My wife wants a divorce; if she ruins my life, I'll leave.

The Meng family has a long tradition of martial arts and military service. Most of the men in the family serve in the Imperial Guard. Meng Xin was awarded the title of General Dingyuan for his meritorious service in protecting the emperor when he was young, and was assigned to the Northwest Camp. He has made outstanding contributions in many battles over the years and is currently the General of Lanzhou, guarding the Northwest frontier. Her eldest brother joined the army when he was a teenager and worked his way up from a private to a lieutenant general.

Looking at the tall and imposing gate of the general's mansion, Meng Ruohua's eyes stung with tears. How long had it been since she had been home?

She had been sick for over a year at that time, and eventually she couldn't even get out of bed. She couldn't go home, and she hadn't even seen her mother for a long time.

The servants of the Meng household saw Meng Ruohua's carriage from afar and ran to report it.

As soon as she got out of the car, the side door opened.

A little kid darted out on his short legs, calling out, "Auntie!"

This is her nephew, Meng Sixiu, who is only four years old this year.

"Auntie, why did it take you so long to come see me?" Meng Siqi asked, looking up at her.

Meng Ruohua gently stroked the bun on his head, squatted down to be level with him, and said, "Next time, your aunt will come to see you earlier."

Meng Sixiu pondered his aunt's words seriously, and after a moment he nodded solemnly, "Next year when I grow up, I can go see my aunt."

Fang Ling, the sister-in-law, stood behind the door and listened to the conversation between the aunt and niece. She couldn't help but smile with satisfaction. Although she and her aunt had only known each other for a year, her aunt was gentle, polite, generous, cheerful, and easy to get along with.

The Meng family mansion is a five-courtyard complex with a garden and a martial arts training ground. It was expanded by the grandfather after he bought the neighboring house. Meng Ruohua also has two uncles.

My second uncle served in Anzhou, and my third uncle served in Fengzhou. Both of them moved their families to their posts, so there were only three people in the household: Meng Ruohua's mother, sister-in-law, and nephew. They sealed off the unused courtyards, giving the place a desolate feel at first glance.

The Meng family was small, and all household affairs were handled by the sister-in-law. Meng's mother, in her forties, was free from daily troubles and thus maintained her appearance very well. She wore a satin embroidered jacket with a jade-green floral crepe skirt, and standing next to Meng Ruohua, they could easily be mistaken for sisters.

As soon as she entered the door, Meng's mother half-embraced her and kept looking her over, "Why do you look so pale? Did you not sleep well?"

Meng Ruohua leaned against her mother, saying, "No, I'm fine."

Sure enough, no matter what happens, I feel much more at ease when I'm by my mother's side.

Mencius' mother was a melancholic woman who didn't like to worry about managing the household. She only loved romance, poetry, and songs. Fortunately, the Mencius family was small, and her father didn't have any concubines or maids to bother her. She lived a much more comfortable life than other wives.

Except for two things!

The sentimental mother wiped away her tears and instructed, "Be good to your parents-in-law and take good care of your son-in-law. Take good care of your health and give birth to a son or daughter as soon as possible, so that you will have a place to live in your later years."

These are the words that Mencius' mother always said, and the order of them never changed!

No matter how old a mother is, she can't help but worry about her children.

This is also the thing that is currently most troubling for Meng's mother. Another thing is that her eldest brother, Meng Zelin, is not returning to the capital, so she cannot have another grandson.

"Yes, I understand." Meng Ruohua really didn't want to be perfunctory, but if she took it too seriously, she would inevitably make her mother anxious.

Besides, she wasn't there to argue with her mother, so she had no choice but to go along with her and say a few perfunctory words.

Hearing her agree, Meng's mother slowly stopped crying. "It's not that I'm being long-winded, but you've been married for three years without any news. How can I not be worried? Everyone says Lingyun Temple is very efficacious. How about I take you to offer incense and pray on the first day of next month?"

There wasn't even incense offered!

Seeing Meng Ruohua's indifferent expression, Meng's mother's eyes reddened with anxiety, and the tears she had just stopped welled up again. "You're acting like this, so it's obviously my fault. But you're of marriageable age, how could I not arrange a marriage for you? Your father has been gone for years, never worrying about your affairs. He asked me to find you husbands, but you all refused. What's wrong with the Song family? Their family background, character, and appearance—aren't they top-notch in the capital?"

Meng Ruohua's mother came from a lowly military family in the capital. From a young age, she admired and envied scholarly families. Therefore, when she was arranging a marriage for Meng Ruohua, she looked for families with a scholarly background. The Song family had produced a first-rank Grand Tutor and was a wealthy and influential family, so she happily agreed.

At the time, the situation in the Northwest was tense, and Meng Xin could not easily return to the capital. He only learned about the situation through letters before agreeing. However, he later heard that Song Chen'an favored his concubines and that his mother-in-law often made things difficult for Meng Ruohua, which caused him to harbor resentment.

“Mother.” Meng Ruohua moved closer to her mother and comforted her, “I don’t blame you. It’s just that I feel the time for our children to be together has not yet come. Going to offer incense would only cause trouble for Buddha.”

Meng's mother angrily slapped Meng Ruohua, "Why haven't they arrived yet? Why didn't you just beg them?"

If everyone's prayers were answered, there would be no suffering in the world!

Finally, unable to resist her mother's nagging, Meng Ruohua agreed to go to offer incense on the first day of the lunar month.

She should thank Buddha for giving her a second chance at life.

After having lunch at home, I coaxed Meng Siqi to go to sleep, and my sister-in-law Fang Ling also went back to her room to rest.

Mencius' mother had a habit of taking a nap in the afternoon. After chatting for a few minutes, she urged him to go to sleep.

Meng Ruohua lay in her room for a while before getting up to go out for a stroll.