“Eh? Why are there two bridal sedans entering the gates for the Heir of Marquis Pingxi? What kind of spectacle is this?”
“I heard the heir is marrying the only daughter of the Yun family, the wealthiest clan in Great Qi. Just look at that endless procession of dowry chests—ten miles of red-lacquered gifts! It seems most of the Yun family’s fortune has been given to their daughter as her dowry. The Pingxi Marquis household will never have to worry about silver again. Truly enviable.”
“The sedan on the left bears the Yun family crest, so that must be the Yun family’s daughter. But then, who is seated in the even grander sedan on the right?”
“This, I haven’t heard anything about it. Strange.”
The murmurs of the guests drifted into the Yun family’s bridal sedan. Inside, a stunning young woman in scarlet wedding robes slowly opened her eyes. In them swirled resentment, despair, fury, pain, and unwillingness—emotions so heavy they seemed like ink that could never be dissolved, filling her gaze with fathomless darkness. Her entire being radiated a chilling aura of hostility. She had actually been reborn!
She had been the only daughter of the Yun family, the wealthiest clan in Great Qi. The Yun fortune rivaled the realm’s treasury, and their businesses spread across the empire. As the sole heiress, she was cherished beyond measure—whatever she wished for was granted, her life filled with happiness.
At sixteen, the Marquis Pingxi household suddenly came forward with a marriage proposal. Her relatives and friends rejoiced, praising her good fortune: to marry into nobility as a merchant’s daughter was a leap across social ranks, a rare honor. Her father, determined to give her confidence in her new household, promised her half of the family fortune as dowry.
At seventeen, she entered the Marquis’s estate with ten miles of red-lacquered wedding chests, brimming with hope. Little did she know that day marked the beginning of her tragic fate.
On her wedding day, she became a laughingstock. Her husband held the hand of his beloved “white moonlight” and performed the rites for both women at once. She resisted, but her mother-in-law shattered her heirloom jade bracelet before the guests, forcing her head down and demanding she submit.
For ten years she lived as a widow in all but name, guarding the ancestral tablets of the main household. She was coerced into adopting the son of her husband’s beloved, drained of every coin of her dowry, and finally poisoned—her body discarded in a pauper’s grave.
At the moment of death, her husband embraced his white moonlight and laughed:
“A merchant’s daughter reeking of copper stench—how could she ever deserve a place in the Marquis family records?”
“You were nothing but a stepping stone for our century of glory!”
Suddenly, a woman’s voice rang out from outside, pulling Yun Zheng back from her torment: “Please, let the groom kick open the bridal sedan door.”
Bang! The heavy kick made the sedan tremble—there was emotion behind that strike.
The matchmaker cried out, “Please, bride, step down from the sedan!”
The door opened, light spilled in, and Yun Zheng met the gaze of a young man. Their eyes locked.
The new bride’s almond-shaped eyes and rosy cheeks, her snow-pale skin and delicate brows—she was as breathtaking as a peony in full bloom. A flicker of astonishment crossed the man’s eyes.
Yun Zheng stared at him. This was Jiang Wenzhou, the young heir of Marquis Pingxi—the man who was, in name, her husband.
“You…”
The gleam of admiration in Jiang Wenzhou’s eyes vanished, replaced by impatience. What use was beauty? To be forced into marrying a merchant’s daughter was the greatest humiliation of his life. He would never show her kindness.
“Must we invite you three times before you step down? What arrogance! The Yun family’s upbringing speaks for itself.”
Yun Zheng trembled. These were the very first words Jiang Wenzhou had spoken to her on their wedding day—exactly the same. Full of disdain, intent on belittling her family, crushing her pride into dust. This was one of Jiang Wenzhou’s ways of control.
Back then, she hadn’t dared to argue. Conscious of her lowly birth, she only wanted to please her husband and his household, desperate to secure her place in the Marquis estate and not disgrace her parents and family. Yet everything went against her will!
A surge of fury rose from the depths of Yun Zheng’s heart. She shot back coldly, “What’s wrong with the Yun family’s upbringing? I’d like the young heir to explain.”
Jiang Wenzhou froze—how dare she?
“Daughters of merchants are petty and vulgar. They can’t stand on the stage.”
Yun Zheng’s anger flared. “Then why did the Marquis household come begging for marriage? Has the Marquis estate fallen so low? Or is it that you couldn’t find a wife of equal rank?”
Her gaze dropped, lips curling into a mocking smile. “Or perhaps… you have some defect in your body?”
The Marquis estate might look grand, but inside it was hollow. They couldn’t even pay the servants’ monthly wages. Otherwise, why would they seek her out as a scapegoat to fill their coffers?
Jiang Wenzhou felt as if he had been slapped. Humiliated and enraged, he barked, “Yun Zheng! How dare you utter words that disgrace the Marquis household? Such audacity! I’ll teach you what it means to obey the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, to treat your husband as heaven itself!”
In his fury, he forgot all decorum. He reached out, intending to drag Yun Zheng from the bridal sedan and put her in her place. But Yun Zheng was ready. With agile movement, she slipped out of the sedan before he could touch her. She looked around. Flowers adorned the courtyard, guests filled the space, all eyes fixed on her with varied expressions.
Turning back to Jiang Wenzhou, she saw him—arrogant, domineering, still carrying a trace of youthful immaturity. She realized: she had been reborn to the very day of her wedding, when her husband married two women at once, with two bridal sedans arriving together!
Good. Perfect. This time, she would defy fate itself. First, she would escape this wolf’s den that devoured people whole. Then, she would plan her next moves carefully.
A plan already formed in her mind. She leaned closer, lowering her voice: “You’re flustered—it seems I struck a nerve. Ah, the dignified heir of Marquis Pingxi can only marry a merchant’s daughter. Well, my Yun family has mountains of gold and silver. Bowing to money isn’t shameful. Once I enter the Marquis estate, if you coax me well, I might even reward you when I’m pleased.”
Reward him? That was pure humiliation. Jiang Wenzhou had never encountered such a brazen woman. His whole body shook with rage. “Entering the Marquis estate won’t be so easy. Believe me, I can send you back right now!”
It was both a threat and a warning. If she were sent back, her reputation—and her family’s—would be ruined, condemned by society. It was nothing less than a death sentence.
A strange light flickered in Yun Zheng’s eyes. She blinked, her lashes trembling, and suddenly her eyes reddened. “Young heir, are you certain you want to send me back?”
Seeing her appear frightened, Jiang Wenzhou felt a surge of triumph. A low-born merchant’s daughter—if she dared defy him, he would grind her dignity beneath his heel. “Yes.”
But Yun Zheng turned to the gathered guests, bowed gracefully, and with tears brimming in her eyes, spoke in a voice full of grievance: “Everyone, the heir of Pingxi Marquis openly questions the Yun family’s upbringing. Before I even entered the gates, he struck me and threatened to send my bridal sedan back. I ask you all to bear witness—it is not the Yun family who is unjust, but the heir who has humiliated us first. This marriage, I will not proceed with.”
She gave him no chance to respond, making her decision swiftly: “Men, pull the dowry back. We are returning home.”
To enter the Marquis’s estate was to plunge into a sea as deep as fate itself—once inside, life and death would no longer be her own. At this moment, she lacked the strength to confront them head-on. But Jiang Wenzhou, still young, lacked the cunning and depth of experience. He was not the true danger. The real threat lay elsewhere.
Her words stunned the guests. The entire courtyard erupted. The heir of Marquis Pingxi, famed in the capital as a refined and brilliant youth—how could he act so dishonorably?
Jiang Wenzhou’s rage boiled over. “Yun Zheng, are you mad? Do you not understand—if I refuse to marry you, no man in this world will dare take you. You will die alone, unloved, for the rest of your life!”
Yun Zheng deliberately raised her voice so all could hear: “Better to die alone than to be devoured, left without even a grave!”
Each word rang clear, echoing in every ear.
The crowd gasped.
“Ah, so the Marquis estate intends to swallow her fortune whole. How insidious.”
“Isn’t it obvious they only covet her silver? Why else propose to a merchant’s daughter?”
“They scorn her, yet grit their teeth to marry her. Isn’t that just living off her wealth?”
“Of course it is. How could it not be?”
Jiang Wenzhou felt as though he had been struck by a heavy blow. His vision darkened, his blood surged violently. Detestable! How dare this wretched woman drag the Marquis estate into the mud? She was courting death!
Yun Zheng turned and strode away—one step, two steps, three steps…
Just as she was about to cross the street, joy flickering in her heart, a stern voice rang out behind her: “Stop her.”
Her whole body stiffened. She closed her eyes, then opened them again—madness blazing within. She would fight to the end!