My betrothed had become entangled in a love affair in Yangzhou.
The woman was a courtesan named Li Pengpeng, the most celebrated beauty in the city’s pleasure quarters.
She bought her freedom and stood alone outside the Xie family’s ancestral residence, waiting in silence for an entire month before she was finally granted an audience with Old Madam Xie.
In the end, a sedan chair carried her into a house on Four Wells Lane.
When I reached the capital, I happened to hear that she and Xie Shijing had held a proper wedding feast.
They went everywhere together, basking in their newfound glory.
Though only his mistress, she enjoyed all the privileges of a lawful wife.
Everyone in Shangjing was watching for my humiliation.
Occasionally someone voiced indignation on my behalf, but other voices soon drowned them out.
Some busybodies even opened a betting pool, wagering that I would swallow the insult.
After all, the Song family of Luochuan had long since fallen from its former standing, while the Xies were a pillar of the imperial court.
On the day the betting began, I went alone to the Xie family’s principal residence, just as Li Pengpeng had done.
I had not come to demand justice.
I had come to end the engagement.
Xie Shijing was unworthy of being my husband.
