I was born the most honored noblewoman in all of Great Jin. My mother was the Grand Princess, and my father was the Grand Tutor to the emperor.
My father personally chose Lu Jian, the new top scorer in the imperial examinations, as my husband. He said Lu Jian had the talent to govern the realm and would make an excellent match.
For the sake of his career, my Xie family called in countless favors and paved his path to success.
In three years, he rose from a lowly Hanlin Academy compiler to a vice minister in one of the Six Ministries.
Our wedding day was fast approaching when, at a family banquet, he asked my parents to postpone the wedding.
My father frowned. "Why?"
Lu Jian knelt on the floor, tears streaming down his face. "It's not that I am unwilling, but my mentor, on his deathbed, entrusted his only daughter to my care. If I don't marry her, she'll have no choice but to spend the rest of her life in a convent. I promised my mentor I would make her my wife and give her a lifetime of glory."
Silence fell over the entire hall. My mother trembled with rage.
I only smiled, set down my chopsticks, and asked him softly, "So, Vice Minister Lu, are you saying you'll give up the great support of my Xie family for the sake of an orphan?"
He looked up at me, eyes burning with calculation and affection. "No, our engagement remains unchanged. But her circumstances are so pitiful that only the position of principal wife can protect her from gossip. Your marrying beneath you to wed me is an act of affection; her marrying beneath her station is a matter of honor. I'm sorry to ask you to enter my household first as a favored concubine. Once I rise to the highest rank, I'll promote you to principal wife."
I picked up the wine before me and splashed it across his self-satisfied face.
He must have forgotten: daughters of the Xie family are only ever married into a household, never married out. And they certainly never become anyone's concubines.
