Chapter 10

“The Prince will be back today. Have you checked that the front courtyard is properly arranged?”

“Don’t worry Shizi Fei, this slave 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-in-law. 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, compassionate to the elderly servants, and not only do you exempt them from manual labour, 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 slave is your wet nurse, this slave really isn’t boasting. Shizi Fei was praised by everyone when she was still an unmarried young lady for composing 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 never compare 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!”

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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 relaxed. 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 welcomed 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◇. Granny Tao nagged as she walked, “Prince Yan hasn’t returned to the capital for three years. When he comes back and sees that the house has been managed perfectly, he’ll be very happy to have such a smart daughter-in-law like Miss. If this slave 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.”

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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 delayed 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 blame the daughter of his previous subordinate for falling ill during the journey, which ended up delaying 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◇ had appeared. Gao Ran only listened until there and already started imagining the kind of person who was arriving soon.

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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 classmates. It was a shame that she met with an accident 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 her comeback 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 clichéd. After the male and female leads went through hardships together, just as they get married, here comes 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 young lady. 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 vigilantly. The coachman accidentally ran over a small stone, and when the carriage shook subtly, everyone glared 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 uncomfortable?”

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 she compete 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 delayed 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 place, 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-in-law 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 guts come from?

Once again, Gao Ran had difficulty controlling her expression. She thought mockingly, sure enough, this one comes from a poor family. Her behaviour lacks generosity and consideration, and she shouldn’t be allowed out in public. 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 Palace summoned him urgently. He had no choice but to enter the Imperial Palace, 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 she compare 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 occasionally condescendingly replying with a sentence or two. One could imagine how frustrated Gao Ran was. She accompanied 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 eyelashes. 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!