Xie Mengcai, the illegitimate daughter of the Vice Minister of Personnel, is desperate to escape being used as a pawn and married off to a powerful official over fifty years old. In her haste, she makes a marriage contract with Cheng Linxu, a frontier officer returning to the capital to report on his duties, who is also being pressured to marry. They agree to pretend to be husband and wife, then amicably “divorce” after a year, each getting what they want and going their separate ways.
After the wedding, Xie Mengcai relies on her intelligence and caution to find her footing in the danger-ridden General’s residence, keeping the household in perfect order. Cheng Linxu, cold in appearance and poor with words, is gradually drawn to this seemingly delicate yet remarkably resilient woman through their many casual encounters. He watches her quietly resolve disputes within the household and is surprised to discover that she can identify poisons by smell, allowing her to evade repeated attempts on her life.
While Cheng Linxu is away guarding the frontier, they exchange letters. Their messages, at first limited to a few formal words about business, slowly turn into everyday accounts of the storms and snow along the border and the changing seasons in the capital. As the fighting intensifies, Xie Mengcai draws on her knowledge of medicinal herbs and textiles to find ways to send urgently needed supplies to the frontier troops, becoming Cheng Linxu’s strongest support. The ice around Cheng Linxu’s heart gradually melts for her.
As the year-long term nears its end, news reaches the capital that Cheng Linxu has died in battle. The Xie family immediately pressures Xie Mengcai to “die for her chastity” or remarry. Unwilling to believe Cheng Linxu is dead, she stands up to her family alone and secretly investigates his whereabouts. Just as she reaches a desperate impasse, Cheng Linxu, now a great general, returns through a sea of enemies with his armor stained red with blood. He shields her behind him and tears up their “divorce agreement” in front of everyone.
“I, Cheng Linxu, will have no wife but you for the rest of my life. Our marriage was fake before. From now on, I’ll stake my life on making it real.”
