Chapter 1

Translator: Exodus Tales

Editor: Exodus Tales

Rains of the spring filled Jinguan City during the Qingming Festival.

The falling petals in Nan residence covered the bluestone trails, soaking in the cold.

Facing the rain in the west window, Nan Baoyi leaned against a bamboo couch while staring blankly at her fair and tender little hands.

Suddenly, someone was shouting from the outside.

“Jiaojiao, there is a guest in the house sitting in grandmother’s yard. Why are you still sleeping? Hurry up, let’s go see what’s going on!”

[Translation note: Jiaojiao is Nan Baoyi’s nickname in the family]

An elegant and polished little beauty trotted in and smiled while pinching Nan Baoyi’s small cheeks, “Why are you looking thinner these two days, did the maid not serve you properly?”

Nan Baoyi pouted and brushed away her hands.

She looked into the bronze mirror with flower petal edging. The mirror reflected a girl of twelve years old, like a carved jade doll.

She sighed at the bottom of her heart. It would be better if she had rebirth to the days before getting married. Unfortunately, she rebirthed to a twelve-year-old girl, too young.

…

After being dragged all the way to the flower yard by her cousin sister, Nan Baoyi hid behind a red sandalwood screen embroidered with birds and flowers. She quietly watched what was happening in the yard.

Grandmother sat upright and still, setting down her white jade teacup heavily on the table, “Son, your wife passed away just less than two years ago and already you want to bring in an outsider. Have you thought about what would happen to Jiaojiao?!”

A graceful and refined middle-aged man sat next to her, “Mother, Madam Liu is not a person who treats children harshly. She will raise Jiaojiao properly as her own. Look, isn’t Yan’er well raised?”

The girl behind him immediately walked to the middle of the yard and kneeled respectfully in front of the old madam, “Yan’er greets Grandmother, wishing Grandmother good health and good luck!”

The girl was thirteen years old, with apricot-shaped eyes and rosy cheeks. Her voice was as sweet as honey.

Behind the screens, Nan Baoyi turned white.

It was also this time during her previous life, under her father’s persuasion, Madam Liu brought in a son and a daughter into the residence and became his second wife.

As a stepmother, Madam Liu did indeed spoil her. However, her indulgence slowly went out of control and Nan Baoyi became a conceited idiot.

Nan Yan was Madam Liu’s own daughter but she was raised with a poised elegance. Not only did she set off Nan Baoyi’s stupidity and stubbornness, in the end, she even took away her marriage.

Her marriage was to the second son of the first wife of a governor in Shu Country, Cheng Deyu.

The Nan family was a merchant in silk. A daughter from a merchant family being able to marry into a governor’s family, this marriage was considered climbing into a higher social class.

In her previous life, she happily married into the family but unexpectedly, this was when the nightmare started.

It turned out that Cheng Deyu and Nan Yan were already in a relationship with each other. After her marriage, the two of them performed multiple public displays of an affectionate couple in a bitter fate. Everyone believed that Nan Baoyi was the one hindering these two love birds from a happy ending, an evil woman in someone else’s love story.

She struggled and to please Cheng Deyu, she asked him to marry her and let Nan Yan marry into the family as a wife on equal grounds with her.

However, her good intention was returned with evilness and Nan Yan deliberately used boiling water to scald her face as a result…

Nan Baoyi stretched out her small hand and tremblingly touched her smooth flawless face.

“Jiaojiao, what’s wrong with you?” Her cousin sister, Nan Baozhu asked with concern.

Nan Baoyi shook her head, her eyes displaying determination.

Since she had a chance at rebirth, the first thing she needed to do was never allowing Madam Liu and Nan Yan into the family!

She stepped out of the screens timidly, “Grandmother, who is this girl?”

The old madam hugged her lovingly, “Just two days ago you fell from the rockery and knocked your head, why are you out here and not resting properly inside?”

Nan Baoyi blushed, “Grandmother, my head is fine.”

She turned to Nan Yan again and spoke coyly, “Grandmother, she looks very pretty, just like an actress on an opera stage.”

The maids’ faces changed.

An opera actress had a low position in society. Wasn’t this an indirect way to disrespect Nan Yan?

The maids secretly sized up Nan Baoyi and Nan Yan. Their fifth miss had beautiful delicate features, even her eyebrows looked cultured. She definitely looked more dignified than this outsider’s daughter.

Nan Yan, who was kneeling on the ground also looked at Nan Baoyi.

Nan Baoyi had her hair combed up in two cute buns, wearing a yellow silk outfit embroidered with golden hibiscus. There were two expensive-looking jade bracelets on her wrists, her waist was adorned with gold and silver bells and her shoes had pearls on the embroidered patterns. Her whole appearance had a subtle exquisiteness.

Nan Yan lowered her head and looked at herself. She wore a pink satin dress with two gold bracelets on her wrists. This was already her most expensive look.

She was also her father’s daughter but she was the daughter of a concubine, not fit to be seen in public and she became the one with low status.

This indescribable inferiority filled her heart. She clenched her lips tightly, a strong resentment and unwillingness to give in grew deep inside her heart.

Nan Baoyi took in the whole scene of her looks at once.

She lovingly walked up to her, smiling slightly while she helped Nan Yan up.

She said: “The ground is cold, you would not want to get sick. Father, is she an actress you want to purchase for the family to perform shows particularly for grandmother?”

Nan Guang felt awkward, “Jiaojiao, she, she’s your Aunt Liu’s daughter, she’s your elder sister…”

Nan Baoyi opened her eyes widely in ‘surprise’.

Tears accumulated in her eyes as she took a few steps back delicately. Suddenly, she bit her small handkerchief and cried out.

She turned around and rushed into her grandmother’s embrace, “Grandmother, Father doesn’t want me anymore!”

The old madam had a soft spot for her and hurriedly patted her thin back to comfort her. Then, she stared angrily at Nan Guang.

Nan Guang felt guilty, but he pressed on, “Jiaojiao, Yan’er is your own elder sister. With her in the family, there’s another person to love you, isn’t that good? Moreover, your sister is of the age to talk about marriage. It would be easier to get a good marriage in the future if she’s staying in the residence. Jiaojiao, you’re grown up now. You need to be mature. You need to help your sister!”

“Shut up, can’t you see Jiaojiao is already in tears?!” The old madam said sternly, “You coming here early in the morning to make a scene, such a headache!”

“It’s my fault…” Nan Guang forced a smile and gave orders to the maid, “Layout our breakfast.”

The Nan residence was extremely rich. Not only was their breakfast prepared exquisitely and carefully, but they also had strict rules about consuming it.

The maids came in like flowing water, respectfully serving the delicious food on the table.

Nan Baoyi accompanied the old madam to take a seat, quietly took a look at Nan Yan, and said intentionally, “Grandmother, shall I serve you your food?”

Nan Guang hurriedly said, “Since your sister is here, let her serve!”

This was a good opportunity to please the old madam!

Nan Baoyi did not say anything and moved away while smiling.

Nan Yan seized the chance and stepped forward. She took a carefully designed gold pot from the maid’s hand.

The gold pot contained some liquid and smelled very fragrant and sweet.

Perhaps this was a hot soup to warm the stomach!

Nan Yan smiled confidently. She laid out the gold pot on the table while everyone else looked stunned. She took a spoon, scooped it out to a small bowl, and respectfully delivered it to the old madam’s mouth, “Grandmother, please have some soup.”

“Pffft!”

Nan Baozhu, who slipped out to steal some food, laughed out loud.

The maids who were serving in the room laughed too, barely concealing the mocking and despised looks in their eyes.

Nan Baoyi understandingly said, “That is used to clean our hands.”

Nan Yan was stunned to the spot.

She looked at Nan Baoyi while she slowly rolled up half of her pink sleeves, revealing soft and fair hands, her slender fingertips even had a slight clear powder on it.

She immersed both her hands into the fragrant solution and a maid sprinkled a few red rose petals with warm mist diffusing the air, portraying a delicate beauty in a wealthy family.

And she, Nan Yan, wanted to serve a hand washing solution for people to drink…

Blood flushed up and her face turned red. She wished there was a hole in the ground she could get into!

Children from the first wife and concubines, from a rich family and poor family, the scope of experience was a huge difference like the clouds in the sky and the mud in the ground.

She bit her lip harshly, feeling inferior. Finally, she could not hold it in and cry into her sleeves.

Everyone in the room felt awkward.

She was the daughter of a concubine after all. No one bullied her and yet she was now crying here early in the morning in the ancestral yard. Wasn’t this bad luck?

This was such bad behavior. It was clear that her mother was also someone who was just as lowly, how could she be Nan residence’s third madam?

[Translation note: Nan Guang is the third son of the Nan family.]

Nan Guang, however, felt heartache, “Mother, look at this, this is the bad thing about raising children outside of the family. Madam Liu gave birth to a son and a daughter for me, the right thing to do is to bring her into this home. Moreover, Yan’er is about to come of age to talk about her marriage. If she stays here in the family residence, it’s easier to find her a good marriage. You are her grandmother, you need to be more understanding, you need to help Yan’er! No matter what, I will marry Madam Liu and bring her into this family next month!”

After he said that, he took Nan Yan away.

Everyone looked at each other.

The old madam smashed a teacup angrily, “He’s an absolute disgrace!”

Noticing Nan Baoyi was still there, she hugged her with teary eyes, “My poor Jiaojiao’er. What should I do once your stepmother comes in…”

Nan Baoyi’s nose stung.

Her grandmother really loved her. Funny thing was that in the previous life, Madam Liu drove a wedge between the two of them. She thought that her grandmother disliked her and so she slowly grew distant from her grandmother.

After that, when she was locked up in the Cheng residence’s storeroom, she saw Nan Yan wearing a white flower on her head, and only then she knew that her grandmother had passed away.

At that time, Nan Yan stood proudly in front of her and mocked, “That old woman kept calling your name when she was dying. I told her you did not want to go back but she kept her eyes wide open and tried to look for you in the crowd… Nan Baoyi, you are really unfilial!”

Nan Baoyi laid in the arms of her grandmother and suddenly sobbed heavily.

Yes, in the previous life, she was really unfilial!