The intended guests invited to the gathering were mainly young ladies from various aristocratic households in the capital. It was an event organized by the Empress, under the pretext of a flower appreciation tea session. But in reality, the Empress wanted to select a consort for her dearest son, Prince Li.
As many would have expected, many young ladies from various influential households started claiming to have mysteriously fallen sick with grave illness when the invitations were sent out.
Naturally, the Empress was no fool to fall for their pitiful deceits. In a fit of rage, she dispatched her maidservants to ‘pay an official visit and check on the condition” of each and every gravely ill young lady.
As a result, even the ladies who originally feigned their illness became truly sick from prolonged fear and over worrying.
The attendees today were mainly from lower noble households, except for the lady by her side, Ye Yao, the second daughter of the Finance Minister. Her family status was barely passable by the standards of the Empress.
The Empress gave her a short glance and decided to entertain her a little, nodding slightly to indicate her agreement.
Ye Yao had a keen eye. After secretly scanning over the other participants, she could discern that none of them were her competition. The smile on her face became even more enchanting, as she raised the hems of her skirt slightly, intending to approach and present the pot of black peony to the Empress.
Just then, echoes of hasty footsteps could be heard, as a palace maid, Qing Yin, swiftly rushed to the side of the Empress. She excitedly relayed the news she had heard to the Empress.
“Breaking news, Your Majesty! Prince Li has brought a child back with him!”
The Empress frowned.
“A child? Are you deliberately trying to spite me? My heart aches whenever I am reminded of that incident. Do not ever mention the word ‘child’ again.”
The Empress was evidently still tormented by the misfortune that befell on Prince Li almost three years ago.
Noticing that the mood of the Empress had soured, Qing Yin hurriedly bowed down and clarified.
“This humble servant dare not have the courage to spite Your Majesty. But Prince Li had indeed brought a child along with him into the palace, and that child is said to be a splitting image of the Prince!”
The Empress who was originally unreceptive to her report, suddenly brightened up as she grabbed Qing Yin’s wrist with her hands still trembling.
“Are you certain of the validity of those claims?”
Qing Yin smiled and nodded at the master she had served for a long time, as she faithfully supported her with both hands.
“Help me up. This gathering shall end here. Send everyone back.”
With the new development, she was no longer in the mood for the gathering. Her only wish now was for the news to not turn out to be false hope.
Upon hearing that the tea session would end prematurely, the young ladies were secretly relieved. After all, becoming the consort of Prince Li was no different from a death sentence, since they would have zero chances of producing a royal offspring.
Except for a handful of small noble households who desired for more power, no one was willing to be engaged to an impotent prince. It was a path of no progression, and their authority and influence would gradually wane as time passed.
Ye Yao was the only lady who reluctantly tugged her handkerchief. She had gone the extra mile to finally obtain a chance like this. How would she willing to give up so easily?
She had adored Prince Li for the longest time. Even if she would never produce any children, Ye Yao was fine with it and was prepared to accompany the Prince till ripe old age. Getting married with Prince Li – that was the only thing she wished for. Everything else was ancillary.
In the past, the prospect of being married to Prince Li was all but a distant dream. Most young ladies could only fantasize and daydream about it. Even Ye Yao could only admire him from afar due to the gap in their family status.
Even though the Prince had become impotent, she viewed it as a great opportunity instead. No one would compete with her for the position of Prince Li’s consort!
She directed her bitter gaze at the direction where the Empress was heading towards, as she lamented the unexpected variable that had appeared at this juncture, even though her goal was almost within her reach.
……
“Why has he not arrived yet? Go and check it out. Does he not intend to pay a visit to his mother?”
“Please calm down, Your Majesty. His Majesty must have held Prince Li back to discuss about important affairs. Everyone knows how filial the sixth prince is. He will most certainly drop by to visit Your Majesty after he is done.”
The comforting words of her close servants eased the Empress’s heart.
“Instruct the chefs to prepare some food suitable for the child.”
“Please rest assured, Your Majesty. All preparations have been made in advance… ”
The Empress anxiously waited on her couch, with her body slightly leaned forward. As more time passed, impatience caught up to her and she subconsciously began tapping on the tea cup with her fingertip.
At the moment when her expectations had waned to a low point, her pair of half-closed of eyes suddenly widened.
A chubby little face cautiously peered out from the side of the doorway without a sound. Even the palace maids behind the Empress were at a loss for words.
The little figure had a triumphant expression, apparently proud of her accomplishment of successfully sneaking into the Empress’s Palace. With her youthful and lively energy, Guaibao had outrun the attendants assigned to look after her, and reached the Empress’ abode before the accompanying maids could announce her arrival.
She curiously peeked at the person seated in the middle. None of the servants around had any intention of stopping her.
(This lady is really pretty… Guaibao… admits defeat…)
The Empress’ gaze flickered at the same time as Guaibao blinked her eyes.
(This was not an illusion!)
The Empress abruptly stood up and looked at the little figure at the entrance, still unable to believe her own eyes. Her sudden reaction caused the tea to spill all over and a maid swiftly brought out a silk handkerchief to wipe the spillage.
Regaining her composure in no time, the Empress suppressed her excitement and retracted her desire to rush forward. She patted her chest with one hand to calm her heart and beckoned the little girl to enter with the other hand.
Guaibao straightened her back with her hands behind her back, and resolved herself to enter the Empress’s palace with confidence.
Even if she had admitted defeat in the looks department, Guaibao had no intention of losing in terms of disposition!
Overflowing with spirit, Guaibao challenged the raised threshold of the doorway which was taller than her waist.
After managing to cross the obstacle with one of her feet, she came to realize that the same method would not work for her other feet. And that was not the end of her woes. She soon found out that she could no longer retract her front foot too…
She was officially stuck!
Despite her determination and struggle, Guaibao could not get past the hurdle, and her face became flushed with embarrassment.
(It’s over! Where can I find a hole to bury my face?)
Just as Guaibao was considering the option of smashing apart that annoying threshold which caused her embarrassment, an adult-sized hand lifted her up from behind.
Ming Jue endured the urge to laugh and patted her clothes while avoiding direct gaze with her. Despite her small figure, he knew that the little girl cared a lot about her image.
He swept his eyes across each and every person in the surrounding, silently warning them to not to laugh.
Even the Empress had to conceal her curled lips with a handkerchief. She could not hide the delight in her eyes.
“Oh little sweetie, come closer and let grandma have a good look.”
In the past, her attention was focused solely on Ming Jue whenever he came over to visit. But now, she only had eyes for the chubby little girl.
Guaibao straightened her chest in a reserved manner, meekly glancing around to confirm that no one was laughing at her. After checking her surroundings, she took a step towards the Empress.
“My name is Guaibao, and I am turning three soon.”
Guaibao raised her chin and introduced herself, stating her name and age in advance since she noticed that everyone had the exact same questions for her during their first meeting.
Tears welled up in her eyes as the Empress heard the young tender voice. Her hands, which were still trembling, reached out towards the face of the little girl, wanting to physically confirm her existence.
Her precious son had an offspring!
Ever since her son was poisoned, the Empress had not been able to eat or sleep well, constantly plagued by distressing nightmares every single night. Even a perfectly healthy body would succumb to the adverse effects of prolonged psychological and mental distress.
She fervently rubbed and kneaded the Guaibao’s chubby little face, feeling the weight in her heart dissipate with every touch. At this moment, all of her pent up negative feelings and emotions had vanished without a trace…
……
With a calm expression, Su Jin stood at the top of an elevated ground, hands behind her back as she surveyed the fields in front of her. The crops were lush and thriving, indicative of the fruits of her efforts and accomplishments over the past few years.
She could not help but feel somewhat hesitant, as she wondered if she could obtain a field of similar scale in the capital to grow crops.
Originally, Su Jin had intended to leave for the capital after attending Jiang Ruyan’s wedding, but her yearning for Guaibao had gotten the better side of her. It seemed that she would have to apologize and make up for her absence with a grandiose gift.
“Boss, a young gentleman has arrived at the mansion and is requesting for an audience with you.”
Housekeeper Xiao finally located Su Jin after searching the areas where his boss frequented, informing her about the visitor without further delay.
Su Jin reined back her feelings of attachment and asked with an eyebrow raised, “Did he state his identity?”
“That young gentleman exuded an extraordinary disposition and there was a faint scar on his face. He had only mentioned his family name, Chen.”
Housekeeper Xiao recalled the details of the gentleman he had observed earlier, and he was certain that the young man was not a native resident of the Fengyuan County.
(A faint scar? Could it be related to young lady Liu, who had sought for her medicine in the past…)
Su Jin pondered for a moment and speculated.
By the time Su Jin arrived, she noticed that the visitor was already seated in the main hall, and approached the man.
But just before she reached him, the man abruptly stood up and rushed towards her instead, staring at her eyes without blinking. His expression was filled with surprise and doubt.
Su Jin: “…”
(What’s the issue with him?)
She creased her eyebrows and assessed him from his outward appearance, before asking in a deep tone. “What business do you have with me?”
“You…”
Despite his state of confusion, Chen Beiqing resolved himself and opened his mouth, but he did not know how to approach the topic.
“You can be straightforward with your words. No need to beat around the bush.”
(As I thought, there must be something wrong with him.)
“When is your birthday?”
Realizing that his question was too abrupt, he quickly clarified his intentions, “Please forgive me for the abruptness, Miss. It’s just that your appearance greatly resembles someone I know, so I was wondering if…”
Su Jin understood the implied meaning of the unspoken words and glanced at him as she mentally pieced the puzzle.
Someone from the Chen family, claiming that she closely resembled someone… Without a doubt, the young man in front of her must be from that Chen family, which the original owner of this body had visited, back when she first transmigrated to her current body.
Setting aside her thoughts, she nonchalantly looked straight at him and directly affirmed his speculation.
“Yes, you are not mistaken. If the familiar person you mentioned is someone from the Chen family in the capital, then you have gotten it right.”
No matter how mentally prepared Chen Beiqing was, he was bound to be dumbfounded by her response.
(She was aware of it?)
“So you mean to say that you are aware of your own identity and recognize the Chen family. In that case… why did you not…”
Chen Beiqing bit his lips and stared straight at the person in front of him, or accurately speaking, his younger sister.
Since young, he knew that he had a little sister who went missing.
His mother had isolated herself and lived in seclusion at a corner of the estate due to her own guilt. He had complained to his mother about Chen Xinyue, who had now usurped the status of his real younger sister as the legitimate daughter, but she merely shook her head and said nothing.
Su Jin interrupted him and completed his sentence, “Why have I not attempted to reunite with my blood-related family, you ask? What gave you the confidence to make that claim?”
She stared back with a smirk that carried a hint of mockery.
“You visited in the past? When was it? Why has mother not heard of it?”
(Mother? I guess that would make him the brother of the original owner of this body.)
“About three years ago, I was given a warm reception by a young lady in your estate then.”
Su Jin tilted her head and answered casually. Either way, Su Jin intended to seek revenge on her sooner or later. There was no reason to withhold this piece of information.
Now that she was reminded about it, Su Jin realized that she had unknowingly delayed her vengeance by three years. Su Jin spent a short moment to silently express her remorse to the original owner of the body, promising to make things right soon.
Chen Beiqing’s expression instantly turned dark. Snapping sound could be heard as he clenched his fist.
He uttered in a deep tone, “Who was it?”
His sister had made an attempt to reunite with them, but someone had obstructed her and delayed the long-desired reunion by three years! Whoever it was, he swore that he would never forgive that person!
At this moment, the figure of a person flashed crossed his mind, and his eyes narrowed. He hoped that it did not turn out to be as he imagined.
Su Jin recalled the scene when she first opened her eyes. A cold flash of light flickered across her eyes as she replied.
“No idea. Let’s discuss about it after going to the capital.”
It was not a lie, since Su Jin truly did not know the name of that young lady from the Chen family. She could not be bothered to find out either, since that young lady would soon be history.
TL Corner: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Do let me know in the comments or discord if there are any errors or mistakes.
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