Chapter 38: Lying Flat in the Tomb of Love

“Mother, what’s happening outside?”

“Sit still!”

Lady Ding pressed her daughter down and carefully fixed her hairpins and golden hairpins. Then she touched up her lips with vermilion and shaped her brows with a delicate red.

Cao Rong shook her head, making the red hairpin on her head chime with crisp, tinkling sounds. Her heart drifted away with the music.

“Mother! Is Zi Ning here yet?”

“What’s the hurry?”

The red wedding dress was edged with golden thread; the sleeves were embroidered with mandarin ducks, the collar with soaring kites and canopies, all highlighting Cao Rong’s unmatched beauty. The light green veil added a touch of mysterious allure.

Lady Ding worked with deliberate care, her hands unhurried.

“Mother… are you reluctant to let me go?”

“No.”

Her son-in-law had neither parents nor kin, relying on the Cao family for everything. Their house was only two streets away. Calling it a marriage or a live-in son-in-law made little difference.

If Lady Ding missed her daughter, a short walk would bring her right over.

What was there to be reluctant about?

“Oh, Mother, I don’t like Jianjia. Can’t you change my maid?”

Cao Rong’s original maid of honor was Zhi Hua, but Cao Cao had already sent Zhi Hua to Chen Cong, so the family arranged Jianjia as the new maid—essentially a concubine.

Unlike Zhi Hua, who had grown up with her, Jianjia was not originally a maid, but a dancing girl kept by Old Master Cao.

She was beautiful, with a graceful figure, frail and delicate, able to cry at the slightest provocation, always uttering, “A husband is my heaven.”

Such a maid would never help Cao Rong manage the Chen household; she’d be lucky not to compete for her man.

The idea that Cao Rong could like her was laughable.

Lady Ding’s hand paused, her brow furrowed. “Rong’er, Jianjia is not your enemy. She comes from the Cao household!”

“Mother! Chen Zi Ning, he…”

“That’s enough. Don’t bring this up again.”

Lady Ding did not wish to explain.

Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.

As Cao Rong’s mother, she didn’t want to upset her daughter, but she understood too well the nature of the man by her side.

Chen Zi Ning—that was a name Cao Cao called even in his dreams.

His importance to Cao Cao far exceeded that of his own daughter, Cao Rong.

In other words, until her husband was sure that Chen Cong was tied to the Cao family for good, things like Jianjia would happen again and again.

If she couldn’t tolerate even Jianjia, how would Cao Rong manage in the future?

After all, Cao Cao had other daughters.

“Fine, fine. Father won’t help me, you won’t help me—then I’ll ask Chen Cong! Hmph!”

A commotion arose outside the courtyard.

The wedding procession had arrived.

Lady Ding sighed and gently stroked her daughter’s smooth hair.

“If he’s truly willing to help you, then your feelings will not have been in vain.”

...

When you are strong enough, the world will treat you with deference.

That was Chen Cong’s current situation.

His four loyal guards surrounded him, fussing over every detail.

Xu Chu held the reins, not the slightest bit nervous, even wearing a hint of pride.

Mi Heng, without needing instruction, went off with a flattering smile to recite the bridal poems.

Chen Cong, meanwhile, whispered quietly to Cao Cao.

“Father-in-law, Yuan Zhong wants to kill Wang Ji.”

“That’s good news.”

The surroundings were noisy, and Chen Cong thought Cao Cao hadn’t heard him, just as he was about to repeat himself, Cao Cao stopped him.

“No need to worry, Zi Ning. This only benefits us. We’ll talk later.”

Just then, two gates opened at once.

On one side,

Cao Rong appeared in dazzling red, so striking that Chen Cong couldn’t help but recall lines from the Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River:

Like light clouds veiling the moon, drifting as wind stirs falling snow. Viewed from afar, radiant as the morning sun; up close, as brilliant as a lotus rising from green waves.

If he set aside her temperament and looked only at her beauty, his wife was truly stunning.

A woman emerged from the side courtyard, equally radiant.

Clad in a pale green gown, she moved like water flowing over stones. Her slender waist, delicate as a willow, seemed too fragile to hold. Graceful and refined, she walked as if treading on mist.

Though she lacked Cao Rong’s splendor, she possessed an ethereal beauty.

Cao Cao smiled lightly. “This girl is Jianjia, a maid I personally selected for you. Are you satisfied, Zi Ning?”

“Heh, very satisfied, Father-in-law. The stout fellow holding the horse is as brave as ten thousand men, loyal and filial—consider him my gift in return.”

In a few words, father-in-law and son-in-law sealed their secret bargain.

Before Chen Cong could indulge in his daydreams any further, Cao Rong lifted her skirts and ran over.

“Zi Ning!”

A chill ran down Chen Cong’s spine; he instinctively took two steps to hide behind Cao Cao.

He knew things couldn’t be that simple!

“Speak your mind. Don’t call me that—it’s unsettling.”

Cao Rong wrinkled her delicate nose and pointed at Jianjia. “I don’t like that maid. Can’t you just marry me alone?”

The noise faded, and all the guests fell silent.

Relatives from her family lowered their heads, not daring to look at Chen Cong, much less offer any advice.

In an age like this, what Cao Rong said counted as the “jealousy” forbidden among the seven grounds for divorce.

Dislike her all you want, but as the lady of the house, can’t you handle a mere concubine?

Saying such things in public not only shamed the Cao family—if she truly angered the groom...

“Enough nonsense!” Cao Cao barked, then glared at the maids. “Take the young lady away at once!”

Lady Ding, who had followed them out, opened her mouth but said nothing.

“Chen Cong!”

A single tear slid down her cheek, smudging her carefully applied makeup.

Cao Rong regretted it.

Not that she regretted marrying Chen Cong, but—

When she made her wish by the Luo River, she’d asked only for a husband of her choosing, forgetting to ask for his heart.

No matter how beautiful her clothes and face, they could never compete with a house full of singing girls.

Living in such an age, she never expected to have Chen Cong to herself, but she still hoped for the respect due her as the mistress of the house. Was she not the lady here?

Why?

Her father had changed; her mother, too.

Was it such a heinous sin to refuse her husband another woman she disliked?

Cao Rong closed her eyes and waited for the maids to escort her away.

Peeking through one narrowed eyelid, she saw his broad back shielding her from all the servants.

Her emotions flared and faded just as quickly.

She broke into a smile through her tears. “Zi Ning, I knew you wouldn’t let me down.”

Chen Cong only smiled.

Giving up an entire forest for a single tree wasn’t as painful as he’d imagined.

And holding up the sky for her alone made the world itself feel brighter.

Was it like or love?

Chen Cong didn’t know; his memory was still caught in the flutter of their first meeting.

That day, the sunlight had been so bright.

He couldn’t bear to see this woman cry.

“Zi Ning, I—” Cao Cao called awkwardly, about to promise he could discipline Cao Rong.

But there was no need.

Chen Cong scooped Cao Rong up by the waist and smiled back. “No more pretending, Father-in-law. The truth is, I’m afraid of my wife.”

Is it shameful to fear your wife?

Uh...

Cao Cao laughed as well.

For a fleeting instant, the cunning, suspicious “Thief Cao” felt utterly at peace.

“Father, I told you Zi Ning is henpecked. Rong’er could give him a black eye with one punch, but you never believed it.”

Cao Cao clapped Cao Ang heavily on the shoulder and laughed. “You’re right, this time it’s my mistake.”

This was the hero who had defeated Zhang Xiu with a single stroke, survived five arrows, and made two hundred Liang cavalry tremble in fear.

He’d fought a fierce tiger alone and come out unscathed.

Why would he end up with a black eye from a mere woman?

If you set aside ambition and think carefully, isn’t the answer plain to see?