The Golden Hairpin

Wen Yin was born into poverty and sold as a "thin horse." When she grew a little older, she was sent to serve as a concubine to the Regent, Chu Shen. Everyone said she was lucky, that fortune had come to her overnight.

But Wen Yin had someone in her heart. The man she wanted to marry was her scholar cousin. On the day of the Lantern Festival, rebels caused trouble at the fair, and Wen Yin took advantage of the chaos to escape.

Wen Yin was a gift from one of his subordinates. Chu Shen had never thought much of her, but she was gentle and attentive in caring for him, and in bed at night she was irresistibly charming. He was quite pleased with her, and gave her a measure of respect.

He thought that was all there was to it.

Until Wen Yin died, leaving no trace of her remains. Chu Shen was so stricken with grief that he fell gravely ill. Only then did he understand that the unremarkable woman had entered his heart without him realizing it.

For the sake of a concubine, Chu Shen vowed to observe three years of mourning, becoming the subject of a love story throughout the capital.

A year passed in the blink of an eye. Chu Shen went to Yangzhou to inspect the salt taxes. At the entrance to the residence where he was staying, he ran into a clerk bringing an invitation on behalf of the prefect, and Wen Yin, following behind him with a shy smile.

Chu Shen's sharp gaze cut into her like a knife, but Wen Yin remained calm, as if she had never known him. Instead, she pulled out a handkerchief and wiped her cousin's sweat as though no one else were there.

Chu Shen had Wen Yin seized on the spot and locked away. Pinning her against the wall, he clamped a hand around her trembling throat and smiled wickedly. "You die, or he dies. Choose."

Though Wen Yin feared death, she still managed to say, "I die. He lives."

Chu Shen's eyes, calm until then, surged like a storm. He laid Wen Yin across the bed, tore open the thin clothes covering her, and forced himself on her. "Since you are so determined to die, I will grant your wish."

Blurb written on 2024/08/20 and screenshotted.

Theme: Self-respect and self-love