Chapter 20 - Gossip

Chapter 20 - Gossip

"Have you heard about what happened within General Bai's estate?" someone asked in a hushed voice, his eyes sparkling with excitement as he looked both ways to ensure that no one from the Bai family was present.
The voice was neither loud nor low, and everyone within the restaurant looked at the speaker with curiosity.
Everyone loved some good gossip, especially when it was about the prominent families in the Empire.
"You know that the dumb Miss Bai married Prince Yun, I mean everyone knows that, but today they returned to the Bai family to pay their respect to Miss Bai's mother.
"What happened was that they had not placed her name, or epitaph in the family shrine so they could not visit her.
"Worse was it that four of the young misses wanted to bully Miss Bai, and followed her when she left the main hall. When she was looking at the fish swimming in the pond, these four women wanted to make Miss Bai lose all her reputation by pushing her into the water.
"Fortunately, Miss Bai was lucky to step aside at the right time, and it was the four of them who ended up soaked, but that was not enough; they proceeded to start tugging and beating her!
"Miss Bai was seriously scared, and the four other misses of the Bai family did not even care that many servants were ogling at them.
"Their clothes were soaking wet and sticking to their bodies, showing off every curve and bump, but they did not at all care. Instead, they continued to bully their own sister!
"Prince Yun came to see it and saved her, but the situation was so embarrassing that he instantly left with Miss Bai after demanding an explanation from the General's estate."
The man was passed a mug filled with beer, which he downed in a few gulps. He saw that he had their full focus, and his eyes gleamed cunningly.
"Miss Bai is immensely pitiful," he continued. "She was continuously bullied when she lived within the General's Estate. Even the servants were ruthless towards her, but the worst were the two generals.
"We all respect the Old General, but he never protected her, only saying that she was not allowed to die. Who can imagine how she has lived until now?
"Not to mention the Young General is the reason she is dumb and deaf and mute!"
Everyone was listening with bated breath. Although they knew that the dumb Miss Bai was not treated well, they had never heard such details.
This man told them everything he knew. He did not even have to exaggerate; the things that the original Bai Rouyun had experienced were genuinely horrible.
Finally, he finished his talk with a few sentences that shocked the crowd into silence.
"All this is heard from the servants in the General's Estate. I know the people from there, they are my family, but something strange happened, it seems that on the wedding night, Bai Rouyun had been poisoned and sedated by the Bai family.
"Although it was his majesty who ordered her to marry Prince Yun, the Bai family wanted to give a chance to another one of their daughters, so they tried killing Bai Rouyun, letting someone else take over her rightful place.
"I really hope that she will be happy in the future. Also, I heard that the Prince is currently looking for a doctor to heal her. It is not impossible, just that it will be challenging."
Hearing the words, everyone was suddenly buzzing amongst themselves; the sounds of voices could be heard all over as they were discussing what he had said.
Seeing that everyone was busy, the man smirked as he left the restaurant. He found an alley, found a small bottle of medicinal liquid, smeared it on his face, and suddenly his entire appearance changed.
If Bai Rouyun were here, she would instantly recognize the person who showed up as being one of the shadow guards.
It was not only him who had been tasked with going out to spread the news, a whole twenty shadow guards were sent out, and all of them had altered their faces and entered various inns and restaurants to spread the news.
In less than a day, the entire capital was aware of how cruelly the Bai Family had treated Bai Rouyun. They were also informed that she was not born being dumb, deaf, and mute, but had become so because the Young General refused to bring a doctor to her when she was young and suffering from a horrible fever.
At the same time, it was also known that four of the young misses within the Bai Family had disregarded men ogling at their bodies, just for the sake of bullying Bai Rouyun. Such behavior was impossible to accept. And no man would ever marry a woman who had been seen by other men.
When the Old and Young General finally realized what had happened, it was already too late. Their faces were swept across the ground, and the name they had established for generations was crumbling.
Even their business was suffering under the gossip, many knew which businesses were owned by the Bai family, and hence they refused to use their services.
At this time, while everything outside was on the verge of mayhem for the Bai family, Bai Rouyun was not even aware that she had become the most pitied person in the capital.
She was busy cultivating at home; a smile was adorning her lips as she felt the energy pulsating within her body.
But although she was in a hurry to cultivate, she understood the importance of a solid foundation, so she was not rushing anything.