The Teahouse of Tianjin

A tough-skinned female coroner x a delicate, fair-skinned teahouse owner

Zhang Xian made a living telling stories. Orphaned, he was fortunate to be raised by his master, who also passed on his craft. When Zhang came of age, his master passed away, and he teamed up with his senior fellow apprentice to open a teahouse.

On ordinary days, he would take the stage to tell stories when there was business, and chat with customers below the stage when there wasn't.

One day, the famous matchmaker Granny Wang from Hejian Prefecture came to arrange a match for him. She told him the bride-to-be was the second daughter of the Feng family, a family of good standing, and praised her as a refined and well-read young lady. But when someone led him to meet her, he realized... Huh, wasn't she the coroner Feng who had come to his shop to investigate a woman's murder?

To find out what happens next, tune in to the next chapter.

[A comedic period romance]

As they chatted, everyone praised Coroner Feng's new husband and said she was a lucky woman.

After hearing this so often, Feng Yu couldn't help but grow annoyed.

Once again, someone praised Zhang Xian for being loving toward her and said she was blessed.

Feng Yu snapped at them. "You are all fools! What goes on between a husband and wife behind closed doors has nothing to do with luck or blessings. You praise his talent and manners, but you don't know that he's a beast in human skin!"

Everyone was stunned. Had the young couple fallen out? They had never heard anything strange about Zhang Xian.

So someone asked, "How is he a beast? Tell us." They looked ready to help her if it turned out to be true.

Feng Yu flushed, thinking, Good heavens! I said it was a private matter between husband and wife. She's a woman, after all. How could she possibly say it out loud? She regretted speaking so quickly and wanted to slap herself twice.

The redder she got, the more the others thought she was about to cry. They didn't want to press her, but were left even more unsure what to make of Zhang Xian. The story passed from person to person until it reached Zhang Xian's ears. He pondered it for a moment, then burst out laughing.

When he got home, he told Feng Yu. She flushed red again, blaming herself for losing her temper.

That night, Zhang Xian said he would prove his innocence, then followed Feng Yu's description and tumbled into bed with her.

After a night of passion, what went on between husband and wife behind closed doors, and whether he was a beast or not, was something only the two of them knew.

Dear readers, you understand with a knowing smile, shake your heads, and leave it at that.

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