After Transmigrating, I Was Kidnapped By A Scheming Beauty Into The Bridal Chamber - Chapter 4

What should have been a beautiful spring scene, full of vibrant flowers and green willows, was ruined by the hateful man in the distance.

Seeing that she wouldn’t be able to stop the slap from landing on Miss Jiang’s face, Shěn Hétáng bent down and picked up a stone the size of half an egg. The moment her fingers touched the stone, it flew out.

While the man was screaming, Shěn Hétáng quickly walked to Jiang Chényú’s side and lifted her from the ground. The action and force of throwing the stone were definitely not her own skills; they were more like the muscle memory of this body.

“Who are you? How dare you be so insolent in my residence!” Wú Dàoyuǎn, whose wrist was almost shattered, glared furiously at the young man in front of him, his usual good-natured demeanor completely gone.

“Father, this is Shen Hétáng, the man I married yesterday. My husband now.” Jiang Chényú stood behind Shěn Hétáng, but her every word was clear as she replied to Wú Dàoyuǎn. It was also more like she was firmly informing him that she already had a husband.

“Good… good… you shameless girl! I’ve pampered you for so many years, only for you to do something so brazen behind my back. Go ask around! What respectable young lady would secretly get involved with a man? This is an illicit affair! I should have you both sunk in the river!” Wú Dàoyuǎn roared uncontrollably. When Madam Wu told him that Chūntáo had brazenly shown a wedding handkerchief to half the courtyard, he wished he could strangle this dog and bitch.

“Um… Sir… please don’t get so agitated. My wife’s and my marriage certificate was registered at the yamen by a matchmaker. It was absolutely not an illicit affair and has nothing to do with fornication. Please rest assured.” 

She couldn’t bring herself to call him “Father.” The relationship between this father and daughter didn’t seem to be very good at all.

“Go and get a divorce immediately, or I will beat this pretty boy to death.” Wú Dàoyuǎn’s eyes were dark and menacing as he looked at Jiang Chényú.

“Father, I was just so distraught over the Zhang family. But now that I’m married to Shěn, it’s not a bad thing. I’m your only daughter in the Jiang residence. Do you really want to marry me off and be lonely for the rest of your life?” Now, she had to tie herself to Shěn Hétáng no matter what.

“You… you… even if you resent the Zhang family, you should have let me choose a good son-in-law for you again. What good is a pretty boy like this?” Wú Dàoyuǎn pointed at Shěn Hétáng, looking infuriated.

Shěn Hétáng leaned back to dodge his pointing finger. This was too much. She was standing right here; did he think she wasn’t present?

“Father, I think Shěn is a wonderful man. The rice is already cooked, and there is no way we can get a divorce.” Jiang Chényú’s melodious voice delivered each word clearly into Wú Dàoyuǎn’s ears.

“Fine… fine… it seems you won’t repent without some punishment. Guards! Lock this shameless girl in the woodshed!” Wú Dàoyuǎn was done arguing with them. His patience was completely exhausted. The reason he hadn’t had Shěn Hétáng tied up as well was that he didn’t acknowledge his identity at all; he just wanted to kick him out and then give him a good beating.

Jiang Chényú watched her stepfather shed his facade. Though she was afraid, she reached out to pull Shěn Hétáng behind her. After all, she had dragged him into this, and she didn’t want him to be in any danger. This jerk’s mood changed faster than turning a page in a book. Was he going to use a private punishment on her now?

Just as Madam Wu brought two guards to separate them, Shěn Hétáng’s gaze sharpened like a sword, piercing Madam Wu. The domineering look in his phoenix eyes scared Madam Wu so much that she hesitated to extend her rough, plier-like hands.

This young man’s eyes were so dark and bright, with an inexplicable sense of pressure. Madam Wu was a bit hesitant.

“Are you all deaf? I said, lock up this shameless whore!” Master Wu saw his servants dawdling and raised his voice.

Shěn Hétáng’s brows furrowed. Who calls their own daughter a whore? Considering that Miss Jiang had to get married in a hurry while her father was away, she was starting to doubt their relationship.

When Madam Wu heard Master Wu’s urging, she shouted loudly, “Are you all deaf? Get up there and grab them!”

The two guards behind her reached out to grab Jiang Chényú’s shoulders. Just as they were about to pull her away, a chest was viciously kicked. There was a cracking sound as a rib broke, and the man flew five or six meters away, landing with a loud thud, followed by a painful wail that echoed through half the Jiang residence.

“Is my father-in-law insane? How dare he let other men bully my wife in front of me?” Shěn Hétáng loudly questioned while everyone else was still stunned.

The few people in the courtyard hadn’t processed how the guard had flown so far. After hearing Shěn Hétáng’s question, they finally came back to their senses and looked at her.

“How dare you be so insolent in my residence!” Wú Dàoyuǎn was also shocked by that kick and could only quickly try to save face.

“My wife and I are a couple who have undergone the marriage ceremony. Not even my father-in-law can separate us. He was just a servant. If I see anyone daring to disrespect my wife again, I will not let them off easily.” No young lady should be handled by a mere guard. She thought this master was losing his mind.

Shěn Hétáng’s words were forceful and resonant. Her voice was clear and bright with a youthful tone, but her expression was so serious that it commanded obedience.

Wú Dàoyuǎn had been repeatedly embarrassed by the two of them and had to give up for now.

“Fine… fine… I’ll settle this with you later. Without my permission, let’s see who acknowledges him as a son-in-law.” He was so angry that his chest heaved up and down. He flung his wide sleeve and strode away.

The servant with the broken rib was helped away by the other one, groaning in pain. Madam Wu reluctantly cursed a few words and followed Wú Dàoyuǎn back.

In the entire small garden, only Shěn Hétáng and Jiang Chényú remained. Jiang Chényú tightly gripped her husband’s arm, her heart pounding. It wasn’t from the shocking scene, but from the kick Shěn Hétáng had delivered to protect her.

She pressed herself against him. Shěn Hétáng felt her clothes being pulled taut and looked down to meet a pair of sparkling eyes.

Seeing her clinging to her like a little kangaroo, she asked, “Are you hurt?”

“I’m alright. Nothing’s wrong.” She shook her head and said softly.

But Shěn Hétáng still noticed the red swelling on her wrist. This didn’t look like something a father would do to his child. She was a grown woman now; why was she still being physically punished?

“Let’s go back. I’ll help you with the medicine.” She turned and put her arm around Jiang Chényú, walking back.

“Okay, thank you, husband… Um… don’t you want to ask me anything?” She couldn’t bring herself to speak about Wú Dàoyuǎn’s dirty intentions toward her, afraid she would taint her husband’s ears.

“If you think it’s necessary for me to know, then tell me.” She still needed to understand the relationships here.

Hearing this, Jiang Chényú recalled how she had lived like a dependent in the Jiang family’s residence for the past few years, and she felt so wronged that her eyes turned red.

After they returned to the bedroom, they ran into Chuntáo, who was bringing their breakfast from the kitchen. She was unaware of the conflict in the front courtyard and was in high spirits as she set the bowls and chopsticks on the table.

Two baskets of steamed buns, four small cold dishes, a vegetable congee, and a ham and egg custard—a few simple dishes looked like a feast of delicacies to Shěn Hétáng at that moment. But remembering that Jiang Chényú’s hand was still swollen, she told Chūntáo to go get some medicinal wine.

The young master didn’t say what the wine was for, and Chūntáo didn’t dare to ask. She just looked at her mistress and, seeing her nod, obediently went to get the wine.

Jiang Chényú didn’t want to recount the chaotic scene to Chūntáo again; it would just give her a bigger headache.

With no one else in the room, Shěn Hétáng lifted the pink embroidered cuff of her outer robe and gently applied the medicinal wine to the swollen wrist. She rubbed it back and forth a couple of times to warm the wine for better absorption.

“Wú Dàoyuǎn is my stepfather. Just like you, he is a live-in son-in-law in the Jiang residence, only my mother married him after she divorced my father.” Looking at the person diligently applying the medicine, Jiang Chényú’s heart softened. She explained the family structure in two sentences.

“Stepfather?” Shěn Hétáng felt this answer was both unexpected and within reason. If he were her biological father, why would he force her to throw an embroidered ball and randomly grab a man on the street?

“Yes. Yesterday, the matchmaker went to the yamen and registered our marriage certificate. She also got a new household register for you. Since it’s a live-in marriage, it’s very convenient to get a new one. You are now a person of my Jiang family.” Matchmaker Wang had been dealing with the yamen for years; as long as she gave them enough money, there was nothing she couldn’t get done.

“I’m on the Jiang residence’s household register?” It was that fast? She had a legal identity?

“Not the Jiang residence. You are on my Jiang Chényú’s household register.” She had a hint of pink eyeshadow at the corners of her eyes, which made her look both beautiful and seductive. She had a soft and harmless appearance but was speaking like a CEO. Was this what it meant to have a rich benefactor?

Jiang Chényú’s maternal grandfather was a wise old man who wasn’t old-fashioned. Before he passed away, he split the residence into two households, using half of the eastern side to establish a new household for his granddaughter.

On the surface, he said it was to continue the Jiang family line, and that if his daughter had more children in the future, they could take Wú Dàoyuǎn’s surname so his family line wouldn’t die out. In reality, he just feared his daughter was too weak and wanted to leave his granddaughter a way out.

At the time, Jiang Chényú was young and only remembered her grandfather saying that the land deed and household register should never be handed over to anyone and must be held firmly in her own hands. Later, when Wú Dàoyuǎn asked her for them, she insisted they were with her mother. But her mother had already been buried by then, so Wú Dàoyuǎn couldn’t go to her grave and ask. He thought that as long as he had the person, he would eventually get the things.

Only now did she understand the importance of being the head of a household. By adding a husband, she was no longer connected to Wú Dàoyuǎn. Before, when she was alone, she didn’t have the courage to burn her bridges. But now that she had a reliable person, she no longer had to be afraid.

Late at night, Shěn Hétáng reflected on her actions during the day. She was certain that the ability to break a man’s rib with a single kick was not her own, but the original owner’s. She felt that she and the original body were a perfect match; every move felt natural, as if this body had always been her own.

Lost in thought, a soft body suddenly rolled over and cuddled up to her. The early spring night wasn’t hot, in fact, it was a little chilly. This little girl, wearing a layer of smooth undergarments, lay beside her, her delicate hand resting naturally on her waist. It gave her a fright.

She quickly checked that she was still wearing her two layers of clothes and sighed in relief. ‘It’s good, it’s good.’ For now, she needed this job, and Jiang Chényú needed a husband. A cuddle was a cuddle, as long as she wasn’t exposed.

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