Pei Huaian did not want to swap marriage partners. For one, the woman he had always dreamed of was the Shen family’s Third Young Lady; for another, he simply couldn’t imagine becoming husband and wife with the Shen family’s Eldest Young Lady—after all, he’d called her “Sister-in-law” for over a month now.
When they arrived at Junzhi Courtyard, Pei Huaian quickened his pace to get ahead of his elder brother and said, “Brother, let’s split up to ask. I’ll go see Third Young Lady Shen, and you go see Eldest Young Lady Shen.”
Although Pei Huaijin knew his seventh brother’s feelings, after all, Third Young Lady Shen had originally been his own beloved. He had already wronged him by stealing her away, and it wouldn’t be right to deny them even a word together at this point, so he said, “Alright…”
At that moment, Shen Youran was already fully dressed and had long since left the bedchamber, sitting with her elder sister in the left side room. Tinglan and Danruo, having been summoned back, stood guard outside, sighing quietly.
Inside, Shen Youran’s eyes were swollen from crying, her strength spent, slumped limply over the desk as she listened to her eldest sister analyze the pros and cons.
Eldest Sister said that both the Pei and Shen families were prominent houses in the capital; with such a scandal, it was imperative to keep things secret, or else both families’ reputations would suffer. Whether they chose to swap the engagements and make the best of a bad situation, or break off one to save the other, between two evils, the Pei family would likely choose the former…
Shen Youran sniffled, her voice thick with sobs. “I don’t want to swap. I want to break off the engagement. If it comes to it, I’ll just become a nun on the mountain…”
“Don’t say such things. The Pei family’s eldest son is a husband many young ladies in the capital dream of marrying. You wouldn’t be losing out by marrying him…”
“I know he’s very good, but he and I don’t match at all. Just as you and Pei Seventh Young Master don’t match.” Shen Youran was filled with remorse. “How foolish of me. How didn’t I realize it before? What sixteen-year-old boy looks so mature? I was muddleheaded and…”
The feeling of their skin touching lingered; the pressure as his fingers parted hers was still fresh. Shen Youran stared at her own hand, a wave of nausea welling up. She dry-heaved involuntarily…
Seeing her younger sister so repulsed, Shen Yunshu could not persuade her any further and could only sit silently to the side, sighing.
There was a knock at the door. Tinglan, who was waiting outside, came in to report, “Young Master Pei and Seventh Young Master Pei have returned. Seventh Young Master Pei wishes to come in and speak with Third Young Lady…”
Shen Youran looked helplessly at Shen Yunshu and shook her head. “Sister, I don’t want to see anyone.”
“Alright, if you don’t want to see him, then you don’t have to.” Shen Yunshu patted her sister’s hand and asked Tinglan, “What about Young Master Pei?”
“Young Master Pei is in the main hall.”
They must have come to tell them the results of their discussion with the Old Madam.
Shen Yunshu stood up and said to Shen Youran, “I’ll go out and speak with them. You wait here for me, and don’t cry anymore. Your eyes are already not good…”
“Mm.”
As soon as the door opened, Pei Huaian tried to squeeze in, but Shen Yunshu blocked him. “Seventh Young Master, Third Sister is frightened and doesn’t want to see anyone right now. If you have something to say, tell me, and I’ll pass it on to her.”
“No, there are things I have to say to her face,” Pei Huaian said, gripping the partition and leaning half his body in to call, “Third Young Lady, won’t you let me in?”
There was no response from inside for a long time. Shen Yunshu, not wanting to put her sister in a difficult spot, pushed him out and closed the door behind her.
“Seventh Young Master, what did you decide in Chunxuan Hall?” she asked.
“Go ask my brother.” Pei Huaian threw out these words and turned to leave.
Tonight, he had to see Shen Youran no matter what.
Shen Yunshu thought he’d left in a huff and went to the main hall to find Pei Huaijin.
Several lamps burned in the hall, and Pei Huaijin stood there with his hands clasped behind his back, his figure upright but rather aloof. Seeing her enter, his somewhat distracted eyes looked over. He gave a slight nod to indicate she should sit, his demeanor distant yet courteous.
After tonight’s farce, the two who were supposed to become husband and wife could only sit apart, speaking politely like strangers.
“How is she?”
“She just finished crying…”
“Mm,” Pei Huaijin paused for several breaths, then spoke slowly. “Though it was a misunderstanding, I have already shared almost all formalities with her. I must take responsibility. Our marriage must be called off.”
“It’s good that Young Master Pei is willing to take responsibility for Youran,” Shen Yunshu was not surprised at all. “What did the elders say?”
“The elders wish to make the best of the mistake and let me and Seventh Brother swap marriages. But you and Seventh Brother haven’t shared all the formalities. If you wish to withdraw entirely, I can help persuade them…”
Withdraw entirely?
Shen Yunshu had considered it, but she couldn’t leave. She was uneasy about leaving Third Sister alone in the Pei residence, and she didn’t dare go, because outside there was still Lu Yi, watching like a tiger.
“Thank you for understanding, Young Master. But if I leave, it will confirm the rumors of a marriage swap. Our two families would become a laughingstock at every teahouse and dinner table. If I stay, as long as we silence the servants and claim that the original engagements were always you with Third Sister, and me with Seventh Young Master, perhaps we can save some face for both families…”
Pei Huaijin raised his brows slightly, somewhat surprised by her answer.
“My mother mentioned before that you came to Grandmother’s birthday banquet. There were many guests, and everyone already knows your identity. The servants here can be silenced, but how can the tongues outside be stopped? Besides, reputation is ultimately empty, it won’t truly harm the families’ foundations. It’s not worth sacrificing your marriage for it.”
“I know what kind of person Seventh Young Master is. Marrying him isn’t a sacrifice…”
“But you and Seventh Brother aren’t suited for each other,” Pei Huaijin said tactfully, not wanting her to know how Seventh Brother had stomped his feet refusing in Chunxuan Hall. “Seventh Brother once said he doesn’t like older women…”
“In that case…” She pondered for a moment before saying, “A forced melon isn’t sweet. If I really can’t get along with Seventh Young Master, I can always seek divorce later. I’ve already worn the wedding dress once—breaking off the engagement now or divorcing later is little different.”
“You don’t need to wrong yourself like this.”
Shen Yunshu couldn’t reveal her true intentions and could only gently refuse his goodwill. “Since swapping the marriages is the best option for now, Young Master, please don’t try to persuade me otherwise.”
Pei Huaijin didn’t understand why she was so stubborn, but seeing her mind was set, he could say no more.
His expression was icy. As she stood to leave, he brought up another matter.
“After returning to the manor, I heard there was an attempted bride-snatching today. But the capital is peaceful and law-abiding—such a serious event hasn’t occurred in years. Xie Ci, the Da Li Temple’s Judge, was my classmate and specializes in difficult cases in the capital. I want to ask him to help investigate. Do you have any clues to offer?”
He looked at her coolly, suspicion hidden behind his calm tone.
He really had begun to suspect the bride-snatching incident was related to the new bride.
A chill rose up inside Shen Yunshu, but she had expected someone would be suspicious, so she didn’t panic. Instead, she met his oppressive gaze directly, wearing an expression of complete innocence. “It happened so suddenly, I didn’t notice anything unusual…”
“Forgive my bluntness, but before the wedding, was there any man with impure intentions around you?”
Shen Yunshu took a steady breath and replied calmly, “I entered the capital two years ago and have lived quietly in the inner residence with Third Sister, seldom going out. The only time I met an outsider was three months before the wedding, at the City God Temple festival. I accompanied Third Sister to meet the Liang family’s Sixth Young Master from the General’s Manor, but that meeting ended without result because Seventh Young Master appeared…”
The more details she gave, the more she could distance herself and Third Sister from suspicion. Even if Da Li Temple later discovered her stepbrother Lu Yi was behind the kidnapping, she would insist she never knew of his feelings for her.
Seeing her so calm and without signs of lying, Pei Huaijin withdrew his probing and returned to the topic of swapping marriages. “Since you have no objection to the marriage swap, come with me to inform Third Young Lady Shen. Then I can report back to the elders in Chunxuan Hall.”
“Third Sister is still unstable. Could you let her calm down a while longer, Young Master?”
“She’ll have to face it eventually; we can’t keep the elders waiting forever…”
Unable to persuade him, Shen Yunshu had no choice but to accompany him to the left side room.
What they didn’t know was that, while they were speaking in the hall, Pei Huaian had already gone around to the back of the house and pushed open the window of the left side room.
At that time, Shen Youran was still slumped over the desk, wallowing in self-pity. Hearing the window rattle, she thought it was just the wind and couldn’t be bothered to turn her head.
Then she heard a light sound of someone landing on the ground—someone had climbed in through the window. Only then did she slowly turn her head, just as a figure came up beside her.
She was about to scream, but her gaping mouth was covered by his hand.
“Don’t be afraid, it’s me,” Pei Huaian met her frightened gaze, “I’m Pei Seventh, the man you were supposed to marry tonight.”
“I know you don’t want to see anyone right now, but there are things I must say to you in person. Don’t cry out, don’t make a fuss, and I’ll let go, alright?”
Shen Youran nodded.
He withdrew his hand, dragged a stool over, and sat beside her, staring at her intently.
Shen Youran was curious and looked him over: so this is what Pei family’s Seventh Young Master, her intended, looked like.
His stature was not as tall and commanding as the Pei family’s eldest son, but he was graceful as a bamboo shoot. Dressed in red wedding robes, he looked even more elegant and refined. The candlelight poured across the table, illuminating his exquisite features, pale skin, and deep, dark eyes. His brows were slightly raised, exuding a youthful, striking spirit.
He was truly handsome, but looked nothing like the Pei family’s eldest son.
If only she’d seen this face before the wedding, she wouldn’t have mistaken Pei Eldest Young Master for him, would she?
Thinking of this, her eyes stung, and a fresh wave of grievance and shame surged up.
Before Pei Huaian could speak, he saw her lips quiver as she was about to cry again and quickly said, “I know you’re very upset, but please don’t be. Just now, in Chunxuan Hall, the elders tried to persuade me and my brother to swap marriage partners. But I don’t want to marry your sister, and you don’t want to marry my brother, do you?”
Shen Youran fought back tears and replied, “Mm.”
“If you don’t want to, and I don’t either, then let’s pretend nothing happened tonight. You’ll still be my wife. Later, I’ll take you to Quanzhou to live, and you’ll never have to see my brother again…”
“Quanzhou?” Shen Youran remembered her second brother was studying in Quanzhou. But she and her second brother weren’t close; she wanted to be with her elder sister more. “But then I wouldn’t get to see my elder sister anymore. Or my father, or mother…”
“Ah?” Pei Huaian hadn’t thought of that. He’d simply assumed she would want to go to Quanzhou because he’d grown up there and his father had been doing business there for years.
He hadn’t expected her to be so attached to her family.
Asking her to leave everything and settle in Quanzhou was inconsiderate of him.
“Then… how about we move out of the manor after the wedding? My father has a residence in Wuyi Lane. We could move there instead. What do you think?”
“That…” That would be alright.
Shen Youran’s heart was moved, and she almost wanted to agree, but then—
“Don’t you mind?” She looked down, twisting her sleeve unconsciously. “I’ve already… already…”
She bit her lip, unable to say it out loud.
“I…” To say he didn’t mind was a lie, but he’d dreamed of her so many times before, and had already defiled her in his dreams. Now that she was before him, if he could just get past this, he could truly have her.
Moreover, with the elders determined to swap marriages, if he couldn’t have her back, he would have to marry that “Sister-in-law” instead.
Pei Huaian took her hand to show his resolve. “I don’t mind.”
The unfamiliar touch made Shen Youran think again of that strong, forceful hand, sending a chill through her. She tried to pull away.
“But I mind…”
Pei Huaian racked his brains to comfort her. “Don’t dwell on it. Just treat it like you were bitten by a dog…”
Suddenly, the door burst open, and a cool, quiet voice drifted in.
“Who’s the dog?”