Chapter 1
My father was the Duke of Zhenguo, famed for his victories in battle.
Everyone said he had killed too many people on the battlefield, and that was why his daughter had been born different.
Ever since I was little, I had been a little slower than everyone else to speak and act.
It had made me the butt of plenty of jokes.
We had consulted physician after physician, all to no avail.
Gradually, I stopped wanting to speak.
In time, people forgot about it.
Until the year I turned sixteen, when Father took me to the palace for the emperor’s birthday celebrations.
After several rounds of wine, the emperor suddenly began reminiscing with Father about the days when they had ridden into battle together.
Since I was Father’s only child, the emperor trusted him more than he trusted the other military commanders.
It was a familiar scene.
What I hadn’t expected was for the emperor to mention me.
“Ah Shu is sixteen this year, isn’t she?” He looked at me. “Is there anyone you fancy?”
I lowered my head. Only after a long moment did I shake it.
He took that for maidenly shyness.
He had quite forgotten that I had always been a little slower than other people.
And so he started going down the list.
“What about the crown prince? He’s old enough to take a crown princess.” The emperor smiled at me.
The crown prince’s face darkened. The empress, seated beside the emperor, looked delighted.
I blinked without speaking.
Unoffended, the emperor went on. “Prince Qin, then? He’s fought beside your father several times. A brave fellow. Do you like him?”
I kept my head lowered, showing only my reddening ears.
When I still said nothing, he continued, “Then Prince Rui. He’s steady and well-mannered. You would make a good match.”
My eyes lit up.
Naturally, I had heard of Prince Rui’s fine reputation in the capital. Handsome and gracious, he was the man of many a young lady’s dreams.
If I had to marry one of the emperor’s sons,
Prince Rui would be an excellent choice.
But some time had passed before I thought to nod.
The emperor’s brows shifted slightly. Tentatively, he asked, “Surely you don’t mean Prince Yan?”
I nodded.
That nod had actually been meant for Prince Rui.
But now everyone thought I had nodded for Prince Yan.
Not far across from me, Prince Yan, Shen Yi, swayed in his seat. His wine cup fell to the floor.
Everyone present was just as startled as he was.
For one simple reason.
His reputation was dreadful. The mere mention of him struck terror into people throughout the capital.
He was the demon whose name could frighten crying children into silence.
“Absolutely not.” Father and the empress spoke at once.
The empress said gently, “Prince Yan deals constantly with prisons and criminal cases, and he is cold by nature. I hear there isn’t a single maid in his residence. I’m afraid Ah Shu would suffer.”
The maids present drew sharp breaths at that.
Rumor had it that several maids had once been carried out of Prince Yan’s residence covered in blood. Afterward, every maid in the household had disappeared.
Father turned even paler.
He hurriedly knelt. “Your Majesty is most gracious. But my daughter is still young, and she is my only child. I had hoped to keep her at home a little longer.”
People began whispering among themselves.
Some said Father’s military achievements had made him so powerful that he dared defy the emperor’s wishes.
Others said Prince Yan was so savage that no woman in the world would dare marry him.
I stole a look at Shen Yi.
Somehow he had acquired another cup, and appeared wholly uninterested in what was being said.
But my eyesight was excellent.
I saw his long, lowered lashes tremble again and again.
Like the ripples spreading, one after another, across the wine in his cup.
The emperor sighed. “It seems I presumed too much.”
Anxious to ease the awkwardness, the crown prince introduced another subject.
That was when I said softly, “I am willing to marry Prince Yan.”
The hall fell silent.
Shen Yi dropped his cup again.