MTL - Tomb Raider: Bandit Chief - Chapter 23

Pei Jiu picked up a girl by the riverside. He settled her on the mountain, and planned to send her back once she recovered. This delicate girl was a useless crybaby, so Pei Jiu had to be a nice person. He cooked her food and washed her clothes. He let the troublesome girl ride on his shoulders so she could pick fruits. During winter, he would warm up the bed for her. One day, she hugged Pei Jiu’s arm with a smile. “Big Brother Pei, you’re really an honest and a good man. I will marry you and give birth to your babies!”

Pei Jiu eyed her critically and scathingly enumerated her shortcomings. She was ignorant and spoiled. She only knew how to pester and flirt with people all day long. Give birth to babies? Go ahead, give birth to caterpillars.

The delicate girl bawled so hard that she passed out. The next day, Pei Jiu returned to his mansion and told his servants to prepare for his wedding ceremony. When he returned to the mountain in the evening, Pei Jiu opened the door as usual, but he found that the cheeky girl had disappeared. He searched the whole mountain for her to no avail. No one would act like a spoiled brat in front of him anymore. What a headache.

Note : 娇 (jiāo) : tender/delicate/pampered/spoiled

- Description from Novelupdates

The six prefectures of Zhongbo were offered to foreign enemies on a silver platter, and Shen Zechuan was taken into custody in the capital, reduced to a drowning dog—loathed and condemned by all.Xiao Chiye followed the scent of the furor and made his way over. But instead of setting others on him, he kicked Shen Zechuan with his very own leg, rendering the latter an invalid. Who would expect this invalid to turn around and bite him in a counterattack until he was all drenched in blood?That was the start of an epic feud between both men who tore at each other every time they come face-to-face with one another.“Fate wants to bind me here for life, but this is not the path I choose. The yellow dust submerged my brothers deep under. I have no wish to bow in submission to an illusory fate. The imperial edict can’t save my troops, and the imperial court can’t fill the stomachs of my mounts. I’m no longer willing to lay down my life for this purpose. I want to surmount that mountain. I am going to fight for myself.”Note: A ‘drowning dog’ is someone who is down and out, having lost favor or power.

The Bulwark Duke’s residence had fallen. On the day of the duke’s son’s wedding, all men in the family were imprisoned. In just three days, the patriarch and duke died. What was originally a joyful occasion became a depressing funeral.Shen Yijia had transmigrated as the unfortunate bride. By the time her husband was sent back home to her, he was crippled and heavily injured. Everyone said that this fallen family would never recover. Shen Yijia possessed a spirit liquid that helped her bring her husband back from the brink of death. When Song Jingchen woke up, he advised her to marry someone else instead. Shen Yijia stared at his handsome face and shook her head. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep you.”On the way back to their hometown, they encountered bandits and even suicide warriors who tried to assassinate them at all costs. Shen Yijia patted her chest and vowed to her beautiful husband, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.” However, nosy people kept nagging at her, saying that a wife should be knowledgeable, reasonable, and virtuous. Was she supposed to help her husband pick out a concubine too? Shen Yijia was annoyed. As a modern woman, she couldn’t possibly get her husband a concubine! Her husband belonged to her alone!For the sake of earning money, she hunted in the mountains, battled scum, and took in disciples. Eventually, Shen Yijia’s life became smooth sailing.Many years later, they returned to the capital. Everyone assumed that Song Jingchen disliked having such a violent wife, and would soon divorce her to remarry. The young noblewomen rubbed their hands together in glee, waiting for Shen Yijia to leave so they could take her place. But as they waited and waited, they saw the Song Jingchen gently hold Shen Yijia’s hands right after the latter had beaten someone up. Song Jingchen asked worriedly, “Does it hurt?” [1v1 sweet love. A doting yet violent female lead vs a jealous two-faced male lead]

Rudel Arses, the first born of one of the ‘Three Lords’ of the Courtois Kingdom, is from a corrupted family, but at 5 years old, he saw a dragon in the sky and his dark future as a villain changed. He was considered an idiot, but was that true? How would his effort to become a dragoon change the kingdom?