Submit Beneath Her Skirts

[Scheming Beauty vs. Fake Gentleman]

Xiao Yin first heard about Jiang Fu from his younger sister, the princess.

She complained to him about a distant cousin who had recently come to stay at her fiancé's home, acting all coy and swaying with every step, and how she'd bewitched her fiancé until he was completely lovestruck.

Before she could finish speaking, they saw a man on an arched bridge tuck a flower hairpin into the hair of the young woman beside him.

The woman smiled shyly, her brows and eyes full of bashfulness, like a lotus reflected in the moonlight, like spring water shining beneath willow branches.

When she lowered her head, the visible stretch of her neck was so white it seemed almost creamy.

His sister said, "There, that's her."

Xiao Yin unconsciously rubbed his fingers together.

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After her parents died unexpectedly, Jiang Fu brought her young sister to seek shelter with a distant aunt and temporarily settled in the Earl of Ding'an's manor.

She knew that staying in someone else's home could never be a long-term arrangement. All she wanted was to find a good family to marry into, so she and her sister would have someone to rely on for the rest of their lives.

She first noticed Xiao Yin at a literary gathering. He was as pure and elegant as autumn moonlight, gentle and reserved, and stood out among her many unimpressive cousins.

She also heard people say that he was a scholar from a humble family, with no relatives at home.

With a background like that, he probably wouldn't look down too much on her family's decline.

Jiang Fu took note of him. As she passed by, she deliberately let a handkerchief fall.

Half an hour later, the man came to the pavilion to return it.

The scenery in Jiangyang was lovely that day. Jiang Fu chatted with the man who had returned her handkerchief for half an hour, and neither of them wanted the conversation to end.

.

They were both interested in each other, and before long, Jiang Fu and Xiao Yin were deeply involved.

Although she sometimes thought this "scholar from a humble family" was a little too generous with his money and spoke a little too elegantly, she simply assumed that was his natural disposition and never gave it another thought.

Until the day the old lady of the manor celebrated her birthday. Jiang Fu sat at the far end of the banquet and watched, wide-eyed, as the man arrived with his attendants. He was noble and handsome, every inch the gentleman, and everyone fell silent as he passed.

The old lady was overwhelmed by the honor and addressed him as His Highness the Crown Prince. When the subject of his choosing a consort came up, she eagerly hinted that her youngest granddaughter should step forward to greet him.

Xiao Yin smiled and responded to each of them in turn.

Jiang Fu's face turned white in an instant.

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When Jiang Fu first mistook him for someone else, Xiao Yin didn't correct her because he found her interesting.

A woman as intriguing as her, someone with whom he could share a night of passion and enjoy a fleeting romance, seemed like a perfectly good idea.

But little by little, he fell for her and wanted to take her as a concubine, keep her confined in his residence, and treasure her in secret.

Just as he was happily building a golden house and jade halls for her, he heard that Jiang Fu had fallen gravely ill and returned to her hometown.

Remembering how she'd been smiling in his arms just yesterday, saying she would marry him, Xiao Yin coldly and unhurriedly crushed the jade hairpin he'd just carved for her.

Who told her she could run away?

Didn't she know that husband and wife were meant to live and die together?

Who gave her permission to abandon him?

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When she saw Xiao Yin again, the man was smiling, but his eyes were bloodshot. He looked just like a demon come to collect a debt.

Frightened, Jiang Fu took a step back.

His eyes darkened in an instant, but he smiled and opened his arms to her. "A Fu, why aren't you coming over? Don't you recognize your Xiao Lang anymore?"

Theme: Love life