I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 179 Harmony
Bai Rouyin returned to the Yang residence by carriage. Before she could even tidy her clothes after getting off the carriage, she was summoned to the main hall by Zhang, the dowry maid of Madam Yang.

Zhang shouted, "Kneel down!"

Bai Rouyin raised her chin, "What mistake did my daughter-in-law make that requires her to kneel?"

"What wrong have you committed?" Madam Zhang raised her eyebrows. "Just because you didn't uphold the virtues of a wife!"

"Please be careful with your words, Mother-in-law. Since my marriage, I have always upheld the virtues of a wife. When have I ever had any dealings with men outside the marriage?"

"Ha!" Zhang sneered, "You've already forgotten what you just did?"

"Pulling and begging the General of the Cavalry in full view of everyone, have you no shame?"

“How can General Gu be considered an outsider?” Bai Rouyin retorted, insisting that she was right. “My father served the Prince for over twenty years, and my family has a very close relationship with the Prince Xuan’s mansion. Although I am not destined to be husband and wife with General Gu, we have a bond that has lasted since childhood.”

"My father has been punished, and as his daughter, I wish I could take his place. What's wrong with running around pleading for him?"

As Bai Rouyin spoke, hatred flashed in her eyes, "Do you want to be like my father-in-law and mother-in-law, wishing you could sever all ties with the Bai family?"

"How dare you!" Master Yang, who had been hiding behind the screen, strode angrily to Bai Rouyin and raised his hand to strike her down. "Who gave you the audacity to speak to your in-laws like that!"

*Thud!* Bai Rouyin lost her balance and fell to the ground, clutching her right cheek and looking up in disbelief. "You dare hit me?"

"You are disrespectful to your parents-in-law and have no filial piety or virtues whatsoever. Even if we divorce you, no one in the Yang family will say a word against you!"

"You dare!" Bai Rouyin shrieked, "I'm going home right now, and I'll have my parents stand up for me!"

"Go! Go now!" Master Yang roared, his eyes wide. "I also want to ask the Earl of Zhongyong and his wife how they raised their daughter, who doesn't even understand the most basic manners and sense of shame!"

"In broad daylight, in front of the entire city and Princess Zhaoshan, you knelt on the ground and begged the General of the Cavalry, 'Your man is not dead yet, my Yang family is not extinct yet!'"

Master Yang patted his face, "What you've done is tantamount to tearing the Yang family's face off and trampling it underfoot!"

"If the Yang family weren't powerless and had no say in front of Prince Xuan, why would I, a woman from the inner quarters, need to step forward to plead for them?"

Bai Rouyin retorted, "If Father-in-law is so powerful in the inner quarters, why did I have to run around trying to find positions for the Yang family's sons in the army before?!"

"You!" Master Yang was speechless.

Madam Zhang stepped forward to defuse the situation, saying, "I understand that you are pleading for your father, but as a woman, you should plead with the Princess Consort or the Crown Prince's wife, or at the very least, Princess Zhaoshan."

"No matter how deep your friendship with the General of the Cavalry was since childhood, now that you are married and have your own families, you should know to avoid suspicion."

“The Princess and the Crown Princess only manage the internal affairs of their fiefdoms and never interfere in politics. My mother and I have requested an audience many times, but the Princess will not say a word on our behalf. Later, she even claimed to be ill and refused to see us.”

Utterly heartless and ruthless.

As for Tang Zhao, Bai Rouyin sneered. She would rather die than beg for Tang Zhao's mercy!
"In the end, my in-laws just wanted to bully me because my father lost his official position and military power, but unfortunately they couldn't do as they wished."

Bai Rouyin pushed away Lian Qiao, who came forward to help her, and stood up on her own. "General Gu has already agreed to help my father return to the army," she said with a hearty laugh. "With my father's ability and prestige, he will soon accumulate military merits and be promoted again, becoming a General of Chariots and Cavalry once more. At that time..."

Hearing Bai Rouyin's confident vows, Master Yang was suddenly filled with regret.

If only she had held back and let Zhang take the lead. Seeing that Master Yang's momentum had weakened, Zhang gritted her teeth and said fiercely, "How could my Yang family be the kind of family that flatters the powerful and bullies the weak? Let me tell you, whether your Bai family is in power or not has nothing to do with your misconduct and punishment today."

Bai Rouyin sneered.

"I'm giving you two choices today: either resign or go to a nunnery to cultivate yourself. You can return to the Yang family when you've learned proper virtues and manners!"

"Ha! I wouldn't even want to dirty my shoes in a filthy place like the Yang family," Bai Rouyin ignored Lian Qiao, who kept giving her meaningful glances. "Want to be divorced? Dream on!"

“I have done nothing wrong since I got married, so why should I ask to be divorced?” Bai Rouyin turned around when she heard footsteps. “I only accept a divorce.”

Yang Zhui entered the main hall, stood in front of Bai Rouyin, and bowed, "Father, Mother, Rouyin and I have a deep affection for each other, please forgive your son for not being able to..."

"Who has deep feelings for you!" Bai Rouyin said sharply. "If I had no other choice, why would I marry you!"

Lianqiao lowered her head and closed her eyes; though she was physically present, her soul had already flown to the heavens.

Yang Zhui turned around and looked at Bai Rouyin.

"Do you think I don't know why you married me? You just want to use the power of my Bai family to climb the social ladder!"

"But I don't care! I'll give you a dowry of money to help you make friends with your colleagues and manage your subordinates. I'll help you build connections with other generals' wives and gather connections. I'll use all the rice and grain I have to earn a good reputation for you among the people!"

Bai Rouyin's tone was full of disdain, "But you're so useless! A whole year, no matter how much I help you, no matter how much your father promotes you, you've been stuck in the same place, with absolutely no ability to make progress!"

"Gu Ci has now been promoted to General of Lanzhou Guard, a second-rank military officer, while you are still a fifth-rank vanguard!"

"Yang Zhui, you may be willing to live a life of mediocrity, but I am not!" Bai Rouyin raised her chin. "I, Bai Rouyin, am born into a noble family, possess both beauty and talent, and my birth chart is extremely auspicious, destined to be a person of high status for life!"

"Yang Zhui, remember this: it's not you who divorced me, but I, Bai Rouyin, who abandoned you."

After Bai Rouyin finished speaking, she straightened her back, turned around, and strode away.

Inside the main hall, Yang Zhui suddenly kicked a chair away. This was the first time that Master Yang and Madam Zhang had seen Yang Zhui so angry, and they dared not add fuel to the fire.

"Miss, are we just going back like this?" Lian Qiao felt sorry for the dowry that had been taken to the Yang family. Even if they were to divorce, the dowry should still be taken with them.

"It's just a bunch of worthless things, consider it a reward for the Yang family," Bai Rouyin said indifferently. "When I get married in the future, my mother will definitely prepare something better for me."

"What the young lady says is true," Lian Qiao said with a forced smile, though tears were streaming down her face.

What did she owe Bai Rouyin in her past life that she had to be Bai Rouyin's maid in this life?

At the Zhongyong Earl's villa, Bai Weigang had just calmed Zhao Shi down when Bai Rouyin came in crying, exaggerating her experiences at the Yang family and insisting on a divorce.

“How dare the Yang family hit you? Those damned bastards!” Zhao cried out again, “Lord, you must do justice for Rouyin!”

Seeing the clear handprint on his daughter's fair face, Bai Wei was furious. His daughter, whom he had cherished for twenty years, had been bullied like this. He immediately got up to go and beat the Yang family, but he pulled on his shoulder and back, injuring himself and falling back onto the bed in pain. He could only pound the bed and curse angrily.

"How dare you, Zhu Zi!"

(End of this chapter)