Married to the Wrong Person

[This story is complete. For the text, please refer to Jinjiang.] Story blurb: Wen Liuying had been betrothed to the third young master of the Xie family since childhood. When she had just come of age, the Xie family sent someone south to escort her in person. In the early summer, Jiangnan was shrouded in drizzling rain, and the wind lifted the delicate curtains. Through the misty haze, Wen Liuying curtsied to Xie Zhenshi, who had just arrived in Jiangnan. Her soft Jiangnan-accented greeting, "Greetings, Third Brother," came with the fine rain, landing on his face and tying them together in an unbreakable tangle. She called him Third Brother all the way from Jiangnan to the capital. It was only after entering the Xie household and meeting the real third young master, Xie Mieshan, that she realized she had been deceived. In the blink of an eye, October had passed. The first chill of winter had arrived, and the wedding was near. Xie Zhenshi, whom she hadn't seen in months, suddenly appeared in her room, drenched from head to toe in cold rain. Drops of water ran down his brocade clothes and fell to the floor one after another. He seemed drunk, a reckless smile on his face. Without a word, he gripped her hand tightly and forced her to hold a long sword, slashing the wedding dress prepared nearby to shreds. Wen Liuying cursed him for his madness as she tried to wrench her hand free. But he seized both her hands, lowered his guard, and rested his chin on her shoulder. His voice, almost brushing her ear, was even more indistinct. "You little southern barbarians love to lead people on. Just the other day, you said you wouldn't marry anyone but me. Now you're embroidering a wedding dress for my elder brother." #If fate should bring you past the general's residence, please offer me the blood-red sunset beyond the frontier and pass along these words: "In the plum-rain season, I saw fireflies." Content warnings: fictional setting, both leads are virgins, happy ending The author's new story next door is now available. Feel free to check it out if you're interested. The moment Jiang Chengyun learned that she wasn't actually his younger sister, it was as if a withered tree had come back to life. His heart kept clamoring: I've taken meticulous care of her for over ten years. Doesn't she belong to me, completely and utterly? * Jiang Ningyue had spent seventeen years as the daughter of a marquis, only to suddenly learn she was the illegitimate child her father's concubine had borne outside the family. Her father, Marquis Wenyuan, was furious. He had intended to throw her out of the marquis's residence, but to save face, he had no choice but to marry her off and forbid her from having any further contact with the family. Fortunately, her husband was handsome and treated her with great consideration. She thought she had found a new home. But on their wedding day, her husband was thrown in jail over an imperial examination scandal. Rumor had it he would be sentenced to be cut in half at the waist. To save her husband's life, she ignored the promise she'd made before leaving home and went to plead with her elder brother Jiang Chengyun in the middle of the night. By the table, the candlelight flickered red. Jiang Chengyun sat upright, tapping the documents in his hand as he declared righteously, "The confession has already been signed. There's no way to change things." At his words, Jiang Ningyue lost all hope and buried her face against his knees, sobbing as she had when she was a child. He lowered his gaze to her, taking in her tear-filled eyes, her moist red lips, and her slender, delicate frame. His Adam's apple bobbed as he suddenly changed his tune. "However..." Theme: Deceit may work for a moment, but sincerity lasts forever.