I was reborn before the divorce

After the afternoon banquet, the emperor, followed by civil and military officials, walked up to the observation deck in a grand procession.

At this time, the grassland was crowded with people, even more lively than in the morning.

There was no sign of Duan Gui in front of the pasture. Only the other three men who were going to compete were choosing horses in the stable. These young men were agile and had sharp eyes. They were all heroes who had fought on the battlefield.

Today, Altan Khan was so bold as to mock the Ming Dynasty for being weak and effeminate. The military generals accompanying him in the palace were all dissatisfied, because those who had lost several battles in the morning were all literati.

It has been one hundred and sixty-eight years since the founding of this dynasty, and the court has gradually come to value civil officials over military officials. These people today want to take this opportunity to show their talents in front of the emperor, in the hope of being valued in the army and bringing glory to the family.

This polo match was played four-on-four, with two wins out of three. To increase the difficulty, a rule was added that if a team had a fallen or retired player, no more players could be added, which made the game much more cruel.

Duan Gui handed the reins to the groom and asked him to watch for a while. He walked to Xie Yun and asked, "Why didn't Ling Yi come? I remember she was the best at playing polo. Could she be serving your aunt in your mansion?"

Duan Gui was known as the "Little Overlord of the Frontier" for his bravery and invincibility in the army. He was born into a noble family. His ancestors had followed Emperor Taizu through life and death to establish the Ming Dynasty. He was named the Duke of Zhenguo, and was granted a red-lettered iron certificate and thousands of acres of fertile land.

Although it is said that the grace of a gentleman will be cut off after five generations, by the time of the Yuan and Qing dynasties, many descendants of the founding ministers had lost their ability to succeed them and their family backgrounds were not as good as before. However, the Duan family was different. They had many talented people and were very prestigious in the army.

He and Xie Yun had no grudges against each other, and the military generals and civil officials had little intersection. If there was any entanglement, it started when the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo was arranging a marriage for Duan Gui. The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo asked the emperor to grant a marriage for her son to the daughter of Lord Shen, the chief priest of Jinling. However, the Shen family refused to agree to the marriage, using the excuse that their daughter had already been engaged to the Xie family in the capital.

The marriage between the Shen and Xie families was reasonable. Later, when Shen Lingyi married and moved to the capital, Duan Gui disappeared from the capital. No one knew where he went. There were rumors that he went to Jinling.

Duan Gui's eyes were filled with infinite hatred. The Xie family betrothed their daughter to the Xie family who proposed marriage later. Because the Xie family's grandmother was the Shen family's aunt, the Shen family naturally considered marrying their daughter to Xie Yun first, which was a good idea.

But he knew that Shen Lingyi was attracted to Xie Yun, so she rejected him. Shen Lingyi was only fifteen years old at the time. What did she know? She was deceived by Xie Yun, a hypocritical and sour scholar.

Shen Lingyi's life after marriage was indeed not good, like she was in a fire pit. After he learned about what happened in the inner house of Xie's mansion, he felt sorry for Shen Lingyi. Shen Lingyi's family was far away, so he had to support her.

"Brother Duan, you may have drunk too much. Come, go for a horse race with me to sober up." Zhang Fu, who followed Duan Gui and was about to go on the field together, said solemnly while sitting on the horse.

Zhang Fu, who was not far away, heard Duan Gui calling someone else's wife's name and felt something was wrong. The daughter of the Shen family was already married. If he really loved someone, he should consider her reputation. By doing this, wouldn't that make the married woman disliked by her husband's family?

Moreover... Xie Yun is now the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and military pay and supplies will not have to go through him in the future. He really thinks that his good brother Duan Gui has lost his mind.

He dismounted, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you for your forgiveness, sir. Brother Duan drank too much at the banquet just now and didn't know his place. You are a magnanimous person. Please don't bother with him." As he said that, he pulled Duan Gui away.

Xie Yun did not answer. His expression was calm, and his sharp eyes looked at Duan Gui, who was showing a provocative look.

Duan Gui raised his lips slightly and pointed the whip at Caitou, "Xie Yun, I know why you didn't bring her here, because you don't dare to let her know that there are better men than you in this world. I just feel sorry for Ling Yi. She is young and has no experience. She married you ignorantly. If you dare to treat her badly, I, Duan Gui, will be the first one to not let you go."

Zhang Fu laughed dryly twice, trying to keep his composure, and scolded, "Brother Duan, you really drank too much. Go and sober up by running a horse."

He hit the butt of the horse that Duan Gui was riding with a whip, and the horse got the signal and trotted off.

Duan Gui pulled on the horse's bridle, with a look of confidence on his face, and turned sideways and said, "Xie Yun, I know why you didn't bring her here, because you don't dare to let her know that there are better men than you in this world. I just feel sorry for Ling Yi."

Xie Yun's face was calm, he smiled slightly and turned to leave. The Minister of Revenue Huang, who had been keeping an eye on him, saw Xie Yun leaving and asked, "What happened over there just now?"

One of the officials looked over, with a hint of sneer on his lips, and leaned over to whisper in Mr. Huang's ear, "The young master of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion said something to Mr. Xie. Mr. Xie didn't look very well. Judging from his appearance, he must have gone to the back mountain, right?"

Mr. Huang frowned and looked at his subordinates with a puzzled look.

A meaningful smile appeared in the corner of the subordinate's eyes, "I seem to have heard this somewhere before, saying that General Duan once asked to marry the daughter of Shen Jijiu's family..."

Lord Huang frowned, his face solemn. The man did not dare to keep him in suspense and said vaguely, "Lord Xie's wife is the daughter of Shen Jijiu."

Huang, who was a very important figure, understood this and shook his head and sighed, "Young man..."

Then they continued to watch the polo match and did not ask Xie Yun to come to the observation deck quickly. After all, anyone who encountered such a thing would need to find a place to adjust their mood.

The emperor sat at the top, and on his right sat Concubine Zhang, the most favored concubine in the harem.

She was dressed in a bright yellow palace dress, looking beautiful and noble. She sat quietly beside the emperor, her eyes always absent-minded, as if she was not interested in the polo match.

She glanced casually outside the venue and saw Xie Yun going to the back mountain. Lady Zhang lowered her thick eyelashes, and a hint of calculation quickly flashed across her calm eyes.

Yan smiled and looked at the emperor who was concentrating on watching the polo match: "Your Majesty, the sun is at its highest point, and I can't stand it anymore. Can you allow me to go back to the inner palace to cool off?"

"Look at you, a person who is extremely afraid of the heat, but you just can't leave me and insist on coming. Do you regret it now?" Emperor Yuanqing put his arm around her slender shoulders and joked.

"Your Majesty..." Concubine Zhang raised her head and glared at him.

The "future" emperor waved his sleeves, and Concubine Zhang bowed, thanked him and took her leave.

*

Concubine Zhang lifted her skirt and walked towards the back mountain, followed by her trusted confidants, and they were protected all the way to the back mountain.

She and the two maids looked around cautiously. Lady Zhang said coldly, "Watch out! No one can come over here."

The maid bowed and left, going to guard different places.

The waterfall was cascading, the water was gurgling, and Xie Yun was standing by the railing in the Canglang Pavilion built against the mountain.

Lady Zhang narrowed her eyes, and her eyes were filled with the determination of a hunter looking at his prey.