"When I was young, Chen Xian didn't guard against me much. Sometimes, I saw women coming to his home. The most frequent one was Third Brother Guan's wife from our village!"
Meng Zhao was not surprised. In affairs of illicit passion like this, the vast majority involved married women. Young maidens still had some reservations; even if they truly gave themselves, they would often marry afterward. Otherwise, it would become a huge problem.
Although Chen Xian had considerable fame and great strength in Little Cold Village, if he proved faithless and heartless, seducing and abandoning women—especially unmarried girls in the village—he would certainly become the target of everyone's condemnation. Men like Han Dali in the village would not tolerate him either.
Gu Xiaoqing and Wen San could serve as examples.
All their lovers were either widows or married women.
Widows were easy enough to handle, while married women came in different circumstances.
Some families were poor, barely able to make ends meet, their lives full of hardship. If they attached themselves to wealthy households like Gu Xiaoqing's or Wen San's, life would become much easier. Even if their husbands found out, they would mostly acquiesce.
First, they could not afford to provoke such figures. Second, their families received benefits, and at least they would not starve to death.
Women, well, that was just how it was. Once they married, they were no longer worth much.
Of course, there were also hot-blooded men. Even Gu Xiaoqing, Wen San, or men like Chen Xian would not dare provoke them. If anyone touched their women, it would be a fight to the death. Even if they could defeat the man, word getting out would still ruin their reputation. Thus, when acting, they deliberately chose women with gentle temperaments and impoverished homes.
Other women