Chapter 2: You Are the Wife-Master

Meng Jun’s heart skipped a beat as he turned to look at Li Ruantang, who was sitting obediently on the edge of the kang bed.

Her face had gained some color, and her dark almond eyes were shining brightly. “Don’t worry, young master. I’m not from an disreputable family.”

“I asked about this because I was afraid I might have done something imprudent while I was unconscious and injured.”

“I…”

As she spoke continuously, small cracks appeared at the corners of her lips. Li Ruantang merely pressed her dry, cracked lips together slightly, and a faint taste of blood filled her mouth.

She sighed, lowering her gaze to look at her disheveled appearance, and the words of proposal rolling in her mouth paused.

With her current appearance, this young gentleman might not be willing. She would need to make a good effort to win him over.

Although it was for a bet, still…

Li Ruantang secretly glanced at the young gentleman holding the cup, feeling a bit more delighted in her heart. She wondered what kind of girl he liked.

But judging by the brocade clothes she wore and the jade pendant at her waist, her family must be wealthy.

After all, in the Great Jin Dynasty, only the powerful and noble could wear jade.

Good family background was one point, but what about the back courtyard?

Li Ruantang frowned slightly, but she really couldn’t remember anything. However, judging by how nervous and shaky she was when she hugged the young gentleman earlier, Li Ruantang estimated that she probably didn’t have any personal servants in her courtyard yet.

That meant a clean household!

She secretly counted on her fingers, racking her brains to calculate the advantages she should mention in a moment.

Meng Jun turned his head, handed over the cup that had been warming in his palm for a while, and said softly, “Drink some of this first.”

There was only a pot of cold tea in the room, but fortunately, the outer room was warm, so drinking it wouldn’t hurt the stomach too much. However, Li Ruantang was injured and very thirsty.

She had just taken a sip when the young gentleman gently tapped her wrist holding the cup with his fingertip. “Drink slowly. This water is cold. It won’t be pleasant if your stomach hurts later.”

His voice was clear and cool, but the concern in his words was genuine.

Li Ruantang’s ears turned slightly red as she heard this. This young gentleman was indeed gentle. She felt increasingly happy in her heart. After moistening her throat and organizing her thoughts, she spoke again very solemnly, “If the young master doesn’t mind, Li’s family background is decent, the back courtyard is clean, and moreover…”

“Wife, wife-master.”

Meng Jun forced a smile and gently interrupted Li Ruantang, who was counting her own merits.

He wasn’t even engaged yet, and these two words that he had heard others say smoothly in the past stumbled on his tongue for the first time.

With outsiders eyeing him covetously, even if he didn’t want to get involved with Li Ruantang, he had no choice but to obediently accept this wife-master at the moment.

Moreover, Meng Jun wasn’t sure if Li Ruantang, who had lost her memory, would still be willing to protect him. Rather than causing unnecessary complications, it was better to directly confirm this title, to prevent those people from truly handing him over to some Madam Fu.

“…You don’t remember me?”

The corners of his eyes were still tinged with red as he turned his gaze, looking aggrieved and pitiful, startling Li Ruantang so much that her shoulders sank. “What did you call me, young master?”

She widened her eyes, staring blankly at the young gentleman who was secretly wiping away tears.

“Wife-master, how could you forget me?” Meng Jun covered his face with his wide sleeve, his voice muffled and filled with sadness. “Are you doing this on purpose?”

“Did you fall for some other young gentleman and regret marrying me?”

The young gentleman cried so convincingly, asking three questions in a row, startling Li Ruantang into believing him even more. “Am I really your wife-master?!”

She had actually taken a husband?

Her foggy consciousness suddenly cleared for a moment because of this sentence. It was like a fire had been lit, burning her face hot. No wonder she was so happy when she saw this young gentleman.

However, she was injured so severely that she had forgotten such an important matter.

Li Ruantang fumbled in her sleeve for a while before finally pulling out a handkerchief. She turned it over and looked at it, and only when she saw it was clean did she dare to hand it to the young gentleman who was still upset. “Don’t cry. I really don’t have any other young gentlemen.”

“I swear, it’s only you.”

“Hmph!” Meng Jun secretly wiped away the tears he had forced out, then turned to stare at her and said, “Didn’t wife-master lose her memory? You don’t even remember me, so how do you know you don’t have other lovers!”

He spoke with clear logic, leaving Li Ruantang’s eye twitching. Her voice immediately dropped half an octave, “I, I…”

Meng Jun naturally knew she didn’t remember the past, otherwise, with her personality, how could she be so easily fooled by him?

Indeed, the young gentleman had also thought of a follow-up plan. If Li Ruantang truly lost her memory, then he would pretend to have lost his memory too.

When they returned to the capital, he would regain his memory at an appropriate time. Given their past grudges, it wouldn’t be difficult to completely sever ties.

Thinking of this, the young gentleman lowered his eyes and sighed sadly, “Wife-master doesn’t remember the past, and actually, I can’t remember some things clearly either.”

“For example, besides knowing that you are my wife-master, I don’t remember my own name. I also don’t know why I ended up in this place with wife-master.”

“Does your head hurt? I hope you didn’t injure anything internally.” Li Ruantang was secretly shocked. She looked at his forehead, but aside from his clothes being a bit dirty, she couldn’t see any injuries on the young gentleman.

His handsome face was flushed pink, indescribably cute.

She secretly suppressed her inappropriate thoughts. Since the young gentleman had also lost his memory, there was a possibility that the husband’s identity was mistaken.

But Li Ruantang didn’t dare to ask. She glanced at the person standing in front of her shaking his head, pondered for a moment, and said, “Since you don’t remember your name, let me give you one for now.”

Outside, the flowers were in full bloom, and sunlight seeped through the window cracks, warmly bathing the earthen kang bed.

Li Ruantang’s eyes curved in a smile, as if remembering something, and said happily, “How about calling you Jiujiu?”

“Jiujiu?” Meng Jun was stunned for a moment, then nodded. The name was a bit strange, but it would only be for two or three days anyway, so whatever she wanted to call him was fine.

“Oh—, looks like the noble guest has awakened.”

In the courtyard, the female voice that had earlier scolded away the birds under the eaves rang out loudly. The face peering in from outside the window looked even more jubilant.

“May I ask how to address you, madam?” Li Ruantang gently tugged at the stunned Meng Jun, gesturing for him to stand behind her.

Creak—

The thin wooden door opened from the outside, and the newcomer stood at the threshold, smiling, “Madam is too kind. We’re just a small, humble household, how could we have any grand names? This place is Hu Family Village, and I am the third daughter of the village head, so people here call me Sanniang.”

“May I ask for the noble guests’ esteemed names?” Hu Sanniang’s eyes darted around, fixing on the young gentleman protected behind Li Ruantang.

“This is my husband.” Li Ruantang supported herself as she stood up, holding Meng Jun’s wrist from behind. “Jiujiu, let’s thank Sanniang together for saving our lives.”

Their gestures were familiar, and Hu Sanniang had a good idea of the situation. It seemed that the marriage arrangement with the Fu family was no longer possible.

Li Ruantang was about to bow, but as a commoner herself, how could Hu Sanniang allow it?

“Madam is too kind.” Hu Sanniang hurriedly waved her hands, shrinking her head as she said, “It was just fate that brought me and madam together. That Long Mountain Gully rarely has visitors. If it weren’t for my husband craving some wild game, I wouldn’t have gone there by chance and encountered madam’s family.”

“However, I know my family is poor, and I fear offending such noble guests.” She bowed but didn’t say more.

Li Ruantang pondered briefly, understanding the meaning behind her words, and smiled faintly, “Sanniang has taken good care of us and hasn’t been disrespectful at all. However, my husband and I have accidentally found ourselves here, and I wonder if Sanniang has a way to send a message to the capital?”

Hu Sanniang nodded eagerly, “Yes, we do. Although our Hu Family Village isn’t wealthy, we do have peddlers coming by every three to five days. At that time, madam can write a letter.”

“That puts my mind at ease.” Li Ruantang nodded slightly, then added, “In that case, we’ll have to trouble Sanniang for these three to five days. We’ll settle everything with Sanniang at that time.”

“Of course, of course.”

Hu Sanniang was delighted, nodding and bowing repeatedly. “You two are precious guests. I’ve already had my husband prepare hot water in advance. The noble guests can now bathe and relax.”

She was respectful and considerate, even thoughtfully closing the door before leaving.

Meng Jun looked out the window, and seeing that Hu Sanniang had walked away, he finally lowered his voice, “Wife-master, didn’t you say you couldn’t remember? Then this letter…”

“Don’t worry.” Li Ruantang smiled. There were only three to five families surnamed Li in the capital. At worst, she could send a letter to each of them, and someone would surely come to claim them.

If no one really came…

Li Ruantang looked at the young gentleman beside her. She would take good care of him.

Beyond the thin door, wisps of steam emanated from the room. Li Ruantang stood guard outside. She had just asked Hu Sanniang to get an unused bathtub from the village carpenter and found some new bedding.

After all, they would be staying here for another three to five days, and she naturally wanted to make Jiujiu as comfortable as possible. The more things she added, the deeper the wrinkles of joy at the corners of Hu Sanniang’s eyes became.

Each and every item was shining silver, enough for half a year’s harvest for the Hu family.

Hu Sanniang became increasingly respectful, even having her husband take out a few eggs they had been saving for days to make fried eggs for Li Ruantang to nourish her body.

The sound of water in the room gradually diminished. Creak—

The tightly closed door was pulled open a crack from the inside. “Wife, wife-master.”

The young gentleman’s eyes peeked out slightly, still a bit awkward in his address.

He hid most of his body behind the door, and seeing no one in the courtyard, he opened the door a bit more to invite Li Ruantang in.

The room was originally dilapidated, and now it was damp with steam.

The only window had been pushed half-open.

Water droplets still clung to the young gentleman’s hair, glistening on the dark strands scattered over his shoulders, rolling back and forth reluctantly, preparing to fall to the ground.

“Jiujiu.”

Li Ruantang glanced at him and then turned her face away. She picked up the bowl Zhou Fulang had brought and placed it on the table. After composing herself, she managed to smile at him, “You must be hungry too. There are two more fried eggs here. Eat them to replenish your strength.”

“Replenish my strength?”

Meng Jun was stunned. His gaze fell on the pair of pillows and a set of bedding newly arranged on the kang bed, and he involuntarily took half a step back.

He had only thought about not falling into Hu Sanniang’s hands, but he forgot that Li Ruantang was also a woman. If she really wanted to do something to him…

The young gentleman was both shocked and angry, looking with shame and indignation at Li Ruantang, who was untying her belt. “What, what are you doing?!”

***

“I know she doesn’t love him.” (Female-dominant)

I’ve read this novel twice already. Sis, I’m highly recommending it to you!

The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.

Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.

The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.

I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.

There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.

For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.

I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.

Here’s the story synopsis:

One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.

Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead

Intro 1:

“I know she doesn’t love him.”

With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.

Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.

In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.

Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…

Intro 2:

Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.

He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.

Watched her go public with her boyfriend.

Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.

Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.

The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.

Fan Xia, how can I have you!

【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】

1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy

2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition

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Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.

If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.