For more, check out my column, The Butcher's Daughter and Her Scholar. Give it a try, dear readers! Feel free to add it to your favorites~ The blurb is at the very bottom.
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Blurb:
Jiang Wanyi's face was streaked with tears, yet she still tried to deceive herself: Perhaps the Third Prince had made a mistake. Her family had not rebelled!
"Sister~ You don't really think the Third Prince likes you, do you? I forgot to tell you: the Third Prince is the emperor now. He was the one who ordered your entire clan executed."
Jiang Wanyi was overcome with dizziness. She braced both hands against the ground to steady her swaying body. As she took the cup of poisoned wine, someone came to mind, and she asked bitterly, "Is the Grand Commandant well?"
"Without the Tiger Tally, do you think the Third Prince would let him go?"
Suddenly, the blood-red scene began to shift. The events of the past came back to her one after another, replaying until the scene reached the day she had fallen into the water. She realized that the person who had saved her was actually the Grand Commandant. She could not possibly have mistaken the jade pendant at his waist...
When she woke again, Jiang Wanyi discovered that she had been reborn. She secretly vowed that in this life, no matter what, she would change the fates of the Jiang family and the Grand Commandant.
-- Blurb for the upcoming story in my column, The Butcher's Daughter and Her Scholar --
The butcher's daughter, Jiang Lanyi, had helped her father sell pork since she was little. On the night of the Qixi Festival, she met a handsome scholar and could not take her eyes off him.
After asking around, she learned his name was Su Ming, and that he was a student at Juhe Academy.
Later, her friend egged Jiang Lanyi on to strike up a conversation with Su Ming and give him gifts, but... nothing worked, and their relationship made no progress.
It was not until the day Su Ming set off by carriage to take the provincial examination that she called his name from behind, carrying a food box she had prepared for his journey.
Instead, he met her with three questions in a row:
"What are you doing here?" Su Ming's tone was cold and distant.
"Jiang Lanyi, do you understand the boundaries between men and women?" He lowered his eyes to meet her clear, bright gaze. His hand trembled slightly beneath his sleeve.
"Do you think anyone could like someone shameless? Stop bothering me."
Jiang Lanyi felt a lump in her chest and could barely breathe. Her eyes grew warm and damp as all she could do was watch Su Ming walk away.
*
[Jiang Lanyi's perspective]
A few years passed, and Jiang Lanyi began to let go of that one-sided love. She listened to her father and threw a bridal ball to find herself a husband.
She turned to look, and... how had the ball landed in Su Ming's hands?
Her heart, dead for so long, stirred once more, only for her to quickly suppress the feeling.
Su Ming explained that their marriage was only a stopgap. He needed a wife to shield him from trouble in official circles. Of course, he would not treat her unfairly. He promised to give her a generous sum of silver, then divorce her after a year and find her a suitable husband...
Jiang Lanyi agreed. First, it would put a stop to her father's nagging. Second, she would receive a hundred taels of gold as payment. It was a pretty good deal, even if her heart was dead...
*
[Su Ming's perspective]
After the wedding,
Jiang Lanyi climbed a tree to pick fruit. A branch accidentally snapped, and Su Ming pushed off the ground with his toes, swept through the air, and caught her in his arms.
The two stared at each other in a daze, then quickly looked away. Jiang Lanyi's voice came from beside him: "Thank you! Put me down."
Su Ming reached out to brush the fallen leaves from her hair, but Jiang Lanyi took a step back and recited, "Master Su, men and women should keep their distance. We're only pretending to be married, so please behave yourself!"
Su Ming was baffled. How had the girl who used to follow him everywhere a few years ago changed so much...
[Blunt butcher's daughter x arrogant, sensitive, scheming top-ranked scholar]
Reading Guide:
1. One-on-one romance, both leads are chaste, alternate history, many original settings, happy ending
2. He chases his wife and suffers for it, with some elements of possessive love and madness
Theme: Live well
