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

The Wang family's banquet went smoothly; no one fell into the water, no one went to the wrong courtyard, and nothing that shouldn't have happened occurred.

After lunch, everyone went to the theater to watch a play. The Wang family's theater was divided into east and west sides; male guests sat on the east side, and female guests sat on the west side.

Meng Ruohua had never liked watching plays since she was a child; she found the loud, garbled music to be a headache. As soon as the play started, she secretly slipped out to get some fresh air and some peace and quiet when no one was looking.

Walking under the plum grove in the garden, she looked up at the bare branches. Literati and poets admired its spirit of not fearing the cold, and when painting, they would try to capture the proud posture of the plum branches. But she looked for a long time and still couldn't see how it was different from the branches of other trees.

Linglong draped the cloak over her shoulders; it was already afternoon, and the temperature was getting a bit low.

"cough!"

A sudden, light cough interrupted Meng Ruohua's thoughts. She looked in the direction of the sound and saw a man in a dark blue brocade robe standing by the roadside.

"Brother Yu, you're here too?" Meng Ruohua asked with a smile.

Their presence at the banquet, especially the Imperial Guards, will likely unsettle everyone.

"I'll come whenever I have time."

The man was indeed Yu Yan, and he had also received the invitation. He hadn't intended to come, but he heard that Meng Ruohua had brought people from the Song family.

Yu Yan glanced at her casually and saw that she was wearing a light blue satin gown with gold trim and floral patterns, paired with a grayish-blue pleated skirt with dark cloud patterns. Her long, ink-black hair was styled into a spiral bun, with a pair of filigree and beaded crane flowers inserted into the bun, and a beaded tassel ruyi hairpin on top. Her jade earrings were shimmering and colorful.

"You're very different from before; you've become much more composed."

Meng Ruohua tilted her head slightly, her eyes full of questions, then suddenly smiled and said, "You are as composed as ever."

The two smiled at each other, which eased the awkwardness of not seeing each other for many years.

Yu Yan gazed at the setting sun in the west and said in a deep voice, "If you encounter any difficulties, feel free to come to Cui Lu Lou to find me."

He knew she had sent people to the Northwest to collect furs, but she had never done business before and only thought about collecting the furs without looking for a market. What would she do with them then? Besides, the timing of their trip was wrong. By the time they returned, it would be December. If they were to spend a few more days looking for a market, wealthy families would have already finished making their New Year's clothes. Who would they sell them to?

Yu Yan couldn't help but feel anxious for her, and wondered why she would send people to collect hides. Didn't General Meng always forbid his clansmen from doing business?

Worried that something had happened to her and she needed money, they sent people to investigate for a long time, but all they found was that the Song family had taken away her management power. Later, she was seen taking the third young lady of the Song family out to buy jewelry, and she didn't seem to be short of money.

It wasn't appropriate to ask her in detail in front of her, since the two of them had no relationship.

"Thank you, Brother Yu!" Meng Ruohua said with a smile.

Yu Yan clenched his fist tightly until his knuckles turned white and his palms stung before he let go.

She adhered to the rules and refused to ask her family for help even when she was humiliated in the Song household, let alone ask him for help.

A servant carrying tea and snacks passed by, and the two stopped talking.

Meng Ruohua asked, "Are you leaving, or are you going to see a play?"

"I'm leaving!" Yu Yan replied. He had only wanted to see Meng Ruohua, and now that he had, there was no need for him to stay any longer.

Meng Ruohua nodded, "Then Brother Yu, please be careful on your journey."

The two were two or three meters apart when they spoke, and to anyone else it would have seemed like a simple greeting. But to Song Chen'an, this scene took on a different meaning.

Song Chen'an also came out for some fresh air. He was snubbed when he arrived at the Wang family. Those with high official positions disdained to talk to him, and those with low official positions didn't bother to waste their time on him. Who came here without trying to get close to him and build relationships?

He couldn't bring himself to flatter them, and after a few words, he was pushed out. So for the rest of the day, he stopped trying to join in and just sat to the side listening to the people around him chat.

He was also getting annoyed by the opera, so he came out and happened to bump into Meng Ruohua and Yu Yan talking.

They were too far away to hear what they were saying, but Meng Ruohua's cheerful demeanor was completely different from her arrogant attitude in the mansion.

Is she also the type to fawn over Yu Yan because he's in a high position, while mocking and ridiculing her because she's in a low position? Is she just like everyone else, praising the powerful and belittling the weak?

The more Song Chen'an thought about it, the angrier he became, wishing he could jump out immediately and demand an explanation. But he retained some reason, which forced him to lie hidden behind the artificial hill, too afraid to move.

That's the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Emperor's own nephew, and Princess Yangcheng's only son! He's not someone he can offend casually.

He gritted his teeth and stared intently until the two said goodbye.

Yu Yan glanced at him casually, but his eyes were like frozen ice, completely calm.

Song Chen'an was startled; he had been discovered!

But that was his wife. Who could stop him from looking at his wife? Not even the Imperial Guards could interfere with him looking at his wife! Thinking this, he felt confident and straightened his back, as if this gave him endless strength.

But Yu Yan seemed not to care about him at all, and calmly walked away. Song Chen'an walked out from behind the rockery and stood in Meng Ruohua's line of sight, as if to say that he had seen everything.

Meng Ruohua glanced at it casually, then turned and went back to the theater.

Another casual glance?

Song Chen'an was so angry at Meng Ruohua's arrogant attitude that his face turned ashen, but since they were in the Wang family, he couldn't go up and ask her what was going on, so he had no choice but to swallow his anger.

He choked and let out a long sigh, then punched his chest hard before stopping.

I must get to the bottom of this when I get home. What is her relationship with Yu Yan? Openly meeting in someone else's house is shameless and shows she has no respect for him!

Unaware of anything, Meng Ruohua went up to the opera house and chatted with her mother.

It was nothing more than telling her to find a royal physician to check her health, and if there was anything wrong, to treat it as soon as possible. Meng Ruohua verbally agreed, but her mind was elsewhere.

Uncle Yang should be back by the end of this month at the earliest, or at the latest by the end of the year. The only question is how many furs they'll bring back; hopefully, they won't lose money. Her dowry is only ten thousand taels; if it's all lost, there won't be any money left to buy food next year.

Sigh! I used to think I had a lot of money, but now it seems like nothing at all.

She shifted her gaze to Lady Wu'an, who was wearing a set of emerald headdresses. Each gemstone was about the size of a thumb and had a beautiful color, making them obviously very valuable.

Some things can't be bought with money!

Even though the Marquis of Wu'an's family turned over 70% of the profits to the national treasury, the remaining 30% still made his family richer than ordinary people.

But Meng Ruohua also understood that if she wanted to make money, she had better distance herself from the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion, as their relationship with the Emperor was too close.

This year is fine; she'll sell the leather she bought to the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion first, and next year she'll open her own fabric shop.