TCN: Mei Gongqing

Chapter 12: Escape

Chapter 12: Escape

A middle-aged man frowned in reply. "But she is, after all, a concubine-born daughter of a subsidiary branch; her father is also concubine-born."

Wang Zhuo shook his head. He did not speak, but he was quietly thinking to himself that: Though Chen Rong is lowly born, she will inevitably become known to the nobles in the wake of these two incidents. Furthermore, if she married into the Wang house, what happened would not be her feat to boast. The honor would belong to the exceptionally clever daughter-in-law of the Wang house. Then, our reputation would no longer be undermined, no?

Wang Zhuo began to feel a little anxious and could not help but carefully consider the matter.

"But if you make her a concubine, I'm afraid she won't agree," the middle-aged man offered after some thought.

Wang Zhuo nodded while thinking again to himself: Pity that her father is not here. This marriage will have to wait until we arrive in the south to be decided.

In the evening, the scouts sent by the House of Wang returned and reported that from what passers-by had told them, they would be able to find water if they went a hundred miles more.

This news lifted the Wang family's spirit and the team hurried on.

Even so, both men and horses were parched. They had only gone fifty miles though they had traveled through the night.

The early morning dew was no longer for only horses. People also began to slurp up what they could. Of course, the Wangs had Chen Rong's half-full barrel and were not reduced to lying on the grass to lick morning dew. Doing so were only the servants and guards.

This translation belongs to hamster428.

By the time the moon emerged on the third day, they finally came across a patch of green, and when they listened, they could hear the sound of rushing water.

The cavalcade abruptly burst into cheers. Ecstatic, they drove the carriages ahead without waiting to be told.

The cheers did not cease this evening. Many were reluctant to leave their soaking spots in the river all the way until dawn.

The sun once again climbed high.

As they marched on the green road and listened to the chirping of birds coming from the trees from time to time, each of them reveled in the miracle of being alive again.

By now, the Wang youngsters had also matured; they did not complain about the birds in the sky and instead laughed in delight.

"Ah Rong, come over here." Wang Wulang waved to her from afar; a light glinted in his elongated eyes.

Since she met with Sir Wang yesterday, Chen Rong found that Wang Wulang's attitude toward her had begun to contain more apparent enthusiasm. The gaze he directed at her would always be accompanied by a strange gleam she did not quite understand.

Chen Rong nodded in Wang Wulang's direction, indicating for her carriage to head that way.

This translation belongs to hamster428.

Because Confucianism was fiercely rebuffed in this time period, what previously confined women had considerably eased. In certain states that were established by northern tribes, even women could enjoy political status. In the state of Jin, it was not uncommon to see widows remarrying. It was common for women to express their admiration and gladness to men. As occurred in history, each time the heartthrob Pan An went out, droves of women would encircle him and throw fruits into his carriage. Pan An would always come home with his basket full. Wei Jie, another heartthrob, even suffered a claustrophobic death from these women's attack. He contributed to history the idiom "Wei Jie was watched to death" (看杀卫玠).