Often, Bai Minmin herself couldn’t understand how her gaze had fallen from the dashing young scholars parading through the streets to Zhang Huaiyu, a seemingly good-for-nothing playboy.
Bai Minmin was the cherished daughter of the Changguo Duke’s household, while Zhang Huaiyu was the pampered heir of the Pingguo Duke. With matching social status and age, they had known each other since childhood through family gossip. After Ming Tan and Jiang Xu’s engagement, their paths began to cross more frequently.
However, these encounters remained superficial. The Changguo Duke and his wife had already chosen a suitable match for Bai Minmin, while the Empress had arranged for Zhang Huaiyu to marry the Grand Tutor Zhang’s granddaughter. Even after both engagements fell through, Bai Minmin’s attention remained fixed on the renowned Second Young Master Shu.
Until that day at the teahouse…
Bai Minmin had never been the model of a proper young lady. Her talent for mischief was unparalleled, though her close friends Ming Tan and Zhou Jingwan managed to keep her somewhat in check.
She loved storytelling performances. Of the 108 teahouses in the capital, from the high-end Listening to Rain Pavilion to the humble street-corner shops, she knew them all.
One day, she heard about a new upscale teahouse in the western part of the city. It boasted excellent tea, delicious snacks, and a particularly skilled storyteller whose performances had been drawing full houses.
Eager to attend, Bai Minmin obtained an invitation from the Zhou household to justify her outing. Since her broken engagement, her mother and sister-in-law had kept a close watch on her, confining her to needlework at home unless properly invited out.
When she arrived at the teahouse, it was indeed packed and lively, with no seats available.
Though dressed as a man, Bai Minmin felt uncomfortable sitting among strangers downstairs. Adhering to the principle that “money solves all problems,” she confidently approached a private room on the second floor, politely offering a gold tael to exchange seats.
The room fell silent for a moment before a folding fan parted the curtain.
Zhang Huaiyu? Bai Minmin was surprised to see him.
Zhang Huaiyu recognized her too, raising an eyebrow before casually saying, “Young Master Bai, what a coincidence. Since there are no seats, why don’t you join us?”
“Well… I’d be honored,” Bai Minmin replied, thick-skinned as ever. Thinking it wasn’t too awkward, she accepted his offer and entered the room.
“…And so the Martial Arts Alliance Leader realized he had married the wrong person! The demonic woman he was now leading the righteous sects to destroy was the one who had sacrificed half her inner power to save his life!”
“What happened next?”
“Keep going!”
“What became of the Alliance Leader?”
As the audience clamored for more, Bai Minmin eagerly looked at the storyteller who had paused to sip tea. Just as the excitement peaked, the storyteller set down his cup and smiled teasingly, “Time’s up for today, folks. If you want to know what happens next, come back tomorrow.”
The crowd below groaned in disappointment.
Bai Minmin was stunned. How could it end at such a thrilling moment? Her enthusiasm was abruptly doused.
Zhang Huaiyu, seemingly unaffected, casually asked her, “Want to know what happens next?”
Bai Minmin nodded, “I can guess most of it. It’s just a typical story – the Alliance Leader turns against the righteous path for the demonic woman, protects her at all costs, they overcome hardships together, and live happily ever after.” She sighed, “But this storyteller is really good, no worse than Master Qian from the Listening to Rain Pavilion.”
Zhang Huaiyu raised an eyebrow and wagged a finger.
Bai Minmin looked puzzled, “Hm? What do you mean?”
Zhang Huaiyu fanned himself slowly and said, “Your guess is wrong. Though the Alliance Leader knows the truth, he still uses the pretext of upholding justice and cleansing the martial arts world to wipe out the entire demonic sect. He kills the demonic woman.”
“Nonsense,” Bai Minmin exclaimed, “That’s impossible. I’ve never heard such a story!”
“That’s because you lack experience.”
“You…!”
“If you don’t believe me, let’s make a bet. The loser treats the winner to dinner. How about it?”
“You’re on.”
Unconvinced, Bai Minmin waited impatiently for a day, then found another opportunity to sneak out and hear the rest of the story. To her amazement, the ending matched Zhang Huaiyu’s description exactly!
During their dinner, Bai Minmin still couldn’t understand, “How did you know the Alliance Leader would do that? The storyteller said it was the first time he told this story. Don’t tell me you wrote it.”
She had meant it as a joke, but to her surprise, Zhang Huaiyu smugly fanned himself and said, “As a matter of fact, I did commission someone to write it.”
Bai Minmin’s eyes widened.
“Those usual stories are so dull and predictable. You can guess the second half just from hearing the first. It’s ridiculous – how could a respected Alliance Leader turn against the entire martial arts world for a demonic woman? Miss Bai, the kind of story you imagined is just meant to please sheltered young ladies like yourself.”
“What do you mean, ‘the kind of story I imagined’?!” Bai Minmin belatedly realized she was being insulted. Not only had he tricked her into paying for dinner, but he was also mocking the stories she usually enjoyed!
“Well, you said it yourself – that’s the kind of story you could imagine.”
“Stop it!”
“All right, I won’t argue. Eat your food.”
“You argue and then say you won’t! How can someone like you be friends with Second Young Master Shu!”
“As if he’d be friends with you instead? I heard your engagement fell through. What, have you set your sights on Young Master Shu now?”
“Enough, Zhang Huaiyu! You trick me into treating you and still talk so much. Pay for it yourself, I’m not treating you anymore!”
“You didn’t need to pay anyway. This restaurant is mine. Oh, I forgot to mention, the Listening to Rain Pavilion is mine too.”
“…!”
Bai Minmin glared at him with a look that said, “So what if you’re rich?” Zhang Huaiyu returned her gaze calmly, his face clearly expressing that being rich was indeed a big deal.
And so, a small feud began between them.
As the saying goes, “Familiarity breeds contempt.” While they had seen each other often before, they had never really talked. After this verbal sparring, they unexpectedly became more familiar with each other.
Zhang Huaiyu was a skilled socialite. After becoming acquainted, he often invited Bai Minmin out through his cousin, Zhang Hanmiao.
Bai Minmin, being equally fun-loving, enjoyed exploring the city with him, always seeking new and interesting experiences.
Despite having read many romantic stories, Bai Minmin was oblivious to matters of the heart. She didn’t realize her growing feelings for Zhang Huaiyu and often asked him about Second Young Master Shu, knowing they were friends.
Later, during a small gathering between Zhang Huaiyu, Shu Jingran, and Lu Ting at a restaurant, Bai Minmin came looking for Zhang Huaiyu. By chance, she overheard Shu Jingran confess that he already had someone he liked – and it wasn’t her.
Zhang Huaiyu, noticing her outside, quickly rose and led her away from the restaurant.
That night, the Wenxiang Pavilion was selecting its top courtesan, an event held only once every two years. Zhang Huaiyu had promised to take her to witness this grand occasion. As they walked, he kept glancing at her, finally clearing his throat awkwardly after a long pause, “Um, are you all right?”
“Hm? I’m fine.”
“You don’t need to be too upset. You and Shu Er weren’t suitable. He’s quite dull; you’d have suffered being with him. Plus, his mother is extremely strict. Marrying him wouldn’t have made for an easy life.” Zhang Huaiyu consoled her for a while, then added, “Although your personality isn’t exactly that of a traditional lady, your family background and looks could still secure you a good match. Besides, someone might prefer your personality.”
Bai Minmin gave him an odd look: “Why are you telling me all this?”
Zhang Huaiyu hesitated: “Weren’t you… in love with Shu Er?”
“Yes, I did like Young Master Shu, but it was admiration, not the kind of like where I wanted to marry him,” Bai Minmin replied without hesitation.
“Then who do you want to marry?”
“Well, certainly not—” Before Bai Minmin could finish, someone suddenly rushed through the crowded street. She couldn’t dodge in time and let out a startled cry. When she regained her senses, she found Zhang Huaiyu had quickly pulled her into his arms.
In the flickering lamplight, their heartbeats were close. After what seemed like an eternity, Bai Minmin came to her senses and hurriedly stepped back from his embrace. Zhang Huaiyu, also belatedly realizing, let go. Their gazes crossed awkwardly, and Bai Minmin silently swallowed the “you” she had been about to say.
That night, the courtesan chosen at Wenxiang Pavilion was stunningly beautiful, the kind that even other women couldn’t help but admire. When a young master won her with a thousand gold taels, Bai Minmin whispered, “Why didn’t you bid?”
“Why should I?”
“Tch, haven’t you ever competed for a girl before?”
“If I liked someone, would I need to compete?”
“You don’t even like someone this beautiful? Is something wrong with your eyes?”
Zhang Huaiyu suddenly glanced at her: “Yes, something’s wrong with my eyes. I’m blind.”
The glance was brief, but it inexplicably made Bai Minmin feel self-conscious.
After that night, something seemed to change. Bai Minmin heard that the Empress was again looking for potential matches for Zhang Huaiyu, and she felt an inexplicable unease. Yet when the matchmaking came to her, she couldn’t suppress a feeling of joy.
They still interacted as before, bickering after every few sentences, but gradually, they both realized things were different between them.
Bai Minmin especially noticed Zhang Huaiyu’s increasingly obvious intentions after learning she didn’t want to marry Shu Er.
Though they hadn’t explicitly addressed their feelings, their potential marriage seemed to be an unspoken understanding. Empress Zhang first summoned Bai Minmin’s mother to the palace several times, then called for Bai Minmin herself repeatedly, showing approval of her both publicly and privately.
Soon, it was Bai Minmin’s birthday. As it wasn’t a major one, they only held a simple family dinner. Still, she received many gifts, including a pair of exquisite jade ruyi from Empress Zhang. However, after searching through everything, she couldn’t find a gift from Zhang Huaiyu, not even a message from his cousin Zhang Hanmiao.
Bai Minmin grew increasingly angry and disappointed as she waited. By nightfall, she had already bathed and changed for bed when she heard a soft tapping on her window.
She hesitantly opened it to find none other than Zhang Huaiyu, who had been absent all day.
Without waiting for her questions, he swiftly led her over the wall of the Changguo Duke’s mansion. A carriage was waiting outside, which took them directly to a valley north of the city.
“Why did you bring me here?” The valley was pitch black at night, with a cool breeze in the air.
Zhang Huaiyu draped his outer robe over her shoulders but remained silent.
After a while, Bai Minmin noticed several sky lanterns slowly rising from the ground, floating bright and slow towards the sky. More and more appeared until the sky above the valley seemed to flow with a warm, brilliant river of light, set against the deep blue backdrop, breathtakingly beautiful.
“This is my birthday gift to you. Do you like it?”
Bai Minmin stared upwards, unblinking and after a long moment, nodded slowly: “I like it. I like it very much… Thank you.”
While Bai Minmin was still immersed in the awe of this river of lanterns, Zhang Huaiyu said, half-serious and half-joking: “There’s no need for thanks between us. If you insist on thanking me, offering yourself in marriage wouldn’t be out of the question.”
As he spoke, he quietly took hold of Bai Minmin’s cool hand.
Bai Minmin came back to her senses, made a token effort to pull away, and then allowed him to hold her hand. Still, she couldn’t help but retort: “I thought you’d forgotten my birthday. These sky lanterns are indeed beautiful, but if you think they’re enough for me to offer myself in marriage, that’s a bit too easy.”
“I also had a new story written for you.”
“What story?”
“The Martial Arts Alliance Leader and the Demonic Woman.”
“Didn’t we already hear that story?”
“It’s been changed. Now the Alliance Leader turns against the righteous path for the demonic woman, protects her at all costs, they overcome hardships together, and live happily ever after.”
Hearing this, Bai Minmin smiled: “That’s more like it.”
Though the story might be cliché, it’s the happy ending that truly brings joy.
Zhang Huaiyu tightened his grip on her hand and looked up at the brilliant sky lanterns: “Minmin, happy birthday.”