A Willing Mistake, My Lady – Chapter 50
by Little PandaCommandant Zhao Chenlan
Probably a Playboy
In the seventh month, the earth was so lush and vibrant with crimson blossoms and green willows that it resembled a watercolor painting—the perfect time for an excursion.
Since they hadn’t gone out to clear their minds in a long time, the two of them set out together today for Yuming Pool to see the lotuses. There, an endless stretch of emerald green met their eyes. Layer upon dense layer of lotus leaves unfolded across the water, dotted with large, incomparably gorgeous blossoms.
Shen Hetang looked down at her own clothes, then at Jiang Chenyu’s, and finally glanced out at the pool.
“Madam, my outfit today fits the scenery a bit too well,” Shen Hetang said. “If I were to fall into the pool in a moment, you’d never find your green-clad husband.” She felt she looked far greener than those lotus leaves.
Hearing her words, Jiang Chenyu smiled, her eyes curving into crescent moons as she looked her up and down. Shen Hetang wore a dark oily-green, patterned damask shirt with wide sleeves, layered over with a light-colored robe embroidered with cloud patterns. Although she wore two layers, they were no thicker than a single sheet of satin, lending her an ethereal, celestial grace with a face as pure and elegant as jade.
“It’s fine. Your face is still fair and bright; you won’t get lost.” Jiang Chenyu pressed her fair hand against the small of Shen Hetang’s back to measure it—mm, the lines were smooth and the skin firm, possessing a quality that seemed at once soft and strong.
Seeing how much fun the young lady was having back there, Shen Hetang looked over her shoulder. “We’re in broad daylight. Don’t be so impatient. Why don’t you wait until we get back to touch me?”
“Psh!” Embarrassed by the teasing, Jiang Chenyu quickly withdrew her hand and turned her back on her.
“Come on, come on, touch all you like!” Seeing her walk ahead, Shen Hetang cheekily grabbed her hand and pressed it back against her own waist.
“Hmph…” Although Jiang Chenyu scoffed, a secret smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
She wore a white-and-pink gown layered with a pale pink jacket embroidered with golden butterflies. She was a vision of soft pink from head to toe, with a trace of delicate slant-red makeup1 swept near her eyes. Every tilt of her head, every smile, carried an alluring charm.
Such an eye-catching pair was bound to draw attention wherever they went, but fortunately, Qingyuan Town was small, and over time, the locals had grown familiar with Shen Hetang.
Everyone knew she had beaten a tiger to death, so the local ruffians and scoundrels didn’t dare come near the two of them.
The pool was so packed with lotuses that the water was completely hidden from view. Along the shore, a ring of weeping willows swayed gracefully, their vibrant green branches falling like the elegant, flowing hair of young girls.
The shrill hum of cicadas rose and fell from all directions—who knew where those little rascals were hiding!
“There’s a boat ahead! Let’s go take a ride!” Shen Hetang said, pulling Miss Jiang onto the small boat.
As the oars rocked the boat gently, the faint, clean scent of lotus blossoms drifted through the air, gradually growing richer and sweeter with every stroke they took.
The boat glided slowly along the narrow channel. With one hand holding Shen Hetang’s, Jiang Chenyu reached out with her other hand to brush against the passing lotuses. Surrounded on all sides by brilliant reds and deep greens, the two of them looked like a pair of lotus spirits that had materialized from the pool, making the elderly boatman grin from ear to ear.
It was fortunate that Shen Hetang possessed such outstanding looks; on anyone else, a suit of such bright, oily green would’ve been an absolute disaster.
From the shore, a figure stood watching the boat. After a long silence, he finally turned and walked away. He already had the address, anyway; he’d simply seek him out tomorrow.
Jiang Chenyu leaned contentedly against her, the endless green washing away the lingering grime of recent events and soothing her soul. As they made a slow circle around the water, they occasionally drifted under massive lotus leaves that shielded half their bodies from view. Whenever they were hidden beneath the foliage, the person sitting beside her would lean down to steal a kiss, leaving her heart pounding wildly.
When they finally stepped back onto the shore, she fled as if escaping a chase, provoking a round of hearty laughter from Shen Hetang behind her.
After weighing it in her mind for a long time, Jiang Chenyu decided to tell Shen Hetang about how Wu Daoyuan and Nanny Wu had been secretly conspiring2 under everyone’s noses in Jiang Manor. Hearing this, Shen Hetang stared blankly, her utter shock written all over her face.
Good heavens, what kind of soap-opera drama is this? Even a professional screenwriter couldn’t come up with a script like this! Bringing your original wedded wife to live under the same roof as your new bride… Should Wu Daoyuan be called a heartless bastard, or a loyal husband who never forgot his old companion? Truly, there’s only what you can’t imagine, and nothing others won’t do!
“So, what do you plan to do?” Shen Hetang asked. This was clearly the two of them working together to swallow the Jiang family’s wealth. If she hadn’t crossed over and entered the picture, wouldn’t this poor girl have fallen straight into a wolves’ den?
“I want to reclaim all of the Jiang family’s shops,” Jiang Chenyu replied, her voice low and heavy, a glint of hatred flashing in her eyes. “Since they want to depend on each other, I’ll fulfill their wish. I’ll send them right back to where they came from. They won’t leave with a single copper coin of the Jiang family’s.”
“Alright, alright, let’s not dwell on them anymore,” Shen Hetang said, comforting her. “If that’s what you want to do, then go ahead and do it. Just be careful not to let him hurt you. If there’s any danger, remember to tell me.” Although she worked for the Yamen, in this matter, whether by reason or by affection, she stood squarely on Jiang Chenyu’s side.
Jiang Chenyu wanted to avenge herself, her family, and her mother, and Shen Hetang had no intention of stopping her. Since she hadn’t suffered those wrongs herself, she could never bring herself to mouth platitudes about returning injury with kindness. Let her do as she pleased. Besides, she had a premonition that they wouldn’t be staying here much longer…
The next day, Shen Hetang received a visitor at the Yamen who was both a complete stranger and yet intimately familiar.
He was a stranger because they’d never met in person, but familiar because she’d seen his face more than once in her dreams.
“Master, you… are you alright?” The tall, robust young man stared unblinkingly at her, his eyes rimmed with red, making her feel a bit uneasy.
Shen Hetang felt he was desperately restraining himself, and that if he lost control, he’d grab her sleeve.
“I’m doing well… Mm… pretty good!” Faking familiarity with a stranger was a delicate art indeed.
“It’s all this subordinate’s dereliction of duty, failing to protect you! Please, Master, hand down your punishment!” A dignified, seven-foot-tall man3 was actually on the verge of dropping to his knees.
“What’re you doing? Do you even know how I met with disaster? Were you with me at the time?” Shen Hetang asked, thoroughly bewildered.
“No, this subordinate was still stationed at Xixing Pass at the time. You returned alone, Master.” Zhao Chenlan remained kneeling on the floor.
“Since you weren’t even there when it happened, what’s it got to do with you? Get up quickly and go sit over there!” Seeing such a massive fellow kneeling before her made her head throb.
“Master, when’re we going back?” Zhao Chenlan had rushed straight over after hearing news of his master from the Shizifei. Shen Yunshu had likely calculated the timing perfectly before sending him the notification.
“I… I haven’t made up my mind yet,” Shen Hetang said. “By the way, Chenlan, aren’t you a fifth-rank Commandant? Why’re you always calling me ‘Master’?” She was still completely in the dark regarding their exact relationship.
“I was your personal retainer first, and a fifth-rank Commandant second,” the thick-browed, righteous-looking young man replied, his tone resolute and unwavering. “My sole purpose in life since the day I was born has been to protect you, Master.”
“You’re my family servant?” Truth be told, Chenlan’s bearing didn’t resemble a servant’s in the slightest; he looked more like an older brother.
“Master, the Shizifei said… she said you lost your memory… Don’t you really remember Chenlan?” Despite being a high-ranking fifth-rank officer, he sounded on the verge of sobbing.
Shen Hetang realized she’d completely misjudged him. How could this iron-blooded warrior be such a crybaby? What she didn’t know was that Zhao Chenlan had entered the Shen family estate at the age of three and had never left her side since. Under his mother’s brainwashing, guarding his master was his only duty.
During his years at the frontier, he’d simply executed whatever his master directed him to do. The Little General, unwilling to let him spend his entire life as a mere personal retainer, had planned out an official commission for him.
Though Zhao Chenlan was built like a towering older brother, at heart, he’d always been a younger brother who had been protected. He had seen what other families’ servants were like; yet, from childhood, his master had arranged for him to learn to read and write, allowed him to train in martial arts, and had even carved out a future career for him.
When the Little General went home and managed to lose herself, Zhao Chenlan—stuck far away at the frontier—felt as frantic and lost as if he’d lost his very eyeballs. Yet, bound by military duty, he couldn’t simply desert his post. He had to remain behind, guarding the Little General’s assets and keeping rivals from seizing any opportunity.
Now that his master said she didn’t remember him, how could he not feel deeply aggrieved?
“I still… have… a bit of an impression.” Though she’d only dreamt of him, she supposed that still counted as having an impression.
Zhao Chenlan’s face made it clear he didn’t believe a word. His eyes began to water again. He also felt that his master seemed to have grown smaller somehow, and the sharp, murderous aura she had possessed when they parted was entirely gone.
“Alright, you’re a grown man. Can’t you leave me with a slightly better impression?” Shen Hetang sighed. He’d grown so tall all for nothing; at heart, he was like a child whose inner strength wasn’t even up to her wife’s.
“Master, shall we return to the capital tomorrow?” Zhao Chenlan asked. It’s enough that his master has been found; whether she remembers him or not, she’d figure it out sooner or later.
“Hold on, hold on,” Shen Hetang said, hastily raising a hand to cut him off. “Why’re you acting like a bandit, trying to carry me off the moment you arrive?”
“What’m I supposed to do once I get back?” She was completely in the dark about a general’s daily routine.
“Once you return to the capital, Master, you must naturally enter the palace to report your safe return to the Emperor,” Zhao Chenlan explained, analyzing the situation. “Although our foreign enemies are currently just biding their time without making any moves, the Emperor will likely dispatch you back to Xixing Pass anyway.” But if the Emperor harbored other designs, Zhao Chenlan wouldn’t know what kind of irregular schemes might be in play.
“I see… And what does the capital think of my disappearance?” If she didn’t learn more now, she’d be completely blind when the time came.
“His Majesty naturally dispatched the Brocade Guard to conduct a thorough search. However, the place where you disappeared is immense distances away from Qingyuan County, so searching for you was like looking for a needle in a vast ocean.”
“Furthermore, the streets are rife with rumors. Some say you were assassinated by foreign invaders, while others claim you were captured and imprisoned. In short, there’re all sorts of wild rumors. There’re even quite a few young ladies who’ve been going up the mountains in groups to offer flowers and pray for the General’s well-being.” At this, Zhao Chenlan snuck a look at his master’s expression.
“People’re actually climbing mountains to offer flowers and pray for me? Are they treating me like a holiday?” Shen Hetang was rather taken aback. Had the original owner gone and left her with a peach blossom debt4?
“Among all the young masters of the capital, your looks have always stood head and shoulders above the rest, Master,” Zhao Chenlan said, a note of pride creeping into his voice. “Moreover, people naturally hold a certain admiration for a reformed playboy who went on to achieve such great military glory.”
Hearing this, the corners of Shen Hetang’s eyes and brows twitched with a very guilty sort of anxiety. The original owner was biologically female—what on earth was she doing attracting bees and butterflies like that? If she’d ended up provoking someone she shouldn’t have, wouldn’t that put her on a spit to roast over a fire?
“Let me ask you something, and tell me the absolute truth—I… didn’t have any peach blossom debts back then, did I?” Shen Hetang probed cautiously.
“Well…” Chenlan recalled thoughtfully. “You received quite a few scented sachets and handkerchiefs, Master. But because you got so many, they’re all treated as mere souvenirs. No single young lady was ever given special treatment.” There was really no helping it; who could help it when their young master was so exceptionally beautiful? Back then, even though she hadn’t been particularly ambitious, she’d still managed to capture the hearts of countless young maidens.
Shen Hetang’s fingertips trembled. Original owner, oh original owner, you were really seeking death!
But at least there wasn’t a primary suitor. She wasn’t afraid of a whole crowd of loose admirers; she was only afraid of a single, highly determined one.
“Are you alright, Master?” Chenlan asked, looking concerned as he noticed the grim look on her face.
“I’m fine. I won’t die just yet,” she muttered. Slumping back into her chair, she rested her fingers across her face, digesting the fact that she might have been a playboy.
After receiving the secret letter from the Shizifei, Zhao Chenlan had requested family leave to return. In another two days, he’d have to ride post-haste back to Xixing Pass. Ever since he’d been promoted to Commandant, he could no longer accompany Shen Hetang at every hour of the day.
Shen Hetang decided that once she’d finished sorting out the affairs here, she’d set off for the capital. In truth, she simply wanted to buy a little more time. The fragmented memories in her mind still lacked a few crucial details before they could be fully pieced together, and she felt as though she was still waiting for some final catalyst.
Moreover, Chenyu’s affairs weren’t yet settled. Waiting a little longer would be for the best; the young lady still needed to properly arrange her shops and estates before they could leave.
But before any of that, she’d first have to lay all her cards on the table and confess her true background to her wife, in hopes of receiving a lenient sentence.
Footnotes
- Xiéhóng (斜红) is a traditional style of Chinese cosmetics dating back to the Three Kingdoms period, where red crescent-shaped marks are painted near the temples.
- Andu Chencang (暗度陈仓) is a classic military idiom meaning to carry out an affair or conspiracy in secret while maintaining a deceptive front. Literally 'secretly crossing the Chencang pass.'
- Qīchǐ nán'ér (七尺男儿) is a traditional expression meaning a 'seven-foot man,' historically used to describe a tall, strong, and honorable man of dignity.
- Táohuā zhài (桃花债) is a traditional Chinese concept referring to troublesome romantic entanglements or karmic debts arising from love affairs.
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