Everyone within a hundred li knew that Liu Youyu was a good woman.
She was dependable and hardworking. The fields she plowed were fertile and productive, and the grain she grew was plump and full. She was dark-skinned and sturdy, with a warm smile.
But she couldn't find a man.
Liu Youyu couldn't find a man. Men preferred petite, delicate women, while Liu Youyu grew older and broader through the waist and back. Her voice grew rougher, and she became more bossy and domineering.
People would say, "Youyu, you really should find yourself a man."
One day, a matchmaker from the neighboring village came by.
"Youyu, want a man?"
For two hundred wen, Liu Youyu bought herself a handsome man.
He was filthy and badly injured, with a face as beautiful as jade and a cool, indifferent gaze. Liu Youyu found him pleasing to the eye and suitable marriage material.
On their wedding night, he was so frightened he wouldn't let her touch him. She sighed. "From now on, you're my man. I'll treat you well."
After a little coaxing, they spent a night in a haze of passion.
Li Hanxin had just one thought:
She's got incredible stamina.
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On the first night of their marriage, Liu Youyu made him a solemn promise:
You're my man. Since I've married you, I'll treat you well.
After their wedding, Liu Youyu kept her promise. She made a straw mat for herself and a cotton quilt for him, ate coarse-grain buns herself and gave him roast duck and steamed goose. Everyone within a hundred li said Liu Youyu treated her husband so well.
Those who love their husbands thrive.
Liu Youyu's life got better and better, and the couple grew ever more devoted to each other. But a secret letter shattered their blissful life together.
"His Majesty is critically ill. Third Prince, return at once."
As he left, he held his wife, who loved him with all her heart, and whispered, "My dear Youyu, once things at court have settled down, I'll come for you."
He was gone for three years.
-
Three years later, Li Hanxin, now the new emperor, returned to the town where he and his wife had once lived together day and night. Just as he pushed open the courtyard gate, he heard Liu Youyu say from inside:
"Zhou Zeyin, I've been married once before, but I'm older and know how to care for someone. You're my man. Since I've married you, I'll treat you well."
That night, the dew was heavy and the hour late.
Li Hanxin listened to the sounds from outside the room all night, tears streaming down his face.
She's still got incredible stamina.
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Then a third man appeared.
Liu Youyu said much the same as ever: "Young General Xiao, I'm just a village woman, coarse and uneducated, and I've already had two husbands. But everyone around here knows I treat the men in my household exceptionally well."
Li Hanxin's eyes rolled back, and he nearly died on the spot.
What could he do?
She's still got incredible stamina.
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The relationships happen in stages, one at a time. No cheating.
The heroine will always love only the man in her household.
Theme: Those who love their husbands are loved in return.
