After visiting the Thirteenth Prince, she found that he was not as depressed as she had imagined. Nan Yi returned to Tongzhou, and half a month later, Xiao Xi came to find her.
After not seeing each other for half a year, Xiao Xi asked Yi Ren for wine without saying a word.
Nan was stunned for a moment, staring at her with wide eyes. What was going on? One after another, they were all asking her to drink.
"Your sex life is out of balance, you look so restless," Nan Yihun joked with a laugh.
"Get lost, you're the one who's into sex... Ptooey, you bastard, you've corrupted me." Xiao Xi rolled her eyes at her, her face flushed. "Hmph, you're always hiding in Tongzhou, we're so far apart, it's inconvenient for us to even have a chat."
“Isn’t Tongzhou good? It’s quiet and peaceful. Look at me, my life is getting more and more carefree. But you, on the other hand, look worried and full of worries.”
Nan Yi pulled her into the courtyard and sat her down. "Tell me, what's wrong that's making you so depressed that you want to drown your sorrows in alcohol?"
Xiao Xi slumped onto the table, her eyes glazed over, her hands resting on her chin. Two years into her marriage, she thought she would never encounter the same difficulties that Nan Yi had faced.
Nan Yi is so beautiful, her looks are unparalleled, and as a concubine of a prince, the Fourth Prince doesn't necessarily dote on her much.
Heartbroken and disappointed, he even went to Tongzhou to live alone.
She, on the other hand, was too confident in herself. She had martial arts skills but lacked gentleness and beauty, and she couldn't stay at home like an ordinary woman to take care of her husband and children.
However, after only two years, her husband proposed taking a concubine. She didn't want him to take a concubine, but she couldn't meet the conditions he set.
Nan noticed the sadness in Xiao Xi's eyes and was puzzled. He couldn't understand it, so he tried to say something happy to cheer her up. "Xi Xi, I heard you got promoted. Now you should be called a general, right? It seems your husband's official rank isn't as high as yours."
It would have been better if these words hadn't been mentioned, because once they were, Xiao Xi felt even more disappointed.
"You always bring up things I shouldn't talk about, Nan Yi, you just know how to rub salt in my wounds," Xiao Xi said, annoyed.
Nan Yi sensed something was off about her tone. "What's wrong? You got a promotion, and your husband is unhappy? He's so petty."
She almost forgot that this was the Qing Dynasty. Even in modern times, conflicts are very likely to arise between husband and wife when the woman is stronger and the man is weaker.
The Fourth Prince cherished Xiao Xi's talent and gave her many important positions. Xiao Xi is now a sixth-rank official, while her husband is still a seventh-rank military officer.
Because of this, many people secretly laughed at Commandant Luo, whose surname was Luo and given name was Heng.
When Luo Heng proposed to Xiao Xi, it was because he truly admired her and gave her his heart. However, Xiao Xi was promoted twice in two years, and Luo Heng overestimated his ability to withstand rumors.
A grown man, constantly questioned by outsiders as being inferior to his wife, with relatives, friends, neighbors, and the surrounding community pointing fingers and gossiping—how could he bear it?
Luo Heng did not genuinely intend to take a concubine. He hoped that Xiao Xi would resign from her official post and devote herself to being a wife and mother at home. When Xiao Xi disagreed, he deliberately staged a play, hoping to force Xiao Xi to give up her official position and stay at home to fulfill her duties as a woman by taking a concubine.
It was originally his own selfish intention, but he never expected that Xiao Xi would take it seriously, putting both of them in a difficult position. As for him, he accidentally turned a play into a real one.
A woman like her, content with being a wife and mother, is not what she desires. Xiao Xi is only happy when she can realize her ambitions outside.
“Nan Yi, Aheng wants to take a concubine.” Xiao Xi said sadly. Why are all men in the world so heartless? The passion of their honeymoon had not yet faded. She still remembered a month ago when the two of them went on a trip to the countryside. He wove a flower wreath for her and said that he would treat her well for the rest of his life.
The promise he made still echoed in her ears, and a month later, he told her that he wanted to take a concubine.
"What? He wants to take a concubine? I'll break her legs!" Nan Yi jumped up in shock, ready to settle scores with Luo Heng.
She grabbed Xiao Xi's arm and angrily scolded, "He wants to take a concubine, and you chicken out? General Xiao, where's your guts? You scoundrel! He married you and doesn't cherish you. Then I'll break his third leg."
"Nan Yi, why are you getting more and more out of control, talking nonsense all the time?" Although Xiao Xi is a tough woman, she was made to blush by Nan Yi's shameless and unruly behavior.
“He’s right. I spend all my time in the barracks and rarely see my husband. We’ve been married for two years but I haven’t been able to give birth to any children for the Luo family. I also can’t take care of the family. It’s normal for him to take a concubine to continue the Luo family line.”
"Bullshit, it's only been two years. It's not your fault that you haven't had a child. He already knew about your situation when he married you. Why didn't he say he cared about these things back then?"
Nan Yi stood up for her.
Xiao Xi's charm lies in her own talent; Luo Heng was nowhere to be seen before.
"So, what are you planning to do? Agree to him taking a concubine?"
Xiao Xi shook her head. "I don't know. I don't want my husband to take a concubine, but I might not be able to stop him."
Nan Yi gritted her teeth in anger. Damn it, she had originally planned to say that such a heartless man should be abandoned.
But Xiao Xi wasn't a modern person, so she swallowed these inappropriate words. As the old saying goes, it's better to destroy a temple than to break up a marriage.
Moreover, in this era, it was perfectly natural for men to take concubines.
"Alright, alright, think it through yourself. If you need help, just ask," Nan Yi said irritably. "But Xi Xi, you must not wrong yourself."
She was already having a terrible time herself and didn't want Xiao Xi to have a bad time either.
Xiao Xi forced a smile and grasped Nan Yi's hand. "Thank you, Nan Yi. You're already troublesome enough, and I'm just adding to your troubles. When I heard my husband mention taking a concubine, my mind was in complete turmoil. I had nowhere else to talk to but you."
Nan Yi lightly patted her arm, "What are you talking about? We're like family, why are you saying such formalities?"
"Alright, stop worrying. The grapes in the manor are ripe, let's go take a look." Nan Yi pulled Xiao Xi up, taking her for a walk to clear her mind and dispel her worries.
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