Chapter 10

The Woman Before Him and the One Rumored

    As soon as Shan Shan returned home with a complete set of paper, ink, and brushes, she immediately started drawing and writing.

    In the cramped and dilapidated room of the bamboo house, a graceful woman with long flowing black hair sat intensely focused on her writing. Her fingers firmly held the brush, her movements forceful yet as fluid as water flowing in a stream. Her eyes, partially hidden by her thick lashes on her gentle face.

    It revealed a sharp and resolute determination. Her tightly pursed red lips clearly indicated how serious she was about her task.

    A few steps away, a tall man stood watching her with a cold, scrutinizing gaze, his face expressionless.

    Zhao Wei, arms crossed, observed Shan Shan with icy detachment. Noticing her concentrated effort as if she were preparing for an important exam, he couldn't help himself and finally asked in a low voice,

    "Who are you, really?"

    "Hmm..."

    The young man's imposing presence filled the room, his eyes sparking sharply as he continued to probe,

    "It's clear you're not Qing Lin.” He squinted, “Who sent you here?"

    "Eh?"

    "What are your true intentions?"

    "..."

    Shan Shan paused and blinked slowly, taken aback for a moment.

    Zhao Wei observed every one of her movements closely.

    It took a while for Shan Shan to regain her composure, but instead of panicking, she calmly replied,

    "The world is vast and filled with thousands of incredible stories. One of those stories is mine."

    As she spoke, she continued to write smoothly, her composure unshaken by any signs of agitation. This deep calmness was typical of Shan Shan.

    Zhao Wei watched her more intently, his gaze deepening.

    Normally not one to engage in much conversation, especially with his voice being hoarse from a throat injury, he acted more like a mute. But with Shan Shan, he felt different, so he added,

    "You appear to be just an ordinary village woman, unrefined and considered simple by everyone. Or have you just been pretending all along, letting people look down on you to survive?"

    Shan Shan smiled briefly but continued writing, replying smoothly, "My Ye Niu is a man of great stature and once possessed high martial skills, but his martial prowess was destroyed, forcing him to hide here."

    This remark made Zhao Wei furrow his brows.

    Shan Shan set down her brush, picked up the paper to dry the ink, and then gently placed it down. She picked up another sheet to continue writing, not forgetting to cast a fleeting glance at her husband before cooingly saying,

    "I have nothing to hide, nor do I have anything to declare. Since you have secrets you cannot reveal and I choose not to ask, why don’t we forget everything from the past and live well together?"

    Shan Shan’s words, rather than angering Zhao Wei, actually amused him. Though his face, scarred and emotionless, showed no sign, inside he felt quite satisfied.

    He decided not to question further, simply preparing to leave the room quietly as he mentioned, "You must be hungry by now."

    Shan Shan was momentarily startled, sensing that her usually distant husband was beginning to change.

    "Um...I'd like some fish porridge."

    "Today there’s no fish, only venison."

    "Huh...venison, really?" Shan Shan exclaimed with widened eyes. "You had me sell the chickens and rabbits this afternoon. So, there was venison left?"

    Zhao Wei did not reply but coolly ordered, "Go start a fire."

    "Ah...right away,"

    She set down her brush and immediately followed her husband's back.

    "My Ye Niu knows me so well. I'm so tired of fish. It will be good to eat some meat for a change," she said, laughing cheerfully, delighted by the thought.

    The young man did not respond but walked out to the front yard and started handling the deer meat with a detached demeanor, seemingly uninterested in anyone else. Only she kept chatting nonstop.

    "Ye Niu, you should eat a lot too."

    "You're not planning to poison me, are you?"

    "Oh...my intentions are always good, rest assured."

    Unbeknownst to them, the old bamboo house seemed to have the sweet, rainbow-colored threads weaving throughout the space.

    The once indifferent and distant gaze of the young man slowly harbored the silhouette of a woman deep inside, unbeknownst to him when he started seeing her as a husband sees his wife...

    As the night grew cooler and the breeze became gentler.

    Due to the day's exertions and a belly full of venison, Shan Shan’s eyelids became heavy as soon as dusk came, and she slept as if dead to the world.

    On the modest bed covered only by a single blanket, a woman lay seemingly senseless, with a man lying beside her, frowning as he watched.

    "You troublemaker!"

    Zhao Wei muttered before reaching out to pull the blanket over Shan Shan's chest, allowing her to nestle on his arm and snuggle warmly against him.

    On a bed neither too small nor too large, a wife now lay wrapped around her husband, sleeping peacefully like never before. She was unaware that the eyes watching her were filled with smiles.

    A man, noble since birth and a son of the Emperor, not only possessed wealth but also an exceptionally beautiful appearance. Throughout his life, countless women had desired to be close to him, to be intimate, and even to be possessed by him.

    Yet, when he had to disguise himself and hide his identity as an unattractive man, not just to get close, but even a glance from these women was too much to expect.

    For a couple to truly stand together through thick and thin until old age, they must accept each other completely, for better or worse, beauty or ugliness, low or high status, skilled or unskilled.

    It's not easy to find such a match, but the handsome Crown Prince of Da Tang, forced to hide his charming identity and live without allure, was encountering someone truly intriguing.

    Zhao Wei's sharp eyes meticulously observed the woman before him, reflecting on the report from his close guard.

    The words spoken by Wu Jie were filled with sincerity.

    He stressed on how Qing Lin was the worst woman on earth, utterly charmless and not worth associating with at all. As Zhao Wei thought about it, a slight smirk curled under his green mustache, amused and deeply contemplative.

    His wife, indeed...perfectly matched the rumors...

    At dawn, the air was still cold.

    Shan Shan struggled to open her eyes, reaching out for the warmth of her husband but found no one beside her.

    She slowly opened her eyes, scanning the bed before sitting up and straightening her clothes. She walked over to the corner desk, saw the paper she had written on the day before, and decided she should finish writing all the techniques and then practice for six hours each day…

    As she thought this, she glanced at the cold bed, then swept her gaze across the empty room filled with a penetrating chill. Another thought struck her.

    If she wanted to master the skill quickly, the internal energy was crucial.

    She desired the Liberated Bed and a windbreak plank to aid her training, so she should find a way to earn more money. Hmm...but how?

    Walking and thinking, Shan Shan stepped out of the house to find a wooden barrel filled with water. Using a ladle, she scooped some water into a small basin next to the barrel, then crossed to the other side where a small cloth lay folded on a wooden shelf.

    She dipped the cloth in the water, wrung it slightly, and dabbed it on her face. Her eyes briefly caught her husband using water from the same barrel for cooking in the kitchen on another side of the house.

    Shan Shan rolled her eyes and instantly thought of a way to make money.

    She quickly returned inside, finished writing the tendon-stretching techniques, and handed them to the young man in the kitchen, saying, "Ye Niu, follow these practicing. I assure you that your body will be restored to its original strength and health. After that, we can start on other techniques."

    While speaking, she turned to grab a woven bamboo basket, adding,

    "You should store up more water. We'll skip bathing for a few days, just use it for drinking and washing faces."

    With those words, she walked away without looking back.

    Zhao Wei just watched silently, not bothering to ask further, inwardly groaning with irritation,

    If only she would stop being so busy during the day and quit falling dead asleep at night, how nice that would be?

    Shan Shan's mind was filled with techniques; she needed to choose one to practice to make money.

    The Deathly Palm, Soul-binding Demonic Breath, Divine Assassination Breath, Dangers of Women techniques—all required time to strengthen the body first, practice the movements, and cultivate the internal energy, certainly no small feat.

    So, she decided to start with the Myriad Poisons art, climbed the mountain to gather herbs for brewing poison.

    Everything under the sky had two sides. There were advantages and disadvantages, benefits and dangers. Each herb was also like that; if extracted and prepared maliciously, it easily produces vile results.

    Once Shan Shan was satisfied with the herbs she had collected, she hurried down the mountain to brew the herbs until thick. After cooling, she mixed in flour to form neat pills.

    The next morning, Shan Shan laid the concoction out in the strong sun. Once dry, she ground it into a fine powder.

    She then sprinkled this powder into the stream that flowed down towards Ping Yan village.

    A gust of wind shook the branches, scattering petals and leaves onto the water's surface, drifting along the riverbank in the evening twilight. A lone, slender woman with an air of harmless innocence stood by, her face masked by a chilling smile...

    Late next morning,

    Villagers suddenly fell ill, and within a day, many showed the same alarming symptoms.

    By the third day, the affected villagers crowded the local doctor's house. The doctor hypothesized it was some kind of acute epidemic, yet could not determine its nature, as it was unprecedented.

    By the fourth day, no remedy seemed to work; all the patients did not improve.

    Until the seventh day, a mysterious woman appeared. Dressed in white like a celestial being, she wore a woven bamboo hat covered with a sheer fabric and a white cloth tightly masking her face, revealing only her dark, icy eyes, unfathomable of her beauty. Her movements were fluid like a goddess in disguise.

    She came from an unknown direction but offered to cure this strange illness.

    Initially, the people of Ping Yan village were skeptical, but driven by desperation, one villager exclaimed that he would rather die than suffer longer and promised a handsome sum of money if cured.

    This villager stepped forward to take a pill from the enigmatic woman. After swallowing just one, he was miraculously cured within minutes. Skin irritations that had nearly festered away healed completely.

    Instantly, the villagers were astounded and gathered in droves in the village square to buy the mysterious woman's medicine.

    Under her bamboo hat with a layer of fabric covering the head and the masked face, a thin smile formed at the corner of her mouth. Her eyes were black and unfathomably calm. She was the white-robed goddess selling heavenly medicine. Soon, she quietly left with a considerable amount of money.

    From the beginning to the end, her identity was unseen by anyone. As she departed, the healed villagers cheered and praised joyously behind her.

    All this was a calculated plan by Shan Shan.

    She had mildly poisoned the villagers by releasing toxins into the river used by every household in Ping Yan village for drinking and cooking.

    Then, she prepared an antidote in advance, waited for the number of sick to increase, disguised herself as a divine doctor without revealing her face, and sold the antidote to them. Once she had collected enough money, she left without a trace.

    The reason Shan Shan had to disguise herself and hide her face was that Qing Lin was a well-known simple and witless young lady, recognized by the villagers for a long time.

    Revealing her true face while offering help would have been impossible.

    Thus, she needed to mask her appearance while selling the antidote, ensuring credibility and avoiding potential complications that could arise later.

    In the pitch-dark night, only the light from a lantern filtered through the bamboo house's ventilation slits.

    Zhao Wei stood with his arms crossed, watching Shan Shan as she sat at a corner table counting a pile of money. Seeing her eyes sparkle like stars in the night sky, he spoke in a cool tone,

    "You've made a lot of money in just a few days. I'm worried you might tear down my old house and build a mansion soon."

    His tone clearly conveyed his reluctance for such changes.

    Shan Shan paused briefly, glanced at him, and replied softly,

    "Let's keep the outside of our house looking dilapidated as it is, to keep thieves away. Inside, we can gradually add valuable furnishings."

    "What do you really want?"

    He asked sternly, visibly upset. If his wife desired something, why wouldn't she simply tell him, her husband?

    For Zhao Wei, money was not an issue, and neither were dubious methods. His main concern was Shan Shan's safety—why would she need to resort to such dangerous schemes?

    He was significantly annoyed by this thought.

    But Shan Shan misunderstood, thinking her husband was angry about her poisoning the entire village and then tricking them into buying her antidote. She quickly tried to cover up her wrongdoing with a yawn, muttering,

    "I'm sleepy now...let me sleep first."

    With that, she hurriedly put the money away, climbed into bed, and lay down.

    The young man hesitated before asking in a tense voice, unable to agree,

    "Shouldn't we talk first?"

    "Not Now. I'm too tired,"

    She said with a weak voice, and immediately, the wife fell asleep deeply, leaving her husband to endure a lonely night...

    Once again...

    Zhao Wei narrowed his eyes and looked at Shan Shan silently, suppressing his natural desires of men before sighing resignedly.

    He had been practicing the tendon-stretching technique intensely over the past few days, using up much of his strength, and he acknowledged that he too should rest more.

    With that realization, he climbed into bed and lay down, gently nudging the person beside him while uttering a soft command,

    "Lay properly."

    This prompted the woman lying close to the wall to turn around and cuddle into his warm chest immediately.

    A slight smile appeared on the man's face.

    One of Zhao Wei’s arms wrapped around Shan Shan’s smooth shoulders, the other gently adjusted the blanket over her chest, then lifted it to pillow his own head.

    Though the man’s pillow was not as comfortable as the woman’s, he still managed to sleep surprisingly well every night.

    Zhao Wei sighed deeply, slowly closed his eyes, and as he drifted into sleep, he contemplated deeply:

    This woman should never be out of sight.