Only after being reborn did I realize that I was the white moonlight of a powerful minister.

“Miss Yunzhi, you are mistaken. I am merely pursuing a girl I admire; I would not be shameless.” Zhao Chuan still smiled. “A few days ago, I heard Chunxi tell someone that your wife was not looking well, so I specially went fishing for crucian carp. I went there yesterday and stayed by the river all night, and finally caught this fat one. I would be grateful if Miss Yunzhi could help me make a soup to nourish your wife.”

If it weren't for her upbringing, Yunzhi would have already chased them away with a broom. "Young Master Zhao, if others see you like this, they'll gossip. I'm begging you, you're about to take the imperial examination, can't you be a little more ambitious and focus on your studies instead of wasting our time?"

"Studying is quite easy. I always pass on the first try. My teacher said that with my talent, passing the imperial examination is not difficult. Thank you for your concern, Miss Yunzhi. I will definitely pass the imperial examination and your wife will receive an imperial title." Zhao Chuan was very confident.

Yunzhi couldn't argue with her anymore, so she simply closed the door.

Undeterred, Zhao Chuan knocked on the door again. Yunzhi asked her master with a distressed expression, "We didn't back down before, but he kept pestering us. It's really a headache."

“Go and throw his crucian carp into the river,” Ye Wanning said. “I used to think it was bad to offend people, but now it seems that if I’m not ruthless, he won’t give up.”

Ye Wanning had no intention of getting married and couldn't bring herself to like Zhao Chuan, a fair-skinned scholar. After all, she had already suffered from the influence of scholars, having been through Zhou Yu.

Following her master's instructions, Yunzhi accepted the crucian carp from Zhao Chuan. Before Zhao Chuan could even feel happy, Yunzhi carried the crucian carp outside.

"Miss Yunzhi, where are you going?" Zhao Chuan chased after her and saw Yunzhi throw the crucian carp into the stream. He wasn't angry and followed her back. "What a pity, such a fat crucian carp. Did your wife not like crucian carp, so she made you throw it away? Why don't you tell me what she likes, and I'll go find something she likes?"

"Young Master Zhao," Ye Wanning said, standing at the door with her veil on, "They say a widow's door is always a source of gossip. If you truly care for me, please stop bothering me. You've only met me once, yet you claim to be in love with me. Do you even know me?"

"I……"

"Do you even know what kind of person I am, what I like, and what I dislike? You don't know any of that. You're only attracted to my looks. Doesn't that make you seem too superficial?" Ye Wanning knew she couldn't get rid of Zhao Chuan, so she had no choice but to come out herself.

Zhao Chuan didn't really know Ye Wanning, but a fleeting glance at her was enough to make him dream about her. "Madam Ye, I admit I was being superficial, but it would be truly presumptuous of me to send a matchmaker to propose marriage without your permission. I don't care about formalities; I only know that I fell in love with you at first sight."

Hearing such blunt words, Yunzhi wanted to grab a stick. If this were a wealthy family in the capital, she would have beaten Zhao Chuan so badly he couldn't get up. However, they were both women and couldn't bring themselves to do it.

Ye Wanning had never seen such a persistent man before. She said in a deep voice, "But I don't like it, so could you please not come again?"

Hearing this, Zhao Chuan's eyes were clearly hurt. He was stunned for a while before nodding, "I have bothered you and caused you trouble these past few days. However, my feelings for you are as clear as day and night, and there is absolutely no pretense in them. If you need anything in the future, you can still come to me."

Zhao Chuan left sadly. Seeing him leave, Ye Wanning breathed a sigh of relief. Her words were a bit harsh, but there was nothing she could do about it.

Just as she was about to go back, the house across the street suddenly opened its door, and an old woman came out.

Granny Chen splashed swill in Ye Wanning's direction, "The world is going to the dogs! Anyone who didn't know better would think she was some kind of stunning beauty, wearing a veil in broad daylight. Does she really think she's something special?"

"How dare you speak like that?" Yunzhi glared at her.

The Chen family had just moved in. Soon after settling in, Chen took a liking to Zhao Chuan and wanted to marry her daughter to him. She hired a matchmaker to propose marriage, but Zhao Chuan flatly refused. Chen held a grudge and, after discovering Zhao Chuan's feelings for Ye Wanning, she frequently slandered Ye Wanning to others.

However, Ye Wanning rarely went out, and most people had never seen her before. When they heard from Granny Chen that Ye Wanning was seducing men, they were only half-believing and half-doubting.

Ye Wanning's peaceful life was disrupted by the gossip and rumors spread by Granny Chen, and she even considered moving. However, the border was unstable recently, and there were bandits causing trouble in the vicinity, so she couldn't think of a place to move to.

"I'm just saying this, so what?" Granny Chen was born into the streets and had to sell goods when she was young. She was incredibly fierce when she argued and didn't care about manners at all. "You all seduce men, and you won't let me speak? Oh ho, did you build this street, or are you royalty who can tell me what to do?"

This is the second time today that Yunzhi has lost an argument with someone. Her eyes were red with anger, and she was on the verge of tears.

Ye Wanning had never seen a shrew like Granny Chen before, and for a moment, she couldn't think of a retort.

Old Mrs. Chen stood with her hands on her hips, pointing a finger at Ye Wanning. "Why aren't you saying anything? Heh, if you're really capable, then shut me up. If you're not, then don't listen to what I want to say. I'm going to say it today: why do you have to show off when you're a perfectly good widow? Look at your clothes, all flashy and gaudy. If you were a widow who had settled down, would you dress like this?"

"You...you're a bad person!" Ye Chengle, who had just returned from buying candied hawthorns, rushed over, picked up a stone from the ground, and threw it at him. "You're not allowed to bully my mother!"

The little guy was quite imposing, standing in front of his mother and glaring angrily at Granny Chen.

The child wasn't very strong, and the stones didn't hurt Granny Chen much when they hit her, but once he started hitting her, Granny Chen couldn't take it anymore. She sat on the ground crying and screaming, "Everyone come and see! This family is going to bully me to death! Even a little kid dares to throw stones at me! They're completely lawless!"

Seeing that Granny Chen's wailing was getting louder and louder, Ye Wanning couldn't stand it anymore. "If you keep making a scene, why don't we go to the county magistrate's office and see if it's more serious that my son threw a small stone at you, or that it's more serious that you spread rumors about me behind my back? As far as I know, if you behave like this at the government office, you'll get twenty slaps on the face with a bamboo stick."

"Don't try to scare me, I'm not afraid." Despite saying that, Granny Chen nimbly got up, dusted herself off, and headed home. "I'm not easily frightened. I'll let you off the hook for now, but I'll settle the score with you later!"