Her Three-Inch Golden Lotuses

[Sorry, sorry. Something came up in real life, and I'm swamped dealing with it. I don't know when I'll be back, so updates will be sporadic for now. I won't abandon this story. I'll keep filling in the plot holes bit by bit~]

Hong Kong tycoon heir vs. woman bound by feudal foot-binding customs

Before transmigrating, Jiang Minghao died in an illegal street race in the early hours of the morning.

The speedometer of his Bugatti shot up to 300 kilometers per hour, and he slammed into the guardrail on a winding mountain road. When he woke up, he had become the eldest legitimate son of a duke's household, and was told he had to marry his own cousin.

On his wedding night, he saw his wife.

The candlelight flickered dimly. The girl wore a brilliant red wedding gown. Her shoulders were thin, her waist slender, and she sat properly by the edge of the bed. A pair of tiny feet dangled beneath her, barely three inches long.

Jiang Minghao had never smelled anything like this on a seventeen-year-old girl: something rotten and withered, like a corpse that had lain in its coffin for years.

He thought, I will never fall in love with a woman like this in this lifetime.

*

Pei Xuanzhu had lived for seventeen years, and years of relentless instruction in feminine virtue had steeped her to the core. She had been shaped into the perfect young lady who met every expectation of propriety, and the wealthy families of the capital vied to marry her.

But her husband did not seem to like her.

Ever since they married, her cousin seemed like a different person. A carefree, unruly boyish spirit often flared in his eyes, and he was always saying strange things to her, like, "Women can hold up half the sky," and, "We are all equal."

Some of his words made sense to her, and some did not. But whatever he said, Pei Xuanzhu would arch her slender brows and let dimples bloom beside her lips. "My husband is right. Your wife will do as you say." Yet the look on his face only grew more disgusted.

Pei Xuanzhu did not know what she had done wrong. She had been careful to abide by the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, and the rule that a wife must follow her husband.

Until one day, he lifted her three-inch golden lilies, slowly unwound the white bandages, and threw them into the brazier. "Don't bind them again. Not ever."

Pei Xuanzhu was terrified. Her deerlike eyes trembled with tears. "Husband... are you going to cast me aside?"

Dark ink churned in his eyes. It was not disgust. It looked more like pity.

*

Pei Xuanzhu's feet were unbound.

The open fields west of the city were vast. He held her hand and said, "Run, Xuanzhu. Run!"

Run? It was such a strange word. She had rarely even stepped beyond the inner gate in her whole life. What did it mean to run?

He clasped her hand tightly and led her forward at a sprint. She stumbled along, the toes that had been bent out of shape aching as they rubbed together. But the wind whistled past her ears, the clouds wheeled across the sky, and she wanted so badly to shout.

So this was how exhilarating life could be.

*

In the thirtieth year of Jing'an, cavalry from the grasslands swept south, and the country fell, leaving families destroyed.

Pei Xuanzhu joined the army and became a medic accompanying the troops.

At night, she lay by the Yellow River. The water murmured, and the clouds still drifted across the sky, but his warm, broad hand was no longer there.

"Run, Xuanzhu. Run!"

His firm voice rang once more beside her ear.

He had taught her that the world was vast, and that a woman, too, could travel far, far away.

Reading guide:

1. This is a happy ending!! A happy ending!! I swear!

2. One-on-one romance, both leads are each other's only partners.

Next book, coming soon: The Emperor Meows All Day Long

Super-sweet, easygoing soft girl vs. cold, arrogant tyrant

Cheng Junze, the young emperor of the Great Liang Kingdom, was imposing and cruel. Though his forbidding appearance kept others at a distance, he had an unspeakable secret: every night, his soul transmigrated into the body of a young woman's cat.

Ruofu was the least favored illegitimate daughter of a marquis's household. Her mother's family was lowborn, and on top of that, her beauty was the sort that brought calamity and her delicate body seemed as frail as a willow, making the principal wife dislike her even more.

Luckily, she had never taken any of it to heart.

She did not care for gold, silver, pearls, or jade, and she was too lazy to fight over power and status. Every day, she played mahjong with her sisters and went shopping, then slept until she woke naturally. What could be more delightful? Best of all, her precious cat was there to keep her company.

The night wind rose. The red bed curtains were warm with fragrance. After bathing, Ruofu put on a thin gauzy robe and pulled her cat into her arms. "My precious Yuer, Mama loves you most! Mwah, mwah, mwah!"

After getting her fill of cuddles, she looked up and saw the cat in her arms staring wide-eyed, two streams of blood slowly running from its nose.

Ruofu: "???"

Cat: "Meow!"

*

The marquis's household wanted to climb the social ladder by offering its beautiful young daughter to Duke Lian as a concubine. Duke Lian was old and frail, and notorious as an old lecher. Unable to accept her fate, Ruofu hugged Yuer and wept quietly that night.

The cat in her arms looked up at her, its pale green eyes brimming with pity. It stretched out its tongue and licked her tears. "Meow..."

The next day, a covered carriage from the palace arrived. To the astonishment of everyone in the household, it took Ruofu to the palace.

*

Ruofu had never expected to escape the wolf's den only to land in the tiger's lair. She had heard that the young emperor was bloodthirsty and unpredictable, and worried she might not even survive.

The young emperor's behavior was indeed eccentric. He never showed himself at night, but summoned her to his bed during the day.

Wrapped in a silk quilt, one fragrant shoulder exposed, Ruofu lay trembling on the imperial bed.

The curtain was lifted, and the man who entered was tall and imposing, his jade-like face more beautiful than any immortal's. Most uncanny of all, his lovely pale green eyes fixed intently on her.

He clearly had not said a word, but Ruofu could not help feeling that those catlike, bewitching eyes were asking her:

"Meow?"

Theme: Your life was meant to be an open wilderness.