After Transmigrating, I Was Kidnapped By A Scheming Beauty Into The Bridal Chamber - Chapter 1

The dim candlelight flickered unsteadily in the main hall of the Jiang residence. A man in his early forties sat upright with a grave expression, while not far in front of him stood a delicate young girl, just at the age of sixteen.

Her beauty was tinged with freshness, like a flower bud yet to bloom still dewy, full of promise. Her figure, far more graceful than most her age, made her the center of attention wherever she stood. 

“Father, it’s so late. Why did you call for me?” Her voice was clear and sweet, like polished jade beads rolling against each other. Yet buried beneath the courtesy was a faint trace of impatience, so subtle it was hard to catch.

“Didn’t I just return from Yang City? I thought of you, and remembered I haven’t given you the gift I brought back. So I had Madam Wu summon you. What’s this, were you already asleep?” Wu Daoyuan used the candlelight to study his stepdaughter. The girl had grown more and more captivating, nothing at all like her plain and meek mother.

“Thank you for Father’s thoughtfulness.” Jiang Chenyu deliberately lowered her voice, trying to mask her naturally soft and lilting tone.

“Come, let me put it on you.” He rose and stepped forward, his tall frame casting her in shadow.

His broad palm casually rested on her rounded shoulder, while the other hand pretended to measure at her head.

“Whatever Father buys must be fine goods. If my sisters invite me out, I’ll certainly wear it to show off,” Jiang Chenyu said lightly. Yet when she glanced at the paper window, where their silhouettes overlapped like an embrace, a wave of humiliation and disgust surged within her. Instinctively, she stepped back.

Wu Daoyuan slid a pearl hairpin into her thick, waterfall-like black hair. His hand lingered on her shoulder a moment longer before withdrawing.

“Chenyu, you’re such a sensible girl. You’re my only daughter. Of course I’ll dote on you.” With hands clasped behind his back, he now assumed the solemn posture of a righteous elder.

“Come, sit here. Father has something to discuss with you.” He tapped the space beside him.

Inside, Jiang Chenyu cursed the beast in human skin a thousand times over, yet she still walked toward the Luohan couch. She couldn’t afford to show her guard. If cornered, who knew what he might do?

“What does Father wish to discuss?” she asked calmly, choosing a spot just beyond his arm’s reach.

“Ah, you’re already sixteen, a grown young lady. Since your mother passed, I’ve raised you with care, and now you’ve blossomed so gracefully.” As he spoke, he used the excuse to pat her thigh twice.

Chenyu’s whole body stiffened, goosebumps rising in shock.

“Father, these fruits on the table are newly delivered. Why weren’t any sent to my room?” She quickly stood, snatched up a large red apple, and clung to it like a lifeline.

“Madam Wu prepared them this afternoon. If you like them, take the whole tray.” Wu Daoyuan put on a kindly smile.

“So what matter did Father wish to speak of?”

“There is something. Do you still remember the Zhang family’s young master, the fiancé arranged for you when you were small? Weren’t we planning for you to wed after the new year? But who could have guessed that at this crucial moment, that unfortunate boy would run into trouble?” Wu Daoyuan drawled leisurely.

“What happened?” Chenyu asked anxiously. That childhood engagement was her only hope of escape. It was the reason she could still endure living beside this wolf in human skin. Once she married into the Zhang family, she’d finally be free of this house.

“Ah, bad luck. Just the other day, I happened to be in Danyang County and thought I’d pay the Zhangs a visit. To my surprise, their gate was draped in red silk. After asking around, I learned their young master had gotten himself entangled with a decent girl outside. The girl even showed up at their home, pregnant, demanding justice.” As he spoke, Wu Daoyuan’s lips curved faintly, though the dim candlelight blurred his expression.

Chenyu’s face drained of color. She collapsed onto a stool, clutching the apple so tightly her knuckles turned white. Normally, it was improper for a man to speak of such things like pregnancy and affairs with a young girl. But at that moment, Chenyu had no mind for propriety.

“But even if she’s with child, why not take her as a concubine?” she pressed, her face pale. She’d never cared much for her fiancé, having met him only once as a child. But ever since she noticed Wu Daoyuan’s dark intentions, she had pinned all her hopes on marrying into the Zhangs.

“They wanted to, but that girl happens to have a relative working in the magistrate’s office. And in the end, commoners can’t win against officials. The Zhangs had no choice but to accept the situation. It’s a pity… especially for you, my daughter.” He sighed with feigned regret.

“But don’t be too sad. A man who breaks promises isn’t worth mourning. Even if you never marry, am I not here to provide for you? As long as you are my daughter, I can support you for a lifetime.” His tone shifted into false righteousness again.

“Father, I’m tired. Let’s speak of this another time.” She lowered her head, feigning defeat, her voice listless.

“It is indeed late. Go back and rest. Tomorrow I’ll come check on you.”

“Then I’ll take my leave.” She turned and left the hall.

Wu Daoyuan’s gaze burned on her retreating, slender figure. The corners of his lips curled upward. Dark, unspoken schemes coiled in his heart.

Back in her room, Chenyu’s hands and feet were cold as despair flooded her chest. That damned Zhang Er. Why couldn’t he hold on? Truly, whether young or old, men were all the same. Worthless.

What should she do now? What should she do? With her fate clenched in another’s hand, how could she ever break free?

The Jiang family was one of the wealthiest households in Qingyuan County. Chenyu’s maternal grandfather had built a vast fortune through a lifetime of trade. But he had only one daughter. After her marriage, within six or seven years she was mistreated and her life grew bitter.

When Old Master Jiang learned of it, he quarreled fiercely with her in-laws, sacrificing a large dowry to secure his daughter’s divorce. He brought her and five-year-old Chenyu back to Qingyuan Town.

Fortunately, he’d been wise enough to give only a quarter of his wealth as her dowry, wary of how aristocrats treated merchants.

Reunited, the family once again lived comfortably. They should have been able to enjoy peace. Yet having a daughter so late in life, Old Master Jiang worried constantly. His daughter now nearing twenty-four or twenty-five, while he and his wife were already close to sixty. He often lay awake, fretting for their future.

Later, her mother set her sights on a fallen scholar, Wu Daoyuan. Fearing that once he and his wife passed away, there would be no one left to look after his daughter and granddaughter, Old Master Jiang reluctantly agreed to the match.

At the time, Wu Daoyuan seemed ambitious and diligent, always buried in books and preparing for the imperial examinations. But after both Old Master Jiang and his wife died in quick succession, Wu claimed the family business needed someone to manage it. He gave up the examinations altogether and took control of the Jiang family’s trade.

Chenyu’s mother was a gentle, fragile woman. To remarry had already been considered outrageous by society. Once Wu Daoyuan entered the household, naturally, his word became law. So for six or seven years, Chenyu’s mother lived quietly with her daughter and her new husband. Yet her body had already been worn down from years of mistreatment by her first in-laws. And now this new husband… never let her live in peace.

Eventually, her health failed completely, leaving thirteen-year-old Chenyu to fend for herself.

From then on, Wu Daoyuan became the absolute master of the Jiang estate. He even moved in his own kin, like Madam Wu and together they enjoyed the luxury and prestige of the Jiang family’s name, living in silk and satin, ordering servants about.

To outsiders, he treated Chenyu with open kindness and hidden indulgence. Neighbors and relatives alike praised him as a man of loyalty and righteousness, well-deserving of everything the Jiang family provided.

But Chenyu had sharp eyes. After her mother’s death, she quickly noticed the filth hidden beneath her stepfather’s benevolent mask. She had grown up watching her mother suffer at the hands of her grandmother, ignored by her father and bullied by concubines. Sensitive and cautious by nature, she knew better than to expose her suspicions.

She could only act as though she saw nothing, keeping her days calm and uneventful. Her one hope was that when the three-year mourning period ended, she could marry into the Zhang family and finally escape this beast of a man.

But today, Wu Daoyuan’s words had cast her into an icy abyss. That engagement had been arranged by her grandfather. Now that he was gone, how could a wolf like Wu willingly find her another husband?

To the outside world, he constantly claimed Chenyu was frail and weak, just like her late mother, a delicate young miss too fragile to endure hardship. Heaven knew, her health was perfectly fine. She had hardly touched a bowl of medicine in years.

His deceit was truly unforgivable.

That night, lying in bed, Chenyu tossed and turned without sleep. With Zhang family’s second son no longer an option, where could she find another man, so urgently, to shield her?

*******

Meanwhile, outside the city, inside a dilapidated temple, a young man in silk robes lay sprawled across a pile of dry straw. His face was flawless as jade, his brows elegant, nose tall and refined, lips red as if painted.

But such beauty seemed completely out of place in the ruined, shadowy temple.

Shen Hetang’s head throbbed as if it were about to split. She groaned, rubbing her temple before forcing her eyes open. All she saw was rubble.

Half-collapsed walls. An open, broken roof.

Where was she?

Dazed, she tried to piece things together. Just moments ago, she had been on her way to report to the police department. She had been specially recruited for her province-leading martial arts skills. But right at the station gates, she’d encountered a man strapped with explosives, seeking revenge. Her sense of duty had flared, and she’d grappled with him. After that… nothing. Only the deafening blast remained etched in her memory.

Unsteadily, she got to her feet, shielding her eyes from the blinding sunlight. That was when she caught sight of the wide, patterned sleeves of a dark-blue robe. Startled, she looked down at herself.

What was this? Her heart lurched as she took in the ancient clothing.

No way…

She stumbled out of the temple, staring at the dirt road, the carriages, the shrubs and the people walking by in hanfu.

She had transmigrated?

If not, then she must already be dead. Between the two, perhaps transmigration wasn’t the worst outcome.

Still stunned, she stood blankly at the roadside, watching the traffic of carts and pedestrians.

“Young master, are you needing a ride?” A carter in rough hemp clothes called out.

“Young master?” Shen Hetang repeated dully, almost on instinct.

“Yes, I’m talking to you.” The carter eyed her up and down. With her refined looks, she could’ve been mistaken for a celestial being. But her slow reaction made him frown, was this young man simple-minded? His gaze turned cautious, even a little pitying.

“Ah… yes, yes. Thank you, brother.” Shen Hetang clambered onto the cart, dazed, not even sure if the ride would cost money.

She searched herself for a pouch but found nothing except for the hairpin on her head.

Then she remembered that the carter had addressed her as “young master.” With a furtive hand, she felt along her body, and let out a silent breath of relief. Still female. At least she hadn’t transmigrated into a man’s body; that would’ve been far harder to accept.

Her hands, though, caught her attention. Pale and slender, the joints well defined. Yet at the base of the thumb and across the palms, there were rough calluses.

Familiar calluses. From years of training. Just like hers.

“Young master, are you headed to the city as well?” the carter asked again from the front.

“Yes. I’m on the way there too,” she answered vaguely.

“Visiting relatives, then?” The man was talkative.

With a sudden flash of inspiration, Shen Hetang sighed. “To be honest, I was on my way to propose a marriage. But halfway through, bandits robbed me clean. Now I’ve no papers, no coin, nothing. I don’t know what to do…” She let her shoulders droop, her tone low and lost, playing the part of someone struck by misfortune.

The farmer’s face softened with sympathy. “That’s truly unlucky. But since you were going to your fiancée’s home, I’m sure once you arrive, all will be resolved. Money can be earned again. Your life is what matters most.”

His simple kindness warmed her unexpectedly.

“Brother, your words are wise. I was being foolish, dwelling on the loss.” Shen Hetang cupped her hands in thanks.

“But tell me, without my household papers, will I even be allowed into the city?”

“These days, the guards are busy repairing the walls. They’re not too strict at the gates. Just sit inside. I’m well-known on this road. They usually don’t trouble me.”

Luck was finally turning, it seemed. Perhaps fate wasn’t all cruel after all. She feigned deep gratitude, her voice thick with feeling. “I’ve truly met a good man today.”

The carter straightened proudly, spurred on by the praise. With heroic vigor, he snapped his whip, the cart rattling faster down the road.

Settling into the jolting cart, Shen Hetang tried to piece together her fragmented memory. But the blank in her mind was too large. For now, she had no choice but to take things one step at a time. Once inside the city, she’d figure out her next move.

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