After Accidentally Marrying a Fierce General

Blunt, cheerful sweetheart x cold-faced, fierce general Marriage first, love later / lighthearted, sweet everyday romance Yu Zhiguang, the Yu family’s cherished daughter, was ambushed outside the city and spent a night in a bandit den before Xue Shen, a general of the Imperial Guard, rescued her. At the Hibiscus Banquet, rumors ran rampant, claiming she had lost her virtue. Her betrothed, to whom she had been promised since childhood, came to break off the engagement. But when he met her sweet, guileless smile, the words of rejection caught in his throat. In the end, the letter of annulment was still delivered to the Yu residence. The General’s mansion’s betrothal gifts arrived right after it, accompanied by drums and fanfare. Xue Shen left Yu Zhiguang a note: “Since that night in the bandit stronghold, I have thought of you without rest. I hope you will keep your promise.” Rumor had it that Xue Shen had earned his military honors amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and that he never let a slight go unpunished. When his political rivals fell, he personally led the search of their homes and took the opportunity to wipe out their entire families. Her parents grew even more worried. “How can Shengsheng get mixed up with General Xue?” Yu Zhiguang had no way to explain herself: … On the night she was abducted to be the bandits’ bride, she mistook Xue Shen for a thug and fought back using the self-defense technique her brother had taught her, kicking him four inches below the navel. When she learned about the misunderstanding, she was terrified of bringing trouble upon the Yu family and promised nervously, “If anything’s wrong with you, I’ll take responsibility…” Whether that meant finding a doctor or getting medicine. But Xue Shen refused to see a doctor, and even insisted she marry him to conceal his condition? * All he needed was an excuse to refuse a marriage arranged by the imperial palace. Xue Shen never imagined Yu Zhiguang would take her promise so seriously that she would actually climb into the bridal sedan. The pampered young lady was as delicate as tofu. A little too much force and she might crumble, and she looked at him in terror as if he were a demon from hell. Xue Shen was just as uninterested. Since he had married her, he might as well provide her with fine clothes and food. Romance was nowhere near as satisfying as hunting or martial arts competitions. He would never go out of his way to win her affection. Six months into their marriage, a great clan ran into a difficult problem and came to the Xue residence for help. “Would you prefer gold and silver, or a favor in official circles down the line? Name your price, General Xue. We’ll do anything we can.” “Could you delay the sale of the almond pastries at your Jia Qing Teahouse by an hour?” “?” “They sell a limited amount every day, and they’re hard to get. If I leave work late, even riding over at a gallop won’t get me there in time.” His Shengsheng loved them, especially the ones he bought for her. The author’s next novel, A Second Spring, is about a gentle cook and a general who has loved her in secret. A masked customer always visits on rainy days, when hardly anyone else comes by. He sits down, sweeping his robe aside, his imposing frame as still as a mountain. “A bowl of Golden Crumble Rice.” Yu Yan secretly studies the scars the edges of his mask cannot hide, as well as his strong, muscular shoulders and arms. She adds plenty of braised meat to his Golden Crumble Rice. “Can you come tomorrow afternoon? I’ll give you an extra-large bowl with extra meat, free of charge.” Behind the mask, his eyes are sharp as a hawk’s, but he doesn’t ask why. “What if you scare off your other customers?” “There won’t be any customers tomorrow, but there will be lots of… nasty people coming to extort protection money.” She had recently divorced and was running the place on her own. Every few days she had to deal with hoodlums, not to mention her ex-husband’s harassment. She had been thinking of hiring a bodyguard for ages. The customer looked like he could handle himself. After hearing her out, he said in a low voice, “All right.” After that, neither the bullies nor her ex-husband dared come back. Who would have thought that one meal could hire her a bodyguard who was a battle-hardened general, clawed from mountains of corpses and seas of blood? * Later, on another day of torrential rain, the military man took off his mask. The frightening scars had vanished, revealing a face with striking brows and handsome eyes, so heroic it made her heart flutter. Yu Yan paused. “Still a bowl of Golden Crumble Rice?” Xu Xing’s voice was slightly hoarse. “I’m afraid that won’t be enough anymore.” * When Xu Xing was at his lowest, a girl from the neighboring household brought him a steaming bowl of Golden Crumble Rice through a dog hole in the wall. For ten years at the border, he lived by the blade, and countless times he found himself remembering its taste. The girl was wonderful, and she already had a promising fiancé. Xu Xing was not worthy of her. He kept her in the purest corner of his heart and never entertained any other thoughts. Later, covered in military honors and scars, he was transferred back to the capital and saw her walking alone in the street, crying. Only then did Xu Xing realize that someone else was the one who was unworthy. Theme: Time reveals a person’s true character.