Changyu Baisheng was timid by nature, a sweet, well-mannered young woman who was always on her best behavior.
Though her parents had died early, her older brother doted on her. For more than ten years, she lived a carefree life by the side of her brilliant brother, whose political career was flourishing.
Then disaster struck without warning.
Her brother fell ill after offending someone while away from the capital on business. He died before she could reach him to see him one last time.
With his dying breath, Changyu Qing entrusted his younger sister to his close friend.
Changyu Baisheng left the capital alone. When she returned, Lin Yuezhang was by her side.
Lin Yuezhang said he would marry her.
1.
Changyu Baisheng and Lin Yuezhang had not spent much time together. Since he was close to her brother, she called him Brother Lin.
Lin Yuezhang was a member of the imperial clan. His parents had died young, but he had an emperor for an uncle who doted on him.
He was cold by nature and decisive, and sometimes showed the arrogance and stubborn pride of a privileged young noble. But around Changyu Baisheng, he put on the air of a modest gentleman.
After all, she was his friend's younger sister, and she was timid, so he gave her special consideration beyond what propriety required.
That was one of the few times Lin Yuezhang showed warmth.
Back then, he never imagined he would one day marry her.
2.
After her brother's death, Changyu Baisheng was frightened and uneasy for a long time.
She knew there was more to his death than met the eye. On her journey to Hengzhou, she never even got to see her brother's body one last time, and all she heard from others was that he had died horribly.
She had lost the only family she had.
Changyu Baisheng slept poorly night after night, plagued by nightmares.
Lin Yuezhang was the first to notice how unwell she was.
After they married, they did not share a bed like ordinary couples. They lived in the same residence but in separate courtyards. Lin Yuezhang felt more like Changyu Baisheng's brother than her husband.
But now, he could no longer sleep in a separate bed from her.
She needed someone by her side.
3.
With Lin Yuezhang comforting her, Changyu Baisheng still had many dreams at night, but she no longer woke up in fright all the time.
Lin Yuezhang prided himself on his self-restraint. He had looked after a young woman with single-minded devotion, like a truly kind and dependable older brother. Surely his dear friend would be moved to see it from beyond the grave.
But that pride was shattered one morning.
Perhaps after spending so much time together, Changyu Baisheng had come to feel closer to Lin Yuezhang. So she spoke frankly about something she might otherwise have kept to herself.
“Brother Yuezhang, lately, when I fall asleep, I keep feeling something strange at my waist.”
Something hot. Something hard. Something strange.
It kept Changyu Baisheng wide awake, her eyes growing wider by the moment.
Lin Yuezhang felt as if he had been struck by lightning.
Yes, he couldn't control himself. It had been that way from the first night, or perhaps from the first moment he saw her.
P.S.
1. This is a short novel, ending at 200,000 characters.
2. The marriage is not taking advantage of her while she's vulnerable; there's a reason for it. Her biological brother isn't dead. The blurb is provisional, and I'll polish it as the publication date approaches.
Theme: Encountering all that is beautiful.
