Has My Cousin Finally Been Driven Mad?

*Xie Zhixu had a smooth life and extraordinary talent. The only exception was his frail health as a boy. A Taoist priest declared that he would recover only after getting past the hurdle of his fifteenth birthday.

He lived in anxious suspense until his fifteenth birthday. That very day, his cousin moved in.

His cousin was healthy and energetic. She never studied, and she loved climbing onto the roof and tearing up the place. The books she ripped were his, and the roof tiles she lifted were his.

She often made him so angry he could barely breathe, his heart pounding in his chest.

Seeing that he finally had some color in his face, the adults in both families were delighted. They said he'd seemed much more alive since his cousin moved in and insisted that she stay a while longer.

Xie Zhixu: ...I think I know what the hurdle is.

*As the only girl of her generation in the Shen family, Shen Mingyue had been indulged since childhood and had no patience for anything.

Except her eldest cousin.

Her eldest cousin had a bad temper and always insisted on doing things the hard way, but he was genuinely beautiful.

Still, he never paid her any attention.

When she went to play with him, he shut the study door in her face without a word. Luckily, she never gave up. She climbed in through the window and kicked over his inkstone.

The next day, she found the window had been latched too.

Xie Zhixu watched the figure outside walk away. He'd just breathed a sigh of relief and lowered his head to focus on his reading when the room suddenly grew dazzlingly bright. He looked up to see a roof tile lifted away, the blazing sun overhead, and Shen Mingyue peeking in at him.

Shen Mingyue: Hehe.

*Later, the Shen family was promoted and moved to the capital with all their household. Shen Mingyue left the Xie residence too.

Xie Zhixu passed the imperial examinations with top honors and rose rapidly through the ranks while implementing new policies.

Even his health miraculously improved after he turned fifteen. He excelled at archery, horseback riding, and martial arts.

At the palace banquet celebrating his achievements, the empress asked if he was married. He instinctively looked at Shen Mingyue--

For some reason, even now, thinking of Shen Mingyue still made his heart race.

But his cousin didn't look at him.

Xie Zhixu didn't sleep a wink that night.

But Shen Mingyue had been popping up in front of him every few days all these years. Surely... she felt the same way about him.

Early the next morning, he went to the Shen residence, planning to confess his feelings. He also wondered what he should do if Shen Mingyue was so happy she fainted--

But as soon as he walked in, he saw her chatting and laughing with the newly appointed third-place candidate in the imperial examinations.

The betrothal geese sent by the third-place candidate's family were still flapping around in the courtyard.

[Graceful and refined (?), handsome cousin x cousin with golden retriever energy]

[Bonus scene]

*Shen Mingyue knew her eldest cousin was in poor health, but she hadn't realized just how poor!

All she'd done was drag him out boating, and the two of them accidentally capsized the boat. How had he come down with such a high fever afterward?

The person on the bed lay with his eyes shut tight. The physician kept shaking his head and said that if he didn't wake up tonight, he might...

Shen Mingyue kept watch by his bed all night, clutching his hand and crying as she called his name again and again.

Xie Zhixu's head throbbed from the noise. He struggled to open his eyes and found the person beside his bed with reddened eyes. Suddenly, he couldn't say a word.

...How could anyone have so many tears?

She was crying so hard he felt like he was still submerged in the lake.

*After they married, Shen Mingyue accidentally wandered into his bathing room because of a plan he had set up.

Steam curled through the air. His underclothes hung open, and droplets of water slid over his perfectly sculpted, strong waist and abdomen--

Shen Mingyue's almond-shaped eyes widened. She hurriedly covered his head with a cloak. "You'll catch cold! You'll get a high fever! You're not well!"

Xie Zhixu closed his eyes, pulled off the cloak, then spread it wide and wrapped her tightly in his arms. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Why don't you find out for yourself whether I'm well, Jiaojiao?"

Theme: Love is the only standard.