Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons

A married woman asking for a divorce may have sounded like a rebellious act in the increasingly outdated Ming and Qing dynasties, but it was not considered a big deal in the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Code clearly stated: "If a couple cannot live in harmony and divorce, they will not be punished." At the same time, if a husband forcibly divorces his wife without breaking any of the seven grounds for divorce, he will be beaten with a hundred sticks.

Yin Wenjiao's son Xuanzang was just born with a Buddhist nature and didn't want to return to secular life, he wasn't dead. After Chen Guangrui's mother was taken back to Chang'an, she was served by Yin Wenjiao, the daughter-in-law. If Chen Guangrui gave Yin Wenjiao a divorce letter just because of his dirty thoughts, he would be beaten with a hundred sticks. For the sake of Yin Wenjiao's father Yin Kaishan, I believe that every stick would be solid, genuine, and fair.

Chen Guangrui didn't want to be beaten half to death, so he used a knife to kill people, indulged his concubines to death, and then used them to force Yin Wenjiao to die. If other noble ladies were treated like this, they would have long been shouting for divorce, or at worst, they would have kept three or four male lovers to seek happiness. But the tender Yin Wenjiao could only swallow the bitter fruit silently until she lost interest in life.

Cold violence in marriage is the most torturous to one’s heart.

Wen Jiao despised such a vicious and mean man. She held Madam Yin's hand tightly and said in a hoarse voice, "Mother, since my daughter married into the Chen family, I have served my aunt and managed household affairs. I ask myself if I have treated anyone unfairly, especially Chen Guangrui. If it weren't for him, we would have been killed by the boatman that day. He only blamed his daughter for not refusing to die in the face of danger. Why didn't he think that if he didn't misunderstand that his daughter relied on her family background to suppress him, causing his daughter to leave her family members in Chang'an, which boatman would dare to rob us?"

"It's clearly his own fault that has implicated me. He has the Dragon King to protect his life, and he has been living freely in the Dragon Palace for more than ten years. How could he ever care about me? In the end, he has the nerve to resent a weak woman like me for begging for life." Thinking of Yin Wenjiao's indignation, Wenjiao's eyes were stern, "He is disrespectful to his wife, unkind to his children, and can't even do the basic self-cultivation and family management. How can we expect him to be a parent official for the people? Mother, not only do I want to divorce him, I will also peel off a layer of his skin!"

Madam Yin also sneered and ordered, "Tell him to come over as soon as the master comes back." She lovingly embraced Wen Jiao in her arms, "Don't be afraid, Mantangjiao, mother is here. We mother and daughter should ask your father what the rules of the court's appointment of officials are. How can such a hypocrite with a beastly heart in human form get the position of a scholar in Wenyuan Pavilion?"

For some reason, Chen Guangrui's eyelids had been twitching since last night. He thought of what Yin Wenjiao's maid had shouted when she barged in while he was drinking with the Li sisters last night.

"Did Yin commit suicide?"

The road home after court was long. The chestnut horse he rode was very steady, and the sound of its hooves was crisp and dull. The spring sunlight covered his head, making him gradually sleepy. In his hazy state, he thought with regret, "It's a pity that the maid rushed in to save him. If it had been a moment later..."

He knew Yin Wenjiao. If she failed to commit suicide this time, she would surely succeed next time or the next time. A woman losing her virginity was the most shameful thing in the world, and it was natural for her husband to dislike her because of this. With Yin Wenjiao's temper, she didn't dare to make a scene and embarrass the Xiangfu, nor did she dare to break up with him. Apart from committing suicide, she couldn't make any waves.

If a woman who lost her virginity had any sense of shame, she should have been hanged with a hemp rope long ago. He allowed her to live for a few more days with good food and drink, which was already a measure of magnanimity from the prime minister. Don't think he didn't know that his colleagues had asked about the color of his hat in private. After being talked about for a long time, he couldn't help but touch his head before going out every day to make sure whether the crown he wore was made of jade.

What is tolerable and what is intolerable?

Fortunately, these hard days will soon be over. After Yin Wenjiao's death, my father-in-law will inevitably be held accountable. Ah Man has a child and needs to be protected. Xiao Man is a good candidate for a scapegoat. When the mistress died, the concubine who had always been close to her volunteered to be buried with her. If it were spread out, it would be a beautiful story of a wife and concubine getting along well with each other, and even my father-in-law would not be able to find any reason to blame her.

He has always valued my talent. As long as I give him some face, why should I be afraid that he will investigate the cause of death of a daughter who brought shame to the Yin family? Then I can take advantage of the situation and ask for a Yin family girl as my successor. This will cover up the scandal and not sever the marriage relationship. Isn't that the best of both worlds?

Chen Guangrui had already found out. His father-in-law had no daughter, but there were many girls of marriageable age from his side branches. He heard that some of them were both talented and beautiful and were suitable to be wives of scholars.

He lazily got off the horse and decided to go to Li Xiaoman's room to have a few drinks and persuade her, but he came back empty-handed. The servant said, "The young lady went to pay her respects to the mistress and has not returned since then." Seeing that lunch was about to be served but no one had come, they were all considering whether to go to the mistress to look for someone.

Chen Guangrui didn't want to meet Yin Wenjiao at the moment, so he pointed at a maid and said, "Go to her courtyard and call someone, and tell them that I'm waiting for Xiaoman to have dinner with you." This kind of thing was common, so the maid was not surprised. She put down the embroidery frame and left. After a while, she came back with a strange look on her face, followed by Li Xiaoman and her maid Xiaoyu. Both of them had messy hair and untidy clothes, and Li Xiaoman's face was even more mottled. If you look closely, it should be because her makeup was smudged due to crying.

Chen Guangrui suddenly had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, Xiaoyu knelt down in front of him and said, "My dear, you have to help us! We just went to borrow something from the mistress, and we didn't say we wouldn't return it, but she turned hostile on the spot and asked Mingxin and the others to gag and tie us up. If you hadn't sent someone to look for us, we don't know if we would be able to see you again." Li Xiaoman's face was panic-stricken, her red lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but she closed her mouth timidly.

Chen Guangrui should have been furious and supported his concubine and her maidservant on the spot, but he felt something was wrong: "Didn't the lady give an explanation?"

Li Xiaoman finally came to his senses, lowered his head, and glanced at him with fear in his eyes: "After the lady kidnapped us, she went back to her parents' home."

Chen Guangrui was shocked: "What was she wearing when she left?" If she was as meticulously groomed as always, then she was deliberately covering up...

Xiaoyu said quickly: "The lady didn't dress up. She went out in casual clothes, and she didn't even wear a hairpin or a ring."

Oops!

Without caring about comforting his frightened concubine and maidservant, Chen Guangrui quickly mounted his horse and rushed to the Prime Minister's residence. Yin Wenjiao, this stupid woman, didn't she understand that once her scandalous deeds were made public, both families would lose face? I hope this unruly woman hasn't gone far. He has to intercept her before she complains to his father-in-law!