Chapter 1: The Spherical Lightning in the Bridal Chamber

  In the first year of the Northern Song Dynasty's Zhongping era, in May, the Guangyang Duke's mansion in Kaifeng was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers. The sound of firecrackers filled the air, and the two stone lions guarding the gate were surrounded by horse-drawn carriages. Countless servants stood beside the carriages, waiting for their masters to attend a banquet. These servants also had joyful expressions on their faces, as they had received a considerable amount of reward money that day.

  Today is the day of Guangyang Duke's grand wedding, and those who can enter the duke's mansion to offer congratulations are all famous dignitaries in Kaifeng City. Even officials below the fourth rank do not have the qualifications to enter the mansion for the banquet. Therefore, being able to enter the duke's mansion today is a symbol of status in itself. Not only are those attending the banquet full of glory, but also the family servants waiting outside are all puffed out their chests, and the glances they cast at the common people gathered outside to catch a glimpse of the excitement all contain a few hints of disdain.

  The Prince of Guangyang, Zhao Yan, is the third son of the current emperor and is only fifteen years old this year. He is a notorious young master in Kaifeng City, who often fights and gambles with his friends, doing all sorts of bad things. Whether among the nobility or common people, the Prince of Guangyang is synonymous with being a rogue.

  Although Zhao Yan's reputation was not good, he was after all the son of Emperor Song, so when he got married, all the dignitaries in Kaifeng City had to come to congratulate him. The current emperor of the Song Dynasty is named Zhao Xiu, who is the fifth emperor of the Song Dynasty and also known as Emperor Yingzong of Song in history. There are not many records of Emperor Yingzong of Song in historical books because he was only an emperor for four years, and this year happens to be the first year of his accession to the throne. His eldest son is Zhao Xu, who supported Wang Anshi's reform in history, also known as Emperor Shenzong of Song. The Zhao Yan who got married today is also the younger brother of Zhao Xu by the same mother.

  In the grand hall and side halls of the Duke's mansion, a luxurious wedding banquet was in full swing. The famous nobles and officials from Kaifeng City had all brought their families to attend, and they were all drinking merrily. Normally, attending someone else's wedding should be a joyful occasion, but if one looked closely, it would become apparent that many of the young noble sons who had come to the banquet did not have any joy on their faces. They were either filled with sorrow, jealousy, or despair as they drank the celebratory wine, and the beautiful wines bestowed by the imperial court had all turned into bitter drinks that were hard to swallow.

  In comparison, the women who were attending the banquet in the side hall were mostly beaming with joy. The noblewomen who had sons of marriageable age were all excitedly discussing when to arrange their sons' marriages. Those whose sons had refused to get married two years ago should now give up hope and could soon welcome grandsons. The young misses from official families were also gathered together, blushing as they covered their faces with their hands while softly discussing which young master was the most talented and what kind of husband he would make in the future.

  The reason for the vastly different scenes at the banquet was all because of the newly appointed Princess Consort of Guangyang, Cao Ying. This princess was originally the daughter of the first general's family in the Song Dynasty, not only beautiful but also talented and knowledgeable among the ladies of the military families. It is said that she also understood medicine, and with the Cao family being the first general's family in the Song Dynasty, Empress Dowager Cao was from the Cao family, making Cao Ying the daughter of Empress Dowager Cao's nephew, her birth could be described as extremely noble.

  A woman like Cao Ying is naturally a sought-after marriage partner for many families, and there were also many young men from noble families in Kaifeng who proposed to the Cao family, but they were all rejected without exception. It is said that this Miss Cao has high standards and simply looks down on those who propose to her.

  Just when many noble young men were secretly pining for the proud and arrogant Miss Cao, no one could have imagined that the infamous Prince of Guangyang would successfully ask for her hand in marriage from Empress Cao. As a result, Empress Cao arranged for her niece to marry Zhao Yan, causing the Cao family to be connected to the imperial family once again.

  One was a talented and beautiful noblewoman, the other was the son of the current emperor. Although Zhao Yan's reputation was slightly worse, in the eyes of outsiders, they were still considered to be a good match. However, Cao Ying in the bridal chamber obviously did not think so.

  The red candlelight danced, the light gauze curtain was warm, and Cao Ying, the newly appointed princess of the county king, had already been lifted by the good mother to open her veil. She sat alone on the red lacquer bed, wearing a flower-patterned large-sleeved dress. Originally, there were two accompanying maids beside her, but they had been driven out by her earlier. Cao Ying's face did not have any joyful color, her left hand grasped a delicate short sword, and her right hand grasped the hilt, constantly drawing it out and putting it back in. The smooth surface of the sword emitted a cold light, flashing uncertainly under the candlelight in the bridal chamber.

  Cao Ying was born into a military family, known as the "military gate", which refers to families that have produced generals for generations in the Song Dynasty. Some of these families had been generals since the founding of the dynasty, such as Cao Bin, Cao Ying's ancestor, who was a famous general during the early years of the Song Dynasty. Later, when Emperor Taizu of Song relinquished military power over wine, Cao Bin and others wisely handed over their military power. As a reward, the Zhao royal family granted them wealth and nobility for generations to come.

  Many of the descendants of these generals also became excellent generals due to their family background, with the most outstanding being the Cao and Gao families. In addition to being a military family, they have been married to the imperial family of the Song Dynasty for generations. For example, Empress Dowager Cao and Empress Gao are from these two families, and Empress Dowager Cao is also the aunt of Empress Gao, which shows how prominent their family background is.

  Cao Ying's grandfather was Cao Taihou's own brother, so she should call Cao Taihou "great aunt", but Cao Ying didn't have a good impression of this great aunt because it was her who arranged for her to marry Zhao Yan, the Prince of Guangyang Commandery, despite Cao Ying's strong objections.

  Cao Ying is now filled with indignation and resentment. Her appearance and talent have always been among the best among her sisters in the clan, and she has also been doted on by the elders of the family since childhood. The other sisters in the clan all wanted to marry a famous scholar from the Donghua Gate, thinking that those people were the talents of the Great Song Dynasty. However, Cao Ying had always believed that only great generals like her ancestors Cao Bin and Cao Wei were truly great heroes and mighty warriors. Although the status of military officers in the Great Song Dynasty was not as high as that of civil officials, Cao Ying still dreamed of marrying a young general one day, preferably one who was both handsome and brave like Di Qing. Unfortunately, she was born decades too late, and Di Qing had passed away many years ago.

  Compared to her dream husband, the Prince of Guangyang she is about to marry is another extreme. Although Cao Ying has never met Zhao Yan, she has heard of his notorious reputation. It is said that he is greedy and evil, and a few years ago, he was expelled from the palace for molesting a palace maid. After being kicked out of the palace, Zhao Yan became more and more reckless, spending every day with a group of friends in taverns and brothels. Almost every few days, there would be news of him fighting with others over women. As for bullying good people and beating civilians, these are just routine for Zhao Yan. It can be said that his notorious reputation is known to everyone in the Eastern Capital. Coincidentally, Cao Ying's useless cousin often hangs out with Zhao Yan, so she knows more about his character than ordinary people do.

  Thinking of spending the second half of her life with someone like Zhao Yan, Cao Ying felt unbearably painful. Her personality was strong and she would rather die than let Zhao Yan touch even a single finger of hers. Even this morning when she put on her wedding dress, she hid her beloved short sword in her clothes, planning to kill herself in the bridal chamber to preserve her chastity.

  At the time of Cao Ying's marriage, she saw her mother crying and apologizing to her, saying that she was sorry for her daughter. Although her mother knew Zhao Yan's character, she still had to marry off her daughter due to family needs, and her mother was powerless to change it. Her usually strong father also looked ashamed, turning his face away and unable to bear looking at Cao Ying, with many white hairs added to his temples. The elder brother who carried her downstairs also sighed, only the younger siblings and nieces and nephews who didn't understand what was going on laughed and made noise without a care.

  Thinking of her family, Cao Ying's heart softened. She didn't mind dying herself, but it would definitely implicate her parents and siblings. After all, Zhao Yan was a prince, and if she were to commit suicide on the day of their grand wedding, it would be an obvious insult to the imperial family. Once the news got out, in order to save face for the imperial family, the Cao family would definitely be punished. Perhaps the entire Cao clan wouldn't be affected, but for Cao Ying's father's branch of the family, it would be a huge blow. It was even possible that the Cao clan would expel her father's branch from the family in order to protect their own reputation.

  Thinking that if she were to commit suicide, it would bring serious consequences to her family, Cao Ying couldn't help but sigh and get up to walk to the window. She pushed open the window and looked out at the gloomy sky outside. Although it was nighttime, there were occasional flashes of lightning in the clouds, and faint thunder could be heard, making it seem like rain was on its way.

  "Oh, Heaven! If you truly have a spirit, then directly strike down lightning and kill that evil person Zhao Yan. In the future, I will definitely eat vegetarian food and recite Buddhist scriptures to repay your kindness!" Cao Ying looked up at the dark sky and suddenly spoke out in a low voice with some wild and fanciful thoughts, but what made her disappointed was that the thunder and lightning in the sky did not change at all, still slowly rolling in the clouds, and it was even more impossible for them to strike Zhao Yan who was drinking in the front hall.

  At this point, Cao Ying sighed again. She also knew that she was just fantasizing. Previously, she had formally married Zhao Yan and met with the official Zhao Shu and Empress Gao, which marked that they were already officially husband and wife. Even if a god descended from heaven, it would probably be impossible to change this fact.

  Cao Ying looked down at the treasured sword tightly held in her hand, a birthday gift from her grandfather. The sword was not only beautiful but also extremely sharp, always her most cherished possession. However, as sharp as the sword was, it could not cut off the bonds of family affection in this world. At least Cao Ying now found it hard to sever her attachment to her loved ones.

  "Since it's no longer useful, what's the point of keeping you?" Cao Ying said, suddenly waving her hand and throwing her beloved sword out the window with great force. The result was a quick splash, as outside not far away was a pond, and the sword had fallen into the water, probably never to be found again.

  As the hour of Hai was approaching, the wedding banquet in the front hall was almost over. Cao Ying sat back on her bed with a wooden face, and since fate was like this, she could only choose to obey.

  "Bang!" With a loud noise, the door of the bridal chamber was suddenly pushed open, and a strong smell of wine also rushed in, which made Cao Ying's eyebrows slightly frown. Then a staggering figure rushed into the room, and the maid outside quietly closed the door of the bridal chamber. Without asking, this heavily drunken person must be Zhao Yan, the infamous Prince of Guangyang.

  Although Cao Ying was already disheartened, she couldn't help but feel a little curious about her future husband. She turned her head to take a look at him, only to be extremely disappointed. With the help of the red candles in the bridal chamber, Cao Ying could see Zhao Yan's appearance very clearly. He didn't look bad, and was even somewhat handsome, but his face had an abnormal pale complexion, with dark eye circles and sunken cheeks, making him look listless and lacking energy.

  Cao Ying's grandfather was well-versed in medicine and had a great reputation in the Song Dynasty. She had also learned a lot of medical skills from her grandfather since she was young, which made her stand out more in the aristocratic circle. As for Zhao Yan's situation, Cao Ying could see at a glance that he was suffering from excessive drinking and lust, although he was young and could recover with rest, but it would still take a long time and great willpower, and Cao Ying obviously didn't think that someone like Zhao Yan had such great willpower.

  Only then did Zhao Yan, with a drunken gaze, enter the bridal chamber and look up at the breathtakingly beautiful bride. He chuckled to himself and said: "Indeed, she is worthy of being called the number one beauty of the Zhao family. I, Zhao Yan, am truly lucky to have married such a lovely little wife!"

  As Zhao Yan boasted about his own appearance, Cao Ying didn't react at all. Zhao Yan was also drunk and didn't notice the wooden expression on Cao Ying's face. He stumbled to the table, poured himself a cup of wine, took out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket, opened it with a sly smile towards Cao Ying, and emptied the powder into the wine before drinking it in one gulp.

  The table was not far from Cao Ying, and when Zhao Yan opened the porcelain bottle, she smelled a medicinal smell. As a result, Cao Ying, who was familiar with medicine and pharmacology, immediately identified what kind of medicine it was. Moreover, her sharp eyes even saw that there were three words "dispersing" written on the porcelain bottle. Even if she didn't understand pharmacology, just based on this name, she could guess that Zhao Yan took aphrodisiacs.

  "You……" This discovery almost made Cao Ying faint, her hands grasped the hem of her clothes, and her phoenix eyes were also filled with humiliation and anger. The groom used aphrodisiacs on the first night of their wedding, if this got out, not only would Zhao Yan lose face, but Cao Ying would be even more humiliated, she already regretted throwing away her dagger earlier, such a great shame, even if it meant destroying her family and herself, she didn't want to endure it for another moment.

  "Haha, on the night of the wedding, how can we not have something to liven things up? Don't be impatient, little girl, later I'll let you know what it means to experience ultimate pleasure in human life." Drunken Zhao Yan didn't notice Cao Ying's anger at all, and even flirted with her a bit more, thinking that she was already his woman, so speaking some lewd words wasn't anything.

  As she watched Zhao Yan step by step closer to herself, Cao Ying felt that she was about to go crazy. From childhood to adulthood, this was the first time she had ever hated someone so much. She even felt that being in the same room as Zhao Yan was the greatest insult to herself, let alone having to spend a night with him.

  Thinking of this, Cao Ying's fiery personality suddenly reached out and grabbed the hairpin on her head. Originally for the sake of her family, she had already made preparations to yield, but Zhao Yan's current behavior had exceeded her bottom line, so no matter what, she would not let such a person touch her, even if she was now nominally Zhao Yan's wife!

  Zhao Yan, with his drunken eyes blurred, didn't notice Cao Ying's abnormality at all. His mind was filled with indecent images and couldn't accommodate anything else, so he still approached Cao Ying with a lustful smile on his face.

  Just as Cao Ying was about to pull out the hairpin on her head, and would rather die than suffer this humiliation, a sudden cry of surprise came from outside the bridal chamber, accompanied by the shrill screams of the maidservants, sounding extremely panicked, as if something terrifying had burst into the Duke's mansion.

  Hearing the commotion outside, Cao Ying stopped her actions and Zhao Yan also stopped in her tracks. Both of their faces were filled with confusion. After all, this was the inner courtyard of the Duke's mansion, and today was a grand day for Zhao Yan. The surroundings of the Duke's mansion were heavily guarded by soldiers, so how could anything unexpected happen?

  Just as Cao Ying and Zhao Yan were stunned, a white light flashed outside the window that Cao Ying had opened, and then a person-sized white light ball floated in. After this light ball came in, it seemed to pause for a moment, and then flew straight towards Zhao Yan. As a result, Cao Ying only heard Zhao Yan's mournful cry, and then the whole bridal chamber was filled with a great white light, causing her to instinctively close her eyes.

  A moment later, when Cao Ying opened her eyes again, she found that there was no big change in the whole room. The tables and chairs were still very neat, and the red candles were still bright. However, Zhao Yan was lying straight on the bed, with no obvious wounds on his face, but his face was all black and gray, and his clothes were burned with holes everywhere. Some places seemed to have emitted a few strands of green smoke. What made Cao Ying even more surprised was that there seemed to be some strange things beside Zhao Yan.

  "What...what's going on?" Cao Ying stared blankly at Zhao Yan on the ground, her face full of incredulity.

  However, Cao Ying quickly came to her senses from the shock. No matter what happened, Zhao Yan's current situation was very bad. If she really died in the bridal chamber, then she would also be implicated, and even her family would be involved.

  Cao Ying hastily got up and walked over to check if the other person was dead or alive. However, just as she reached Zhao Yan's side, she saw that Zhao Yan, who had a face full of black soot, suddenly opened his eyes and stared at her blankly. This startled Cao Ying, but at the same time, she felt a sense of relief in her heart because at least Zhao Yan was still alive.

  However, what Cao Ying did not expect was that when Zhao Yan opened her eyes and saw her, she suddenly showed a very sad and indignant expression, propped herself up and shouted loudly at her: "Fairy sister, I just stole a piece of pumpkin and two corn stalks from my fellow villager, do you have to strike me with lightning?"