Volume One, Chapter Three: Treating Her as a Substitute
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Ruan Liuzheng frowned, unsure of what he intended to do.
Lu Chengze, however, said, “What are you pretending for? When you climbed into my bed before, you weren’t so reserved.”
“You don’t need to humiliate me. I don’t understand.”
“Don’t overthink it. Yingying asked me to paint plum blossoms on her shoulders, but I hadn’t tried before, so I used you to practice.”
Ruan Liuzheng felt utterly humiliated and could no longer bear it.
“You can have someone else practice on.”
“But you are my wife.”
“Heh, when you were with her in bed, didn’t you forget I was your wife?” she couldn’t help but retort.
Her legs throbbed continuously, but the fire in her heart flared up fiercely.
“What’s the matter? Are you jealous?” Lu Chengze mocked.
Ruan Liuzheng’s eyes reddened. “I feel like I don’t know you anymore. The man I once regarded as a brother is gone.”
Hearing this, Lu Chengze’s anger erupted.
“The Lu Chengze who treated you so well back then, yet you hurt him so deeply! It’s all your own fault. Don’t make me say it again—take off your clothes.”
Seeing Ruan Liuzheng refuse to move, Lu Chengze reached out to pull her, tearing open her collar and exposing her pale shoulders.
Her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground again, crying out in pain. He was indifferent, expressionless as he pressed her shoulders and began to paint.
Tears streamed down Ruan Liuzheng’s face—not only from pain but from overwhelming grievance and humiliation.
To please Ruan Yingying, he never regarded her as a person.
Before he finished painting, she couldn’t hold on any longer and fainted.
In that moment, Lu Chengze’s heart panicked.
No matter what, she was the girl who had grown up with him. He couldn’t be so cruel as to watch coldly.
He scooped her up and called outside, “Send the medic.”
The medic examined her and said, “How long has the young madam been kneeling? The wounds have become this severe—if any later, the consequences would be unimaginable.”
Seeing the injuries on her knees, Lu Chengze’s mind went blank, then he scolded her. Was she playing some kind of self-inflicted trick? With wounds this serious, why didn’t she speak up?
The medic treated her wounds and prescribed medicine before leaving.
Originally scheduled to enter the palace the next day, Lu Chengze’s fleeting guilt vanished completely since she wouldn’t see Yingying again.
He coldly instructed Ruyan, who was serving nearby, “When she wakes, tell her she doesn’t need to enter the palace tomorrow. I will report her condition to Her Majesty the Empress.”
“Yes, sir,” Ruyan replied.
After speaking, he left without another glance at her.
Ruan Liuzheng woke the next day, suddenly opening her eyes.
Ruyan brought water to feed her. “Young Madam, you’re finally awake. How do you feel? Does it still hurt?”
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Ruan Liuzheng recalled the humiliating scene in the Quiet Ying Pavilion, her heart feeling suffocated.
Why did Lu Chengze treat her this way?
“The young master said you don’t need to enter the palace today. You can rest for a few days.”
“Mm. I’m hungry, Ruyan.”
“All right, I’ll bring some food right away.”
There was no light in Ruan Liuzheng’s eyes. She hadn’t expected Lu Chengze to treat her like this.
At first, it was just mockery, but now he didn’t even see her as a person.
Ruyan quickly returned with porridge and fed her spoonful by spoonful.
After a few bites, Lu Chengze’s voice came, “Finished eating? Once done, we’ll continue what we left unfinished last night.”
His intent was clearly to humiliate her!
Ruyan dared not say more, and Lu Chengze watched from the side.
Ruan Liuzheng sighed deeply. “You may leave, Ruyan.”
Ruyan withdrew.
Lu Chengze stepped forward, pretending to tug at her collar. She turned aside to dodge.
“I’ll do it myself.”
She slowly removed her clothes, revealing her pale, flawless shoulders. She appeared fragile, yet her figure was exquisite.
Lu Chengze’s Adam’s apple bobbed involuntarily.
He began to paint.
When the plum blossoms were finished, they were unimaginably beautiful.
Then she said, “Let’s divorce.”
Lu Chengze suddenly looked up, incredulous. “What are you saying?”
“You’ve always wanted to divorce me, haven’t you? Then let’s do it.”
She thought he would be pleased, but instead, he grabbed her neck, eyes filled with murderous intent.
“Divorce? If I divorce you, how will I see Yingying? Don’t even think about it!”
Ruan Liuzheng struggled as he choked her nearly to death. She slapped at him, begging for release, but he seemed to have lost his mind.
At the brink of suffocation, he finally let go.
“We will be bound together for life. Don’t think of divorce—unless you die.”
He actually wanted to kill her. He truly wished her dead!
Ruan Liuzheng was terrified by his gaze. She gasped for air, tears streaming down.
Must her life be this painful, trapped between the Lu residence and the palace?
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Desperation glimmered in her eyes. Ruyan entered and saw her crying, quickly wiping her tears with a handkerchief.
Ruan Liuzheng gripped Ruyan’s wrist tightly. “He really tried to kill me just now. I nearly died.”
All because of Ruan Yingying.
He was no longer the man she once regarded as a brother.
The Lu Chengze who once adored her was dead.
“Young Madam, what shall we do now?”
Ruan Liuzheng tried to calm herself.
She didn’t know what to do, but she had to leave. Otherwise, she feared dying in the Lu residence.
“I’ll write to my parents, say I’m ill and want to stay at home a few days. Ask them to come get me.”
Ruyan took the letter and personally went to deliver it to the Ruan family.
Ruan Liuzheng’s neck bore bruises, dark and purple—proof of how hard he had gripped her.
The thought of that scene made it hard for her to breathe.
Soon after, Ruyan returned—dragged back forcefully.
Madam Liu glanced at Ruan Liuzheng’s neck and said, “Out of concern for the young madam’s condition, I sent this old servant to assist with care.”
This was no care—it was surveillance.
“Madam, I only suddenly missed my parents and askedI'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.