Chapter 1 Return

Dong!

With a muffled sound, her forehead hit the carriage compartment.

Sss!

Ouch!

Feng Shaojun, feeling groggy, covered her forehead with her hand and suddenly opened her eyes.

A familiar face, long gone but now in front of her, sounded anxious, "Miss, does your forehead hurt?"

The round and pleasing face, with large almond-shaped eyes full of concern and a cute black mole at the corner of the mouth, belonged to her maid, Jixiang!

Eleven years ago, Jixiang died protecting her from poison. How could she suddenly come back to life?

Feng Shaojun's heart pounded like a drum. Ignoring the pain in her forehead, she reached out and touched Jixiang's face.

Startled by her sudden action, Jixiang whispered, "Miss, you've been away from the capital for so many years. Now we're almost at the Feng residence, where you'll be staying. Even I, as your maid, feel a bit scared."

"Miss lived in Pingjiang Prefecture for six years. It's almost time for her to return, especially since she's of marriageable age..."

Jixiang's chatter echoed in her ears, very real.

The warm and soft skin under her palm made Feng Shaojun retract her hand and touch her own face.

It was warm too.

She lowered her head and saw herself wearing a yellow short jacket, paired with a long green skirt, covered with a light green gauze. A jade pendant hung from her waist, emitting a soft and gentle light, finely carved from top-quality sheep fat jade.

The embroidered shoes peeking out from under the long skirt were adorned with delicate patterns and fine pink pearls.

Her blood pulsed at her temples, and her heartbeat suddenly quickened.

"Jixiang," Feng Shaojun heard her own soft and pleasant voice, "bring me the mirror."

Jixiang was surprised to see her mistress staring at the mirror without moving. "Is it because you think today's attire is too flashy?"

Before Feng Shaojun could respond, Jixiang whispered, "Miss, you've been in mourning for three years. You've always worn plain clothes. Now that the mourning period is over, it's your first time meeting the old master and madam. You should dress more festively."

Feng Shaojun looked at the mirror with a complex expression. "Put it away!"

Jixiang complied and put away the mirror.

Feng Shaojun closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then lifted the curtain to take a peek.

The carriage was just turning a corner from the spacious street into an alley.

The road, paved with blue bricks, was solid and smooth enough for three carriages to pass side by side. Two rows of willow trees lined the road, and it was already April, with the willow branches swaying gently in the breeze.

This was the Willow Tree Alley in Chengqing District.

Those who lived in Chengqing District were all officials in the court. The highest-ranking official was a second-rank Minister of Revenue, and the lowest-ranking official was a fifth-rank official.

The Feng family was considered a middle-class family.

The grandfather held the position of a third-rank Right Assistant Minister of Rites, in charge of ceremonial matters and relations with vassal states. The Ministry of Rites was a clean government office, and the Right Assistant Minister of Rites didn't benefit much from it. There were more than ten members of the Feng family living in a four-courtyard house.

The Right Assistant Minister of Rites had three sons and two daughters.

The eldest son, Feng Gang, passed the imperial examination and became an official, currently serving as the magistrate of Huizhou. His wife, Zhou, came from a scholarly family and gave birth to a son and a daughter.

The second son, Feng Wei, passed the imperial examination but never achieved the title of a scholar. He was assigned to a position as a county magistrate, at most a seventh-rank official, and he had been studying at home. His wife, Yao, was the daughter of a Ministry of Works official, and they had a son and two daughters. There were also two children from concubines, two sons and three daughters.

The eldest daughter, Da Feng, was born from a concubine and married a captain of the Imperial Guards, Shen Mao, and had three sons.

The second daughter, Xiao Feng, married into the Prince Kang's mansion as a concubine. Although Prince Kang was older and less attractive, he was a legitimate prince. After Xiao Feng married him, she became the princess of the county.

The only regret was that after several years of marriage, Xiao Feng had not yet conceived a child.

Feng Shaojun's deceased father, Feng Lun, was the youngest son of the Right Assistant Minister of Rites.

Among the three brothers, Feng Lun was the most intelligent and talented in his studies. At the age of eighteen, he became the top scholar in the imperial examination, and later married and became an official.

Feng Lun's official career was not smooth. Six years ago, he was transferred from the position of magistrate of Qingzhou to the Imperial Salt Commissioner of Lianghuai. His mother, Cui, was weak and fell seriously ill on the way, passing away. Grieving for his beloved wife, Feng Lun also fell ill.

With no one to take care of the young Feng Shaojun, Feng Lun had her sent to her maternal family in Pingjiang Prefecture.

Three years later, Feng Lun was accused of corruption and bribery by the Wei family, a salt merchant in Yangzhou, and was escorted to the capital for questioning. On the way, he encountered a group of bandits and was unjustly killed by their blades.

She had lived in the Cui family for six years.

A month ago, the Right Assistant Minister of Rites personally sent a letter to Pingjiang Prefecture.

Her maternal grandmother, Madam Xu, tearfully bid her farewell, urging her to come to the capital.

[The text is a continuation of the story, describing the family background and the circumstances leading up to the present situation.]

Before leaving, the Xu family gave her a brocade box. Inside the box, there were land deeds for the fertile fields in Pingjiang Prefecture, deeds for five prime storefronts in the capital city, and two hundred thousand taels of silver. Together with the gold and silver treasures left by her parents, it was enough for her to live a life of luxury.

She tearfully bid farewell to her beloved grandmother, and under the escort of her cousin, she traveled to the capital and returned to the Feng residence.

She thought she was returning to her family.

Little did she know that as an heiress of tens of millions left by her deceased parents, she was already a piece of fat in the eyes of the Feng family. They were all rubbing their hands, eager to swallow this piece of fat.

Her marriage had long been planned by the Feng family.

A "good" marriage was waiting for her!

The Emperor Long'an had four sons, and the youngest son of the Crown Prince, the Prince of Qin, had been a sickly child since he was young. He could only spend less than ten days a year moving around. This noble Prince of Qin was now of marriageable age.

The Princess of Qin wanted to find a suitable marriage for her son to bring him joy. This young prince of the county was short-lived, and any girl who married into the family would end up a widow. Families who cherished their daughters were unwilling.

Those who sought to attach themselves to the Prince of Qin's residence were either of low birth or lacked in appearance, and the Princess of Qin did not approve.

Little Feng played the matchmaker, and the Feng official also had thoughts, and together they presented her, who knew nothing, to the Princess of Qin. She was a girl from the Feng official's residence, beautiful, and with a substantial dowry. The Princess of Qin was indeed taken with her.

With her parents deceased, her grandfather had arranged her marriage, and it was all proceeding smoothly.

After coming of age, she was welcomed into the Prince of Qin's residence. Just as the bridal sedan chair entered the prince's residence, the young prince passed away.

The wedding had not even taken place, and it turned into a funeral.

She changed out of her wedding clothes and into mourning attire, kneeling in despair at the funeral hall. She mourned for a husband she had never seen. The Princess of Qin fainted several times and in the funeral hall, she cursed her as an ill-fated star, failing to bring joy and causing her son's death.

The female relatives of the Feng family who came to offer condolences remained silent, no one spoke up for her.

Her heart turned cold.

Her grandfather, the Feng official, also came, consoling her with pity, and then turned around to show loyalty to the Princess of Qin, willing to have this girl from the Feng family buried with the young prince.

The moment the bad news reached her ears, her world collapsed.

"Miss, quickly escape," Jixiang, with a pale face, resolutely changed into her clothes, "This servant's life is worthless, it doesn't matter if I die. Miss, escape, and in the future, I will avenge you."

Tears streaming down her face, she changed into Jixiang's clothes, disguised herself, and took advantage of the coming and going of people in the Prince of Qin's residence to escape.

From then on, she hid her identity and changed her appearance.

There was no longer a Feng Shaojun in the world.

Several years later, the Prince of Qin's struggle for the throne failed, and he was stripped of his title, and the people of the Prince of Qin's residence were exiled to the border. The pampered Princess of Qin died within a year.

The Feng official, being a supporter of the Prince of Qin, was also implicated and stripped of his official position. The Feng family returned to their ancestral home in Pingjiang Prefecture, but on the way, they encountered bandits, and the whole family perished, dying clean deaths.

She had avenged her great grudge, but fell seriously ill, and after enduring for a year, she closed her eyes and passed away.

The year she died, she was twenty-six.

Twelve years, like a nightmare.

Today, she opened her eyes before the nightmare began.

...

The memories of her past life rushed into her mind.

The hatred and anger in her heart surged incessantly.

Feng Shaojun coldly tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"Cousin," a familiar voice of a long-lost youth sounded, "We're almost at the Feng residence."

Feng Shaojun quickly came to her senses and glanced over.

A young man riding a white steed came into view.

This young man, about fifteen or sixteen years old, was dressed in a green brocade, with handsome features and a radiant spirit. His smiling eyes were warmer than the spring.

Her grandmother only had one daughter, her own mother, Cui, and then had no more children, so she was adopted from a distant relative of the Cui family. Cui Yuanhan was her uncle's eldest son and also Feng Shaojun's cousin.

Feng Shaojun had lived in her grandmother's house for six years and had a deep bond with her cousin Cui Yuanhan, like siblings.

As a young girl traveling alone to the capital, Cui Yuanhan volunteered to accompany her back to the capital, taking care of her needs along the way.

After escaping from the Prince of Qin's residence in her past life, she was afraid of implicating her extended family and heartlessly never sent a single letter. Her grandmother thought she had died in the Prince of Qin's residence, and after a major illness, she passed away two years later.

Enduring the heartache, she returned to Pingjiang Prefecture to offer condolences to her grandmother. She witnessed the ugly faces of the Cui family members who were clamoring to divide the family property.

Her uncle, being simple and not good with words, was forced into a difficult situation by the family members.

The young Cui Yuanhan stepped forward and caused a scene with the Cui family members, saving the family property.

"Cousin," Feng Shaojun gazed at the handsome young man on the horse, and called out softly.

Cousin, after years of separation, are you well?

Cui Yuanhan smiled and replied, "Don't be nervous. When you're settled, I can return to Pingjiang Prefecture with peace of mind."

In a joking manner, the carriage stopped in front of a mansion.

The vermilion main gate was tightly closed, with a black plaque hanging above it. The plaque was thick and ancient, with the golden characters "Feng Residence" engraved on it.

Feng Shaojun narrowed her eyes, her gaze icy.

She had finally arrived at the Feng residence.