“Quick, the Ji family is about to start the silk ball toss. Hurry and take a look!”
“I wonder who will win this grand prize. It’s a literal ladder to heaven.”
“Indeed. Never mind the Ji family’s immense wealth; the eldest Miss Ji’s beauty alone is enough to take one’s breath away. Tsk tsk, she is the number one beauty of Anzhao Guo…”
It was the fifteenth year of Anzhao, during the Lantern Festival.
Jizhou Cheng was exceptionally lively, with surging crowds and a bustling atmosphere. People were flocking toward the entrance of Ji Jia Shanghang, eager to catch a glimpse of the grand marriage recruitment event.
A gentle breeze blew, causing the lanterns hanging at the entrance to sway slightly, making a rustling sound that added a touch of life to the festive atmosphere.
Inside the merchant house, a maid entered the room carrying a tray of freshly brewed hot tea and spoke softly, “Miss, the silk ball marriage recruitment is about to begin.”
Clang—
Along with the sound of gongs and drums outside, Ji Ruyue’s eyes snapped open, a flicker of trance-like confusion passing through the depths of her gaze.
“Miss?”
“Bai… Bai Mei?”
Ji Ruyue looked at the person before her in shock. How could her long-dead personal maid, Bai Mei, suddenly appear?
“Today, I, Master Ji, have specially set up this Zhaoxin Tai for my daughter, and I sincerely invite all eligible young talents to join us in this grand event…” Master Ji’s sonorous and powerful voice echoed from outside, causing Ji Ruyue’s heart to skip a beat.
“Father!” Ji Ruyue’s lips trembled, but she couldn’t make a sound.
Noticing her lady’s strangeness, Bai Mei hurriedly set down the tray and approached her with concern. “Miss, are you very nervous?”
Ji Ruyue’s loss of composure was fleeting; she quickly calmed her emotions.
What was going on? Was this a dream?
No! She had clearly died. She had been strangled to death with a white silk sash by Chen Shujin, the husband who had stayed by her side for eight years…
“Actually, you don’t need to be nervous, Miss. Master has set up many layers of tests; he will surely find a fine husband for you,” Bai Mei comforted her with a smile.
Ji Ruyue raised a hand to touch her forehead. A wave of inexplicable nausea washed over her, making everything before her feel even more surreal.
In an instant, hatred surged like a tide…
Heaven truly had eyes, allowing her to be reborn!
“Miss, have a cup of tea and rest first. Looking at the commotion outside, I’m afraid it will still be a while.”
The corners of Ji Ruyue’s mouth curled into a cold sneer. “Help me fix my makeup. It will be over very soon out there.”
How could it not be fast?
Her miserable life, and the tragic fate of the Ji family—the extermination of nine generations—all originated from this silk ball recruitment event.
In a short while, her silk ball would be caught by a woman.
That woman was of extraordinary status, and though this concerned Ji Ruyue’s life, the woman treated it entirely as a game. Once she had her fun, she would toss the ball away carelessly to a passing poor scholar.
That poor scholar was Chen Shujin, her heartless and ungrateful husband!
That woman had said: Do not look down on a youth for being poor. You must marry him whether you want to or not.
She had used her status to break Master Ji’s pride, forcing him to marry his beloved daughter off to that poor scholar.
Ji Ruyue had been the apple of Master Ji’s eye since childhood, raised with indulgence. She was gentle and virtuous, and she trusted her father implicitly. How could she disobey his command?
If Chen Shujin had treated her with sincerity, backed by the Ji family’s massive fortune, they could have lived a good life no matter what.
Unfortunately, Chen Shujin was deeply in love with the woman who had tossed him the silk ball, viewing her as his soulmate.
When that woman started an uprising, he did not hesitate to betray the Ji family. He murdered Master Ji, imprisoned Ji Ruyue, and handed over all of the Ji family’s wealth to serve as her treasury.
On the day the woman was crowned Empress, Chen Shujin personally ended Ji Ruyue’s life with a white silk sash.
Despite eight years of marriage, he viewed that past as a stain on his reputation. To erase that stain, he ensured that over a hundred members of the Ji family perished in a fire overnight, leaving no survivors.
Ten days later, the Empress issued an edict: the Ji family was guilty of collaborating with the enemy and treason. With conclusive evidence, nine generations were to be exterminated!
Chen Shujin’s series of utterly ruthless actions were merely to show his loyalty to the Empress, voluntarily becoming one of her many male concubines…
Ji Ruyue’s heart was filled with resentment!
The Ji family had spent their lives doing good and never owed anyone anything. Why did they end up like that?
In this reborn life, even if she had to strike a stone with an egg, she swore to make that pair of shameless scoundrels receive their due retribution!
“Miss, do you still need to wear this hairpin?” Bai Mei’s voice pulled Ji Ruyue back from her thoughts.
“No need.”
Ji Ruyue slowly turned toward the bronze mirror, her gaze falling upon the youthful and unfamiliar face within. It was clearly how she looked when she had just reached the age of adulthood, yet it felt so foreign.
The girl in the mirror was in her sweet sixteen, her skin as fair as jade with a flowing luster. Her brows were like crescent moons, and her face was like a peach blossom. Her eyes were clear and bright, more brilliant than the stars. Her cherry lips were naturally red without makeup, tender and succulent, and the small red mole between her brows added a touch of vibrant beauty.
Dressed in red, her slender figure was like a weeping willow of Jiangnan, graceful and multifaceted. Even just sitting there, she could not hide her peerless elegance.
Ji Ruyue raised her hand in a daze, lightly touching her cheek. She felt it was simply unbelievable!
“Miss, you are truly beautiful.”
Just as Bai Mei finished speaking, a chaotic clamor suddenly erupted from outside.
“Let’s go,” Ji Ruyue said calmly.
“Yes, Miss.”
In her previous life, from the moment she stepped out of this room, an endless nightmare began.
Her palms were pierced by her vivid red-painted nails, and beads of blood quietly seeped out.
Ji Ruyue raised her eyes slightly. She felt none of the anticipation of her previous life as she pushed the door open and stepped into everyone’s sight.
“Look, the Ji family’s young lady is out!” In the crowd, someone with sharp eyes was the first to notice her and shouted softly.
In an instant, the originally noisy area below the stage fell silent. Everyone’s gaze focused on the stunning woman who had just appeared.
Many people couldn’t help but gasp, struck by her heavenly beauty!
Ji Ruyue walked as if treading on lotus flowers. With lowered eyes, she stepped onto the Zhaoxin Tai.
The Zhaoxin Tai built by the Ji family was extremely luxurious, with sandalwood pillars and fine satin covering the floor. It was more than spacious enough to hold a hundred people.
Master Ji flicked his sleeve, his face showing signs of annoyance.
However, when he saw his daughter, his expression instantly became warm and kind. “Yue’er, this silk ball recruitment hasn’t ended yet. Why have you come out?”
Before Ji Ruyue could speak, a woman on the stage dressed as a young man spoke up first. “How is it not over? Since this scholar has caught the silk ball, he is naturally the Ji family’s ideal son-in-law. Does Master Ji intend to go back on his word?”
“You… you woman, you are truly making trouble without reason!” Master Ji roared in anger.
Ji Ruyue raised her small hand slightly to calm her father, her gaze coldly settling on the woman dressed as a youth.
This person was the future Empress of Anzhao Guo, currently still Changle Gongzhu, Murong Jing!
Murong Jing had heroic features and a tall stature. She looked good in male clothing, but no matter how well she disguised herself, she was still a woman. No one present was a three-year-old child; who couldn’t tell?
It was just that the status of women in Anzhao Guo had always been lofty, and people were extremely tolerant of different styles of dress, so they were used to it.
Ji Ruyue’s expression was indifferent, but her tone was extremely cold and stern. “If my Ji family decides to go back on this word, what will you do about it?”
Murong Jing was stunned by the question. Her gaze swept over Ji Ruyue, and a playful smile curled at the corners of her mouth as she casually pushed the frail scholar beside her forward. “What? Is the Ji family looking down on this scholar for being poor? Are you looking down on people like dogs?”
As she emphasized each word, the people present gradually fell silent.
Ji Ruyue took two steps forward, her eyes lifting to meet Murong Jing’s. “Oh? Forgive this humble girl’s shallow knowledge, but how exactly does a dog look at someone? Why don’t you demonstrate it for me, miss?”
Immediately, someone below the stage couldn’t help themselves and burst into loud laughter.
Before Murong Jing could get angry, Ji Ruyue spoke again. “Disdain? Even if I do disdain him, what is wrong with that? My Ji family set up this Zhaoxin Tai with every rule clearly defined. Did this scholar win the literary competition? Or did he win the martial competition? To dare to stand before me like a joke, where does he get the face?”
“My Ji family is recruiting a husband, not performing an act of charity!”