My Wife Is Fierce

Ancient-era teacher and student / marriage first, love later

Everyone in the capital knew that the Seventh Prince was the youngest son of the current emperor, born when the emperor was fifty, and his most beloved child. He had been exceptionally gifted from a young age and received every favor imaginable. He had even been held on the emperor's lap at court banquets and had never suffered the slightest hardship.

So when preparations began for the Seventh Prince's marriage upon his coming of age, everyone in the capital wondered which noble young lady would catch the emperor's eye and be chosen as the prince's bride.

But no one expected that the person chosen for the Seventh Prince would be Xie Jing, the brilliant and refined Hanlin Academy scholar, a man of extraordinary talent.

Although Scholar Xie came from a poor family, he was the youngest person to pass the palace examination in a century.

He was the Seventh Prince's teacher, and he was a man.

The people of the capital gossiped endlessly, and the Seventh Prince reacted even more strongly. For a whole month, he threw tantrums and rolled around in front of the imperial study. But the emperor, who had always indulged him, was unyielding for the first time and forced him to marry.

On his wedding night, the Seventh Prince thought of Xie Jing's ever-serious face, his distant manner, and all those days of having his palms beaten with bamboo strips. His legs trembled with fear, and he couldn't bring himself to step into the bridal chamber.

He paced around the courtyard until the lights went out at midnight, and only then did he finally gather the courage to enter.

He thought Xie Jing would already be asleep. Instead, as soon as he stepped inside, he saw Xie Jing in a bright red wedding robe, seated at the desk and reading the policy paper the prince had written two days earlier by the light of the moon outside. His brow was furrowed.

"Wife..." The Seventh Prince was on the verge of tears as he hesitantly stepped forward.

Then he saw Xie Jing look up, his slender fingers lightly tapping the policy paper on the desk. The familiar bamboo strip lay beside it.

The Seventh Prince wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, trying to bluff his way out. "Wife, it's late. Why don't we turn in early?"

"Turn in?" Xie Jing looked at him coolly and interrupted him without haste. "Have you forgotten there's something more important to do first?"

The Seventh Prince instantly felt a layer of cold sweat break out across his back.

He wondered if Xie Jing was about to force him to consummate the marriage. But then Xie Jing stood up and tossed the policy paper onto him.

"Rewrite this before dawn."

-

The Seventh Prince had always believed Xie Jing had married him only because he was compelled by imperial decree.

That was until he was forced to fake his death and reduced to a commoner.

The next time he heard news of Xie Jing, the new emperor had been defeated and killed, and Great Liang was on the brink of ruin. In its hour of need, Xie Jing stepped forward, helped a young member of the imperial clan ascend the throne, led troops as a civil official to repel the enemy, and safeguarded the realm as regent.

Under his rule, Great Liang grew stronger by the day, and no one dared invade again.

The regent's residence was nearly trampled by matchmakers. Countless powerful families in the capital wanted to marry into his family, but Xie Jing turned them all down.

His reason was: "I, Xie, am already married."

People gossiped about it, since no one had taken that childish imperial marriage decree seriously. Besides, the Seventh Prince was long dead.

So everyone assumed it was just an excuse.

But unexpectedly, as the years passed, Xie Jing never remarried. He continued to spend every night in the bridal chamber he had once shared with the Seventh Prince, its furnishings unchanged, exactly as they had been before.

People couldn't help sighing. They didn't understand why he was so devoted to a man.

Besides, the Seventh Prince would never return.

Xie Jing had thought the same, until many years later, during the Battle of Weicheng. A commander in the army slew enemy generals, seized their banners, and stormed their ranks. For his outstanding military achievements, Xie Jing personally received him upon his return to the capital and appointed him General of Agile Cavalry.

But on the day of the appointment, the general approached from across the hall.

His face was clearly different, yet Xie Jing saw the shadow of that person in him.

He must be drunk.

Xie Jing steadied the cup in his hand and drained it.

He had thought it was only a resemblance in build. But later, as he saw the newly appointed General of Agile Cavalry off on a campaign beyond the pass, the man leaned close as he passed Xie Jing and, just as he had many years ago, whispered in his ear:

"Wife."

Theme: Ancient-era teacher and student