Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Although Li Shiyin’s words were subtle, Xi’er and my wet nurse understood them instantly, just as I did.

It was no surprise. My wet nurse was an experienced woman, and although Xi’er was unmarried, she had grown up alongside me.

Before I was wed, I was the daughter of Chief Clerk Xie.

My father, Chief Clerk Xie, was the head of all officials within the Chancellor’s Mansion and an extremely strict man.

He placed great importance on rules and etiquette, as well as the education of his children. Consequently, I began learning to read and write at a very young age.

However, the books I read were all of the variety like *Admonitions for Women*, *Inner Training*, and the *Classic of Filial Daughters*.

Xi’er was my personal maid, and through constant exposure, she had managed to learn a few characters herself.

I remember that before my wedding, my mother had my wet nurse place a scroll at the bottom of my dowry chest.

My wet nurse told me that the scroll could only be opened on my wedding night and that I was to view it together with my husband.

But I was far too curious. One night, while my wet nurse was away, I pulled Xi’er over and opened it with great anticipation.

As it turned out, those erotic illustrations of men and women in the throes of passion terrified us both.

I still remember a line of text written on that scroll-

“Fire-Avoiding Secret Pleasure Pictures, where Yin and Yang harmonize.”

Later, the candle in Xi’er’s and my hands accidentally fell, burning a hole right through the scroll.

I swear it wasn’t intentional. I only blame those so-called Fire-Avoiding Secret Pleasure Pictures for not being fire-resistant at all. Furthermore, the men depicted within were all green-faced and long-fanged, looking hideous and frightening.

To the me of that time, it was undoubtedly a terrifying thing.

So, before marrying Cheng Wenting, I had nightmares for several nights in a row.

I dreamed that within the pitch-black bed curtains, a green-faced, long-fanged monster bit my neck, using its massive hands to tear the skin from my back, slowly stripping my bones and devouring my flesh inch by inch until I was swallowed whole.

After waking up, I, who had always been of a gentle and submissive temperament, ran to my mother to cry and complain for the first time.

I told her I didn’t like Young Master Cheng and didn’t want to get married.

My marriage to Cheng Wenting was arranged by my parents through a matchmaker-not to mention that the matchmaker was Chancellor Fan’s mother, the highly respected Old Matriarch of the Chancellor’s Mansion.

My father was the Chief Clerk serving Chancellor Fan, while Cheng Wenting was the Chancellor’s cousin. The late Old Censor Cheng was his father, and he himself had been appointed Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince at the age of twenty, making him a renowned talent in the capital.

Countless noble ladies in the capital yearned to marry him. No matter how one looked at it, the Xie Family was the one getting the better end of this deal.

Because of this, when my father learned of my complaints, his response was a furious slap across my face.