Chapter 10

Ying Yue didn’t notice Mama Cai’s reaction. She only froze for a moment when Madam Hong mentioned “biting her tongue to commit suicide,” as she hadn’t expected her accidental injury to be misunderstood in such a way. Yet no one in the room refuted it—not even Mama Cai spoke up. It seemed this had become the accepted narrative.

She wanted to explain, but then reconsidered. After all, she truly had no desire to marry Fang Hanxiao—he was supposed to be her elder sister’s husband. In terms of the outcome, Madam Hong’s assumption wasn’t entirely wrong. So she closed her mouth and focused intently on climbing down from the bed.

After taking the medicine, she felt she had regained a bit of strength and wanted to leave as soon as possible. Mama Cai couldn’t control her now, and the people of Marquis Pingjiang Manor would likely be eager to sweep her out the door—no one would stop her.

But Ying Yue had overestimated her stamina. Her limbs were still weak, and as soon as her feet touched the footstool, her arms, propped against the quilt, gave way. She plummeted like a weight, nearly face-planting before Fang Hanxiao, who stood nearby, swiftly reached out and caught her just in time.

The attention of everyone in the room snapped toward them.

Ying Yue: “…”

She slumped in his arms, mortified to the point of steam practically rising from her head, unable to even open her eyes. She wished she had just knocked herself unconscious on the floor instead.

Fang Hanxiao placed her back on the bed.

Ying Yue felt utterly humiliated. Still, since Fang Hanxiao had extended a hand to save her from smashing her face like a squashed persimmon, she couldn’t pretend nothing had happened. Forcing her eyes open, she mouthed to him: *Thank you.*

She also wanted to say, *Don’t worry, I won’t cling to you—I’ll definitely leave.* But that string of words was too complex to convey clearly with just her lips. After a futile attempt, she gave up, feeling a pang of sympathy: *Being mute is really hard. Just this short while, and I already find it inconvenient.*

Her emotions were always transparent, and this sympathy leaked straight into her gaze. Fang Hanxiao noticed, his cool eyes sweeping over her face—neither bright nor friendly, though not exactly hostile either. It was more like he regarded her as a trivial plaything, looking at her without truly seeing her.

After settling her, Fang Hanxiao straightened up quickly, his expression now unreadable—calm, at least on the surface.

Especially compared to Madam Hong’s agitation.

As the true victim of this marriage substitution insult, he had shown no obvious emotional reaction thus far.

Madam Hong’s gaze lingered on him with veiled suspicion. Just as she was about to speak again, the outer curtain rustled—Marquis Pingjiang arrived in hurried steps, right at this critical moment.

Mama Cai turned her head, her panicked eyes lighting up with renewed hope. While Madam Hong might genuinely be furious at being outmaneuvered by Madam Xu and losing face, the Marquis, as a man, ought to be more composed and less impulsive, right?

There was one matter many privately suspected but lacked evidence to confirm: When Fang Hanxiao’s father, as the rightful eldest son, inherited the title, it was indisputable. But after his early death, the Heir Apparent Position didn’t pass to his younger brother Fang Zhengsheng—instead, it went to the young Fang Hanxiao. Could Fang Zhengsheng have truly accepted this? Later, when Fang Hanxiao met misfortune, Fang Zhengsheng ultimately ascended as the current Marquis Pingjiang. Though five years had passed since Fang Hanxiao’s incident, this shadow of doubt still lingered in some minds.

Madam Xu dared to challenge Marquis Pingjiang Manor with her sixth-rank official status after Old Master Xu’s passing, using Ying Yue as a scapegoat, all due to her tangled suspicions. Deep down, she believed herself to be the wronged party, convinced that Fang Zhengsheng had stolen the bright future of being the Heir Apparent’s Wife of Looking at the Moon—or even the Marchioness—from Wangyue. However, circumstances were stronger than individuals. Since Fang Hanxiao had become a useless cripple, she restrained herself from openly venting her frustrations.

The convoluted emotions behind this were too complex to explain in a few words. In short, Madam Xu truly believed her actions were justified by her own logic. Mama Cai, as her confidante, understood her mistress’s mindset and thus shared her confidence.

But her confidence was swiftly shattered once more. Lord Fang was even more decisive than Madam Hong, not even giving her a chance to speak. With a face as dark as storm clouds, he stormed in and roared, “I’ve heard everything! How dare the Xu family insult Xiao’er like this? This is utterly outrageous! Madam, there’s no need to waste words with these servants. Drag this fake bride back into the sedan chair—I’ll personally return her to the Xu family and demand an explanation from Xu Huaiying!”

Xu Huaiying was none other than Master Xu.

Mama Cai turned pale, scrambling for words to salvage the situation, but Lord Fang’s orders were swiftly obeyed. Immediately, servants moved to drag Ying Yue from the bed. Ying Yue, who had no desire to stay, offered no resistance and cooperated fully. Yet, their rough handling caused her head to slam against the bed’s railing with a loud thud. Unable to cry out in pain, tears welled up in her eyes from the impact.

Doctor Wang, with a healer’s compassion, now understood the situation. Though he knew he shouldn’t interfere, he couldn’t help but say, “This—this young lady is seriously injured.”

Lord Fang glanced at him and said, “Why are you here, Doctor? Old Master cannot be left unattended. You should return to Tranquil Virtue Courtyard to tend to him—and by the way, don’t mention this matter to him. We wouldn’t want to shock his already frail health.”

He wasn’t worried about Doctor Wang gossiping. If anything happened to Old Master Fang due to negligence, the doctor would be the first to bear the blame.

Doctor Wang was displeased, though not for personal reasons. He had just painstakingly prepared a medicinal brew for Ying Yue, and now his efforts were wasted as she was being mistreated. Frustrated, he muttered to Fang Hanxiao, “Why did you make me go through all this trouble?”

With that, he left. As he wasn’t a servant of the manor, he didn’t need to overly concern himself with their reactions.

The manor’s servants paid him no mind and continued dragging Ying Yue. However, Fang Hanxiao seemed stirred by Doctor Wang’s words and stepped forward, signaling Lord Fang to pause.

Lord Fang sighed. “Xiao’er, I know this is a blow to your dignity. If you’re angry, let it out—don’t bottle it up and harm your health. As for the Xu family, I’ve already sent someone to investigate. Rest assured, since you’ve just returned, your uncle won’t let you suffer this injustice in vain.”

Madam Hong chimed in at the right moment, “My Lord, what’s there to investigate? Even without looking into it, I can guess what happened. Xu Wangyue must have entangled herself with someone else—who knows how far it’s gone? Otherwise, why would they shove a mere concubine-born daughter at us to silence us? I’ll go with you to see what excuses the Xu family can come up with!”

Mama Cai’s vision darkened—there was no mistaking it now. Marquis Pingjiang Manor intended to escalate this into a major scandal!

Fang Han Xiao stood opposite his uncle, Lord Fang, his hands clenched at his sides. His thick, ink-black sword-like brows were furrowed, and a faint red streak of exhaustion lined the corners of his narrow eyes. His tense expression sharpened the angles of his profile, making him appear as though he had finally been pushed to the brink, his anger boiling over.

After all, being cuckolded was considered the ultimate humiliation for a man—how many could truly endure such an insult?

Madam Hong’s eyes flashed with satisfaction as she directed the servants to resume their task. Ying Yue suffered two more rough jolts before being dragged off the bed and hauled toward the door.

Just as Ying Yue was about to be pulled over the threshold, with Lord Fang and Madam Hong preparing to follow, Fang Han Xiao unexpectedly stepped forward to block their path.

Lord Fang’s expression stiffened imperceptibly, a trace of impatience hidden between his brows. “Xiao’er, what now? It’s nearly dark. Any further delay, and we won’t be able to leave. There are still many guests waiting in the manor, and we owe them an explanation. Time is pressing.”

Marriage ceremonies were traditionally held at dusk, and the bridal procession had arrived accordingly. The last remnants of twilight spilled sparingly through the doorway, casting a faint glow on the crimson hem of Fang Han Xiao’s wedding robes—yet his upper body remained shrouded in shadow, his face entirely obscured in darkness, lending him an air of inscrutability.

Ying Yue, halted in front of him, tilted her head in confusion. This treatment was hardly unexpected—what was unexpected was Fang Han Xiao’s intervention. She wanted to discern his intentions.

Though she could see his expression, it told her little. For a fleeting moment, she thought she glimpsed a strange smile playing at his lips as he faced his uncle and aunt. But when she blinked, it vanished—his lips hadn’t moved at all. Perhaps the blows to her head had left her dazed, conjuring illusions.

Fang Han Xiao didn’t spare her a glance. After stopping them, he strode to the window, where paper and brush lay on the desk. With swift strokes, he wrote two lines, then lifted the still-wet sheet for Lord Fang to read: *Five years away—my fault. Let it go.*

*Let it go?*

*Let it go?!*

This time, Lord Fang couldn’t mask his shock, his astonishment plain in his gaze.

Madam Hong, illiterate, only understood the message after a maid whispered it to her. Her face paled even more noticeably than Lord Fang’s. She tried to cover it with a smile but failed, her lips twitching stiffly. “Xiao’er, how can such a grave matter be dismissed so lightly? And how would we even go about ‘letting it go’? You speak like a child! The Xu family trampled on your dignity—if your aunt doesn’t demand justice for you, how will you, or even your uncle and I, ever show our faces outside again?”

Fang Han Xiao lowered his gaze and wrote again.

He raised a fresh sheet: *If this spreads, I’ll be just as humiliated.*

His reasoning was clear: if word got out that his bride had been swapped for a concubine’s daughter at the last moment, while the Xu family’s reputation would be ruined, he—already fallen from grace—would become the butt of endless ridicule for being so blatantly scorned by his in-laws.

Back in the day before the incident, Fang Hanxiao had been among the most outstanding young nobles in the capital. Old Master Fang favored him, granting him the Heir Apparent Position, while also providing rigorous guidance. His martial and literary skills surpassed those of his peers from noble families, making him the kind of prodigy elders would cite while scolding their own children: “Look at the heir of Pingjiang Marquis!”

But now, his healthy body was gone, his bright future vanished, and even his marriage had encountered such a major mishap.

It was only natural that he would rather swallow his pride than become the subject of gossip again.

Madam Hong, realizing the crux of the matter, sighed in relief and said with a smile, “Why bother with those who kick a man when he’s down? Everyone gets talked about—it’s like the howling north wind in winter; it passes after a while. But if you suppress your anger, the grievance in your heart won’t fade. Listen to your aunt—make a scene, vent your anger, and you won’t regret it later. Only then will you be free of lingering resentment.”

Her words sounded perfectly reasonable, and Fang Hanxiao seemed moved. He stood by the table, thought for a moment, then nodded.

Lord Fang and Madam Hong watched him intently, their expressions relaxing when they saw his reaction.

Fang Hanxiao lowered his head to write something else. Madam Hong couldn’t wait and urged, “Hanxiao, you can say more later—”

Fang Hanxiao lifted the paper and unfolded it.

A maid carefully read aloud: “Thank you for your kindness, Aunt. But since things have come to this, to avoid disturbing Grandfather, let’s leave the mistake—as it is?”

…

Lord Fang and Madam Hong’s expressions froze.

Only Mama Cai was nearly moved to tears: What a reasonable and accommodating young—no, third son-in-law! If they had known earlier, they could have just spoken openly with him directly. Why take such a risky gamble with the bride swap?

Author’s Note:

Did you see it, dear readers? Madam Xu’s assumption was wrong. Now, it’s Lord Fang and Madam Hong who want to escalate things—the bigger the commotion, the better. Meanwhile, Fang Hanxiao, who should be the one making a fuss, wants to suppress it. He refuses to stir trouble—he accepts it.

That’s the answer to the bride swap mystery. Its success wasn’t due to Madam Xu’s cunning scheme, but because the male lead chose to accept it.