Lin Jianyi was plain-looking and unremarkable in talent. At home, she was expected to give way to her younger siblings, and lived in constant submission.
The one time she found the courage to stand up for herself, she argued with her parents and won the right to choose her own marriage.
Her husband made her proud. He passed the three highest imperial examinations in succession, became the top scholar, entered the Grand Tutor's service, and was posted to Yangzhou as an official. She became the envy of everyone in the city.
But no one knew that after her husband's family rose to the top overnight, they found fault with her at every turn, because she was a timid daughter-in-law.
Some days she was told she had failed to follow the rules; other days she was tormented mercilessly. They treated her with extreme harshness and, to curry favor with the powerful, falsely accused her of theft and adultery. They even used family punishment to beat her nearly to death.
Her husband wore an impassive expression, pretending to be grief-stricken. “Why put yourself through this? In all the years we've been married, I have never wronged you. How could you do something that brings shame on the family?”
As everyone heaped abuse on her, Lin Jianyi, coughing blood and close to fainting, cried out in rage, “I didn't do it!”
Before she could finish, her husband shouted, “Silence! You did something so shameless and still want to plead your innocence? Someone, gag her. Don't let her offend our honored guests.”
As her consciousness blurred, Lin Jianyi thought she heard a clear bell ring and smelled the crisp fragrance of bamboo. She struggled to lift her eyes, but only heard a cool, gentle voice say, “Under the laws of our dynasty, privately punishing one's wife is a serious crime punishable by imprisonment. If someone reports you, do you want to spend the rest of your life in jail?”
Her usually arrogant husband turned pale with shock and hurriedly knelt to beg forgiveness. “Please forgive me, Teacher. I would never dare.”
Lin Jianyi remembered. He was her husband's teacher, Wen Liangyu, the Grand Tutor of the dynasty.
She was not reconciled. She did not want to be beaten to death as a stain on the family. The only person who could save her was this man.
That night, enduring her injuries, Lin Jianyi crept into Wen Liangyu's room in the dark. She knelt, kowtowed, and choked back tears. “I beg you, my lord, please save me. I want to live.”
Wen Liangyu supported her hands and said softly, “This is a family matter. I cannot intervene.”
“If you refuse,” Lin Jianyi said, head bowed and voice just as soft, “by tomorrow, all of Yangzhou will know that the person I had an affair with was you.”
The next moment, she felt Wen Liangyu's grip on her hands tighten.
-
Wen Liangyu was born into a prestigious family. He made a name for himself at a young age and was a Heaven-gifted genius. Handsome beyond compare, with no equal in the world.
Everyone knew he was disciplined and courteous, a gentleman of impeccable character, as if he were an immortal descended from heaven.
But Wen Liangyu silently disagreed. No, he was not.
In fact, he was guilty.
Because he had fallen in love with his student's wife.
Theme: A gentleman observes propriety, except that love alone defies the rules of etiquette.
