The Sickly Beauty Substitute Called It Quits

“Pfft.” Shen Yu couldn’t help laughing out loud. He covered his mouth, not wanting to interrupt such a big show.

Shen Yu drifted over to Shang JunLin and sat down beside him. In a low voice, Shen Yu said, “I’m surprised the King of Yue provoked such eloquent people. Open a dyeing workshop? Hahaha. He must be dying of anger….”

Shen Yu was laughing so hard he almost toppled over. Shang JunLin had no choice but to hold his shoulders to prevent him from falling.

“What girl is that? So talented.”

Shang JunLin wrapped his arms around the young man who fell against him, laughing. “She’s the only daughter of Minister Fang,” he answered.

“Oh, she’s from Minister Fang’s family. Minister Fang really taught his daughter well,” Shen Yu praised.

But the drama on that side wasn’t over, mainly because the girl in pink refused to give up.

The King of Yue was exasperated. All he wanted was to meet Shen QingRan in private. He wasn’t expecting to meet all these other people at the same time.

Recently the court had been in a state of flux, which made it impossible to approach the ministers. If not for that, he wouldn’t have needed to find another way and make advances to the children of officials.

People are always defenseless against their families, and the King of Yue had picked up a lot of useful information this way. After getting a taste of success, the King of Yue made use of his usual tricks and befriended the children of several important people.

Shang JunLin told Shen Yu what the Hidden Dragon Guard had found out.

Shen Yu beckoned to the waiter to get a small dish of melon seeds. While nibbling, he said, “The King of Yue really spared no effort.”

The man didn’t hesitate to go into battle personally to seduce people.

When he heard Shen Yu’s meaning, the corners of Shang JunLin’s mouth rose slightly.

“Ah Lin should eat too.” Shen Yu grabbed a handful of melon seeds and gave them to Shang JunLin.

He continued to eat while enjoying the show.

Fortunately, they were located in a small room upstairs, and there weren’t many other guests there. Most of the people standing around the King of Yue had received letters from him.

None of them had any idea they’d run into such a scene when they came.

“I don’t want to listen to your excuses. I’ll say it here and now. You have to give us an explanation!” the woman in pink said bluntly.

The other women nodded in unison.

They were all pampered young ladies. When had they ever suffered such an indignity? If the King of Yue wouldn’t give them a satisfactory answer, they wouldn’t just let the matter drop.

The King of Yue’s headache was getting worse. When he contacted Minister Fang’s daughter, he liked her sassy personality, but it wasn’t nearly as fun when it was directed at him.

The moment he stepped through the door of the private room and saw the woman in pink, he knew it wouldn’t be good. And he was right. Before he could say a word, the woman bombarded him with questions that left him speechless.

If it was only the woman in pink, he could have found a way to appease her. But as it turned out, there were several other people in the room.

Before he had a chance to say anything, all he could do was retreat one step at a time.

Shen Yu nudged Shang JunLin with his elbow. “What do you think? How will the King of Yue resolve this crisis?”

Shang JunLin shook his head. Then he thought of something, and his hawk-like eyes stared at Shen Yu. “Do you know?”

Shen Yu froze for a moment, then he pulled his attention from the “battlefield” and pursed his lips. “I only have Ah Lin. How is it possible for me to enjoy the ‘blessings’ of the King of Yue?”

Shang JunLin looked away and continued to peel melon seeds.

The King of Yue held back his impatience and tried to appease the woman in pink. “Why don’t we go inside and talk about it? I promise to give you an explanation!”

The woman disdained this kind of two-timing man. “No need. Let’s just stay here. Say it clearly and I’ll go.” 

Several other finely-dressed women nodded along. “The same goes for us.” 

When these ladies first learned the truth, they didn’t know what to think. Fortunately, the young lady of the Fang family showed them the true face of this slag man. There were thousands of men in the world. They all had good family backgrounds, and they didn’t need to waste themselves on a scumbag.

Right now, they only wanted justice.

There was a lot of commotion. One by one, guests from other rooms came out to watch the excitement. Because of the upcoming event, most of the guests in Yingxing House were students who came to the capital from all over the empire to take the exam. The King of Yue had managed to completely ruin his image in the eyes of these scholars.

One of the new arrivals didn’t understand what was going on. “What just happened?” he asked doubtfully.

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“It seems like this man cheated on several young ladies at the same time.”

“Oh, so many?!”

“I think it’s not only ladies. There are also some handsome-looking young gentlemen over there.”

Feeling the strange eyes sweeping towards them from time to time, the two young scholars standing by the King of Yue frowned in embarrassment and quietly backed away.

They don’t want to be splashed by muddy water.

The goodwill they felt for the King of Yue also sank to the bottom.

No amount of talent could cure a bad character.

The two looked at each other and silently removed the King of Yue from their list of acquaintances.

With so many gossipy eyes looking his way, Shen QingRan clenched his fists. He didn’t understand how such a thing happened. He thought that after today he’d be able to soar to great heights, but he’d only jumped from one abyss into another.

The number of people gathered around them increased more and more, and the arguing voices got louder and louder. The King of Yue’s forehead twitched. He was almost unable to maintain the expression on his face.

The cheated women surrounded the King of Yue and didn’t let him go. The woman in pink didn’t care about the outsiders who were watching. All she wanted was justice for herself and the other women this man had cheated.

Shen Yu watched with relish. In order to get a better view, he pulled Shang JunLin over to the door, where they mixed into the crowd.

The sound of Shen Yu crunching melon seeds attracted the attention of people nearby.

Shen Yu noticed their glances and generously held out his hand. “Would you like some?”

A scholar dressed in green actually accepted a small handful of melon seeds from Shen Yu.

Shang JunLin’s gaze fell on the student in green like a shadow.

No matter how much the student wanted to watch the show, it was impossible for him to just stand there enduring those eyes. In a low voice he asked Shen Yu, “I wonder how to address the two young masters?”

“My surname is Yu, and his surname is Lin.” Shen Yu pointed to himself and then Shang JunLin.

“Young Master Yu. Young Master Lin.” The student in green greeted them, then introduced himself. “My surname is Jiang. You can just call me HuaiQing.”

Jiang HuaiQing.

Shen Yu quietly looked at the young man in front of him. He was full of energy and youthful spirit, not yet worn down by the trials and tribulations of life. He didn’t have that world-weary, pessimistic air.

His most powerful subordinate from his previous life was still a vibrant young man, untouched by wind and frost.

Shen Yu hooked the corners of his mouth. Compared to the melancholy subordinate he knew in his previous life, he preferred this Jiang HuaiQing who still had light in his eyes.

“Is HuaiQing staying here too?”

Jiang HuaiQing nodded and thought of something a little embarrassing. “Originally, some of my companions said they wanted to introduce a friend to me today, but I didn’t expect…”

Shen Yu understood. “The person they were going to introduce is the man currently surrounded by young ladies?”

Jiang HuaiQing nodded. “Now it’s impossible for me to befriend him no matter what.”

A heavy gaze fell on his body, and Jiang HuaiQing felt a burst of cold intent. Under a sudden, fierce sense of crisis, his hair began to stand on end.

Jiang HuaiQing suspiciously looked around for the source of this gaze. When he saw it came from the man standing beside Shen Yu, he froze.

Looking at the man’s possessive posture towards Shen Yu, Jiang HuaiQing immediately made a certain guess and silently stood a little farther from Shen Yu.

Sure enough, after he intentionally tried to avoid suspicion, the temperature around his body rose.

Feeling a bit numb, Jiang HuaiQing once again turned his eyes to the crowd. He’d better continue to eat melons.

Shen Yu didn’t notice this small interaction. While paying attention to the King of Yue, he murmured quietly to Shang JunLin.

The King of Yue was in a sorry state. Minister Fang’s daughter was extremely hard to deal with. No matter what he said, she didn’t relent, and she easily saw through his lies. With her as the leader, the other women became even more difficult to handle.

The King of Yue really regretted what he’d done. If he’d known this would happen, he wouldn’t have tried to seduce Minister Fang’s daughter in an attempt to get information about the emperor. Not only did he not get any useful news, he also stirred up a storm.

“This woman is so powerful.” Jiang HuaiQing couldn’t help but sigh. “With just a few words, she forced that man into a rout. I doubt most men could be so clear and logical.”

Shen Yu nodded in agreement. The King of Yue had really kicked an iron plate this time.

Shang JunLin approached slightly, leaned close to Shen Yu’s ear, and lowered his voice. Only the two of them could hear: “This daughter of Minister Fang’s family can really stand toe-to-toe with anyone.”

His warm breath met Shen Yu’s sensitive earlobe. Shen Yu trembled a little, and his ear gradually flushed red.

As scarlet seeped into the pure white jade, the color of Shang JunLin’s eyes grew darker and deeper, and the tip of his teeth began to ache.

He couldn’t resist getting closer.

Shen Yu felt a sting of pain. Before he had time to think, he abruptly raised his hand to cover his ear and turned his head in dissatisfaction. “What are you doing?”

Shang JunLin didn’t feel the slightest trace of guilt. “Doesn’t Ah Yu think I’m right?” 

Shen Yu’s ears were burning, and the feeling of being bitten lingered. He ground his teeth and wanted to bite Shang JunLin back.

Jiang HuaiQing, who happened to see this exchange, rigidly turned away and forgot what he was going to say to Shen Yu.

Under the increasing pressure of the woman in pink, the King of Yue was eventually forced to apologize. At that point, a woman who’d been standing silently in the corner stood up and said in a stern voice:

“This man is His Highness the King of Yue. Why should he apologize to commoners like you? You’re lucky he even looked at you!”

“Oh—”

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A single stone created thousands of waves.

“Is that man really the King of Yue?”

“Didn’t the King of Yue return to his fief like the other vassal kings?”

“She doesn’t look like she’s lying. It’s a serious crime to slander the imperial family.”

“But don’t all the rumors say the King of Yue is gentle and refined and stays aloof from the world?”

“Like you said, it’s just a rumor. You can know a person or recognize their face, but you still don’t know their heart. Who knows what he’s like in private?”

The sound of discussion suddenly rose.

Shen Yu poked Shang JunLin’s arm. “Did you arrange this?”

Shang JunLin frowned. “No.”

He told the Hidden Dragon Guard to deliver the letters, nothing else.

Shen Yu held his chin and thought. How interesting, who else had a big grudge against the King of Yue and wanted to reveal his identity at a time like this?

The King of Yue’s face changed in an instant, and his murderous gaze shot straight at the woman.

He’d intended to put an end to his current identity. Anyway, he was going back to his fief and wouldn’t be able to return to the capital for a while. It wasn’t a big deal to wait until the fuss died down and come back under a new identity later. But if his real name was exposed, all his previous efforts would be in vain!

“The King of Yue? Then he’s not raising fish, he’s choosing concubines,” someone in the crowd said sarcastically. “No wonder his selections are all girls from leading families.”

The woman in pink said with disdain, “Choosing concubines? Does he really think he’s worthy? His Majesty only needs one person in his harem, so why does the mere King of Yue want to catch every noblewoman in his net?” 

TL Notes:

melon seeds – 瓜子 – Like popcorn, a common food for people to eat while watching a show or enjoying drama they’re not personally involved in

eat melon – 吃瓜 – An Internet term which refers to people who gossip about issues online that have no connection to themselves (Baidu), people who are just onlookers enjoying the show. In English we might say they’re eating popcorn. Eating melon seeds is a related activity.

spared no effort – 舍得下本钱 – willing to part with capital / experiences / abilities

two-timing – 劈叉 – do the splits, split legs – AKA cheating

wind and frost – 风霜 – wind and frost — hardships of a journey or of one’s life 

in a sorry state – 焦头烂额 – be scorched by the flames; badly battered; beat sb.’s head off; be bruised and battered; be scorched and burned; in a sorry plight; in a terrible fix; smash heads and scorch brows; utterly exhausted from overwork [anxiety]

stirred up a storm – 惹了一身腥 – caused a fishy mess

can really stand toe-to-toe with anyone – 不让须眉 – (idiom) to compare favorably with men in terms of ability, bravery etc / to be a match for men / lit. not conceding to men (beard and eyebrows)

You can know a person or recognize their face, but you still don’t know their heart – 知人知面不知心 – We may know a man’s exterior but not his heart; It is impossible to judge a man’s heart from his face; One may know a person for a long time without understanding his true nature; You know a man or you recognize him when you see him, but you don’t know his heart

Transliterated names, places, and titles—new in this chapter:

Young Master Yu – 余公子

Young Master Lin – 林公子

Jiang HuaiQing – 江怀清