The Crown Princess Still Hasn't Divorced Today

The Crown Prince, Zong Changhui, was as refined as an orchid and as handsome as a jade tree, with a gentle, jade-like disposition. When Guan Yinyue was chosen as his crown princess, noble young ladies envied her.

Yet barely a month after their wedding, Guan Yinyue wrote to her elder sister, bitterly complaining about the Crown Prince's excessive rules.

"Every time we're kissing and things get really heated, he stops to ask if it's all right with me. How am I supposed to answer that? If I say no, I'm saying the opposite of what I mean. If I say yes, I'm too embarrassed. Can't he be a little more domineering?"

"He insists I keep him company at dinner every night, but by the time he finishes his official duties and returns to the Eastern Palace, it's nearly the hour of the Dog. I'm busy reading romance stories and really don't have time for him. Even when I send a maid to tell him I've gone to bed, he won't let it go. He even comes into my bedroom to catch me!"

"I really don't know what's so interesting about the flowers and plants in the Eastern Palace. I've seen them so often I'm sick of them. I wanted him to take me out during his day off, and he was delighted at first. But when he found out I wanted to bring my older brother and sister-in-law, my older sister and brother-in-law, Qing, and her younger sister, his face went dark. He said I knew nothing about how to be a wife, then punished me by making me stay in the Eastern Palace and look at flowers and plants with him while I reflected on myself."

At the end of her letter, she came to a firm conclusion.

"Is this any way to live? I want a divorce!"

*

When she was six, the Empress teased Guan Yinyue and asked what kind of man she liked. Thinking of how her older brother at home was always bullying her, she blurted out, "Yue-niang likes refined gentlemen best."

The young Crown Prince was sitting nearby and silently took her words to heart.

He restrained himself and observed propriety, determined to become the perfect gentleman in Yue-niang's eyes. Even when killing someone, he never abandoned his graceful, gentlemanly nature. Before striking, he remembered to smile and wish his victim good night. Afterward, he would considerately close the eyes that had died staring open.

At last, when he was twenty, he got his wish and married Guan Yinyue. But his happy life had barely lasted a month when a serious problem arose.

Not only did he discover the huge stash of erotic books Guan Yinyue had hidden away, he also saw the letter she'd written to a close friend from her maiden days. After denouncing him as dull and boring, she didn't forget to make a request of her friend.

"Once I'm divorced, remember to find me eighteen strong, handsome men."

The Crown Prince held the letter and smiled coldly.

Core theme: Sincerity is the ultimate weapon.