My Wife is a Frustrating Genius!!! - Chapter 1

“You shameless rogue! How dare you harass a young maiden in broad daylight!”

“Ouch!”

“Young master!!!”

On a winding, muddy path, a woman dressed in coarse linen stood with her hands on her hips, having just kicked a young man in luxurious brocade robes onto the filthy ground.

The richly dressed youth fell hard onto his knees, his face contorted in pain as he clutched his legs, trembling all over.

The two maids and servants accompanying him immediately rushed forward to help him up, carefully supporting his arms as they lifted him from the ground.

“How dare you, woman? Do you even know who our young master is?!” one of the maids, Guo’er, shouted angrily after helping her master up, storming toward the woman who had kicked him. “Our young master is from a prominent family in Bianjing! He is—”

Lu Jiahe, who was on the verge of tears from the pain, quickly called out to stop her before she could reveal his name in front of so many people. “Guo’er, come back!”

Having just returned from studying in the capital, Lu Jiahe didn’t want any trouble that might reach the ears of her scheming stepmother otherwise, she’d be forced to kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment.

A prominent family? Who?

Cheng Yi frowned, scrutinizing the fair-skinned, delicate-looking youth before her. She had been in Bianjing for at least two or three years since transmigrating here. The town wasn’t large, and the population wasn’t huge either yet she had never seen this person before.

Guo’er glared at the woman, fuming inwardly. Her master was, after all, a girl; how could she endure such rough treatment?

So delicate-looking…

Cheng Yi crossed her arms, studying the youth more closely. The more she looked, the more she suspected that this “young master” wasn’t actually male. His voice had been quite clear and bright too. To confirm her suspicions, she ignored the attendants and stepped directly in front of the youth.

Lu Jiahe’s heart pounded in fear as the woman who had just kicked her approached. She clutched her thighs tightly, looking up at the imposing figure looming over her with an unfriendly expression.

Her neck was covered by the collar. Can’t see anything.

Too focused on her investigation, Cheng Yi didn’t notice the beads of sweat forming at the youth’s temples. She tilted her head, examining the other’s neck from different angles before suddenly reaching out and tugging the collar aside to check for an Adam’s apple.

!!!

Lu Jiahe had never imagined such a brazen woman existed. First kicking her, then trying to strip her clothes off! She stiffened in shock, gripping her robes tightly.

“Y-you—you barbaric woman! What are you doing?!” Lu Jiahe stammered, her face pale with fright. To her, this woman was like a demoness, terrifying beyond words!

No Adam’s apple. The finger joints weren’t as broad as a man’s either.

Having confirmed her suspicions, Cheng Yi let out a long sigh. She had initially thought this was some spoiled young master trying to harass women on the street, engaging in vulgar and despicable behavior.

No! While same-sex love is quite normal in modern society, she had now traveled back to ancient times. What if this woman disguised as a man also liked women and wanted to forcibly take advantage of her, engaging in some sort of “grinding” affair?

At this thought, Cheng Yi’s face cycled through all four seasons before settling on winter. Her expression icy, she narrowed her eyes and looked down at this young master of uncertain character, wondering how she could make them admit their wrongdoing and justly stand up for the disheveled girl sitting on the ground nearby.

Guo’er, seeing her master being stripped in public by this vicious woman, immediately stepped forward and shoved her away. “What do you think you’re doing to my young master, you shrew?”

Though Cheng Yi had trained in martial arts and self-defense since childhood, the unexpected push from the little maid nearly sent her stumbling.

Frowning, Guo’er pushed Cheng Yi away from Lu Jiahe and quickly helped straighten her master’s collar.

“You shameless woman! How dare you try to assault my young master in broad daylight?” After fixing her master’s clothes, Guo’er shielded Lu Jiahe behind her, glaring fiercely at Cheng Yi.

Cheng Yi knew it was wrong to pin imagined crimes on this cross-dressing person without verifying the truth, but she couldn’t entirely dismiss the possibility that their fearful expression was just an act.

“If they had no ill intentions, then what’s the deal with this girl?” Cheng Yi frowned, her face full of righteous indignation as she glanced at the young woman who had just sat down on a nearby stool.

“Our young master stepped in to drive off the men who were trying to assault her! And what do you do? You come out of nowhere, don’t even ask what happened, and just start beating our young master! You’re nothing but a brute!” Guo’er was furious inside. Her master had acted out of kindness to save someone in distress, only for this vicious woman to appear out of nowhere and beat them up.

The more Cheng Yi listened, the more she felt she might be in the wrong. Finally, she turned to the girl and asked, “Miss, is what she’s saying true? Don’t be afraid. If they harmed you, just say so. I’ll make sure they never dare to bother you again.”

The girl looked up at Cheng Yi and Lu Jiahe. Though she wasn’t from Bianjing, she had lived here as a child and knew exactly who Lu Jiahe was. Moreover, they had indeed just saved her. “Miss, it’s true. Young Master Lu and his people rescued me.”

“Don’t be afraid. If they really did hurt you, I won’t let them off the hook.” Worried the girl might fear retaliation after she left, Cheng Yi pointed at Lu Jiahe, trying to reassure her.

“Miss, Young Master Lu really didn’t harm me. Before you arrived, some spoiled young nobles from Bianjing tried to assault me. Thanks to Young Master Lu, I escaped.” As she spoke, the girl cast a soft, grateful glance at Lu Jiahe.

That look sent a shiver down Lu Jiahe’s spine. To prevent the situation from spiraling into something even more bizarre, Lu Jiahe quickly stood up and called for Guo’er and Lu An, hurrying away from the tea stall.

“Young Master, aren’t we going to teach that little wench a lesson?” Lu An whispered as he followed his master.

Lu Jiahe turned her head to glance at Lu An upon hearing his words. “She was just trying to protect that girl. Let it be, better to avoid unnecessary trouble.”

“Master Lu.”

Just as Lu Jiahe was leading the servants onto the carriage to depart, a soft, delicate voice suddenly called out from behind.

Lu Jiahe turned to look at the sound, and before she could steady herself, the girl she had just rescued from danger stood before her.

“Is there anything else, miss?” Lu Jiahe asked, noticing the faint blush on the girl’s cheeks, a sense of foreboding creeping into her heart.

At Lu Jiahe’s gentle words, the girl’s already rosy cheeks deepened in color. “Today’s incident was all thanks to Master Lu’s help. I…” Before she could finish, the girl pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to Lu Jiahe.

Lu Jiahe knew exactly what this gesture implied. Accepting the handkerchief would mean inviting a heap of trouble for herself.

“I have matters to attend to. Please be careful when you go out in the future, miss. It’s best to bring servants along to avoid any mishaps.” With that, Lu Jiahe hastily tugged at her robes and scrambled onto the carriage, fleeing the scene with her entourage in tow.

Cheng Yi watched the receding carriage with amusement, thinking to herself how this person dared to disguise herself as a man in such a conservative society, yet was afraid of a young girl’s casual offer of marriage.

“Miss, it’s so dangerous out here with all these people coming and going. Why didn’t you bring a maid with you?” Cheng Yi studied the young girl standing before her, noting that her attire suggested she wasn’t from an ordinary family.

The girl frowned slightly as she watched the carriage disappear down the path. Startled by Cheng Yi’s words as if waking from a dream, she pursed her lips and looked at her.

“I…” The girl hesitated before finally speaking. “I came to Bianjing to seek refuge with my grandmother and uncle.”

Cheng Yi understood the implication. “Bianjing is full of unscrupulous young nobles,” she said, glancing around. “Why don’t we rest here for a while? I’ll take you into the city later.”

Still shaken by the earlier incident, the girl was wary of trusting Cheng Yi. But remembering how Cheng Yi had mistaken Lu Jiahe for someone trying to harass her and stood up for her, she found herself torn.

Seeing the hesitation on the girl’s face, Cheng Yi added, “Don’t worry. I’ve practiced self-defense since childhood. Those spoiled nobles in Bianjing steer clear of me.”

The girl looked at her in surprise, then nodded firmly, clutching her bundle tightly.

Meanwhile, Lu Jiahe, who had fled in a fluster onto the carriage, sat upright as Guo’er used a damp cloth to wipe the black footprints off her robes.

“That woman is absolutely wild! Look at how many times she kicked you! So many footprints! How vicious!” Guo’er grumbled, her heart aching at the sight of her mistress’s soiled robes. She scrubbed at the fabric as if it were the woman herself, venting her anger.

Lu Jiahe’s gaze drifted to the remaining footprints on her clothes, her mind involuntarily recalling the woman who both frightened and intrigued her.

“Guo’er, stop fussing with it. The robe won’t be wearable if you keep at it.” Lu Jiahe reached out and snatched the robe back from Guo’er’s hands.

“If we don’t clean this properly, you’ll definitely be punished with kneeling again when you get home!”