When we were sixteen, Shen Qing stormed into the princess’s residence to protect me. I carried my mother’s bloodstained clothes to the palace and kowtowed a thousand times, saving him from being torn apart by five horses. Later, he came first in all three imperial examinations and cherished me above all else. Yet he had secretly kept his pregnant concubine, Zhang Wan, in the suburbs. He let her trample my mother’s memorial tablet and throw away her belongings, and even raised a knife against me for her. On our wedding day, Zhang Wan and I clashed, and the bedroom caught fire. He rushed through the flames, but only saved me. I reminded him of his vow that he would leave me only when I was dead. He plunged a dagger into his chest and said he would protect me in our next life. I closed his wide-open eyes and felt lighter than I ever had before.
