Chapter 1
Edward Quan ·
On the day of my wedding, my husband carried a courtesan straight into the bridal hall.
The red candles were still blazing, and guests filled both sides of the hall. Yet there he was, holding the woman tightly in his arms as he knelt before his mother.
“Mother, please grant me your blessing.”
“O Yingying nearly lost her life because of me today.”
“Your son wants to take her into the household and give her a proper place.”
The bridal hall fell silent.
Every gaze turned toward me.
They all assumed that, as the legitimate daughter of a prominent family, I would fly into a rage after being humiliated on my own wedding day. Surely I would raise such a storm in the Wei household that no one could put it right.
After all, what bride in this world had to watch her new husband carry another woman in and demand that she be accepted as a concubine the moment she crossed the threshold?
Yet I only smiled.
I accepted the concubine’s tea with my own hands, then slipped the jade bracelet from my wrist and placed it on hers. With magnanimity, I welcomed her into the family.
Everyone thought I had swallowed the insult until I had no pride left.
Only I knew the truth.
That filthy pair had delivered themselves into my hands, begging me to show them a way to die.
And I had always been a kind, benevolent woman.
If they had asked so sincerely, how could I refuse to give them exactly what they wanted?
1.
As it happened, the young lord of the Wei family had just sent eighty chests of betrothal gifts into the Sheng residence when word of his kept woman spread through Bianjing.
My father held the title of Junior Secretary of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and was known for his integrity. In truth, however, he was weak-willed, forever protecting the appearance of dignity and refinement whenever trouble arose.
Even over such a humiliating match with the Wei family, he had not dared to refuse outright.
All he could do was shut the doors and vent his frustration by weakly slapping the table.
“That Wei Jing! Does he really take our Sheng family for soft persimmons he can squeeze at will?”
My mother clutched her handkerchief so tightly her silver teeth nearly ground together.
“The Wei family dared to hide such a disgrace from us. If you marry into that household, you’ll suffer nothing but hardship. Let Mother… let Mother have the betrothal gifts sent back at once. We can’t let you be wronged!”
She made as if to leave, but her steps grew slower with every one.
When no one stopped her, she turned back, embarrassed.
“Only… we must inspect the gifts carefully first. We can’t let them set a trap for us.”
I stroked my vermilion-painted nails and smiled coolly at the two people before me, both pretending to be more resolute than they were.
My father was mediocre, and my mother soft-hearted. From the time I was little, I had made all the decisions, great and small, in our household.
“Never mind, Mother. Don’t trouble yourself.”
Impatient, I cut short their little performance.
“If I break off the engagement today, tomorrow all of Bianjing will be saying that the Sheng family’s young lady is jealous and petty. Would you have the good name of my father, the Junior Secretary of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, ruined over a little filth?”
“Forget it. At worst, he’ll take one more concubine. If that’s what he wants, let him.”
“For the sake of the Sheng family, your daughter can afford to be magnanimous.”
2.
On my wedding day, the Wei residence was packed with guests.
Amid the lively wedding music, Wei Jing and I were about to bow to heaven and earth when a young servant hurried into the bridal hall and whispered something in his ear.
Wei Jing’s expression changed at once. In front of every guest, he dared to draw the sword at his side and stride out.
Before long, he returned, supporting a disheveled woman whose clothes were askew and hair loose.
Her face was pale, a trace of blood still at the corner of her mouth. Her almond-shaped eyes shimmered with tears, and she looked so frail and helpless that anyone might pity her.
She was barely twenty, with the beauty of a hibiscus wet with dew. Her shy smile mingled with glistening tears, as if she had a thousand things to say but could not utter a word.
Wei Jing dropped to his knees before the Wei matriarch. His voice shook with emotion, but his resolve was firm.
“Mother, Yingying nearly lost her life today while protecting your son’s virtue! I beg you to show mercy. Let me take her into the household and give her a proper place!”
The Wei matriarch slammed her hand on the table in fury.
“Absurd! It is your wedding day, and yet you draw your sword in public for a low woman. Have you no sense of propriety?”