RRP: (1)

Liu Jiang Qing was the most noble lady in the eyes of the Imperial Capital.

The Lady of the Liu family, an aristocratic family in the Imperial Capital. Her father, Liu Meng Tang, is the current Hanlin Academician. The Liu family has been influential in the court for three dynasties. With a distinguished lineage, she travels in luxury carriages and horses, attending lavish banquets, and having been well-versed in poetry, calligraphy, and painting since childhood. She is also naturally stunning, with both talent and appearance that captivated the Imperial Capital... Such praises for a woman who is both gifted and pretty as a picture can be lavishly heaped upon her without reservation.

Of course, aside from the somewhat absurd nature of her marriage—this Lady, unexpectedly, chose not to marry a nobleman from the court but instead resolutely married the humble scholar Shang Yun Tian.

Initially, it was a matter of regret and lamentation, but who would have thought that this humble scholar would one day achieve fame and be favored by the current Emperor? The Liu residence had once been caught up in political turmoil and had to endure many hardships, which made the Emperor feel pity for them. This son-in-law of the Liu residence, despite having no background, caught the Emperor's eye. Eventually, Shang Yun Tian rose to the position of Cabinet Minister and became a distinguished and respected political figure.

After Liu Jiang Qing married into the Shang residence, the handsome and gentle Shang Yun Tian never took a concubine. They lived in harmony, raising a pair of children, thus ensuring the continuation of their family.

At least half of the noblewomen in the Imperial Capital envied Liu Jiang Qing for her wise choice of husband. Their manor was peaceful and pleasant. She was well known for her affability and magnanimous disposition, even being personally bestowed the title of First Rank Lady of Heavy Flowers by the Emperor.

At this moment, with the dawn breeze and the waning moon, the candlelight flickered in the window panes. As she eagerly pushed open the tightly closed bedroom door, she, like everyone else, was grateful for the smooth and stable first half of her life.

Unfortunately... all of this collapsed into ruins when she caught her husband in the act with another woman in bed.

Shang Yun Tian's good-looking face still bore a flush and sweat. Before he could catch his breath from the passionate activity, he embarrassedly looked back at his wife, who had suddenly returned from her matrimonial home, while shielding the smooth-skinned woman beneath him.

However, being a stalwart figure forged in the court, he quickly regained his composure, swiftly pulling the quilt from beneath them to hide their shame.

The room was filled with a choking haze. The two entangled in a passionate embrace, and the quilt that had been beneath them was now stained with suspicious patches of moisture, insinuating at the intensity of their affair.

Lu Jiang Qing stared blankly at the brocade quilt she had painstakingly embroidered by hand, thinking to herself: What a pity that the lily quilt she had spent a month meticulously embroidering was now so filthy it would have to be burned to be cleaned...

She, who had intended to surprise her husband, was momentarily stunned by his surprise.

Even so, the woman underneath his body, Cui Ping'er, remained calm and composed.

Liu Jiang Qing was so overwhelmed by the revolting air that she could hardly breathe and could not help but step out of the room, breathing heavily. Cui Ping'er, with her ratty hair and donned in Shang Yun Tian's coat, slowly walked out of the inner chamber. After admiring the displeasure on Liu Jiang Qing's face with satisfaction, she finally spoke, "Shang Lang and I have been exchanging feelings for a long time, but because of sister's jealousy, Shang Lang could not bring himself to speak to you. Now that you have caught us, it saves us the trouble. Tomorrow, I will have Shang Lang inform our parents and arrange our marriage soon."

T/N: The Lang 郎 character has multiple meanings in contexts. It usually refers to a male and can be used to denote a groom, a gentleman, a son of a family, and as a term of endearment romantically.

Liu Jiang Qing stared straight at Cui Ping'er's beguiling face, which still bore a hint of seduction. Unable to hold back any longer, she smacked her: "Doing such disgraceful things and still being so brazen, you really have no shame!"

Cui Ping'er, having long been accustomed to the streets, was not one to suffer losses easily. Moreover, she was used to speaking over Liu Jiang Qing and had grown accustomed to her magnanimity and humility. So, she immediately retaliated with a slap, her face showing a thrilled and spiteful expression, but her voice quivered softly as if she had suffered great injustice: "Sister, why did you hit me? Have not I been humiliated enough by you? Clearly, I am the real daughter of the Liu family, yet you, an outsider, have taken my place! Have I ever blamed you?"

Just this "taken my place" was enough to shut Liu Jiang Qing up.

What Cui Ping'er said was strictly confidential of the Liu residence and could not be spoken of.

Years ago, during a major upheaval in the court, the Liu residence faced difficulties and fled the Imperial Capital to escape their foes. They took refuge in a mountain hut to avoid the rain and coincidentally encountered a family of merchants, the Cui family. Both families had intricate fates, each with a pair of dragon and phoenix twins. Due to a twist of fate, the Liu and Cui families, who were both seeking shelter from the rain, accidentally swapped the two little ones.

As a consequence, the true golden branches and jade leaves of the Liu family fell into misfortune. Meanwhile, Liu Jiang Qing, the daughter of the Cui family merchant, became the apple of the Liu family's eye.

The truth about her birth was revealed by the ailing nanny of the Liu residence just before Liu Jiang Qing was to be married off at the age of sixteen.

At that time, Liu Jiang Qing's mother—the head matriarch of the Liu family, Madam Yao—was devastated, while Liu Jiang Qing was utterly shocked and at a loss.

According to the wishes of her Mother—they were to bring back Cui Ping'er, who had been raised in the Cui family, and re-establish her as a member of the Liu family.

However, the investigation disclosed that Cui Ping'er had already become a concubine of Prince Lang, Chu Xie.

At that time, Prince Lang was stationed in Jiangdong with troops seemingly on the verge of rebellion. All the court officials avoided him as if he were a plague. In such a critical moment, if they were to bring back Cui Ping'er, Liu Meng Tang would become Prince Lang's father-in-law.

Such a relative who could bring disaster to the nine clans could not be casually recognized!

At that moment, they could only go along with the mistake and continue to treat Liu Jiang Qing as Young Lady of the Liu family without recognizing their biological daughter.

However, the doting Yao family, upon learning that Prince Lang, Chu Xie, was not only cruel but despised women and concubines, often giving his beloved concubines to others, secretly entrusted someone and spent a large sum of silver to hire a trusted aide of Prince Lang to bring Cui Ping'er out. They then returned to the Imperial Capital, using the pretext of seeking refuge with distant relatives, and finally returned Cui Ping'er to the Liu residence. 

After learning about her real identity, Cui Ping'er hated Liu Jiang Qing, who had taken her position as the real daughter, to the bone. She blamed the misfortune of having been reduced to a plaything to Liu Jiang Qing. After returning to the Liu residence and living a comfortable life, she felt even more wicked and hostile, thinking that everything should have been hers.

At last, Cui Ping'er even believed that Liu Jiang Qing's spouse—the promising pillar of the nation—should have been hers!

Because she had been given a lethal poison in the Wang family's manor years ago, Cui Ping'er knew she would never have her own descendants in this lifetime. In lieu, she intentionally became intimate to Liu Jiang Qing's two children, often sending them fresh fruits and toys.

On the other hand, Liu Jiang Qing, occupied with mingling among noblewomen at tea parties and poetry clubs, worried about that being a doting mother would spoil her children. Therefore, she focused solely on their education, imposing strict demands and often using a ruler to discipline them, which led to a rift between her and the children.

In comparison, their Aunt Cui was actually more loving and amiable in the children's hearts than their own Mother. Every time they looked forward to their Aunt Cui coming to their manor to play and jest with them.

This kind of deceptive goodwill actually deceived her. For a period of time, Liu Jiang Qing even wrongly thought that Cui Ping'er had put aside her grievance and was willing to get along with her as sisters, which was why Shang Yun Tian and the children were so harmonious with her. Furthermore, since Liu Jiang Qing, was not the real daughter of the Liu family and felt remorseful about it, she deliberately tried to please Cui Ping'er.

But at this moment, she finally understood that Cui Ping'er was not being kind! She was trying to take control, bent on claiming her husband and children for herself!

The burning sensation on her cheek reminded Liu Jiang Qing of how foolish she had been to deliberately curry favor with Cui Ping'er, bringing this viper into her own home.

In the past, Liu Jiang Qing would have endured such a blow from Cui Ping'er. But now she was dead set on not to tolerate any longer. She coldly glared at Cui Ping'er's increasingly haughty face, and without warning, she lifted her leg and struck her in the abdomen forcefully.

The eldest son of the Liu family, Liu Jiang Lu, was skilled in martial arts, while Liu Jiang Qing, who had been frail since childhood, had learned some martial arts from her elder brother's Master. The force behind her flying kick was not just for show.

Cui Ping'er let out a miserable scream and immediately collapsed to the ground like a ragdoll.

After this kick, Shang Yun Tian, who had not shown himself in the inner chamber, finally came out.

The pillar of the nation was clearly not adept at mediating the conflicts between new and old lovers. He had been listening to the commotion inside, reflecting about how to apologize to his wife, Liu Jiang Qing. She had always been gentle and had treated Cui Ping'er very well, so she probably would not make things hard for her, right? However, Liu Jiang Qing was obviously seething this time, and her loud scolding and displeasure made Cui Ping'er's kind words seem even more piteous.

Furrowing his thick brows, he helped the momentarily weakened Cui Ping'er up and seemed to have gained some courage. He told Liu Jiang Qing, "Qing Niang, you have gone too far. The fault lies with me. I deserve the beating and scolding. But how could you... how could you treat your sister like this? She has suffered too much. Father-in-law and Mother-in-law dotes on her and cannot bear to see her suffer. If they knew you were behaving like this, would not they blame you? This is... this is too crude of you!"

T/N: 娘 (niáng): This term can mean "mother" or "mom". More traditional and can have a poetic feeling and may refer to a mother in a more respectful or affectionate context.

It felt as if her heart had been brutally smashed into smithereens, causing Liu Jiang Qing's upright figure to sway slightly. Being painfully aware of her own real identity, a constant reminder that the blood flowing in her veins was that of a lowly merchant, she became more and more rigid and collected after turning sixteen, strictly adhering to the etiquette of a noble lady, dreading that her words and actions might be misinterpreted by her family members who have knowledge about it.

But now, her own husband has siezed the secret wound in her heart while craddling the woman in his arms and accusing her, Liu Jiang Qing, of being too crude...

Heaven knows, if she had a dagger in her hand at the moment, she would not just be acting crude. She would have gracefully stabbed two glaring holes in him and called it a day!

At this moment, the long-suppressed temperament burst forth, her previously calm and magnanimous mien was cast aside. She sneered, determined to be utterly crude. Taking a few steps to stand before Shang Yun Tian, she swept away all the virtuousness of the past, raised her hand, and delivered a heavy smack to him, his head snapped to the side before speaking: "Shang Yun Tian, were you blind or deaf before signing the marriage contract? Did I ever hide my real identity from you before marriage? Why did I choose you, a fallen noble in white robes, despite all the noblemen in the Capital? It is because I am well aware that I am not the real daughter of the Liu family and not worthy of a truly noble family. I did not want my husband to know about it in the future and accuse me of deception, hence why I chose you..."

While she spoke, she scanned him up and down, who suddenly became a stranger, and snickered: "I was originally a lowly merchant, and your Shang family was in such a pathetic state that I could not take the blame. We were well matched, and we could not find fault with each other. Back then, when I showed you my flaw, how did you promise to agree? You said no matter what my real identity is, from that day on, I will be you, Shang Yun Tian's, wife. The son of the Shang family will use his own ability to make his wife and children famous and respected. Yet now, you are disgusted with me because I am too crude? How so? Since you had an affair with Cui Ping'er, did you experience the real and graceful Lady of the Liu residence on the bed? You sure are scholarly and cultured!"

T/N: To tell the truth, I'm still a noob translator, so please feel free to correct me kindly if there's anything wrong. 

Also, is the font size alright for you? Let me know if it's too small, I can adjust it. Many thanks! <3

Next Chapter: RRP (2)

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