Jiang Jixue was the most famous courtesan at Huaman Tower. Everyone who had seen her praised her.
She was not only stunningly beautiful, but also skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. She could pick up a brush and compose poetry.
She was renowned for having a smile that no amount of money could buy.
But no one knew that she hadn't always been surnamed Jiang. Her original surname was Xie, the same as the Xie family that had been executed to the last member in the capital three years earlier.
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Jiang Jixue had nimble hands. She could not only play the zither, but also captivate and ensnare. This had always been one of her most effective weapons.
That is, until the day she met the foolish hostage prince from Chu.
They were both people brought low by fate, but beneath the same roof, each had a destiny of their own.
Ordered to test him, she filled a cup with wine and extended her delicate hand. "My lord, would you help me with this cup?"
Yan Chenbei, the famous fool of the capital, reached out and grabbed her wrist. She clearly saw not a trace of foolishness on his face. "Jiang Jixue. What a beautiful name."
But soon he was acting absurd again, leaning his head back and flopping onto her lap, repeating, "In Chu, we only believe in feeding wine mouth to mouth."
The banquet erupted in laughter.
It was the first time her hand had trembled. Wine spilled onto her fingertips, only for him to take them into his mouth.
*
Sincerity and deceit, deceit and sincerity.
After telling so many lies, how can anyone be sure there's not a bit of true feeling mixed in?
Yan Chenbei's five years in Han were up. It was time for him to return home.
At the banquet, Jiang Jixue lowered her eyes and poured out a cup of wine laced with deadly poison.
Yan Chenbei put an arm around her waist, smiling brightly. "Jixue, if you could leave, would you come back to Chu with me?"
A noble young man beside them jeered, "Of course she'd follow the king, never regretting it even in death!"
Everyone laughed, and Yan Chenbei laughed, too.
Jiang Jixue extended a fingertip painted with red nail polish and spoke softly. "If you can drink this cup, I'll go with you."
But Yan Chenbei merely leaned in and raised an eyebrow as if nothing were amiss. "Then I want you to feed it to me."
As the cup reached his lips, she still hesitated. "This wine..."
But the man grasped her wrist just as he had the first time. "Let this wine be the nuptial cup we share. From now on, you can be Consort Yu and I can be the Conqueror. Then we'll truly be husband and wife."
Theme: Live well
