My husband has imprisoned my younger sister!
Three years ago, my husband went to the battlefield. To save him, I used divination to forcibly alter his destiny, losing my sight in the process. Never had I imagined that three years later, I would be hiding in a secret chamber within his study, lying beneath the very bed where he held my younger sister captive, listening as he poured out his frantic, devoted heart.
"I will not allow you to leave me. You belong by my side, and no one shall ever take you away!"
"Brother-in-law, we cannot do this. We cannot betray my sister... Mmph!"
The chains on my sister’s wrists rattled as she struggled; through the wooden bed frame, the sound rang in my ears like drums from hell, drilling into my brain, striking me until I nearly blacked out. I shoved my fingers into my mouth and bit down until I tasted blood, swallowing my tears along with the metallic tang.
"Brother-in-law, no..."
"Where could you possibly run? Three years ago, you disguised yourself as a man to follow me to the frontier. We shared life and death, we endured hardship together; we are one. Besides being by my side, where else could you want to go?"
"But... my sister..."
"She is a star of misfortune reincarnated, bringing ruin to everyone she touches..."
My husband’s cold, indifferent words were clear, falling upon my ears with a surreal, yet agonizing reality.
"Wouldn't it be a mercy for her to be set free?"
My sightless eyes gave a faint, fragile flutter. Every shred of heartbreak seemed to crest into a towering wave with that single movement, only to collapse gently back onto the surface of the sea, returning to stillness.
"Marquis!"
Just as I had calculated, the Marquis of Pingyang’s right-hand man called out from outside the study: "Master Jiang has arrived! He says the Crown Prince has heard that the Second Miss is unwell and intends to visit her soon. He has come specifically to take the Second Miss back home!"
Indeed, Jiang Huan, the Second Miss of the Jiang family and the lucky star of the Da'an Dynasty, had been betrothed to the Crown Prince by the Emperor. This was what had driven my husband, He Yunxuan, to madness, leading him to imprison her. He was bold enough to kidnap her, but he did not dare let it be known that she was in his possession.
Hearing He Yunxuan leap from the bed and hurry out of the secret chamber, I slowly crawled out from underneath.
"Sister!"
No sooner had I emerged than my sister lunged from behind, wrapping me in a tight embrace. She buried her face in the crook of my neck, sobbing, "Sister, you heard him. Brother-in-law intends to keep me locked up here forever. Please, save me! I’m so scared!"
She held me with a suffocating grip, appearing truly terrified. Feeling her warm breath against my skin, I felt a moment of disorientation. Born under a cursed star, I had been reviled and feared by all my life, with only my sister remaining consistently affectionate toward me.
Hiding my turmoil deep within, I acted as if nothing were amiss and patted her hand. "Don't be afraid. Sister will get you out."
I fumbled for the stone she handed me and struck the chains binding her with all my might. But because I could not see, the stone hit my own fingers instead. The pain was blinding... I gasped, stunned, as I felt my sister take my bleeding finger into her mouth. "It’s okay now, Sister! It doesn't hurt anymore!"
Just as I stood dazed, a sudden gust of wind erupted. I instinctively moved to shield my sister, only to be struck squarely in the chest and sent flying. It was He Yunxuan, who had returned.
I felt numb. Before I could process the pain, he grabbed me by the throat and hoisted me into the air. His roar was thunderous: "Jiang Wuyan! What were you trying to do to Huanhuan?"
My windpipe crushed, I could not utter a sound. I struggled in the throes of suffocation, but I was nothing more than a frail, blind woman; I could not move him in the slightest. Through the haze, I heard my sister’s wailing: "Brother-in-law... no, please! Even if Sister knows, she would never tell anyone! Don't hurt her!"
Just as I believed he would strangle the life out of me, He Yunxuan tossed me aside. I collapsed onto the floor, my keen hearing picking up his frantic efforts to comfort my sister, who seemed to have fainted. Meanwhile, I clutched my throat, coughing uncontrollably as if trying to vomit up my very insides.
I am blind. My world is nothing but darkness. But in this moment, it was as if I were submerged in freezing, pitch-black water, the cold seeping into my marrow, the crushing weight threatening to shatter me.
Beside me, I heard He Yunxuan making promise after promise to Jiang Huan: "Huanhuan, don't be afraid! No one can ever take you away from me!"
"Brother Yunxuan, please don't do this. You are my sister’s husband. We cannot betray her!"
"No one shall divide us! No one!"
In the end, it seemed I was the villain, the obstacle standing in the way of true love.
I fell silent, slowly propping myself up. The kick to my chest had taken its toll; every breath was a jagged blade of pain, and I dared not move too much. He Yunxuan approached and grabbed me, dragging me toward the door. "Come out and speak!"
I stumbled repeatedly, nearly falling, until he dragged me out of the secret chamber and into the study, where he threw me down once more.
I collapsed, listening to my husband’s icy threats: "Jiang Wuyan! I have ignored your disgusting, underhanded behavior all this time only for Huanhuan's sake. If you have any gratitude for what she has done for you over the years, keep your mouth shut and be a proper Marchioness of Pingyang. Otherwise, I would not mind casting you out of this estate!"
I lifted my head slightly, and somehow, a laugh escaped my lips. "Do you think... I care about being the Marchioness of Pingyang?"
He Yunxuan sneered. "Jiang Wuyan, you are a married woman, and you are blind. Aside from staying safely in the Marquis Manor as my wife, where else could you go? These past three years, Huanhuan and I have faced death together, sharing joy and sorrow. We have barely managed to survive and return; no one can stop us from being together!"
Oh? True love, is it?
I hadn't wanted to marry him in the beginning. It was he who insisted, declaring that the talk of me being a cursed star was nonsense. He said that no matter what happened, he would never let go of my hand, that he would be the crutch I leaned on for the rest of my life.
Yet now, he claimed he was deeply in love with my sister, and that I, a blind woman, was nothing more than a tool in his hands.
I felt him crouch down before me. He seemed calmer now, his tone softening. "Ah-Yan, stop being so unreasonable."
"The moment you entered the He Estate, your father fell ill and died. I wasn't even able to mourn him before I was forced to the front lines in his stead!"
"I know the 'cursed star' label is not your fault, and I know I shouldn't blame you entirely, but all these years, the pressure has been on me. Everyone has been pushing me... Wuyan, I am so tired!"
"It is Huanhuan. She is like a little lucky star. While you brought me only suffering and torment, she brought me hope."
Hope, was it?
I lowered my eyes, extinguishing the final glimmer of light within them.
"Ah-Yan, just help me this once."
"Consider it... repaying what you owe us."
Repaying?
What did I owe them? I had given them my eyes, my light, my everything—and yet, I owed them?
No. I owed them nothing.
I sat rigid as if dead, my heart hardening from cold to numbness, building walls that would never come down. With my eyes cast down, appearing sorrowful but feeling only indifference, I pulled my hand away.
"How," I said, my voice as light as air, "do you want me to help you?"
After a moment of silence, He Yunxuan replied: "Your father has come looking for you... Until I find a way to make the Crown Prince call off the marriage, Ah-Yan, you must return home and take Huanhuan’s place. Do not let anyone discover the truth."
"And if you cannot find a way? Am I to be sent away in her stead to be married off? He Yunxuan, to covet your wife's sister and then send your own wife to another man's bed... you truly are lower than a beast."