As it turned out, she had relaxed too soon. Shen Guiya wasn’t foolish—she had become even more clever. After recognizing everyone in the courtyard, she pointed at her and said, “Sister Guiyan is as beautiful as a flower. You must be the one who has earned Young Master Gu’s deep affection?”
Her speech was much more gentle and courteous than before. Shen Guiyan couldn’t help looking at her a few more times, then lowered her head in acknowledgment.
“I understand.” Shen Guiya touched her own face and smiled. “Congratulations on Sister’s wedding joy. Sister may marry as planned—Younger Sister won’t obstruct in the slightest.”
Having always beaten and scolded her at will, Shen Guiya’s sudden gentleness made Shen Guiyan truly unaccustomed. However, if she would graciously step aside, she naturally wished for nothing more. A mad monk had once read Shen Guiyan’s fortune, saying she would face great calamity at her coming-of-age ceremony, great joy at twenty, and great sorrow in old age. Shen Guiyan felt those street charlatans shaking bells and holding banners couldn’t be trusted—even if they shaved their heads bald, it would be the same. Fate still depended on how one lived one’s own life.
She was about to reach her coming-of-age ceremony soon, and hadn’t nothing happened yet?
She returned to peacefully prepare her wedding clothes, with Concubine Qin also helping to prepare embroidered items. On a certain moonlit night when she was embroidering patterns on her skirt, Gu Chaodong came riding the wind again, standing outside her window and saying, “I’ve already made it clear to Father—I will only marry you. After you cross the threshold, we can arrange a good match for Fifth Miss.”
Shen Guiyan looked at the person at the window, truly moved, because she lived on the second floor of Swallow Tower and he was hanging outside—it was truly not easy.
So she believed him.
As it turned out, for some unknown reason, the birth date and time that had long been calculated suddenly changed. When the matchmaker took her birth details back to go through the formality, matching them with Gu Chaodong’s details yielded an extremely inauspicious result—their destinies clashed and they were unsuitable for marriage.
The Shen household was shocked upon hearing this news. Gu Chaodong was also somewhat stunned. He and Shen Guiyan looked at each other, both speechless.
In childhood, a divination had been performed saying she had a fortune that would bring prosperity to her husband. How could she now clash with Gu Chaodong’s destiny? Shen Guiyan’s face turned pale, but she didn’t hide away crying like those other young ladies. Instead, she requested Gu Chaodong’s birth details and, taking her own, secretly went out to find someone to calculate again.
The result: the fortune teller said, “Though not a match made in heaven, there’s no hindrance to marriage.”
Thinking it over repeatedly without understanding why the Chancellor’s household calculated a clash, Shen Guiyan returned to the household through the back gate. Rounding the corridor, she happened to see Gu Chaodong walking hurriedly ahead in the distance, with Shen Guiya following behind him with a grin.
“Do you really detest me this much?” Shen Guiya asked with a laugh.
Gu Chaodong didn’t turn his head. “Fifth Miss, please conduct yourself with propriety.”
Shen Guiya pouted, looking quite adorable, yet completely shameless. She pressed closer, following him. “You men are all duplicitous. I heard you and I have already had physical intimacy, so why are you telling me to conduct myself with propriety? Hypocrite.”
Gu Chaodong was probably speechless. He flicked his sleeves and left. The two turned past the corridor, and Shen Guiyan could see nothing more.
“How can Fifth Miss be so shameless?” Baoshan stood behind Shen Guiyan, stamping her feet in anger. “The moment Miss is away, she clings to Young Master Gu relentlessly. That seductive manner—could she have been possessed by some demon from the lotus pond?”
Shen Guiyan laughed coldly. “She’s so lacking in propriety that Young Master Gu naturally won’t take a liking to her. What’s there to worry about?”
“But I’m afraid Young Master Gu might be bewitched…” Baoshan pursed her lips.
“He won’t be.” Shen Guiyan smiled. “I’ve known him since childhood—it’s been six years now. I naturally understand his character. He won’t betray me.”
After all this time, she and he could be considered mutually familiar and understanding. No matter how bad Gu Chaodong might be, he wouldn’t like a woman like Shen Guiya who had neither talent nor temperament. She still had this much confidence.
Unfortunately, though she had read ten thousand volumes of books, she only knew this one man. Shen Guiyan was ultimately too young and didn’t understand that the more elegant a man appeared, the more repressed passion burned in his bones.
And repressed passion was far more deadly than open passion.
Turning to an unoccupied area of the household, Shen Guiya boldly stepped forward. Hooking Gu Chaodong’s waist sash, she pushed him into the woodshed beside them.
“What are you doing?” Gu Chaodong frowned.
Shen Guiya laughed a few times, then lifted her leg and wrapped it around his waist. “Young Master’s mouth won’t admit it, but your body is quite honest, isn’t it?”
Her hand slid downward, her actions so bold they absolutely couldn’t be achieved by an ancient woman. Gu Chaodong was momentarily frightened into stupidity, forgetting to struggle.
Inside Shen Guiya’s body was a soul from the twenty-first century, but not a decent one. Having spent too long mixing in nightclubs and bars, she had quite a repertoire of methods for dealing with men. Coming to this place where life was unfamiliar, of course she had to find the male lead first.
Looking around, only this Gu Chaodong barely suited her taste. The original owner of this body seemed to like him too, so it must be him then.
The men she set her sights on invariably couldn’t escape her grasp.
Gu Chaodong was about to shout, but his face suddenly flushed bright red. The woman’s fragrant breath lightly teased at his ear. “Why struggle? This sort of thing is naturally mutual consent. Doesn’t Young Master want to… have an enjoyable time with Ya’er? Hmm?”
It wasn’t beauty that was frightening, but exceptional skill. Gu Chaodong was already troubled and exhausted over the birth details matter. With Shen Guiya seducing him like this, he simply stopped thinking about anything and, following his body’s desires, sank down.
A passing servant heard the commotion, drew in a sharp breath of cold air, turned around and ran toward Lady Shen’s courtyard.
Lady Shen remained composed. After hearing the news, she didn’t make a great commotion to catch them, only having a few maids from her own courtyard follow along and block the woodshed door. After they finished, she had the two brought back to her courtyard to talk.
For some reason, Shen Guiyan’s heart felt somewhat unsettled. She got up to embroider her wedding clothes for a while, then went to look at the stars in the sky.
“Miss should sleep early. Everything is going smoothly,” Baoshan said teasingly. “There’s still over a month to go—no need to worry.”
Shen Guiyan nodded and turned back to sleep. But her dreams were full of chaos. When she woke the next day, there were dark circles under her eyes. She fiddled with them in the mirror for a long time before they became less obvious.
“Today I want to take my own birth details to the Gu household to see,” Shen Guiyan said. “The birth details the matchmaker took last time may have had problems.”
“Alright.” Baoshan selected a goose-yellow long dress for her, paired with a lotus-colored vest—fresh yet dignified.
But just as she reached the gate, she was actually stopped by the Lady.
“The Gu household will send someone shortly,” Lady Shen said with a stern face. “Just wait in the main hall. No need to go yourself.”
Shen Guiyan frowned slightly but couldn’t disobey. She could only nod in agreement and sit in the main hall.
As it turned out, Gu Chaodong, departing from his usual carefree demeanor, came with a pale face. Shen Guiyan very much wanted to ask him what was wrong, but Nanny Xiurong blocked her path, giving her no chance to speak at all.
Gu Chaodong stood in the main hall for a long time. The look he gave her was guilty and complex. Finally, gritting his teeth, he said, “There’s no problem with Third Miss’s birth details. The wedding will proceed as scheduled.”
“What are you saying?” Lady Shen flew into a rage. “Caught in the act a second time, and Young Master still wants to say Ya’er forced you? Even now, you still won’t take responsibility for Ya’er?”
Shen Guiyan listened somewhat confused. “What… second time?”
Shen Guiya, sitting quietly to the side with her head lowered, smiled with difficulty. “Mother need not be angry. Last time in the woodshed with Young Master Gu… it was also your daughter being lowly, willingly giving her body to Young Master Gu again. If Young Master doesn’t wish to take responsibility, then I wish Young Master and Sister to grow old together in harmony.”
“Ya’er!” Lady Shen raged. “He ruined your virtue and made you bear infamy—such a man, and you still protect him?”
Shen Guiyan felt she might have been struck by lightning. Hearing these words, her entire body couldn’t move. She could only listen dumbly, stare blankly.
Ancient foolish women hadn’t read online forums or seen dramatic posts—naturally they didn’t know how formidable modern women were at seizing men. Encountering such a matter, her mind went completely blank.
Shen Guiya cried grievously. Gu Chaodong gathered his robe and knelt again, his features full of struggle. “This matter is this humble one’s fault toward Fifth Miss. I only hope Fifth Miss won’t demean herself.”
Shen Guiyan still only watched.
“How should this matter be handled?” Lady Shen looked at her. “Surely you don’t still want to marry this person who has repeatedly taken your sister’s virtue?”
Gu Chaodong looked up at her anxiously. Shen Guiya also glanced at her lightly.
No matter how she answered this question, it would be wrong. Shen Guiyan said through gritted teeth, “Let Father make the decision.”