Divorced by her husband's family and rejected by her own! She defiantly turned her life around

Lu Yunzhou was the last to emerge from Zuixianlou. Standing at the entrance, he exchanged compliments with the restaurant's manager. "Young Master Lu, you are so learned and talented at such a young age. Your future is limitless. You are welcome to visit my Zuixianlou often to compose poems and exchange verses."

"Manager Pang, you flatter me. I appreciate your kindness, but I was just lucky. I have no talent whatsoever. Our Lingshui County is a place of outstanding people and talents. Today, I was just lucky."

"Young Master Lu, there's no need to be modest. Even a great scholar has praised your talent, so how could you be wrong? If you encounter any difficulties in the county town in the future, you can come and find me, and I will definitely help you if I can."

"Thank you very much, shopkeeper. I will inevitably need to trouble you in the future."

The innkeeper turned and went back to the restaurant. Lu Yunzhou was full of pride and walked with his back straight, exuding the spiritedness of a young man.

He believed that now he could establish himself in the county school, and every teacher and classmate would look up to him. He was confident that by tomorrow, his name and his poems would resound throughout Lingshui County, and even the prefectural city. This was what it meant to become famous overnight, hahaha...

"Young Master Lu, Young Master Lu..."

Lu Yunzhou was walking intently, lost in thought, and didn't hear anyone calling him. Miss Zhou's maid, Xiang'er, hurried over and called out twice, "Young Master Lu, Young Master Lu."

Hearing someone call his name, Lu Yunzhou stopped and looked closely. It turned out to be Xiang'er, Miss Zhou's maid. "Xiang'er, what are you doing here? Where is your mistress?"

Xiang'er turned around and pointed, "Our young lady is waiting for the young master over there."

Lu Yunzhou looked in the direction she was pointing and saw a graceful and beautiful woman standing in the dappled, dim light. Seeing a beauty under the lamplight was truly a unique experience.

"Young Master Lu, Young Master Lu, let's go over there, Miss is waiting for you!"

When the two met, their eyes were overflowing with affection. Miss Zhou spoke softly, "Young Master Lu."

The way he addressed him as "Young Master Lu" made Lu Yunzhou's bones melt. "Miss Zhou, when did you arrive in the county? Why didn't you notify me in advance?"

"Xiang'er and I arrived this afternoon. We found an inn to settle in first, and then went to the county school to look for you. The gatekeeper said he didn't know you, and we didn't know where to look for you either."

"It's probably because I'm new to the county school, so it's normal that the gatekeeper doesn't recognize me."

"I heard there was a poetry gathering here, so I came to look for you. I didn't expect to find you here. Young master, you are very learned and talented. You won first place. Congratulations!"

Lu Yunzhou felt that he finally had face in front of women and was no longer suppressed by Liu Shi. He believed that after this incident, Master Zhou would be even less likely to treat him lightly.

"Miss Zhou, on this festive occasion, let me accompany you to admire the lanterns."

Zhou Yuyan's wish was finally fulfilled. She wanted Lu Yunzhou to accompany her to admire the lanterns. It is said that if you admire the lanterns with your lover on the Lantern Festival, your future life will be happy and fulfilling.

"Young Master Lu, it's only been a short time since we last met, yet you seem to have become distant with me. Could it be that you've forgotten me since you arrived in the county town?"

"Miss Zhou, what makes you say that? Yunzhou is truly wronged."

"You used to call me Yu Yan or Yan'er, but today you keep calling me 'Miss,' isn't that just being distant?"

"So that's what it was about. I'm new to the county town, and I'm always careful about etiquette. I'm afraid of saying the wrong thing and offending someone, so I've been cautious. Here, Yunzhou apologizes to Miss Yuyan."

Lu Yunzhou bowed deeply, "Please don't hold it against me, Miss Yuyan. I'll be at your service tonight."

Zhou Yuyan covered her mouth and chuckled, "I forgive you because of your sincerity."

"Miss Yuyan is not only beautiful and kind-hearted, but also broad-minded, just like the bright and dazzling full moon in the sky."

Let's go see the lanterns.

"Young Master Lu, when did you arrive in the county town? Why didn't you inform me beforehand?"

"I wanted to come too, but I didn't dare."

"What happened?"

Lu Yunzhou then told him about the stolen silver notes. "Brother Yunzhou, why didn't you come to town to find me? You had no money for your studies, so how have you been living these past few days?"

My family scraped together 15 taels of silver for me, but after paying tuition at the county school, there wasn't much left. I didn't dare go to you because I was afraid my uncle would say I was there to ask for the money back.

As you know, I'm a scholar, and I value my reputation. How could I possibly have the face to bother you again?

So you're just making yourself suffer.

Zhou Yuyan took out 100 taels of silver from her pocket and handed it to Lu Yunzhou. "Brother Yunzhou, take this 100 taels of silver. Studying is hard work, so you should take good care of yourself and not neglect your health."

"Yan'er, I can't accept your money. I won first place at today's poetry competition, and the manager of Zuixianlou gave me 200 taels as a reward, which is more than enough for me."

"What's yours is yours, but this is my heartfelt gift. I'm still waiting for you to pass the imperial examination and come to my house to propose marriage!"

"Yan'er, don't worry, I will never let you down. Once I pass the imperial examination and become a scholar, I will definitely bring a matchmaker to your house to propose marriage and make you my official wife."

Beneath the wide sleeves of his robe, Lu Yunzhou took her hand, and together they admired the lanterns and the everyday life of the people.

"Yan'er, are you hungry? I'm a little hungry. Shall we find a food stall and get something to eat?"

"Okay, I want to try some delicious food too." The two bought a little of this and a little of that to try. Zhou Yuyan felt that these things were especially delicious today. Being with the person she liked made everything so wonderful.

Lu Yunzhou was good at coaxing people. He took her to watch a variety show and guess riddles together. When he saw a pretty wooden hairpin on the street, he bought one for her. "Yan'er, I think this wooden hairpin is very pretty. I bought it for you. I don't have the money to buy a better one right now. I hope you won't mind. I'll buy you a better one when I have more money in the future."

"Brother Yunzhou, I don't mind. I don't mind anything you gave me. Please put it on for me."

Lu Yunzhou picked up the hairpin and placed it in her hair. "Beautiful, so beautiful!"

Xiang'er scoffed softly, "What's so pretty about it? They're treating their young lady like an idiot, all sweet talk."

"Brother Yunzhou, I want that mandarin duck lantern. Can you win it for me?"

"If you want to, I'll definitely help you win it."

Lu Yunzhou was truly remarkable; he guessed all the riddles correctly. The shopkeeper handed him a lamp with a line of small characters on it, which Lu Yunzhou read aloud: "All day long, no one watches the light rain; mandarin ducks face each other, bathing in red robes."

"What a beautiful poem!"

"Swallow, this is for you."

Zhou Yuyan took the mandarin duck lanterns, her face beaming with joy. "Thank you, Brother Yunzhou, I really like them."

"Yan'er, it's getting late. I should go back to the academy. It'll be closing time if I stay too long. Let me take you back to the inn."

"it is good."

Lu Yunzhou escorted the person to the entrance of the inn. "Brother Yunzhou, it's okay that the academy is closed. I've booked two superior rooms at the inn. Xiang'er can stay in one, or you can stay in the other. The Lixian Academy is quite far from here, and it might not be safe on the way."

You can go back to the academy early tomorrow morning.

Lu Yunzhou looked up at Zhou Yuyan, wondering what she meant and whether he should stay. She and Xiang'er could share a room, so was this one reserved specifically for him?

Xiang'er then understood why her young mistress had booked two rooms. What if something happened to Young Master Lu if he stayed over? She immediately tried to stop her, saying, "Miss, if Young Master Lu doesn't return home after going to the county school, it will inevitably give people something to talk about and it will not be good for his reputation. If you are worried about his safety, please have the shop assistant escort him."

"Yan'er, Xiang'er is right. I've only gained a little fame today, and I can't afford to give people something to talk about."