A Poisonous Wife in a Marriage of Sin

Three years ago, the powerful Xiao family, led by Grand Marshal Xiao, was executed by poison on charges of treason, and its womenfolk were made slaves. To save the orphaned Xiao girl, she attempted to assassinate the King of Xichuan.

He was soundly defeated in that battle. Accused of getting drunk and losing his wits, he had barely had time to enjoy the title of King of Xichuan before he was stripped of his royal rank and military post, his lands, stipend, and troops. He bore thirty-two knife wounds and twenty-seven bruises. Afterward, King Su Huaishao of Xichuan was so enraged that he vomited blood. Because of a single lie, he had lost the thousand miles of Xichuan and everything else.

He had moved through a thousand beauties and risked everything for wealth and power. When he returned to the capital as the hero Cheng Jin, he still could not forget the moment he had lifted the assassin’s mask. Her profile was delicate, her eyes alluring and brilliant, just like his mother’s, captivating to the soul. But instead of the loving warmth he longed for, her eyes held only insolence and utter disregard for consequences. It was the look he hated most.

Three years later, she received a letter announcing an imperial marriage decree. Born into a prominent family but abandoned because of her eye disease, she was to marry none other than King Su Huaishao of Xichuan, the man she had once tried to assassinate. If he recognized her, would their wedding night become the night of her death, and their bridal chamber her tomb?

But Xiao Jinse, the orphaned Xiao girl she had saved, was willing to take her place and enter the palace of the King of Xichuan, to clear her family’s name and rescue the women of the clan who were still slaves.

When Su Huaishao learned that the woman he was to marry had been blind since childhood and was unfit to appear in public, he flew into a thunderous rage. He was the dignified King of Xichuan, yet he was expected to marry such a woman! He could tame a runaway horse with his bare hands, had a magnificent appearance, and had lived as a hero. Yet now he was to wed a blind woman. Shame and resentment filled his impetuous heart. Fate had always treated him with harshness and cruelty.

His childhood sweetheart Xie Xingji, Xiao Jinse, who had endured humiliation for years, and the treacherous, poisonous Xie matriarch: which woman would end up in the King of Xichuan’s household?

When he first saw her, the blind woman was plainly dressed, disheveled, and travel-worn, yet graceful and poised, with a hint of heroic spirit between her brows. Beneath the pale blue cloth covering her eyes, her nose was as fine as jade, and her lips were as pale as orchids. No one thought much of her, yet he alone felt a pang of pity. The world admired Wang Lang, while Wang Lang alone adored Miss Xie.

He felt compassion for her, only to discover how ruthless she could be.

He thought she was helpless and alone, only to discover the poisonous heart of a snake or scorpion.

He was self-controlled and courteous, a courageous man of virtue who treasured his reputation as a phoenix treasured its feathers. Yet he discovered she flouted convention, had no regard for a woman’s virtue, and was an expert at stealing chickens and dogs!

“He who rides in another man’s carriage shares his troubles; he who wears another man’s clothes bears his concerns; he who eats another man’s food must die for him.” She was certain that if Wang Changsu ever got into trouble, she would follow the righteous men of old, risking life and limb and giving all she had.

But they said, “A shameless woman like you will never come to a good end! Lord Wang has slept with you, hasn’t he? You think you can marry him just by spreading your legs?!”

“A whore like you thinks a man of Lord Wang’s standing would marry you? Bah! Keep dreaming!”

Who was she, really? It was a secret she could never reveal. Xiao Jinse had already taken her place in the Xie household. From then on, even her own name became a secret she could not speak aloud. The man she was to marry was the King of Xichuan, and their marriage had been decreed by the Emperor. If the truth came out, Xiao Jinse, she, Daoyi, and the entire Xie family would all be doomed. In three years, she had twice committed a crime punishable by death.

“When a woman commits a crime, no matter how serious, she must first receive twenty strokes, then be stripped and paraded through the streets for three days. For a lesser offense, her face is tattooed with black ink, marking her with shame for life. For a graver one...”

“If that happens to me, would you come see me in prison?”

“No.”

It was all because he had been blind!

The blindness that had moved him to pity, the helplessness that had stirred his compassion, the serene grace that had dazzled him: it had all been an illusion. Beneath that beautiful, delicate mask lay a ruthless heart that filled him with fear.

“I was blind, deceived by your frail exterior and unable to see the venomous heart beneath. To desire a woman like you, to lose my senses and my self-control, even to have thought of marrying you, is the greatest disgrace of my life.” The struggle in Wang Changsu’s eyes died away. Just moments ago, he had held her tightly, and in that instant they had been in love, kissing passionately,