Rizal left Paris for Brussels in January 1890 due to the high cost of living in Paris during an exposition and the distractions of social life there that hampered his writing. In Brussels, he focused on writing his second novel while also contributing articles to La Solidaridad under pseudonyms. He received worrying news from home about his family suffering due to land disputes. Plans to return home were delayed when he learned of a court case appeal in Spain regarding the disputes. He traveled to Madrid in July 1890 instead to oversee the legal case, bringing some cheer from a romance before departing Brussels.