TRBDM -Chapter 54 Leverage

Wei Zhaorong held the slightly trembling Xie Wanrou in her arms. “Don’t worry, Rou’er. I will make sure you get a divorce.”

After a while, Wei Zhaorong personally escorted Xie Wanrou back to the Moyun Courtyard.

“If the courtyard needs anything, tell me, and I’ll have it prepared. For the next few days, stay here in the mansion, follow the doctor’s orders, and take good care of your health.”

“Mother, there’s so much to handle for Lan’er’s birthday banquet. I can help.”

Xie Wanrou had plenty of experience managing affairs at the General’s Mansion and considered all the details, big and small.

“No need. I’ll let Dou Shuyao handle it. She lacks opportunities to practice, and this is the perfect chance for her to get some experience. Otherwise, how will she ever manage the entire mansion in the future?”

In front of Xie Wanrou, Wei Zhaorong didn’t bother hiding her intentions: she was grooming Dou Shuyao to become the mistress of the household.

Hearing this, Xie Wanrou said no more.

A little later, Dou Shuyao sent someone to inform Wei Zhaorong that Imperial Physician Xiao had examined Xie Chuan and reported that his body was recovering well. Occasional drinking wouldn’t hurt, but he still had two months to go during which not a drop of alcohol could be touched—otherwise, all progress would be undone.

“Tell Dou Shuyao that on Lan’er’s birthday banquet, replace Chuan’er’s wine with plain water, and keep a close watch so he doesn’t sneak a drink.”

Wei Zhaorong didn’t even need to remind her; Dou Shuyao had already thought of it.

At Xie Lan’s birthday banquet, Xie Chuan, as the eldest legitimate son, would naturally have to show up.

At the banquet, cups would be raised in toasts, and it wouldn’t do for Xie Chuan to refuse wine. Simply swapping his cup with plain water would solve two problems at once.

Fearing that Xie Chuan might cause a scene, Dou Shuyao warned him: “Just treat the water as if it were wine. Don’t let anyone notice. And don’t try to sneak a sip—one sip, and you’re grounded for a month. These are Mother’s orders, and you know she always follows through.”

Xie Chuan quickly agreed.

These past days, he had tasted hardship: the sting of Mother’s hand, which sometimes even haunted him in dreams.

Worse than the hand was being grounded—it could make a person truly numb.

The world outside was vast and waiting; he couldn’t afford to lose the big picture over small matters.

Once Xie Chuan was settled, Dou Shuyao continued with her duties.

With some free time, Wei Zhaorong sent a letter to the Nanyang General’s Mansion, arranging to meet Lin Juehui.

The next day, they met in a private room at a teahouse.

“Xiaohui, try this Dragon-Phoenix Tea. The owner brewed it with snow water from Qingcheng Mountain. Look—the tea leaves have formed a pattern like a ‘Crane Soaring Through Clouds.’”

“Oh, it’s beautiful,” Lin Juehui twitched her nose. “It smells amazing. A-Rong, this tea must be expensive.”

Wei Zhaorong smiled. “I have a favor to ask, so naturally, I must bribe you with the best tea.”

“All right, but first, let me enjoy it properly.”

The two chatted idly, watching the bustling crowd outside the window, feeling as if they had returned to their teenage days.

When the pastries were gone and the tea drunk to the bottom, Lin Juehui wiped her hands clean. “Go ahead, A-Rong. What is it that you wanted to talk to me about?”

“A year and a half ago, a vassal state attacked the border. The Nanyang General fought on the frontlines for three months. Supplies were short, and the Emperor sent Lei Lieshan to deliver rations to the border within a month.”

“Yes…”

During those months, the Nanyang General risked his life at the border, and Lin Juehui had been anxious and fearful at the General’s Mansion the entire time.

Fortunately, the Nanyang General was brave and ultimately defeated the vassal army.

With the victory, the Emperor was delighted and lavishly rewarded the Nanyang General’s Mansion, even granting merit to Lei Lieshan, who had simply delivered the supplies.

“Xiaohui, at that time, was the general who received the rations at the border Lei Lieshan?”

Lin Juehui shook her head. “No, it wasn’t him.”

Wei Zhaorong’s brow twitched, her voice tight: “Lei Lieshan didn’t personally deliver it? Then who did?”

“My husband only mentioned it in passing,” Lin Juehui said. “He said the military provisions were critically low; the soldiers couldn’t even get porridge thin enough to see shadows of people in it. The convoy transporting the supplies was delayed by a full ten days.”

The battlefield changes in an instant. Ten whole days—one could hardly imagine the pressure the General of Nanyang was under at the time.

“It wasn’t even Lei Lieshan himself who took the provisions to the border—it was a deputy general,” Lin Juehui said through gritted teeth, anger flashing in her eyes.

“Was that deputy surnamed Luo?”

“How did you know?” Lin Juehui was startled.

Wei Zhaorong understood immediately. Deputy General Luo was none other than Luo Feiyang’s father.

As the commanding officer responsible for transporting the supplies, Lei Lieshan had been negligent—moving too slowly and almost jeopardizing a critical operation—and he wasn’t even personally present.

The General of Nanyang was dissatisfied, but out of respect for the senior General of Weiyuan, he did not report the matter to the Emperor.

Later, when the army returned victorious, Lei Lieshan was still credited with merit, while the Nanyang General was so angry he went days without eating.

Lin Juehui, knowing the situation, privately favored the Mingde Marquisate because Lei Lieshan was Xie Wanrou’s husband, their esteemed son-in-law. During that period, she constantly advised the Nanyang General to be magnanimous.

Since no real loss had occurred, bringing the matter to the Emperor would have only made the Nanyang General appear petty.

The General of Nanyang had been injured returning from the battlefield. Lying in his residence at the time, he lacked both the strength and opportunity to report it, and the matter quietly died down.

Later, Lei Lieshan repeatedly boasted publicly that if he hadn’t personally led the army at breakneck speed, riding day and night to deliver the supplies, the outcome of the war would have been disastrous.

Every time these words reached the Nanyang General’s ears, he wanted nothing more than to punch Lei Lieshan.

“The General of Nanyang’s magnanimity is extraordinary. If it were me, I would have reported it to the Emperor long ago,” Wei Zhaorong said coldly.

“Uh…” Lin Juehui hesitated. “General Lei is the Mingde Marquisate’s esteemed son-in-law… A-Rong, am I saying this in a way that displeases you?”

“Of course not. His conduct is truly despicable; I despise him from the bottom of my heart. Though family scandals shouldn’t be spread, Xiaohui, I want to tell you something.”

“What happened?” Lin Juehui asked nervously.

“In a few days, it will be my Lan’er’s birthday banquet. I had Rou’er return to the residence early. When she came back, I found her covered in bruises.”

“What!” Lin Juehui almost jumped. “Lei Lieshan… hit her?”

“It was him.”

Lin Juehui’s breathing immediately grew heavy. “Rou’er is gentle and virtuous—the model noblewoman of our capital. If my two sons weren’t significantly older than her, I would have done anything to marry Rou’er into our family.”

Lin Juehui had originally agreed to the marriage between Xie Wanrou and her youngest son, believing that since Xie Wanrou set such an example, Xie Wanyi couldn’t be too bad.

But after what happened with the sorcery against her, Lin Juehui’s view of Xie Wanyi had completely changed.

Hearing this, she felt deeply sorry for Xie Wanrou, unable to hide her disgust: “Lei Lieshan is a military man—how could he lay a hand on Rou’er? How is he different from a beast?”

“It’s my fault. I ignored Rou’er too much in daily life, never noticing the two-faced nature of Lei Lieshan, and let Rou’er suffer unjustly.”

“So what will you do? You can’t just let her endure this suffering.”

“I will have Rou’er seek a divorce and reclaim all her dowry.”

Her words landed like a hammer.

“I came to you today precisely to discuss the leverage for the divorce. Lei Lieshan has left a handle in my hands; I am not afraid that he will refuse.”

Lin Juehui nodded. “If you need my help, you must tell me.”

“Yes, it’s enough. Just the crime of dereliction of duty alone is weighty enough to make him reconsider. If he refuses, I will petition the Emperor to intervene and issue a decree for divorce.”

While the Mingde Marquisate still held some influence with the Emperor, Wei Zhaorong intended to secure an imperial decree granting Xie Wanrou a divorce.

With a dual approach, this marriage was set to end.