《I Became The Stepmother of My Ex-husband》


 Chapter 1

    That night, under the cold wind and winter light, the person in the low lying room was groggy. Lin Wei Xiid on the bed, her fine eyebrows furrowed, and anyone could tell that she hadn¡¯t slept peacefully.


    The sound of cooking could be heard graduallying from the vige. The farmers couldn¡¯t afford to idle and so, even on such a cold day, there were still many who woke up to burn wood and cook food. There was also the sound of movementing from the brightest room in the main courtyard. It seemed like Aunt Lin had awoken. Lin Wei Xi thought of something vaguely, but her limbs were quite weak and she was stuck in a dream, unable to break free.


    In the dreamlike vermilion courtyard stood a maid with her hair up double buns, her clothes made of smooth and vibrant lu silk. It seemed like she didn¡¯t dare face the person in front of her, her voice thin and soft like a mosquito, ¡°Shizi Fei<sup>¡ó</sup>, someone sent word from the front yard just now saying that Shizi<sup>¡ó</sup>is busy today and he won¡¯t being. If Lady feels ufortable, then I will call the imperial physician to have a look at you again.¡±


    Shizi Fei¡ó


    Shizi¡ó


    The woman opposite her froze for a long time. Only after what seemed like half a day did she faintly respond with a stunned voice, ¡°Busy? I have no idea what could possibly be more important than I, his dying wife.¡±


    ¡°Lady¡­¡±


    ¡°Stop talking, I don¡¯t want to listen.¡± The woman coughed twice, trying very hard to suppress it and refusing to show weakness in front of others. The maids who stood outside also knew this master¡¯s rules, so they held their breath and lowered their heads, not looking at the other person¡¯s sickly appearance. After a while, the cough finally eased a little. The woman didn¡¯t care enough to moisten her throat with tea, and instead insisted on asking, ¡°Who came to deliver the message?¡±


    The maid couldn¡¯t bear to say it, ¡°Shizi Fei¡­¡±


    ¡°Say it! ¡°


    The maid sighed and replied, ¡°It¡¯s Miss Yun Hui.¡±


    ¡°Yun Hui¡­¡± The womanughed lightly, unsure whether it was sarcasm or self-deprecation, ¡°So it actually was her. I can¡¯tpete, I truly can¡¯tpete with her. She waited on Shizi for many years and was bestowed by Princess Shen<sup>¡ó</sup>herself. How can I, as an outsider, match this kind of long standing mutual affection?¡±


    ¡ó


    She was obviously the Shizi Fei but called herself an outsider. If other people heard this, they would definitely be nothing but a joke. But the maid knew that Shizi Fei only spoke the truth regarding the Prince Yan Residence.


    Shizi and Shizi Fei had barely been married for a year, but their rtionship was even worse than that of strangers. Shizi Fei had be so severely ill that servants like them concealed the fact that they¡¯d called on the front yard three or four times, but the results became more chilling with every visit. The maid knew that although Shizi Fei was tough with her words, forbidding them from inviting Shizi over, but she closed one eye to their small actions. It was obvious that she also wanted to see him. But Shizi never came, not even once.


    Still, Lin Wei Xiid on the simple wooden bed with her eyes closed, but tears continued to trickle from the corners of her eyes, wetting the pillow. Lin Wei Xi knew that she had been caught in a nightmare, because even in the dream, the memories of the past wouldn¡¯t let her go. Again, it brought her back to the Prince Yan Residence; brought her back to that failure of a marriage.


    Actually, she wasn¡¯t originally called Lin Wei Xi, neither was she this small vige girl. Her previous family was very prestigious, and she was originally named Gao Xi, the eldest di<sup>¡ó</sup>granddaughter of Duke Ying. Her biological father was the only di son of the duke, while her birth mother was the only daughter of Princess Royal Shou Kang<sup>¡ó</sup>. Being born into this kind of family, her background was quite good.


    di¡ó


    Princess Royal Shou Kang¡ó


    Because of her prominent status, Gao Xi was very strong willed since young, and even had an honourable marriage afterwards. She relied on the status of her maternal grandmother, and actually married Gu Cheng Yao, the only son of Prince Yan<sup>¡ó</sup>. After the marriage was announced, the whole capital was shocked that Princess Royal Shou Kang had actually been able to get Gao Xi married to the only son of Prince Yan, and the Grand Princess¡¯s reputation skyrocketed.


    ¡ó


    Speaking of Prince Yan, everyone under the heavens, regardless of whether they were men, women, young or old, even a suckling infant had heard of his prestigious name. The final years of the previous Jianzhao Emperor were very turbulent. Bu Guifei<sup>¡ó</sup>had dominated the imperial court with the help of a powerful eunuch. If Prince Yan hadn¡¯t entered the capital with his troops in time, restoring order and killing the eunuch, the future would¡¯ve changed drastically. Prince Yan did everything in his power to protect the emperor and subdue the uprising. After the death of the previous emperor, he supported the new emperor, who was only eight years old, in seeding the throne. The Great Zhou Dynasty¡¯s vassal states took advantage of the youth of the new emperor, and the following year, many ces at the border grew restless. Prince Yan took the initiative in battle and left the capital with his troops to quell the chaos. During this time, it was when Gao Xi was ill and bedridden for several days that the front line sent back the news that Prince Yan had achieved victory. Once the good news was received, everyone in the imperial court celebrated. To put it bluntly, the little Emperor was young, the Empress Dowager was cowardly, and even worse, the court officials were a mess. Now, the whole Zhou Dynasty relied solely on Prince Yan to guard it.


    ¡ó


    Prince Yan only had this one son, Gu Cheng Yao. Since she was Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s wife, it was only right for her to feel proud when her father-inw repeatedly made military achievements. It was a pity that the glory of Prince Yan Residence belonged to Prince Yan Residence, and had nothing to do with her.


    Gao Xi sometimes wondered, back when she first married Gu Cheng Yao they were obviously deeply affectionate. So why did he suddenly turn so cold?


    She still remembered during the first night of their marriage when Gu Cheng Yao lifted up her bridal veil, he had deliberately avoided everyone and said to her with a smile, ¡°Look, I still found you.¡±


    Gao Xi was confused, what did that mean? But the newly-weds were thin-skinned, and Gu Cheng Yao took her silence as shyness, smiling faintly before dropping the matter. Was there any girl who didn¡¯t think of love? Gao Xi grew up listening to Prince Yan¡¯s exploits, and now she was married to his only son, who had the aura of a deity. Gao Xi¡¯s heart was instantly shaken, and she became both anxious and happy to be Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s wife. In the following month, the two of them shared a strong affection, were almost inseparable, and Gao Xi happily relished in thefort and luxury. Since she was a child, she grew up seeing her mother suffer from the concubine¡¯s schemes. She never thought that her marriage would be this happy.


    But still, she¡¯d miscalcted the Heaven¡¯s kindness. Fresh flowers withered, a beautiful face would grow old, and too much fortune would never stay for long. In just one month, Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s attitude took a turn for the worse. That day, he looked at her coldly and questioned her, ¡°Why did you lie? Why did you impersonate her?¡±


    What?


    At that time she, who wasn¡¯t very good at the feminine arts, was sewing clothes for Gu Cheng Yao. Because she couldn¡¯tpare to Gao Ran, the more she did it, the more she disliked it. But now, she wanted to make a set of clothes for Gu Cheng Yao with her own two hands, not caring even when her fingers were pricked with needles until they bled. Hearing Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s words, Gao Xi was baffled. What lies? What impersonation?


    Since then, Gao Xi and Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s marital rtionship cooled down, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that it was a disaster. Gao Xi was the di eldest granddaughter of the duke, and even more so, her grandmother, the Grand Princess, pampered her greatly and so she was rather ill-tempered. Since Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t want toe, then good riddance. He shouldn¡¯t expect her to be like those concubines and fight for his favour to keep him with her.


    Subsequently, the husband and wife became more distant over time, turning into each other¡¯s enemy. In the end, Gao Xi fell ill and lingered on the sickbed, unable to get up again, but Gu Cheng Yao still refused to even look at her.


    Gao Xi was an extremely proud person, but this failed marriagepletely destroyed all her pride.


    Gao Xi could not reconcile with this when she died. Where did she go wrong? Why did Gu Cheng Yao not like her? Even if he didn¡¯t favour her, how could he not even respect her dignity as his wife in her final moments?


    Maybe because her remaining grievances were unaddressed, her soul was not taken away into the underworld, and she floated for a while in a muddled state, and actually returned to the world again.


    This time, Gao Xi finally knew why Gu Cheng Yao had asked her those two questions, and why she suddenly fell out of favour.


    Gao Xi found a book amidst the vast expanse of whiteness. She was puzzled and tentatively flipped through it. What she read shocked her to her core and left her trembling.


    The book depicted Gao Xi¡¯s life, but unfortunately, she was not the protagonist. Instead, the protagonist was her younger shu<sup>¡ó</sup>sister, Gao Ran, who had been a thorn in her side since childhood.


    ¡ó


    The book described Gao Ran as a transmigrator. Gao Xi didn¡¯t know what a transmigrator was, but this was nothing more than an insignificant passing remark in the book. What Gao Xi really cared about was the story that followed.


    ording to the book description, Gao Ran transmigrated into one of the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s unfavoured shu daughters when she was six years old. She had just caught a serious illness and almost died. Perhaps the host was already dead, so Gao Ran was able to take her ce.


    After Gao Ran reincarnated into the body, she had the appearance of a 6 year old girl, but her mind was that of a 26-year-old adult. With the help of her modern knowledge and adult experience, she pretended to be stupid, ying dumb while hiding her strength. Not only did she help her biological mother Han Shi<sup>¡ó</sup>be the Duke Ying Shizi¡¯s favourite concubine, she even instructed her younger biological brother, whoter overcame his status as a concubine¡¯s child and established himself as the heir of the Ying dukedom. Furthermore, Gao Ran herself saved a masked man in a Buddhist temple when she was 13 years old. She didn¡¯t want to reveal her identity, but the other person forcefully held her hand and refused to let go. Gao Ran had no choice but to remove a jade pendant from her person. If he had the ability to find her, he would.


    ¡ó


    Gao Xiughed mournfully when she read that,ughing till she cried. It was no wonder her elders always used her of not being as sensible or caring as Gao Ran when she was a child. No matter what she studied, Gao Ran was always the faster learner. In the past, Gao Xi thought that Gao Ran¡¯s smarts were perhaps Heaven¡¯s blessings. Now she understood that Gao Ran was not a child at all, and her age was evenparable to Gao Xi¡¯s mother. She was an old woman living in a child¡¯s body, no wonder she was so capable.


    No wonder Gu Cheng Yao had said to Gao Xi that day in the bridal chamber, ¡°Look, I still found you.¡± No wonder Gu Cheng Yaoter said she lied.


    So that was it, that was it!


    The corners of Gao Xi¡¯s eyes reddened with anger. Her biological mother Wei Shi was the di daughter of Princess Royal Shou Kang. The Grand Princess had only this one child, so one could only imagine her pampered personality. Therefore, Wei shi always carried herself like a nobledy with an indifferent expression, refusing to humble herself to coax her husband, refusing to put on a gentle demeanour. From a young age, Gao Xi watched her mother guard themp alone, waiting from dawn until dusk for the arrival of her husband. But at this time, Gao Xi¡¯s father, the Duke Ying Shizi, spent most of his time in Han shi¡¯s courtyard.


    Gao Xi felt distress for her mother and was angry at that fox of a concubine from the west courtyard. But she was a di daughter. She couldn¡¯t possibly lower herself and make things difficult for a concubine, so she studied desperately, trying to surpass Gao Ran, that girl from the west courtyard. The strange thing was, no matter how much effort Gao Xi spent in private, she could never be as thorough or capable as Gao Ran. Gao Ran could y new and innovative songs, surprising the zither masters. She invented gomoku and checkers, which attracted the youths in the n to scramble to make friends with her. Sometimes, Gao Ran would blurt out an extremely sophisticated verse. But when asked about it, Gao Ran would smile faintly and say that she¡¯d only thought of this one sentence, and forgot the rest.


    No one believed that Gao Ran had really forgotten such profound verses, but felt that she was hiding something. For this reason, everyone in the Residence paid more attention to her. As Gan Xi stood in the shadows of such a little sister, there was no way she didn¡¯t feel the pressure. Fortunately, Gao Xi¡¯s identity left Gao Ran in the dust, and with the influence of Princess Royal Shou Kang, Gao Xi married Gu Cheng Yao of the Prince Yan Residence. Gao Xi once quietly thought to herself that she¡¯d finally won against Gao Ran. No one else in the capital had a higher status than Gu Cheng Yao. Even if Gao Ran married up, her future husband¡¯s family would definitely have a lower status than hers.


    What a funny twist of fate. Gao Ran once rescued a man at a Buddhist temple, and by coincidence, that person was Gu Cheng Yao. At that time, Gao Ran took a jade pendant off her person in order to get away. That jade pendant was one half of a pair of fishes. Someone outside her family had made it and given it to Gao Xi. Gao Xi felt that the carving was quite delicate, and she happened to give one half of it to Gao Ran.


    That was originally Gao Xi¡¯s jade pendant, but because Gao Ran was afraid of getting into trouble, she used Gao Xi¡¯s things to avoid the problem. Gao Xi had given it to her in private, so in case someone came looking for her in the future, Gao Xi would be the one left to handle it.


    Gu Cheng Yao fell in love at first sight with the mysterious woman who had saved him on that moonlit night. Although he didn¡¯t see her face, he was determined to marry her. By mistake, Gu Cheng Yao found Gao Xi with the half jade pendant and ended up marrying her. He was so sure that Gao Xi was his saviour, and they spent the first month after their marriage deeply attached to each other. But in the second month, when Gao Xi returned to her family¡¯s house, Gu Cheng Yao apanied her back and it was at the Duke Ying Residence where met his wife¡¯s sister, Gao Ran.


    In her ignorance, Gan Xi was repaid, lied to and then abandoned.


    The malicious older sister, who had deceived her younger sister and received kindness in her ce, had been exposed. Even though her marriage afterwards was full of misfortune, Gao Xi had a stubborn personality. The more Gu Cheng Yao ignored her, the more she wanted to prove herself for everyone to see. Gao Xi personally managed Prince Yan Residence, drastically rectifying thend and shops that belonged to the Prince Yan Residence, suppressing the people who followed Gu Cheng Yao, and fighting with Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s personal servant girl, Yun Hui, who had served him for ten years. Gao Xi fully believed that as long as she was capable enough, Gu Cheng Yao would see the good in her and change his mind.


    But all she did was upset herself, slowly dying without waiting for Gu Cheng Yao to change his mind.


    If the story had ended here, Gao Xi would only sigh, think that she had bad luck, and that she wasn¡¯t meant to be with Gu Cheng Yao. However, the story so far was only a small section of the book, and the real climax was only just starting. After Gao Xi, who failed as an older sister and wife, died, the Duke Ying Residence also felt that Gao Xi was unqualified. She was simply the antithesis of what a good wife should be. The Duke Ying Residence felt guilty towards Gu Cheng Yao and proposed to let Gao Ran marry him as a substitute. Of course Gu Cheng Yao agreed. And so, not long after Gao Xi died, Gao Ran married Gu Cheng Yao as his second wife.


    After Gao Ran married into the Prince Yan Residence, she always treated Gu Cheng Yao with tenderness. Gu Cheng Yao also greatly treasured someone he thought he¡¯d lost, and so the two of them shared a mutual affection, devoting their love to each other. Gu Cheng Yao was so moved by Gao Ran¡¯s sincerity, that he even dismissed his concubine for her and favoured only her. After many years passed, Gu Cheng Yao took over the mantle of Prince Yan and became the country¡¯s new pir of strength; but despite this he never took in a concubine.


    The entire second half of the book depicted the sweet daily life of Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran, the text reflecting how much Gu Cheng Yao doted on Gan Ran, and how smart and capable Gan Ran was. She was a graceful and caring wife, and was the widely respected Shizi Fei of the Prince Yan Residence. When people in the capital praised Gao Ran, they would always bring up Gao Xi and use her utter failure to contrast Gao Ran¡¯s high EQ. They would finally conclude with, ¡°Sure enough, one can¡¯t marry a wife just based on family background. Character and temperament are still the most important. The eldest miss of the Duke Ying Residence and Prince Yan¡¯s Shizi Fei are the best example of this.¡±


    Look, even Gao Xi, the original wife, was not qualified for the title of Shizi Fei.


    When Gao Xi read this, she didn¡¯t want to continue. She closed the book and let the tears fall down her cheeks.


    Buddha said that there were seven kinds of suffering in the world: birth, old age, sickness, death, resentment, separation from loved ones, and not getting what one wants.


    Gu Cheng Yao was exactly what Gao Xi wanted but couldn¡¯t obtain. Since she was a child, her father and male elders did not find her endearing. After marrying the person she liked, he ignored her, and so she had to put on a tough and careless front, doing everything she could to attract him to return to her. Even when she exhausted herself until she died of depression, not once did her husband turn around to look at her.


    In fact, when Gao Xi died, she knew that Gu Cheng Yao was young and had a prestigious family background. It was inevitable that he would marry again in the future. Considering the influence of Prince Yan, the capital had many noble women who were no worse than her rushing to marry Gu Cheng Yao. But only Gao Ran and Gao Ran alone could not be that person. It was after Gao Xi had hastily swept through the second half of the book did she realize that Gu Cheng Yao could also be troubled by something he wanted but could not have. He could swallow his pride in order to please a woman. He even had no regrets about keeping himself just for one woman, never touching other women.


    When Gao Xi read the book she came across a word: Scumbag. Even if Gao Xi had never heard it before, she could guess it¡¯s meaning. Was Gu Cheng Yao a scumbag? It didn¡¯t seem so. He could be passionately devoted, choosing to stay with only one person out of all his potential lovers. But in the end, this affection wasn¡¯t given to Gao Xi.


    Heartbroken, Gao Xi¡¯s eyes gradually clouded with tears. Before losing consciousness, Gao Xi saw a frail and delicate girl smiling shyly at her, ¡°Benefactor sister, I¡¯m going to find my father. Six years ago, you saved me. But I¡¯m unable to repay your kindness, and can only trouble you to live on in my ce.¡±


    Gao Xi was disoriented and didn¡¯t know how long she had slept. When she woke up, she saw a worn down bed canopy, a dark wooden cab, as well as a pair of slender white hands.


    It seemed to be very noisy outside, with the mour of a crowd of people. Gao Xi faintly heard words like ¡°martyrism¡±, ¡°Prince Yan¡¯s decree,¡± and ¡°confer a title¡± and so on. Gao Xi supported her weak body and walked to the vanity mirror, staring at the face in the mirror for a long time.


    Yes, the eldest di granddaughter of Duke Ying Residence and the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s Shizi Fei Gao Xi was already dead. From today on, she was Lin Wei Xi.

 Chapter 2

    Lin Wei Xi finally woke up from her nightmare, suddenly breaking free from the dream. She opened her eyes to see the worn bed canopy, with her limbs stiff and her heart beating fast.


    She had another dream about her past life. Her failed marriage, the despair and abandonment when she died, and the weird celestial book in her dream. When she woke up in Lin Wei Xi¡¯s body, she felt an overwhelming sense of panic and gratitude.


    Gao Xi had already passed away and there would no longer be a Gao Xi in the world from then on. The eldest di granddaughter of Duke Ying had been buried as Prince Yan Residence¡¯s Shizi Fei and her body had long turned cold. Gao Xi was dead. Her identity and status, resentment and disappointment, had nothing to do with Lin Wei Xi.


    Returning from death was already Heaven¡¯s kindness. She was Lin Wei Xi and she would never be tricked again by those bitches in her previous life. It was only right that she start her life anew.


    Thinking about this, Lin Wei Xi slowly recovered from the horror of the nightmare. She sat up, lightly moved her wrists, then walked quietly on the ground.


    Lin Wei Xi had already been here for a month. This one month was neither too long nor too short, but it was enough for her to get a feel for Lin Wei Xi¡¯s situation. Speaking of the original host, they actually had some ties. Back when she was still Gao Xi, at eleven years old, she hade back from the Princess Royal Residence and met a pair of father and daughter at the gate of the Duke Ying Residence. She had never seen this kind of situation before; the carriage driver was afraid that she would be angry, and hastily chased them away. Gao Xi happened to lift the curtain and saw a beggar standing in front of the gate. He looked furious because he¡¯d been humiliated by the bystanders, but he looked back at his timid daughter and continued to endure his anger. He amicably begged the gatekeeper to give him a chance. He was strong enough to be a guard, he said. Even if they didn¡¯t ask him to do manualbour, he would still work hard.


    The man whispered, and the frail little girl coughed intermittently, her small hands clung tightly on the man¡¯s clothes. Gao Xi suddenly felt very moved. Since she was a child, she was not very close with her father. No matter what she did, Duke Ying Shizi<sup>¡ó</sup>would nonmittally say ¡°Oh¡±, then happily turn around to y with his concubine¡¯s children. The Duke Ying Shiziined that she had been raised into an ungrateful brat, only close to her mother and Princess Royal Shou Kang. But who would¡¯ve thought that the arrogant Miss Gao Xi also craved her father¡¯s love.


    ¡ó


    Gao Xi dropped the curtain and instructed her personal servant with a few words. The servant looked at Gao Xi in surprise, but still obediently jumped out of the carriage to give the father and daughter twenty taels of silver. Gao Xi guessed that the man was trying to raise medical expenses for his daughter. Because of this, he was so anxious that he did not hesitate to beg for money. A man with no money is no man at all, and it wasn¡¯t easy for anyone to live. Twenty taels of silver did not mean much to Gao Xi. If she could help them, then she would just regard it as her childhood longing for fatherly love.


    Gao Xi didn¡¯t know what happened afterwards. She didn¡¯t show up to ask the father and daughter for their name, nor did she tell them who she was. If this was Gao Ran, she would definitely have revealed it by ident, particrly letting others know that she did a virtuous deed, but Gao Xi would not. What she did was her own business; this was her style of doing things. There was no need to use others¡¯ hardships to boost her own reputation.


    She hadpletely forgotten about this chance meeting after it happened. Later on, when Bu Guifei caused chaos and endangered everyone in the capital, she wasn¡¯t in the mood to think about this matter. But who knew that the father and daughter she rescued that year had another stroke of good luck. The man was Lin Yong, and the sick girl was Lin Wei Xi. Lin Yong had used the twenty taels of silver to cure his daughter¡¯s illness, managing to save his daughter¡¯s life. It just so happened that, at that time, Prince Yan entered the capital to rescue the emperor. Lin Yong was born with extraordinary strength, and he became Prince Yan¡¯s subordinate. He then sent his daughter back to his hometown and wholeheartedly followed Prince Yan in order to save a dowry for his daughter.


    Emperor Mu Zong died in the thirteenth year of Jianzhao, and appointed Prince Yan as one of the three Regent Ministers while on his deathbed. Prince Yan could only stay in the capital to assist the deceased emperor¡¯s eldest son seed the throne. One yearter, there was more trouble at the border. Prince Yan left the capital in the second month that year with his troops, travelling there to subdue the uprising.


    It was inevitable that a lot of manpower was needed to suppress the rebellion, support the new emperor and kill enemies at the border. Lin Yong took this opportunity to establish himself under Prince Yan, gradually making some aplishments, which fortunately earned Prince Yan¡¯s recognition. Prince Yan felt that Lin Yong indeed had potential, so he ordered Lin Yong to follow him. This time, the Dugt tribe<sup>¡ó</sup>from the northwestern border took the opportunity to make trouble. The terrain wasplicated and the climate was bitterly cold. Prince Yan put in considerable work before he gradually gained the upper hand.


    ¡ó


    During a small-scale siege, Lin Yong died while saving Prince Yan during an ambush. Lin Yong had an unrelenting personality. Even when there were three arrows buried in his back, he still desperately escorted Prince Yan through. But it was a pity that Lin Yong¡¯s injuries were too severe; he ran out of strength and was unable to push through. The Dugt tribe lost in that instant. Humiliation turned into anger, so they let out all their anger onto Lin Yong, not letting him off even after he¡¯d died. Two to three dayster, Lin Yong¡¯s head was chopped off and hung from the city gate as a demonstration to Prince Yan.


    Prince Yan fought the Dugt tribe for a year and they were almost exterminated. All the men and boys were killed, leaving only the elderly, the women and the children. The following year, Prince Yan supported a new regime, and took over the women and property of the fallen Dugt tribe, consequently forming checks and bnces with the other two tribes in the north. Once the situation in the north-west was cleaned up, Prince Yan took Lin Yong¡¯s remains and returned to the capital with his troops.


    Everyone in the capital rejoiced when they received news of Prince Yan¡¯s victory. Following the instructions of Grand Secretary Zhang, the little emperor acted like a grown-up and wrote a letter to Prince Yan asking him what reward he wanted. Prince Yan already owned an estate that housed tens of thousands of families and he also had authority as Regent Minister. There was nothing he couldn¡¯t have in this world. If one had to say, it was that his Wangfei died ten years ago, so perhaps what hecked was a new wife.


    However, the reward that Prince Yan asked for was beyond everyone¡¯s expectations. He didn¡¯t ask for money or an official position for his only son. Instead, he requested for the emperor to confer a noble title to Lin Yong as a martyr who died for his country. It was nothing more than an honorary title. But it was much easier than giving the Prince Yan Residence a reward, and doing this also boosted the reputation of the imperial court, so Grand Secretary Zhang agreed to Prince Yan¡¯s request without hesitation. After the whole affair, the war hero Lin Yong was conferred the title of Marquis Zhongyong.


    Lin Yong¡¯s wife had died of illness many years ago and left behind only one daughter. The title of Marquis Zhongyong had reached its end and Lin Wei Xi could use nothing more than the reward and reputation that her father had exchanged his life for.


    In the second year of the Yuanjia reign, Prince Yan sent word of Lin Yong¡¯s tragic sacrifice to the Lin household. It wasn¡¯t until the tenth month of the fourth year of the Yuanjia reign, when Lin Wei Xi had almost finished observing three years of filial mourning to her father, that the imperial court conferred Lin Yong as Marquis Zhongyong. The original host had a weak body and her mother died from the difficultbour right after giving birth to her. Over the years, the father and daughter could only rely on each other. The only reason the original host held out until now was to wait for Prince Yan to send Lin Yong¡¯s remains back to their hometown.


    Thinking back to one month ago, the timid little original host had suddenly appeared in her dream with a smile and said that she was leaving to find her father. By then, Lin Yong¡¯s soul had presumably already entered the afterlife.


    From the perspective of the original host, the reputation of being Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s orphan daughter and therge amount ofnd bestowed by the imperial court were not as important as her father¡¯s remains. Hence, the original host waited for her father before leaving without a worry, and gave Gao Xi, who had a good rtionship with the Lin family, another chance at life.


    It was currently the first month of the fifth year of the Yuanjia reign; Gao Xi had passed away in the twelfth month the previous year. It had been a month since the original host left to follow Lin Yong.


    Gao Xi was Lin Wei Xi¡¯s past life. Following that, Lin Wei Xi sighed for a while, fetched some water, and clumsily tidied herself up.


    This was almost unthinkable in Lin Wei Xi¡¯s previous life. Even a second-ss servant girl in the Duke Ying Residence didn¡¯t have to do such rough work like sweeping the floor. Since Lin Wei Xi was born, even when washing her hands, all she needed to do was to spread her fingers and the servants would wipe it for her. Now, she had to learn how to wash her face,b her hair, and even wash her clothes by herself.


    In fact, Lin Yong had already been conferred as Marquis Zhongyong by the imperial court. Even if he couldn¡¯t bepared to the wealthy families in the capital, but in a small countryside, it was enough for Lin Wei Xi to livefortably without worrying about food or clothing. Lin Wei Xi now needed to do everything by herself, but she actually started doing this from the day the reward was given to her.


    The emperor ascended the throne at the age of eight and was only twelve years old this year. How could a child who hadn¡¯t even reached adolescence be expected to run the country. While it looked like the young emperor was in power, as a matter of fact, all of the country¡¯s government affairs were handled by Grand Secretary Zhang Xiao Lian.


    This Grand Secretary had no rtionship with the current Lin Wei Xi. Zhang Xiao Lian contentedly built a reputation for cherishing talented people in the capital, and so he handed over the matter of the Honorary Deed Medallion<sup>¡ó</sup>to his subordinates. Although Marquis Zhongyong had a noble title and was a martyr, he had no brothers, no sons, and no n. Only his daughter remained, and there was no sessor to be found. If one thought about it, the reward conferred by the imperial court had already been emptied out after passing throughyer uponyer of government official¡¯s hands, before being sent to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s ce.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi was still furious at the thought of this. She had arrivedte that day and didn¡¯t know what happened when the imperial court¡¯s envoy arrived. She only knew that after the imperial envoy read the imperial decree, she was supposed to receive the decree. She didn¡¯t know how, but the imperial decree ended up being transferred to the county magistrate afterwards; even all of the rewards from the imperial court were carried to the prefecture office. Lin Wei Xi was both angry and anxious. Obviously, she had been swindled that day because she didn¡¯t give enough money. Aunt Lin<sup>¡ó</sup>and the entire family were also short-sighted. What would they do with just the money? At least take the god damn imperial edict and Honorary Deed Medallion!


    ¡ó


    The bulk of the reward given by the imperial court had been seized by the county magistrate and vige officials, and these so-called ¡°magistrates¡± leaked off a small portion for Aunt Lin¡¯s family to monopolize. In the end, the only thing that Lin Wei Xi, this sole daughter, actually received was only the title of ¡®martyr¡¯s daughter¡¯.


    In order to take back Lin Yong¡¯s things, Lin Wei Xi had no choice but to spend money to seek help. If this had happened during her previous life, all she needed to do was say it offhandedly and it would be done. But now she was no longer the Shizi Fei of the Prince Yan Residence. If she wanted to get back Lin Yong¡¯s things, she could only think of a solution herself.


    Lin Wei Xi thought about the issue of taking back the imperial decree and Honorary Deed Medallion, stumbling while twisting the towel in her hand, and managed to tidy herself up into a presentable state. Speaking of, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s appearance was truly stunning. In her previous life, she had seen so many official¡¯s daughters and noble beauties, but none of them couldpare to Lin Wei Xi in terms of facial features. She had a kind of extremely exquisite beauty, and because she was too beautiful, it would evoke a sense of contempt in others.


    Lin Wei Xi only washed her face and wiped her arms, but she managed to wet most of the ground. She blushed with shame and hurriedly moved to find something to wipe the floor with.


    Just as she ced her hand on the door, she suddenly heard voices outside.


    Perhaps Aunt Lin thought that Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t woken up yet, or that even if Lin Wei Xi had, she wasn¡¯t afraid of being heard. Aunt Lin had spent her entire life eking out a living from the farms when suddenly, a group of officials arrived, bearing the imperial decree and many rewards. It would be weird if Aunt Lin didn¡¯t covet any of it.


    ¡°This brother of mine had a short life, his wife passed away as soon as his daughter was born, and he died on the battlefield to save others. As his older sister, I feel so heartbroken! Six years ago, he sent his only daughter to our home. We already have many mouths to feed, and suddenly there¡¯s a sick person who constantly needs medicine. Such a heavy burden, do I have to say more?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly stopped pushing the door open. Blocked by only the door, she quietly listened to the unconcealed conversation going on outside.


    ¡°Sister Lin, I know that you have a kind heart and raised your younger brother¡¯s daughter for six years. It¡¯s just that, your younger brother is famous now, Xi¡¯er is no longer a burden, she¡¯s now a Marquis¡¯s daughter! It¡¯s a pity she isn¡¯t a man, your brother¡¯s Marquis title will only go to waste. Even if the title can¡¯t be retained, money doesn¡¯t deceive. Xi¡¯er has so many dowries, she will be blessed when she marries in the future.¡±


    Aunt Lin wasn¡¯t too happy to hear this, ¡°I am his only sister. Now that he¡¯s gone, the money he earned still skipped me and ispletely left to Xi¡¯er? His daughter is an outsider, but we brother and sister share the same flesh and blood. Not to mention, Xi¡¯er can¡¯t inherit the title, but our family¡¯s Li Da is a boy!¡±


    Li Da was Aunt Lin¡¯s son, 19 years old this year and not yet married . He idled all day long, and even now nobody knew where he was.


    Matchmaker Wang<sup>¡ó</sup>, who was a well-known matchmaker in the vige, could onlyugh at this. Although she looked polite on the surface, Matchmaker Wang couldn¡¯t help thinking to herself; she¡¯d heard of people leaving family property to their brothers or their daughters, but she¡¯d never heard of someone¡¯s nephew inheriting the title. What kind of reasoning was this?


    ¡ó


    But she came here to act as a matchmaker, there was no need to sour her rtionship with Aunt Lin. Matchmaker Wang continued tough and said, ¡°Sister Lin is right. You are Xi¡¯er¡¯s aunt, and her parents are dead, so naturally you are the one overseeing her marriage. Sister, the son of the Liu Yuan Wai family is very popr. If sister Xi marries over, she will live like a young madam; she won¡¯t have to man the fields or do housework. There will even be a little maid waiting on her! Sister, don¡¯t me me for siding with the Liu Yuan Wai household as a matchmaker. Their family is indeed very good. Many girls in the vige want to marry into their household, but now Liu Yuan Wei is willing to let Xi¡¯er be part of the main family, what a blessing this is!¡±


    What kind of blessing was this? Lin Wei Xi had a huge inheritance under her name, and she didn¡¯t have any brothers or uncles to support her. Wouldn¡¯t the person who married her win the lottery without having done anything? What¡¯s more, he could also use Lin Yong¡¯s Marquis Zhongyong title to make his descendants seem special. In the future, it would benefit them, whether they wanted to do business, to take the imperial exam, or more.


    Lin Wei Xi clenched her fingers unconsciously. She hadn¡¯t finished observing her filial mourning to her father, but these people were already forcing her to get married.


    Author¡¯s note:


    Gao Xi ispletely dead, so the ethical rtionship between the female lead and the Prince Yan Residence because of marriage no longer exists. Lin Wei Xi is nowpletely free and unmarried.


    The female lead¡¯s character in this novel is different from the previous ones (t/n: the author¡¯s other novels). If I have to sum it up, maybe it¡¯s like a little chilli pepper? The body of a teddy bear with the temper of a Tibetan Mastiff¡­

 Chapter 3

    If someone had been willing to marry Lin Wei Xi 3 months ago, Aunt Lin would¡¯ve happily sent her over already, but now¡­


    Aunt Lin hesitated. She didn¡¯t dare disregard Li Yuan Wai¡¯s favour, but on the other hand, she was very unwilling to part with her brother¡¯s property. She had married out of the Lin family, and thus couldn¡¯t technically be counted as an elder of the Lin family. Even if she could pull some from Lin Yong¡¯s estates, she wouldn¡¯t get much. But if Lin Wei Xi were to marry her son, then all of Lin Yong¡¯s rewards would belong to their family. Maybe they could even go to the government officials to request for the title of Marquis Zhongyong to be passed on to her son Li Da. This was a Marquis title! It was way better than the schr next door. It was unthinkable if Aunt Lin wasn¡¯t green with envy.


    Aunt Lin and Matchmaker Wang each harboured ulterior motives, stuck in their tug of war,pletely disregarding Lin Wei Xi¡¯s opinion. Lin Wei Xi stood in the room and sneered once she listened to all of this. Then she pushed open the door with a grim expression on her face.


    The wooden door mmed into the wall with a bang, thoroughly scaring the two people in the courtyard. Aunt Lin turned her head in shock and when she realized that it was only Lin Wei Xi, her fright immediately turned into anger, ¡°What kind of crazy things are you doing so early in the morning? Can youpensate for breaking the door?¡±


    ¡°How could I not afford topensate?¡± Lin Wei Xi straightened her back, and her clear eyes glimmered as she fixed her gaze onto Aunt Lin. Her ck eyes shone brightly and distinctly, as if none of the bad things in the world could mar them, leaving all the dirty and sinister things with nowhere to hide, ¡°Lin¡­ Father died for the country, and the imperial court conferred him as the Marquis Zhongyong. Aunt, you¡¯ve already seized so many of my father¡¯s things, but you can¡¯t even let go of this small wooden door?¡±


    Matchmaker Wang saw the person in the room and heaved a sigh. She¡¯d only previously known that there was an orphan living in Aunt Lin¡¯s house. She¡¯d heard that the girl was sickly and didn¡¯t go out very often, so she had never seen Lin Wei Xi. It wasn¡¯t until after the imperial court sent over the reward did Matchmaker Wang remember her. Now that the entire vige was eyeing Lin Wei Xi, this loaded gold mine, Matchmaker Wang hurriedly came over to mediate after receiving money from Li Yuan Wai.


    Matchmaker Wang expected Lin Wei Xi to be a sickly girl with arge inheritance who could die at any moment. This kind of person was definitely consumed by the disease, so she was certain that she wasn¡¯t the only person rushing to marry her into their house. After seeing Lin Wei Xi did Matchmaker Wang learn that there really existed someone with a fairy-like appearance in this world, with the grace and god-like beauty from a y.


    Matchmaker Wang was astonished by Lin Wei Xi¡¯s beauty, and her desire to sessfully conclude the marriage talks became more urgent. With an abundance of wealth, reputation as the only daughter of a martyr, and even the appearance of Chang¡¯e, she would be a fool not to quickly take this girl back.


    Aunt Lin was also stunned. She knew that Lin Wei Xi looked good, but previously, Lin Wei Xi always shut herself in her room without interacting with others; she always looked sickly and made those who saw her feel unlucky. Aunt Lin resented Lin Wei Xi¡¯s cowering, so when her son proposed that he marry Lin Wei Xi as his wife, Aunt Lin could never agree no matter what. From then on, she loathed Lin Wei Xi even more. She fully believed that this child was a seductive fox with a short life, one who would only bring bad luck to their household. In spite of this, Aunt Lin raised Lin Wei Xi for several years, but she couldn¡¯t let so many years of resources go to waste. Aunt Lin already nned it out, and she would sell Lin Wei Xi to a rich family as a concubine in the future. This was only fair.


    However, after knowing that Lin Wei Xi had Lin Yong¡¯s inheritance, Aunt Lin changed her n. It¡¯s just that she couldn¡¯t ovee her prejudices, which caused her to be in conflict with herself. Even so, Aunt Lin looked down on Lin Wei Xi. But seeing Lin Wei Xi push open the door to question her now, she felt in awe for some reason, leaving her weak-kneed. It was as if she was looking at a high rankingdy.


    Aunt Lin shook her head fiercely and chuckled at herself for thinking too much and being afraid of the sick girl in front of her. Aunt Lin narrowed her eyes and shot a nce at Lin Wei Xi, not leaving the bite out of her words, ¡°What do you mean seizing? That¡¯s originally what Lin Yong left me, and we have many things to buy for the New Year. Who knows how much money I¡¯ve lost while raising you these past few years. Now my brother has an official title, what¡¯s wrong with taking some things to replenish the family expenses?¡±


    ¡°Although I¡¯ve been temporarily staying at Aunt¡¯s house, I haven¡¯t spent any of the Li family¡¯s money. In all the years that father has served under Prince Yan, he sends back money every year, and I haven¡¯t seen it even once. All of it should¡¯ve been kept by Aunt. Not to mention, when the imperial court conferred the Marquis title posthumously, the box of silver ingots that auntie secretly hid, that alone should be enough to buy this little courtyard hundreds of times over, shouldn¡¯t it?¡±


    Matchmaker Wang was shocked. A box of silver ingots? Aunt Lin¡¯s secret had been exposed; she was frustrated and her eyes twitched, ¡°A child like you doesn¡¯t know anything, don¡¯t talk nonsense. Those aren¡¯t silver ingots, they¡¯re just a few pieces of shards. I am Lin Yong¡¯s sister. He was rewarded by the imperial court, so is it a crime for me to take a few pieces of silver?¡±


    A few pieces of shards¡­ Lin Wei Xi sneered to herself. A family of farmers that frugally saved one years worth of hardbour couldn¡¯t save more than two or three silver, and that was considered a prosperous household. Based on the Li family¡¯s harvest, how could they even earn one silver? Before embezzling Lin Yong and Lin Wei Xi¡¯s property, Aunt Lin and the others had never even touched a silver ingot before. But now, Aunt Lin could still self-righteously insist that she took nothing more than a few pieces of shards.


    Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t a stingy person who couldn¡¯t differentiate right from wrong. She was raised as an eldest di granddaughter and was taught by Princess Royal Shou Kang from time to time. After that, she¡¯d even be the mistress in charge of the Prince Yan Residence. She wasn¡¯t a cheapskate; on the contrary, she was very generous with her own people. If Aunt Lin had treated Lin Wei Xi a little better, and was a little more considerate towards her, Lin Wei Xi would not possibly have kept Lin Yong¡¯s astronomical inheritance to herself and not leave a single thing for Aunt Lin.


    But in the past month, Lin Wei Xi had been watching coldly on the sidelines, and Aunt Lin¡¯s performance was too disappointing. She¡¯d never sincerely considered Lin Wei Xi as her niece. From the start, she only saw Lin Wei Xi as a sickly, unwanted step-child who constantly needed medicine. It was only after Lin Yong was conferred a title posthumously by the imperial court and left behind arge inheritance, did Aunt Lin remember her love for her brother.


    What was the best way to justify embezzling her brother¡¯s property? Of course it was to have Lin Wei Xi ¡°voluntarily¡± marry Li Da, so that Lin Yong¡¯s things could belong to Aunt Lin and Li Da. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s health was also not very good, so they would be pleased if Lin Wei Xi died after marrying into the household.


    Lin Wei Xi saw this clearly, and she seethed with anger. What kind of bullshit y was this? Each and every one of them preached about benevolence, righteousness, manners and trustworthiness, but they only thought about making money and harming others. Lin Wei Xi finally understood how the original owner died. The original host was timid by nature, but this Lin Wei Xi was not.


    However, Lin Wei Xi thought of her mother¡¯s teachings and felt that it wasn¡¯t good to scold others, so she maintained her patience and politely said, ¡°Aunt, I¡¯m grateful for your kindness in raising me, but I haven¡¯t finished observing my filial mourning to father, so I shouldn¡¯t talk about marriage right now. Grandmother Wang, thank you for making this trip, but please go back and ry to the others that I, Lin Wei Xi, am grateful to my father for his kindness, and am determined to recite sutras and pray for him. I will not marry anyone in the future. If anyone asks you to act as a matchmaker again in the future, you don¡¯t have to ept it for me.¡±


    When Aunt Lin heard Lin Wei Xi say that she would never marry in the future, she was even more anxious than Matchmaker Wang, ¡°How can this be? You are a little girl who doesn¡¯t know anything, but as an elder I can¡¯t watch you make mistakes. Our vige doesn¡¯t have so many rules, it¡¯s enough for you to observe mourning for your father for a few months. You can rely on your youth now, and someone will be willing to marry you, so you should marry as soon as possible.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi held back her anger and said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to marry anyone.¡± After speaking, she didn¡¯t want to listen anymore and turned around to walk out of the room.


    Aunt Lin jumped to her feet in anger, pointed her finger at Lin Wei Xi, and said acridly, ¡°Right now you¡¯re just pretending to be virtuous, arrogantly saying you don¡¯t want to get married. Let¡¯s see what you can do when you grow older and no one is willing to marry you!¡±


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly paused in her step. In the gloom of the farmer¡¯s house, her eyes almost glowed brightly.


    It could be said that Aunt Lin¡¯s words poked at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s sore spot. Lin Wei Xi was a noble di granddaughter of a Duke and Princess Royal in her previous life, but after marrying, her days as a wife were bad. Later she discovered that she was just an unruly ex-wife, a failed first marriage, a stepping stone to help Gao Ran justify marrying into the Prince Yan Residence, given her status as a shu daughter. This had be a thorn in Lin Wei Xi¡¯s heart. Now, in front of outsiders, Aunt Lin said that Lin Wei Xi was pretending to be virtuous and no one would marry her in the future. This was truly poking a ho¡¯s nest.


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly turned around with mes zing in her eyes, ¡°Is it any of your business if I get married or not? Who do you think you are? Also, wouldn¡¯t you be happy if I don¡¯t marry and end up tortured to an early death by you? If I die, the Lin family¡¯s reputation and rewards will all belong to you.¡±


    Aunt Lin sprung to her feet like someone had stepped on her tail, ¡°Hey, what are you saying!¡±


    ¡°You still don¡¯t understand even though I¡¯m speaking so clearly, are you deaf? You really think I don¡¯t know about your vicious n? I will make it clear to you, I will not marry in the future. I, Lin Wei Xi, am someone of the Lin family, I will die as a ghost of the Lin family. Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s estate will not have anything to do with you and your son!¡±


    Lin Wei Xi rapidly spit out her words without letting anyone get a word in. She clearly didn¡¯t use obscenities, but her words were sharp, like countless small knives that stabbed a person until they were full of cuts and bruises. Aunt Lin was so hurt that even her lungs burned and she trembled out ¡°Yo-you, I-I¡± for half a day, but she couldn¡¯t get out aplete sentence.


    Matchmaker Wang¡¯s mouth was agape with shock. This little girl looked delicate and fragile, but she could scold people this fiercely? She seemed very articte, not at all like how Aunt Lin described, that she never spoke to other people. On the contrary¡­ it seemed like she often instructed people like this.


    Matchmaker Wang also didn¡¯t know where she got this strange feeling from. So she shook her head, set aside this strange thought and said to Lin Wei Xi with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s good as long as Xi¡¯er understands that we as outsiders feel distressed when we look at you, but are afraid of causing a rift in your aunt-niece rtionship if we were to pull you into it. Xi¡¯er, it¡¯s good if you can now think this through yourself. It¡¯s not a good fit for you to stay at your Aunt¡¯s ce. Although Li Da is sincere, the Li family are farmers after all, unlike Li Yuan Wai¡¯s household, which is a household that has sessive generations of high ranking officials that possess moral qualities. If you marry in, you will live the life of a youngdy, and even have a maid dedicated to serving you! Xi¡¯er, if you miss this opportunity, it¡¯ll be gone forever. You can¡¯t let it slip by!¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was so angry that sheughed, ¡°You want to talk about sessive generations of high ranking officials with moral qualities in front of me? It must¡¯ve been hard for you to memorize these two fancy lines. You and my aunt are just like the pot calling the kettle ck. The Li family is full of wolves, and Li Yuan Wai¡¯s household is like a tiger¡¯s nest. Who can¡¯t see through the vile ns that you¡¯ve schemed? I¡¯ll clearly tell you now, don¡¯t even think about it.¡±


    Li Yuan Wai was the local tyrant of this area, so Matchmaker Wang took pride in acting as matchmaker for the son of Li Yuan Wai¡¯s family. Now that Lin Wei Xi had thrown Li Yuan Wai¡¯s honour to the dirt and stepped on it, Matchmaker Wang was immediately annoyed and she lowered her head before saying, ¡°Don¡¯t be shameless, you¡¯re just an orphan without any male rtives. We gave you some dignity and called you a ¡®martyr¡¯s daughter¡¯, so you really thought of yourself as the young miss of a Marquis Residence? Let me tell you, it¡¯s your fortune that Li Yuan Wai took a liking to you, so it¡¯s best that you be sensible. Otherwise, you¡¯ll need to marry even if you don¡¯t want to! If you still insist on making a fuss, be careful that you don¡¯t offend Li Yuan Wai and get reduced to a concubine. Don¡¯t tell me you won¡¯t be a proper youngdy, and insist on being obstinate. When the timees, even if you want to cry, you won¡¯t be able to.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just a second-rate matchmaker, you dare to say such big words and even force a normal girl to be a concubine?¡± Lin Wei Xi¡¯s jade-like eyes nced at Matchmaker Wang, and she let out a softughced with sarcasm, ¡°What a grand speech. He is nothing more than someone who bought over his official position, and he really thinks himself a local tyrant? Those who know, know him to be from a wealthy family, but if you don¡¯t know, you¡¯d think his son is a prince selecting his imperial concubine.¡±


    When Matchmaker Wang heard this, she was scared half to death, ¡°You really don¡¯t want to live, anyhow saying the kind of words that would get you killed!¡±


    ¡°Since you people dare to do it, why don¡¯t you dare let people talk about it. It¡¯sughably ridiculous to y this trick of coercion on me. Grandaunt, you people know nothing about what I¡¯ve experienced.¡± Lin Wei Xi gently raised her eyebrows, her thick eyshes fluttering slightly and her voice like ice hitting jade. Her words were obviously condescending and a little harsh, but her voice was clear and cold, her tone, a little delicate. Combined with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s quick and concise way of speaking, one would unexpectedly enjoy it even when she was scolding someone.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t realize that others enjoyed her admonishment. If she knew she would¡¯ve been angered half to death. At the moment, she was still pointing at Matchmaker Wang and scolded, ¡°I¡¯m telling you, I will not marry, and no one in this world can force me to do what I¡¯m unwilling to do. Today it¡¯s Li Yuan Wai¡¯s son, tomorrow will it be Wang Yuan Wai¡¯s grandson? If you think of such nasty ns again in the future, I will go to the county magistrate¡¯s office and hang myself from a white silk on the front beam. Anyway, my father¡¯s Honorary Deed Medallion is still being held up; I will die and show everyone how you people persecute the daughter of a martyr! By the time this bes a huge issue, the capital and Prince Yan will know about this, so don¡¯t think a single one of you will have a good life!¡±


    ¡°Xi¡¯er¡­¡±


    ¡°Go away! If you say another word I¡¯ll throw myself into theke immediately!¡±


    Outside the courtyard, the county magistrate who was apanying a young man was drenched in cold sweat. The man lightly caressed his jade thumb ring and asked indifferently, ¡°Lin Yong¡¯s Honorary Deed Medallion is being held up?¡±


    ¡°No, I was only¡­ erm¡­, I was just holding onto it temporarily for safekeeping for Marquis Zhongyong. Sir also knows that the people in the countryside aren¡¯t knowledgeable, aren¡¯t educated, and there is no limit to the number of thefts. This subordinate is worried that Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s Honorary Deed Medallion will be stolen by a petty thief, so it¡¯s kept in the county office for safekeeping.¡±


    These were all perfunctory pleasantries and empty words, and the man didn¡¯t know whether he believed it or not. He nced at the particrly lively farmer¡¯s house and said, ¡°When Marquis Zhongyong was still alive, he couldn¡¯t stop worrying about his only daughter . Although she is only a little girl, she is Lin Yong¡¯s legitimate sessor. Hand everything directly to her when you¡¯ve brought them back.¡±


    ¡°Yes sir.¡±


    The man¡¯s voice was t but unquestionable. It could be seen that he¡¯d been a high-ranking person for many years and was used to giving orders. After the county magistrate broke out in cold sweat on his face, he found that the man hadn¡¯t moved. The magistrate was surprised, realized something immediately, and hurriedly turned around to walk towards Aunt Lin¡¯s courtyard.


    In the courtyard, Aunt Lin and Matchmaker Wang both felt suffocated. They¡¯d quarrelled with their neighbours before, but it was a mutual exchange where each party had their wins and losses. Not like now, where they couldn¡¯t get a single word in without being interrupted. The sound of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s voice incessantly rang in their ears, it was truly infuriating.


    Aunt Lin was so angry she wanted to hit someone. The beginnings of another scheme had barely formed in her mind, but she suddenly felt that the atmosphere was not quite right. She hurriedly turned her head and her legs turned to jelly the moment she saw the person who entered.


    ¡°Sir county magistrate¡­ ¡°


    The county magistrate waved his hand in frustration. Therge Buddha standing outside was still looking at him, who is your sir? Please don¡¯t ruin his career as an official. After secretly warning the two vige women, the county magistrate turned to look at Lin Wei Xi, his face immediately looked kind, ¡°Miss Lin, I heard that you were ill again a few days ago. Are you feeling better now?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t an ordinary vige girl; she recognized the uniform that the county magistrate wore was the most formal one, and that this county magistrate was trying to please her. Lin Wei Xi became more on guard. She looked at the other person defensively, greeted him with a salute first, then asked tensely, ¡°We are honoured by the county magistrate¡¯s presence, what is the matter?¡±


    The smile on the county magistrate¡¯s face deepened. After listening to the county magistrate¡¯s words, Lin Wei Xi became more surprised.


    The county magistrate actually wanted to return the Honorary Deed Medallion to her. Furthermore, the rewards sent by the imperial court would be transferred,pletely intact, to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s name. How could this be possible? This abnormal behaviour was suspicious, what did he want to do?


    When the county magistrate saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s refusal to respond, he started sweating out of anxiety. He really had no choice but to turn sideways and point outside, then signalled to Lin Wei Xi with his eyes, ¡°The lord from the capital is here, he wants to give it to you so you should ept it.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked outside and she saw many horses tied to the crooked tree on the other side of the road. There were so many people standing there, but they stood there inplete silence, in awe of the one person they were standing behind.


    Lin Wei Xi was already this old and hade and gone through manyrge events, but she was actually captured by this person¡¯s aura. Lin Wei Xi stared nkly and asked, ¡°Who is that?¡±


    ¡°Prince Yan.¡±

 Chapter 4

    Prince Yan?


    Maybe it was because Lin Wei Xi looked so dumbfounded, but the county magistrate thought she didn¡¯t know who Prince Yan was, so he could only add, ¡°That person is His Highness Prince Yan. He entered the capital to subdue the rebellion and support the new emperor. The previous emperor named him one of the three Regent Ministers before his death. He¡¯s just returned from suppressing the uprising at the border, and specially came to Shunde District to return Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s remains back to his hometown.¡±


    Of course Lin Wei Xi knew who Prince Yan was. She looked at the man outside in a trance. This was the famous and powerful Prince Yan, and the father-inw she never met in her previous life.


    Because Lin Wei Xi married Prince Yan¡¯s only son in her past life, she was scorned by numerous other nobledies for the entirety of two years. After her messy break up with Gu Cheng Yao, the nder died down a bit. But even so, no one could deny that Lin Wei Xi married very well in her past life. She was the di granddaughter of a Duke and the granddaughter of a Princess Royal. Even with such a prominent status, she still married up when she married Prince Yan¡¯s son.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s maternal grandmother was an imperial princess, and she spent most of her time in the Princess Residence every year, so Lin Wei Xi listened to stories of Prince Yan¡¯s aplishments growing up. ording to ounts, Prince Yan led soldiers to battle at the age of fifteen. In the first year of Jianzhao, the previous Prince Yan passed away, and the seventeen year old Gu Hui Yan became the new Prince Yan. In the past ten years, he defended the country from all sides and Emperor Muzong also put him in an extremely important position. Later when the pce was embroiled in chaos, Emperor Muzong¡¯s first secret edict was issued to Prince Yan. Prince Yan lived up to his expectations, suppressing discord in the capital and cleaning up the government. Afterwards, Emperor Muzong entrusted Prince Yan to assist his then eight years old eldest son, who was the current young emperor.


    Lin Wei Xi grew up listening to Prince Yan¡¯s story. When she first married Gu Cheng Yao, she couldn¡¯t be happier. But in the end, she and Prince Yan Residence were not meant to be. Lin Wei Xi married Gu Cheng Yao in the first month of the fourth year of Yuanjia. In the second year of Yuanjia, Prince Yan left the capital to quell the Dugt tribe¡¯s rebellion, even missing his son¡¯s marriage. Then she died afterwards.


    Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t believe that she never got to meet Prince Yan while married into the Prince Yan household, but it was after being reborn that she met the legendary God of War in a small vige.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s feelings were veryplicated. She and Gu Cheng Yao ended their rtionship like that, so based on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s temperament, she shouldn¡¯t want anything to do with those rted to him, and would no longer maintain goodwill towards those of the Prince Yan Residence. But at that moment, when Lin Wei Xi saw the god Prince Yan, she realized that she couldn¡¯t be angry at all. Prince Yan merely stood there, an invisible and overwhelming aura enveloping the entire field, and no one dared to even harbour ill-will, much lessin.


    So this was Prince Yan¡­ Lin Wei Xi¡¯s shock simply couldn¡¯t be expressed. Unexpectedly, Prince Yan was very young and his looks, extremely outstanding. It¡¯s just that with such a position, no one could notice his appearance. With a high rank came greater responsibility, and he talked about nothing except work. Under this kind of deathly aura, who would dare evaluate Prince Yan¡¯s appearance.


    Perhaps Lin Wei Xi had been staring for too long, but Gu Hui Yan, who was used to receiving stares, lightly lifted his eyebrows. He was themander of the army and the head of a Prince Residence; he nevercked attention, but very rarely did hee across girls the same age as Lin Wei Xi. He had been fighting in the campaign for many years, so his murderous aura was awe-inspiring. Even the Empress Dowager felt awkward when she met him, not to mention other women. While in the capital, young women would bow their heads and hold their breath when they saw him and the noble girls who hadn¡¯t left their boudoir yet were so scared that they didn¡¯t dare lift their heads. There were few people like Lin Wei Xi who took the initiative to watch him, and she was the only one who looked at him without flinching. Furthermore, this little girl¡¯s eyes were also very interesting.


    Gu Hui Yan faintly smiled back, an almost imperceptible inquiry hidden in the depths of his eyes. Lin Wei Xi locked eyes with Gu Hui Yan, and after looking at each other for a short while, Lin Wei Xi quickly lowered her head to avoid Prince Yan¡¯s gaze.


    Seeing Lin Wei Xi lower her head, Gu Hui Yan no longer forced the little girl. If Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t stared at him for a long time with a strange expression in her eyes, he wouldn¡¯t have looked back at this littledy. He was very clear about the kind of strain it took to look at him. She was just a little kid, so he would pretend he knew nothing, and let it go.


    Lin Wei Xi lowered her head, her heart pounding in her chest. Too scary. The father-inw from her past life turned out to be this scary. She thought there wouldn¡¯t be much of a difference between father and son, but after seeing it for herself today, she knew that the image she had of Prince Yan in her head was too superficial.


    After everyone knew that Prince Yan had arrived, the atmosphere at the scene immediately changed. County magistrate He Li felt like he was facing an enemy while Matchmaker Wang and Aunt Lin had long retreated to a corner, trembling. Lin Wei Xi also hung her head, like a rabbit with drooping ears, her previously imposing bout of verbal sparring nowhere to be seen.


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t deliberately take a detour to listen to Lin Wei Xi quarrel with her aunt. After irritating the county magistrate, he asked, ¡°Where is Lin Yong¡¯s cenotaph?¡±


    He¡¯de to Shunde District to bury Lin Yong¡¯s remains and while he was at it, take a look at Lin Yong¡¯s only daughter, who was Lin Yong¡¯s only concern before his death. But it seemed like Lin Yong¡¯s description of his daughter was very inurate. Gu Hui Yan had settled Lin Wei Xi¡¯s affairs, so naturally he was now going to open Lin Yong¡¯s coffin to bury his bones.


    Opening the coffin wasn¡¯t a trivial affair. Li Zheng and the vige head lead Gu Hui Yan to Lin Yong¡¯s cenotaph, and the vige men noisily followed them halfway. During situations like these, Lin Wei Xi hated that she was a daughter. Because she was a woman, she couldn¡¯t even participate in major events like burying her birth father¡¯s remains.


    Because of this disturbance, Aunt Lin stood in a trance. She had long discarded her intentions to arrange a marriage for Lin Wei Xi. Lin Wei Xi also returned to her room, preupied by themotion. She¡¯d originallye out to grab a cloth to wipe the water on the ground, but after such a long time, the water on the ground would¡¯ve dried up. Lin Wei Xi nkly stared at the water stain for a while, the confusion in her eyes dissipated, and her expression slowly cleared.


    She couldn¡¯t stay in this ignorant little vige, where everyone had the same surname. She could escape Li Da and Li Yuan Wai, but she couldn¡¯t escape Li Er and Li San<sup>¡ó</sup>. She was very wealthy but didn¡¯t have the strength to protect herself. If she continued to stay in this vige, she would only bring about her own death.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi had been given a second chance at life, and that was what she cherished the most.


    However, she was but a single lone woman, without parents to shelter her, without a family to protect her, and with an appearance that would only drag her down. Even if she converted all her property into silver and nned to escape from the vige, she wouldn¡¯t have the stamina to travel on the road for long.


    The only option she had was Prince Yan. Although Lin Wei Xi was reluctant to continue being in contact with Prince Yan¡¯s family, but for now, only Prince Yan could take her away unscathed and also find a ce for her to live in peace.


    As for how to convince Prince Yan¡­ Lin Wei Xi, who¡¯d never acted coquettishly before to gain a man¡¯s affections, felt embarrassed. But this time she would just have to try her best¡­


    Opening the tomb was not an easy thing to do, and the sky was already dark by the time they¡¯d finished toiling in the dirt. The vige head was extremely polite, immediately inviting Prince Yan to his humble home. The county magistrate also urged Prince Yan to the county mansion, the wine already prepared.


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t want to hang around for too long. He¡¯d marched with the army for many years, and hadn¡¯t been picky about his living conditions for the longest time. So instead of dragging the crowd of people to the county mansion, he led his people to the vige head¡¯s house to stay for the night.


    This time, Gu Hui Yan was returning to the imperial court with his troops after his victory. Halfway through, he left the main troops with his trusted subordinates, and came to Shunde District in advance to bury Lin Yong¡¯s remains, directly setting off the next day to catch up with his troops. After all, they were still in the middle of the march and it wasn¡¯t good for him to be absent for too long.


    Gu Hui Yan declined to stay at the county mansion. Although the county magistrate felt disappointed, he also felt deeply relieved. Apanying the monarch was like apanying a tiger. Although Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t a monarch, he was no less influential, and the county magistrate didn¡¯t want to bet his career prospects.


    When the vige head learned that His Highness Prince Yan really wanted to stay in his home, he felt very ttered, and immediately sent someone back to clean up the house and notified the other vigers who had extra space in their houses. Prince Yan had brought many of his subordinates on this trip. Even though therge countryside had many empty houses, it wasn¡¯t easy to settle so many people at once.


    The vige head hurried away. Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t in a hurry to head back, so he got off his horse, dismissed his entourage, and slowly walked on the moonlit country road. He rarely had the time to rx like this, with no war, no paperwork, and no need to socialize. Above him spanned a vast and endless starry sky, below himy the frost covered ground. He could wander aimlessly and undisturbed.


    The countryside was extremely dark at night, and the stars in the sky faintly outlined the trees on both sides of the road. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s ears suddenly twitched and he stopped in his tracks.


    The dark clouds in the sky covered the moon, the thick forest shrouded in shadow. He couldn¡¯t see clearly and could only make out a vague shadow, ¡°¡­ Father, this unfilial daughter has let you down. I¡¯ve had a weak body since young, not to mention, I killed my mother when I was born, yet you still ran around from ce to ce for me. Six years ago you said you would save a dowry for me, letting me go home with a peace of mind to wait for good news, but I didn¡¯t think that I would be forever separated from you. Father, because you sacrificed yourself for the country, you became the country¡¯s hero. Daughter should be proud of you¡­ but Daughter would rather Father never went to the capital. Daughter doesn¡¯t want a dowry. We¡¯ve depended on each other all our lives, it would¡¯ve been best to just live well. Now that your spirit has returned from the war and your remains have returned home, I can¡¯t even personally make sure that you¡¯re buried safely¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan paused in ce, his face hidden in the dark of the night, and he couldn¡¯t see clearly. The people following Prince Yan from far behind saw that he hadn¡¯t moved for a while and wanted to inquire, but Gu Hui Yan stopped them with a gesture.


    The sky was dark and Gu Hui Yan walked over quietly by himself without making much disturbance. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know what was happening outside on the road. She was immersed in her grief and mourning her father, squatting under the tree where she used to y as a child, ¡°Father, daughter respects you as a hero, please be well. When I was born, Mummy died due to a difficult birth, and you raised me while acting as both father and mother. Daughter doesn¡¯t want to marry, really doesn¡¯t want to marry. I just want to stay by Father¡¯s side and be your little girl. You finally returned home today, so your daughter will send you the rest of the way. If you can hear me from the other side, no need to worry about this unfilial daughter.¡±


    ¡°If you really don¡¯t marry for your entire life, he won¡¯t be able to rest in peace.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stood up from the ground in surprise, dry trails of tears clung to her face. She looked at the person approaching her and stared for a long time before recognizing the speaker in the dim night, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± Gu Hui Yan slowly walked out of the shadows. He stopped three steps away from Lin Wei Xi and looked at the delicate, pale girl in front of him, who had a waist that was thinner than his arms. He couldn¡¯t help but sigh, ¡°You¡¯re young and still in the best time of your life, why would you say such depressing words?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not depressing.¡± Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t used to others seeing her crying face. She wanted to raise her hand and wipe her tears but felt it was too obvious, so she turned her face away and red to the side, ¡°Prince Yan must think this is funny. Since this little girl¡¯s ugly side has been seen, and there¡¯s no need to worry about family affairs, I might as well tell Prince Yan directly. You¡¯ve seen my current situation, even if you help me retrieve my father¡¯s Honorary Deed Medallion, do you think I can hold onto it? My biological aunt is already like this, let alone the other people in the vige. All of them have the surname Li, and mine is Lin. If something were to happen in the future, I wouldn¡¯t even be able to run.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan quickly realized the crux of the issue, ¡°You don¡¯t want to marry?¡±


    ¡°There are so many women in the world and everyone has their own way of living, so why must I get married!¡± Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t help raising her voice, and then she realized that she¡¯d gotten too emotional. She took a deep breath, lowered her head and said in a low voice, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, this little girl has been rude.¡±


    Did children nowadays all object to getting married? Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t good at exining this to an unmarried littledy, so he could only drop the subject without pursuing the matter, and instead he quietly asked, ¡°Then what do you n to do?¡±


    ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan.¡± Lin Wei Xi suddenly gave a salute to Prince Yan solemnly, raised her eyes, and firmly looked at Gu Hui Yan in concentration, ¡°This little girl has admired Prince Yan¡¯s achievements since young. Being able to see you in person this time is this little girl¡¯s fortune for two lifetimes. Thank you for your help today. This little girl may seem insatiably greedy, but I¡¯d still like to make a presumptuous request and ask you to take me out of this vige full of Li¡¯s. After leaving this ce, Prince Yan can randomly leave me in a small obscure town. This little girl doesn¡¯t want the reputation of Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s orphan daughter. I will guard my father¡¯s imperial decree, reciting scriptures and worshipping the Buddha every day. Being able to live my life in tranquillity is satisfying enough for me.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked at her and said without emotion, ¡°Do you want to leave like this? Think this through, this is your hometown and your only rtives live here.¡±


    ¡°This little girl has already thought it through. It can¡¯t be said that this ce is my hometown. Father and Aunt fled here because of famine. Aunt assimted into the vige after marrying, but Father travelled all over the ce because my condition wasn¡¯t stable. To me, this is not even my hometown. My hometown is where my father is.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze paused on Lin Wei Xi before raising his eyes and looking up at the vast starry sky behind her. Lin Wei Xi was so nervous that her palms were practically oozing sweat. She¡¯d taken a risky gamble today, but Prince Yan would be leaving tomorrow. If she didn¡¯t make a move tonight, there wouldn¡¯t be another opportunity.


    Gu Hui Yan withdrew his gaze from the star-scattered sky, nced at Lin Wei Xi, then turned and left. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s heart almost leaped out of her throat. Prince Yan, what did this mean? She¡¯d deliberately imitated Gao Ran¡¯s trick of ¡°identally¡± crying and being heard. Did she actually fail?


    Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t help taking two steps, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ste and it¡¯s getting colder outside. Go back first.¡±


    ¡°You still haven¡¯t told me if you¡¯re going to take me away or not!¡±


    Gu Hui Yan sighed internally. He¡¯d been in power for many years, but this was the first time he was being questioned like this. Fortunately, his subordinates were standing far away, otherwise his private affairs would¡¯ve spread by tomorrow if they heard that sentence. These men had been following Prince Yan for many years, from the cradle to the grave, entrusting each other with their lives, and Gu Hui Yan regarded these people as his hands and feet. But if these coarse men had a w, it was that they were too concerned with his private affairs.


    A Wangfei wasn¡¯t a necessity, and the Prince Yan Residence was doing well, plus he wasn¡¯tcking in heirs. Thus, there was no need to marry a new Wangfei.


    Not to mention, the young girl in front of him was tender like shallots. She looked only fifteen or sixteen years old, even younger than his own son. Gu Hui Yan knew that Lin Wei Xi only yelled those words out of anxiety and had no other meaning, and he was also quite a bit older. He didn¡¯t want his reputation to be ruined in such a ce so he stopped walking and, for the first time in his life, exined his n to someone, ¡°I will find you a safe ce to live and settle you in. Please don¡¯t worry. I owe Lin Yong my life and you are his only daughter. I won¡¯t abandon you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi finally breathed a sigh of relief. It was good that she received Prince Yan¡¯s affirmation. Ever since Gu Hui Yan became Prince Yan at the age of seventeen, or even earlier than that, since he joined the army at the age of fifteen, he¡®d never been so rudely shouted at like this. Gu Hui Yan wouldn¡¯t go so far as to fuss with a little girl, so he continued to walk forward. But he hadn¡¯t taken two steps before more footsteps sounded from behind. That little girl caught up with him again, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, if I go with you tomorrow, will I have to pack up my things tonight? When will I be joining you tomorrow?¡±


    It was this kind of ambiguity that would make others doubt his character if they overheard. Gu Hui Yan could only stop and say to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, I will send someone to take care of it. Miss Lin, it¡¯s gettingte, you should go back first.¡±


    She could understand it if she didn¡¯t need to pack her things, but he didn¡¯t even tell her the time? Lin Wei Xi was very sceptical and couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, you¡¯re not deceiving me right?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t expect there¡¯de a day where he¡¯d actually hear such words from someone. He smiled lightly and asked, ¡°What did you say?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi shut up and quietly lowered her head under Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze. Seeing this, Gu Hui Yan looked away from her and continued to stoically walk towards his horse.


    After Gu Hui Yan had walked a distance, Lin Wei Xi thought that he couldn¡¯t hear, and mumbled in a small voice, ¡°None of them are good people.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s footsteps stopped and his eyes deepened slightly; this was the first time his self-restraint had been repeatedly tested by someone. He didn¡¯t turn around, but lightly said to the person behind him, ¡°The wind is cold at night, Miss Lin should head back quickly. The next time you want to talk to me, juste to me directly. There¡¯s no need for you to run all the way out here to put on an unnecessary show under a tree.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi regretted speaking as soon as the words left her mouth. She was emotional just now and somehow thought of Gu Cheng Yao. In her mind, there were no good people in the Gu family, but who would¡¯ve thought that she¡¯d really say the words out loud. As soon as she blurted it out, she regretted it. It was true that Gu Cheng Yao had wronged her, but Prince Yan hadn¡¯t done anything to be sorry for. He was the patron saint of the dynasty, and even more so, he¡¯d helped her. How could she say such ungrateful words? When Lin Wei Xi heard Prince Yan¡¯sst sentence, her face turned red and she could barely speak, ¡°You know?¡±


    How could he not know? Her acting and technique were too clumsy. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t stop again this time, and walked straight into the night.

 Chapter 5

    Lin Wei Xi drifted home in the dark. She¡¯d just opened the gate when a voice suddenly came from the pitch dark yard, ¡°Where did you go?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was startled. She patted her chest and calmed her nerves. After identifying the person who¡¯d spoken, she rolled her eyes inwardly and, following the wall, headed towards her room without a word.


    Seeing Lin Wei Xi disregard him, Li Da felt very unhappy. He quickly moved forward to block Lin Wei Xi and couldn¡¯t help sounding irritated, ¡°I¡¯m talking to you!¡±


    Lin Wei Xi furrowed her eyebrows and scowled as she tried to walk past him, but when she took a few steps, Li Da kept following and blocking her. After doing this a few times, the distance between Li Da and Lin Wei Xi shrunk, and he grew interested, but Lin Wei Xi was fed up with it.


    She looked displeased and said coldly, ¡°Step aside.¡±


    Li Da rarely stood this close to Lin Wei Xi, but seeing her displeased expression, he also felt angry. However, what kind of man could stay angry after looking at such a face. His voice couldn¡¯t help but soften, ¡°I¡¯m worried about you! An unmarried girl like you went out alone on such a dark night, what do you think this looks like? I¡¯ve been waiting for you for a long time and you onlye back now. Do you think this is okay? Let¡¯s say you want to go out and rx. You should¡¯ve told me or my mother, and I would¡¯ve gone with you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi gave a shortugh, her voice ice-cold, ¡°There¡¯s no need, I¡¯m going back.¡± When she finished speaking, she walked forward, but was quickly blocked by Li Da. Lin Wei Xi tried two more times, all of which were firmly blocked by him. Her scowl deepened and she gently raised an eyebrow as she looked at Li Da, ¡°What is the meaning of this?¡±


    A beauty was a beauty, and she looked stunning even with disdain written all over her face. Li Da smiled apologetically and said, ¡°Cousin, do you really not understand what I want? We cousins are ??of the same age. Since ancient times, the best method of finding a good spouse is to marry your own rtive. I know that you¡¯re sad because Uncle is gone. Don¡¯t worry, from now on, I¡¯ll take care of you in his stead.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled lightly. When she smiled, her eyes curved slightly; it really was more dazzling than the stars in the sky. Li Da stared at her until he went a little crazy. But the next thing he knew, the beauty had stopped smiling, and from her cherry red lips spilled words as cold and sharp as ice, ¡°And you can take over my father¡¯s properties and wealth while you¡¯re at it, right?¡±


    Li Da flinched in embarrassment, ¡°Cousin, what are you saying¡­ ¡­ ¡°


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong big guy, you dare to do but don¡¯t dare to be? Aren¡¯t you perfectly clear the kind of vile schemes that you and your mother have? You really think of yourself as a phnthropist, someone who has umted good virtues and deeds, who took in a lonely and helpless little cousin? Hurry up and take back your hypocrisy. Without you and your mother, I can definitely live so much better.¡±


    After Lin Wei Xi finished speaking, she coldly stared at Li Da and walked around him without looking back. This time Li Da didn¡¯t stop her. He stood still for a while, and suddenly said to her as she was entering the room, ¡°Cousin, I can¡¯t help it if my mother has this kind of temper. I know she¡¯s been cold to you all these years and made you feel wronged. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll talk to her so that you definitely won¡¯t continue to be wronged. I sincerely want to marry you, and told my mother that I want to marry you long before Uncle¡¯s rewards were delivered.¡±


    ¡°So?¡± Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t turn around, her expression still frigid, ¡°She disagreed, so you didn¡¯t say anything at all. Moreover, if my dad hadn¡¯t been conferred as Marquis Zhongyang, you wouldn¡¯t have said that you won¡¯t wronged me in the future. How ridiculous, do you still fancy yourself infatuated? Did you invest yourself so much that now you can¡¯t remove yourself from the situation? Oh, you just refuse to admit the fact that you¡¯re a coward who has no opinion of his own and can¡¯t defy his mother.¡±


    After she finished speaking, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t be bothered to look at Li Da¡¯s expression; she pushed open the door and walked in. Just as she crossed the threshold, she heard Li Da say, ¡°Cousin, you¡¯re so mean. If it weren¡¯t for your pretty face, based on your temper, no man would be willing to marry you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s blood rushed to her head. Li Da and Aunt Lin indeed deserved to be tied together. It didn¡¯t matter if they had no abilities to speak of but acted arrogant, but they constantly looked down on women. Did they expect women to gently tter them with grace? Did Li Da and Aunt Lin fancy themselves part of the imperial family?


    Lin Wei Xi felt stifled. Her failed marriage in her previous life was a thorn in her heart. In this life, the most uneptable thing was for someone to say that she wouldn¡¯t be able to get married or that her husband wouldn¡¯t like her. Anyone who touched thisndmine would die.


    Lin Wei Xi turned around and even smiled at Li Da. She was beautiful beyondparison, and her smile resembled a fairy, but the words that followed cut like a knife, ¡°So what if no man wants to marry me? My father was conferred as Marquis Zhongyang by the imperial court and I have thousands of hectares of fertilend to my name. Even if I don¡¯t have a man, I can live a life that¡¯s a thousand times better than your own just by relying on myself and the inheritance left by my father.¡±


    Li Da had always been spoiled by Aunt Lin as a child, so when he heard her words, he got so angry that his chest started heaving and he pointed a finger at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi raised her eyebrows slightly, ¡°What ¡®you¡¯? Put your hand down, who allowed you to point your finger at me?¡±


    When Lin Wei Xi was still Gao Xi in her past life, she¡¯d been told off many times by the Duke Ying Lady because of her temper. The Lady often said that she herself was a Princess¡¯ daughter, and had been pampered since young, but even she hadn¡¯t developed a temperament like Lin Wei Xi¡¯s, unreasonable and able to scold someone till they cried. Princess Royal Shou Kangughed when she heard this, as people always saw their own children in a positive light. The Princess Royal then said that Xi¡¯er was the eldest di granddaughter of a Duke and the granddaughter of a Princess Royal, so what if she had a temper? If someone made a mistake, they deserved to be scolded by her.


    Back when Lin Wei Xi married into the Prince Yan Residence and became the Shizi Fei, being the daughter-inw of an imperial household required her to be more docile, and she didn¡¯t dare act presumptuously in the Prince Yan Residence. So she held herself back when she reprimanded the servants and took care of the family business. Even so, the senior servants in the residence still bore a grudge against her, and reported it to Gu Cheng Yao. Naturally, he became disgusted with her.


    After Lin Wei Xi was reborn, she welled in her misery for a good period of time, and even wondered if it was really because of her terrible temper that she ruined the good hand she¡¯d been dealt with and slipped into depression before finally dying. Perhaps Gao Ran¡¯s personality was truly the type that pleased men.


    Lin Wei Xi got over her misery after a month. She didn¡¯t n to marry again in this life anyway. Her rebirth was a godsend, she didn¡¯t need to wrong herself because of others¡¯ opinions. She knew she had the kind of character that others found unpleasant, so the only thing she could do was to not marry again and not destroy another family. As for her remaining lifetime, she would just live as she pleased.


    However, Lin Wei Xi overlooked one problem. The people she berated in the past were too embarrassed to even raise their heads mostly because of her identity. Now she was without the protection of the Duke Ying Residence, Princess Royal Shou Kang, and even the Prince Yan Residence. When the person who was being scolded couldn¡¯t retort, it was easy for them to take extreme measures in a fit of rage.


    Li Da was like this. Every single one of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words felt like a sharp knife being thrust into his heart, but he couldn¡¯t say a single word back. Li Da got angry and rushed at Lin Wei Xi with the intention of letting her know whether or not she really wanted a man. (T/n: r*pe)


    Lin Wei Xi started when she saw the momentum of Li Da¡¯s movement. She reflexively looked at the main building and found that the lights were already turned off in a deliberate show of silence. Lin Wei Xi understood that this family had long nned to have Li Da force himself onto her.


    Lin Wei Xi was a little scared; her body wasn¡¯t very healthy and she would cough every two steps if she walked too quickly. How could her strengthpare to that of a young, healthy man like Li Da. She knew that she couldn¡¯t get caught while inside the house, otherwise no one woulde even if she cried for help. She didn¡¯t see what she¡¯d grabbed from her side, but she threw it directly at Li Da¡¯s face. He was blinded by the oing bread crumbs and couldn¡¯t help but stop to rub his eyes. Lin Wei Xi took advantage of the opportunity to run, and desperately rushed towards the gate. Li Da¡¯s vision was blurry, so she could run past him while he wasn¡¯t looking. When his eyes finally cleared, he grinned and chased after her.


    Lin Wei Xi had just unbolted the door only to find that Li Da had already caught up. She panicked and mmed the door on his face, stumbling while running out.


    But how much strength did Lin Wei Xi¡¯s body have? She was quickly caught by Li Da. He could hold onto her with one hand, and no matter how she kicked or hit, she couldn¡¯t break free at all. Everyone in this vige all had the surname Li, and the vigers fiercely hated outsiders. Even if they heard the unusual sounds Lin Wei Xi made, no one woulde to help her. She hated that she was weak. When it looked like she was about to be dragged back to Aunt Lin¡¯s house, she suddenly had a thought amidst her anxiety. She¡¯d once been the youngdy of a Duke Residence, and these rich and influential families prioritised security the most, so they¡¯d arrange for guards outside the courtyard¡¯s wall day and night. If these rich and influential families were like this during times of peace, then what about Prince Yan?


    Lin Wei Xi was at the end of her rope so she took a gamble. She discarded the noble demeanour she¡¯d had for many years and yelled at the top of her lungs, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, you promised to settle me in a good ce, will you let me be bullied? Your Highness Prin-¡°


    Before Lin Wei Xi could finish shouting, she felt a breeze graze the back of her neck and the hold around her arm loosen. Li Da had been knocked unconscious.


    Lin Wei Xi nked out for a moment, before quickly withdrawing her hand and furiously rubbing at the ce Li Da had touched. The person who¡¯d made a move was as silent as an iron tower, with a dark aura hanging over him. If he hadn¡¯t just saved Lin Wei Xi, she would¡¯ve been scared to death.


    ¡°Thank you¡­ ¡± Lin Wei Xi looked at the person in front of her and couldn¡¯t help swallowing her saliva. She tried her best to smile warmly and gently, totally different from how she looked a while ago. ¡°May I ask what this hero¡¯s name is?¡±


    ¡°Zhou Mao Cheng.¡± The bear-like man had a strange look in his eyes as he looked at Lin Wei Xi. He endured until he could hold it no longer, ¡°Were you calling the Prince<sup>¡ó</sup>just now?¡±


    ¡ó


    ¡°Yes.¡± Lin Wei Xi smiled gently and tried her best to show her gentle side to her benefactor, ¡°Benefactor Zhou, could you send me to Prince Yan? As you¡¯ve seen, this ce¡­ I probably can¡¯t stay here anymore.¡±


    The way Zhou Mao Cheng looked at Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t simply be described with words. Under such a stare, her smile grew stiff. What did this mean? Did she scold someone too harshly and leave a bad impression?


    Zhou Mao Cheng had been sent by Prince Yan to guard Lin Yong¡¯s daughter, and he felt very strange when he received this task. Why would the Prince pay attention to a little girl? Immediately, he remembered that Lin Yong was theirrades, their brotherly bond strong like iron. Lin Yong¡¯s daughter was also Zhou Mao Cheng¡¯s daughter, so it was reasonable to guard the little girl all night. Martial artists had sharp eyes and ears, so as he squatted outside while listening to Lin Wei Xi scolding someone, he felt that Lin Yong¡¯s description of his daughter wasn¡¯t very urate and his embellishment of his daughter was too much. But he had to say, listening to this little girl scold someone was pretty satisfying.


    When Li Dater became restless, Zhou Mao Cheng cursed internally and immediately came to save Lin Wei Xi. However, he didn¡¯t expect that he would hear such unexpected words from Lin Wei Xi a momentter.


    Who did Lin Wei Xi call? Prince Yan?


    Zhou Mao Cheng¡¯s expression was as dark as a bear, but the scene repeated itself in his mind. Along the way, Lin Wei Xi felt that this warrior was ncing at her over and over again, and her heart couldn¡¯t help but beat faster. Did she say something wrong?


    In the vige head¡¯s house, Gu Hui Yan was still checking the letters from the capital under the light of themp. He couldn¡¯t leave the army and capital affairs to someone else at the moment. Not to mention, he might not be able to catch up with the rest of the army the next day as nned. All the more reason to properly settle these issues.


    After an unknown period of time, someone knocked on the door three times. This was a rule in his army. Gu Hui Yan said without lifting his head, ¡°Come in.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng entered and said with a sullen face, ¡°My Prince, Lin Yong¡¯s daughter wants to see you.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan paused for a moment before making the connection between Lin Yong¡¯s daughter and Lin Wei Xi. He couldn¡¯t help but rub his temple when he thought of that little girl, ¡°What¡¯s wrong with her?¡±


    ¡°She said that since she¡¯s going with you tomorrow, she won¡¯t return today and wants to stay here.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng¡¯s face was tense, but he secretly snuck a look at Gu Hui Yan. He watched as the Prince, who¡¯d always been unreasonable, pressed his temple and sighed lightly, ¡°I said I won¡¯t leave her behind¡­ Forget it, since she doesn¡¯t feel at ease, just let her stay. Ming Da, pack up my room and let Lin Wei Xi stay in it. Arrange for a few people to patrol the room tonight and rece them frequently.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan paused after he finished speaking, then added, ¡°Ask the vige head for a few new beddings, add it to my tab, and pay for them together tomorrow.¡± After speaking, Gu Hui Yan felt a little bit unsure, ¡°What else do I need to care for this little girl? Do I have to buy dresses and makeup too?¡±


    This question stumped the men. They were clear and logical when it came to military matters, but a little girl as delicate as Lin Wei Xi¡­


    Gu Hui Yan knew he couldn¡¯t count on the people in the room when he saw their expressions. He tried hard to recall the organization of the Prince Yan Residence, and said, ¡°Let the vige head¡¯s wife settle it. Right now we aren¡¯t able to purchase a lot of items, so we¡¯ll revisit this when we reach the county mansion tomorrow.¡±


    After Gu Hui Yan gave his orders, he found that Zhou Mao Cheng hadn¡¯t moved an inch. Gu Hui Yan raised his eyebrows, and he unhurriedly asked what seemed to be an ordinary question, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng woke up from his daze, immediately stood up to give Gu Hui Yan a military salute, and neatly stepped back, ¡°Yes Sir.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi waited outside the courtyard for a while before being led to a spacious room by the vige head¡¯s daughter-inw. Although she felt that the gazes of the people around her were a little strange when she entered the house, she didn¡¯t take it to heart. She silentlymented that the vige head¡¯s family really was wealthy, where even the temporary room provided for her was so spacious and warm.


    Lin Wei Xi already told Zhou Mao Cheng on the way here that there was no need to tell Prince Yan about what had happened under Aunt Lin¡¯s roof. It¡¯s not like Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t care about her reputation regarding this kind of shameless thing. She just felt that Prince Yan was her childhood idol, and she didn¡¯t want to tell Prince Yan about her unsavoury personal affairs.


    Lin Wei Xi sat on the soft bedding, thinking back to what had happened that day, and reality finally came crashing in after surviving a disaster. At the moment, she felt a little afraid of what had just happened. Lin Wei Xi fell backward onto the bedding, her nose filled with the unique scent of a sun-dried mattress. She stared at the top of the bed for a while before suddenly bursting into a huge smile.


    Her isted, nightmare-like life was finally over. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t care whether Aunt Lin¡¯s family lived or died from now on. Tomorrow she will get up early and keep an eye on Prince Yan. Anyway, she needed to rely on Prince Yan to take her away. After finding a quiet and simple town, Prince Yan would no longer have anything to do with her. From then on, when Lin Wei Xi copied scriptures and prayed for Lin Yong and her mother, she would definitely burn longevity incense for Prince Yan as well. His son harmed her so terribly, but Lin Wei Xi was only asking for Prince Yan to get her out of this mess, so this shouldn¡¯t be asking for too much right?


    Lin Wei Xi agonized over her thoughts for a while before falling asleep. Since her rebirth, this was a rare instance for her to have a peace of mind, and she slept until dawn. When she opened her eyes and saw the dazzling sunshine outside, her mind was foggy for a moment before she abruptly woke up.


    Oh no! Lin Wei Xi hurriedly tied up her hair and pulled on her clothes before running out. As soon as she opened the door, she saw the man in the yard and was startled.


    Gu Hui Yan turned his head around when he heard the sound. The sun shone on him, colouring him in gold, ¡°You¡¯ve woken up?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stared at him nkly for a moment, and silently closed the door.


    Gu Hui Yan turned back and continuedbing Zhao Xue¡¯s mane, but there was a slight smile on his face. Zhou Mao Cheng was puzzled when he saw this, ¡°What¡¯s up with the Lin girl? Why did she go back?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan only chuckled and shook his head without a word.


    After a while, Lin Wei Xi came out of the room again. This time, her cheeks were clean and her hair was neat. Although she didn¡¯t apply powder, her appearance was more dazzling than the sun. Gu Hui Yan had found her a carriage from who knows where; she raised her chin slightly and boarded the carriage elegantly with the air of a nobledy. When he saw this, his eyes, which had stayed emotionless for many years, smiled. Seeing that everyone was ready, he took the lead and straddled Zhao Xue, his voice clear and majestic, ¡°Move out.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± The response was loud and full of virility, their voices rang in unison, resounding in the sky. It was followed by the orderly sound of men mounting their horses. Zhou Mao Cheng felt it was weird even as he sat down on his horse. What was His Highnessughing at? What was so funny?

 Chapter 6

    T/n: some formatting errors caused parts of this chapter to get deleted without my knowledge. I¡¯ve updated it to include the full chapter so the current version is urate.


    <hr>


    For the first time in a while, Lin Wei Xi sat in a carriage. After a long journey on the bumpy road, it grew noisy outside the carriage. Lin Wei Xi guessed that they¡¯d probably entered the city.


    Sure enough, when the city guards saw Prince Yan¡¯s token, they didn¡¯t dare to check the carriage, and lowered their heads to let Prince Yan¡¯s convoy enter the city. When the county magistrate heard that Prince Yan, who¡¯d clearly said the day before that he was leaving, had actuallye to the county town, he was startled, and hurriedly brought his assistant to wee Prince Yan.


    ¡°Wee Your Highness Prince Yan. My Prince has visited in person, please forgive me for the inadequate wee.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s no problem, get up.¡± Gu Hui Yan loosely grasped the reins as he towered from his position on his horse, and said stoically, ¡°Is there a quiet courtyard nearby?¡±


    Courtyard? How long was Prince Yan actually nning on staying? The county magistrate was a little confused. He nced at the carriage behind Prince Yan and made a random guess that Prince Yan was looking for a quiet courtyard for that person. He heard that Prince Yan had lost his wife nearly ten years ago¡­ The county magistrate¡¯s thoughts only went so far and he didn¡¯t dare think about it further. His attitude became more respectful, ¡°My Prince, we are honoured by your presence in our humble county, how could I dare let you stay outside? My official residence might be small, but if My Prince doesn¡¯t mind, how about staying at my residence.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan quickly nced at the county magistrate. This county magistrate was truly a smooth talker, even in the bureaucratguage. Gu Hui Yan tightened his hold on the reins and said as he soothed the agitated Zhao Xue, ¡°No need, find another house.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s words were t, but the county magistrate immediately heard a danger within it. Cold sweat oozed from his back, and he didn¡¯t dare make any more assertions. He lowered his body and replied, ¡°This lowly official obeys. My Prince, please wait a moment.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt the carriage stop. Although she was alone in the carriage, she sat in ce without lifting the curtain out of curiosity. After a while, the carriage continued moving, and after an estimated few turns, a thump sounded from under the carriage. Zhou Mao Cheng¡¯s voice came from outside the carriage, ¡°Lin girl, you can get off the carriage.¡±


    Actually, ording to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s upbringing, her appearance couldn¡¯t be seen by men other than her father and brother, and the carriage had to stop at the second gate, which led to the main courtyard. It was a breach of etiquette to get on or off a carriage on the street. But this was just a small town, and she no longer had her original identity. In that case, there was no need to be too particr about the rules.


    Lin Wei Xi lifted the corner of her skirt and stepped off the carriage. She looked up and found that they¡¯d stopped in front of a double gated house. Lin Wei Xi felt a little confused by Prince Yan¡¯s train of thought. What did Prince Yan mean?


    Lin Wei Xi snuck a look at Prince Yan as he stood in front of everyone like usual. He was listening to his subordinate report something when he became aware of her gaze, so he raised his hand to stop the subordinate from continuing, and gently nodded to her, ¡°Go inside.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked around and pointed to herself in bewilderment. Gu Hui Yan nodded. She felt ttered and walked in first, with Gu Hui Yan following behind her, and then everyone else.


    They were only staying here temporarily, so Gu Hui Yan only bought a house with two courtyards. The inner yard was entirely left for Lin Wei Xi herself, while Gu Hui Yan stayed in front with his subordinates. If something happened, it would certainly rm them, so her safety was guaranteed.


    Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t brought any luggage when she left that morning. She¡¯d lived in Aunt Lin¡¯s house for six years, but she had very few belongings. The only thing that she had any attachment to were several letters sent by Lin Yong. She¡¯d already packed those a long time ago and was ready to leave at any time. She didn¡¯t want to see Aunt Lin¡¯s family again, so she didn¡¯t go back, and instead entrusted Zhou Mao Cheng with going to Aunt Lin¡¯s house to fetch her things.


    In the end, Aunt Lin was Lin Wei Xi¡¯s blood rtive who¡¯d adopted the original host for six years. She scolded them ferociously, but she actually didn¡¯t know how to deal with them. She didn¡¯t intend to look into the silver taels that Aunt Lin had swiped, and merely regarded it as charity to a beggar, but what Li Da did the day before disgusted her.


    She¡¯d lived this long, but be it as Gao Xi or as Lin Wei Xi, she¡¯d never suffered such humiliation. She was angry beyond words, but now she was without her former identity. She couldn¡¯t do anything to Li Da, and she didn¡¯t know who to turn to for help. Lin Wei Xi contemted the entire situation, but in the end she could only get angry with herself.


    Lin Wei Xi walked to the inner courtyard. As she entered the door, Zhou Mao Cheng took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention and whispered to her, ¡°Lin girl, don¡¯t be afraid. Last night, Uncle beat that kid to a pulp. When I went to pick up your things this morning, the entire family was trembling like a quail, and didn¡¯t even dare to make a sound.¡±


    They were such vulgar words but Lin Wei Xi let out a chuckle. She stoppedughing and said seriously, ¡°Thank you Uncle Zhou.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng felt incredibly smug when he heard the phrase ¡°Uncle Zhou¡±, and hemented that it was better to have a daughter. He could listen to this charming voice and polite manner. It was better than those rascals in his family.


    As Zhou Mao Cheng looked at Lin Wei Xi, he asked on a whim, ¡°Lin girl, it¡¯s not that Uncle wants to take advantage of you, but I¡¯ve taken a liking to a little kid like you. It just so happens that there are a few good-for-nothing boys in my family who are about the same age as you and haven¡¯t married yet. See if you want to marry into Uncle¡¯s family as a daughter-inw or not? So long as you consent, Uncle will let you marry whichever son you want!¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was smiling in the beginning, but when she heard this, her smile slowly stiffened, ¡°Uncle Zhou, thank you for your kindness, but there¡¯s no need¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be polite, as long as you are willing, those small brats in our family earnestly look forward to it.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s really no need¡­¡±


    After bidding farewell to a disappointed Zhou Mao Cheng, Lin Wei Xi turned around and walked into the building. After entering, she heaved a heavy sigh.


    Did she seem anxious to marry? Why did everyone want to act as a matchmaker? Even Zhou Mao Cheng nned to force this on his son.


    Lin Wei Xi slowly sat down on the chair<sup>¡ó</sup>, looking at the thin cracks on the round table made of pear wood, lost in thought.


    ¡ó


    Prince Yan rushing back to the capital should be because of Gu Cheng Yao. It¡¯s true that she used to be blinded by her family background, and really thought that because she was proficient in Four Arts<sup>¡ó</sup>, she would also be good at managing the household. Furthermore, she¡¯d thought that others spoke highly of her because they really liked her. But once she broke out of her family¡¯s influence, her true colours were exposed.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi smiled bitterly. When she thought about it, if she were a man, she also wouldn¡¯t like herself, an overbearing woman who relied on her family background and grandmother. That¡¯s why, if she was really grateful to Zhou Mao Cheng, she couldn¡¯t marry into his family and bring them harm.


    Zhou Mao Cheng watched Lin Wei Xi enter the house in disappointment before returning to the front courtyard with a deep sigh. Gu Hui Yan was handling urgent matters in the temporary study. When he heard Zhou Mao Cheng sigh, he raised his head and nced up without stopping the brush in his hand, and asked off-handedly, ¡°What the problem?¡±


    ¡°That Lin girl is smart and articte. In the future, she will bring prosperity to the family that she marries into. I brazenly acted as matchmaker for my sons, but she refused. Sigh, although I expected it, it¡¯s still a pity¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yanughed lightly. That girl wasn¡¯t only intelligent, but also courageous and high-spirited. If the man wasn¡¯t capable, he couldn¡¯t possibly rein her in. Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t surprised that Zhou Mao Cheng had been rejected, because just the day prior, he¡¯d barely touched the topic before she butt heads with him.


    But speaking of Lin Wei Xi bringing prosperity to the family, Gu Hui Yan was reminded of another matter. He¡¯d personally written a letter to Princess Royal Shou Kang to bring in a daughter-inw, but the girl had died of illness at the end of the previous year.


    Gu Hui Yan remembered that this daughter-inw was called Gao Xi. In all fairness, Gu Hui Yan was quite satisfied with this daughter-inw. It¡¯s just a pity that things were not meant to be, and it couldn¡¯t be forced.


    Shen Shi had been dead for ten years, and the old Princess Consort had also died a long time ago. The only two men who remained in the Prince Yan Residence were Gu Hui Yan and Gu Cheng Yao. There wasn¡¯t a mistress to care for the home, and each of their marriages had been dyed year after year. Gu Hui Yan himself didn¡¯t want to remarry, so of course he couldn¡¯t be bothered with Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s marriage matters. So when Gu Cheng Yao suddenly sent him one half of a fish-shaped jade pendant and asked him to find the owner of the jade pendant, he was surprised.


    Gu Cheng Yao was only sixteen years old but he already knew how to find a wife for himself? Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t really care about family status, so no matter what status the woman had, it would all be the same in the face of his household. Since Gu Cheng Yao liked her, then as his father he didn¡¯t need to dampen his enthusiasm. However, at that time, Gu Hui Yan was in the midst of quelling the Dugt tribe¡¯s rebellion. He didn¡¯t have the time to investigate some woman¡¯s jade pendant, so he wrote a letter and sent it back to the capital together with the jade pendant, entrusting Princess Royal Shou Kang with finding the woman.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was Gu Hui Yan¡¯s paternal aunt. Back then, when the previous Prince Yan hadn¡¯t yet moved to his vassal state, Princess Shou Kang took care of him, so the previous Prince Yan and Princess Consort greatly cared about their friendship with Princess Shou Kang. Later on, when Gu Hui Yan suddenly emerged with a force to be reckoned with, his power greatly surpassing that of the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence, he didn¡¯t sever contact with the Princess Royal Residence. The two families were quite close, and Gu Hui Yan was also very courteous to his aunt.


    Gu Hui Yan was busy, so naturally he entrusted Princess Royal Shou Kang with finding the woman. The Princess Royal lived in the capital, and she made frequent contact with the women there, so it was better to have the Princess Royal find someone than Gu Hui Yan. But he didn¡¯t expect that after he sent the letter, the Princess Royal sent back a reply almost immediately, and along with the letter came the other half of the fish-shaped jade pendant.


    So such a coincidence could actually ur. The woman Gu Cheng Yao wanted to find just so happened to be the granddaughter of Princess Royal Shou Kang. After receiving the reply, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t say a word, immediately took out his official seal, and sincerely asked for his son to marry the granddaughter of the Princess Royal, Gao Xi.


    Everyone in the capital knew what happened after. The Duke Ying Residence and the Prince Yan Residence were joined together by their marriage, two joyful events urring in session. Gu Hui Yan had one less thing to worry about, so he went back to concentrating on dealing with the war in the Northwest, and stopped paying attention to what happened in the residence.


    Gu Hui Yan was very clear about the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence¡¯s situation. Princess Shou Kang had been favoured before she went into decline and her husband ced third in the national civil exams during the Chengwu era. The emperor¡¯s son-inw couldn¡¯t be an official once he married into the imperial family, and Princess Shou Kang¡¯s Husband<sup>¡ó</sup>was a schr with no particr foundation for his career. It was an honour to marry a princess, but he had to choose between his career prospects or marrying the Princess. The Princess¡¯ Husband had no official career, so he had no choice but to rely on the Princess¡¯s dignity. As for Princess Shou Kang, she had a rather strong personality.


    ¡ó


    Consequently, Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s only daughter, Wei Shi, was influenced by the way her parents interacted. After marrying into the Duke Ying Residence, she refused to swallow her pride and suffered a lot under the concubine¡¯s deceitful ways. Wei Shi¡¯s daughter, Gao Xi, couldn¡¯t ept her mother¡¯s situation. She waspetitive from a young age and had to be the best at whatever she did out of all her sisters, even brothers. In Gu Hui Yan¡¯s opinion, a woman having a strong personality wasn¡¯t a bad thing. On the contrary, if Gu Cheng Yao actually took a liking to those kinds of gentle and frail women, he would really worry about the Prince Yan Residence and it¡¯srge family business. Furthermore, Gao Xi stayed at the Princess Shou Kang Residence most of the time. Since she had the Princess Royal¡¯s guidance, Gu Hui Yan felt very relieved.


    But he didn¡¯t expect that in the short time he wasn¡¯t paying attention to the affairs of the residence, the next time he received a letter, it informed him of the news of Gao Xi¡¯s death.


    Although it was very disrespectful to say this about the deceased but¡­ wasn¡¯t this too quick? But what caused Gu Hui Yan to frown in particr was the fact that Gu Cheng Yao had handed over the obituary along with the deceased. The Duke Ying Residence intended to let Gao Xi¡¯s shu sister, Gao Ran, marry in as his second wife. And he¡¯d already consented.


    Gu Hui Yan hadn¡¯t said anything at the time, but everyone who was present knew that Prince Yan was very upset about his son¡¯s remarriage.


    He didn¡¯t know why Lin Wei Xi reminded him of his former daughter-inw. When Zhou Mao Cheng saw that Gu Hui Yan¡¯s face was a little sombre, he suddenly swallowed his unspoken grumble. He looked at Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression and carefully said, ¡°My Prince, did Shizi send that letter?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan sighed slightly: ¡°A letter was just sent from the capital, his marriage to the third miss of Duke Ying Residence is scheduled for next month.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi hade over to express her thanks to Prince Yan when she happened to hear this as she walked past the window.


    Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran would be married next month.

 Chapter 7

    Lin Wei Xi passed by the window and happened to hear Prince Yan say that Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran¡¯s wedding was scheduled for next month.


    Lin Wei Xi thought that she didn¡¯t give a damn anymore, but when she heard the words, the smile on her face stiffened.


    She¡¯d died of depression in the twelfth month, and in only a few days, Gu Cheng Yao wanted to marry someone else?


    She was the eldest di granddaughter of Duke Ying. Lin Wei Xi could ept it if Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t like her, but what about the Duke Ying Residence? What about her father and grandmother? They would actually let him do this? Perhaps they were anxious to have Gao Ran marry into the family as soon as possible, so as to not ruin the hard-earned marriage alliance between the Prince Yan Residence and the Duke Ying Residence because of Gao Xi¡¯s failure.


    The corners of her eyes reddened for no apparent reason. Her mother, Wei Shi, died when she was ten years old, and subsequently, she lived in her grandmother¡¯s Princess Residence a majority of the time. She thought that she was quite indifferent to her former rtives. There still had to be some fondness between rtives, but since the Duke Ying Shizi didn¡¯t like his di daughter, then she also wouldn¡¯t be close to him or respect him. It was fine as long as both sides were even. But how could they trample all over her dignity like this? Was it because she was already dead and couldn¡¯t know about their actions, and with no mother to speak up for her, that they became so unscrupulous?


    Unfortunately for them, she hadn¡¯t died, but returned as a new person.


    The guard outside the study already saw Lin Wei Xi, and the conversation in the study instantly stopped.


    Lin Wei Xi forced a neutral expression and smiled as she walked,¡±Is His Highness Prince Yan here?¡±


    Before the guard could report her presence, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s deep and clear voice floated from the room, ¡°Let her in.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi entered and saw Zhou Mao Cheng standing on the side, his head hanging slightly and his expression a bit unnatural.


    Speaking of the Gu family¡¯s Shizi, it was best not to say anything, even for a trusted aide like Zhou Mao Cheng.


    Zhou Mao Cheng lowered his head and said nothing. Prince Yan treated them generously, but it didn¡¯t mean they could advise Prince Yan on his family matters. Because Shizi had a father like Prince Yan, he¡¯d lived his life like a proud son of heaven from a young age. Right now, he was only marrying a new wife, which wasn¡¯t a big deal. Prince Yan could be dissatisfied, but that didn¡¯t apply to the rest of them.


    Lin Wei Xi harboured some small inexplicable evil intentions in her heart, and purposely asked, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, Uncle Zhou, what were you talking about just now? Who is getting married?¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng nced at Gu Hui Yan and found that Prince Yan didn¡¯t intend to hide anything, so he exined to her, ¡°The only son of my Prince, our Prince Yan Residence¡¯s Shizi, is getting married.¡±


    ¡°Oh, is this his first wife? Congrattions to the young couple.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng was a little embarrassed, ¡°It¡¯s his second wife.¡±


    He awkwardly exined it to Lin Wei Xi, and she pretended to listen. Neither of them noticed that Gu Hui Yan had nced furtively at her. It swept past her fleetingly, but it contained a frightening sort of inquiry and insight. When most people heard that someone was going to get married, they wouldn¡¯t think about whether or not this was their first partner. But when she asked about it, it was as if she already knew this wasn¡¯t his first partner.


    Gu Hui Yan only nced at her briefly before looking away, his expression still unhappy. On the other end, Lin Wei Xi finally ¡°understood¡± the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s situation, and sighed, ¡°So the young master of the Prince Yan Residence is marrying his wife¡¯s sister. How unexpected. Is the young master of the Prince Yan Residence very old? Prince Yan is so young, so I thought Shizi was also quite young.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan was already thinking about what had just happened, but when he heard this, he couldn¡¯t help butugh lightly and smile at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Your ttery is too obvious. Why don¡¯t you practise properly before trying again next time.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s heart felt prickly. She¡¯d been caught red handed by her ex-husband¡¯s father, so it was inevitable that she felt embarrassed. She rolled her eyes and red unconvincingly at Gu Hui Yan, ¡°What I said is true! Uncle Zhou, what do you think?¡±


    Strangely, Zhou Mao Cheng felt goosebumps all over his body. He grimaced and forced himself to nod, ¡°That¡¯s right, my Prince is young and strong, while Shizi is at the prime of his life.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled softly, and the atmosphere in the room instantly rxed.


    Gu Hui Yan was in a much better mood. Zhou Mao Cheng sighed in relief before he dared to speak, ¡°My Prince, Shizi specially wrote to request that you attend the wedding. Thest time we were in the north-west suppressing the uprising, so we couldn¡¯t make it in time. Although Shizi didn¡¯t say anything, he definitely looked forward to seeing you. This time, it wasn¡¯t easy to have this opportunity¡­ My Prince, this subordinate knows that you aren¡¯t satisfied with this marriage, but what¡¯s done is done. At the end of the day, Shizi likes her¡­ ¡°


    When Lin Wei Xi heard this, she couldn¡¯t help but criticize, ¡°It seems that I¡¯m not knowledgeable. Wasn¡¯t Prince Yan¡¯s expedition something that happened in thest one to two years? He missed Shizi¡¯s first wedding, but he¡¯ll actually able to make it to the second one.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng was rendered speechless by Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words, his face flushing. Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t at all annoyed. Instead, he smiled as he looked at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You seem very hostile towards Gu Cheng Yao, even getting snapping about his marriage. You don¡¯t know him, do you?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt horrified that she¡¯d carelessly exposed her inner most thoughts. How could she have forgotten that the person standing in front of her was the all mighty Prince Yan. She¡¯d let her emotions leak into her words and had unexpectedly been caught by him.


    Anyhow, she¡¯d also been the mistress in charge of a household before. Her expression remained unchanged and she deliberately acted arrogantly, ¡°Of course I¡¯m hostile to him. You already promised me that you would find a ce to settle me first before returning to the capital. But now this one letter is calling for you to leave! What am I supposed to do?¡±


    Her exnation was reasonable. Gu Hui Yan epted it and let it go with a slight smile. Zhou Mao Cheng¡¯s heart beat fluctuated wildly. He¡¯d been frightened so many times in such a short period, and he now looked at Lin Wei Xi in a new light. Was it because she was fearless in her ignorance or was it out of pure luck that she dared talk to Prince Yan in this manner? What was even more terrifying was that Prince Yan didn¡¯t seem to mind.


    Zhou Mao Chengmented for a while, then looked away before trying again, ¡°My Prince, about Shizi¡­¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to talk about this anymore. I¡¯m not going back.¡± Gu Hui Yan put his brush down on the desk. His expression clearly didn¡¯t change, but the temperature in the room suddenly dropped, ¡°His first wife died of illness less than a month ago, but he wants to remarry, and he actually scheduled the wedding for the second month this year. Did he ever consider ??Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s opinion? He¡¯s already so old, but he¡¯s still so naive and reckless.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng attempted to speak up for Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°Shizi is still young, how can he take interpersonal rtionships into ount¡­ ¡°


    ¡°Young? He¡¯s already seventeen this year. When I was seventeen, I took over the title of Prince Yan and the entire Prince Yan Residence. Take a good look at him and see what he¡¯s done.¡±


    Sure enough, Zhou Mao Cheng couldn¡¯t think of anything to say. As a matter of fact, no matter who it was, a seventeen year old was still a teenager. Not to mention, for a noble son in the capital, he was a talented, handsome and elegant young man in the prime of his life. But who asked Shizi¡¯s father, the Prince Yan, Gu Hui Yan, to be so famous at such a young age, his halo too bright. He entered the battlefield at fifteen and at the age of sixteen, he fought a splendid battle that brought him fame. Since then, he rose to fame and cemented himself as a household name. After that, at seventeen, he became Dazhou¡¯s youngest first-rank Prince. At twenty-five, he already made outstanding military achievements and became the emperor¡¯s most trusted subject and nephew. At twenty-seven he supported the King onto the throne, and at twenty-nine he became the Regent Minister. Right now Prince Yan was only thirty-three years old, but he was already renowned throughout the country, and not a single person didn¡¯t know who he was.


    Under the halo of his father, Gu Cheng Yao appeared to be reallycking. His performance in these recent years was quite praise-worthy, and as part of the younger generation of the capital, he was one of the most outstanding. But he wasn¡¯t much to look atpared to his father.


    That¡¯s why Gu Hui Yan was dissatisfied with him, and Zhou Mao Cheng couldn¡¯t say a word. When Lin Wei Xi heard that Prince Yan wouldn¡¯t attend Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran¡¯s wedding, she almost couldn¡¯t hold back her smile.


    They were already on the way back but decided to avoid it and not go. It was different from not being able to return in time because of the war. Lin Wei Xi hurriedly lowered her head to conceal her gloating. On the other hand, Zhou Mao Cheng was a loyal subject and couldn¡¯t help but overstep his boundaries by persuading, ¡°My Prince, this subordinate knows that you have high hopes for Shizi, but Shizi is young after all. He¡¯s not like us, who have fought our way through the mes of war and developed bodies of steel through training. Shizi has always admired you, but it¡¯s a pity that because of the war, you¡¯re always separated and rarely have time together. This trip back to the capital is a rare chance for you to spend more time with him and get along. Even if you¡¯re dissatisfied, you still have to exin it to him.¡±


    After listening, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t give his opinion, speak nor get angry. However, this kind of behaviour was scarier than anger. Zhou Mao Cheng didn¡¯t dare say anything, and looked pleadingly at Lin Wei Xi for help, ¡°Lin girl, why don¡¯t you say something?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi sneered to herself. He wanted her help with persuading? Her ex-husband and her shu sister were getting married. Was he counting on her as the older sister to bless their true love? He was daydreaming. Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s father and Gao Ran¡¯s future father-inw stood in front of her right now. If she didn¡¯t take advantage of this god given opportunity to make trouble for them, then it would be a waste of this life!


    ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, you are doing the right thing. If your child is in the wrong, he should be punished. You can¡¯t spoil him! He is already so old, what can he not tolerate? Without your protection, can he not endure others talking bad about him?¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng looked at Lin Wei Xi in astonishment, and Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t hold back hisughter, ¡°You really do hate him. Forget it, I¡¯ll listen to you and not indulge him this time. But how is a child like you so mature? You¡¯re one year younger than Gu Cheng Yao, but your tone of voice is the same as his elders when instructing.¡±


    At first, she wasn¡¯t happy that she¡¯d been called a ¡° child¡±, but when she saw the relief on the faces of those around her, she guessed that Prince Yan¡¯sughter was a rarity. At the very least, it proved that nothing bad would happen. Through a strange series of events, she¡¯d unexpectedly helped Gu Cheng Yao. She was very begrudging, but she couldn¡¯t cross the line. Prince Yan was kind to her and it wouldn¡¯t make sense to provoke him again.


    Gu Hui Yan saw the reluctance on her face and increasingly felt that this little girl had a very vibrant personality, like she was from apletely different world from a stale person like him. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t want to embarrass her too much, so he asked, ¡°I didn¡¯t ask you just now, but what are you doing here?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi almost forgot about why she was here, and she quickly said, ¡°Ie here especially to express my thanks to Your Highness Prince Yan! Thank you for upholding justice for me, and thank you for taking me out of that wolf¡¯s den.¡±


    It was just a small issue so Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t take it to heart. He hinted to Zhou Mao Cheng with his gaze, and Zhou Mao Cheng stepped down. Once everyone else left the study, Gu Hui Yan discussed Lin Wei Xi¡¯s personal affairs with her, ¡°Your aunt is too greedy and isn¡¯t suitable. I sent someone to investigate Li Yuan Wai, and his son is indecisive and an embarrassment. You were right in not wanting to marry into these two families. Although this county town is very small, it¡¯s good that it¡¯s close to your hometown. If you get married here, you can pass your days in peace and avoid being harassed by the Li vige. I had the county magistrate produce a name list of young men.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt extremely disillusioned, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, what are you doing?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan sighed and looked helplessly at her, ¡°You were angry yesterday, so I let you do what you wanted. But you¡¯re a blossoming young woman, are you really going to tend to the oilmp of the Buddha statue alone for the rest of your life?¡±


    ¡°Why can¡¯t I?¡± Lin Wei Xi looked at Gu Hui Yan, not knowing why she started tearing up, ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t be like this. I respect you from the bottom of my heart, but why are you also forcing this on me?¡±


    After she finished speaking, she didn¡¯t dare to look back at the expression on Gu Hui Yan¡¯s face. She turned around and quickly rushed out of the room. Zhou Mao Cheng, who was guarding the door, was shocked when he saw Lin Wei Xi rush out with reddened eyes, ¡°Lin Girl, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t say a word and charged straight ahead. Zhou Mao Cheng paused and looked into the study to see Gu Hui Yan pressing his temple.


    Zhou Mao Cheng looked at the expressions of the two people, the drama that yed in his head scaring him to death. He stood at the door and carefully asked, ¡°My Prince, what happened with Miss Lin?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan had sighed more times that day than in the past year, ¡°She used me of forcing her to marry.¡±


    So that was it. Aiyo, it scared him to death. Zhou Mao Cheng breathed a sigh of relief. He thought about what happened the day before, and after a moment, he steeled himself to tell Prince Yan.


    After Zhou Mao Cheng finished exining the situation with Li Da, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression couldn¡¯t get any uglier. His face was frigid and he could barely conceal the anger in his voice, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say anything yesterday?¡±


    ¡°She is such a sensitive little girl, she wouldn¡¯t want others to know about this kind of thing.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan thought about it and suddenly pitied her. He only knew she¡¯d lost her temper and was making a fuss about not wanting to marry. As a matter of fact, something like this had happened to her in private. A single weak woman like her was helpless in the face of this kind of situation. It¡¯s no wonder she was so opposed to getting married. Gu Hui Yan sighed internally, but the words that he said were cold and not reflective of his emotions, ¡°Call Gu Ming Da in.¡±


    Gu Ming Da was Prince Yan¡¯s right-hand man. When he heard that, Zhou Mao Cheng knew that Prince Yan was truly pissed off this time. These past few years, Prince Yan had a high position that came with many responsibilities, so he increasingly restrained his emotions. He rarely showed emotion, and the fact that Aunt Lin¡¯s family could do so was a talent in and of itself.

 Chapter 8

    After Lin Wei Xi shouted those words at Prince Yan, she rushed off towards the inner courtyard. Only after returning to her room did her emotions finally settle.


    She also didn¡¯t know why she¡¯d suddenly exploded like that. Maybe it was because her past life and that heavenly book had a firm hold on her during this period of time, and after her encounter with Li Dast night, her pent up emotions suddenly exploded. Or it could be because the person who said those words was Prince Yan. If it were anyone else, she could¡¯ve convinced them with reason, but this was Prince Yan.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t light themp, and sat there daydreaming as the room gradually darkened to the point where she couldn¡¯t even see the bedside cab. She was in a daze when a knock suddenly sounded from the door, ¡°Miss Lin, are you in there?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi returned to her senses. She¡¯d never heard this voice before; why was it outside her door? However, no matter how pissed off she may be, she was convinced that Prince Yan would guarantee her safety, so she didn¡¯t think too much and stood to open the door.


    Outside the door stood a girl with her hair in twin buns, around seventeen or eighteen years old. Looking at her clothes, she seemed to be a maid. Seeing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s clear look of shock, the visitor realized she¡¯d been rude and quickly bowed her head in greeting, ¡°Miss Lin, this servant is Wan Yue, here to attend to Miss Lin by order of the Prince.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at the girl, her eyes shifting faintly, ¡°Prince Yan asked you toe?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi pursed her lips. She didn¡¯t know what Prince Yan meant. The unpleasant scene from earlier was actually her fault. From a worldly perspective, he only did this for her own good; it was she who failed to appreciate it. Lin Wei Xi herself was still conflicted about whether to go over and apologize, but Prince Yan had sent someone over in an instant, as if what had happened earlier didn¡¯t bother him. He didn¡¯t care, so she should¡¯ve felt relieved, but her feelings regarding this issue were veryplicated. It made her feel like she was insignificant to him, like she was just an ignorant, unwanted step-child who needed to be settled down.


    Lin Wei Xi immediatelyughed at herself. She didn¡¯t have any rtionship with Prince Yan, and the fact that he¡¯d brought her with him was a testament to his benevolence and attention to duty. When they reached the next town, she ought to voluntarily retreat. Prince Yan still had important things to do in the capital, not to mention, Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s wedding would happen soon. He merely said the words, but how could he actually not attend the wedding? If she knew how to be tactful, she ought not burden Prince Yan.


    Hence, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t say anything, and only nodded before stepping aside, ¡°Come on in. Where are you from?¡±


    ¡°This servant is from Shunde and used to wait on the county magistrate official¡¯s youngdy. Prince Yanmanded that this servant be bought from the mansion and sent this servant to serve Miss Lin.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s forehead almost started dripping in sweat, ¡°You were the personal maid of the county magistrate¡¯s precious daughter?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t be considered a personal maid, it was just some manualbour.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had managed a household for many years, and one look at Wan Yue¡¯s speech and conduct told her this maid had to have had a very important position in her master¡¯s house. Considering the difference between this small town and the capital, it definitely took a lot of effort to groom a capable maid like Wan Yue, who was probably a secret weapon that the county magistrate Lady had prepared for her daughters. No one expected Prince Yan to just ask for it. This was actually considered very rude in a wealthy family. After all, the maid who served the youngdy represented her mistress¡¯ honour. Prince Yan¡¯s behaviour was¡­ too high handed.


    Lin Wei Xi thought about it, and couldn¡¯t be bothered. The maid wouldn¡¯t be returning to her previous master, and it was very important to have a clever maid by her side. Besides, it was Prince Yan who¡¯d personally stepped in, why not just sit back and enjoy it?


    Lin Wei Xi asked Wan Yue a few more questions, and set it aside after understanding the situation.


    Although Lin Wei Xi received Prince Yan¡¯s kindness, she still felt awkward. He didn¡¯t argue with her, and even sent her a capable maid. Thus, shouldn¡¯t Lin Wei Xi take the initiative and admit her mistake? After all, although he seemed easy to talk to, he was also a Prince with overwhelming power and was themander of the three armies, with outstanding military aplishments. Not to mention, when the Dugt tribe rebelled the previous year, they tried to provoke Prince Yan, and after they were defeated, the male tribe members were exterminated. This had beenmanded by Prince Yan himself.


    His easy going personality was just a facade, and Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t dare offend such a person.


    The next morning, Lin Wei Xi dilly-dallied as she walked to the front courtyard to look for Prince Yan. Zhou Mao Cheng was bustling about when he saw her, and he called out to her from a distance, ¡°Lin Girl, why are you up so early?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi blushed. Because she¡¯d been frightened the previous day, she had a rare good night¡¯s rest after calming down, so she only awoke when the sun was high in the sky, even though she was usually very well-educated and wouldn¡¯t do such inappropriate things. The one time she overslept, she ran into Prince Yan. Not only did she trouble everyone by having them wait for her for a long time, she also appeared in front of Prince Yan with an unkempt appearance. Lin Wei Xi felt embarrassed at the thought of what happened that day. On top of that, Zhou Mao Cheng actually shouted so loudly in front of so many people.


    Lin Wei Xi smiled stiffly, ¡°Uncle Zhou, you¡¯re mistaken. I got up a long time ago.¡± She was afraid that Zhou Mao Cheng would question her again, and quickly changed the subject, ¡°Uncle Zhou, what are you doing?¡±


    Sure enough, he changed the subject and said, ¡°I was ordered by the Prince to acquire something. If you dislike how noisy they are, you can return to the inner courtyard to rest.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi guessed that Prince Yan was taking advantage of the time he had to replenish the items needed for the journey. This was a serious matter for his troops. She understood her ce, so she didn¡¯t ask., and secretly nced in the direction of the study to find it nketed in silence.


    Zhou Mao Cheng noticed her actions, clearly understood it, and asked, ¡°Are you looking for the Prince?¡±


    Since she¡¯d been discovered, she didn¡¯t hide it and conveniently admitted, ¡°I want to ask His Highness Prince Yan something regarding my father.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng immediately sighed when he heard that it was about Lin Yong, and he looked at her with increasing pity in his eyes, ¡°My Prince left early this morning. If you have something to say to him, it¡¯ll be better to wait.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi gave in. She was very self-aware, and smiled at this, ¡°I understand, thank you Uncle Zhou.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng looked at the expression on her face and almost let it slip what Prince Yan went to do that day, but he worried about how sensitive she would be. After all, this event would harm her reputation, so he dropped it.


    Lin Wei Xi hid her sigh of relief when she learned that Prince Yan wasn¡¯t in and returned to the inner courtyard so as not to disturb Zhou Mao Cheng¡¯s work. However, it was as if she¡¯d been born to worry. When she was ten, she was taken to the Princess Royal Residence, and at noon everyday, she shadowed her grandmother when managing the Princess Residence¡¯s household affairs and external businesses. When Princess Royal Shou Kang saw that Lin Wei Xi enjoyed handling these things, she prepared many estates and shops for her dowry. When she got engaged to Gu Cheng Yao at fourteen, the Princess Royal passed these properties to her in advance and let her manage her own dowry.


    Later, she married into the Prince Yan Residence. Although she became the Shizi Fei, she didn¡¯t have a mother-inw or a grandmother-inw, so she managed the daily operations of the Prince Yan Residence herself. She had long grown ustomed to issuing orders and managing the operation and personnel. When she became Lin Wei Xiter on, the chattering by her ears suddenly turned quiet, but she was still not quite used to it. When she lived with Aunt Lin previously, she wouldn¡¯t speak unless it was necessary, but listening to the activity outside right now made it really difficult for her to sit still.


    Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t stand it any longer, and took Wan Yue to the front courtyard to check out the excitement. Before she knew it, she was already directing Prince Yan¡¯s subordinates. Zhou Mao Cheng returned from shopping with some others, and even he didn¡¯t know whether this was a good or bad thing, so he made do with his shopping. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t stand idly by and watch, unable to resist giving an order or two. Gradually, the situation turned into something like this: she would say something, anyone who was avable would listen, before theyboured to move the items.


    These were mostly military men, reticent and preferring to take action over talking, and they were much stronger than those treacherous old vixens from the back courtyard, so Lin Wei Xi¡¯s management went exceptionally smoothly. Zhou Mao Cheng also felt that working while relying on strength alone was truly too easy; he and a few others silently breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at herposed posture and sighed to himself once more. This kid Lin Wei Xi was articte and arranged the housework in an orderly manner. At a nce, it seemed like she¡¯de from a prosperous household. Understandably, no matter who married her, their family business could only flourish in the future. It was a pity that none of his sons had such a blessing.


    Gu Hui Yan returned with his subordinates at dusk. His trusted aide had already reported to him on the way back about the going ons in the courtyard that day. When Gu Hui Yan heard how Lin Wei Xi had criticized the way things were run and showed her capabilities, he smiled softly.


    That was good; she was intelligent and had an outspoken personality. No matter who she marries in the future, Gu Hui Yan need not worry about her being taken advantage of for money. After all, Lin Yong had died to save him. So long as it was within his power, he, too, wanted Lin Yong¡¯s only remaining bloodline to live in a carefree and idyllic manner for the rest of her life.


    When Lin Wei Xi heard that Prince Yan was back, she struggled for a long time before bringing Wan Yue with her to greet him in the end.


    Be it during her past life or with regards to Lin Yong, Gu Hui Yan was her elder, unquestioningly. As a junior, she ought to pay her respects to Prince Yan, and apologize for the previous day¡¯s mistakes while she was at it. As an elder, Prince Yan definitely wouldn¡¯t embarrass an ignorant junior like her.


    This time, Lin Wei Xi had just walked into the study, when the guard at the door spotted her and let her in without reporting her presence. Gu Hui Yan was unsurprised by Lin Wei Xi¡¯s arrival. He appeared to be busy with official duties, and pointed towards a pear wood armchair, saying, ¡°Sit down first and wait for a while.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi sat down obediently. Even when in front of Duke Ying, she was unwilling to obey him and refused to obediently receive a lecture. However, when facing Gu Hui Yan, she had no temper at all, and she didn¡¯t know the reason why.


    Gu Hui Yan lowered his eyes to read the letter. When Lin Wei Xi saw him lost in concentration, she became curious and waited for him to close the letter, and couldn¡¯t resist asking, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, whose letter is this for you to be so focused?¡±


    His hand stopped moving, and he nced at her with a spark of interest,¡±How do you know that I¡¯m focused?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s quite simple. Thest time I was here, you read the letter very quickly, but this letter took you almost twice as long as thest time.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled lightly with a look of approval, ¡°You are astute in your observation.¡± She¡¯d only been here twice, but she could identify such a subtle difference. Of course, an old subordinate like Gu Ming Da could also get a feel for something like this, but considering Lin Wei Xi¡¯s age and experience, this wasmendable.


    She felt ttered after suddenly receiving praise from Prince Yan. He also easily answered her previous question, ¡°It¡¯s from Zhang Jiang Ling.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi thought for a moment, and was astounded, ¡°Grand Secretary Zhang?¡±


    Zhang Xiao Lian¡¯s ethnic origins were from Jiangling, so he was also known as Zhang Jiang Ling. This wasn¡¯t a secret within the official circles, but what about Lin Wei Xi?


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. He set aside his things, like an easy-going uncle humouring his ignorant niece: ¡°It¡¯s him.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was frightened. She stared with wide-eyed reverence at the letter that Gu Hui Yan had folded randomly, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, I only said it off-handedly. I don¡¯t dare interrupt your work. You should go back to reading the Grand Secretary¡¯s letter first.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the rush?¡± ??Gu Hui Yan appeared easygoing, like the world renowned Grand Secretary was nothing more than an ordinary schr to him.


    Lin Wei Xi realized that she¡¯d actually dyed the response to the Grand Secretary¡¯s letter, and she immediately couldn¡¯t sit still. She also realized at that moment that Gu Hui Yan was one of the three Regent Ministers, the most trusted out of the three, and possessed military power. She used to think these titles only sounded morous in the past, but now she truly understood what they meant.


    To Lin Wei Xi, the Grand Secretary was like a distant character in a stage y, but to Gu Hui Yan, he was nothing more than a colleague who often wrote letters.


    She was speechless from shock, and when he saw that she was terrified, he spoke first and changed the subject, ¡°I heard that Zhou Mao Cheng finished the shopping today, and you also contributed a lot.¡±


    ¡°I dare not take any credit, all I did was try out some small ideas.¡± Lin Wei Xi felt more rxed when talking about this topic, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, are you setting off soon?¡±


    ¡°More or less. This house was originally bought for you, and I had intended to settle your major life events before heading back to the capital. But since you don¡¯t want to marry, there¡¯s no need to wait.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi sighed softly. She felt somewhat guilty, so she said to Gu Hui Yan with her head lowered, ¡°Thank you, My Prince.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, it¡¯s because I didn¡¯t properly think it through. Even if I leave you with more self-protection, this ce is too far from the capital and it will eventually be beyond my reach. The county magistrate will behave for a while, but after a period of time, I¡¯m afraid he will make trouble for you. A single weak woman like you simply can¡¯t contend with those government officials, so instead of making you worry about your safety all the time, it¡¯s better to put you in a ce where I can see you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was grateful at first; Prince Yan was such a good person. But as she listened to his words, she gradually felt that something was wrong, ¡°Prince Yan, what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t Zhou Mao Cheng pass you the eyebrow powder? The road will be bumpy, we should thoroughly prepare while we still can so that you will feel at ease on our journey.¡±


    Her eyes widened in surprise, and her small cherry lips opened slightly, ¡°Could it be that you¡¯re thinking of bringing me to the capital?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked at her strangely, his tone absolute, ¡°Of course. You are still observing filial mourning to your father, which isn¡¯t as urgent as getting married. You can take it easy and live in the Prince Yan Residence for as long as you want. The Prince Yan Residence won¡¯t be stingy with it¡¯s spending.¡±

 Chapter 9

    You can take it easy and live in the Prince Yan Residence for as long as you want.


    This sentence seemed to linger in her mind, and she stared nkly, rooted to the spot. When she came to her senses, she tly denied, ¡°No way.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, but his eyes concealed a deeply hidden indescribable inquiry, ¡°Why?¡±


    No matter what Lin Wei Xi said, how could she tell him that his son was actually her husband in her past life, and that his soon to be daughter-inw was her shu sister? She¡¯d already been sufficiently tortured by these two people, and now she had to return again under another identity?


    Lin Wei Xi refused without even having to think about it, ¡°Prince Yan, this isn¡¯t appropriate. I have no rtions with the Prince Yan Residence. What would it look like if I lived in your residence without a good reason? Plus, your new daughter-inw is about to marry into the household, would she not mind it if I, an outsider, stayed there?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked at her with calm eyes and a faint smile, ¡°If I say you can take it easy and live, then you can. My word isw, and if someone speaks out of turn, tell me about it no matter who they are.¡±


    A chill ran down Lin Wei Xi¡¯s back when she heard the phrase ¡®no matter who they are.¡¯ Prince Yan was referring to Gao Ran, right? Indeed, a lone orphan woman living in another person¡¯s house naturally invited a lot of trouble. It was understandable for the mistress of the household to feel unhappy. Lin Wei Xi had been a daughter-inw before, so she understood this. But if the person in charge was Prince Yan, his word wasw and they would just have to endure.


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly realized the irony of the situation. It seemed like not too long ago that she was painstakingly managing the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s household duties, dealing with the two-faced servants and silently enduring all manner of insults. But in the blink of an eye, she went from being the tortured party to being the privileged party.


    The world worked in mysterious ways and the root of all this was resolved with a single sentence from the person in front of her


    Lin Wei Xi sighed and finally shook her head, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, I appreciate your kindness. But I only wish to live peacefully; it¡¯s enough for me to live my life with a sound mind and body. The Prince Yan Residence¡¯s status is too high and I am unsuitable to go.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re unsuitable to go? Why do I get the feeling that you just don¡¯t want to go?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt an abrupt and unspeakable pressure. This was Prince Yan. When speaking to him, there was not a trace of the haughty manner of Prince Yan. Hisugh was clear as water, like stepping in the shallow waters of a beach, like a refreshing spring breeze that put one¡¯s mind at ease. But then you suddenly realize that you were bound by the deep ocean, the surface calm as before. However, when it was ready, it could set off terrifying waves. Lin Wei Xi was now the one being drowned by the water over and over again.


    She internally scolded herself for being pig-headed. She¡¯d already messed up once the day before, so how could she expose her weakness again today. She put on the act of a little miss from the countryside who was resisting staying at the residence of a high-ranking official, and deliberately said rudely, ¡°I went to the capital when I was ten; there are so many carriages and people. The clothes that people casually wear on the street areparable to what the vige head¡¯s family wears. However, at that time, I almost died from my illness. There were so many people on the street, but none of them stopped to inquire about my condition, and they even chased my father and I away. I don¡¯t like that ce. Besides, you¡¯re Prince Yan. You¡¯re talking so nicely to me now, but this definitely won¡¯t be the case once you return to your residence. I can¡¯t even live properly in my aunt¡¯s house, not to mention the Prince Yan Residence.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan ignored the little miss¡¯s delicate and sensitive moods and controlled his imposing manner, gently saying, ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, I will take you back, and what happened when you were ten won¡¯t happen again. Moreover, there are few people in the residence and I only have one son. Although he¡¯s immature, he¡¯s unlikely to make things difficult for you. You can just focus on staying with us when we reach the capital. If you don¡¯t like being disturbed by others, then I¡¯ll find you a secluded courtyard in the residence. You have the final say in how the servants are managed. As for the expenses for daily necessities, you don¡¯t need to worry about it. Your spending will be paid from my personal ount. Buy whatever you want, no one will point their fingers at you.¡±


    ¡°Actually, it¡¯s enough to find a simple and quiet town for me to live peacefully¡­¡±


    ¡°There is no such ce in the face of profit. You are very young and wealthy. Nowhere is safe if you were to live alone by yourself. But as long as youe to the capital, whether you want to marry or live alone in the future, no one will bother you while you are in the Prince Yan Residence.¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡± Lin Wei Xi opened her mouth and found that Gu Hui Yan had said everything he needed to say. She couldn¡¯t find a single reason to object. If she said that she didn¡¯t want to rely on someone else¡¯s charity, he would find a courtyard for her to live alone. If she was worried that she would sh with the new mistress, then Gu Hui Yan would let her use his private ount. This way, no one could control her. Lin Wei Xi held it in for a long time and could only say, ¡°This is too much trouble for you¡­ ¡°


    ¡°It¡¯s no trouble.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi waspletely speechless. She saw how unppable Prince Yan was and suddenly had a strange feeling.


    Why did she feel like Prince Yan had deliberately led her to express her objections, and then blocked her arguments one by one? Prince Yan looked easy-going, but once he made up his mind, there was no room for leeway. In actuality, he was a very high-handed person.


    Gu Hui Yan noticed Lin Wei Xi secretly sizing him up. He smiled without a care and instead asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You can¡¯t bear to leave your hometown, so you don¡¯t want to go?¡±


    In fact, Lin Wei Xi really wanted to use this excuse. Unfortunately, in order to rely on Prince Yan a few days ago, she¡¯d personally cut off this ¡®hometown¡¯ reason, which was her most powerful escape route. She felt tired to the bones. Sighing, her entire body drooped, ¡°Fine, I will do as Prince Yan says.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t say for sure what kind of feelings she held for the capital. She grew up there and all her rtives lived in that magnificent city, but all her nightmares had also happened there. If she could, she didn¡¯t want to return to the capital. So what if she was running away, so what if she was deceiving herself. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to be reborn and she didn¡¯t want to see Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran again. So long as she didn¡¯t have to see them, Lin Wei Xi could continue to deceive herself that she wasn¡¯t a failure, that she could also find a small town and live a secure and affluent life. She just can¡¯t see her rtives, friends, and husband; she could convince herself that they hadn¡¯t abandoned her like throwing out a worn out shoe.


    But when Gu Hui Yan said the phrase ¡°return to the Residence ¡±, after her initial strong rejection, she suddenly calmed down after realizing that there wasn¡¯t any room to salvage the situation. Actually, she didn¡¯t feel reconciled.


    Even regarding Princess Royal Shou Kang and no one else, Lin Wei Xi wanted to go back to see her grandmother again. She was her mother¡¯s only child and her mother Wei Shi was also Princess Shou Kang¡¯s only daughter. Wei Shi passed away early, and Lin Wei Xi was now Princess Shou Kang¡¯s only remaining bloodline. Furthermore, the rtionship between her grandmother and her grandmother¡¯s husband wasn¡¯t very good. Every time she thought about how there wasn¡¯t a single junior to serve her grandmother, it tore her up inside. She had to go back, even if it was only for her grandmother.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s mind gradually calmed down. When Gu Hui Yan saw that she¡¯d thought it through, he looked at her with satisfaction, then continued to flip through the letter, casually saying to her, ¡°Lin Yong¡¯s imperial decree for his title conferment, the Honorary Deed Medallion, as well as thend deeds awarded by the imperial court are all with me. If you have nothing to do in the next two days, you can take inventory of the ceremonial objects in the gift list. Can you read the gift list?¡±


    ¡°I can.¡± Lin Wei Xi had shadowed Princess Shou Kang in arranging banquets and preparing New Year¡¯s gifts since a young age. Last year, the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s tribute to the pce had even been personally prepared by herself. If she¡¯d known what would happen, why bother painstakingly managing the family business in the first ce, she should¡¯ve just let all of the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s businesses go into debt.


    ¡°Then you can go y with the inventory first. After reaching the capital, I¡¯ll exchange the title deeds for those around the capital, for your dowry in the future.¡±


    Lin Yong¡¯s posthumous title had been greatly embezzled. The Marquis¡¯s special set of ceremonial objects was unique so no one dared to touch it. But other than that, thend deeds, silk and silver had all been snatched away. Gu Hui Yan knew that corruption among the officials was severe, but he didn¡¯t expect it to be serious to this extent. If he hadn¡¯t made a temporary detour to Shunde District, he was afraid that this issue wouldn¡¯t have been addressed. Today, the county magistrate had carefully absolved himself of his involvement for fear that Gu Hui Yan would condemn him, but with Gu Hui Yan¡¯s status, why would he get angry with a few low-ranking officials. He wrote a letter directly to Zhang Xiao Lian. He didn¡¯t care how Grand Secretary Zhang dealt with his subordinates as long as he got results from him in the end.


    It was good that he could just control these shameless acts, and Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t need to know. Thend deeds that the imperial court gave to Lin Yong were mostly just padding, many of which werend in name only, and none of these had been received by Lin Wei Xi. Gu Hui Yan would exchange these deeds fornd near the capital. She couldn¡¯t do such things, but it was nothing if he did it under his name.


    Lin Wei Xi converted it in her mind, and suddenly became interested, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, how will this be converted? How much can one acre be exchanged for thend in the capital?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t help butugh, his eyes smiling as he looked at her with helpless amusement, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t take advantage of you. Naturally, one acre will be exchanged for one acre and it will be a one-to-one conversion.¡±


    This wasn¡¯t an equal conversion. Lin Yong¡¯s fief was in Shunde. How could thend in Shunde beparable to thend in the capital? When Lin Wei Xi heard this, she quickly saluted Prince Yan with thanks, afraid that he might regret it, ¡°Thank you Your Highness Prince Yan.¡±


    With one hand on the table, Gu Hui Yan smiled at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You¡¯re so opposed to getting married that I thought you wouldn¡¯t want to hear even a mention of your dowry.¡±


    ¡°How are they the same?¡± Lin Wei Xi had been managing the household since young so she understood all too well the benefits of owning private property. She certainly didn¡¯t want to marry again, but if they were talking about preparing a dowry for her, then it wasn¡¯t a problem and there was no need to worry about trampling her ego.


    Gu Hui Yan was amused, and he evenughed softly. If Zhou Mao Cheng or any other of the older soldiers had been standing there, their jaws would¡¯ve dropped from shock at the sight. However, Lin Wei Xi truly didn¡¯t understand how rare it was to see himugh and she was now anxious to find an opportunity to retire. Her palms were itching now that she¡¯d finally gotten her hands on Lin Yong¡¯s title.


    Gu Hui Yan could see Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eagerness so he didn¡¯t make things difficult for her and pointed to the box beside her, saying, ¡°This is your father¡¯snd deed and that maid¡¯s ve contract, take them together. It¡¯s not convenient to bring too many maids on our travels. I only found one for you, so the rest will be supplemented when we reach the capital.¡±


    Without further prompting, she nimbly stepped forward to pick up the items from their spot next to him. She hugged the wooden box and bowed to him. Just as she was about to withdraw, she suddenly heard Gu Hui Yan unintentionally say, ¡°If you are treated unjustly in the future, juste and find me. There is no need topromise.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi froze for a moment, a startling conjecture floated into her mind. Her pupils expanded unconsciously, her shock clear on her face, ¡°How do you know?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t speak as he spread out the writing paper and took a writing brush from it¡¯s stand, appearing to n his response to Zhang Xiao Lian. She didn¡¯t say a word as she silently ground the ink for him, before quietly retreating.


    After exiting the study, a chilly wind blew at her face, highlighting the presence of the unwieldy wooden box in her hands, and Lin Wei Xi was suddenly hit by reality.


    She was already so old, but for the first time in her life, someone said to her, ¡°You don¡¯t have topromise.¡± Her previous father, paternal grandmother, and even the teachers in the Duke Ying Residence all told her over and over again that she was the eldest di granddaughter, that she had to have the demeanour of an older sister and give in to her younger sister.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes were a little moist for some reason. It turned out that Prince Yan had gone out today for her. Not only had he dealt with Aunt Lin and Li Da, he¡¯d also retrieved Lin Yong¡¯s reward from the county magistrate for her.


    This was the first time she knew how it felt like to be cared for by others. In the past, Gao Ran could get the attention of the Duke Ying Shizi, the brothers in the family, and even the male cousins without lifting a finger. She¡¯d dismissed it at the time. It¡¯s not like she didn¡¯t have hands; she could contend for such things herself, so why use them to look good? But Lin Wei Xi finally knew now that it was different.


    It wasn¡¯t something she could get by herself just by contending for it through intentions alone, even if it was the same thing.


    Prince Yan didn¡¯t stay for long in the county town. Once everything was more or less ready for the journey, he ordered them to set off for the capital. He¡¯d originally intended to make a trip to Shunde District, and after burying Lin Yong¡¯s remains, hurriedly chase after the main troops on his victorious return to the capital. However, Lin Wei Xi had been added to the team at thest minute, and the n to catch up with the troops had naturally been abandoned. Gu Hui Yan separating from the army couldn¡¯t be concealed. In that case, he simply wrote a letter to the capital exining that he would bete, before slowly bringing Lin Wei Xi to the capital.


    From Gu Hui Yan¡¯s perspective, this was a deliberately slow route, but for Lin Wei Xi, who¡¯d never travelled long distances and wasn¡¯t in good health, such a schedule was still too rushed.


    She was still able to hold on for the first few days, but when they stopped at one of the ry stations, she couldn¡¯t hold on any longer. She had a high fever that night, and couldn¡¯t get up.


    Because Lin Wei Xi fell ill during the journey, Prince Yan¡¯s progress was greatly dyed, and it was already the third month when they finally returned to the capital.


    One month had already passed since Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran¡¯s wedding.


    Weak from sickness, she leaned against the carriage wall as she heard someone greet her from outside, ¡°Miss Lin, we¡¯ve arrived at the Prince Yan Residence.¡±


    With the support of her maid, Lin Wei Xi cautiously stepped out of the carriage and once again stood in front of this magnificent official¡¯s residence.


    Prince Yan Residence, she was back.

 Chapter 10

    ¡°The Prince will be back today. Have you checked that the front courtyard is properly arranged?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Shizi Fei, this ve has looked at it three or four times. Every servant is very cautious and no one would dare to neglect their duties.¡±


    Gao Ran heaved a sigh of relief, ¡°That¡¯s good. This is the first time Prince Yan has returned to the residence. In a moment, I have to go to the front hall to greet Father-inw. I can¡¯t make a single mistake.¡±


    Granny Tao sighed and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry Shizi Fei. Ever since you entered the household, has there been anything that you haven¡¯t done perfectly? You¡¯re generous to others,passionate to the elderly servants, and not only do you exempt them from manualbour, but you also pay them silver every month, what is it called¡­ Ah yes, a pension. There isn¡¯t a single person in this residence who doesn¡¯t praise you, and there isn¡¯t a single being under the heavens who is as perfect as you. Although Prince Yan has high-ranking authority, he is very reasonable. You¡¯ve managed the residence so well, he will definitely feel grateful when he sees you.¡±


    Gao Ran didn¡¯t refute her words, but lightly reprimanded the wet nurse, ¡°What are you saying Granny Tao, how am I perfect? Don¡¯t speak of this again, otherwise others will think it¡¯s a joke.¡±


    ¡°How is this a joke! Although this ve is your wet nurse, this ve really isn¡¯t boasting. Shizi Fei was praised by everyone when she was still an unmarried youngdy forposing a lively tune while still learning the Qin and inventing a novelty like gomoku while still learning chess, like following the old madam to worship Buddha. You can learn without a teacher and can recite profound Buddhist principles at the wave of your hand. There are also the stories you told the young master when you were ten, something about Chen Xiang saving his mother`, the fisherman and the fish. Heavens, how old were you then, that you were able to make up this kind of story. The reincarnation of a celestial fairy will neverpare to how perfect you are. Shizi Fei, this isn¡¯t just my opinion, the maids and grannies in the Duke Ying residence all say that you are the reincarnation of Xuan Nu. If it weren¡¯t for your birth status, why would you be the second wife!¡±


    ¡ó


    Gao Ran had always been humble, but she didn¡¯t stop Granny Tao from talking, and only listened with a smile. But once the conversation turned to her birth and her being the second wife, her smile stiffened, but then she immediately rxed. So what if she was of lowly birth? So what if she was a shu daughter? Being a di or shu daughter had never been a deciding factor when it came to evaluating a woman. As long as she married well, what did it matter if she was a di or shu?


    Furthermore, even if one were a di daughter, it didn¡¯t mean that she would live well. Being of noble birth but being unable to appeal to a man¡¯s affections was the same as dooming oneself.


    Gao Ran didn¡¯t want to bring up that other person on such an important day, it was inauspicious. Her expression turned frigid and she said icily to Granny Tao, ¡°Granny Tao, you have crossed the line. Sister is my senior and Shizi¡¯s first wife. We should be respectful of the dead, as I¡¯ve always loved Sister Xi. I know you don¡¯t mean it, but if Shizi and the others hear this, it is inevitable that they will think that I, a shu daughter, am causing trouble by being disrespectful towards my di sister. You can¡¯t say this again, okay?¡±


    Granny Tao and Gao Ran¡¯s dowry maid, Ning Fu, felt indignant. Ning Fu said, ¡°Shizi Fei, the eldest Miss didn¡¯t give you any face while at home, and she became more arrogant when she got married. Even so, you always weed her with a smile and sincerely tended to her as your elder sister. Miss, you¡¯ll be bullied because you¡¯re too kind.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s not talk about this.¡± Gao Ran lightly interrupted the maids, and said, ¡°The Prince hasn¡¯t been home in three years and is returning for the first time today. Nothing can go wrong. The Prince¡¯s carriage should arrive soon. Let¡¯s wait at the second gate together.¡±


    Granny Tao and Ning Fu hummed in agreement and supported Gao Ran to the Weeping Flower Gate<sup>¡ó</sup>. Granny Tao nagged as she walked, ¡°Prince Yan hasn¡¯t returned to the capital for three years. When hees back and sees that the house has been managed perfectly, he¡¯ll be very happy to have such a smart daughter-inw like Miss. If this ve had to say, anyone under the heavens who has clear-minded and aren¡¯t blinded by the prejudice against the di and shu statuses, will definitely like Third Miss.¡±


    ¡ó


    Without waiting for Gao Ran to speak, Ning Fu rushed to say, ¡°That¡¯s right! Shizi Fei is truly the reincarnation of a fairy that is liked by everyone. It¡¯s just a shame that the Prince was dyed during his journey and missed Shizi and Shizi Fei¡¯s wedding.¡±


    Speaking of this, Granny Tao also felt very regretful. She was on Gao Ran¡¯s side, so of course she felt that Gao Ran was good no matter what she did. So it was natural that she was greatly disappointed in the patriarch of the Prince Yan Residence for failing to make it in time for Gao Ran¡¯s wedding. However, this disappointment wasn¡¯t Gao Ran¡¯s to bear, but the Prince Yan Residence.


    Seeing that no one was around, Granny Tao stealthily told Gao Ran, ¡°Shizi Fei, I heard that the Prince originally wanted to rush back to attend the wedding, and he separated from the troops to travel alone for this purpose. You can me the daughter of his previous subordinate for falling ill during the journey, which ended up dying his progress.¡±


    Gao Ran originally felt that it wasn¡¯t very appropriate to talk about Prince Yan within the residence. If someone overheard, they might think she was gossiping. But having a wedding without her husband¡¯s parents was indeed a chip on her shoulder. Now that she¡¯d heard the reason, Gao Ran grew curious. She didn¡¯t stop Granny Tao, but instead let her continue.


    ¡°His subordinate¡¯s daughter? Who is she and why is she in the Prince¡¯s convoy?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I heard that she¡¯s also an orphan. Her father died in order to save the Prince, so he took her with him wherever he went. This matter has long spread throughout the capital, and he seems to be called¡­ Oh yes, Marquis Zhongyong.¡±


    Gao Ran already lost interest at this point. An orphan who¡¯d lost both her parents and came to the capital to seek shelter in the Prince Yan Residence. Looks like a little white lotus<sup>¡ó</sup>had appeared. Gao Ran only listened until there and already started imagining the kind of person who was arriving soon.


    ¡ó


    In her past life, Gao Ran had sworn to marry a pampered nouveau riche. The wedding had to be grandiose enough to overwhelm all her female ssmates. It was a shame that she met with an ident before her dream could be realized. After transmigrating, she was unable to contain her joy when she found herself in the body of a beautiful, rich and fair-skinned girl. Gao Ran also secretly rejoiced that under the facade of a child, she had the mind of an adult. Otherwise, she¡¯d definitely be slowly ground to death by those bootlickers in the Duke Ying Residence who stepped on the weak.


    Later, her malicious di mother passed from a self-inflicted disaster, and Gao Xi, who¡¯d robbed her of her marriage, also received retribution. Gao Xi couldn¡¯t earn the favour of her husband, and died prematurely to make way for her. Gao Ran was like the heroine in all the stories. Her status as a shu daughter only served to hone her character, and in the end, she married the most powerful husband, whose family background surpassed all other second generation officials. This was so much better than the pampered nouveau riche from her past life.


    Gao Ran was very satisfied with hereback in this life. It was a small disappointment that her husband¡¯s parents hadn¡¯t attended the wedding. Gao Ran originally thought that Prince Yan minded her status as a shu daughter, but now it seemed that this was clearly just an introduction, one for the little white lotus that was about to arrive.


    How clich¨¦d. After the male and female leads went through hardships together, just as they get married, herees an orphan girl who is allowed to live with them because their senior owed her a favour. Later this woman would likely fall in love at first sight with Gu Cheng Yao. Blinded by the wealth of the Prince Yan Residence, and under the guise of expressing her gratitude, she would ask to be Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s concubine.


    Thinking of this, Gao Ran¡¯s smile became gentler, but the light in her eyes was sharp and aggressive.


    Gao Ran took multiple servant girls and grannies to wait at the Weeping Flower Gate. The group revolved around her as their leader as she stood with the posture and air of a noble youngdy. She stood for a long time before the long overdue edge of Prince Yan¡¯s convoy could be seen. Many men who looked to be part of the army surrounded the second carriage, escorting it carefully and vigntly. The coachman identally ran over a small stone, and when the carriage shook subtly, everyone red at him.


    The coachman hurriedly apologized to the person inside. When Gao Ran saw this, the smile on her lips deepened, faintly revealing her confidence in her victory. After the carriage carefully stopped, Zhou Mao Cheng knocked on the door and said, ¡°Lin girl, we¡¯re here. Are you still ufortable?¡±


    A muffled sound came from the carriage. A white hand lifted the curtain and a fair and delicate woman appeared in front of the crowd. Gao Ran looked at the person who¡¯d just arrived, unconcerned. Sure enough, what skills did someone from a poor family have? This kind of person wasn¡¯t even worthy of her shoes, how could shepete with her?


    Gao Ran had barely stepped forward and was about to speak when she saw the woman jump off the carriage while lifting the corner of her skirt, before quickly turning around to support another person.


    The carriage¡¯s curtain lifted once again, and in front of everyone appeared another woman with twin buns supporting a girl. The people of the residence who were waiting by the second gate saw them and couldn¡¯t help but suck in their breaths in amazement.


    When they saw the first girl getting off the carriage, many felt contemptuous. This was the burden that dyed the Prince¡¯s journey? If that was it, then forget it! However, she was actually just a maid. When the mistress emerged from the carriage and they saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face, many people were stunned in ce, their jaw dropping unconsciously.


    Everyone possessed the heart to appreciate beauty, but everyone also differed in their opinion on who was considered beautiful. Some preferred the delicate and pitiful kind, some preferred the dignified and magnanimous kind. But regarding the one who was slowly getting off the carriage, even the pickiest person couldn¡¯t say that she wasn¡¯t good looking.


    She had a kind of exceeding good-looks, extremely beautiful, and not just pretty, but also gorgeous. The servants of the residence stopped and stared, and Gao Ran¡¯s gaze swept across Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face, to her body, and down to her shoes, her eyebrows furrowing unconsciously.


    The journey was hard in Lin Wei Xi, her whole body haggard, and her current state extremely poor. If possible, she didn¡¯t want to appear so weak in front of everyone in the Prince Yan Residence, but her body didn¡¯t allow it. She suffered to the point where she didn¡¯t have the energy to show her temper, so she gave up and stopped bothering, and made do with the situation. Anyway, everyone in the Prince Yan Residence didn¡¯t know who she was.


    The two maids supported Lin Wei Xi by the arms and assisted her off the carriage, and the guards escorting her stared at her movements with bated breath. Only when they saw her standing safely on the ground, did they let out their tightly held breath. She tightened the shawl around her body, and immediately the first thing she saw was Gao Ran.


    Oh, after not seeing her for a while, this shu younger sister seemed to have changed into another person and was almost unrecognizable.


    Gao Ran also happened to lock eyes with Lin Wei Xi and the two looked at each other for a moment. She reined in her unhappiness, smiled gently and walked down the steps before trying to take Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand, ¡°So this is the distinguished guest that Father-inw mentioned in his letter. What is this miss¡¯s name?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi coldly avoided Gao Ran¡¯s hand like she was giving her a cold shoulder, and said, her face expressionless, ¡°My surname is Lin. Shizi Fei can call me Wei Xi.¡±


    So she was called Lin Wei Xi¡­ Gao Ran tasted the name on her tongue, and once again put on the act of the hostess, smiling broadly, ¡°Miss Lin has just arrived, and I¡¯m worried she¡¯s still shy. There¡¯s no need for Sister to be afraid. You can treat the residence as your own home, and if you need anything, just tell me directly.¡±


    ¡°Shizi Fei, my parents only have one daughter, so I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t be your younger sister.¡± Lin Wei Xi¡¯s smile didn¡¯t change, and although her eyes were smiling, there was a hidden frostiness to her voice, ¡°I have no siblings, and I¡¯m not used to addressing people as brothers or sisters. Just address me using my name.¡±


    Daring to call her Sister, where did Gao Ran¡¯s gutse from?


    Once again, Gao Ran had difficulty controlling her expression. She thought mockingly,<em>sure enough, this onees from a poor family. Her behaviourcks generosity and consideration, and she shouldn¡¯t be allowed out in public</em>. But the more this was so, the more enthusiastically Gao Ran treated the other person. Everyone who saw could tell who was the better person.


    Zhou Mao Cheng wasn¡¯t surprised to hear Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words. He knew that no one aside from the Prince could escape this girl¡¯s harsh words. But after looking after her all this time, he knew that even though her words were harsh and relentless, her heart was good. He was afraid that Shizi Fei would make things difficult for her, so he quickly stepped forward and said, ¡°Paying my respects to Shizi Fei! The Prince originally wanted to send Lin girl back to the residence first, but the Pce summoned him urgently. He had no choice but to enter the Imperial Pce, so he left it to me to send her back. This subordinate will go to the front courtyard to greet Shizi. Lin girl is in poor health and is still sick from the journey. We¡¯ll leave Shizi Fei to take care of her temporarily.¡±


    Although Zhou Mao Cheng was rough in nature, he closely followed Prince Yan, so he was actually quite eloquent. His words seemed polite, but he was obviously telling her that Prince Yan attached great importance to Lin Wei Xi. And it was obvious to everyone the weight of that final sentence, ¡°We¡¯ll leave Shizi Fei to take care of her temporarily¡±.


    Gao Ran understood the underlying message, and she became increasingly unhappy. Wasn¡¯t she just an orphan girl with a face that looked a bit better than average. How could shepare to a distinguished and educated woman like herself? Gao Ran internally ridiculed these unrefined people for their ignorance and poor eyesight, but externally, she still politely bid farewell to Zhou Mao Cheng and the others, before affectionately bringing Lin Wei Xi into the house.


    Gao Ran inquired about Lin Wei Xi¡¯s well-being along the way, her coy hostess act was extremely excessive. However, Lin Wei Xi maintained her cold indifference, aloofly holding the hand-held furnace, and asionally condescendingly replying with a sentence or two. One could imagine how frustrated Gao Ran was. She apanied Lin Wei Xi to the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s richly ornamented corridor. Turning her head slightly, she could see Lin Wei Xi¡¯s exquisite profile and long eyshes. As she looked at her profile, an extremely absurd thought suddenly popped into her mind.


    It was as if the person walking beside her wasn¡¯t Lin Wei Xi, who¡¯d lost her father and mother and came to the capital to seek shelter, but her greatest rival since childhood, Gao Xi!

 Chapter 11

    Gao Ran was taken aback by this thought. Lin Wei Xi noticed the gaze on her and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Her heart was pounding. She looked at the face in front of her, which waspletely different from Gao Xi¡¯s, andughed at herself for thinking too much. Be it in terms of identity, appearance, or personality, Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t simr to Gao Xi in the slightest. Not to mention, Gao Xi was already dead, and Gao Ran had even personally lit the incense in front of her tablet.


    Gao Xi, who relied on her grandmother to rob someone of their marriage, ultimately received retribution. If it didn¡¯t belong to her, it was useless to rob it. As for the girl in front of her, there was nothing to her except for her face. She was nothing more than a stepping stone for Gao Ran on her road to being a solely favoured wife.


    She overcame her panic, smiling as she said to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°I hope your journey wasn¡¯t too arduous, Miss Lin must¡¯ve suffered a lot on the road, right? All¡¯s well now that you¡¯re here in the residence. I¡¯ll instruct my servants to prepare dinner for you, and you¡¯ll be able to rest properly.¡±


    As Gao Ran was about to send someone to rece Lin Wei Xi¡¯s bedding for a new one, when she interrupted her and said, ¡°Shizi Fei, please wait a moment, I¡¯ve brought my own necessities. In a while, Uncle Zhou will help me move everything over from the front courtyard, no need to trouble Shizi Fei. As for the courtyard where I¡¯ll be staying¡­ His Highness Prince Yan said that he has his own arrangements, so Shizi Fei doesn¡¯t need to bother with it.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had beenpletely uncooperative this entire time. She didn¡¯t allow Gao Ran to carry out sisterly acts, she didn¡¯t need the bedding that Gao Ran had prepared, now she didn¡¯t even let Gao Ran lend a hand with her living arrangements. Although Gao Ran was still smiling, the stiffness of her lips revealed her true feelings. Granny Tao, who stood behind her, was already quite displeased. Ever since Gao Ran came to Prince Yan Residence, unlike her suffering in her maiden home, not only was she the one managing the house throughout, Shizi also loved Gao Ran dearly. Even a maid like Granny Tao rose with the circumstances of her mistress, and her ambitions slowly grew as well. What right did an orphan girl, who¡¯d just arrived, have to disrespect Shizi Fei?


    Granny Tao got so angry that she spoke without thinking, ¡°Shizi Fei is the mistress of the household, with the entire Prince Yan Residence¡¯s under her control. Miss Lin¡¯s attitude is so terrible, Shizi Fei doesn¡¯t actually need to be concerned with your daily necessities. It can be assumed that your family is rich, so you should be able to handle all your expenses right?¡±


    ¡°Granny Tao.¡± Gao Ran softly chided, ¡°Miss Lin is a guest.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled to herself. No wonder Gao Ran, a shu daughter, seeded in marrying her sister¡¯s husband. Her manner of speaking and acting set the bar high. She was clearly scolding the maid, but when she said ¡°Miss Lin is a guest¡±, she painted Lin Wei Xi as being deliberately provocative and having great ambitions despite clearlying from a poor family.


    Lin Wei Xi gripped the hand-held furnace, covered her lips and coughed twice. After the coughing subsided, her cheeks were painted in an unusually red blush, which made her look even more beautiful. But her tone was, contrary to her looks, careless, ¡°where do I start. Well, my father was conferred as Marquis Zhongyong by the emperor himself, with thousands of acres of fertilend to his name. I am now his only descendant. Although I can¡¯tpare to the Emperor¡¯s noble descendants, I won¡¯t have to worry about my food and clothing.¡±


    Wan Yue was indeed worthy of being someone who¡¯d been carefully trained by the county magistrate Lady. When she saw this, she immediately moved closer to Lin Wei Xi and said, ¡°Although our Miss lost her parents at a young age, she is known as the apple of the Marquis¡¯s eye. Marquis Zhongyong sacrificed his life for the country as an act of loyalty, and our miss became Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s remaining daughter, because of that loyalty.¡±


    Gao Ran¡¯s face darkened when she heard this. She¡¯d actually forgotten that Lin Wei Xi had a nominal Marquis father. If she¡¯d been the child of a martyr in modern times, she would¡¯ve been greatly advantaged, be it from her schooling to her employment, and this was even more so in ancient times, where they put more focus on reputation and family.


    Marquis Zhongyong was only an honorary title, with no residence and no real power, but he had died for his country. If Lin Wei Xi were a boy, enlisting in the army would be as easy as a hot knife cutting through butter, just by relying on the Zhongyang name. Even though she was only a girl, it was enough for her to live the rest of her life infort just by relying on Marquis Zhongyang¡¯s legacy. And Granny Tao had just tried to insult Lin Wei Xi¡­ Gao Ran¡¯s expression turned ugly, but it was quickly covered up with a smile. She pretended to be angry and said, ¡°Granny Tao, Miss Lin is Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s descendant, and I secretly admire her very much. I¡¯m beyond happy that I can see Miss Lin now, what are you saying?¡±


    Granny Tao hastily lowered her head and retreated behind Gao Ran. Lin Wei Xi stood there like none of it concerned her, watching while stroking her sleeves, then looked up at the vermilion pirs that spanned the corridor, and said slowly, ¡°I just arrived in the capital and don¡¯t understand the rules, so I didn¡¯t dare say too much until now. But seeing the behaviour of the people around Shizi Fei, it turns out that saying the wrong words doesn¡¯t warrant punishment in the capital? Even if someone bullies the guests, it can be swept under the rug with one word from the host.¡±


    The smile on Gao Ran¡¯s face stiffened, ¡°Miss Lin¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi fearlessly looked Gao Ran in the eyes, ¡°What, does Shizi Fei still want to teach me something?¡±


    Gao Ran felt her chest tighten from frustration when she met the challenging expression on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face. After staring at each other for a moment, in the end Gao Ran didn¡¯t dare say harsh words to the child of a martyr, and said with a sullen face, ¡°Granny Tao, have I been too indulgent with you, so much so that you became arrogant about your abilities? Quickly apologized to Miss Lin.¡±


    Granny Tao was stunned. Ever since she followed Gao Ran to the Prince Yan Residence, her treatment here pared to the Duke Ying Residence, felt almost like heaven and earth. She¡¯d gotten used to having the prestige of being the mistress¡¯s wet nurse, and now she had to apologize to a sixteen year old girl in front of so many servants. This was incredibly humiliating. Granny Tao actually didn¡¯t pay much attention to Lin Wei Xi. Wasn¡¯t she just a country bumpkin? Even if her father relied on the Prince to confer the Marquis title to him, it didn¡¯t change the fact that she was just a vige girl. Granny Tao looked at Gao Ran in disbelief, but after seeing the look in her eyes, she gave in and toughened up to apologize to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°this ve wascent andcked decency, and offended Miss Lin. May Miss Lin please forgive me.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s delicate jaw didn¡¯t move, and she only nced at Granny Tao with her eyelids lowered. She spoke firmly but condescendingly, ¡°Get up. You only spoke rudely to me this time, so I won¡¯t hold you ountable out of consideration for Prince Yan. If you dare insult the name of Marquis Zhongyong again, then you will bear the crime of disrespecting the imperial heroes and no one will be able to take responsibility for you.¡±


    After saying that, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t even bother looking at Granny Tao and Gao Ran, and walked forwards. Since marrying into the Prince Yan Residence, Gao Ran had rarely been ignored like this. She was stunned for a moment, rage ming her eyes, but she suppressed it in the end and quickly chased after Lin Wei Xi.


    ¡°Miss Lin, since you don¡¯t want me to prepare the courtyard for you, then where are you going to stay for now?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi paused and she immediately slowed down. She¡¯d almost forgotten that it was supposed to be her first visit to the Prince Yan Residence, so she shouldn¡¯t know her way around. She disguised it with a low cough and said, ¡°I¡¯ll have to trouble Shizi Fei to lead me to the main hall. His Highness Prince Yan has given me great kindness, so I must wait for him to return to pay my respects.¡±


    Gao Ran had nothing to say. In fact, in this short period of time, her opinion of Lin Wei Xi plummeted again and again. She now understood that this wasn¡¯t a little white lotus in the popr sense, but a character with some tricks up her sleeve that stung. Withpetition suddenly moving in like this, it seemed like Gao Ran still had a long road ahead of her.


    The mes in Gao Ran¡¯s heart grew hotter and hotter. She lowered her head to conceal the hostility and aggressiveness in her eyes, and when she raised her head, she looked gentle and generous once again, ¡°Miss Lin is truly honourable and loyal. When Fatheres back and sees you, he will definitely be very pleased. Follow me Miss Lin, the main hall of the back courtyard is this way.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was taken aback for a moment, and realized that when Gao Ran said ¡°Father¡±, it referred to Prince Yan. Lin Wei Xi felt a little perplexed and an unspeakable pride at the same time. Was Gao Ran trying, and failing, to demonstrate her rtionship with Prince Yan? She thought to herself, if it was about their rtionship with Prince Yan, no one would know for sure.


    Lin Wei Xi fell ill on the way and burned up with a fever the entire night. At that time, she was delirious from fever, but extremely sensitive to the sounds and movement around her. Amidst the haze, she could hear some footsteps, and lifted a sliver of her eyelid after much effort to see Prince Yan sitting at her bedside, his face sombre as he checked her forehead. He frowned in silence, and after a while, left to bring a doctor. Lin Wei Xiid inside the room and could only hear faint voicesing from outside. Even when discussing her illness, Prince Yan made everyone lower their voice.


    Based on the kindness he showed while she was ill, Lin Wei Xi knew she hadn¡¯t been wrong to choose Prince Yan as her role model so many years ago. Even though she¡¯d suffered because of his son, she couldn¡¯t find a reason to be angry with Prince Yan himself. She was in the middle of scolding someone the first time she met him. Then afterwards, her tricks had been exposed, she was seen with an unkempt appearance, and was disciplined when she¡¯d lost her temper¡­ all of her ugliness had already been exposed. It couldn¡¯t get worse, so she was calm in his presence. Even if she clearly showed her dislike for Gao Ran, he wouldn¡¯t bat an eye. But if Gao Ran tried to be a smart aleck andin to Prince Yan¡­ Heh, then it would be uncertain who was telling the truth and who was lying.


    Lin Wei Xi actually knew where the main hall was, but because of her previous mistake, she decided to follow Gao Ran to their destination. Gao Ran was about to lead her in when she was suddenly called away by a servant. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s years of upbringing taught her not to wander around by herself when the host wasn¡¯t there, so she stood there and waited. With her white velvet cloak draped over her shoulder, she stared at the flowers carved onto the window, ovee with boredom, when a voice suddenly came from behind, ¡°Sister Xi.¡±


    Obviously, Lin Wei Xi turned around, just in time to see a man step through the gate and meet her gaze. Hearing the words that were shouted just now, he looked obviously taken aback.


    Sister Xi?


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression turned stiff when she saw the person walking towards her, so she quickly lowered her head to hide the violent emotions stirring in her eyes. During this time, Zhou Mao Cheng had somehow walked all the way to her side, and said in a carefree manner, ¡°Sister Xi, you cough every other step. Why aren¡¯t you resting inside? What are you doing standing in the draft?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was afraid that she¡¯d be exposed if she were to rx, so she could only force her face into a neutral expression. She nced indifferently at the person walking towards her, before shifting her gaze to Zhou Mao Cheng. He pped his forehead and eximed, ¡°whoops, I forgot to introduce you. This is the Prince¡¯s only son, our Prince Yan Residence¡¯s Shizi, Gu Cheng Yao. He¡¯s one of us, so you don¡¯t need to be shy.¡±


    ¡°Who is one of us?¡± Lin Wei Xi said jerkily without raising her head, and she respectfully and coldly saluted Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°Shizi.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng had a rough personality, so he didn¡¯t notice how tense her body was, and even enthusiastically introduced Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°Shizi, this is the girl the Prince mentioned in his letter, the only daughter of Marquis Zhongyong, Lin Wei Xi.¡±


    Normally, a woman¡¯s maiden name couldn¡¯t be revealed, but Gu Cheng Yao was Prince Yan¡¯s son, so to Zhou Mao Cheng, he certainly wasn¡¯t a stranger, and he ended up carelessly revealing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s name. The inexplicable shock Gu Cheng Yao felt didn¡¯t subside until he heard her full name.


    So she was called Lin Wei Xi, and she wasn¡¯t Sister Xi. Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t tell what he was feeling, but in front of a guest, he ignored theplicated emotions in his heart. Instead, he smiled politely at her, ¡°I¡¯m Gu Cheng Yao. Since your father sacrificed himself to save my father, then you are the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s honoured guest. In the future, there¡¯s no need to hold yourself back while living in our residence, and if you have any difficulties, juste and find me.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression was still frigid, but sheughed to herself,ughing until she pitied herself¡­ Gu Cheng Yao had said to apletely unfamiliar woman, ¡°If you have any difficulties, juste and find me.¡± However, as his wife in her past life, she exhausted herself both mentally and physically in order to manage the household, and racked her brains in order to amodate his lifestyle. In the end, she fell ill and died of overwork, but she¡¯d never heard Gu Cheng Yao say even one sentence of ¡°if you have any difficulties, you cane find me¡±.


    The ups and downs in one¡¯s life were truly absurd.

 Chapter 12

    Zhou Mao Cheng knew nothing about this undercurrent between Lin Wei Xi and Gu Cheng Yao, and was even enthusiastically pulling at Gu Cheng Yao, exining how delicate Lin Wei Xi¡¯s body was and how hard the entire journey had been for her. Because of her illness, Prince Yan had summoned all the doctors in the vicinity, and on top of that, he specially went to the city to pick a maid to take care of her.


    Gu Cheng Yao was surprised when he heard this, ¡°Father actually chose the maid himself?¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡± Zhou Mao Cheng looked perplexed. Not counting Gu Cheng Yao, even a subordinate like him who¡¯d been with the Prince for more than ten years felt it unimaginable.


    Gu Cheng Yao turned his head to look at Lin Wei Xi, but this time, the look in his eyes was much moreplicated than before. Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t afraid of another¡¯s probing gaze. On the contrary, she was more concerned about something else. Why did she feel that Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s eyes seemed to contain a little envy just now?


    In hindsight, although Gu Cheng Yao was Prince Yan¡¯s only son, they didn¡¯t spend much time together. Prince Yan had spent half his life in the army, defending the country on all sides. Even children on the streets could recite his military exploits. However, he didn¡¯t spend much time in the Prince Yan Residence, and spent even less time with Gu Cheng Yao.


    When Zhou Mao Cheng saw that Gu Cheng Yao had fallen silent, he understood after thinking about it again. He sighed to himself, pretending to rx, and said, ¡°The rebellions throughout the country have been resolved, and any small scuffles won¡¯t require the Prince to enter the battlefield. The Prince will most likely stay for a long while this time.¡±


    The previous emperor had entrusted his son to Prince Yan after his death, and while the new emperor was still young, the capital couldn¡¯t be left unattended. If it weren¡¯t for the serious rebellion in the North-West that needed to be quickly put down to deter further dissent, Prince Yan wouldn¡¯t have personally led the army to battle. However, after news of this victory over the Dugt tribe became widespread, no one would dare challenge the authority of Prince Yan and the country for quite a long time.


    Gu Cheng Yao was relieved at the thought of this. It was truly such a rare thing to be able to live in the same house as his father for this long.


    At that moment, Gao Ran returned after settling the matter, and there was an impatience to her steps. When she saw Gu Cheng Yao standing in the middle of the courtyard with Lin Wei Xi not too far off, her pupils shrank in surprise.


    Gao Ran maintained herposure and smiled, greeted Gu Cheng Yao smilingly, and, with the air of the hostess, stood next to Gu Cheng Yao like it was the most natural thing to do. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t help but scoff when she saw this. She scorned them, and she inevitably couldn¡¯t stop her expression from turning cold.


    Zhou Mao Cheng had entered together with Gu Cheng Yao, but he¡¯de because of Lin Wei Xi. Now that he had seen her, and Shizi Fei had also returned, Zhou Mao Cheng, who wasn¡¯t a family member, couldn¡¯t continue lingering in the residence¡¯s back courtyard and immediately bid farewell.


    Once Zhou Mao Cheng left, only the three of them remained. For some reason, the servants suddenly felt indescribably stifled.


    How strange, Shizi and Shizi Fei were deeply in love. Miss Lin wasn¡¯t part of the family, today was her first time at the residence, and she held no grudges. So why was the atmosphere suddenly tense?


    It was Gu Cheng Yao who acted first. He was a man, and Prince Yan had returned to the capital today, so there were plenty of matters in the outer courtyard that required his attention; he left after sending the women inside. Gao Ran dropped off the guest and left quickly. In the dim light, Lin Wei Xi sat across the window and watched as Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao talked to each other in hushed voices. The two stood close, whispering, Gao Ran looking at Gu Cheng Yao tenderly throughout. Before he left, she gently stretched out her hand to brush the dust off his shoulder.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes hurt from watching them. In her previous life, she¡¯d managed the Prince Yan Residence very strictly. No matter which room it was, it would¡¯ve been cleaned every day, why would Gu Cheng Yao get dust on him when walking in the residence? Even if an evil wind had blown through today and caused dust to cover Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s shoulder, were the servant girls behind him so useless that they needed Gao Ran to brush off the dust herself?


    Lin Wei Xi fiercely rolled her eyes internally. It was nauseatingly pretentious. She regretted giving in when Prince Yan pushed her to agree toe to the Prince Yan Residence. If she had to watch this for a long period of time, this bitch would definitely anger her to death.


    Fortunately, Gu Cheng Yao was, after all, born and raised in an aristocratic family, and he wasn¡¯t used to being too intimate with his wife in public. He nced at Gao Ran gratefully, whispered something, and then strode out the door.


    Only then did Gao Ran seem to remember that there was a guest in the room. She walked in again, a blush painting her cheeks, showing just the right amount of shyness of a newly-weds, ¡°please don¡¯tugh at me Miss Lin.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled cooperatively, but internally she rolled her eyes.


    The rest of her time was spent sitting in the magnificent dining hall of the Prince Yan Residence, listening to Gao Ran inadvertently mention the nobility of the Prince Yan Residence, the influence of her maiden family, the Duke Ying Residence, as well as the fact that Gu Cheng Yao always worried about her and kept giving her ¡®trouble¡¯. If the news of Prince Yan¡¯s return to the residence hadn¡¯t arrived at a critical moment, Lin Wei Xi would have pped her then and there.


    When Gu Hui Yan entered the capital, he was asked by the pce eunuch to enter the pce to see the Emperor and Empress Dowager Qian, and could only sessfully leave after cating the mother and son. Even as he stood in his residence now, the dust from his journey still clung to him.


    From the moment Gu Hui Yan entered the door, the entire Prince Yan Residence noticeably came back to life. All the servants, from the front courtyard to the back courtyard, regardless of rank, all eagerly ran around and yelled in awe and joy, ¡°the Prince is back!¡±


    Prince Yan had returned, the expansive Prince Yan Residence finally weed it¡¯s true master after three years of absence.


    The noise could be heard all the way in the back courtyard, and Gao Ran promptly stood up, unintentionally revealing her nervousness, ¡°Prince Yan has returned? Granny Tao, how do I look?¡±


    Gao Ran and her maids started to bustle about. Ignoring the people around her, Lin Wei Xi slowly got up and stood by the door. Seeing the person who¡¯d just arrived, she faced the courtyard and gave a standard Wanfu salute<sup>¡ó</sup>, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan.¡±


    ¡ó


    Gao Ran heard this and hurried to greet him. Gu Hui Yan was in the middle of questioning Gu Cheng Yao, and hearing the familiar voice, he stopped and looked at Lin Wei Xi in surprise, ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi asked in response, ¡°Didn¡¯t you insist on bringing me to the residence?¡±


    The expressions of Gu Cheng Yao and the old servants of the residence around them shifted. Before they could intervene, they heard Gu Hui Yan sigh helplessly and say, ¡°I¡¯m asking you why you¡¯re not resting. Didn¡¯t I arrange for someone to send you back? How can they let you just stand here?¡±


    It turned out she was mistaken. Lin Wei Xi straightened up without waiting for Gu Hui Yan to speak, and said nonchntly, ¡°I waited to pay my respects to you.¡±


    ¡°Tell me the truth.¡±


    ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t know where I¡¯m supposed to stay. You didn¡¯t say anything, so how can I wander around?¡±


    As soon as Gu Hui Yan left the imperial pce, he unintentionally disyed his imposing manner on the way back, his overwhelming presence fully revealed. Even Gu Cheng Yao was struck with fear and awe, and surrendered wholeheartedly, when he saw Gu Hui Yan. But when it came to Lin Wei Xi, with just a few words, she could make Gu Hui Yan let out a smile and look at her in amusement, ¡°Even if you can speak, your body is weak and must recuperate. Jingdan Garden is suitable, so move your things there!¡±


    Jingdan Garden? Lin Wei Xi was very familiar with theyout of the Prince Yan Residence. She smiled and immediately thanked Gu Hui Yan with a salute, ¡°Thank you Prince Yan.¡±


    Gao Ran hurried out to wee back Gu Hui Yan. Because she presented herself as a gentle and generous Miss Perfect, she would maintain her bowing position if Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t say anything. But who would¡¯ve thought that the famous Prince Yan would unexpectedly act as if no one else was around, and talk to a young girl about such trivial matters like her everyday life, not caring at all that her status was lower than his. Gao Ran couldn¡¯t help raising her head and ncing forward in surprise, only to find clear bewilderment in Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s eyes. Evidently, Prince Yan wasn¡¯t an easy-going person. In his presence, no one in the residence dared to rise, let alone contradict him. However, ording to the norm of the Prince Yan Residence, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words just now were already very disrespectful.


    Gao Ran felt somewhat jealous. For a while now, she had her eye on Jingdan Garden, and nned to leave it for her son in the future. Jingdan Garden and the courtyard where Gu Cheng Yao lived were built symmetrically. It¡¯s significance was obvious. It was only because the Prince Yan Residence didn¡¯t have many people that it went unused. Why should Lin Wei Xi, an orphan with unknown origins who was a guest of the residence, live there?


    Gu Hui Yan only seemed to notice everyone else then. He nced down, stepped into the main hall, and said tly, ¡°all of you may rise.¡±


    Only then did Gao Ran straighten up, and she felt an indescribable pressure just from facing the other person. She finally realized that her impression of a real wealthy family was too superficial. Prince Yan definitely wasn¡¯t like the rich men she had witnessed in her previous life.


    Even though Prince Yan was the son of an influential family, he had grown his family¡¯s honour many fold. Gao Ran had been full of confidence before, but now she hesitated. If Prince Yan really wasn¡¯t satisfied with her status¡­ Would it change anything even if she worked hard in managing the household and on her image?


    After Gu Hui Yan walked in, he clearly didn¡¯t disy any coldness or ferociousness, but the whole hall held their breath as they solemnly stood in position, watching him in awe and respect. His gaze swept from Lin Wei Xi to the other two, and he asked, ¡°Have you introduced yourselves to each other?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gu Cheng Yao responded. He stepped forward and knelt down with his back straight in front of Gu Hui Yan. When Gao Ran saw this, she hurriedly followed suit.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t been filial, paying my respects to Father.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao kowtowed, his forehead knocking against the ground, and Gao Ran followed suit. Lin Wei Xi stepped to the side to make space for Gu Cheng Yao and his wife¡¯s kowtow ceremony. But at the same time, Lin Wei Xi felt a strange sense of pleasure. Although it wasn¡¯t directed at her, she was the one standing while Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran were both kneeling, and it was enough for her to feel refreshed.


    What¡¯s done is done, and in the end, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t embarrass Gu Cheng Yao and his new daughter-inw. He calmly stared at them for a while, before motioning them to stand up. Gao Ran was overjoyed, and her maid immediately passed over the tea. She carried the teacup, her hands above her forehead, and said respectfully, ¡°Daughter-inw serves tea to Father.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan took it and lifted the lid of the teacup, before setting it on the table. It was just a gesture and he didn¡¯t intend to drink the tea, but this was enough for Gao Ran. She kowtowed to Gu Hui Yan, before being supported by her dowry maid to stand up.


    Lin Wei Xi stood on the sidelines watching the entire thing. She was sneering to herself when she suddenly heard Gu Hui Yan call her name, ¡°You are unwell. It¡¯s bad for you to stay outside for too long. Why don¡¯t you go back and rest.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s goal had been achieved, and she didn¡¯t want to stay here any longer to look at this pair of ¡®lovers¡¯, otherwise she would feel queasy. She bowed to Gu Hui Yan to retire and he nodded somewhat worriedly, before adding, ¡°Jingdan Garden has been unupied for a long time. Tell me immediately if anything happens, and don¡¯t endure it by yourself, okay?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi responded with an ¡°okay¡±, and couldn¡¯t hold herself back from asking, ¡°Prince Yan, about my box¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan raised his eyebrows and didn¡¯t speak, looking at her with clear eyes. Lin Wei Xi smiled at him, and shamelessly said, ¡°Of course I dare not doubt Your Highness Prince Yan¡­ It¡¯s just that I¡¯ll only feel at ease if I hold on to it myself.¡±


    He looked away, still silent, but there was a smile in his eyes, ¡°You really can¡¯t do without your things, just go.¡±


    Only then did Lin Wei Xi leave,pletely satisfied. As the servants of the residence led Lin Wei Xi to Jingdan Garden, their expressions remained terrified throughout.


    Lin Wei Xi had suddenly gone from being an exploited wife and transformed into a privileged exploiter, oh how refreshing. As expected, Jingdan Garden lived up to its superior location. Lin Wei Xi took afortable bath to wash off the dust. And after a nap, the servants outside cautiously reported, ¡°Miss Lin, have you woken up?¡±


    The person speaking thought that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t recognize her, but Lin Wei Xi was actually very clear about the situation. She looked at the old servant¡¯s distinctly different attitude, and smiled to herself sarcastically, ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°The meal will be ready soon. The Prince said that if Miss wakes up, this ve will be the one to bring Miss to the main hall for the meal.¡±


    Prince Yan had returned, so the dinner arrangements naturally couldn¡¯t be sloppy. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s clothes and hair essories were all ready, so there was no need to dress herself again. She stood up and said, ¡°Got it, lead the way.¡±


    When they arrived, everyone was standing straight while holding their breath, and even Gao Ran stood to one side without sitting down. Lin Wei Xi calmly greeted Gu Hui Yan, then walked to the side and sat down. She carried herself as if she had always been a member of the family.


    She sat downfortably, while Gao Ran had to stand and serve the elders, and this contrast really made people feel ufortable. On the contrary, Gu Hui Yan paid it no mind. When he saw that Lin Wei Xi had changed her clothes, he frowned slightly and asked, ¡°Does your head still hurt?¡±


    This was clearly an illness she only had while travelling. She was weak, and would get a headache when a wind blew past so she needed to be careful after washing up. Lin Wei Xi shook her head and replied, ¡°It¡¯s nothing, you don¡¯t need to bother with it.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan frowned again after hearing this, but now wasn¡¯t the time to talk about it, so he didn¡¯t say anything. The dishes were passed from maid to maid, and they were silently delivered into the main hall one after another. Gao Ran used the serving chopsticks to serve food to everyone, and inevitably had to serve Lin Wei Xi. Lin Wei Xi felt gleeful, but she still declined in the end, ¡°Thank you Shizi Fei. Shizi Fei is too polite.¡±


    Gao Ran smiled stiffly, ¡°As a married woman, of course I have to assist my husband, raise our children, and manage the household. This is what I ought to do.¡± It was custom for unmarried women to sit, but the daughter-inw not to sit during meal times. It was also a rule for newly wedded brides to serve their elders during meal times. But who was Lin Wei Xi? Gao Ran really wanted to vomit blood.


    Gu Hui Yan nced at Lin Wei Xi slightly and said, ¡°No one here is a stranger, there¡¯s no need to do this. Sit down.¡±


    Gao Ran declined as usual. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, but a light bulb suddenly went off in her head, and she remembered what an old servant had mentioned before: Prince Yan never repeated what he said.


    Gao Ran didn¡¯t dare carry on her act. Gu Cheng Yao coincidentally happened to look at her, and she immediately took the opportunity to sit down next to him.


    The room waspletely silent throughout the meal, and when Gu Hui Yan stopped eating, everyone else immediately put down their chopsticks. There were still many matters that needed to be tended to after dinner. After rinsing her mouth and washing her hands, Lin Wei Xi heard Gu Hui Yan questioning Gu Cheng Yao. The voice was emotionless, but there was a fierce anger hidden within, ¡°I heard from Gu Ming Da that our residence has been distant from the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence these past few months. What the hell is this about?¡±

 Chapter 13

    After Gu Hui Yan said that, the atmosphere in the room turned heavy.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was the maternal grandmother of the previous Shizi Fei, Gao Xi. The Duke Ying Residence treated their daughters the same regardless of their status, but that might not be the case for Princess Shou Kang.


    Wei Shi was the Princess¡¯s di daughter, and her marriage was the most famous alliance between two influential families of equal rank the year she married the Duke Ying Shizi. But they didn¡¯t get along after marriage. Wei Shi carried the haughty air of a Princess¡¯s daughter, while the Duke Ying Shizi preferred delicate and beautiful women. This marriage seemedpatible on the surface, but Wei Shi led a difficult life. When Han Shi gained favour and became the apple of the Duke Ying Shizi¡¯s eyes, the rtionship between Wei Shi and the Duke Ying Shizi became strained.


    Wei Shi had been proud and arrogant since young, how could she stand to be oppressed by a concubine of humble birth. In the first month, ninth year of Jianzhao, the New Year had barely passed when Han Shi came out to show off, and Wei Shi called to mind her many years of resentment. She turned on Han Shi and made her kneel in the ancestral hall. Whenever Lin Wei Xi looked back on this incident, she always felt that such coincidences were scary. At that time, Han Shi didn¡¯t dare go against the mistress¡¯s orders, and went to kneel in the ice-cold ancestral hall while feeling wronged. The weather during the first month that year was incredibly cold, and Han Shi hadn¡¯t knelt for long before blood started to flow. When the Duke Ying Shizi heard this, he hurried back to find his favourite concubine¡¯s face as pale as paper, bleeding non-stop from her abdomen.


    Han Shi had actually been pregnant, the ice-cold floor causing her to immediately start bleeding. Heirs were very important to the family, so the Shizi was furious. The old Duke Ying Madam heard about it and also got angry at Wei Shi¡¯s unreasonable jealousy and disregard of decorum. Wei Shi had a huge row with her husband and mother-inw, and Shizi spat out many harsh words out of frustration. Wei Shi had been depressed for many years, and her cycle had been irregr since childhood, so she didn¡¯t even know that she was pregnant. With this rush of anger, she unexpectedly miscarried during the conflict. A women¡¯s pregnancy already harmed her body, but a miscarriage brought even greater harm. As a result, Wei Shi fell gravely ill, and within a few months, she passed away at a young age.


    That year, Wei Shi¡¯s only daughter, Gao Xi, was only ten years old, and the child that Wei Shi miscarried was a boy. Wei Shi had been looking forward to it for many years, but she unexpectedly ended up like this. The irony was that Han Shi, who¡¯d been punished in the ancestral hall and said to have been unable to save her fetus, safely gave birth to a son not nine monthster.


    He was Gao Ran¡¯s brother born from the same mother. If the heavenly book Lin Wei Xi saw that day wasn¡¯t wrong, this eldest son would be the Duke Ying Shizi, and heir,ter on. After all, the official wife had already passed away, and the only child she had was a daughter, Gao Xi. Furthermore, the Duke Ying Shizi especially favoured Han Shi and her children. In a situation where the official wife hadn¡¯t borne a son, it was reasonable to establish the eldest shu son as the heir.


    Her only daughter had been schemed to death by the concubine. Of course Princess Royal Shou Kang wouldn¡¯t forgive the concubine when she heard about it, but Wei Shi was also in the wrong regarding this matter. In this proper society that ced a woman¡¯s character<sup>¡ó</sup>and obedience above all else, Wei Shi¡¯s punishment led to the concubine bleeding from her abdomen. Afterwards, she even quarrelled with her mother-inw and husband, and she angered herself into a miscarriage in the end. Princess Shou Kang, as Wei Shi¡¯s mother, was of course extremely angry, but in public, everyone would say that Wei Shi only got what she deserved. Princess Shou Kang couldn¡¯t seek justice for her daughter, and the Duke Ying Residence wasn¡¯t a small household that could be trampled on. Princess Royal Shou Kang could only endure her rage, taking in her granddaughter Gao Xi and raising her meticulously.


    ¡ó


    Shou Kang was a noble princess, but her rtionship with her husband had been detached her entire life, with no son or grandson. Her only daughter had died at a young age, so her granddaughter Gao Xi was her sole support. But who would¡¯ve imagined that the tragedy of the previous two generations would repeat. Gao Xi was outstanding in everything she did, but her marriage didn¡¯t go well. She couldn¡¯t evenpare to Wei shi, and lived only a year before dying of depression.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was hit hard, but the other person was the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s Shizi. Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s father had overwhelming power, so what could Princess Shou Kang do? What truly made Princess Royal Shou Kang unable to stand it was what happened after. It had only been a month since Gao Xi passed, and the Duke Ying Residence was already proposing to let Gao Ran marry in as the second wife.


    Who was Gao Ran? She was Han Shi¡¯s daughter. Not only had that bitch Han Shi caused Princess Shou Kang¡¯s daughter to die, but now she even wanted to take over her granddaughter¡¯s household? Princess Royal Shou Kang immediately had a falling out with the Duke Ying Residence, and their many years of affection and warmth cooled.


    The fact that Princess Royal Shou Kang didn¡¯t like Gao Ran and that shu son was something everyone in the capital knew. Gu Cheng Yao had finally married his treasured white moonlight and cinnabar mole, and he was unhappy now that his sweetheart was being targeted by Princess Royal Shou Kang. He became a Shizi as soon as he was born, and with an influential family, others only yielded to him for all these years. When had he ever considered other people¡¯s honour and dignity? Since Princess Shou Kang showed her dissatisfaction, then Gu Cheng Yao also wouldn¡¯t cherish their previous favourable rtionship. The Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence was nothing more than an empty shell with no sessors. Anyone could see that their household was declining, but because Shou Kang was an elder, she could do nothing more than rely on the Princess Royal¡¯s position to cling to the facade. But if she truly confronted Prince Yan Residence, how could Gu Cheng Yao be afraid of her?


    So after Gao Ran entered the family, the Prince Yan Residence and the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence inevitably became indifferent to each other. Gao Ran was happy to see it, and Gu Cheng Yao wasn¡¯t scared in the least. Now that Gu Hui Yan brought it up, Gu Cheng Yao only paused for a moment before saying, ¡°Princess Royal Shou Kang seems to have misunderstood something about Shizi Fei, I specially made a trip to exin to the Princess Royal, but the people of the Princess¡¯s Residence looked coldly at Shizi Fei. Since a husband and wife are of the same body, their disrespect to Shizi Fei is a disrespect to me. In that case, then I need not stay any longer.¡±


    After hearing this, Lin Wei Xi knew that it was over. Gu Hui Yan was pissed. The expression on his face was the same as usual, and his voice was also no different than before, ¡°if you know that husband and wife are of the same body, then is Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s granddaughter Gao Xi not your wife?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao turned towards Gao Ran. She originally felt gratified that the old Princess, who was so disliked by men, didn¡¯t like her, and she disdained entering the Princess Residence. The old Princess couldn¡¯t even give birth to a son and only knew how to oppress others with her status. Gao Ran sincerely felt that Shou Kang deserved karmic retribution, and even more so Wei Shi and Gao Xi. Gu Cheng Yao cut off rtions with the Princess Residence because the people there treated her coldly. Gao Ran felt the male lead¡¯s aura was very useful. But now that Gu Hui Yan said this¡­ Gao Ran was stunned, and she didn¡¯t know what was going on. Could it be that Prince Yan was dissatisfied because of this? How did it get to this?


    Gu Cheng Yao was different from Gao Ran, and knew his father better. Once he heard Gu Hui Yan¡¯s tone, he knew that his father had lost his temper. The angrier Gu Hui Yan was, the moreposed he was, and the situation right now was clearly thetter.


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t dare sit any longer, and immediately stood up, lowered his head, and said, ¡°that¡¯s not what I mean¡­ But Princess Royal Shou Kang is too domineering. Shizi Fei is already my official wife. If the elder doesn¡¯t love the junior, then why should I be filial? She refuses to respect Shizi Fei. If I still submit to her as before, then wouldn¡¯t I be lowering the prestige of the Prince Yan Residence?¡±


    Gao Ran also hurriedly stood up. She quickly nced at Lin Wei Xi and pursed her lips, before lowering her head, ¡°It¡¯s me who is wrong, not Shizi. Father, please don¡¯t me him.¡±


    Of course, Lin Wei Xi understood the meaning behind Gao Ran¡¯s nce. This was a family matter of the Prince Yan Residence. No matter what, Lin Wei Xi shouldn¡¯t listen to this, as she wasn¡¯t part of the family. Normally, she would¡¯ve found an excuse to leave, but the person standing in front of her was Gu Cheng Yao. Her years of upbringing told her to respect the private affairs of her host family, and that she ought to politely avoid listening, but¡­ she really wanted to watch Gu Cheng Yao get yelled at. Lin Wei Xi finally resigned to her wishes. She sat firmly while trying to make herself as small as possible, and continued to listen, projecting a righteous image when in fact she was secretly pleased to see his suffering.


    When Gu Hui Yan heard Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s words, his anger grew stronger. There was no expression on his face, but his words alone held an intense pressure, ¡°if the Princess Royal really didn¡¯t care about the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s honour and dignity, she wouldn¡¯t have let you in.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran bowed their heads, purposely breathing lightly. Gu Hui Yan calmed down, and when he spoke again, he returned to being the stoic Prince Yan, not letting any emotions leak through, ¡°You didn¡¯t keep to the mourning period for your wife and insisted on remarrying, so this is your fault. Princess Royal Shou Kang is only giving you the cold shoulder, and it¡¯s only right for her if she had her people bar you from the door. In the first ce, you were the one who personally wrote and asked to marry her granddaughter, who was her only remaining bloodline. But she died of illness in the residence within a year from dubious reasons. Princess Shou Kang hasints against you, and you still have objections?¡±


    ¡°Father.¡± Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t help lifting his head, ¡°The person I was looking for in the beginning wasn¡¯t her, it was her and the Princess Royal¡­ ¡°


    His voice gradually shrivelled up under Gu Hui Yan¡¯s look. Seeing him lower his head obediently, Gu Hui Yan chuckled and set the teacup on the table with a m, ¡°were you not the one who wrote the letter in the first ce? Was it not you who got engaged to her when you exchanged your eight-character cards<sup>¡ó</sup>?¡±


    ¡ó


    Gu Cheng Yao looked vexed. After restraining and holding himself back, he unwillingly and reluctantly said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, no one will listen to your excuses. You¡¯re already so old. If you do something wrong, then you¡¯re wrong. You don¡¯t want to take responsibility, but instead make excuses for yourself?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes turned sour when she heard this. She quickly opened her eyes and forced back her tears. For so long, that heavenly book, the Duke Ying Residence, and even the many old servants in the Prince Yan Residence all said that she reaped what she¡¯d sown and that she deserved it. Out of so many people, it was unexpectedly solely Prince Yan who rectified the injustice and ruthlessly criticized Gu Cheng Yan. Furthermore, he was Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s father, and one hundred percent her husband¡¯s family.


    At that time, it was Lin Wei Xi who¡¯d stupidly taken Gao Ran¡¯s ce as his saviour, but who¡¯s fault was it? It was Gu Cheng Yao, who had confessed to the wrong person, and Gao Ran, who was the one behind the trick, so why did she have to shoulder the burden of failure in the end? Even if it was discovered that a strange turn of events caused the mistake that started the rtionship, Gu Cheng Yao had married her after all, why didn¡¯t he think about his responsibility as a husband?


    Gu Cheng Yao wanted to look for a hole to crawl into after being reprimanded. Gao Ran wanted to say something, but when she met Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze, she was so scared that her throat choked up, and she was unable to make a sound.


    This was a rare urrence of Gu Hui Yan¡¯s anger. The hall was silent in fear, inside and out. Even the old servants who used to serve the previous Prince didn¡¯t dare speak at this moment. In the stillness of the dining hall, there was a sudden burst of irritable coughing. The person seemed to want to suppress it, but the more she tried to suppress it, the worse the coughing became. Lin Wei Xi covered her mouth, knitted her eyebrows, and managed to say to Gu Hui Yan after much difficulty, ¡°Sorry. I also don¡¯t want to disturb you and Shizi. It¡¯s just¡­ cough cough¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi coughed until her cheeks were flushed and her tears filled her eyes; it was actually to hide her excitement. Gu Hui Yan was initially angry, but seeing Lin Wei Xi coughing so pitifully, he sighed and said, ¡°Why are you coughing again? Did you drink your medicine today?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was silent. Wan Yue hurried forward and carefully replied, ¡°This ve has already served the medicine to Miss, but the weather has been dry these few days and it doesn¡¯t always work.¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow, I will call the imperial physician from the pce to change your medicine.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi thanked Gu Hui Yan with difficulty, and Gu Cheng Yao watched helplessly as a group of people rushed to her side, handing her tea and patting her back, seemingly forgetting about him.


    But fortunately, with this, everyone moved on from the matter, and the people under Gu Cheng Yao felt very relieved. When Lin Wei Xi realized that she had once again helped Gu Cheng Yao get out of trouble, her anger rushed to her head and she couldn¡¯t stop the emotions gathered at the back of her throat.


    After great difficulty, she finally stopped coughing, and everyone in the hall breathed a sigh of relief. Gu Hui Yan was still looking at her with a frown. She carefully put on a pleasant expression as she took a look at Gu Hui Yan, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, are you still angry?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan helplessly looked at Lin Wei Xi, and without changing his expression, gently raised his hand to Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°There won¡¯t be a second chance.¡±


    Gao Ran was overjoyed when she heard this, while Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s face was tense. He gave Lin Wei Xi aplicated look and bowed to Gu Hui Yan. For a while, everyone looked at Lin Wei Xi, their eyes filled with gratitude, and she smiled stiffly, swallowing her misery.


    Actually, that wasn¡¯t what she meant¡­

 Chapter 14

    Lin Wei Xi sadly found that she always identally helped Gu Cheng Yao when what she obviously wanted was to stir up trouble. What was even more annoying was that the people around her misunderstood her actions by confusingly thinking that she was kind-hearted and couldn¡¯t stand to watch Shizi get reprimanded by the Prince, so she found a way to get him out of the predicament.


    Before helping him out of the damn predicament, Lin Wei Xi had looked forward to Prince Yan scolding him for another two hours.


    She went back to Jingdan Garden, fuming with anger. After taking off her cloak and sitting down, Wan Xing brought her some hot tea. Seeing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s frigid expression, she smiled and said, ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Miss? Did someone in the residence make you angry?¡±


    Wan Xing was the maid that Prince Yan bought to take care of Lin Wei Xi after she fell ill during the journey. Lin Wei Xi went along with the theme of Wan Yue¡¯s name and named her Wan Xing<sup>¡ó</sup>. These two maids were now her only subordinates.


    ¡ó


    Wan Yue had left to keep Lin Wei Xi¡¯s cloak, and when she heard this sentence upon returning, she replied, ¡°Miss started coughing again today, but thanks to her, Shizi and Shizi Fei managed to avoid an embarrassing situation.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    Wan Yue recounted what happened over dinner, and Wan Xing sighed, praising ¡°Miss is so kind. Shizi Fei purposely had her wet nurse scold Miss, but Miss helped them get out of trouble.¡±


    Who helped them? Lin Wei Xi replied angrily in her mind. They were in the residence, and Gao Ran was the daughter-inw of Prince Yan. Wan Xing and Wan Yue didn¡¯t have much to say, so they dropped the subject. Wan Yue continued, ¡°Exactly, the Prince¡¯s anger today was really scary, so scary that I didn¡¯t dare raise my head. The Prince is only easier to talk to when he¡¯s talking to Miss. He¡¯s extremely strict with Shizi, and will reprimand him in front of so many people without hesitation.¡±


    ¡°Why did he do that?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s because of Princess Royal Shou Kang. I didn¡¯t expect that although Prince Yan seems unreasonable, he is filial to the Princess.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi lightly added at this point, ¡°It¡¯s not that he is filial to Princess Royal Shou Kang. Although Princess Royal is Prince Yan¡¯s paternal aunt, how many princesses do you think there are in the royal family? With so many uncles, nephews and aunts, I don¡¯t see him being close to any of them. The one Prince Yan is really filial to is the previous Prince Yan. Back then, when the previous Prince Yan hadn¡¯t yet moved to his fief, the then Emperor was suspicious of him. It was because Princess Royal Shou Kang vouched for him, that he could smoothly leave the capital. It¡¯s because of this that Prince Yan treats the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence extremely courteously. Gu Cheng Yao grew up in the fief and was born when the Prince Yan Residence was at the peak of its power. Everything he did went smooth sailing, so how can he understand the hardships of the previous generation?¡±


    ¡°So that¡¯s the origin of their rtionship.¡± After listening, Wan Xing inadvertently asked, ¡°Miss, how do you know about what happened with the Emperor?¡±


    The hand holding the teacup immediately paused. Lin Wei Xi naturally knew this because of what Princess Royal Shou Kang had said herself. But Lin Wei Xi, a lone weak woman, shouldn¡¯t know about it. She was inwardly rmed, but she casually replied, ¡°When I was ten years old, my dad brought me to the capital to see a doctor. I stayed in the capital for almost half a year and happened to hear what an old man in the alleys said.¡±


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing both joined Lin Wei Xi halfway and knew nothing about her past, so they believed her exnation. Seeing that she managed to fool the two maids, she felt relieved, but she also warned herself not to be so careless.


    If the person who heard this was Prince Yan, it would be over.


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing were both in the capital for the first time, and they were also in a Prince¡¯s Residence, so they were curious to no end. The two were different from Lin Wei Xi¡¯s former maids, and they chattered lively. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s identity was no longer the same as before, so she couldn¡¯t be too critical of the two maidservants. Wan Xing and Wan Yue were full of curiosity about the renowned Prince Yan Residence, and it was even more amazing now that the both of them were actually living with Lin Wei Xi in that ce. They lowered their voices and said that this was only the tip of the iceberg of the Prince Yan Residence, but it was already an entertaining enough family affair, ¡°I heard that the current Shizi Fei is the second wife, and that thedy before her is also surnamed Gao, who was actually Shizi Fei¡¯s older sister!¡±


    Wan Yue covered her mouth in bewilderment, ¡°Her older sister?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Wan Yue looked surprised, ¡°Shizi looks very young, but it seems like he has already married a second wife.¡±


    ¡°The Prince looks like he¡¯s only in his twenties. If you didn¡¯t already know, you wouldn¡¯t have guessed that his son is already seventeen.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true. Shizi is only seventeen, so he¡¯s the one who married early.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that he married early, it¡¯s the former Shizi Fei who died too quickly.¡± Lin Wei Xi took over the conversation, and even smiled, ¡°they married in the first month that year, but she died at the end of the year. In the second month the next year, Shizi brought the younger sister into the household without dy.¡±


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue didn¡¯t expect Lin Wei Xi to suddenly join the conversation. They didn¡¯t think too much, but sighed, ¡°The previous Shizi Fei was so pitiful.¡±


    Pitiful? Lin Wei Xi smiled, ¡°Perhaps. But Prince Yan is right. People only look at the results and don¡¯t ask for the reason. I¡¯m afraid she only has herself to me for living her life like this. Shizi and the new Shizi Fei are deeply in love with each other. It¡¯s good to make way for her early.¡±


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing looked at each other, not knowing why Miss Lin was suddenly so pessimistic. Wan Xing was a lively person, and after only one day¡¯s work, she¡¯d already gathered a lot of information from the servants in the residence, ¡°actually, it¡¯s not necessarily the previous Shizi Fei¡¯s fault. Today, this ve heard people say that the previous Shizi Fei was extremely strict in managing the residence at that time. The rules were clean cut, no gossiping, noziness, and no pilfering the kitchen. The Prince Yan Consort passed away many years ago, and Prince Yan spends all year round on war campaigns. It was inevitable that many rules in the residence became ck. When the previous Shizi Fei just arrived, she made a decisive overhaul with good intentions, but it unfortunately offended many people.¡±


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing were third party observers, so they could objectively evaluate the situation in the Prince Yan Residence. However, for the old servants who were deeply rooted in the Prince Yan Residence, Gao Xi¡¯s actions had uprooted their territory. So to these people, Gao Xi was, of course, no good at all. And after Gao Xi had finally dealt with the years of umted bad practices, she herself copsed from exhaustion. Afterwards, Gao Ran entered the household, and with the foundation alreadyid, taking over the reins was naturally as easy as cutting through butter. Gao Ran only had to run the household on the surface, and she had the benefit of rxing the rules a little bit. Compared to Gao Xi¡¯s strictness, Gao Ran immediately became the gentle and kind new mistress, the whole residence agreeing that she was good.


    This led to the current situation. Wan Xing and Wan Yue, as newly recruited servants, could say ¡°it¡¯s good that the previous Shizi Fei was diligent¡±, but Gu Cheng Yao, who was blinded by the old servants, couldn¡¯t see it.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t expect to hear such words from these two girls. Sheughed self-deprecatingly. It was rare for someone to see her kindness. She didn¡¯t want to talk about such depressing things anymore. She was getting real tired of seeing Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran act so intimately, and even worse, Gao Ran¡¯s dowry maid was proudly advocating it. God knows these servants previously didn¡¯t even dare lift their heads in front of her, but now they were actually so unrestrained.


    She stood up and said faintly, ¡°This is their family affair after all. It¡¯s not good to talk about their private affairs behind their back, so don¡¯t bring this up again.¡±


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing looked at each other and noticed the contradiction in her words. Miss Lin obviously relied on Prince Yan a lot, but was uncharacteristically indifferent when talking about his family. One ought to embrace everything about the other person, so why did Miss Lin have such a conflicting attitude? Wan Yue and Wan Xing didn¡¯t know why and so they didn¡¯t bring it up again. Instead, they carefully served Lin Wei Xi in changing her clothes, ¡°Miss, Prince Yan was angry with Shizi today because of what happened with Princess Royal Shou Kang, and said that he will take Shizi to visit her in a few days to apologize. Is this true?¡±


    ¡°Why would it not be true?¡± Lin Wei Xi sneered, sarcasm filling her voice, ¡°how dare they look down on the Princess Royal Residence because it doesn¡¯t have an heir? Where did they find the guts to do that? Even if the Princess Residence really has no sessor, as long as the Princess is still around, no one in the capital could possibly ignore it. Even Prince Yan still wants to call Princess Royal Shou Kang aunt. A shu daughter like her is anxious to climb up, thinking that she can behave atrociously in the Princess¡¯s domain. What a joke.¡±


    ¡°Miss¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi realized she was being emotional. She took a deep breath and said, ¡°Prepare my clothes for the next few days. I am going to visit the Princess Royal Residence with Prince Yan.¡±


    Wan Yue was stunned. Lin Wei Xi was still observing her filial mourning and usually locked herself in her room. Why did she want to go to the Princess Royal Residence? But it wasn¡¯t her ce as a maid to worry about such things. Wan Yue softly responded and went to prepare Lin Wei Xi¡¯s clothes for the visitation.


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t say anything after learning about it, and only nodded his head in consent. When he finally freed up some time in his schedule, he personally took everyone from the Prince Yan Residence to pay a visit to Princess Royal Shou Kang.


    Prince Yan was of course regarded as a distinguished guest and immediately weed into the residence. When Princess Royal Shou Kang heard that he had visited her, she had her maids support her right away so she could greet him herself.


    When Gu Hui Yan saw her, he quickly got up to support her arm, ¡°Aunt, this son is stubborn and has let you down even after all your painstaking efforts. And now I¡¯ve even troubled you toe out in person. This is all my fault.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say that. You are now a Prince that the emperor heavily relies on. How can I, an olddy who already has one foot on the grave, ept your apology.¡±


    When Gu Hui Yan heard this, he also couldn¡¯t say anything, and looked pointedly at Gu Cheng Yao for a moment. Gu Cheng Yao understood his father¡¯s meaning, and could only reluctantly walk up to salute Princess Royal Shou Kang, ¡°This junior was confused a few days ago and offended grandaunt. Please forgive this junior.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao was the son of Prince Yan. Even if Princess Royal Shou Kang hated his negligence of Xi¡¯er, she couldn¡¯t ignore Prince Yan¡¯s face. Prince Yan had taken his son to apologize in person, so no matter be it from the perspective of etiquette or morals, Prince Yan had sufficiently expressed his sincerity. Princess Royal Shou Kang could only nod her head and say in a lukewarm manner, ¡°There is no prolonged hatred amongst family. It¡¯s good that you understand. Get up quickly.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao got up, and Gao Ran followed and saluted, ¡°Maternal grandmother.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang snorted coldly, not even looking at her. Gao Ran looked wronged and Gu Cheng Yao felt torn, but Gu Hui Yan was still sitting calmly. Even if Gu Cheng Yao was angry, he didn¡¯t dare make the slightest move.


    It was also at this time that Princess Royal Shou Kang realized there was one more person. She looked at the girl, who looked like she¡¯d walked out of an exquisite New Year¡¯s painting, and was slightly stunned, ¡°This is¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi stepped forward and kowtowed three times to Princess Royal Shou Kang, ¡°This girl is Lin Wei Xi, paying my respect to Princess Royal.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang looked at the girl on the ground, her eyes unconsciously widened. Gu Hui Yan saw this and exined, ¡°When suppressing the Northwest rebellion, I was careless. It was her father who died in battle as he shielded me. You should have an impression of Marquis Zhongyong from before. After the Northwest rebellion was suppressed, I met this young girl who¡¯d lost her mother as a child, and now she¡¯s also lost her father. It¡¯s not a good idea to wander around alone, so I took her to the capital. Today, I brought the juniors to greet you, and she also tagged along.¡±


    After Princess Royal Shou Kang listened to this, the inexplicable beating of her heart became more and more obvious. She had someone help Lin Wei Xi up to move her closer, and after carefully examining her for a while, she warmly covered the back of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand with her rough ones and asked, ¡°Your name is Lin Wei Xi, what is your nickname?¡±


    ¡°This girl lost her mother at a young age and didn¡¯t have a pet name as a child. Everyone in the family called me Xi¡¯er.¡±


    ¡°Xi¡¯er.¡± Even her name was exactly the same. Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s eyes suddenly turned moist, ¡°Okay, let¡¯s call you Xi¡¯er. When were you born?¡±


    ¡°On the fifteenth of the first lunar month, at 5-7 am.¡±


    Hearing the hour, Gao Ran¡¯s eyes widened and Gu Cheng Yao also had a strange look on his face. When Gu Hui Yan saw this, he raised his eyebrows and calmly asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t speak, but an old woman of the Princess Residence wiped her tears and said, ¡°Replying to Prince Yan, our eldest miss was born on the fifteenth of the first lunar month, but it was at 5-7 pm.¡±


    Gao Xi had been close to her maternal family since childhood, so the people of the Princess Royal Residence called her eldest miss.


    Gu Hui Yan was also surprised to hear this, ¡°what a coincidence.¡±


    The same nickname, the same syble, and even the same birthday. That strange feeling came back. Gu Cheng Yao looked at Lin Wei Xi, who was standing up front, and suddenly went into a trance.


    For a split second, Gu Cheng Yao almost felt like the person standing in front of him was his deceased first wife, and the cause of his unhappy marriage, Gao Xi.

 Chapter 15

    ¡°This Xiss and I have been brought together by fate.¡± Princess Royal Shou Kang was gloomy when she first came out, but now her eyes were filled with light again. The unconscious draw between rtives was beyond expression. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t dare tell her grandmother the truth, but Princess Royal Shou Kang still followed her instinctive closeness to Lin Wei Xi. She stubbornly felt that this was her granddaughter, that her Xi¡¯er had returned.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang couldn¡¯t help but weep. She wiped away her tears and smiled at everyone, ¡°please don¡¯tugh, it¡¯s easy to be emotional when you¡¯re old, and everything you see makes you sentimental.¡±


    Everyone in the room whispered words offort, and Gu Hui Yan also said, ¡°Aunt, what are you saying? Lin Wei Xi doesn¡¯t have any blood rtives. If seeing her can make you happy and talking to her can relieve your sorrow, then all the better.¡±


    After crying, Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s heart obviously felt much lighter. She looked at Lin Wei Xi, and the girl looked pleasing to her eyes no matter how much she looked at her, ¡°You were born during the Lantern Festival at 5-7 am. It¡¯s a good time. I¡¯ve always felt that Gao Xi¡¯s birthday was too noisy and was afraid the noise couldn¡¯t be contained. She was born on the 15th day of the first lunar month at 5-7 pm, when it¡¯s time to light thenterns and the whole city is filled with the sound of fireworks. Although it was festive, it was too noisy and I was afraid it would bring bad luck. Your hour is just right, when the sky is starting to brighten, and every living creature is just waking up, just like your name, Xi [t/n: dawn], a brilliant dawn light!¡±


    ¡°Thank you Princess Royal.¡±


    ¡°Why do you sound so distant? You also don¡¯t have any rtives. You lost your parents at a young age and don¡¯t even have uncles and cousins. Although I was born into the imperial family, all my brothers and sisters each have their own family, even the half of them who are already gone. I only had one daughter, but she passed away at a young age. Even my only granddaughter¡­ I have the fate of a parent seeing their child leave before them.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang had watched these two people pass before her, and it made her extremely broken-hearted. An old granny from the Princess Royal Residence saw this and said, ¡°Miss Lin lost her parents at a young age, and our Princess doesn¡¯t have descendants. Why don¡¯t we let Miss Lin call the Princess ¡®grandmother¡¯! Then Miss Lin will have a rtive who can protect her, and our Princess¡¯s wish can also be fulfilled after so many years.¡±


    The most regrettable thing in Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s life was herck of children. Lin Wei Xi had been educated by Princess Royal Shou Kang for many years, and to her, Shou Kang was much closer to her, and much more qualified, than her nominal grandmother, the Duke Ying Lady. It was just that the disguishment between close and distant rtives was determined with the word ¡®external¡¯<sup>¡ó</sup>. Lin Wei Xi looked at Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s expectant expression, smiled softly, and said crisply, ¡°Grandmother.¡±


    ¡ó


    Shou Kang¡¯s eyes grew hot and she heaved a heavy ¡°hey¡±. After this, she looked like she wanted to cry again. The old servants who were standing at the side also turned their faces away to wipe their tears one after another.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang and Lin Wei Xi were overflowing with joy, as if they truly recognized each other as grandparent and grandchild. The few people standing at the back had stiff expressions on their faces, all kinds of thoughts shing through their minds.


    Gu Cheng Yao felt even more dazed, and his gaze on Lin Wei Xi grew clouded. Gao Ran silently stared at him, and after seeing his expression, she bit her lip, her hatred for Gao Xi bing stronger.


    It was Gao Xi who had stolen her position, relying on her status as a di daughter and colluding with her grandmother to twist the facts, deceiving Prince Yan and Gu Cheng Yao into agreeing to the marriage. God knows how shocked Gao Ran was when she saw Gu Cheng Yao at the wedding. At the time, he was injured and didn¡¯t see her face, but she remembered how he looked. Combined with the vague rumours being spread from Gao Xi¡¯s side about her fish jade pendant, of course Gao Ran understood the situation. Gao Xi was just like the vicious princesses in those fairy tales, who impersonated the saviour and shamelessly stole credit that didn¡¯t belong to her, even snatching away the prince.


    Don¡¯t even mention the despair and hatred Gao Ran felt at that time, but fortunately, the Shizi Fei who had taken her ce as the saviour led an unfortunate life afterwards. This was the thing that made Gao Ran the happiest.


    Later, the fake Princess died, and Gao Ran finally fulfilled her wish to marry her knight in shining armour. Furthermore, she won the love of the entire residence as soon as she entered the household. She thought that her story would happily continue like those in a fairy tale. It didn¡¯t even matter if Gu Cheng Yao had a personal maid or a concubine<sup>¡ó</sup>. Sooner orter, she would capture his heart. But now that Gao Ran had seen his gaze linger on another woman, that woman being an unparalleled beauty, Gao Ran suddenly couldn¡¯t suppress her jealousy.


    ¡ó


    It hadn¡¯t been easy for Gao Ran to take back her marriage, and she wouldn¡¯t allow anyone to destroy it. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s appearance was too clich¨¦d. She arrived after Gao Ran had gotten married, and just as she arrived, she won the favour of the viiness, Princess Royal Shou Kang. Her personality was virtuous while her body was delicate. She ticked every box that proved she was Gao Ran¡¯s female rival, and was even a little white lotus.


    Gao Ran looked at Lin Wei Xi from behind with intense hostility in her eyes. From her previous life until this one, she had never lost a fight with another woman. Even Gao Xi, with such a high family background, couldn¡¯t beat her, so how could an orphan with only a beautiful face be her opponent?


    Gao Ran only took a nce before looking away to contemte her next move. Lin Wei Xi was emotional and didn¡¯t notice the movement behind her. She¡¯d finally seen her grandmother despite their separation after her death. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t tell Princess Shou Kang the truth without talking about the supernatural phenomena that happened to her, she couldn¡¯t afford to take that risk. But it didn¡¯t affect her filial piety for her grandmother. Anyway, she didn¡¯t n to marry in the future, so she would spend all her time fulfilling her filial piety to Princess Royal Shou Kang, even if they were no longer real grandparent and grandchild.


    Gu Hui Yan watched as Lin Wei Xi and Princess Shou Kang hit it off on their first meeting. He sat and watched quietly for a while, and then said to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that you and aunt get along well. It¡¯s a wonderful day, no need to cry. Why don¡¯t you go wash your face first, it¡¯s a mess.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was startled when she heard this. Her face was a mess? Oh God, she had shown her ugly side in front of Prince Yan again.


    Her cheeks were flushed. She really thought that her appearance was a mess and, disregarding everything else, hurried out to fix her make-up. After Lin Wei Xi left, Gu Hui Yan found an excuse to send Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran out as well. Princess Royal Shou Kang had expected this when Gu Yan Hui told Lin Wei Xi her face was a mess, so she leaned against the pillow while smiling, and asked, ¡°You deliberately sent everyone out, so what do you wish to say to this old woman?¡±


    ¡°Aunt should have already guessed that I want to talk about Lin Wei Xi.¡± Gu Hui Yan said, ¡°Her father died in order to save me. After Lin Yong passed away, she had no rtives even in her hometown. It was I who let her down, that¡¯s why I have to take care of her in ce of Lin Yong no matter what. The least I can do is to find a reliable husband for her.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang nodded, ¡°Prince Yan has thought it through. She is a youngdy with no support, so it¡¯s inevitable that she will be bullied. Let¡¯s find her a good partner, so that she has someone to rely on in the future.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I was going to say.¡± Gu Hui Yan sighed helplessly. ¡°But she is very resistant to getting married for some reason. I mentioned it twice before and she refused to, even getting angry at me.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Princess Shou Kang was very surprised. A little girl like Lin Wei Xi dared to lose her temper at Gu Hui Yan? When did his temper improve?


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t want to talk more about it, so he dropped the topic and said to Princess Shou Kang, ¡°It was I who personally wrote to you to ask for the eldest daughter of the Duke Ying Residence to marry my son. It¡¯s a pity that that stupid son was stubborn. Not only did he let Gao Xi down, but he also failed to live up to your expectations. I know that I have no face to say this to you, but Lin Wei Xi is still unmarried after all. Even if her father and I have this life-saving bond, she¡¯ll eventually not have a valid reason to live in the Prince Yan Residence after a long period of time, and over time it will damage her reputation. So I can only shamelessly request this of you.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang already understood, ¡°You want me to find a good marriage for her.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t expect that the day woulde where he would worry about this kind of thing, but Lin Wei Xi¡¯s body was weak but her temper was fierce. Gu Hui Yan had no choice but to entrust it to other people, ¡°she will explode the moment I mention this to her, but I see that you and her are close, so it¡¯s better for you to talk to her about it.¡±


    ¡°When will she finish observing her filial mourning?¡±


    ¡°The fifth month this year.¡±


    It wouldn¡¯t be long then, with only two months left. Shou Kang nodded thoughtfully and agreed. Old people always worried about the younger generation¡¯s marriage. She saw Lin Wei Xi as her own granddaughter, and there was no way she wouldn¡¯t choose a good husband for her granddaughter. Gu Hui Yan felt relieved when he saw Shou Kang¡¯s demeanour. Since Gao Xi¡¯s death, Princess Shou Kang¡¯s condition had deteriorated day by day. She had no attachments to this world and no spirit, so it was natural that her body deteriorated. Since he¡¯d found something for Shou Kang to do and could also settle Lin Wei Xi¡¯s marital affairs, it was like killing two birds with one stone, so why not do it?


    Gu Hui Yan had achieved his two purposes today. There were many things waiting for his attention, and he didn¡¯t have much time, so he got up and said goodbye. Lin Wei Xi had just returned from fixing herself up, but was instead taken away by Prince Yan without even being able to sit. She reluctantly bid farewell to Princess Royal Shou Kang and boarded the carriage of the Prince Yan Residence.


    This visit was of great significance. Prince Yan used his actions to crush the rumours in the capital regarding the falling out between the Prince Yan Residence and the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence, making his position clear. Gao Xi, the previous Shizi Fei, was still the daughter-inw that Prince Yan acknowledged, and all the rumours floating around the capital wereplete nonsense.


    The atmosphere inside the Prince Yan Residence also quietly changed. Prince Yan¡¯s high-profile visit to the Princess Shou Kang Residence restored Gao Xi¡¯s name, but it was also a p in the face for Gao Ran. Even if the rtionship between Gao Xi and Gu Cheng Yao was a mess, Gao Xi was still the official daughter-inw that Prince Yan acknowledged and the original consort of the Prince Yan Residence. Gao Ran had to put to rest her sense of superiority.


    Gao Ran wasn¡¯t happy, but she told herself then, that one could only know a person after a long time, and with the time she had, Prince Yan would definitely be able to see her good points and acknowledge her. But before that, Gao Ran needed to deal with the other threats first.


    The weather was turning warm, and the winter clothes were gradually put away. All the girls who loved pretty things immediately brought out their light spring clothes. Lin Wei Xi had been living in the Prince Yan Residence for close to a month. At first, everyone only treated her as a guest, with Gao Ran fanning the mes. But as time passed, Lin Wei Xi was like a fish in the water in the Prince Yan Residence, and the people in the residence grew more and more used to her presence. Because of how detached she was from the residence, some people even regarded her as a backer, and there was no shortage of people ttering and fawning over her.


    Gao Ran was incredibly frustrated during this time. She was clearly the mistress of the residence, but Lin Wei Xi had suddenly appeared, and not only did she annoy her, but she still had to treat this person like a sister-inw, with care and respect. The more respected Lin Wei Xi became in the residence, the more tormented Gao Ran grew.


    One afternoon, Gao Ran invited Lin Wei Xi to the garden to enjoy the flowers and talk. ording to her, they were the only two women in the residence and were as affectionate as sisters. Lin Wei Xi got goosebumps all over her body at that analogy. She was bored and passing the time by pulling flower petals, when she suddenly saw Gao Ran letting the servants bring out tes of fruits, and to the side was a chessboard, some embroidery, and all kinds of entertainment. Lin Wei Xi quietly raised her eyebrows, while Gao Ran smiled gently and said to her, ¡°It¡¯s a beautiful spring day today and this weather is best for a hike. It¡¯s just a pity that we can¡¯t leave the residence, so let¡¯s take a walk in the garden and chat for fun. ¡°


    Gao Ran pretended to unintentionally pick up a chess piece, and said, ¡°Miss Lin, do you know how to y chess? The sun is out today, how about we y a round amongst the flowers?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at the ck chess piece in Gao Ran¡¯s hand and smiled softly, ¡°Alright.¡±


    She gracefully sat down across Gao Ran, who was picking out misced chess pieces, her wrist moving elegantly andzily. With a smile on her lips, she nonchntly said, ¡°Miss Lin, chess is boring, so why don¡¯t we y a new game.¡±


    ¡°Oh, what game is it?¡±


    ¡°Gomoku.¡±

 Chapter 16

    It was as she¡¯d expected. Lin Wei Xi smiled when she heard this, ying with the glittering and translucent white jade chess pieces that radiated some warmth in her hands, and asked, ¡°What is this game that I¡¯ve never heard of before?¡±


    Ning Fu, who was waiting on them at the side, responded, ¡°This is a new game that our Shizi Fei invented herself. It¡¯s rxing and interesting, and is liked by all the young masters and mistresses in the Duke Ying Residence.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled silently. Seeing her focus on the chess piece, Gao Ran gently added, ¡°This is part of my dowry. It¡¯s called Warm Jade Chess and is made from warm jade; it will be radiant and warm whenever it¡¯s taken out and is beneficial to one¡¯s body after using it for a long time.¡±


    Ning Fu thought Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t aware of what warm jade was, so she quickly said, ¡°Has Miss Lin not seen this kind of jade before? This is no ordinary jade. Even in the capital, it¡¯s exorbitantly high price means that it can¡¯t be found in stores, and each piece was difficult to find. However, it¡¯s nothing more than an ordinary item in Shizi Fei¡¯s dowry.¡±


    ¡°Ning Fu.¡± Gao Ran lightly reproached her, ¡°I have many items in my dowry because my grandmother cherishes me. Why does it sound like boasting when ites from your mouth?¡± After she finished speaking, Gao Ran looked at Lin Wei Xi and nodded in embarrassment, ¡°please don¡¯tugh Miss Lin, I hope you don¡¯t take offence. Even if it¡¯s precious, it¡¯s not practical and is nothing more than a worldly possession. Let¡¯s just y chess.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at the chess pieces in her hand and smiled meaningfully, ¡°Shizi Fei is really open-minded.¡±


    Wasn¡¯t she really open-minded? Not one year ago, this had belonged to Lin Wei Xi.


    This had originally been a part of her dowry before, and Gao Ran¡¯s maid hurriedly exined it to Lin Wei Xi just now. How ridiculous. It made her so angry that she wanted tough.


    Lin Wei Xi knew that after her death, her dowry would¡¯ve been redistributed by the Duke Ying Residence, and she even gave in to this possibility in her mind. But when the oue presented itself in front of her, Lin Wei Xi found that she still couldn¡¯t let it go.


    And it wasn¡¯t just the chess set in front of her. When Lin Wei Xi looked around at the gold and silver furnishings, the blue and white porcins, and even the sandalwood furniture on disy, all of it felt familiar.


    Lin Wei Xi hurriedly lowered her gaze. If she continued looking she would be furious. Seeing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face go stiff, Gao Ran thought that the other girl was intimidated by her wealthy family background and felt inferior because of it. She smiled and said, ¡°This Ning Fu doesn¡¯t have a filter on her mouth and is often blunt. Please don¡¯t mind it Miss Lin, she doesn¡¯t have any bad intentions.¡±


    ¡°If she can¡¯t control her own mouth, then she should be punished. If she still doesn¡¯t know how to speak properly, then she should be sold to a ve trader.¡± Lin Wei Xi was already ufortable, so she immediately exploded when she heard those words. She looked at Gao Ran impatiently. Her voice was delicate from illness, but her words were unforgiving, ¡°you can¡¯t even discipline your own maid properly, but you¡¯re asking other people to be magnanimous? Why should I tolerate it? Your dog has bitten someone, and you still refuse to tie her down?¡±


    Wan Xing let out a ¡°pfft¡±, but hurriedly shrank her shoulders and lowered her head after receiving the stares of other people. Even so, everyone could tell that her shoulders were shaking slightly.


    Wan Xing had been bought from outside the residence, so it was inevitable that she would perform worse during such a big scene. Wan Yue had experience in a wealthy household, so she was much moreposed than Wan Xing. Even if she really wanted tough, she continued to hold it in.


    Ning Fu had been embarrassed by Lin Wei Xi, and with Wan Xingughing from behind, she was overwhelmed with shame and anger, her eyes immediately turning red. She and the other dowry maids red at Lin Wei Xi, as Gao Ran lost face when her maid was rebuked in front of her.


    Granny Tao and a few others glowered. Gao Ran nced back at them, her eyes moved slightly, and she maintained her temper, saying, ¡°Ning Fu is frank and outspoken, and is only saying what¡¯s on her mind, unlike those people with bad intentions. She is harmless, and I¡¯m afraid Miss Lin may have misunderstood her.¡±


    ¡°What is the meaning of this, Shizi Fei? What do you mean when you say that because she¡¯s outspoken, she¡¯s harmless? I am also very frank and outspoken, but Shizi Fei doesn¡¯t seem too happy? Furthermore, who is the person with bad intentions that Shizi Fei is alluding to?¡±


    After she finished speaking, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t wait for Gao Ran to respond. At that moment, the courtyard was nketed in an abnormal silence. She paused for a moment, immediately on alert.


    Gao Ran, this sly fox, had tricked her again! Lin Wei Xi had always been like this in her past life. It was clearly the other party who initially said something easily misinterpreted, and after provoking her temper, Gao Ran would pretend to be wronged and ignorant. At this kind of timing, an elder or a brother would definitely happen to pass by!


    Lin Wei Xi held in her anger and turned around. Sure enough, Gu Cheng Yao was standing not far away, but even worse was that Gu Hui Yan stood in front of him.


    Gao Ran had already stood up, and meekly greeted Gu Hui Yan and Gu Cheng Yao, looking proper and well-mannered, while Lin Wei Xi looked overbearing and appeared unable to distinguish good from bad.


    Lin Wei Xi stood up coldly and stiffly greeted them, angry enough to explode. Gu Cheng Yao knitted his eyebrows the entire time, only tolerating Lin Wei Xi because she was a guest.


    Compared to the tantly unhappy Gu Cheng Yao, Gu Hui Yan was much calmer, and nobody could tell what he was thinking at all. He led everyone closer, and the maids on both sides gave way after saluting. Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran both bowed their heads and lightly greeted, ¡°My Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nced at the chessboard and without showing any emotions seemed to ask offhandedly, ¡°Are you ying chess?¡±


    Gao Ran rushed to say, ¡°Yes. This daughter-inw often yed a new type of chess with my brothers and sisters at home. I was just talking about this with Miss Lin, and didn¡¯t notice the gracious presence of the Prince and Shizi. Please forgive me, My Prince.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi snorted inwardly. She didn¡¯t know how many times she¡¯d seen scenarios like the one right now. With Gao Ran taking the initiative to cover it up with chess, as a result, it solidified Lin Wei Xi¡¯s reputation of finding fault for no reason and being unable to distinguish good from bad.


    Gu Hui Yan acted like he¡¯d really heard them talk about chess. He smiled and asked, ¡°Oh? I didn¡¯t know that there are new ways of ying chess. How do you y it?¡±


    Gao Ran repeated that it was called gomoku, and interest sparked in his eyes, ¡°The first person to have five pieces lined up wins. This is indeed new.¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯tugh at me Father.¡± Gao Ran chuckled lightly, and Granny Tao immediately added from the side, ¡°reporting to the Prince, this gomoku game is something ourdy invented.¡±


    After hearing this, the meaning in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes deepened, ¡°That¡¯s rare. Since you two want to y, there¡¯s no need to ruin the mood. You may continue.¡±


    Gao Ran¡¯s smile was slightly restrained as she tilted her head inquiringly at Lin Wei Xi. Lin Wei Xi bottled up her fiery anger, her eyes glowed, and even her voice sounded irritated, ¡°Let¡¯s start already. Are you afraid you won¡¯t win?¡±


    After hearing this, Gu Cheng Yao knitted his eyebrows deeper and Gao Ran nodded apologetically to Gu Hui Yan and Gu Cheng Yao, before motioning Lin Wei Xi to take a seat first with her hand.


    Lin Wei Xi sat down with a cold expression. When Gu Hui Yan saw it, an imperceptible smile shed across his eyes.


    Gao Ran slowly sat opposite her, a lustrous ck stone between her fingers, and said, ¡°this is Miss Lin¡¯s first time ying and I have an advantage. Why don¡¯t I yield three moves to Miss Lin.¡±


    ¡°How annoying. If you really want to yield, why don¡¯t you just give me the first four moves as well?¡± The expression on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face looked bad and she sounded as if she¡¯d just eaten chilli. She looked at Gao Ran¡¯s face and raised her eyebrows lightly, ¡°what, you don¡¯t want to? Then stop putting on an act and let¡¯s y. Even if you¡¯re not tired, I¡¯m annoyed.¡±


    ¡°Miss Lin!¡± Gu Cheng Yao was unable to keep watching and couldn¡¯t help but give a warning. These words of his incited big trouble. Lin Wei Xi turned around, her eyes almost spouting mes, ¡°What are you shouting to me for? I wasn¡¯t even talking to you!¡±


    When Lin Wei Xi said this, her eyes were bright, like the final touch that brought to life her otherworldly beauty. It could only be said that a beauty was a beauty. Even if she shoved falsities down people¡¯s throats, the other party couldn¡¯t possibly get angry. Moreover, she had a weak body. Such a delicate beauty was ring and acting unreasonable. To other people, she would simply look like she was throwing a tantrum.


    Gu Cheng Yao was choked into speechlessness. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t contain his smile and tilted his head while smiling, saying, ¡°Chess is a noble game, pay attention to your conduct.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi reluctantly held back her temper, and Gao Ran, who was sitting on the opposite side of the chessboard, subtly felt like she was being ignored. She was shocked and a little afraid. This wasn¡¯t the oue that she wanted. Gao Ran hurriedly spoke, forcing everyone¡¯s attention back to herself, ¡°Miss Lin, I will make the first move. Thank you for letting me win.¡±


    Gao Ran was full of confidence. She was weak at chess, but when it came to gomoku and checkers, how could these people from ancient timespare to her? Gao Ran intended to show off her skills in front of her husband and Prince Yan, at the same time showing everyone who was the fair, rich and beautifuldy with essential qualities and aplishments, and who was the empty-headed idiot with only beauty and no brains.


    Gao Ran was still checking whether her chess posture was elegant, whether her thinking posture reflected the beauty of a woman in concentration, and fine-tuning her point of view, when she suddenly saw Lin Wei Xi put the chess piece between her fingers onto the chessboard.


    Gao Ran froze. What had Lin Wei Xi done again? She was a little displeased, ¡°What happened?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao knitted his eyebrows and didn¡¯t speak. Instead, it was Gu Hui Yan, with a smile on his face, who gestured at the chessboard with his eyes, ¡°She won.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had won? Gao Ran was shocked. Impossible! They were ying gomoku, so how could someone from ancient times win?


    Gao Ran hurriedly looked at the chessboard and found that, as Prince Yan said, Lin Wei Xi had already lined up five stones in a row and Gao Ran, who had been immersed in her thoughts just now about whether her posture was beautiful enough, didn¡¯t even notice.


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue watched from behind. The two of them actually didn¡¯t understand, but if Prince Yan said that their miss had won, then he couldn¡¯t be wrong. Wan Xing immediately pped her hands happily, ¡°this is Miss¡¯s first time ying, but she won against Shizi Fei, who invented this game? Miss is really amazing.¡±


    In a sh, a flush rose on Gao Ran¡¯s face. Ever since she ¡°invented¡± Gomoku at the age of eight, she ought not to ever lose because she relied on the rules of the game. This time she¡¯d really been careless and lost so much face. Gao Ran learned a painful lesson, put away any unnecessary thoughts, and devoted her attention to the second round.


    However, Gao Ran didn¡¯t hold on for long this time before she was easily taken down by Lin Wei Xi.


    She waspletely stunned, and she smiled awkwardly at the audience, stroking the hair at her shoulder, and said, ¡°Miss Lin is indeed intelligent and quickly understood the game. I was distracted just now. Please don¡¯tugh.¡±


    Gao Ran implied that she had purposely let Lin Wei Xi win. Lin Wei Xi snorted disdainfully. She thought no one had noticed, but was actually caught red-handed by Gu Hui Yan.


    Gu Hui Yan tilted his head and coughed lightly, hiding the smile on his lips. Gu Cheng Yao actually also noticed Lin Wei Xi¡¯s small movement, and he felt a little embarrassed, but when he saw Prince Yan actually smiling, Gu Cheng Yao was shocked beyond words.


    For some reason, Gu Cheng Yao suddenly had a nagging feeling.


    Gao Ran forcibly covered up her humiliation, straightened her expression, and said to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Three wins in five games. Miss Lin, please.¡±


    Gao Ran subtly implied that she had let Lin Wei Xi win before, but now she was serious. Gao Ran summoned her focus for preparing for an exam from her previous life, and stared at the chessboard intently. Her reputation and face were on the line. She couldn¡¯t lose again.


    The third game was full of tension from the start. Gao Ran was eager to win, and Lin Wei Xi also changed her previous y style, bing extremely aggressive, all offence and no defence. At first, Gao Ran wanted to take advantage of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s impatient and chaotic moves to win, but she quickly discovered that the phrase ¡°offence is the best defence¡± wasn¡¯t incorrect. She was tired of containing Lin Wei Xi, theyout of her own ck pieces were a mess, and just when she tired of being pushed all over the ce, Lin Wei Xi won without saying a word.


    Lin Wei Xi put the white chess piece between her fingers on the board, and smiled at Gao Ran with a somewhat unapologetically triumphed look, ¡°Three wins in five rounds, you¡¯re wee.¡±


    Gao Ran was dumbfounded before she realized that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s ¡°You¡¯re wee¡± was a response to her ¡°Thank you for letting me win¡± at the start.


    Gao Ran felt unprecedented shame¡­ and frustration. She never expected that she, a transmigrated woman, would lose while ying a modern game with an ancient girl. Before, Gao Ran really thought that she would win and had talked big, but now¡­ after living for so many years in both lives, it wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to say that for the first time, she hated that she couldn¡¯t find a hole in the ground to crawl into.


    Especially with Gu Hui Yan and Gu Cheng Yao still watching, Gao Ran sat awkwardly at her seat, unable to stand up. Seeing this, her maid hurriedly said, ¡°The early spring weather is chilly, and the wind is strong today. Was Shizi Fei affected by the cold weather?¡±


    When Gao Ran heard this, she yed along and held her forehead in her hand, ¡°Maybe. Since I woke up this morning, I¡¯ve been a little absent-minded and been remembering things wrong.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao saw this, and he could only walk over to support Gao Ran¡¯s arm, saying considerately, ¡°Since you aren¡¯t feeling well, quickly go back. The garden is windy, so be careful not to catch a cold.¡±


    Gao Ran looked at him gratefully, her expression tender. Lin Wei Xi got up slowly, watching as Gao Ran acted like she had caught a serious illness and was weakly being helped away. Gu Hui Yan still stood where he was, watching Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression, and asked in amusement, ¡°What¡¯s with you?¡±


    ¡°Nothing.¡± Lin Wei Xi said heavily, enunciating every word, ¡°The wind is strong. I have a headache.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao hadn¡¯t walked far before he heard this sentence and paused. Then he heard Gu Hui Yan¡¯s melodiousugh from behind him. Even though it was very soft, there was true delight in it, ¡°Since you¡¯ve got a headache, hurry up and go back to rest.¡±

 Chapter 17

    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t look good on her way back, and when she returned to her room, Wan Xing couldn¡¯t hold back her excitement anymore. She quickly pulled on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s sleeve and said, ¡°Miss, you¡¯re so amazing! That was your first time ying, but you crushed Shizi Fei until she couldn¡¯t make a move at all.¡±


    After she heard this, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression improved, and she indifferently said, ¡°It¡¯s not that difficult. I may be at a disadvantage the first time because I don¡¯t know the rules, but it¡¯s actually very easy after familiarizing yourself with it, and is much simpler than ying proper chess. If you two like it, I can teach it to you.¡±


    ¡°Really? Thank you Miss!¡±


    Wan Xing almost jumped for joy, while Wan Yue was moreposed, but she smiled widely after hearing this. Lin Wei Xi looked at these two lively maids, who hadn¡¯t had their humanity crushed by the politics of high society, and smiled unconsciously.


    Such simple happiness had been out of her reach for so long.


    Lin Wei Xi remembered that in her past life, she could recite the Thousand Character ssics at the age of three, entered school earlier at the age of five, and began to learn the four arts at the age of six. A six year old child had difficulty sitting still, so one could imagine the oue when forcing her to study all this. No less than a yearter, Gao Ran¡¯s temperament suddenly changed from her former quiet self. It wasn¡¯t just her manner of speech, she also recognized words and learned the guqin much faster than Lin Wei Xi. Under such strongpetition, Lin Wei Xi became more and more disliked by her peers. She became scared, so she began to study more seriously.


    It was a pity that Lin Wei Xi, an actual child, could never measure up to the adult that was Gao Ran. In ss, the teacher preferred Gao Ran and frequently praised her by name. Her grandmother, father, and brothers slowly but surely changed their attitude. That kind experience was truly terrifying. She watched as what had originally belonged to her was taken away, and her loved ones chose another over her, and she didn¡¯t even know what she could do to stop it.


    It seemed that overnight, the familial love and friendship that belonged to Gao Xi were taken away by Gao Ran, and the only thing that remained was her mother Wei Shi and her identity as the eldest granddaughter.


    Of course she was afraid. Sometimes, people who looked tough on the outside were actually more fragile on the inside. Unfortunately, that was the kind of person she was. In order to take back the attention of her loved ones and to preserve her only remaining dignity as the eldest di sister, she began to desperately work harder in private. At school, Gao Ran could master new skills in a minute. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t do that. On the surface, she didn¡¯t care, but after returning to her courtyard, she would desperately practise, spending double the time to bridge the gap. However, despite working so hard, she refused to let anyone know. Gao Ran could do it so easily, while she had to spend so much effort in private. How could such a thing be known?


    She was too headstrong and would rather silently endure all the insults thrown at her than let other people know just how stressed she was.


    When she was ten, her mother died because of an idental miscarriage. In her rage, Princess Royal Shou Kang took her to the Princess Residence. From then on, she spent most of her time in the Princess Residence, finally escaping from Gao Ran¡¯s shadow.


    Ten year old Gao Xi truly regarded Gao Ran as an insurmountable advisory. It wasn¡¯t untilter, when she saw the heavenly book, that she finally understood that Gao Ran wasn¡¯t naturally intelligent. She¡¯d just taken on the body of a young child, and with the mind of a twenty six year old, she was like a fish in the water among six year old children. When they were six, Gao Ran was obviously advantaged, but when they turned sixteen or seventeen, the gap would¡¯ve shrunk.


    Lin Wei Xi had grown, but Gao Ran stagnated. Gao Ran was still immersed in the false prosperity brought about by her age advantage, while ignoring the time-honoured truth, that to stop moving forward is to fall behind. On the other hand, Gao Xi had worked harder than her peers because she had her powerful shu younger sister to spur her on.


    As one rises, another falls. In her past life, Lin Wei Xi had learned gomoku and checkers in private, and could also remember Gao Ran¡¯s novel song after listening to it once. On the other hand, Gao Ran hadn¡¯tid a solid foundation for her four arts.


    For Lin Wei Xi, who had a solid foundation in chess, gomoku wasn¡¯t difficult. She understood after secretly practising two games in private. But for Gao Ran, once deprived of the advantage brought by modern knowledge, she had nothing else.


    To catch somebody off guard was a powerful strategy to win, but a general who could only rely on surprise attacks would sooner orter die from hisziness andcency. Gao Ran focused too much on superficial skills, and neglected to cultivate true ability. Like what happened today, even if Gao Ran tried to the best of her ability, she could never beat Lin Wei Xi, who had already mastered gomoku.


    Before the game, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t expect that she would win three rounds in a row,pletely crushing her opponent. It was also while she was holding the white jade chess piece, that she suddenly realized that the insurmountable peak that had brought her endless stress at the age of ten, had copsed. Gao Ran could no longer beat her, except when it came to affairs between men and women.


    Gu Cheng Yao was simply the biggest wound in her heart. She had loved, hated, resented and even abandoned herself out of despair before she was reborn, but he just didn¡¯t love her, so what could she do? On the way to the capital, for the first time in her life, Lin Wei Xi had lived together with a male outside her family for a long period of time. Zhou Mao Cheng and the other taciturn soldiers were there to quietly take care of her. Lin Wei Xi felt that perhaps it wasn¡¯t her who was bad, but maybe it was Gu Cheng Yao who was blind.


    When she looked at him now, the love and hatred that she¡¯d felt when she was first reborn already disappeared. Now she just wanted to see him have a bad time. If possible, she would also like to step on him a few times herself.


    Today, Lin Wei Xi looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar Prince Yan Residence, and Jingdan Garden, which looked almost exactly the same as the courtyard from her previous marriage, and realized that she had finally reconciled with her past. From then on, Lin Wei Xi and Gao Xi had truly be the same person.


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue chattered on and found that Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t spoken for a while. The two of them asked, ¡°Miss, what¡¯s the matter?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Lin Wei Xi stood and walked to the window, pushing open the finely carved vermilioncquered window frame. She looked at the vibrant spring outside and smiled lightly, ¡°I¡¯m just thinking, maybe it¡¯s time to request to move in with the Princess Royal.¡±


    Although she was somewhat unreconciled, in the end she still needed to move on. The Prince Yan Residence was in her past, and her ex-husband Gu Cheng Yao and shu younger sister Gao Ran could go and repeat their love story over and over again. Lin Wei Xi should start her life anew.


    Wan Xing was very surprised when she heard this, ¡°Miss Lin, you want to move out? Did someone bully you? Miss, if you feel wronged, let¡¯s go to Prince Yan. How can you move out?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Lin Wei Xi said, ¡°I have no rtions with the Prince Yan Residence, and I have no justification to live here in the long run. Prince Yan is polite and values loyalty, bringing us to the residence to take care of us, but we can¡¯t take it for granted.¡±


    Wan Xing still wanted to say something, but was held back by Wan Yue. Wan Yue said, ¡°Miss, this worried ve understands. It¡¯s just that¡­ Miss only met the Princess Royal for the first time not too long ago. Isn¡¯t it a bit too impudent to ask to live in the Princess Residence?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was startled by the words. She almost forgot that her surname was Lin now. She still regarded Princess Royal Shou Kang as her grandmother in her mind, but to Princess Royal Shou Kang, Lin Wei Xi was just a junior who shared a little bit of fate with her. It was too rude of her to hurriedly move into the Princess Residence when they had barely met.


    Lin Wei Xi rubbed her temples with a headache, ¡°Forget it, I still need to reconsider this issue. Keep what we said today to yourselves and don¡¯t let it leave the room, understood?¡±


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue hurriedly nodded, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had to abandon her n to move to her grandmother¡¯s ce, and she could only continue living in the Prince Yan Residence. Lin Wei Xi even thought of ??buying a house in the capital. It didn¡¯t need to be big. A small three courtyard one was good enough. Lin Wei Xi was still considering this, and after a few days on the other side, Gao Ran¡¯s mysterious headache also got better. What happened that day was slowly forgotten, and Gao Ran returned to being the kind and generous Shizi Fei.


    Lin Wei Xi had already decided to let Gao Ran go, but Gao Ran refused. Her animosity towards Lin Wei Xi grew stronger because Lin Wei Xi had embarrassed her; she couldn¡¯t let go of this affront to her reputation, so she had to find other ways to make up for it.


    One morning, Gao Ran invited Lin Wei Xi to her courtyard again. Lin Wei Xi was beyond fed up, but she decided to give Gu Hui Yan face and not start a fight with his daughter-inw in Prince Yan Residence, so she pushed down her disgust and left for Gao Ran¡¯s courtyard.


    Not long after Lin Wei Xi sat down, she saw Ning Fu bring in a gilded rabbit shaped incense burner. The carving was exquisite and delicate, and the base was even iid with tiny rubies.


    Be it the materials or craftsmanship, it was an unparalleled treasure.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes hurt when she saw this rabbit-shaped incense burner. Gao Ran put the incense burner on the table, deliberately slowly lifting the lid and lighting the incense, before saying to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°I¡¯m used to using light fragrances at home and am not ustomed to the smell of agar wood in the residence. This Qianbu incense was sent from a shop under my name and is thetest fragrance this year. Are you alright with the smell, Miss Lin?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t even look at it, and said coldly, ¡°The guest follows the host. Burn it if you want.¡±


    At this time, Granny Tao came out from the inner room holding an intricately carvedcquer box in her hand, her expression anxious, ¡°Where did Shizi Fei¡¯s golden filigree sapphire hair ornament go? It¡¯s aplete set of sapphire head ornaments, so why is this one missing?¡±


    Inside and outside the courtyard, the maids responded one after another. After some chaos, the gorgeous hair ornament was finally found, and Lin Wei Xi personally watched them put it back into thecquer box. The dazzling gems and iid mother-of-pearl on the box reflected off each other, hurting one¡¯s eyes.


    Lin Wei Xi simply didn¡¯t know what to say. If Gao Ran wished to scare her away with her family background, she should¡¯ve calmly swapped out a fine porcin tea set for another. What could showing off her jewellery achieve?


    But Granny Tao was still incessantly chattering by her ear, talking about how this set of head ornaments had been especially given to Gao Ran by the Duke Ying Lady, how much Shizi and the old Lady valued Gao Ran and so on and so forth. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t bear it, and asked offhandedly, ¡°Since the Duke Residence thinks that Shizi Fei is so important, why haven¡¯t I seen your madame and talk to Shizi Fei in the past few days?¡±


    Granny Tao¡¯s endless chattering stopped in an instant, and even Gao Ran¡¯s expression stiffened.


    Madam and Grandma weremon forms of address inrge families. The grandchildren and daughter-inws usually used grandma, while the mother-inws usually used madam. Only titled households could use Lady.


    But obviously, no matter if it was madam or Lady, these titles had nothing to do with the concubines.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t n to wait for an answer. She looked at the rabbit-shaped incense burner that was releasing incense, and delivered a second blow, ¡°This incense burner in the shape of a rabbit is quite a novelty. Were you born in the year of the rabbit?¡±


    Gao Ran was obviously embarrassed. She was born in the year of the dragon, one year younger than Gao Xi. The rabbit was Gao Xi, so it was obviously catered for Gao Xi when it was created.


    Everyone in the room became silent at once. Lin Wei Xi felt very satisfied. With a smile on her lips, she issued a third blow, ¡°I really envy Shizi Fei for having ready-made gold and silver. In the future, I will need to melt and forge new jewellery. Although my dad left me all hisnd, the Honorary Deed Medallion, and the rewards conferred by the imperial court, these gold and silver items were made under the supervision of the Ministry of Rites and have a special marking on them. If I want to use gold items, I can only buy it outside.¡±


    Gao Ran had inherited part of Gao Xi¡¯s dowry, followed by additions from her father and grandmother. Her family was indeed rich, but could a dowry from the Duke Residencepare to inheriting the entirety of the Marquis Residence¡¯s property?


    Lin Wei Xi was satisfied to see these people shut up. Did they actually want topare how wealthy they were with her?


    Originally, she didn¡¯t want to care about these people, but they had forced her to call them out. Were these people looking for a scolding?


    Of course, Gao Ran couldn¡¯t sit still anymore. Lin Wei Xi mockingly returned to her courtyard, but as soon as she sat down, the expression on her face changed.


    ¡°Miss?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi called Wan Xing over and whispered in her ear, ¡°Go out and ask about Gao Ran¡¯s dowry. You don¡¯t have to specifically ask about it, just casually bring it up while making small talk.¡±


    Wan Xing quickly left after receiving her orders. Lin Wei Xi looked at the exquisite and intricate white porcin vase on the pear wood table, still angry beyond words.


    No, Lin Wei Xi was still a normal human being. She was definitely determined to move on and restart her life, but seeing Gao Ran righteously upy her property made her angry enough to want to poison Gao Ran.


    Enough was enough, what had happened to her dowry in the end?

 Chapter 18

    After Wan Xing intermittently looked into it for several days, Lin Wei Xi finally pieced together the truth about her dowry.


    Last year when Gao Xi died of illness, the Prince Yan Residence had a flourishing business, so they naturally wouldn¡¯t covet their daughter-inw¡¯s dowry. Therefore, Gao Xi¡¯s entire dowry had been handed back to the Duke Ying Residencepletely intact. That was when the Duke Ying Residence came up with the idea of ??marrying another Gao daughter into the Prince Yan Residence along with a very generous dowry. In the end, the Duke Ying Shizi and Gu Cheng Yao reached a consensus to have Gao Ran marry him as the second wife. The Duke Ying Residence was overjoyed at the turn of events, at the same time they transferred all of Gao Xi¡¯s dowry to Gao Ran, even setting aside some silver as protection money for her in order to win her over.


    Gao Xi was the eldest di granddaughter of the Duke Residence, so her dowry was considerablyrge. She was also her mother Wei Shi¡¯s only child. With Wei Shi¡¯s dowry plus the dowry prepared by Duke Ying Residence,bined with what Princess Royal Shou Kang had secretly supplemented, it was easy to imagine Gao Xi¡¯s fortune.


    In the end, Gao Xi died of illness without leaving behind any children. If the daughter-inw had no children, the dowry had to be returned to her maiden family. At that time, Gao Ran¡¯s remarriage had already been set in stone. If the Duke Ying Lady wanted to win over the inws of the Prince Yan Residence, Gao Ran¡¯s attitude was very important. Hence, the Duke Ying Lady bled money and transferred almost all of Gao Xi¡¯s dowry to Gao Ran, adding four new sets of head ornaments to it. However, Gao Xi¡¯s dowry also contained Wei Shi¡¯s things. If Wei Shi was an ordinary daughter-inw, the Duke Ying Lady could call the shots as the mother-inw, but Wei Shi was a Princess¡¯s daughter, which made things somewhatplicated.


    Wei Shi had been dead for many years and she had only one daughter, so her entire dowry should rightfully have been inherited by Gao Xi, and her maiden family had no right to take it. The problem was that Gao Xi had also passed away at a young age without having any children. The Duke Ying Residence was very apprehensive when handling Gao Xi¡¯s inheritance. Although Princess Royal Shou Kang had no heir and the family was in decline, as long as she was still alive, she was still a member of the imperial family and the grandaunt of the current emperor. The decline of the Princess Residence was the imperial family¡¯s business. If outsiders refused to give face to the Princess, then they¡¯d be at odds with the imperial family.


    The Duke Ying Residence still had misgivings about this senior princess, but could only politely pass on the word to the Princess Residence and ask how Princess Royal Shou Kang nned to handle Gao Xi¡¯s and even Wei Shi¡¯s dowry.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang had enjoyed the benefits of imperial worship her entire life. When she opened her own bank ount, she didn¡¯t have to suffer from her mother-inw or sister-inw¡¯s disapproval. Her belongings were nothing more than worldly possessions, and there wasn¡¯t anything she was particrly obsessed with. Although the Princess Residence where Shou Kang lived bore her seal, the Princess Residence would be taken back by the imperial family after she died and be awarded to another Princess after renovation. It had nothing to do with the Princess¡¯s Husband or his family. Princess Royal Shou Kang didn¡¯t have a son, and her huge family property would be returned to the national treasury after death, so with regards to her daughter¡¯s dowry, she didn¡¯t consider it as importantpared to what an ordinary person might.


    If this was an ordinary shu daughter, after Gao Xi¡¯s death, Wei Shi¡¯s dowry would¡¯ve been inherited by her, even if she had no rtion with Wei Shi or Princess Royal Shou Kang. But Gao Ran was Han Shi¡¯s daughter, the culprit who¡¯d killed Wei Shi in the first ce. How could Princess Royal Shou Kang let this group of sluts have such an easy life? After receiving the letter, Princess Royal Shou Kang sneered, immediately ignored the face of her inws, and ordered the Residence steward to go to the Duke Ying Residence. She didn¡¯t care how much dowry the Duke Residence nned to give to Gao Ran, but they had to return every little bit of Wei Shi¡¯s things and what she¡¯d prepared for her granddaughter Gao Xi.


    After so many years, the Princess Residence had taken back the dowry of their married daughter. This was a huge p in the face. The wealthy and influential households valued face the most, and by doing so, Princess Royal Shou Kang had thrown the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s face to the ground and stepped on it in front of the entire capital. The Duke Ying Lady was furious beyond words, but the other party was the Gu family, and they were the most noble family in the nation. The Duke Ying Lady suffered terribly, but she didn¡¯t dare do anything to Princess Royal Shou Kang except privately scold her in front of her son and daughter-inw. Now that the inws of the two houses had be enemies, the Duke Ying Lady coldly decided to secretly spread rumours about the goings-on in the Princess Residence. They were the dignified Duke Ying Residence. How could the Gao family not be able to afford a dowry when marrying off their daughters?


    So the dowry that the Duke Ying Residence had prepared for Gao Xi was used as Gao Ran¡¯s dowry, plus some additional clothes for all four seasons and gold and silver jewellery. Of course, the dowry wasn¡¯t bad, butpared to others in the capital, it was only at the level of an ordinary noble daughter. There were as many noble families in the capital as there were dogs, with too many noble women from influential family backgrounds trying to marry up. Gao Xi¡¯s dowry was astronomical in the eyes of the ordinary people, but to women of the same status, it was the standard.


    Wei Shi was the only daughter, and Gao Xi was also her only daughter, and the umtion of three generations of dowry couldn¡¯t be underestimated. Gao Ran didn¡¯t have the financial support of her mother¡¯s family, and could only rely on the mediocre dowry prepared by the Duke Ying Residence. After all, the Duke Ying Residence had many children. Even if Gao Ran married up, she was also no more than a married daughter. How could shepare with the Duke Residence¡¯s son and grandson? However, if she could get her hands on the financial power of the Prince Yan Residence, then it was another matter. No matter how great her family background was, it couldn¡¯t bepared to the imperial family¡¯s riches and honour. The day when they could bepared would most likely be the day their family was exterminated.


    When Lin Wei Xi learned that her mother Wei Shi¡¯s dowry and thend deed that her grandmother had secretly given to her had been taken back by the Princess Residence, she breathed a sigh of relief. That was good; the dowry given to her by the Duke Ying Residence was the private property of the Gao family. She had nothing to say and didn¡¯t really care if they chose to hand over her dowry to Gao Ran. However, Gao Ran couldn¡¯t be allowed to dip her fingers into the remnants of her mother Wei Shi no matter what.


    His mother¡¯s keepsakes and grandmother¡¯s things hadn¡¯t fallen into Gao Ran¡¯s hands. Lin Wei Xi was extremely happy, and for a few days, she was extremely spirited at the good news. She even looked kindly at Gao Ran. It seemed that what Gao Ran received was far inferior than what she herself had received for her dowry. Lin Wei Xi seemed deeply regretful on the outside but was in fact extremely delighted.


    Thinking back to Gao Ran unting her wealth a few days ago, Lin Wei Xi felt it ridiculous. The entire evening, Lin Wei Xi looked at Gao Ran with an indescribable smile, ncing at her from time to time. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t try to conceal her actions, and Gao Ran felt a little upset for some reason; even Gu Cheng Yao shot several nces at Lin Wei Xi.


    Halfway through the meal, Lin Wei Xi stopped moving her chopsticks, poking her rice. After Gu Hui Yan stopped eating, she immediately set her chopsticks on the table. Because she¡¯d put the chopsticks down too quickly, Gu Hui Yan looked at her, ¡°Eat properly and don¡¯t make so much noise.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi refused to obey, ¡°Who is making so much noise?¡±


    When all the servants in the room heard this, they were dumbfounded, and even Gu Cheng Yao could barely keep hisposure at the unexpected situation. Miss Lin was a very special existence in the residence. No matter who they offended, they couldn¡¯t offend Miss Lin.


    Sure enough, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t care when faced with this kind of contradiction. Instead, he changed the topic and talked about something else, ¡°Your mourning period will end in May. There isn¡¯t much time left. Is everything ready?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi pursed her lip. She didn¡¯t answer, and instead looked at Gu Hui Yan, ¡°Must I end my mourning period in the Prince Yan Residence?¡±


    Gu Yan Hui looked at her gently, ¡°What else do you suggest?¡±


    Those who were listening by the side couldn¡¯t stand it. Prince Yan had taken the initiative to arrange Miss Lin¡¯s filial mourning matters, but she was actually reluctant? Gao Ran¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t very good. Lin Wei Xi was really too pretentious, and Prince Yan too. Why spoil this kind of unreasonable and pretentious woman? But with Gu Hui Yan bringing it up like this, and Gu Cheng Yao, who was sitting next to her, having no opposition, Gao Ran could only smile and agree, ¡°Coming out from one¡¯s filial mourning is a major event. If Miss Lin can end her mourning period in the Prince Yan Residence, then it¡¯s truly fate that has brought her to us. I¡¯ve never managed such an event before, so if anything is unsatisfactory, may Miss Lin please forgive me.¡±


    Gao Ran had buried a nail within her words. What she said was polite, but no one expected Lin Wei Xi to actually respond, ¡°Since Shizi Fei has never managed weddings and funerals before, let¡¯s just forget it. Ending my mourning period isn¡¯t a major event anyway. I can arrange it myself, so there¡¯s no need for Shizi Fei to learn.¡±


    The atmosphere turned awkward as soon as the words left her mouth. Gao Ran didn¡¯t expect Lin Wei Xi to criticize her polite words. Her lips stiffened, and she could only justify herself, ¡°Although I¡¯m young, I¡¯ve been guided by my grandmother at home and have handled several major events. Since Miss Lin is our distinguished guest living in the residence. How can we let you, the guest, prepare the ending of your morning period by yourself?¡±


    ¡°Why is it out of the question? I¡¯m the only one left in the Lin family. If I hadn¡¯t met His Highness Prince Yan, is there anything I wouldn¡¯t have done by myself?¡± Speaking until there, Lin Wei Xi nced to the side. She dared to directly confront Gao Ran, but didn¡¯t dare disregard Gu Hui Yan¡¯s face. Frankly speaking, the right to decide this was still up to Gu Hui Yan. Seeing his calm expression that didn¡¯t betray his emotions, Lin Wei Xi felt an invisible pressure and cleverly ttered him, ¡°It¡¯s because I have an affinity with His Highness Prince Yan, not the Prince Yan Residence. It makes no sense to ask the Prince Yan Residence to help me end my mourning period. Your Highness Prince Yan, do you agree?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by no affinity?¡± Gu Hui Yan looked amiably at Lin Wei Xi, but the words he said werepletely different, ¡°Is there a difference between the Prince Yan Residence and I?¡±


    ¡°Of course there¡¯s a difference. You are Prince Yan, but the Prince Yan Residence is a family title conferred by the imperial court. If other people in the Residence provoke me, I will certainly ignore it, but if it is you Prince Yan, as long as you ask for it, I will sacrifice myself for you without hesitation.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan finallyughed, ncing softly at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You really know how to talk.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi knew there was still hope when she heard this, ¡°Then is this how this matter will be concluded?¡±


    ¡°Up to you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi immediately beamed, and remembered to turn to Gao Ran, ¡°Although the guest usuallyplies with the host, it is better not to inconvenience you if I can. Shizi Fei doesn¡¯t have to worry about learning. His Highness Prince Yan has agreed that I will deal with it myself.¡±


    Even at such a time, she still didn¡¯t forget to bring him up. Gu Hui Yan felt helpless and found it funny. This little girl¡¯s mind was too different for him to understand. He was used to being surrounded by blood-stained military reports or cold-blooded imperial conflicts. Suddenly being dragged into scheming against his own children by a little girl felt as if he was being infected by another person¡¯s anger. Although weak and trivial, this feeling wasn¡¯t bad at all.


    Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao sat together, and when Lin Wei Xi nced at Gao Ran, Gu Cheng Yao naturally saw it. Both his upbringing and childhood experience told him that he should like gentle and generous women, and he¡¯d also thought so for all these years. Lin Wei Xi ran counter to his expectations of female virtues. He thought he¡¯d get fed up, but when he actually encountered Lin Wei Xi¡¯s unconcealed provocation, he found that he wasn¡¯t impatient, but was instead calm and slightly helpless. It felt like¡­ indulgence.


    Gu Cheng Yao was taken aback by his own thoughts, and immediatelyughed at himself for thinking such foolish things. Gao Ran was his destined person that he¡¯d searched for. It was only because of his father¡¯s face that he tolerated Lin Wei Xi.


    Seeing the two masters being indulgent towards Lin Wei Xi, Gao Ran immediately became unhappy. She firmly believed that Lin Wei Xi did this on purpose, deliberately acting contrary in order to attract Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s attention, before pretending to be pitiful. Gao Ran was furious, and she became more determined to make Lin Wei Xi quickly move out. The Prince Yan¡¯s Residence could only have her as it¡¯s mistress, and she wouldn¡¯t allow a second one.


    The matter of ending Lin Wei Xi¡¯s mourning period was finalized like that. Gu Hui Yan said that Lin Wei Xi was allowed to handle it on her own, but he still sent some people to help herter on. Lin Wei Xi intended to decline, but Gu Hui Yan said, ¡°these workers were sent under my private ount. Didn¡¯t you say that you refused to ept the help of the Prince Yan Residence, but wouldn¡¯t reject me?¡±


    Alright then, Lin Wei Xi would obediently shut her mouth.


    On the third day of the fifth month, Lin Wei Xi removed her white mourning clothes and the white flowers in her hair. Three years of filial mourning had officiallye to an end. Even so, Lin Wei Xi remembered the kindness of Lin Yong and the original host, so she didn¡¯t wear bright red or yellow clothing, and instead wore in colours.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang also paid close attention to the end of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s mourning period. It just so happened that the Dragon Boat Festival would happen not long after. The Emperor and Empress Dowager Qian wanted to go to Xiyuan to watch the dragon boat race, apanied by the female imperial family members and court officials. Princess Royal Shou Kang sent Lin Wei Xi new clothes and jewellery early on, eager and ready to dress Lin Wei Xi up, before leading her out to formally introduce her to thedies and madams of the capital.


    Lin Wei Xi looked at the Cloud brocade dress and sighed, but couldn¡¯t bear to disappoint her grandmother, so she followed the wishes of Princess Royal Shou Kang and dressed grandly.


    How could Lin Wei Xi know at that time that Princess Royal Shou Kang wanted to find her a husband.

 Chapter 19

    On the fifth day of the fifth month, the servants of the Prince Yan Residence started working at the first light of dawn. That day, the emperor would arrange for a dragon boat in Xiyuan, and the Prince Yan Residence was the most important of the attendees. Afterwards there would be the Dragon Boat Festival, also known as the Festival of the Five Poisonous Insects, and other activities. Prince Yan would need to head out early otherwise they¡¯d bete.


    Seeing as they would have no time to rest the entire day, the servants of the Residence were taut with anxiety since the early morning. The sweet sedge, folding screens and other items in the residence had been arranged the day before, and the women¡¯s carriage was parked at the second gate first thing that morning. Nowadays, high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital travelled with pride, but Prince Yan had been in the army for many years and had long since cultivated iron-d rules, so how could he ride a sedan chair like an emperor? It wasn¡¯t just Gu Hui Yan, but even Gu Cheng Yao, who had grown up in the capital, wasn¡¯t allowed to ride a sedan chair. No matter how far they travelled, they would all take the horses without exception.


    Gu Ming Da held onto Zhaoxue while standing beside the Weeping Flower Gate like a statue, Zhaoxue puffing its nose. Gu Hui Yan stood in front of him, wearing an imperial dragon garment with a belt indicating his rank tied around his waist. Gu Cheng Yao also wore the corresponding imperial clothing, but his rank was one rank lower than Gu Hui Yan. She didn¡¯t know if it was because of the reduction in the decorative patterns, but once he stood next to Gu Hui Yan, he was overshadowed until he couldn¡¯tpare even though they both wore the same colour and Gu Cheng Yao wore the ceremonial garb of a first-rank Prince Shizi, clearly an elegant noble son. Everyone who passed through the Weeping Flower Gate would see Prince Yan first, and only Prince Yan. They held their breath and bowed their heads, not daring to breathe too loudly.


    Gu Hui Yan waited by the Weeping Flower Gate, the carriage behind him ready, and they were just waiting for the women inside to get ready. Normally, Gu Hui Yan wouldn¡¯t wait more than five minutes from when he issued the order to the departure of the whole army. He ruled the army strictly and there had never been a situation where someone didn¡¯t show up on time. None of his generals and soldiers dared to let him wait. But the capital was different from his fief, and the person he was waiting for was also different from strictly obedient soldiers.


    All the men and horses stood quietly for a long time. No one knew who spoke first, but it was like a stone had been cast into the middle of theke. The quiet and solemn passageway immediately came to life, ¡°Miss Lin has arrived.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi, escorted by Wan Xing and Wan Yue, arrived at the second gate. Seeing the situation on the other side of the gate, she was startled and immediately quickened her pace, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, you¡¯re already here? Since you¡¯ve arrived, why didn¡¯t you call for me? It¡¯s my fault for making you wait.¡±


    The first rays of the morning sun streaked across her as she walked, the vermilion building and the white morning light framing the backdrop; Gu Hui Yan has seen this image many times before. Today, she wore a white damask blouse and a red Mamian pleated skirt withrge jewel-like flowers embroidered in silver thread at knee level. Her hair was coiled in a bun, held together with a simple hairpin covered in fine crystals that faintly refracted the light as she walked. Her beauty was ethereal. When she was still in her mourning period, she used to dress inly and didn¡¯t wear make up, and even then she was already stunning enough. Now that she wore a magnificent dress, she looked like she was glowing, and it naturally attracted attention.


    No matter who passed by, they would always double back when they walked past her. Everyone had their own opinions about beauty, but for Lin Wei Xi¡¯s ultimate blooming beauty, even if they didn¡¯t say anything, their eyes still revealed their innermost thoughts. Some beauties were like green tea, weak but demanding. Some beauties were like a peony, majestic and gorgeous. And Lin Wei Xi was probably a ruby ??polished to its full potential. You could dislike her, but you couldn¡¯t say that she wasn¡¯t good-looking.


    From the moment Lin Wei Xi showed up, everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to her. When she walked, their gaze followed her furtively. Only when she stood in front of Gu Hui Yan did they look away nonchntly.


    Gu Hui Yan also silentlyplimented her. Before, he knew Lin Wei Xi was good-looking, but he got used to it after seeing the same face every day, and paid more attention to her troublemaking personality. Now that she was dressed grandly, her aura delicate, she immediately showed her powerful lethality.


    But Gu Hui Yan thought this to himself and that was it. Every woman was different, and each had her own appeal. As a general, he had already experienced many scenarios. Even if Lin Wei Xi was beautiful beyond normal convention, aside from the initial momentary feeling of amazement, it was difficult to shake his heart from then on. He didn¡¯t say anything and indicated to the carriage behind her, ¡°It¡¯s alright, get in the carriage.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t pay attention to her surroundings at all and sincerely felt apologetic, ¡°It¡¯s very rude of me to make you wait for so long. Did you wait for long? Why didn¡¯t you send someone to call me, I thought everyone else wasn¡¯t ready¡­ ¡°


    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± who could get angry when faced with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s guilty and astonishingly beautiful eyes that sucked people in. Besides, Gu Hui Yan would never me her. When he finished speaking and saw that Lin Wei Xi still couldn¡¯t let it go, he smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, waiting for you is something that they should do. Get in the carriage first.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi initially felt ashamed, but she couldn¡¯t help chuckling when she heard this. This smile was like a gem reflecting rainbow-coloured light under the sun, dazzling enough to make one dizzy. Since Gu Hui Yan said this, she felt relieved. She looked away from him, stepped back slightly, and saluted to Gu Cheng Yao and Gu Ming Da. After greeting the both of them, she entered the carriage together with her maid.


    Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t help feeling somewhat impatient at first, but after seeing Lin Wei Xi, her beauty immediately caused what little impatience he had to disappear without a trace. And then when she ran directly towards Prince Yan, he felt strange for some reason. Only after Lin Wei Xi and his father emerged from their own little world once they finished speaking did she finally turn around to look at him, hastily greet him, and then walk away. Gu Cheng Yao had a nagging feeling. There were so many of them waiting outside, so why did she only see Prince Yan?


    After Lin Wei Xi got in the carriage, she saw Gao Ran already seated just as she¡¯d expected. Seeing her getting in, Gao Ran pursed her lips and smiled lightly, ¡°Why did Miss Lin only arrive now? Did you waste too much time dressing up?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi hated Gao Ran¡¯s fake attitude and deliberately telling her the wrong time, and felt embarrassed for her. She chuckled softly before arranging her clothes and sitting. Then she carefully smoothed out the pleats of her skirt one by one, ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Shizi Fei can actually predict the future and arrive five minutes early. I¡¯m really thankful to you.¡±


    Gao Ranughed and said, ¡°Miss Lin is polite. What my father dislikes the most is people who arete, so Miss Lin shouldn¡¯t do this again.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi snorted softly, toozy to pay attention to her. The carriage shook for a moment and rumbled as it moved forward. No one spoke for a while. Gao Ran was secretly pleased with herself that she¡¯d lowered Lin Wei Xi¡¯s impression in front of everyone, but she didn¡¯t know that it was her actions which allowed Lin Wei Xi to have a grand entrance.


    Everyone would lose their reason when facing a beautiful woman.


    The carriage of the Prince Yan Residence set off, and everyone along the way, be it officials or pedestrians, gave way when they saw it. After arriving at the pce gate, a eunuch dressed in yellow saw the familiar figure and waited at the door from a distance. Even Lin Wei Xi¡¯s carriage also received great deferential treatment.


    Gao Ran alighted the carriage first, followed by Lin Wei Xi. When the eunuch who was guiding them saw Lin Wei Xi, he nced back in wonder, then lowered his gaze, his polite and respectful attitude just right, ¡°Paying my respect to Shizi Fei, paying my respect to this noble person. May the two of you please follow me this way.¡±


    Xiyuan was located to the west of Miyagi and next to the Imperial Pce. It was surrounded by water and could be regarded as a private imperial garden. Today¡¯s dragon boat race was located in Xiyuan. The family members of the Prince Yan Residence immediately caused a big sensation as soon as they arrived. Princess Royal Shou Kang had arrived early that morning, and upon hearing the announcement from the servant, her gaze immediately turned to the direction of the noise.


    As the Prince Yan Shizi Fei, Gao Ran was crowded by people as soon as she appeared. It was said that the new Shizi Fei was doted on by the Shizi as soon as she entered the household. But there was more. With her important status as Shizi Fei, Gao Ran¡¯s previous identity as a shu daughter couldn¡¯tpare. Relying on the strong support of the Duke Ying Residence and the Prince Yan Residence, Gao Ran¡¯s status increased many-fold in a short period of time. The noble Ladies who had treated Gao Ran indifferently in the past changed their attitudes and were now incredibly affectionate towards her. Gao Ran felt pleased. She smiled reservedly and greeted all the Ladies one by one with the imposing manner of a high rankingdy.


    The Ladies enthusiastically approached Gao Ran to establish connections with her. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t like getting too close to others, so she stepped back. She was avoiding the crowd when a voice suddenly said next to her, ¡°the Duke Ying Residence has arrived.¡±


    The world around Lin Wei Xi seemed to stop for an instant and she froze on the spot. A moment passed before the mour around her eventually resumed. She slowly turned around, and saw the edge of an elegant skirt and heard the jingling of jewellery. The women of the Duke Ying Residence were holding the hands of women they were familiar with, amiably catching up with each other. A maid next to the Duke Ying Lady saw Gao Ran and quickly smiled, saying, ¡°Shizi Fei is also here.¡±


    ¡°Grandaunt.¡± Everyone in the Gao family smiled and greeted Gao Ran. The Duke Ying Lady held Gao Ran¡¯s hand and pulled her to talk to the people around her. Gao Ran responded in kind and made the Duke Ying Ladyugh, the wrinkles at the corner of her eyes crinkling. The grandparent waspassionate, the grandchild was filial; who wouldn¡¯t praise such a harmonious and prosperous picture of the family.


    Even Lin Wei Xi smiled at this act. What a loving example of the Twenty Four Paragons of Filial Piety<sup>¡ó</sup>. Gao Ran had married above her station and her younger brother was the only son of the Duke Ying Shizi. With her children having such prospective futures, Han Shi¡¯s status rose in the Duke Ying Residence. It was rumoured that she was already helping to manage the Shizi¡¯s household affairs. Without a main wife and with her husband¡¯s intention to make her son the heir, Han Shi was a concubine in name, but she was treated no differently from the main wife.


    ¡ó


    With the ways things were now, who would remember Wei Shi and Gao Xi? Although Wei Shi was from a noble household, it was an indisputable fact that Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s Residence was in decline. Who would be foolish enough to provoke Gao Ran by bringing it up?


    Human rtionships were superficial and money made the word go round. This was something that Lin Wei Xi already knew, but she still felt sad.


    The familiar voices behind her continued talking andughing. She left without looking back.


    The Duke Ying Lady was surrounded by her daughter-inws and granddaughters, and she held the hand of her most sessful granddaughter. It was reasonable to say that she was extremely blessed. But at that moment, her heart jumped suddenly. She happened to look up and see a woman wearing a silver and red dress walk away from them. From the back, she obviously looked slender and distinguished, but also revealed a sense of resoluteness. The Duke Ying Lady¡¯s heart mysteriously started to beat faster. It was as if at that moment, something important was walking away from her, and the family, children, wealth, and the glorious future she was so proud of was actually due to her rose tinted lenses, and her future was unclear.


    ¡°Grandmother?¡±


    The Duke Ying Lady returned to her senses to find Gao Ran looking at her worriedly. She smiled, secretly scolding herself for being too old. Why worry about personal gains and losses? Her granddaughter had climbed up to the Prince Yan Residence and was dearly loved by the Prince Yan Shizi. Her precious son was increasingly looking after the family, so she turned a blind eye to Han Shi. Everything was going in the right direction. The Duke Ying Residence was powerful on the outside and harmonious inside, and it¡¯s bright future was obvious to everyone. How could she think of such baseless spections.

 Chapter 20

    Gao Ran nced at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s ¡°lonely¡± departure from the corner of her eye. Sheughed to herself and suddenly eximed in surprise, revealing a bit of anxiety, ¡°My memory seems to be getting worse. I was so busy talking to Grandmother that I forgot about someone. Where is Miss Lin? Before I left, I promised Father to take good care of her. This is her first time socialising, so I¡¯m afraid she is shy with strangers.¡±


    A loose-lipped Lady couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Miss Lin? Who¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°The daughter of Father¡¯s old friend. She is also pitiful. She lost both parents and has no one to rely on. Father took pity on her hardship and brought her back to the residence.¡±


    The Ladies could rte to her experience. The daughter of an old friend who was a pitiful orphan and lived relying on somebody else¡¯s charity. These Ladies who managed their householdsughed gently and said to Gao Ran, ¡°Shizi Fei is truly attentive and kind, constantly taking care of the daughter of an old friend.¡±


    In the capital filled with influential households, Marquis Zhongyong Lin Yong was like a drop of water that made no ripples. Why would these arrogant Ladies remember who he was? They wouldn¡¯t think of him when they heard the surname Lin, and really thought this person was like a wretched and miserable pitiful cousin.


    The Duke Ying Lady realized what Gao Ran intended to do. Her old eyes turned indifferent and her voice was both flippant and critical, ¡°Is this the orphan that Prince Yan brought back some time ago? It wasn¡¯t easy for you to marry into the residence. The most urgent thing is to give birth to an heir, so don¡¯t worry too much about such irrelevant things.¡±


    The Duke Ying Lady didn¡¯t care much about this orphan girl. She was the daughter of a nominal Marquis, with no foresight and no knowledge, who somehow found a ce to live. Wasn¡¯t the situation obvious? Obviously, the Duke Ying Lady would think this way because she¡¯d never met Lin Wei Xi, nor had she been to the Prince Yan Residence.


    Gao Ran said this to demonstrate her benevolence and ability, but ended up being embarrassed by the Duke Ying Lady. Gao Ran secretly scolded her for her feudalistic mindset, but she and her grandmother were only close on the surface anyway. She didn¡¯t take the Duke Ying Residence as her home and only treated them superficially.


    Gao Ran thought about it and said, ¡°This Miss Lin has had a very pitiful life. Both her parents died and she has no uncles or rtives. She used to stay at her aunt¡¯s house, but when the Prince saw her suffering, he took her to the residence. I was loved by my grandmother and father since I was born, and didn¡¯t know that such a pitiful person existed. When I saw Miss Lin, I felt more grateful for my family. Being able to have my grandmother¡¯s protection is Heaven¡¯s blessing, so I want to help Miss Lin even more. If the Buddha sees my actions, it might amass good fortune for my grandmother and younger brother.¡±


    After she finished speaking, the Duke Ying Lady repeatedly praised her for being a good child, and the surrounding Ladies also praised her for her filial piety. Gao Ran pursed her lips and smiled. After refusing a few times, she turned to ask Ning Fu gently, ¡°What about Miss Lin, where did she disappear to? All the Ladies are here now, so I want to introduce Miss Lin to them and my grandmother.¡±


    Gao Ran remembered that in her past life, when she was looking for a rtionship with a pampered nouveau riche, she tried sneaking into a party. This was how the rich and beautiful ssmate who had brought her along to the dinner party introduced her to the others. Gao Ran was nervous and happy back then, thinking that she was epted by the people of that social ss. It was only now that she was in the same situation again, did she realize that she hadn¡¯t been epted by the people of that social ss. When introduced like that, it was actually condescending charity.


    Gao Ran nced around but couldn¡¯t find Lin Wei Xi. Seeing her do this, the Ladies and wives around her also followed suit, ¡°Xiyuan is a park exclusive to the imperial family, why wander around¡­ ¡°


    They were looking around when a voice suddenly came from behind them, ¡°The dragon boat hasn¡¯t started yet, what are you looking for?¡±


    Everyone turned around and smiled when they saw the person who had arrived, ¡°Old madam, greetings.¡±


    The people of the Duke Ying Residence looked embarrassed, but said hello to Princess Royal Shou Kang, ¡°we hope the Princess Royal has been in good health.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang walked slowly with the support of others. She beamed, and although there were traces of age on her face, she was much more spirited than before. She glowed with vitality, as if she were several years younger. She smiled and asked, ¡°You seem to be having a lively conversation. Who are you talking about?¡±


    Gao Ran rushed to answer, but was cut off by another talkative youngdy, ¡°Shizi Fei is talking about the woman that His Highness Prince Yan brought back two days ago. I heard that she¡¯s an orphan and is staying at the residence. Shizi Fei empathizes with this woman, so we were praising her filial piety.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Princess Shou Kang looked coldly at Gao Ran with unconcealed ridicule, ¡°If I didn¡¯t know this Lin girl and instead listened to Shizi Fei¡¯s description, I would¡¯ve thought that Prince Yan had brought someone else back.¡±


    It was an open secret that Princess Royal Shou Kang didn¡¯t get along with Gao Ran and the Duke Ying Residence, but no one expected that Shou Kang would do something like this on such a big asion. Everyone¡¯s smile froze. Gao Ran was popr in the capital, but that didn¡¯t mean she could talk back to Princess Royal Shou Kang. Shou Kang was Gao Ran¡¯s nominal grandmother, and Gao Ran had no right to speak up.


    The Duke Ying Lady¡¯s face sank. She and Shou Kang were from the same generation of noblewomen, and if Shou Kang weren¡¯t a princess, how could the Duke Ying Lady, who had an abundance of children and grandchildren, fear her. However, having said that, the identity of the princess was no joke. The Duke Ying Lady wasn¡¯t happy, but she decided to try andpromise, ¡°Third Miss is sincere, so why is Princess Royal taking her anger out on third girl when she doesn¡¯t deserve it?¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang smiled sarcastically and ignored her. She did a turnabout and looked benevolent and good-natured, lovingly patted the hand of the person beside her, and said, ¡°Since you¡¯re talking about her, then I shall introduce my newly recognized granddaughter, Xi¡¯er.¡±


    When they heard this name, many of the Ladies who were familiar with that name felt stunned. Xi¡¯er? They looked at the girl standing next to Princess Royal Shou Kang and found that she was blossoming into a dazzling and beautiful young woman. Although they¡¯d never seen her before, she obviously wasn¡¯t the Eldest Miss, Gao Xi, of the Duke Ying Residence.


    Lin Wei Xi took a step forward and greeted everyone naturally, ¡°Ladies, greetings.¡±


    Seeing the doubt on everyone¡¯s faces, Princess Royal Shou Kang smiled and said, ¡°This child was taken in by Prince Yan. I felt that we were kindred spirits the first time we met, like she was no different from my own granddaughter. I also don¡¯t know why, but not seeing her for a few days feels like being separated for a few years, so I called her away as soon as I saw her just now. Xi¡¯er is well mannered and said that she couldn¡¯t leave without telling someone, so we came to tell Shizi Fei that she will be following me. There¡¯s no need for the Shizi Fei to pretend to care for her.¡±


    The rtives of officials and nobility in the capital gave Gao Ran face, but Princess Royal Shou Kang obviously didn¡¯t need to. Having been ridiculed in front of everyone by Princess Royal Shou Kang, Gao Ran was very embarrassed, and she said, ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that maternal grandmother and Miss Lin hit it off with each other. I originally wanted to let some of these Ladies meet Miss Lin out of good intentions, but I didn¡¯t expect Grandmother to misunderstand.¡±


    ¡°Good intentions? Xi¡¯er doesn¡¯t need your good intentions.¡± Princess Royal Shou Kang humphed coldly and said, ¡°it¡¯s true that she lost her parents when she was young. But her father was conferred as Marquis Zhongyong by the imperial court. There are thousands of hectares of fertilend to her name, and she¡¯ll have an easy life no matter where she goes. Just two days ago, Prince Yan told me that Xi¡¯er will only be living temporarily in the residence. Why does it be so vulgar when you exin it?¡±


    Princess Royal was teaching the younger generation, so the Ladies quietly raised their eyebrows and lowered their heads while smiling subtly without interrupting. The Duke Ying Lady couldn¡¯t stand it anymore and frowned, ¡°Third Miss obviously had good intentions. I¡¯m afraid Princess Royal is prejudiced and looked at it wrongly. Who is this Xi¡¯er, and why is she using that name?¡±


    The Duke Ying Lady felt fearful when she heard the name Xi¡¯er. If she didn¡¯t already know that it was impossible, she would¡¯ve thought Princess Royal Shou Kang was calling for Gao Xi.


    How could she use that name? Lin Wei Xi felt sorrowful when she heard her former grandmother actually say such a thing, and the smile on her face also became lonely, ¡°my name is Wei Xi, and my father called me Xi¡¯er. Does the Duke Ying Lady think that my name is inappropriate? But this is something my father left behind. Now that Father has passed, how can my name be changed?¡±


    ¡°Why would you change your name? She just has a guilty conscience and wants to control what other people call themselves,¡± Shou Kang unhappily nced at the Duke Ying Lady, sounding irritated, ¡°Marquis Zhongyong is a brave and loyal man who gave his life for the country. Now that the Lin family only has one descendant left, please stop being so domineering, Duke Ying Lady! This martyr¡¯s daughter isn¡¯t someone you can bully.¡±


    Duke Ying Lady¡¯s face turned ashen. To have a reputation for bullying orphans, widow or elderly, was already offensive enough. Even worse, the other party was a martyr¡¯s child, and one could be used of misconduct if they weren¡¯t not careful. The Duke Ying Residence was indeed powerful and famous, but it was mostly because of their inws, the Prince Yan Residence. The Gao family¡¯s influence in the imperial court was mediocre. The Duke Ying Lady was tense for a long while, before deciding that she couldn¡¯t risk her son¡¯s career, and she could only soften her expression, saying, ¡°I only felt that this name was familiar and said that without thinking. How did Miss Lin misunderstand and think that I want her to change her name? Justst year, my grandchild passed away, and Xi¡¯er was only seventeen. I still mourn for her, so I was careless when I heard the familiar name.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked down, her eyes filled with disdain and sorrow. Duke Ying Lady had actually used the dead as a shield. How funny. She was actually being attacked by her grandmother using her own death.


    Seeing this, the Lady standing next to her hurriedly mediated, ¡°that¡¯s enough, it¡¯s all a misunderstanding. Just let it go. This Miss is so pretty, and it¡¯s my first time seeing this kind of beauty.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s mood fluctuated. When she saw this, she pretended to shyly lower her head to cover up the intense condemnation and fury in her eyes. Princess Royal Shou Kang didn¡¯t want to incite conflict on such a wonderful day, and besides, she was still in the pce, so she followed up with a smile, ¡°Xi¡¯er just came out of her filial mourning the day before yesterday, and has just started socializing. It¡¯s her first time showing her face, so please don¡¯tugh.¡±


    ¡°Think nothing of it, Princess Royal,¡± The wives looked at Lin Wei Xi, their eyes shing fervently. So she turned out to be the daughter of Marquis Zhongyong, who¡¯d been very hot news in the capital some time ago. They didn¡¯t expect that she was this beautiful and easy to talk to. She¡¯d even obtained the approval of the Princess Royal, which was rare. Listening to Gao Ran¡¯s narrative just now, they really thought she was a shameless girl from a fallen noble house.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang patted Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand affectionately, and angrily scolded everyone, ¡°You can¡¯t look down on her just because she has no family. Later when she marries, I will empty out my box of property deeds for her to bolster her image.¡±


    Of course, everyoneughed and ttered her, and the Ladies who had a son started to n ahead. Although Lin Wei Xi¡¯s background wasn¡¯t prestigious, they were unable to resist her generous dowry. She owned the assets of the Marquis Residence and had the Princess Royal adding to her dowry. She also looked this beautiful¡­ the person who married her in the future would have the Lin family¡¯s loyalty and bravery to their name, which was quite a useful bargaining chip.


    Seeing that her goal had been achieved, Princess Royal Shou Kang smiled and left with Lin Wei Xi after giving a few polite greetings. From start to end, Princess Royal Shou Kang ignored Gao Ran, toozy to pretend to respect the Duke Ying Residence.


    Gao Ran forced a smile. After they left, a Ladyined to Gao Ran without thinking, ¡°really, Shizi Fei! You exined it so modestly. I really thought she was just an ordinary girl. She is Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s daughter. Her status is pretty good, but unfortunately she doesn¡¯t have any rtives. However, she¡¯s good-looking. These ws are nothing.¡±


    When Gao Ran heard this, her expression turned cold. Another Lady also added, ¡°Isn¡¯t it? Who knows how many people I¡¯ve met in the capital after so many years, but this is the first time I¡¯ve seen such an attractive person. Such an exquisite young girl, how good it is to be young! Hey, Shizi Fei, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡±


    Gao Ran turned her head and smiled gently, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I was thinking of the instructions Shizi gave me before leaving the house, so my mind wandered a little.¡±


    When Gu Cheng Yao was mentioned, the Ladies immediately dropped the topic of Lin Wei Xi and enthusiastically talked about the Prince Yan Residence. Gao Ran turned the focus to herself again and lightly hummed to herself. She¡¯d intended to lower everyone¡¯s first impression of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s. So long as it was destroyed, Lin Wei Xi wouldn¡¯t be able to marry into a good family. However, she didn¡¯t expect Lin Wei Xi to meet up with Princess Royal Shou Kang so soon, or for Princess Royal Shou Kang to willinglye forward to introduce her. When entering the social circle, the first introducer was extremely important. If not for the support of Princess Royal Shou Kang, how could these arrogant noble Ladies ept Lin Wei Xi, this threatening beauty from a poor family, without a fuss?


    Gao Ran had prepared for a long time, but felt extremely upset now that she got such results.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang enthusiastically led Lin Wei Xi to meet all the titled personages. Although Lin Wei Xi recognized these people, she still appreciated her grandmother¡¯s kindness and acted the part of a lovable grandchild, greeting all the Ladies she met. It took a lot of effort to finish this round. If it weren¡¯t for Princess Shou Kang¡¯sck of energy, she would¡¯ve introduced her to Empress Dowager Qian.


    Lin Wei Xi and the servants of the Princess Residence persuaded Princess Royal Shou Kang to sit down in the pce. Soon after they sat down, the dragon boat race began. Empress Dowager Qian led the women to a special tform. It was difficult for the imperial concubines to have such entertainment, and this kind of dragon boat race was a rare and grand asion. Everyone was in high spirits. Although Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t too interested, there were many people in the stands. She was afraid something would happen, so she was on alert as she carefully supported Shou Kang.


    Luckily, Lin Wei Xi was paying attention. No one knew which family this kid was from, but his vision was blocked, and in his impatience, he reached out to push the person in front of him. The woman in front of him couldn¡¯t have known that someone would push her from behind. She was caught off guard and hit her waist. She was currently pregnant and her bnce was unstable; she narrowly avoided falling into the water. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes saw that something was amiss, and quickly reached out and grabbed. The woman cried out in rm as she fell forward. Lin Wei Xi grabbed her hand and pulled her from danger. The woman was young, but was scared out of her wits after what happened. Lin Wei Xi was also very frightened. She tried to control her anger and calmly questioned the child, ¡°Whose child are you to actually do this kind of thing.¡±

 Chapter 21

    Someone being pushed in that corner of the viewing tform caused a disturbance. The Ladies were frightened and stepped back immediately. The child was only nine years old, but he was already stocky. He heard Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words and pouted, saying, ¡°who do you think you are? Fuck off! Don¡¯t block my view of the dragon boat.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi swept her eyes over his clothes and had a vague idea of the identity of the child. Prince Zhao had died in battle a few years ago, leaving behind his Consort and one young son. How could this orphan and widow guard the Zhao fief? Emperor Mu Zong took pity on his young nephew, brought Prince Zhao¡¯s widow and son to the capital, and conferred his nephew as Prince Zhao early on so that they could enjoy the sry of a first-rank Prince. They wouldn¡¯t need to worry about making a living, nor worry about facing the bitter cold of the North. The little Prince Zhao could go back to the fief once he¡¯d grown up. That was how the Prince Zhao family ended up staying in the capital a few years earlier than Prince Yan.


    Little Prince Zhao inherited the title of Prince when he was young. His mother was widowed at a young age, leaving him as the only remaining bloodline. One could imagine how spoiled he was. Prince Zhao had no male elders to discipline him, and he was indulged by his mother and the servants for years on end. Over time, he grew increasingly unreasonable. Now, Prince Zhao was only nine years old, but he was already a bully that everyone in the capital avoided. Just like now, who could prevent him from unexpectedly pushing someone? But he was a Prince, and no one dared to control him. If anything happened, one could only resign themselves to their bad luck.


    All the Ladies around him stepped back to avoid him. A kind-hearteddy thought that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know him, and softly warned her, ¡°that¡¯s Prince Zhao.¡±


    That¡¯s Prince Zhao. Saying that was enough.


    Prince Zhao humphed arrogantly when he saw this, ¡°hear that? I¡¯m a Prince! Whoever blocks my view of the boat deserves to be thrown into the water.¡±


    Listening to his words, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s heart burned with anger. The Princess Residence¡¯s servants held on to her and warned, ¡°Miss, Prince Zhao is still young, so it¡¯s inevitable that he¡¯ll be yful. Let¡¯s check on the injured first.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi knew that they were currently in the pce, and the other party was an undisciplined and uncontroble little Prince. Even if what he did was disgraceful, she could only leave it to the Gu family to teach him a lesson. She couldn¡¯t cause trouble for the Princess Residence. After angrily ring at Prince Zhao, she turned to the woman who was almost pushed into the water, ¡°My Lady, are you okay?¡±


    The woman was around twenty five or twenty six years old, and she was just recovering from her shock. When she heard that the other party was the influential Prince Zhao, she didn¡¯t dare look into it further, and promptly waved her hand, saying, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Thank you for rescuing me, Miss. You don¡¯t need to bring this up again.¡±


    The woman was afraid that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s righteousness would invite trouble, so she quickly grabbed Lin Wei Xi in an attempt to keep the peace. The happenings on this side already attracted the attention of the Empress Dowager Qian, and Lin Wei Xi had no choice but to say, ¡°My Lady, you are pregnant. Is this really alright? Otherwise, I can apany you to ask for a doctor?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need.¡± The woman wanted to decline, but Lin Wei Xi looked at her face and insisted on bringing her to find an imperial doctor. The woman¡¯s refusal was to no avail, and top of that, her lower abdomen was indeed ufortable. She couldn¡¯t continue to linger in this ce, so she gave Lin Wei Xi a grateful look and left together with her.


    It was only after leaving the viewing tform that the woman dared to heave a sigh of relief, and her expression became painful. Lin Wei Xi felt that something was amiss. She immediately had the servants of the Princess Residence take Princess Shou Kang¡¯s insignia to find an imperial doctor from the hospital.


    Lin Wei Xi supported the woman to a water pavilion to sit. This ce was originally meant for people to rest, but right now, everyone was watching the dragon boat race with the Empress Dowager. The water pavilion was devoid of people and spotless. Lin Wei Xi helped the woman to sit down, but when she saw the woman¡¯s face, she grew anxious.


    She had grown up in arge family and knew all too well how dangerous it was to be pregnant. Her mother had died because of a miscarriage, so what she couldn¡¯t stand the most was someone who treated pregnant women harshly. She was anxious and angry, constantly checking the path to the pavilion, ¡°Why isn¡¯t the imperial doctor here?¡±


    The woman frowned as she leaned against the chair, her face pale. Seeing Lin Wei Xi so anxious for her, she felt moved and said, ¡°thank you, Miss. We¡¯replete strangers, but not only did you save me, you¡¯re also calling a doctor for me. Su Niang will remember Miss¡¯s kindness for the rest of my life and return the favour many-fold¡­ ¡°


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. You were in shock and your top priority should be to recuperate. As for repayment, there¡¯s no need to do so. No one who sees this kind of thing would look on without lifting a finger. The greatest repayment you can give me is to raise the child properly once they¡¯re born.¡±


    The woman¡¯s eyes reddened, ¡°Miss, you¡¯re such a good person. Su Niang won¡¯t forget your kindness. My surname is Liu and my given name is Su Niang. What is Miss¡¯s name?¡±


    Liu Su Niang. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t have an impression of that name and said, ¡°my surname is Lin, and my given name is Wei Xi.¡±


    Liu Su Niang understood when she heard this, ¡°so it¡¯s Miss Lin. I heard that His Highness Prince Yan brought Marquis Zhongyong¡¯s daughter to the capital a few days ago. Is that Miss?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was taken aback when she heard this, ¡°you know me?¡±


    ¡°No I don¡¯t. My husband mentioned it a few times and I¡¯m only repeating what he said.¡± Liu Su Niang smiled bashfully and looked at Lin Wei Xi with eyes full of pure admiration, ¡°Marquis Zhongyong was extremely loyal to our nation. My husband regards Marquis Zhongyong as the role model for his generation, but he never had the chance to meet him. I didn¡¯t expect that I¡¯d be so blessed to meet Miss Lin today, and that Miss Lin is such a beautiful and outstanding person.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi also liked this delicate and timiddy very much. Listening to her talk about Lin Yong, her affection grew. She asked, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that there¡¯d be anyone left in the capital who knows Father. May I ask who your husband is?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need for Miss Lin to be so polite. He¡¯s just an editor at the Imperial Hanlin Academy. His name is Shen Ming Da.¡± Liu Su Niang repeatedly refuted, sincerely believing that her husband didn¡¯t have a high official position. And she seemed a little embarrassed to be with Lin Wei Xi.


    Lin Wei Xi was stunned when she heard the name, and asked incredulously, ¡°Shen Ming Da?¡±


    Liu Su Niang was taken aback by her sudden rise in tone and stared nkly, ¡°yes, what about it? Does Miss Lin know my husband?¡±


    It was more than just that. Lin Wei Xi remembered this name vividly as it was very well-known.


    Before her rebirth, she happened toe across that heavenly book. After learning that she was just a character in the book, and a cannon fodder to be stepped on at that, she was scared out of her wits and didn¡¯t have the heart to continue reading. But even so, at the end of the day, she was the daughter of a high-ranking official and was raised by the Princess Royal for several years. Her years of political intuition helped her endure her disgust. She skipped through the lovey-dovey interactions between Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao, and found a lot of important information in theter half of the book. For example, the events that would happen in the next few years, and the person who would take over Zhang Xiao Lian as Grand Secretary.


    This book mainly described Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s love story, and unterally praised Gao Ran. It rarely touched on the government and the state of affairs, and skimmed through them when it did. Lin Wei Xi could only vaguely guess the movements of the imperial court from reading between the lines, and Shen Ming Da¡¯s name was specifically mentioned in theter part of the book.


    The reason was obvious, and it was because Shen Ming Da was the next Grand Secretary. He had been the top scorer of the Imperial Examinations in the past and was an editor in the Imperial Hanlin Academy for many years. He was gentle and prudent, and never offended his colleagues. Zhang Xiao Lian was indecisive when he was in office. However, after the death of the tyrannical Grand Secretary Zhang, Shen Ming Da suddenly stood out in the chaotic situation and rose through the ranks, eventually bing the new cab Grand Secretary.


    Lin Wei Xi was able to remember this name all thanks to Gao Ran. Although Gao Ran¡¯s younger brother was favoured, he was a concubine-born son after all. In order to ovee his social ss and be the sessor, he couldn¡¯t do without the assistance of people in high positions. Gu Cheng Yao was one such person, and Shen Ming Da was another.


    Shen Ming Da only appeared in theter half of the heavenly book. By then, Gao Ran¡¯s position was stable. In private, Gu Cheng Yao favoured her and only her, and in public, she was respected as the mistress of the Prince Yan Residence. Everything was supposed to be perfect. But who was Gao Ran if not the heroine? Anyone who opposed her wouldn¡¯t have a good ending, but the family and close friends recognized by the heroine would all live a smooth life. Although they fell short of the heroine, they already won in all aspects of life.


    Gao Ran was a concubine-born heroine, favoured after marriage and getting her man in one move. Her only disgrace was mostly her status as a shu daughter and the inferiority of her mother¡¯s maiden family. In the book, even though Han Shi was a concubine, her heart was pure and noble, and she stayed with the Duke Ying Shizi out of love. Han Shi¡¯s family were also full of kind and dependable people, and they often visited the Prince Yan Residence to give Gao Ran fresh fruits and vegetables that they grew, receiving the unanimous approval of everyone in the Prince Yan Residence. Among them, Gao Ran had a cousin surnamed Han who married Shen Ming Da as his second wife, with Gao Ran as the go-between.


    Back then, Shen Ming Da had yet to make his mark and was only a poverty-stricken and unknown editor who hadn¡¯t remarried for many years because of his deceased wife. Gao Ran felt that a man who thought of histe wife like this must be a good person. Although he was poor, the Han family had some savings that came from her allowance and they wouldn¡¯tck in food and clothing. In any case, his character was the most important. Gao Ran felt that Shen Ming Da waspatible with her cousin, so she made the decision to have her cousin marry him. Thister proved to be Gao Ran¡¯s game changing chess piece. Shen Ming Da experienced a meteoric rise in his career after Zhang Xiao Lian¡¯s death as he entered the cab and became the Grand Secretary. Han Shi¡¯s son could be the heir to the Duke Ying Residencergely due to Shen Ming Da¡¯s efforts.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t expect to hear this name today. After she got over her surprise, she somewhat understood the situation as she looked at Liu Su Niang, who was sitting in front of her. Perhaps this was Shen Ming Da¡¯s first wife who had died early and caused him to refuse to remarry for years.


    ¡°Miss Lin, is something wrong?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi returned to her senses and realized that she¡¯d been staring at Liu Su Niang. Liu Su Niang was frightened by her stare, so she lowered her gaze to cover the peculiar feeling in her eyes. She acted like nothing was wrong and smiled, ¡°it¡¯s nothing. I just remembered that Shen Ming Da was the top scorer of the Imperial Examinations in the 9th year of Jianzhao. It¡¯s a pleasant surprise that I¡¯m now talking to the wife of one such person.¡±


    Liu Su Niang believed her words and smiled shyly, ¡°not at all, Miss Lin is making fun of me again.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled quietly. The imperial doctor finally arrived and she quickly stepped aside to let him check Liu Su Niang¡¯s pulse. She¡¯d just stepped back when she saw a man hurry into the water pavilion , anxiety written all over his face,¡±Su Niang, are you okay?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was startled. This person was Shen Ming Da, the next Grand Secretary and top scorer of the Imperial Examinations during the 9th year of Jian Zhao. She immediately turned around to find that several others had lifted their gowns and stepped into the water pavilion.


    Even Prince Yan had been rmed by this disturbance.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t good and his deeply imposing eyes fell on Lin Wei Xi. Seeing that she was fine, his expression improved a little, ¡°I heard that there was amotion at the women¡¯s gathering and that someone was almost pushed off the viewing tform. Are you injured?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Lin Wei Xi quickly shook her head and pointed to Liu Su Niang, ¡°It¡¯s Miss Liu who isn¡¯t looking too good.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan raised his hand and the imperial doctor behind him hurried to check her pulse. Gu Cheng Yao had alsoe along. Lin Wei Xi had nothing to say to him, so she just nodded at him and considered it a greeting.


    To the Lords and Ladies, this was nothing more than a small incident. But when Prince Yan arrived in person, their tomfoolery immediately ceased. The servants of the Prince Zhao Residence hurriedly led the small Prince Zhao to the water pavilion. When Gao Ran heard that Gu Cheng Yao hade, she also immediately followed along.


    Not long after Gu Hui Yan¡¯s arrival, the initially tranquil water pavilion promptly became crowded. Lin Wei Xi ignored everyone outside and focused on the diagnosis of the imperial physicians inside, ¡°the Lady was frightened which caused the fetus to be unstable. That¡¯s why her abdominal pain is unbearable. Fortunately, she was properly settled down in time. I will write a few subscriptions to help strengthen her cultivation foundation. One dose of each medicine every morning and evening¡±


    ording to the imperial doctors, it seemed like Liu Su Niang wasn¡¯t in danger. Lin Wei Xi finally breathed a sigh of relief. When she reflected on what had happened, she felt terrified. If she hadn¡¯t been paying attention to her surroundings today, or if she hadn¡¯t caught Liu Su Niang in time when the incident happened, it was unimaginable to her what would¡¯ve happened after. Perhaps this matter was rted to Liu Su Niang¡¯s early death?


    Endless whispers echoed from inside the water pavilion. After a moment, Shen Ming Da walked out from behind the partition and wanted to salute Lin Wei Xi with a bow. She was taken aback, and hurriedly stopped him, ¡°Sir Shen, what are you doing?¡±


    Actually, Shen Ming Da¡¯s current position was far from being called ¡°Sir¡±, but in her anxiety, she didn¡¯t pay attention to her words. When Lin Wei Xi stopped him, she unconsciously stepped closer to Gu Hui Yan. He braced her and reached out to block him for her, ¡°It¡¯s good that your wife is fine. You¡¯re going to scare her if you bow to her.¡±


    Prince Yan had spoken, so Shen Ming Da could only salute to the two of them, ¡°thank you Prince Yan, thank you Miss Lin.¡±


    Actually, Shen Ming Da¡¯s rank wasn¡¯t high enough for him to participate in the Dragon Boat Festival. The reason the husband and wife could enter the pce today was all due to the prestigious Imperial Hanlin Academy, as well as his title as top scorer of the Imperial Examinations. However, there were as many influential officials as there were clouds. He was fine since he could tend to the emperor, but Su Niang was pregnant and by herself. With her introverted personality, Shen Ming Da was constantly fretful that something would happen. Then, when news was delivered that Su Niang had almost been pushed off the viewing tform, Shen Ming Da was so frightened that he broke out in cold sweat and dropped everything to follow Prince Yan. Fortunately, nothing had happened to Su Niang. Otherwise, he was scared witless at the thought of what could¡¯ve happened.


    Shen Ming Da sincerely thanked Lin Wei Xi. He had a clean and noble reputation, but he was a small official from the Imperial Hanlin Academy who had nary the right to speak in the capital. Why would this group of influential officials bother to notice Su Niang¡¯s life or death? If Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t been the one to grab onto Su Niang and use her personal connections to ask for an imperial doctor, Su Niang¡¯s situation today would be no less than disastrous.


    Prince Yan didn¡¯t allow him to bow to Lin Wei Xi so as not to frighten her. Shen Ming Daplied and retreated, engraving Lin Wei Xi¡¯s kindness onto his heart. The huge favour hadn¡¯t been repaid. If a chance presented itself in the future, Shen Ming Da would definitely express his gratitude for saving his wife by returning the favour.


    Since everything was fine, she could slowly recuperate afterwards, and the matter was temporarily put on hold. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression was indifferent, but the oppressiveness in his words was palpable, ¡°Who was the person who was pushing others on the viewing tform?¡±

 Chapter 22

    T/n: Trigger warning for brief mentions of suicidal intentions


    After Gu Hui Yan said that, silence descended on the water pavilion. Only the murmuring of running water could be hearding from outside the pavilion.


    The servants of the Prince Zhao Residence reluctantly stepped up and said, ¡°It¡¯s our Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze was sharp and there was a hidden thunder in his voice, ¡°Let him speak himself.¡±


    The little Prince Zhao stepped out from behind his servant, embarrassed, his voice almost inaudible, ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± After saying that, he mumbled to himself without a care, ¡°didn¡¯t she not fall? Who asked her to block this Prince from watching the dragon boat race.¡±


    ¡°Even now, you refuse to acknowledge your mistake.¡± Gu Hui Yan looked at him coldly, ¡°You inherited your father¡¯s title at a young age. I used to pity you for losing your father and didn¡¯t discipline you too harshly, but now it seems to have harmed you. You¡¯ve been indulged too much and ended up bing so undisciplined and out of control.¡±


    Prince Yan was the leader of the Princes. Even if the former Prince Zhao were to stand here today, he wouldn¡¯t dare raise his head if he were to be scolded by Prince Yan, let alone a nine year old child like the small Prince Zhao. Gu Hui Yan had experienced several wars, and he had the aura of experiencing being surrounded by a mass of dead people. After being stared at by such unfeeling eyes, Prince Zhao immediately became scared and burst into tears. The cry of a nine year old child was sharp and resounding, stabbing everyone in the ears. But with Prince Yan standing there, no one dared to move. Even more so, the servants of Prince Zhao Residence didn¡¯t dare coax this little devil of theirs.


    The child¡¯s sharp cries resounded through the water pavilion, and the Prince Zhao Consort hurried over. It almost broke her heart to hear her son¡¯s crying from afar. She pushed through the crowd and threw herself at him, tightly embracing her cherished son and crying, ¡°my son, you¡¯ve been weak since young. Who wronged you and made you cry like this? It¡¯s a pity your father passed early, leaving only us behind. Others can bully us and we can¡¯t do anything about it¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan listened to her words and had a headache. He could reprimand his nephew, could reprimand Prince Zhao, even the emperor would lower his face and listen to his teachings. But what could he say to his widowed sister-inw?


    The Prince Zhao Consort was still whimpering and sobbing as shemented. With his mother to support him, the little Prince Zhao¡¯s crying gradually morphed into a bellow of rage that was full of conviction.


    Gu Hui Yan could only restrain his imposing manner and without making things too personal, stated the facts as they were, ¡°Even if he¡¯s young, he can¡¯t disregard ethics or his rtions with others. Besides, he¡¯s not young anymore. He¡¯s already nine years old and has since long reached the age to understand etiquette. It¡¯s fortunate that no one was hurt when he pushed someone on the viewing tform. But what if something had happened? He has no regard for human life at such a young age, and touts himself around so arrogantly and self-righteously. If he isn¡¯t disciplined now, wouldn¡¯t he grow to be a tyrant who acts with total disregard for the life of his countrymen?¡±


    Hearing Gu Hui Yan say this about her son, the Prince Zhao Consort¡¯s heart crumbled and her cries grew more piercing, ¡°Why is Prince Yan going so far to say these things about my son? He only wanted to have some fun and identally ran into an official¡¯s wife who doesn¡¯t even have a title. But Prince Yan is actually mocking and cursing at him like this. What do you mean by preying on people and disregarding human life? Prince Yan is trying to hound us to our deaths! My son lost his father at a young age. Since childhood, he¡¯s experienced many illnesses and disasters, so his body is frail. We¡¯re doing nothing more than drifting along to survive, but I didn¡¯t expect that we would still anger Prince Yan. As a widow, I¡¯m considered inauspicious no matter where I am. I¡¯m going to ask Empress Dowager Qian for an official instruction and return to the Zhao fief tomorrow!¡±


    The Prince Zhao Consort cried as she threatened to take her own life. The people around her hurriedly stopped her and tried to persuade her kindly. She continued crying and didn¡¯t even look to see how fat and robust her son was. In what way did he look frail?


    Gu Hui Yan held one hand behind his back, his face calm, but his eyes hid a great force. When he saw this, Shen Ming Da hurriedly bowed and said, ¡°thank you for saving my wife, Prince Yan. She¡¯s fine now, and since it was idental, let¡¯s put it behind us.¡±


    Shen Ming Da said this because he didn¡¯t want conflict to arise between Gu Hui Yan and the Prince Zhao Residence. The Prince Zhao Consort immediately agreed with him and said, ¡°the child is just yful and nothing happened anyway, so why make a big deal out of it? My son was so scared that he started crying.¡±


    The little devil existed because his parents spoiled him. With the Prince Zhao Consort like this, it was no surprise that the Prince dared to push people at the edge of the viewing tform. Gu Hui Yan recalled that this Prince was Prince Zhao¡¯s only remaining descendant after all. In the end, he couldn¡¯t take it and tried to give a word of advice, ¡°a caring mother will only hold back her son. If you indulge him like this, you will harm him in the future.¡±


    The Prince Zhao Consort hated it the most when people pointed out her son¡¯s ws. She pulled her son towards her and red at Gu Hui Yan, her voice biting, ¡°can¡¯t Prince Yan see that the Prince Zhao Residence¡¯s situation is bad? How can you insist on saying such malicious things to my son?¡±


    The people of the Prince Yan Residence grew angry when they heard this, and red at the Prince Zhao Consort with fire in their eyes. The Prince Zhao Consort cowered in fear and immediately started crying again, ¡°My Prince, how could you leave us behind! You shed your blood andid down your life for the imperial family and the country, and died guarding the destends of the border. But everyone in the imperial family doesn¡¯t appreciate your sentiments. Even if you¡¯re dead, they will bully your only son. This is the only remaining descendant of our Residence! My Prince, I have let you down. I should just die¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan had a headache from all her crying, waving his hand to hint to Gu Ming Da and the others to step down as they couldn¡¯t be rude to Prince Zhao¡¯s widow. The Prince Zhao Consort felt pleased with herself when she saw this and left while hugging her son. The Prince Yan Residence¡¯s people who remained in the water pavilion seethed with anger. Didn¡¯t Prince Yan lecture the little Prince Zhao for his own good? Not only were the results bad, but the Prince Zhao Consort had also set him up!


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s face turned ashen as he looked at Gu Hui Yan, ¡°Father¡­ ¡°


    Gao Ran also wrinkled her eyebrows as she walked closer, and she said earnestly, ¡°Father, the Prince Zhao Consort only said this because she was anxious. Please don¡¯t take it to heart. ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t want to get angry with a married woman. He waved his hand to show that he¡¯d gotten over it. Lin Wei Xi suddenly turned around and said to Gu Hui Yan, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, I feel stuffy. I¡¯m going to get some air.¡±


    Without waiting for him to reply, she swiftly walked out.


    The few people remaining in the water pavilion froze for a moment before a clear voice echoed from outside, ¡°Prince Zhao Consort, please stop.¡±


    ¡°Prince Zhao Consort, please stop.¡±


    The Prince Zhao Consort stopped in confusion. When Lin Wei Xi was the one she saw after turning around, she felt unconcerned and looked impatient, ¡°Who are you to have the audacity to stop me?¡±


    ¡°In terms of status and position, I definitely can¡¯t measure up to you, but in terms of my personal conduct, I¡¯m definitely leagues beyond you, Prince Zhao Consort. I called out to you this time because I wanted to teach you how to conduct yourself and how to educate your child.¡±


    ¡°How brazen!¡±


    ¡°The Consort can only confidently stand here because nothing happened. If the little Prince had really pushed someone off the viewing tform today, seeing how deep the water is under the stands and how Miss Liu is pregnant, the slightest mistake would¡¯ve taken two lives. This is a pregnant woman and an unborn child. While injuring these two people, the Consort and the little Prince would¡¯ve umted some karma. Are you not afraid that your descendants will receive retribution?¡±


    Talking about someone¡¯s descendants receiving retribution was extremely serious in Chinese society, and the Prince Zhao Consort immediately became furious, ¡°how impudent! Who are you? I will have you punished for disrespecting me!¡±


    ¡°Speaking of being disrespectful, it¡¯s still uncertain who¡¯s thewless one here. The little Prince was standing behind a group of women, with Princess Royal Shou Kang just a short distance away. Who knows whether or not it was the Princess or someone else that Prince Zhao secretly wanted to push, and he¡¯d only identally pushed the wrong person with Miss Liu suffering instead. If the Consort wants the Empress Dowager to be the judge, we can go together and let the Empress Dowager judge what exactly it was that your son was nning.¡±


    The Prince Zhao Consort was at a loss for words. She could endlessly pester Prince Yan about whether or not her son was in the wrong. But in front of Empress Dowager Qian, the Prince Zhao Residence would definitely need to take responsibility. It was because Lin Wei Xi was sure that the Prince Zhao Consort wouldn¡¯t bring this up in front of the Empress Dowager that she could mock her without restraint.


    But even so, the Prince Zhao Consort couldn¡¯t swallow the mockery. She looked at Lin Wei Xi and sneered, ¡°do you think that because you didn¡¯t give your name, I can¡¯t find out who you are? Just you wait, I¡¯ll make you regret what you did today until youe crying to the Prince Zhao Residence to apologize.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Lin Wei Xi crossed her arms, tilted her head at the Prince Zhao Consort, and smiled charmingly, ¡°What does the Prince Zhao Consort want to do to me or to my family? No need to trouble the Consort to investigate it, I¡¯ll just tell you now. My name is Lin Wei Xi. My mother died many years ago and my father is Marquis Zhongyong, Lin Yong. Like the previous Prince Zhao, he also died in battle for our country. If the Consort wants to send someone to cause trouble, you don¡¯t need too many people. I¡¯m the only one left in my family so it¡¯s enough to focus on me. When the Consort does something, I will go to the capital magistrate and appeal for justice by beating the drums outside the court. I¡¯ll say that the Prince Zhao Residence is bullying the daughter of a martyr. When the timees, let¡¯s see who has the popr sentiment.¡±


    ¡°You¡­ ¡± the Prince Zhao Consort was so angry that she pointed at Lin Wei Xi and clenched her teeth with hatred, ¡°do you think that I can¡¯t do something to you even with this?¡±


    ¡°No way, I only learned it from the Consort. Since you can go against Prince Yan with the excuse of your husband being killed in battle, I can also go against you using my identity. The Prince Zhao Consort is a widow while I¡¯m a martyr¡¯s daughter. Doesn¡¯t the Consort enjoy acting miserable and pitiful? What a coincidence, so can I.¡±


    The Prince Zhao Consort fumed with rage and gritted her teeth while looking at Lin Wei Xi. In the end, she red fiercely at Lin Wei Xi and left with a flick of her sleeve. Lin Wei Xi watched as the Prince Zhao Consort walked away with that young devil of a boy. She smiled angrily and, knowing they would hear her, said to the retreating members of the Prince Zhao Residence, ¡°Prince Yan disciplined the little Prince Zhao for his own good. If the Consort truly loves her son, you should have him apologize to the Shen family and Prince Yan, and discipline him strictly from now on. Don¡¯t take his side if he¡¯s in the wrong. Otherwise you¡¯ll receive retribution sooner orter.¡±


    The Prince Zhao Consort hated it when others criticized her son. She stopped to turn around, and one could feel the poison in her eyes even from a distance. At that moment, Gu Ming Da walked to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s side and respectfully bowed to her, ¡°Miss Lin, it¡¯s windy outside. You should head back.¡±


    This was Prince Yan¡¯s unspoken but undisputable stance. He could let it go if she used a dead man as an excuse to make a fuss, but if she wanted to involve Lin Wei Xi, then he wouldn¡¯t hesitate to take action even if it meant not giving her any face.


    The Prince Zhao Consort understood Gu Hui Yan¡¯s silent dissuasion and could only stomp her feet in anger before leaving.


    Lin Wei Xi won an overwhelming victory. She sighed as she looked at the dark green of the pool, and hummed, ¡°Sure enough, I came outside to take a breather and the tightness in my chest immediately improved. These kinds of people just need to be scolded. Let¡¯s go and return to the pavilion.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi turned around. On the other side of the winding corridor, she saw Gu Hui Yan standing with a few others. She felt embarrassed, but still pretended like nothing had happened and calmly walked through the secluded corridor.


    Although the ce where Lin Wei Xi and the Prince Zhao Consort were talking was a distance from the water pavilion, thanks to the quiet environment, the conversation could still be heard even if it was muffled. Gu Hui Yan watched as Lin Wei Xi walked through the corridor, her eyes lowered slightly and her actions cute. It was impossible to tell that she was threatening someone else just now.


    Shen Ming Da was filled with a sense of disillusionment. If Prince Yan wasn¡¯t also standing there, he¡¯d have thought that he was hallucinating. He saw how lovable and charming Lin Wei Xi was and thought that she was like a pliant willow swaying in the wind kind of beauty. But what had he heard just now? Gu Hui Yan smiled slightly, and it was uncertain whether he¡¯d unconsciously said his thoughts aloud or was speaking to the person next to him, ¡°If the person being scolded is someone else, listening to her scold them is quite enjoyable.¡±


    If Zhou Mao Cheng was here, he would surely agree. Gu Cheng Yao thought about it and quietly nodded.


    The conversation between the Prince Zhao Consort and Lin Wei Xi could be heard faintly even inside the water pavilion. Astonishment and adoration coloured Liu Su Niang¡¯s face while Gao Ran stood unhappily to the side.


    The daughter-inw of the Residence was her. Prince Yan was being pestered by that vixen, but the person getting chased out wasn¡¯t her, and instead an outsider.


    Gao Ran wrung the handkerchief in her hands. If she could start over, she definitely wouldn¡¯t give in to Lin Wei Xi.


    Things were hectic and Liu Su Niang was no longer in the mood to watch the dragon boat race. The emperor¡¯s eunuch hade to nag at Gu Hui Yan several times and he couldn¡¯t decline further requests, so he left. Gao Ran also took the opportunity to withdraw and returned to continue socializing with the other women as someone of the Prince Yan Residence. As an idle person, Lin Wei Xi had nothing to do and stayed behind to apany Liu Su Niang.


    The two of them sat for a while as Shen Ming Da left to request a leave of absence, before he returned to take Liu Su Niang home. Liu Su Niang reluctantly bid farewell to Lin Wei Xi, and she watched as Shen Ming Da carefully assisted Liu Su Niang, a boundless warmth radiating from both of them. She was the only one left in the water pavilion. She continued to sit, sighing at the silence.


    After a while, it started to rain. Wan Xing looked anxious, ¡°Miss, we don¡¯t have an umbre. What do we do?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at the drizzle outside and said indifferently, ¡°What can we do? Let¡¯s just wait. Prince Yan won¡¯t just leave me here.¡±


    As soon as she said that, the sound of footsteps could be hearding around the corner. The umbre slowly lifted and the face of the person was revealed as the rain pattered on.


    It was Gu Cheng Yao.


    <hr>


    T/n: thank you all for the kind messages andments! I¡¯m sorry if I¡¯m slow at responding, I¡¯ve just been very busy with uni and all that haha. I really appreciate them and it¡¯s helped motivate me to continue tranting this series despite my difficulties with all the ancient Chinese lingo and obscure poetry references.

 Chapter 23

    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes unconsciously grew cold as she watched the person approaching her.


    Who did she think it was?


    ¡°Miss Lin.¡± Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t enter the pavilion but said to Lin Wei Xi through the window, ¡°Father asked me to pick you up.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi turned to look at the curtain of pattering rain. This time, the rain was heavy, and Xiyuan was itself riddled withkes and rivers. The ashen sky seemed to meld into theke, an overcast fog of grey as far as the eye could see.


    ¡°Miss Lin?¡±


    ¡°The rain is so heavy. Even if you have an umbre, I¡¯ll definitely get wet if I follow you out. Why don¡¯t we wait here for a while. May showers don¡¯tst very long.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao automatically frowned when he heard this suggestion. It was inappropriate for a man and woman to be alone together in the same room. Lin Wei Xi gave Gu Cheng Yao a sweeping nce, her tone impolite, ¡°Of course, I¡¯m saying this for myself. My body is weak and I get a headache from the slightest wind. If I get caught in the rain again, I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be going back today. If you don¡¯t want to wait then hurry up and leave. Anyways, Shizi is in good health and doesn¡¯t have to care about a little wind and rain.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao usually avoided finding trouble for himself. It was raining outside, so why wait in the rain if he had the choice not to? In any case, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t leave, so it should be alright for him to wait in the water pavilion a little longer.


    Gu Cheng Yao had his servants keep his rain gear but stood under the eaves by the window, refusing to enter the room with Lin Wei Xi. If she were an ordinary woman, Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s actions at that moment would¡¯ve been very noble. But to Lin Wei Xi¡­ she only felt indifferent and fed up with him.


    In this manner, the two of them fell into a strange silence. Lin Wei Xi, someone who would say anything that came to mind under normal circumstances, was exceptionally quiet. Gu Cheng Yao paused for a moment and suddenly said, ¡°Thank you for today.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi froze before realizing that Gu Cheng Yao was talking to her. Normally, when people spoke to each other, not only would they be sitting across from each other, they¡¯d also at least maintain eye contact. But the two of them did neither of those. He watched the vast curtain of rain that surrounded the pavilion while she merely rolled her eyes and said unhappily, ¡°No need to thank me. I just can¡¯t stand it when people me Prince Yan. It¡¯s not for the Prince Yan Residence and certainly not for you. Why on earth would you thank me?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao smiled softly and finally turned to look at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You seem to want nothing to do with me. Since the first time we met, you¡¯ve deliberately kept your distance and your attitude has been unfriendly. We¡¯replete strangers. I never offended you before, right?¡±


    ¡°Shizi, you¡¯re an extremely privileged person who grew up loved by your family. You¡¯re too used to getting what you want and have never seen what the real world is like. Today I¡¯ll show you just how much of a troublemaker a woman can be. I know nothing about liking someone, but as for hating someone, do I need a reason to?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi thought that he¡¯d get angry, but he didn¡¯t. He merely shook his head and smiled, ¡°you truly have a deeply-rooted prejudice against me.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t get angry, but gently and politely talked to her, a weak woman whose status and position were far inferior to him. She felt very disheartened. He could be so gentlemanly to a woman he didn¡¯t know, but he didn¡¯t even have the patience to finish listening to a single sentence from his first wife.


    Perhaps it was because the mood was too calm, or perhaps it was because the pattering of the rain outside the pavilion felt like an illusion, but Lin Wei Xi suddenly brought up things from her past, back when she was still Gao Xi. She said things that she thought she wouldn¡¯t say for the rest of her life, ¡°Shizi, I¡¯ve been so unreasonable to you, but you still maintain your elegant demeanour and patiently listen to me. Normally, you¡¯d be the model of a noble son who¡¯s had a proper education. But why is it that when ites to the person you¡¯re closest to, you seem to turn into apletely different person?¡±


    ¡°The person I¡¯m closest to?¡± Gu Cheng Yao was puzzled, ¡°I respect my father, always adhere to my duty as a son, and I¡¯ve never acted bossy or arrogant to the servants of the Residence. And regarding Shizi Fei¡­ ¡°


    Gu Cheng Yao paused, his eyes turning cold, and he didn¡¯t conceal the scrutiny in his eyes, ¡°What do you mean? How do you know?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean anything. It¡¯s just random gossip I heard from the servants of the residence.¡± Lin Wei Xi sat on the dark brown sandalwood chair. The water pavilion was dark under the rain, but with her clear skin and fine appearance, she seemed to glow in the dim light. She looked at Gu Cheng Yao, her exquisite features like those of a painting, and she said with a rarely seen single-mindedness, ¡°Shizi should be an elegant gentleman, but you were exceptionally neglectful towards your first wife. I really want to know the reason why.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao looked straight into Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes, but for some unknown reason, he suddenly broke eye contact and couldn¡¯t look at her, ¡°there¡¯s no reason. She deceived me and intentionally destroyed my marriage with my fated partner. Why would I continue with that marriage?¡±


    ¡°I heard that reason when you refused to visit the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence.¡± Lin Wei Xi¡¯s gaze swept across Gu Cheng Yao and settled on the vast expanse of rain behind him, smiling despite herself, ¡°do you remember why Prince Yan scolded you back then? That¡¯s exactly what I want to tell you now. You take everything for granted. When you made that decision, did you talk about it openly with her? Do you actually have all the facts? Sooner orter, you will pay the price for yourcency.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t expect to hear this from her, ¡°You¡­ ¡°


    Without waiting for him to finish speaking, Lin Wei Xi sighed self-deprecatingly, ¡°I wish I could see the day.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao looked at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s side profile as a smile threatened to spread across his face. There was no need to continue what was said just now. Heughed as he said to her, ¡°Then I hope Miss Lin¡¯s wishes true?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi snorted softly. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye and felt disinclined to deign him with an answer. From this incident, Gu Cheng Yao felt that the distance between the both of them had closed somewhat, so he said what he was feeling, ¡°Miss Lin, I didn¡¯t really like you in the beginning. But now I realize that my first impression wasn¡¯t entirely urate. I thought that I didn¡¯t like girls with your kind of personality, but after knowing you for some time, I realized that although you have a simple and frank character, you¡¯re also cute in other aspects.¡± If Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t marked him out like this, she¡¯d be much more adorable.


    Lin Wei Xi got angry when she heard this, ¡°why would I need you to like me? I¡¯m a famous, beautiful, wealthy young woman. If I wanted to, plenty of men would be fighting each other to marry me. I don¡¯t need you to tell me that I¡¯m cute even though I have a simple and frank character! Just go back to your beloved Shizi Fei.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t expect Lin Wei Xi to have such a huge reaction. He chuckled helplessly, ¡°you¡¯re really too hostile to Gao Ran.¡±


    ¡°Oh, do you think she isn¡¯t hostile to me? Shall I help you recall what she¡¯s said about me to you in private?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao clenched his fist and coughed softly when he heard this, ¡°how can an unmarried girl like you say that?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stared nkly at his words. She immediately reacted, unable to contain her rage, ¡°why are you ming me when you¡¯re the one with your head in the gutter?¡±


    ¡­


    The conversation ended with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s chaotic words. The rain stopped, and Gu Cheng Yao looked at Lin Wei Xi helpless before saying, ¡°the rain has stopped, so we won¡¯t get drenched. Can we go now?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi humphed unhappily, rushed out of the pavilion and strode forward. Gu Cheng Yao was left behind, but he could only sigh and hasten his steps to chase after her.


    Gao Ran received an inquiry from Prince Yan asking if she¡¯d seen Gu Cheng Yao. She hadn¡¯t, and when she looked into it, she learned that he¡¯d gone to pick up Lin Wei Xi, and he still hadn¡¯t returned.


    Gao Ran felt her heart drop. When the rain subsided a little, she hurried to the water pavilion.


    Halfway there, she saw Lin Wei Xi and Gu Cheng Yao rounding the corner. Gu Cheng Yao was handsome and tall, while Lin Wei Xi was delicate and beautiful. The two were shrouded by dense mist as they walked, more beautiful than the idol drama from her previous life.


    Gao Ran was keenly aware that something had changed between the two of them. Chemistry between two people was a difficult thing to determine, but Gao Ran¡¯s intuition told her that the two of them had be much closer.


    Gu Cheng Yao saw Gao Ran and smiled as he walked towards her. Lin Wei Xi asked the servants behind her, ¡°are we leaving the pce?¡± After getting a definitive answer, she nodded and without any hesitation, walked out without looking back. Gu Cheng Yao noticed that Gao Ran was looking directly at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s retreating back. He lowered his head, baffled, and asked Gao Ran, ¡°what¡¯s the matter, you seem a little distracted?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Gao Ran forced herself to calm down. She followed the numerous attendants out of the pce and caught sight of Lin Wei Xi when she looked up. Lin Wei Xi was slim, but she had some curves on her figure, with slender waist, shoulders and neck. Anyone could see how outstanding she was from behind. Seeing this, Gao Ran¡¯s thoughts became clearer.


    Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t continue to stay. At the very least, she couldn¡¯t be allowed to continue living in the Prince Yan Residence.


    Gao Ran suddenly remembered that the Qian family had discreetly made an inquiry that day. Empress Dowager Qian had finally be the Empress Dowager after much hardship. The Qian family¡¯s fortunes were about to make a turn for the better and they were now the most honourable inws of the imperial family. A young master of the Qian family had taken a fancy to Lin Wei Xi. From every perspective, it was Lin Wei Xi¡¯s good fortune. Even if the second son of the Qian family was a little licentious, it was better than ying around with prostitutes.


    There was no reason to refuse. Even if Lin Wei Xi moved in with Princess Royal Shou Kang, Shou Kang was an old woman with half her foot in the grave. Would she dare to confront the Empress Dowager¡¯s family?


    Gao Ran told herself that she was doing this for Lin Wei Xi¡¯s sake. She¡¯d be marrying the Empress Dowager¡¯s nephew as the main wife no less. As an orphan with nothing to her name, this was such a good marriage!

 Chapter 24

    It was raining heavily during the Dragon Boat Festival. Ever since the rain started during the Pce Banquet, the capital was enveloped in a dense and overcast downpour for several days.


    ¡°Miss Lin.¡± The person dashed through the courtyard and stashed away the rain gear that she was wearing along the shaded corridor. She flicked the water off her body and smiled at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Miss Lin, Shizi Fei is looking for you.¡±


    Wan Xing looked at the rain outside, and stared at the messenger with distrust, ¡°It¡¯s still raining, why would Shizi Fei ask for our Miss right now?¡±


    ¡°This ve also doesn¡¯t know. It¡¯s possible that she has something important to say to Miss Lin.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stood up from the reclining chair when she heard this and said, ¡°Since it¡¯s important, then let¡¯s go.¡±


    Wan Xing hurried to retrieve Lin Wei Xi¡¯s cloak from the inner house. She ttened out the creases on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s clothes, as she mumbled to herself, ¡°Miss caught a bit of a cold after she returned from the pce and she has to go out into the cold wind today. Don¡¯t cause Miss to fall ill.¡±


    ¡°Wan Xing.¡±


    Wan Yue secretly pinched Wan Xing and quickly pulled her away. Lin Wei Xi nced indifferently, tightened her cloak, and walked out.


    The rainwater rolling off the eaves looked like silver strings from afar. Lin Wei Xi walked through the sheltered corridor. Even though the eaves sheltered her from the rain, the edge of her clothes waspletely drenched.


    In the central room, Gao Ran was talking to a well-dressed old female servant. When she saw Lin Wei Xi enter the room, she waved at an area further behind her, ¡°Miss Lin, you¡¯re here. You can head inside and take a seat first. There are still some things that I haven¡¯t finished dealing with. Miss Lin, please wait a moment.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nced at that woman sitting in the hall and walked in without saying a word.


    When the female servant saw Lin Wei Xi walk in like that without so much as a word, she flicked her gaze at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s back, lowered her voice, and said to Gao Ran with a frown, ¡°Shizi Fei, what¡¯s wrong with this one. The Prince gave her some face because he owes a favour and she takes advantage of this! She¡¯s managed to trick the Prince because she speaks well in front of him, but behind his back, she dares to disrespect Shizi Fei.¡±


    ¡°Granny Sun, let¡¯s stop saying that.¡± Gao Ran¡¯s voice became more serious as she said, ¡°She¡¯s the only daughter of a hero and her father died to save the Prince. It¡¯s inevitable that she¡¯ll be a little antisocial. It¡¯s fine for you to say this to me, but you absolutely mustn¡¯t repeat this outside.¡±


    ¡°Shizi Fei, you¡¯re really too benevolent.¡± Granny Sun wrung her wrists and whispered something under her breath again. Only then did she rub her hands and bring up another matter, ¡°Shizi Fei, what should we do about purchasing the kitchen supplies¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi sat on a soft cushion. Separated by the wooden partition, she could faintly make out what Gao Ran and Granny Sun had been whispering about, and the matter of purchasing kitchen supplies after that. Even if she hadn¡¯t clearly heard what was said in the beginning, Lin Wei Xi could guess that it was definitely nothing good. Granny Sun wanted to show off her wits and tter Gao Ran for personal gain. This was nothing she hadn¡¯t seen before.


    Now that she was talking about business, Gao Ran no longer lowered her voice. Lin Wei Xi sat there listening on and off, and got the general idea. Granny Sunined about how difficult life was, how exhausting it was to work in the kitchen, finally bringing Princess Consort Shen into it. When Granny Sun opened her mouth, she could speak extremely well. Based on her words, it seemed like she was a wholly devoted servant, cautiously conscientious and enduring hardships for the sake of the residence. But because she¡¯d unfortunately offended the previous Shizi Fei, and because the previous Shizi Fei was also eager to nt her own people in the residence, she¡¯d removed Granny Sun and her family from their position of purchasing kitchen supplies. Although Granny Sun still worked in the kitchen, it wasn¡¯t an important job. She couldn¡¯t even tend to the stove. It was nothing more than a facade.


    After Granny Sun finished speaking, she burst into tears and cried. The maids also felt distressed listening to what she¡¯d said. Gao Ran sighed and said, ¡°I understand your devotion. You¡¯ve been old for many years, and you¡¯ve been a servant in the Prince Yan Residence since Mother-inw was alive. There¡¯s naturally no need to doubt your loyalty. Even if you don¡¯t mention your hard work over the years, I won¡¯t treat you and your family badly because Mother-inw favoured you.¡±


    Granny Sun pped her hands with tears in her eyes when she heard this, ¡°being able to hear this from Shizi Fei, this old ve is willing to die immediately!¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t say that without rhyme or reason. Why would you provoke inauspiciousness for no reason at all by talking about living and dying.¡± Gao Ran rebuked. She flipped through the register and said, ¡°Since it was just a misunderstanding, then you really were wronged by Sister Xi when she pushed you to the brink. In my opinion, your family shoulde back to manage the purchasing of the kitchen supplies. You¡¯re familiar with the vendors at the wet market and I can be at ease giving you the responsibility of the purchasing.¡±


    Granny Sun was overjoyed at the unexpected news and immediately knelt down to kowtow, ¡°Thank you Shizi Fei.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi slowly blew the tea in her hands. When she heard this, she shook her head and smiled. Granny Sun truly was glib. Gu Cheng Yao had also been tricked by such sweet talk before.


    Granny Sun had indeed been an old servant for many years, but who was to say that old servants were all loyal? The moreplicated and intertwined the servants became with each other, to the point where some started their own families, the more likely they were to do unsavoury things. When Lin Wei Xi checked the ountsst year, she found that the kitchen was in serious debt. All the money had actually gone to this wicked ve. This old woman relied on the fact that Lin Wei Xi was newly married and didn¡¯t understand the ount books, so she tampered with the ledger to fool her, and was thoroughly scolded when Lin Wei Xi uncovered her trickery. At that time, Granny Sun also pretended to be devoted and climbed the ranks using Princess Consort Shen, because he¡¯d served the Consort before. This was what gave her the confidence to run rampant and indulge in unbridled corruption in the inner courtyard. Back then, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t stand to watch it any longer and immediately threw their entire family out of the kitchen. If she hadn¡¯t considered her mother-inw¡¯s face, how could Granny Sun still keep an idle job in the kitchen.


    Some time passed since then, and Gao Xi died of illness. Granny Sun looked at the vacant position and started trouble by telling her tragic story. Gao Ran also wasn¡¯t clear-headed and she actually believed it, restoring Granny Sun to her original position.


    Gao Ran actually didn¡¯t really have to believe in Granny Sun¡¯s excuses, but Granny Sun looked humble and sincere. Even if a person with such an appearance had her own selfish motives, she wouldn¡¯t be a particrly wicked person. Granny Sun had only been punished by Gao Xi previously because of a discrepancy between the purchased items and the money, and Gao Ran felt that Gao Xi had been making a fuss over nothing once she flipped through the ledger.


    Managing a household was like being an executive manager in her previous life. One couldn¡¯t expect everyone to have a clean record, and could the people in the purchasing department really not have an ounce of greed? That was impossible. So when Gao Ran saw that there weren¡¯t any major problems with the ledger, she revoked Gao Xi¡¯s punishment. Gao Ran sighed over Gao Xi. One could tell that she was a nobledy from a prestigious family who was known to be raised by the Princess Royal herself, but how could she not even have an ounce of emotional intelligence? She only knew how to criticize her subordinates and demanded that they not make any mistakes. No wonder she ended up like that, dying with everyone in the residence thinking she was bad. Who was to me if she didn¡¯t have the emotional intelligence?


    Gao Ran was in a good mood, as if all the regrets from her previous life had been resolved in this one. She was now a rich and beautiful nobledy from a prestigious family who could step on anyone she wanted. As soon as she ¡°graduated¡± from her maiden family, she became an ¡°executive manager¡±. Gao Ran had no doubt in her emotional intelligence and could definitely get along well with everyone. So it seemed that she¡¯d been held back by her social status before transmigrating, otherwise she wouldn¡¯t have been worse off from those rich daughters ofrge family conglomerates.


    Gao Ran walked briskly into the room. She still hadn¡¯t forgotten that she had trouble sitting in there. She smiled and sat opposite Lin Wei Xi, and repeatedly apologized, ¡°there are endless trifles that need to be dealt with every day and I worry that I won¡¯t be able to finish it. It¡¯s rude of me to keep Miss Lin waiting.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi ignored Gao Ran¡¯s insincere apology; she clearly knew that Gao Xi was already dead and the Prince Yan Residence had nothing to do with her anymore, but her hard work was being ruined. She felt it was a pity and couldn¡¯t help but warn her sessor, ¡°Shizi Fei handed over the position of purchasing the kitchen supplies to them only based on their side of the story. Isn¡¯t that rather imprudent.¡±


    Oh! She actually wanted to criticize her authority and the way she managed the household. Gao Ran looked at Lin Wei Xi with an unsmiling smile, ¡°This is a domestic affair of the Prince Yan Residence, so Miss Lin doesn¡¯t have to worry herself about it, right?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi scoffed lightly and her eyes wandered, toozy to look at Gao Ran and warn her again.


    Gao Ran thought that she¡¯d won and her mood improved. Her voice also rose, ¡°Miss Lin, you¡¯re already sixteen years old this year. You were born early in the year, so you can be considered seventeen then<sup>¡ó</sup>.¡±


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi raised his eyebrows, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°What can I do other than help Miss Lin with this matter?¡± Gao Ran smiled and said, ¡°Now that you have finished observing filial piety to your father, you can no longer justify dying your marriage. You haven¡¯t gotten engaged even though you¡¯re already seventeen and you¡¯ll be eighteen by the time you finish the traditional marriage rituals and enter your husband¡¯s household. To tell the truth, you¡¯re already a little old. If you don¡¯t hurry up, you¡¯ll be too old to bear a child.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi would never expect these words toe from Gao Ran. If she guessed correctly, wasn¡¯t the world that Gao Ran came from before transmigration very tolerant of a woman¡¯s age when she married? Lin Wei Xi really didn¡¯t anticipate that a person who had transmigrated to ancient times would actually be more obsessed than her, an ancient Chinese woman, with marriage and having children. So what if she hadn¡¯t been engaged at seventeen? What could Gao Ran do about it if she decided not to marry her entire life?


    Lin Wei Xi was disgusted by these words. She grew impatient and she coldly said, ¡°You called me over on a rainy day just for this? If there¡¯s nothing else to say then I¡¯ll leave first.¡±


    Gao Ran blocked Lin Wei Xi, still smiling, and stared at Lin Wei Xi motionlessly, ¡°Does Miss Lin really not want to marry in order to pray for your father, or do you harbour thoughts about the Prince Yan Residence?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expressionpletely iced over, with no smile on her face. Her ck eyes glowed, and for a moment they looked like heated pearls steeped in ice water, icy and zing, ¡°Shizi Fei, pay attention to what you say.¡±


    ¡°Is Miss Lin actually angry?¡± Gao Ran smiled as she took a sip of tea and covered her lips, ¡°my mistake, I shouldn¡¯t have revealed a girl¡¯s thoughts. After all, what girl doesn¡¯t yearn for love. Miss Lin¡¯s countenance is just right and it makes sense to fall in love at first sight with a young and handsome man. It¡¯s just that Shizi is already married, Miss Lin.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi sneered, and looked at Gao Ran with the same unsmiling smile, ¡°I know, and it¡¯s his second marriage.¡±


    Gao Ran stiffened at her words before she quickly adjusted her expression to conceal her loss of self-control, ¡°even if I¡¯m his second wife, I officially married him as his consort and am also the main wife. But to have a shady rtionship with a married man while the legal wife is well and alive, is to have illicit sexual rtions without a matchmaker, a third wheel trying topete.¡±


    ¡°You talk like you only met Gu Cheng Yao after your older sister died, so you can say that to yourself.¡± Lin Wei Xi noticed Gao Ran¡¯s gaze and met it head on, even lightly raising her eyebrows, ¡°What, am I wrong? Then why were you already married to your older sister¡¯s husband not one month after her death?¡±


    Gao Ran had been criticized until she couldn¡¯t take it any longer. She took a deep breath and found that she really couldn¡¯t show off her argumentative skills when dealing with Lin Wei Xi, otherwise Lin Wei Xi would anger her to death! Gao Ran immediately changed the subject and said, ¡°then let¡¯s do what Miss Lin wants. You¡¯re witty, and honest people like us can¡¯t speak like you. But Miss Lin is already so old and has long since reached a marriageable age. Miss Lin can¡¯t deny this, right? You¡¯re a Lin and we are the Gu family. ording to reason, it¡¯s not our ce to worry about your marriage. But after all is said and done, you live in the Prince Yan Residence and originally didn¡¯t have any status. If you¡¯re still not married after ending your filial piety, I¡¯m afraid people will talk about our Prince Yan Residence.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi coldly looked at Gao Ran, ¡°shut up. Who gave you the guts to nder my reputation?¡±


    ¡°nder? If Miss Lin really doesn¡¯t have any intentions towards Shizi, how could you drag your feet and refuse marriage talks?¡± Gao Ran¡¯s expression also turned cold, ¡°you wish to eye someone else¡¯s husband, but I don¡¯t wish to be schemed against by you. I¡¯ve already discussed this with Madam Qian. The second Qian young master is of the right age and has yet to marry. Normally, this kind of marriage is too good to be given to someone like you, but the second Qian young master took a fancy to Miss Lin¡¯s beauty. What a wonderful story of an ideal couple. In any case, Madam Qian isn¡¯t picky about your family background and status. After reporting this to the Empress Dowager, the Qian family will send someone to exchange the eight-character cards.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes widened when she heard this, ¡°What did you say? The second Qian son?¡±


    The second Qian son was famous for being a hedonist in the capital. He slept around with prostitutes, didn¡¯t study, and had no skills. He could only be described as a useless waste of space. What Lin Wei Xi held in contempt the most was this kind of licentious man-child who relied on his parents for money and power. Be it before or after her rebirth, she couldn¡¯t stand this kind of person, but Gao Ran had actually gone behind her back and agreed to the Qian family¡¯s marriage proposal?


    ¡°Yes, he¡¯s the Empress Dowager¡¯s nephew and the di son of the Qian family, the emperor¡¯s maternal family. This marriage is actually really unexpected. In the end, you¡¯re the one who¡¯s climbing the socialdder. The fact that the second Qian young master doesn¡¯t care about family status, and wants to marry a poor girl like you, is already a great blessing.¡± After she finished speaking, she nced at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face. It went without saying what she meant. Lin Wei Xi had relied on her body and beauty to climb the ranks, and it was the main wife of the Empress Dowager¡¯s nephew at that. She should just be content with her situation!


    Lin Wei Xi got so angry that she actually calmed down. She asked, ¡°You said that the Qian family will exchange the eight-character cards after informing the Empress Dowager. Does this mean you¡¯ve already given them your word?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! It¡¯s such a good marriage. If you let this opportunity slip away because you¡¯re being pretentious, then you will definitely regret it.¡±


    ¡°My goodness, you racked your brains in order to marry up into a noble family, but others look down on that. When did you agree? What did you say to the Qian family?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s the Qian family¡¯s young master, so just be content.¡± Gao Ran sighed impatiently, ¡°If you¡¯re thinking of going to the Princess Shou Kang Residence to ask for help, then I advise you not to waste your effort. Princess Royal Shou Kang doesn¡¯t have any sons or descendants and she can¡¯t even protect herself, so there¡¯s no way she¡¯d ignore the face of Empress Dowager¡¯s maiden family. Listen to my advice. It¡¯s already your good fortune that you can climb up the socialdder just from marrying into the Qian family, and as a main wife at that.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes burned bright with fire and ice, ¡°Gao Ran, you really have no shame. Who do you think you are to decide my marriage? You relied on dishonest practices to marry your brother-inw, and now you¡¯re using your say as the main wife to advise others to climb the socialdder using a man. You¡¯ve truly disgraced the Duke Ying Residence.¡±


    This sentence poked at Gao Ran¡¯s sore spot and she immediately looked displeased, ¡°Don¡¯t take advantage of my weakness. I gave you some face out of consideration for Father, but did you really think I¡¯m afraid of you? I am ady of the Duke Ying Residence and the Prince Yan Shizi Fei, but you¡¯re nothing more than amoner. I¡¯m educating you as someone of the same generation, but you¡¯re seriously shouting and quarrelling with me. You really don¡¯t have any decorum.¡±


    ¡°You clearly know what kind of person the second Qian son is, and you still agreed to it in private. If you do something so heartless, are you not afraid that people will criticize you once they find out?¡±


    Gao Ran sneered disdainfully, ¡°Are you going toin to Prince Yan again? Then go ahead and let everyone see whether or not this marriage is a good match and whether or not I¡¯m doing this for you. Lin Wei Xi, you have such lofty ambitions but you¡¯ll fail and die young. If you wish topete with me, there¡¯s no point in doing that. I¡¯m the Prince Yan Shizi Fei and will be the Prince Yan Consort someday. My eldest son will be a future first-rank Prince and my other di sons will receive the title of second-rank Prince. My children and grandchildren will be imperial nobles and receive the worship of the masses. The Grand Secretary can be reced, but royalty cannot. As long as they don¡¯t rebel, they¡¯ll be nobles for their entire life. But what do you have? An empty Marquis title and a pretty face. Even if you use your beauty to marry up, your husband is nothing more than the son of an official, and his promotion will depend on his circumstances and the emperor¡¯s favour. Everything one does is for the purpose of serving the Emperor. I am part of the imperial family but you¡¯re just a servant. Not just you, but your children and grandchildren are doomed to failure and will neverpare to my descendants.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stood motionlessly as she red at Gao Ran, her eyes zing, while Gao Ran actually looked at her with a smile. That¡¯s right, what could Lin Wei Xi do even if she was angry? Gao Ran was the Prince Yan Shizi Fei and there were few people in the capital more noble than her. What could a single weak woman like Lin Wei Xi do?


    She fixed her gaze on Gao Ran and without a word, stood up, raised the curtain forcefully and left. The beaded curtain tinkled as the beads collided with each other and Ning Fu frowned when she saw this, stepping forward to say, ¡°Shizi Fei¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s all right.¡± Gao Ran reached out to stop Ning Fu, smiled, and shook her head, ¡°she can use this as an opportunity to vent her anger. Don¡¯t let her rudeness bother you, and return to your job.¡±


    Ning Fuplied and left quietly. Gao Ran looked at the curtain of rain outside the window and mumbled, ¡°the rain has gotten heavier¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi walked briskly into the rain without looking back. The rain dispersed into white mist when it hit the ground, enveloping the entire corridor. Lin Wei Xi walked at the edge of the corridor, her steps so hurried that half her clothes were soaked a short momentter. Wan Yue hastily chased after her, trying to drape a cloak over Lin Wei Xi¡¯s shoulders, ¡°Miss, your body is weak and you can¡¯t get caught in the rain.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt agitated and she said frigidly, ¡°Don¡¯t follow me. Leave me alone for a while.¡±


    ¡°Miss!¡± Wan Yue wasn¡¯t deterred by Lin Wei Xi¡¯s coldness. She disregarded the rain and rushed to Lin Wei Xi, forcibly stopping her to fasten the cloak on her, ¡°Miss, even if you¡¯re unhappy, you can¡¯t make things difficult for your body! You had a bit of a cold when you left. If you get caught in the rain and stay out in the cold wind again, who knows how much you¡¯ll suffer when you return.¡±


    Wan Yue forcibly pulled her back. Lin Wei Xi tried to shake her off but to no avail. She struggled a few times, and her mind gradually calmed down as she did so.


    Punishing her own body because of someone else¡¯s mistake was the stupidest way of handling the situation. Lin Wei Xi stopped struggling and let Wan Yue wrap her up in the cloak.


    Seeing Lin Wei Xi finally calm down, Wan Yue let out a breath of relief. After tidying Lin Wei Xi¡¯s cor, she stepped down and stood quietly behind Lin Wei Xi, listening to the pattering rain outside the corridor together with her.


    Gao Ran wasn¡¯t wrong. She was indeed despicable, but what could Lin Wei Xi do about her? Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t worried at all about the marriage with the Qian family. It was difficult to go through with a marriage, but it was too simple to destroy it. As long as she refused to marry or decided to be a nun, could the Qian family force her to marry into the household? But if she did this, Lin Wei Xi would live half her life in loneliness and poverty while observing Buddhism.


    What Lin Wei Xi really cared about was what Gao Ran said next: that the Duke and Marquis households could be beheaded, but Imperial Princes would remain throughout the ages. A first-rank Prince¡¯s eldest di son would automatically be the Shizi and inherit the title someday. All the other di sons would be conferred as second-rank Princes while the di grandson would be conferred as a General. The Princes could only progress and not regress. As long as the Prince had a son, the titles of first-rank and second-rank Prince would be passed from generation to generation. So Gao Ran wasn¡¯t wrong. Prince Yan had reached the pinnacle of power. Even the emperor had to rely on Prince Yan, and the Prince Yan Residence would only receive glory for generations with no end to their descendants.


    Gao Ran could only do this because others were unable to do anything to her. Even if Lin Wei Xi resolved the problem temporarily, did she have to tolerate the situation and allow Gao Ran to maliciously scheme against her?


    Yet, if she couldn¡¯t stand it, what could she do to Gao Ran!


    Lin Wei Xi stood for a long time in the corridor until the edges of her skirt were drenched with rain. Wan Yue watched anxiously, ¡°Miss, since it¡¯s pouring and windy, let¡¯s head back first!¡±


    ¡°What for?¡± Lin Wei Xi suddenly moved. She smiled softly at the rain; her face was snow white, her lips vivid red, but her eyes were apathetic and terrifying. It shook one to their core to see her stand amidst the grey downpour.


    Wan Yue was rmed and astonished, her heart beating fast. She heard Lin Wei Xi ask with the kind of calm that one would have if nothing had happened, ¡°What time is it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s almost 5pm.¡±


    She smiled when she heard this, turned around, and left without even saying where she was headed. Wan Yue instinctively felt a little scared, but worried when Lin Wei Xi was by herself, so she could only hurry after her.


    The guard outside the study stared forward with rapt attention and didn¡¯t ck off just because it was raining. His eyes suddenly focused and he looked at the person in surprise, ¡°Miss Lin?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had run the whole way, and her skirts were nowpletely drenched. Even her hair hadn¡¯t been spared from a light sprinkle of rain. Several locks of unruly hair stuck to her forehead and temple, making her skin look even more snow white¡¯s. She was astonishingly beautiful.


    ¡°Is Prince Yan inside?¡±


    ¡°The Prince is in.¡± The guard looked at Lin Wei Xi in hesitation. Lin Wei Xi raised his eyebrows, ¡°am I not allowed to enter?¡±


    ¡°Of course not! It¡¯s just that you¡¯ve been drenched by the rain, Miss Lin. Do you need a servant to help you tidy up first?¡±


    ¡°No need.¡± seeing as the guard had noints, she strode inside. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s study was located inside a separate courtyard. Because of the rain, it was much more peaceful.


    Gu Ming Da was startled when he saw Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Miss Lin? How did you end up so drenched? Miss, please wait a minute. I¡¯ll call a servant girl over¡­ ¡°


    A clear and melodious voice could be heard from the inner room. Perhaps it was because he hadn¡¯t spoken for a while, but his voice was a little deep, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know why, but her eyes grew sore and she quickly walked in the direction of the voice, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan emerged from the study and saw Lin Wei Xi. At first, he was astonished, but he then lowered his gaze, ¡°What happened? Who¡¯s supposed to be serving you and why did she let you get caught in the rain?¡±


    Wan Yue kept her head down and immediately went down on her knees when she heard this. Lin Wei Xi stopped Wan Yue, her dark eyes focused on Prince Yan intently and stubbornly, ¡°It¡¯s not her fault. Prince Yan, I have something to tell you.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked at Lin Wei Xi, her eyes telling him that she wouldn¡¯t leave until she had achieved her goal. Gu Hui Yan sighed and said, ¡°everyone leave.¡±


    Gu Ming Da stepped down and closed the door without a word. Lin Wei Xi stood there and saw Gu Hui Yan turn around and head inside. She hesitated. Prince Yan¡¯s study was filled with ssified documents and she wasn¡¯t sure if she could enter. Before she could think about it further, Gu Hui Yan came back out with a piece of white silk in his hand, ¡°The hot water is outside, so wipe your hair first. You know your body best. What you want to tell me can wait untilter, but if you fall sick because of overexertion, you¡¯re the one who will suffer.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi took the white silk and tried to recall what it was called when a beautiful young girl at the prime of her youth dried her hair indecently in front of a man. Seeing that she hadn¡¯t moved, Gu Hui Yan asked calmly, ¡°do you not want to?¡±


    ¡°Silk can¡¯t absorb water. Even if you want me to dry my hair, you should¡¯ve given me a cotton cloth instead.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan felt truly helpless, ¡°alright. I¡¯ll have one ready for you next time.¡±


    But thanks to this interruption, Lin Wei Xi was no longer agitated. After thinking about it carefully, her mind became clearer, ¡°Prince Yan, I have something to tell you.¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t forgotten.¡± Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t take this matter to heart. He returned to his desk, held up his sleeve, and held the brush before dipping the brush in ink, casually saying, ¡°tell me.¡±


    ¡°You promised me before that if I had anything I wanted, you¡¯d do as I asked as long as it didn¡¯t cross the line?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan answered as he wrote, ¡°en.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi held her breath, ¡°Your Highness, don¡¯t you need a wife?¡±


    The brush in his hand trembled and the letter he¡¯d been writing to Zhang Xiao Lian was instantly ruined.


    Gu Hui Yan raised his head and looked at her with meaning in his eyes, ¡°what did you say?¡±

 Chapter 25

    Lin Wei Xi regretted speaking as soon as the words left her mouth, but what¡¯s done was done. What could she do? She could only brace herself and force herself to calm down, ¡°Princess Consort Shen, Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s mother, passed away ten years ago during the seventh year of Jianzhao. You¡¯re different from Gu Cheng Yao and kept to the three year mourning period for your wife. Even though no one would dare force it on you because of your status, you still did it. It¡¯s been ten years since Princess Consort Shen passed away and Shizi has also settled down. Although he has yet to have children, there will surely be one in the next few years.¡±


    ¡°What are you trying to say?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi blushed but her voice remained firm, ¡°The Princess Consort has been dead for many years and Shizi has grown up. You don¡¯t need to worry about having a sessor or your new bride mistreating the children of your previous wife. Since there¡¯s no need to worry about family disputes, you should bring in a new Princess Consort.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan put down his brush, no longer caring about the Grand Secretary¡¯s ruined letter. Instead, he looked at Lin Wei Xi, his eyes calm and unruffled, ¡°continue.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi almost lowered her head unconsciously. How terrifying. This was scarier than the old-fashioned teacher who taught her how to read during her childhood. But there was no turning back. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t just tell Prince Yan ¡®sorry, you heard wrong. I was just being delusional¡¯.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face was as red as an apple. Mustering all the courage she had, she said timidly, ¡°why don¡¯t you consider me?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan had the same indifferent expression on his face as before. But he knew that wasn¡¯t the case.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s fingers rested on the table. His reply to Grand Secretary Zhang, which had just been ruined by a drop of ink, sat under his fingertips. But under this letter hid an exquisite letter from the pce.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang had written the letter, and in it, she wrote that she and Lin Wei Xi were extremely close. She felt that the Princess Residence was vacant and empty since she was an old woman living by herself. Lin Wei Xi happened to mention this, so Princess Royal Shou Kang wanted to let her live in the Princess Residence.


    This suggestion actually satisfied both sides. Even if no one dared to gossip about the Prince Yan Residence, at the end of the day, Lin Wei Xi was an unmarried girl. She wasn¡¯t rted to anyone in the Prince Yan Residence, and the Residence had no female elder. Her reputation would be damaged if she continued to stay there.


    It was a reasonable proposal, but Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t write a single word even after staring at it for a long time. Rainy days tended to make people jittery, and Gu Hui Yan felt offended for no apparent reason. When he noticed this, he was shocked. Why was this so? Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression remained the same as usual, but his heart was a raging torrent of chaos. Instead of dealing with Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s letter, he took out a new piece of paper,id it out, and wrote a letter to Zhang Xiao Lian. As Gu Hui Yan wrote the letter, his thoughts constantly drifted unconsciously towards the other matter. It was at this moment that Lin Wei Xi opened the door and entered.


    For a moment, Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t tell if this was a coincidence or the inevitable result of abination of several coincidences.


    Those were the thoughts that shed through his head. In reality, Lin Wei Xi had just finished rmending herself and was too distressed to lift her head.


    Gu Hui Yan looked at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hair whorl. She looked especially lovable with her head lowered like that, and her neck looked like a swan¡¯s, like it would break with a touch. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t know how long he¡¯d been staring, perhaps it had been ten minutes or a second, but he quickly snapped out of it and looked away, ¡°You have a fever so go back and properly recuperate. I¡¯ll pretend I didn¡¯t hear anything. You can still live at ease in the Prince Yan Residence moving forward. Tell Gu Ming Da if you need anything.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t!¡± Lin Wei Xi had been extremely ashamed, but was surprisingly indignant when she heard what he said, ¡°Prince Yan, what do you mean? Even after what I said, you¡¯ll only take it as me having a fever and nonchntly send me back to rest. You¡¯ll definitely treat me the same way again. What do I really mean to you? Am I just an object without thoughts and feelings, or am I an amusing pet that¡¯s at your beck and call?¡±


    The emotions in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes shifted slightly, finally revealing some of his true feelings, ¡°Do you know what you¡¯re saying?¡±


    ¡°I know!¡± Lin Wei Xi thought that since things had turned out like this, she might as well not hold back, and yelled, ¡°I admire Prince Yan¡¯s handsome and mighty bearing, and want to marry you as your second wife. My father entrusted you to look after me, and you¡¯ve wanted to find me a good marriage from the beginning so that I have a husband to depend on in the future. But what if I make an error in my judgement of the person? What if he only covets your power and my dowry? You can support me once, but can you protect me my entire life? If that¡¯s the case, wouldn¡¯t letting me stay in the residence be the best way of looking after me¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi trailed off under Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze. Alright, she also knew that this was a preposterous and inappropriate suggestion. However, even if it didn¡¯t sound good, it was reasonable. Lin Wei Xi had been in conflict with herself since she first started her journey to the capital. On one hand, she felt that her previous life was already over; she ought not to waste her new life and should instead start that new life. On the other hand, she looked at the people from her previous life, the events from her previous life, and couldn¡¯t resign herself to it. She was already dead. Not only were these people alive and well, but they also looked like they¡¯d have a better future. This was truly a hard pill for her to swallow.


    As she thought about it, tears filled her eyes. Gu Hui Yan got a headache when he saw this and sighed. He had yet to say a word about her rebellious behaviour, but the instigator of this whole thing looked like she was going to cry because she felt wronged. He could only say, ¡°it¡¯s easy to catch a cold after getting caught in the rain. Go back first and rest properly.¡±


    This excuse again. Why were these people in high positions always so on the fence about things? Why couldn¡¯t he give a solid yes or no answer?


    Lin Wei Xi slightly opened her red lips to say something, but Gu Hui Yan turned his gaze to her immediately. The courage that Lin Wei Xi had mustered with difficulty crumbled instantly. She lowered her head and silently gave Gu Hui Yan a Wanfu salute before despondently walking away.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s withdrawal carried an element of anger, but at that moment, no one cared about it. She stepped out to find Gu Cheng Yao standing under the eaves and keeping his umbre. Gu Ming Da diligently guarded the door. Seeing her unhappy expression, Gu Cheng Yao asked, ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t wish to say anything so she coldly brushed past Gu Cheng Yao. Gu Ming Da had heard what seemed to be an argument. A close subordinate like him knew how to behave appropriately and wouldn¡¯t pry into his master¡¯s conversation. However, as Prince Yan¡¯s closest subordinate, Gu Ming Da felt amazed. Someone actually dared to argue with Prince Yan? Or more urately, someone was actually capable of arguing with Prince Yan?


    So seeing Lin Wei Xie out with a sour expression came to no surprise for Gu Ming Da. On the contrary, Gu Cheng Yao frowned silently after seeing her walk into the rain without looking back, ¡°why does she look so drenched from the rain?¡±


    After returning to Jingdan Garden, Lin Wei Xi got a headache as soon as she stepped through the door and burned through a fever all night. Her illness this time was fierce. She¡¯d already caught a cold after returning from the pce and today she¡¯d spent so much time in the rain, so she had a fever as soon as she returned. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s illness rmed many people and an imperial physician was brought into the residence that very night, half the lights in the residence lit through the night. It wasn¡¯t until noon the next day that her fever subsided a little after great difficulty. She opened her eyes in a daze and saw an imperial dragon robe outside her bed curtain. The clothes were awe-inspiring and ck as the night, with coiling dragons embroidered in golden thread. Amidst the refined and warm boudoir, it looked more majestic and dignified.


    There was only one person who could wear such clothes in the residence.


    Upon hearing movement from the bed<sup>¡ó</sup>, the conversation outside stopped. After a moment, the bed curtains were lifted one by one. Gu Hui Yan stood on the other side of the partition and looked at Lin Wei Xi helplessly before sighing, ¡°do you feel better?¡±


    ¡ó


    Her body ached from head to toe, and she felt as if this round of fever had melted her bones. Lin Wei Xi pursed her lips, and said with some effort, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±


    The hoarseness of her voice startled Lin Wei Xi. Gu Hui Yan sighed in disbelief that she was truly ¡°fine¡±. Gu Hui Yan indicated for Wan Xing and Wan Yue to let the bed curtain down, ¡°she doesn¡¯t appear to have a cold anymore. Let her recuperate properly.¡±


    Wan Yue obeyed and carefully released the innermost red gauze curtain. Gu Hui Yan stood outside as he dealt with a mountain of work that couldn¡¯t be dyed any longer. He turned to move, but before he could take two steps, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s voice sounded from behind him, her voice hoarse and tired, ¡°Your Highness, the issue I brought up yesterday wasn¡¯t just some random nonsense.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan stopped and turned around halfway to see Lin Wei Xi half propped up on the bed behind the thin bed curtain. Even if he couldn¡¯t see her expression, he could imagine how her eyes burned with fire. Even though she was ufortably ill, she stubbornly wanted an answer.


    Wan Yue was keeping the bed curtain when she saw Miss Lin suddenly prop up her body to talk to Prince Yan despite her illness, with Prince Yan silently halting in his footsteps. She didn¡¯t know what they had talked about the previous day. Although she had apanied Lin Wei Xi to the study, she didn¡¯t know the specifics.


    Wan Yue held an exquisite curtain in her hand, not knowing what to do for a moment. She could only stand by the bed and wait quietly without disturbing Miss Lin and Prince Yan¡¯s conversation.


    Gu Hui Yan gave in and said, ¡°If you¡¯re worried about the issue with the second Qian son, you can rest assured. I¡¯ve already handled it.¡±


    He¡¯d already handled the issue from yesterday afternoon. Lin Wei Xi felt emotional for a moment, pressure rising at the back of her throat, and she couldn¡¯t help coughing. After finally containing it, she said hoarsely, ¡°It¡¯s not because of him.¡±


    She knew she looked silly and impulsive, but she wanted him to understand.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes darkened, and the temperature in the room slowly dropped, ¡°do you know what you¡¯re saying?¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Lin Wei Xi said after much effort, and did her best to look him in the eyes.


    Gu Hui Yan was separated by a gauze bed curtain, but in that moment, he was certain that she didn¡¯t know. She was only acting rashly because she felt wronged.


    And it was obvious who she¡¯d been wronged by.


    Gu Hui Yan paused for a moment and proceeded to walk out soon after, ¡°you can rest assured and recuperate.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan had just walked out of the building when sure enough, the sounds of a tantrum started up. Gu Hui Yan thought to himself that even with so little strength, she still managed to learn how to vent her anger by throwing things.


    Gu Ming Da, who¡¯d been waiting in the courtyard, immediately stepped behind Gu Hui Yan and bowed his head slightly when he saw him walk out, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan brought people through the richly and extravagantly decorated winding corridors of the residence. When all the servants in the garden saw him, they scrambled out of the way and lowered their heads, waiting for him to walk past, not daring to look up. As Gu Hui Yan passed through a courtyard, he suddenly stopped. On the other side of the carved railing, the wisteria tree draping from the eaves gently swayed.


    Gu Ming Da saw Gu Hui Yan stop and he looked to the front before stepping forward and whispering, ¡°my Prince, maybe it¡¯s the wind.¡±


    The gardener in charge of the courtyard almost fell to his knees in fright. Was the Prince not satisfied with the wisteria tree? Did he dislike how dense it was?


    Fortunately, Gu Hui Yan had only stopped to take a look, and he wordlessly continued on his way. He was silent the whole way, solemness permeated wherever he went.


    Perhaps it wasn¡¯t the wind.


    After returning to the study, Gu Hui Yan peacefully dealt with the important official duties that had umted since the day before. After giving a few simple instructions to his aides, he had Gu Ming Da prepare his horse to visit the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence.


    The entire Princess Residence was rmed by Prince Yan¡¯s sudden visit. It was imperative that with his rank, he had to give a notice at least three days in advance no matter where he went. Princess Royal Shou Kang sat in the main hall and asked Gu Hui Yan somewhat doubtfully, ¡°why are you here today? If you had sent someone in advance, I could¡¯ve prepared myself properly.¡±


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t trouble Aunt like that.¡± Gu Hui Yan smiled while nodding, and said unhurriedly, ¡°I hastily visited today because I have something to request of Aunt.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡± Princess Shou Kang became curious. What did Gu Hui Yan need that he required the help of someone else? She smiled and said, ¡°you¡¯re being modest again. Is there anything in the world that Prince Yan can¡¯t do?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled. That wasn¡¯t the case this time. He said, ¡°I¡¯m requesting for Aunt to act as matchmaker for Lin Wei Xi and I.¡±

 Chapter 26

    Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s smile stiffened. She blinked, thinking that she¡¯d heard wrong.


    Gu Hui Yan maintained a calm smile and serenely watched her.


    He didn¡¯t look like he was joking. Shou Kang slowly digested his words before responding.


    Although Princess Royal Shou Kang was shocked, she pushed aside the maid who stepped forward to serve her, ¡°What are you saying? You¡­ are you serious?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m serious.¡±


    Princess Shou Kang looked at Gu Hui Yan¡¯s calm and unruffled manner, as if he was talking about something ordinary like eating or drinking. But her heart was in chaos and she was almost unable to maintain her cool. If memory serves her right, hadn¡¯t Gu Hui Yan entrusted her to help Lin Wei Xi look for a husband not one month ago? What happened during that time to cause this kind of flip?


    Princess Royal Shou Kang hurriedly took a sip of tea. After calming down a bit, she thought about it again and felt it was good no matter how she thought about it. Of course, Princess Royal Shou Kang wanted to find a good husband for Lin Wei Xi and had spent these past few days considering quite a number of sons of influential officials. But which family couldpare to Prince Yan?


    Furthermore, even if Shou Kang chose someone, Lin Wei Xi would have to wait on her inws. How could Princess Shou Kang find a simple and upright family like that? After all, a daughter-inw was different from a daughter. As the saying goes, what goes aroundes around, and Lin Wei Xi had to carefully serve her inws. But if it was the Prince Yan Residence, these troubles wouldn¡¯t exist. Prince Yan¡¯s parents had passed away many years ago and there were only three people in the family. Aside from Prince Yan, the other two were his son and daughter-inw. If Lin Wei Xi married Prince Yan, she would be Shizi and Shizi Fei¡¯s elder. Who in the entire residence would dare to give her attitude?


    Princess Shou Kang felt this was a good thing the more she thought about it. Prince Yan was clear minded and had insurmountable power. He wasn¡¯t the kind of person who could be deceived by tricks and schemes. As long as Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t provoke Prince Yan¡¯s anger, she would never suffer in the back courtyard. The Shizi had also grown up, and Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t have to endure any anger directed at her for being a stepmother. Instead, she earned a filial daughter-inw without doing anything.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang almostughed out loud when she thought of that. Didn¡¯t Gao Ran scheme to rob Gao Xi of her marriage for the power of the Prince Yan Residence, and to be the mistress in charge of the Prince Yan Residence. But she should know that the Prince Yan Residence belonged to Prince Yan, not Gu Cheng Yao. The Prince Yan Consort seat was empty, so Gao Ran, as the Shizi Fei, took charge of the household instead. But once the true mistress returned, who was Gao Ranpared to her?


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was overwhelmed with joy. She felt reassured about Lin Wei Xi¡¯s marriage and finally had the time to think about the intentions behind Prince Yan¡¯s words. It was in a woman¡¯s nature to be gossipy, and Princess Shou Kang was no exception. She asked tentatively, ¡°Prince Yan, I¡¯m not trying to be disrespectful. It¡¯s just that things were alright previously, but you suddenly brought this up today. Is there a reason for this?¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang would never expect that Lin Wei Xi had been the one to proposed this shocking n. She still thought that Prince Yan was going all out to look after Lin Wei Xi, and now that she was about to get married, he almost couldn¡¯t bear to part. Or maybe something had happened in the Prince Yan Residence that outsiders didn¡¯t know about, which was the catalyst¡­


    Gu Hui Yan looked at the eagerness in Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s eyes and could guess what his Aunt was thinking. He had already figured it out by the time he returned to the study. After that, he prepared his horse and left to visit Shou Kang first. He knew very well what he was doing and made clear arrangements for each step ahead of time. Now that Princess Royal Shou Kang was asking him the question, Gu Hui Yan also thought about it. Why was he doing this?


    Lin Wei Xi had said those words due to her illness. Knowing her temperament, there was no way she would take her words back once she¡¯d said them. Either she¡¯d seed, or she¡¯d leave the Prince Yan Residence and their paths would never cross again. Gu Hui Yan had to admit that he was fond of this overly lively girl. Watching her make noise made him feel as if he was a lot younger than he actually was. He felt indescribably jittery at the thought of letting Lin Wei Xi move out of the Prince Yan Residence, unable to see her again. Since it was like this, then he only had one other option.


    It was either one or the other, so the logic was simple. Gu Hui Yan went to the battlefield at fifteen and spent half his life on it. What he did best was making strategic decisions, and he was also the most decisive when making those decisions. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s situation was much simpler than the ever-changing battlefield. The pros and cons were clear and distinct, and he didn¡¯t have to choose between abandoning one team or the whole army. Gu Hui Yan made his decision very quickly.


    But Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t used to discussing such personal topics, so he only smiled and said, ¡°Aunt can rest assured that I¡¯m not hiding anything. I know what I¡¯m doing.¡± After speaking, Gu Hui Yan paused slightly and added, ¡°she also knows.¡±


    I hope she knows.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang pretended to look relieved, but she knew she wouldn¡¯t be getting anything else out of Prince Yan. He seemed reasonable and easy to talk to, but was actually very firm with his boundaries, and she¡¯d cross them if she continued to question him. Shou Kang conveniently changed the topic and no longer asked about it.


    She was extremely excited today. Her only granddaughter had passed away and she felt unspeakable regret. Now that she had Lin Wei Xi, she wholeheartedly wanted to manage the perfect marriage for her, so that she wouldn¡¯t follow Gao Xi¡¯s footsteps. Gu Hui Yan no longer lingered on the matter after entrusting it to Princess Royal Shou Kang. As for the traditional wedding rituals, marriage proposal and other ceremonies, she would handle it. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t care how she handled it, and cared even less about the extravagance of the whole thing.


    Seeing as time was almost up, Gu Hui Yan got up and bid farewell. Shou Kang smiled and sent him out of the main hall. After that, she excitedly had herdy-in-waiting open the storeroom so she could pick Lin Wei Xi¡¯s dowry herself. The atmosphere in the Princess Shou Kang Residence was cheerful and warm, while the Prince Yan Residence was quiet and serene. It had been raining for the past few days and it was humid today. The trees in the courtyard had been thoroughly rained on, while wind blew into everyone¡¯s sleeves, making it seem colder than it actually was.


    Lin Wei Xi woke briefly at noon before falling asleep again. Her breath was hot, her dreams were intermittent, and she slept restlessly. The peopleing in and out of Jingdan Garden all had serious expressions. Regardless of whether they were sincere or not, they at least seemed to be worried about her condition. Wan Xing and Wan Yue reced the cold handkerchief on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s forehead without a break, and continued to do so until evening, when her fever finally subsided.


    Lin Wei Xi woke up to see that the sky had darkened outside the window. She lowered her head and coughed, ignored the drink, and promptly asked, ¡°did His Highness Prince Yan visit?¡±


    ¡°He didn¡¯t.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi let out a soft ¡°Oh¡±, her heart slowly sinking. Didn¡¯t she already know that Prince Yan wasn¡¯t stupid. How could he allow her to scheme against himself?


    Wan Yue saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression and had a bad premonition. She whispered, ¡°the Prince just returned from the Princess Shou Kang Residence and still hasn¡¯t returned to the back courtyard. If Miss has something to tell him, why don¡¯t I go and invite him?¡±


    Before Lin Wei Xi could respond, she heard footstepsing from outside. When Lin Wei Xi saw the person, she promptly tried to sit up, ¡± Commander Gu¡­ ¡°


    Gu Ming Da was greeted respectfully as soon as he entered Jingdan Garden. There wasn¡¯t a single person in the Prince Yan Residence who didn¡¯t know him. His family had served the Prince Yan Residence for generations and he¡¯d followed Prince Yan around in his youth. Later, he was even granted the imperial surname ¡°Gu¡±, showing his status. However, a trusted aide like him who stood above the inner and outer courtyards, and even stood above the masters¡¯ close servants, was very polite to Lin Wei Xi. After entering the room, he stopped outside the screen, lowered his eyes, and didn¡¯t peek inside at all. He asked in a formal tone, ¡°Miss Lin, are you feeling better?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi let Wan Xing support her as she sat up. Separated by the bed curtain and the screen, she also politely replied, ¡°Thank you for your concern, Commander Gu. I feel much better already.¡± she couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°did His Highness Prince Yan ask you toe here and check on me?¡±


    Gu Ming Da unexpectedly didn¡¯t answer, but paused for a moment and said, ¡°It¡¯s good that Miss Lin¡¯s illness has improved. Miss Lin should focus on recuperating for the next few days. When the weather gets warmer, Princess Royal Shou Kang will pick you up to stay with her temporarily.¡±


    Gu Ming Da didn¡¯t say whether or not it was Prince Yan, but if she didn¡¯t know that it was impossible, she would¡¯ve thought that Gu Ming Da was deliberately avoiding it. However, what kind of servant would avoid painting his master in a good light? Wouldn¡¯t it benefit him to give an answer after putting up some resistance? Gu Ming Da¡¯s attitude was indeed strange. But before she could digest his words, he mentioned her moving out. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s attention shifted and she frowned, doubtful, ¡°why?¡±


    Why now?


    ¡°Why?¡± Gu Cheng Yao also looked at Gu Hui Ya, puzzled, ¡°she¡¯s bedridden right now, and it¡¯s not as if the Prince Yan Residence can¡¯t support her, so why have her move out of the residence?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan sat in the armchair, unhurriedly lifting the floating leaves from the teacup, ¡°in the beginning, it wasn¡¯t an issue if she wanted to stay here for a long time, but now it¡¯s inappropriate for her to continue living in Prince Yan Residence.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao was baffled, and he asked without thinking, ¡°Why is it inappropriate?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan put down the Yue porcin cup. His movements were calm and his expression was the same as when he faced all those countless battles, imposing and unmoving, as if victory was within his grasp. But if Gu Ming Da were here, he would¡¯ve realized that Gu Hui Yan¡¯s movements and speech were slower than usual. This hesitancy was unusual for Gu Hui Yan.


    It was only after Gu Hui Yan set the teacup down that his mood settled. He acted like nothing had happened and said without thinking, ¡°in a few days, she¡¯ll marry into the Prince Yan Residence. If she continues to live in the Residence, it will affect her reputation.¡±


    Thunder had struck the ground<sup>¡ó</sup>, and all the servants in the study stared in astonishment before quickly clenching their teeth, shrinking their shoulders and lowering their heads. Gu Cheng Yao stared nkly and only understood what Gu Hui Yan had said after a long time, ¡°Father, did you say that Lin Wei Xi is going to marry into the residence? I don¡¯t have any brothers, this¡­ ¡± as he said that, he quickly came to himself and looked at Gu Hui Yan in disbelief, ¡°Father, could it be¡­ ¡°


    ¡ó


    ¡°Correct, I will soon marry her, and she¡¯ll be the Princess Consort.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao, who¡¯d always been praised by everyone in the capital for being a gentleman, neglected his appearance. His mouth gaped open in astonishment as he stared at Gu Hui Yan. After a moment, his face suddenly sank and he said resolutely, ¡°you can¡¯t.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan merely nced faintly at Gu Cheng Yao, obviously not really caring. Gu Ming Da came in, and when he heard this, he said evenly, ¡°Shizi, you¡¯ve crossed the line.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao also found his words ridiculous. He was the child, so who was he to control the affairs of his elders? But how was this okay?


    His thoughts were in a mess. He¡¯d opposed it without thinking and practically blurted everything out. It was only after he finished speaking that he pondered it in hindsight. Why not?


    Did he disapprove of his father¡¯s remarriage in order to protect his parent¡¯s love, because his mother, Shen Shi, said that they¡¯d fallen in love at first sight, their love stronger than gold? Or was it because the person his father wanted to marry was Lin Wei Xi, who was younger than himself, and felt it preposterous, so he opposed it. Or perhaps it was because she was Lin Wei Xi, someone who felt indescribably familiar to him?


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s confusionsted for only a moment before it was pushed down by the image of Shen Shi¡¯s smiling face. Gu Hui Yan had been in the war campaign for many years and didn¡¯t stay in the residence for long, so Gu Cheng Yao grew up by his mother¡¯s side. Back when they were still living in the residence in the Yan fief, the old Princess Consort had still been alive, and she treated Shen Shi in a lukewarm manner. Shen Shi hadmented to Gu Cheng Yao all the time about her mother-inw¡¯s harsh criticism. As time passed, he grew further distanced from his grandmother and clung to his mother even more.


    At that time, Gu Cheng Yao was still young. Shen Shi repeatedly and patiently narrated her encounter with Prince Yan to him. Prince Yan had rescued her from amidst the chaos of battle; the hero had saved the beauty and she fell in love at first sight. Hence, she travelled thousands of miles to chase her husband, and they got married in the end, living happily ever after. Gu Cheng Yao was actually not very interested in Shen Shi¡¯s stories about their romance, but she was his mother. Over the years, Gu Cheng Yao became deeply influenced throughout his childhood. Without even realizing it, he truly believed that his parent¡¯s marriage was an eternal love out of a fairy tale, even if Gu Hui Yan stayed in the army camp without returning home the entire year. Even if his grandmother was very apathetic towards Shen Shi.


    When Shen Shiter died of illness, Prince Yan didn¡¯t remarry for many years, and everything seemed to be going well. But now this fairy tale love was suddenly shattered and someone new had appeared out of nowhere. There was no way Gu Cheng Yao could allow it.


    He pulled a long face, his voice stiff, ¡°Father, isn¡¯t this unfair to Mother? While you were busy fighting the war these past few years, she managed the household, supported grandmother, and raised me all by herself. Did you think of Mother even once, who¡¯s in the underworld, when you decided to remarry?¡±


    Gu Ming Da thought to himself<em>so you know that Princess Consort Shen¡¯s already in the underworld.</em>But he merely took a step forward and coldly said, ¡°Shizi, you¡¯ve crossed the line.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao looked at Gu Ming Da, but Gu Ming Da stayed firm and watched him with a calm and businesslike look in his eyes. Gu Cheng Yao ultimately caved in and stiffly said, ¡°this son was rude,¡± before turning and fleeing from the room.


    ¡°My Prince¡­ ¡°


    ¡°It¡¯s all right.¡± Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t pay any attention to the earlier disturbance and stood up to walk toward the study. Court affairs piled up into a mountain of documents everyday, so he didn¡¯t actually have a lot of free time. ¡°He¡¯s still naive. Let him be.¡±


    Gao Ran was sitting in the room, and when she saw Gu Cheng Yao rush in, she promptly greeted him, ¡°Shizi.¡±


    She saw Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s expression and she smiled sweetly, her voice gentle as water, ¡°Shizi, what happened?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao took a deep breath and said, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Nothing more than a disagreement with Father.¡±


    Gao Ran was shocked, ¡°What kind of disagreement? Why?¡± It wasn¡¯t a good sign that he had argued with Gu Hui Yan.


    ¡°Father wishes to marry Lin Wei Xi as his Princess Consort. I said a few things and it turned out like this.¡±


    Gao Ran didn¡¯t listen to the second half of Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s sentence. Her attention was entirely focused on his first few words. She stood on the spot, her brain buzzing, and was finally able to speak normally after a moment, ¡°What did you say?¡±

 Chapter 27

    What did Gu Cheng Yao just say? He wanted to marry Lin Wei Xi as his Princess Consort?


    There was a buzzing in Gao Ran¡¯s head, and it took quite a while for her to return to her senses. Gu Cheng Yao was also distraught with anxiety and didn¡¯t notice the difference in Gao Ran¡¯s behaviour.


    The heart of antern went off with a pop and Gao Ran snapped back to attention with a start. She suddenly realized the significance of this incident. The day before, she¡¯d just cemented the marriage between Lin Wei Xi and the second Qian young master. Although it was just a verbal promise, Gao Ran had faith in her conviction when she made the promise to Madam Qian and hadn¡¯t expected there to be a problem. Though parents and the matchmaker made the match, there were so many marriages decreed by the Emperor and the Empress, and not all of them were for the rtives of the Emperor. As long as one was powerful enough, they could stand above all the rules and regtions.


    So when Madam Qian mentioned Lin Wei Xi¡¯s marriage, it was exactly what Gao Ran wanted and she agreed without much resistance. Both the Qian family and Gao Ran were delighted and satisfied. As for the person involved, was it necessary to ask for her opinion?


    Of course Gao Ran knew that Lin Wei Xi would be unhappy, and she even guessed that Lin Wei Xi would most likely bring this up to Prince Yan. However, just like how a lizard discards its tail, she decided to make a sacrifice in order to survive. Compared to Prince Yan¡¯s momentary dissatisfaction, it was more dangerous for Lin Wei Xi to continue staying in the Prince Yan Residence, so she dly abandoned temporary favour in exchange for long term peace of mind.


    However, Gao Ran didn¡¯t expect this to be the result of Lin Wei Xiining to Prince Yan.


    Lin Wei Xi was actually marrying into the Prince Yan Residence? Even more unimaginable was that the person involved wasn¡¯t Gu Cheng Yao, but Prince Yan?


    Gao Ran was too shocked to speak. It was fine if all she felt was shock. The trouble was that Lin Wei Xi would be a generation above her in name. If Lin Wei Xi remembered their animosity and deliberately picked a quarrel in the future, Gao Ran would be in serious trouble.


    Right now, the promise with Madam Qian wasn¡¯t important anymore. Gao Ran was more concerned about Prince Yan. She was too impatient to notice that her voice was no longer as gentle as water. She was unable to wait, ¡°why did Father want to marry Lin Wei Xi? Is she going to be the Princess Consort or a concubine?¡±


    Although Gu Cheng Yao had also thought this to himself, he couldn¡¯t help but lower his head and look at Gao Ran. In the past, she¡¯d always been principled, gentle and subdued. How could she say something so vulgar and disrespectful? Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t know how Gao Ran came to such a conjecture, but not only was it an insult to Lin Wei Xi, it was also an insult to Prince Yan.


    He was displeased, but repressed his emotions and gently answered his wife¡¯s question, ¡°naturally, she¡¯ll be the Princess Consort. The Prince Yan Consort.¡±


    Gao Ran¡¯sst thread of hope was shattered. She wanted to vomit out of anger. She was undoubtedly finished. Why had Lin Wei Xi created such a mess again. What a troublemaker!


    Gao Ran furrowed her brows in contemtion. After a while, she suddenly realized that Gu Cheng Yao was looking at her. She became alert, quickly eased her expression, and forced out a smile, ¡°Shizi, hearing this now has really surprised me. That¡¯s right, you and the Prince were talking about something, so how did this topice up?¡±


    Gao Ran exined her gloomy expression in the first half. After clearing up the ambiguousness, she immediately changed the subject.


    Speaking of which, Gu Cheng Yao wasn¡¯t too happy, so he didn¡¯t look into Gao Ran¡¯sck of manners, ¡°Father said that Lin Wei Xi will move to the Princess Shou Kang Residence. I didn¡¯t understand, and after asking about it, Father said he wanted to marry her as his Consort. ¡°


    If Prince Yan really wanted to marry Lin Wei Xi, then allowing her to continue living in the Prince Yan Residence wasn¡¯t a good idea. That way, the truth couldn¡¯t be distorted, and Lin Wei Xi would most likely marry out from the Princess Shou Kang Residence<sup>¡ó</sup>.


    ¡ó


    Not only would Lin Wei Xi be the Prince Yan Consort without any basis, she would be marrying out of a Princess Residence due to a freakbination of events.


    Gao Ran¡¯s heart was set aze. A living Cindere story was happening right before her eyes, and it was offensive to her eyes. What she loathed even more was that this Cindere would be her mother-inw and naturally hold the management and authority over her.


    Gao Ran was used to seeing this kind of vicious mother-inw in her previous life, be it from movies, television or novels. If Lin Wei Xi gave birth to a son in the future, she would definitely covet Shizi¡¯s position. Gao Ran didn¡¯t try to conceal her malice towards her future stepmother andpletely forgot that she herself was also a second wife. If Gao Xi hadn¡¯t died early, Gao Ran would¡¯ve been someone else¡¯s stepmother.


    Gao Ran considered her countermeasures at lightning speed. She rolled her eyes and felt that Gu Cheng Yao was the key. Women were nothing but essories, but he was Prince Yan¡¯s only son and the Shizi of the residence. If Lin Wei Xi yed any shameful tricks on him, everyone in the Prince Yan Residence definitely wouldn¡¯t forgive her. That¡¯s why he was Gao Ran¡¯s crutch. So long as they were of the same mind, working together against the same adversary, she could slowly rise above Lin Wei Xi and empty out her position of Consort.


    After Gao Ran thought it through, she calmed down and asked softly, ¡°Shizi, you didn¡¯t look too good when you came in just now. Did you say something to the Prince?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao sighed, ¡°I was in the wrong and shouldn¡¯t have contradicted Father. But I¡¯m not worthy of Mother. Mother and Father held deep affections for each other, but where is Mother¡¯s ce if Father is remarrying after so many years?¡±


    Gao Ran knew that this ¡®Mother¡¯ referred to her honourable Mother-inw, Shen Shi. Princess Consort Shen was very famous within the Prince Yan Residence, and she heard these things from the Granny in charge as soon as she married into the household. It was said that Princess Consort Shen and Prince Yan¡¯s love back then could move heaven and earth. Princess Consort Shen had chased her husband for thousands of miles, jumped up the socialdder, and remained true to her original aspirations even when her inws made things difficult for her after she entered the household. Her love was brave and ardent. What a shame that the Heavens were jealous of beautiful women. Princess Consort Shen had been enduring her Mother-inw¡¯s cold treatment for many years, and during one of Prince Yan¡¯s war campaigns, she died of illness in the back courtyard of the Prince Yan Residence.


    After he returned and learned about this, Prince Yan was silent for a long time before throwing a grand funeral for Shen Shi. In the subsequent years, he didn¡¯t remarry. During this period, countless young and beautiful women rmended themselves to warm his bed but Prince Yan didn¡¯t ept any of them. Later as Gu Cheng Yao grew up, he was quickly established as the Shizi. Gao Ran sighed when she heard this. What a touching love story. The heroine overcame worldly obstacles while the hero remained affectionate for years and continued guarding his wife after her death. Even the various important departments of the residence guarded the deceased wife¡¯s dowry. Thus, Lin Wei Xi became hated for intervening.


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s recollection of Shen Shi was already quite fuzzy, but it didn¡¯t hinder him from grieving for his mother or favouring the old servant left behind by his mother. Even now, most of his important subordinates were the servants that Princess Consort Shen had left behind at that time. The day after Gao Ran married in, the Granny in charge and Gu Cheng Gao¡¯s personal servant Yun Hui visited her toy all the cards on the table. When Gao Ran heard that they were Shen Shi¡¯s people, she immediately treated them very politely. Gao Ran was more tactful than Gao Xi because she chose to curry favour with Yun Hui and the rest, and Gu Cheng Yao doted on Gao Ran more. After seeing this, Princess Consort Shen¡¯s people treated her pretty well. Compared to Gao Xi, who¡¯de before her, Gao Ran had a joyous and harmonious rtionship with what was left of Princess Consort Shen¡¯s people.


    Gao Ranpletely understood Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s emotional state. Her father in name, the Duke Ying Shizi, couldn¡¯t be together with his true love, Han Shi, because of his worldly views, so Han Shi could only be wronged and remain as a concubine. She grasped his hand and said, ¡°Shizi, I understand how you feel. Don¡¯t worry, I will only recognize Princess Consort Shen as my Mother-inw. No matter what happens in the future, my feelings for you will never change.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao tightly held Gao Ran¡¯s hand in turn. Normally, he¡¯d feel touched by her words. However, he felt very disconnected from her today for some reason. The words that he heard didn¡¯t stun him like how they had in the past.


    After Gu Ming Da left, Lin Wei Xi remained in her room for several days to recuperate. He hadn¡¯t mentioned anything that day because topics about the engagement couldn¡¯t be heard by the bride¡¯s side. But based on the expressions of the servant around her these days and the false rumours floating around the residence, Lin Wei Xi could more or less guess what was going on.


    After Lin Wei Xi¡¯s fever subsided, her mind, which had been burned to confusion, finally cleared up. Could it be that water had leaked into her head because she¡¯d been caught in the rain for too long that day? What had she done!


    She was too embarrassed to face the stupid things she¡¯d done, so she could only use her recovery as an excuse to hide in her room and not see the people who visited. Falling ill was such a good excuse. She used to think that the women in the Duke Residence who¡¯d get sick every now and then were only exaggerating. But she now knew that recuperating from an illness was truly an all-purpose excuse. She didn¡¯t have the face to meet people and could hide day after day.


    Fortunately, two days had barely passed when people from the Princess Shou Kang Residence arrived. They were bustling with noise and excitement as they took Lin Wei Xi to the Princess Residence to recuperate. She had very simple luggage, and aside from Lin Yong¡¯s rewards which had remained untouched, she only had two servants, Wan Xing and Wan Yue. At the back, Wan Yue helped the people from the Princess Residence to take inventory of the rosewood boxes, while Lin Wei Xizily lounged around as she recuperated up front. One of Gao Ran¡¯s Grannies came to scout out the situation. She softly and quietly entered Jingdan Garden and smiled at Wan Xing, ¡°Miss Wan Xing, is Miss Lin inside? Miss Lin will be leaving soon, so Shizi Fei sent this ve to ask if she needs to buy anything.¡±


    Wan Xing had a sour expression, ¡°she doesn¡¯t need anything. Even if she did, you don¡¯t need to buy it. It¡¯s not like our Miss has no money. Besides, the Princess Residence has so many female officials. Who would need you?¡±


    Several days ago, Wan Xing absolutely wouldn¡¯t have said such a thing to Shizi Fei¡¯s people. But her Miss was going to be the Princess Consort. Wan Xing was amoner and a foul-mouthed lower-ss girl through and through. She nned meticulously and was calctive; favour and hatred were clearly defined. When she could step on someone, no doubt she¡¯d run them over twice.


    Wan Xing thought to herself that her Miss would soon be Shizi Fei¡¯s mother-inw. Normal mother-inws would use their status to oppress their daughter-inw, who¡¯d have to endure beatings and scoldings. Even if the practices of the aristocratic families were different from those of the ordinary people, based on Wan Xing¡¯s observations and inquiries over the past few days, she discovered that the practices in these noble families were sometimes stricter than that of themon folk. What was there to be afraid of if that was the case. One could almost see Wan Xing¡¯s tail wagging happily. Wan Yue had secretly told her about what had happened that day and she guessed that Shizi Fei had most likely insulted Miss Lin, who fell ill out of anger once she returned. Now, the tables had turned, and Wan Xing could breathe freely. Why should she give them any face?


    The Granny was scolded until her face turned red. She tried to look virtuous and said, ¡°This ve knows that Miss Lin is rich, but this ve still came here to represent Shizi Fei. Miss Lin doesn¡¯t have to give me face, but can¡¯t you give Shizi Fei face? If this ve can¡¯t even see Miss Lin, what do I report to Shizi Fei when I return?¡±


    Wan Xing felt confused by the polite words used in these kinds of great and noble families. She didn¡¯t know how to respond, so she pouted and replied angrily, ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll go ask Miss.¡±


    After a while, Wan Xing lifted the curtain as she walked out of the room, her expression arrogant as a peacock, ¡°Miss said she isn¡¯t going to see you.¡±


    The Granny couldn¡¯t believe it, ¡°Shizi Fei ordered me to, Miss Lin, she¡­ ¡°


    ¡°Our Miss said that she won¡¯t see Shizi Fei even if shees. Hurry and leave. Stop waving a chicken feather around as a symbol of power<sup>¡ó</sup>. Our Miss isn¡¯t epting what you want to give.¡±


    ¡ó


    Wan Xing brought out her attitude of buying vegetables at the market, pushing the Granny out by scolding her. What about drawing a line when doing things so that the future is well met<sup>¡ó</sup>? Wan Xing was very pleased and satisfied with herself, so there was no need! Her Miss was the future Princess Consort and mother-inw. Who would want to draw the line with her own daughter-inw?


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi could hear everything happening outside her room clearly. Wan Yue put down the booklet for the gift list and poured Lin Wei Xi a cup of tea, ¡°Miss, Wan Xing is ustomed to walking around town and shooting her mouth off. Please forgive her.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi covered her mouth and coughed slightly. After washing down the itch in her throat with water, she carelessly said, ¡°it¡¯s not a problem.¡±


    It was good that Wan Xing was outspoken and happy to avenge her out of gratitude. In any case, Wan Xing and Wan Yue¡¯s ve contracts were with her. In the event that she couldn¡¯t protect herself in the future, she¡¯d let them both go and definitely wouldn¡¯t leave them for Gao Ran to take out her anger on. With things as they were now, did she have anything to worry about?


    After the Granny returned to Gao Ran, she angrily scolded Wan Xing for being frivolous and daring to speak rudely. Lin Wei Xi naturally imed all the credit as her master. Gao Ran¡¯s people felt aggrieved, but this would have to be saved forter. As of that moment, Lin Wei Xi had already boarded the Princess Residence¡¯s carriage, bringing her generous inheritance to the Princess Shou Kang Residence with her. If everything went as nned, she¡¯d settle there until she got married.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was happy beyond words to see Lin Wei Xi. Early one morning, after Lin Wei Xi had taken breakfast in her room, she went to pay her respects to Shou Kang and was pulled close as soon as she walked through the door. Princess Royal Shou Kang looked at her up and down as she held her hand. After a moment, she shook her head and said to the surrounding female officials with sorrow, ¡°why do I feel like Xi¡¯er grew thinner again?¡±


    Cold sweat dripped down Lin Wei Xi¡¯s back and she promptly said, ¡°what are you saying, I ate and slept so well these past few days that I grew fat.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang looked at her suspiciously and could tell that she hadn¡¯t gotten fat. An elder always felt that the younger generation were better-looking if they were a little fat, so she told Lin Wei Xi to eat and sleep more. Lin Wei Xi felt helpless, but she still agreed.


    Seeing her lovable response, Shou Kang felt satisfied, and proceeded to animatedly talk about the dowry with her, ¡°Prince Yan has already sent the betrothal gift booklet, and it¡¯s an inch thick! He also said that the rest is up to us to decide. Xi¡¯er, although people say that a marriage is determined by one¡¯s parents and a matchmaker, and an unmarried girl like you can¡¯t listen to this, but you¡¯ve lost your parents and you¡¯ll be living on your own after you get married. Why don¡¯t we discard these fading traditions? When do you want to get married?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt extremely embarrassed. Wasn¡¯t it bad to ask a new bride like her about her wedding date? Was she supposed to say that it was too early or toote?


    Lin Wei Xi could only say tactfully, ¡°I¡¯m unfamiliar with this. You and Prince Yan can decide.¡±


    ¡°Why are you saying the same thing? The both of you are the ones involved, but are soposed. It seems I¡¯ll copse from my one-sided enthusiasm.¡± Princess Royal Shou Kang grumbled without thinking, took the list of auspicious timings, and deliberated on the marriage date over and over by herself. One of the two was her nephew and the other was her adopted granddaughter, who wasn¡¯t her biological granddaughter but surpassed her biological granddaughter. Although they had a one generation gap, it was nothing amongstrge and influential families that were connected by marriage generation after generation. Two of her favourite juniors were getting married, so she was unable to contain her joy, eager to make this a perfect and Heavenly wedding.


    As Shou Kang and the female officials deliberated on the auspicious date and timing, Lin Wei Xi continued to sit there, embarrassed. Just as she was about to get up, Shou Kang stopped her, ¡°Xi¡¯er, what good timing, let¡¯s discuss your dowry today. The betrothal gifts sent by Prince Yan haven¡¯t been touched, so take all of them with you. Also, I prepared a dowry for you. The dowry list is here. Look through these two lists when you return to your room.¡±

 Chapter 28

    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s declination was to no avail, and she returned to her room with a thick pile of gift lists.


    The gift lists were divided into two portions: one of them was for the betrothal gifts sent by Prince Yan, and the other was for the dowry prepared by Princess Royal Shou Kang. Maybe it was more urate to say that there were three portions. Thest one was for the rewards that the imperial court conferred to Lin Yong. Lin Yong had passed away and his assets were inherited by his only daughter, Lin Wei Xi. All of it originally belonged to her and neither Prince Yan nor Princess Royal Shou Kang intended to let her use them as part of her dowry.


    Piled together, the three gift booklets were considerably thick. Lin Wei Xi casually picked one of them and flipped through it.


    The one she¡¯d pulled out was for the dowry prepared by Princess Royal Shou Kang. Shou Kang had listed everything in detail. The furniture, to the daily necessities, brocade for all four seasons and the gold and silver utensils had been recorded. All of the information regarding colour, material and even the designs was written clearly; even the weight of the gold utensils had been annotated at the side. Obviously, Shou Kang was afraid of Lin Wei Xi being cheated of her dowry in the future, that¡¯s why she would rather write it all down so it could be easily understood.


    Lin Wei Xi read each line slowly and carefully. She saw many familiar items on the list, including her mother¡¯s dowry, and the dowry from her previous life.


    That¡¯s right, Princess Royal Shou Kang had initially rushed to prepare the dowry from the start, but she ended up demanding it back from the Duke Ying Residence. The Princess Residence had fiercely restored their face, but apart from feeling sad and nostalgic, it didn¡¯t have any practical use. These furniture and daily necessities had originally been made for her daughter¡¯s and granddaughter¡¯s dowry, but the two had passed away one after the other. The things that had once been filled with jubtion were piled into the storeroom, causing everyone¡¯s hearts to ache. Princess Royal Shou Kang was growing old and didn¡¯t have any descendants. Even if she kept it, who would she give it to? It¡¯d be nothing more than a tiny n residence in a hundred years.


    But destiny had its way, and Lin Wei Xi appeared soon after. The moment Shou Kang saw her, she immediately felt that this was it. She couldn¡¯t be wrong. Shou Kang had found a spiritual pir all of a sudden, and quickly took Lin Wei Xi in as her own granddaughter, loving her dearly.


    Now that Lin Wei Xi was about to get married as Prince Yan¡¯s Consort, conveniently bing Gao Ran¡¯s mother-inw in the process, Princess Royal Shou Kang woke upughing from her dreams many times. That being the case, there wasn¡¯t anything left to say. Shou Kang was happy that she could let Lin Wei Xi have a grand wedding with a dowry that¡¯d make everyone in the capital feel inferior for the next ten years.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was worried that Lin Wei Xi would find it unlucky, since the dowry contained items from the people who came before her. One of Shou Kang¡¯s female officers specifically informed Lin Wei Xi that all of Wei Shi¡¯s and Gao Xi¡¯s gold and silver ware had been cast into new ones. The boxes for the daily necessities were all made with high-ss wood that could be used for many years without wear and tear, but would have to be repainted with red paint. She could rece the remaining porcin, incense burners, vases, and so on if she didn¡¯t like them.


    Of course, Lin Wei Xi felt that it didn¡¯t matter. A dowry wasn¡¯t a coffin and was passed down from generation to generation, so there was no reason to feel it was unlucky. Besides, something she hadn¡¯t voiced was that she wished to see her mother¡¯s mementos again.


    When Princess Royal Shou Kang saw that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯tin, she felt relieved. Lin Wei Xi now sat in the boudoir as a light fragrance drifted through the air. She put down the dowry list Shou Kang had prepared and picked up another one.


    This had originally been Lin Yong¡¯s reward. Lin Wei Xi had already read it countless times and memorized it. Actually, not many of Lin Yong¡¯s assets could be exchanged for cash, and the imperial court had only given a few silver ingots as part of the procedure, with the stamp of the Department of Supervision branded on them. There was no way to spend them, and Lin Wei Xi also didn¡¯t dare to smelt the rest of the ritualistic artifacts that represented the Marquis. As for the imperial decree and Honorary Deed Medallion, they had no use aside from putting them on disy.


    In the end, the truly important items from the Marquis Zhongyong Residence¡¯s inheritance were thend deeds. Even if the imperial court conferred power, thend and estates were the foundation of a family. Of course, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t have a family. She didn¡¯t know how he did it, but Prince Yan had exchanged some of hernd for ones next to the capital, and the rest were exchanged for fertilend with rich soil. Less than half of her remainingnd was situated in her hometown, Shunde District.


    Lin Wei Xi silently admired Prince Yan for doing this. One could attack while advancing and defend while retreating. The fertilend around the capital could be used to make money during peacetime, and if anything happened, she could still return to Shunde, her ancestral home. Neither advance nor retreating could go wrong.


    When Lin Wei Xi thought of Prince Yan, she immediately recalled the stupid things she¡¯d done a few days ago. She put down the list, her cheeks flushed.


    She only realized in hindsight that the betrothal gifts had been delivered and her marriage to Prince Yan was already set in stone. In a few months, would she be the legendary wife of the man whose exploits she¡¯d listened to growing up?


    Lin Wei Xi was stumped for words and felt like she was stepping on clouds, out of touch with reality. She was going to be a wife again, but this time it was vastly different. What should she do if she was still unqualified? What¡¯s worse was that the one who originally ran into Prince Yan¡¯s study and spontaneously brought it up was her.


    Water had probably leaked into her head at the time, her fever cooking her brain. What exactly had she done?


    Lin Wei Xi looked through the dowry list in her room, while Princess Royal Shou Kang also talked about it.


    ¡°Miss Lin is very attentive and went into a daze after looking at it for a while.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kangughed when she heard this, ¡°maybe she¡¯s in a daze because she¡¯s thinking about her father¡¯snd deeds. Actually, Xi¡¯er won¡¯t have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of her life, just by relying on what Marquis Zhongyong left behind. All I did was give her some utensils to use on a daily basis.¡±


    The female officer smiled and agreed but thought of the darkness and conflict in life. Of course, there¡¯d be no problem if Marquis Zhongyong were still alive. It¡¯d also be a bit better if Lin Wei Xi had an uncle or brother, but she was all that remained of the Lin family. Had it not been for Prince Yan, who took her in, she might not have thend deeds with her. Even if she had it, it might not be a good thing.


    But as the female officer recalled Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face, she felt relieved. Lin Wei Xi had grown to be so beautiful. Even if she wasn¡¯t wealthy, living among themon folk was actually quite dangerous. All beautiful women who were unable to protect themselves would end in disaster. But now with Prince Yan to protect her, and her bing the future Princess Consort, it showed that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s beauty, experiences, and inheritance were mandated by heaven and she deserved this fortune.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang was still excitedly choosing a date. When the female officer saw how lively Shou Kang was, she felt gratified and smiled, ¡°the princess is in such a good mood. I¡¯ve never been as concerned as back then, when I was afraid that the Princess would fade away by herself.¡±


    As soon as the words left her mouth the female officer knew that she¡¯d said something wrong. Sure enough, Princess Shou Kang¡¯s expression sank, and she asked, ¡°Is my husband still living in the Wei Residence?¡±


    ¡°Princess¡­ ¡°


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Princess Shou Kang smiled bitterly, ¡°it¡¯s not like I¡¯m a new bride. Who¡¯d care about him after so many years? I¡¯m just afraid that he saw what I prepared for Xi¡¯er and became jealous, only returning to the Wei Residence to show off his leisurely retirement ying with the grandchildren.¡±


    Seeing as Princess Shou Kang didn¡¯t look sorrowful or emotional, the female officer felt relieved and said, ¡°your husband and the Wei brothers are close after all. I heard that two days ago, the Wei family had another child. It¡¯s natural for your husband to go back to tease his grandnephew. They also had quite a number of youngdies in their family who were of marriageable age these past two years. Previously, Madam Wei specially brought a few of them to pay their respects to the Princess. I¡¯m afraid they thought of that idea then.¡±


    ¡°My goodness.¡± Shou Kang thought it funny, and she actuallyughed, ¡°he resented me for ruining his career as an official and didn¡¯t return to the Princess Residence for many years. We¡¯re husband and wife but we feel more like strangers. It¡¯s my fault that he can¡¯t participate in politics because he married me. I can understand it if he harbours a grudge. But since he doesn¡¯t want to recognize me as his wife, then stop eyeing the Princess Residence¡¯s assets. He goes home toin while eyeing my territory at the same time. It¡¯s ridiculous that he wants to leave all my private property to the Wei family after I die. Where did they find the guts?¡±


    The female officer couldn¡¯t say a word regarding Shou Kang¡¯s household matters and merely said, ¡°Princess, don¡¯t be angry. You have Miss Xi now.¡±


    Shou Kang¡¯s anger turned into joy when she heard Lin Wei Xi¡¯s name, ¡°that¡¯s right, I still have Xi¡¯er. It¡¯s up to me to give my things to the people I love. Even the Ministry of Domestic Affairs has no control over it. The more the Wei family acts like this, the more I want to give all my private property to Xi¡¯er.¡±


    The wedding preparations passed day by day, and the Princess Shou Kang Residence beat it¡¯s gongs and drums grandiosely. The news of Prince Yan marrying a Consort exploded in the capital but quickly died down. Everyone peacefully watched as the Prince Yan Residence and the Princess Shou Kang Residence, decorated withnterns and colourful banners, prepared to wee the new bride.


    Talk about Lin Wei Xi, this new Prince Yan Consort, continued non-stop, but Lin Wei Xi herself waspletely ignorant about how lively it was outside. She remained in the Princess Residence courtyard from her previous life, never once leaving the house so she could get married with a peace of mind. One day, she heard the sound of activity which seemed toe from the Wei family Lady and Misses. Lin Wei Xi knew the kind of conduct the Wei family had and she¡¯d nned to go meet the Wei family so they wouldn¡¯t make things difficult for her grandmother. Before she could do anything, she was stopped by the servants of the Princess Residence. One of Shou Kang¡¯s female officials said with a smile that Lin Wei Xi was the Prince Yan Consort and there was no need to disturb her because of these people. She only needed to focus on preparing her dowry.


    Since Princess Royal Shou Kang didn¡¯t need her help, Lin Wei Xi epted her grandmother¡¯s good intentions. She took it seriously and returned to her room to rest. The Wei family was very hostile to Lin Wei Xi, who had snatched their property, but they couldn¡¯t even get a glimpse of her. As for the sour words<sup>¡ó</sup>that they¡¯d prepared in advance, they naturally had no choice but to grit their teeth and swallow them.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s world was serene, but when Gao Ran learned about Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s astonishing battle that almost turned the entire Princess Residence upside down, she couldn¡¯t sit still. She picked a day that wasn¡¯t too hot, ordered servants to set up a carriage, and returned to the Duke Ying Residence wearing adornments indicating her status as Shizi Fei.


    The Duke Ying Ladyy on her side on the fragrant rosewood arhat bed, leaning against arge red pillow ced behind her. A young maid held a beauty hammer as she gently massaged her legs and feet. Gao Ran moved a stool to sit in front of the arhat bed to talk to the Duke Ying Lady, frowning uneasily.


    ¡°Did you inform your elders when you left today?¡±


    A married woman needed the approval of her husband¡¯s family even if it was just to visit her maiden family. There was nothing wrong with the Duke Ying Lady¡¯s words. She was only worried that Gao Ran was visiting her maiden family too frequently and would be scolded by her husband¡¯s family.


    Gao Ran said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Grandmother. Father is busy all day and doesn¡¯t really care about what happens in the back courtyard. Shizi also greatly cherishes me. If I want to go out, all I need to do is prepare my own carriage. No one will gossip.¡±


    It was only then that the Duke Ying Lady remembered that Gao Ran had no mother-inw or grandmother-inw, and she had more freedom than the normal wife. The Duke Ying Lady sighed, ¡°you became the mistress of the house as soon as you married and don¡¯t have to tolerate your mother-inw¡¯s temper. Based on this alone, I don¡¯t know how many women in the world envy you.¡±


    Gao Ran was initially very pleased with the early death of Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s mother. Wasn¡¯t there a saying she¡¯d heard before she transmigrated?<em>He has a car and a house, and lost both his parents have passed away</em><sup>¡ó</sup>. Although only Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s mother was dead, Prince Yan wasn¡¯t home most of the time. There wasn¡¯t much difference between her situation and this saying. It¡¯s just a pity that Gao Ran¡¯s unrestrained married life was about to be cut short.


    ¡ó


    The Duke Ying Lady had obviously also thought of the Prince Yan Consort, who was about to enter the household. Everything had been going without a hitch, but a mother-inw abruptly appeared out of thin air, so of course Gao Ran and the Duke Ying Lady weren¡¯t happy. But who would dare talk about Prince Yan¡¯s private affairs?


    The Duke Ying Lady could only console her, ¡°it¡¯s okay, your new mother-inw isn¡¯t that much older than you. She used to be raised at her aunt¡¯s house in the countryside. She¡¯s probably an ignorant idiot. Give in to her first. Once everyone sees the good and bad between the two of you, the days ahead of you will be better.¡±


    The Duke Ying Lady happened to hold the same view as Gao Ran, who also thought the same way. She¡¯d first give in to and indulge Lin Wei Xi, and once Prince Yan and everyone else saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s true colours, she¡¯d swoop in to save them from the crisis and clean up the aftermath. Wasn¡¯t that just nice? Or maybe she¡¯d be able to push a few times when the time came.


    Seeing the expression in Gao Ran¡¯s eyes, the Duke Ying Lady knew that she¡¯d understood. Since that was so, the Duke Ying Lady no longer talked about it. Out of her many granddaughters, Gao Xi seemed unreasonable and distant, but was actually very benevolent. Only her third granddaughter had a soft smile and gentle voice, but did things regardless of how hard it was. Facts had proven that with a personality like that, Gao Ran would go on to achieve great things. Not only had she married up, but she¡¯d also won over her husband¡¯s family. Perhaps she could help her maiden family in the future.


    The Duke Ying Lady felt very satisfied, and even secretly felt that it wasn¡¯t a big deal to silently hand wave sinister things. The most important thing was that she could put it to good use. She correctly predicted that although Gao Ran was malicious to other people, the Duke Ying Residence was her maiden family and definitely not on this list of ¡°other people¡±.

 Chapter 29

    The Duke Ying Lady and Gao Ran were having a conversation. She said, ¡°it¡¯s been hard for you to leave the house. Why don¡¯t you go talk to your Yiniang<sup>¡ó</sup>since you still have time.¡±


    ¡ó


    Gao Ran secretly sneered at the Duke Ying Lady. The Duke Ying Lady spoke as if she empathized with her, but in actuality, she was justcking. Gao Ran didn¡¯t reveal any emotions on her face, and softly excused herself.


    When Han Shi heard that her daughter hade home, she came out early to wait in her small courtyard. The moment she saw Gao Ran enter, she promptly wiped her tears and pulled Gao Ran into the room. Han Shi didn¡¯t think to ask about her daughter¡¯s situation at her inw¡¯s house, and instead asked, ¡°Your Father-inw is marrying a new wife?¡±


    Sure enough, there was no one in or outside the capital, in the boudoir or the marketce, who didn¡¯t know about this matter.


    Gao Ran nodded, ¡°Yes, it¡¯s the girl that Prince Yan brought backst time.¡±


    Han Shi stared nkly when she heard this, and suddenly pped her hands, bluntly saying, ¡°in that case, if she has a son, wouldn¡¯t Shizi¡¯s position as the heir be unstable?¡±


    Her daughter, who¡¯d just married, was about to wee a new mother-inw. As a mother, Han Shi¡¯s initial concern wasn¡¯t how her daughter was doing in her inw¡¯s family, nor was it the new mother-inw¡¯s character, but Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s position as Shizi. In other words, Gao Ran¡¯s position as Shizi Fei.


    But Gao Ran didn¡¯t seem ufortable with this. She nodded in agreement, ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯m also trying to prevent it. But Shizi is already a grown up. Even if she wants to, it¡¯s toote to interfere with his upbringing or scheme against him.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Han Shi felt relieved when she considered it, ¡°Shizi is already seventeen and is reasonable. He¡¯s no longer a teenager who¡¯d let his stepmother torment him. But you need to be careful. That woman is around the same age as you and your husband. It¡¯s uncertain how much Prince Yan will dote on this little wife that he¡¯s going to marry in the future. Should she give birth to a sonter on, you¡¯ll be in trouble. Shizi won¡¯t be able to inherit the title for the moment. When the timees, she¡¯ll use pillow talk to influence Prince Yan, and it¡¯ll be hard to say whether or not he¡¯ll decide to pass the title to his youngest son.¡±


    Gao Ran held Han Shi¡¯s hand, ¡°Yiniang, I know. I¡¯ve already raised this issue with Shizi. I¡¯ll guard myself against her moving forward.¡±


    Actually, Chinese n ceremonial rites were especially strict regarding the heir inheriting the title. Nowadays, the cab advocated for ruling the country ethically and ruling the countryside with filial piety. Obviously, the inheritance of the royal family had to be strictly in ordance with ¡°ethics.¡± It was out of the question for the emperor to change the crown prince from his eldest son to his beloved second son. Could the remaining Princes, generals and ministers ept this exception? Not to mention, Gu Cheng Yao was the eldest di son who was at the peak of etiquette. Unless he met an untimely death without having a son ormitted murder or arson, it would be too difficult for the second son to remove him and take his ce.


    What a pity that Gao Ran and Han Shi thought nothing of the nws and had no faith in the Imperial Court n or thew. They sincerely went over how to win over men and how to dominate the back courtyard so that Prince Yan would pass on the title to Gu Cheng Yao.


    Gao Ran and Han Shi had been talking for a while when Han Shi patted Gao Ran¡¯s hand and said meaningfully, ¡°These tricks are only the cherry on top. What really matters is that you quickly give birth to a son. Your position will be stable once you have a son, and your husband¡¯s family will think highly of you.¡±


    It was reasonable for a new bride to feel shy when hearing such words, but Gao Ran felt indifferent towards this and merely nodded, ¡°I understand.¡±


    Although Gao Ran¡¯s body was that of a sixteen year old girl, she was actually over thirty. How could she be ufortable with this subject?


    Seeing how Gao Ran seemed to have a card up her sleeve, Han Shi finally felt relieved. From a young age, Gao Ran had never given Han Shi a reason to worry about her. She sighed, ¡°Once you give birth to a son and establish a stable position in your husband¡¯s home, your brother will have a much better future with a sister like you to assist him.¡±


    To put it bluntly, Han Shi asked so many questions and was so concerned about whether Gao Ran could preserve her position as Shizi Fei, was admittedly because she was thinking of her daughter, but it was mostly for her son. If he had an elder sister who gave birth to the di grandson of the Prince Yan Residence, Han shi¡¯s son could reap maximum benefits, be it in the Duke Ying Residence, in school, and even when he became an official in the future.


    Gao Ran knew that Han Shi valued her son and didn¡¯t prioritize her daughter, and although she loved Gao Ran, she would always put her son first. This didn¡¯t bother Gao Ran, neither did she me Han Shi for being partial to him. Although she was a transmigrator, this was in ancient times. Gao Ran didn¡¯t think it was a problem.


    When Lin Wei Xi was a teenager, because her family valued her male cousins more, she used to constantly study hard, and did better than those cousins. But Gao Ran was the opposite. She dly epted that her younger brother was better than herself, so her younger brother ended up receiving better treatment than her. It was unknown how their environment while growing up and their nature shaped them, but the two hadpletely different personalities, so the ups and downs in their life were therefore very different.


    Everyone is the main character of their story.


    Gu Hui Yan entrusted all authority over the wedding to Princess Royal Shou Kang. Seeing himpletely ce his trust in her, Shou Kang dly weed it and withdrew the funds from her maiden family, and paid attention to all the etiquette that needed attention. Normally when the groom was older, in order not to dy having a son, the bride would usually cut short the wedding preparations and enter the household ahead of schedule. Furthermore, Prince Yan¡¯s situation stood out amidst the older grooms. But he didn¡¯t hasten the wedding, so Shou Kang followed her heart and kept Lin Wei Xi for an entire half a year, extending the time frame and unhurriedly held the wedding.


    From midsummer to early winter, Lin Wei Xi remained in the Princess Residence. The North wind whistled and hundreds of trees slumped over. In the blink of an eye, it was already the eleventh month.


    Lin Wei Xi was woken up first thing in the early morning, female officials long since crowding outside her room. After hearing her wake up, they lined up in two rows and entered one after another, holding trays in their hands. Wan Xing and Wan Yue wore brand new clothes, but they looked tense, like they were preparing for battle.


    The Princess Shou Kang Residence was holding a wedding with Prince Yan as the groom. Oh, how amazing. From the emperor¡¯s rtives to the powers behind the imperial court, every famous household in the capital had long since prepared generous gifts, and the Lady of each family was also ready for action. On the day the Prince Yan Consort would marry out of her household, those who were on friendly terms with her came to her boudoir to send off the bride, while those who weren¡¯t joined Princess Royal Shou Kang and entertained her. Those who were a bit more thick-skinned arrived early for the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s banquet.


    Because of Princess Royal Shou Kang¡¯s and Prince Yan¡¯s imperial family background, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s room was packed full of all kinds of Princess Consorts and first and second rank Princesses. The rest of the Ladies and youngdies worked in the pce as pce officials all year round, and had face in front of the Empress Dowager because they were favoured. The Fortune Lady, who was invited by Princess Royal Shou Kang herself, took the thread and recited auspicious words while removing the fine hairs on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face with practised hands. Slight pain pinpricked across her face as the hairs were plucked out by the thread. She silently endured it, letting the Fortune Lady hold this rite of passage that symbolized her transition from a young girl to a woman.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s skin was fair, but after the fine hairs were threaded, her cheeks glowed like freshly peeled eggs, exquisite and full of life, like it could break just from blowing at it. The Fortune Lady looked at Lin Wei Xi and couldn¡¯t help but sigh, ¡°I¡¯vebed the hair of many brides, and this is my first time seeing a woman as beautiful as Miss Lin. Be it her appearance or her skin, even when she¡¯s right in front of me, I can¡¯t find anything unsatisfactory.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi merely smiled softly at this. Auspicious words had to be said on the wedding day, and her facial features would be exaggerated even more so by the people around her. She¡¯d married once before so she knew what was happening. The Fortune Lady saw that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t believe her and she repeatedly wrung her wrists. Her words were indeed flowery the moment she started to speak, coaxing amazement and happiness out of the bride¡¯s family, but this time her words came from her heart.


    As time passed, more and more people gathered in Lin Wei Xi¡¯s room. Everyone¡¯sughter sounded like beads, filled to the brim with joy. It was livelier than her wedding during her previous life.


    She was astonished for a moment beforeing to a realization. Although she was a Duke Residence¡¯s di daughter in her previous life, there was nock of Dukes in the capital. If not for the fact that her husband was Prince Yan¡¯s only son, her wedding wouldn¡¯t have been so extravagant. However, no matter how grand the wedding from her previous life was, Gao Xi and Gu Cheng Yao were both juniors. There was an insurmountable disparity between the older and younger generation. The youth of the third generation could join in on the fun, but the second generation and even the first generation wouldn¡¯te. But this time was different. This was Prince Yan¡¯s wedding, with Princess Royal Shou Kang handling the wedding reception. Prince Yan had power and influence while Princess Royal Shou Kang held the highest seat of seniority. So it waspletely understandable that the whole capital was abuzz with the news.


    Amidst theughter and auspicious words from the crowd, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s rich bridal makeup was painted on her face. The women were joking around when firecrackers suddenly sounded from outside. Everyone looked out and smiled immediately, ¡°I reckon that¡¯s the bridal procession. What a rare sight to see Prince Yan wee the bride himself. We can¡¯t let him enter so easily!¡±


    During the first three days of the wedding, there was no distinction between seniority, and there weren¡¯t many opportunities to tease Prince Yan. But even so, the gatekeepers did nothing more thanugh and tease him verbally, not daring to actually do anything to him. Furthermore, the groom¡¯s attendants were all high ranking officials and part of the elite troops, d in armour as they followed Prince Yan to fetch the bride. This group of sergeants uniformly walked to the door and stood there, their red clothing unable to hide their sternness and formidability. Being stared at by so many people, the gatekeepers¡¯ legs went weak, so how could they dare to tease Prince Yan?


    That¡¯s why Gu Hui Yan¡¯s troops reached the main hall so quickly. When word was passed on to the women that he¡¯d arrived, the colour drained from all of their faces and they cried out ¡°why is he so fast?¡± as they scrambled to find Lin Wei Xi¡¯s veil and the apple. Because the apple was small, no one knew who had kept it, and they couldn¡¯t find it when it was time to leave. A lot of trouble was created in order to find this fruit that symbolized auspiciousness and peace.


    Lin Wei Xi was clearly someone who¡¯d gone through a wedding before, but because of this incident with the apple, she also became flustered. She felt like a marite as she was led away. Gradually, the atmosphere outside turned solemn and the air seemed to change. Her heart suddenly beat fiercely. But even though her field of vision was coloured in red, she knew that Prince Yan was in front of her.


    Lin Wei Xi was extremely aware that she was approaching Gu Hui Yan with every step that she took. Her legs stiffened and she almost thought that she would trip over herself. At that moment, she rejoiced at the fact that her face was covered with red silk and no one could see her expression. Otherwise she¡¯d show her ugly side.


    Fortunately, every bride would feel nervous when they got married, and the people who noticed how stiff Lin Wei Xi was merelyughed as they teased. The matron of honour<sup>¡ó</sup>supported her as she bid farewell to her parent in the main hall. Since both her parents had passed away, she knelt down and kowtowed to their ck memorial tablets, emotions and tears suddenly bubbled up endlessly. At that moment, reality finally came crashing down on her. She really wanted to say goodbye to her parents and be a wife. Thereafter, she¡¯d spend the rest of her life with another person. They¡¯d go through honour and disgrace together, be intimate and dependent on one another. He¡¯d also rece her parents as the person closest to her.


    ¡ó


    And that person was Gu Hui Yan. Lin Wei Xi had never thought that she¡¯d end up marrying him and felt it presumptuous to even think about it. Be it from the perspective of Princess Royal Shou Kang or the Shizi Fei, Prince Yan was her elder through and through.


    But Gu Hui Yan was standing next to her now, apanying her in kowtowing to her parents. His aura had always been distinct. As he stood next to Lin Wei Xi, in that moment, his aura was enough to intimidate everyone to the depths of their hearts even if he didn¡¯t say a word. She couldn¡¯t see a thing, but she could clearly feel each and every movement of the person beside her, down to his breathing.


    From then on, they¡¯d be husband and wife, and she would serve and obey her husband. Lin Wei Xi quietly called for her mother in her heart. Her surname was Lin now, and she was no longer qualified to pay her respects to Wei Shi. But she still wanted her mother to know that she¡¯d gotten married. May Wei Shi¡¯s spirit rest in peace in Heaven. This time, everything would be different.


    The newly-weds decked out in traditional Chinese clothes bid farewell to the memorial tablet instead of her parents. Seeing this made many tear up. The matron of honour then told Gu Hui Yan to bring his people to Princess Royal Shou Kang and greet her. Shou Kang recognized Lin Wei Xi as her adoptive granddaughter. It wasmon knowledge that she didn¡¯t have a son, but since she wished to acknowledge Lin Wei Xi as her granddaughter, who could do anything about it? Shou Kang was Gu Hui Yan¡¯s aunt and Lin Wei Xi¡¯s adoptive grandmother at the same time . As Lin Wei Xi¡¯s elder, she received the newly-wed¡¯s salute, as it should be.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang changed into clothes befitting a Princess Royal and sat at the highest seat. Seeing the two of them in the hall, she couldn¡¯t help but tear up.


    Gu Hui Yan rarely wore warm coloured clothing, so the bright red clothes dissipated the coldness and sombreness that surrounded him. Instead, it highlighted his handsome brow. A first-rank Prince¡¯s wedding clothes also had its own style. The dragon, along with the sun and moon, coiled around his shoulders and cuffs, instantly distinguishing him from an adolescent boy. With his majestic presence and high cheekbones, everyone was assaulted by an invisible force.


    Gu Hui Yan maintained his dignity and amiability in just the right bnce so that no one would be intimidated, but wouldn¡¯t allow people to be rash. It¡¯s just that the event that day was his own wedding, so he deliberately rxed his aura. After all, it¡¯d be too rude to scare the bride¡¯s family on such a blessed asion. After Gu Hui Yan specifically exercised restraint, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s presence became more obvious. Although no one could see the bride¡¯s face, she had a slender figure and her bearing was dignified. When she walked, the tassels on the veil didn¡¯t sway. The two of them stood side by side in front of the hall, praised by everyone as a match made in heaven and extremely well suited for each other.


    On the big day, Princess Royal Shou Kang held back her tears and solemnly instructed the two newly-weds. Although Gao Xi¡¯s wedding had been honourable and dignified, she hadn¡¯t married out of the Princess Residence. Princess Shou Kang didn¡¯t expect that one day, her years of regret would be resolved.


    After the elders instructed the newly-weds, the ceremony in the bride¡¯s maiden house was concluded. The etiquette official sang out ¡°it¡¯s the auspicious time¡±, and the entire courtyard swarmed towards the gate like a red cloud.


    Lin Wei Xi sat on the marriage sedan with the help of the matron of honour. With a shout, the sedan lifted into the air. She couldn¡¯t help but grip the apple in the palm of her hand. One yearter, she was returning to the Prince Yan Residence under a different identity.


    From then on, she¡¯d have nothing to do with her ex-husband. She was the Prince Yan Consort and Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s mother.

 Chapter 30

    The news of Prince Yan¡¯s wedding shocked everyone in society. That day, almost everyone in the capital turned up and crowded along the road to watch Prince Yan¡¯s wedding procession.


    The elite soldiers escorted the bride while the armoured troops cleared the path. This extravagant way of marrying a wife was definitely very unique. Those who were watching talked ardently and excitedly about Prince Yan¡¯s military might. They talked about this and that, casually chatting for a long time, when they suddenly realized something. Why hadn¡¯t the new Prince Yan Consort¡¯s wedding procession finished yet?


    Red silk hung on every rosewood box, thecquer uniform and shiny. The porters were all strong and sturdy men, but it was still aborious task to walk while carrying the boxes. The wedding procession passed by the main street, but it¡¯s end remained elusive. The onlookers spent a long time stretching their necks and looking around, but they still couldn¡¯t find it¡¯s end.


    Ten miles of dowry; ten miles was clearly not enough.


    Lin Wei Xi sat motionlessly on the marriage sedan, and even though no one could see her, her back was ramrod straight. After an unknown amount of time, the sedan slowed down. She continued to sit still, and it wasn¡¯t long before a whoosh came from outside, followed by the sound of three arrows uniformly nailing themselves into the sedan door one after another. After the arrow shooting ceremony, the matron of honour¡¯s happy voice rang out next to the sedan, ¡°it¡¯s now auspicious for the bride to get off the sedan. May the bride step down.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stepped out of the sedan with the support of the crowd. When the bride appeared, the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s guests instantly erupted into noise. After that, she followed the matron of honour¡¯s guidance, stepping over the brazier, stepping over the horse saddle as she entered the threshold of the residence, and the ceremony for worshipping heaven and earth<sup>¡ó</sup>. Although this was her wedding, her participation in it was minimal. She felt like a puppet from start to finish, following other people¡¯s instructions.


    ¡ó


    It was only after she finally sat on the bed in the bridal chambers that the apanying maids and female officials secretly let out a sigh of relief. After she entered the wedding room, the wedding ceremony was basicallypleted. Even if an ident urred, the guests wouldn¡¯t be able to see it.


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue secretly rxed, but Lin Wei Xi was unusually nervous. She¡¯d been covered by a red veil for the entire day, so she hadn¡¯t seen Prince Yan yet. But when she thought of what was going to happen next, her palms broke out in a nervous sweat.


    During the three days of the wedding, there was no distinction between seniority, and for the masses who had nothing better to do, disturbing the bridal chamber was their favourite activity. There were people who¡¯d long since been causing a disturbance in the residence so they could see the bride, and for the first time, Lin Wei Xi was concerned about her appearance. Her makeup was a bit thick today, her face instead covered by powder and rouge. It made her look especially delicate and pale. But all bridal makeup was like this and she couldn¡¯t do anything about it.


    Just as she was letting her imagination run wild, a ck pair of cloud patterned boots appeared in her line of sight. His gait was unhurried even at a time like this. Lin Wei Xi even suspected that every step Gu Hui Yan took was the same distance apart.


    A red steel rod raised a tassel, and the veil followed, lifting up. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s vision brightened.


    She reflectively looked at the source of light. She raised her head and happened to meet Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze. This was her first time seeing him wear warm coloured clothes. The red clothes contrasting against him made hisplexion warm as jade and his usual oppressiveness that chased everyone away had also diminished by a lot. His facial features were actually very beautiful, with a heroic and graceful bearing, a tall straight nose, and high cheekbones. When he focused his attention on someone, his eyes were so ck and clear that one could drown them.


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly had an untimely thought that after knowing each other for so long, this was the first time that Prince Yan was looking at her carefully. She couldn¡¯t tell what she was feeling. The two of them nced at each other and quietly looked away, pretending to bashfully lower their heads.


    Nobody noticed that invisible exchange between the two of them. Those who were here to watch were still absorbed in their astonishment at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s appearance, ¡°Some time ago, I heard that the Prince Yan Consort is a beauty. After seeing her today, I realize that my entire life has been for nothing. There actually exists such a beautiful person in this world.¡±


    Standing in the bridal chamber were the female members of the imperial family and a few boys from the imperial family who relied on their youth to boldly stay behind to see the bride. As for the others, even if they had the interest, they didn¡¯t have the courage.


    For a while, the women praised her endlessly. The boys returned to their senses, sighing with envy. Sure enough, the wife that Prince Yan was bringing in could becking in other areas, but wouldn¡¯t becking in terms of appearance. It really pissed them off when they thought about it. Before they could even see the beauty, she¡¯d long since been swiped up.


    The new Princess Consort was the subject of envy and shock from the people around them, and Prince Yan also seemed very satisfied with her. The matron of honour was delighted and immediately walked over with liquor in her hand, a stream of auspicious words spilling from her lips. Gu Hui Yan sat next to Lin Wei Xi and took the lead, picking up the ss of wine. Lin Wei Xi followed his lead and picked the other cup. She was no stranger to this ceremony of sharing of the nuptial cup as she knew it by heart, but she nced furtively at Prince Yan, her hand that held the wine ss hesitated.


    Of course, even though she thought that she¡¯d hidden her gaze, he still noticed. He felt so helpless. She¡¯d been so gutsy back in the fifth month when she dared toe to him and rmend herself for marriage. Now she looked like a little white rabbit. Gu Hui Yan made a move first and moved his wrist into position, and Lin Wei Xi conveniently followed his lead. The two were almost nose to nose as they drank the wine. She looked through the wine ss and saw that their sleeves were ovepping on top of each other. Her wedding gown was extremely luxurious and the sleeves were very wide. Its borate and delicate embroidery now covered Gu Hui Yan¡¯s dignified coiling ck dragon pattern, the contrast unexpectedly bringing out a different kind of aesthetic.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s focus was on Gu Hui Yan¡¯s sleeves, and she choked on the wine when she wasn¡¯t paying attention. Fortunately, the wine ss was tiny, and the wine wasn¡¯t strong. She coughed lightly, quickly enduring the burn at the back of her throat while tightly gritting her teeth, and refused to vite etiquette on such an important day.


    The wedding dress was wide, so Lin Wei Xi¡¯s movements weren¡¯t obvious under the cover of her dress. But even if she could hide it from others, she couldn¡¯t hide it from the person next to her.


    Gu Hui Yan nced at Lin Wei Xi as she sat there awkwardly, not even daring to look in his direction. Fortunately, he merely looked at her before turning his gaze away as if nothing had happened. She sighed in relief and sadly thought that it was over. Prince Yan must think that she was a fool.


    Many of the teenagers cheered loudly as the two of them drank the wine while hooking their wrists. It was a rare opportunity to heckle their Uncle Prince Yan, and this was their only chance. The Ladies covered their lips and smiled. The matron of honour took advantage of the atmosphere in the room to happily walk over and sprinkle fruit onto the bridal chamber. She tossed the fruits while throwing out auspicious words like throwing away money.


    The fruits fell from above with an indescribable grandness. An old woman wasn¡¯t paying attention and smashed a longan on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s forehead. Although the longan was small, it still hurt when it was thrown at her like this. She maintained her smile, but the corner of her mouth twitched imperceptibly.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, but he immediately nced at the old woman. The old woman was initially smiling, but her hand trembled under his gaze, her heart beating like a drum. When she tossed the fruit again, she didn¡¯t dare to use too much force and sprinkled it towards empty space.


    Many of the boys hadn¡¯t satisfied their craving for trouble and wanted to create more. At that moment, Gu Ming Da walked to the door and silently stopped on the other side of the threshold. Although he didn¡¯t say a word, everyone in the room instantly knew that something had happened outside. Gu Hui Yan stood up with his usual expression and said, ¡°Ladies, please be at ease and just enjoy yourselves. Serve the Princess Consort well.¡±


    Hisst sentence was directed at the servants in the room. The servant girls lowered their heads and promised. Gu Hui Yan nodded to several senior Princesses and Princess Consorts before walking out. As soon as he stepped out of the room, Gu Ming Da immediately followed him silently and stepped next to him, whispering something.


    Once he left, be it the guests or the maids, everyone in the room involuntarily let out a sigh of relief. Without Prince Yan here, the Ladies and Madams spoke more freely, and the number of people who came to tease the bride suddenly increased.


    The traditional marriage ceremony waspleted. Lin Wei Xi would be the Prince Yan Consort from then on. Although she was still a bride, the current situation didn¡¯t allow her to be shy. She adjusted herself a little and tried to adapt to the situation. She got up from the bed, a perfect smile on her face, modestly and good-naturedly greeting the Ladies. As long as everything went well, these Ladies would be Lin Wei Xi¡¯s main social circle in the future. This was her first appearance as the Prince Yan Consort, but she couldn¡¯t allow others to look down on her.


    The only thing Lin Wei Xi was proud of in her previous life was that she was a model of a nobledy. She naturally and rxedly stood while entertaining the guests. Even when she was teased, she merely smiled shyly, and didn¡¯t show the displeasure or anger of a mean-spirited person. These Ladies internally assessed her, and their smiles became more earnest.


    Those few boys from the imperial family had long since left without a trace. No one knew if they¡¯d left by themselves or been sent away by Prince Yan¡¯s people, but all who remained were the Ladies and Madams who lived in thep of luxury. Why would they be so noisy? Everyone had a few goodughs. After fulfilling their wish to see Lin Wei Xi blush, they tactfully bid farewell in session and left to participate in the feast outside.


    Today was Lin Wei Xi¡¯s wedding, and ording to custom, it was inauspicious to meet one¡¯s mother-inw. Although it was normal for the mother-inw to avoid the new daughter-inw who had just entered the household, this was the opposite for the Prince Yan Residence. Firstly, Lin Wei Xi was the bride, and secondly, she was the stepmother. Be it social custom or seniority, Lin Wei Xi had no reason to avoid Gao Ran. So she went about her business as usual, while Gao Ran had to hide in her room all day, unable toe out and provoke Lin Wei Xi.


    The mouring of gongs and drums sounded from outside, but Gao Ran had to hide in her room by herself while restraining her feelings of being wronged. She had to appear deeply grateful and willing to do anything, otherwise she¡¯d be disrespecting her mother-inw. Perhaps only Gao Ran herself knew the taste of this feeling.


    Lin Wei Xi was also very happy that a slut like Gao Ran wouldn¡¯t show up on her big day. In her previous life, she had to endure Gao Ran hanging around in front of her on her wedding day. Not only that, she had to act out a role as affectionate sisters with Gao Ran, not to mention how fed up she was with the act. However, only a yearter, Lin Wei Xi had a legitimate reason to make Gao Ran avoid her. Furthermore, in the future, she could ¡°teach¡± Gao Ran about how to conduct herself without holding back. Just thinking about it made her delighted.


    All the strangers had left the room. Wan Yue walked towards Lin Wei Xi and asked quietly, ¡°Miss, do you want to remove the phoenix crown?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nodded. She had long since wanted to get rid of this beautiful burden on her head. Unexpectedly, the Princess Consort¡¯s phoenix crown was much heavier than the Shizi Fei¡¯s. She sat down in front of the dressing table, and Wan Yue came to carefully remove the phoenix crown. As she assisted Wan Yue, Wan Xing excitedly nudged Wan Yue¡¯s elbow, winked, and said, ¡°what do you mean Miss? We should address her as Princess Consort!¡±


    Lin Wei Xi watched their interaction through the mirror and angrily red at them. Wan Xing wasn¡¯t scared, and continued to smile happily as she removed theplicated hairpin from Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hair, nimbly storing it in the jewellery box.


    After releasing her hair, Lin Wei Xi felt very relieved. Getting married was truly physically demanding. What¡¯s more, her physical strength wasn¡¯t very good. Wan Yue was in the middle of talking to Lin Wei Xi when an old granny suddenly walked in holding a serving tray in her hands and gave Lin Wei Xi a Wanfu salute, ¡°Princess Consort, the hangover soup you ordered.¡±


    She stared nkly for a moment, turning around to look at Wan Xing and Wan Yue, ¡°When did you call for a hangover soup?¡±


    Wan Yue was also dumbfounded, ¡°this ve never requested it from the kitchen.¡±


    The kitchen granny also found it odd, ¡°wasn¡¯t it Princess Consort who sent Commander Gu to the kitchen to request for hot soup?¡±


    Gu Ming Da? Everyone in the room was baffled, but Lin Wei Xi understood it at once. She coughed awkwardly, and said quickly, ¡°I had someone request for it. Put it down. All of you have worked hard today. Wan Xing.¡±


    Wan Xing understood and gave the servant a tip. All who had served in the Princess Consort¡¯s bridal chamber that day were rewarded with money. The granny originally thought that she wouldn¡¯t get to experience the festive atmosphere while working in the kitchen, but who would¡¯ve guessed that luck would appear out of thin air. The granny secretly squeezed her purse and her smile grew wider, ¡°thank you Princess Consort! This servant prays that the Prince and Princess Consort will grow old together and quickly have a son. This servant is clumsy with words and is only able to say this. I hope the Princess Consort doesn¡¯t dislike it.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled, and Wan Xing teased the granny as she sent her out. After she left, Wan Yue asked curiously, ¡°Miss, when did you have Commander Gu send for the soup from the kitchen?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi also didn¡¯t expect that Gu Hui Yan would notice this kind of detail when he stood so far above her. She¡¯d choked when they drank the nuptial wine, and he must¡¯ve assumed that she wasn¡¯t used to drinking alcohol, so he sent Gu Ming Da to the kitchen to prepare hot soup. She smiled in embarrassment and quickly changed the subject, ¡°It¡¯s gettingte, and I don¡¯t know when Prince Yan will return. Go check on the hot water. I want to take a bath.¡±


    Wan Yue obediently left to turn on the water in the bathroom and Lin Wei Xi softly let out a sigh of relief. Taking advantage of this time, she listened to the reason for Gu Hui Yan¡¯s early departure from her dowry maid. It turned out that a reward had arrived from the pce. The Emperor regretted not being able to attend his Uncle Prince Yan¡¯s wedding in person, so he dispatched Chief of Security Feng to send a generous gift and attend the feast on his behalf. The Emperor had specially given Prince Yan a congrattory wedding gift, and when the Empress Dowager learned about it, she also prepared one and had Chief of Security Feng present both gifts simultaneously.


    Gu Hui Yan had left earlier to greet Chief of Security Feng. Furthermore, Grand Secretary Zhang had also visited the Residence today. The three Regent Ministers appointed by the previous Emperor himself had all gathered today.


    While Emperor Mu Zong was on his deathbed, he entrusted his only son to Prince Yan Gu Hui Yan, Grand Secretary Zhang Xiao Lian and Supervisor Feng Cheng, all of whom he¡¯d appointed as Regent Ministers to assist the young Emperor. Gu Hui Yan was a first-rank Prince of the imperial family who held massive military power and stood matchless within the army. Zhang Xiao Lian was the Grand Secretary and the main pir of support for the civilian court. Feng Cheng was a pce eunuch and the chief of the Shadow Guards.


    The imperial n, the civil servants, and the pce eunuchs; these three powers formed checks and bnces on each other. It could be seen that although Emperor Mu Zong was blinded by Bugui Fei, he was very clear-headed when it came to his own country. When Lin Wei Xi heard this, she felt that it was very miraculous. Grand Secretary Zhang, His Highness Prince Yan, and Chief of Secretary Eunuch Feng all stood above tens of thousands of people. These people had only existed in major political events and legends. But now, these three legendary figures were actually walking on the samend as her and one of them was even her husband.


    Lin Wei Xi thought about it for a while before shaking the thoughts out of her head. They were worlds apart from her; she didn¡¯t understand them and it wasn¡¯t her ce to care. She ought not to worry about it.


    She went to take a bath after removing her makeup. After that, she spent a lot of time and effort applying perfume and tidying her hair. After she finished struggling with it, she waited for a long time but wasn¡¯t able to see Gu Hui Yan return. In the end, she almost fell asleep leaning against the bedpost. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps and greetings came from outside, and Lin Wei Xi woke with a start.


    A tall and slender figure could be seen slowly walking towards the inner room through the screen.

 Chapter 31

    The door opened and the early cold winter wind rushed in from the gap. Lin Wei Xi unconsciously stood up. Gu Hui Yan had only taken two steps and saw a blurry figure through the screen. He stopped, looking emotionlessly at the person who¡¯d opened the door.


    The granny who opened the door had no reaction. She was scared dumb by Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze. Wan Xing was still the most alert. She seized the curtain and turned around to close the door tightly. After blocking out the wind, she red at the woman angrily, ¡°Our Miss¡¯s body is weak. Can you take responsibility for exposing her to the wind?¡±


    Only then did the old servant realize that Prince Yan had gotten angry just now because of the new Princess Consort. The granny who hadmitted a mistake lowered her head in embarrassment. The others in the room also bowed their heads and held their breaths. Gu Hui Yan had no intention to argue with his servants. Seeing as they recognized their mistake, he turned around and walked in. After he left, almost everyone let out a long sigh. Only a few had indescribably expressions on their faces, their eyes dark and difficult to read.


    Lin Wei Xi saw Gu Hui Yan approach and didn¡¯t even know what to do with her hands, ¡°Your¡­ Your Highness Prince Yan, you¡¯ve returned? The water is ready, do you want to take a bath first?¡±


    He nced at her. In the end, he didn¡¯t want to make things difficult for her, so he merely nodded and went into the bathroom. She stood there staring nkly for a while, her mind in a mess. What should she do next? Apparently, a qualified wife would always have hangover soup prepared for her husband. No matter what time he returned from social events, it would always be ready. Lin Wei Xi smacked her forehead. It was over, she¡¯d forgotten. The only soup in the room was the bowl of hot soup that Prince Yan had requested. If she turned around and gave it to him, would he recognize it?


    Lin Wei Xi stood there as her imagination ran wild, and she still hadn¡¯t made up her mind when she suddenly heard movement from behind her. Her heart dropped as she turned her head, ¡°You¡¯re out? So fast?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan frowned without saying a word and looked at her, ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was confused. What did he mean? What had she said?


    Gu Hui Yan was clearly more familiar with this room than her and walked straight into the adjacent room. She was at a loss for a moment before following behind with small steps.


    ¡°Your Highness, would you like to drink hangover soup?¡±


    ¡°Is it ready?¡±


    She lowered her head and said softly, ¡°No.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked helplessly at Lin Wei Xi. He tried to hold back his smile, but it couldn¡¯t help slipping out, ¡°You¡­ that¡¯s enough. Raise your head. I didn¡¯t drink that much.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nced tentatively at him and found that although his face was calm, something seemed to be hidden in his eyes. He seemed indescribably fretful but he also didn¡¯t look drunk. That¡¯s right, Gu Hui Yan had left that time to receive the Emperor and Empress Dowager¡¯s reward. Eunuch Feng had arrived in an Imperial procession. Aside from Prince Yan, was there anyone else qualified to receive him? As for drinking at the wedding banquet following that, it was naturally a gathering of these few top characters that included Gu Hui Yan, Eunuch Feng, and Grand Secretary Zhang. The three of them were sophisticated men. How could they get drunk?


    It could be said that Gu Hui Yan felt indescribably irritated because of this meeting. Clearly, with the top three men of the imperial court gathered together like this, it was hard to say whether it was a coincidence that all the topics discussed were heavy.


    Lin Wei Xi had a vague idea of the situation, but her eyes kept sweeping away from Gu Hui Yan. Although she was somewhat rted to Prince Yan in her previous life, her position had changed in this new life and she¡¯d be Prince Yan¡¯s main wife. She actually cared a lot about the items that represented her status as the main wife.


    It wasn¡¯t a problem for Prince Yan to treat her as a child since she was previously his subordinate¡¯s daughter. But if, moving forward, he continued to treat her as a junior and an amusing pet to tease when he was bored, it waspletely uneptable. Lin Wei Xi knew that as someone who had spontaneously asked for marriage, she probably didn¡¯t hold much weight to Prince Yan. But even if he was discontented, she still had to have the status and respect of a main wife. This was a principle that had been instilled into her at a young age so there was no use discussing it.


    Lin Wei Xi secretly looked at Gu Hui Yan again, pretending to unintentionally walk towards the seat across from him. She had barely taken two steps before his gaze swept over her. She immediately stopped walking and looked a little stiff.


    It¡¯d really been a long time since he¡¯d felt so helpless. He had no choice but to say, e sit here.¡±


    No matter how fierce she¡¯d been previously, Lin Wei Xi instantly knew her ce when facing Gu Hui Yan. She cleverly sat across from him, unconsciously folding her hands on her knees with the posture of a child greeting their master. Gu Hui Yan patted her hand and asked with a smile, ¡°Are you afraid of me?¡±


    ¡°You think too highly of me.¡± she couldn¡¯t help letting it slip, ¡°it¡¯s not only me. The whole world is afraid of you.¡±


    ¡°I remember the first time I saw you, you dared to vent your displeasure at me and hide behind a tree while stalking my route. Why are you scared now?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt extremely embarrassed, ¡°I was wrong. I had no idea what I was doing and offended the Prince.¡± At that, she secretly nced at Gu Hui Yan¡¯s face and said haltingly, ¡°Prince Yan, at that time¡­ I was wrong. Please don¡¯t hold it against me.¡±


    Both of them were well aware of what she was talking about. He leaned back against his chair as he looked at her, his fingers unconsciously stroking his tea cup. Even he didn¡¯t realize that a small smile was floating in his eyes, ¡°You¡¯ve already be the Prince Yan Consort, and you¡¯re just now telling me not to hold it against you? Then what do you n to do if I choose to?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stood up, lips shaking, and looked like she was going to cry, ¡°am I not allowed to make mistakes? As the adult, you should be forgiving and not bicker with a little girl like me.¡±


    Only now did she think of herself as a little girl.


    Lin Wei Xi had her head lowered, so she didn¡¯t see Gu Hui Yan tilt his head and cough lightly, using his fist to cover the smile on his lips. She¡¯d looked radiant with delight when scolding people in the past, confident in her convictions, even daring to mercilessly scold the Prince Zhao Consort. It was rare for one to look so cute and wronged at the same time. His irritation calmed down without him noticing. Problems with court disputes and having a weak ruler suppressed by strong retainers seemed so far away at the moment. The person he was facing was nothing more than an awkward little girl.


    Gu Hui Yan smiled unconsciously and motioned for Lin Wei Xi to sit down. After she sat down, he said, ¡°You can count on me to keep my word since I promised you. You can continue to live like how you used to in the Prince Yan Residence.¡±


    She sat diffidently on the chair, half believing and half doubtful, ¡°are you serious?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Prince Yan hadmitted to this in front of her. This was supposed to be considerate and generous, but she felt unhappy for some reason. Her lips twitched imperceptibly, ¡°you really are so forgiving and generous. If another womanes begging in a few days, are you going to ept her? The way I see it, it won¡¯t be long before the Prince Yan Residence turns into a charity.¡±


    He smiled calmly, his tone casual, ¡°After all, I¡¯d promised your father to take care of you. What better way to care for you than by staying in the Prince Yan Residence?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s unfathomable anger suddenly disappeared. She knew that Prince Yan was definitely not one who had a good temper. If one dared to be mean to him, one had to be prepared to lose everything.


    She sat and sulked for a while before realizing that he was calmly doing his own thing and not paying attention to her. She suddenly felt very stupid. Back then, she¡¯d braved the rain to meet him and say the most audacious words in both her lifetimes not to sit here acting rashly with him because she felt wronged and repeat the mistakes of her past life. After Lin Wei Xi thought about it, she tried to find the most straightforward way to get herself out of this embarrassing situation, ¡°Your Highness, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m not dissatisfied with you, it¡¯s just that¡­ ¡± She racked her brains for the right words, ¡°in any case, I¡¯m the Prince Yan Consort now. I know I¡¯m in no position to be dissatisfied, but should you bring in another woman in the future, it will make things difficult for me¡­ ¡°


    Before she could finish speaking, she was suddenly interrupted. His voice was firm and unwavering, ¡°I won¡¯t.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was dumbfounded. Gu Hui Yan thought that she hadn¡¯t heard him, so he repeated himself, ¡°There won¡¯t be another one. There are very few people in the world whom I owe a favour to, and you¡¯re the only one capable of making me promise you the position of Prince Yan Consort.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s heart suddenly skipped a few beats, ¡°you mean¡­ ¡°


    ¡°I had promised Lin Yong to protect you. Since you don¡¯t trust other people and don¡¯t want to marry into their house, it¡¯s okay to always stay in the residence. Just be yourself. There¡¯s no need to burden yourself.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know what kind of answer she wanted to hear, but she knew that after hearing his words, her heart quickly sank. Prince Yan had merely epted her unreasonable request and promised to marry her out of kindness.


    In simple terms, he didn¡¯t care if he had a Princess Consort or who was the Princess Consort. Since she¡¯d asked for it like this, he¡¯d considered it and epted it, so it was all right to do as she wished. The root of all thisy with Lin Yong¡¯s life saving debt of kindness.


    Lin Wei Xi was a little disheartened. She didn¡¯t know why she felt this way, as her current situation was much better than what she¡¯d expected. She knew all too well how terrifying her husband¡¯s silent treatment was. She was unharmed at the moment, and he was ready to treat her with mutual respect as her husband, each person minding their own business. This was indeed the ideal husband and wife rtionship. If such a couple existed in an influential aristocratic family, they¡¯d be praised by everyone as a happily married couple.


    Lin Wei Xi lowered her gaze and whispered, ¡°my Prince is right. As long as you treat me with the dignity of the main wife, I¡¯ll wholeheartedly manage the household for you. From now on, I belong to the Prince Yan Residence. I won¡¯t disappoint you and I¡¯ll definitely be a capable mistress.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked at her and couldn¡¯t help reaching out to pat her head, ¡°Why do you look so downcast? What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    She swatted his hand away, her face still cold and solemn, ¡°my Prince, I¡¯m your main wife. You should respect me.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan really couldn¡¯t help butugh, ¡°Why are you acting like a child and showing your temper?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s anger rushed to her head but she forced it down, ¡°I¡¯m not a child. Stop thinking of me as a child.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan leaned against the armrest with one hand. He smiled quietly, Lin Wei Xi the only one in his eyes, ¡°then how should I treat you?¡±


    ¡°In two months, I¡¯ll turn seventeenth. You should treat me as a woman.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes changed almost imperceptibly. He nced to the side and gave off a very dangerous feeling for some reason. Lin Wei Xi unconsciously followed his gaze and found that he was looking at a pair of wedding candles, carved with a dragon and a phoenix. Because it¡¯d been burning for a long time, the red wedding candles were halfway melted and tears of wax umted into numerous small hills.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face reddened unconsciously, and before she could say anything to smooth things over, her body suddenly felt light and she rose into the air.


    At the sudden weightlessness, she unconsciously clung onto the shoulders of the person in front of her. Prince Yan had been in the army for many years so his shoulders were much sturdier than those of the arrogant men in the capital. Even beneath twoyers of clothing, she could feel how strong and lithe his arms were. She could feel the heat through both their clothes as it slowly and unavoidably spread to her waist and thighs.


    Lin Wei Xi was finally distinctly aware of what the Prince Yan Consort represented, aside from taking care of the household and socializing.


    <hr>


    T/n: oof what a cliffhanger. Will they bonk? We¡¯ll only know next chapter. Unfortunately due to my update schedule, yall will have to wait till Monday. I will say tho that the author is a SCAM and skipped straight to the following morning. Hopefully this doesn¡¯t leave yall in too much suspense, I don¡¯t want to spoil what happens either HAHA

 Chapter 32

    Lin Wei Xi tossed and turned the entire night, but Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t sleep well either. He¡¯d spent most of his youth on the battlefield and the slightest oversight would lead to death, so he¡¯d long since developed a habit of being alert while asleep and would open his eyes at the slightest movement. Now there was suddenly another person sleeping next to him, and she had a bad sleeping posture. As one could imagine, he didn¡¯t get much sleep that night, and when he finally settled down after much difficulty, the eastern sky was slowly brightening. Before long, his biological clock that he¡¯d developed over the years woke him up ording to schedule.


    Gu Hui Yan sighed in resignation. It seemed like there were many things they¡¯d have to adjust. He sat up after lying down for a moment. Lin Wei Xi was having difficulties sleeping in a different bed, and when she groggily felt movement by her side, she was startled awake and immediately opened her eyes. She stared at therge red bed curtain, lost in thought for a long time. She was deep in thought when she suddenly felt a pat on her head, ¡°since you¡¯re awake, get up. Don¡¯t space out.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi forced herself up and stared nkly at the person in front of her before looking around at theyout of the room, her consciousness finally returning. That¡¯s right, she¡¯d gotten married to His Highness Prince Yan yesterday.


    Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t tell the difference between night and day and she hugged the embroidered quilt as she sat on the bed. Gu Hui Yan had already changed his clothes and when he turned around to find her still sitting there hugging her knees, he felt amused and helpless. He could only lift the bed curtain, stand on the step outside the arhet bed, and say to her, ¡°still spacing out? They¡¯re going to serve you tea in a while. Won¡¯t you feel embarrassed if you let the juniors wait?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was used to livingfortably in her boudoir and didn¡¯t feel like getting up on such a cold day. Especially afterst night, her body felt quite ufortable. But after hearing Gu Hui Yan¡¯s words, she cheered up. That¡¯s right, from now on, she was Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s and Gao Ran¡¯s elder. Today, the two of them were going to kowtow to her. How could such a satisfyingly happy asion be dyed by sleeping in?


    Lin Wei Xi immediately became excited. When Gu Hui Yan saw that she finally decided to move, he smiled to himself, let down the curtain, and no longer intruded in her space while she changed.


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue had long since been waiting outside the door with hot water, no one having been on the night watch the day before. Gu Hui Yan was very vignt, and sleeping with another person by his side was his limit. If the maids were left on night watch, he wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep at all. Since she was a child, Lin Wei Xi was used to leaving a maid on night duty on a small couch outside the room. But now she could only change her habits to fit Gu Hui Yan¡¯s and remove the granny and servant girl on night duty.


    After changing her clothes, Lin Wei Xi let her hair down and called for Wan Xing and Wan Yue, who opened the door and filed in. The whole morning seemed to brighten up with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s voice. The maids came and went, seemingly chaotic, but there was an order to it. And at the heart of this vortex was Lin Wei Xi.


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t really understand why so many people were required to help her get dressed and wash up. But separated by the numerous attendants, this delicate and seemingly otherworldly woman stood at the centre of everyone. She stretched out her hands like it was second nature, allowing the maids on both sides to fasten her gorgeous dresses and straighten out every fold on her skirt. Perhaps because her hair had gotten stuck in her cor, Lin Wei Xi pulled up her long hair as it fell like a ck waterfall, the soft silky hair drawing an elegant arc in the morning light. She indifferently smoothened out her hair, a nk expression on her delicate face, but it was this kind of carelessness that deeply attracted the attention of men, who were unable to break out of it.


    Gu Hui Yan watched her silently for a while, his Adam¡¯s apple bobbing slightly, before finally forcing himself to look away. He¡¯d spent half his life in the military. His world previously consisted entirely of armoured horses along frozen rivers on a Northern conquest, or an open desert with a lone smoke beacon next to the setting sun. His life was like the vastness of the moon, calm,posed, neat and orderly; only the sound of the wind could be heard. Until one day a red delicate flower suddenly pierced through the deste sea of ??sand. She was weak and delicate, but contrary to expectations, wanted to take root in the desert, trying in vain to change something with her own power.


    There existed armoured horses as unbearably cold as the spring wind, and there were also green willows and red flowers that bloomed brightly. The former was him, thetter was Lin Wei Xi. He suddenly understood why there were so many types of jewellery, hairpins, precious stones and tortoise shells. If it were Lin Wei Xi, she was indeed befitting of all the treasures in the world.


    Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan¡¯s daily habits were probably worlds apart. He always did things by himself, silently and quickly, be it taking a bath, eating or changing. But she was different. Or rather, she was theplete opposite. She was a woman, and a rather beautiful woman at that. It was quite normal to put in more time and effort to dress herself and put on makeup.


    By the time Lin Wei Xi was finally satisfied with her appearance, Gu Hui Yan had already half a book in the corner. She stood by the door, somewhat embarrassed, and softly called, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan put down his book before Lin Wei Xi reached him. At that moment, he just so happened to get up and walk to her side. His expression was very calm, not at all like the upright general who previously punished those who were even a little bitte with twenty strokes of the cane. Today, she wore red makeup and a flower patterned cross-cored top with a skirt of the same colour underneath,rge Moutan peonies blooming across it. It seemed like almost half the room lit up when she stood there. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze lingered on her without concealing the astonishment and smile in his eyes, ¡°very good, let¡¯s go.¡±


    It took Lin Wei Xi a long time before she realized that ¡°very good¡± was apliment.


    She spent a lot of time dressing and grooming herself because she liked to make herself beautiful, but it was certainly more enjoyable to receive the admiration of others, especially if that person was Prince Yan. Lin Wei Xi was in a good mood, and followed next to him as he walked to the main hall of the residence.


    Unsurprisingly, Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran were already waiting in the main hall. Lin Wei Xi retracted the smile on her face, put on the air of an elder, and sat solemnly to the right of Gu Hui Yan.


    As soon as Gu Hui Yan showed up, the faintly discernible sound of conversation in the hall faded and disappeared. Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao stood to the side with their heads bowed to respectfully greet their father. Behind Gu Hui Yan, a bright red skirt swept past everyone¡¯s vision, following which Lin Wei Xi sat in a chair in the main hall with her chin slightly tucked, steadily looking at them.


    Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran feltplicated seeing this. Yesterday had been Prince Yan and Lin Wei Xi¡¯s imperial wedding and Gao Ran hadn¡¯t left her room in order to avoid her future mother-inw. Gu Cheng Yao, as a stepson, had no reason to hang around his young stepmother. This made it embarrassing to meet today. Back in the fifth month, he¡¯d never thought that they¡¯d be mother and child the next time they met.


    Seeing that the Prince and the Princess Consort were already seated, the servant next to them calmly cleared his throat to remind the stunned Shizi and Shizi Fei to move. Gu Cheng Yao returned to his senses, lowered his gaze and lifted his robe before kowtowing to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°may Father and Mother please receive this son¡¯s respects. This son wishes you good health.¡±


    Gao Ran followed him and kowtowed, ¡°Father, Mother.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi only needed to lower her gaze to see Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran kneeling in front of her with their hands on the ground and their foreheads firmly on the back of their hands. This was a very precise kowtow ceremony. She barely managed to control herughter. She intended to pretend to be earnest and let them kneel longer, but Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t pay attention to her small wants and said in a deep voice, ¡°you can get up.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt very regretful, but she knew that there¡¯d be ample time for thatter. There were still plenty of days where these two had to kowtow to her and there was no need to pick at this particr instance. She smiled at the thought of this and said, ¡°I¡¯m not that much older than Shizi and Shizi Fei. I feel so ashamed to receive such a huge show of respect from you. Quickly, get up.¡±


    Wan Xing couldn¡¯t help but silently curse when she heard this,<em>Miss, even though you say this, your seat is more secure than anyone else and it¡¯s obvious that you¡¯re not really ashamed</em>. If even Wan Xing thought so, one could imagine how strange Gu Cheng Yao felt and how furious Gao Ran was.


    Gu Hui Yan turned around and shot a nce at Lin Wei Xi, saying, ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re not much older than them? You were younger than them from the start.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was trying to act coy by posing as a model elder, but it was spoiled by Prince Yan in a blink of an eye. She red at him with some resentment, ¡°my Prince, we¡¯re in front of the juniors.¡±


    Alright, he wouldn¡¯t argue with her. He merely turned around and said lightly, ¡°it¡¯s the truth.¡±


    Naturally, Lin Wei Xi pretended not to hear. Gao Ran, who was kneeling on the ground, realized that the two of them were idly chatting like no one else was present, as if those around them didn¡¯t exist. She was a little humiliated and embarrassed. At the thought that she¡¯d have to pay her respects to Lin Wei Xi every day from then on, she immediately felt furious and desperate and faintly felt like vomiting.


    Gu Hui Yan and Lin Wei Xi had both told them to get up, but there was still one more etiquette that they hadn¡¯tpleted, and a junior could never get up without permission. Gu Cheng Yao still knelt and only straightened his upper body, taking a teacup from the maid beside him and raising it to his eyebrows. He fixed his gaze on the decorative design of the table and chair, refusing to look at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Mother, this son offers you tea.¡±


    Previously, during Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran¡¯s wedding, because Princess Consort Shen had passed away and Prince Yan wasn¡¯t home, their tea ceremony was dyed to this point. When Prince Yan returned from the Northter on, Gao Ran made up for the tea ceremony the day she met him. At that time, Gu Hui Yan had received the tea like this before putting it down. Although he was aloof, the tea was considered to be epted. However, he was only the father. Gao Ran hadn¡¯t settled the tea ceremony with her mother-inw.


    If the residence had no mistress, it was enough for Gao Ran to serve a cup of tea to Princess Consort Shen¡¯s memorial tablet, which she did on a regr basis. Unfortunately, Prince Yanter married a new Princess Consort and Lin Wei Xi became Gao Ran¡¯s new mother-inw. Since things were like this, the half-finished tea ceremony couldn¡¯t be disregarded.


    Newly-wed couples served their parents tea to show that they¡¯d serve their parents, from meals to tea, after marriage and dedicate themselves to fulfilling their filial piety. Gu Cheng Yao took the lead in raising the teacup over his eyebrows. Lin Wei Xi arrogantly snorted to herself and humbled herself to a lower position to take the teacup and say, ¡°I¡¯ll remember your filial piety. In the future, you must study diligently and carefully consider the way you treat others. Be sure that your words and deeds are consistent and always be self-aware.¡±


    It wasmon for parents to admonish their children during the tea ceremony. This was, of course, for the good of the children, but these few sentences that Lin Wei Xi said made the people who heard it want to grit their teeth and fume with rage.


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change and he indifferently agreed. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t want to drink the tea that he¡¯d offered, so she lifted the lid and put it down, refusing to pretend to even take a sip. Of course, Gu Hui Yan could see her unconcealed hostility towards Gu Cheng Yao, but he¡¯d actually known about it since Shunde District. Perhaps some things no longer posed a threat once known. Gu Hui Yan watched the scene unfold in front of him and epted it without much surprise.


    Gu Cheng Yao had also obviously expected it and wasn¡¯t surprised at all. Gao Ran watched from the sidelines and rejoiced to herself. Lin Wei Xi dared to not give Shizi face in public. An outsider like her deserved to die! Even though Prince Yan and Shizi seemed calm now, they¡¯d certainly care about it, so Lin Wei Xi¡¯s image was greatly affected without Gao Ran needing to do anything.


    Gao Ran¡¯s smile became more genuine. She took the teacup from the maid and gently handed it over to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Princess Consort, this daughter-inw serves you tea.¡±


    Gao Ran secretly gathered her strength in her hands, but Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t receive the teacup and instead asked, ¡°What did you call me?¡±


    Gao Ran smiled a little stiffly, ¡°Princess Consort¡­ ¡°


    Very good. Lin Wei Xi humphed lightly and turned to look at Gu Hui Yan, ¡°my Prince, look at her!¡±


    His expression didn¡¯t change, but his eyes obviously softened and he was clearly holding back a smile. Gu Cheng Yao genuinely felt helpless towards Gao Ran, towards this childish stepmother, and towards his father.


    At the same time, Gu Cheng Yao felt that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s tactics were so obvious that no one could bear to look straight at her. He couldn¡¯t stand Lin Wei Xi¡¯s troublemaking tendencies nor his father letting her do as she pleased. Gu Hui Yan obviously sided with Lin Wei Xi. In fact, Gu Cheng Yao was this old but he¡¯d never seen anyone aside from her dare to involve themselves with Gu Hui Yan.


    Since his father was willing to indulge her, Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t really say anything about it. But the person Lin Wei Xi had targeted was his wife! The most important thing was that the family lived in harmony. Over time, the estrangement between Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran would only get worse. Gu Cheng Yao had no choice but to stand up and say, ¡°Mother, Gao Ran didn¡¯t have bad intentions. She just thought you¡¯d prefer this form of address.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi snorted, ¡°I don¡¯t like it. Even the Prince doesn¡¯t address me like that. Why should you?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan raised his eyebrows and nced meaningfully at Lin Wei Xi with a smile in his eyes. He looked like he was watching a y. Gao Ran had no way to vent her anger and could only follow Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s lead and say, ¡°Shizi is right. I just thought that Mother would prefer to be addressed as Princess Consort. Since Mother dislikes it, then I¡¯ll no longer use it.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi waspletelyforted after being called Mother. She was in a good mood, so she stopped making things difficult, ¡°since you¡¯re so filial, from my perspective, I¡¯ll naturally teach you wholeheartedly¡­ ¡°


    When Lin Wei Xi received Gao Ran¡¯s tea, her hand suddenly shook, and an entire cup of hot tea was sshed on Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao.

 Chapter 33

    Shizi Fei served tea to the new Princess Consort. She was gentle and respectful, filial towards her parents, while the Princess Consort was amiable. Although she wasn¡¯t Shizi Fei¡¯s biological Mother-inw, she didn¡¯t neglect teaching her. If things only ended there, this would be a picture of filial piety between a kind mother-inw and the filial daughter-inw, and that would be the end of it.


    But what followed surprised everyone in the room. The Princess Consort seemed fine, but when she received the tea from Shizi Fei, her hand unexpectedly shook and the entire cup of tea spilled on Shizi Fei. It was important to note that this was freshly brewed hot tea. If it spilled onto someone, it¡¯d be a catastrophe.


    Lin Wei Xi saw a smile practically sh through Gao Ran¡¯s eyes.


    Ah, stepmother. This ¡®step¡¯ was the Original Sin. If she properly took care of the child left behind by her predecessor, others would criticize and say that she was cunningly two-faced, harming the child by excessively praising them. If she tried to avoid suspicion and ended up estranged from the children, she¡¯d still be criticized for being harsh. They summed up every woman in a sentence, calling all of them cruel. And if a woman was both a mother-inw and a stepmother, this would probably naturally be the main topic surrounding her. Even if she did nothing, she¡¯d still be stared at with guarded eyes. And if she were to pour a cup of hot tea at the first wife¡¯s daughter-inw in public, she¡¯d be ndered to death by the masses once this spread.


    Fortunately, Lin Wei Xi had dealt with Gao Ran for more than ten years. When she was young, she suffered from many avoidable and unavoidable losses. And when she grew up, her heart became more guarded than normal women. Lin Wei Xi was secretly cautious when she received the tea. And sure enough, when she reached out for it, she saw Gao Ran¡¯s fingers move. Her wrist looked stiff, like it was ready to exert force.


    Lin Wei Xi inwardly let out an ¡°Oh¡±. She didn¡¯t bat an eyelid, but turned her outstretched hand slightly to ensure that Gu Hui Yan could clearly see the movement of her hand. As expected, she¡¯d barely touched the saucer and hadn¡¯t even felt the weight of it, before the entire cup of hot tea suddenly tilted and spilled onto Gao Ran.


    From the back, it seemed like Lin Wei Xi had deliberately thrown the cup at Gao Ran.


    Cries of rm echoed in the hall and Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes immediately sharpened. Gu Cheng Yao was kneeling next to Gao Ran and reacted the fastest. He pulled her away, and she closely avoided the most dangerous ssh of hot water. But despite this, her arms and hands couldn¡¯t avoid getting soaked with tea. Gao Ran hissed painfully and furrowed her eyebrows. It seemed like she¡¯d been scalded by hot water but was forcing herself to endure it.


    Lin Wei Xi merely raised an eyebrow at this and then retracted her hand like nothing had happened. The maids and Grannies were so scared that they cried as they gathered around Gao Ran, inquiring about the injury while feeling sorry for her. Gu Cheng Yao was also extremely angry, his brow shrouded in anxiety as he raised his head to look at Lin Wei Xi.


    But when he saw her expression, he couldn¡¯t help but freeze. He thought he¡¯d see an insincere expression on her face. Shouldn¡¯t she be pretending to be a little concerned and guilty? But no, Lin Wei Xi sat there, unconcerned and aloof with no guilt or pride on her face. There was even a cold smile in her eyes, as if she¡¯d expected this to happen.


    Gu Cheng Yao frowned. He was incredibly ufortable with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression that seemed to suggest that she was uninvolved. Gu Hui Yan looked at the mess in front of him. His voice unconsciously deepened and a powerful pressure hit everyone, ¡°quiet.¡±


    In a sh, the hall became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Even Gao Ran, who was cradling her arm, suppressed the sound of her breathing as she endured the pain. Afterwards, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s emotionless voice sounded, ¡°Call the imperial doctor.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t a trivial matter for the Prince Yan Shizi Fei to burn her arm with hot tea. The imperial doctor came immediately. Because the Shizi Fei had been identally injured, the tea ceremony and the meeting of the new inws naturally couldn¡¯t continue. Lin Wei Xi stood in the next room and listened as the imperial doctor treated Gao Ran on the other side of the folding screen.


    The imperial doctor gave many instructions and the maids inside responded one by one. Even Gu Cheng Yao listened attentively. Finally, he sent the imperial doctor out and as he rounded the folding screen, he saw Lin Wei Xi and nodded coldly, ¡°Mother.¡±


    The imperial doctor hurriedly greeted her, ¡°Prince Yan Consort.¡±


    ¡°Imperial doctor, no need to be courteous.¡± Lin Wei Xi pretended to support the imperial doctor. He hurriedly declined and stood up straight. Of course, Lin Wei Xi was only acting. She was now the Prince Yan Consort. Even her father and brother could no longer touch her as they wished, not to mention other men. She politely smiled as she asked, ¡°How is Shizi Fei¡¯s injury?¡±


    ¡°The tea was freshly brewed when it was poured directly onto her arm. Mother, what do you think is going to happen?¡± Before the imperial doctor could reply, Gu Cheng Yao stared at Lin Wei Xi and asked in a harsh tone.


    She didn¡¯t seem to care about Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s outage and continued to smile politely. Sweat dripped down the imperial doctor¡¯s forehead. He¡¯d heard a long time ago that Prince Yan was going to marry a new bride. The wedding reception the day before had caused a sensation in the capital. But why did the Shizi and the new Princess Consort not seem to get along with each other?


    The imperial doctor didn¡¯t know what to say, and it was at this moment that Gu Hui Yan walked in. This was where his son and his daughter-inw lived and it was inappropriate for him to enter the inner room. So while Gu Cheng Yao and Lin Wei Xi apanied the doctor to watch after Gao Ran inside, he stood in the hall outside. But no one knew what happened to cause Gu Hui Yan to walk through the partition. His gaze fell on Gu Cheng Yao first before he looked at the imperial doctor, and he said in a light tone, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Despite regrly visiting the back courtyard of high-ranking officials, the imperial doctor couldn¡¯t stand it right now. Prince Yan had high status and great power, with numerous departments under hismand. He¡¯d long since passed the age of showing off his abilities, and as his status rose, he became more reserved and unfathomable. But this didn¡¯t mean that the thorns around him were no longer there. On the contrary, the thorns were more deadly because they were invisible.


    The imperial doctor was in a kind of intangible but deadly vortex. Shizi had thrown a few words at the Princess Consort and immediately after, Prince Yan came in without concealing his displeasure¡­ he had an inkling of what was going on, but instead of thinking about it, he lowered his head and exined in detail, ¡°The Shizi Fei¡¯s wounds look terrible, but as long as it¡¯s carefully taken care of, it won¡¯t be a problem. This humble official has already left medicine for her, and her dietary constraints for the next few days were also clearly exined to the maids just now. Princess Consort and Shizi, please rest assured.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t state his opinion on this, but instructed the people behind him, ¡°Thank you for the trouble, imperial doctor Zhou. Send him out.¡±


    Imperial doctor Zhou instantly declined. The doctor and the little servant boy exchanged greetings and walked away, leaving only Lin Wei Xi, Gu Cheng Yao and Gu Hui Yan in the room.


    Only then did Gu Hui Yan look at Gu Cheng Yao, his gaze silent, ¡°are you going to talk to her like this?¡±


    ¡°My Prince¡­¡± Lin Wei Xi had barely said a word before she was interrupted by Gu Hui Yan. His voice was thunderous, ¡°let him answer.¡±


    However, this time, she didn¡¯tply as usual. Instead, she walked to him and clung to his arm, ¡°My Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nced down at her, but she held her ground and looked back at him. The two of them locked gazes with each other for a while and he seemed to sigh softly.


    Gu Cheng Yao looked at him, bbergasted. His father had actually acquiesced? He¡¯d never seen his father revoke an order his entire life, let alonepromise with someone else.


    Lin Wei Xi continued speaking, ¡°Shizi only spoke to me like that because he felt that I¡¯d deliberately sshed hot tea onto Shizi Fei. After all, the tea was spilled from that direction, so it could¡¯ve only been me. Shizi, isn¡¯t that how it is?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao turned his head away, but clearly tacitly agreed. That was indeed what he thought. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know whether to smile sarcastically or to grieve. Separated by life and death, she¡¯d changed her identity, but he still refused to believe her. In the past, Gao Xi would¡¯ve argued. But now, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t even have the energy to defend herself. Wasn¡¯t she their mother? As the mother, wasn¡¯t she supposed to be tolerant of children who were wrong?


    So she merely smiled magnanimously and didn¡¯t go into too much detail of what happened, ¡°I don¡¯t know when Shizi started having such deep seated prejudice against me. If there¡¯s anything I don¡¯t like, I can just say it. Can you even disobey me? Why would I act as a viiness and stupidly let everyone see me targeting Shizi Fei by spilling tea on her?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao originally wanted to refute, but he opened his mouth and realized that he couldn¡¯t say a word. Although her reasoning was twisted, it was truly undisputable.


    Gu Hui Yan was originally angry, but when he heard Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words, he wanted tough despite his anger.


    ¡°Do you know what you¡¯re talking about?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± she shot a nce at him, disgruntled. Her eyes were soft like flowing water, sharp with intelligence and glowing with vigour. The arrogance on her face as it should be, ¡°Shizi, don¡¯t you agree?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao seriously thought through Lin Wei Xi¡¯s reasoning and found himself speechless. His mind, which seemed to have been deceived by a demonic spirit, gradually cleared up. That¡¯s right, why would she need to do something so obvious and stupid? In the past, she was the person with the least support in the residence. Was she crazy enough to pour hot tea on her daughter-inw in public? Furthermore, this wasn¡¯t good to hear, but if Lin Wei Xi really wanted to pour tea on someone, it would definitely be aimed at him. Gao Ran was nothing more than coteral damage. Gu Cheng Yao clearly knew what kind of person Lin Wei Xi was. But when this happened, why didn¡¯t he think that it might be an ident, but instead went straight to suspecting her?


    Gu Cheng Yao was rmed and shocked. What was wrong with him? Why did he seem to have been captured by something just now, which was very unlike himself?


    Lin Wei Xiid out her fantastic logic, and strangely enough, he actually believed it. Gu Hui Yan watched the two people in front of him and for the first time felt preposterous. He could let it go if Lin Wei Xi was dumb. But what was the matter with his son, the heir that he¡¯d nurtured with utmost care?


    As the three of them talked in the adjacent room, there was no movement at all in the bedroom behind the folding screen. The situation had now turned around, and the footsteps in the room suddenly seemed louder. The old servant inside seemed to share Gao Ran¡¯s pain.


    Lin Wei Xi was dangerously close to rolling her eyes. Look at this dirty trick! What an insult to the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s name! It was a dereliction of one¡¯s duty if a woman who grew up in the high walls of the back courtyard didn¡¯t understand how these shameful secrets worked. But even if you wanted to use it, at least look at the situation and who you were facing, right?


    Gu Cheng Yao had been criticizing Lin Wei Xi earlier, but he now felt embarrassed, especially with her disdain clearly written on her face. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes moved and his gaze darkened.


    Actually, Gu Hui Yan had seen it then. He clearly saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand reach halfway and her palm suddenly turn in his direction as her fingertips touched the bottom of the cup. Her hand obviously didn¡¯t have any strength behind it, but the tea sshed in Gao Ran¡¯s direction. Lin Wei Xi naturally didn¡¯t have the strength to do it given her posture. There was something fishy about Gao Ran spilling her tea, but Lin Wei Xi¡¯s movements were also very meaningful.


    Perhaps this wasn¡¯t a feud between young girls like he¡¯d thought.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s heart suddenly lifted, but he didn¡¯t say anything in the end. Lin Wei Xi had barely entered the household as his wife and it was his responsibility to protect her. On the other hand, Gao Ran was his daughter-inw. What was most important was that Gu Cheng Yao loved her.


    Even if this woman might not be a good person, this was his only son¡¯s personal affairs. As long as Gao Ran wholeheartedly loved Gu Cheng Yao, Gu Hui Yan could tolerate these dirty tricks.


    These thoughts shed through his mind. His expression remained the same and he said indifferently, ¡°I saw it during the tea ceremony. The Princess Consort didn¡¯t flip the cup.¡±


    It was like a sudden p of thunder had sounded. The inner and outer rooms immediately turned quiet and the atmosphere inside clearly grew tense. Gao Ran¡¯s heart almost jumped out of her throat. If it wasn¡¯t the Princess Consort, then who was it?


    Without letting anyone specte for too long, Gu Hui Yan continued speaking, ¡°it¡¯s most likely just an ident. Shizi Fei and the Princess Consort don¡¯t really know each other, so the cup slipped.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi sighed a little when she heard this, but she wasn¡¯t surprised. As the head of the family, Prince Yan couldn¡¯t publicly pick on his daughter-inw. His words proved that her actions weren¡¯t in vain. He¡¯d seen it.


    This was enough. Lin Wei Xi also didn¡¯t expect Gao Ran¡¯s true colours to be revealed after just one incident. In fact, the first step was the most difficult. Gu Hui Yan was now wary of Gao Ran, so she wouldn¡¯t really need to do much moving forward. He¡¯d discover everything himself step by step. If Gao Ran wanted to continue stirring up trouble, Lin Wei Xi could only wish her the best. After all, no one knew where Prince Yan¡¯s bottom line was.


    Lin Wei Xi was in a good mood and she was filled with the joy of bing a mother. Her happiness showed on her face and it was only when Gu Hui Yan shot her a nce that she reluctantly held it back.


    It was just the two of them, so why wasn¡¯t the teacup properly received? Then why didn¡¯t the teacup fall vertically, but ssh in Gao Ran¡¯s direction? Not mentioning Gu Cheng Yao, even the other servants in the room didn¡¯t believe it. But Prince Yan said it was an ident, so it was an ident. Gu Cheng Yao knew better than anyone that his father would never lie, not even in court. So Lin Wei Xi undoubtedly hadn¡¯t pushed the teacup.


    Gu Cheng Yao suddenly didn¡¯t want to think about it further. Since it wasn¡¯t Lin Wei Xi, then who was his father covering up for?


    The criticism had originally been directed at the Princess Consort, but the situation suddenly took an abrupt turn. In the end, Prince Yan testified that this matter had nothing to do with her. The situation had developed to this point and no one in the room dared to breathe. Amidst the silence, the hustle and bustle of the inner room stood out. A maid identally knocked over a tray, and the Granny next to Gao Ran promptly scolded in a forced whisper, ¡°how clumsy. Can¡¯t you see that Shizi Fei is sick?¡±


    ¡°Granny¡­ ¡± Gao Ran¡¯s voice sounded, somewhat strained and a weird silence then came from the other side of the screen. It seemed like she was indicating to the other side of the screen.


    Since standing there was ufortable, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t feel like staying any longer. He ordered a ¡°serve them well¡± and turned around to leave first. Gu Cheng Yao only paused for a moment before following after Gu Hui Yan.


    Lin Wei Xi watched the two of them leave one after the other. When Gu Cheng Yao passed by, his eyes lingered for a moment for no apparent reason. She nced at him, her impatience obvious.


    Whatever for?


    He looked away and quickly chased after Gu Hui Yan.


    Those who had no other duties to attend to retreated one after another, and Gao Ran¡¯s servants visibly rxed. Lin Wei Xi wore an indescribable smile as she rounded the screen and walked toward Gao Ran.


    Gao Ran had been frightened earlier, and it wasn¡¯t until Prince Yan left that she felt relieved. It seemed that he hadn¡¯t discovered the truth. He must¡¯ve defended Lin Wei Xi for the Princess Consort¡¯s face.


    Gao Ran saw Lin Wei Xi enter uninvited and stop in front of her bed. She was ufortable but she still squeezed out a smile and said softly, ¡°Mother, why are you here? I¡¯m sorry that I¡¯ve troubled all of you toe just now. My injury isn¡¯t serious. Mother doesn¡¯t need to worry about it.¡±


    ¡°Since you call me Mother, how could I not be concerned about you?¡± Lin Wei Xi smiled and nced at Gao Ran¡¯s arm, that had ointment applied on it, out of the corner of her eyes, ¡°I came to see how badly Shizi Fei had injured herself.¡±

 Chapter 34

    ¡°I came to see how badly Shizi Fei injured herself.¡±


    Gao Ran initially felt nervous if Prince Yan had seen it or not, but hearing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s obvious joy at her misfortune, she could barely maintain the smile on her face. Her expression grew cold and she asked in response, ¡°I don¡¯t understand what Mother means.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just concerned about your injury.¡± Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes overflowed with joy, but they looked faintly icy and thorny when she looked at Gao Ran, ¡°What do you think I want?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words had a hidden meaning. Those who weren¡¯t in the know would of course think that this was her caring for her daughter-inw. But for Gao Ran, who knew her well, this was her way of taunting her secretly.


    Gao Ran had relied on her age to give her an edge for so many years and was sessful in every endeavour in the back courtyard. Over time, she grew confident that she¡¯d seed in whatever she did and that she ought to seed. It took a lot of technique and good timing to throw a teacup while everyone was watching. It was harmful to oneself and there was the risk of being caught. If it were anyone else, Gao Ran would think that this scheme wasn¡¯t worth it. But when it came to herself, she was extremely confident that she¡¯d seed without a problem.


    The situation was initially one-sided at the start, as Gao Ran had predicted. Women had wide sleeves, and she only used her strength when Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand touched the teacup. The timing, the ce, and the people had all aligned for Lin Wei Xi to educate her daughter-inw like this in front of everyone. Anyone who knew about it would get angry. Lin Wei Xi would lose face if she made such a big mistake as soon as she made a public appearance and she¡¯d most likely have no face to fight Gao Ran for power in the future.


    However, Gao Ran hadn¡¯t expected Prince Yan to suddenly say something like that.


    When he said the first sentence, Gao Ran¡¯s heart almost jumped out of her throat. He really saw Lin Wei Xi not flip the teacup? Or had he reluctantlypromised for the sake of the Prince Yan Consort¡¯s face? Gao Ran panicked for a moment until she heard his conclusion that it was just an ident.


    Just an ident. Gao Ran heaved a sigh of relief. Everything was good as long as he didn¡¯t doubt her. But then she thought about it and felt a little unhappy. If it was just an ident, and Prince Yan testified to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s innocence, then for what reason had she suffered such a severe burn?


    She hadn¡¯t aplished her objective and also injured herself.


    She was a little ufortable at first and tried to console herself to forget about this incident, but Lin Wei Xi had to sit at the edge of her bed, take her hand, and examine the burn on her arm.


    ¡°Tsk¡­ it¡¯s red and swollen, plus it¡¯s blistering, I¡¯m afraid your skin will start peeling in a few days. It really hurts to think about it.¡±


    Gao Ran had already steeled herself, but her wounds seemed to burn again at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words. Gao Ran¡¯s face was stiff and she forced herself to smile as she tried to pull back her hand, ¡°Thank you Mother for caring. The wound looks gross. I can¡¯t let it stain Mother¡¯s eyes.¡±


    She tried to pull back her arm, but was firmly held in ce by Lin Wei Xi. She raised her head and gave Gao Ran a brilliant smile that looked sincere, ¡°a freshly boiled cup of tea spilled onto your arm. Luckily you dodged it in time. Otherwise, it could¡¯ve sshed onto your face.¡± Lin Wei Xi¡¯s gaze stopped on Gao Ran¡¯s face, moving inch by inch, ¡°if it had sshed on your face, I¡¯m afraid it would¡¯ve been ruined.¡±


    Being stared at by Lin Wei Xi in this manner made Gao Ran feel like the smooth skin on her face was burning, as if hot water had really sshed on it. A disfigured Shizi Fei¡­ Gao Ran shuddered from head to toe. After breaking free from that unwarranted mental image, she felt a little annoyed as she looked at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Mother, please watch your words!¡±


    ¡°What are you afraid of? It didn¡¯t ssh on your face.¡± Although Lin Wei Xi said this, there was a bit of pity on her face. She lowered her head and swept her eyes over Gao Ran¡¯s fiercely inmed wound and said, ¡°It¡¯s fortunate that it only spilled on your arm. Even if scars are left behind during the scabbing, winter clothes can cover it up and in the summer, no one will see if you wear tighter clothes. It merely hurts a little. Shizi Fei didn¡¯t lose anything.¡±


    Those words caused Gao Ran¡¯s teeth to ache. What did she mean it only hurts a little? Didn¡¯t people struggle their entire lives for the sake of their own body? Gao Ran was already feeling defeated after suffering a double loss from trying to trick her enemy. When Lin Wei Xi said this, the pain felt even more difficult to bear.


    Gao Ran¡¯s facepletely froze over. She and Lin Wei Xi had long since broken off rtions in May because of the marriage, and now they were merely pretending with each other. Lin Wei Xi gripped Gao Ran¡¯s wrist and she had ¡°what a pity¡± written all over her face as she undressed Gao Ran¡¯s wounds with her gaze. Even a living Bodhisattva wouldn¡¯t be able to endure it. Gao Ran fiercely pulled her hand back, but ended up tearing the wound because she used too much force. A wave of burning sensation stretched across her arm and she frowned angrily, hurriedly covered it up, and pretended that it didn¡¯t hurt at all. She said to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°It¡¯s my honour to be able to chat with Mother. But I was injured today. I was struggling for so long earlier. It¡¯s truly exhausting.¡±


    It was obvious that she was hinting for Lin Wei Xi to leave. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s smile became more sincere as she nced down and raised her eyebrows, saying, ¡°that pull must¡¯ve hurt a lot. Imperial doctor Zhou left the medicine, but if the wound isn¡¯t properly taken care of, his painstaking effort will be in vain. Someone, bring the ointment that imperial doctor Zhou left behind. I will personally help Shizi Fei apply the medicine.¡±


    Gao Ran¡¯s maid and old servant grew flustered when they heard this, ¡°Princess Consort¡­ ¡°


    ¡°Are you deaf?¡± Lin Wei Xi suddenly raised her voice. It sounded delicate and cold. ¡°Or do you look down on me, the Princess Consort?¡±


    Seeing this, Wan Xing nced angrily at Ning Fu and the rest, ¡°the Princess Consort is Shizi Fei¡¯s mother-inw. It¡¯s an honour for the daughter-inw to have her mother-inw personally apply medicine for her. You actually dare to ignore her?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t dare.¡± Granny Tao and the few of them could only lower their heads and retrieve the ointment left by imperial doctor Zhou while feeling wronged. They reluctantly handed the medicine to Lin Wei Xi.


    Gao Ran turned pale when she realized that Lin Wei Xi was serious about applying medicine for her, ¡°Mother, my injuries aren¡¯t that bad. There¡¯s no need for Mother to do it.¡±


    ¡°You already call me Mother, so what¡¯s the use in refusing.¡± Lin Wei Xi squinted at Gao Ran and smiled, ¡°you ought to cherish whatever your elder gives you. I don¡¯t have anything with me right now, so I can only apply medicine myself to make up for it. You can treat it as a return gift, my good daughter-inw.¡±


    After she finished speaking, she pulled Gao Ran¡¯s arm without waiting for her to react and fiercely dug out a spoonful of ointment, pping it onto Gao Ran¡¯s arm. The burned skin was especially fragile and it hurt as soon as it was touched. Gao Ran couldn¡¯t hold back a cry and Lin Wei Xi pretended to be surprised as she covered her mouth, her eyes filling with water, ¡°Does it hurt?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was dressed entirely in red today. At that moment, her eyes widened innocently and grew watery. Anyone who saw her would pity her. Unfortunately, Gao Ran was explicitly aware that the tears in Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes weren¡¯t ones of distress, but from enduring herughter.


    Gao Ran clenched her teeth but still squeezed out a smile, ¡°It doesn¡¯t hurt.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s good if it doesn¡¯t hurt. I¡¯ve never done something like this before and don¡¯t know how much force to use. If I¡¯m using too much strength, please tell me Shizi Fei.¡± Lin Wei Xi finished speaking and continued to dig up the ointment and apply it onto Gao Ran¡¯s arm. Gao Ran had nurtured her soft skin and delicate flesh all these years. Getting scalded by boiling tea already made her skin ache, but being treated like this by Lin Wei Xi on top of that brought her indescribable pain. Unfortunately,she had no outlet to vent. Her mother-inw was personally applying medicine for her. This was earth-shattering. If the daughter-inw felt dissatisfied, then she simply couldn¡¯t differentiate good from bad.


    Lin Wei Xi applied the medicine for Gao Ran without any hesitation. The expression on Gao Ran¡¯s face told her that she wanted to hide, but couldn¡¯t. Granny Tao and several others were angry but didn¡¯t dare say anything. Lin Wei Xi endured herughter until her face grew stiff. It was only when she waspletely out of breath that she finally put down the ointment. Everyone in the room, including Gao Ran, quietly breathed a sigh of relief.


    Lin Wei Xi looked at Gao Ran with a smile, and said, ¡°Shizi Fei, you should now be able to take proper care of the wound, right?¡±


    Gao Ran smiled unsmilingly and the corners of her mouth twitched, ¡°Thank you, Mother.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± Lin Wei Xi stood up, lowered her eyes, and looked down at Gao Ran condescendingly, ¡°Shizi Fei offered me tea so I ought to return the favour. You¡¯ve suffered today, so properly recuperate.¡±


    How dare Gao Ran scheme against her by injuring herself to gain everyone¡¯s sympathy. She truly deserved it!


    It felt refreshing for Lin Wei Xi to get her revenge after being schemed against. Yesterday, the kowtow ceremony had happened in the innermost hall of the residence. Large households often used specialized rooms to hold weddings, funerals, ceremonies and other events. That hall was reserved for wedding ceremonies. Now that the wedding was over, Lin Wei Xi moved back to the residence¡¯s main courtyard, Jingcheng courtyard.


    Jingcheng Courtyard stood in the centre of the residence. It spanned a vast area, grand and magnificent. Prince Yan and the Prince Yan Consort lived and entertained their guests there. When Lin Wei Xi walked into Jingcheng Courtyard, a crowd of servants were already kneeling inside. When they saw her enter, all the servants said in unison, ¡°Paying our respects to the Princess Consort. We wish the Princess Consort good health.¡±


    They were all servants who served in Jingcheng Courtyard. Lin Wei Xi paused briefly, her eyes slowly sweeping across the top of everyone¡¯s heads. Without a word, she walked through the passage they made and made her way to a seat in the hall before slowly speaking, ¡°Get up.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Princess Consort.¡±


    The rustling of clothes sounded, but the servants didn¡¯t dare raise their heads even as they stood. They held their breath and bowed their heads looking to the floor


    ¡°Shizi Fei identally injured herself today and it¡¯s held up some of my work. In that case, I¡¯ll just focus on this. Let¡¯s do a roll call of everyone one by one ording to the roster. All the managers will stand up first and briefly exin what you¡¯re in charge of. Then form groups of five ording to your responsibilities and let these maids know when you¡¯re ready so I can recognize your face.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi actually recognized everyone here, but as an outsider who¡¯d only stayed in the residence for a period of time, she shouldn¡¯t be able to recognize the servants of the main courtyard. Therefore, she took this opportunity to have everyone step up one by one, and she¡¯d consider this public knowledge.


    After everyone finished kowtowing to Lin Wei Xi, the new mistress, the sun had already risen to its peak. She¡¯d woken up early today. Firstly, there was that ident during the tea ceremony, and she¡¯d spent half the morning at Gao Ran¡¯s ce. After that, it had taken a long time to do roll call. After the kowtowing was finished, Lin Wei Xi got up from her seat and temporarily went to the west room to sit on the arhat bed. Wan Yue came to ask for instructions, ¡°Princess Consort, do you want your meal?¡±


    She almost nodded but suddenly remembered that she was the Prince Yan Consort now. She was no longer a well-bred youngdy who lived by herself and decided everything on her own. She now had to worry about her husband¡¯s daily schedule. Lin Wei Xi paused and said, ¡°Wait. Wan Xing, go to the front courtyard and ask when the Prince will return for his meal.¡±


    In the study, Gu Hui Yan was solemnly instructing his son. Gu Cheng Yao lowered his head as he listened. He carefully answered, and when he saw that Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression still didn¡¯t look too good, he asked cautiously, ¡°Father, the Grand Secretary and Supervisor Feng came to the Residence yesterday¡­ ¡°


    The meeting between Prince Yan, Grand Secretary Zhang, and Eunuch Feng was a subject of interest for the entire capital. Everyone, from the imperial court to the ordinaryyman, all wanted to know what they¡¯d discussed.


    What a pity that Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t wish to talk about it. He said lightly , ¡°you¡¯re still not old enough to know about this. You should focus on studying and prepare for next year¡¯s civil service exam in Spring.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Gu Cheng Yao replied respectfully.


    Gu Hui Yan began his career through outstanding military service, and the Prince Yan Residence also defended an important strategic location. Gu Cheng Yao would definitely join the army in the future. But first, they were now in the capital, and second, the current situation unfortunately didn¡¯t allow the heirs of the Prince Yan Residence to only have knowledge of military affairs. An official with no friends or connections would meet a bad end. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t have that much confidence to think that he was an exception. While he was still in the capital and the various powers were fighting, he¡¯d let Gu Cheng Yao learn more through experience.


    Gu Cheng Yao now took it for granted and Gu Hui Yan had been dissatisfied about it for a long time, so he rejected his subordinates¡¯ opinions and insisted on having Gu Cheng Yao go to the underprivileged and negligible department to experience everything from the bottom. But because of Gu Hui Yan, he received too much preferential treatment. His father¡¯s halo made everything smooth sailing. In the past, Gu Hui Yan had been too busy with the war to care. But now, it was impossible not to care.


    Gu Hui Yan thought of that rather scheming daughter-inw and his gaze darkened. So this was the ¡°saviour¡± that Gu Cheng Yao insisted on marrying despite his wife¡¯s passing. The more disappointed he was with Gu Cheng Yao, the more harsh his expectations became.


    Gu Cheng Yao seemed to have also thought of what happened during the tea ceremony. His eyes shed and he asked, ¡°Father, just now, you said that you saw it¡­ ¡°


    At the same time, another voice sounded from outside the door, ¡°my Prince, the Princess Consort sent someone to ask when you¡¯ll be going back for your meal.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan and Gu Cheng Yao both froze for a moment. It¡¯s not as if Gu Hui Yan had never been urged to have a meal before, but things were much simpler during wartime and he was busy dealing with military affairs. The soldier who delivered the food would put his food by his desk and asionally make small talk, and that was it. This was the first time that someone thought of him like this and specifically asked for him.


    Gu Cheng Yao was obviously not used to this. His impression of his father was that he always seemed to be in the study, martial arts field, or the battlefield. He came to see his father mostly because he had questions to ask him. No matter what he asked, his father could always clear his doubts in a sentence. Gu Cheng Yao increasingly admired his father and kept that admiration close to his heart. He naturally respected his father and inquired about his father¡¯s health out of filial piety. As for when his father ate and so on¡­ it seemed like Gu Cheng Yao had never paid attention to it. Prince Yan had always seemed unapproachable, victory always within his grasp. Everyone revered the god of war, so they¡¯d automatically assume that he didn¡¯t need to eat or sleep.


    It wasn¡¯t until Lin Wei Xi sent someone to inquire that Gu Cheng Yao realized with surprise that his father had married a new Princess Consort, and they even had their private space.


    Gu Cheng Yao felt conflicted while Gu Hui Yan was a little surprised. He once again realized that he was married, and that he was married to a thoughtful little girl. His fingers twitched and he actually stood up to walk outside, ¡°I seem to have forgotten the time. Shizi Fei was injured today, you can return and spend time with her.¡±


    And just like that, Gu Cheng Yao was sent away, but it was impossible to find fault with the reason. He remembered his question that had been interrupted, and was a little bit unwilling to leave for the first time. He couldn¡¯t help following him, ¡°Father, during the tea ceremony today, you say¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan extended his hand to stop Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°whatever it is that you want to know, find out for yourself.¡±

 Chapter 35

    Lin Wei Xi sent someone to the study to invite Gu Hui Yan, but was upied in the meantime.


    In Jingcheng courtyard, several respected old female servants were talking to her.


    ¡°¡­Princess Consort, everyone in the residence wants to kowtow and pay their respects to you. It¡¯s just that you got married yesterday and you still have many things to settle, so they wanted to be considerate and not disturb you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had just finished checking the servants in Jingcheng courtyard. If she were just the Shizi Fei, this would be enough. But she was now the Princess Consort. Aside from the courtyard she lived in, she also had to ept visitation from the entire residence. She swept a nce at the woman who spoke and asked calmly, ¡°Then when does Granny think is a good time to summon everyone? I am the Princess Consort. How preposterous for the servants of the residence to not recognize me as their mistress.¡±


    Granny Zhao nced at the people beside her and said with a virtuous smile, ¡°we will follow the time that Princess Consort prefers. How dare we make the decision for you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi snorted inwardly. It¡¯s good that you don¡¯t dare to do it. She flipped through the Prince Yan residence¡¯s thick roster and said, ¡°let¡¯s just go with the flow and do it this afternoon at 1pm. Have everyone in the residence set aside any work on hand ande to Jingcheng Courtyard so I can recognize their faces.¡±


    Although the old servant next to Granny Zhao didn¡¯t move, the corners of her mouth curled downwards and she looked displeased. This servant looked around fifty years old, with a long face and a square chin. There were wrinkles at the corners of her mouth and her eyes sagged, making her look unfriendly. She wore a crisp blue pongee doubleyered top, a simple ck and blue skirt, and spotless shoes. She had a heavy gold hairpin on her head, bracelets on both wrists, and a simply woven gold bracelet as wide as a thumb on her right hand. This Granny was not only strict in temperament, but also had a high status in Prince Yan Residence and was obviously used to giving orders.


    When Lin Wei Xi asked questions earlier, Granny Zhao nced to the side to look at that old servant before speaking. Lin Wei Xi was no stranger to this extremely ostentatious woman. Who wouldn¡¯t recognize Princess Consort Shen¡¯s dowry Granny, Bu Shi?


    The previous Prince Yan and Prince Yan Consort both left early and those who¡¯d served the previous Prince Yan Consort were either dead or had moved away. Even if they were still alive, they¡¯d have retired to their home towns where they looked after their grandsons and took care of their health. Very few continued working. The servants of the previous Princess Consort¡¯s generation had retired and the important divisions of the residence were taken over by Princess Consort Shen¡¯s people. Granny Bu was the nanny that Princess Consort Shen brought with her from her maiden family, and was the person whom she trusted and relied on the most. Granny Bu had been in charge of the residence all this time, so why would she give it up to someone else?


    Not two years after the death of the previous Prince Yan Consort, Princess Consort Shen also died. At that time, Shizi was only eight years old and Prince Yan, twenty four. Although he was in the prime of his life, the war in the North was relentless. He passed through various ces to quell the chaos and that was when he fought many of his famous military campaigns. He was busy with the war and had no time to concern himself with the residence, while Gu Cheng Yao had just started schooling. Gu Cheng Yao deeply trusted Granny Bu, and with the credibility of having served Princess Consort Shen, she of course held an important position in the residence at that time. Gradually, every important matter in the residence required Granny Bu¡¯s approval.


    Prince Yan was away all year round while Shizi was young and ignorant of foreign affairs. The residence relied on these old Grannies to run it and it was obvious what the state of the residence¡¯s domestic affairs was like during that time. When Lin Wei Xi first married in, she was shocked to see the bills of the past few years. Prince Yan was very famous, but she would never have expected the Prince Yan Residence to be in such a mess. He had many territories under his name, silver truly running like water. Relying on the ample silver, the Prince Yan Residence looked like a delicate blooming flower on the outside, imposing and brilliant, but it¡¯s ounts were actually rotten on the inside.


    After getting married, Lin Wei Xi was in a difficult position for a period of time. In this kind of situation, it didn¡¯t matter if she was negligent or not, because she¡¯d certainly offend these old servants. When the time came, it¡¯d be her fault. It was also her bad luck. That period of time just so happened to be when she and Gu Cheng Yao had a harmonious rtionship and Gao Ran hadn¡¯t yet told him the truth. Lin Wei Xi let her farce of a marriage life get to her head, and was quite careless when cleaning up the mess. She firmly believed that she was doing the right thing. Even if they were respectable old servants, they ought to be punished if they did something wrong. She didn¡¯t care when the servants talked badly about her. The long-term survival of the residence was the priority.


    However, the Prince Yan Residence wasn¡¯t the Princess Residence and Gu Cheng Yao wasn¡¯t Princess Royal Shou Kang. In the end, one thing happened after another and their husband-wife rtionship broke down. The wicked ve that she had punished seized the opportunity to bounce back. Lin Wei Xi had a strict personality and was naturally more strict with purging the bad practices when trying to prove herself to everyone. As a result, the rtionship between husband and wife only worsened. The vicious cycle was like a snowball that grew bigger and bigger until itpletely overwhelmed her in the end.


    Lin Wei Xi looked at Granny Bu again, feeling somewhat amused and rueful. She never imagined that she¡¯d once again meet an old friend from her previous life, nor that she¡¯d return to the position of the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s mistress. Lin Wei Xi closed the roster and looked at Granny Bu with a small smile, ¡°Granny Bu, it seems like you have something you want to say. It¡¯s just us here, so whatever it is, just speak your mind.¡±


    ¡°Princess Consort, it¡¯s nothing more than a few words for you to order the servants to have an audience with you, but it¡¯s barely an hour until 1pm. The kitchen, purchasing department, and those on sweeping duty have much work to do. This is indeed nothing for the Princess Consort, but if you make them leave their work to kowtow to you, things could go wrong. At the end of the day, such arge residence isn¡¯t for you to y around with.¡±


    ¡°If it bes chaotic just because theye to kowtow to me, then they no longer need to work in the residence. My Prince Yan Residence doesn¡¯t need such mediocrity.¡± Lin Wei Xi indifferently nced at Granny Bu, ignoring her acting like an elder, and continued, ¡°Let¡¯s do it this way. At 1pm, have everyone in the residencee in batches to pay their respects. In every location, have half the people stay and the other halfe here. After the first batch returns, the second will have their turn. The kitchen still needs to prepare dinner, so have theme first. After the two groups from the kitchen leave, those from the warehouse¡­ ¡°


    When Lin Wei Xi spoke, it sounded like jade pearls falling onto a silver te<sup>¡ó</sup>, and she efficiently set up arrangements for therge residence. Granny Zhao and Granny Bu didn¡¯t even have a chance to interrupt. After she finished speaking, she lifted the teacup and took a sip to moisten her throat. She then ced the teacup on the table with a thud, her eyes clear and her expression calm, ¡°did you remember everything?¡±


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi had the natural and easy air of a mistress and the servants didn¡¯t even dare to lift their heads, affirming their agreement. Granny Bu had intended to bring down this little Princess Consort¡¯s authority today to show her who was in charge of the residence, and who was the true Princess Consort. After Lin Wei Xi gave her instructions, Granny Bu was unexpectedly too stunned to catch even the tiniest slip up. Instead, it seemed that she was the one at a disadvantage. Granny Bu wasn¡¯t happy. She¡¯d been respected for so many years and disliked this orphan girl who¡¯de in and taken over the position of her owndy. Herdy had been devoted to Prince Yan and even gave birth to the residence¡¯s only heir. Prince Yan ought to honour her his entire life. How could he let someone else upy herdy¡¯s position?


    Granny Bu initially felt personally prejudiced, but now that she was suppressed by Lin Wei Xi, she became more unreasonable. She frowned deeply and the wrinkles on both sides of her mouth became more pronounced, ¡°Princess Consort¡¯s management is naturally good. Although you are the second wife, you are unexpectedly decent at managing the household and won¡¯t lose to other nobledies from influential households.¡±


    As soon as she said that, silence descended on the west room. Wan Xing¡¯s eyes widened, but she was firmly held back by Wan Yue. Lin Wei Xi smiled as she rested her hands on her knees, leaned back slightly and looked at Granny Bu with a smile, ¡°I may be incapable, but since I have this position, how can I betray the Prince¡¯s trust? As the Prince Yan Consort, this is what I ought to do.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi directly addressed herself as ¡°Prince Yan Consort¡± and even briefly mentioned Prince Yan at the end. Granny Bu didn¡¯t dare say anything about Prince Yan, so she had no choice but to avoid thisndmine, and agreed with a smile. Afterwards, she seemed to casually talk about Princess Consort Shen¡¯s past aplishments. It included her first encounter with Prince Yan, their marriage, everyone¡¯s joy when Shizi was born, as well as Princess Consort Shen¡¯s extremely grand funeral when she died.


    Lin Wei Xi maintained her smile as she listened. She could strike back against ves who deceived their master and decisively demonstrate her position as mistress, but she couldn¡¯t say anything about the deceased original wife who was a white moonlight.


    Actually, Lin Wei Xi had already heard all of this during her previous life. Although the focusst time was to one up her when it came to filial piety, this time it was a demonstration to show her that she was an outsider. Thest time she heard this, she was a daughter-inw who didn¡¯t care at all about the feelings of her mother-inw and father-inw. She treated it as if it were a story. But this time, Lin Wei Xi noticed some discrepancies in the story.


    Shou Kang was a princess, Wei Shi was the Princess¡¯ di daughter and the wife of a Duke¡¯s Shizi, while Lin Wei Xi was a Duke Residence¡¯s di daughter in her previous life. With the umtion of education from generation to generation within the family, frankly speaking, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t understand the beauty behind this story about falling in love at first sight during military upheaval and thus eloping for thousands of miles.


    Wasn¡¯t this illicit sexual rtions without a matchmaker and eloping? Lin Wei Xi, who came from generations of imperial officials and had a quarter imperial blood, didn¡¯t really understand this kind of marriage union. In her world, marriage was a way to tie two families together for their benefit. The main wife was in charge of offering prayers and worship to the ancestors as well as finances. This symbolized her status and role as a wife and it wasn¡¯t about love. As a noble youngdy who was raised as a model wife from birth, no one dared to talk about love to Lin Wei Xi. And the husband wife rtionship of her grandmother and mother didn¡¯t give Lin Wei Xi a good impression of love between a man and a woman.


    So with Granny Bu now telling the legendary and touching love story of Princess Consort Shen, Lin Wei Xi could remain silent and nothing more. She¡¯d never been in love, nor had anyone given her love before. She was like a spectator of a drama, only able to hide at a distance and silently avoid Prince Yan and Princess Consort Shen¡¯s story.


    First it was Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran, now it was Prince Yan and Princess Consort Shen. Lin Wei Xi maintained a smile on her face, but her heart was frozen. She was probably born in the ashes of others¡¯ love stories. She couldn¡¯t seem to avoid it for the entirety of her two lives.


    Granny Bu was still going on about it when footsteps came from outside the room. When she saw the person walk in, her voice suddenly trailed off, ¡°My Prince.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi also stood up and greeted Gu Hui Yan with a Wanfu salute, ¡°my Prince, you¡¯re back. Would you like to eat?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan swept his gaze across the room filled with maids and grannies before it finally stopped on her, ¡°not yet. Have you been waiting here this whole time?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± she felt a little down. She forced a smile and tried her best to walk over to Gu Hui Yan without showing her feelings, ¡°my Prince, the food is hot. I¡¯ll have them prepare it, so please wait a little.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nodded. Seeing this, Granny Bu and the others promptly withdrew, Wan Xing and Wan Yue following them out to bring the food. He had barely crossed the threshold before thepletely packed west room emptied out.


    Gu Hui Yan sat down at the west window seat and looked at Lin Wei Xi. When he came in earlier, had he faintly heard them talking about Shen Shi? His feelings towards his deceased wife had always been veryplicated and somewhat indescribable. But at the end of the day, she was Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s birth mother. He wouldn¡¯t speak ill of the dead and always showed respect towards her. But these servants actually talked about it in front of Lin Wei Xi?


    Irritation suddenly rose within Gu Hui Yan.

 Chapter 36

    Gu Hui Yan couldn''t make heads or tails of his emotions. He was only surprised for a moment, then suppressed his unnecessary change in mood. He wasn''t in the habit ofmenting whether the deceased was right or not, nor did he wish to bring these things up in front of Lin Wei Xi. His expression didn''t change and he calmly changed the subject, "you didn''t eat this entire time?"


    Lin Wei Xi was sitting opposite him, and she looked up at him, baffled, when she heard his question, "of course. How can I leave you behind and eat by myself? Who does that?"


    "Your body is weak so you have to pay attention to your diet. If I get held up by something, you should eat first and not wait for me."


    She was a little unhappy and she said softly, "my Prince, you''re not sending me away because you don''t want to eat together with me, or because I''m bothering you, right?"


    Gu Hui Yan frowned. That was simply unimaginable, "why would you think that? I''m just afraid you''ll go hungry."


    "Then that''s fine." Lin Wei Xi snorted lightly and said, "If that''s so, then all the more reason to wait for you. I''m your wife. Sleeping and eating together is what a wife does."


    Lin Wei Xi''s mind was full of thoughts on how to be a qualified wife. Gu Hui Yan felt a little helpless and a tiny spark of peculiarity in his heart. It wasmon for him to postpone his meal out of habit, as well as being too busy to eat. But at that moment, he understood that it''d be different from now on. If he didn''t return, this silly girl would continue waiting for him. Her body was weak and if her meals were irregr, more so she wouldn''t be able to take it.


    He thoroughly concealed the pounding in his heart. Whenever he faced Lin Wei Xi, he always seemed to be able to rx easily. He smiled unconsciously, "Why are you so obsessed with the word wife?"


    Was it not because of Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran. In the heavenly book, Gao Xi was aplete failure when it came to gentleness, bearing heirs, and managing the household. She didn''t have a single good aspect whenpared to Gao Ran and was basically a counterexample of an outstanding wife. Lin Wei Xi didn''t seem to care on the outside, but she actually doubted herself.


    That''s why she was so obsessed with being a "qualified" wife.


    She remembered the heavenly book''s assessment of her and somehow thought of Granny Bu''s words earlier. The smile on her face disappeared, "It''s nothing. I''m just fulfilling my promise. My Prince, you gave in to my wilfulness and married me. I''m endlessly grateful for this and will definitely return the favour many fold. As I said that day, as long as my Prince treats me with the respect owed to the main wife, I will do my utmost to repay you. I can''t do anything else except manage and take care of your household. Just treat this as my repayment to you."

 Chapter 37

    Lin Wei Xi actually knew the roster and bills like the back of her hand. But as the new Princess Consort, she had to act like she didn¡¯t. She pretended to study the roster and bills but her mind couldn¡¯t help wandering as she stared at the familiar names. After a while, she was so bored that she couldn¡¯t resist poking her head to watch Gu Hui Yan.


    ¡°My Prince, what are you reading?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan flipped over the book and pointed at the spine, ¡°Taibai Yinfu.¡±


    ¡°¡­what kind of book is it?¡±


    ¡°A book on the art of war.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was stunned and looked at him in astonishment, ¡°Didn¡¯t you just say that you don¡¯t have to deal with political matters for the next few days? Why are you reading a book on war?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need to worry about it right now, but on the battlefield, every oversight costs lives. No one can bear that price.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan said it lightly, but Lin Wei Xi was in awe. He¡¯d led the army for ten years and remained undefeated. This aplishment had been embellished and exaggerated in reports to the imperial court as a brilliant and prosperous age. Lin Wei Xi and other spectators of course admired him when they saw this. But for Prince Yan, he shouldered much pressure and responsibility behind this achievement.


    When Lin Wei Xi was a child, Princess Royal Shou Kang had told her about the battles of Langshan and Dingxiang. Those were the battles that made him famous. Back then, she¡¯d been fascinated, and pestered her grandmother to tell the story over and over again. Unexpectedly, she received the opportunity to get close to ande into contact with the hero of those battles.


    Seeing her eyes drift to the pages of his book, Gu Hui Yan simply put it down and said to her, ¡°If you¡¯re curious, why don¡¯t I exin it to you?¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡± Lin Wei Xi tossed aside the paperwork in her hands, afraid that he might change his mind. He smiled softly when he saw her reaction. He was about to ask a maid to bring a chair over when she said ¡°no need¡±, took off her shoes and settled down right next to him. She was already slim, but she looked even more like a small ball when kneeling next to him. Theplicated Princess Consort dress contrasted against her delicate frame, making her look dainty and charming. After settling herself down, she raised her head and looked at Gu Hui Yan with bright eyes, ¡°my Prince, I¡¯m ready.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked down at Lin Wei Xi and suddenly felt absurd, like he was telling a story to his daughter. Space was limited in the side room so it was naturally impossible to put a whole set of sandalwood furniture like his study. That¡¯s why the room only had a water chestnut table up against the wall. This was barely enough space for Gu Hui Yan alone. But with Lin Wei Xi moving her things over, the table definitely didn¡¯t have enough space. Either way, Gu Hui Yan was only here to read books, so in a rare event where he broke his own rules, he sat together with Lin Wei Xi on the Arhat bed next to the window. The two of them had been sitting across from each other on a small table, but now that Lin Wei Xi had tossed aside her books and taken off her shoes to nestle down next to him, the distance between them quickly closed.


    She was a little too close forfort for Gu Hui Yan, but then he recalled that they¡¯d been closer the day before and it was a littlete to make a fuss over this now. So he let her do what she wanted, ced the book t on the table, and exined everything to her from the beginning.


    Sunlight shone into the room from the multi-coloured ss window. Gu Hui Yan had a gentle appearance, his voice clear and soft. He exined the contents of the book in simple terms and sometimes used battles that he¡¯d experienced first hand as examples. Nestled next to him was an extremely beautiful woman, gorgeous like jade pearls, dazzling yet quick-witted, who listened intently to his words. She was so engrossed that she unknowingly leaned against him, and he could even feel her hair tickling his neck. It was itchy.


    After Gu Hui Yan finished a section, he craned his neck to look at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°do you understand?¡±


    She shook her head truthfully and he sighed, ¡°I knew it.¡±


    She looked embarrassed, ¡°is it because I¡¯m stupid? But I can understand stories about military tactics and the Prince¡¯s military campaigns from when you were seventeen.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan shook his head and sighed lightly, ¡°it¡¯s not your fault.¡± It was because he couldn¡¯t really concentrate near the end. Once he lost concentration, order and logic would naturally unravel. How could he me her?


    Lin Wei Xi wouldn¡¯t know what was running through his head. She just felt that he was giving her an out of an embarrassing situation and didn¡¯t have the heart to me her. She was even more unwilling to give up. This was the kind of personality she had. The higher the difficulty, the less willing she was to concede. She unconsciously straightened her back and solemnly vowed to Gu Hui Yan, her small face earnest and persistent, ¡°my Prince, don¡¯t worry. I will study it over and over again during my free time. Don¡¯t think I¡¯m stupid because of this.¡±


    ¡°How can I?¡± Gu Hui Yan broke intoughter. ¡°It¡¯s normal not to understand things you just learned. Why would I dislike you for that? Where did you learn such a habit? Why are you always so tense?¡±


    If it wasn¡¯t for Gao Ran pressuring her, she wouldn¡¯t have dared to rx even a little in ss. The moment Gao Ran was in the picture, the teacher would be biased towards her. Over time, Lin Wei Xi got used to it. She always had to be the best in everything and was always afraid that those around her would be disappointed in her.


    Seeing Lin Wei Xi suddenly look sad, Gu Hui Yan pondered over it and smiledfortingly, ¡°What are you afraid of? Even a teacher can¡¯t me the student for not understanding properly, needless to say your husband. If you don¡¯t understand the first time, I will just exin a second and third time. As long as you are happy to listen, I am always here to teach you.¡±


    She raised her head to look at him and chuckled, her eyes bright and glittering like stars, ¡°Thank you my Prince.¡±


    That¡¯s right, Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t her former teacher. He was her husband. Lin Wei Xi secretly felt delighted. This time, no matter what Gao Ran did, she wouldn¡¯t be able to steal the person who belonged to her. He¡¯d always be on her side, no matter the reason.


    Gu Hui Yan was stunned by her smile. After he came to his senses, he felt a littleplicated. From morning till now, he¡¯d lost himself three times. Was the self control that he was so proud of this fragile in the face of beauty?


    Lin Wei Xi noticed that Gu Hui Yan looked a little distracted. She leaned forward and stared at him, ¡°my Prince, what are you thinking of?¡±


    Her ck eyes gleamed, and Gu Hui Yan clearly reflected them. He thought to himself that this was too close, and she had long since crossed hisfort zone. Lin Wei Xi was almostpletely nestled in his arms and he could even feel her breathing against his chest over and over again. His heart started thumping wildly because of this.


    He couldn¡¯t ignore how strange his body was feeling, so he supported Lin Wei Xi¡¯s shoulders so she could sit properly, and said sternly, ¡°Reading gives you knowledge. You must have the proper attitude and sit properly.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s feelings were difficult to express. She nced at him unhappily before lifting up her skirt, going around him, and jumping off the Arhat bed, ¡°Then I don¡¯t want to read it. It¡¯s almost 1pm. Someone should¡¯vee to pay their respects to me¡±


    She jumped off the bed, lithe as a small deer. In a sh, the faint and mild fragrance around him disappeared. Before he could say anything, she had already put on her shoes and was quickly walking out, ¡°Wan Yue.¡±


    Wan Yue responded and entered. Lin Wei Xi walked to Wan Yue and whispered something. Wan Yue nodded repeatedly in affirmation. The master and servant stood close while they talked. Gu Hui Yan watched them silently before averting his gaze and indifferently turning his focus back onto the book.


    Everything seemed to be back on track. With no one to disturb him, he ought to feel rxed. But he stared at the book in his hands for a long time without turning the page.

 Chapter 38

    Lin Wei Xi arranged a time for all the servants in the residence to pay their respects to her in Jingcheng Courtyard. From 1pm onwards, she sat in the main hall. The servants formed groups of five, kowtowed to her in batches, then stated their name and responsibilities. The entire Residence wasplicated and enormous, and she sat there until 5pm before meeting everyone.


    Being the mistress wasn¡¯t easy, especially for a colossal household like the Prince Yan Residence. It wasn¡¯t a small number for a few hundred people to work and operate together simultaneously. It required the mistress in charge to be skilled in household management and organization. Not only did Lin Wei Xi summon all the servants in the residence to put on a show of having them introduce themselves, but also to make clear her status as Princess Consort to the entire residence. The sky was already dark by the time she finished suffering through the whole thing. Lin Wei Xi had kept her waist taut the entire afternoon, so her back felt sore. Especially because she¡¯d sleptte the night before, her back was already aching. She¡¯d spent the whole afternoon sitting today, so she was beaten and exhausted.


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue promptly supported her inside to take a rest. It was only when she copsed onto the soft coach that she felt a little better. She didn¡¯t bother to massage her waist, and quickly asked, ¡°what about the Prince? Is he still inside?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nced at the East side room and she couldn¡¯t help the smile that floated on her face. The process today was something she had to go through with. Compared to how important it was, her body aches were not worth mentioning. Things of course went without a hitch today because she¡¯d used a carrot and stick method with Granny Bu that morning. But the biggest reason was Prince Yan.


    With Prince Yan sitting in the East side room, who would dare make trouble? Lin Wei Xi had summoned the servants to the main hall, disciplining and admonishing them, so it was quite noisy. But Prince Yan endured it and stayed in the side room to read. Although he didn¡¯t say anything, he would prefer silence over the noise. So his position on the matter undoubtedly deterred everyone from making trouble, supporting Lin Wei Xi to the public.


    Lin Wei Xi felt at ease and didn¡¯t bother having Wan Xing massage her waist. Instead, she happily walked straight to the side room. As soon as she opened the door, she sweetly called out, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled unconsciously, ¡°Are you finished?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± She quickly walked towards him. She thought of sitting next to him, but remembered what had happened that afternoon. In the end, she turned at thest minute and sat down properly opposite Gu Hui Yan. ¡°I must¡¯ve disturbed your reading today. I¡¯ll have to thank you, my Prince.¡±


    For some reason, Gu Hui Yan felt sorry seeing Lin Wei Xi do this. He suppressed this small peculiar feeling and said to her, ¡°You talked and met the servants all afternoon. I¡¯m concerned that your body isn¡¯t able to hold out much longer. Let¡¯s have dinner first, then you should rest early.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled heavily, ¡°did you hear¡­ what I said this afternoon? Did it disturb you?¡±


    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t.¡± Gu Hui Yan said as he smiled softly. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t really believe it. She looked at his kind expression and grew increasingly dismayed, ¡°You definitely heard it. I can¡¯t say for sure if you¡¯re secretlyughing at me.¡±


    ¡°You really didn¡¯t.¡± Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t helpughing, the light shining in his eyes was amazingly bright, ¡°Although you¡¯re fierce when you scold others, you never find trouble with nothing. It¡¯s reasonable and well-founded, plus there¡¯s a cause. As long as I¡¯m not on the receiving end, it¡¯s actually quite pleasant to listen to.¡±


    Anyone whose admonishment was described as ¡°pleasant to hear¡± wouldn¡¯t be happy. Lin Wei Xi was so angry that she red at Gu Hui Yan and turned her back on him, feeling wronged. Hisughter sounded more delighted. Seeing her back grow stiff, he stopped teasing her and got up to support her shoulders as they walked out, ¡°Okay, don¡¯t be angry. Let¡¯s have dinner first.¡±


    Prince Yan himself was supporting her, so she found it hard to refuse. After he held her shoulders, almost taking her whole body in his arms, she found it even more difficult to break free. She awkwardly sat at the dining table, using more force than necessary when taking her food. Did he think that she¡¯d so easily forget, what was it that was so pleasant to listen to? She was the Princess Consort. The servants who were being reprimanded ought to feel intimidated. Prince Yan actually said that it was pleasant to listen to her reprimanding?


    She would rather die than be insulted like this. She couldn¡¯t take it.


    Gu Hui Yan watched Lin Wei Xi forcefully vent her anger on the food. His gaze was soft and overflowing with amusement. He¡¯d said today that he didn¡¯t need a hobby, but it looked like he would need to change that. It seemed like he had found a new hobby.


    The residence¡¯s custom was for each person to arrange their own lunch every day, but for everyone to have dinner together. There used to be three people in the Residence. Gu Hui Yan often stayed at the imperial court in the afternoon and didn¡¯t return to the residence for lunch. He didn¡¯t even necessarily make it for dinner so most of the time, it was just Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran themselves dining together. Now that Gao Ran¡¯s hand was injured, they couldn¡¯t expect her to serve the meal with her wound, so she was exempted from dinner. Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran would eat in their courtyard by themselves. If this were in the past, Gu Hui Yan would most probably have to eat alone. But now that Lin Wei Xi was here, it truly felt warmer even though there was just one more person to apany him.


    No wonder his subordinates and colleagues were always nagging him to remarry. Gu Hui Yan never felt it necessary. His life wouldn¡¯t change if he had a Princess Consort so why go through the trouble? But he now realized that this was how it felt like to have someone who cared about him and apanied him.


    Although Lin Wei Xi was still angry at him, it didn¡¯t mean that her observational skills she¡¯d developed over the years had disappeared. She found that Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t picky with food, but hepletely didn¡¯t touch the fish in the middle of the table. She was surprised. Granny Bu and Gu Cheng Yao both said that Prince Yan loved fish, shrimps and other seafood. But from her observation, that wasn¡¯t the case?


    Granny Bu was Princess Consort Shen¡¯s dowry maid who had been with her for many years. As Prince Yan¡¯s first wife, did she really not remember what he liked to eat? Not to mention if Gu Cheng Yao, as the only son, couldn¡¯t remember what his father liked to eat, then it was pretty suspicious.


    Lin Wei Xi observed him quietly for a while, then asked Wan Yue to scoop her a bowl of fish soup before asking, ¡°my Prince, do you want fish soup?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan merely nced faintly at her and replied, ¡°no need. You can drink it if you want.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi took a sip and said, ¡°It¡¯s a bit fishy. My Prince, I don¡¯t like this kind of fish. Why don¡¯t we take it away?¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± His expression didn¡¯t change at all. Clearly he didn¡¯t care.


    Very good. Lin Wei Xi was sure that Gu Hui Yan really didn¡¯t like fish. This was strange. Granny Bu could¡¯ve deliberately told her what Prince Yan disliked in order to mislead her, but in her previous life, Gu Cheng Yao had no reason to lie to her, right? She bit on the vegetables. What was wrong with this family? The son and the servants had gotten Prince Yan¡¯s preferences flipped, but he himself didn¡¯t say anything about it and let the mistakes continue. This kind of thing could obviously be found out if they cared even a little bit to ask.


    Lin Wei Xi tilted her head and thought about it, but still couldn¡¯t figure out where Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s ridiculous misunderstanding came from.


    After the meal, Lin Wei Xi rested for a moment before taking a bath. After she came out, she went through the trouble to brush her hair and take good care of her skin. It waste by the time she was finished. She was a little embarrassed, but fortunately, she was the mother-inw and she didn¡¯t need to wake up early the next day to pay her respects. Otherwise if she were a daughter-inw, with this kind of attitude, she¡¯d bete in paying her respects to her husband¡¯s parents every day.


    Lin Wei Xi stood at the door and whispered, ¡°my Prince, I¡¯m done.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan put down his book to see Lin Wei Xi with her jet-ck hair let down, steam faintly lingering on her fair and delicate skin. Under the dim yellow light, she looked like a lotus appearing out of the water, her beauty otherworldly.


    The more delicate the porcin was, the more time it took to maintain it. This was clearly an urate description of Lin Wei Xi. However, with her looking so soft and gentle, standing by the door and tenderly calling him ¡°my Prince¡±, was there any point in taking a bath?


    Gu Hui Yan told himself that she was one generation younger than him. He¡¯d promised Lin Yong that he¡¯d take care of his daughter and initially agreed to marry Lin Wei Xi in order to take care of her. How could he be praised for being a wise military leader but fail as he was about to seed.


    His adam¡¯s apple bobbed up and down. In the end, he looked away with much restraint and said to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°You¡¯ve worked hard all afternoon. Why don¡¯t you sleep early.¡±


    ¡°Ok.¡± Lin Wei Xi also really wanted to sleep, but her husband was still outside. How could she just go to bed by herself? So she looked at Gu Hui Yan with damp eyes and said, ¡°my Prince, it¡¯ste. You ought to sleep too.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan clenched his fist twice and put down the book, walking into the room. Lin Wei Xi was very happy when she saw him walk in. She blew out the candles in the bedroom, leaving only thestmpstand lit. She then turned around and looked at him sincerely, ¡°my Prince, why are you still standing there?¡±


    He watched her silently and admired himself in the moment, ¡°pass thempstand to me. You can go to sleep first.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi passed thempstand to him, reassured. She walked to the Arhat bed andfortablyid in the embroidered quilt. Gu Hui Yan stood in the bedroom for a moment, half shrouded in shadow. After he calmed down, he walked into the room.


    Yet, he entered the room to see Lin Wei Xi get up in a daze, her voice floating over, ¡°my Prince, you¡¯re back.¡±


    Her voice was refreshing, but it took on a delicate edge as he rounded the corner. On a normal day, he already enjoyed listening to it. Now that she was half-awake, her words made him feel like melting.


    His eyes unconsciously darkened, ¡°Why are you not asleep yet?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan was silent. Just how much did she trust him? As the saying goes, something shouldn¡¯t be done three times in a row, so he decided to let nature take its course. He sat on the edge of the bed and helped her lie down, his voice hoarse, ¡°go to sleep if you¡¯re sleepy.¡±


    She gave a soft ¡°yes¡± but she continued to stare at him without moving. She was so sleepy, to the point that the mist filled her eyes. When someone was looking at him so intently like that, even a saint wouldn¡¯t be able to hold himself back.


    Furthermore, Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t a saint. He leaned over and brushed his fingers against her cheek. His voice unconsciously carried a hint of slyness, ¡°Xi¡¯er, are you very sleepy?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know the reason behind this question and whispered, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡±


    Before she could think about the meaning behind this sentence, she was plunged into a vast ocean. She was actually quite scared of this kind thing. She didn¡¯t have much experience in her previous life, and it had been really hurt the previous night. She didn¡¯t understand why books on this kind of thing described it as a blissful feeling. But before she could say anything today, all resistance was drowned out by the huge waves. After she settled down with much difficulty, Lin Wei Xi was already trembling from head to toe, tears drenching her eyshes.


    Gu Hui Yan carried her to take a simple wash, then carried her back to the bed. her body ached and she couldn¡¯t keep her eyes open the entire time, so she naturally let him handle her. After tidying everything, heid on the outer side of the bed and patted her quilt somewhat guiltily, ¡°good girl. Come sleep.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi angrily humphed to herself. She didn¡¯t even have the strength to move her fingers. She leaned on her side with her legs slightly bent and her hands on the side of her face, looking very pitiful. She didn¡¯t have a good sleeping posture, and after looking at it for a while, Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t resist trying to correct it.


    After many years in the military, he had developed an obsessivepulsive disorder.


    Gu Hui Yan tried his best to fix Lin Wei Xi¡¯s posture without disturbing her. In order to sleep properly, her legs needed to be straight. She was half-conscious as she slept. When she felt him rearranging her sleeping posture, it was thest straw. Had he not just moved her back and forth in that kind of position, so why hadn¡¯t he tried to fix her posture then? Lin Wei Xi was very angry but she really didn¡¯t have any strength, so she simply wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned her head against his shoulder, her voice barely inaudible, ¡°stop that. I¡¯m going to sleep like this.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s hand stiffened. He paused for a moment before reaching out to support her waist with much restraint. Alright, so be it.

 Chapter 39

    The next day, the morning sunlight streamed in through the window as Gu Hui Yan woke up on time.


    Unlike the night of the wedding, he had a rare good night of sleep. He turned slightly and saw Lin Wei Xi sleeping peacefully against his shoulder. Her even soft breathing feathered against his shoulders and neck, making him feel indescribably ticklish.


    The sun rosete in winter, so the room was still nketed in dusk and mist. The light that shone through theyers of red canopy was dimmer. The inside of the bed was drenched in a scarlet red and the faint morning light made the bed canopy glow, lingering on the love between the two of them. In the dim light, only Lin Wei Xi was pale as fine porcin, almost glowing in the dim red light. She slept deeply, her small face sinking into the soft red embroidered nket, leaving only half of it exposed. Her soft ck hair spread across the pillows and nket, a strand even covering the side of her face. It made her skin look more exquisite, like white porcin. The jet ck hair, dark red quilt and snow white skin stood in stark contrast, creating a picture that was indescribably breathtaking and enticing.


    Gu Hui Yan himself didn''t notice that he''d been staring at her for a long time. His hand moved slightly. The skin under his palm was cool and soft and a delicate fragrance floated up, gentle and fragrant as jade¡ó. What an urate description.


    Speaking of, it was weird. After it was over thest time, it had taken a long time for Gu Hui Yan to fall asleep, and he''d wake up again when Lin Wei Xi made the slightest movement. He couldn''t sleep with someone next to him but he didn''t have a problem when he held her in his arms.


    He didn''t know what was wrong with him.


    The red candle outside the bed made a popping sound. It finally burned out after burning the entire night and the room was quiet once again. This picture of a sleeping beauty was too eye-catching. If it weren''t sote, Gu Hui Yan wouldn''t have had the heart to destroy it. However, they needed to enter the pce today. Lin Wei Xi took a lot of time to get ready. If they didn''t get up now, they''d bete for their appointment at the pce.


    Gu Hui Yan leaned over, put one hand on Lin Wei Xi''s side and whispered, "Wei Xi, it''s time to get up."


    Lin Wei Xi slept soundly, hazily feeling someone gather her hair and whispering something in her ear. She had sleptte and overworked the night before, and now felt like all of her bones had gone soft. How could she bear to leave the warm quilt and wake up? She turned over in the opposite direction, trying to escape the annoying sound. Gu Hui Yan chuckled when he saw this and held her by her waist. Her waist was extremely flexible, and she fell backwards onto the bed, soft and supple. If this were the night before, he would''ve admired her flexibility. But he was now afraid that she''d sprain her waist, so he quickly reached out to support her head and helped her to sit up, "wake up. You shouldn''t be sleeping."


    Lin Wei Xi felt very wronged. She was so sleepy that she couldn''t open her eyes. Unfortunately, she couldn''t get angry at the nuisance who''d disturbed her dream. She was forced out of the warm bed and slight goosebumps spread across her exposed arms when they met the morning air. She wrapped her hands around herself, and with misty eyes and messy hair, she muttered, "It''s cold."


    Seeing Lin Wei Xi like this, Gu Hui Yan felt that she was really too pitiful. The earth dragon¡óhad burned all night, so it was unsurprising that she''d be weak early in the morning. But because he always had good health and didn''t feel cold, he ended up overlooking this. It was now toote to have the servants heat up the earth dragon. He could only hug her and use his body temperature to warm her up, "I was careless. This won''t happen again. Get up first. After today, you don''t have to wake up early again."


    While Lin Wei Xi had been awoken by the cold winter morning air, it was worth it to have Prince Yan wake her up. Today, they were going to the pce today to meet the Empress Dowager, so they really couldn''t dally. She sobered up only to find herself still nestled in Gu Hui Yan''s arms. She felt embarrassed and quickly backed up against the nket and bedding, blushing, "my Prince, I''m awake now. My sleeping posture isn''t very good. Please don''tugh."


    He merely smiled and straightened out her hair. Then he patted her hair and said, "since you''re awake, you should get up. You only need to wake up early today and not tomorrow."


    Gu Hui Yan didn''t think it was any trouble to wake up his lovable wife. If it were Gu Cheng Yao or his subordinates instead who dared to lie in bed without a good reason, they''d be sent straight to receive the army cane. But with her, he found it very enjoyable.


    He watched as she clutched the bedding with both hands and looked at him with caution in her eyes. He understood the meaning behind it and stood up to change his clothes and bathe. Only after he left and the bed curtains were let down did Lin Wei Xi breathe a sigh of relief. She quickly took out her undergarments from the basket at the foot of the bed. Her fingers moving like lightning, she opened the front of the top and fastened the ties around her chest and abdomen. After putting on the rest of her clothes, she lifted the red curtain and got off bed and raised her voice to call in the maids waiting outside.


    Her maids arranged her hair into a high bun and painted on the refined and beautiful pce makeup. Following the rules, a seven-winged golden phoenix dangling hair ornament indicating her status as Princess Consort was inserted into her hair and both sides of the bun were adorned with pearl jade and precious stones. She looked gorgeous, like she was illuminated by rays of light. Her facial features were already extremely exquisite. After dressing up, she looked more like a ruby polished to it''s finest and she almost seemed to sparkle under the sunlight.


    Today, they were entering the pce to thank the Emperor and Empress Dowager for their favour. Aside from Gu Hui Yan and Lin Wei Xi, Shizi and Shizi Fei also had to follow along. In order to save time, each couple would have breakfast in their own courtyard that morning. When they were ready, they''d meet in Lin Wei Xi''s courtyard and they''d depart once everyone arrived. Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran had arrived long ago. The maids told them that the Princess Consort was still getting dressed. Naturally, it wasn''t a good time for Gu Cheng Yao, as the adult stepson, to enter the room, so he could only stand in the front and wait. Gao Ran stood beside him and waited together. After a while, the curtain to the central building lifted and Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan walked out side by side. No one knew what the two had talked about prior to leaving the room, but Lin Wei Xi was looking at Gu Hui Yan, who had a smile in his eyes. When they saw the two people in the yard, both of them instantly stopped smiling and their expressions became dignified and serene.


    Such obvious changes obviously wouldn''t go unnoticed by the two people in the front yard. Gu Cheng Yao didn''t know what to think. He had never seen his father smile so softly, nor Lin Wei Xi, who was always cold and distant in front of him. It turns out that when they weren''t around him, his father and Lin Wei Xi could actually have such tender expressions. Seeing them support each other like that as they walked out the door, the thorn in Gao Ran''s heart pierced deeper.


    ¡óHeating system in ancient China


    Lin Wei Xi resolutely went through the entire greeting etiquette before getting up. Empress Dowager Qian didn''t say a word but merely smiled and had her servants show Lin Wei Xi to a seat. After she sat down, Empress Dowager Qian looked away from her and nced at Gao Ran behind her, smiling, "Aijia¡óis old and my pce is lifeless all day long. On the contrary, the Prince Yan Consort''s visit has made things lively again. Look at how beautiful the two of you are. If one didn''t know, who would guess that the two of you are mother-inw and daughter-inw? It''s more believable to say that you''re sisters."


    Gao Ran had apanied Lin Wei Xi to kowtow and salute. While Lin Wei Xi could sit down, she had to stand behind Lin Wei Xi and wait on her. Gao Ran was a little unhappy at first, but hearing the Empress Dowager''s words, her lips couldn''t help but stiffen.


    Age was a woman''s Achilles heel. If a mother-inw and daughter-inw were said to look like sisters, of course, the mother-inw would naturally be pleased. But for the daughter-inw, it wasn''t something to feel happy about.


    Especially because Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran were about the same age, but Lin Wei Xi was one generation above Gao Ran. In any situation, Lin Wei Xi would be the one sitting while Gao Ran had to stand. When Lin Wei Xi, the Empress Dowager and the others made small talk, Gao Ran could only stand behind them and listen like a wooden statue. As long as Lin Wei Xi was there, Gao Ran only served to make her look better. When everyone came to say hello, they would see Lin Wei Xi first.


    This was undoubtedly a huge drop in status for Gao Ran, who had gotten used to enjoying her high status as the Prince Yan Shizi Fei. Gao Ran stood silently behind Lin Wei Xi and felt it extremely absurd for some reason, as if the situation had returned to before she''d gotten married, when she was a shu daughter and Gao Xi was a di daughter. They were obviously standing next to each other, but all the Ladies could see was Gao Xi and Gao Xi only. They had the same father but different fates. It was vividly contrasted between her and Gao Xi.


    Afterwards, Gao Ran managed to scheme Gao Xi''s death, inheriting Gao Xi''s generous dowry and respectable husband. Gao Ran was finally able to ovee her faint jealousy and be the "Shizi Fei".


    Gao Ran thought that the hard times had ended and the future was going to go well, that her persistence had paid off. But who would''ve thought that after no less than a few months offort, Lin Wei Xi would appear. What''s more absurd was that after five months, she became Gao Ran''s mother-inw. The power and position that Gao Ran had just gotten hold of had been taken away in an instant. And even sadder was that while she and Gao Xi were sisters, Lin Wei Xi was her mother-inw.


    This feeling was extremely hard to bear. She had toiled to work out a strategy, only to be beaten back to her original position after barely a few days of enjoying it.


    Lin Wei Xi nced behind her, not caring at all about Gao Ran''s mood. She pursed her lips and smiled, "The Empress Dowager speaks too highly of this humble one. How can this humble one''s weak countenance bepared to the blessed Empress Dowager? Shizi Fei wants to thank the Empress Dowager for the praise, but is slow-witted and she still has many things to learn. I''m afraid she can''t live up to the Empress Dowager''s praise. This humble one is also young, so I hope to be able to learn from the Empress Dowager."


    ¡óAijia is a pronoun used by the Empress Dowager to refer to herself. It''s another form of ''I'' or ''me''


    T/n: another announcement! I underestimated the amount of project work I have for the second half of the semester, so I will unfortunately have to continue with the current upload schedule. I may upload extra chapters on Wednesday if I happen to have free time, but it''s not a guarantee.

 Chapter 40

    Gao Ran¡¯s chest tightened. For a moment, she couldn¡¯t tell whether Empress Dowager Qian was mocking her or ridiculing Lin Wei Xi using metaphors and exaggeration.


    It was true that it had been wrong of her to secretly consent to the marriage proposal, but Prince Yan and the Second Qian Young Master had had a crush on the same woman at the same time. For men, it was romantic to wage war for a beauty, but for a woman, it wasn¡¯t a good reputation to have.


    Gao Ran¡¯s heart jumped out of her throat the moment she heard her name, but she slowly rxed when she processed the situation. She nced at Lin Wei Xi and lowered her head, pretending to be terrified, ¡°Empress Dowager, please forgive me. At that time, this humble one heard that Madam Qian wanted to propose marriage for the Second Qian Young Master. Of course, Young Master Qian is a good man, which is why this humble one didn¡¯t think too much before epting it, and meant to speak to the elders after returning. Unfortunately this humble one was too greedy. I only thought of how good a family the Qian family was and wanted to ept it as a good sister. But because of my impatience, I made a mistake.¡±


    Gao Ran¡¯s words hinted that she had listened to Madam Qian¡¯s proposal first but Prince Yan had decided Lin Wei Xi¡¯s matter after. As for why Prince Yan did this and what happened then, they¡¯d have to ask the protagonist herself.


    Gao Ran wanted to incite Empress Dowager to treat Lin Wei Xi as a femme fatale. It would be even better if she used Lin Wei Xi of being a seductress. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s smile faded when she heard the Second Qian son¡¯s name. Empress Dowager Qian was the Empress Dowager. It was fine if she didn¡¯t mind her words, but Gao Ran actually dared to y tricks in front of her?


    Gao Ran was still so stupid. It seemed like the hot water yesterday hadn¡¯t been hot enough. Lin Wei Xi was now the Prince Yan Consort. The power a mother-inw had over her daughter-inw was far more than what she¡¯d wielded during the tea ceremony.


    After Gao Ran finished speaking, she continuously stared at Lin Wei Xi. Unfortunately, she was going to be disappointed. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t show any embarrassment or unnatural expression. She merely smiled calmly and said, ¡°why do I not know about this issue regarding the Second Qian Young Master?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s question caused everyone to go silent. Empress Dowager Qian couldn¡¯t speak. No matter how old she was, she couldn¡¯t tell the Prince Yan Consort ¡°Gao Ran had secretly agreed to marry you to someone, but Prince Yan stepped in so the matter was dropped¡±.


    Lin Wei Xi continued to smile innocently and naturally, her eyes full of pure curiosity, ¡°What did Shizi Fei say? How did you get involved with the Second Qian Young Master? I know nothing about these things. Empress Dowager, please hurry and tell me. I¡¯m curious to death.¡±


    The Empress Dowager smiled after much difficulty and probed, ¡°Prince Yan Consort, you didn¡¯t know?¡±


    ¡°What is it that I ought to know?¡± Lin Wei Xi smiled and turned her head, her dark ck pupils clearly reflecting Gao Ran within them, ¡°say, Shizi Fei, what is it that I ought to know?¡±


    Gao Ran was speechless. Their dispute had happened in private. Aside from their maids, who else would know about it? As long as Lin Wei Xi swore that she didn¡¯t know anything, Gao Ran had no way to prove otherwise. It would instead put her at a disadvantage.


    The Empress Dowager observed the interaction between the mother-inw and daughter-inw. Lin Wei Xi had calmly inquired, but Shizi Fei looked stiff. Empress Dowager Qian mulled over it and asked, ¡°Prince Yan Consort, did you really not know anything about your marriage?¡±


    ¡°My marriage is decided by my parents and introduced by the matchmaker. This humble one naturally listens to the Princess Royal.¡± Lin Wei Xi said with a smile, ¡°one will only be a concubine if one elopes without a matchmaker. If you defy your parents and elders and act as matchmaker, you will be cast aside. Even if this humble one is mischievous, I dare not do such a thing.¡±


    One had control over their actions and their words, and these two could differ. Lin Wei Xi spoke those words without any guilty conscience, her eyes clear and her smile calm. Gao Ran had guessed correctly. After their dispute that time, Lin Wei Xi had gotten so angry that she impulsively went to Gu Hui Yan to rmend herself for marriage. But Gu Hui Yan would certainly not speak of this and neither would Lin Wei Xi. Gao Ran actually attempted to threaten her with this incident. It would be strange if Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t sort her out.


    It wasmon knowledge that Lin Wei Xi recognized Princess Royal Shou Kang as her adoptive grandmother. Empress Dowager Qian finally understood when she thought about it. Hadn¡¯t Princess Shou Kang also acted as a matchmaker for her granddaughter and Gu Cheng Yao? It seemed that because Shou Kang didn¡¯t have any heirs, she was especially fond of the Prince Yan Residence. Last time, it had been her own granddaughter. This time, she¡¯d even married the adoptive granddaughter she¡¯d just recognized to Prince Yan. Her intentions were too obvious.


    After Empress Dowager Qian contemted and ran through the entire series of events in her head, she believed she had seen the truth. It seemed that Lin Wei Xi waspletely at the mercy of Shou Kang. Perhaps she didn¡¯t know about anything that happened prior. As for Gao Ran secretly promising the Qian family, at best she didn¡¯t know about the proposal between Prince Yan and Shou Kang, but at worst, she didn¡¯t want a mother-inw, so she used the Qian family.


    Empress Dowager Qian¡¯s gaze on Gao Ran immediately changed. Gao Ran wasn¡¯t even aware of what was happening. In the span of a moment, what happened to the Empress Dowager and why did she look at her like that? Gao Ran¡¯s intuition told her that something was wrong. As she was about to try to mend the situation, she was cut off by Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Empress Dowager, the flower and bat embroidery on your dress is very bright and pleasant. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen it before.¡±


    Empress Dowager Qian had be increasingly superstitious in recent years and liked to wear old-fashioned dresses and it was difficult for Lin Wei Xi to praise her with a beautiful expression on her face. Anyone would be pleased to have an extremely beautiful young girlplement their clothes, so Empress Dowager Qian was pleased and chattered incessantly with Lin Wei Xi about good fortune, the Bodhisattva, etc.


    There was no doubt that Lin Wei Xi had a clever tongue. She deliberately changed the subject and teased Empress Dowager Qian. Gao Ran attempted to exin the matter several times to Empress Dowager Qian but failed to get through Lin Wei Xi¡¯s defence. After all, could a junior like her interrupt her mother-inw or the Empress Dowager? She wasn¡¯t brave enough to do that, and could only try to find a gap to insert herself in the conversation, but she couldn¡¯t win against Lin Wei Xi.


    After continuously failing several times, Gan Ran became furious but could only grit her teeth and restrain herself. Yet she couldn¡¯t afford to be seen with that look on her face, so she had to lower her head.


    After going through the engagement in reverse order with the Empress Dowager, Lin Wei Xi continued smiling, half her attention defending against Gao Ran and the other half deliberately ttering the Empress Dowager for having good fortune. Not a momentter, Empress Dowager Qian was beaming with joy.


    What Empress Dowager Qian was most proud of in her life was that she had a long and blessed life. She was formerly Emperor Muzong¡¯s Empress, but because of her mediocre appearance and old-fashioned nature, she couldn¡¯t earn his favour. Then when Bu Guifei appeared out of thin airter on, she was neglected on many asions. Fortunately, she managed to hold out during the political unrest in theter part of Jianzhao. Prince Yan entered the capital to kill the traitors, the eunuchs, and Bu Guifei hung herself. Empress Qian was considered to have restored justice, and she became the Empress Dowager. Wasn¡¯t she a lucky person?


    The current emperor wasn¡¯t Empress Dowager Qian¡¯s biological son. Although she was the empress, she wasn¡¯t favoured, so she had nothing to do all those years. In the third year of Jianzhao, Bu Guifei entered the pce and quickly became favoured, so she¡¯d been backed into a corner. The spiritless Empress Qian panicked. So when a pce maid gave birth to the eldest son of the emperor in the fifth year of Jianzhao, Empress Qian didn¡¯t care that he was the son of a concubine and hurriedly took him in to raise him herself. At that point, she no longer expected a son of her own, so she quickly adopted the eldest son of the emperor to protect herself. He had a high position and she almost considered him her own son after raising him, which put him in an advantageous position with the officials. Empress Qian counted on this child to support her as she grew old. What a pity that even though she¡¯d had a good n, fate liked to y pranks on people. At the end of the same year, Bu Guifei became pregnant.


    That was a huge problem. Everyday, Empress Qian hoped for Bu Guifei to miscarry. Unfortunately, the mother and son were safe and sound, and she smoothly gave birth to the child, a prince, the following year. Bu Guifei was already favoured and now that she had given birth to the emperor¡¯s son, she became greedy. She grew increasingly domineering and constantly pestered Emperor Muzong to establish the second prince as the crown prince. One was his eldest son whom he held no feelings for and the other one was his second son from his favourite concubine. Emperor Muzong actually wanted to pass the throne to his second son, but the imperial ministers firmly refused. Since the Empress didn¡¯t have a son, the eldest son was appointed as crown prince. The eldest son had no disabilities and had been raised by the Empress. Obviously the eldest son was the legitimate candidate for crown prince.


    Emperor Muzong and the imperial ministers got into a dispute due to this. Because of Emperor Muzong¡¯s hesitation, the power struggle in the imperial harem grew fierce. Bu Guifei even colluded with pce eunuchs, removing her opposition without restraint and ughtering the ministers who advocated for the eldest son as the crown prince. It was obvious what it was like for Empress Dowager Qian and the eldest son during those years. It was a spectacr mess during the final years of Jianzhao and the breaking point came in the form of an epidemic.


    In early spring, the five poisons<sup>¡ó</sup>became active and the epidemic spread from the capital to the pce. The second prince unfortunately contracted an illness and within a month, died because no medical treatment could cure him.


    ¡ó


    Empress Qian almost burned incense in Kunning Pce. The Buddha was really watching over her. The long drawn struggle over the crown prince forcefully reached a conclusion. Bu Guifei went mad from the pain of losing her son and became increasingly unbridled in eliminating her opposition. For a time, the wicked eunuchs ran amok to the point where even Emperor Muzong couldn¡¯t control them. He had no choice but to write a secret edict to summon Prince Yan into the capital to suppress the rebellion, punish the traitors and hold the reins of the Qing Dynasty. Whether or not Bu Guifei actually hung herself in the end, only Emperor Muzong and Prince Yan knew.


    In the end, the second prince died of illness and Bu Guifei was executed. The eldest prince was the only remaining prince. Even if he was an idiot, the ministers had to assist him in bing a wise monarch. Emperor Muzong received such a huge blow from this incident that he passed on soon after. Before his death, he appointed the eldest prince as crown prince and Gu Hui Yan, Zhang Xiao Lian, and Eunuch Feng as the regent ministers. Together, they¡¯d assist the young emperor as he grew up until he was old enough to govern the country himself.


    It was currently the fifth year of Yuanjia. The young Emperor had ascended the throne five years ago and was already twelve years old.


    Empress Dowager Qian really didn¡¯t care about the state of the imperial court. The harem wasn¡¯t allowed to interfere with politics and she wasn¡¯t interested. She already held the highest position and the most respected status in thend. No matter how the dynasty changed, would it involve the Empress Dowager? All the more reason for her to grow old with a peace of mind in the harem. If she wasn¡¯t observing a vegetarian diet and praying to the Buddha, she¡¯d summon her sister-inw for a chat. The issue between the Second Qian Young Master and Lin Wei Xi was something that came from Madam Qian.


    At that time, news of Prince Yan marrying a Consort had already spread. Of course, the Qian family didn¡¯t dare fight with Prince Yan over a woman. Plus, he¡¯d specifically passed on the news. When that happened, the Second Qian Young Master became too scared to leave the house. After a period of time, when the news died down, Madam Qian became a little ufortable. The Prince Yan Shizi Fei had clearly already given her word, but it was intercepted by Prince Yan no more than a few dayster. Was the Prince Yan Residence going to step on the Qian family¡¯s face like this?


    The more Madam Qian thought about it, the more unresigned she became, so she entered the pce and raised the issue. Empress Dowager Qian only knew that Prince Yan was going to marry a new Consort. Only after hearing her sister-inw¡¯s version did she realize that the new Prince Yan Consort, Lin Shi, and her second nephew were connected in this manner. Of course, Empress Dowager Qian wouldn¡¯t have anyints about Prince Yan. The Emperor seeded the throne back then thanks to his assistance. When he first ascended the throne, they were invaded by foreign forces, and it was Prince Yan who led the army to suppress the rebellion. Without Prince Yan¡¯s military strength that acted as a deterrent, Empress Dowager Qian and the Emperor were nothing more than an orphan and widow. What could they do to suppress the court officials and generals of the previous dynasty? Empress Dowager Qian actually depended on Prince Yan a lot. How could she criticize him for marrying a Consort?


    While she was too scared to me Prince Yan, it didn¡¯t prevent her from criticizing this troublesome new Princess Consort. Today, Lin Shi would enter the pce to kowtow. She intended to test her. She wanted to see for herself what kind of person could incite her nephew and Prince Yan to fight for her hand in marriage.


    But it seemed like this Prince Yan Consort was not only very beautiful, but also very clever and lovable. When Emperor Muzong was still alive, Princess Royal Shou Kang was treated extremely respectfully, her face almostparable to Qian Shi, who was the Empress. As a result, Empress Dowager Qian held a bit of a grudge. Now that the tables had turned, she n was not at all afraid to specte the worst about Shou Kang. From her perspective, Shou Kang most likely chose Lin Shi for her beauty and recognized her as an adoptive granddaughter. After that, she thought of a way to have Lin Shi marry Prince Yan to stabilize the rtionship between the Princess Shou Kang Residence and the Prince Yan Residence. After all, Shou Kang¡¯s biological granddaughter had died. It made sense that she was anxious.


    Empress Dowager Qian¡¯s mood turned for the better when she thought this. She would never make an enemy out of Princess Royal Shou Kang. However, it gave her indescribable joy to see the once well-regarded princess inferior to herself. Which was why Lin Wei Xi looked more pleasing to her. However, when Empress Dowager Qian looked at Gao Ran, she thought to herself that one really couldn¡¯t judge a book by it¡¯s cover. A gentle, sweet, well-bred youngdy like her could actually do something like block her mother-inw from entering the household and promise her to another family. What was especially abominable was that she had plotted against her nephew!


    At this point, Empress Dowager Qian hadpletely forgotten that it was Madam Qian who had proposed the marriage to Gao Ran first. Then, since the Qian family didn¡¯t dare confront Prince Yan, the reason why they had lost face was because of other people!


    Gao Ran unknowingly took the me for Madam Qian, but unfortunately she wasn¡¯t able to exin it. One could tell from Empress Dowager Qian that the Qian family was not an honest family. Gao Ran couldn¡¯t say what she wanted to say and Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t give her a chance to speak.


    Gao Ran spent the entire morning trying to get a word in and it was truly unspeakably upsetting. Just as she grew fretful, a voice chanted from outside, ¡°The Emperor has arrived. Prince Yan has arrived.¡±


    Cining Pce erupted intomotion. Lin Wei Xi stood up and bowed to the door in greeting.


    ¡°Long live the Emperor.¡±


    The Emperor entered Cining Pce escorted by a group of people, Gu Hui Yan standing beside him. He looked around after entering, his eyes suddenly focusing on one person, ¡°Uncle Yan, is this my new Aunt?¡±

 Chapter 41

    The young emperor tilted his head slightly and looked at Lin Wei Xi with open curiosity.


    It wasn¡¯t necessarily a good thing to receive the Emperor¡¯s curiosity. Lin Wei Xi lowered her head further, revealing only her slender neck. Gu Hui Yan nced at her and said, ¡°that¡¯s my wife.¡±


    The Emperor looked at her curiously a few more times before saying, ¡°You may forgo the formalities.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stood up along with everyone and the Emperor stepped forward to greet Empress Dowager Qian. The Emperor and Prince Yan were here, so the seating order naturally had to be rearranged. Lin Wei Xi took the opportunity to walk to Gu Hui Yan, silently disappearing under his imposing aura.


    Gu Cheng Yao had also followed Gu Hui Yan and the Emperor to visit the Empress Dowager. He watched Lin Wei Xi eagerly walk in his direction and stop in front of him.


    Gu Hui Yan wore a first rank Prince¡¯s ck python garment while Lin Wei Xi looked gorgeous and tender dressed all in red. He was tall and lean while she was curvy. Standing next to each other, they radiated harmony.


    An inexplicable feeling he didn¡¯t understand rose within Gu Cheng Yao. Seeing Lin Wei Xi automatically walk to Prince Yan, Gao Ran also headed towards Gu Cheng Yao, unwilling to lose. After she settled into her position next to him, she realized that he looked a little distracted. She couldn¡¯t resist whispering, ¡°Shizi?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao returned to his senses to find Gao Ran looking at him with concern. He smiled gently, easily concealed his emotions, and tried to pacify her with a gaze, ¡°I¡¯m fine. The Emperor and the Empress Dowager are here. I¡¯ll tell you when we return home.¡±


    Of course Gao Ran understood this logic. But when he said it like that, she felt a little unhappy for some reason. It seemed like she hadn¡¯t expected him to behave like that. She wanted to let him know how Lin Wei Xi had acted using her status as mother-inw, how she had deliberately cut off her sentences, and how she had abused her position in public by ndering her in front of Empress Dowager. But Gao Ran could only quietly respond and lower her head as she listened to the Emperor and Prince Yan talk.


    The Emperor had ascended the throne when he was eight. Five years passed in a sh, and he would be turning thirteen after the New Year. Thirteen was neither too old nor too young, but it was a sensitive age in the imperial family.


    The earth dragon in Cining Pce burned hot and incense floated in the pce, warm as spring. It was normally very cosy, but in the room full of people, only the Emperor and Gu Hui Yan spoke.


    Everyone else was too scared to breathe too loudly, and they bowed their heads and waited. Even Empress Dowager Qian stopped her endless drivel, sitting to the side with a smile. She nodded and responded from time to time, but couldn¡¯t really insert herself into the conversation. Lin Wei Xi simply sat next to Gu Hui Yan like a statue. While she had a bright smile on her face, her mind was wandering.


    It was now the eleventh month, fifth year of Yuanjia and the Emperor was twelve years old. If she were still the Shizi Fei in her previous life, she would certainly feel that the imperial court was prosperous and the country was at peace. But she¡¯d read that heavenly book and she knew things wouldn¡¯t always be so peaceful.


    Ever since he came to power, Grand Secretary Zhang made drastic reforms, managing all governmental affairs down to the smallest detail. He also served as the Emperor¡¯s teacher and was responsible for teaching the Emperor basic ethics and morality. A court minister had reached such a position; he could be said to be the brightest spark out of all schrs since the dawn of time. However, Lin Wei Xi learned from the heavenly book that while Zhang Xiao Lian had reached the pinnacle as an official while he was alive, after his death, none of his sessors, who were supposed to help guide the young Emperor in running the nation, met a good ending. Even their bones couldn¡¯t be salvaged. Afterwards, there was even a crusade against Zhang Xiao Lian. Every single policy by him was vetoed. All the officials who opposed him were praised as martyrs, even if that minister was actually just a cynical idiot.


    With just a few isted phrases from the heavenly book, Lin Wei Xi could already catch a glimpse of the wide scale danger at that time. She¡¯d never been involved in governmental affairs and didn¡¯t know what kind of person the renowned Grand Secretary Zhang was. But it was true that the national tax more than doubled when he was in power. It was true that he was strict with the imperial court. It was true that the Zhang family epted bribes without restraint. It was also true that Zhang Xiao Lian seized the opportunity to eliminate those who opposed him and nted his trusted aides in their positions. But it wasn¡¯t up to Lin Wei Xi to judge such a legendary person. She actually only cared about the Prince Yan Residence.


    She was once the Shizi Fei, but she was now the Prince Yan Consort. She was bound to live and die, to bear honour and disgrace together with Prince Yan. The previous Emperor had appointed three regent ministers so that they¡¯d control each other. Prince Yan was a member of the imperial family who held military power that deterred outside forces; Eunuch Feng was a pce eunuch who took care the Emperor and controlled the cab; Emperor Muzong¡¯s intentions to promote Zhang Xiao Lian before his death must¡¯ve been because he had seen Zhang Xiao Lian¡¯s outstanding ability to govern and wanted to use him to guard against Prince Yan. Prince Yan himself was part of the Gu family. His nephew was young and Empress Dowager Qian wasn¡¯t very smart. If something happened, the person sitting on the throne would change.


    Unexpectedly, the situation went in the opposite direction. Prince Yan remained upright and honest. On the contrary, Zhang Xiao Lian, who used to be the most trusted, monopolized the court. This dynasty had no prime minister, so all the memorials had to be approved by the Emperor himself. In fact, apart from the founding Emperor, no other Emperor had the physical strength to endure this level of work. Hence, a cab was set up to review and make suggestions for each memorial. Afraid that the cab would monopolize the imperial court, the Emperorter established a department of supervisors. The suggestions offered by the cab, or the preliminary proposal, could only go into effect after approval by the department of supervisors. The person in charge of the department of supervisors today was Eunuch Feng.


    Eunuch Feng had watched the Emperor grow up and was affectionately addressed as ¡°Chief Feng¡± by the Emperor. He was no different than his father figure. No one knew how Eunuch Feng got along so well with Grand Secretary Zhang. The two who were supposed to be in conflict with each other were actually very harmonious. All the memorials that Grand Secretary Zhang handed over were approved without a nce. Hence, it wasn¡¯t surprising that Grand Secretary Zhang could monopolize the government without anyone knowing.


    The two of the three pirs were in cahoots, and Prince Yan was the most important as the final pir. After Prince Yan returned to the capital, he remained on fairly good terms with Grand Secretary Zhang. At least, they seemed to respect each other on the surface and acted like gentlemen. Lin Wei Xi once thought that Gu Hui Yan and Grand Secretary Zhang were pretty good friends. But when Gu Hui Yan returned from the banquet on their wedding night, there was a faint worry in his brows. Perhaps the true rtionship between these three regent ministers wasn¡¯t peaceful as everyone thought.


    If even Prince Yan found it tricky, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t think that she herself would have any good ideas. She was just a little worried. If what was written in the heavenly book was true, what would happen to the Prince Yan Residence, which had a good rtionship with Grand Secretary Zhang, when he embezzled from the national treasury without restraint in the future? What would happen once the next Grand Secretary, Shen Shi Xing, came into power? An even more malicious spection was what kind of role did the Emperor y in this matter?


    The young emperor, who was only twelve years old, was currently sitting and talking to Prince Yan. He had elegant features and looked kind and harmless. But Lin Wei Xi felt a chill from the depth of her heart.


    In that moment, she finally realized that although the heavenly book was profound, it was only written from a biased perspective. That book was written from Gao Ran¡¯s perspective that romanticized her personal everyday life. How could it summarize the unpredictable nature of the imperial court and the ruthlessness of power struggles between political parties.


    Perhaps she didn¡¯t need to take the contents of the book so seriously.


    Gu Hui Yan had apanied the Emperor to the harem to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager. It was actually to satisfy the Emperor¡¯s curiosity with Lin Wei Xi. He was, after all, the Emperor. Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t say no. After seeing the person in question, Gu Hui Yan saw that it was time to leave and immediately stood up, bringing Lin Wei Xi with him as he left.


    Seeing him take his leave, the Emperor stood up rather reluctantly and said, ¡°Uncle Yan, you rarely enter the pce. Why don¡¯t you stay for a while more? I still want Uncle to show me how to ride a horse.¡±


    ¡°I came here today to apany my wife to thank the Empress Dowager. It¡¯s gettingte. We shouldn¡¯t linger in the harem for too long. If the Emperor wants to practice riding and shooting, why don¡¯t I visit the pce again tomorrow and practice with you until you¡¯re satisfied.¡±


    The Emperor helplessly sighed at this, ¡°Uncle Yan is right. It¡¯s just that, tomorrow Zhen<sup>¡ó</sup>has to go to Wenhua Pavilion for lectures. There¡¯s no time for the drill grounds.¡±


    ¡ó


    Gu Hui Yan paused momentarily and smiled again, ¡°Grand Secretary Zhang is dedicated to Your Majesty and strictly abides by his duty as a teacher. This is a blessing for the country.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t miss the fact that the Emperor addressed himself with ¡°I¡± in front of Prince Yan, nor did she miss Prince Yan merely calling Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s strict discipline ¡°a blessing to the country¡±, devoid of any personal opinion. Grand Secretary Zhang shouldered the responsibility of being the Emperor¡¯s teacher. He also wholeheartedly wanted to groom a virtuous and wise monarch for the Qi Dynasty. Hence, the Emperor¡¯s discipline was veryplicated and strict. From the books he read to the words he practised, to even what he did during court sessions, everything was strict and regimental. From an adult¡¯s perspective, Grand Secretary Zhang was doing this for the sake of the Emperor. But from the perspective of a twelve year old child, this was most likely a pain in the neck.


    The Emperor reluctantly sent Prince Yan out. He nced at Lin Wei Xi again and said, ¡°Uncle Wang just got married. Zhen is a junior and wasn¡¯t able to congratte you on the day of. It¡¯s truly unfortunate. Zhen doesn¡¯t have much of a greeting gift. It¡¯s only a pair of jade Bi for Aunt Yan. Zhen hopes that Aunt and Uncle Yan live a long and happy life together in harmony.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was caught off guard when she was addressed. She had never spoken to the emperor before, so she almost stumbled, ¡°Your Majesty, this official¡¯s wifecks the ability¡­ ¡°


    The Emperor smiled kindly at Lin Wei Xi. The young man had fair skin which made his smile look elegant and neat, ¡°Aunt Yan, you don¡¯t need to do this. Zhen has always respected Uncle Yan. This is Zhen¡¯s congrattory wedding gift to the both of you. Auntie should just ept it.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at Gu Hui Yan. He nodded slightly, so she said, ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty. Long live Your Majesty.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan made small talk with the Emperor while Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao had to stand at a respectful distance and watch from the back. Gao Ran couldn¡¯t say a word. She watched the two of them stand side by side from behind, and thought to herself for some reason, that Gu Cheng Yao was only a Shizi and when people brought him up, they¡¯d always refer to him as Prince Yan¡¯s son. Gao Ran used to be extremely proud of her identity. But now it was hard for her to understand her own feelings.


    It was because he was Prince Yan¡¯s son that Gao Ran could only stand at the back and watch Lin Wei Xi ept greetings, make small talk, and joke with various influential figures. It wasn¡¯t due to how clever Lin Wei Xi was or how stupid Gao Ran was. Lin Wei Xi could only do this because she was the Prince Yan Consort, Prince Yan¡¯s new wife.


    Gao Ran stood an arm¡¯s length away and watched her thank the Emperor with a smile before having her servants put away the jade artefact he gave to her. Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao were obviously standing not far away, but they seemed to be separated by an insurmountable valley.


    That valley was power, status, and seniority, and also Prince Yan¡¯s outstanding military service. The Emperor had no choice but to rely on his massive military power. For the first time, Gao Ran clearly realized that the honour she had as Shizi Fei was not because of Gu Cheng Yao, but because of Prince Yan.


    After leaving the pce, Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran both got onto the carriage and remained silent the entire way. Lin Wei Xi was deep in thought about the heavenly book while Gao Ran stared at the decorative motif on the sleeve of her dress, slightly distracted.


    Because of this incident, Gao Ran was preupied with her thoughts until dinner. That evening, everyone in the Residence would be eating together. From start to end, she stood behind Lin Wei Xi and served her. When the maid swapped out the tea, Gao Ran rolled up her sleeves and poured it for Lin Wei Xi.


    Lin Wei Xi watched her former sister serve her tea and water. She silently basked in it for a while, and when Gao Ran held out the tea to her, she said, ¡°I¡¯m not thirsty. I don¡¯t want to drink tea. Put it away first. ¡°


    Gao Ran¡¯s hand tightened around the teacup. Ning Fu and the other maids looked indignant. Of course Lin Wei Xi saw it. Her smile didn¡¯t change and she said carelessly, ¡°Shizi Fei¡¯s hand just healed. You couldn¡¯t even serve tea properly when your hand was still okay. Now that your hand is injured, I¡¯m afraid it won¡¯t have any strength. Put it down. It¡¯s just been boiled. Unlike Shizi Fei, I can¡¯t stand getting scalded.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was truly being incessantly picky. Gu Cheng Yao had just entered the room when he heard this. His eyebrows twitched and he unconsciously looked at Gu Hui Yan, who was in front of him.

 Chapter 42

    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s qi gong was excellent. He remained calm, as if he hadn¡¯t heard anything. When everyone in the hall saw him and Shizi enter, they promptly greeted them. Lin Wei Xi stood up as well when she heard the mour and greeted, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan supported Lin Wei Xi naturally. She was halfway through giving a Wanfu salute and had to stand up with Gu Hui Yan¡¯s support. Everyone else in the room was a little surprised when they saw this. Gao Ran stared at the hand he used to support Lin Wei Xi¡¯s arm and couldn¡¯t believe that he could take such good care of someone. Was Lin Wei Xi incapable of taking care of herself?


    Gu Cheng Yao looked away from their intertwined hands and greeted Lin Wei Xi with focused eyes, ¡°Mother.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi never expected Gu Hui Yan to help her up in front of everyone. The wife nurtured the family; she was responsible for bearing an heir and presiding over the ancestral hall. The husband only needed to be respectful and not intimate. This had been her understanding for the longest time and she never expected a man to be so attentive to her. Her brain couldn¡¯t keep up. In a daze, she was led to a seat by Gu Hui Yan and sat down next to him.


    Gu Cheng Yao followed and took a seat. There were a total of four people in their family. Gao Ran¡¯s position suddenly became awkward as she was the only one there who couldn¡¯t sit. It was proper for the daughter-inw to wait on her mother-inw during meals, and she definitely couldn¡¯t carelessly sit down before her mother-inw allowed her to.


    Coincidentally, Gao Ran was the only person there who had a wound. After the food was served, Gao Ran lifted her chopsticks as if to serve Lin Wei Xi food. Lin Wei Xi nced at her hand and said, ¡°Shizi Fei, no need to feel impatient to fulfil your filial duty. Your hand is still injured, so just sit down. Otherwise it¡¯ll look like I¡¯m bullying you. Then it¡¯ll be this stepmother¡¯s fault again.¡±


    Under Lin Wei Xi¡¯s wordsy an usation. Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t continue to listen, so he stood up and said, ¡°It was my fault for disrespecting Mother yesterday. Mother, please forgive me.¡±


    How nice it was to have a powerful father who could force others to forgive him. Lin Wei Xi smiled lightly and said, ¡°you tter me. Shizi is the residence¡¯s only heir. I¡¯m only the second wife, so how could I dare criticize Shizi.¡±


    Everyone¡¯s faces changed as soon as she said this. They truly thought so, but once someone said it, the implications were too grave. Even if they secretly looked down on her, Lin Wei Xi was the Prince Yan Consort and Shizi¡¯s Mother. Gu Cheng Yao frowned and said, ¡°your son has never thought so. Where did Mother get this idea from?¡±


    ¡°You may not think that, but it¡¯s more likely than not that your servants think so.¡± Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes coldly and quickly swept over Granny Bu mercilessly. No one else there might¡¯ve been able to catch it, but as the person in question, Granny Bu must¡¯ve sensed it. After she finished her provocation, she carelessly said, ¡°Shizi, Shizi Fei, sit down.¡±


    Although Lin Wei Xi had nced too quickly for them to see, a few of the people present were smart. How could they overlook such details? Gu Cheng Yao noticed that her gaze had settled on Granny Bu, who was behind him. He was embarrassed and unconvinced. Could it be that Granny Bu had said something to Lin Wei Xi? But Granny Bu wasn¡¯t that kind of person?


    Gu Cheng Yao continued to stand and refused to sit down. Gao Ran stood by Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s side and frowned, ¡°Mother, this might be a misunderstanding. If this daughter-inw didn¡¯t serve you well, then Mother can beat and scold me. But there¡¯s no reason to take your anger out on Shizi.¡±


    Gao Ran was really annoying. Trying to make herself seem pitiful so that it looked like Lin Wei Xi was deliberately provoking her. Furthermore, she defended Gu Cheng Yao while she was at it, disying her loyalty for everyone to see. Lin Wei Xi was sick of it and she sounded irritated, ¡°It¡¯s just a matter of fact. I¡¯m not rted to him so why would I take my anger out on him? I know that Shizi Fei and Shizi are deeply in love with each other. But Shizi Fei, before you defend Shizi, you ought to listen to what the other person has to say.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t expect things to be more messy. He was about to speak, but was cut off by Gu Hui Yan, ¡°He ought to apologize, so it¡¯s your right to ept it.¡±


    The moment Gu Hui Yan opened his mouth, everyone immediately went quiet. Even Lin Wei Xi became obedient.


    Gu Hui Yan nced at her and said lightly, ¡°She is the Prince Yan Consort. Her words are the same as mine. If you ignore her order, it is the same as ignoring my order, and you won¡¯t have a ce in the Prince Yan Residence anymore.¡±


    As soon as he said that, the servants in the dining hall turned pale. No matter which courtyard they served, all of them immediately knelt down, ¡°my Prince¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan looked straight ahead and didn¡¯t so much as nce at the many people kneeling on the ground. Seeing the tense atmosphere, Lin Wei Xi quietly tugged his sleeves, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    She gazed at him with teary eyes, her expression gentle and slight fawning. She had indeed deliberately red up today. Granny Bu refused to acknowledge her as the new Princess Consort and even mentioned the previous wife to suppress her. If she didn¡¯t beat this kind of person at least once, how could she establish her reputation in the household? Her original intention was to knock some sense into Gu Cheng Yao so she could show him exactly what kind of person his loyal servant truly was. But she hadn¡¯t expected Gu Hui Yan to speak up. Not only did he reproach Gu Cheng Yao, he also sided with her unconditionally.


    Lin Wei Xi was moved by his actions, but she also felt guilty for exploiting him. Prince Yan had spent the entire day socializing in the pce, but she caused trouble during dinner and took the opportunity to beat the servants into their ce. She felt very apologetic. She watched him, her eyes unconsciously carrying some satisfaction.


    Being looked at by such eyes, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s anger unwittingly dissipated. In the end, he couldn¡¯t bear to reject Lin Wei Xi, so he said tly, ¡°Get up.¡±


    Everyone in the room let out a huge sigh of relief and got up from the ground with their heads lowered. Gu Hui Yan nced lightly at Gu Cheng Yao and said, ¡°Since she asked for leniency for all of you, remember it well. Everybody sit down. There¡¯s no need to bring out any more dishes today.¡±


    Gao Ran hurriedly thanked him and walked over to sit by Gu Cheng Yao. The meal passed in silence. Even the maids painstakingly softened their footsteps as they served the food. All the maids and older servants in the hall respectfully stood with their hands folded. Throughout the meal, their eyes couldn¡¯t help but drift towards Lin Wei Xi.


    The Prince actually cared this much about the new Princess Consort. First, he had helped her up himself. Then he had scolded Shizi and intimidated the servants for her. Princess Consort Lin was more than one generation younger than Prince Yan and she was so beautiful. With such a lovable wife, it¡¯s no wonder Prince Yan spoiled and indulged her a lot.


    Everyone had a vague inkling that the winds were about to change in the residence. They previously guessed that the Prince attached importance to Shizi and would guard against getting a second wife. Unfortunately, they were gravely mistaken.


    After dinner, Gu Cheng Yao and his wife quietly asked to take their leave. Lin Wei Xi also followed Gu Hui Yan back to their courtyard. After entering the room, Lin Wei Xi gave a warning nce. Wan Xing and Wan Yue understood and chased out all the servants, leaving only the two of them in the room.


    After everyone left, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t have to worry about her reputation. She immediately sat down next to Gu Hui Yan, hooked his sleeve with her little finger, and tilted her head slightly, her eyes curling up, ¡°my Prince, thank you very much for today.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan actually felt that this was something he ought to do. Since he¡¯d agreed to marry her, how could he allow the residence¡¯s servants to use their seniority to bully her? It was his negligence that allowed these ves to say such contradictory words to her. He should¡¯ve disciplined the servants and spoken to them about it earlier. He initially didn¡¯t think it was important, but this littledy had decided to bring up the truth first. For some reason, he felt touched and asked, ¡°Why are you thanking me?¡±


    ¡°Thank you for supporting me in front of everybody today.¡± She looked at him very seriously, ¡°I know that I was wrong in the past. My Prince, you married me because of a n I concocted. If you despise me because of that, I can¡¯tin about it. But you still treat me with respect and are always considerate of my needs. I am beyond grateful to you. You spent the day apanying the Emperor. It¡¯s already a troublesome affair, but after returning to the residence, the trouble didn¡¯t stop there. Dinner was supposed to be a family affair, but I made noise about this kind of problem. I am truly¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan had only been teasing her at the start and listened with a smile. But as she talked, his smile slowly faded and his tone became serious, ¡°why do you think that? That day¡­ you were indeed very bold. But once I make my decision, no one can change my mind. I did everything because I genuinely wanted to, so how can I despise you for it? Don¡¯t say such things again. As I said on our wedding day, since I¡¯ve married you, I¡¯ll make sure you don¡¯t face any difficulties. Just continue to be yourself and act as you¡¯ve always been. There¡¯s really no need for you to bear any burden.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes became a little moist when she heard his words. She felt deeply moved and even felt that she¡¯d fooled the Heavens just a little. That day, she¡¯d gone to Prince Yan¡¯s study and said those words. To put it kindly, one could call it repaying his kindness. At worst, it could be interpreted as forcing him to owe her a favour. She¡¯d be ckmailing him. The man had been forced to marry the woman, so it was obvious what would happen after the marriage. However, even in this situation, Prince Yan could still say he¡¯d made the decision himself and would take responsibility to the end. If Gu Cheng Yao had even a tenth of the responsibility his father had, she wouldn¡¯t have ended up like that in her previous life.


    But there were too many what-ifs. Besides, she was already married to Prince Yan, so she couldn¡¯t allow herself to think about her previous life. Lin Wei Xi tried to blink back her tears and forced a smile, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan, I have admired you since I was a child. I only found out today that my admiration is too shallow. You are truly a good person.¡±


    These past few days, Lin Wei Xi had painstakingly changed the way she addressed Gu Hui Yan from formal to informal. She was no longer his subordinate¡¯s daughter, but his wife. She didn¡¯t want Gu Hui Yan to see her as a child. But at the moment, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words reflected her feelings of sincere love and respect for the hero standing in front of her that she held in both her lives<sup>¡ó</sup>. It was her fortune that she was able to marry Prince Yan.


    ¡ó


    Gu Hui Yan had heard many exaggerated praises from the people around him, but he didn¡¯t actually think much of his achievements. He wasn¡¯t as noble as people imagined. At fifteen, hemanded the army for the residence and the fief. From twenty onwards, he fought in various regions to gain power. At thirty, he entered the capital to save the Emperor, but it wasn¡¯t necessarily for the sake of the country. He knew that he was actually very selfish, and the various praises the world sang of him were much too embellished. As for the repeated victories and no defeats that he brought since he joined the army, as themander, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t think this was anything worth bragging about.


    Going to war wasn¡¯t child¡¯s y. Each and every move involved human lives. It was themander¡¯s duty to seriously deliberate the n before making a move.


    However, even if Gu Hui Yan thought it was nothing, a young beautiful girl was now looking up to him and watching him with those eyes. He couldn¡¯t stop himself from feeling a hint of male pleasure. Especially since it was his lovable wife who¡¯d seriously and intently said ¡®I admire you very much¡¯.


    Although he believed he had the best self-control and was used to seeing turmoil and huge changes, Gu Hui Yan found it hard to control himself. He didn¡¯t know why and looked up at the sky.


    Seeing that he wasn¡¯t saying anything, but looking up at the sky, Lin Wei Xi thought that what she¡¯d said had been too impetuous and caused him to feel impatient. She was startled and quickly said, ¡°my Prince, every single one of my words is sincere. I¡¯m not trying to be offensive, nor am I trying to tter you.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan raised his hand and lightly coughed into his fist, ¡°I know.¡± In contrast, his thoughts became dirtier. Lin Yong had entrusted him to look after his only daughter because he trusted him to conduct himself morally. If Lin Yong learned of his recent behaviour, wouldn¡¯t he have betrayed his old friend¡¯s sincerity?


    His expression was difficult to read, but he didn¡¯t look angry. She felt a little relieved. After thinking about it, she asked tentatively, ¡°my Prince, I was rude to Shizi today. You won¡¯t be angry at me, right?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Gu Hui Yan seemed unperturbed, ¡°He has thick skin. I didn¡¯t say much, nothing will happen. On the contrary, your body is weak and delicate. He¡¯ll be fine even if you scold him, but don¡¯t get too angry.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled, ¡°My Prince, thank you for not ming me. I¡¯m not actually trying to provoke anyone. My words are grounded and justified.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled as he looked at her, ¡°I know.¡±


    Speaking of the saying ¡®if the older person doesn¡¯t behave respectably, the youth won¡¯t respect them¡¯, Gu Hui Yan quite liked that saying. As for his son, Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t mind him too much. He was already an adult, how could he not tolerate even a little bit of scolding. His stepmother was younger than him and her body was delicate. Gu Cheng Yao ought to give in an appropriate amount.


    After receiving immunity from Prince Yan, Lin Wei Xi immediately felt pacified and she trembled in anticipation. Who would¡¯ve thought thatst year, she¡¯d been so angry with Gu Cheng Yao that she hovered between life and death and had to endure his cold treatment. But now, she had the authority to scold him.

 Chapter 43

    Lin Wei Xi was happy for a moment, but as she suddenly thought of the events in the book, her joy immediately clouded over. Her smile faded and Gu Hui Yan was sharp enough to notice this. His gaze shifted and he asked, his voice deep, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Lin Wei Xi shook her head. She didn¡¯t intend to mention this to him. After all, the events in the heavenly book were too unimaginable. Frankly speaking, she was chasing wind and shadows and specting about events that hadn¡¯t urred yet. But when she looked into his eyes, she wholly trusted him, not knowing why. It seemed like no matter what happened, she could depend on the person in front of her. Lin Wei Xi was gradually put under a spell as she looked at Gu Hui Yan, and she hesitated in asking, ¡°my Prince, what kind of person do you think Grand Secretary Zhang is?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze changed abruptly and he even looked a little surprised. He initially assumed that his little wife had let her imagination run wild again. She seemed to easily get caught up in memories and sometimes mourned some things in her life, as if something simr but bad had happened to her before. This was absolutely undesirable for her growth. Gu Hui Yan kept these things to himself and didn¡¯t normally talk about them. He thought the same thing was happening today, but he didn¡¯t expect to hear this question from her.


    If she could ask such a question, then the answer she wanted was definitely not something rted to Zhang Xiao Lian¡¯s poetry and literature, him personally attending to all the government affairs, or himboriously teaching the Emperor. Gu Hui Yan felt it was strange. Given her age and experience, she shouldn¡¯t have been exposed to this level of political affairs. Gu Hui Yan asked what was on his mind, ¡°Why do you ask?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It¡¯s just that, when I saw the Emperor today, I suddenly realized that His Majesty has grown so tall and is almost the same height as me. He will probably be taller than me next year, so I feel a bit rueful.¡± Lin Wei Xi answered nervously. When she said this in front of Prince Yan, she felt quite like she was disying her small skills in front of an expert. She peeped at him and asked carefully, ¡°my Prince, my thoughts aren¡¯t detailed but I decided to exin them to you. Do you find themughable?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Gu Hui Yanughed in spite of himself and couldn¡¯t resist reaching across the table to pat her head. ¡°Why would I? It¡¯s great that you thought of this.¡±


    The young emperor grew older day by day, but the three regent ministers were still in charge of government affairs. Under the lively and vibrant facade, tensions were already brewing. Unfortunately, those of the imperial court remained wilfully ignorant and immersed in this flourishing era and their vanity. Perhaps even Zhang Xiao Lian himself never thought this would be a problem. It was very rare toe across a sixteen-year-old girl like Lin Wei Xi who could think like this after just entering the pce.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression darkened. He realized that Lin Wei Xi, who was sitting right next to him, was looking at him nervously with damp eyes, as if the sky was going to copse at that moment. He smiled softly and his imposing aura rxed, ¡°that day is still far. We can enjoy at least five more years of peace. What are you worried about? Besides, even if the dayes, I will be here. Nothing will happen.¡±


    Because Lin Wei Xi had read the heavenly book, she knew that someday, Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s actions would have huge implications. Even if the factions weren¡¯t in conflict now, a shadow constantly loomed over her heart. Hearing Gu Hui Yan say this, her heart was consoled and she rxed. She immediately smiled and said, ¡°that¡¯s right, you¡¯re here.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was truly much more rxed. Based on Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression, he seemed to constantly have his guard up against this matter. Maybe he already expected what had happened today from the moment he first entered the capital to assist the Emperor. Who was Prince Yan? Even if Lin Wei Xi was lucky enough to see the future from the heavenly book, she¡¯d neverpare herself to him. Since he was already prepared, wouldn¡¯t her worries be groundless even if she continued to worry about it?


    Lin Wei Xi calmed down a bit and her expression rxed. Although this had been what Gu Hui Yan wanted, he was still surprised when he saw her reaction, ¡°you¡¯re trusting me so easily? It¡¯s just an empty promise. No one can really predict the future.¡±


    ¡°Of course I believe you.¡± Lin Wei Xi wiped the depressed look off her face and smiled beautifully at Gu Hui Yan, her dimples shing, ¡°Because you¡¯re Prince Yan.¡±


    Such unreserved trusting from this littledy really made him feel like he was falling. Gu Hui Yan unconsciously smiled and his gaze softened.


    He said that he had seven days of wedding leave. Actually, he¡¯d ended his leave on day three, after his return from the pce, and returned to handling government affairs.


    Lin Wei Xi forced herself to get up early and insisted on personally helping Gu Hui Yan into his first-rank Prince court dress. He noticed that her eyes were red-rimmed, clearly notpletely woken up yet. She only wore the inner lining<sup>¡ó</sup>to her clothes and she shivered slightly as she helped him change. Even though the earth dragon was burning, the early winter morning was freezing. Gu Hui Yan pitied her since she was still half-asleep and felt sorry that she¡¯d catch a cold standing outside. He asked her to go back to sleep several times but she shook her head and declined. It was her first time doing this for a man. Because he held a high status, his court dress was ratherplicated. She reached out and strained as she tried to tie his leather belt.


    ¡ó


    Gu Hui Yan had strong shoulders, a slim waist, and well-proportioned and long legs. He looked tall and dignified when he stood, and anyone could tell at a nce that he was in the military. Lin Wei Xi already looked slim when standing in front of him. But as she wrapped her hands around his waist to tie his leather belt, in only her inner wear with her long hair draped behind her, it seemed like she was trying to hug him. While Gu Hui Yan was immactely dressed and decked out in the first-rank Prince¡¯s court dress, Lin Wei Xi wore her long hair at the waist, her clothes wrapping around her slim frame. The contrast gave one an indescribably romantic feeling.


    Lin Wei Xi felt a little embarrassed as she tied on the leather belt, especially when she clearly felt Gu Hui Yan focusing on her. She didn¡¯t know why, but the movement of her hands were a little flustered and the leather belt stayed twisted for a long time. She grew a little anxious. Attending court was an important event. Being discourteous orte were both serious offences. She was bing impatient when he suddenly reached out to guide her hand to properly tie the leather belt. The light calluses on his palm were rough as he touched her hand, but it carried a reassuring warmth. Lin Wei Xi blushed a little. She forced it down, took the jade pendant, medal, Bixi<sup>¡ó</sup>, etc. and hung them on the leather belt one by one.


    ¡ó


    It waster than usual by the time she properly helped him into the entire first-rank court dress. Lin Wei Xi took a step back, deeply and intuitively feeling the impact of this outfit. She pursed her lips at Gu Hui Yan and smiled, giving a deep Wanfu salute, ¡°my Prince, I¡¯ve caused you to wait a long time today. This humble one will wait here for you to return.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t find his words. He looked at Lin Wei Xi deeply. After a moment, he stepped forward to support her arm and pulled her up with little effort. He raised his hand to her cheek, stroked her chin a few times, then walked away.


    When Lin Wei Xi dressed Gu Hui Yan, there were many maids in the room, but no one dared to step up and interfere. The Princess Consort had run around from start to finish to help Prince Yan put on his clothes. He had also been focused on her. Even if he didn¡¯t say anything, everyone knew that he wouldn¡¯t allow them to disturb them.


    After Gu Hui Yan left, everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did Wan Xing and Wan Yue step forward to support Lin Wei Xi. They asked, ¡°Princess Consort, it¡¯s still early. Do you want to lie down on the bed for a little while?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked outside. Although the sky was still dark, at the same time, the Eastern sky was already turning bright. She¡¯d been so sleepy when she first woke up, but after helping Gu Hui Yan change into his court dress, her sleepiness more or less disappeared. She shook her head and said, ¡°I¡¯m wide awake. It¡¯s not proper for me to return to bed. I¡¯ll change my clothes.¡±


    Because Gu Hui Yan was the only one in the residence who needed to attend court, by the time Gao Ran came to pay her respects, Lin Wei Xi had already been sitting there for a long time. Previously, Gao Ran had waited for Lin Wei Xi for a long time before the tea ceremony. Coupled with entering the pce the day before, she determined that Lin Wei Xi liked to sleep in, so she was rather sloppy when paying her respects today. Unexpectedly, Lin Wei Xi actually woke up early today. The moment Gao Ran saw her already neatly dressed and sitting by the window drinking tea, she hurried forward to bow her head in shock. She said, ¡°Paying my respects to Mother. This daughter-inw iste today. Mother, please forgive me.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nced at her and indifferently said, ¡°Didn¡¯t I excuse you from morning and evening greetings for the next few days because of your injury? Why did youe?¡±


    ¡°Mother is verypassionate to her children. This daughter-inw is very grateful and wants to be even more filial to mother. How could I dare neglect you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was no stranger to this kind of response. If their positions were switched and she was exempted from the routine greetings by her mother-inw because she pitied her injury, she¡¯d say she was grateful, but she wouldn¡¯t actually skip the greetings. In the Duke Yingguo Residence, Lin Wei Xi had gotten used to her grandmother, the Duke Yingguo Madam¡¯s, ways of doing things. Her mother was the Princess Royal¡¯s daughter, but she never skipped the morning and evening greetings. In her memory, it was only during those few days where her mother went throughbour prematurely that she was exempted from paying her respects because she couldn¡¯t get out of bed. Afterwards, Wei Shi¡¯s health deteriorated, so she couldn¡¯t serve her mother-inw.


    Lin Wei Xi thought of Wei Shi, and also recalled Han Shi and Han Shi¡¯s son, her former shu younger brother. Thinking of these unpleasant old friends, her interest waned and her expression became colder, ¡°Shizi Fei is considerate. No wonder everyone always praises you for your filial piety. I heard that even before you married, you already had a reputation for being virtuous. Seeing you today, it seems like you deserve that reputation.¡±


    ¡°Mother, you praise me too much. Those Madams are just giving face to this daughter-inw. I¡¯m just lucky that I have a reputation for being talented and filial. How dare this daughter-inw take it seriously? Mother, please don¡¯t say that again. This daughter-inw is ashamed.¡±


    She spoke modestly, but deliberately implied that she indeed had a reputation for being talented and filial before she got married. Lin Wei Xi smiled, put down her teacup, and looked at Gao Ran, ¡°Shizi Fei is actually so famous. My Prince Yan Residence is really fortunate to have you as a wife. Since Shizi Fei was so famous before getting married, then surely it wouldn¡¯t be a problem for you to serve your parents-inw and do the housework, needlework and cooking.¡±


    Gao Ran¡¯s face became a little stiff. She hadn¡¯t said anything untoward, but the way Lin Wei Xi said it made her seem like a maid waiting on someone. But even if she was unhappy, she didn¡¯t have a choice. Society¡¯s requirements for a daughter-inw were to be her mother-inw¡¯s maid, a perfect person in front of the husband, and the Buddha in front of the servants.


    If Lin Wei Xi really ordered Gao Ran around like a maid, Gao Ran was powerless to do anything except use her tears to garner sympathy from the masses.


    Lin Wei Xi wiped the corners of her mouth with a handkerchief and held the armrest as she made to get up. Gao Ran felt fed up when she saw this and hurried to help. ¡°Mother, be careful.¡±


    After she stood up, she shook off Gao Ran¡¯s hand. She walked to the anteroom and asked, ¡°Shizi Fei, did you already have breakfast? If you haven¡¯t, you can eat together with me.¡±


    Gao Ran quickly said ¡°I don¡¯t dare¡±. She¡¯d beente in paying her respects today. If she had breakfast here, that¡¯d leave fuel for gossip. She¡¯d rather go hungry.


    It was just a rhetorical question. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t actually want to eat together with Gao Ran. She sat at the dining table and a maid brought out steaming tea and cakes. Every dish was exquisite and small, and they all looked expensive. After Lin Wei Xi sat down, Gao Ran promptly stepped forward and said to the maid who was serving the food, ¡°I¡¯ll serve Mother. Withdraw.¡±


    Seeing that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t respond, the maid passed the serving chopsticks to Gao Ran with both hands, then bowed and withdrew.


    Lin Wei Xi smiled politely, ¡°Shizi Fei, you still have burns on your hand. How can we have you do a servant¡¯s job? It¡¯s too difficult.¡±


    ¡°How is serving Mother-inw difficult?¡± Gao Ran continued to smile gently without showing any stiffness or embarrassment. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes merely shifted a little and Gao Ran put the dish that she¡¯d looked at into her bowl. She didn¡¯t need to say anything at all. Lin Wei Xi had seen Gao Ran ingratiate herself with their grandmother when she was still in the Duke Residence. Although she felt that Gao Ran was just putting on an act of filial piety, she had to admit that Gao Ran was much better at serving others than she was. If it were Lin Wei Xi, she definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to do things like personally serve tea or eagerly serve food to the female elders or her husband.


    She used to disdain Gao Ran¡¯s way of doing things, but now that she was in a different position, she suddenly found that it felt quite good. No wonder the Duke Yingguo Madam always praised Gao Ran. Who wouldn¡¯t praise her after being served so thoughtfully and thoroughly?

 Chapter 44

    Lin Wei Xi cheerfully enjoyed the treatment her former grandmother received. Gao Ran was an expert at this. Lin Wei Xi merely had to nce at a dish and Gao Ran would serve it to her in an instant. After a few times, Gao Ran got a feel for Lin Wei Xi¡¯s appetite. The amount of food she served was just right. It wasn¡¯t too much and it was enough to satisfy her.


    Unconsciously, Lin Wei Xi ate a little more than she usually did. Being in a good mood made everything appetizing. She put down her chopsticks and rinsed her mouth with tea. Gao Ran had a silk handkerchief at the ready for her to wipe her lips, and was incredibly attentive from start to finish.


    After Lin Wei Xi tidied up properly, she slowly stood up with the support of a servant. She looked at Gao Ran and smiled softly, ¡°thank you for the trouble, Shizi Fei. You¡¯ve been standing for so long. I¡¯ll be seeing the estate manager in a bit. If you¡¯re tired, you can go back first.¡±


    Gao Ran had had only two mouthfuls of pastries that morning before leaving. It was very exhausting for her to observe someone¡¯s reaction to predict their thoughts. After that breakfast, the two chestnut cakes in Gao Ran¡¯s stomach had long since beenpletely digested. But after Lin Wei Xi said this, how could she go back? Was it too tiring to sit and honestly serve her mother-inw? Gao Ran suppressed her exhaustion and said with a smile, ¡°why would I go back? As long as Mother doesn¡¯t feel bothered by me, I¡¯m happy to serve Mother for a while longer. What would I even do if I return early?¡±


    Since Gao Ran said so, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t decline. She actually took her across the courtyard, through the main hall, and sat her in the room East of the main hall. A screen stood at the entrance of the room that hazily blocked Lin Wei Xi¡¯s figure. The maids filed in and quietly arranged the incense burner, fruit te, embroidered cushion, etc. After putting everything in order, Wan Yue helped Lin Wei Xi onto a couch in the centre of a in five-panel folding screen.


    Lin Wei Xi was the centre of attention of everyone in the room. Only after she sat down did Gao Ran walk to the side of the couch behind Lin Wei Xi and stand still.


    The maid left to call for the estate manager. After a while, the manager of the residence¡¯s estate in Daxing was brought in.


    She was a solid woman in her forties and wore a short blue rough cotton coat. She was no stranger to the Prince Yan Residence. The husband and wife were the residence¡¯s ves and they managed the estate in Daxing. At the end of each year, they offered the poultry and fresh food produced from the property to the Prince Yan Residence. In previous years, she met Granny Bu directly. But this year, she learned that Prince Yan had married a new Princess Consort. With a mistress, Granny Bu was no longer in charge of the tribute offered by the estate, so the Granny from the estate had to visit the new Princess Consort and kowtow to her first.


    Aside from the flowerbeds in the residence, everywhere else was paved with blue stone. The estate Granny followed the brightly dressed and pretty maid from the side gate to the centre of the residence, to Jingcheng Courtyard. After walking through the tall gateway, she saw the zed spirit screen first, impressive and awe-inspiring. The coiled dragon on the wall stared at her, and her heart pounded. She was too scared to look at it again. She quickly lowered her head and followed the maid around the spirit screen, walking along the corridor under the eaves.


    Even though the estate Granny was a farmer, she knew that Jingcheng Courtyard was the courtyard where the Prince and Princess Consort lived. Behind the spirit screen was a spacious and smooth courtyard, the side rooms incredibly tall and magnificent. The estate Granny couldn¡¯t resist peeking at it. It was only a side room but it was more spacious and bright than three main rooms in the Daxing countryside. However, ording to the maid, these side rooms weren¡¯t upied.


    The estate granny felt distressed and in the time that her mind wandered, they arrived. In front of her was a five room building with raised corners on the roof. The room in the centre was cleared and used as an entrance hall. Chairs, vases and other objects were ced in the middle. This room was most likely used for hosting guests. A magnificent garden could be faintly seen beyond the hallway, the greenery lush and dense and the carvings were borate. The estate Granny had barely nced around when she bumped into someone. She looked up to see the maid who¡¯d led her here looking at her disapprovingly, ¡°that¡¯s the courtyard where the Princess Consort lives. Don¡¯t do anything presumptuous.¡±


    Only then did the estate Granny realize that the courtyard she was standing on, the one that had her sighing for so long, was only the surrounding building of where the Princess Consort lived. The building where she actually lived was even further inside. Strangers like them could only have an audience with her in the guest room outside her living quarters. Thinking about what kind of person the Princess Consort was, how could she allow others to step into her living quarters as and when they wanted to.


    The estate Granny¡¯s heart clenched when she was given the reminder. She stood in the hallway with the maid. On the other side of the screen, she could hazily make out several beautiful silhouettes, all of them surrounding one person. After the maid whispered to someone behind the screen, a voice sounded, ¡°so this is the estate manager of the southern Daxing county suburb?¡±


    Despite living for so many years, this was the first time the estate Granny had heard such a nice voice. She didn¡¯t know how to describe it. It was like spring water that had just melted in spring, like raindrops on lotus leaves in the summer. It was clear and delicate, without any fake charm and sweetness, it¡¯s freshness naturally hit people in their senses. This voice distracted the estate Granny and after she processed what happened, she quickly responded, ¡°It¡¯s this old ve.¡±


    There was a pause behind the screen and the estate granny grew apprehensive. The fairy-like voice sounded again, ¡°since you¡¯re all servants of the residence, you¡¯re part of it. The entryway is cold. Let¡¯s head inside and talk.¡±


    The estate Granny felt like she was stepping on clouds and looked dazed, unable to react for the moment. It was the maid next to her who nced at her and reminded, ¡°quickly thank the Princess Consort.¡±


    The estate Granny startled out of her trance, ¡°Ah yes, thank you Princess Consort.¡±


    The granny thought the Princess Consort¡¯s voice was what stood out about her. Women in the imperial family all had their own speciality. Some had slender waists and some were good at seduction. The new Princess Consort¡¯s speciality must be her beautiful voice. After the estate granny walked around the screen and kowtowed, she was caught off guard when she raised her eyes and stood up. She let out an ¡°aiyo¡± and almost fell backward.


    Wan Xing frowned and immediately shouted, ¡°impudent! How dare you make a racket in front of the Princess Consort?¡±


    The estate Granny saw the woman sitting in the centre raise her hand. Even though the maid who stood up to scold her continued to re, she immediately bowed her head and stepped back. Then, the woman who caused the estate granny to forget her manners and almost caused her to choke on her breath turned around and lightly nced at her, ¡°the manager is unsteady. Quickly help her up.¡±


    The estate granny was half supported and half lifted up by the maids on either side. When she looked at Lin Wei Xi, she was rendered speechless. She was stunned, and when she realized that she¡¯d been rude, she promptly bowed and begged for forgiveness, ¡°Princess Consort, please forgive me¡­ this old ve was really shocked just now and did something rude. This old ve has lived for so many years and has seen women from all walks of life, from the city to the countryside. But this old ve has never seen someone as beautiful as the Princess Consort¡­ No, they can¡¯t evenpare to the Princess Consort¡¯s finger. As long as they have even a tenth of Princess Consort¡¯s beauty, this old ve will still be unprepared and fall down out of shock.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had long since grown used to all kinds of reactions when strangers saw her. This old woman¡¯s reaction was just a bit extreme and she merely fell on the ground. Such exaggerated praise went in one ear and out the other; she didn¡¯t take it seriously. She saw that the Granny was finally standing properly, and flipped through the book in her hand before asking, ¡°Are the animals used for the winter sacrifices and New Year celebration ready?¡±


    The Daxing estate farming records were written in the book. The amount ofnd in the estate, the number of farmers hired that year, the number of fowl, fish, cattle, sheep and even wild deer raised in early spring were all clearly recorded in the book. Every spring, each farm submitted a register. At the end of the year, the better quality products that year were sent to the residence and the rest sold at the market. The money from the transaction would be sent to Prince Yan Residence at the end of the year. Calcting how much they made every year became a test of the mistress¡¯s ability to discern the numbers. For the longest time, this was how the estates under the Prince Yan Residence operated.


    Speaking of it, the Granny who was looking around not too long ago became at ease all of a sudden. She rubbed her hands and smiled in embarrassment, ¡°Reporting to Princess Consort. To be honest, this old ve also wanted to offer more and better items to the residence. However, the harvest this year is really bad and this winter is too cold. Our son went to check the fish pond every day. For the past few days, he basically lived next to the fish ponds. But the fish in the estate refused to show. This old ve knows that the residence¡¯s fish feast at the end of the year can¡¯t be cancelled, but there aren¡¯t many fish in the pond. It¡¯s almost the end of the year. This old ve is very anxious¡­ ¡°


    The Daxing estate wasn¡¯t small. There was more than a hundred acres ofnd surrounding the estate and the peasant households living there were all the property of the residence. While the Prince Yan Residence had many simr estates, the Daxing¡¯s estate was special because it¡¯s geographical location was rich in resources.


    This estate was backed against hills with mountain springs running not too far away. Thend was rich and fertile, suitable for digging fish ponds and raising fish. At the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s annual feast, half of the dishes were freshwater seafood, so this estate became irreceable and even it¡¯s manager had a lot of face. This Granny could only say that the fish in the estate weren¡¯t active because she relied on the fact that the residence needed freshwater seafood. It was almost the twelfth month and it was obviously impossible to buy the seafood from the market in winter. That¡¯s why they could be so confident and self-assured.


    Lin Wei Xi had already seen the collusion between managers inside and outside the residence, and how they support each other, protecting theirwork. She wasn¡¯t in a hurry and merely put down the produce book, her gaze was clear as she looked down from her seat, ¡°manager, what do you mean?¡±


    The Granny smiled more cheerfully, ¡°It¡¯s almost the twelfth lunar month. The annual offering and New Year greetings are major events. This old ve also knows that it¡¯s extremely important, so this old ve rushed our family¡¯s brat to quickly manage the fish pond these past few days. Don¡¯t worry Princess Consort, my family has tended to the estate for a long time and we¡¯re the most experienced. The fresh fish will definitely be delivered before the twentieth of the twelfth month. However Princess Consort, you also know that this happened too suddenly. Animals like fish and shrimp are different from seeds and are really difficult to care for. The estate doesn¡¯t have enough silver. If the management of the fish pond is rushed, I¡¯m afraid the resources aren¡¯t enough¡­ ¡°


    In a nutshell, it was all about money. Lin Wei Xi smiled slightly. She looked at the other managers in the room and found that everyone had their heads bowed. No one intended to say anything. As the people in charge of a vast estate that produced an extremely important speciality, it was obvious that this manager couple had many connections within the residence. They must have bribed the other servants when they came to the capital to ask for money this time.


    These servants may have been in the residence for twenty or thirty years and became as slippery as a loach long ago. Everyone made money together, breathed together, and supported each other. This was how they survived by sharing money. As for the silver they extorted from their master¡­ Anyway, the Residence had many people and ran arge business. It was nothing to throw one or two thousand taels into a pond. Why would they care about an insignificant hundred taels? As long as the produce didn¡¯t run out and no major trouble happened, this was nothing.


    Lin Wei Xi said, ¡°it¡¯s near the end of the year. The offering and New Year¡¯s celebration are both major events. There can¡¯t be any dy. Then in Manager¡¯s opinion, how much silver is needed to cover the operation?¡±


    Sure enough, the estate granny rubbed her hands and smiled. This new Princess Consort was as beautiful as a fairy, but she looked young and wouldn¡¯t know anything about managing the estate. This was also the first time the Princess Consort was dealing with the year ends offering, celebrations, etc. The moment she heard something was wrong, she¡¯d definitely be very scared. As long as it could be solved with money, then she should quickly bring out the money.


    As she thought of that, the granny smiled more sincerely, ¡°Reporting to Princess Consort. Time is running out. If you want to make it for the New Year¡¯s festival, more money is needed to call in experienced people to tend to it. This old ve thinks that one to two hundred taels is enough for an advance payment.¡±


    One hundred taels¡­ Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t helpughing to herself. She actually dared to ask for it. A family of five spent no more than ten taels a year and a hundred and fifty taels could buy an estate, including thend it stood on. This old woman had asked for one hundred taels right off the bat. It was clear how unbridled these wicked ves were at lining their pockets with their master¡¯s money.


    Seeing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face turn cold, the estate Granny quickly added, ¡°It¡¯s been cold these few days and the fish haven¡¯t been active. If we don¡¯t remedy it, I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll have to dy the annual feast. Princess Consort, you also know that more than half of the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s annual feastprises of freshwater fish and the like. The capital is located ind and it isn¡¯t easy to obtain fresh seafood. Everyone in our estate is constantly watching the ponds. This one hundred taels is nothing to the Princess Consort, but the fish in the pond won¡¯t wait. Furthermore, this winter has been cold and it¡¯s extremely difficult to reorganize the fish pond during the coldest part of winter. I¡¯m afraid my family will have to pull all nighters for two weeks after I return¡­ ¡°


    Gao Ran also heard that this Granny used the New Year as an excuse to covet more money, but when she heard that she only wanted one hundred taels, she felt that it was nothing. Prince Yan Residence earned several tens of thousands of taels a year. One hundred taels was nothing for Gao Ran. Although these old ves were greedy, a hundred taels wasn¡¯t much. As long as they did a good job, she could overlook these ws.


    Not just Gao Ran, but the other servants in the room felt that one hundred taels wasn¡¯t much. The outfit Lin Wei Xi was wearing cost far more than a hundred taels. Prince Yan liked freshwater fish and the dishes for the annual banquet couldn¡¯t be dyed. Since it could be solved with a hundred taels, then she should just give it.


    Lin Wei Xi picked up the tea cup and took a sip. After putting down the cdon cup, she said very casually, ¡°since it¡¯s so troublesome, don¡¯t send the fish. Just raise it this winter and wait until next spring when it¡¯s fattened up to sell it at the market. This¡¯ll save you from having to pull all nighters for the next two weeks to fix the fish pond. Don¡¯t do it since it¡¯s so exhausting.¡±


    The estate granny was thoroughly shocked. She never expected Lin Wei Xi to say this. Her smile looked a little stiff, ¡°thank you for yourpassion, Princess Consort. This old ve is the residence¡¯s ve. It¡¯s only right to work hard for the residence. It¡¯s just that the New Year¡¯s feast is a major event. The New Year¡¯s feast needs to have seafood. If this is dyed, it can¡¯t be bought anywhere¡­ ¡°


    She even dared to threaten her with this. Lin Wei Xi said, her voice as light as a feather, ¡°since the manager can¡¯t deliver the food on time, we can just cut a few of the seafood dishes from the menu. Wan Xing, bring the menu.¡±


    Wan Xing froze for a moment. Wan Yue had to poke her from behind before she hurried to get the New Year feast menu. The estate granny started panicking a little and she looked to Granny Zhao, who she¡¯d bribed, for help. Granny Zhao was Granny Bu¡¯s right-hand man. Now that Lin Wei Xi truly wanted to remove the fish from the menu, she hurried forward and said, ¡°Princess Consort, the New Year feast menu was set by Princess Consort Shen back then. It has been used for many years since then. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s inappropriate to change it so rashly.¡±

 Chapter 45

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Lin Wei Xi retracted her smile and looked coldly at Granny Zhao, ¡°does the menu have to follow a golden rule? Even thew of the Dali Temple could be changed. Can the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s feast menu not be changed?¡±


    ¡°But this was something that Princess Consort Shen decided¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes turned cold and her voice sounded like ice hitting jade, ¡°Am I not the Princess Consort now?¡±


    Granny Zhao waspletely speechless. She looked at Gao Ran and appealed for help, ¡°Shizi Fei, this old ve is lowly and isn¡¯t taken seriously. Please persuade the Princess Consort.¡±


    The estate Granny followed Granny Zhao¡¯s line of sight, only just realizing that Shizi Fei was also there. She burst out into cold sweat and felt incredibly ashamed. She hurriedly knelt down to salute, ¡°This ve greets Shizi Fei. May Shizi Fei be in good health.¡±


    The estate Granny was sweating as she kowtowed. Actually, no one could me her. Lin Wei Xi sat in the middle of the room and looked gorgeous. The entire room full of rich and luxurious decorations weren¡¯t as dazzling as her. The estate granny was shocked by such a brilliant fairy-like person and didn¡¯t notice the person next to her. In fact, upon closer inspection, one could recognize Gao Ran. She was gorgeously dressed with golden hairpins and jade in her hair,pletely different from a maid. But Lin Wei Xi looked too magnificent. The estate Granny was so surprised by the new Princess Consort that she secretly nced at her multiple times and unconsciously thought that everyone around were her servants. As a result of her negligence, she left out Shizi Fei by mistake.


    If this estate Granny had known her ce and only responded when questioned, Gao Ran could pretend that this Granny wasn¡¯t able to find an appropriate time to greet her because Lin Wei Xi had prevented her from doing so. However, this woman first looked like she¡¯d seen a ghost, and then hurriedly knelt down to kowtow. Gao Ran was very embarrassed by her actions. In her embarrassment, Gao Ran became increasingly angry. Was this woman so daring that she regarded her as Lin Wei Xi¡¯s maid?


    But it was bad for Gao Ran to re up in front of so many people, so she could only force a smile as she ordered the Granny to stand up, ¡°It¡¯s fine, you¡¯re too nervous. Neglecting your etiquette can sometimes happen.¡±


    The estate Granny started to cold sweat. She got up and smiled, ¡°It¡¯s this old ve who was rude. Please don¡¯t me me Shizi Fei.¡±


    Granny Zhao also wondered what this country bumpkin was doing. She shot a displeased re at the estate Granny and changed the subject, ¡°Shizi Fei, the Princess Consort is angry. Please persuade her.¡±


    Gao Ran rolled her eyes slightly. She wondered to herself whether Lin Wei Xi knew that Prince Yan liked freshwater fish. If so, all the more reason she wanted Lin Wei Xi to make this mistake. She changed her course of action and a smile appeared on her face, ¡°Mother, I know you¡¯re angry, but the menu for the New Year¡¯s feast is something that Mother-inw left behind. It can¡¯t be changed. Besides, it¡¯s been used for so many years. It¡¯s not good for you to change it so rashly.¡±


    Gao Ran knew that Lin Wei Xi took offence to Princess Consort Shen. The more she minded it, the more Gao Ran wanted to mention Shen Shi in front of everyone so that everyone knew who her real mother-inw was, and who the proper Princess Consort was. Gao Ran wanted to provoke Lin Wei Xi into making a mistake with the menu. It would be even better to make Lin Wei Xi so angry that she insisted on viting the wishes of the deceased. If this happened, multiple crimes would happen concurrently and when it was passed on to Prince Yan and Shizi, she¡¯d be in trouble.


    When Shizi Fei mentioned ¡°Mother-inw¡± in front of the Princess Consort, the atmosphere in the room froze over. All the maids bowed their heads, and Granny Zhao and those who¡¯d served Princess Consort Shen looked proud of themselves. Lin Shi was only a novelty now, so the Prince would dote on her for only a day or two. In reality, how could shepare to Princess Consort Shen? She was truly ignorant if she dared touch the things Princess Consort Shen left behind.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t get angry when she heard Gao Ran¡¯s words. She paused and said, ¡°you¡¯re right, I¡¯m still young. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to properly handle many aspects of this.¡±


    As soon as the words left her mouth, everyone in the room was both happy and surprised. They were happy because Lin Wei Xi had finally agreed to follow their standard procedure, but they were surprised that she gave in so easily. She ignored the various expressions of everyone in the room, and continued, ¡°as a junior, I¡¯m inexperienced, so of course I¡¯ll have to learn from my elders. Someone bring out the New Year¡¯s feast menu when the senior Princess Consort was alive. I will consult Mother-inw¡¯s things to see how the New Year celebrations ought to be arranged.¡±


    Gao Ran, Granny Zhao and the others instantly turned quiet. Thete Princess Consort was the first Prince Yan Consort, Prince Yan Gu Hui Yan¡¯s mother. They could bully Lin Wei Xi because she didn¡¯t have any status as the second wife, but even if the three of them were to gather all their daring and courage, they¡¯d never dare to find fault with the senior Princess Consort. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s gaze swept across the hall and chuckled when she saw that everyone bowed their heads, like they knew their ce, ¡°why is everyone so quiet? Shizi Fei, do you have any more wisdom to share?¡±


    Gao Ran could only lower her head and said, ¡°no. This daughter-inw has overstepped.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s gaze was cool like water. Were you the only one with a mother-inw? If Gao Ran dared to use Princess Consort Shen to control her, Lin Wei Xi could also use her own mother-inw, the senior Princess Consort, in kind. Let¡¯s see who could suppress the other.


    By chance, Wan Xing returned with the menu at that moment. Lin Wei Xi stood up and motioned for Wan Xing to follow her with the menu. Lin Wei Xi walked to the centre of the hall and the surrounding maids kneeled to salute. Even Granny Zhao had to step back and bow. Everyone in the crowded room was one head lower than Lin Wei Xi. She stopped in front of the estate Granny. Seeing the delicate skirt stop in front of her, the estate Granny became frightened about the impending disaster and firmly knocked her head against the ground by Lin Wei Xi¡¯s feet.


    ¡°Since the harvest in Daxing estate this year isn¡¯t good, the collection of rent at the end of the year will be deferred. The hundred acres of farnd wasn¡¯t tended to properly. Since your family can¡¯t properly manage the estate, then don¡¯t manage it. There are many in the Prince Yan Residence who can do it.¡±


    The estate granny was extremely astonished. Had Lin Wei Xi taken away her family¡¯s managerial position? The estate Granny wanted to get up and exin but she didn¡¯t dare touch Lin Wei Xi¡¯s exquisite and alluring dress, so she could only watch her walk away, ¡°Princess Consort, please listen to this old ve¡¯s exnation. It¡¯s not like that¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi ignored her and left. After she left, the estate Granny sat on the ground and looked at Granny Zhao in a panic, ¡°Granny Zhao, what should I do?¡±


    It was the end of the year and their family wanted to save some silver for the New Year, so they directed those intentions towards their master. Of course they knew it was wrong, but other farmers had done it before. The estate Granny¡¯s family had been tempted and thought that perhaps it wasn¡¯t an issue. Why would the mistress of Prince Yan Residence care about a trifling hundred taels of silver? If it was just their family, they wouldn¡¯t have been so greedy even if they were beaten to death. They only had the confidence to ask for money because they¡¯d given ten taels of silver to Granny Zhao earlier. Granny Zhao had the backing of Granny Bu, the manager of the inner courtyard. As long as she closed one eye, their behaviour could continue unchecked.


    But who would¡¯ve expected the Princess Consort to get angry andmand that they be reced next year! The estate granny¡¯s whole family lived on and relied on the estate. Every year, they saved a lot of money by reselling farm produce generated by the estate. If they were kicked out, how could their family survive?


    The estate Granny never expected that in her quest for more money, not only did she not make any money, she faced a dead loss. After Lin Wei Xi left, everyone else in the room left in session. With so few people in the room, the estate granny took advantage of it to grab Granny Zhao. She refused to let Granny Zhao leave no matter what, ¡°Granny Zhao, you received something this time, so you should help me.¡±


    Granny Zhao couldn¡¯t free herself even after pulling several times. She became flustered and exasperated, lowered her voice and said angrily, ¡°Let go, there are so many people here. What are you trying to do by saying this?¡±


    The estate Granny wasn¡¯t stupid. She wouldn¡¯t let go even if she died and her expression said ¡®you ought to help me since you epted my money¡¯. Granny Zhao had no choice but to secretly signal to her, ¡°how can I covet your ten taels of silver? There¡¯s no use pestering me here. I¡¯m not someone who can make decisions in the residence.¡±


    The estate Granny picked up the hint, ¡°Granny Zhao means¡­ ¡°


    Granny Zhao nced meaningfully at Gao Ran¡¯s back, ¡°The new Princess Consort wants to contest Princess Consort Shen. Of course, us servants have to obey her orders. But Princess Consort Shen is Shizi Fei¡¯s rightful mother-inw. How can she idly sit by? Besides, Granny Bu is here.¡±


    The estate granny suddenly understood and got up with a grunt, pleasantly surprised. She held Granny Zhao¡¯s hand and said, ¡°may I trouble Granny Zhao to put in a good word for me. I¡¯m too uncultured to meet Shizi Fei. I¡¯ll have to trouble Granny Zhao to say a word or two to Shizi Fei and Granny Bu for me.¡±


    Granny Zhao looked awkward. The estate Granny understood and immediately took out a piece of silver from her sleeve, stuffing it into Granny Zhao¡¯s hand. Granny Zhao hid it in her sleeve, weighed it in her hand, and immediately beamed, ¡°Since you asked me to, I¡¯ll have to do a favour for you. Wait at the guardhouse first. I¡¯ll call you when I have information.¡±


    The estate granny nodded with a smile. She felt distressed when she thought of the piece of silver she just gave away. That was no less than three taels! But then she thought about her job at the estate. If she could keep it, wouldn¡¯t she earn more than that in a year? It was worth the money.


    The estate granny sighed as she looked in the direction that the fairy-like Princess Consort left in earlier. Why did problems suddenly appear without rhyme or reason? Things used to go so well, but why was the new Princess Consort so stingy.


    Gao Ran followed Lin Wei Xi back to the side room. Lin Wei Xi deliberated over the menu and after a while, allowed Gao Ran to return to her courtyard.


    Once Gao Ran returned to her courtyard, Ning Fu and the other maids felt distressed for her, ¡°Shizi Fei, the injury on your hand hasn¡¯t healed yet. Not only did the Princess Consort not spare you from morning and evening greetings, she also made you stand all morning. Her bullying is too much.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s enough, stop talking about it.¡± Gao Ran said, ¡°After all, she¡¯s my mother-inw in name. Society considers her my parents, got it? Shizi should be returning from his studies in a while. Don¡¯t mention this to him.¡±


    Ning Fu pouted and refused to give in. Only after Gao Ran red at her did the maids unwillingly agree. Before leaving, many were distressed by the Shizi Fei¡¯s misfortune. When she was in her maiden family, her di older sister stole her marriage. After much difficulty, she and Shizi finally became husband and wife. But now she was having a hard time because of her evil mother-inw.


    Gao Ran heard the maid¡¯s whispered gossiping, but she didn¡¯t bother with them and acted like she didn¡¯t hear them. Gu Cheng Yao returned from his studies in the front yard¡¯s study room. Sure enough, no one told him about what happened that morning. Gao Ran gently and carefully served him his meal. He looked at the shaking chopsticks in her hands and said, distressed, ¡°sit down. You¡¯re hurt so you ought to rest. How can I let you serve the food?¡±


    Gao Ran smiled softly at him, looking moved, ¡°Thank you for your kindness Shizi .¡±


    He was looking at her, but his thoughts drifted to another person for some reason. Gao Xi never said such pleasing words. Moreover, she refused to serve her husband or follow any of the feminine virtues. His mood suddenly cooled and he was surprised with himself. Why had he thought of Gao Xi? She was a malicious woman who¡¯d deliberately ruined another person¡¯s destined marriage. Why would he suddenly think of her voice and smile a year after her death?


    Gu Cheng Yao suppressed the curious feeling. Fortunately, a maid was blocking Gao Ran¡¯s line of sight, so she didn¡¯t notice. He looked at her and thought about their family¡¯s other mistress, his head suddenly aching, ¡°you went to pay your respects to her today. Did it go well?¡±


    Gao Ran naturally knew who ¡°her¡± was referring to. They would address Lin Wei Xi as Mother in front of Gu Hui Yan, but they refused to do that in private. It was too ufortable. Ning Fu moved as if to say something, but was stopped by Gao Ran. She smiled sweetly and naturally, ¡°the Princess Consort was very kind and didn¡¯t make things difficult for me.¡±


    It was fine for Gao Ran not to say anything. Gu Cheng Yao would be even more suspicious when she acted like this. He frowned helplessly, but when he saw her expression, he sighed inwardly and didn¡¯t mention it again.


    In the afternoon, after he left, Ning Fu was furious, ¡°Shizi Fei, why didn¡¯t you say anything when Shizi asked you about it earlier? The Princess Consort purposely made things difficult for you.¡±


    Gao Ran smiled disapprovingly, ¡°only the ipetent make theint themselves. A truly smart person never enters the fight themselves.¡±


    Ning Fu didn¡¯t understand and Gao Ran didn¡¯t borate. As they sat, the sound of activity came from outside the door and there was a chorus of ¡°Granny Bu¡± as people greeted her one after another. Gao Ran smiled as she stood up and said, seemingly innocent, ¡°isn¡¯t she here?¡±


    There was no need for her to be the bad guy. Wouldn¡¯t it be better if Shizi heard her grievances from the people around him?

 Chapter 46

    Granny Bu saw Gao Ran and greeted her with a smile, ¡°Shizi Fei.¡±


    ¡°Granny, what are you doing?¡± Gao Ran hurried forward to support her and rebuked, ¡°Granny, you¡¯re my mother-inw¡¯s dowry maid, and you watched over Shizi as he grew up. It¡¯s not an exaggeration to say that you¡¯re almost like an elder to me. How can I make you greet me?¡±


    Granny Bu feltfortable from head to toe when she was ttered like that. She knew that even though she was a senior, she was just a ve. Shizi gave her face because of Princess Consort Shen, but if Gao Ran actually made things difficult, she really wasn¡¯t able to differentiate good from bad. But this was how humans were. They understood it, but their actions showed that they were reluctant to lose face. Gao Ran was a youngdy of a Duke Residence, but she was so humble. Granny Bu felt indescribable pride andfort.


    Granny Bu was warmly and thoughtfully weed into the receiving room by Gao Ran and sat face to face with her. A servant couldn¡¯t sit like this in front of their master. Even if the master allowed them to sit, they had to diffidently lower their head in a half-bow. It was unsightly for them to sit down. But not only was Granny Bu sitting properly, she also sat face to face with Gao Ran. Although Gao Ran was smiling on the outside, she was sneering inwardly.


    Granny Bu secretly quite enjoyed Gao Ran¡¯s humble attitude and was deeply moved. If this were the previous Shizi Fei, it would be unthinkable for her to receive this kind of treatment. The day after entering the household, she exined the rules to Gao Xi and brought Yunhui over to introduce her to the Shizi Fei. But she actually got angry. Yun Hui had served Shizi for so many years and was almost basically a concubine. Granny Bu had brought her over so that she and the previous Shizi Fei could get to know each other. This was also for the sake of properly serving Shizi. What right did Gao Xi have to disregard her face? Granny Bu had had her face thrown back at her, so of course she wasn¡¯t happy. Of course she wouldn¡¯t say anything good about Gao Xi to Shizi after that.


    But this Shizi Fei was different. Granny Bu sometimesmented. Why was the disparity between sisters from the same household and the same father so great? Gao Ran was very gentle and considerate, was polite to Yun Hui, and even treated Granny Bu like her elder. To put it bluntly, Gao Ran attended to Granny Bu almost like how one would a mother-inw.


    If this were previously, Granny Bu would think that¡¯s how it ought to be. But everything was rtive. Compared to that person from Jingcheng courtyard, Granny Bu now felt that Gao Ran was too restrained and meek. She got a headache thinking about Princess Consort Lin. Not only had that person taken over her youngdy¡¯s position, she now wanted to change the regtions and gift list her youngdy left behind. Granny Bu was angry beyond words. She hated that the estate Granny had reported to the Princess Consort without her around, and also Granny Zhao for not being smart enough, actually allowing that person to have her way.


    How could this happen? Granny Bu would absolutely never allow it. With amon enemy, Gao Ran immediately looked pleasing to her eyes. She¡¯d listened to Granny Zhao¡¯s story beforeing here to think of a n with Shizi Fei, ¡°Shizi Fei, I heard that that person used the rules to make you stand for a long time. Shizi Fei, your hand is still injured. Isn¡¯t she purposely trying to ¡°educate¡± her daughter-inw?¡±


    Gao Ran got annoyed when she thought of what happened that morning. She ced a hand on her injured arm and lowered her head, smiling, ¡°What can I do, she¡¯s my mother-inw now.¡±


    Granny Bu was rendered speechless. That¡¯s right, that person was the Princess Consort now. What could they do if they disliked it? Prince Yan indulged her and Shizi refused to go against this younger stepmother.


    She hated her but couldn¡¯t do anything to her. Granny Bu¡¯s mouth was agape for a long time and said, refusing to believe her, ¡°Shizi Fei, how can you bear this? Don¡¯t tell me no one¡¯s able to control her?¡±


    Gao Ran said sadly, ¡°I¡¯m a junior. I ought to serve the Princess Consort. I can¡¯t resist even if the Princess Consort asks me to serve the food ording to the rules, or if she makes me cook and wash her feet, or squeezes people into my room. Others not from the residence might treat their elders and mother-inw like that. Furthermore, now that Father is in the residence and the Princess Consort is young and beautiful, he will definitely dote on her. I¡¯m only suffering a little. It¡¯s really nothing. I¡¯m perfectly content as long as nothing happens to Shizi.¡±


    Granny Bu was saddened by her words. She wiped her tears with the handkerchief and deeply pitied Gao Ran and Shizi. She wailed and said, ¡°What a pity our youngdy left early, leaving the young Shizi to grow up all alone until now. He married a wife after much difficulty, but she¡¯s treated harshly by the stepmother who just entered the household. This old servant¡¯s heart ah¡­ it feels like it¡¯s being fried in hot oil. What a pity our youngdy left early. If thedy were still here, would she have the chance to marry into our household?¡±


    Seeing that the fish had taken the bait, Gao Ran smiled to herself. The look in her eyes was mournful as she sincerely held Granny Bu¡¯s hand, ¡°Granny Bu, don¡¯t say that. It¡¯s fine that the Princess Consort is only targeting me, how could she dare criticize Shizi. Besides, Shizi is very filial to Mother-inw and Prince Yan loves the previous Princess Consort very much. Can someone else rece Mother-inw? Granny Bu, didn¡¯t you say before that the Prince rescued Mother-inw in the middle of the rebellion and they fell in love at first sight? That they had a destined marriage? With Prince Yan and Shizi here, Mother-inw¡¯s position is stable. If that person doesn¡¯t pay attention and attempts to disrespect Mother-inw, Prince Yan won¡¯t spare her.¡±


    ¡°Shizi Fei is right.¡± Granny Bu had been with Princess Consort Shen for many years and she¡¯d never seen Prince Yan look so amiable before. So when he personally helped Lin Wei Xi up that day in the dining hall and supported her unquestioningly, Granny Bu had been frightened by his unusual actions. She spent a long time pondering but couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of it. Only after Gao Ran reminded her did Granny Bu realize how muddled she¡¯d been to forget Shizi!


    As for Gao Ran¡¯s im that Prince Yan would bring justice, Granny Bu didn¡¯t have any expectations of him. Gao Ran had just married in and didn¡¯t know the full picture, but she knew how things had been like back then. Prince Yan couldn¡¯t be provoked, but Shizi was Princess Consort Shen¡¯s son through and through. They could go to him and ask him to seek justice for Princess Consort Shen!


    Granny Bu¡¯s eyes flicked around as she made up her mind. Gao Ran smiled lightly when she saw Granny Bu¡¯s expression and moved to personally pour tea for her. Granny Bu made up her mind about what she wanted to say. She looked at Gao Ran and couldn¡¯t help grasping her hand, earnestly saying, ¡°Shizi Fei, although you call that person Mother, please remember that my youngdy is Shizi¡¯s birth mother.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡± The other person¡¯s hand was aged and dry. Gao Ran had to resist the urge to immediately pull her hand away. She endured her difort and said, ¡°Of course I know that Princess Consort Shen is my Mother-inw. Of course I¡¯ll side with Shizi and Mother-inw. What a shame I didn¡¯t have the chance to be filial to Mother-inw. Granny Bu, you and all those old servants are almost like my elders. I¡¯ll need to rely on you in the future.¡±


    With Gao Ran¡¯s words, Granny Bu felt relieved. She smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s good as long as Shizi Fei understands who that person in that courtyard really is. This old ve still has things to do, so I won¡¯t disturb Shizi Fei¡¯s recuperation.¡±


    Gao Ran could finally withdraw her hand. Her hand felt so ufortable that she almost cleaned it against her skirt. But she held back, smiled eagerly, and sent Granny Bu out herself.


    After seeing her slowly walk away, the smile on Gao Ran¡¯s face faded little by little. In the end, it becamepletely cold, her smile from earlier nowhere in sight. She watched for a while, then flung the curtain and went back into the room, calling the maid to change her clothes.


    If she guessed correctly, the main courtyard would soon be noisy. How could she be absent from such an important event? Lin Wei Xi actually dared to touch the things her predecessors left behind. She was finished.


    Lin Wei Xi sat on the Arhat bed, her brush quick and nimble. After a few strokes, she removed several dishes that were a waste of time or didn¡¯t make sense. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t like fish, but half of the menu for the New Year¡¯s Eve reunion feast consisted of fish. It was too boring. She referred to the menu from when the senior Prince Yan Consort was still alive and tried to recall the dishes that Gu Hui Yan gravitated towards during their meals, struggling to draw up a new menu.


    As for that person who took advantage of her seniority and the estate manager who took the New Year festival as an opportunity to extort money from their master, let them serve those they wanted to serve. It was true that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t think anything of a hundred taels of silver, but it didn¡¯t mean that others could take her for a foolish spendthrift and tap on her for money one by one. When she was Shizi Fei in her previous life, she¡¯d corrected these practices. Unexpectedly, in the year that she was absent, these people became bolder to the point where they demanded a hundred taels the moment they opened their mouths. This kind of servant was really difficult to deal with. But Lin Wei Xi was now the Princess Consort, so all the more reason she didn¡¯t need to worry about it. The next Spring, she¡¯d have people drive out their entire family as a wakeup call for those undisciplined servants.


    Lin Wei Xi had someone spread the paper and made a clean copy of the revised menu herself. Then she handed it to a servant, saying, ¡°make another copy of this list. Prepare this year¡¯s New Year¡¯s Eve family dinner ording to the menu on this list.¡±


    Wan Yue took the thick red menu. She tried to hold back, but ended up tactfully mentioning, ¡°Princess Consort, this list was left by the previous Princess Consort. You¡¯ve just entered the household but are removing the regtions left by your predecessor. Aren¡¯t you being too impatient?¡±


    ¡°Then what should I do?¡± Lin Wei Xi asked, ¡°I also want to spend these few years in peace, but those wicked ves rely on their seniority and use their so-called propriety to make things difficult for me. If I don¡¯t beat them, I¡¯d be letting them do what they want. Not only would I be ignoring their negligence of their job, I¡¯d also be giving them a hundred taels of silver to squander?¡±


    Wan Yue was silent. Everyone knew that a new bride shouldn¡¯t make drastic changes when entering the household. But in the Prince Yan Residence, others would make things difficult for you if you weren¡¯t in the lead. How could Miss Lin, who even dared provoke the Prince, indulge them?


    Wan Yue said nothing. She gave Lin Wei Xi a salute and respectfully withdrew to make the arrangements. At the end of the year, every household was bustling. It was busy enough just preparing the New Year¡¯s Eve feast and candles to worship the ancestors with. The Prince Yan Residence was still an aristocratic residence. At the end of the year, they had to celebrate the asion with other high-ranking officials. This major event concerned their face, so any carelessness wasn¡¯t allowed. Hence, the New Year¡¯s feast menu couldn¡¯t have any mistakes. Once it was finalized, it couldn¡¯t be changed.


    But the moment Wan Yue stepped out of the door, she ran directly into a group of people. She had to stop, step aside, and bow her head to salute the visitors, ¡°Shizi, Shizi Fei.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s expression didn¡¯t look good. He walked straight into the room. Gao Ran nced at the red list in Wan Yue¡¯s hand, pursed her lips and smiled, chasing after Gu Cheng Yao.


    Wan Yue silently sighed. She wasn¡¯t in a hurry to send the list to the kitchen and warehouse and trailed behind, slowly walking into the room.


    Lin Wei Xi heard the mour outside and pursed her lips, scoffing inwardly. She wasn¡¯t surprised at all by the people who walked in, ¡°Shizi, which wind actually blew you here?¡±


    Her disregard carried some ridicule. Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t feel much at first, but when he saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression, he felt like a basin of cold water was sshed onto his face and his tone became worse, ¡°I heard that Mother is going to remove the manager of the Southern Daxing estate?¡±


    Oh, so it was because of this. Lin Wei Xi thought Gu Cheng Yao came to question her about Princess Consort Shen¡¯s matters. She said, ¡°Yes, I was the one who fired them. This kind of trivial matter was actually passed on to Shizi?¡± she nced at the people behind him. Those she looked at immediately bowed their heads and she chuckled without hiding the ridicule in her voice, ¡°you really have many tricks up your sleeve.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao frowned, his voice unconsciously hardening, ¡°the inner courtyard is naturally managed by Mother. But the estate farmers are ordinary people. Since they¡¯ve suffered a disaster and the harvest isn¡¯t good, Mother should give them another month or two. How can you cut off their entire family¡¯s livelihood because of a mistake due tock of manpower? If this spreads, won¡¯t people say that the Prince Yan Residence abused the farmers of their estate?¡±


    ¡°Abuse the farmers in our estate?¡± Lin Wei Xi threw the writing brush with a bang, straightened up, and looked at Gu Cheng Yao with scorching eyes and frost on her face, ¡°is that how Shizi thinks of me? Are you only going to rely on their word before you gather everyone together to demand an answer from me and condemn me? ¡°


    Gu Cheng Yao wanted to deny it, that he just couldn¡¯t bear for Lin Wei Xi to have a reputation for abusing the farmers, so he came to remind her. How was this gathering a crowd to demand an answer from her and condemn her? But faced with her bright eyes, Gu Cheng Yao was rendered speechless. He felt an unprecedented sense of absurdity and familiarity. It felt like his and Gao Xi¡¯s many conversations in the past that deviated from the original topic every time and became irreversible.

 Chapter 47

    Gu Cheng Yao wanted to exin himself but the words couldn¡¯t leave his mouth. When Lin Wei Xi saw how quiet he was, she became bitterly disappointed. She smiled grimly and didn¡¯t want to look at him anymore. She walked around him and looked at the Granny who was bowed on the other side of the partition, trying in vain to hide herself, ¡°I¡¯d just taught you a lesson earlier today and this is how you reflect? Not only did you not admit your mistakes, you brought an inner courtyard matter to Shizi and even provoked him to argue with me. Your trickery is truly astounding!¡±


    The estate granny had long been afraid to look up. When she heard Lin Wei Xi¡¯s frosty words, her legs trembled with fright and she knelt down, ¡°Princess Consort, please calm your anger. This ve doesn¡¯t dare incite conflict between Shizi and Princess Consort! This ve just didn¡¯t have any other option. This ve¡¯s entire family is bound to the Prince Yan Residence and two generations of our family have served the residence for ten years. If the Princess Consort drives us out, we don¡¯t even havend and no way to make a living. Our only option is to starve to death!¡±


    Lin Wei Xiughed angrily, ¡°So you¡¯re going to me me?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t like her expression for some reason. He said, ¡°I met them by chance, so I brought them over to rify the situation. Don¡¯t drag them in.¡±


    He should¡¯ve stayed silent. As soon as he opened his mouth, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s anger, which she¡¯d suppressed with great difficulty, came rushing back. The one she wanted to scold the most out of everyone here was Gu Cheng Yao.


    ¡°By chance? Shizi, say that again? I dare you to say that these ves didn¡¯t wag their tongues in front of you before you entered the room.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ ¡± Gu Cheng Yao was at a loss for words. Granny Bu had indeed informed him of this and the manager had taken the opportunity toin. He knew that they might harbour ulterior motives. But Lin Wei Xi had postponed the submission of the estate offerings and even fired the manager because the weather was so cold that the fishery froze over. It was too arbitrary and callous.


    Shizi and the Princess Consort shed with each other. All the maids in the room bowed their heads and held their breath. Only Granny Bu looked around feeling proud of herself. She stepped forward and said, ¡°Princess Consort, this old ve knows that you¡¯re young and full of life and want to achieve something for everyone to see. But no matter how urgent it is, there¡¯s no reason to harm our own people, let alone loyal servants who¡¯ve served the residence for more than ten years. If Princess Consort sends them away, it will frighten the servants.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi ignored Granny Bu and looked straight at Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°do you think so too?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao wanted to say yes, but seeing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s disappointed and cold gaze, he couldn¡¯t speak for some reason. Granny Bu was like his mother. She¡¯d done her best for him all these years, so of course she wouldn¡¯t lie. Furthermore, Gao Ran had agreed with her. So after listening to the two of them, Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s first reaction was that Lin Wei Xi had done something again. After listening to Granny Bu¡¯s report, Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t help but frown. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s punishment was too heavy. After all, she was an old servant who¡¯d served the residence for many years. How could she be sent away just because she said so?


    This was Granny Bu¡¯s, or perhaps Gao Ran¡¯s brilliance. They didn¡¯t directly say that Lin Wei Xi wanted to overturn the regtions left by Princess Consort Shen, but went around and used the previous matter as a tool to block her. As long as Lin Wei Xi¡¯s punishment was turned down, would anyone follow her changes for the New Year¡¯s feast menu?


    Lin Wei Xiughed, full of doubt. At that moment, footsteps sounded from outside the door and the person who stood at the doorway bowed and said, ¡°Miss.¡±


    She restrained her anger and said, ¡°Come in.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao unconsciously frowned. Who was this person to actually call Lin Wei Xi ¡®Miss¡¯ and not ¡®Princess Consort¡¯? When the person entered, he only kowtowed to Lin Wei Xi. She pointed her finger at Gu Cheng Yao and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be rude. This is the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s Shizi.¡±


    Only then did the person greet him. No one knew who this person was to have the cheek to be so arrogant. Lin Wei Xi exined, ¡°This is a vassal under the Marquis Zhongyong Residence who manages the estate in the suburbs for me. Coincidentally, he also manages the southern suburbs, including Daxing County.¡±


    Only then did Gu Cheng Yao remember that when the imperial court conferred Lin Yong as Marquis Zhongyong, aside from thousands of acres of fertile fields, he was also bestowed some ves. This was most likely one of them. It wasn¡¯t just Gu Cheng Yao, everyone else was in a daze. Although Lin Wei Xi brought an astronomical dowry with her when she married into the residence, everyone in the residence was still under the impression that she was a helpless orphan. They¡¯d almost forgotten that she was also the daughter of a Marquis.


    Lin Wei Xi continued, ¡°After I received the estate manager¡¯s report this morning, I felt it was strange. My estate is around the same location, so why is it fine? I sent someone to notify the estate in the southern suburbs and had them take a trip to the Prince Yan Residence estate.¡±


    The estate Granny¡¯s expression changed a bit. The Lin family vassal received themand and said, ¡°This ve received the order from our youngdy and came to the residence. It¡¯s true that the fish in the pond aren¡¯t very active, but it¡¯s not because of the cold weather or a disaster. It¡¯s because the estate management is bad. The pond water wasn¡¯t changed for seven to eight days and there is a lot of filth and debris in the water. No wonder the fish aren¡¯t active. If this continues for several more days, I¡¯m afraid all the fish will die.¡±


    After he finished speaking, Lin Wei Xi looked at Gu Cheng Yao, her eyes gleaming with cynicism, ¡°Do you understand now? I didn¡¯t abuse the servants. They were the ones who deceived their master to line their own pockets! The estate ended up like this under their management and with the excuse of a cold wave, actually asked me for a hundred taels of silver to solve this crisis. Shizi, should we be sympathetic to such a ve and not severely punish them?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao watched the estate Granny shiver and tremble as she knelt on the ground, and didn¡¯t dare reply. There was nothing left to understand right now. If the vassal were lying, the estate Granny would¡¯ve jumped up long ago to make a fuss. But she didn¡¯t dare do anything, which meant this was true.


    Gu Cheng Yao suddenly doubted himself tremendously. Before he came here, he genuinely thought that Lin Wei Xi had gone astray and he was here to correct her. But in a short period of time, it was verified that it wasn¡¯t Lin Wei Xi who was harsh, but him who was ignorant. He¡¯d been deceived by a few wicked ves into running around in circles!


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s expression didn¡¯t look good. Granny Bu felt something was wrong and ditched her original n. She hurriedly stepped forward and said, ¡°This Granny is too deceitful. Shizi is sincere and benevolent, and never expected that she¡¯d lie so outrageously today! But in the end this granny was just an excuse. Because of her, the Princess Consort took her anger out on everyone, and even wanted to get rid of the rules and regtions meticulously set by Princess Consort Shen. How is that reasonable?


    Lin Wei Xi snorted. When she looked at Gu Cheng Yao, her eyes contained a mocking smile, ¡°does Shizi also feel the same way? As long as it¡¯s something your birth mother left behind, I can¡¯t change it?¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s throat seemed to be blocked. He indeed respected his birth mother, but he was different from Granny Bu and the other womenfolk. He didn¡¯t regard the rules left by Princess Consort Shen as important. Now that Lin Wei Xi was the Princess Consort, she should change them if she wanted to. Gu Cheng Yao more or less understood why Granny Bu especially came to find him today. It wasn¡¯t about feeling sorry for people who were barely getting by, nor was it being unable to see her friends get hurt. Granny Bu clearly did this for the power she held. The shock Gu Cheng Yao felt couldn¡¯t be described with words. How could the Granny Bu that he¡¯d respected and trusted since he was a child do such a thing? Had a simr situation happened before?


    Granny Bu started panicking when Gu Cheng Yao stayed silent for a long time. Gao Ran originally nned to hide behind the scenes but got really angry when she saw Granny Bu making things worse. The room was in a mess when suddenly, a powerful and dignified voice sounded from outside, ¡°What are all of you doing?¡±


    Prince Yan?!


    Everyone was startled. When had Prince Yan returned? To everyone¡¯s surprise, there¡¯d been no announcement about his arrival at all. Everyone in the room hurried to school their expressions and turned around to greet him in a flurry. Lin Wei Xi was also surprised. She walked past the bookcase and stood by the table to give a Wanfu salute. Gu Cheng Yao happened to be standing near her, so the two of them seemed to salute side by side.


    This was what Gu Hui Yan saw when he entered the room. His heart sank for some reason and without being aware of it, his subconscious mindpletely and utterly rejected this. He inexplicably felt a kind of unnatural anger, an anger that came so fast, he didn¡¯t even have time to suppress it under his usual calm demeanour.


    Everyone in the room clearly felt Prince Yan¡¯s imposing manner be increasingly terrifying after he entered the room. They didn¡¯t dare look around but had many conjectures about this rarely seen anger. Granny Bu felt a glimmer of hope and Gao Ran was even more ecstatic. She¡¯d guessed right. Prince Yan really held deep affections for his previous wife and Lin Wei Xi, who¡¯d rashly touched Princess Consort Shen¡¯s things, had triggered and mine.


    Of course Lin Wei Xi also noticed the change in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s mood. What was even more unimaginable was that something seemed to attract his attention after he nced in her direction. There was only her and Gu Cheng Yao here. Who was he looking at? Could it be that she¡¯d been too careless and Prince Yan preferred his son over her without hesitation?


    Lin Wei Xi remained crouched, feeling confused. Fortunately, Gu Hui Yan withdrew his oppressive aura in an instant and returned to being His Highness Prince Yan who could remain calm and steady in the face of any situation. He nced at Lin Wei Xi and Gu Cheng Yao, but still felt it was too offensive to his eyes and said, ¡°Get up.¡±


    Only then did Lin Wei Xi stand up. After she stood up, she realized that Gu Cheng Yao was actually standing by her shoulder. Lin Wei Xi rolled her eyes inwardly and immediately pretended to identally step back.


    Although Gu Hui Yan indifferently looked forward, he was constantly paying attention to this area. The unfathomable and unnatural fire in his heart settled down and he stood in the middle of the hall. A maid gathered her courage to bring Gu Hui Yan a chair, but was stopped by him. He nced across the quiet room and asked again, ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡±


    Granny Zhao looked around in confusion but Granny Bu kept calm as she lowered her head silently. Gao Ran nced at Granny Bu, her eyes calcting. Everyone had a lot of small tricks, but no one dared to speak.


    Lin Wei Xi only struggled for a moment, before stepping forward and whispering, ¡°my Prince¡­ ¡°


    Gu Hui Yan finally had a chance to say this. He opened his palm to Lin Wei Xi and said heavily, ¡°Come here.¡±


    She didn¡¯t even think about it before quickly walking past the crowd towards Gu Hui Yan. Gu Cheng Yao stayed where he was. She seemed to stir a gentle whirlpool when she walked past him. Coincidentally, thempstand next to the table flickered and seemed to dim as she walked away.


    Since Gu Hui Yan entered the room, Gu Cheng Yao hadn¡¯t said a word. He didn¡¯t have time to react before Lin Wei Xi, who¡¯d been squabbling with him just now, quickly walked past him towards his father without hesitation. Gu Hui Yan opened his palms, and when Lin Wei Xi neared him, she was gracefully pulled into his embrace, unable to resist.


    Gu Hui Yan lowered his head. He said the same words as before, but his tone had dropped several levels, ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nced at the estate Granny who was prostrating on the ground, and then at Granny Bu, whose expression was tense and righteous. She felt her tone was frosty and cold, but to Gu Hui Yan she sounded like she wasining about her grievances, ¡°Today, the Granny from southern Daxing County came to deliver offerings from the estate. She was ipetent but wanted to use her master¡¯s silver to cover up her misdeeds. I removed her from her managerial position. I never thought that in the same afternoon, they¡¯d bring Shizi over and say that I treated her unjustly.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s remarks were fair and just, but when Gu Hui Yan looked at her tone and expression, he felt that what was written on her face was, ¡°my Prince, they bullied me.¡±


    It was true that Gu Hui Yan was often absent from the residence these few years, but it¡¯d be a huge mistake to think that he knew nothing about the residence. After all, the residence had Prince Yan in its name. Since young, he¡¯d been immersed in the art of war and politics, but how could he neglect control over his own house? He knew very well the ins and outs of what Granny Bu and others had been up to. He used to think that it wasn¡¯t important enoughpared to the war and government affairs at hand, that it really wasn¡¯t worth diverting his attention to. But it¡¯d be too arrogant and stupid to try in vain to use underhanded tricks because they¡¯d been deceived into thinking that he knew nothing.

 Chapter 48

    Gu Hui Yan merely took a nce and roughly understood what happened. He was a little surprised. This little girl had a brain and unexpectedly knew how to pull the carpet out from under someone and prepare herself in advance. How else could the Lin family vassal standing in the courtyard have travelled from Daxing to the capital in such a short time. Satisfied, Gu Hui Yan nodded to the Lin family vassal, ¡°You did a good job today. It¡¯s gettingte. Hurry and leave the city.¡±


    The vassal was overwhelmed by his favour. Although he was loyal and devoted to the Marquis Zhongyong family, he was actually brought in by Prince Yan and assigned to Lin Wei Xi for her protection. Because of this, he of course knew how rare it was to receive praise from Prince Yan. He also knew that when Prince Yan said ¡°you did a good job¡±, it didn¡¯t refer to his management of the Lin Family estate, but to him strictlyplying to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s orders. The Lin family vassal felt happy, but he understood Prince Yan¡¯s meaning. He ought to leave the residence. The vassal knelt and bowed to Gu Hui Yan. When he first entered the room, he dared to bow to only Lin Wei Xi and ignored everyone else. But now he kowtowed to Gu Hui Yan without a hint of disrespect. He also didn¡¯t address Lin Wei Xi as part of the Lin family, ¡°Thank you Prince Yan. This subordinate wishes Prince Yan and the Princess Consort well. My Prince, Princess Consort, this subordinate will withdraw first.¡±


    After he left, only those of the residence remained in Jingcheng Courtyard.


    Everyone keenly felt the atmosphere change. They lowered their heads and were too scared to specte, but resigned themselves to waiting for Prince Yan¡¯s final decision.


    Gu Hui Yan no longer concealed his mighty and imposing aura, ¡°Who gave all of you the courage to question the Princess Consort¡¯s decision and gather everyone in front of her?¡±


    Gao Ran still had her head bowed in submission. She thought her heart was ready, but couldn¡¯t hide her shock when she heard this. Wasn¡¯t Prince Yan being a bit biased? Was this really the point?


    Granny Bu was obviously subdued. When she finally processed what happened, she couldn¡¯t help saying, ¡°my Prince, you haven¡¯t asked about the whole story behind the situation today. How can you convict us straight away after only listening to the Princess Consort¡¯s side of the story?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan had a look of displeasure in his eyes. He nced at her lightly, but Granny Bu almost fell to the floor in fright with just that nce, ¡°Didn¡¯t I say before that she is the Prince Yan Consort, the only master of the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s inner courtyard. Do as shemands. You servants don¡¯t need to know the whole story or the reason. I never say the same thing twice. This is the only exception. Do all of you understand this time?¡±


    Everyone knelt on the ground, not caring that the floor was cold. Their foreheads all touched the ground and they were too scared to breathe too loud. Granny Bu cold sweated even more. She knelt on the ground in panic, with her cheeks pressed against the cold ground, looking like she was pleading guilt. Even so, her face was deathly pale and she was obviously extremely scared.


    Although Granny Bu was a dowry maid from the Shen family, she¡¯d been in the residence for many years and she already considered this ce her home. However, since Granny Bu entered the residence, it was only when the old Prince Yan Consort passed away did she see Prince Yan¡¯s terrifying emotions so explicitly.


    Gu Cheng Yao was of course angry with Granny Bu, who had taken advantage of his trust to incite discord and twisted the story. But Granny Bu was Princess Consort Shen¡¯s dowry maid, the old servant who¡¯d watched him grow up. Now that she knelt trembling on the ground, without any dignity at all, he couldn¡¯t continue watching. He could push against the tremendous pressure and step forward, bowing his head to Gu Hui Yan, ¡°Father, Granny Bu¡¯s mistakes today are due to my oversight and insufficient discipline. Father, please forgive her.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan said lightly without even turning around, ¡°The one you should ask for forgiveness isn¡¯t me. She is the one in charge of the inner courtyard.¡±


    Everyone in the courtyard was dumbfounded. But Gu Cheng Yao merely was startled for a moment before he submissively gave a cultured salute to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Mother, what happened today is this son¡¯s oversight. I didn¡¯t understand what actually happened and offended you. Mother can scold and punish me and I definitely will not object. I only ask that Mother consider Granny Bu¡¯s years of hard work and forgive her muddle-headedness in her old age.¡±


    When Lin Wei Xi first saw Gu Hui Yan, aside from being surprised, she actually felt quite nervous. Based on her experience from her previous life, she was quite worried about how her husband would treat her. But Gu Hui Yan¡¯s actions went beyond her expectations. Not only did he go straight to reprimanding the servants without question, he also didn¡¯t give Gu Cheng Yao any face.


    Of course the inner courtyard was ruled by the women, but a husband¡¯s family was different from one¡¯s maiden family. Everyone had close rtions with one another and the husband would be even closer to the servants whom he¡¯d grown up together with. Understandably, this was human nature. Previously, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s greatest hope was for her husband¡¯s family to be reasonable. Her greatest fortune was to have a husband who was able to distinguish right from wrong. She never thought that her husband would unquestioningly protect her.


    Gu Hui Yan now stood next to her. With him by her side, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s confidence instantly rose. Before, she didn¡¯t dare imagine that Gu Cheng Yao would one day beg her for mercy. She finally understood what it felt like to use powerful connections to intimidate others. She arrogantly snorted to herself, her expression haughty, ¡°Shizi, you tter me. After all, I¡¯m just your stepmother, and a strangerpared to others in the residence. I know I can¡¯tpare to Shizi¡¯s birth mother. How could I dare dispose of the old and loyal servants Princess Consort Shen left behind? Not to mention, in a few days, Shizi and Shizi Fei willin that I, as the second wife, didn¡¯t understand the severity of the situation and persecuted a loyal servant left by her predecessor. At the end of the day, I can¡¯t even change the menu left by Princess Consort Shen.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s face was unreadable, but Gu Hui Yan¡¯s frown was clear as day, ¡°did they actually say that to you?¡±


    In front of Gu Hui Yan, Lin Wei Xi immediately dropped her mocking tone and blinked innocently, raising her head and smiling, ¡°Of course they won¡¯t dare to say that in front of my Prince. It¡¯s just¡­ ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi left her sentence hanging, precise in the art of hidden meaning. Gu Hui Yan was already very angry from the few words that were spoken previously. When he heard Lin Wei Xi say this, his expression sankpletely. He nced at Gu Cheng Yao, his eyes dark, and an invisible pressure washing over everyone, ¡°You are truly mature. Because of a few wicked ves, you disobeyed your mother, questioned her decision and wronged her?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan had always been reserved. These were quite serious words, and a criticism of both morals and wisdom. Hecked morals because he¡¯d disobeyed his Mother. Hecked wisdom because he wasn¡¯t able to differentiate right from wrong. This was a very harsh criticism, not to mention they came directly from Gu Hui Yan.


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s face turned pale and the hands he held by his side tightened. In the end, he merely hung his head lower. Gu Cheng Yao himself was silent, but everyone else was close to going crazy.


    Granny Bu considered Gu Cheng Yao as her hope for the future since he was a kid and had long since regarded him as belonging to her. It wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to say that he was her most cherished person in her life. As for Gao Ran, bing Shizi Fei was the proudest thing in her life. Now that her honour and pride was being condemned, she couldn¡¯t bear it.


    Granny Bu was so anxious that her eyes turned red. She simply hated that she couldn¡¯t rece him. And Gao Ran was so angry that she cursed inwardly. This was truly a case of ¡®forgetting one¡¯s children after remarriage¡¯. Was the magnificent Prince Yan actually this muddle-headed?


    Of course, the three who were standing could see Granny Bu and Gao Ran¡¯s movements. Lin Wei Xi took a nce and pretended not to see anything. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t say a word. Gu Cheng Yao frowned and shouted, ¡°Granny Bu, Shizi Fei, don¡¯t be rude.¡±


    Granny Bu was very afraid of Prince Yan. When Gu Cheng Yao said this, she became even more afraid. No matter how anxious she was, she could only bow her head. However, Gao Ran hadn¡¯t been in Prince Yan Residence for a long and had never seen the other sides to Gu Hui Yan. She felt she was justified and took the opportunity to say, ¡°my Prince, it¡¯s not wrong for you to dote on the new Princess Consort, but Shen Shi is also your Princess Consort. Furthermore, Shizi is filial. When you scold Shizi like this, won¡¯t it scare everyone?¡±


    As soon as Gao Ran said those words about Princess Consort Shen, Granny Bu¡¯s face turned white. Gu Cheng Yao was even more shocked and angry. He didn¡¯t care that he was still being reprimanded by his father and immediately stepped forward with rare solemnity and severity in his eyes, ¡°impudent! Quickly beg Father and Mother for forgiveness!¡±


    Gao Ran bit her lip. She obviously didn¡¯t feel that she¡¯d said anything wrong. Fine, Gu Hui Yan had a new wife and forgot about the old one. But why was Gu Cheng Yao speaking to her like this? Hadn¡¯t Granny Bu said that Prince Yan was deeply in love with Princess Consort Shen? Plus, with Gu Cheng Yao here, why should she be afraid of Lin Wei Xi, the second wife?


    Gao Ran had argued in order to show Gu Cheng Yao her intentions, but was instead mercilessly reprimanded by him. She felt very unhappy, but at the end of the day, she was too scared to defy Prince Yan and Gu Cheng Yao. She could only choke back her actual thoughts and bite her lip as she saluted to Gu Hui Yan and Lin Wei Xi, ¡°This daughter-inw¡¯s anxiety and excessive concern for Shizi resulted in my misconduct. May Father and Mother please forgive this child¡¯s rudeness.¡±


    Listen to this, was this the attitude someone had while apologizing? Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s impression of Gao Ran almost did and about-face, but Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t say anything, so he didn¡¯t dare rebuke her. Gu Hui Yan was still calm. He merely nced at Gao Ran indifferently, the expression in his eyes telling others not to argue. But he quickly schooled his expression and turned his face to nod at Lin Wei Xi.


    Lin Wei Xi understood that he was leaving the decision up to her. It was all up to her whether or not to forgive Gao Ran and how to deal with these people. She beamed and said to Gao Ran, ¡°so it turns out Shizi Fei said that to protect Shizi. You husband and wife are very much in love. It¡¯s truly touching. However, while it¡¯s normal to talk to me like that, you were disrespectful to Prince Yan. This can¡¯t be so easily let go.¡±


    When Gao Ran realized that Lin Wei Xi was the one who would lecture her, she instantly felt her throat choke up with resentment and almost stopped breathing. But before she could settle her emotions and put up the act of being sensible but being forced to ept apromise, Gu Cheng Yao replied for her, ¡°Mother is right that Shizi Fei is young. If Mother wants to punish her, this son is willing to ept it in her ce.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a different matter. Shizi is the heir of the residence. Your education and punishment are all determined by the Prince. But Shizi Fei¡¯s conduct and even the discipline of the servants are all matters of the inner courtyard. I, as the Princess Consort, am the rightful master. Furthermore, those who make mistakes must be punished. Whether it¡¯s right and wrong should be considered before their status. I know that Granny Bu is an old servant who worked for more than 20 years and has made many contributions to the residence over the years. Of course she should receive generous treatment. But she ought to be judged the same way as any maid who¡¯d just joined the residence. If a mistake goes unpunished and we sympathize with the servant who made the mistake, then what¡¯s the point of having rules and regtions? ¡°


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s words were cold and cruel. As Granny Bu knelt on the ground, the chill crept up from her knees to her heart. Gu Cheng Yao also felt that she was too merciless. Humans weren¡¯t sages who could do no wrong. It was alright to be lenient towards the elderly like Granny Bu who¡¯d made many contributions. But now that he was in no position to speak, he could only listen in silence.


    Gu Cheng Yao, who¡¯d grown up in the residence and was looked after by the servants, felt that her views were too heartless. But Gu Hui Yan agreed. ¡®Right and wrong should be considered before one¡¯s status¡¯ was a wonderful saying. He looked on with approval. He looked at Lin Wei Xi, his expression seemed to have softened, ¡°ording to you, how should what happened today be taken care of?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression seemed to indicate that she was doing well. Lin Wei Xi felt calm and continued, ¡°The estate Granny neglected her duty, cheated her master of their money, and then sowed discord. Her family will now be expelled from the Prince Yan Residence. In addition, someone will be sent to search her home to retrieve all the money she took from the estate all these years. Shizi Fei disrespected the Prince due to her anxiety. Considering it was her first offence, her punishment will be to copy the ssics of Filial Piety a hundred times. She will stay in the Buddhist sanctum for several days, eat a vegetarian diet, and reflect on her errors. She cane out after she¡¯s finished copying.¡±


    She had to copy a book a hundred times, and even had to stay in the Buddhist sanctum! Even though she¡¯d mentally prepared herself, she was still shocked. Lin Wei Xi was actually so unbridled? Moreover, copying the ssics of Filial Piety and copying the Women¡¯s Precepts were twopletely different things. It would be the end of the year in a few days and the women from every family would start socializing. But she, the Shizi Fei, would be trapped in the Buddhist sanctum copying the ssics of Filial Piety. This punishment was far worse than physical punishments such as kneeling.


    Gao Ran was dumbfounded, but when she raised her head to look at Gu Hui Yan, Lin Wei Xi, and even Gu Cheng Yao, none of them paid any attention to her. These people with the right to speak obviously didn¡¯t intend to say anything. Gao Ran understood. She was distraught and angry, but could only squeeze out a ¡°yes¡± with much difficulty.


    After dealing with Gao Ran and the estate Granny, the few people who remained felt conflicted. The Granny Bu and the servants were very intertwined and were very involved with each other. Almost everyone in the residence was paying attention to this. If the punishment was too heavy, the servants under them would oppose. If she dealt with them too lightly, she wouldn¡¯t win the servant¡¯s respect. Lin Wei Xi thought for a while and said, ¡°Granny Zhao epted bribes from the estate Granny and conspired with her against the family for her own benefit. Although it¡¯s not as bad as her aplice, it¡¯s undoubtedly corruption. ording tow, Granny Zhao ought to be sent to the authorities and caned to death. But considering that she served the residence for many years, she will get a lighter sentence. She will be removed from her position as manager. We won¡¯t take back her sry over the years, but she has to leave the residence in three days. After that, her life and death will be her own responsibility.¡±


    Granny Zhao¡¯s face turned ashen when she heard this. She was Granny Bu¡¯s right hand man. She¡¯d relied on her contributions to unscrupulously run rampant for many years and never thought that she¡¯d be driven out of the residence. What family would want a servant that was driven out by the Prince Yan Residence? She was a ve. How would she survive without her master¡¯s protection?


    Granny Zhao wailed and tried to crawl over to beg Lin Wei Xi but was grabbed and dragged out. Listening to the noise, Granny Bu became increasingly scared. It was no more than a present of ten taels of silver but this Lin Shi had actually kicked them out? How dare she!


    Lin Wei Xi turned her gaze to Granny Bu. Granny Bu¡¯s whole body quivered and she unconsciously knelt stiffly. Lin Wei Xi merely smiled when she saw this and said, ¡°Granny Bu, I also know that you served Princess Consort Shen for more than ten years andter served Shizi for eighteen years. You¡¯re the residence¡¯s biggest contributor. It¡¯s no exaggeration to say that you¡¯re almost a master. But everything has to follow the regtions. Granny has a high position, but if you do something wrong, you ought to be punished ording to the rules. Granny Bu, don¡¯t you agree?


    Granny Bu sucked in her cheeks, gritted her teeth, and said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s good that Granny Bu understands.¡± Lin Wei Xi said unhurriedly, ¡°Granny Bu couldn¡¯t distinguish right from wrong and was instigated by the wicked ves, bringing the inner courtyard¡¯s matters to Shizi. Her first offence is overstepping her authority. As head manager, she indulged the corruption and deceit of her right hand men. Not only did she let it slip for many years, she waster tricked by someone else. Her second offence is neglecting her duties.¡±


    Everyone listened with rapt attention to Lin Wei Xi¡¯s next words. One was the new Princess Consort and the other was an old servant belonging to the previous Princess Consort who¡¯d managed the inner courtyard for more than ten years. This was the first time the two of them were dealing with each other and it was clear how important the final oue was. Even Gao Ran couldn¡¯t help feeling tense. On one hand, she disapproved of Lin Wei Xi. After all, who was she to confront a powerful bully like Granny Bu? Gao Ran had been in the household for a year but she only dared to speak words of praise to Granny Bu. But on the other hand, Gao Ran couldn¡¯t help being affected by the atmosphere in the room and became jittery.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t let everyone wait for long. She looked down at Granny Bu, her voice clear and delicate, ¡°Granny Bu is at fault and there¡¯s no good reason for her to continue managing the residence. But she¡¯s an old servant who has served the residence for more than twenty years and served two generations of the family. Considering Shizi¡¯s face, Granny Bu won¡¯t be demoted but moved to Shizi¡¯s Qingsong Garden and continue serving as it¡¯s head manager.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao heaved a huge sigh of relief when he heard this. He was really afraid that Lin Wei Xi would take drastic action. Granny Bu was almost like a mother to him after all. She¡¯d originally nned to make trouble endlessly. But when she heard that Lin Wei Xi would move her to Qingsong Garden, the hostility she felt faded. Although the head manager of the residence had the same title as head manager of Qingsong Garden, this was actually a demotion. But with Granny Zhao at the forefront, Granny Bu could ept this oue. The power she had had been drastically reduced, but she wouldply as long as she could take care of Shizi.


    This conclusion satisfied both sides, but Gao Ran was the only one who almost lost her self-control then and there. What had Lin Wei Xi said? Granny Bu was going to be stuffed into her courtyard? Granny Bu had always been pretentious and acted like a mother-inw. Gao Ran used to endure it and let it go, but would she be okay if she allowed Granny Bu to settle in Qingsong Garden?

 Chapter 49

    Granny Bu seemed to take her ¡°transfer¡± quite well. She was fully mentally prepared, especially after Granny Zhao was heavily punished by being chased out of the Residence because she¡¯d taken bribes. If Lin Wei Xi used the same method to deal with her, she¡¯d instigate every servant in the residence to cause trouble. But she didn¡¯t expect that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s response would beckingpared to her actions earlier.


    Although she¡¯d been demoted from the inner courtyard to Qingsong Garden, Qingsong Garden was where Shizi lived. It was obvious how important that was. Granny Bu didn¡¯t utter a word when she heard this. Of course, there was no longer a need to organize the servants to make trouble. And Gu Cheng Yao was greatly relieved when he heard this. Granny Bu was indeed at fault, but if Lin Wei Xi acted as she pleased, he wouldn¡¯t ept it. Fortunately, she merely moved Granny Bu to Qingsong Garden. This transfer made no difference to him. Granny Bu had raised him so he was fine with anything.


    Both Gu Cheng Yao and Granny Bu were satisfied, and perhaps the only person who wasn¡¯t satisfied with the oue was Gao Ran. She never expected Lin Wei Xi to put her in this situation.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t want to deal with it herself, so she stuffed Granny Bu into Gao Ran¡¯s courtyard. Once the male master got married, management power of the inner courtyard should belong to his wife. In the past, Granny Bu used to enjoy criticizing the management of Qingsong Garden, but because they didn¡¯t live together and Granny Bu was busy with managing other internal affairs, Gao Ran was fine with enduring it. Gao Ran initially consideredpromising and after enduring it for some time, would chip away at Granny Bu¡¯s power and destroy her ce in Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s heart, progressively crushing Bu Shi. But her n didn¡¯t include Bu Shi moving to their courtyard. Qingsong Garden already had her. If there was another head manager, then who was in charge?


    Gao Ran was extremely disgruntled by this oue, but what could she say in front of Granny Bu and Gu Cheng Yao? Gao Ran had difficulty speaking, but Granny Bu and Gu Cheng Yao were happy with the result. Lin Wei Xi was really evil. She¡¯d concluded the matter without giving Gao Ran a chance to respond.


    Only Gu Hui Yan nced meaningfully at Lin Wei Xi with understanding in his eyes.


    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t notice the struggle under the surface, but Gu Hui Yan knew about it. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s move was truly brilliant, even more brilliant than moves officials made to prevent themselves from suffering and passing the problem on to someone else. With such a simple move, not only did she appease the servants, she also showed that she waspletely uninvolved with Shizi¡¯s internal affairs and avoided rousing suspicion. She¡¯d also taken back power over internal affairs and conveniently driven a wedge between the two parties. Gao Ran and Granny Bu seemed to be friendly with each other now because there was no conflict between them; the two were working together against Lin Wei Xi. There was no conflict now, but what about when they lived together?


    A rift would definitely form between them. Gao Ran and Granny Bu would expose themselves without Lin Wei Xi having to do anything once the conflict and friction grew so fierce that they couldn¡¯t be concealed. Having the enemy battalion split itself in two without sacrificing a single soldier was truly the best method a military strategist coulde up with.


    It seemed that his Princess Consort was quite scheming. Gu Hui Yan merely smiled and said nothing. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t notice the look he gave her because she was overjoyed. In her previous life, she¡¯d suffered a lot under Granny Bu. This old woman relied on her age and seniority and actually meddled with the newly-weds¡¯ bedroom matters. But things were better now. The two old acquaintances from her previous life were now tossed together in the same ce.


    Didn¡¯t Gao Ran and Granny Bu have a friendly and harmonious master-servant rtionship? Didn¡¯t they look down on Gao Xi¡¯s uprightness, and were now ganging up on her to push her out? Since Gao Ran saw only Shen Shi as her mother-inw, then properly take care of Shen Shi¡¯s outstanding servant. Lin Wei Xi wholeheartedly wished them a delightful time with each other.


    They¡¯d made trouble until it was quitete and the sky was dark. No one was in the mood to eat anymore. Lin Wei Xi made the decision for Prince Yan, cancelled dinner, and had everyone return to their respective courtyards for dinner. Everyone in Jingcheng Courtyard left one after another and the kitchen delivered the meals to the room. Lin Wei Xi used the time the maids took to prepare the meal and whispered to Wan Yue to retrieve the keys and ques.


    Granny Bu held onto all the keys in the residence as well as the ques required to retrieve items from the storeroom. It was easy to invite someone in but difficult to get them to leave. Who would be willing to give up what they had. Normally, it¡¯d be too difficult to ask Granny Bu for the keys. But she¡¯d angered Prince Yan today. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Lin Wei Xi would of course strike the iron while it was hot and take back everything.


    Of course Granny Bu didn¡¯t want to hand over the key. But she was too scared to make trouble at this juncture. If she rmed Prince Yan, it wouldn¡¯t end with just a fine of her monthly sry. She was unwilling but could only dawdle as she took out the keys and box of cards, unhappily throwing them at Wan Yue.


    Wan Yue didn¡¯t care about Granny Bu¡¯s ck face. After verifying everything, she hurried back to the main courtyard. Lin Wei Xi was waiting in the side room. When she saw the items in Wan Yue¡¯s hands, she let out a rxed sigh.


    It was only then that she became the actual mistress of the Prince Yan Residence. The keys to the courtyards and warehouses were in her grasp. She only had the confidence to speak when she held this lifeline in her hands. She couldn¡¯t help but feel good. After looking at them one more time, she had Wan Xing and Wan Yue keep them and walked to the main room.


    She hadn¡¯t forgotten that Prince Yan was waiting for her for dinner.


    He was sitting at the table when he saw her enter the room with a smile on her face. Throughout the meal, she was full of joy and obviously in a good mood. He took it all in but didn¡¯t point it out. When it was just the two of them in the bedroom that night, he casually said, ¡°it¡¯s been hard on you today.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi raised her guard up and her smile faded, ¡°I don¡¯t dare.¡±


    Seeing her tense up, he couldn¡¯t helpughing, ¡°I¡¯m not questioning you. No need to be nervous.¡±


    His words rxed her, but she still felt tense.


    Gu Hui Yan could see that Lin Wei Xi was very defensive now and felt helpless. He wasn¡¯t going to bite her. Why should husband and wife have to be so on guard with each other? How could he not side with her against a servant?


    He didn¡¯t understand where her strong distrust of her husband came from. He could only soften his tone and say, ¡°you handled things very well today. I¡¯m not in the residence all the time and the rules will naturally be rxed. I wanted to deal with these people for you. But you just married into the household, so I was afraid that it would scare you. That¡¯s why I didn¡¯t bring it up. I never expected them to trouble you within thest few days.¡±


    Hearing Gu Hui Yan¡¯s words, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s shoulders unknowingly rxed. That¡¯s right, he was Prince Yan, not Gu Cheng Yao. She didn¡¯t have to worry about being coldly criticized by her husband when she went through the trouble to keep the servants in check. She finally smiled, unaware that her tone was probing, ¡°my Prince, did you not feel that I handled things too coldly today?¡±


    ¡°Why would I?¡± He chuckled, beckoning her to sit next to him. He ran his palm through her soft long hair and said, ¡°The rewards and punishments were clear, and the power given is reflective of the responsibility they bear. Your judgement is correct. The older and more trusted the servants are, the stricter we should be in them. Otherwise we will harm them, and then ourselves.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi always used to be criticized for being unfeeling and heartless when she was in the Duke Residence. Her husband also said the same of her after she married, so she slowly began to doubt herself. She was now finally hearing something different from someone else. Prince Yan thought so highly of her that she immediately let go of the knot in her heart. Her expression rxed and her eyes twinkled, ¡°as long as my Prince doesn¡¯t me me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m the one who ought to be med.¡± Gu Hui Yan saw his little miss¡¯ eyebrows soften, the surprise and nervousness disappear from her face, and a tiny smile appear in the depths of her eyes, ¡°I promised to marry you but I didn¡¯t properly deal with the residence¡¯s problems before that. It¡¯s my fault that you had to face such a terrible mess.¡±


    ¡°How can I me you?¡± Lin Wei Xi smiled as she said. She tried to lean her shoulder against Gu Hui Yan. When he didn¡¯t react, she rxed her body weight against him. Neither of them spoke, but the atmosphere in the room was very warm andfortable.


    The contrast between the present and the past was so distinct that Lin Wei Xi felt sorry for herself, and also a lot of strong emotions towards this father-son pair from the Prince Yan Residence. Gu Cheng Yao had lived a privileged life. On the other hand, senior Prince Yan had died early from illness and Prince Yan was busy with war. Gu Cheng Yao never had much contact with any male elders, and that was how he grew up pampered and indulged by the women of the inner courtyard. Because he was the centre of the world in his childhood, when he grew up, he naturally thought he was right and judged others with his way of thinking.


    But Gu Hui Yan was different. He became famous when he was too young and stood at the peak of the dynasty at thirty. Only experienced old men in their sixtieth were qualified to sit with him at a banquet. Among the three auxiliary ministers, Gu Hui Yan was around the same age as Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s son. Because he¡¯d assumed the expectations of his family, fief and even the army at a young age, his sense of responsibility was unexpectedly strong. And he¡¯d spent half his life in the military. Of course he endorsed the army¡¯s strictly impartial way of handling things. Although Gu Cheng Yao and Gu Hui Yan were father and son, there was a huge disparity in their values.


    It was indeed disastrous to put Lin Wei Xi¡¯s unbending and strong personality together with Gu Cheng Yao.


    Gu Hui Yan watched her, who was slightly lost in thought. His eyes narrowed and his voice remained the same, ¡°What are you thinking of?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi returned to her senses. She covered her lips, coughed, and said, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I got carried away for a bit thinking about Granny Bu.¡±


    He didn¡¯t probe further. Since she said it was about Granny Bu, then it was about that old servant. But Lin Wei Xi was still leaning against him and he refused to let her think about other such trivial matters. He sat back and took the opportunity to pull her shoulders into his embrace, saying, ¡°you don¡¯t really need to work so hard. If you want the financial power of the residence, just tell me.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt that Gu Hui Yan¡¯s grip was a bit strong, but she thought it was merely idental. She also didn¡¯t think too much about his words and shook her head as she said, ¡°No. This is my duty. I can ask for your help once, but can I always ask for your help my entire life?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled and asked, ¡°Why not?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know how to respond for a moment. She couldn¡¯t resist smiling and looked up at him, joking, ¡°my Prince, you¡¯re the most outstanding person in both the army and imperial court. If someone keeps looking for you for every little thing, why continue to keep that subordinate?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s different.¡± Gu Hui Yan watched her smile at him with glittering eyes and the dark clouds in his heart disappeared. His voice was soft, almost like he was speaking to himself, ¡°You¡¯re not my subordinate. There may be many officials who follow me, but there¡¯s only one of you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face grew a little warm, and because she was flustered, she unconsciously said, ¡°That¡¯s not a given. Loyal subordinates are hard to find, but it¡¯s easy to change the Princess Consort.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan watched her silently and she slowly caved under that gaze. She was finished. She¡¯d spoken without thinking again. She cautiously turned around and gently pulled the corner of his clothes. He still didn¡¯t move. She gritted her teeth. In for a penny in for a pound. She wrapped her arms around his neck and said anxiously , ¡°my Prince, I said it randomly. Don¡¯t be angry.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not angry.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re definitely angry.¡± Lin Wei Xi steeled her heart and clung onto Gu Hui Yan. Her arms tightened and her hair fluttered against his neck. Because her chin was perched on his shoulder, she sounded a little muffled, ¡°my Prince, if you don¡¯t calm down, I won¡¯t let go. Otherwise, you won¡¯t be able to attend court tomorrow.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan really couldn¡¯t hold back hisugh. He wrapped his hand around Lin Wei Xi¡¯s waist and held her in his arms with little effort, ¡°You have a convincing reason. Enough, it¡¯ste. Let¡¯s go rest.¡±

 Chapter 50

    As the twelfth month arrived, the end of the year grew closer and every household became busier. It had snowed in the past few days, painting the sky and ground white as the new year rounded the corner.


    In the Buddhist sanctum, a maid hurried in holding a red box. She stomped her feet and shook off the snow on her hood as she entered and shouted, ¡°Shizi Fei, this ve brings you hot soup.¡±


    Gao Ran sat by a low-lying table in a side room holding a hand stove, wrapped in a thick squirrel fur cloak. Despite this, the maid next to her continued stirring the smouldering coal in the brazier non-stop, afraid that Gao Ran would feel cold.


    The Buddhist sanctum was clean and sandalwood Buddha incense constantly floated in the room. It was quite shady and cool in the summer, but in winter, it became so cold that it seeped into one¡¯s bones. Gao Ran had been punished by Lin Wei Xi and had to copy the ssic of Filial Piety in the Buddhist hall. She assumed that she¡¯d finish in two or three days, but only after she came here did she realize that the situation wasn¡¯t so optimistic.


    Fortunately, although Lin Wei Xi sent someone to keep an eye on Gao Ran as she copied the book, she didn¡¯t stop her servants from sending things to her. She resented how gloomy and cold it was in here and was especially afraid that staying here for a long time would affect her fertility, so she had the servants bring several braziers as well as cushions, seats, pillows, etc., and almost converted the quiet and dignified side room of the Buddhist sanctum into her private heated room.


    Ning Fu headed straight to Qingsong Garden to fetch hot tea and freshly baked cakes. Gao Ran was bundled up in thick warm clothing and looked a little bloated when she held the brush. When Ning Fu ced the refreshments and other things on the table one by one, Gao Ran¡¯s hand shook and she wrote a word wrong. A page that was almost finished was wasted yet again.


    An unknown fire suddenly burst in Gao Ran¡¯s heart and she threw the brush at the brush holder. The brush and porcin collided, making a sharp sound that resounded clearly in the quiet temple. Ning Fu paused. Granny Tao saw the look on Gao Ran¡¯s face and quickly pushed Ning Fu from behind, ¡°Shizi Fei is copying the book. Why did you bring food? Won¡¯t it dy Shizi Fei in her writing? Leave.¡±


    Ning Fu opened her mouth. Hadn¡¯t Shizi Fei said that she was cold and asked her to bring some hot food? Ning Fu returned the tes to the food box without saying a word and bowed, withdrawing.


    Gao Ran was very irritable. It was almost New Year¡¯s Eve. These few days, the Prince Yan Residence had been very busy entertaining guests, but she¡¯d been trapped in the Buddhist sanctum by Lin Wei Xi and couldn¡¯t even see other people. She gloomily sat for a while and asked, ¡°did all the managers visit Jingcheng Courtyard these past few days to hand over their cards?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Granny Tao said carefully. ¡°The Princess Consort turned the side room of the courtyard next to Jingcheng Courtyard into a meeting room for the servants. The managers will go there every day at 9am to report to the Princess Consort and ask for her instructions for that day. If there are any problems they can¡¯t solve, they can go there again at 3pm. Aside from these two timings, the Princess Consort won¡¯t see anyone unless it¡¯s something unexpected or urgent. The Princess Consort said that if the managing Grannies came to her for every trivial matter, then the Princess Consort wouldn¡¯t be able to get any work done. So she simply arranged a timing for everyone to gather. If the Princess Consort has anything to say, she only needs to say it once.¡±


    Granny Bu had been moved to Qingsong Garden. Although she was still a head manager in name, anyone with a discerning eye could see that she¡¯d been demoted. While she could no longer manage the residence, there wasn¡¯t much bacsh because she could still stay by Shizi¡¯s side and take care of him while maintaining her dignity. The country couldn¡¯t go without a king for a day and the residence couldn¡¯t go on without a decision maker. With Granny Bu gone, the person in charge would naturally be the Princess Consort. The moment Lin Wei Xi took over, she handled things in apletely different way. Not only did the rules be clearer, but a time was set to report to her. Aside from those two hours, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t allow the managers toe over as and when they liked. Even if they stood outside her door, as long as it was outside the appointed time, they couldn¡¯t see her so long as she refused.


    Of course, the servants who were used to beingzy disliked Lin Wei Xi for being troublesome and doing unnecessary things. But after being refused several times and seeing that there was really no one whom they couldin to, they obediently followed Lin Wei Xi¡¯s rules. Thus, the managers had to visit her every day and the Grannies were too scared to shirk their responsibilities to go gambling and drinking. The steadfast but somewhat clumsy servants saw what their master was doing and knew what they ought to do. If they had anything to report, they could do it in a timely manner. The management system had been reorganized, so it was unlikely not to meet with anyone all day. The low-ranking maids had someone they could go to for questions, so everything became more efficient. In just a few days, the residence was cleaned out. The tidy structure and the work efficiency was clear as day.


    The changes in the residence couldn¡¯t be hidden from everyone. Even Gao Ran, who was in the Buddhist sanctum all day, had heard about it. Gao Ran was previously quite confident thatpared to her, who was knowledgeable and experienced, Lin Wei Xi, a little girl from a smallmoner¡¯s household, had rashly taken over hundreds of people. The Prince Yan Residence, which was akin to a mid-levelpany, would definitely end up in a big mess. When Lin Wei Xi made a fool of herself because she didn¡¯t have the ability to fix such arge residence, the managerial power would return to Gao Ran¡¯s hands. At that time, it wouldn¡¯t matter whether she copied the ssics of Filial Piety a hundred times or not.


    So Gao Ran remained unhurried. But as the days passed, the weather grew colder and New Year¡¯s Eve approached, the trouble Gao Ran anticipated never came. She couldn¡¯t sit still. After sending someone to inquire for a few days, she found out that the way Lin Wei Xi managed the huge residence was truly neat and tidy. She was shocked and found it unbelievable.


    How was it possible? Lin Wei Xi was new to the residence, didn¡¯t even recognize the servants, and waspletely ignorant about theplicated and intertwined rtionship of these ves. How could she, the new Princess Consort who had gone in blind, arrange everything perfectly?


    Gao Ran couldn¡¯t figure it out and tried hard to ignore the unceasing panic she felt. She frowned and pondered for a while, and could only sum up Lin Wei Xi¡¯s seemingly prophetic actions to sheer dumb luck. Gao Ran sat in boredom for a moment, but still asked reluctantly, ¡°There are so many things to do at the end of the year like preparations for the banquet, purchasing things for the New Year¡¯s, auditing the ount books of the shops and estates, even nning gifts for the pce and high-ranking officials, and handling the subordinate¡¯s gifts. Did she manage all of this alone?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Tao Granny said, ¡°I heard that the Princess Consort¡¯s courtyard has been especially busy these past few days. Those from Jingcheng Courtyard almost look like they¡¯re flying. However, the Princess Consort definitely arranged everything.¡±


    A bride who¡¯d barely been married for a month wanted to manage such a huge matter and was quite good at it. Gao Ran didn¡¯t know what it was that she felt. She¡¯d entered the household in the second month and it would be almost a year now, but she was hesitant to work on something so tremendous andplex, especially when it involved sending gifts to the pce, the Grand Secretary and other such people. This wasn¡¯t a joke. However, Lin Wei Xi had only married in the eleventh month and took over everything almost as soon as she entered the household. Even though she was faced withpletely unfamiliar staff, no one dared to look down on her no matter who they were.


    Seeing Gao Ran¡¯s still expression, Granny Tao felt ufortable. In her maiden home, Gao Ran had struck back and then married up in one move. Although she was a shu daughter, she¡¯d been progressing forward all these years and had never suffered such a huge setback. Now, someone with a higher status, a higher authority, and who was clearly more capable than Gao Ran suddenly appeared. Not to mention Gao Ran, even Tao Granny couldn¡¯t stand it.


    Time seemed to have turned back to the time when Gao Ran was ten years old and firmly shrouded in Gao Xi¡¯s light. It had also been like this back then. Gao Xi had the status of eldest di granddaughter, a powerful maternal family with a grandmother whose reputation preceded her, and outstanding literary achievements that received admiration. The younger generation in the Duke Residence were full of wonder and admiration when talking about their eldest sister and didn¡¯t even have the heart to feel jealous orpete with her. Gao Ran constantly felt that she lost when it came to her status as a shu daughter, so she worked hard the past few years and did everything she could to pry away the people around Gao Xi and everything she had. And after a strange series of events, she married Gu Cheng Yao in the end. Gao Ran thought it was over. She¡¯d finally proved to everyone that she was better than Gao Xi and any distinction between di and shu children was all prejudice. But even after her years of struggle, she seemed to have returned to the starting point.


    A servant arrived and Granny Tao went out for a moment. She looked embarrassed when she returned. She saw that Gao Ran¡¯s expression didn¡¯t look good but was too scared not to ry the message. She faltered but had no choice but to say, ¡°Shizi Fei, Shizi needs to prepare for the civil service exam and won¡¯t be returning to sleep with you for the next few days. Granny Bu says that Shizi Fei is focused on copying Buddhist scriptures and won¡¯t have time to serve Shizi, so she had Yun Hui follow Shizi to the study.¡±


    Gao Ran suddenly returned to her senses and clenched her palms, her nails digging into her flesh. After that day, Gu Cheng Yao had been punished by Prince Yan. The inner courtyard didn¡¯t know any specifics on the punishment. All Gao Ran knew was that his workload had drastically increased all at once and she barely saw him on a day to day basis. Now, Gu Cheng Yao wanted topletely live in the study. Gao Ran could understand a man¡¯s ambitions and she was supportive of it. But this support was limited to him studying hard by himself and didn¡¯t include abandoning his wife to have another woman, a beautiful woman at that, apany him day and night.


    Granny Bu had intercepted Gao Ran¡¯s servants and sent Yun Hui to the study. Did they really think that no one could see their filthy thoughts? Gao Ran was beyond angry. Her chest rose and fell, but she ultimately held back her outburst. If she couldn¡¯t tolerate such a small thing, she would ruin the bigger, more important things. She was currently in ancient times. It was normal for a man to have multiple wives and concubines. Anyway, she was the main wife. For the time being, she could put up with these lowly maids. It was more important that Gu Cheng Yao not haveints about her. Once she gave birth to a son in the future and her position stabilized, wouldn¡¯t she be free to dispose of those lowly wenches?


    Gao Ran calmed her anger after much difficulty and suddenly felt agitated as she looked at the ssics of Filial Piety spread open before her. Who had the patience to copy such old fashioned rubbish? What else did it aplish except to waste time? A woman studied the four arts to get married. Now that she¡¯d married up, what was the use of reading this? Right now, Gao Ran ought to be busy attending banquets, socializing with the other Madams, as well as keeping an eye on the numerous concubines around Gu Cheng Yao.


    Gao Ran paused and knew that she couldn¡¯t dy any further. She called Granny Tao and whispered in her ear. Granny Tao understood. After a while, a person walked out of the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s side gate and headed towards the Duke Ying Residence.


    In Jingcheng Courtyard, Lin Wei Xi finally took care of the work the managers reported. She sat back in her living room and Wan Xing hurriedly stuffed a soft pillow behind her waist. Wan Yue handed some hot tea to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Princess Consort, you¡¯ve been busy all morning. Why don¡¯t you drink a cup of tea.¡±


    ¡°En.¡± Lin Wei Xi epted the tea, took a sip, and asked, ¡°that person in the Buddhist sanctum still hasn¡¯t finished copying?¡±


    At the mention of this, Wan Yue looked a little baffled, ¡°she¡¯s only made one more copy since yesterday.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi put down the teacup and found it outrageous. She admitted that she¡¯d been selfish when she punished Gao Ran and had her copy the ssics of Filial Piety a hundred times. But it wasn¡¯t even two thousand words. How could she not finish copying a hundred, or more than a hundred, copies in twenty days? Lin Wei Xi expected her to take half a month. When a woman made a mistake, it was normal to confine her and have her copy text for half a month. This punishment was the right amount, and it prevented Gao Ran from being present during the year end visitations. Nosy people said that she treated her daughter-inw harshly. But Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t think that Gao Ran would spend more than twenty days copying, from the beginning of the month to the end of the year, and not leave the Buddhist sanctum.


    How embarrassing. At the end of the year, every household began to visit one another. Many Ladies visited the residence and met only Lin Wei Xi without seeing Gao Ran. They would inevitably question this. In the past few days, Lin Wei Xi exined multiple times that the reason why Shizi Fei wasn¡¯t present was because she was confined and copying the ssics of Filial Piety for Prince Yan.


    Anyway, Gao Ran was the one who lost face. With Prince Yan as her shield, Lin Wei Xi frankly told the truth. Gao Ran¡¯s handwriting was unpassable and she couldn¡¯t finish copying the ssics of Filial Piety a hundred times. Could anyone me Lin Wei Xi?


    They could leave it at that if the magnificent daughter of the Duke Ying Residence, the Shizi Fei of the Prince Yan Residence, had bad handwriting. But she didn¡¯t even have the most basic, legible handwriting. Lin Wei Xi felt embarrassed for Gao Ran¡¯s negligence of such fundamental skills. What had Gao Ran actually learned after more than ten years of hard work?


    Lin Wei Xi raised her eyebrows lightly and didn¡¯t hide the mockery in her eyes. Wan Yue also felt that Shizi Fei was actually in quite poor shape, but it wasn¡¯t her ce to say such things. Wan Yue could only change the subject and said, ¡°Princess Consort, it¡¯s the twenty third today. From today on, the Prince will be on vacation from court.¡±


    Without her noticing, it was already the twenty-third. She nced at the sky outside, stood up and said, ¡°since it¡¯s a vacation today, the Prince won¡¯t need to stay in the pce to discuss official matters. Perhaps he will return soon. I will take a look outside.¡±


    Wan Xing eximed in surprise and said anxiously, ¡°Princess Consort, you¡¯ve been assigning tasks to the servants all morning and your waist is stiff. Why don¡¯t you rest first before leaving.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had already walked out of the room, her voice careless, ¡°there¡¯s no need.¡±


    At the front gate of the Prince Yan Residence, Gu Hui Yan had just returned from the pce and brought along some people with him. Following behind him on one side was Zhao Qian and on the other was Zhou Mao Cheng.


    Zhao Qian was also an old general who¡¯d followed Gu Hui Yan for many years. He¡¯d heard of Prince Yan¡¯s wedding long ago, but he¡¯d been in another province and wasn¡¯t able to attend the wedding. He could only entrust someone to send his gift to the capital. Now that he¡¯d returned to the capital to give his end of year report, Zhao Qian took this opportunity to finally visit the Prince Yan Residence and personally congratte Gu Hui Yan.


    ¡°My Prince, this subordinate congrattes you on your new marriage. When this subordinate heard of it in the sixth month, this subordinate wanted toe and congratte you. But there were many matters to attend to at the frontier and there was never a chance to leave. It dragged on and it was only now that this subordinate found the chance to visit the capital.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not a big deal. It¡¯s only right that you wholeheartedly guard the border.¡±


    ¡°This subordinate understands. This subordinate was afraid of being unworthy of my Prince¡¯s trust and refused to rx for a moment.¡± Zhao Qian said and sighed, ¡°this subordinate previously always felt that you were alone. Although you are resolute and full of vigour, it¡¯s unavoidable that you¡¯ll feel a little lonely. Now that you¡¯ve married a new Princess Consort, it¡¯s truly a load off of mine and the other old general¡¯s shoulders after so many years.¡±


    Usually, no matter how familiar or close the soldier or old friend was, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression would always turn indifferent the moment marrying a new Princess Consort was brought up. Zhao Qian was initially prepared for this reaction but found that Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t stop him, his expression looking very soft. Zhao Qian was shocked and unconsciously looked at Zhou Mao Cheng.


    Zhou Mao Cheng understood and exined, ¡°The Princess Consort is beautiful, virtuous and sincere to others. The Prince and Princess Consort have a very good rtionship.¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng was someone who¡¯d rolled around on a bloody battlefield. For him to call someone ¡°sincere to others¡± was clearly a very high assessment. Zhao Qian was even more amazed. He saw that Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t look displeased about this and obviously thought that his new Princess Consort was perfect. Zhao Qian was surprised and asked with curiosity, ¡°I haven¡¯t paid my respects to the Princess Consort yet. Which household is the Princess Consort from?¡±


    Based on the high assessment of the Princess Consort earlier, Zhao Qian¡¯s question was quite normal. But he didn¡¯t expect the atmosphere to suddenly be a little strange. Gu Hui Yan was walking in front so he couldn¡¯t see his expression, but Zhou Mao Cheng coughed forcefully.


    Zhao Qian was puzzled, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Zhou Mao Cheng nced forward quickly, then winked at Zhao Qian, ¡°you remember Lin Yong? The Princess Consort is his daughter.¡±


    Zhao Qian¡¯s jaw dropped and he couldn¡¯t react for a long time, ¡°Lin Yong¡¯s¡­ daughter?¡±

 Chapter 51

    Zhao Qian suspected that he''d heard wrong. Lin Yong''s daughter? Wasn''t Lin Yong theirrade? Although he''d aligned himself with Prince Yan at ater stage, Zhao Qian had seen this naturally and unusually strong man several times. He was a talent with a lot of potential. When Zhao Qianter learned that Lin Yong had died to save Prince Yan, hemented. But Lin Yong''s status was lower than his. Why had Prince Yan married his daughter? How did they know each other?


    Zhou Mao Cheng also felt that what Prince Yan did put everyone in an awkward position. He coughed and said, "wasn''t Lin Yong conferred as a Marquis by request of the Prince? After the war, the Prince went to Shunde Prefecture to return Lin Yong''s remains to his hometown. Along the way, he brought Lin Yong''s only daughter back to the capital to take care of her."


    So he took care of her until she became the Prince Yan Consort?


    Zhao Qian told himself that it was fortunate that Lin Yong didn''t know about this. Even though such a great development had happened with this person who was hismanding general, he was a little too gloomy. However, Zhao Qian''s criticism remained unsaid and he was very supportive of this marriage. Prince Yan must''ve been willing to get married this time. Lin Yong''s only worry before his death had been resolved. It was truly a win-win situation for everyone.


    The only problem was that Lin Wei Xi had originally been their junior, but now that she was Prince Yan''s wife, everyone''s positions were a bit troublesome.


    Gu Hui Yan didn''t stop Zhou Mao Cheng from speaking and clearly didn''t think it was something difficult for others to see. As for Zhou Mao Cheng''s winking, Zhao Qian was shocked¡­ Alright, Gu Hui Yan admitted to being a little embarrassed. After agreeing to take care of his subordinate''s daughter, he initially said he''d find a husband for her. But in the end, she entered the Prince Yan Residence and never left again. He really seemed to have let Lin Yong down.


    Prince Yan was a newly-wed. Of course his subordinates and oldrades had to tease him a little. And Gu Hui Yan, who was usually aloof and indifferent, allowed them to joke around. Zhao Qian was surprised and thought that those who''d married really changed. Prince Yan knew that he was wrong this time. Otherwise, under normal circumstances, how could he let them tease him?


    Despite the jokes, Zhao Qian was actually very satisfied with this oue and the corners of his eyes felt a little sour. After meeting again after so many years, his old friend was safe and sound with a lovable wife by his side. Zhao Qian sincerely wished them well. For many years, Prince Yan had fought in various wars all over the country and remained undefeated. Everyone in the army trusted and adored him as the God of War. He was the pir of the Prince Yan Residence and was also someone who provided reassurance to the Emperor and ministers in court. Zhao Qian and Zhou Mao Cheng followed Gu Hui Yan with all their hearts. However, someone like him who deserved everyone''s respect actually didn''t have much luck when it came to his personal rtionships. He''d remained alone for many years regardless of what he did. Now, he had someone to apany him by his side. It wasn''t just Zhao Qian and Zhou Mao Cheng, the one hundred thousand strong Yan army were all wholeheartedly happy for him and wished the Prince Yan Consort well. Their only wish was for the Princess Consort to properly apany Prince Yan.


    The old friends had reunited, and after teasing each other for a while, they slowly talked about the things going on in society and the army. Zhao Qian was in the midst of reporting the situation at the border when he looked across the courtyard and suddenly saw a beautiful woman decked out in pearl jade walking towards them. Before Zhao Qian could react, he saw Gu Hui Yan abandon the few people who were talking and quickly walk in that direction.


    Lin Wei Xi''s neck was wrapped in fluffy white fur that made her skin sparkle and her face look brilliant. Standing among the wless snow and ck branches dripping with water, she looked even more stunning and glowing, like a goddess who''d mistakenly fallen into the human realm. And Gu Hui Yan''s profile was quite handsome. Although he was smiling, the way he patted snow off her was particrly careful and gentle. Whoever saw such a picture had to praise them as a heavenly couple¡ó.


    Gu Cheng Yao stood at the corner of another corridor and happened toe across this scene. This was his first time seeing Lin Wei Xi look so lively and also his first time seeing his father with gentle eyes. The two of them looked very well matched and he couldn''t help but stop in his tracks. For a while he didn''t know whether to walk out like he knew nothing or withdraw and pretend that he hadn''t seen them.


    He didn''t hesitate for long. Wan Yue, who was on the other side, had good eyes and already saw him, "Shizi?"


    Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan both raised their heads and looked in his direction. Gu Cheng Yao had no choice but to step forward and reveal himself to everyone, "Father, Mother."


    Gu Hui Yan saw that it was Gu Cheng Yao and merely nodded indifferently, then lowered his head to continue tidying the snow on Lin Wei Xi''s cor. The smile on Lin Wei Xi''s face quickly disappeared. She looked noble and distant as she nodded to Gu Cheng Yao, "Shizi."


    Like a sh, Lin Wei Xi went from a lively beauty and returned to an aloof, dignified and indifferent stepmother. Gu Cheng Yao didn''t know what it was that he was feeling. He also didn''t know why his eyes were urately capturing many details, like one of his father''s hands picking at the snow on Lin Wei Xi''s head while the othery on her waist. The two were extremely close and Lin Wei Xi was very unperturbed by this level of physical contact, without a hint of difort.


    Gu Cheng Yao rolled his eyes without anyone noticing. Lin Wei Xi had greeted Gu Cheng Yao very formally when she suddenly felt a pinprick at the top of her head. She covered her hair and painfully raised her head toin, "my Prince, you grabbed my hair!"


    "Is that so? I wasn''t paying attention." Gu Hui Yan calmly retracted his hand as if it was truly a momentary slip of the hand. He looked at Lin Wei Xi''s watery eyes caused by the pain, and felt a little sorry for the first time. He rubbed the spot where he''d pulled and asked in a whisper, "Does it hurt?"

 Chapter 52

    Gu Hui Yan leaned over and asked in a whisper. Lin Wei Xi wrinkled her nose and said, ¡°not really.¡±


    He¡¯d already pulled her hair. What else could she do?


    Gu Cheng Yao felt some mild emotions. He took a step back, lowered his head, and said, ¡°This son still has homework to finish and won¡¯t disturb Father and Mother¡¯s appreciation of the snow. Please excuse this son.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nodded and said, ¡°Go ahead. The civil service exam ising up. Prioritize preparing for the preliminary round. Don¡¯t be distracted by the mour for the next few days. Understand?¡±


    ¡°I understand. Thank you for teaching me Father.¡± After Gu Cheng Yao responded, he looked up at Lin Wei Xi again and cupped his hand to salute to her before leaving.


    Gu Hui Yan was teaching his son, so Lin Wei Xi stood aside and listened. After Gu Cheng Yao turned around and returned the way he¡¯de from, she remembered something and asked suspiciously, ¡°why did Shizi want toe over? He¡¯s going back just like that?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps he got bored of sitting in the study and came out to get some air.¡± Gu Hui Yan nced at Lin Wei Xi and said, ¡°The weather will be cold these few days. Don¡¯t let your temper get the better of you and be careful not to catch a cold.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t. I¡¯m not that unruly.¡± she mumbled, toozy to care about Gu Cheng Yao. Anyway, how Gu Cheng Yao was faring had nothing to do with her. She¡¯d handed over management of Qingsong Garden to the dowry servant Princess Consort Shen left behind. She made it very clear that she wasn¡¯t interfering with Shizi¡¯s matters. Whatever happened in his courtyard was their own business and she had nothing to do with it.


    As for whether Gao Ran would overpower Granny Bu or vice versa, it would depend on their methods. Lin Wei Xi would watch the fun without getting involved.


    After returning to Jingcheng Courtyard, she first ordered the kitchen to prepare some food, then went to the inner room to change her wet clothing that was soaked from the snow. It was really too much of a coincidence that the snowball had fallen onto her. It was fine that her hair had gotten wet, but the snow that fell in her cor was troublesome. The snow was already cold. When it fell on her neck, it made her feel cold and her body temperature then turned it into icy water. It now seeped into her back. She was not only ufortable, but going to easily catch a cold.


    Lin Wei Xi had to untie her hair and change into a new set of dry and warm clothes. She then casually tied her hair up into a low bun and went out to eat with Gu Hui Yan. Seeing here out, he first reached out to check the temperature of her forehead. Only after he checked that she didn¡¯t have a fever did he say in relief, ¡°Fortunately, you don¡¯t have a fever. Finish the ginger tea first.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at the ginger tea. Before she said anything, Gu Hui Yan saw through her and said, ¡°don¡¯tin, you have to drink it. Your body is already delicate. You spent so much time in the snow today and it got into your clothes. If you don¡¯t take care of yourself now, what will you do if you get a fever tomorrow?¡±


    Yes, Lin Wei Xi knew that her health was bad right now and couldn¡¯t be like how it was in the past. She could only take the tea cup and drink the hot ginger tea a bit at a time. Lin Wei Xi stared intently at the cup in her hand. Hot air rose from the ginger tea and turned into mist when it hit the air. It happened to cling on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyshes, condensing into fine drops of water.


    Gu Hui Yan watched her for a long time and couldn¡¯t resist reaching out to touch her long eyshes. Her eyshes were especially long, the ends neatly curling up. With the water droplets stuck to it, refusing to fall off, she looked very delicate and pitiful. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s finger touched the outermost eysh. Lin Wei Xi was puzzled and raised her head to ask, ¡°what¡¯s the matter?¡±


    He shook his head and smiled, but didn¡¯t reply. Lin Wei Xi finished the tea after much difficulty. She took a handkerchief from Wan Xing and gently wiped the water from her lips. Only after Gu Hui Yan saw that she¡¯d tidied herself did he have the servants serve the meal.


    Although it was the New Year holidays from the twenty third of the twelfth month to the seventeenth of the first month, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s status was different from the norm. He was simultaneously themander of a hundred thousand strong army and a regent minister of the imperial court. Even if he didn¡¯t leave the house, many problems woulde knocking. Besides, with the New Year approaching, many families were making social visits. After Gu Hui Yan ate lunch with Lin Wei Xi, he didn¡¯t linger and left to the front to deal with some work.


    After he left, Lin Wei Xi had her own work to do. These past few days, Gu Hui Yan wasn¡¯t the only one who was busy; she, the Prince Yan Consort, was also up to her neck with work. Many families visited them before the end of the year and gifts piled up at the gate everyday. It was the end of the year and officials from the other provinces had toe to the capital to give their report. Most of the gifts were presents sent by these officials from the various provinces. Although most people couldn¡¯t even enter the residence, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t carelessly leave the gifts there. Who would send a gift if they didn¡¯t want anything? Especially since Prince Yan¡¯s current position was delicate. It wasn¡¯t good for the emperor¡¯s uncle, a first-rank Prince who led an army, to be too outstanding. Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t short-sighted. She didn¡¯t care about money that others sent but more about the Prince Yan Residence¡¯s stability and longevity.


    So she had to be especially careful when handling these gifts. She couldn¡¯t keep those that were too valuable, nor could she ept the gifts given out of goodwill from households that they had friendly rtions with too casually. She had to prepare a suitable and slightly more valuable gift in return, and send someone to deliver it to the other family. She had to repeat this everyday and just handling the gifts consumed all her energy.


    Lin Wei Xi was in the middle of choosing a return gift for the capital governor when she suddenly heard someone make an announcement from outside. A maid with twin buns stood outside the door curtain and greeted her before saying, ¡°Princess Consort, the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s senior Lady and Madam are here.¡±


    ¡°The Duke Ying Residence?¡± Lin Wei Xi was dumbfounded when she heard the name. She quickly came to her senses and asked, ¡°I never received the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s greeting card yesterday. Did the gatekeeper leave it out by mistake?¡±


    ¡°The gatekeeper didn¡¯t miss it.¡± The maid stepped forward and handed over the greeting card, and said, ¡°This is the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s greeting card.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had Wan Xing receive the greeting card. After she received it, she knew what was going on without even turning it over


    Any household with a status, be it visiting rtives or friends, had to send a greeting card to the other party one or two days in advance. First, it was out of respect for the host and to allow the host time to prepare. Second, it was to demonstrate their courtesy. Every family¡¯s greeting card was carefully prepared and an experienceddy of the house could guess which household it was from by just looking at the cover. But very few households would actually pay a visit on the day of without sending word in advance. Even a married woman returning to her maiden house would send someone to notify them in advance and would never drop by unexpectedly.


    It was undoubtedly quite rude of the Duke Ying Residence to do this. It wasn¡¯t a problem if Gao Ran was currently the person in charge. They were her family and it was all right to be a little rxed. But Lin Wei Xi was now the one in charge and Gao Ran¡¯s mother-inw. The Duke Ying Residence dared to be so disrespectful to their inws. If they hadn¡¯t gone insane, then something sudden must have happened and they were too anxious to pay attention to etiquette.


    In any case, the Duke Ying Residence was a Duke Residence. It was unlikely that the Duke Ying Lady didn¡¯t know about this aspect of social etiquette. So the Duke Residence¡¯s actions could most likely be credited to that good daughter-inw of hers.


    Lin Wei Xi knew what was going on but pretended not to know. She closed the greeting card and said, ¡°Quickly invite the Duke Ying Lady to the living room. Wan Yue, serve hot tea to the Lady and the Madam.¡±


    On the other hand, Lin Wei Xi stood up and left to change her clothes in the inner room. She¡¯d just eaten with Gu Hui Yan and was dressed forfort, but it wasn¡¯t suitable now that she had to greet her guests. She didn¡¯t let anyoneb her hair over again and merely changed into the Zhuanghua dress she wore when greeting guests before leisurely walking to the living room.


    The Duke Ying Residence had visited without notice. Since they didn¡¯t respect her as thedy of the household, she didn¡¯t need to care too much about being a good hostess. There was no harm in having the guests wait for a while.


    By the time the people of the Duke Ying Residence had finished drinking two cups of tea, they could be considered to have waited for Lin Wei Xi, who arrived leisurelyte. Hearing ¡°Greetings Princess Consort¡± repeatedly from outside the partition, the Duke Ying Lady knew that Lin Wei Xi had arrived and couldn¡¯t help but coldly humph to herself.


    Lin Wei Xi walked in and everyone in the room stood up to greet her. Only the Duke Ying Lady calmly remained seated and didn¡¯t have any intentions to get up. Seeing her enter, the Duke Ying Lady solemnly put the tea cup on the table, her expression indifferent and aloof, ¡°Your Highness Prince Yan Consort, this olddy ought to greet you, but this olddy has weak legs and am afraid that it will be difficult to greet the Princess Consort.¡±


    The Duke Ying Lady was sixty years old. She was old and relied on her seniority to not give Lin Wei Xi any face. A young person like her really couldn¡¯t say anything about it. Of course she understood that the Duke Ying Lady was mocking her for beingte despite being the host. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t pay it any mind and instead smiled as she sat down opposite the Duke Ying Lady, instantly demonstrating that they were on equal footing, ¡°Senior Lady, you are too polite. You personally brought the Lady and Madams of the Duke Ying Residence to grace our Prince Residence with your presence. As the junior, I ought to have received you at the inner gate. However, you came at an unfortunate time. I was in the middle of grooming myself and changing clothes. I had to put it on hold for the time being and made you and the Gao family¡¯s Madam wait for a while. The Senior Lady and the Madams won¡¯t me me for failing to apany you, right?¡±


    The Senior Duke Ying Lady was dissatisfied that Lin Wei Xi had kept them waiting, but Lin Wei Xi could retaliate with the fact that the Duke Ying Residence hade without sending notice. Wasn¡¯t it the Duke Ying Residence that¡¯d been rude first? The senior Duke Ying Lady lost so much face that she could only sigh to herself and swallow her feelings.


    After everyone was seated, Lin Wei Xi looked at the women from the Gao family whom she used to be extremely familiar with, but was now supposed to be meeting officially for the first time. Her eyes swept across everyone and suddenly recognized a familiar figure. Her gaze darkened but she asked, her smile not faltering, ¡°Senior Lady, this person is?¡±


    The senior Lady turned around and only realized then that she hadn¡¯t introduced them. Although they¡¯d met before at the pce banquet, Lin Wei Xi had been a little orphan girl back then. How could the arrogant senior Duke Ying Lady take a liking to someone like that? Later on when Lin Wei Xi and Prince Yan got married, the Duke Ying Residence also participated in the wedding banquet. But how could Lin Wei Xi, the new bride, remember them when they were mixed with the other guests. So strictly speaking, she still wasn¡¯t very well acquainted with those of the Gao family.


    The senior Duke Ying Lady could only have her daughter-inw and grandson step forward and said, ¡°This is my second daughter-inw and this is my eldest grandson. The two of you, quickly greet the Princess Consort.¡±


    The second Gao Madam stepped forward and gave Lin Wei Xi a wanfu salute. Lin Wei Xi looked at thedy who used to be her second aunt and smiled as Wan Xing and Wan Yue helped her up. She said, ¡°Second Madam is too polite. I¡¯m young and don¡¯t deserve this courtesy.¡±


    The Second Gao Madam said, ¡°Prince Yan Consort, you are too modest. Although you are young, you are a first-rank Princess Consort of the imperial family. Although I am the same generation as you because of my children¡¯s marriage, I still ought to follow etiquette and bow to you.¡±


    Gao Ran was the Second Gao Madam¡¯s niece and Lin Wei Xi was Gao Ran¡¯s mother-inw. Using this line of logic, Lin Wei Xi and the Second Gao Madam were indeed of the same generation. However, the second son of the Gao family, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s previous second uncle, didn¡¯t have any rank or achievements but became an idle fifth-rank official due to his family¡¯s contributions. Going by rank, the Second Gao Madam didn¡¯t truly dare to consider herself Lin Wei Xi¡¯s peer. She still needed to salute her.


    Lin Wei Xi smiled and didn¡¯t say much, but politely had a maid being a stool for the Second Gao Madam to sit. Once the Second Gao Madam was seated, the other person stepped forward to kowtow to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Paying my respects to the Prince Yan Consort.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s smile was as appropriately elegant as before, but the fingers under her wide sleeves were tightly clenched. The Second Gao Madam thought that Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know who he was and introduced him from her seat at the side, ¡°This is our Duke Ying Residence¡¯s Shizi¡¯s only son. Although he is the son of a concubine, he is considered the eldest grandson, and is very bright and intelligent. Chen¡¯er,e closer and let the Princess Consort look at you.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s gaze quickly turned cold. How could she not recognize this person? Gao Chen, her former shu younger brother and Gao Ran¡¯s younger brother from the same mother. He was also the child who¡¯d indirectly killed Wei Shi back then.


    And he was undoubtedly the future Duke Ying.

 Chapter 53

    Gao Chen obeyed his elders and stepped forward to kowtow to Lin Wei Xi. Kowtowing was considered very formal etiquette afforded only to elders and high-ranking seniors. If this were her previous life, although Lin Wei Xi had been the eldest sister, she was of the same generation as Gao Chen and wouldn¡¯t receive a kowtow. But now, Lin Wei Xi settled into her seat and watched him steadily knock his head against the ground three times.


    Her gaze was fixed on Gao Chen¡¯s movements and the depths of her eyes seemed to hold a dark whirlpool. After he kowtowed, for a long time, he didn¡¯t hear anyone tell him to get up. He was puzzled and stayed bowed, not daring to get up. The Second Gao Madam had been smiling, but was rather bewildered and uncertain when she saw this. This ought to be the first time the Prince Yan Consort was meeting Gao Chen, right? He wasn¡¯t dressed inappropriately, so why did she look at him like that?


    After a momentary stiffness, Wan Yue whispered to Lin Wei Xi from behind, ¡°Princess Consort?¡±


    She returned to her senses. She lowered her eyes, nced indifferently at the boy who almost seemed to have his whole body glued to the ground, and said neutrally, ¡°you may rise.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s tone wasn¡¯t usatory, but it also didn¡¯t carry any fondness. For this visit today, Gao Chen¡¯s mother and wet nurse had asked him to perform well. It would be best if he made a good impression on the Prince Yan Consort.


    Han Shi¡¯s daughter was Lin Wei Xi¡¯s daughter-inw and her son might have to rely on Prince Yan to obtain an official post and even the title of Prince in the future. She naturally didn¡¯t dare offend Lin Wei Xi, and was even eager to curry favour with this young new consort who was rumoured to be very favoured by Prince Yan. Han Shi¡¯s original n was quite good. A noble little boy like Gao Chen was well raised, with fair and soft skin, and a beautiful appearance. What Lady didn¡¯t like him after seeing him? Furthermore, Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t had a child yet, and would most likely be affected by this kind of cheerful boy. So Han Shi thought that as long as Gao Chen didn¡¯t do anything indecent or annoy anyone, Lin Wei Xi had no reason to dislike him.


    Before Gao Chen left, his mother had given him some ardent advice. And on the way here, he¡¯d been instructed again by his grandmother and aunt. He knew that the Lady he¡¯d meet today wasn¡¯t an ordinarydy, so he¡¯d been very careful the entire time. After seeing Lin Wei Xi, Gao Chen was thoroughly shocked. This was the Lady he had to cautiously curry favour with? She was actually very young and clearly looked to be around his sister¡¯s age.


    But no matter what thoughts were running through his head, Gao Chen didn¡¯t dare to show it. Instead, he acted as he usually did when trying to please his grandmother and father. Kowtowing, paying his respect and his movements were natural yet child-like and cute. It was a guarantee that anyone who saw would smile as they praised him. This was how he usually won rewards from the Ladies who visited the Duke Residence. But today, he¡¯d knocked his head against the floor for a good while without hearing anything from the Princess Consort, who sat at the seat of honour. Gao Chen didn¡¯t dare raise his head and could only remain in his original position with his hands and face firmly glued to the ground. Amidst the delicate fragrance floating in the room, the beautiful, radiant and young Princess Consort sat tall while he considerately knelt on the ground. It was at this moment Gao Chen suddenly felt humbled.


    An unknown period of time passed. It probably wasn¡¯t that long, but to Gao Chen, it felt like a lifetime. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s pleasant voice that flowed like precious water sounded, the end of her sentence carelessly lilting, ¡°you may rise.¡±


    Only then did Gao Chen dare to carefully get up. In only a short span of time, he began to respect and fear the brilliant Princess Consort in front of him. He didn¡¯t even dare to look directly at her. He realized once again that he was only a concubine-born son. Comparing himself to such a noble Lady was likeparing the clouds in the sky to the mud on the ground, and it was a shamefulparison.


    Before he left, Han Shi had specifically told Gao Chen to respect and please the Princess Consort no matter what his grandmother said. Her reason was easy to understand. How could their Duke Residencepare to Prince Yan? Gao Xi had such a noble status, but her marriage to Gu Cheng Yao was considered marrying up. Although Gao Ran had reced her, they were both of the younger generation. Now that the Duke Residence wanted to see Gao Ran¡¯s mother-inw, the honourable Prince Yan Consort, how could Han Shi and the Duke Ying Shizi dare to disrespect her. But at the end of the day, their visit this time was to give Gao Ran support. She had to bring out her maiden family. So before going out, everyone in the Duke Ying Residence had reached an agreement. The Duke Ying Lady would y the bad cop, the Second Gao Madam would y the good cop, and Gao Chen, the child, would mediate. In the face of the child¡¯s innocence, the Prince Yan Consort should be easier to talk to.


    Even though those of the Duke Ying Residence had thoroughly thought things through before leaving, they never expected that Lin Wei Xi wouldn¡¯t buy Gao Chen¡¯s act at all when they arrived at the Prince Yan Residence. The senior Duke Ying Lady and her second daughter-inw looked at each other to see surprise and embarrassment in each other¡¯s eyes.


    They no longer had a buffer to mediate them. The senior Duke Ying Lady, who was supposed to y the bad cop,cked confidence as she spoke. She did her best to steel herself and brought up the fact that she was a senior, ¡°Prince Yan Consort, the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s juniors are naughty. Please don¡¯tugh.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled when she heard that. Sure enough, they were going to do it again. She leaned back, an elbow inclined on the armrest, the other leisurely lifting the lid of the teacup. She said indifferently, ¡°the Duke Ying Residence is a crouching tiger, hidden dragon<sup>¡ó</sup>. Senior Lady, you¡¯re too modest. I still haven¡¯t asked the reason why you personally gathered your daughter-inw and grandson to the Prince Yan Residence?¡±


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi acted leisurely without paying them mind, but they were ready for a confrontation. They hadn¡¯t even fought yet but already seemed to be at a disadvantage. The senior Duke Ying Lady frowned, dissatisfied with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s careless attitude. Wasn¡¯t she looking down on them too much?


    ¡°This olddy pushed this old body to visit in person. Of course I have a reason for this visit. I¡¯d just like to know where our family¡¯s useless third miss is? Her grandmother and aunt are here. As a junior, why has she note out to greet us?¡±


    ¡°Oh, the senior Lady is asking about Shizi Fei.¡± Lin Wei Xi continued tozily lean on the armchair and said casually, ¡°Shizi Fei is still copying books in the Buddhist sanctum. It was something that happened at the end ofst month and it¡¯s already been more than twenty days. Shizi Fei can¡¯te out to meet the senior Lady because she still hasn¡¯t finished copying. Speaking of, it¡¯s also my fault as her mother-inw. I couldn¡¯t properly teach her earlier. She can¡¯t even copy a few copies of the ssics of Filial Piety. Senior Lady, if you miss the Shizi Fei, you might as well wait for her. Once she finishes copying, I could have her quicklye over?¡±


    Duke Ying madam choked. When a woman married her husband, the responsibility of teaching her was transferred from her mother to her mother-inw. The mother-inw naturally had the authority to discipline her daughter-inw, and sometimes her biological mother didn¡¯t even have a say in it. Lin Wei Xi was justified in disciplining Gao Ran. She¡¯d even said that Gao Ran¡¯s practise was bad and couldn¡¯t properly copy the ssics of Filial Piety. The senior Duke Ying Lady and the others from the maiden family were very ashamed. Using filial piety as a shield really pushed them into a corner. The daughter they¡¯d married out hadn¡¯t been taught properly and was rejected by her inws for being ipetent and even unfilial. Even her maiden family felt ashamed.


    The senior Duke Ying Lady was also a mother-inw herself. She couldn¡¯t be said to be kind to her daughter-inw, but when it came to her granddaughter, she was very unhappy.


    Not long ago, the Duke Ying Residence had received a message from Gao Ran. Gao Ran had entrusted someone to send the message that she was disliked by her mother-inw and was locked in the cold Buddhist sanctum, copying books during the New Year. The day she¡¯d be let out was in the distant and unforeseeable future. Seeing that she wasn¡¯t around, some of the more courageous servants in Shizi¡¯s courtyard were already thinking about climbing into his bed.


    The Duke Ying Residence counted heavily on the fact that Shizi favoured Gao Ran the most. Although Gao Ran was a shu daughter, as long as she benefited the Duke Residence, it didn¡¯t matter whether she was the di or shu daughter. The entire Duke Ying Residence could see Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s dedication to Gao Ran, but it was better to be safe than sorry. How was it a good thing if there were truly women who were taking advantage of the fact that Gao Ran was absent to climb into Shizi¡¯s bed and steal his affection? Once Gao Ran lost favour, the marriage connecting the two residences would return to how it was when Gao Xi was alive, which was an extremely precarious situation. Gao Ran¡¯s status wasn¡¯t as high as Gao Xi¡¯s. Without the added rtionship of Princess Royal Shou Kang, the rtionship between the Duke Ying Residence and the Prince Yan Residence would just weaken.


    Everyone in the Duke Ying Residence looked forward to Gao Ran giving birth to a son as soon as possible, so that they could jump onto the giant ship that was Gu Hui Yan for a good long while. After hearing that Gao Ran was being treated harshly by her mother-inw, and was in danger of losing favour, the senior Duke Ying Lady immediately panicked. She disregarded her dignity and status, immediately preparing a carriage and personally paid a visit to demand an exnation for Gao Ran.


    The senior Duke Ying Lady signalled to the others. The second Gao Madam understood and had a maid bring Gao Chen outside. When there were no more children in the room, the senior Lady could speak more frankly, ¡°Princess Consort, although our third miss was naughty and mischievous before she married, she wasn¡¯t one who couldn¡¯t see the seriousness of a situation, and would never do anything unfilial. Princess Consort said that she wasn¡¯t filial and had her copy the ssics of Filial Piety in the Buddhist sanctum as punishment. What¡¯s the reason for this?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi chuckled and sat up in her seat, her eyes bright and frost hidden in the depths of her gaze, ¡°I was wondering why the senior Lady visited without even sending a greeting card. So it¡¯s because you want to inquire about the reason for the punishment. Alright then. Although this is our Prince Yan Residence¡¯s domestic affair, since the girls from your Duke Residence can¡¯t be punished, I have no choice but to air our family¡¯s dirtyundry. Your residence¡¯s thirddy was punished because she talked back to Prince Yan in front of everyone and used him of being unfair. I know I¡¯m her stepmother-inw and will invite suspicion no matter what I do. But Shizi Fei had talked back to Prince Yan in front of a crowd. Senior Lady, do you think she ought to be punished or not? I understand that she is a woman and has probably never even been scratched in her life. That¡¯s why she was exempted from physical punishment and only had to copy books in the Buddhist sanctum to reflect on her mistakes behind closed doors as well as meditate. It¡¯s been twenty days, but I never thought that Shizi Fei would barely copy half the number of the ssics of Filial Piety and wait for her maiden family to seek justice for her.¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady and the second Gao Madam were so shocked that they stood up when they heard that Gao Ran had been punished for offending Prince Yan. After listening to the whole story, they became more rmed and frightened. A wave of anger rose amidst their terror. Gao Ran dared to talk back to Prince Yan, who was an elder? And she even dared to call Prince Yan¡¯s fairness into question? Oh God, he was Prince Yan. Even the emperor didn¡¯t dare to say such things to him, so how could she dare to do that!


    Lin Wei Xi looked at her grandmother and second aunt from her previous life, their faces ugly and twisted with remorse and anger. Sheughed bitterly to herself and made to stand up, ¡°Since the Duke Residence¡¯s misses can¡¯t be punished, I¡¯ll call for Shizi Fei. I¡¯m young and it¡¯s difficult to convince everyone. Today, I learned that if a daughter-inw talks back to her parents-inw, her maiden family can be dragged over and aggressively question the punishment. Since the senior Lady and Madam Gao won¡¯t allow me to punish Shizi Fei, then say so earlier. Even after I disciplined her out of good intentions, the senior Lady still visited and insulted me, saying that I am a wicked mother-inw who treats her daughter-inw harshly.¡±


    ¡°Ah, Princess Consort!¡± Everyone immediately stepped forward to stop her. The senior Duke Ying Lady couldn¡¯t move due to her seniority, but the second Gao Madam had no qualms. She strode forward and grabbed Lin Wei Xi¡¯s arm. Lin Wei Xi made to pull her arm away but was firmly held in ce by the second Gao Madam, ¡°Princess Consort, it¡¯s our fault for hurrying over after hearing only a few words from the servants without realizing it was actually that spoiled girl who made a mistake. Princess Consort, you are the third miss¡¯s mother-inw. She was disciplined by her mother before she married. After marrying, isn¡¯t the Princess Consort the one she¡¯ll depend on to teach her! Our senior Lady spoke out of anxiety earlier, but she didn¡¯t mean to me you. Those of us from her maiden family won¡¯t have any objections on how you discipline her.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled. Although the second Gao Madam held onto her arm, the expression on her face contained cold mockery, ¡°I don¡¯t dare. I¡¯m around the same age as Shizi Fei and never lived in the capital before I suddenly became Shizi Fei¡¯s mother-inw. If I were her maiden family, I¡¯d also be dissatisfied. I can understand the senior Lady and the second Madam, so I¡¯ll call for Shizi Fei immediately. I¡¯ll follow the senior Lady and the Duke Residence¡¯s guidance on how to discipline her in the future. I won¡¯t be in charge of her anymore.¡±


    ¡°Aiya, what are you talking about Princess Consort?¡± The second Gao Madam didn¡¯t want to be embarrassed. She quickly bent over and gave up the dignity she¡¯d held on to for more than thirty years to a young girl who was around the same age as her daughter, praising her, ¡°Princess Consort, it was our fault earlier. We wrongly med you. Although you¡¯re young, the Empress Dowager praised the way you do things. Was there a single festival gift sent out by the Prince Yan Residence this month that wasn¡¯t personally chosen by the Princess Consort. There isn¡¯t a single household in the capital that doesn¡¯t praise you. We¡¯ve never disrespected the Princess Consort for your youth, let alone look down on you because you are new to the capital. The Princess Consort naturally has her reasons for doing things and you¡¯d never punish the third miss for no reason. Our Duke Residence is greatly at ease to leave our third miss in your care.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was being pulled by a bunch of people so she could only stop and stop acting like she was leaving. However, her expression was still cold. She asked, ¡°If that¡¯s the case, whatever I assign to Shizi Fei in the future¡­ ¡°


    The second Gao Madam sincerely pledged, ¡°do not hesitate to punish her. Our Duke Ying Residence will not object. We were deceived by the ves this time and misunderstood the Princess Consort. This kind of mistake won¡¯t happen again in the future.¡±


    The second Gao Madam said such words in front of everyone. In the future, she certainly wouldn¡¯t have any face to pick at matters between mother-inw and daughter-inw. As long as Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t act like an evil mother-inw and make Gao Ran do things like use freezing water to wash clothes in winter, or count beans by the kitchen fire, the Duke Ying Residence would no longer have the confidence to back Gao Ran up.


    Gao Ran had specially invited her maiden family over to protest, but she would never have expected this kind of oue.

 Chapter 54

    Lin Wei Xi was very satisfied with the oue. Who did these people think they were, toe over and me her? Seeing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression soften, the second Gao Madam was overjoyed and quickly helped her back to her seat. After resisting a little, Lin Wei Xi yielded and sat back down. Seeing that the farce hade to an end and that it wasn¡¯t an irredeemable situation, the senior Duke Ying Lady felt greatly relieved, ¡°Prince Yan Consort, this olddy spoke out of anxiety earlier and caused a misunderstanding.¡±


    This was a roundabout way to apologize. After all, the senior Duke Ying Lady was forty or fifty years older than Lin Wei Xi. In a patriarchal society that ced importance on respecting the elderly, it was more rare for an elder that old to speak to such a degree than it was for red rain to fall from the sky. In her previous life, Lin Wei Xi never thought that one day, she¡¯d actually hear her overbearing and bossy grandmother apologize to her.


    But Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t one to stop while she was ahead and she liked it best when she could make a clean sweep. She smiled at the senior Lady. She was radiantly beautiful and her smile looked like sunlight breaking through the clouds, like spring blooming on earth. What a pity her words were theplete opposite of her demeanour, ¡°senior Lady, since today was all a misunderstanding, where is the servant who spread the gossip that caused this misunderstanding? For them to be able to pass on word of what happened in the Prince Yan Residence to the Duke Residence, it¡¯s most likely a servant of the Prince Yan Residence. Someone dared to do this under my management and even misled the senior Lady and the Second Madam. It¡¯s a crime punishable by death. Senior Lady, don¡¯t hesitate to tell me. No matter who it is, I¡¯ll give them a severe punishment and bring justice for the Duke Ying Residence.¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady was shocked when she heard this. She was so shocked that she looked at the second Gao Madam in surprise. She¡¯d never expected Lin Wei Xi to be so uptight about things. It was an eye-opener for the second Gao Madam. Out of all the nobledies she met on a regr basis, were there any who weren¡¯t thin-skinned, who didn¡¯t ce more importance on their dignity and image over their life? Even if they were angry, if others begged them properly, they¡¯d be embarrassed and most would just let it go. But Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t do this. They¡¯d spoken at such lengths earlier and almost left the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s dignity in the dust before finally persuading Lin Wei Xi not to leave. But now she wanted to investigate the messenger?


    This was the second Gao Madam¡¯s first time meeting such an unrelenting<sup>¡ó</sup>woman. Wasn¡¯t she being too fearless just because someone had her back?


    ¡ó


    But the other person was really very fearless. Lin Wei Xi was the Prince Yan Consort. She was one generation younger than Prince Yan and had been brought back by Prince Yan himself. It was clear how much he loved her. Even though the Duke Ying Residence were the inws, Gu Cheng Yao was the one they were connected to. The one they truly needed to rely on was Prince Yan, so how could they dare offend the little Princess Consort whom he loved so much? To make things worse, Gao Ran was in the wrong in this situation.


    The second Gao Madam internally scolded Gao Ran. This troublemaker had gotten into trouble and was punished, but then sought out her maternal elders and now wanted them to amodate the Princess Consort for her.


    The second Gao Madam carefully nced at her mother-inw, and after receiving her instructions, she gave a name with shame on her face. Lin Wei Xi knew at once that it was one of Gao Ran¡¯s dowry servants. Although she was also one of Gao Ran¡¯s people from the Duke Residence, she couldn¡¯tpare to trusted aides like Granny Tao and Ning Fu. Lin Wei Xi knew that it was impossible to remove Gao Ran¡¯s right hand men all at once. But it was quite beneficial for her if she could get rid of a dowry servant because of an opportunity Gao Ran presented herself.


    These were Lin Wei Xi¡¯s thoughts. She knew what the senior Duke Ying Lady wanted and didn¡¯t continue to investigate it, but merely dismissed the dowry servant. It just so happened that her master¡¯s family was also here, so Lin Wei Xi said, ¡°Shizi Fei was the one who brought this servant. Since she is part of my residence, these dowry servants all belong to my residence. But at the end of the day, they¡¯re from the Duke Ying Residence. It¡¯s hard for me to grasp the severity of the situation, so I¡¯d like to ask the senior Lady for some advice. In your opinion, how should I deal with this kind of evil ve that incites disputes between inws through gossip?¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady had never felt so irritated in such a long time. She said, ¡°why would you keep such a wicked ve. Even the Duke Residence won¡¯t tolerate this kind of servant. You don¡¯t have to worry, Princess Consort. You can just sell her.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Lin Wei Xi responded with a smile and said to Wan Yue, ¡°Pass on the senior Lady¡¯smand and sell all the dowry servants in the Shizi Fei¡¯s courtyard who have the surname Li.¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady was speechless. How had this be an order from her? The second Gao Madam learned that such a difficult person actually existed in this world. And that person was Gao Ran¡¯s mother-inw, the Prince Yan Consort that even Duke Ying didn¡¯t dare to offend.


    The Duke Ying Residence¡¯s trip this time had truly been useless. They¡¯d intended to support their granddaughter, but had been fooled by their granddaughter¡¯s young mother-inw. They¡¯d been humiliated for the first time in many years. Furthermore, they¡¯d lost a dowry servant. Gao Ran had only brought two dowry servants with her when she married. They¡¯d lost one servant in the blink of an eye. This loss was not insignificant.


    She might as well throw away her shame. The senior Duke Ying Lady simply gave up and shamelessly asked, ¡°Princess Consort, the New Year is approaching. Even the imperial court has gone on annual leave. Does Shizi really have to study all night?¡±


    For a moment, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t guess why the senior Lady was asking about Gu Cheng Yao. She was afraid to leave an opening and merely responded vaguely, ¡°the outer courtyard has always been in charge of Shizi¡¯s basic needs. They generally follow the Prince¡¯s arrangement and I¡¯ve never been involved.¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady stuck to this topic. She didn¡¯t intend to question the way Prince Yan disciplined his son, and instead asked, ¡°it really amazes me how strict His Highness Prince Yan is with Shizi¡¯s discipline. It¡¯s just that studying is a noble and praiseworthy pursuit. It¡¯s improper to be distracted. Since Shizi needs to concentrate on studying, won¡¯t having a maid by his side disrupt his focus?


    Only then did Lin Wei Xi realize that the senior Duke Ying Lady was talking about Yun Hui. She tilted her head and coughed, a blush rising to her face. Her expression turned embarrassed, ¡°about Yun Hui¡­ this is Shizi¡¯s bedroom affairs. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s inappropriate for me to meddle.¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady also felt embarrassed saying this to a seventeen year old girl. She couldn¡¯t contain her humiliation. However, this was the main purpose of her visit today. Since the conversation had concluded like this and they¡¯d lost a dowry servant, they had to get rid of the vixen by Shizi¡¯s side. They couldn¡¯t meet Prince Yan and didn¡¯t dare talk to him about this. Naturally, as the mother, Lin Wei Xi had to be the one to get rid of Shizi¡¯s concubines.


    Lin Wei Xi thought about this matter¡­ She knew Yun Hui from her previous life. She had served Gu Cheng Yao for ten years and was two years older than him. Girls matured earlier, and Yun Hui had personally taken care of Gu Cheng Yao from when he was boy to when he became a man. Perhaps she already considered herself his bedsidepanion. Furthermore, she was close to Granny Bu, closer than mother-inw and daughter-inw would be. In such a situation, if the main wife who wasn¡¯t from the household wanted to establish herself, these two who made ¡°great contributions¡± were only trouble.


    In her past life, Lin Wei Xi had disapproved of Yun Hui¡¯s actions, and was even more disgusted with Granny Bu, who thought of herself almost as a mother-inw. She wanted her and Yun Hui to copy Ehuang and N¨¹ying¡¯s<sup>¡ó</sup>intimacy and enthusiasm? In her dreams. Yun Hui was no match for her.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi had gotten into never ending disputes with Granny Bu and Yun Hui in her past life, but Gu Cheng Yao was unexpectedly blind and wholeheartedly thought that his nanny and personal maid were good people. She¡¯d finally left that sticky situation and be thest one standing. Although it was true that she¡¯d been the one to stir up trouble, why was she still contaminated by this mud? Gao Ran usually had her guard up against her, but now she wanted her to get rid of Yun Hui. Goodness, how could she be so shameless.


    Lin Wei Xi firmly shook her head, ¡°I¡¯m around the same age as Shizi. I ought to avoid rousing suspicion. If I were to meddle with Shizi¡¯s bedroom affairs, what would people say about me once it gets out? Shizi Fei is pure of heart and exudes elegance. She¡¯s also the wife Shizi married against all odds. It won¡¯t be a problem to deal with such a trivial thing. Anything that happens between the wife and concubine are part of Shizi Fei¡¯s duties, so we should let her handle it herself.¡±


    If Gao Ran could send Yun Hui away, why would she want to borrow Lin Wei Xi¡¯s power? It was precisely because she couldn¡¯t get rid of that person that the senior Duke Ying Lady was here to pressure Lin Wei Xi, ¡°you¡¯re wrong, Princess Consort. Shizi wants to call you mother, after all. But the kids don¡¯t know you that well since they haven¡¯t known you for long. They can¡¯t see your good and bad qualities, and can¡¯t rely on the Princess Consort to guide them as their mother. Princess Consort, you¡¯ll have to depend on Shizi in your old age, and the rtionship between mother and Shizi will carry on for a long time. Do you really not care about what happens in Shizi¡¯s courtyard?¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady had threatened Lin Wei Xi with her reliance on Shizi in her old age. Even if she had children in the future, she¡¯d still have to depend on Gu Cheng Yao in her old age. And Gao Ran¡¯s, the daughter-inw, opinion was particrly important. After all, Shizi wasn¡¯t Lin Wei Xi¡¯s biological child. Wasn¡¯t how she¡¯d live in her old age depend on Gao Ran, the main consort?


    Lin Wei Xi understood and felt a little angry. She no longer cared about their feelings, her voice instantly turning cold, ¡°If it happened once, it will happen a second time. Hence, Shizi Fei hopes for me to arrange for a concubine for her?¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady suddenly couldn¡¯t speak. A stepmother meddling with Shizi¡¯s bedroom matters wasn¡¯t a good reputation to have, but reputation and rules could only restrict those who care about them. If Lin Wei Xi truly acted out and didn¡¯t care about the consequences, she¡¯d use her reputation as an excuse to bestow a servant girl to Gu Cheng Yao. She could meddle with Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s concubines, but what could everyone else do aside from scorn her?


    The room sunk into an unnatural silence. Lin Wei Xi and the senior Lady¡¯s expressions didn¡¯t look good. At that moment, the sound of movement suddenly came from outside the partition, like something toppling. Everyone in the room was shocked. Lin Wei Xi stood up and heard whispers of apologizing from outside, mixed with the sound of a greeting.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression sank. She quickly walked out and happened to see Gao Chen standing to the side, a toppled vase by his feet. His wet nurse embraced him as she apologized non-stop to another person.


    Gao Chen had been eavesdropping from outside? Lin Wei Xi was furious, but she suppressed it and gave a wanfu salute first, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nodded and indicated for her to get up. Gao Chen was small and he¡¯d hidden in a small crack. If Gu Hui Yan hadn¡¯t returned, who knows how long he¡¯d hide there. Of course the family had instructed him to sneak back and eavesdrop. His mother often let him do this. After some time, Gao Chen learned how to do it. But he¡¯d been identally discovered today and toppled a vase. Seeing the expression on his wet nurse¡¯s face, even if he didn¡¯t understand why, he knew that disaster was imminent this time.


    The wet nurse also hadn¡¯t expected that the young master would happen to be discovered by Prince Yan while eavesdropping and identally topple a vase in his shock. This was porcin from the Tang Dynasty. Yue Porcin had long since been discontinued and had been priceless since the previous dynasty. The wet nurse couldn¡¯t even begin to imagine the current price of Yue Porcin. She was thoroughly shocked and repeatedly apologized, ¡°my Prince, please forgive me. The young master didn¡¯t purposely topple the vase. He¡¯s still a child¡­ ¡°


    The senior Duke Ying Lady walked out with the help of the second Gao Madam. Seeing the scene outside, her expression darkened. Gu Hui Yan nced lightly at the ground and said, ¡°It¡¯s nothing but a vase. Someone sweep it up.¡±


    The maids on both sides responded and everyone from the wet nurse to the senior Duke Ying Lady breathed a sigh of relief, ¡°Thank you my Prince. Chen¡¯er is young and mischievous. May we ask the Prince not to be offended by his rudeness.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t intend to speak. Lin Wei Xi saw this and continued, ¡°It¡¯s only a vase. If it¡¯s broken, then it¡¯s broken. As long as no one is hurt. Should I call someone to take a look at his hand?¡±


    Everyone from the Duke Ying Residence were rather embarrassed, so they naturally rejected the offer quickly. The senior Lady sighed to herself. The Prince Yan Residence was indeed a huge family with an enormous business. They didn¡¯t bat an eye to a Yue porcin case and just swept it up. The senior Duke Ying Lady felt a little rueful and turned to worry about the other problem. When had Prince Yan returned? Had he heard the first part of their conversation?


    Gu Hui Yan was actually not in a good mood right now. Of course it wasn¡¯t because he¡¯d caught a child eavesdropping. He was a high-ranking official and naturally wouldn¡¯t do something so beneath his dignity like eavesdropping. But he¡¯d trained his sharp hearing after many years ofbat, and the senior Duke Ying Lady and Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t particrly lowered their voices when talking earlier.


    Lin Wei Xi had said that she was around the same age as Shizi. After that, the Gao family¡¯s senior Lady had replied that Lin Wei Xi would need to depend on Gu Cheng Yao in her old age, that they¡¯d have to get along with each other for a long time.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s initially fair mood suddenly clouded over.


    Over the years, he¡¯d gradually advanced and reached the peak of his power step by step. But no amount of meticulous nning could change the passing of time. No matter what he did, he couldn¡¯t erase the fact that he was more than a generation older than Lin Wei Xi.


    He hadn¡¯t cared initially. But recently, when he looked at the youthful and radiant Lin Wei Xi, and then his own son who was at the prime of his life, he¡¯d always feel a little preposterous. It was undeniable that Lin Wei Xi and Gu Cheng Yao were close in age, young and energetic. They were the ones who ought to be from the same world.


    And not him.


    Especially when the senior Duke Ying Lady had said that Lin Wei Xi would have to depend on Gu Cheng Yao in her old age. How ridiculous it was that Lin Wei Xi and Gu Cheng Yao would probably apany each other the longest and have the deepest bond. In this hierarchical society, brothers could separate, fathers and sons could be enemies, husbands and wives could part ways, but only the rtionship between a mother and child couldn¡¯t be severed.


    Gu Hui Yan suddenly wanted to know what Lin Wei Xi thought about this marriage that had to be tied because of rash feelings of injustice and unforeseen circumstances. Why did she refuse to arrange a concubine for Gu Cheng Yao?

 Chapter 55

    Prince Yan had returned. Everyone from the Duke Ying Residence was too scared to continue sitting. Lin Wei Xi sent everyone out out of courtesy. She politely said in passing, ¡°Senior Lady, are you leaving now? It wasn¡¯t easy for you to visit the Prince¡¯s Residence. Aren¡¯t you going to meet Shizi Fei?¡±


    There was no reason not to see their daughters when the maiden family visited. But the situation today was different from normal. The senior Duke Ying Lady and Prince Yan were meeting face to face and she just wanted to leave as soon as possible. She didn¡¯t want to remain in the Residence any longer. The senior Lady said, ¡°no need. The Duke Residence and Prince Residence have a good rtionship. We will have many opportunities to meet in the future, so no need to rush. On the contrary, we¡¯ve disturbed the Princess Consort too long. You still need to set up lunch. This old Lady won¡¯t disturb you any longer.¡±


    ¡°Senior Lady, you¡¯re too polite.¡± Lin Wei Xi smiled and asked out of the blue, ¡°in your opinion, senior Lady, how should I deal with Shizi Fei, who hasn¡¯t finished copying The ssics of Filial Piety? The New Year is just around the corner and she can¡¯t continue to stay in the Buddhist sanctum. Should I just leave it at that?¡±


    That was indeed what the senior Duke Ying Lady thought. Wasn¡¯t this something everyone tacitly agreed to and then swept under the rug? However, when Lin Wei Xi openly talked about it in front of everyone like this, no matter how shameless they were, the Duke Ying Residence couldn¡¯t say ¡°let¡¯s just leave it at that¡±. The senior Lady could only brace herself and say, ¡°How is that eptable! She¡¯s made a mistake, so how can she stop halfway? Once the New Year has passed, have her go back and continue copying.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi made an ¡°Oh¡±. She thought to herself that one grew more experienced and knowledgeable as they grew older, but it was a pity that she saw through the senior Lady¡¯s ploy. It was useless to y the trick on her. She smiled and asked sweetly and bluntly, ¡°what date is considered after the New Years? It¡¯s too vague. I¡¯m afraid of making a mistake. Senior Lady, it would be good to clearly exin which day you¡¯re referring to.¡±


    The second Gao Madam¡¯s jaw dropped and she looked up at Lin Wei Xi in amazement as if she¡¯d grown two heads. The senior Duke Ying Lady was already gnashing her teeth a little, ¡°The seventh day of the New Year. After the People¡¯s Day, when the Kitchen God returns to the Heavens.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡± Lin Wei Xi responded with a smile, ¡°Then I¡¯ll follow the senior Lady¡¯s instructions and have Shizi Fei continue copying texts in the Buddhist sanctum on the eighth day of the New Year. I will inform Shizi Fei. Senior Lady, second Gao Madam, do you want to wait for her?¡±


    ¡°No need.¡± The corners of the senior Duke Ying Lady¡¯s lips stiffly pulled down and she said, ¡°We¡¯re leaving now. No need to see us out, Princess Consort.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi really stopped at the courtyard entrance, smiled politely, and had the maid send them out. Normally, she ought to have walked them out a little, but Prince Yan was inside. Even if she left him to send off the guests, no one from the Duke Ying Residence dared to ept it.


    Lin Wei Xi stood around the entrance and returned to the room when it was time. Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression hadn¡¯t looked right when he returned earlier. What was the problem?


    She didn¡¯t see him when she entered the room and asked the maid on standby, ¡°Where is the Prince?¡±


    The maid bowed and whispered, ¡°the Prince is in the study.¡±


    She headed to the side room. She stood at the door and saw Gu Hui Yan standing in front of the bookshelf organizing his library. The Eastern side room was now a study, but it was actually unused. Now that the Prince had moved the books he frequently used back to the inner courtyard and the Princess Consort had put her things in it, the side room was too cramped. Naturally the study needed to be expanded. The East side room now opened to the veranda at the back. New windows were installed with clear coloured ss. The entire study was spacious and neat.


    Lin Wei Xi might¡¯ve contributed to the spaciousness. After all, it¡¯d been her idea to open all the windows from every direction, but the neatness was entirely because of Gu Hui Yan. Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t a messy person. After all, her family background and education were good. She wasn¡¯t one to leave her things lying around. But Gu Hui Yan¡¯s OCD was severe. His books had to be of the same height, aligned in the same direction, separated based on their different categories. No matter which direction one looked from, the books were neatly arranged in a straight line.


    When Lin Wei Xi walked through the door, she couldn¡¯t help pausing. Prince Yan hadid out everything so neatly that it made it difficult for her to wade through. She really felt like a huge mess.


    Gu Hui Yan had long since heard Lin Wei Xi¡¯s footsteps. He waited for a while but found that it¡¯d stopped. He turned around to see her leaning by the door with a strange expression on her face. He was amused by that wacky expression, and the solemn expression on his face livened up a little, ¡°Why aren¡¯t youing in? What are you doing by the door?¡±


    ¡°My Prince, you¡¯ve organized everything here into a clear order. Won¡¯t I mess it up once I enter?¡±


    ¡°At worst I¡¯ll just arrange it again. It¡¯s not a problem.¡± Gu Hui Yan looked at her and smiled, reaching his hand out to her, ¡°Come here.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi actually leaned forward. She took the book in his hand, looked up at him, and smiled crookedly, ¡°my Prince, although you say it¡¯s not a hindrance, I¡¯m still afraid that you¡¯ll secretly me me. I¡¯ll give you a hand, so you definitely can¡¯t do that.¡±


    He smiled and acquiesced. He said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to thank you for the trouble.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan stood side by side in front of the tall and solid red sandalwood bookshelf that faintly gave off a distinct woody fragrance. Gu Hui Yan held the book in one hand, quietly and calmly returning it to its proper ce. The setting sun passed through the coloured windows andnded on him, lighting his profile with ayer of golden light. He looked more like a god descending to the mortal realm, handsome and refined. The orange sun shone on his hands, outlining his slender and well proportioned hands, while the light calluses on his fingers and palms quietly reflected his strength.


    Lin Wei Xi became entranced as she watched. When he saw that she wasn¡¯t responding, he repeated himself more seriously, ¡°Questions and Replies between Tang Taizong and Li Weigong.¡±


    She woke up from her trance. She quickly pulled the book from her arms and handed it over to him.


    The atmosphere was harmonious between the two of them as one handed over the book while the other ced it on the shelf. Although Lin Wei Xi felt that she wasn¡¯t being very helpful and suspected that she was slowing him down, she shamelessly gave herself credit for organizing the library with Gu Hui Yan. The atmosphere in the study was harmonious. Lin Wei Xi asked as she searched for a book, ¡°my Prince, were you angry earlier?¡±


    His hand paused imperceptibly and he turned to straighten the spine of the book while looking away, ¡°No. Why do you ask?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It just felt like you were in a bad mood.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nced down at her and said lightly, ¡°How old are you to know how to read a person?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with being young? Can I not be born naturally intelligent and talented?¡± Lin Wei Xi disliked that he always talked about how young she was and couldn¡¯t help mumbling to herself, ¡°isn¡¯t it because I always see you that I have to ask. Otherwise, who will take care of you?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nced lightly at her. After a while, he couldn¡¯t hold back his smile.


    He rarely actually revealed his emotions, especially emotions that exposed his true thoughts, like anger and displeasure. He actually hadn¡¯t intended to bring this up, but who knew he¡¯d be seen through by his delicate and bad-tempered little wife. He didn¡¯t think it was because his many years of martial arts training had regressed. Perhaps, as Lin Wei Xi said, the two of them lived together and were intimate, so the small changes in his expression that even his political opponents couldn¡¯t discern couldn¡¯t be hidden from the person who shared his bed.


    Lin Wei Xi saw Gu Hui Yan¡¯s smile and the pressure around him eased. She felt encouraged and tried to sound him out, ¡°Is it because of Gao Chen?¡±


    No one knew where Gao Chen had learned that ¡°good habit¡± of eavesdropping in other people¡¯s homes. And he¡¯d almost gotten away with it. If Gu Hui Yan hadn¡¯t suddenly returned and wasn¡¯t more vignt than the average person, perhaps Lin Wei Xi still wouldn¡¯t know that what she¡¯d said had been heard word for word and could be instantly passed on to Han Shi and even Gao Ran.


    Lin Wei Xi thought that Gu Hui Yan felt displeased about catching someone eavesdropping in his own residence. But heughed and shook his head, ¡°Of course not. Why do you think so?¡±


    Even if eavesdropping was a vulgar and lowly thing to do, Gao Chen wasn¡¯t even a speck of sand to Gu Hui Yan. Why would he be worried or displeased with someone so unremarkable? The number of people who could affect him could be counted on one hand. And now, another had been added.


    Gu Hui Yan looked down at Lin Wei Xi. She was still ignorantly pondering about the culprit that had caused his mood to deteriorate. When she mentioned Gao Chen, she couldn¡¯t help thinking of the Heavenly Book and how he¡¯d inherit the Duke Residence in the future. Her heart pounded and she couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°my Prince, what do you think of Gao Chen?¡±


    ¡°Him?¡± Gu Hui Yan hadn¡¯t expected Lin Wei Xi to suddenly ask about him. He was just a seven to eight year old shu grandson from the Duke Ying Residence. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t think much of that child. Hearing Lin Wei Xi¡¯s question, he thought about it and said, ¡°he tters people too much and is unreliable.¡±


    His verdict waspletely different from the ending that Lin Wei Xi saw in the book. But Prince Yan¡¯s judgment of people was never wrong. So why was there such a huge discrepancy? She was curious, so she asked, ¡°my Prince, why do you think that? Is it because of his eavesdropping?¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not. Those who are sessful don¡¯t bother with such trivial matters. What does it matter if he justifies his tricks and eavesdrops on someone else¡¯s conversation. But whether he truly has a noble or a deceitful character, all those who seed have, without exception, perseverance and clear goals. But he¡¯s too shallow and all he thinks about is how to ingratiate himself to the tastes of those around him. I don¡¯t know this child¡¯s whole story, but he¡¯s most likely adept at pleasing the women of the inner courtyard and has only been exposed to those in his family. He¡¯ll be good to have in power struggles, but he¡¯ll never be able to expand his influence.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly saw the light when she heard this. It was no wonder that even though Gao Chen would indeed rely on the help of his sister and brother-inw in the future to be the Duke despite being a shu son, the Duke Ying Residence didn¡¯t stand out. Hepletely relied on the glory of his inws. It wasn¡¯t inconsistent for Gao Chen to be the Duke despite being ipetent. Coming out as the winner of a family power struggle didn¡¯t mean he could lead the family to prosperity. The saying ¡°a person¡¯s personality can be determined at three¡± didn¡¯t pop out of thin air. With a single meeting, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s assessment resolved her long-standing confusion.


    Lin Wei Xi had been very ufortable that Gao Chen would inherit the Duke Ying Residence. After listening to Gu Hui Yan, she wanted the current timeline to follow the Heavenly Book even less.


    If Gao Chen were really a talented person, then there was a limit to how much she could dislike him due to her personal grudges. But if he couldn¡¯t bring prosperity to the Duke Ying Residence, maybe even leading the family to linger in the status quo and slip into the abyss of stagnation, then Lin Wei Xi had no reason to sit by and watch someone ipetent, someone she hated, be the head of the Duke Residence.


    Lin Wei Xi looked down and couldn¡¯t help thinking about her cousins from the branch families who were exemry in virtue and academics. It didn¡¯t matter to her whether the person who inherited the position of Shizi from her father was an adopted rtive from a branch family who didn¡¯t share the same parent as her, or her shu younger brother. After her rebirth, she¡¯d vowed to draw a line with her past. Her identity, status, past glory, and even dowry had been buried together with Gao Xi¡¯s death, and everyone in the Duke Ying Residence was no longer her maiden family. Even if she had approached Princess Royal Shou Kang out of selfishness, she had used another identity and she didn¡¯t intend to divulge the secret that she was Gao Xi.


    That¡¯s why Lin Wei Xi really had nothing to do with her past life anymore. The Duke Ying Residence¡¯s fate had nothing to do with her. But the Duke Ying Residence had once raised her after all. A generous lifestyle since childhood, an advanced education, and the pile of gold and jade spent on her had all been given to her by her family. It would be very low of her to enjoy the shelter of her family, and then curse them out the moment she got married. Although Lin Wei Xi had already died and was now reborn, and wasn¡¯t involved, she still wanted to do her part for the family that had once birthed her and raised her. The least she could do was watch the Duke Ying Residence¡¯s progression while she was alive.


    Lin Wei Xi quickly went through the people from the branch families and tried to choose a child who was suitable in every aspect. But this kind of thing couldn¡¯t be decided in a hurry. She raised her head and saw Gu Hui Yan looking down at her, his gaze deep, ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi blinked. She reached out to hug his arm, smiled innocently, and refused to say anything. He couldn¡¯t do anything about it so he let it slide.


    If he really wanted to know, he didn¡¯t need to ask her. He let her y dumb and act coquettishly because he didn¡¯t feel like investigating it.


    Lin Wei Xi had initially been properly helping and handing over the books. But sheter didn¡¯t feel like answering, so she simply clung onto Gu Hui Yan. She was so distracting that it was impossible to organize the bookshelves. Fortunately, the books were more or less tidied up and all he needed was one hand to finish the job. Gu Hui Yan unhurriedly organized the books, his other hand wrapped around Lin Wei Xi¡¯s waist. He unwittingly asked, ¡°The scenery outside is nice but you want to stay in the room with me to tidy up books. Isn¡¯t it boring? ¡°


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not boring.¡± Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of his question, ¡°why would you think I¡¯m bored? It¡¯s rare for you to have so much free time. To be able to do something together with you¡­ although you did most of it, I¡¯m actually having a good time.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan lowered his head to see Lin Wei Xi resting her head against his shoulder, her fine chin slightly raised, proudly and wilfully confident in her conviction. He smiled slightly, his heart slowly rxing. This wasn¡¯t actually the answer he wanted to hear. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t understand what it was he¡¯d been trying to sound out. Sometimes she didn¡¯t even realize he was probing her. But what did it matter? She was already his wife. Before thinking about the issue of providing for her in old age, she¡¯d be spending much more time together with him. So there was no need to investigate the reason why she chose to marry him.


    Gu Hui Yan could understand her reasoning at that time. Because Gao Ran had decided to promise her to someone else and said something that provoked her. Lin Wei Xi refused to be overpowered, just like an unmarried little miss refusing to be oppressed by her sister. Gao Ran had unted her status as Shizi Fei, so Lin Wei Xi married someone of a higher status out of spite. Gu Hui Yan knew that she¡¯d been acting rashly from the start and he was merely a tool, a way out, to her. But it didn¡¯t matter. He could be a way for her to climb the socialdder precisely because he was at the top of the socialdder. His achievements and glory were a part of him.


    What¡¯s done is done. They were already married, the marriage consummated, and the little miss really enjoyed ying the role of the Prince Yan Consort. It wasn¡¯t impossible for him to provide her a long life where she lived proudly and happily.

 Chapter 56

    Lin Wei Xi watched Gu Hui Yan return the numerous books to order. Her heart suddenly moved and she said, ¡°my Prince, you were halfway through teaching me Taibai Yinfust time. We haven¡¯t finished it.¡±


    That had happened when they first married. During Gu Hui Yan¡¯s three days of wedding leave, the two of them suddenly grew closer. It was inevitable for them to feel awkward when living together, so Gu Hui Yan taught the books to her. It was Taibai Yinfu, an ancient book on the art of war. That day, Lin Wei Xi had only listened to half of the book, leaving midway to meet the managers and receive the servant¡¯s greetings. They¡¯d entered the pce the very next day and then Gu Hui Yan had ended his leave early. They hadn¡¯t been able to finish the book where they¡¯d left off.


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly brought it up and Gu Hui Yan was a little surprised, ¡°you remembered?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a blockhead. Why wouldn¡¯t I be able to remember this type of thing?¡±she red at him in dissatisfaction and when she looked away, there was meaning in her eyes, ¡°my Prince, you haven¡¯t taught me many things. It¡¯s so rare for you to teach me, how could I forget? It¡¯s just a pity that I¡¯m not talented and couldn¡¯t keep up with your pace. I can¡¯t even finish this one thing.¡±


    Few people now dared to talk to Gu Hui Yan so sarcastically, but Lin Wei Xi spoke so openly that he couldn¡¯t be unhappy. He couldn¡¯t restrain his smile as he nced at her, ¡°Stop messing around.¡±


    He wasn¡¯t angry and Lin Wei Xi grew bolder. She promptly acted like she¡¯d ¡°been given an inch and wanted a mile¡± and ¡°emboldened because she had backing¡±, ¡°how is this messing around? My Prince, you said so yourself that you spent very little time in the residence this month, so how much time is left for me? We¡¯re husband and wife but we can¡¯t even finish a book in one month.¡±


    Although Gu Hui Yan looked at Lin Wei Xi with a smile on his face, guilt rose within him. His expression suddenly grew serious and he said, ¡°This is indeed due to my negligence. I said I¡¯d teach you, but ended up stopping halfway. It¡¯s my fault.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi had been ying along and teasing him, joking around, but Gu Hui Yan apologized so seriously that she felt embarrassed. She hurriedly said, ¡°No, no. My Prince, there¡¯s no reason for you to feel guilty. You were busy with court affairs and you shouldn¡¯t have to worry about what happens in the inner courtyard. You¡¯re already doing very well as my husband. On the contrary, I ought to share your worries, but I always end up causing you trouble. You are willing to go slow and personally teach me military books. It¡¯s due to the character and morals that you¡¯ve cultivated. How can I not know that? Don¡¯t take me so seriously.¡±


    ¡°I have to fulfil my promise to you, I can¡¯t make excuses.¡± Gu Hui Yan¡¯s opinion waspletely different. He said, ¡°You don¡¯t have to gloss over it, I know what I did. I¡¯ve neglected my duty as your husband and spent too little time with you .¡±


    Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t expected him to take this so seriously. He truly was someone who was harsh on himself. He had a strong sense of responsibility and had extreme expectations of himself, but expected the least from others. This was how he acted with Lin Wei Xi. He constantly demanded that he be a qualified husband but never held her to the same standard. It could be said that he was very upright and strict with himself but treated others leniently. Lin Wei Xi sighed to herself. Gu Hui Yan was reasonable and responsible. On the contrary, she constantly caused trouble.


    Gu Hui Yan finished speaking to find that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s expression had fallen. He was surprised, just as he ced thest book in ce. He sat on the chair beside him, the two close together, and he smoothly drew her towards himself, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi let him pull her close and sat on hisp. Because it was a little cramped, she was a little unbnced. She reached her arms around his shoulders and rested her forehead on his shoulders, her voice moody, ¡°my Prince, do I seem arrogant and wilful, with high standards and no ability?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan found it funny. He put one hand on her lower back to hold her steady, his other hand ying with the ornaments dangling from the pin holding her hair in a bun and didn¡¯t say anything.


    Lin Wei Xi humphed lightly, her voice displeased, ¡°my Prince, you haven¡¯t said anything. Do you really think that?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan chuckled. He poked the tassel behind Lin Wei Xi¡¯s ear and said, ¡°Look at you. You like to think too much and end up in a bad mood. But when someone brings it up, you don¡¯t let them contradict you. It¡¯s too hard to understand your authoritarian way of doing things and that makes it difficult for others to figure out your thoughts and words.¡±


    ¡°Who said I¡¯m authoritarian?¡± Lin Wei Xi raised her head. When he looked at her, she happened to catch his gaze. A smile bloomed in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes, ¡°you see? And you still deny it?¡±


    ¡°I¡­¡± Lin Wei Xi was speechless and couldn¡¯t hold back from exining herself, ¡°my Prince, you can¡¯t think that I¡¯m a careless person just because I embarrassed myself in front of you several times. I¡¯m very neat and orderly when ites to my work.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t helpughing. He¡¯d barely said anything and she immediately became anxious. After he finishedughing, he said, ¡°Of course I know you have the ability. Everyone can see the changes you¡¯ve made to the residence. I¡¯m very thankful to you for your tireless work at solving the residence¡¯s mess.¡±


    Although Lin Wei Xi still looked displeased, the corners of her mouth obviously curved. You could insult her, but you could never insult her management skills. She was beside herself with joy at Prince Yan¡¯s praise, but in front of her idol, she hid her feelings a little and pretended to be nonchnt as she said, ¡°I only spent a few more hours on it. My work isn¡¯t that good, so please don¡¯tugh at me, Prince Yan.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan finally couldn¡¯t hold back hisughter. He ruffled Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hair and her neat bun immediately became undone. He set her on the ground with little effort and stood up as well, ¡°You¡¯re doing a good job. No need to be bothered by what others say. That¡¯s all nonsense.¡±


    His hands were very steady. Even as he hugged her, he still held her firmly in ce. Lin Wei Xi stood there and only realized then that his words were in response to her previous question.


    She wasn¡¯t blindly arrogant, nor did she have high expectations but was ipetent. Her mood lifted. She quickly caught up to Gu Hui Yan, her voice lively, ¡°my Prince, about the book we didn¡¯t finishst time¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s time to prepare for dinner. After dinner, the servants who have no more duties to tend to can leave. I¡¯ll continue teaching the book to you.¡±


    ¡°Okay. It¡¯s a promise?¡±


    Gu Hui Yan smiled and stopped. He grabbed her hand, saving her the effort of having to chase him, ¡°Of course, everything is as you will it to be. Don¡¯t worry, these few days are my rare off-days and I¡¯ll have a lot of free time. I¡¯ve rejected many unnecessary invitations to socialize and can certainly finish all the books that you want to read together with you.¡±


    She felt really embarrassed, but she happily responded, ¡°Thank you my Prince.¡±


    It was only after Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan came out of the study that Wan Yue dared to fall in line behind Lin Wei Xi and whisper, ¡°Princess Consort, the kitchen has sent word that all the food is ready. The dining room has also been properly set up and they¡¯re just waiting for the Prince and Princess Consort.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi said, ¡°they can start preparing the meal. The Prince and I will be there shortly. Right, where are Shizi and Shizi Fei?¡±


    Wan Yue lowered her gaze, not daring to look at the Prince Yan and the Princess Consort¡¯s apparently linked hands, ¡°Shizi Fei came out of the Buddhist sanctum at 5pm, then returned to Qingsong Garden. She¡¯s already waiting in the dining hall with Shizi.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nodded and said nothing else. Wan Xing had already prepared a cloak and the hand stove. Seeing Lin Wei Xiing out of the study, she quickly stepped forward to help her into her clothes. It wasn¡¯t asplicated for Gu Hui Yan to get ready as Lin Wei Xi. He didn¡¯t take long to put on an overcoat, but she was still sorting herself out. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t wait outside as other people did. Instead, he stood by the door and quietly watched her put on arge cloak. The fluffy cor surrounded her face as she stood absent-mindedly, letting the maid fasten the gold buckles. After that, she took the hand stove and walked towards him, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    He reached out to straighten the fluffy white velvet around her neck. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s palm-sized face was wrapped in fluff. She looked indescribably delicate and romantic.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    The two walked hand in hand into the dining hall. When Lin Wei Xi first entered, she intended to walk half a step behind Gu Hui Yan, but he intentionally slowed down and walked into everyone¡¯s line of sight together with her.


    When everyone in the room saw them enter, they hurriedly bowed and greeted them. Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran also greeted them one after the other, ¡°Father. Mother.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan nodded indifferently and amiably, and said, ¡°You¡¯re excused, you can sit down.¡±


    Gao Ran stood up to follow Lin Wei Xi, her eyes lowered slightly. Lin Wei Xi nced at her from the corner of her eye and chuckled to herself. During the meal, Gao Ran served Lin Wei Xi food using the serving chopsticks as usual. Lin Wei Xi said, ¡°Shizi Fei has spent thest few days copying books. It¡¯s hard work, so you may take a break.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t dare.¡± Gao Ran intended to decline but Lin Wei Xi interrupted her with a smile, ¡°no need to say anything. It¡¯s rare for the entire family to have a reunion dinner during New Years. Just sit down. You will have a temporary break from copying texts tomorrow. Focus on preparing Qingsong Garden for the New Year. It¡¯s never toote to show your filial piety, but you can¡¯t neglect Shizi during the New Year.¡±


    A temporary break. Gao Ran thought of the message the maid had delivered and felt wronged, but she had to gratefully thank Lin Wei Xi on the surface. The inner courtyard was Lin Wei Xi¡¯s responsibility. When she disciplined her daughter-inw, even Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t easily intervene. Only after she finished speaking and Gao Ran took a seat did the servants by the side dare to fetch the utensils and quietly wait on Gao Ran for her meal.


    The soft nking of the bowls and cups sounded with the distinct tinkling of porcin. Gu Cheng Yao sat and waited for Gao Ran. He stared at the dishes on the dinner table, a little bored, and suddenly realized something, ¡°why haven¡¯t we had any seafood for dinner these past few days?¡±


    The maids who served them by the dinner table paused, then their movements rxed. Gao Ran quickly nced at Lin Wei Xi, raising her eyebrows like she was watching a y.


    Everyone in the Residence knew that Prince Yan liked freshwater fish. But due to her grudge against the previous Princess Consort Shen, Lin Wei Xi had one-sidedly decided to remove most of the seafood from the annual banquet, and even changed their everyday menu. Now that someone had asked about it, and that someone was Gu Cheng Yao, there would no doubt be better results.


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly became a little curious when she heard this. She put down her chopsticks and turned to look at Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°seafood is rare in winter and sometimes it¡¯s inevitable that it¡¯s not fresh. It¡¯s not umon to remove them. Shizi, why do you ask?¡±


    Their eyes met. Ever since Lin Wei Xi married into the household, she rarely looked at him so seriously. Normally, she¡¯d either maintain her image as stepmother and avoid looking at him, or she¡¯d look at him cynically with ridicule in her eyes. Such an earnest and serious expression was really rare. Gu Cheng Yao looked at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s bright ck pupils and lost himself momentarily. He quickly came back to himself and said with a serious expression, ¡°although seafood is rare in winter, they are father¡¯s favourite and it¡¯s something we naturally can¡¯t be short on. When my mother was alive, the residence always had fish, shrimp, crabs and other animals in stock.¡±


    Even now, Gu Cheng Yao still staunchly believed that Gu Hui Yan liked fresh seafood. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know what to say. If she remembered correctly, in her previous life, when Gu Cheng Yao asionally mentioned Prince Yan¡¯s preferences, he specifically mentioned that this was something Princess Consort Shen had told him. If this was the impression he got from his biological mother when he was a child, it definitely wouldn¡¯t be easy to correct. But regarding things like meals, as long as Gu Cheng Yao paid a little attention, he¡¯d know by the third meal that Prince Yan, who was rumoured to love seafood, didn¡¯t actually eat it at all.


    And the funny thing was that Gu Cheng Yao never suspected that something was wrong. Everyone else received instructions from the master and continued to steadily spread this wrong information. Now Gu Cheng Yao was even saying it in front of Prince Yan himself.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s expression was calm and he made noment. Even if he heard his son forcing his ¡°preference¡±, his expression didn¡¯t fluctuate. He wasn¡¯t someone who liked to dere things about himself, and the wrong perception had continued for more than ten years. If she corrected it now, not only would it embarrass Gu Cheng Yao, the entire Residence would also make a fuss. This wasn¡¯t anything important so there was no need to get everyone involved.


    There was a moment of silence at the dinner table. Lin Wei Xi put down her chopsticks and calmly took the handkerchief from Wan Xing, gently patting the corners of her lips. Her voice was as light as a feather, ¡°My health isn¡¯t good. The imperial physician said that I can¡¯t eat too much food that triggers illnesses so that I avoid contracting a chronic disease. Hence, I decided to remove it.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao choked. He paused for a moment and finally said solemnly, ¡°This son has been rude.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t care and only Gu Hui Yan nced at her lightly. This little miss was sometimes especially irritating, and sometimes she was incredibly sharp.

 Chapter 57

    The head of the household didn¡¯t say a word and Shizi lowered his head, conceding. Lin Wei Xi managed to smoothly change something that had beenmon practice in the residence for many years. This also made it clear that she was the new mistress of Prince Yan Residence and that past customs and rules would remain in the past.


    Gao Ran had secretly looked forward to this show, but when she saw the conclusion, the vicious anger that had umted in the past many days rushed to her head.


    Poor health was truly a shield that could be used wherever Lin Wei Xi wanted to. How was she so brazen and on what basis could she change whatever she wanted to change?


    Gao Ran was truly frustrated by this ¡°mother-inw¡± who relied on her weak health to make unreasonable demands. She was suddenly at a loss. Lin Wei Xi was around her age, and there was no way she could endure her mother-inw¡¯s torture. The Duke Ying Residence hade to support her earlier today but failed to resolve her situation in the end. She couldn¡¯t count on her maiden family and her father-inw, contrary to his astuteness in court,pletely indulged and pampered his wife. Surely the rest of Gao Ran¡¯s life wouldn¡¯t be spent being criticised by Lin Wei Xi and enduring her malicious behaviour?


    Prince Yan was on leave today, so dinner was especiallyvish and exquisite, but it was tasteless to Gao Ran.


    Her mind wandered throughout the meal. After sending off Prince Yan and Lin Wei Xi, Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao returned to their courtyard. She was dispirited and not in the mood to talk. Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t say a word either the whole journey for some reason.


    When they returned to Qingsong Garden, he stopped at the entrance to the back courtyard and said, ¡°You must be tired after today. Go and rest first. I need to revise, so I won¡¯t follow you back.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao turned and left after saying that. Gao Ran couldn¡¯t help eximing in surprise, but he didn¡¯t seem to hear and was soon too far away. She watched his figure from behind, growing more agitated than she already was.


    Although Qingsong Garden was merely one of the courtyards in Prince Yan Residence, it contained a total of three courtyards. The outer courtyard, study, main building and back building had everything they would ever need. It could be considered a small residence. All they needed to do was close its doors and it could stand alone as a courtyard. Gao Ran resided in the second section of the main building, which was thergest building used to reside in. Earlier, Gu Cheng Yao had walked to the entrance of this building before turning to the study room in the front courtyard.


    Of course, what happened at the building entrance wouldn¡¯t escape the eyes and ears of everyone there. Gao Ran returned alone and not long after sitting down, Granny Bu arrived, ¡°Shizi Fei, did Shizi go to the front courtyard?¡±


    Gao Ran wasn¡¯t in the mood to respond to something so obvious and Granny Bu wasn¡¯t truly inquiring about it when she asked that question. Granny Bu paused and said to herself, ¡°It¡¯s almost the New Year and Shizi is still so diligent. It¡¯s truly a blessing for the family. If the Princess Consort could see this, how happy she¡¯d be.¡±


    The Princess Consort Granny Bu was referring to was Shen Shi. Ever since Lin Wei Xi forcibly took away her power, she¡¯d been unable to ept it. Therefore, she vented her anger by refusing to address Lin Wei Xi as the Princess Consort and merely used ¡®that one¡¯ instead. She even frequently talked about what happened with Shen Shi in the past; who knew who she was showing off to. Gao Ran and Granny Bu had shared a hatred against amon enemy at first, but Gao Ran couldn¡¯t stand how Granny Bu repeated the same things again and again, and now she couldn¡¯t help feeling sick and tired of it. Even though she was already dead, it was annoying enough to repeat the entire story everyday. What¡¯s more, she¡¯d been dead for more than ten years. What was the use in saying how virtuous and affectionate Shen Shi was every day? Could she not see that the one in power was now that person?


    But even if she was unhappy about it, when Granny Bu brought up Shizi¡¯s birth mother, Gao Ran had to smile and respond, ¡°Granny, you¡¯re right. Shizi is so diligent and ambitious despite his respectable birth. If mother-inw in heaven learns of this, she¡¯ll definitely feel relieved. ¡°


    ¡°Exactly. My youngdy had been so lucky. In her maiden family, she was treated like a jewel and spoiled by her father and brother, and had never even washed her own hands. When she unfortunately came across a defeated enemy army that had fallen into disarray, she ran into Prince Yan, who¡¯d been Shizi back then. Aiyo, what a magnificent sight it was to see a beautiful boy lead powerful troops. Amidst the confusion of the fleeing army, he alone stood at the forefront,manding his men to charge from three sides and quickly suppressed the riot. You weren¡¯t there to see the scene. The earth-shattering storm and a young man of only fifteen or sixteenmanding cavalry of more than a hundred strong. Hisposed bearing as he tookmand from across the gale and the wall of humans is seared into my mind. At that time, everyone was watching him. But once Prince Yan sorted out the situation, he left with his men without leaving his name. Nevertheless, after he left, we listened to the conversations of those around us and found out that he was the eldest di son of the Yan fief¡¯s Prince, Gu Hui Yan.¡±


    When she heard this for the first time, Gao Ran had been fascinated by the story, but now she only felt annoyed. At first, when she heard that Prince Yan and Princess Consort Shen were together because he had saved her life, she thought it was such a fairy tale romance. However, in reality, Prince Yan not only saved Princess Consort Shen, but many others as well. Afterwards, in the wake of Granny Bu taking great pains to retell the story over and over again, Gao Ran was at the end of her patience and instead felt antipathy.


    Granny Bu continued to recall how handsome and brave the young Prince Yan had been back then. This was the kind of thing where if one wasn¡¯t there to see it themselves, even if the person speaking was well spoken and eloquent, they wouldn¡¯t be able to describe how mind-blowing it was to be there. This was currently the situation with Granny Bu. Granny Bu noticed Gao Ran¡¯s disinterest, so she stopped reminiscing and reluctantly concluded her story in one sentence, ¡°Young folks like you have never seen the perils of war. How can you understand how awe-inspiring Prince Yan is on the battlefield? He has risen in power these past few years and handles more court matters, which is why he has be more reserved over time. In fact, he liked to show off his abilities when he was young. Not only was he quick and ruthless in a fight, but he also looked exceedingly valiant and handsome. Back then, themon people at the border didn¡¯t pray to spirits or gods, they prayed only to Prince Yan.¡±


    For some reason, Gao Ran felt ufortable at Granny Bu¡¯s high praise of Gu Hui Yan, so she said pointedly, ¡°Even if Prince Yan was handsome and formidable back then, the northern frontier had strong sandstorms, the weapons and sand keeping himpany all day long. How can itpare to Shizi¡¯s life of luxury, the faint scent of books on him, and the noble aura he¡¯s always had?¡±


    It wasn¡¯t reasonable for Granny Bu to touch Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s matters on a normal day. But after hearing Gao Ran¡¯s words, she unexpectedly didn¡¯t side with Gu Cheng Yao, shaking her head solemnly, ¡°Don¡¯t say that. Prince Yan now holds a high and important position and his quiet demeanour hides great wisdom. Teenagers are young, frivolous, and like to show off. But no matter if it¡¯s in his youth or now, he is extremely good looking. What¡¯s more, just based on looks, the Prince was more handsome than Shizi at neen.¡±


    Gao Ran was very unhappy to hear this, but the other person in question was Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s father. She couldn¡¯t talk badly about her father-inw and could only swallow it. Even so, her expression showed she still disagreed somewhat.


    Granny Bu couldn¡¯t help staring nkly as she recalled the past. After returning to her senses, she again bragged about herdy¡¯s fortunate life, ¡°Our youngdy lived a pampered life the moment she was born. She was spoiled by her father and brother in her maternal family, andter married the Yan fief¡¯s young hero. Who knows how many littledies secretly crushed on the Prince. But in the end, wasn¡¯t it our youngdy who became the Princess? This is clearly fate. After marriage, the youngdy¡¯s first child was a son. Look how hard she worked. It¡¯s just a pity thedy wasn¡¯t in good health, and she left before her son could grow up.¡±


    Granny Bu sighed. She was obviously thinking that if Shen Shi were still here, how would Gao Ran be able to act so arrogantly. Gao Ran was afraid that Granny Bu was going to talk about the past again and quickly cut her off, ¡°Exactly. However, Shizi is filial and making progress in his studies. Mother-inw ought to be content in the afterlife.¡±


    Granny Bu gently wiped at her eyes. She didn¡¯t actually have any tears, but always made this gesture. She said, ¡°If mydy were still here and saw Shizi studying hard even during the New Year, she¡¯d definitely worry for his health.¡±


    Gao Ran suddenly had a bad feeling. She prepared herself and casually echoed Granny Bu¡¯s sentiments, ¡°Of course Shizi¡¯s health is the most important.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right, us women can¡¯t share the burden of Shizi¡¯s court affairs, so we have to pay more attention to his basic needs. Shizi Fei, you¡¯ve been so busy dealing with the New Year¡¯s celebration that I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s too difficult for you to handle more than one thing at a time. Furthermore, Shizi has been working hard to study all day long with servants constantly around him. This ve came to tell Shizi Fei that Yun Hui has already left to serve Shizi and will not be returning to the inner courtyard tonight. Shizi Fei, no need to worry about how they¡¯re doing in the study. While Yun Hui is there to manage everything, you just need to focus on recuperating.¡±


    Blood immediately rushed to her head when she heard that. How dare a thing like Yun Hui have the audacity to take Gao Ran¡¯s ce and give orders to care for Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s basic needs. Moreover, Gu Cheng Yao was unlikely to return to the bedroom to sleep judging by the time he left for study, and with Yun Hui also in the study¡­


    Gao Ran couldn¡¯t sit still. Probably no woman would be able to sit back and watch her own husband spend the night with another young woman. Perhaps Granny Bu saw Gao Ran¡¯s dissatisfaction, as she immediately frowned and said, ¡°Shizi Fei, this ve is one of the people Princess Consort Shen left behind, who was entrusted by the Princess Consort to look after Shizi when she was on her deathbed. And Yun Hui, who has followed Shizi for ten years, cares about him. This olddy can be rest assured if she¡¯s taking care of Shizi. Furthermore, Shizi Fei has not yet given birth to a child for Shizi and for the past few days, has spent much time in the Buddhist sanctum. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯ll be even more difficult for you to conceive. Shizi Fei, you should take care of your health and extend the family line as soon as possible instead of getting jealous.¡±


    It wasn¡¯t good for a woman to bebelled as jealous. Granny Bu had even brought up Princess Consort Shen and jealousy, one of the seven grounds for divorce<sup>¡ó</sup>. Gao Ran could only take a deep breath and responded, ¡°I¡¯m not such an unreasonable person. Granny, you¡¯re only doing this for my own good. I understand.¡±


    ¡ó


    Granny Bu smiled and said, satisfied, ¡°It¡¯s good that Shizi Fei understands the trouble this ve goes through. Shizi Fei, this ve did this so that you could have time to take care of your health and not dy having children. Shizi Fei please don¡¯t misunderstand this ve¡¯s good intentions.¡±


    Good intentions? If Granny Bu had good intentions, would she have kept a close eye on the door and chased after Shizi when he left the room, and even sent a servant specifically to stop her from leaving? Gao Ran was very disdainful and barely stopped herself from cursing. But when she thought about Gao Xi¡¯s ending, she held herself back in the end. She squeezed out a gentle smile at this wicked ve in front of her who had inserted a third party into her marriage.


    Granny Bu was very satisfied with Gao Ran¡¯s behaviour. She paused for a moment. Only when she saw that Gao Ran didn¡¯t show any signs of losing her temper or even chasing her out did she feel satisfied enough to leave. After Granny Bu left, Granny Tao and Ning Fu hurriedly surrounded Gao Ran and, speaking over each other, asked, ¡°Shizi Fei, for the past few days, Yun Hui has only served Shizi in the study room during the day. But now she¡¯s shameless enough to consider serving him as he studies at night. Granny Bu is still keeping an eye on the inner courtyard. What should we do?¡±


    This scheme of Granny Bu wasn¡¯t a secret. Gao Ran took a deep breath and thought for some time before saying, ¡°It seems Yun Hui hasn¡¯t been embraced by Shizi based on how anxious Granny Bu is. Since he hasn¡¯t epted her, she will surely think of another method. We don¡¯t need to worry. Let¡¯s bide our time and see what happens.¡±


    Ning Fu and the others answered in affirmation. Gao Ran had gone through many events today and was mentally drained. This exhaustion wasn¡¯t caused by physical fatigue, but one that spread from her heart and gradually consumed her whole. She¡¯d hoped that by calling in her maternal family that they would punish Lin Wei Xi, but in the end, she lost a dowry maid. And when she returned to her courtyard exhausted from head to toe that night, she was told that Gu Cheng Yao wouldn¡¯t return that night and that Yun Hui had followed him to the study to serve him.


    Ning Fu and the other servants tactfully withdrew from the room when they saw Gao Ran¡¯s expression. As they left the room, Gao Ran¡¯s voice suddenly came from behind them, ¡°Granny Tao, inform the kitchen to make a bowl of contraceptive soup tonight.¡±


    Granny Tao stopped in her tracks. It was very inappropriate for a concubine to give birth to an eldest son before the main wife gave birth to a son. She also couldn¡¯t stop her husband from doting on the concubine, so she could only give contraceptive soup to the concubine or tong fang<sup>¡ó</sup>in order to properly safeguarding the interests of the main wife and di son. Gao Ran¡¯s earlier analysis of the situation had been clear, but she was actually panicking.


    ¡ó


    In the study room outside Qingsong Garden, the candle me danced. As Gu Cheng Yao moved to shift the cover of themp, someone else picked it up first. Yun Hui held a pair of scissors as she cut the burnt wick, and the room brightened again. After she did that, she fastened themp cover and smiled submissively at Gu Cheng Yao, ¡°Shizi.¡±


    He was a little surprised, ¡°Why is it you?¡±


    Yun Hui said, ¡°Daimao is careless and likes to doze off. If he ends up falling asleep tonight, he won¡¯t even be able to get you hot water if you asked for it. I hate how crude he is, so I sent him back.¡±


    Yun Hui took over for Daimao partially because she worried that Daimao wouldn¡¯t serve Shizi properly, but it was mostly out of selfishness. Prince Yan was very strict when it came to managing Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s studies. Those who served Shizi in the study were all young male servants. But without Gao Ran around these past few days, Yun Hui grew bold, running to the study during the day. Gu Cheng Yao also didn¡¯t make her leave. When she saw him leave for the outer courtyard that day, it seemed like he wouldn¡¯t return that night. Yun Hui felt that this opportunity was truly godsent, and quickly entrusted Granny Bu with watching Shizi Fei. Then she bribed Daimao with a piece of silver and sent him out for a drink, while she herself went to serve Gu Cheng Yao in studying and grinding ink. Although it was called a study room, a bed and other items were all avable here. Yun Hui¡¯s intentions were not purely to be a beautiful readingpanion.


    Gu Cheng Yao actually felt it was inappropriate when he heard this. After all, he¡¯d been married twice before and was no longer a naive young boy. Of course he knew the implication behind a maid serving her master at night. Although his father was strict with his education, as he grew older in recent years, his father¡¯s control gradually eased, especially on matters between men and women.


    If Gu Cheng Yao were fifteen, Prince Yan wouldn¡¯t have allowed Yun Hui to follow him to the study, regardless of whether he wanted it or not. But now that his son was older, there were some things Gu Hui Yan could no longer manage. At Gu Cheng Yao¡¯sck of response, he thought that Gu Cheng Yao had asked for it so he closed one eye and pretended not to know.


    Gu Cheng Yao looked at the girl in front of him. Her hair was coiled up to reveal her pale, smooth neck, with pearl earrings dangling from her ears. Her skin looked much more exquisite under the light of themp, almost like ze on porcin. Yun Hui couldn¡¯t be considered beautiful, but she¡¯d served Gu Cheng Yao for more than ten years and had been like his sister since young. Now that she was all dressed up, she felt more like a woman.


    His beautiful readingpanion who was interested in him, the big sister who¡¯d lived together with him since childhood; perhaps only a few men would refuse. But when Gu Cheng Yao looked at Yun Hui at that moment, he suddenly thought of something that had happened in the past.


    It was when Gao Xi had still been alive.

 Chapter 58

    Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t know what was wrong with him. He¡¯d suddenly thought of his first wife Gao Xi on this quiet winter night.


    Gao Xi had passed away on a snowy winter day in the twelfth month the previous year. As soon as Gu Cheng Yao returned to the residence, he¡¯d been informed that Shizi Fei had passed away.


    What had he felt back then? He couldn¡¯t remember, only how shocked he¡¯d been at the time. He¡¯d been prejudiced against Gao Xi due to the incident with the jade pendant and afterwards, he disliked her overbearing personality, so he didn¡¯t want to see her even more. It wasn¡¯t until she died of illness that snowy day did he realise the severity of her illness.


    Before that, the entire time<strong>,</strong>he¡¯d thought it was just a woman¡¯s trick to ckmail him.


    Everything Gu Cheng Yao knew about Gao Xi came from Granny Bu and Yun Hui. Most of what he heard all day long was about how Shizi Fei was once again throwing her weight around and how she was relying on her family background to bully the old servants. A gentleman should, of course, care for the elderly and help the weak. As a result, it was difficult for Gu Cheng Yao to have a good impression of his wife. After that, when news of Gao Xi gradually decreased, he began to think she¡¯d realised that her tricks were useless and had stopped out of embarrassment. It was only muchter he realised that Gao Xi had suppressed the news and prevented the servants from passing it on to him. However, Gu Cheng Yao never expected that the next time he heard news of Gao Xi, that it¡¯d be about her death.


    At that time, he stood in the hall as white snowkes steadily fell onto his shoulders. Gu Cheng Yao stood in the wind for a while before slowly remembering that as he was about to leave that day, it seemed that a maid indeed came to him and requested he see Shizi Fei. He¡¯d been in a hurry to leave at the time and avoided Gao Xi as he disliked her using such tricks to coax him back. So he hadn¡¯t taken it seriously and sent her away. It turned out that it would¡¯ve been thest time he saw Gao Xi, but he still hadn¡¯t gone to see her.


    Gu Cheng Yao finally went to the inner courtyard to see his Shizi Fei. Gao Xi¡¯s courtyard was just as quiet and tidy as before, and he waspletely unable to tell that its mistress was no longer around. Gao Xi had been extremely strict with how she managed her servants. Gu Cheng Yao had always felt that it wasn¡¯t good for her to punish her servants so readily. But as he stood in the house where Gao Xi had lived, he saw that although the servant¡¯s eyes were red, they didn¡¯t dare scream or shout. They were messy but not disordered. He was amazed that Gao Xi¡¯s reputation was so strong among her servants that even in death, no one dared to disobey the rules she implemented when she¡¯d been alive.


    That was how Gao Xi, unfavoured, fell seriously ill and remained bedridden for a year.


    When the maids who were bustling around saw him, they lowered their heads and avoided him like he didn¡¯t exist. Some of them were probably Gao Xi¡¯s personal attendants. They looked indignant when they saw Gu Cheng Yao but were immediately held back by those next to them.


    Gu Cheng Yao felt that he ought to see Gao Xi onest time. Those few maids were very unwilling and one of them even said, ¡°When Shizi Fei was seriously ill, we didn¡¯t see Shizi visit even once. Now that Shizi Fei has made up her mind and you have no rtion with each other, why has Shizi decided to visit? Shizi Fei left peacefully by herself. Shizi, why are you disturbing her after death?¡±


    The maid wearing silk was pinched by someone next to her before she could finish speaking and reluctantly shut her mouth, bowing her head angrily. Gu Cheng Yao had received a great deal of doting since young and had never been contradicted by someone like this before. The fuzzy and lingering sense of suffocation that wrapped around his heart since learning of Gao Xi¡¯s death greatly reduced. He originally wanted to just turn around and leave. Who were these maids to provoke him? But he didn¡¯t leave in the end; he had his attendant pull down the white cloth. Separated by life and death, he saw Gao Xi for thest time.


    Gao Xi had always strove to do everything well. Even at a time like this, she had herself tidied up clean and proper, without any sign of weakness or sickness. Instead, her makeup was beautifully and vividly painted, as if she were just sleeping. Gu Cheng Yao merely nced at her once, before having his servants pull the white cloth back up and leaving.


    The shock from thisst visit was beyond what Gu Cheng Yao, and even greater than what Gao Xi, had expected.


    Since then, he continued to deliberately avoid Gao Xi¡¯s death. In the mourning hall during her funeral, his father-inw, also Gao Xi¡¯s father the Duke Ying Shizi, carefully suggested remarrying his daughter. Gu Cheng Yao agreed without really thinking about it. He felt that he needed a new wife quickly. As long as someone held that position, all traces of Gao Xi would soon fade. Actually, he hadn¡¯t clearly heard that day which one of Gao Xi¡¯s sisters he¡¯d be remarrying. It was onlyter that he learned it was Gao Xi¡¯s half sister, Gao Ran.


    Everyone knew what happened next. Gao Xi passed away and Gao Ran became his second wife. Gu Cheng Yao told himself that this was good. Everything had been restored to before the mistake he¡¯d made and everyone was happy. This was enough. After Gao Ran married him, Gu Cheng Yao did his best to be good to her out of a sense of repayment that even he himself wasn¡¯t aware of. Everyone thought it was because he loved her, and he almost felt the same way. But on this chilly, snowy night, as he listened to the wind that sounded exactly like it had on that day, he realised it might not be true.


    He felt guilty and he was making it up to someone who didn¡¯t know.


    When he was young, Gu Cheng Yao often listened to his mother tell him about how she¡¯d met his father. On almost a daily basis, as long as she had the time, Shen Shi would certainly recount how Prince Yan had saved her life and their burning, passionate love for each other. Actually, the details of Shen Shi¡¯s story often changed, and Gu Cheng Yao didn¡¯t know what was true and what was from her imagination. His mother really liked to read story books. She could hardly pull away from stories of gifted men with beautiful women, heroes with beauties, and often couldn¡¯t differentiate reality from fiction. Although Gu Cheng Yao felt it wasn¡¯t good for his mother to do this, at the end of the day, she was his mother. He instantly felt it was unfilial of him to think so.


    At that time, only his grandmother, mother and him lived in the Residence. His grandmother would sometimes call him over to teach him, but not long after sitting down, Shen Shi would follow and stand to one side with tears in her eyes. She¡¯d stare at him, as if she was afraid he¡¯d be abused. Of course his grandmother was displeased. After reading but a few sentences, she had no choice but to let Shen Shi bring him back. After this happened several times, his grandmother rarely spent time with him anymore.


    The effects of one¡¯s childhood were invariably invisible and ubiquitous. When Gu Cheng Yao recalled the past as an adult, he felt that what his mother did hadn¡¯t been very good. His grandmother, the previous Prince Yan Consort, was the di daughter of a literary family in the capital. Personally teaching Gu Cheng Yao history and ssics waspletely for his sake, but he¡¯d still been unconsciously influenced by Shen Shi. He subconsciously felt that his parent¡¯s love would ovee all obstacles, that gifted men and beautiful women could cross social divides, and that Prince Yan and Shen shi were together because he¡¯d saved her life. So when the same thing happened to Gu Cheng Yao, he unconsciously sumbed to a kind of meticulous suggestion. He told himself that this was the right thing to do, so he married aplete stranger, someone whose identity, looks, conduct, and family he knew nothing about. When heter found out she was the eldest di granddaughter of the Duke Ying Residence who was worthy of Prince Yan¡¯s family, he was pleasantly surprised and believed even more firmly that he was right.


    It was just like a fated marriage in one of those mystical novels.


    After Gu Cheng Yao spent the first month of his marriage with his wife, he suddenly learned that he¡¯d identified the wrong person. In other words, his fated partner had been deliberately reced with someone else.


    It looked like this could be a story with twists and turns. If Shen Shi were to see this situation, based on her personality, she¡¯d definitely cry for the pitiful heroine and resent the vicious sister who took the heroine¡¯s ce. Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s impression of Gao Xi plummeted and he remarried Gao Ran after she died. If life were a y, this would be his happy ending.


    In the month following Gao Xi¡¯s death, Gu Cheng Yao felt a constant buzzing in his ears. He quickly arranged for the wedding despite knowing it would offend his father. It was only after Gao Ran entered the household the following month and the remnants of Gao Xi¡¯s presence quickly faded, did Gu Cheng Yao feel a bit better.


    Everything was back on track, as it should be. It was just a pity that his father couldn¡¯t make it to one of the most important days of his life. Then one day in early spring, as the ice was melting and the air carried a distinctive feeling of dampness, his father, who¡¯d been away for many years, finally came home. Gu Cheng Yao personally went to greet his father¡¯s attendants. When they entered the residence, under the bright red winding corridor, he suddenly saw a slender and quiet figure facing him. At the same time, he heard someone shout, ¡°Sister Xi.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s blood froze. Immediately after, he saw the woman slowly turn around, her skin pale as ice, white as jade. This was the first time in his life seeing someone so lovely, her gaze ice-cold and indifferent. He didn¡¯t know if he was relieved or disappointed. Oh, it was Lin Wei Xi, a woman he didn¡¯t know at all.


    From then on, this Lin Wei Xi seemed to suddenly enter his life, vivid and full of life, and showed up almost everywhere. Whenever he entered a room, he always unconsciously searched for a trace of her. He watched her go from snow-white in clothes to high buns and bright, beautiful dresses. She became his stepmother, his father¡¯s Princess Consort.


    Gu Cheng Yao knew his actions were utterly outrageous, but he couldn¡¯t help feeling ridiculous. Her every move, her every word and action, even a slightly raised eyebrow or nce all felt iparably familiar to him.


    ¡°Shizi? Shizi!¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao suddenly snapped back to reality. He saw Yun Hui looking at him worriedly, concern clearly reflected in her eyes.


    He suddenly wondered if Lin Wei Xi was this loving and gentle when she spent time with his father in private. In his memory, Gao Xi had always been refined and honourable. She was almost never gentle and thoughtful of her husband, neither did she seem concerned about how he was doing.


    Yun Hui noticed that Shizi seemed to be thinking of someone else. She¡¯d painstakingly dressed herself and even purposely changed into seductive clothing that showed her breasts, putting perfume on her body. Shizi was alone with her, yet he was spacing out? Yun Hui felt anger and shame amidst her discouragement. Who in the world was the person who could cause Shizi to worry so much?


    Gu Cheng Yao truly wasn¡¯t thinking about Yun Hui in a positive light. He suddenly remembered that on the night he and Gao Xi married, Yun Hui broke into their bridal chamber. Gao Xi had fluttered her eyes and with a few words, scolded Yun Hui so badly that she was unable to lift her face. The next day, Yun Hui naturally came toin to him with tears in her eyes. He also felt that Gao Xi had been too tough, not at all like the ideal gentle wife. Now, Gao Ran fulfilled every aspect of the virtues of a wife advocated by schrs. Even if Yun Hui provoked her, Gao Ran would bear with it. It should be a good thing that his wife was sensible and generous. Yet he was now suddenly wondering what Gao Xi would do if it were her?


    She would have definitely long since blocked the door to the study room, not only embarrassing Yun Hui, but even he would probably not be spared. Gu Cheng Yao smiled as he thought that, and his smile faded as his long buried feelings of pain surged, prickling and sharp as needles.


    It was yet another year of heavy snowfall, and it had been a year since Gao Xi passed.


    Yun Hui watched as Shizi stared at the same spot without moving. He was obviously thinking of someone, and smiled gently in the end. Although he was smiling, it was a very wan and distraught smile. Yun Hui was astonished. What was happening? She was beyond bewildered when she suddenly heard him say, ¡°I don¡¯t need you here. You can leave.¡±


    Yun Hui was immediately dragged back from her wandering thoughts, clearly surprised, ¡°Shizi?¡± Seeing that he hadn¡¯t moved, she immediately felt wronged, ¡°Shizi, it¡¯s already so dark outside. If this servant goes back now, it may rm the other servants. Besides, you can¡¯t have no servants to serve you. Shizi, if you dislike it, then this servant will wait outside the room. This servant wille if you have any instructions, and will definitely not disturb you.¡±


    Gu Cheng Yao thought that it was indeed quitete. Yun Hui was someone he¡¯d grown up with and he couldn¡¯t bear to leave her out in the cold wind, so he said, ¡°Then, wait on the other side of the folding screen. I can help myself. I don¡¯t need you for anything.¡±


    Although she¡¯d been chased out of Shizi¡¯s study room, she fortunately didn¡¯t have to go back. Although Yun Hui didn¡¯t really want to, she softly answered in affirmation. At this time, the inner courtyard would¡¯ve already locked its doors. If she went back now, she¡¯d definitely disturb the maids and grannies in charge of guarding the entrance and the keys. If that happened, with so many people making a racket, the news that she¡¯d been chased out by Shizi after going to serve him would be widespread. Fortunately, Shizi gave in to her. Although she hadn¡¯t seeded in bing his woman, her dignity was still intact. She was truly relieved.


    After Yun Hui left, Gu Cheng Yao was the only one left in the room. He sat at his desk for a long time without turning a single page of the book in his hands. In the end, he couldn¡¯t bear it any longer and put down the book, walked to the window and forcefully pushed it open.


    Cold wind immediately whistled into the room and the air, carrying fluffs of snow, caused the candle me to dance under themp covering. Gu Cheng Yao stood amidst the wind and looked out the window at the tranquil sky and the snowy ground that glowed under the moonlight. He stood still, lost in thought for a long time.


    The lights were on in Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s study. If he headed North from there, he would see that thergest and most magnificent courtyard in the Prince Yan Residence was also constantly lit.


    ¡°Taicu Judui is the Taicu men, and Yinde Jugan is the Yinde men. The first general on the right, the line can be water, the ck g banner, is for the Jingmen<sup>¡ó</sup>.¡± After Gu Hui Yan exined it, he asked Lin Wei Xi, ¡°did you understand what I said?¡±


    ¡ó


    She pursed her lips and stared for a long moment before finally shaking her head in despair, ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Shoushan Pavilion is a series of ten books that describe plots, military formations, memorial addresses, divination skills, etc. Without Qimen Dunjia<sup>¡ó</sup>as your foundation, it will be extremely difficult to understand these.¡±


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi thought to herself that this was beyond extremely difficult. She didn¡¯t understand it at all.


    She already regretted it. Why couldn¡¯t she have a normal conversation with Prince Yan with this little time they had. Why did she have to give herself trouble?


    But Prince Yan was a careful person and a meticulous nner. He felt that although his student¡¯s foundation was a bitcking, he¡¯d definitely make Lin Wei Xi understand after trying a few different methods. So he picked another book from the bookshelf and considered starting from Qimen Dunjia.


    Lin Wei Xi got a headache the moment she saw the thick ancient tomb. She watched Gu Hui Yan put the book on the table and move to take another brush in a manner that screamed ¡®don¡¯t give up even if you don¡¯t understand¡¯. She panicked. She didn¡¯t care if it embarrassed her, she hurriedly reached across the table and tightly hugged Gu Hui Yan¡¯s waist, ¡°my Prince, it¡¯s already dark outside. Let¡¯s take a break and do something else, alright?¡±

 Chapter 59

    Gu Hui Yan and Lin Wei Xi extended their living quarters to the study room and the furnishings needed to be purchased ordingly. The side room used to be small and the desk had been a narrow table made of in weave. Now that the study room was expanded, the tables and chairs had been reced with an intricately carved square rosewood table. Gu Hui Yan sat at the head of the table, with Lin Wei Xi sitting to his left in a chair with an borate cloud pattern. He returned from retrieving a book from the bookshelf and ced it near the edge of the table. As he turned to get his brush and ink, Lin Wei Xi unexpectedly hugged him.


    ¡°My Prince, it¡¯s already dark outside. Let¡¯s take a break and do something else, alright?¡±


    She raised herself slightly to hug Gu Hui Yan¡¯s waist. A man¡¯s waist couldn¡¯t be touched so carelessly, and he stiffened a bit and struggled to free himself on reflex. On the other hand, when Lin Wei Xi felt his movements, she hugged him tighter.


    Gu Hui Yan looked down to see her arms circling him. Her gorgeous wide sleeves had been pushed up halfway, revealing smooth and slender forearms. She firmly refused to let go and gazed up at him pitifully.


    They looked at each other for a few seconds. In the end, it was Gu Hui Yan who gave in, ¡°Alright, let¡¯s take a short break.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi breathed a huge sigh of relief. The change in her demeanour was too obvious and Gu Hui Yan, who was looking at her, noticed everything. He looked up and said, ¡°Let go. Sit properly.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi made an ¡°Oh¡± sound and sat back down primly and properly. The oveppingyers of her sleeve were too numerous and hung on the nook of her arm for a moment without falling back down over her arms. She didn¡¯t notice at all and instead curiously flipped through the book that Gu Hui Yan had brought over earlier. After only skimming two pages, she frowned in distaste and lost all interest.


    Lin Wei Xi had dark ck hair and snowy white skin; even her forearms were paler than snow, slender, the contours of her skin graceful. Her translucent and smooth arms casually rested on the ck rosewood table with a beauty that was hard to describe, that easily entranced people. Gu Hui Yan looked down at her and said steadily, ¡°Tug your sleeves down and sit straight.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi realised then how messy her sleeves were and sighed to herself. Prince Yan was truly so upright and serious that he couldn¡¯t stand even a little bit of mess. A person like him who was so particr about orderliness would have to endure every moment he spent with her in the study. But Prince Yan had made a promise, so he had to put up with her.


    Lin Wei Xi suddenly felt very disheartened. Seeing her grow gloomy, Gu Hui Yan couldn¡¯t help questioning himself. Had he been too difficult to understand? Why did she look so worried?


    The atmosphere in the study became a bit awkward. Gu Hui Yan stood next to the desk for a moment and criticised himself. Sure enough, even when he was at his peak physically and mentally speaking, he had nomon topics to talk about with this lively young girl. In the end, he was an older man in a rtionship with a much younger woman.


    Sensing that the atmosphere was not quite right, Lin Wei Xi disregarded her feelings of envy and quickly grabbed Gu Hui Yan¡¯s sleeve. With her chin propped on one hand, she looked at him and said, ¡°my Prince, these books on the theory and art of war are too difficult for me. Why don¡¯t you tell me about the Battle of Langshan?¡±


    The battles of Langshan and Dingxiang urred around the same time frame. They were the battles that propelled Gu Hui Yan to fame and also the start of his renown as a god of war. Since then, he¡¯d been in charge of the army for close to twenty years and not once had he been defeated. The battles of Langshan and Dingxiang also became famous as a result, and became a model that every young general in the world studied before they went to battle.


    The battle of Langshan had been studied and researched repeatedly almost until it was dissected to pieces. Even a sheltered girl like Lin Wei Xi had heard of it. Anyone from the army could recall parts of it. As for Gu Hui Yan, this was no problem at all. He never expected Lin Wei Xi to be curious about a battle he participated in when he was sixteen. This was much simpler than teaching a book about military tactics. He sat down, grabbed a piece of paper, roughly sketched the topography of the Langshan, and told her about the battle.


    Lin Wei Xi immediately became very interested. Compared to the obscure and difficult theory on warfare, she was obviously more interested in Prince Yan. She brought up books on war that day so that she¡¯d have something to talk about with him but what she really wanted to know was his past and experiences.


    Discussing these battles brought vivid imagery to mind. It wasn¡¯t as difficult to understand as Qimen Dunjia, and Gu Hui Yan was a very good teacher. His voice and logic were clear. Furthermore, as someone who witnessed the battle, he was the most appropriate person to dissect the battle of Langshan. He gave much more detail than those who merely theorised about it. Lin Wei Xi was so enthralled that without her realising, it was almost as if she¡¯d gone back in time, like she was really standing in the never ending expanse of yellow sand of the Gobi desert and seeing the major battle for herself.


    Gu Hui Yan was very considerate of her and she grew confident enough to ask questions from time to time. The fundamentals were required to understand military tactics and it was all about monopolising resources. There were an uncountable number of people who¡¯d be overjoyed to obtain a military book, but they struggled to learn the fundamentals. If they found out that Lin Wei Xi had been taught by themander of the famous battle himself and was even able to ask him questions face to face, at least half of them would jump into the river out of jealousy.


    After she asked all her questions, she simply propped her head up and pestered Gu Hui Yan about his experience in the military. He felt that this wasn¡¯t much to talk about, but she looked at him with such glittering eyes that he had no choice but to pick a few impressionable events and describe them to her. After he was finished with his story, Gu Hui Yan was afraid it had disappointed her and asked with uncertainty, ¡°There¡¯s really nothing interesting about my experiences. Did it bore you?¡±


    ¡°Of course not, how could it bore me?¡± Lin Wei Xi held her face in her hands and said with a smile, ¡°I like learning about what you went through in your youth, my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze softened. Over the years, he¡¯d heard countless excessive praise from those in the imperial court, from colleagues, from subordinates. After a long time, he¡¯d been desensitised to it. But in that moment, when a word like ¡°like¡± came out of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s mouth, his heart melted.


    She looked beautiful under the light, not to mention the fact that she was a beautiful woman whose beauty far exceeded the imagination. Gu Hui Yan looked at his radiant beautiful wife, the only one in the whole world, in front of him, and his heart suddenly pounded.


    Lin Wei Xi would be seventeen after the new year. Although she felt young to him, in a normal household, she was old enough to be a mother.


    Gu Hui Yan thought about it and filed away that thought, without a change in his expression, so that he could focus on the main topic at hand, ¡°After talking about so many useless things, you most likely have rested enough. We still have half of the Taibai map to go. We can be done for the day once we finish this section.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s brain hurt when she saw that Gu Hui Yan actually wanted to continue. She always felt that Prince Yan was a very noble and dignified person, to the point where he couldn¡¯t bear the sight of her messy sleeves. He definitely wouldn¡¯t like her making a fuss. But Lin Wei Xi really got a headache when she saw all these kanmen, zhenmen, shengmen and simen<sup>¡ó</sup>. She bit her lip and whispered, ¡°How can the battle that brought my Prince to fame be called useless? Why don¡¯t we talk about your past, my Prince?¡±


    ¡ó


    ¡°No, we can¡¯t.¡±


    His Highness Prince Yan was truly a principled person. Lin Wei Xi gave up, hung her head, and returned to studying the formation diagram. She forced herself to understand for ten minutes but after a day of work, her brain was too tired to continue. She steeled herself. Even if Prince Yan disliked it, she had to save herself first. She stepped over the chair, wrapped her arms around Gu Hui Yan¡¯s neck. And looked at him expectantly, ¡°my Prince, I really can¡¯t continue listening. Let¡¯s talk about this tomorrow instead.¡±


    ¡°Absolutely not. This is the schedule.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi tightened her embrace around Gu Hui Yan¡¯s neck. Her entire person leaned across the seat, almost hanging on his body, ¡°my Prince¡­ ¡°


    ¡°You really don¡¯t want to continue?¡±


    ¡°En.¡±


    ¡°Sit down properly first.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t want to.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan tried his best to bring out the demeanour he¡¯d used to intimidate the Sixth Army and said, ¡°Sit down. This is an order.¡±


    ¡°Are you ordering me? I don¡¯t want to!¡±


    ¡­ there was nothing else Gu Hui Yan could do. He put down the book he¡¯d been holding, reached across the seat to ce his hand around Lin Wei Xi¡¯s waist and knees, and lifted her straight from her chair in a bridal carry.


    Lin Wei Xi faintly felt that her goal had been achieved. She couldn¡¯t help the joy on her face and immediately wanted to escape to freedom. But as soon as her legs moved, Gu Hui Yan¡¯s hands firmly held them in ce, ¡°Behave yourself and don¡¯t squirm.¡±


    She tried again and discovered that he was serious about not wanting her to move this time. She obediently clung to his shoulders. After a while, she realised something wasn¡¯t right, ¡°my Prince, there are a lot of servants outside. You can¡¯t let me go out like this, right?¡±


    Wan Yue and the servants who were on standby outside the study room, from the corner of their eye, saw what seemed to be Prince Yan carrying the Princess Consort out. They quickly bowed their heads and Wan Yue immediately pulled everyone to withdraw. After they retreated outside the building, Wan Xing even thoughtfully helped her masters close the door tightly.


    ¡­ that was thest straw for Lin Wei Xi and she red fiercely at the two girls. She was sure that they definitely saw it. Gu Hui Yan chuckled and bent over to put her down in front of the dressing table, ¡°You really know how to bully your servants.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi looked at Gu Hui Yan through the bronze mirror on the dressing table and smiled, unwilling to admit defeat, ¡°I¡¯ll bully my servants if I want to. They can me their luck for getting me as their master.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan finallyughed. He reached out to gently pinched the tip of Lin Wei Xi¡¯s nose and said, ¡°Now you¡¯re just twisting the facts.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi merely humphed in response. She raised her head and looked back to scowl at Gu Hui Yan, ¡°now that you¡¯ve sent the maids away, how am I supposed to remove my makeup?¡±


    She usually didn¡¯t wear heavy makeup at home and only used light lipstick and brow shadow. She could handle her makeup herself, but she couldn¡¯t remove the head ornaments herself. Gu Hui Yan looked at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s pretty hair coiled in an borate bun, her ck hair decorated with numerous jewelled tassels. He suddenly had an urge to do something and said, ¡°I can help you remove your hair ornaments.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi stared nkly. Gu Hui Yan thought she didn¡¯t want to do it. Just as he was about to say that he was only joking, he heard her say as she smiled at him brightly through the reflection in the mirror, ¡°Alright.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan was relieved and slowly pulled out the dazzling spread of jewelled pearl and jade ornaments from her ck hair. He moved carefully and managed to not pull Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hair. He was almost as meticulous as the maid who did her hair. The dressing table was quickly piled with all kinds of hairpins. He saw as her gorgeous bun turned into a soft waterfall of hair in his own hands and his heart filled with affection.


    For a man to draw his wife¡¯s eyebrows was a fantasy. In this current dynasty where Confusion propriety was strictly followed, women were very restricted, and even fewer men were willing to pamper their wives in private. Lin Wei Xi also didn¡¯t expect that the Prince Yan who rushed to battlefields on horseback andmanded an army would do something like this for her.


    His hand lingered on Lin Wei Xi¡¯s long hair and in the end, followed the line of soft hair to her cheek and caressed it. He stroked his slightly rough fingertips on her cheeks; his voice had be raspy at some point, ¡°why don¡¯t you take a bath first.¡±


    How could Lin Wei Xi not know what Gu Hui Yan was up to when he¡¯d helped her undo hair and driven everyone out. She blushed, but before she could say anything, he finished his own sentence, ¡°forget it, I¡¯ll go with you.¡±


    <hr>


    T/n: dear god I think I¡¯m truly well and done with the number of times the author describes FL¡¯s beauty. It¡¯s not that bad in Chinese, because the author uses quite a huge variety of words to describe FL¡¯s beauty, with a poetic feel to it. But they all trante to ¡°beautiful¡± so I understand that it bes boring and repetitive to read in English after a while. But even so, I honestly think this is a little too excessive.

 Chapter 60

    The busy period passed in a sh and New Year¡¯s Eve arrived in what felt like the blink of an eye.


    Lin Wei Xi was lifted from the bed by Gu Hui Yan first thing at dawn so that she couldn¡¯t continue sleeping, ¡°it¡¯s fine for you to bezy on a normal day, but the juniors areing to give their New Year¡¯s greetings today. You don¡¯t want to beughed at by them.¡±


    A red candle burned inside the Babu bed. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t tell what time it was, but judging by the light outside the canopy, it seemed quite early. Shezily retreated to the edge of the bed, hugged her knees, and tried to reach for the nket, ¡°any junior who dares to give their New Year¡¯s greeting at this time won¡¯t be getting any money<sup>¡ó</sup>.¡±


    ¡ó


    Gu Hui Yan looked helplessly at Lin Wei Xi, who was on the bed and refusing to get up. His finger held down a corner of the quilt. She pulled hard on it but it wouldn¡¯t budge. As the saying goes ¡°never give up, for there is always a way¡± Lin Wei Xi wriggled her way over and bundled herself in the nket.


    Gu Hui Yan looked away and chuckled before fishing her up from beneath the nkets, ¡°that¡¯s how it is when you¡¯re an elder. Let¡¯s see how much face you lose when the juniors find out that the Prince Yan Consort is still in bed.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± Lin Wei Xi leaned her forehead against Gu Hui Yan¡¯s strong arms and partially covered her mouth as she yawned, her eyes misting over, ¡°no one would know aside from you¡±


    Gu Hui Yan suddenly felt pleased by her words. That¡¯s right, other than him, no man in the world would be able to see how coquettish and charming Lin Wei Xi was when getting out of bed. He sighed lightly and shook her again when he saw her leaning against his arm with no sign of movement, ¡°there¡¯s no use acting coy. Wake up.¡±


    After a difficult struggle, Lin Wei Xi finally called in a maid to help her get dressed. Today, she wore a scarlet top with gold embroidery on the sleeves, the cuffs and cors embroidered withrge bouquets of peony flowers. She paired it with a silvery red Zhuang Hua Duan six piece skirt<sup>¡ó</sup>and it glittered subtly under the light. Today was New Year¡¯s Eve, and the maids mustered all their skills as they vowed to dress up this delicate and unrivalled Princess Consort into a fairy. Once the torment was over, Lin Wei Xi stood up to find Gu Hui Yan, ¡°my Prince.¡±


    ¡ó


    Gu Hui Yan looked up and his vision filled with light; it felt as if she lit up the entire room. Lin Wei Xi also thought that the body she possessed was very pretty. She spread her arms and gave a twirl before Gu Hui Yan. Theyers of her magnificent skirt parted like a flower. After tuning a circle, she ended up exactly by his side. He smiled as he supported her. She raised her chin slightly, her eyes sparkling, ¡°my Prince, what do you think?¡±


    ¡°Your brilliance blinds me.¡± Gu Hui Yan rarely praised women, but his words were full of sincere admiration. Lin Wei Xi smiled proudly and took his arm with practised ease, ¡°as long as you¡¯re satisfied my Prince.¡±


    The entire residence was beyond recognition today. The servants wore new clothes and everyone beamed with joy. This kind ofrge celebration would never let the servants feel dispirited. The moment Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan appeared, everyone gathered around them to greet them with auspicious words.


    Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao also wore formal clothes and had arrived early to pay their respect to their parents. Hearing the greetings from outside the room, Gao Ran quickly readied herself. But despite that, when the door curtain lifted and she saw Lin Wei Xi, her eyes widened.


    Lin Wei Xi was the pinnacle of beauty. On a normal day, dressing up a little was enough to render one unable to look away. Now that she was dressed so splendidly, she was simply too beautiful to be true. Today, Gu Hui Yan wore ck clothing that reflected his status as Qin Wang. His posture was tall and straight, his years of military service all the more moulding him as stiff as a clothing rack. It had been a rite since the first emperor of the Qin dynasty to revere the colour ck, and his top had ferocious golden dragon coiled on the front. The contrasting ck and gold looked honourable and domineering. Gu Hui Yan was not overshadowed by the richness of the colour and instead appeared more handsome, powerful, cold and dignified.


    Lin Wei Xi was dressed in a bright and pretty red. With Gu Hui Yan looking so handsome and cold, it was hard to look directly at them. Standing side by side, calling them resplendent wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration, and all those who came across them gasped in wonder. Even when they were far away, there were people who couldn¡¯t resist craning their necks to look at them.


    Gao Ran quickly hid her surprise and stepped forward to pay her respects to Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan. Gu Cheng Yao politely paid his respects as well, ¡°Greetings Father, Mother.¡±


    Gao Ran also gave her New Year¡¯s greetings. She was also dressed in red today, but the quality of her clothes couldn¡¯t exceed her position. Out of all the nobledies, Gao Ran¡¯s appearance was roughly a six out of ten. Be it her clothing or Gao Ran herself, she could neverpare to Lin Wei Xi. This was hard to tell when Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan hadn¡¯t arrived yet. But now with Lin Wei Xi outshining her, the red dress on Gao Ran immediately felt clich¨¦, and even a little pompous.


    The Prince Yan Residence was very busy today. Soon after Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yao gave their New Year¡¯s greetings to Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan, he quickly left for the front yard. There was an endless stream of people, some of whom had been waiting since dawn, who came to give their New Year¡¯s greetings to him today. As soon as Gu Hui Yan left, Lin Wei Xi engrossed herself with her own business. The officials, from minor ones to important ones, gave their New Year¡¯s greetings to Prince Yan, and many Ladies and Madams came to give their New Year¡¯s greetings to Lin Wei Xi, the Prince Yan Consort, as well.


    When Gu Hui Yan left, Gu Cheng Yao naturally followed. Now only Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran remained in the room. Lin Wei Xi was toozy to act out thepassionate mother-inw to Gao Ran¡¯s filial daughter-inw. She called the servants who had been on standby since earlier to bring out the New Year gifts for every family, and immediately threw herself into sorting and counting the return gifts.


    Lin Wei Xi sat on the warm heated seat, quickly finishing up the routine work that came with the New Year¡¯s. Wan Yue stood to the side and helped her with the gift list. She came across a name and asked, ¡°Princess Consort, Shen Han Lin also gifted a fruit bowl. Do you want to return the gift?¡±


    ¡°Shen Han Lin?¡± Lin Wei Xi repeated. It suddenly clicked, ¡°was it Shen Ming Da¡¯s wife, Liu Su Niang, who sent it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it was Lady Liu.¡±


    Although Han Lin was known as the person everyone had to get through if they wanted to enter the cab, he hadn¡¯t made a name for himself yet. Today, the Prince Yan Residence received countless gifts from high ranking officials who¡¯d already made numerous contributions. Shen Ming Da¡¯s New Year gift had been mixed among his superiors¡¯ and was very inconspicuous.


    But Lin Wei Xi acted out of character and said, ¡°Bring me the fruit bowl Lady Liu gifted.¡±


    The maids were all dumbfounded. Only after Wan Yue pushed her from behind did Wan Xing suddenly realise what was going on and hurry out to retrieve the fruit bowl. After a while, she came back with a redcquered box in her arms, ¡°Princess Consort, this is the fruit bowl sent by the Shen Residence.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi opened it and took a look. It contained normal dried fruits, melons and dates that symbolised reunion. It wasn¡¯t difficult to understand that although Liu Su Niang had a small encounter with Lin Wei Xi at the Dragon Boat Festival, things were very different now. Lin Wei Xi was now the Princess Consort. Even if Liu Su Niang was grateful to her, she most likely didn¡¯t dare get too close. Although Liu Su Niang had sent a New Year¡¯s gift to the Prince Yan Residence, neither she nor Shen Ming Da had any expectation that Lin Wei Xi would return the gift. Hence, it was better to y safe and send a fruit bowl as their gift for their high ranking superior, the Prince Yan Residence. The best oue for them would be to not draw attention to themselves.


    Lin Wei Xi understood the situation when she saw the fruit bowl. She said to Wan Yue, ¡°Send a return gift to Lord Shen and his family. No need to make any special preparations. Just send a regr gift.¡±


    Even if Shen Ming Da was going to be the Grand Secretary, that was far in the future. Right now the best she could do was to send a regr return gift. If she was too impatient, it would instead be easy to shoot herself in the foot.


    Everyone was surprised, and even Gao Ran found it unexpected. Lin Wei Xi was afraid of rousing suspicion, so she pretended to be casual and exined, ¡°Liu Su Niang and I are acquaintances. It would be rude not to reciprocate. Since she sent a New Year¡¯s gift, our Prince Yan Residence has no reason to ignore it. Wan Yue, have a dependable young servant send it to Lord Shen¡¯s house.¡±


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue understood when Lin Wei Xi said that. They¡¯d followed her to the pce during the Dragon Boat Festival and Wan Yue remembered that Lin Wei Xi had even saved Liu Su Niang before. Although it was the Princess Consort who had helped the Shen family, since the Shen Residence had remembered her benevolence after all this time and specially gifted the fruit bowl, there was no reason for the Prince Yan Residence to avoid it. A noble¡¯s magnanimity was in treating everyone equally and kindly.


    Gao Ran remembered who Liu Su Niang was when she heard this. She¡¯d thought that Lin Wei Xi¡¯s behaviour was unusual, but stopped worrying and no longer paid attention when she realised that it was just a minor official¡¯s wife.


    The New Year¡¯s gifting was a very formal form of diplomacy between the various Residences. During the New Year, every Residence prepared festive dishes and sent it to the families they were friends with as a sign of etiquette. Since it involved food, every household had to prepare different things. This was a test of the mistress¡¯ skills. It truly required depth of knowledge to reliably and cleverly prepare the repetitive New Year food.


    Gao Ran stood and watched Lin Wei Xi handle the formal inner courtyard diplomacy and couldn¡¯t help feeling bitter. She and Lin Wei Xi were clearly around the same age, but Lin Wei Xi was now the one in charge while Gao Ran could only stand and watch. When would it be her turn to be the mistress of the household?


    Time passed quickly as Lin Wei Xi dealt with the iing and outgoing courtesy gifts while receiving a few Ladies who came to give their New Year¡¯s greetings. Before she knew it, the sky was growing dark.


    The reunion dinner<sup>¡ó</sup>was the highlight of that evening. Lin Wei Xi was sitting in the warm pavilion questioning the maids and grannies when footsteps suddenly sounded outside and a greeting followed, ¡°Greetings Prince, greetings Shizi.¡±


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran looked up at the door to see Gu Hui Yan and Gu Cheng Yao return. Both mother-inw and daughter-inw headed to the door to wee them. In just a few steps, the curtain to the inner room lifted.


    ¡°My Prince.¡± Lin Wei Xi walked towards Gu Hui Yan and he smoothly caught her as she bowed. They were husband and wife, but Gao Ran couldn¡¯t be as shameless as Lin Wei Xi. She could only give Gu Cheng Yao a wanfu across the crowd of people before returning to her position behind Lin Wei Xi.


    Gu Cheng Yao also merely nced at Gao Ran before looking away. He wasposed and seemed noble and solemn, like a gentleman. But inside, he couldn¡¯t stop thinking about how Lin Wei Xi looked as she smiled and weed them when he first entered the room. She was dressed very beautifully today, the dazzling red matching her snowy white skin, her beauty hard to resist. When she stood up from the inner room that was decorated in red and came to wee her husband, almost no man on earth would say no to that kind of temptation. But she only had eyes for his father, and she only smiled for his father.


    New Year¡¯s Eve was celebrated by the whole country and the New Year¡¯s Eve dinner was an important family reunion. Speaking from etiquette, Lin Wei Xi, Gu Cheng Yao, and Gao Ran were a family. Therefore, on a major day like New Year¡¯s Eve, she had to apany Gu Hui Yan as well as Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran to eat together, stay up for the New Year together, and wee the New Year together.


    New Year¡¯s Eve was a big festival. It used to be lively and bustling when the previous emperor was still alive. His Majesty often threw a banquet on the New Year¡¯s Eve and called the ministers into the pce to apany him through the festivities. But the current emperor was young and the positions of the empress and the four imperial concubines were all empty. The only woman in the pce was superstitious of gods and wasn¡¯t even His Majesty¡¯s biological mother, the Empress Dowager. There really wasn¡¯t anything lively happening. Moreover, if the Emperor held a banquet, he would have to invite the Grand Secretary, his teacher, Zhang Xiao Lian. Based on the Emperor¡¯s childish temperament, he most likely wouldn¡¯t want to see Master Zhang¡¯s face on New Year¡¯s Day.


    And that was why the pce banquet had been cancelled. Gu Hui Yan didn¡¯t need to enter the pce and was able to spend a rare reunion dinner in the Residence. In a normal family, the few generations usually gathered together for the New Years and it would be quite lively as theyughed and talked. Even in a small family, they wouldn¡¯t feel awkward saying affectionate things to each other. But in the Prince Yan Residence, when the four only masters sat down, no one spoke.


    The four of them were usually busy, so they really didn¡¯t have much to talk about when sitting down with each other. The maids had just changed the hot tea and pastries, and Lin Wei Xi was slowly picking out the tea amidst silence, when urgent footsteps suddenly sounded from outside the room. Gu Ming Da then quickly walked in and kneeled to greet Gu Hui Yan from the other side of the engraved folding screen, ¡°my Prince, His Majesty is here.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was so startled she stood up. It was New Year¡¯s Eve, and it was time for the reunion dinner. The little Emperor actually came to the Prince Yan Residence?

 Chapter 61

    The Emperor personally visiting the Prince Yan Residence on New Year¡¯s Eve was no small matter. It wasn¡¯t easy for the Emperor to leave the pce, especially on an important day like New Year. If the slightest thing went wrong, no one would be able to bear the responsibility.


    But he¡¯d still left the pce without a word, and his first stop was the Prince Yan Residence. When Lin Wei Xi heard this, she looked at Gu Hui Yan and sure enough, his reaction waspletely different from his subordinates, who rejoiced and felt deeply honoured. Although Gu Hui Yan looked calm as usual, there was an almost invisible seriousness in his eyes.


    Gu Hui Yan stood up and following his actions, the whole room quietened. The Emperor¡¯s goal for this trip was obviously Gu Hui Yan. He took two steps, seemed to think of something and halted before turning to Lin Wei Xi and said, ¡°I¡¯m going to wee His Majesty. Wait here for now.¡±


    Many people were waiting outside for Prince Yan, and it was at that moment he stopped in his footsteps and specifically exined it to the Princess Consort. No one around them dared to speak. Only Lin Wei Xi¡¯s voice could be heard, ¡°I understand my Prince.¡±


    Perhaps because he saw how tense she was, Gu Hui Yan covered her hand with his. His warm steady palms gave her an indescribable sense offort, ¡°I¡¯ll just be outside. Don¡¯t be afraid.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi instantly calmed down. She squeezed out a smile for him and nodded, ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll wait, my Prince.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan quickly left. The others who were waiting by the door saw him exit the room and silently followed after him. In the blink of an eye, the group of people disappeared from the inner courtyard decorated in red.


    The Emperor had personallye to the Prince Yan Residence on a day like the New Years, which was a day for reunions. It showed how important Prince Yan was to His Majesty. All the servants felt honoured to be associated with Prince Yan and revelled in receiving His Majesty. Wan Xing was from the countryside. Before meeting Lin Wei Xi, she never thought that one day, she¡¯d actually meet the Emperor. Wan Xing couldn¡¯t contain the joy on her face. When she saw Lin Wei Xi¡¯s indifferent expression, she couldn¡¯t help saying, ¡°Princess Consort, His Majesty is here. Perhaps he will even stay for dinner.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Lin Wei Xi replied softly. When the Emperor arrived, she had to pretend to be happy and grateful. She had a smile on her face, but her heart sank. Why had The Emperor abandoned the Empress Dowager and everyone in the pce, and went through the trouble toe to the Prince Yan Residence? It was impossible to hide this from everyone. What was he nning?


    Gu Hui Yan left to receive the Emperor but Gu Cheng Yao stayed behind. Not everyone had the right to meet His Majesty. The Emperor was currently travelling incognito. If he asked to meet Prince Yan¡¯s family, it was, of course, not an issue. But if he didn¡¯t ask, then it was best to stay put.


    Everyone in the room was smiling, but Gu Cheng Yao could tell with a nce that Lin Wei Xi wasn¡¯t truly smiling. He nced back at her again and couldn¡¯t help saying to her, ¡°Since the Emperor is travelling incognito and didn¡¯t give advance notice, he won¡¯t be too fussy about the reception. Mother¡­ there¡¯s no need to be nervous.¡±


    Gao Ran looked at Gu Cheng Yao in surprise. Why had Gu Cheng Yao specifically said this to Lin Wei Xi? Was he trying tofort her? Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t even bother to respond and merely nodded vaguely with an ¡°um¡±.


    Before long, hurried footsteps sounded from outside. The maids and the pce eunuchs hurried into the inner courtyard. Lin Wei Xi stood when she heard the footsteps. After hearing the message from the pce attendant, she immediately took everyone to wait respectfully by the door. Following the family hierarchy, Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran were Lin Wei Xi¡¯s son and daughter-inw, so she stood facing the wind in front while Gu Cheng Yao stood one step behind her. Gu Cheng Yao couldn¡¯t help feeling upset as he gazed at the ming red and delicate back in front of him.


    Soon after, the Emperor appeared surrounded by everyone. The Emperor, who was still a child, walked in the middle. Next to him was Gu Hui Yan and behind the two of them were many eunuchs wearing the pce uniform.


    Lin Wei Xi bowed deeply the moment she saw the Emperor. The beautifuldy¡¯s folded skirts piled against the floor, her head tilted slightly, and her neck was especially slender and graceful. Gu Hui Yan instantly recognized Lin Wei Xi in the crowd. After he approached, the Emperor smiled as he spread his hands, ¡°Princess Consort, please rise. Today, Zhen arrived uninvited and not only disturbed Uncle, but rudely troubled Aunt. Zhen has gone too far.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi lowered her head and said she didn¡¯t dare. Although the Emperor had allowed her to get up, she still properly paid her respects to him before slowly standing up with the help of the maids.


    Gu Hui Yan said, ¡°The wind is strong at night. We shouldn¡¯t let Your Majesty stand outside for too long. If we have anything to talk about, we can do it inside.¡±


    The little Emperor consented to it, and the group noisily walked into the building. Before the Emperor arrived, Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan were sitting on elevated seats at the head of the table. Now that the Emperor had suddenly visited, Lin Wei Xi definitely couldn¡¯t let him sit in the second seat. She gave up her seat and a quick witted maid brought over a lightweight armchair for her. She ended up next to Gu Hui Yan.


    In the small room sat the few most honourable and respected people in the world surrounded by gold and jade, the lingering fragrance billowing slowly. The maids and pce eunuchs stood with their heads bowed in respect, the servants like clouds. Everything was noble, magnificent and colourful. The young Emperor dressed in crimson inclothes sat facing Gu Hui Yan. Although Lin Wei Xi sat on a smaller chair, she leaned closely against Gu Hui Yan, so it was obvious who she was. Gu Cheng Yao, Gao Ran, and the others were left to stand, and behind them stood many more maids and servants.


    After the host and guest sat down, the maids entered one after another and served hot tea and pastries, before bowing their heads, holding their breaths and withdrawing, moving soundlessly. After everyone left, the Emperor was the first to smile and say, ¡°Uncle, Aunt and Shizi were having a reunion. Zhen disturbed Uncle¡¯s reunion with the entire family. Zhen is truly sorry.¡±


    ¡°Your Majesty, that¡¯s incorrect. It is an honour that Your Majesty has graced the Prince Yan Residence with your presence.¡± Gu Hui Yan said.


    The Emperor was now thirteen years old and transitioning from child to teenager. With a slender neck and fair skin, he looked young and full of life. He smiled at Gu Hui Yan¡¯s words and replied, ¡°Uncle, you¡¯re being too formal. ording to the family hierarchy, Zhen and Shizi are brothers. We¡¯re all a family. All is well as long as Uncle doesn¡¯t dislike Zhen foring uninvited and disturbing your family conversation. How can Zhen use royal etiquette to trouble Uncle and the Princess Consort.¡±


    The Emperor¡¯s smile seemed clean and kind. This was a privilege every child and teenager had. No matter what they did, it was very difficult for anyone to loathe them. Gu Hui Yan nodded and smiled when he heard this, ¡°of course. Luckily, Gu Cheng Yao is a few years older than Your Majesty. Thank you for considering him family and calling him brother. Both of you are in the same generation and will have moremon topics to talk about. Be it studying or martial arts, if he and Your Majesty can learn from each other on a regr basis, it will serve him well.¡±


    The Emperor¡¯s smile became more sincere when he heard this. Although Lin Wei Xi sat close to the Emperor, Gu Hui Yan covered for her and she felt more safe. She didn¡¯t need to pick up on any hidden intentions that the Emperor had. She slowly pondered over the Emperor and Gu Hui Yan¡¯s conversation earlier. They appeared to be making small talk, but if one wasn¡¯t listening carefully, it would be hard to discern the subtle implications in their words. The Emperor visiting the Prince Yan Residence on New Year¡¯s Eve was already very significant and had even purposely said that they were of the same family earlier. And after that, Gu Hui Yan affirmed the Emperor and brought Gu Cheng Yao up. Gu Cheng Yao was from the younger generation. Letting the younger generation socialise was much better than Prince Yan promising good rtions.


    The Emperor couldn¡¯t truly travel from afar just to exchange pointers with Gu Cheng Yao. What he wanted was Prince Yan¡¯s political position. Right now there were many factions in the imperial court, and Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s followers were everywhere. Prince Yan was a titled prince and at the same timemanded a troop of 100,000 soldiers. Just whose side exactly was he on? This was the implication behind the ¡°same family¡± that the Emperor mentioned.


    By the time Lin Wei Xi picked up the subtle implication of these two sentences, the conversation between Gu Hui Yan and the Emperor had already moved on. She couldn¡¯t help sighing to herself. No wonder they said that bing a close minister to the Son of Heaven wasn¡¯t appealing. This was the most powerful, and at the same time, the most dangerous ce to be. If it were her, she¡¯d most likely still be trying to understand the meaning behind the Emperor¡¯s words, and the conversation would have ended. There was no way she¡¯d be able to be like Gu Hui Yan, answering without hesitating, dealing with the Emperor in aposed manner, andmunicating with hidden meaning in his words.


    The Emperor got a satisfactory answer, and obviously became very high-spirited. Lin Wei Xi looked at the time and took the opportunity to ask, ¡°Your Majesty, the Residence¡¯s New Year¡¯s banquet is ready. May I be so bold to ask if Your Majesty would like to attend?¡±


    ¡°Of course. For a long time, Zhen has looked forward to meeting the Prince Yan Consort, who is said to have a pure heart and as elegant as an orchid. Even The Empress Dowager, who stays in the inner pce, has heard about you. Zhen never expected to see you today.¡± The Emperor stood as he spoke, and everyone around him stood up as well. However, he took his time and said to Lin Wei Xi, ¡°Although Queen Mother livesfortably in the pce, it¡¯s inevitable that she will be lonely, without anyone to talk to. Prince Yan Consort, if you have the time, there¡¯s no harm in visiting the pce more.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi responded with a smile, ¡°I will.¡±


    His Majesty took his seat and the Residence¡¯s reunion dinner was immediately elevated to a higher level. Fortunately, Lin Wei Xi standardised the management of the inner courtyard. Now that she had a high enough status, she didn¡¯t need to be wary of the servants under her, nor were there people like Granny Bu to criticise her. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s arrangements were all the more irond and strict. The servants all had their own responsibilities, and Lin Wei Xi¡¯s directions were understandable, so in an exceptional situation like His Majesty¡¯s sudden visit, no mistakes were made.


    When the Emperor suddenly arrived, much of the kitchen preparations had to be done over again. In such a situation where time was tight and the pressure was high, it was easiest for problems to arise. Gao Ran initially worried, but when she saw the annual banquet being served without a single detail being overlooked, without a single disagreeable aspect, Gao Ran¡¯s feelings becameplicated.


    Gao Ran nced at Gu Cheng Yao to find that he was also obviously relieved, a hint of admiration present between his brows. She pursed her lips and looked away. After this incident, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s position in the inner courtyard would most likely be even more untouchable. She could even arrange a banquet with the Emperor in a moment. Was there anyone left who¡¯d doubt her. Even a mistress who¡¯d managed a household for twenty, thirty years probably wouldn¡¯t dare brag about such a thing.


    The Emperor said that he wanted to have New Year¡¯s Eve dinner with the Prince Yan Residence, but in reality he only sat down for a few rounds of drinks with Gu Hui Yan before leaving. Now, the news that the Emperor had left the pce had most likely spread to every household. Even if the Emperor didn¡¯t want to, he still had to visit Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s house.


    After the Emperor left, everyone in the residence silently heaved a sigh of relief.


    Gu Hui Yan still looked calm, but Lin Wei Xi spent so much time together with him day and night and could immediately tell that although he looked calm, the subtle change in his expression hinted that he had a lot on his mind. Only the young Emperor who just left could cause Gu Hui Yan to have that kind of expression.


    ¡°My Prince.¡± Lin Wei Xi whispered softly. Gu Hui Yan returned to his senses, nced at her, and held her hand under the table, ¡°It¡¯s alright. His Majesty has already left for the Zhang Residence. We don¡¯t need to worry about entering the pce. Continue eating.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi nodded in response, and Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran sat down in an orderly fashion. However, after this episode, none of them could taste the food, and no one could rx and focus on the meal.


    Lin Wei Xi saw several people put down their chopsticks, as if they didn¡¯t want to continue anymore, and beckoned the maids to clear the New Year¡¯s Eve banquet. The maids removed the dishes quietly, while the masters made their move to the next room and took their seats.


    This was the first time in her two lives that Lin Wei Xi had spent New Years together with her inws. There was a huge difference between an unmarried daughter and a daughter-inw. She usually did her best to find a quiet ce with her sisters and maids so they could talk, but now she definitely couldn¡¯t do that. Luckily, Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t have a mother-inw and the only person older than her in the Residence was Prince Yan. However, apanying one¡¯s husband versus apanying one¡¯s inws to wee the New Year were clearly two different things. Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t feel that apanying Gu Hui Yan was unbearable at all.


    Despite being in the same situation, Gao Ran¡¯s state of mind was on the other end of the spectrum, as she had to constantly follow Lin Wei Xi. Lin Wei Xi sat down and felt sleepy, her eyes heavy with sleep. But she considered herself an elder who had to remain dignified in front of the juniors, so she forced her eyelids open. After a while, her eyes grew misty, her gaze bleary and unfocused.


    A sleepy Lin Wei Xi was slow to react. Compared to her usual eloquence, her eyes were now misty and she looked harmless and innocent. To the people who were often scolded by her, she now looked undoubtedly much cuter.


    This was what Gu Cheng Yao thought. Of course he knew it was inappropriate. She was his stepmother and he had to keep this to himself no matter how he felt. Not only was it disrespectful to his young stepmother, it was also disrespectful to his father. But even though he looked away, he couldn¡¯t stop the scene he saw earlier from reying in his mind. So that was how Lin Wei Xi looked when she was sleepy; her reaction was slow and she looked weak and delicate.


    Gu Hui Yan solemnly sat upright for a while but couldn¡¯t hold back anymore. He sighed and reached out to support Lin Wei Xi, who was swaying back and forth, and said, ¡°Since you¡¯re sleepy, just go back and take a rest.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s head wasn¡¯t very clear at the moment. Sleepy people were simr to drunk people in that they hated it the most when others called them sleepy. She pped Gu Hui Yan¡¯s hand away, ¡°I¡¯m not sleepy.¡±


    The whole room went silent. The Princess Consort had actually pped away Prince Yan¡¯s hand? Wan Xing felt utterly suffocated. She wanted to step forward and shake Lin Wei Xi awake to remind her of where she was, but found that Prince Yan merely sighed, supported her shoulder, andid her head on hisp.


    Lin Wei Xi followed along andid down. After a while, she fell into a muddled slumber. Gu Hui Yan straightened the hair that was spread out on the back of her neck, and immediately returned to minding his own business without the slightest hint of being offended. Wan Xing watched this happen, dumbfounded. Only after someone tugged her sleeves did she silently return to her senses. Just like the many people in the room who were gasping, she pretended not to see anything.


    Lin Wei Xi didn¡¯t know what was going on, only that she slept warmly andfortably. After an unknown period of time, someone gently shook her awake, ¡°Wake up. The New Year is here.¡±

 Chapter 62

    Lin Wei Xi was in a very deep sleep, but someone was trying to wake her from her slumber. She thought that it was Wan Xing ying around, and pped away the person¡¯s hand, muttering ¡°don¡¯t be noisy¡± before turning around and going back to sleep.


    The person seemed to sighed and said, ¡°It¡¯s me. Everyone is weing the New Year, hang on through this and you can go back to sleep when we return.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi felt something was wrong when she heard the voice. She opened her eyes and found herself lying on ck coloured embroidery. And because she wasn¡¯t sleeping in a proper position, she was almost entirely in the other person¡¯s embrace.


    Lin Wei Xi pushed herself up absent-mindedly and happened to meet Gu Hui Yan¡¯s gaze. She looked at him, dumbfounded. Her foggy mind finally clearing a little, she quickly looked around at the other people in the room.


    Fortunately, the room was very quiet. The sound of firecrackers going off one after another merged into a sea of ??sound. The servants seemed fascinated by the excitement and had all left to watch the fireworks. Aside from her and Gu Hui Yan, no one else remained in the room.


    But how could Gu Hui Yan not have any servant on standby next to him? Lin Wei Xi was a little embarrassed. He had obviously chased everyone out because of her. Since he¡¯d done this, wouldn¡¯t everyone know that she¡¯d fallen asleep while weing the new year and that she was still nestled in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s arms?


    Oh God, Lin Wei Xi simply couldn¡¯t continue thinking about it. How would she be able to face her subordinates and give them orders after this. Not even that. If she went out now, how was she supposed to face the maids and grannies outside, or even her son and daughter-inw? It was enough to make her head hurt.


    She whimpered and dejectedly rubbed her head, ¡°My Prince, why didn¡¯t you wake me?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi knew the answer to her question after it left her mouth. It was quite troublesome to wake her up, and what could Gu Hui Yan say in front of everyone? She felt a little apologetic. This was her mistake, but instead she¡¯d questioned him. However, he wasn¡¯t impatient at all and wasn¡¯t bothered by her grumbling. Instead, he said seriously, ¡°There¡¯s no need for that. You would usually be in bed early at this time. There¡¯s no need to force yourself to stay awake, sleep if you¡¯re tired.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan was always like this: putting himself in other people¡¯s shoes and being considerate. Lin Wei Xi was very touched. Seeing as she just woke up, she gave a little stretch and immediately took the opportunity to hug Gu Hui Yan, before returning to her previous position. She¡¯d slept there for so long that the cool stiff fabric had absorbed her warmth. She couldn¡¯t resist rubbing against it and she heard Gu Hui Yanughing from above her.


    ¡°You¡¯re already awake but you¡¯re still acting coy. There are others outside.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi originally considered stopping while she was ahead, but when Gu Hui Yan said this, she hugged him and refused to move. She tilted her face up from where it was resting against his chest and blinked at him intentionally, ¡°My Prince, didn¡¯t you chase everyone out? What is there to be afraid of?¡±


    Based on the standards Gu Hui Yan abided by over the years, it was absolutely taboo to wear dishevelled clothes or have poor posture in a public gathering. Lin Wei Xi had now vited both of them. Gu Hui Yan ought to have seriously corrected her from the start, and even instructed her to sit upright, but as he watched his little wife nestled in his arms acting coquettishly, he was surprisingly reluctant to correct her.


    Gu Hui Yan¡¯s momentary hesitation gave Lin Wei Xi the encouragement to take greater liberties. Seeing as he was silent, she knew that although he seemed virtuous and meticulous, when it came to her little tricks, he quite enjoyed them. He merely refused to admit it. There was no one here anyway. Since she¡¯d started it, she might as well see it through to the end, and immediately wrapped her hands around his neck. With this, all her weight was on her waist, and it twisted in a beautiful and captivating line. However, Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t see this view from her angle. Gu Hui Yan put his hand on her waist, and it was at this moment that she leaned towards his ear and whispered, ¡°My Prince, this is our second year of marriage. Happy New Year.¡±


    Gu Hui Yan looked down at Lin Wei Xi. They were extremely close to each other, breathing the same air. Lin Wei Xi had intended to be provocative, but seeing the look in his eyes now, she couldn¡¯t help feeling a little afraid, and even faintly regretted her earlier rashness.


    The resounding echo of fireworks carried in from outside. It seemed that the young manservants had brought a new batch of fireworks and lit them all together for fun. The look in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s eyes disappeared and he pulled Lin Wei Xi into hisp. This way, she wouldn¡¯t continue to lean her weight on her waist. He straightened the hairpin on the side of her hair and said, ¡°Today is one of the few days in the year that¡¯s so lively. Let¡¯s go and watch the fireworks.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi thought the same. She¡¯d long since outgrown the age for being curious about fireworks, but as the Princess Consort and mistress of the household, it was inappropriate for her not to make an appearance in front of everyone in the residence during shousui<sup>¡ó</sup>. She¡¯d originally nned to call for Wan Xing and Wan Yue, but perhaps because the sound of firecrackers outside was too loud, the maid by the door couldn¡¯t hear her. Lin Wei Xi felt embarrassed, but before she could repeat herself, Gu Hui Yan had her cloak in his hands. He carefully buttoned up and straightened out the fine fur on her coat.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi immediately became quiet and silently watched Gu Hui Yan as he worked on her coat. When he got to the buttons, she reached out to take over for him, but was stopped by him. It was only after he straightened it out to his satisfaction that he patted her head, a smile in his eyes, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    He was already holding on to her hand, so he led her outside. Come to think of it, it was strange that no one heard her call for a maid in the room earlier. But as soon as the door opened, the servants, who were doing who knows what earlier, immediately looked at her and greeted her one by one. The wind was a little strong outside, and the fur on her hood danced wildly in the night breeze. Half of her face was covered by white fur. It was too cold to take her hands out, so she nodded slightly at the servants greeting her, signalling that she¡¯d heard their greet.


    With the main courtyard of the Prince Yan Residence being sorge, in addition to the strong evening wind and deafening sound of firecrackers, it was hard to notice activity in any corner of the courtyard. But the moment Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan emerged, everyone in the courtyard was immediately conscious of them. Although Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran were quite far away, as soon as the door opened, they nced over out of the corner of their eye. Lin Wei Xi and Gu Hui Yan¡¯s figures appeared and they stepped out together.


    Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran had moved to another room for shousui earlier. Lin Wei Xi falling asleep on Prince Yan¡¯sp wasn¡¯t something they ought to see. Yet, this was how humans were. Sometimes, the less they saw, the easier it was to let their imagination run wild. It was only when they weed the new year, the whole city releasing firecrackers, that Gao Ran saw the two of them appear in public, after waiting outside for a quarter of an hour.


    Although Gao Ran smiled as she stood outside epting everyone¡¯s congrattions, she only had to imagine what had happened inside the room before she felt the disgust from earlier ooze from every pore of her body. What did it feel like to watch your father-inw and mother-inw show affection? Apart from Gao Ran, perhaps only Gu Cheng Yao could rte to that question.


    For the past eighteen years, Gu Cheng Yao¡¯s impression of his father had always been proper, solemn, dignified and invincible. Gu Hui Yan also approved everything Gu Cheng Yao imagined about his father. He respected and admired his father from the bottom of his heart. But no matter what, he didn¡¯t expect his father to give his full attention to a woman¡¯s needs. Gu Cheng Yao had also been there at the time. Of course he could see Prince Yan¡¯s constant attention for Lin Wei Xi. None of her small actions could even be concealed from his father. And his father, who had always been cold and indifferent, was careful and meticulous as he ced her on hisp, treating her like a priceless treasure.


    A year ago, if someone had told Gu Cheng Yao that Prince Yan could be this considerate, he would¡¯ve scoffed at them. But now, he was speechless.


    Especially when Gu Cheng Yao realised that this indescribablyplicated feeling was not directed at Lin Wei Xi, but at his father, Gu Hui Yan. Although Gu Hui Yan hadn¡¯t said anything aloud at the time, no one dared to remain in the room. He didn¡¯t allow anyone to see what Lin Wei Xi looked like after falling asleep, but he himself stayed in the room for over an hour. Gu Cheng Yao suddenly realised what it was that he was thinking. His fist clenched tightly by his side. At that moment, a cold gust of wind blew by. Gu Cheng Yao covered it up by taking a deep breath of ice-cold air and allowed his mind, most likely lethargic from staying upte, to calm down.


    Now that they¡¯d seen them, Gu Cheng Yao and Gao Ran definitely had to pay their respects to their parents and give their New Year¡¯s greetings. Although they stood next to each other, they were each in their own thoughts, and it seemed like they were in discord with one another as they made their way over.


    Lin Wei Xi wore a scarlet cloak, fluffy white fur lining the ruff of her hood. She stood under the vermilion corridor, quiet and elegant. Her silence carried an unassable magnificence, like Zhao Jun<sup>¡ó</sup>came to life, a goddess descended to the mortal realm. Seeing Gao Ran and Gu Cheng Yaoing over to pay their respects, she simply nodded slightly before turning her gaze back to look at the dark night sky.


    ¡ó


    It was quite dark this evening, the air was cold and it carried the strong scent of fire. This was the distinctive ambience of New Years. The Prince Yan Residence had prepared many various fireworks. The young male servants eagerly and continuously moved the barrels of firecrackers to the courtyard, then they reached out to light the fuse. The maids covered their ears and stood in the corridor. No one knew whether they were afraid or delighted watching the young men as they lit the firecrackers, shouting and jumping.


    Lin Wei Xi was unwittingly enthralled watching such excitement, her earlier sleepiness disappearing without a trace. Wan Xing was lively and had been unable to hold back herself early on, taking an incense stick and making a ruckus as she lit fireworks in the courtyard. Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t helpughing when she saw this. She stood in the corridor and wasn¡¯t looking at anyone, but many people were secretly paying attention to her. The Princess Consort, who was so beautiful she didn¡¯t seem real, looked to be smiling. Many of those who were setting off the fireworks were inspired, and came up with even more ways to light the fireworks, hoping to win the Princess Consort¡¯s attention.


    Wan Xing truly yed in a rowdy manner. Although Wan Yue was happy for her, she wasposed by nature and tended to contemte things more. Wan Yue called Wan Xing back and said, ¡°There are so many servants in the garden to take care of such things. Look at the state of you after going along with them to light fireworks. Why don¡¯t you take a break for now. Your priority is to serve the Princess Consort.¡±


    Wan Xing was in the mood to y and was reluctant to suddenly be called back, but she knew that Wan Yue said this for her own good. Wan Xing could only mumble to herself and hand the incense stick to the maid next to her. However, she was downcast for barely two seconds before she saw Lin Wei Xi and became excited again, ¡°Princess Consort, you¡¯re awake?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi coldly pursed her lip and smiled in response to hide her embarrassment. Wan Xing didn¡¯t notice this. She was still excited, like she¡¯d been injected by chicken blood<sup>¡ó</sup>, ¡°Princess Consort, it¡¯s a pity there are no children in the residence. The fireworks can only be lit by the servants. In a few years, the young masters will be running everywhere. At that time, the New Year fireworks will be lively!¡±


    ¡ó


    Sinceing outside, Lin Wei Xi had been standing next to Gu Hui Yan, but the noise out here was so loud that no one could be heard unless they were shouting. With the sound of firecrackers concealing it, Lin Wei Xi and her maid did not appear to be having an unexpected conversation. But now that Wan Xing, this dim-wit, said such a thing, Lin Wei Xi hurried a nce at Gu Hui Yan to find that he was still looking ahead and didn¡¯t seem like he¡¯d heard. Relieved, she immediately red at Wan Xing.


    With regards to children, Lin Wei Xi¡¯s attitude had always been to let nature take its course. After all, this was a patriarchal society. If a woman wanted to survive, she couldn¡¯t avoid bearing a son. But she knew that her identity was sensitive. Would Prince Yan allow her to give birth to an heir? A daughter was fine, but what if she had a son?


    Lin Wei Xi refused to think too deeply about this question, so she never allowed the maids to mention it in front of Prince Yan. It was out of the question even if they did it by ident. She didn¡¯t want Gu Hui Yan to think that she was hinting at something.


    This was something she¡¯d thought through already, but at that moment, her excitement for the New Year suddenly dimmed, and the endless stream of fireworks before her lost its appeal. Lin Wei Xi¡¯s mind naturally wandered. She stared at one spot in a daze, when a violent explosion of firecrackers suddenly sounded behind her. She was startled and took a step back in fright.


    Fortunately, there was no small number of people who were frightened. The courtyard filled with screams and Lin Wei Xi¡¯s loss ofposure was no big deal. She took a step back. Before she recovered from the shock, she felt someone support her arm. Following that, her ears were covered by a warmth, the deafening firecrackers instantly fading away.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s violently beating heart slowly settled down. Her ears were blocked so the sound of her heartbeat was especially clear. Beat after beat, it was a strong presence in her chest. Gu Hui Yan was much taller than her, and now he bent slightly over her to cover her ears. Not only her ears, she could also clearly feel the heat of his body on her back. It was as if her whole person was wrapped in his arms. As if there was no need to fear the fire and loud noise outside. All she needed to do was appreciate the beauty of the fireworks without being concerned about the noise that came with such beauty.


    Lin Wei Xi pursed her lips and finally stopped struggling. She allowed Gu Hui Yan to partially hug her in front of everyone. All the gorgeous and noisy firecrackers exploded quickly, as sparks as bright as peacocks sounded in the courtyard. Everything was indescribably lively and beautiful. Lin Wei Xi took advantage of the darkness to hide the corners of her mouth that were quietly raised.


    That¡¯s right, the New Year was here. Last year¡¯s New Year hadn¡¯t been pleasant. In December, she¡¯d endured a hopeless marriage until death. She¡¯d died at the mere age of seventeen after being married for less than a year. When she¡¯d woken up again, although she¡¯d been lucky enough to continue living, she was faced with Lin Wei Xi¡¯s difficult family situation. It had also been difficult for her to celebrate her first New Year after being reborn with a peace of mind. But the fifth year of Yuanjia had passed. That year, she¡¯d met Prince Yan, whom she¡¯d never met in her previous life, gave up her entire life and glory from her previous life, and had no choice but to return to this residence that had brought her both honour and suffering. But in the sixth year of Yuanjia, she weed the first day of the New Year in Gu Hui Yan¡¯s embrace that seemed to carry a cold air.

 Chapter 63

    For the imperial court, New Year¡¯s Eve wasn¡¯t the most important celebration. The first day of the New Year was.


    Early in the morning on the first day of New Years, the entire capital was filled with an unusual energy. It was still dark in the east, but every residence had lit itsmps. Even earlier than that, officials in full dress stood waiting in front of chengtianmen<sup>¡ó</sup>. The most stately affair of the year was congratting the Emperor by bowing to him on the morning of the first day of New Years. On this day, hundreds of court officials performed the ceremony and every country attended court. This was the power of a great country.


    ¡ó


    The congrattory ceremony on New Year¡¯s morning was conducted with extreme prudence. Normally, all titled wives, including the women in the imperial family as well as those outside the imperial family, also had to enter the pce to conduct the congrattory ceremony with the Empress and the Empress Dowager. But the Empress¡¯ pce was empty as the Emperor had yet to choose an Empress, so the rites for the women¡¯s congrattory ceremony were much simpler. Therefore, it was enough to suffer from dawn till afternoon.


    Today, Lin Wei Xi got up before dawn, tormented as she got into the sophisticated court attire. She put on the Imperial Princess Consort¡¯s ceremonial long sleeved garment. She wore a jiudi<sup>¡ó</sup>headdress lined with in muslin. A dark green juyi<sup>¡ó</sup>was fastened over her garments, cloud and phoenix patterns embroidered with luxurious gold thread on the front and back. After hanging the jade pendant and ornaments on the juyi, she wore a voluminous, grand red silk long sleeved garment on top of everything else. Finally, sheyered on a long xiapei<sup>¡ó</sup>with a gold pendant at the bottom to weigh it down. Her entire outfit had a total of five to sixyers and there were even many jade pendants and colourful ribbons between each garment. The sleeves of the red long sleeved garment almost touched the floor and when she moved, the dark green juyi and jade pendants were partially visible. Not to mention, the jiudi headdress was decorated with real gold, silver, jade and precious stones. Wearing such morous clothes, Lin Wei Xi was too noble and awe-inspiring to look at , but the weight behind that privilege was heavy.


    ¡ó


    Although heavy, the Central in<sup>¡ó</sup>was known as a nation of etiquette. Theseplicated details were the best kind of power. Every detail on the ceremonial dress, even a tiny embroidered flower, indicated status and order. It was precisely when Lin Wei Xi stood in the main hall for the congrattory ceremony that the sum of these details made her look dignified and magnificent.


    ¡ó


    Lin Wei Xi was a titled wife outside the imperial family. But since there was no Empress, and as the Prince Yan Consort, the other Princess Consorts did not dare stand in front of her even though she was the youngest. Lin Wei Xi tried to decline, but to no avail. So she stood at the head of the titled wives, elegantly and solemnly leading the crowd to perform the congrattory ceremony, appearing a little like the powerful leader of the titled wives.


    Actually, the ceremony had been simplified a lot. After all,pared to the Empress Dowager, the Empress was the true focus of the ceremony. Since the Emperor was young and had yet to marry an Empress, it was reasonable for the women¡¯s congrattory ceremony to be cancelled. However, Grand Secretary Zhang was very stubborn about these trivial and over-borate formalities. Not only did he nitpick the actions and behaviour of all the ministers, even the Emperor wasn¡¯t spared. He would also impeach the schrs who came every ten days to teach the Emperor literature and history if they made the slightest mistake. If the men conducted themselves like this, then of course Lin Wei Xi and the women had to put up with it as well.


    While weing the New Year the night before, everyone sleptte. And today, they had to wake up at dawn to wear their ceremonial attire. After that, dressed from head to toe in 5 kg worth of clothes, they attended the long-winded and overlyplicated congrattory ceremony. They stood and knelt over and over again who knows how many times. Lin Wei Xi and the other youth were still alright afterpleting the ceremony, but many of the elderly titled Ladies couldn¡¯t take it anymore. When the ceremony ended, even Empress Dowager Qian breathed a sigh of relief and quickly had someone help her to the rear to rest.


    When the Empress Dowager Qian left, all the other women could rx. Even though the congrattory ceremony was over, they couldn¡¯t leave the pce. They had to participate in the pce banquet and could only return once it was over. But the most troublesome ceremony was over and there wasn¡¯t much to do in the remaining time. Grand Secretary Zhang was simply too demanding when it came to these trivial and over-borate formalities. Making a mistake would unfortunately cause trouble for the entire family.


    Fortunately, the congrattory ceremony ended smoothly. As the women couldn¡¯t leave the pce yet, they used the remaining time to socialise. The congrattory ceremony had strong symbolic meaning. In addition, everyone wore their grandest clothes today. No matter how much they normally bragged, with the strict hierarchical rules, their status was obvious at a nce. Therefore, many of the Ladies, together with their hardworking children and grandchildren, liked to socialise on the New Year¡¯s Day banquet after the congrattory ceremony.


    Everyone dispersed from their positions in the congrattory ceremony formation. Lin Wei Xi merely stood there, but was soon surrounded by the other Ladies who came to greet her, before she could step aside to rest for a moment.


    All those eligible to participate in the congrattory ceremony were respected titled Ladies. The next most honourable thing a man could do after distinguishing himself was to first confer a title to his mother, then to his wife. Thus, the Ladies who participated in the congrattory ceremony were generally quite old. Being around forty was considered young, and it wasn¡¯t umon for these old nobles to be seventy or eighty with white hair. Lin Wei Xi was only seventeen this year and especially stood out among them. On top of that, she was radiantly beautiful. The more splendid her clothes were, the more it set off how exquisite and splendid she was. She also looked exceptionally dazzling as she stood at the front throughout the entire ceremony.


    Yesterday evening, it had spread throughout the capital that the Emperor had left the pce during the New Year¡¯s. His first stop had been the Prince Yan Residence, where he¡¯d stayed for half a meal (10-15 minutes). The remaining half was spent at Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s house. With this, it was clear how highly the Emperor thought of Prince Yan. Prince Yan had control of the army, and now it seemed like the new Emperor trusted him greatly. The Emperor even took the initiative to participate in his New Year¡¯s Eve family banquet. His status could easily be inferred. The weight of three consecutive generations of Emperors relying heavily on Prince Yan was too scary.


    Lin Wei Xi, the Prince Yan Consort, attracted attention as soon as she showed up today. If everyone had looked at her with curiosity and respect before, there was cautiousness and even fear today. Lin Wei Xi sighed to herself. The three regent ministers left by the previous Emperor initially held the same status, but when the Emperor did things like this, it forced the three of them into a hierarchy. But as the young Emperor grew up, his ambitions and schemes gradually grew. This wasn¡¯t something that could be avoided even if one wanted to.


    Before marriage, a woman was apanied by her mother and aunt when socialising, and after marriage, she followed her mother-inw. All anyone could see in the main hall were Ladies talking to each other, bringing along their daughter-inw and even granddaughter-inw. Daughter-inws supported their mother-inw with a gentle smile. No matter how it was like in their family, they all looked like gentle mother-inws and filial daughter-inws here. But Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran looked very strange.


    Lin Wei Xi, the mother-inw, stood in front, and was simply younger and more beautiful than her daughter-inw. If everyone around her hadn¡¯t seen the Imperial Princess Consort dress she wore, they wouldn¡¯t believe it at all.


    After seeing off several Ladies who had previously given their New Year¡¯s greetings, Lin Wei Xi took the opportunity to walk towards a small room to the side. The weight of the jiudi headdress on top of her head was heavy and she felt that her neck would snap if she didn¡¯t rest.


    In such a situation, Gao Ran didn¡¯t have the authority to freely move around. She could only follow her mother-inw. Wherever Lin Wei Xi went and whoever she talked to, she had to follow. Even if she saw her maternal family, she couldn¡¯t act without her mother-inw¡¯s permission.


    The daughter-inw would rise from her humble position to finally be a mother-inw who takes charge of important matters. This wasn¡¯t just a saying.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang had alsoe to the pce today for the congrattory ceremony. She was resting in the side room, and was pleasantly surprised when she saw Lin Wei Xi. Lin Wei Xi was just thinking about looking for her maternal grandmother, but she didn¡¯t expect to coincidentally meet her in the room where she was resting. Lin Wei Xi hurriedly greeted her and moved to bow to her, ¡°Greetings to Princess Royal. This junior wishes you Happy New Year.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi was halfway through her bow when she was quickly assisted by the female official next to Shou Kang. Even though Lin Wei Xi was one hundred percent a junior, because of Prince Yan¡¯s current standing, Princess Royal Shou Kang didn¡¯t dare to ept her bow. Shou Kang had someone help Lin Wei Xi up and smiled as she held her hand. She nced left and right, ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you for some time. You¡¯re so heartless. Once you got yourself a husband, you stopped visiting this old woman.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi chuckled and sat next to Princess Royal Shou Kang, leaning against her affectionately, ¡°How could I forget you? I hate that I was unable to visit the Princess Residence every day. Fortunately, the Residence has many trivial matters to take care of at the end of the year, otherwise you would definitely be sick of seeing me now.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kangughed in amusement. In actuality, the two hadn¡¯t seen each other for only a month. It wasn¡¯t easy for women to leave the house and meeting once a month or every other month was quite frequent. Lin Wei Xi was a newlywed, and had just taken over such arge residence. It was normal for her to be unable to get away at the end of the year. But for Shou Kang, one month felt many times longer when she didn¡¯t see her.


    Shou Kang was quite old and theseplicated and tedious ceremonies were too much for her. But when she saw Lin Wei Xi, her fatigue instantly swept away. Her whole body seemed to have limitless energy. Shou Kang took Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand and asked all sorts of questions extremely affectionately. However, she didn¡¯t even spare a nce at Gao Ran, her granddaughter in name, who came with Lin Wei Xi.


    Gao Ran stood to the side and couldn¡¯t help feeling embarrassed, her expression ugly. Gao Ranforted herself by telling herself that when the Heavens are about to bestow great responsibility on a person, it first makes them go through suffering to harden their will. These two viins had only gotten their way for now and she¡¯d let them act as they pleased for the time being. In the future, she¡¯d certainly repay them tenfold.


    Princess Royal Shou Kang attentively inquired about Lin Wei Xi¡¯s current situation and was relieved when she learned that no one in the residence dared to disrespect her, and that she¡¯d smoothly taken over her duties as a wife. Although people in the capital had talked about how the newly-wed young Princess Consort of the Prince Yan Residence was very capable, taking full charge of the internal and external affairs of the residence within a month of entering the household, even personally handling the New Year gifts, Princess Royal Shou Kang was concerned. She only felt reassured after hearing from her directly.


    Despite just entering the household and not knowing anyone there, she dared to take over authority of the Prince Yan Residence. It showed how capable and bold Lin Wei Xi was. In fact, it proved that she indeed had the prerogative to make this public. Princess Shou Kang felt emotional. She felt close to Lin Wei Xi when she saw her, and even her efficient and capable nature reminded her of Gao Xi. Perhaps this was fate at work.


    Seeing that Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t suffered hardship in the Prince Yan Residence, Shou Kang felt at ease and couldn¡¯t help but turn her attention to another matter. Gu Hui Yan was also Princess Shou Kang¡¯s nephew. Be it Lin Wei Xi or Prince Yan, Shou Kang was quite attentive to this newlywed couple she¡¯d personally acted as matchmaker for. She took Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand, leaned in, and asked, ¡°How are you and Prince Yan?¡±


    Lin Wei Xi hesitated for a moment after being suddenly asked about her private married life. Without waiting for a response, Shou Kang saw her face and spoke for her, ¡°Seeing your expression, it seems like it¡¯s going well.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s cheeks instantly turned red. They were both married women. Of course she understood exactly what Shou Kang was insinuating. She felt so embarrassed she didn¡¯t know what to say. Shou Kang wasforted when she saw that the clever and eloquent Lin Wei Xi also had such a shy, girlish side. She patted Lin Wei Xi¡¯s hand and said with great relief, ¡°That¡¯s good to hear. You are two of the few people I care about. Who would¡¯ve thought that the two of you would end up together. Now that I¡¯ve seen that you are doing well, I can be at ease.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s smile froze, ¡°Princess Royal¡­ ¡°


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯m old and there¡¯s no need to avoid these topics.¡± Shou Kang carefully looked at Lin Wei Xi¡¯s face and her eyes couldn¡¯t help but water, ¡°Knowing that you and Prince Yan support each other and are in harmony, my wish has been fulfilled. There is really nothing else that I am worried about. You two must live well and give birth to a big chubby baby soon. If it¡¯s a son he will definitely be like Prince Yan, smart and clever from a young age. If it¡¯s a girl, she will be like you. Oh my, that would be a formidablebination, and I am afraid she won¡¯t be easy to deal with.¡±


    Lin Wei Xiughed when she heard this. She entertained her elders¡¯ imagination, but when she thought of what happenedst night, she couldn¡¯t help but feel down.


    Prince Yan spoiled her now because of those superficial things between men and women. Only when it came to their son would she see his true attitude. What kind of feelings did Prince Yan have for her? What was her ce in his heart?


    Lin Wei Xi hadn¡¯t dwelled on this question for too long before being interrupted. A pce attendant dressed in red stood at the entrance of the warm room, smiling broadly as he bowed to Lin Wei Xi and Shou Kang, ¡°Prince Yan Residence, Princess Royal, the Empress Dowager requests your presence.¡±

 Chapter 64

    The pce attendant in red was polite, but Princess Royal Shou Kang knew that it was Lin Wei Xi the Empress Dowager was inviting. But seeing Lin Wei Xi and Shou Kang sitting here together, the Empress Dowager couldn¡¯t just call for the Prince Yan Consort and leave the other behind, so they were both invited for a conversation.


    Shou Kang could¡¯ve taken the opportunity to decline, and rest for a little longer, but she was worried about Lin Wei Xi going by herself. So she stood up despite feeling exhausted and apanied her to see Empress Dowager Qian. Many people saw the eunuch next to the Empress Dowager leave. And when they first saw the eunuch apany the Prince Yan Consort, their jaws dropped in shock. On New Year¡¯s Eve, the Emperor himself had left the pce to pay a visit to Prince Yan. Today, at the congrattory ceremony, the first person the Empress Dowager called for a chat was the Prince Yan Consort. The power and influence of the Prince Yan Residence was truly frightening.


    In Cining Pce, the Qian family were already sitting with the Empress Dowager. However, the Qian family came to see the Empress Dowager on their own after the ceremony; it was the privilege of being her rtives. Naturally, they were not the same as a non-imperial Lady like Lin Wei Xi, who had to be specifically summoned by the Empress Dowager to speak with her.


    Lin Wei Xi supported Princess Royal Shou Kang as they slowly walked towards Cining Pce. When the two of them appeared, the few people who were already seated looked over and said, ¡°The Prince Yan Consort and the Princess Royal have arrived.¡±


    Except for Empress Dowager Qian, all the other Ladies stood up and offered auspicious New Year¡¯s greetings to Lin Wei Xi. She smiled as soon as she entered the room and was about to pay her respects to Empress Dowager Qian when she was held up by the maid next to the Empress Dowager, ¡°Prince Yan Consort and Princess Royal, no need to stand on ceremony. We¡¯re all family here, so let¡¯s dispense with the formalities. It¡¯s so tiring to be bowing and paying respects all the time.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Empress Dowager.¡± Lin Wei Xi responded with a smile. Despite her words, she stillpleted her wanfu bow before getting up. After standing up, she immediately assisted Princess Royal Shou Kang. As they walked towards the rest, everyone in the Qian family felt a little cautious. One was the Prince Yan Consort, second to none in the capital and the wife of the powerful Prince Yan. The other was Princess Royal Shou Kang, a generation senior to the Empress Dowager Qian. When they both entered, who dared to sit in a higher position than these two?


    The Qian family senior Lady took a step back and gave up her seat. Lin Wei Xi smiled when she saw it, ¡°Senior Madam Qian is too polite. How could I trouble you?¡±


    Senior Madam Qianughed, ¡°Your words make me feel ashamed, Prince Yan Consort. We are unworthy of sitting with the Prince Yan Consort. You and Princess Royal ought to take the seat at the front.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi smiled but before she could say anything, the Empress Dowager, who was seated in the middle, spoke indifferently, ¡°Princess Consort and Princess Royal need not be polite. Please take a seat.¡±


    Princess Royal Shou Kang remained calm and nodded her head in agreement, ¡°Then thank you senior Madam Qian.¡±


    Shou Kang was worried that it would be inconvenient for Lin Wei Xi to ept, so she agreed on her behalf. While the Qian family had face in front of outsiders, they had no right to sit in a higher position above the two of them. However, Lin Wei Xi was still young. Even though her status was high, there were some things she couldn¡¯t say. If she had agreed, she might¡¯ve beenbelled as intemperate. But if it was Princess Royal Shou Kang who agreed, then there wouldn¡¯t be a problem. After all, Shou Kang held seniority and it was expected for them to defer to her.


    After helping Shou Kang to her seat on Empress Dowager Qian¡¯s right, Lin Wei Xi walked around to the opposite side and sat directly to the left of the Empress Dowager. Of course, Empress Dowager Qian, as the Queen Mother, sat in the centre. The seat directly to her right was the most respectable, followed by the one on her left, the second on the right, and so on. Everyone in the Qian family had been having a good conversation, but as soon as Lin Wei Xi and Shou Kang arrived, they all had to stand up and give up their seats. After all the fuss, the Qian family, who was already somewhat ufortable, became more embarrassed.


    After everyone was seated, Empress Dowager Qian asked after the health of everyone in the Prince Yan Residence. This was a very standard small talk, Lin Wei Xi answered for everyone before finally taking the opportunity to ask about the Empress Dowager and the Emperor. As the two of them exchanged pleasantries, everyone else in Cining Pce could only stare, and no one dared to interrupt.


    After speaking to Lin Wei Xi for a long time, Empress Dowager Qian nced behind her and remembered that the Prince Yan Residence also had Gao Ran, the Shizi Fei. Empress Dowager Qian then asked, ¡°Shizi Fei also came. You must be tired after being so busy today.¡±


    Gao Ran lowered her head and said gently, ¡°It is my blessing to serve my mother-inw and the Empress Dowager. I am not tired.¡±


    When the Empress Dowager heard this, she nodded slightly. She¡¯d only asked in passing and didn¡¯t really care about Gao Ran¡¯s answer. One of the Ladies from the Qian family saw this and added, ¡°Shizi Fei is really filial. Prince Yan Consort is fortunate to have such a gentle and sensible daughter-inw by her side.¡±


    Thedy of the Qian family intended topliment Lin Wei Xi, but her words praised both of them equally. Unfortunately, her ttery missed the mark. Both Lin Wei Xi and Gao Ran smiled politely at her words, but neither felt too happy about it.


    After Empress Dowager Qian and Lin Wei Xi finished exchanging pleasantries, they didn¡¯t know what else to talk about. She only found outtest night that the Emperor had left the pce. He¡¯d gone to the Prince Yan Residence first, then to the Zhang Residence, before eventually being escorted back by Grand Secretary Zhang¡¯s men. Empress Dowager Qianined a lot when she learned about this. It was inappropriate for the Emperor to leave the pce without permission, but since he¡¯d gone out, how could he not visit the Qian family? Empress Dowager Qian couldn¡¯t say anything if the Emperor hadn¡¯t gone anywhere, but he¡¯d visited his uncle and his teacher, all except his maternal grandparent¡¯s family, the Qian household. This made Empress Dowager Qian very unhappy.


    However, the Emperor wasn¡¯t her biological son, and even though she was his di mother, there were many things Empress Dowager Qian couldn¡¯t say. Today, when the Qian family entered the pce, they¡¯d also discussed this. Even though Empress Dowager Qian wasn¡¯t happy about it, she still called on Lin Wei Xi to win her over. Yesterday, the Emperor hade over and specifically instructed her to do this.


    The women of the Qian family looked at Lin Wei Xi and felt aplex mix of emotions that were hard to express. It was one thing to give their seat to Princess Royal Shou Kang. After all, Shou Kang had high seniority. The imperial family had to amodate her, even for the sake of their face. But giving up their seat to someone old enough to be their daughter was embarrassing. The Qian family was ecstatic when they first became the Emperor¡¯s maternal rtives, but over time, they grew used to ttery and were no longer satisfied with their current status. They were both rtives of the imperial family; Prince Yan was the Emperor¡¯s uncle, but their Qian family was also the Emperor¡¯s maternal household. But why could Prince Yan hold so much power, while the Qian family could only take on a few meaningless tasks and be treated like decorations.


    Their conversation remained polite throughout. After Lin Wei Xi left, a niece-inw who was very favoured by Empress Dowager Qian said, ¡°Empress Dowager, the Emperor has us as his family here, so why does he always prefer outsiders?¡±


    Although the Emperor called Prince Yan ¡°uncle¡±, Prince Yan¡¯s branch of the family was quite distant from the Emperor¡¯s. To Empress Dowager Qian, even though they relied heavily on Prince Yan, how could Prince Yanpare to her own family, how could he favour Prince Yan over the Qian family? The niece-inw¡¯s words hit Empress Dowager¡¯s sore spot. When everyone in the Qian family saw that Empress Dowager did not get angry after her niece-inw spoke, they were overjoyed. One after another, they began to speak out about their grievances.


    A pce maid who was serving beside the Empress Dowager frowned to herself. In the pce, the walls had ears, and every word had to be carefully considered. But this niece-inw from the Emperor¡¯s maternal family had said that Prince Yan was an outsider in front of a room full of pce maids and eunuchs, and even implicitly criticized the Emperor. The pce granny felt this was inappropriate, but the Empress Dowager didn¡¯t rebuke the girl. The Qian family relied on this and became increasingly out of line. As a servant, it was not her ce to criticize her master¡¯s words and deeds, but the old granny still couldn¡¯t help but sigh. No wonder the Emperor and Prince Yan were reluctant to entrust the Qian family with important tasks. Looking at their entire family¡¯s behaviour, they really weren¡¯t suitable for major responsibilities.


    As soon as she left the Empress Dowager¡¯s pce, Lin Wei Xi was immediately surrounded by people wanting to socialize. She sighed. It seemed she wouldn¡¯t be able to rx all day.


    After she finally managed to leave the pce that evening, Lin Wei Xi happened to run into the people from the Duke Ying Residence on her way out. When they saw her, they froze. Obviously, they still remembered the incidentst year where they¡¯d supported Gao Ran. The Prince Yan Residence and Duke Ying Residence were inws, so they couldn¡¯t avoid greeting each other in the pce earlier, but they¡¯d gone their separate ways after. Unlike then, it was now very awkward with only one road out of the pce.


    Although the senior Duke Ying Lady had a calm expression, she still greeted Lin Wei Xi first, ¡°Greetings, Prince Yan Consort.¡±


    ¡°Greetings, My Lady.¡± Lin Wei Xi couldn¡¯t help feeling amused at the sight of someone familiar. She stood unmovingly. She used to be the junior, but now it was the Duke Ying Residence who had to greet her first. Of course, they also understood this. After the Ladies and daughter-inws of the Duke Ying Residence greeted her one by one, Gao Ran stepped out from behind her and said, her eyes lowered, ¡°This child pays her respect to Grandmother, Aunt and sister-inws. Grandmother, please take care.¡±


    The senior Duke Ying Lady felt embarrassed when she saw Gao Ran. During the previous incident, the senior Lady had aggressively brought her entourage to the Prince Yan Residence to support Gao Ran, but it turned out she was the one being unreasonable. The Duke Ying Residence had caused a scene and lost face. The senior Lady was angry with Gao Ran, so she didn¡¯t meet Gao Ran and went straight back to her residence with everyone. Since then, this was the first time everyone in the Duke Ying Residence saw Gao Ran.


    When they ran into each otherst year during the Dragon Boat Festival, those from the Duke Ying Residence were overjoyed to see their residence¡¯s married third daughter. They acknowledged each other as grandparent and granddaughter in front of everyone, and were very showy about it. However, in just half a year, when they ran into their third daughter and her mother-inw, the atmosphere waspletely different.


    Gao Ran despised the Duke Ying Residence for being useless and treating their daughter like amodity. They were good to her when things were going well, but when she needed the support of her family, no one was quicker to sell her out for the sake of the family. On the other hand, everyone in the Duke Ying Residence felt that Gao Ran was insincere. She¡¯d done something wrong but kept it hidden, and instead instigated her family to quarrel with her mother-inw, using her family as a weapon. The senior Duke Ying Lady had lost a lot of face in front of Lin Wei Xi, and she herself was very angry about this. But seeing Gao Ran¡¯s indifferent attitude now, she became more frustrated.


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s eyes flickered. She looked back at Gao Ran, then turned to look at the Duke Ying Residence in front of her. Finally, she turned back around with a smile in her eyes, ¡°it¡¯s been a long time since My Lady has seen Shizi Fei, hasn¡¯t it. We just happened to run into each other today, and I¡¯m also not an unreasonable mother-inw. In any case, it¡¯s a long road out of the pce. Shizi Fei, you might as well go and chat with your family. You don¡¯t have to stay with me.¡±


    ¡°This won¡¯t do.¡± Before Gao Ran could respond, the senior Duke Ying Lady said coldly, ¡°It¡¯s natural for a daughter-inw to serve her mother-inw. She is a junior, how can she leave her mother-inw and go out on her own? Although Shizi Fei is surnamed Gao, since she married into the Prince Yan Residence, she is a member of the Prince Yan Residence. How can she return to her family so often?¡± After the senior Duke Ying Lady finished speaking, she looked at Lin Wei Xi, ¡°She is your daughter-inw. If she does anything wrong, please correct her. She isn¡¯t a sensible child, and her di mother passed away early. She only has you, her mother-inw, to rely on to teach her.¡±


    Gao Ran also hadn¡¯t wanted to talk to the people of the Duke Ying Residence, but she should¡¯ve been the one to decline instead of being rejected to her face by her family. Gao Ran¡¯s anger grew. She previously held some goodwill towards the Duke Ying Residence. After all, her father had conveniently arranged a good marriage for her. But hearing the senior Lady say such ingratiating words that threw her under the bus, Gao Ran¡¯sst bit of goodwill towards the Duke Ying Residence disappeared.


    Gao Ran was unhappy and she couldn¡¯t stop it from showing in her voice, ¡°Grandmother is right. I am now a member of the Gu family and shouldn¡¯t be spending all my time with the Duke Residence.¡±


    As soon as she said it, the atmosphere became even colder. Seeing the clear deadlock between the two of them, Lin Wei Xi quickly said, ¡°the Duke Residence has a deep understanding of righteousness and Shizi Fei is sensible. This is truly a blessing for the Prince Yan Residence. It¡¯s cold today. Please take care when you¡¯re walking, My Lady.¡±


    After speaking, even Lin Wei Xi herself felt it was very weird. Gao Ran and the Duke Ying Residence were surnamed Gao, while Lin Wei Xi was the step-mother-inw. Normally, she¡¯d be the weaker party and would¡¯ve been targeted. How did she be the one mediating the situation?


    Lin Wei Xi¡¯s reminder to the senior Duke Ying Lady wasn¡¯t just empty words. It had been snowing heavily before the New Year, and now the sky was dark, the west wind gradually picking up. The road out of the pce was indeed difficult to walk on. ck ice prated the cracks between the bricks lining the road and one had to be careful when walking. After Lin Wei Xi helped theme to apromise, the senior Duke Ying Lady thanked her before silently allowing her maid and daughter-inw to support her as she walked. Lin Wei Xi also had no intention to talk. They were walking in silence when a little pce eunuch suddenly approached them from behind, shouting from afar, ¡°Prince Yan Consort, please stay.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi heard the voice and turned around in surprise. Being loud and noisy was prohibited in the inner pce, and if the eunuch weren¡¯t in a hurry, he wouldn¡¯t dare shout so loudly. The eunuch ran up to Lin Wei Xi and after bowing to her, continued, ¡°Princess Consort, please wait. The road out of the pce is long. His Majesty specially ordered a sedan chair to escort My Lady out of the pce.¡±


    Everyone else gasped when they heard this. Lin Wei Xi furrowed her eyebrows and said, ¡°This goes against proper etiquette. His Majesty is a very busy person. How could I trouble His Majesty¡¯s eunuchs? This humble subject is thankful for the favour, but I shall decline the sedan chair.¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t refuse, Princess Consort. His Majesty sent the sedan chair to pick you up after listening to Prince Yan¡¯s request. If you refuse, Prince Yan will have toe personally. His Majesty will surely put the me on this ve.¡±


    So it was because of Gu Hui Yan. Lin Wei Xi wondered how the Emperor could remember a mere female rtive like her. In front of so many people, Lin Wei Xi blushed a little as she tried to make up a proper excuse for Prince Yan¡¯s behaviour, but the senior Duke Ying Lady answered very tactfully, ¡°Since the eunuchs are sending the Princess Consort out of the pce, then this olddy and the others will not bother you anymore. Prince Yan Consort, this olddy will leave first.¡±


    Lin Wei Xi became even more embarrassed and her face reddened. The Emperor had sent a sedan chair for the Prince Yan Consort because of Gu Hui Yan, but he didn¡¯t care to do the same for the Shizi Fei Gao Ran. Gao Ran could only bow to everyone from the Duke Ying Residence, and after watching them leave, she personally helped Lin Wei Xi onto the sedan before walking out alone.


    Gao Ran walked alone on the pce road, surrounded by twilight. asionally, there was ck ice on the ground, the cold gradually creeping up from the soles of her feet to her heart. Comparison was the thief of joy, and many of life¡¯s grievances came fromparing oneself to others. It was better not to know; once you had something topare to, the difference was almost too easy to make one angry to death.

 Chapter 65

    Chapter 65


    My head suddenly felt numb.


    Leona¡¯s father brought up a past that I couldn¡¯t even remember and secretly read into me.


    ¡°Still, we did our best for you.¡±


    He was clearly talking to me, but I couldn¡¯t focus at the moment.


    It didn¡¯t make sense that Leona was dying. There was no recollection about that at all.


    ¡°Leona.¡±


    ¡°My daughter¡­?¡±


    Meanwhile, Mr. and Mrs. Selen held my hands.


    The touch alone gave me goosebumps, so I hurriedly pulled back my hands.


    ¡°Did you really think it was okay to make such a decision just because I¡¯m dying?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been alright since then anyway.¡±


    ¡°You could¡¯ve worked for yourselves. I¡¯ve been working to death alone just to put food on your table. What exactly¡­am I to you?¡±


    I was really curious and asked on behalf of Leona.


    What in the world was Leona to them?


    ¡°A ve? A maid? The only breadwinner in the family?¡±


    ¡°Leona.¡±


    ¡°We wanted to work, too! B-But, we were very weak physically back then. That¡¯s why we couldn¡¯t work!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. We were so weak! Take a look at us¡­¡±


    So I fixed my eyes on each of them just like they wanted.


    Funnily enough, those who imed sickness looked healthier than Leona.


    ¡°No matter how much I look, no one seems weaker than me.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about? Your father¡¯s knees are weak, and I¡­.I feel like copsing anytime. A-And your sister is¡­ she¡­¡±


    ¡°Stop it. She¡¯s ying with us right now. Are you all idiots?¡±


    As expected, Jane was pretty sharp. Hearing her criticize her own parents for their nonsense, I finally came to my senses.


    ¡°Be quiet, Jane! Do you think we did this because we don¡¯t know better?! We did this because we trust Leona!¡±


    ¡°My daughter won¡¯t abandon us! If Leona doesn¡¯t help us¡­then we¡­¡±


    ¡°Is something serious happening?¡±


    I collected myself and looked at them carefully. My parents¡¯ faces tensed as if something quite serious had happened to them.


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­.You have to help us if we tell you about this, okay?¡±


    Almost like she had rehearsed this story, Mrs. Selen whined even before I could answer.


    ¡°Leona, we lived in poverty after you left! Thest time we ate meat was when Duke Petri sent us money¡­but now¡­we can¡¯t even afford rice¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­After I left? Don¡¯t you mean after you sold me?¡±


    ¡°Anyways¡­.! How can you throw away your family! I haven¡¯t eaten for three days! Leona, please¡­you¡¯re not someone who will abandon us!¡±


    Leona¡¯s father rose from his seat in agitation.


    Where else can you find such a great spectacle?


    ¡°So you¡¯ve spent all the money you received from selling me and thepensation money from the Duke, only to show up again after you ran through that money?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not just that! Your father borrowed money using your name¡­.¡±


    ¡°What? Money??¡±


    I doubted my ears for a moment.


    ¡°T-That¡¯s right. We have nothing to eat, so I borrowed money!¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t have anything to eat, you have to work or sell your belongings. Borrowing money? Have you gone crazy? It¡¯s not enough that you sold my body, are you even selling my name now?¡±


    Mrs. Selen shook her hands.


    ¡°W-We are not selling your name! It¡¯s because my daughter is a duchess now¡­¡±


    I wanted to scream all kinds of swear words right in their faces.


    They sold their own daughter and shamelessly used her name to borrow money. I always knew that the Selen family was crazy, but this was far beyond crazy!


    ¡°It hasn¡¯t been long since you sold me. It hasn¡¯t been long at all since the Duchy paid thepensation money. What happened to all that money? Tell me¡­.!¡±


    ¡°¡­We already used it up.¡±


    ¡°How much did you borrow?¡±


    I lived a difficult life. But they easily borrowed money and spent it like it was their own!


    This time, they went too far.


    ¡°You¡¯re going to pay off my debt anyway, so I can borrow that much, right?¡±


    ¡°Why would I pay off your debt? That¡¯s ridiculous! Are you really crazy?¡±


    ¡°How impudent! You¡¯re so full of yourself now that you¡¯ve be a duchess! Did you say we are crazy?! Leona, no matter how demanding we are with you, you¡¯re still my child! We raised you! So you must sacrifice for us!¡±


    Leona¡¯s father screamed, finally dropping his good father act.


    It was so amusing to see them like this. So I burst intoughter.


    ¡°Now you¡¯re showing your true colors.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right! I can¡¯t stand it anymore! I¡¯d still borrow your name from now on¡­!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a reason to pay off your debt! I¡¯m a grown married woman who acquired my husband¡¯s surname! I have no connection with your family anymore. But you want me to pay off your debt? How ridiculous! I don¡¯t care even if you live like a beggar, I won¡¯t give you a single penny!¡±


    I leaped from my seat and spat out my feelings.


    But Leona¡¯s father raised his hand to hit me without a qualm.


    And then,


    Thud!


    ¡°I came in because it was too noisy¡­but what the hell are you doing now?¡±


    It was the Duke. He rushed in and twisted my father¡¯s arm without hesitation.


    Amid this sudden situation, I nced at May standing just outside the door. I think 15 minutes had passed since I entered the parlor, but I didn¡¯t expect the Duke toe in person.


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    Unlike his usual neat appearance, he was disheveled.


    ¡°Ugh, ouch! It hurts! Let go of me!¡±


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    ¡°I thought this was just a normal family reunion¡­.but what the hell is this?¡±


    The Duke¡¯s face was filled with murderous rage. His expression was so distorted that I wondered if he truly was the Duke.


    ¡°Ahh¡­y-your Excellency! Let me go first and talk! This is a misunderstanding¡­.¡±


    ¡°Misunderstanding? Are you telling me raising your hand against someone is a misunderstanding?¡±


    ¡°P-Please let him go first! We were just talking!¡±


    Mrs. Selen, who cherished her husband so much, tried to stop the Duke.


    ¡°We were just talking.¡±


    ¡°Yeah! We were just talking. Right, Leona?¡±


    Everyone turned toward me all at once.


    ¡°¡­That¡¯s right. We were just talking.¡±


    As I spoke, the Duke roughly threw off Mr. Selen¡¯s hand. His naturally frail body fell to the floor like a dead leaf.


    ¡°Ugh¡­w-what the hell is this¡­.how can a duke be so mean to a guest? We are Leona¡¯s family! I¡¯m Leona¡¯s father!¡±


    But the Duke only smirked and approached me.


    ¡°A family? I guess a family must hit each other in your book?¡±


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    ¡°That¡¯s¡­a misunderstanding. Leona doesn¡¯t listen so I got a little carried away. It¡¯s just a little misunderstanding.¡±


    ¡°How amusing. But since when did uninvited people call themselves guests?¡±


    The Duke crossed his arms.


    ¡°E-Even if we don¡¯t have an invitation¡­because we¡¯re family¡­.¡±


    As if intimidated by the Duke, Leona¡¯s father stammered.


    ¡°Hmm¡­because you¡¯re her family, huh? By the way, didn¡¯t you sell my wife a while back?¡±


    ¡°Even so! We are still a family!¡±


    Leona¡¯s father seemed to gather his courage and screamed. Meanwhile, my sister who had been watching silently, suddenly started talking.


    ¡°We did sell her, but objectively speaking, you have no standing to be so conceited since you are the one who bought Leona! You made her a duchess in name only. But it¡¯s strange that you actually take her as a real duchess after so long!¡±


    ¡°Jane! Be quiet!¡±


    Mrs. Selen tried to contain her daughter in a hurry, but Jane was stubborn.


    ¡°Hoo! It¡¯s my first time to witness a woman questioning me like this. Interestingly enough.¡±


    ¡°So let¡¯s annul this transactional rtionship, and bring in your wife fairly.¡±


    ¡°Are you doing this for your sister¡¯s sake? If that¡¯s what you want, then are you willing to return the money you took?¡±


    ¡°No. I¡¯m telling you to bring in someone other than her as your wife!¡±


    Everyone¡¯s faces froze in the natural response to her proposition.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it better to have a wife who doesn¡¯t have a dirty past like her? I think it¡¯s better than having an uneducated wife.¡±


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    Is this what I think it is? Her face got brighter the moment he appeared.


    This is really the height ofedy.


    The Duke basically told her, ¡®You¡¯re the first woman who dares to p me in the face like this¡¯. Did she misunderstand his meaning or what?


    ¡°Haha. Why do you think I took Leona as my wife?¡±


    ¡°Because you already spent money on her?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s because my daughter and I love her more than anyone else. But what can you offer?¡±


    ¡°I can do that much, too.¡±


    As the atmosphere suddenly changed, the Selen couple smiled brightly.


    ¡°Jane! So you were thinking about that!¡±


    ¡°Yeah. We don¡¯t have to beg Leona. We have a better daughter!¡±


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    ¡°How amusing. So you want me to take this woman to be my wife now?¡±


    Mr. and Mrs. Selen nodded at the same time.


    ¡°Actually, Leona is not that great! Your Excellency, on the other hand, our Jane is a child that we raised preciously. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll like her!¡±


    ¡°I really detest women with ugly hearts like you!¡±

 Chapter 66

    Lin Weixi only found out after he died once that he was just a female partner in a prostitute.


    These words seemed to linger in Lin Weixi''s ears, she was stunned on the spot, and after she recovered, Yaguchi said, "No."


    Gu Huiyan''s expression remained unchanged, but there was an inexplicable inquiry hidden deep in his eyes: "Why?"


    What did Lin Weixi say, could she say that your son is actually my husband in a previous life, and your daughter-inw who is about to get started is her concubine? Lin Weixi has been stunned enough by those two people, and is she still going back in another identity?


    Lin Weixi refused to even think about it: "King Yan, this is not appropriate. I have no rtives with the King Yan''s mansion. I live in the mansion for nothing. What does this look like? And your new daughter-inw is about to get started soon, and I live by an outsider. In the past, didn''t you let her care?"


    Gu Huiyan looked at Lin Weixi with calm eyes, and smiled faintly: "You can stay at ease. I say yes, it is ok. If someone talks too much, no matter who it is, you can tell me."


    This "whatever it is" heard Lin Weixi''s back chill, King Yan alluded to Gao Ran, right? That''s right, an orphan without a father and no mother in Beppu does cause a lot of trouble. The hostess''s unhappiness is excusable. Lin Weixi has also been a daughter-inw, and she understands the way. But if the person speaking is King Yan, then he says yes or no, and he has to endure any trouble.


    Lin Weixi suddenly sighed, as if she was still working hard in the housework of the Yan King¡¯s Mansion a few days ago. It was hard to break the silver teeth and blood, but it was just a blink of an eye. She turned from a worrying person to The privileged person.


    The world is really wonderful, and the root of all this is just a word from the person in front of me.


    Lin Weixi sighed for a while, and finally shook his head: "His Royal Highness, your kindness is appreciated by my heart. But I just want to live a peaceful life and live this life without any disease and disaster. The family of King Yan is too high, I Go wrong."


    "Are you going? Why do I think you don''t want to go?"


    Lin Weixi suddenly felt unspeakable pressure. This is King Yan. When he talked to him, he didn''t see King Yan''s airs. He smiled at Yan Yan, as if stepping on a shallow water beach, making people feel refreshed and happy, but waiting for you to be surprised I found that it had been wrapped in the deep sea, and the surface was as calm as before, but it was ready to go, and it could always set off terrifying waves. Lin Weixi is the one who was submerged by the water now, and again.


    Lin Weixi secretly scolded himself as a pig''s brain. He was nted only once yesterday. Why was he caught the w again today. She put on a mood of a little country girl resisting to stay at a high gate, deliberately arrogantly: "I went to the capital when I was ten years old and I was sick. There were many cars in the capital and there were more people on the street than the vige chief. The family was still decent, but at that time I was so sick that I was going to die. There were so many people on the road, none of them stopped to ask, and even drove me and my father away. I don¡¯t like that ce. Besides, you are King Yan, don¡¯t look You talk to me nicely now, but it¡¯s definitely not like that when you return to your pce. I can¡¯t even live in my aunt¡¯s house, let alone go to the pce.¡±


    Gu Huiyan ignored the little girl¡¯s delicate and sensitive emotions. He restrained his momentum and said as gently as possible: "Don¡¯t be afraid, I will take you back. What happened when you were ten years old will never happen again. And there are few people in the pce, I only have For one, although he is not sensible, he still shouldn¡¯t embarrass you. After you arrive in the capital, you can just stay there. If you don¡¯t like other people¡¯s disturbance, then I will find you a separate yard in the pce, and you can arrange the manpower. Forget it. As for food and clothing, don¡¯t worry about it. All your spending will go to my private ount. You can order whatever you want. No one will point you."


    "In fact, find a simple and quiet town where I can live peacefully..."


    "There is no real simple ce in front of interests. You are rich and young. If you live outside alone, it is not safe anywhere. But as long as youe to the capital, whether you want to marry or live alone in the future, Only if the Yan Pce is in one day, no one will bother you."


    "I..." Lin Weixi opened her mouth and found that Gu Huiyan had said everything, and she could no longer find a reason to object. She said that she didn''t want to be sent under the fence, so Gu Huiyan found her a yard alone. She was worried that she would be in conflict with the new mistress, so Gu Huiyan would let her go to her own private ounts, so that no one could control her. Lin Weixi held back for a long time, only to say: "This is too much trouble for you..."


    "No trouble."


    Lin Weixi had nothing to say. She looked at King Yan who was calm and calm, and suddenly felt a strange feeling.


    How did she feel that King Yan had deliberately led her to say her unwillingness, and then blocked her way one by one? King Yan looked easygoing, but there was no room for maneuver in what he wanted to do. In fact, he is actually a very arbitrary person.


    Gu Huiyan noticed Lin Weixi''s hidden gaze, he smiled slightly, not paying attention, but asked: "What''s the matter? You won''t be reluctant to leave your homnd, so you don''t want to go?"


    In fact, Lin Weixi really wanted to use this excuse, but a few days ago, in order to rely on King Yan, she herself cut off homesickness, the most powerful escape route. Lin Weixi felt weak from the bottom of her heart. She sighed, and she drooped down: "Well, just as King Yan said."


    Lin Weixi also couldn''t tell what her feelings for Beijing were like. She grew up there, all her rtives lived in that magnificent city, and all her nightmares were there. If possible, Lin Weixi did not want to return to the capital, saying that she was evading or deceiving herself, that it was not easy for her to live a lifetime, and she did not want to see Gu Chengyao and Gao Ran again. As long as you don¡¯t see them, Lin Weixi can continue to deceive yourself. You are not that failed. You can also find a small city to live a stable and prosperous small family life. You just can¡¯t see your rtives, friends, and husbands. It¡¯s not that they gave up. You, abandon you like a shoe.


    But when the four words "Huiyan King''s Mansion" were uttered from Gu Huiyan''s mouth, after Lin Weixi''s strong rejection at the beginning, she found that there was no more room to turn around, her heart suddenly calmed down. In fact, she is not reconciled.


    Not talking about others, but only about Princess Shoukang, Lin Weixi wanted to go back to see her grandmother again. She is the only child of her mother. Mother Wei is the only daughter of Princess Shoukang. Wei has passed away early. Now Lin Weixi is the only bloodline of Princess Shoukang, and the rtionship between her grandmother and her husband is not very good. Lin Weixi was heartbroken when she thought that there was not even a junior to serve her grandmother. Even for her grandmother, she had to go back.


    Lin Weixi''s mood gradually calmed down. Gu Huiyan saw that Lin Weixi had figured it out. He nced at her with satisfaction, then continued to read the letter, and casually said to Lin Weixi: "Lin Yong''s canonization imperial decree, gold book and iron voucher, as well as thend deeds assigned by the court are all with me. If you have nothing to do in the past two days, just look at the gift list booklet and count the items. Will you read the gift list booklet?"


    "Yes." Lin Weixi had arranged banquets and prepared New Year gifts with Princess Shoukang since he was a child. Lin Weixi thought to himself that she personally prepared the festival gifts that you gave to the pce from the Yan Pcest year. I knew that today, why bother to take care of the family business at the beginning, it should let the Yanwang Mansion all run out of business.


    "Then you go and check it out first. After I go to the capital, I will rece the title deeds with those around the capital and be your dowry in the future."


    Lin Yong''s pursuit of the title was severely deducted. The purpose of the special ceremonial vessel for Fenghou was obvious, and no one dared to move it, but other than that, thend deeds and raw silk were intercepted. Gu Huiyan knew that official corruption was serious, but he didn''t expect it to be so serious. If he hadn''t made a temporary detour to Shunde Mansion, I''m afraid this matter would have been lost. The county magistrate has been careful to excuse himself today, for fear that he will condemn him, but what status is Gu Huiyan, how can he be angry with a few low-grade officials. He wrote directly to Zhang Xiaolian, and he couldn''t control how Zhang Shoufu sent him, as long as he finally got the result from Zhang Xiaolian.


    But he could just manipte these disgraceful things, Lin Weixi didn''t need to know. Thend deed granted to Lin Yong by the imperial court contained a lot of water, and manynds were just named, and they couldn''t get Lin Weixi at all. Gu Huiyan exchanged these death deeds for Lin Weixi around the capital. Lin Weixi could not do these things, but under his name, it would be nothing.


    Lin Weixi converted it in his mind, and suddenly became interested: "His Royal Highness, how can this be converted? How muchnd is an acre into the capital?"


    Gu Huiyan couldn''t help butugh, his eyes were full of smiles, and he looked at her helplessly and amused: "Don''t worry, I won''t take advantage of you. Naturally, one acre is exchanged for one acre, and thend is turned over."


    This is not an equivalent conversion. Lin Yong''s fief is in Shunde. How can Shunde''s farndpare with the capital? When Lin Weixi heard this, he hurriedly thanked King Yan for fear that he would regret it: "His Royal Highness Xie Yan."


    Gu Huiyan put one hand on the wooden table and looked at Lin Weixi with a smile: "You resist marrying like that. I think you don''t want to hear people mention the dowry."


    "How can this be the same." Lin Weixi was a butler since she was young, she understood the benefits of private property too much. She certainly does not want to marry again, but if she prepares a dowry for her, it is okay, and there is no need to worry about her self-esteem.


    Gu Huiyan was amused, and this time he evenughed slightly. If it was Zhou Maocheng or other old people standing here, they would have been shocked to close their mouths at the sight. However, Lin Weixi still didn''t understand how rare it was to make King Yanugh. She was now anxious to find a chance to retire. Lin Yong was finally able to get the seal, her palms were itching now.


    Gu Huiyan could see Lin Weixi''s eagerness. He didn''t feel embarrassed. He pointed to the box beside Lin Weixi and said, "This is your father''snd deed and that maid''s deed of deeds. You can take them together. It''s not convenient to bring too much on the road. Maid, I only found one for you, and the rest will go to the capital to make up."


    Lin Weixi was not polite, and came forward neatly, and went around to pick up something from Gu Huiyan. Lin Weixi hugged the wooden box and bowed to Gu Huiyan. He was about to withdraw. Suddenly, he heard Gu Huiyan say something very unintentionally: "If you feel wronged in the future, juste and find me. There is no need topromise."


    Lin Weixi was taken aback for a moment, and an astonishing guess floated in his heart. Her pupils did not consciously dte, and she was obviously surprised: "You know?"


    Gu Huiyan didn''t speak, he spread out the rice paper and took the pen from the pen, as if he was going to write back to Zhang Xiaolian. Lin Weixi said nothing, and quietly researched Gu Huiyan''s ink, and then quietly stepped back.


    After he came out of the study, the cold air rushed over his face, and the wooden box in his hand heavily demonstrated his existence, and Lin Weixi finally gave birth to a sense of reality.


    When she grew up like this, for the first time someone said to her, "You don¡¯t have to make mistakes." The former father, grandmother, and even the masters and subordinates of the British government all told Lin Weixi over and over again that you are the eldest granddaughter, and you have to take out the granddaughter. The elder sister''s physique makes the younger sister below.


    Lin Weixi''s eyes were a little moist for some reason. It turned out that King Yan went out today for her business. He not only dealt with Aunt Lin and Li Da''s family, but also took Lin Yong''s reward from the county magistrate for her.


    This was the first time she felt the feeling of being cared for. In the past, she was able to get the courtesy of the British son, brothers in the family, and even cousins ??by doing nothing. Lin Weixi dismissed it at that time, and she was not Without hands, she canpete for these things herself, so why use them to be a good person? But now Lin Weixi finally knows that it is different.


    This intention alone is not something you canpare with striving for, even if it is the same thing.


    King Yan did not stay in the county for a long time. After waiting for the preparations on the road to be almostplete, King Yan ordered his departure and headed towards the capital. King Yan was only nning toe to Shunde Mansion. After sending Lin Yong¡¯s bones into the soil, he hurried to chase after the army of the ss, but Lin Weixi was temporarily added to the team, and the n to chase the army was naturally stranded. The separation from the army can''t be covered. In this case, Gu Huiyan simply wrote a letter to Jingcheng, exining that he was going backwards, and then took Lin Weixi to the capital slowly.


    In Gu Huiyan''s opinion, this was a deliberate slowing down of the schedule, but for Lin Weixi who had never traveled far and was not in good health, such a schedule was still too rush.

 Chapter 67

    Lin Weixi only found out after he died once that he was just a female partner in a prostitute.¡¡¡¡ "Don''t worry, concubine, the old ve went to see it three or four times. Every ve was trembling and afraid to neglect his duty."


    Gao Ran heaved a sigh of relief: "That''s good. This is the first time King Yan has returned to the house. I will go to the front hall to meet his father-inw in a while. I can''t go wrong anyway."


    Mother Tao sighed and said, "You can rest assured that the concubine, since you entered the door, what has not been done is clear, and you are kind to others, sympathetic to the old servants, so that they don''t need to say anything, and you pay a monthly payment. What''s that called... Oh yes, pension. Now that one of the top and bottom of the pce does not say hello, there is no perfect person like you in the world. Although King Yan is highly powerful, he is the most reasonable. The pce takes care of it so well, he can only take pleasure in seeing you."


    Gao Ran didn''t refute this, but groaned slightly at the nurse: "Mother Tao, what are you talking about, how can I be perfect. Don''t say that, let people hear jokes."


    "How can this be a joke! Although the old ve is your nanny, but these words are really not the old ve''s boasting. When the concubine was still a girl, everyone was praised. Learning the piano can y a lively minor. Chess cane up with fresh gobangs, that is, follow the olddy to pray to the Buddha. You can learn by yourself without a teacher, and you can casually say the mysterious Buddhist principles, and the story you told the young master when you were ten, what Chenxiang saved the mother, the fisherman and Fish, how old you were at that time, you were able to make up this kind of story. The reincarnation of the fairy in the sky will never be more perfect than you. Concubine, this is not what the old ve said, Guo Gongfu The maids here all said in private that you are the reincarnation of the Nine Heavens Profound Girl, that is, you are from a poorer background, otherwise, why would you be wronged to be your sessor!"


    Gao Ran was self-effacing, but when Mother Tao said she didn''t stop her, she just listened with a smile, and when she talked about her birth and family, Gao Ran''s smile stiffened, and then she was relieved. What about a lower birth? What about being a concubine? A concubine is never a determining condition for evaluating a woman. As long as she is married well, what if she is a concubine?


    Moreover, even a prostitute may not be able to live well, a noble birth but not pleasing to men, will also kill her own way.


    Gao Ran didn''t want to mention another person on such an important day. Gao Ran''s face turned cold and coldly said to Mother Tao: "Mother Tao, you have passed. My elder sister is my eldest sister and the original partner of the son. The deceased is the oldest. I have always loved sister Chongxi. I know you don''t have this. It means, but being heard by the son and others, it is inevitable that I am a concubine who disrespects my sister-inw, causing trouble. I don¡¯t want to say this anymore, you know?"


    Tao¡¯s and Gao Ran¡¯s dowry maid was angrily, Ning Fu said: "Second concubine, the eldestdy will not give you a good face when she is at home. Later, her eyes will be higher when you marry. Even so, you will smile as always. Ying, sincerely serve her as a sister. Miss, you are too kind, so you will be bullied."


    "Okay, don''t say anything." Gao Ran interrupted the maids faintly, and said, "The prince has been away from home for three years and is the first time he is back today. We must make arrangements. The prince''s carriage should being soon, you guys. Let me go to the second door and wait."


    Mother Tao and Ning Fu responded and helped Gao Ran to walk towards Suihua Gate. Mother Tao chattered as she walked: "The King Yan hasn''t returned to Beijing for three years. When the princees back and sees that the house is well organized, she will be very lucky to marry such a smart daughter-inw. I want the old ve to say it. Anyone who has clear hands and eyes and is not deceived by the prejudices of his concubines will like the three girls."


    Without waiting for Gao Ran to speak, Ning Fu rushed and said, "Isn''t it? The concubine Shizi is simply the reincarnation of a fairy, and no one doesn''t like it. It''s a pity that the prince was dyed on the road and didn''t catch up with the marriage between the concubine and the prince."


    Speaking of this mother Tao is also very regretful, her stance is tilted towards Gao Ran, of course she feels that Gao Ran is good in everything. It is a great regret that the Patriarch of Yan Wang failed to catch up with Gao Ran''s wedding, but this regret is not Gao Ran, but Yan Wang Mansion.


    Seeing that there was no one on the left or right, Mother Tao quietly said to Gao Ran: "The concubine, I heard that the prince originally wanted toe back to join the marriage of the prince. He left the army to go alone for this purpose. I me the one on the road. The daughter was ill, which dyed the prince¡¯s schedule."


    Gao Ran originally thought it would be inappropriate to talk about King Yan in the Yan King Mansion. If someone heard it, he might gossip, but the wedding without the husband¡¯s parents was indeed a thorn in Gao Ran''s heart. Now he seems to hear the reason, Gao Ran is curious. Finally, she didn''t drink Zhi Tao''s mother, but let her continue to talk.


    "The subordinate''s daughter? Who is this and why is it in the prince''s team?"


    "I don''t know, I heard that she was an orphan. Her father died in order to save the prince, so the prince pulled her everywhere. This incident was passed on in the capital some time ago, and it seems to be called...Oh yes, Zhongyonghou. "


    Gao Ran is no longer interested when he hears this. An orphan who has both died of her parents and came to Beijing to go to the pce. What a little white flower. Gao Ran just heard this and already imagined what kind of person ising.


    Gao Ran has vowed to marry the rich second generation since her previous life, and the wedding will also be very grand, and must overwhelm all female ssmates. Unfortunately, her dream of marrying the rich second generation in her previous life had not been realized before something went wrong. Bai Fumei is overjoyed. Gao Ran secretly rejoiced that under the skin of her child was the heart of an adult, otherwise, she would definitely have been tortured to death by the government mansion that stepped on it.


    Later, her vicious mother-inw died of her own crimes, and Gao Xi, who had robbed her of her marriage, also bite her back. She couldn''t be loved by her husband. Like all heroines, Gao Ran''s status as a concubine was only tempered. In the end, she married the most powerful husband-inw, the second generation of Quan who had a detached family background, which was much better than the rich second generation in the previous life.


    Gao Ran is very satisfied with his counter-attack career. It is a small regret that the husband¡¯s parents did not attend the wedding. Gao Ran thought it was King Yan who minded his concubine status, but now it seems that this is clearly an introduction. The head is this uing little white flower.


    What a familiar routine. After the protagonist and heroine have gone through hardships together, they just got married, and there is a woman who has both died of parents and ancestors who are kind toe to stay. Thetter woman will probably fall in love with Gu Chengyao at first sight, and she will be rich and wealthy. Lost his eyes, Heng En Tubao wanted to make Gu Chengyao a concubine.


    Thinking of this, Gao Ran''s smile was more gentle, but the light in his eyes was sharp and full of attacks.


    Gao Ran took many maids and women waiting at the Shuihuamen, Gao Ran held the moon in the stars, faintly the first of the people, and ady anddy were in great style. She stood for a while before the frame of King Yan''s team arrivedte. Many men who looked like members of the army surrounded the second carriage, escorting the carriage carefully and vigntly. The horseman rushed to a stone, the carriage shook slightly invisibly, and the coachman was immediately red by everyone.


    The coachman hurriedly apologized to the inside. When Gao Ran saw this, the smile on his lips grew deeper, revealing a vague victory. After the carriage stopped cautiously, Zhou Maocheng knocked on the door and said, "Girl Lin, here we are. Are you still ufortable?"


    There was a slight noise in the carriage, a bare hand lifted his face, and a fair and beautiful woman appeared in front of everyone. Gao Ran didn''t care when he saw theing life. Sure enough, what can a poor family have? This kind of person is not worthy of her shoes, how can hepete with her?


    Gao Ran just moved a step and was about to speak when she saw the woman jumping out of the carriage with the corner of her skirt, and then quickly turned back to help the other person.


    The car curtain was opened again, and another woman with a double ya was supporting a girl and appeared in the sight of everyone. The people in the pce waiting in the second gate could not help but breathe a sigh of relief when they saw the visitor.


    When they saw the first woman who got off the bus, many people looked down upon them. This was the oil bottle that dyed the prince¡¯s journey? It''s nothing more than that. However, in fact, this was just a maid. When the host came out, they saw Lin Weixi''s face. Many people were stunned on the spot, and even their mouths opened unconsciously.


    Everyone has the love of beauty, but the selection of beauty is also divided into different opinions. Everyone has their own opinions. Some people prefer to be pitiful, some like to be dignified and generous, but the one who slowly got off the carriage, even if it is The most picky person can''t tell her what is not good.


    That is an extremely beautiful, extremely beautiful, not beautiful, but beautiful. The people in the pce looked a little dumbfounded, Gao Ran swept across Lin Weixi''s face and then to the shoes, frowning unconsciously.


    Lin Weixi was tortured by the journey, and his whole body was haggard, and his condition was extremely poor. If possible, Lin Weixi didn''t want to appear weakly in front of everyone in the Yan Pce, but it was a pity that her body did not allow her to toss. Lin Weixi was tortured and lost his temper, and she was arrogant, so let''s make a living like this, anyway, everyone in the Yan Pce didn''t know who she was.


    Lin Weixi was cautiously kicked to the ground by the two maids. The sergeant escorting the carriage stared at Lin Weixi''s movements with bated breath. When they saw her safely standing on the ground, they let go of the tightly held breath. Lin Weixi closed the shawl on her body, barely dying, and noticed Gao Ran at first nce.


    Oh, I haven''t seen her for a few days, her concubine was reborn, and she almost taught her not to recognize it.


    Gao Ran also happened to ran into Lin Weixi¡¯s sight. She and Lin Weixi looked at each other for a short while, and then she calmed down her unhappiness, smiled gently and walked down the steps, wanting to pull Lin Weixi¡¯s hand: "This is the father¡¯s letter. That distinguished guest. What do you call a girl?"


    Lin Weixi avoided Gao Ran''s hand with a cold face, with a look of indifferent expression, and said nkly: "If your surname is Lin, the concubine will call me Weixi."


    It turned out to be Lin Weixi... Gao Ran smacked the name from the bottom of his heart, and then put on the posture of the hostess again, and smiled broadly: "Miss Lin just came, I am afraid that she is still afraid of life. Sister, don¡¯t be afraid, treat the pce as your own home. Just tell me if you have any needs."


    "Early concubine, my parents are the only daughter, I am afraid I can''t be your sister." Lin Weixi''s smile remained unchanged, although his eyes were smiling, his voice was frosty, "I have no brothers or sisters, and I am not used to being called brothers and sisters, you Call me by name."


    Dare to call her sister, where''s Gao Ran''s face.


    This time and again, Gao Ran couldn''t hold back her face. She secretly sneered that she was from a poor family, and she was so petty that she couldn''t get on the stage. But the more so, the more enthusiasm Gao Ran has to treat each other. Everyone will know the difference between superior and inferior.


    Zhou Maocheng was not surprised to hear Lin Weixi''s words, he knew that no one could escape this girl''s meanness except for the prince. But after all, after looking after all the way, Zhou Maocheng knew that Lin Weixi was not merciful, but his heart was good. He was afraid that the concubine would make things difficult for Lin Weixi, so he hurried forward and said: "Please peace to the concubine! The prince wanted to send Lin girl first. Back to the house, but the pce was called urgently, the prince had to go to the pce, so I waited to send her back. The subordinate will go to the front yard to see the son. Lin girl is in poor health and is still sick on the road. Temporarily ask Shi Zifei to take care of it."


    Although Zhou Maocheng was a rough person, these people did not learn how to speak when they followed King Yan. His remarks looked polite, but both inside and outside the words revealed that King Yan attaches great importance to Lin Weixi. After thest sentence, "Temporarily take care of the concubine Shizi," you know the weight of this.


    Gao Ran understood, and her heart became more unhappy. An orphan without a father or mother, isn''t it just that her face looks better? How can shepare to a distinguished and educated woman like her? Gao Ran secretly ridiculed these crude people for theirck of eyesight and ignorance, but still politely bid farewell to Zhou Maocheng and others on his face, and then took Lin Weixi into the house affectionately.


    Gao Ran humbled and asked for warmth along the way, the hostess was extremely stance, but Lin Weixi had always been cold and indifferent, holding the furnace coldly, and asionally Xu Zun replied with a sentence or two. Gao Ran could imagine how frustrated she was. She apanied Lin Weixi on the corridor of the carved beams and paintings of the Yanwang Mansion. When she turned slightly, she could see Lin Weixi''s delicate profile and long eyshes. Gao Ran looked at Lin Weixi''s profile and suddenly felt an extremely absurd feeling.

 Chapter 68

    Lin Weixi only found out after he died once that he was just a female partner in a prostitute.


    "What''s wrong?"


    Wanyue said in a few words about the meal, Wan Xing sighed for a while, and praised: "The girl is really kind. The concubine Shizi deliberately asked her nurse to run the girl, and the girl was willing to relieve them."


    Who wants to? Lin Weixi replied in an angry heart. In the pce, Gao Ran is the daughter-inw of the pce of Yan, after all, Wan Xing and Wan Yue didn''t have much to say, so he just gave it up. Wan Yue went on to say: "Isn''t it, but the prince''s anger is really scary today. I didn''t dare to raise my head in fright. That is to say, the prince can speak a little better in the name of the girl. The prince is really strict with the prince. People, when reprimanded, they don¡¯t leave any affection."


    "Because of what?"


    "It''s not for Princess Shoukang. I didn''t expect that King Yan would be unkind, and would be filial to the Princess."


    Lin Weixi added faintly when he heard this: "It''s not that he is filial to the princess Shoukang. Although the princess is Yan Wang''s aunt, how many princesses must be in the royal family? With so many uncles, nephews and aunts, I don''t see him alling close. King Yan was really filial to King Yan. When King Yan was not in the domain, he was very jealous of Sejong. It was Princess Shoukang''s guarantee that King Yan could go to the country smoothly. Because of this matter, King Yan treated Princess Shoukang. The mansion is extraordinarily courteous. Gu Chengyao grew up in a fief, and he was the peak of the Yan Pce''s power when he was born. Everything goes smoothly, how can he understand the origins of the previous generation."


    "It turns out that there is this rtionship." Wan Xing asked identally after listening, "Girl, how do you know about the Sejong Dynasty?"


    Lin Weixi took the tea immediately, and she knew that this was naturally because of what the princess Shoukang had personally said. But Lin Weixi, a lonely foreign woman, shouldn''t know this. Lin Weixi was secretly rmed, but he still casually replied: "When I was ten years old, my dad brought me to the capital to see a doctor. I stayed in the capital for almost half a year and listened to a grandpa in the alley."


    Both Wan Yue and Wan Xing were next to Lin Weixi, who hade halfway, and knew nothing about Lin Weixi''s past. They believed Lin Weixi''s exnation. Seeing that Lin Weixi had fooled the two maids over, while she was relieved, she also secretly warned herself that she should not be so careless.


    If the person who heard this today was King Yan, it would be over.


    Both Wanyue and Wanxing were in Beijing for the first time, and they were also in the Royal Pce. The two of them are different from Lin Weixi''s former maid, and they are very lively chatting. Now Lin Weixi''s identity is no longer the same, let alone two maidservants. Wan Xing and Wan Yue were full of curiosity about the famous Yan Wang Mansion, and now they both live with Lin Weixi in Yan Wang Mansion, which is even more remarkable. They lowered their voices and talked about the tip of the iceberg in the Yanwang Mansion, but it was already a wonderful family story: "I heard that the current concubine is filling the house, and thedy in front of the concubine is also surnamed Gao. It is the sister of the concubine!"


    Wan Xing covered her mouth in surprise: "My sister?"


    "Correct."


    Wan Xing showed an expression of amazement: "The son looks very young, and he has already married Madam Erfang."


    "The prince looks only in his twenties. If he hadn''t known in advance, who would have guessed that the prince''s son is already seventeen."


    "Yes. The eldest son is only seventeen, and the elder son is considered early."


    "It''s not that he got married early, it was because of the death of the previous concubine." Lin Weixi took the words, even with a smile on his face, "We were married in the first month and died at the end of the year. My sister came in in February the following year, without dying my son''s time. ."


    Wan Xing and Wan Yue didn''t expect Lin Weixi to answer the conversation suddenly. They didn''t think too much, just sighed: "The previous concubine was too pitiful."


    Poor? Lin Weixi smiled and said, "Perhaps. But King Yan is right. People in the world only look at the results, no one will ask why. She has lived her life like this, I am afraid that she herself will be to me. Love is in good agreement, deep and righteous, it''s okay to vacate the position earlier."


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing looked at each other, wondering why Miss Lin suddenly gave birth to such a pessimistic emotion. Wan Xing was lively, and it was only a day¡¯s work. She had already inquired a lot of news from the pce: ¡°In fact, it¡¯s not necessarily the fault of the concubine of the previous life. There are separate regtions, no gossip, noziness, and no petty theft on the stove. Princess Yan has passed away for many years, and King Yan has been fighting abroad all the year round. It is inevitable that many rules in the pce are ck. The former concubine just arrived. The drastic rectification is good intentions, but unfortunately it is too offensive."


    Wanyue and Wanxing are outsiders, so they can objectively evaluate the current situation of King Yan''s Mansion. But for the elderly domestic ves who had the wrong roots in the Yanwang Mansion, what Gao Xi did was to move their turf. So in the eyes of these people, Gao Xi was of course no good at all, waiting for Gao Xi to deal with the umted bad habits. When it was over, she herself was tired. After Gao Ran entered the door, the foundation had beenid, and when Gao Ran took over, he was naturally very good. And Gao Ran is used to superficial skills. She has benefited, and the rules are a littlex. With Gao Xi¡¯s strictness in front of the contrast, Gao Ran immediately became a gentle and kind new mistress, and Wang¡¯s residence also talked about her everywhere. it is good.


    This led to the current situation. The two new maids from Wan Xing and Wanyue could say "the concubine of the previous life was good at heart", but Gu Chengyao, who was wrapped in the servants and old ves, couldn''t see it.


    Lin Weixi didn''t expect to hear such words from these two girls. Sheughed mockingly, and it was really rare for someone to think of her kindness. Lin Weixi didn''t want to talk about these bad things anymore. Now she saw that Gu Chengyao and Gao Rang''s concubine''s love was really crooked, but the graceful dowry maid was still preaching everywhere, with a proud face. God knows that these servants had not even dared to lift their heads in front of Lin Weixi, but now they also raised their tails.


    Lin Weixi stood up and said lightly: "This is their family matter after all. It''s not good to talk about personal matters behind the scenes, so I won''t talk about it anymore."


    Wan Yue and Wan Xing looked at each other, and they both noticed the contradiction in Lin Weixi''s body. Miss Lin obviously relies on King Yan very much, but the family of King Yan is uncharacteristically indifferent. Aiwu should be equal to Wucai. Why does Lin have such a contradictory attitude? Wan Yue and Wan Xing didn¡¯t know, and didn¡¯t dare to mention it anymore. Instead, they carefully served Lin Weixi and changed his clothes: "Girl, today King Yan is angry with the son because of Princess Shoukang, and they said they will take the son with him in a few days. The eldest princesses to apologize. Are you saying this is true?"


    "Why isn''t it true?" Lin Weixi sneered, ironically, "How dare you despise the princess mansion because it has no children, where are they courageous? Even if the princess mansion really has no sessor, but as long as it grows long In one day, no one in the capital dared to neglect the princess. Even the King Yan wanted to call Princess Shoukang aunt. She, a concubine, jumped out eagerly, thinking that she could be wild on the grounds of the princess mansion, which is ridiculous."


    "girl¡­¡­"


    Lin Weixi also noticed that his emotions were agitated. She took a deep breath and said, "Get your clothes ready these few days. I''m going to visit the princess mansion with King Yan."


    Wan Yue was stunned for a moment. Lin Weixi was still in her filial piety period. He usually thanked guests behind closed doors. Why did he think of going to the princess mansion this time? But these weren''t her things that a maid should worry about. Wan Yue responded with a low voice, and went to give Lin Weixi the clothes she had prepared for the visitor.


    Gu Huiyan didn''t say anything after learning about it, nodded and agreed. After he finally freed himself up, he personally took the people from the Yanwang Mansion to visit Princess Shoukang.


    King Yan''s visit was of course regarded as a distinguished guest and immediately weed into the mansion. When Princess Shoukang heard that King Yan was visiting, she greeted her with her body.


    When Gu Huiyan saw Princess Shoukang, she quickly got up to support her arm: "Auntie, the dog is stubborn, and has failed your painstaking efforts. Now I bother you toe out in person. This is really my sin."


    "Don''t say that. You are now a prince, and the emperor is relying on you for assistance. How can my half-lengthed olddy dare to be your apocalypse."


    Seeing this, Gu Huiyan couldn¡¯t say any more. He lightly clicked on Gu Chengyao. Gu Chengyao understood what his father meant, so he could only reluctantly walk out and give a big gift to the princess Shoukang: "The junior was confused the other day. , I offended my grandmother, please forgive the younger generation."


    Gu Chengyao is the son of King Yan. Even if Shou Kang hates him for neglecting his sister Xi, he can''t ignore King Yan''s face. King Yan brought his son to apologize personally. From the perspective of etiquette and morals, King Yan¡¯s sincerity was already sufficient. Shou Kang could only nod his head and said coldly, "There is no overnight hatred in the family, since you understand That''s it. Get up quickly."


    Gu Chengyao got up, Gao Ran followed forward and saluted: "Grandma."


    Shou Kang made a cold snort obviously and didn''t even look at it. Gao Ran showed an aggrieved look, Gu Chengyao was distressed, but Gu Huiyan was still sitting on it, even if Gu Chengyao was angry, he did not dare to move.


    It was also at this time that Shou Kang realized that there was one more person. She looked at the exquisite girl like a New Year''s painting in the hall, slightly stunned: "This is..."


    Lin Weixi stepped forward and sturdily knocked three heads to Princess Shoukang: "Little girl Lin Weixi, see Princess Long."


    Shou Kang looked at the woman on the ground, his eyes widened unconsciously. Gu Huiyan saw this exnation: "When the Northwest rebellion was quelled, I was careless. It was her father who fought hard to cover me. You should have the impression that it was the Zhongyonghou from a while ago. After the Northwest rebellion subsided, I saw this young man. The girl lost her mother when she was young, and now she has no father. It¡¯s not a good idea to live alone, so she took her to the capital. Today, I brought the junior to greet you, and she will follow."


    After Shou Kang listened, the inexplicable throbbing in his heart became more obvious. She asked Lin Weixi to lift him up, and she moved closer and looked at it for a while, then warmly covered the back of Lin Weixi''s hand with some rough hands, and asked, "Your name is Lin Weixi, what is your nickname?"


    "The little girl had no mother since she was born, and she had no baby name. Everyone in the family called me sister Xi by her name."


    "Sister Xi." Even the name was exactly the same. Shou Kang''s eyes suddenly became wet. "Okay, I''ll call sister Xi. When is your birthday?"


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