After being forced to leave the marriage, I became the wife of a top scholar.

Chapter 1 Letter of Divorce
In the dead of winter, in a private residence in Huai'an County, Huaizhou, Shang State.

Bai Wanqing, dressed in a simple, elegant outfit, sat on a slightly worn cedar chair, quietly watching the man in front of her throw a letter of divorce in front of her. She was somewhat puzzled, and then looked at her husband, whom she had only been married to for half a year, with a questioning gaze.

Meng Zhan put his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping disdainfully over Bai Wanqing's face, and said coldly, "Bai Wanqing, you are unfilial to your mother-in-law, narrow-minded and jealous. Now I'm giving you a letter of divorce. Take it and leave obediently. This will save face for both of us."

Bai Wanqing placed her hands together in front of her, remaining still. She raised her eyes coldly, and had something to say about this "dignity": "My husband just passed the imperial examination and now he wants to divorce me, and he's even putting two such big accusations on me. It's really unnecessary."

A hint of guilt flashed in Meng Zhan's eyes as he denied it, saying, "How is this a hat? It's true that I'm unfilial, and it's also true that I'm jealous!"

Bai Wanqing slowly recovered from the shock of receiving the letter of divorce. Her expression was sharp as she glanced at the letter on the table out of the corner of her eye. She said with disappointment, "In the past six months of marriage, I have taken care of my mother-in-law with all my heart and soul, and I have been very considerate. Everyone knows this. May I ask how my husband has been unfilial?"

"Not to mention being narrow-minded and jealous, I've never been like that before. We've only been married for half a year, and we're still newlyweds. Even ordinary families wouldn't let their husbands take concubines at this time, let alone a scholar like my husband. I was just protecting my husband's reputation, so how can that be considered jealousy?" Bai Wanqing chuckled.

When Meng Zhan was exposed, he was furious and said in a deep voice, "Look at you now, so sharp-tongued and defiant towards your husband. A person like you is not worthy to stay in our Meng family!"

"Unworthy?" Bai Wanqing remained unmoved, a slight twitch at the corner of her lips. "Husband, do you still remember the promise you made when you asked my mother for my hand in marriage?"

Meng Zhan naturally remembered that his family had been farmers for generations, and it was only with great difficulty that he finally had the opportunity to study. Fortunately, he was quite promising and passed the preliminary examination at the age of thirteen. With a scholar emerging from the family, he naturally became the hope of the Meng family.

However, the cost of continuing his studies was too high, so his mother borrowed money from all over the place. When she heard that the Bai family in the county was looking for a spouse, she tried her best to find the matriarch of the Bai family, Madam Kou, and discussed with her to arrange his marriage to Bai Wanqing, thus solving the problem of his studies.

On the day the marriage contract was exchanged, he solemnly promised Madam Bai: "Madam, rest assured, it is my greatest fortune to have Miss Bai as my wife. I will do everything in my power to protect her for the rest of my life."

Later, Meng Zhan got to where he is today thanks to the Bai family's financial support. Especially in the half year since Bai Wanqing married into the Meng family, all of Meng Zhan's expenses for studying and his affairs were covered by Bai Wanqing's dowry. Thinking of this, Meng Zhan looked at Bai Wanqing with even more impatience, feeling that Bai Wanqing was trampling on his dignity.

"Times have changed. How can you apply what you said in the past to the present?" Meng Zhan frowned and said, "Don't you even consider whether your current status is worthy of the Meng family!"

Not worthy again! Only this time, it's her status that's unworthy! Bai Wanqing slowly raised her eyes and met Meng Zhan's disdainful gaze.

Bai Wanqing felt a chill run down her spine. Looking back on everything, she realized with shock that Meng Zhan was not only looking down on her background now, but that he had despised a merchant's daughter from the very beginning. That's why he pretended to be sick on their wedding night and refused to enter the bridal chamber, and why he used the excuse of studying hard to move to the academy instead of returning to the Meng family.

From the very beginning, he had been waiting for this day, waiting for the day when he would be on the list of successful candidates and have his official position secured, so that he could expel her from the Meng family.

Bai Wanqing chuckled, inwardly resentful, "Will your mother-in-law agree to this?"

“She is my mother. How could she disagree with something that is good for me? But I advise you not to talk to your mother. This is a matter between the two of us.” Meng Zhan stared sharply at Bai Wanqing and said.

Meng Zhan's resolute decision extinguished any remaining affection in Bai Wanqing's eyes. She took a deep breath. "What if I don't agree?"

Meng Zhan's face darkened. "Bai Wanqing, I'm not discussing this with you! And it's not up to you whether you agree or not!"

Clearly, Meng Zhan had lost his patience. He pointed at the letter of divorce on the table and threatened, "I can give you a few days to accept this. If you can come to your senses, I can be more tactful in how the letter of divorce is written. If you still can't come to your senses, then it will be the same reason as before: there is absolutely no possibility of you remarrying. You are a smart person and know how to weigh things."

After saying that, Meng Zhan turned and left. Bai Wanqing felt her body go limp, and Ruixin rushed over to support her.

"Miss!" Ruixin, with tears in her eyes, helped Bai Wanqing back onto the long chair. "How could the young master be so heartless?"

Bai Wanqing glanced at the letter of divorce on the table and sighed softly, "Perhaps this is the real him. We never truly understood him before."

"But his eagerness to kick me out of the Meng family now probably isn't just because he looks down on my status." Bai Wanqing was a little confused. Ruixin felt wronged for her young mistress, "No matter what the reason is, you've helped him so much, how can he be so ungrateful!"

"Human hearts are inherently unpredictable. Since things have come to this, there's no point in saying more." Bai Wanqing's eyes reflected a coldness. "Go to the camphor wood cabinet and bring me my bamboo-patterned mahogany box."

“Miss! What are you going to do with it? We don’t have many shops or estates left to sell, and we’ve already pawned all the jewelry we could to help the young master. All that’s left is the hairpin that Madam left you before she passed away.”

Ruixin muttered something, but her hands didn't stop; she handed the money box to Bai Wanqing.

Bai Wanqing looked at the hairpin left by her mother lying alone in the box, and tears welled up in her eyes.

She was born into a merchant family. Her mother was a female doctor at a century-old medical clinic in Huai'an County, and her father was Bai, a wealthy man in Huai'an County. Five years ago, her six-year-old brother suddenly fell into the river and drowned. Her mother cried every day, was depressed, and fell ill.

When she went to her mother's bedside to take care of her, her mother would always hold her arm and repeat over and over again, "Qing'er, Dong'er, don't be afraid, Mother is here!"

Perhaps knowing that her days were numbered, her mother, who had been in a daze every day, miraculously regained some of her energy and began to arrange her marriage.

Although the Bai family were merchants, they were among the wealthiest in Huai'an County. While they were beyond the reach of the elite, ordinary families would flock to them for such a prestigious position.

After looking at dozens of families, the mother finally chose the Meng family, because the Meng family consisted mainly of Meng Zhan and his mother, and Meng Zhan was gentle and refined, handsome and talented. He had also passed the imperial examination at the age of ten and had a promising future. The mother decided to help the Meng family and hoped that by doing so, Bai Qingwan would be treated well after marrying into the Meng family.

On the day the engagement was made, the mother was very happy because she got the promise she wanted from Meng Zhan.

Perhaps because of something on her mind, her health deteriorated day by day.

"Qing'er," her mother said, holding her hand before she passed away, handing her the dowry box she had prepared for her, her eyes full of regret. "I won't be able to wait for the day you get married. Don't blame me. Remember, once you're in the Meng family, you will be Meng Zhan's wife and the Meng family's daughter-in-law. You must do your best to help your husband. You are husband and wife, and husband and wife are one. You share the same fate, and you share the same fate."

Bai Wanqing always kept her mother's teachings in mind. She was devoted to Meng Zhan and gave him her all, using most of her dowry to pave the way for his future. Who would have thought that this would turn out like this, wasting her mother's good intentions.

“Although there’s not much left, there’s no reason to just leave it to Meng Zhan.” Bai Wanqing’s eyes darkened. She told Ruixin to put the box away again, and then silently put the hairpin her mother had given her into her bosom.

Bai Wanqing pondered in her heart that Meng Zhan's resolute decision to give her a letter of divorce meant he was determined to make her leave the Meng family. He clearly felt guilty towards her, yet he didn't propose a divorce but instead gave her a letter of divorce. All he cared about were her remaining two shops and a few hundred taels of silver, which meant he needed money for something.

If she knew why he used the money, there might still be a chance to negotiate. As for whether she had feelings for Meng Zhan, that would be hard to say. But for a woman to live in this world is already difficult enough. If she were to be divorced by her husband and have her reputation ruined, it would be no different from giving her a white silk noose.

Seeing her young mistress so distressed, Ruixin felt very sorry for her. "Miss, why don't we go back and find Master Bai? With him backing you up, perhaps the son-in-law will have some reservations and put aside his thoughts of divorcing his wife."

Bai Wanqing slowly shook her head. "Father is getting old. The things that happened to Mother and my brother have dealt him a lot of blows. He has only just started to recover. I don't want him to worry before everything is settled."

Ruixin nodded, her face contorted with worry. "Miss, what should we do now?"

Bai Wanqing's eyes were firm, and she had already made up her mind. "Since he gave me time to think it over, I should think it over more clearly."

“Ruixin, go to the front yard and find Bao Si. Tell him I have something to ask him.”

(End of this chapter)