An ancient version of Mr. and Mrs. Smith: courteous to each other by day, each up to something by night.
A poor princess with skills in all eighteen martial arts x a delicate city lord with a head full of schemes
Blurb:
When Xue Qiong is shot through the chest with an arrow from behind and knocked off her horse, she is only a few steps from the gates of Yutian City.
She has failed to reclaim the lost territories, and hasn't even had time to leave a child behind for the Prince of Jing'an's household. She has truly let down her ancestors.
When she wakes, Xue Qiong is tightly wrapped in bandages from head to toe, bound like an ancient mummy and laid on a wooden bed. Only her eyes can move.
What dog has the audacity to try to assassinate this prince?!
With a fierce but unfocused gaze, Xue Qiong stares at the gray-clad man sitting by her bed.
His features are indistinct. He feeds her spoonful after spoonful of a bitter medicinal brew.
Xue Qiong grits her teeth. Her stomach churns with bile, and tears are about to spill from her eyes.
She thinks, Just you wait, brat!
Several months later, Xue Qiong's wounds have finally healed enough.
She gets out of bed by herself and slowly pulls at the bandages around her, a sinister smile curling her lips.
A gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after ten years...
Suddenly, the door is flung open from outside. The slender gray-clad man rushes in with a bamboo basket on his back, his face full of anxious concern. He lunges to Xue Qiong's side and pushes her back onto the bed before she can steady herself.
"Wife, you're finally awake. You had your husband so worried..."
"…"
Xue Qiong meets the eyes of the pursuers outside, then looks at the man lying against her shoulder, weeping with heartfelt sincerity. She clenches her fists.
Fine. Your entire clan is doomed too.
Little scene:
When news that the Prince of Jing'an has gone missing spreads through Yutian City, Pei Xingjian finds an unconscious woman in a ditch beside the outer moat.
The city launches a major manhunt for the Prince of Jing'an. Every unmarried man in the city with a questionable identity is arrested and taken to the Yutian palace for interrogation.
Luckily, Xue Qiong is a reasonable person. She is alone and badly injured, and needs someone to care for her. Pei Xingjian doesn't want to be dragged to the palace, so the two naturally pretend to be husband and wife.
By day, Pei Xingjian goes up the mountain to gather herbs and copies documents for people at the market. Xue Qiong stays home to recover, battling a plucked mountain chicken for the sole purpose of making a bowl of chicken soup for her hard-working husband, Pei.
The neighbors all say that Mr. Pei and his wife are perfectly harmonious, courteous to one another, and clearly made for each other.
Until one dark and windy night, in the main hall of the Yutian palace...
Xue Qiong, clad in red tassels and silver armor, meets the eyes of Pei Xingjian, seated on the dais in his ceremonial robes and crown.
"Your Highness?"
"City Lord?!"
Heh. You're both foxes with a thousand years of cunning. What secret identity are you wearing?
Theme: When there are no troubles weighing on your heart, every season is a fine one
