Chapter 1 Plum Blossom Introduction
The gentle breeze blew, and a few petals drifted down, landing on her face, cool and carrying a faint fragrance.
Luo Jinyan lifted her head and saw several branches of plum blossoms peeking over the wall made of blue bricks, glistening white like snow. As the wind blew, the petals fell slowly onto the snow-covered wall, making it hard to distinguish between snow and plum blossoms.
After several days of heavy snow, it had just cleared up today, and it was her first time stepping out of the house. Sitting on the large heated brick bed in the house, she could only see the desolate courtyard. It was only when she stepped outside that she realized there were plum blossoms on the wall.
This was the corner courtyard of the Luo family's main house in the plum blossom village, and the plum blossoms should belong to the neighboring family.
Indeed, there were real plum blossoms in the Plum Blossom Village. She wondered how many plum trees the family next door had planted. Perhaps the village was named after the plum blossoms?
Luo Jinyan was seven years old. Over the years, she had followed her father on his assignments, from Jiangxi to Hebei, and it was the first time she had seen plum blossoms up close.
She squatted down and carefully picked up the petals that had fallen on the snow. There was a painting of plum blossoms in her father's study, and she often saw her father standing in front of it, lost in thought. Her father must like plum blossoms. When they arrived in Longxi, she planted a few plum trees in the courtyard so that her father could enjoy them at home.
She just didn't know if the plum trees would grow well in Longxi.
In her previous life, Luo Jinyan had never been to a place outside of Hebei.
When she entered the palace, Emperor Renzong was already in his fifties, indulging in women and male favorites, yet also seeking immortality. He was no longer the vigorous and valiant emperor who personally led military expeditions. Apart from the 60th birthday celebration at Wanshou Mountain, Luo Jinyan had not even left the Forbidden City.
At that time, there was a popular folk song in the capital: "Give birth to a daughter, and she will be a daughter of the Luo family. Without seeing the king, she will not speak."
She was indeed the legendary daughter of the Luo family, sent into the palace in the 38th year of Tongde. She was only fourteen at the time, and she had thought she would grow old there like the other palace women, but she had only lived there for eight years. She passed away a year after her death, and Emperor Renzong's funeral was held a year later.
Now it was the 21st year of Tongde, and the Great Zhou Dynasty did not have Emperor Renzong. He was still Emperor Zhao Ji of Tongde, who had just returned to the capital in triumph. The capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty was adorned with colorful flags, and literati and scholars composed poems and songs, praising this great emperor who was as capable in civil administration as in military affairs, comparable to the emperors of the Qin and Han dynasties.
Luo Jinyan could not connect this Emperor Zhao Ji with the one in her memory. It was not a fault of her memory. This Zhao Ji of this life was the same as the Zhao Ji of her previous life. It was just that in her previous life, she had missed the glorious period of his life, leaving her only with decay and cruelty.
In this life, she was still the daughter of the Luo family, but this Luo family had no connection to her previous life's Luo family.
"Look, the mute girl is picking flower petals. She hasn't left yet today. Could she be planning to stay at our house?"
"We can't allow that. If people find out that we have a mute girl in our house, it will be a subject of ridicule. I'll go ask Mother to drive her away."
The girls' voices gradually faded away, probably as they went to find their mother.
Luo Jinyan didn't look over. She wrapped the petals that hadn't touched the ground in a handkerchief and was about to turn back to the house when she heard a surprised "Oh."
It was a male voice.
Or rather, it was a child's voice.
The voice was very close, as if it was right above her head.
Luo Jinyan couldn't help but look up. She saw a face peeking over the wall, a boy of about ten years old, looking at her curiously.
"Are you picking flower petals to make tea? You need plum stamens for that. If you can't reach them, I can pick them for you."
The boy's arm was propped against the wall, and the snow had stained his sleeves, but he didn't seem to mind.
There were plum branches reaching out to him, and when he said he would pick plum stamens for her, it didn't seem like he was just playing around.
Luo Jinyan smiled and shook her head.
"Don't you want them? Really don't want them? Many people in our Qin family are eager to have them," the boy asked again.
Luo Jinyan still shook her head, this time giving a half bow as a gesture of thanks.
The boy seemed a bit disappointed and said, "Why is everyone so quiet? Big brother is like this, and now a little girl is the same, so boring."
It seemed he was feeling bored and had climbed up the wall for that reason.
At that moment, another voice came from outside the wall, "Young Master, come down quickly, don't fall."
It sounded like an old servant. The boy impatiently said, "There's nothing fun here. I'm not coming down."
The old servant said, "Your elder brother is looking for you. Hurry over."
The boy immediately became excited, "Elder brother is really looking for me? Okay, I'll come down right away."
As he spoke, there was a sudden "ouch," probably from twisting his leg when he jumped down.
The wall wasn't very high, so it shouldn't have caused a serious injury. Although the boy complained, he immediately jumped down from the wall when he heard that his elder brother was looking for him. It seemed that the brothers had a good relationship.
He had mentioned that many people in their Qin family were eager to have the plum stamens, so it seemed that their family's plum blossoms were indeed very famous.
Qin family? Luo Jinyan carefully recalled and thought of Qin Jue and Qin Yuzhang.
Thinking of him, a coldness that didn't match her age appeared at the corner of Luo Jinyan's mouth. After her death, a wisp of her soul refused to leave and lingered on the peony in the Crown Prince's residence, watching the changes in the Forbidden City.
Qin Jue, the most favored courtier of Emperor Renzong in his later years, had left his six-year-old son behind shortly after Emperor Renzong's death and resigned from his official position.
Luo Jinyan shook her head vigorously, telling herself not to dwell on the past. She had been reborn, and it was now the twenty-first year of Tongde. At this time in her previous life, she hadn't even been born yet. The current her and the past her, apart from sharing the surname Luo, had no connection at all.
She bumped into Xia Zhi, a little maid, head-on. Xia Zhi was holding a slightly worn cloak and immediately draped it over Luo Jinyan when she saw her. She grumbled, "There's no charcoal in the stove. I just went to ask for some, but they said there's none. I don't believe it. How can there be no charcoal? They must be deliberately making things difficult."
Luo Jinyan smiled and patted her hand, shaking her head at her. She reassured her that their current stay was temporary, and she would be leaving tomorrow. Whether the Luo family treated her well or not was of no importance.
Xia Zhi resisted the urge to tell her mistress that even the servants in the Luo family referred to her as "little mute." She had just argued with another maid.
Her mistress was not mute; she just had difficulty speaking.
The courtyard they were temporarily staying in had no heating, and the room was freezing cold. Luo Jinyan wrapped herself in the cloak and lay on the heated brick bed, while Xia Zhi covered her legs and feet with a quilt. She smiled and said, "The master will come to pick you up tomorrow. Rest for a while, and I'll go pack your luggage."
Luo Jinyan nodded and leaned against the window, picking up the book "Records of Scenery in the Great Zhou."
She counted the days. Her father was supposed to return tomorrow. If it weren't for the snow, her father, feeling sorry for her frail health, would have taken her with him to Changping to manage the family business. Then she wouldn't have to endure the scrutiny of the Luo family.
The Luo family in Meihua Lane was the main branch, while her father, Luo Shao, was from the third branch. They were distant relatives. When her father, Luo Shao, served as the county magistrate of Xingtang in Zhending Prefecture, the head of the main branch, Luo Hong, corresponded with her father. During festivals and holidays, the two families exchanged gifts.
Last year, Luo Shao's mentor, Huo Ying, a minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was demoted due to mismanagement in the southwestern war. Although Luo Shao, as a seventh-rank county magistrate, was not directly implicated, after serving three years, he was transferred to Longxi. Despite still being a seventh-rank magistrate, it was clear to discerning eyes that Luo Shao's prospects for advancement were slim.
Perhaps for this reason, during her temporary stay at the Luo family's Meihua Lane, no one in the Luo family treated her kindly. She had only met the head of the Luo family in front of her father on the day she arrived. As for the mistress of the household, Madam Liu, she had only seen her once.
Luo Jinyan had no complaints. If she had stayed at an inn, her father would have been worried. Now, at least the Luo family provided her with shelter. It was better than making her father worry about her while he was in Changping. In a way, the Luo family had shown her kindness.
Having lived two lives, she understood better than anyone else how precious a small act of kindness could be in times of hardship.
Yet, she still counted the days until her father's return. In this life, her father was her only relative.
Three years ago, a high fever had left the once articulate young girl struggling to speak. Her father sought out renowned doctors, but her condition did not improve. The myriad of words in her mind could only be uttered as a few syllables.
Contrary to her father's sorrow and self-blame, Luo Jinyan did not feel resentful.
In her previous life, at the age of four, she had been chosen by a distant relative and was forbidden to speak. At the age of fourteen, news of a stunning mute beauty from the Luo family in Hejian spread to the capital. A Taoist alchemist who made elixirs for the emperor claimed that she was a gift from heaven. He predicted that she would only speak in front of the emperor.
Soon after, the mute beauty was sent to the capital, and Emperor Renzong appeared before her in plain clothes and straw sandals. Those present did not know his identity, and some even drove him away. But when they saw tears in the beauty's eyes, she knelt down and called out "long live the emperor."
Luo Jinyan gently touched her lips. In her previous life, every year from the age of four, portraits of Emperor Renzong were secretly sent from the capital. It was not surprising that she could recognize the emperor among the crowd.
In her previous life, she pretended to be mute at the age of four, and in this life, she truly became mute at the same age. Perhaps it was retribution, but it shouldn't have fallen on her.
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