Chapter 2

Chapter 2

At the beginning of this year, the young emperor held his grand wedding. Out of nowhere, he remembered that he still had an elder half sister locked away in Shangyang Palace.

Moved by pity, he personally came to bring me out of the cold palace and even wanted to arrange a good marriage for me.

This infuriated Empress Dowager Liu. She believed I had bewitched her son and tried several times to grant me a length of white silk.

For a time, mother and son were at a complete impasse.

In the end, the emperor took a step back and made the Empress Dowager’s niece an Imperial Consort.

Only then did the Empress Dowager relent, satisfied, and allow the emperor to bestow a marriage upon me.

At first, the husband the emperor chose for me was the second son of the Duke of Wu’an-Rong Zhaonan.

He said Rong Zhaonan was handsome, skilled in both letters and martial arts, and had boundless prospects ahead of him. Countless noble young ladies from prestigious families admired him.

A month ago, the emperor had specially instructed the empress to arrange a Plum Blossom Banquet in the Snow, inviting titled madams, noble young masters, and noble young ladies from across the capital.

First, so they could formally pay their respects to me.

Second, so Rong Zhaonan and I could meet.

Who would have thought that on my way to the banquet, an unfamiliar young palace maid carrying wine would carelessly splash blood-red grape wine onto my skirt?

I hurried to the temporary quarters to change.

But just then, a quarrel suddenly broke out outside.

It turned out the foolish eldest son of the Duke of Wu’an’s family had barged in, shouting that there were mad monkeys from Mount Emei fighting inside the quarters and that he wanted to go in to watch the excitement.

The guards hastily hauled the fool away.

As luck would have it, I was suddenly seized by unbearable abdominal pain and could not attend the banquet.

I thought it was nothing more than a small mishap. Who knew that very night, vicious rumors would spread through the capital?

They claimed that while I was bathing and changing, the Duke of Wu’an’s foolish eldest son had seen everything.

They even said that I, an old maiden who had been alone for years, saw that the fool was good-looking and seduced him into sharing my bed.

The emperor flew into a rage and wanted to investigate the matter thoroughly.

But the Empress Dowager rebuked him coldly, asking whether he thought the scandal was not ugly enough already. She said I had utterly disgraced the imperial family and should return to Shangyang Palace as soon as possible.

The emperor advised me that Rong Yi and Rong Zhaonan were, in truth, the same. Both were legitimate sons of a ducal household, so it made no difference which one I married.

And just like that, my husband changed from Rong Zhaonan, the second son of the Duke of Wu’an, to Rong Yi, the eldest son.

In the end, I married a fool.

…

I sighed and turned to ask Mama Shi beside me, “The Consort probably won’t come back tonight, will he?”

Mama Shi was not sure either and said she would go out to take a look. She had only taken a few steps when she suddenly turned back with a smile. “He’s here, he’s here. The Duke personally brought the Consort over.”

As she spoke, I saw the Duke of Wu’an appear in the doorway with his arms around that foolish son of his, who was a full head taller than him.

I had no idea what the Duke said to him, but Rong Yi, who had been throwing a tantrum just now, was now very quiet. Obediently, he walked in by himself.

My heart, which had only just settled, rose into my throat again.

Ah. It seemed there would be no avoiding this wedding night after all.

A moment later, all the attendants in the room withdrew, leaving only Rong Yi and me.

The red dragon-and-phoenix candles burned in silence, while outside, the snow was falling thick and fast.

Rong Yi sat at the round table, happily eating pastries and drinking wine, without even glancing at me.

To be honest, I truly hated this fool. If he had not caused that disturbance that day, shouting nonsense, my reputation would not have been ruined.

In anger, I slammed my fist against the bed.

Rong Yi was so startled that he choked on his wine. Covering his mouth, he coughed violently, his face turning bright red.

“Why are you still here?” My tone was far from kind.

Rong Yi stood up blankly. After thinking for a long while, he slapped his forehead. “I remember. Father said you’re my wife, and tonight is our wedding night.”

I gave a cold laugh. “You idiot. Do you even know what a wedding night is?”

Rong Yi scratched the side of his face with his index finger. “Mama taught me the other day. A wedding night means undoing my wife’s buttons, laying her flat, then spreading her legs, then putting my big worm into-”

“Shut up!”

My face burned scarlet with embarrassment. What on earth had the people of the Duke’s Mansion been teaching this fool? How could he say such things so bluntly?

“You, you-” I pointed toward the door. “Get out!”

Rong Yi’s mouth drooped in grievance. With his head hanging, he obediently walked outside.

But just as he reached the door, he turned back and ran straight toward the bed.

In a panic, I pulled out a hairpin and aimed it at him. “What are you trying to do? Don’t come any closer!”

At first, I thought this fool was going to force himself on me, or beat and humiliate me. Who would have thought that he would simply lie down on the floor, rest his head on his arm, cross one leg over the other, and close his eyes to sleep?

“What are you doing?” I was still badly shaken.

Rong Yi smiled. “Father said that from today on, you’re my wife. I’m a proper man, so I have to protect my wife! Yuanyuan, you can sleep peacefully on the bed.”

Yuanyuan was my childhood name.

It had been more than ten years since I had heard anyone call me that.