Chapter 3.2

In Liangma City, both men and women were out in the open. Women were indifferent to men’s flirtations and were especially attentive to soldiers, hoping that these soldiers would notice them and take them back to the city for a better life. Every girl hoped to move to the capital for a better life.

None of the girls met her standards of propriety. And what reason did Yuan Buqu have not to treat her flippantly, given his long exposure to such girls? So, even after he knew she was not a camp follower, he showed her no more respect! Because every girl would expect his flirtation, bending to please him, right? Such a great general! How grand! Biting her cherry lips, her heart burned with anger. Did he treat every woman this way? And she… it seemed she was not much better than a courtesan!

Perhaps his previous two wives were married to him simply to please him! He was a coarse man, and the women he interacted with were not refined ladies. He was unworthy of her! He was so crude he only suited flirting with village girls in the haystacks!

The images floating in her mind made her want to vomit!

“I don’t want to ¹ I found Du Bingyan as girl whose values was to be filial to her parents and be a virtuous wife, but at this time, she’s rebelling against her fate. In the plot summary, Li Yuhu is the strong, female character while Du Bingyan is the gentle one. But if you read both novels, Du Bingyan has a stronger character than Li Yuhu. She managed to travel to the border to find this “husband” and went through a tough experience, but her spirit is still fierce. Li Yuhu was tough but was more of a follower to her husband’s schemes. !” she cried softly.

What doesn’t she want? She didn’t know, only that she couldn’t think about it any longer! Yet her mind kept spinning with thoughts of his appearance, his embraces and flirtations with women, his strong arms, and iron-like body. His rough hands brushing against a woman’s soft face… so dirty!

“I don’t want to!” she repeated, shaking her head fiercely, tears spilling down her face.

She knew what she didn’t want! She didn’t want Yuan Buqu to flirt with any other woman, or embrace other women. And another thing she didn’t want… she didn’t want to develop feelings for him, or fall in love with him!

But can one just will away such emotions?

When the guard summoned her to the general’s tent, she first saw Sha Shao, whose penetrating gaze seemed to see through her. He should have been dining in the mess tent by now—was he specifically waiting for her? Du Bingyan felt a bit wary.

“Mr. Sha,” she said, bowing in respect.

“You’ve worked hard these past three days, Du Bing.”

“I’ve only done what I was supposed to. It’s nothing to call hard work.” — “The general is waiting for you!” Sha Shao said, lightly brushing his beard and smiling. He thought to himself, what a naturally beautiful woman! What’s more captivating is the graceful demeanor that comes from her upbringing. His clumsy son actually thought she was a man! And Ziren (Yuan Buqu) must have seen through it. What are his plans? Let’s observe for a while! Sha Shao made up his mind.

“Go in! Feng Yufeng went to the city today to buy supplies and left the medicine with you to change for the general. Take good care of him, understand?”

“Understood, I’ll go in now.”

She sighed and stepped into the general’s quarters.

The table was filled with a variety of foods, including fish and meat, but they were not elaborate. She was surprised that Yuan Buqu ate such coarse food. He could have demanded delicacies, but these were ordinary dishes from the mess hall, the same as everyone else’s; there was only an additional dish of sesame oil chicken. Was he not particular about his food, or was he more down-to-earth than she imagined? Regardless, sharing the same hardships with the soldiers in terms of meals was quite touching! He did have some merits.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, tugging at the bandage on his wound. It seemed like he was trying to change the dressing himself, but it looked like he couldn’t stand the constraint, causing the wound to bleed and become messy. Because his left shoulder wound affected the shoulder bone, he couldn’t move his left arm freely.

His thick eyebrows were furrowed as he angrily stared at his wound.

She hurried over, whispering, “Don’t pull it! It will bleed. The wound has barely scabbed over, don’t injure it again!” She quickly took his right hand away and began the rest of the work.

She had seen his muscular chest many times, yet she still felt shy, unable to look into his eyes or stop her face from blushing. His wound was below his left shoulder and above his chest, so she had to wrap the new bandage around his shoulder and across his chest! As she struggled to carefully wrap the bandage around his chest, they were almost in close contact. If he were a gentleman, he would definitely not take advantage of the situation!

But once again, Yuan Buqu proved he was no gentleman! Not even close!

Ignoring the pain of his wound, he wrapped his arms around her waist tightly, pressing her against him! In a moment of panic, she propped herself up on her elbows to avoid touching his body but ended up pressing against his wound.

“General, please respect yourself! I’m not that kind of person, I’m not here to please you!” Oh heavens! Did he really see her as some village girl trying to attach herself to him?

Yuan Buqu’s piercing gaze swept over her pretty face, containing a dangerous calmness. “What should I do with you? A person who shouldn’t be here—without any reason, I could have you executed. You might be a spy or someone who steals military secrets. If I didn’t see you as a courtesan trying to seduce men, what should I consider you? The other two possibilities both mean you must be dealt with immediately.”

She shivered! He wasn’t joking! She quickly whispered, “Let me go, there’s another possibility, and I have something to prove it to you! I came from the capital to find you!” She didn’t want him to look at her like a courtesan! He should at least give her some respect!

He didn’t fully release her but instead used his hand to grip her waist, seeming interested in her slim figure. His hands could span her waist and still not be tight enough! He had never seen a waist so slender.

Du Bingyan, feeling uneasy, twisted her body, realizing he wouldn’t let go, so she resigned herself to sitting beside him and took out the jade medallion from her sleeve.

“Do you recognize this?”

How could he not recognize it! It had his name on it. This jade medallion was an ornament he wore at home and was always kept in his study.

“Why is it in your hand?”

Her voice trembled under his serious and oppressive gaze. Taking a deep breath, she looked courageously into his eyes and said, “You must believe me, even though it sounds absurd.”

“Speak,” he urged calmly.

“Do you remember marrying the young lady from the Li family in Yangzhou last month? At that time, you were leading your troops to Liangma City.”

Seeing him nod, she continued, “I—my name is Du Bingyan, the daughter of the Du family in the north of Yangzhou. I married on the same day as the Li family’s young lady. But… due to a mix-up, we were placed in the wrong bridal sedan. She ended up marrying in Quanzhou—where my husband’s family should have been; and I… because the matchmaker was afraid of taking the blame, was sent to the general’s residence under the pretense of not adjusting well to the new environment. I always wanted to resist, but during the ten-day journey, they made me drink sleeping pills and lied to Steward Li Zongguan that I was suffering from acclimatization and was not mentally stable. So, Steward Li, looked down on me, not believing my words at all. Every day, he only gave me a pile of vulgar jewelry to play with. When I tried to explain, he mocked me for being greedy and unsatisfied. Did you hear about your—wife’s disappearance?”

Would he believe her? Oh heavens! Please let him believe her! Du Bingyan wrung her hands, anxiously and worriedly watching him.

“You’re saying that you’re my wife?”

“I’m not! Li Yuhu should be the one. I just entered the family, but I’m not the one you should have married. I’m not Li Yuhu. You’ve met her; you should remember that she’s much more beautiful than I am.”

“I don’t think so.” He moved her a little closer with an inscrutable expression.

“I really am not Li Yuhu!” She had expected him to be an unyielding stone! Both the master and the servant are the same! Yuan Buqu had no sense of right and wrong! How could he be a great general? Her heart was a mix of anger and frustration, and she thought wildly.

“I know you’re not.” He seemed to be smiling now, his furrowed brows relaxed. “And I don’t think Li Yuhu is more beautiful than you.”

“Ah!” She gasped, her cheeks flushing with heat. She hadn’t expected Yuan Buqu to say something flattering! And… he believed she wasn’t Li Yuhu! That’s great! But because he believed so quickly, she had no way to vent her anticipated anger and didn’t know how to react, staring at him with her lips slightly parted.

Such a look was very tempting! Yuan Buqu suddenly locked his gaze on her, seizing her soft, delicate lips in a passionate kiss!

“No…” Her weak protest was drowned out by his urgent, forceful advance. Her hands even forgot to push against him!

She didn’t know what this kiss meant, nor did she understand it as an extremely intimate act, but she at least knew it was inappropriate and a violation of propriety! She wasn’t his real wife! He shouldn’t be doing this to her! She wanted to resist! But… but… why did her body respond with such fervor? Why was her clarity of mind slipping away? Why did her body fit so well against his? Why did she feel no disgust or shame? He wasn’t her real husband! He was just a brutish, wild warrior, the kind she hated most… She couldn’t break free from him… The only comfort she could give herself was that she wasn’t consenting willingly: she was overpowered by his strength, which was why she allowed his advance…

She felt she was about to faint! One small hand clung to his shoulder, while the other inadvertently pressed into his wound—he started bleeding! She snapped back to reality from the heat in her palm! Quickly, she pushed him away, though she didn’t leave his embrace, at least their lips were apart now! She saw that the bandage had gotten stained with blood! In a panic, she rewrapped the bandage and pressed on the acupuncture points around the wound to stop the bleeding. She felt guilty, but it was all because of his advance, and he deserved it! She wouldn’t apologize! Her lips were sore from his kiss, and his stubbly beard made her face uncomfortable!

“You can’t be so forward with me again! You understand I’m not your real wife.” She washed her hands and spoke softly in front of him, hoping he would understand.

“Is that so? It’s not wrong that you indeed entered my Yuan family, though.” He got off the bed and walked to the dining table. Du Bingyan quickly grabbed a jacket to put on him. Liangma City was colder than autumn at night, and he was injured and needed to rest. After all, she was assigned to serve him, wasn’t she?

“The person you want to marry isn’t me!” What did he want? Knowing the mistake but not trying to fix it, what was his mindset? She anxiously said, “You should send someone to notify the Qi family in Quanzhou about this! If… if they accidentally consummate the marriage, then your… real wife will be gone forever!”

“Why are you so anxious?” He furrowed his brows again! That was a sign of his displeasure, something she had learned to recognize.

“Before the mistake becomes irreparable, you should remedy it! It’s baffling if you’re not anxious! A wife married with five thousand taels of gold and silver—”

“Are you thinking of me? I haven’t decided what to do about this matter!”

“What do you mean?” Her heart skipped a beat. Was he… thinking of using his authority for revenge?

“Do you think I can afford to lose this face? Letting the world know my wife has entered another’s house, and perhaps even consummated the marriage; then I would bring a flawless woman like you to replace a broken one? Why would I make a laughingstock of myself? The one who entered my house is you—Du Bingyan! If I were to force a replacement, where would my face be?”

She bit her lower lip and said softly, “The marriage probably hasn’t been consummated yet. The Qi family’s young master… has been ill for a long time and may not survive this year. Who knows if the marriage will be consummated? There’s no reason for a widow’s fate to be borne by Yuhu. She’s a good girl, not as greedy as her father. You would appreciate her. If you don’t replace her, it will be a great loss for you.”

Yuan Buqu lifted her chin to face him. “Are you saying the man you were supposed to marry is a dying man?”

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