A Zhu and the Wild Peach

When her elder sister returned home as a child, their mother said, “She’s suffered so much. You all need to give her a little leeway.” From then on, the prettiest flowers, the sweetest fruit, the finest brocade, and the loveliest hairpins and jewelry all went to her elder sister first. A Zhu never fought for anything. She had her own Pei Qingyu. On the day of her hairpin ceremony, she got the proposal from Pei Qingyu she had always hoped for. For decades after they married, they treated each other with mutual respect and affection. But when he fell gravely ill and lost consciousness, A Zhu heard Pei Qingyu mumble her elder sister’s name... A Shu. * She returned to her fifteenth year, to the day of her hairpin ceremony. Her mother had ostensibly arranged the banquet for her, but was actually arranging a meeting for her and her elder sister with eligible men. Nearly all the young heirs from the noble families of the capital were there. When A Zhu first met Jiang Tao, she thought he was like a mischievous monkey. Later, she thought he was like an ox who knew nothing but brute force. But this rough, lively man who cared nothing for propriety sheltered her from every storm for the rest of her life. So this time, A Zhu made a different choice. “I’ll marry him.” * A Zhu spent half her life giving way to others. To her family, to her elder sister. After she married Jiang Tao, he raised her all over again. He made sure she would never have to live by reading anyone else’s moods again. P.S. A sweet, everyday romance, with marriage first and love later. The male lead is the wild peach in the title. Coming soon: “My Wife Is a Little Demon” [1] Third Miss Wei was about to get married, but her groom wasn’t the young master of the Chen family, whom she’d clung to since childhood. Instead, it was Second Young Master Cui, who had just placed third in the palace examination. Everyone in the capital knew she liked Chen Jing. But Chen Jing liked her second sister. Wei Zhizhi cried as she went to see Second Young Master Cui. “You like my second sister, and I like Chen Jing. Let’s get married first and make them furious!” Cui Jue silently looked at the young woman’s tear-streaked face and agreed. [2] After they married, Wei Zhizhi spent every day trying to talk Cui Er into things: “Her Majesty is holding a flower-viewing party today. I’m going to push my second sister into the water. Distract Chen Jing, and don’t save her.” Cui Jue: “There are eunuchs and palace maids everywhere. Nothing will happen, and you won’t get away unscathed. You’ll be caned twenty times.” “Fine, forget it.” “Chen Jing is handling this case. Sabotage him and frame him for embezzlement!” Cui Jue: “...I’m the director of the Ministry of Justice. Do you want me to get demoted and exiled, then come with me to suffer in the frontier?” “No, no.” “Let’s just hire someone to kidnap Chen Jing! Beat him half to death!” Cui Jue sighed. He wiped the grease from the roast chicken she’d just eaten off the corner of her mouth. “He’s a military officer, and I’m a civil official. Without Zhizhi protecting me, it’s anyone’s guess who’d be beating whom...” Wei Zhizhi furrowed her brow. “Cui Er, you’re such a coward!” The formidable, impartial Lord Cui of the Court of Judicial Review smiled and nodded. “So I hope you won’t despise me, my lady. You’ll have to protect me forever...” [3] Cui Jue had been cold and unfeeling since childhood, with no affection for the world. Some called him the Smiling Buddha; others said he was the King of Hell himself. Cui Jue never bothered to explain. Until someone really did try to hurt Wei Zhizhi. That night, Lord Cui, famed for his impartiality, cornered the culprit. One by one, he cut off their fingers. Theme: Love yourself before you love someone else