Light Dance Jiajing

Mei'er lived right next door to Wang Qiang. After a few days, Mei'er had a general understanding of the situation in the mansion. Lord Wang's favorite was the Fifth Aunt. Perhaps the Fifth Aunt was the only concubine who gave birth to a son. The Fifth Aunt was quite pretty, and had a bad temper. She always made Lord Wang angry, but Lord Wang spoiled her even more. The concubines couldn't stand it and often went to Lady Wang to make trouble. Lady Wang knew what they were thinking. She also wanted to discipline the Fifth Aunt, but she had Lord Wang to protect her, so she couldn't do anything. She simply let the Fifth Aunt fight with the concubines, and she was too lazy to even care.

The easiest person to bully was the Sixth Aunt. She was originally a maid in the Second Aunt's room. The Second Aunt was out of favor, and Lord Wang seldom went to her room. When he did, he was drunk and forced the maid to sleep with him. Lord Wang had slept with many maids, but this maid got pregnant overnight. Lord Wang was eager to have a son, so he took the maid into the Sixth Aunt's room. As a result, she gave birth to a daughter, and Lord Wang ignored her.

On weekdays, Lord Wang was the most strict with Wang Wei, but it was also obvious that he had high hopes for Wang Wei. The youngest son born to the fifth concubine was only three years old and looked a little spoiled, so that even the main wife was reluctant to mess with the fifth concubine and the young master. Meng'er lived next door to Wang Qiang. At first, they often visited each other, but gradually, the two seemed to have nothing to say to each other. On the first day when Meng'er arrived at Wang Qiang's yard, she saw a tree full of orchids and couldn't help but praise: "What beautiful flowers, so fragrant!"

Wang Qiang thought this was very common, so she asked calmly, "Sister, do you know this flower?"

Meng'er said without surprise: "I've seen orchids before, and the fragrance is so strong. Oh, why are the petals of this white orchid a little yellow? Is it a new variety?"

"Although this flower is very similar to the white orchid, the color is different and the fragrance is stronger than that of the white orchid. Sister, please look at the petiole. The stipule traces of the yellow orchid are generally left at more than half of the length of the petiole, while those of the white orchid are only left at about one-third of the length of the petiole." After Wang Qiang finished her explanation, she just smiled faintly. Her eyes that could speak clearly said, "How could you not even know this?"

In the next few days, when Meng'er came over, she didn't dare to talk nonsense. Wang Qiang found a topic of conversation when she learned that Meng'er could dance and play the piano. The conversation between the two was like sisters exchanging skills. Meng'er was not here to practice dancing, and she became more and more reluctant to come over. But Wang Qiang insisted on letting Meng'er dance for her. Meng'er always thought carefully about what Wang Qiang danced, and borrowed some movements into her own dance. After a few days of exchanging such movements, Meng'er found excuses not to come over.

Anyway, Wang Qiang's schedule is full every day, and she practices music, chess, calligraphy and painting. She starts singing and dancing early in the morning, practices chess during the break, practices calligraphy and painting after a nap, and plays the piano again after dinner. Meng'er really wants to say, you are still a child, why do you make yourself so tired? Before she can say anything, Wang Qiang asks: "Sister, why don't you learn more skills? Even a princess should have the ability to make a living. Otherwise, even if you marry a good husband, if you are not loved by your husband, you will live a miserable life."

Meng'er was stunned and wondered if this little girl was too precocious. She couldn't help but ask, "Are you learning all these skills just to please your husband in the future?"

"Of course." Wang Qiang nodded.

"If you learn it, can you marry the man of your dreams?"

"Yes." Wang Qiang was very sure, "Which man doesn't like a woman with many talents? All a woman wants in her life is to marry a good man. I will marry into an official family and become the principal wife like my mother. Wouldn't it be unfair if I were suppressed by such a lowly concubine?"

Meng'er wanted to argue but suddenly felt powerless to speak. It seemed that women in this era had no other way out except to take care of their husbands and children. No matter how strong a woman was, she had no place to display her talents. Even though she was a princess, she could not escape the constraints of being a woman. This was a patriarchal society. Even though she was a princess, she was just a tool for men to continue their offspring in the harem.

After that, Meng'er came to see Wang Qiang less and less often, and gradually she became closer to the two sisters in the second and fourth concubines' rooms. The eldest sister was the same age as Wang Wei, and the second sister was only a few days older than Meng'er. They were good sisters to begin with, and Meng'er often met them in the garden. At first they were afraid that Meng'er would be difficult to get along with, but gradually they found that Meng'er was easy-going and did not always put on airs like a legitimate lady in front of them like Wang Qiang. Soon the three of them got along very well. Meng'er wondered why they didn't study with Wang Qiang, and the two of them just shook their heads. Lord Wang and the first lady had always neglected illegitimate daughters like them, and what was the point of learning? Anyway, it would be difficult for them to become the principal wife if they married into a family of officials. If they married into an ordinary official or a small family, even if they became the principal wife, they would only take care of the husband and children, and it would be enough for them to recognize a few words.

Every day, Meng'er stayed in the mansion, except talking with Madam Wang, and playing with her two illegitimate sisters. Meng'er had just arrived at the mansion not long ago, and the novelty had not yet worn off, so she did not feel bored. On this day, the mansion suddenly became busy. Wang Wei, who had always been studying in the academy, also returned home early today. It turned out that Madam Wang had received a letter from Lord Wang. The grain transporter in the south of the Yangtze River was originally a lucrative job, but Lord Wang was very unlucky. It had only been a short time since he took office, and heavy rains had continued. The river flooded, and silt from the upper reaches washed down, causing some sections of the river to be blocked. The grain and grass that had been prepared to go to the capital could not be shipped. Although the capital had reserves, in addition to the people, there were also several large camps to consume. Even if it was because of the flood, it could not be delayed again and again. Not only did the dredging of the river require a large amount of silver, but the grain transport had always been carried out by Cao Bang. To dredge the river, Cao Bang, who was familiar with the river, must be found to solve the problem. Lord Wang had just taken office, and he was out of silver. Second, he couldn't talk to Cao Bang again, but the grain and grass could not be delivered to the capital on time, and the governor of a province had a greater responsibility. The governor was not stingy with money, but when he found Cao Bang, these people had some old grudges, and they were sure that the governor had no choice but to use them. Cao Bang asked for a sky-high price, and someone was playing tricks, and these people worked more and more slowly, which made the governor so angry that he took it out on Lord Wang. Lord Wang was not a newcomer in officialdom, and he could see the attitude of the governor, so he felt more and more uneasy. Everyone knew that this was a difficult task, but if the grain could not be transported, there would always be unlucky people to be held accountable. It seemed that the governor was going to push all the responsibility onto him. Lord Wang was worried for several days, but there was nothing he could do. All the people in the capital who should have been delayed had been delayed, and he was afraid that even if he was not punished this time, he would be demoted or dismissed. So he wrote a letter of divorce and asked Mrs. Wang to make preparations early and settle the family.