My Frail Little Concubine Who Can't Take Care of Herself

Sweet and Gentle Maidservant VS Scheming Confucian General

Yu Yao is the personal maidservant of Cui Jingchen, the Marquis of Changping. Beautiful and charming, with a gentle nature, she has been by his side at the border for years and is deeply favored by him.

But their happy days don't last. At the end of the year, Yu Yao accompanies Cui Jingchen to the capital to visit his family, where the Dowager Marchioness finds him a suitable match.

Before the engagement is settled, war breaks out at the border. Cui Jingchen rushes to the front, leaving Yu Yao behind in the capital.

Two months after Cui Jingchen's departure, the old madam sends Yu Yao a bowl of medicine to make her barren.

"The Chu family fears how much Jingchen favors you. They won't allow you to bear him a child."

Only then does Yu Yao understand: no matter how much her master dotes on her, a maidservant like her will never be treated as a person.

She doesn't want to go on living in such humiliation, so she leaves in tears.

When Cui Jingchen returns victorious, the little courtyard where Yu Yao lived has long since been deserted.

The Dowager Marchioness turns the blame on Yu Yao. "That wretched girl ran off with the valuables as soon as word came that you had died."

During the battle, Cui Jingchen was once surrounded at Xiangshuitan and stood on the brink of death. The thought of seeing Yu Yao one more time was what kept him going. The war lasted a year, and he missed her so much he nearly went mad.

Yet all it took was a rumor for her to abandon him without hesitation.

Cui Jingchen slams his fist into a pillar, his every word steeped in anguish. "Good riddance to such a faithless, ungrateful woman. Keeping her around would only bring trouble."

Two years after their parting, Cui Jingchen relinquishes his military command and becomes a civil official at court. One day, while hosting colleagues at a restaurant, he catches sight of Yu Yao delivering spices.

She is dressed as a man, but Cui Jingchen recognizes her at once. He immediately looks away, pretending not to see her, and continues drinking with his colleagues.

He won't spare another glance at such a heartless woman.

But back at the marquis's residence, Cui Jingchen tosses and turns night after night. Every time he closes his eyes, her face and voice fill his thoughts.

Half a month later, Yu Yao is woken by urgent pounding at her door. A group of officers arrives with her contract of servitude, intent on arresting a runaway maid from the Marquis of Changping's residence.

Yu Yao looks up at the carriage at the end of the lane. Cui Jingchen is lifting the curtain and looking right at her.

Their eyes meet. Remembering the love they once shared, Yu Yao's eyes grow red with tears. But all she sees is the man's cold face and the hatred he cannot hide in his phoenix eyes.

Sweet ending, together.

Blurb written on August 21, 2024, screenshot saved.

Theme: Love means letting go