When her flawless elder brother suddenly died, Xie Yanzhi was devastated and beside herself, so she had no choice but to...
Hide out in the countryside, lose herself in wine and women, and drown in pleasure. Perhaps only that could briefly distance her from her grief.
Meanwhile, the judgment against her finally erupted in Jianling City.
"With a splendid embroidered pillow and a lavish banquet, the gifted daughter of the Xie family is, in truth, the dregs of the gentry."
"Is the literary star's fame deserved, or is it all empty reputation?"
"What is true elegance? Should Second Miss Xie consider returning the title?"
"A fake scholar, a real libertine. A woman can never reach the pinnacle of literature."
At the same time, her diehard fans struggled to defend her. The young master of the Wang family, her childhood friend, was the most zealous among them. He rallied friends and relatives to buy up all the city tabloids, burned the banners lining the streets, and beat up the ringleaders, doing everything he could to keep the situation from escalating.
But the uproar was too great, and word eventually reached Xie Yanzhi herself.
She seemed to find it hilarious.
"These so-called intellectuals are such poor fighters. They racked their brains and could only come up with a few lines of condemnation? How disappointing."
"If I were writing them, I'd say:
'Xie family daughter: promiscuous, selfish, heartless, and disloyal.'
'She deceives innocent young men, then abandons them after taking their virtue.'"
Theme: Freedom and love are not incompatible
