A modern bonus chapter has been added, and subscribers can read the whole thing. A few warnings first: the male lead is a scumbag with multiple wives and concubines, and there's no redeeming him. The heroine has low status early on, and he treats her disrespectfully. The tags note that this is an angst-filled romance. Later, the heroine becomes independent, leaves him, and starts her own business. She grows over the course of the story. Later, the male lead tries to win her back and sends away his other wives and concubines. Happy ending. If you're looking for a satisfying, sweet romance, this one won't be for you. That's all.
Zhao Jin, a wealthy merchant from the provincial capital, follows a master's advice and buys a girl with an extremely yin fate in hopes of producing an heir.
When Zhao Jin first meets Chen Rou, all he sees is a scrawny woman with a sallow face and not a trace of beauty. He's used to frequenting pleasure houses and has very high standards. Even if he bought her to bear him an heir, surely he should at least find her pleasing to the eye?
So Chen Rou is left neglected for half a year. During that time, she lives alone in one of Zhao's country residences, eating and drinking as she pleases and enjoying a comfortable life.
One day, Zhao Jin suddenly remembers that he has a woman living outside his household. A little drunk, he slips into her residence that night and sees a beauty beneath the lamplight, no longer gaunt and haggard, but plump and radiant as a pearl.
This time, he can't bring himself to let go.
P.S.
The male lead is a major scumbag early on and is not a virgin. Read with caution.
The heroine has low status early on and is merely a woman the male lead bought to keep outside his household.
The blurb is not the story itself. I'm terrible at blurbs and can't sum up everything in the novel.
The story's premise grew out of my work Palace Allure, published in July 2019, about an emperor and a heroine sent into the palace to bear him an heir.
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My next novel, Spring in the Evening Courtyard, is expected to start around Spring Festival. Feel free to add it to your library.
Blurb: After her family falls into ruin, her fiance comes to break off their engagement, calling her "delusional." Wan Zhen listens silently through the window and says nothing.
In the blink of an eye, Wan Zhen is dressed in a phoenix coronet and wedding robes, sent to bring good luck to the ailing Master Xie, and becomes the matriarch of the Xie household.
Years later, at Master Xie's funeral, her stepsons unite against her. Wan Zhen sits in the place of honor with the memorial tablet in her hands, her expression solemn. She leaves the relatives and friends who came to watch the spectacle utterly stunned.
The only one she fails to impress is the young master of the Wen family. When he hears Wan Zhen reprimand her stepsons, he can't help snickering.
Wan Zhen frowns and looks over. Wen Zheng winks at her.
That night, he sneaks in through the window and is made to kneel beside the bed by the woman, who glares at him. Grinning, he begs, "Auntie, can't you just forgive me?"
As the heir to the mighty Marquis of Wei's household, Wen Zheng is a notorious playboy in the capital. His standards are simply so high that even at twenty-five or twenty-six, he still hasn't met a woman he wants to marry.
His family is frantic about his marriage. After his tenth blind date fails, Old Madam Wen issues an ultimatum: There is only one auspicious wedding date left this year, and before then, even if they have to knock him unconscious, they will carry a bride into his home.
Wen Zheng has no choice. After one night of drinking, he finally admits what's in his heart: He has long loved someone. But she's of a different generation, and he fears his family won't approve, so he has kept quiet.
Old Madam Wen has someone look into it. What she learns nearly knocks her flat with anger.
It turns out the person Wen Zheng has set his heart on is the Dowager Madam of the Xie family.
Theme: When adversity comes, stay true to yourself and face it with confidence and courage, and in the end, you will find happiness.
