Chen Sujun had always wanted to know why only her brother could go out to ride horses and study, while she had to hide away in the inner quarters, embroidering.
She was a better rider than her brother, a better writer, and even taller than him. Why wouldn’t her father hand the family business over to her?
Her mother would only sigh when she looked at her, complaining that her big feet were inelegant and that she walked too quickly to be ladylike.
The day before she was to climb into the bridal sedan chair amid a lavish wedding procession, Chen Sujun ran away.
Perhaps, many years from now, she would figure it out.
Perhaps she never would.
A young lady escapes her father and brothers’ control, disguises herself as a man to sit the imperial examinations, and never marries or returns to being a woman.
Theme: Certifying life
