My Cousin Is Utterly Unsophisticated

[Elegant Noblewoman vs. Vulgar Merchant]

Lu Yunian was born into a family of scholars. Her grandfather was tutor to the Crown Prince, and her father was the Minister of Rites. Both her childhood friend, a girl she grew up with, and her childhood sweetheart were well-read.

Lu Yunian herself was accomplished in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. At ten, she wrote a poem praising the willows that earned the emperor's admiration.

She thought she would marry her childhood sweetheart, a top scholar who shared her interests. But fate took an unexpected turn, and she married her cousin, Zhao Yuanjin.

Lu Yunian hated Zhao Yuanjin. He had not a shred of learning, and all he ever talked about was money. The gifts he sent her were either property deeds or gold and silver jewelry. He was utterly vulgar.

Their marriage was cold and distant. Fortunately, Zhao Yuanjin was away on business most of the time and rarely came home.

Then, in the third year of their marriage, her father was implicated in an imperial exam fraud case, dismissed from office, and imprisoned. The Lu family's old friends and associates wanted nothing to do with them. Lu Yunian went to her childhood sweetheart's family for help, only to be turned away.

Zhao Yuanjin, who was rarely home, hurried back and promised her he would rescue her father.

Overcome with grief and anxiety, Lu Yunian fell gravely ill. She did not live to see that day.

After her death, her spirit lingered in the Zhao household for three years. She watched as her cousin, who had once loved money above all else, gave away his fortune and endured six years of hardship to clear the Lu family's name.

Zhao Yuanjin, once a dashing man in fine robes and jade ornaments, had lost all his former confidence. Dressed in plain clothes, he knelt before her grave and wept bitterly.

When she opened her eyes again, she had returned to the day before her hairpin ceremony. The gifts she received were all rare books and ancient paintings, while Zhao Yuanjin sent several sets of jeweled hair ornaments, so dazzling they could blind you when the box was opened.

Her maid cautiously studied her expression. "Shall I put these away, miss?"

Lu Yunian raised a hand to stop her and pointed to the most ornate set. "I'll wear this one tomorrow."

So the next day, the glittering Lu Yunian and Zhao Yuanjin, dressed like a peacock, stuck out like sore thumbs at the elegant hairpin ceremony.

Everyone: "..."

Zhao Yuanjin: "You don't know a thing. This is what being a perfect match looks like!"

Theme: Cherish the person by your side.