After venting his anger, Duan Jinxing put on a considerate act, personally attending to Jiang Zhaohua’s bath and feigning panic.
"Did I hurt you, my lady?"
"It’s all my fault… I lacked experience and didn’t know what to do…"
Jiang Zhaohua soaked in the warm water, her complexion gradually easing. "It’s nothing."
For some reason, when she heard Duan Jinxing admit his inexperience, despite the lingering pain, a faint sweetness bloomed in her heart.
She thought of the men from noble families who took concubines as early as their teens. By Duan Jinxing’s age, most would have had multiple concubines, some even before marriage.
But Duan Jinxing was different.
That night had been her first time—and his as well.
Though she had suffered, the realization made it all worthwhile.
Her husband was merely unpracticed. In time, as they grew accustomed to each other, the pain would surely lessen.
With this thought, Jiang Zhaohua changed her mind.
She no longer wanted her husband to take a concubine.
Her body and heart belonged to him alone—and his should belong only to her.
The next day, when the maid presented the bridal handkerchief to Duan's mother, the older woman gasped.
"So much blood! Was medicine applied?"
Duan's mother sent a maid with ointment, and only then did Jiang Zhaohua learn it was needed.
Her personal maids were all inexperienced, unaware of such matters. The aunts among her dowry attendants knew, but the Duan residence was too small to house them, so they had been settled at a distant estate.
The medicine arrived in a crude little jar, and Jiang Zhaohua frowned upon seeing it.
"Can something like this even work?"
Distrusting Duan's mother and disdainful of the ointment, she sent her maid to fetch a better one.
Yet the maid returned with the exact same remedy. "The physician said this is the most effective…"
Even so, Jiang Zhaohua used the newly purchased version. True enough, the pain soon eased.
The Duan residence was small, its thin walls incapable of keeping secrets. Duan's mother quickly learned of Jiang Zhaohua’s rejection of her gift.
Furious, she spat, "My kindness wasted on an ungrateful wretch!"
—
Despite the medicine, Jiang Zhaohua’s body only fully recovered the day before her return visit to her family.
Studying herself in the mirror, she confirmed no stiffness remained in her movements and sighed in relief.
At least her mother wouldn’t worry.
Duan Jinxing had hurt her, but his tenderness afterward couldn’t have been feigned. He’d simply been inexperienced.
The thought warmed Jiang Zhaohua’s cheeks. She could never voice such things—not even to her mother.
So when Lady Hou delicately inquired about her married life, Jiang Zhaohua only complained of the cramped Duan residence and her mother-in-law’s harsh temper.
Knowing her daughter’s reserved nature, Lady Hou pressed further.
As expected, Jiang Zhaohua flushed and whispered, "My husband is… very considerate."
Unaware of the truth, Lady Hou took this at face value and was reassured.
The small house and difficult mother-in-law were old news; she paid them no mind.
The emperor’s recent death had erased all her doubts—she was now certain Duan Jinxing would become chancellor, elevating her daughter to a first-rank noblewoman!
Present hardships would be worth it.
Still, Lady Hou couldn’t bear to see her beloved daughter suffer in such cramped quarters.
"I’ll speak with your father," she said. "We’ll find you a proper house to move into."
Jiang Zhaohua blinked. "But I married out, not took a husband into our family. How can my parents buy us a house?"
Lady Hou waved this off. "If your father and I are willing, who cares?"
As for the Duans’ opinion, she never considered they might object. Who wouldn’t leap at free property?
Jiang Zhaohua brightened instantly, nodding eagerly. Life suddenly held new promise.
Once Duan Jinxing benefited from her family’s generosity, he’d surely dote on her even more.
And that old hag? Living under her roof, she wouldn’t dare scold her again!
Seeing her daughter’s joy, Lady Hou beamed.
Casually, she added, "You’re an earl’s daughter, and that widow is ignorant, but she’s still your mother-in-law. Don’t give anyone grounds to criticize you."
Jiang Zhaohua nodded absently, dismissing the advice.
In truth, Lady Hou hadn’t meant it seriously either.
Both women shared the same unspoken belief: the Duans had climbed far above their station by marrying Jiang Zhaohua.
Both Duan Jinxing and his mother ought to be groveling in gratitude.
Lost in their private conversation, time flew.
A maid hovered at the door, repeatedly failing to interrupt until desperation forced her inside.
The intrusion displeased both women.
Gritting her teeth, the maid announced, "My lady, Concubine Qiao’s high fever hasn’t broken for days. She’s… not doing well."
"She keeps raving…"
Lady Hou scowled. "Must you bother me with this?"
"Didn’t we already send medicine?"
"If one dose doesn’t work, brew two and force them down her throat!"
