She pondered for a moment and felt it would be best to clear things up tonight. Retracting the smile on her face, she looked directly into Zhao Shen’s eyes, making herself appear incredibly sincere.
“You know that I was essentially raised by my Aunt. To outsiders, Aunt appears noble and honored, but her life is actually quite difficult.”
“There are too many women in the Palace, so many it’s exhausting.” Her gaze fell upon Zhao Shen’s legs. “Someone like you should be able to save me a bit of trouble.”
Zhao Shen: “…So you want me because I’m disabled?”
He had never imagined his useless legs could actually be seen as such an advantage.
It was no wonder that after discovering the affair between Zhao Heng and Yao Ruolan, she had decisively switched grooms.
To state her jealousy so brazenly—she was truly, unexpectedly candid.
Ji Yunshu: “…”
Is there a need to say it out loud as long as we both understand it?
“Actually, when I said I wanted you because you’re good-looking, I meant it. Who wouldn’t like someone as beautiful as you?”
Zhao Shen didn’t know how to describe his current mood. “Which tutor taught you your poetry and prose? Did they teach you to use ‘beautiful’ to describe a man?”
“That’s not the point,” Ji Yunshu emphasized.
But facing Zhao Shen’s deadpan expression, she really didn’t have the courage to repeat that half-hearted confession. She could only laugh sheepishly and say, “Forget it. It’s late; we should get to sleep early.”
Zhao Shen didn’t take her bluntness to heart and nodded.
He then turned his wheelchair toward the low couch by the window.
Ji Yunshu: “Aren’t you going to sleep with me?”
Hearing this, Zhao Shen suddenly remembered her telling Ji Yunlan that they would undergo consummation tonight. He turned back and asked solemnly, “Are you certain you want to go through with consummation?”
Meeting his gaze, Ji Yunshu felt he was trying to give her a chance to regret it. She smiled and said, “It is our wedding night, after all. What else would we do if not consummate? If there’s no movement from us, I’m afraid others will say…”
She rarely showed a bashful expression. Confused, Zhao Shen asked, “Say what?”
“That you’re incapable.”
Zhao Shen: “…”
He suddenly asked with a hint of interest, “If I really am incapable, what do you plan to do?”
Ji Yunshu instinctively glanced toward his lower half before immediately retracting her gaze to look into his eyes.
Finding that his expression was a bit… awkward, yet lacked even a hint of offended displeasure, she suddenly laughed. “Since you ask it that way, I assume you are capable.”
This time, Zhao Shen smiled as well. “Since we are married, we have plenty of time in the future. Weren’t you tired long ago? Go to sleep.”
Having said that, he ignored Ji Yunshu’s reaction and turned his wheelchair directly to the side of the low couch.
He had married an interesting young lady. Though she didn’t truly love him, she didn’t dislike him either.
Moreover, he had a faint intuition that everything was going to be different now.
Ji Yunshu watched as he propped one hand on the couch, and in the blink of an eye, he had moved himself onto it.
The entire process was smooth and practiced.
This is a disabled person?
She blinked and wrapped herself in the quilt.
Through that brief probe, her doubts about marrying Zhao Shen had vanished.
Although this man had broken legs and was considered disabled in the eyes of others, he did not blame heaven or man, nor did he give up on himself. He hadn’t even let his martial skills slip.
He was mentally strong and emotionally stable.
He seemed to have a very good temper. She had intentionally spoken out of line just now; yesterday, when her brother heard similar words, he had scolded her.
Yet Zhao Shen’s attitude toward her was very tolerant, even slightly indulgent.
Of course, this might be due to the age gap. Zhao Shen was twenty-six this year, a full seven or eight years older than the age of her current body.
But regardless, Zhao Shen was easier to get along with than she had anticipated.
The next morning, when Ji Yunshu heard movement outside the door, the sky had just begun to brighten.
In her daze, she wanted to tell people not to be so noisy, but when she opened her eyes, she was met with red bed curtains embroidered with pomegranate patterns.
Only then did she realize she had transmigrated into a book, and last night was her wedding night.
Seeing her wake up, Lanyin hurried forward, leading several maidservants to efficiently serve her as she washed and dressed.
Mama Li personally helped Ji Yunshu wind her hair into an intricate and beautiful bun while reciting the etiquette she should mind during the upcoming tea ceremony.
Ji Yunshu listened half-heartedly, her mind wandering to the plot of the book.
In the original story, Zhao Heng married her, and Yao Ruolan remained the cousin raised under Madam Yao’s care.
To gain the Ji family’s trust, Zhao Heng publicly showed affection for her while privately coaxing a jealous Yao Ruolan.
The two of them would argue every three days and make a scene every two; their push-and-pull relationship was both sweet and agonizing.
Now, Zhao Heng hadn’t married her, and his relationship with Yao Ruolan had been exposed to everyone beforehand.
Would he give up on using a noble lady as a stepping stone to power and instead marry Yao Ruolan as his wife?
Ji Yunshu didn’t think so.
In that case, could she look forward to watching the lead couple’s tragic, intense love from the sidelines?
At the thought of this, she laughed happily at her reflection in the mirror.
As a vicious villainess, she was only happy when the leads were miserable.
After being served by Jingzhe and Dongzhi, Zhao Shen finished dressing and arrived in his wheelchair, just in time to see her smiling radiantly at the mirror.
Usually, when a girl encountered what happened last night, there was no telling how miserable she would be.
She, however, had decisively swapped grooms and continued to live her life happily.
Zhao Shen’s thoughts were a tangled mess for a moment, and before he could sort them out, Ji Yunshu suddenly turned her head and asked, “Do I look good?”
Only then did Zhao Shen realize he had been staring at her for quite a while.
Naturally, she looked good.
The seventeen-year-old girl had almond eyes and peach-blossom cheeks, with a bright smile that made her look like a freshly bloomed gardenia—a pure and vibrant beauty.
Seeing her staring at him expectantly, Zhao Shen could only speak the truth. “You look good.”
He had never praised a girl like this in all his years. Although his face was taut and expressionless as he spoke, his earlobes were quietly tinged with a red flush.
Ji Yunshu couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.
This pure-hearted ancient hunk was her husband from now on.
The thought of being able to flirt with him whenever she wanted in the future was something to look forward to.
The two of them ate a little before heading to the main courtyard for the tea ceremony.
Upon entering, they found the room already full of people. Although the old Marquis of the Changxing Houfu had passed away, the current Marquis’s generation consisted of only three brothers, all of whom were legitimate, so there had been no family division yet.
Before her wedding, Ji Yunshu had naturally made a special effort to learn about the Houfu’s situation. With a little thought, she matched everyone present to their identities.
The Marquis of the first branch only had two sons, Zhao Shen and Zhao Heng.
The Master of the second branch was away on official duty, so only the Second Madam, née Qin, and her two children were present today.
The couple from the third branch were both there, with one legitimate daughter, two concubine-born daughters, and one concubine-born son.
None of the concubines or servant concubines had come.
Relatively speaking, the population of the Changxing Houfu was not exactly flourishing.
After all, this was an era of one wife, multiple concubines, and no birth control.
While Ji Yunshu pondered these things, she respectfully served tea to all the elders.
Everyone was a person of status; even though the groom had changed, no one showed any outward abnormality.
Everyone drank their tea with joyful expressions and offered words of congratulations.
It was as if everything was exactly as it was meant to be.
Only Madam Yao appeared to have not slept all night. Her complexion was terrible, and no matter how much powder she had applied, it couldn’t hide the dark circles under her eyes.
When Ji Yunshu served the tea, although Madam Yao didn’t intentionally make things difficult, the flash of resentment in her eyes was startling.
Recalling Madam Yao’s personality and methods from the book, Ji Yunshu, who had thought she had escaped the fire pit, instantly realized that Madam Yao likely wouldn’t let her off so easily.