ADWMCES Chapter1

“Hahaha, the beauty’s sedan chair will pass by here soon!”

“Even though I’ve never seen what the first beauty in the capital looks like, at least I can see how this beauty looks when she gets married.”

“Who is the first beauty in the capital city you mentioned, brothers?”

“The Third Young Lady of the Chu family, Chu Yinyin, you don’t even know her, are you from another place?”

“Yes, but she is a noble woman, how can everyone know what she looks like?”

“Although none of us have seen what Third Young Lady Chu looks like, but we are fortunate enough to have seen Second Young Master Chu Fengqing of the Chu Family.” The man sighed afterward. “Tsk, tsk, tsk, he looks like an immortal!! If he were a woman, he would be stunningly beautiful. Coincidentally, he has a twin sister, it’s Third Young Lady of the Chu Family. Everyone guessed that they should look almost the same. That’s how she got the title of the most beautiful woman in the capital.”

“I see.”

“Then you must not even know who Chu Yinyin is marrying to either, right?”

“Who?”

That person lowered his voice: “Ji Yujin.”

The Wangyue Tower was packed with people, especially the seats near the windows, which were taken up early. The streets were also filled with people watching the ceremony.

The stranger’s eyes widened slightly when he heard the name: “But isn’t that person an eunu…?!”

“So, this marriage is a joke ah. It’s a pity for this Third Young Lady. The capital’s first beauty unexpectedly ended up marrying an eunuch! It would be better for her to follow me, a grandpa. At least I still have roots (Refer to the private part), isn’t that right? So I can take good care of her. If Ji Yujin marries her, she will just be a decoration, he can’t do that kind of thing. Hahaha.”

“Who knows what methods that King of Hell will use to torture her? I guess Third Young Lady Chu will not survive more than three days after marrying him.”

“Ai, the Chu family has already fallen into decline. The twins of the Chu family were so enviable back then, but I never expected that they would end up like this.”

There was a lot of noise in the building, and most people were discussing one thing—the royal family granted marriage to Ji Yujin, the eunuch of the Xichang¹Western Depot (Xichang) was a Ming dynasty spy and secret police agency run by eunuchs., and his marriage partner was Chu Yinyin, who was a famous beauty in the capital.

“After all, Master Ji is lucky.”

“Master my ass, just a damn, half crippled eunuch.”

“Brother, be careful with your words!”

The shopkeeper came over when he saw the situation was getting out of control and begged for mercy: “Everyone, everyone, this is this humble one’s small business, please spare this humble one’s life and stop talking about that person. This humble one will apologize to you all here, and everyone’s tea will be free today.”

Everyone then realized who they were talking about, and they were so scared that they broke out in cold sweats. They quickly changed the subject and just waited for the wedding procession to pass by.

On the other side.

Chu Fengqing sat in front of a bronze mirror, next to which was a row of silver needles, which shone with a cold light. On the small couch next to him was a bright red wedding dress, which was gorgeous and exquisite, with exquisite patterns embroidered with gold thread.

“Young Master.” A man dressed like an attendant walked in from outside the door, Chang Wang respectfully said, “The Young Lady and the Madam have already boarded the carriage heading south, and people from the south have been sent to pick them up.”

Hearing this, Chu Fengqing nodded slightly and said, “Alright.”

Now that they were gone, he had nothing to worry about anymore.

Chang Wang then took out a package and stared at it with a subtle look. He said, “The thing you want is also ready.”

Chu Fengqing pursed his lips and said, “Let’s put it there for now.”

He reached out and took a silver needle and placed it on the candle flame to heat it. Under the glow of the red candle, his slender, pale fingers resembled carved jade, flawless and smooth. His eyes were a shade lighter than most, carrying no trace of sorrow or joy. Sitting with a straight back, he looked like a figure stepped out of a painting, only even more exquisite than the art itself.

But there was a sense of alienation lingering around him, and he looked even colder than the snow falling outside.

When the needle was almost burned, he looked up at the bronze mirror and explored his neck with his hand. After a moment, he stopped. This was the acupuncture point. He just had to pierce it with a silver needle, and he could change his voice.

“Young Master…” Chang Wang said with reluctance, “If that person finds out that you are a man…”

Everyone in the world knows that Ji Yujin, the Governor of the Xichang, hates men the most. Who knows if it was because he himself can’t be a man or something, but in any case, no man who falls into his hands will have a good ending, not to mention that now his own young master has to dress up as a woman and marry him.

Chu Fengqing paused for a moment. “He can’t find out, he is an eunuch.”

Eunuchs have their own ways ah! They have all kinds of tricks! Chang Wang opened his mouth, but he didn’t know how to tell his young master about the dirty things he had heard, because it was really insulting, especially to someone like his young master. He really couldn’t open his mouth.

After struggling for a long time, he said with a hot face, “Eunuchs also have their own ways. Young Master, you will inevitably have to consummate the marriage after you marry…”

Chu Fengqing frowned and looked at Chang Wang in confusion. Chang Wang’s face turned even hotter, and he muttered, “I just… heard it from the old woman outside…”

Chang Wang uttered an “Ah”, feeling hopeless, and immediately changed the subject. “Young Master, why don’t we wait a little longer and see if there is any other way?”

He spoke unclearly, and Chu Fengqing didn’t quite understand what he wanted to say. “We can’t wait any longer.”

He pressed the acupuncture point on his neck with his hand and pierced it without any emotion, it was quick and fierce, with coldness and decisiveness.

Chang Wang tilted his head and felt the pain on his face.

His father was detained in the imperial court, his elder brother’s life and death at the border were still unknown, and his younger sister was arranged to be a concubine of the eunuch. His eyes turned slightly cold. This plan was great, and the intention was to force them to death.

Then he will see who will live and who will die.

A violent cough startled Chang Wang. Chu Fengqing pursed his lips to try to suppress the cough, but the more he tried, the harder he coughed, thus he could no longer control it, and his jade-like face turned red.

Chang Wang hurriedly poured him a cup of water. Even though he had been with Chu Fengqing for a long time already, he was still so stunned by his facial expressions when he turned around that he was speechless.

Chu Fengqing took the water and drank a few sips before he managed to suppress his cough. There was a hint of illness on his face. When he spoke again, his voice changed. The clear female voice startled Chang Wang so much that his pupils shrank. To be honest, it really sounded a bit like his young lady’s voice.

Moreover, his adam apple that originally protruded outward has retracted slightly. Although it’s still there, it’s not as obvious, and the difference between him and a girl’s is not much.

Chu Fengqing frowned, obviously a little uncomfortable, and his throat felt sore whenever he spoke. He had seen this method in a medical book when he was young, and it was a method that failed to be handed down from the past generation. After all, it was a crooked way, so how could it be harmless?

Before the bronze mirror, he loosened his hair tie, and in an instant, his black hair cascaded over his shoulders. His phoenix-shaped eyes lifted slightly, and his beauty was so breathtaking it seemed enough to topple a nation.

Chang Wang’s eyes reddened. Such a person now had to marry an eunuch as a man, and he might not even survive.

Chu Fengqing coughed a few more times, his face faintly showing signs of illness. “Chang Wang, help me change my clothes.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

Chang Wang opened the bundle, and the first thing that caught his eye was a big red dudou²Dudou or Chinese bodice, is a traditional Chinese undergarment for women or children, usually made of silk, covering the chest and belly, and tied at the neck and waist.. Chu Fengqing took a look and turned his head. Chang Wang coughed twice in embarrassment and took out two round, spherical objects from it. He scratched the back of his head and said, “Young Master, I can’t find the finished product, and I was afraid that if I let someone else do it, they won’t keep it a secret, so I had to take it back and make it myself… Wait for me a bit.”

Chu Fengqing closed his eyes to avoid the unpleasant sight, his long crow feather-like eyelashes trembling slightly. He couldn’t figure out how he would put this thing on himself later.

Chang Wang had never handled needlework before. After laboring over it for a long while, beads of sweat gathered at the tip of his nose, but at last he managed to fasten them onto the undergarment.

“Young Master, it’s done.”

“En.” Chu Fengqing took that personal item. Chang Wang’s eyes flashed slightly, and he went out first and closed the door.

Chu Fengqing pursed his lips. Is it necessary to go to this extent? Isn’t Ji Yujin an eunuch? It should be fine even if he didn’t wear this…

A rare look crossed his usually cold face,tinged with embarrassment and shyness, but recalling Chang Wang’s earlier words, Chu Fengqing ultimately gave in.

He was defending his sister, and his father was still suffering in the prison. If he continued to go against Ji Yujin, he would end up dead. It would be fine for him to die alone, as he wouldn’t live long anyway.

But no, he had people he needed to protect, and even the slightest misstep could shake everything. He had to tread with utmost caution.

He removed his garments, revealing skin as pale as snow. The delicate curve of his shoulder blades was flawless, like butterfly wings, and a vivid red ribbon was fastened around his neck, the striking color making his ivory skin appear even more luminous.

Chu Fengqing buttoned it casually and put on his undergarment hastily, then summoned Chang Wang to help him put on his wedding dress. The dress was a bit complicated to wear, and he could not handle it alone.

The wedding robe blazed like fire, the beauty stood pure as snow, and the sea of crimson seemed endless.

……

The bridesmaid waved a crimson handkerchief, leading a lively procession with gongs and drums resounding, the eight-man sedan chair swaying amid the commotion. Yet at the very front, an empty horse moved ahead, there was no bridegroom waiting there.

“Where’s Ji Yujin?”

“Who knows? He might still be killing people somewhere else.”

“It’s interesting not to see the groom on the wedding day.”

The bridesmaid stopped the sedan chair in front of a small courtyard, then turned around and walked into the house. “Has the bride dressed up?”

When she stepped into the room, she saw a woman seated within, her long black hair held in place by nothing but a single gold hairpin, her face bare of any makeup. The bridesmaid paused in astonishment, never in all her years had she seen such breathtaking beauty. Simply standing before her stirred a sense of inferiority; she truly was the unrivaled first beauty of the capital.

This is the outfit…

The bridesmaid asked, “Bride, isn’t it a little too plain?”

Chu Fengqing: “No.”

The bridesmaid: “……” Fine, Master Ji is not in the capital now anyway. She couldn’t help but shudder when she thought of the Ji Mansion. That didn’t look like a wedding at all.

But the Chu family was equally harsh. They claimed that Second Young Master Chu suffered from asthma, and Madam Chu had gone south with him to seek treatment, completely neglecting the Third Young Lady without a second thought. But it was also understandable, the Chu family had been powerful for generations. When misfortune struck, their legitimate daughter was wed to an eunuch. Such a shameful secret, if exposed, would tarnish the family’s honor. It was far better to sever all ties.

But if she refused to marry, Old Master Chu would remain locked away in prison, his fate hanging solely on those words. It was truly a tragedy for Third Young Lady Chu, whose entire life was shattered so abruptly.

“Then let’s go. The wedding sedan is waiting outside.”

Chang Wang handed him a veil. Chu Fengqing’s brow twitched briefly, a flicker of disgust passing through his eyes, but he swiftly masked it with his usual impassive expression, revealing no hint of sorrow or happiness.

The moment Chu Fengqing stood up, the bridesmaid looked up at him and thought to herself, This lady is really tall.

His sight was blocked by the red color. He was supported by Chang Wang as he walked out. No one came to see him off, and no one cheered him on either. In the empty and dead air, he stepped out of the threshold. When he arrived in front of the wedding sedan, Chang Wang couldn’t hold back anymore, and a tear drop fell on Chu Fengqing’s hand.

Chu Fengqing was slightly stunned, his hands felt both hot and painful, as if they were burned. He stopped and sighed softly. “After I leave, go to the south to find the Madam and help me take care of them.”

“Please.”

“En.” Chang Wang bit his lips tightly and dared not make a sound. He tilted his head back and tried his best not to let the tears fall. He didn’t want his young master to hear it and feel uncomfortable.

“The bride is getting into the sedan chair!”

Following the bridesmaid’s loud shout, Chang Wang rubbed his hands and couldn’t help shouting, “Young… Young Lady, you must take good care of yourself!”

Chu Fengqing didn’t answer him and stepped into the bridal sedan in his red-embroidered shoes.

The sedan was a little bumpy on the way, and Chu Fengqing took off his veil, revealing his pale lips. There was a dagger hidden in the sleeve of his wedding dress and a few silver needles in the other sleeve.

He was slightly relieved that Ji Yujin did not come to pick up the bride. Ji Yujin was a variable in his plan. This man had a peculiar personality and was really hard to figure out.

In previous years, when he was recuperating in the south due to health reasons, he had never dealt with him. He had only met him once at the Imperial Academy in his early years. At that time, Ji Yujin was still the Crown Prince of Chennan, and he was very carefree and unrestrained. It wasn’t known what happened later that he entered the palace and became an eunuch.

However, even though he was in the south, he had already heard of his deeds. He persecuted loyal and good people and killed them like flies. It was no exaggeration to say that he was notorious. His name could even stop children from crying at night.

The Xichang, which he was in charge of, surpassed the original Dongchang³Eastern Depot was a Ming dynasty spy and secret police agency run by eunuchs in just two years. The Jinyiwei⁴The Jinyiwei (Embroidered Uniform Guards) was the imperial secret police that served the emperors of the Ming dynasty in China. were at his disposal, and with the imperial power’s special permission, he could execute people first and report later, and his power was overwhelming.

But Ji Yujin was also his opportunity. If he can win this person over, it will be much easier for him to act.

The sedan stopped. Chu Fengqing opened the curtain a little, looked up, and saw the words “Ji Mansion”, then covered his head with the veil again.

The bridesmaid supported him and walked into the mansion.

• 1
  Western Depot (Xichang) was a Ming dynasty spy and secret police agency run by eunuchs.
• 2
  Dudou or Chinese bodice, is a traditional Chinese undergarment for women or children, usually made of silk, covering the chest and belly, and tied at the neck and waist.
• 3
  Eastern Depot was a Ming dynasty spy and secret police agency run by eunuchs
• 4
  The Jinyiwei (Embroidered Uniform Guards) was the imperial secret police that served the emperors of the Ming dynasty in China.