Chapter 7: A Melodramatic Soap Opera

Beyond helping Lin Menghua resolve her grievances, she also had others to guide.

She mapped out her schedule in her mind. It was the seventeenth of August, and the weather was clear.

Lin Menghua was in the front hall, reviewing the ledgers submitted by the estate. Yu Guangquan, the estate manager, stood in the center, sweat beading on his forehead.

"The people below reported a famine this year, leading to a drop in grain production..."

Lin Menghua listened while continuing to scan the ledgers. Only when he finished did she raise her eyes to look at him. "These are the ledgers for Qishan. The average yield per acre is only one shi. Outside, even the lowest-grade fields are averaging two shi this year. Qishan was part of my dowry, granted to him only after the Prince established his household. Why is the land there inferior to even the lowest-grade fields?"

Yu Guangquan broke into a cold sweat. There were too many benefits to being a farm manager. His brother-in-law, Li San, had managed it for five years and had already purchased property and land in the capital; he himself had received no shortage of kickbacks. Now, he could only hope to report it and try to patch up the most obvious discrepancies. It would be a painful blow, but he could recover in two or three years.

Lin Menghua naturally understood the crux of the matter. "Qishan is, after all, staffed by people from the Dowager Consort. I shall seek her guidance before making a final decision."

With that, she dismissed him.

Green Willow had been waiting outside for some time and entered to report only after the manager had left. "Princess, the Secondary Consort is here to invite you out to buy Yulu Tuan pastries."

Lin Menghua nodded. "Prepare the carriage."

After spending these past few days together, she felt Pei Zhenzhen was a genuinely kind soul; she could not fathom how Lin Qingwan had managed to turn their relationship into a mortal feud. Ah, right—it was because of love.

"I recently read a new storybook about a young girl and a scholar, but it only has the first volume. I wonder if the shop has the second." Pei Zhenzhen described the story with great enthusiasm. Her eyes were large, and when she was happy, the light within them danced and flickered.

Lin Menghua, failing to appreciate the romance, remarked, "Better to stick to the first volume. What if the second volume has a tragic ending?"

"How could that be? A scholar and a beautiful girl usually have a happy ending, don't they?" Pei Zhenzhen replied.

Before Lin Menghua could share her thoughts on the many melodramatic stories she had read, the two of them soon witnessed a real-life drama.

"You bunch of vicious people, get back inside!" A roar interrupted their conversation.

"Vicious? I was kind enough to allow your mistress into the house, and you are still unsatisfied?" a woman’s voice retorted.

"You think I don't know your intentions? You only want to lure Xinniang into the inner courtyard so you can torment her at your leisure!" the man said with a dark tone.

Gossip from the high-ranking households was like a cool breeze in summer or a warm sun in winter to the hardworking commoners. Soon, a crowd gathered.

Lin Menghua’s party was also interested. When they opened the carriage window, Green Willow exclaimed, "The Cousin?"

Lin Menghua: "???"

Pei Zhenzhen looked outside with similar confusion, appearing somewhat embarrassed. "Sister, is that a relative of yours..."

"It seems... so."

"Zhou Shi, if you are so devoted to your cousin, why did you marry me in the first place?"

The man looked as if he had been struck in a sore spot, his expression turning ugly instantly. "It was the command of my parents; I had no choice!"

"A fine 'command of my parents' indeed!"

"I might as well tell you now: Xinniang is the love of my life! I will divorce you!" the middle-aged man added coldly.

The woman beside him felt a rush of blood to her head, unable to regain her composure for a long while. Pei Zhenzhen’s face turned livid, and she was about to step out when Lin Menghua pulled her back.

She looked at Lin Menghua, confused.

Lin Menghua spoke a few words to Lin Quan, the carriage driver. The young man leaped from the carriage and stood not far away, hands on his hips. "Hey! What 'command of my parents'? It’s nothing but your own weakness! You were too cowardly to marry the woman you claim to love, and so you ruined your own wife’s life! Why are you acting like you're the victim?"

The onlookers, initially moved by the display of 'love,' suddenly saw the situation for what it was: a deceptive marriage.

The women in the crowd, immediately siding with the wife, began to point fingers. "Exactly! If you had a true love, why marry someone else? Isn't that just ruining a young woman's life?"

"What a spineless coward!"

"But isn't it normal for men to have concubines?"

"Which little bastard is that! Someone shut his mouth!" The man’s face turned dark, his fury mounting.

Lin Quan spat on the ground. "Come on! Catch me! Drag me into your den of adultery and beat me to death, if you dare! I want to see if you have the guts to do it in broad daylight!"

At the mention of "adultery," the man trembled with rage; his love for Xinniang was pure! "Catch him! Catch him at once!"

"Help! Help! A government official is using his power to bully others and is trying to kill a witness!" Lin Quan shouted while dodging. "An official is going to kill someone! Help!"

"Official using power to bully" was a buzzword. The crowd grew larger, and the hawkers in the alley stopped their peddling. Many matrons opened their doors to peek out.

"What did you see that makes him want to kill you?" a burly man asked curiously.

"I saw him committing adultery! And now he wants to kill his own wife!" Lin Quan, emboldened by the growing crowd, raised his voice even higher.

Pei Zhenzhen giggled, "Sister, your servant is quite a character!"

Indeed, he was carefully chosen. Lin Menghua smiled slightly.

Seeing the crowd growing restless, the man panicked. "You are slandering me! Talking nonsense! When did I say I wanted to kill my wife?"

"Didn't you just try to provoke your wife to death? You said you would divorce her for your mistress!" Lin Quan countered.

"That's right!" the women who had been watching the drama from the start chimed in, fully empathizing with the wife.

"Is that the Scholar Zhou? The son of Censor Zhou?" a young girl asked in the crowd.

"It seems to be..."

"Do scholars keep mistresses too?"

The crowd chattered, looking at the middle-aged man with growing contempt. Individually, they might have feared an official's son, but as a group, they felt they held the moral high ground.

"Hypocrite!"

"He shames the name of all scholars; he is not fit to be a man!"

The more the people cursed, the more emboldened they became. The man took a step back, looking at the jeering crowd. "When did I ever say I would divorce my wife?"

"Oh? You didn't? Then let’s disperse, everyone!"

With that, Lin Quan waved his hand and strode away. The noblewoman gave a cold laugh and followed him.

The middle-aged man was so angry he nearly vomited blood. Under the intense gaze of the crowd, he had no choice but to retreat into his courtyard. With a loud slam, the gates shut, cutting off the prying eyes of the onlookers.