Chapter 4

Chapter 4

I had been so busy indulging myself that I never imagined keeping a lover on the side could be this expensive!

My mother-in-law had only just sent me a hundred taels of silver, and in barely over a month, it was all gone.

Looking at the countless new outfits in the wardrobe, I felt a headache coming on.

Zhao Chun came home carrying a pile of things and declared, full of swagger, “Hmph! Tomorrow, I’m going to your academy to cheer you on. I absolutely have to beat The one surnamed Liu!”

The academy was holding a cuju match, and Zhao Chun wanted to go watch.

The one surnamed Liu he was talking about was my archnemesis’s husband.

Those two never stopped competing with each other.

I wanted to speak, then stopped.

I thought to myself, Zhao Chun was just a kept lover. Why did he have to compare himself to someone else’s official husband?

But this Little Leopard had an extremely proud streak.

He had been with me for so long, yet the moment anyone brought up his status as a convicted slave, he would fly into a rage.

As for him being my kept lover, I simply assumed he knew perfectly well and was pretending not to, so I never brought it up for fear of upsetting him.

But sooner or later, I had to return to my family.

In another two months, I would be taking the Martial Examination.

If I passed, I would inevitably have to return to the capital.

If Zhao Chun got so used to being kept by me that all he knew was spending money and competing with others, he would have no way to support himself in the future and might end up drifting from woman to woman to survive.

With his personality, he was bound to suffer.

One night as husband and wife meant a hundred nights of affection.

I had to teach him that relying on women to live never led to anything good.

I pointed at the things he had bought and said coldly, “Return them.”

Zhao Chun was not afraid of me at all. He leaned in, wrapped his arms around me, and kissed me with shameless affection.

As he started undoing my clothes, he teased, “Playing the prim and proper lady now? You’ve been shut up in the academy for five days. Must have been stifling, right? Let me help you unwind.”

Zhao Chun had come well prepared. He had heated the bathwater early.

The two of us fooled around in the warm bath barrel for a while.

I had no idea where he learned it, but the way he bit me made my lower back go numb.

By the time I came back to my senses, it was already dark.

Zhao Chun nimbly cleaned us both up, then, without even putting on clothes, crawled under the quilt and pressed himself tightly against me.

Leaning against my side, he said happily, “In two months, you’ll be taking the Martial Examination. With your martial skill and learning, you’ll definitely place high. When the time comes, you’ll become an official, and I’ll open a clothing shop and manage the household for you. The two of us will live happily together.”

Ever since Zhao Chun lost his memory, he had been terribly insecure. He was always talking about us starting a family and living together.

Sometimes, he would wake from a nightmare, hold me, and kiss me again and again.

If I was too lazy to respond, he would kiss me harder and tease me until I did.

He made it sound so nice, saying I was the one who could not live without him.

But in truth, he was clearly the one who could not live without me.

Once, I helped the authorities with a case and stayed in the countryside for ten days.

And what did he do? He came running after me in a hurry.

He did not even care that I had just been caught in the rain. He dragged me into a narrow woodshed, hiding there as he kissed and held me.

Zhao Chun held me while we did it, crying the whole time. His eyes were red, making him look both breathtakingly handsome and pitiful.

“Li Yunzhou, I dreamed you didn’t want me anymore.”

When he was being spoiled and willful, he ordered me to buy this and that.

But when he was pitiful, he really did make one’s heart ache.

I coaxed him, “The case couldn’t be solved right away, so I couldn’t come back. How could I not want you?”

Who would have thought Zhao Chun actually had real ability?

The authorities had failed to solve the case in ten days, but eight hours after he arrived, he found the evidence and caught the criminal.

The culprit was a seasoned jianghu veteran with every sin in the book to his name.

I fought him for half an hour before finally taking him down.

When Zhao Chun saw the tear in my clothes, his face darkened as he cursed the authorities for keeping a bunch of useless freeloaders on their payroll.

But what I was thinking was this:

When Zhao Chun solved the case, he looked calm, composed, and highly experienced.

Before he fell into slavery as a convicted criminal, his identity had probably been anything but simple.

Out of kindness, I wanted to help him recover his memory.

Zhao Chun panicked first. “Li Yunzhou, are you trying to get rid of me so you can go cozy up to that slutty wine seller?”

Seeing him roll up his sleeves like he was about to go start a fight, I did not dare bring it up again.

The matter of parting ways dragged on and on.

Now the Martial Examination was right around the corner. I truly could not afford to delay any longer.

Before going to the academy, I gave Zhao Chun one tael of silver and said flatly, “This is your living allowance for two months. I’ll be secluding myself at the academy to study and practice martial arts. You’re on your own.”

Zhao Chun stared at me in disbelief. “One tael of silver for two months? Have you lost your mind?”

I said firmly, “I’ve pawned all those clothes of yours, and you’re no longer allowed to run tabs at restaurants. From now on, your three meals a day will be simple fare. You may buy only one outfit per season, and no more hairpins, belts, or sachets. If you’re unwilling to live like this, you’re welcome to leave.”

How could Zhao Chun possibly endure such grievance?

He demanded, “Li Yunzhou, have you fallen for someone else?!”

I said coldly, “If that’s what you think, then sure.”

Provoked by me, Zhao Chun kicked over a stool and sneered, “Fine! I stopped wanting to be your husband ages ago anyway!”

So I simply laid it bare. “Zhao Chun, stop pretending to be stupid. I was already married long ago. You’re only my kept lover. Did the human trafficker who sold you not tell you that?”

Zhao Chun looked as if he had been struck by lightning.

His face went pale, and he swayed on his feet, taking two steps back.

Zhao Chun gripped the edge of the table, his knuckles turning white, and said one word at a time, “A pauper like you, and you still learned to keep a lover? Li Yunzhou, since you’re this heartless, then from now on, we’re finished!”

Watching him hold back his tears, I felt a little sorry for him.

But then I thought of the letter my mother-in-law had sent.

You are finally going to take the Martial Examination. I long for your return!

Without you, this residence feels terribly deserted.

That bastard Zhao Qi sent a letter. Though he is no good at all, at least he is still chaste, and his looks are decent. If you’re willing, you can make do with him.

Remember to settle your outside affairs cleanly. Do not let trivial matters between men and women affect your bright future.

Forget it.

Zhao Chun was nice, but it was impossible for me to divorce for his sake.

My mother-in-law might indulge me, but the Zhao Family was still a respectable household.

It was one thing for me to keep a little lover for fun all the way out in Jiangnan, but once I reached the capital, I had to leave Zhao Qi some dignity.

I could not bear to let such a wonderful mother-in-law take risks for me.

Taking this chance to make a clean break with Zhao Chun was best for everyone.