Yurong complains to Yuchen about her husband not consumate their marriage; Momo Gui brought news of drastic turn of events in Liaodong
Standing by the window, Yuchen watched the fine drizzle pattered onto the flower buds outside, gathering into glittering droplets that slid quickly down the leaves.
Yuchen whispered, "He's been gone for so many days—who knows where Wangye1 is now?" If he gets caught in this rain, he could easily get sick.
Momo Gui said, "Don't worry, Wangfei2. Wangye1 will surely be fine." He had so many people with him—surely they wouldn't fail to take care of him?
Shiqin entered and announced, "Wangfei2, Wu Gunainai3 has arrived." After pausing, she added, "She came alone, and her eyes are so swollen she's unrecognisable—it looks like she's suffered a terrible grievance."
Yuchen frowned slightly and instructed, "Let her in." She guessed it must be Madam Jiang, Yu Shi, stirring up trouble. Even so, it wasn't proper for Yurong to come here to complain. If word got out that she had caused such a scene just after her marriage, it wouldn't reflect well on her.
As soon as Yurong saw Yuchen, she burst into sobs. "San Jie4, San Jie4, you must stand up for me! San Jie4…"
Yuchen could tell something was wrong, so she asked, "What happened?" Judging by Yurong's appearance, it seemed as though she had experienced some kind of great injustice. If it were just the usual mother-in-law issues, they wouldn't have escalated to this level.
Yurong was crying so hard she couldn't speak. It was Luye who stepped forward and explained the situation: "Wangfei2, Guye5 has gone too far. On the wedding night, he pretended to be drunk and didn't enter the bridal chamber, which was bad enough in itself. But the next day, he completely ignored Miss and spent the night in the study. Even when he accompanied her back to her family home at dawn, he was cold and indifferent."
Yuchen's expression darkened immediately. She asked, "Do you know why?" No one had forced him to marry—he'd insisted on it himself. And now that he had, he refused to consummate the marriage? It was utterly infuriating.
Yurong shook her head. "I don't know. San Jie4, I can't understand. It was he who insisted on this marriage, so why is he treating me like this now?" She felt as though she had cried a lifetime's worth of tears in just a few days.
Yuchen was speechless—if even you don't understand it, how could I possibly know?
Momo Gui, however, was thinking deeply about it. "Could it be that some cheap hoof6 has been causing trouble?" Some young masters grew deeply attached to their personal maids or concubines and had no desire to consummate the marriage with their official wives. Momo Gui said this because she had heard real stories about such cases before, not just gossip.
Luye shook her head. "Momo, I had Lucao ask around at the Jiang household. The two personal maids have already been married off. No maids are serving in the study either, and Guye5 has always been known to behave properly."
Momo Gui glanced at Yuchen. She suspected that Second Master Jiang might be fond of Longyang7. However, after hearing Luye rule that out, a new idea came to her mind. "Could it be that Second Master Jiang…" but even she couldn't finish the thought aloud.
Yuchen said, "Go ahead and say it. If he can do something like this, what is there left that can't be said?" Yuchen was furious—this wasn't just mistreating Yurong; it was stomping on the honour of the entire Han family.
Momo Gui sent everyone who was not directly involved away, then whispered, "Wangfei2, Wu Gunainai3, I suspect the reasons Second Master Jiang is unwilling to consummate the marriage are either because he is deeply in love with someone whom he will love until death, or because he is physically incapable." Momo Gui leaned more towards the latter. If it were only that he had someone else in his heart, Jiang Hongjin shouldn't have insisted on marrying Yurong in the first place.
Yurong's face turned deathly pale. Either possibility was a devastating blow to her.
However, though Yuchen was angry, she remained rational. "If that's the case, then it explains why he was so adamantly against breaking the engagement." As the saying goes, 'the onlooker sees things more clearly'. Yuchen had never believed Jiang Hongjin was deeply in love with Yurong. It was simple—if he genuinely liked her, he would have gone out of his way to win her affection. However, aside from sending gifts during festivals, he never visited the Third Branch of the Han family. Yuchen had already harboured doubts, but they were not something she could openly say.
Yurong felt as though she had fallen into an icy abyss8. She immediately shook her head desperately, muttering, "No—it's not true. I don't believe it. It's impossible…"
Yuchen comforted her, "This is only Momo Gui's speculation. Maybe things aren't as we think—perhaps Jiang Hongjin has some hardship he can't speak of. But whatever the reason, whether physical or otherwise, he must give us a satisfactory explanation."
Yurong stated, "San Jie4, if Jiang Hongjin is really impotent, I want a divorce." Her teeth were chattering as she said it. She liked Jiang Hongjin, but not enough to spend her whole life as a living widow9, especially given how cold he was towards her.
After a moment's thought, Yuchen asked, "So you mean, if Jiang Hongjin's body is fine, you won't divorce him?"
Yurong looked anguished. "San Jie4, I don't know."
Though they say 'better to tear down a temple than break up a marriage10', given the current situation, Yuchen still favoured divorce. However, as Yurong clearly hadn't made up her mind yet, Yuchen decided not to bring it up again to avoid being blamed later. "Stay at home for now. Let Jiancheng go speak with the Jiang family—let's see what their stance is first."
Yurong sobbed as she replied, "Alright."
Yuchen said, "Momo Gui, please escort Wu Gunainai3 back to Jinyu Alley. Tell Dad that if the Jiang family doesn't give us a proper explanation, we won't let this matter go."
When Yurong heard this, she jerked her head up and looked at Yuchen. "San Jie4, I don't want to go back to Jinyu Alley. Can I stay in the wangfu11?" Han Jingyan would never agree to a divorce, and Yurong really couldn't stand her stepmother's nasty face.
Yuchen said, "The matter isn't resolved yet. Running away won't help—go back." It wasn't that she didn't want to keep Yurong there, but she had no choice. Only her father and Jiancheng could handle this. She would only intervene herself if things truly got out of hand.
Yuchen rubbed her temples and muttered, "What a mess this is." Jiang Hongjin had lost all sense in causing such a scandal.
Yurong was heartbroken, but she still knew her limits: if she angered Yuchen and lost her support, she would be the one to suffer the consequences.
After escorting Yurong back, Momo Gui returned, looking alarmed. "Wangfei2, something terrible has happened…" She hadn't expected to hear such news on a simple outing.
Yuchen could barely stand. "Wangye1… What happened to him…" For Momo Gui to be this terrified, it must have something to do with Wangye1.
Momo Gui quickly shook her head. "It's not Wangye1—Liaodong is the one in trouble. Wangfei2, there's been a rebellion in Liaodong, too."
Jing Wang12 had travelled to Liaodong, but judging by his itinerary, he should still be en route and not yet within Liaodong's borders. Yuchen asked hurriedly, "Momo, what about Wangye1? Is there any news of him?"
Momo Gui assured her, "Don't worry, Wangfei2, I'm sure Wangye1 is safe. But I'm worried something might happen to Lord Jiu13." In truth, she was concerned about Marquis Chiang, who was Wangfei2's greatest supporter.
Yuchen was worried too, but tried to reassure herself: "Jiujiu14 has so many troops under his command—he should be fine."
Momo Gui felt it was still hard to say for sure. The northwest had over two hundred thousand soldiers, yet it still fell. Suddenly, she remembered something she had forgotten to tell Yuchen. "Wangfei2, I just received word—Yun Qing has taken Haocheng."🦊
Yuchen felt as if the blood in her veins had frozen. "Wasn't Haocheng supposed to be impenetrable, impossible for the rebels to take?" That was what Jing Wang12 had told her before he left. Yet, in just a few days, the city had fallen. With Haocheng lost, the entire northwest had effectively fallen into Yun Qing's hands.
Momo Gui said anxiously, "Wangfei2, the regional armies in the northwest cannot even withstand a single blow16." In less than two months, the entire northwest had fallen.
Yuchen muttered to herself, "Momo, I fear the realm is about to fall into chaos." There had already been rebellions everywhere. Now that the northwest had fallen and Liaodong erupted in revolt, the empire was surely headed for disorder.
Momo Gui was deeply worried, too, but now was not the time to stir more panic. She quickly said, "Wangfei2, I believe the Lord Marquis can suppress the rebellion in Liaodong."
Yuchen nodded, feeling slightly reassured. "You're right—Jiujiu14 is not Ji Xuan. He'll definitely be able to hold Liaodong and crush the rebels."
Unfortunately, that hope only lasted a day. The next morning, during breakfast, the Chief Steward came in and reported shocking news to Yuchen. "Wangfei2, rumours are spreading outside that say the deaths of Marshal Yan and the Yan family back then were orchestrated by the Emperor and the Song family."
Yuchen stood up from her couch and asked, "How could such a rumour spread?" The capital was under the Son of Heaven's feet17—if such talk spread, the consequences would be unimaginable.
The Chief Steward replied, "Wangfei2, the rumour goes that the Empress and Crown Prince could only be deposed after Marshal Yan died." As it turned out, that was precisely what had happened—once Marshal Yan and the Yan family were gone, the Empress and Crown Prince died, too. The only problem was that the late Emperor had not yet officially appointed the Ninth Prince as the new heir then.
Yuchen was shocked. "Is there anything else?"
The Chief Steward was flustered himself. "Wangfei2, the rebellion in Liaodong was started by Yan Wushuang. Rumour has it that Yan Wushuang still has the late Crown Prince's orphan heir in his hands." Yan Wushuang's rebellion, under the banner of protecting the late Crown Prince's heir, was clearly an attempt to overthrow the current Emperor and restore the late Crown Prince's bloodline. If this were true, the Emperor's throne would indeed be in jeopardy. After all, no one would accept a traitorous emperor, whether they were officials or commoners.
Initially, Yuchen wondered why Song Guojiu18 had taken the risk of travelling to Liaodong despite the danger. Perhaps they had received news that Yan Wushuang was still alive and wanted to eliminate the threat he posed. In other words, these rumours might not be rumours at all but the truth.
The Chief Steward asked anxiously, "Wangfei2, what should we do now? Wangye1 is still heading to Liaodong!" If this were true, even if Wangye1 hadn't reached Liaodong yet, he might still be in mortal danger. He was the pillar of the wangfu11. If anything were to happen to him, the household would lose its support.
Yuchen clutched her chest and said, "Let me calm down. Just let me calm down." The news had hit her too hard—her mind was in utter chaos. She couldn't think straight right now. She just needed time to collect herself.
Footnotes Full List
- 王 wáng: king; 爷yé: lord
- 王 wáng: king; 妃 fēi: consort
- 五 wǔ: fifth, 姑奶奶 gūnǎinai: (a respectful form of address for a married woman used by members of her parents' family) married daughter
- 三 sān: three/third; 姐 jiě: older sister
- 姑爷 gūye = son-in-law (used by the wife's family)
- In Chinese, the phrase "cheap hoof" (贱蹄子, jiàn tízi) is a derogatory term historically used to insult women, implying they are "promiscuous" or "shameless."
- 龙阳之好 (Lóngyáng zhī hǎo) is a classical Chinese idiom referring to male homosexual love, particularly involving a male favourite or lover of a king or nobleman. It comes from a story in the Warring States period, in which Lord Longyang, a male favourite of the King of Wei, expressed jealousy over the king's attention to others. The king, in turn, declared that anyone who spoke ill of Lord Longyang or suggested replacing him would be executed — thus affirming their exclusive relationship.
- 仿若掉入冰窟窿: 'fǎngruò diàorù bīngkūlóng' — a metaphor for sudden emotional shock or despair.
- This idiom, 守活寡 (shǒu huó guǎ), describes a situation where a married woman lives in a state that is tantamount to being a widow, even though her husband is still alive.
- 宁拆一座庙，不毁一桩亲 (níng chāi yīzuò miào， bù huǐ yīzhuāng qīn): This proverb means that marriage is sacred and should not be broken lightly.
- 王府 wángfǔ: king's residence
- 王 wáng: king
- 舅 jiù: mother's brother; maternal uncle
- 舅舅 jiùjiu: mother's brother; maternal uncle
- I thought Momo Gui was talking about YQ's army, but she was talking about all the soldiers in the northwest under Ji Xuan. 😅
- This idiom, 不堪一击 (bù kān yī jī), describes something or someone that is extremely fragile, weak, or vulnerable, to the point where they cannot endure even a minor attack or challenge. It implies being easily defeated or destroyed.
- 天子脚下: "tiānzǐ jiǎoxià" — an idiom referring to the capital, meaning the Emperor's direct domain.
- 国舅 guójiù: Emperor's maternal uncle or brother-in-law
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