Li Zhaoji thought this was just an absurd little interlude that would soon pass.
At the time, that was what he believed.
The Tang Residence.
Tang Jiayu changed out of her cumbersome ceremonial robes with their wide sleeves and directed the maidservants to organize Qinyu Garden—clothes, jewelry, books, antiques… she wanted to dig up and inventory even the ants on the ground. When a young servant came in to report that the master had returned, Tang Jiayu was having someone wipe down her brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.
Tang Jiayu had always been one to act on every whim, and it was always the maidservants below her who bore the brunt of her caprices. Zhexia had no idea what Tang Jiayu was up to now and complained, "My lady, these sheets of painting paper haven't been used in ages. What made you suddenly think of them?"
Naturally, it was because they would soon be put to use. Tang Jiayu smiled and said, "I'm about to get married. In the future I'll need to purchase things for the young master as well. I should have a count of exactly how much property is in my chambers. You all continue airing out the paintings—I'm going to pay my respects to Father."
The maidservants exchanged glances. Tang Jiayu was already calling him "young master"? But he was the Young Lord.
How could they dare let Tang Jiayu go off on her own? They all offered to accompany her to the Hall of Humble Virtue. Tang Jiayu thought it over and picked Zhanqiu to go with her.
If she wanted to escape Hedong, she needed people of her own on the outside to make arrangements for her. But she was trapped within the Tang Residence and had no contact with outsiders at all—how could she cultivate her own people? After turning it over in her mind, she concluded she would have to start with those around her. If she could turn the maidservants by her side, her grand escape plan would be much easier.
Zhenchun and Zhexia had betrayed Li Jichen, so they could betray her too—untrustworthy. Zhanqiu and Zhandong were skilled in martial arts and highly loyal, reliable in a crisis—they were the key targets of Tang Jiayu's observation.
With maidservants accompanying her, Tang Jiayu had no choice but to put on a full act. She feigned the appearance of a maiden whose heart was stirring with springtime feelings, skipping and bouncing all the way to the Hall of Humble Virtue.
"Father!"
Her voice arrived before she did. The servants at the Hall of Humble Virtue hurriedly adjusted their expressions—those watering flowers, those sweeping the ground, each busied themselves. When Tang Jiayu ran in, they pretended to have just noticed her and greeted her warmly, "Peace to you, my lady."
Everyone was so good to her. Everyone seemed to like her. Tang Jiayu sneered inwardly and, refusing to be outdone, returned a brilliant smile.
Entering the room, Tang Jiayu found not only Pang Cheng but Wei Chengjun as well. Judging by their grave expressions, they had already rehearsed their story.
Tang Jiayu knew Li Zhaoji could not possibly agree. She had never expected to drag Li Zhaoji down in a single round. But she still put on a joyful, exuberant front, throwing herself down beside Pang Cheng and asking, "Father, how did it go? Did Young Master Li agree?"
That morning, Tang Jiayu had publicly pointed at Li Zhaoji and named him as her husband. Pang Cheng had disagreed, but the guests were ones he had invited, and it was he himself who had said she could pick anyone she liked. Pang Cheng could not salvage the situation and could only give a vague answer—that he did not know much about that man either, only that his surname was Li and his family was very poor. The ever-practical Tang Jiayu, however, had a change of heart this time, insisting stubbornly that she did not mind the man's poverty—she only cared about love.
No matter how Pang Cheng tried to talk her out of it, Tang Jiayu remained obstinately unrepentant. With no other option, Pang Cheng made the excuse of going to inquire about the Li family's circumstances and went out in the afternoon—when in truth he went to the Governor's Manor to seek instructions from Li Jichen. Tang Jiayu knew this perfectly well and continued playing along with Pang Cheng.
Pang Cheng sighed deeply, his expression grave. "Jiayu, as your father, I cannot bear to disappoint you either. But I went to the Li family this afternoon to look. That boy's home is completely bare—he's in debt up to his ears, so poor he has nothing but that face of his."
"That's perfect, then." Tang Jiayu's eyes held a smile as she spoke with innocent generosity. "Our family has money. However much he owes, I'll pay it off for him."
Pang Cheng choked slightly, silently apologizing to the Military Governor and the Young Lord, then continued heavily, "He's not just poor—I've heard his family's reputation is poor as well. His parents died young, and not a single uncle or neighbor is willing to associate with him. I've heard his ancestors may have committed some offense, and the family is barred from officialdom for three generations. His family is a bottomless pit. Every woman around avoids him like the plague! Jiayu, I've doted on you like a pearl in my palm since you were small—how could I let you marry someone like this? Think it over again. Choose a better man."
"Yes, cousin." Wei Chengjun was rather displeased, his face dark as he spoke. "You've only met him once, you don't even know his name, and you want to marry him? There are plenty of men in this world better than him. Why go far when the best is near? I've grown up with you as childhood sweethearts, accompanied you for years, and I'm devoted to you with all my heart—can't you see that?"
Tang Jiayu secretly pinched herself, forcing a sheen of tears into her eyes. "Cousin, I've seen all the kindness you've shown me over the years, but I've only ever regarded you as an elder brother. When you meet that person in the future, you'll understand—some people, the moment you see them, you know they're destined."
Pang Cheng frowned. "What about Wang Rong, then? Last year you also said you fell in love with Wang Rong at first sight. This year you're telling a new person it's destiny. You're simply drawn to beauty because you're young and impressionable—changing every year. How much sincerity can there be in that? Jiang Jun is the most reliable. You two have been siblings for years, an unbreakable blood bond, and you know each other inside and out. If you marry him, I'll be most at ease."
In truth, Pang Cheng was right. What Tang Jiayu liked about Wang Rong was merely the halo of his noble birth and outstanding looks, not the person himself. A love that stirs at first sight—how deep could it truly be?
As for Li Zhaoji, she couldn't even call it being moved—it was revenge, nothing more. But anyone had the right to criticize her—anyone except Pang Cheng.
In her previous life, Tang Jiayu had been wholeheartedly filial to her father. And Pang Cheng? Had there ever been even a moment when he truly treated her as his own child? Probably not. In this life, she no longer cared for anyone's love. She wanted to return to Chang'an, to obtain the honor and glory befitting a princess, and to repay these people a thousandfold, a hundredfold, for the harm she suffered in her previous life!
Tang Jiayu thought of the snow in the ninth year of Shengping. Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, and without any need for acting, tears rolled down naturally. "Father, would it be better if I had been born a boy? I could go to battle, establish merit and achievements—at the very least, I could take a wife I liked and carry on the family line. But I was born a daughter instead. I cannot study to enter officialdom, nor can I practice martial arts to join the army. I'm nothing but a burden to the Tang family."
When Pang Cheng and Wei Chengjun saw Tang Jiayu burst into tears, they were both stunned. Hearing her words, Pang Cheng's expression shifted slightly. "How could you think such a thing? Who's been whispering such nonsense in your ear?"
"Naturally, it's all thanks to you—I saw it with my own eyes." Tang Jiayu said between sobs, "No one told me, but I'm not stupid. How could I not guess? If I were a son, I could inherit the Tang family estate. Father wouldn't have to worry about having no heir, nor would he need to be so anxious about finding a live-in son-in-law. I might as well disguise myself as a man and serve as a retainer in a military commissioner's office—who knows, I might even carve out a career for myself!"
Pang Cheng's head was spinning just hearing this. Wandering around Bingzhou wasn't enough for her—now she wanted to disguise herself as a man? Pang Cheng hastily said, "Nonsense! Whether you're a boy or a girl, you are my only child. If the Tang family estate doesn't go to you, who else would it go to? Stay quietly in the Tang household and stop thinking about disguising yourself as a man or running away from home!"
"But Father seems so dissatisfied with me. A son can choose whomever he likes to marry—why can't I, just because I'm a daughter?"
Pang Cheng was caught in a loop. After a stunned moment, he said, "I'm not opposed to you taking a live-in son-in-law. It's just that you need to find a decent young man—you can't just go by looks. Even when taking a wife, one should marry for virtue. You're a daughter—your marriage prospects require even more caution."
"But Young Master Li is clearly wonderful." Tang Jiayu's eyes brimmed with tears. "He's unmarried, both his parents are dead, and his relatives don't associate with him—he's simply the perfect candidate for a live-in son-in-law! I know Wang Rong's family is illustrious and he could never marry into our family. If I wanted to be with him, I'd have to leave the Tang family and marry into Youzhou. I can't bear to leave you, Father, so I've given up on Wang Rong. Why can't I even have Young Master Li?"
Wei Chengjun was in a terrible mood. What kind of curse was this? Why did everyone like Li Zhaoji? He was grinding his teeth to dust. "Why must it be him and no one else?" he asked hatefully.
"Cousin." Tang Jiayu looked at Wei Chengjun through her tears, her gaze hazy. "We've been brother and sister for so many years—there's no one closer. If you married a woman you loved and made her my sister-in-law, I would be happy for you. Now I've finally found a young man I like, and Father doesn't understand me. Cousin, even you don't understand me?"
Wei Chengjun was rendered speechless, unable to say a word.
After Tang Jiayu's bout of muddled pestering, Pang Cheng and Wei Chengjun had forgotten that she hadn't answered a single one of their questions. Instead, they had been led into a pit by her, stuck between a rock and a hard place, unable to do anything right.
This was Tang Jiayu's first rule of dealing with the world: never explain. To explain is to fall into the other person's trap—chattering on to prove what you didn't do, the more you say the more wrong you become. Better to say nothing at all. Besides, she couldn't explain anyway, because she truly wasn't sincere.
Attack was the best defense. Take your own weapon and strike first, let the other party prove themselves. As they prove and prove, they forget what they originally intended to do.
Seeing her spinning further and further off course, Pang Cheng gritted his teeth, unwilling to keep playing along with this scene of fatherly love and daughterly devotion. "You can like whoever you want, but by the order of parents and the words of matchmakers—as long as I am the head of the Tang family for even one day, your marriage will be decided by me. Your head is muddled right now, but I cannot stand by and watch you jump into a fire pit. Go back and clear your head. In a couple of days, you'll understand your father's painstaking care."
Pang Cheng signaled for the maids to pull her away. Just as Zhanqiu was about to step forward, Tang Jiayu threw herself to the ground with a thud, raised her hand, and declared, "I, Tang Jiayu, swear to heaven: in this life, I will marry no one but Young Master Li. If I break this vow, may both he and I lose our families, have no children, and live out our days in loneliness! Father, I don't mind that he's poor, and I don't mind that he's ill-omened. Please just grant me this."
Pang Cheng was so furious his beard trembled. In all his years, this was the first time he had seen someone curse the other party while making a vow! Pang Cheng also spoke fiercely: "If you insist on marrying him, fine—then you are no longer my daughter! You won't take a single coin of the Tang family's wealth. From now on, whether you live or die has nothing to do with the Tang family!"
Pang Cheng knew Tang Jiayu had been pampered since childhood and loved wealth most of all. Her stubbornness was simply because she believed the Tang family's fortune could back her up. But what if the family fortune and her love became an either-or choice?
Pang Cheng thought this time Tang Jiayu would finally come to her senses. Unexpectedly, she wiped away her tears, knocked her head three times on the ground with force, and when she raised her face, her eyes were firm and blazing: "Father, your daughter is unfilial and cannot stay to care for you in your old age. From now on, please take good care of your health. Your daughter is leaving."
With that, Tang Jiayu rose and walked toward the door. The Military Governor had just instructed that she be kept under watch—how could Pang Cheng let her leave? Pang Cheng was greatly alarmed and, seizing the moment, feigned towering rage, slamming the table: "You dare rebel! For the sake of a man, you would abandon your family? He is penniless and owns nothing—he cannot possibly give you the life you have now. If you marry him, you are doomed to a lifetime of hardship. How could you be so foolish!"
The maids in the room were also startled and hurried forward to block Tang Jiayu: "My lady, you cannot leave."
Of course she could not leave. If she walked out that door, all of them would lose their heads.
Tang Jiayu wore the look of someone willing to defy the entire world for love, and declared resolutely: "Do not stop me. If I can be with my love, I would not shrink from death; I would rather be a pair of mandarin ducks than an immortal. As long as it is him, I am willing to endure even the hardest life!"
Pang Cheng could distinguish between mission and reality, and in all these years he had never confused the two. But in this moment, he truly experienced the misery of raising a daughter. He had piled up gold and jade to pamper her, and for the sake of a poor young man she had met only once, she was ready to break with her family?
Pang Cheng was both angry and plagued by a headache. He roared: "Foolish girl! Stop her at once! Take the young lady back to her room and confine her to reflect on her mistakes. Without my order, she is not to step outside."
.
By the time the matter at the Tang residence reached Li Zhaoji's ears, several days had passed. He was practicing spear techniques at the training ground as usual when Wei Chengjun arrived at some point and stood at the edge of the field, watching him with an unreadable expression.
Li Zhaoji was used to being watched, but for a man to look at him like that for so long was truly revolting. Li Zhaoji had no choice but to stop practicing, remove his wrist guards, and walk over: "Cousin, why have you come? Is there something you want to say to me?"
Wei Chengjun looked at him for a long while, then said: "Cousin, you are quite capable. Your archery is Hundred-Pace Willow-Piercing, your spearwork flows like clouds and water—and even a casual trip outside can make a woman want to live or die for you."
Wei Chengjun's tone was barbed and full of gunpowder. Li Zhaoji could not help frowning. The first two claims were facts, and Li Zhaoji admitted them, but the last was a gross injustice.
Li Zhaoji said: "Whoever angered you, cousin, you come and vent your anger on me. The only people around me are soldiers and horses—what woman is there?"
No, wait—he actually had met one. Li Zhaoji's expression shifted slightly. Seeing that he had realized, Wei Chengjun said with a sneer: "Cousin, you probably do not know. That princess fell in love with you at first sight and would rather cut ties with her family than not marry you. She has been fasting to show her resolve for three days now."