The middle of the night brought a bitter chill that warned of approaching winter. Soon, the first snow would fall.
Out on the cold stone porch, An Yimei lay wrapped tightly in her thick cotton blanket, her small frame curled against the heavy wooden door frame. Exhausted from the long day, she had dozed off into a deep sleep.
Click.
The quiet sound of an iron latch slipping out of place cut through the dark.
Slowly, the heavy wooden doors creaked open a few inches. Bai Zhengyu sat in his wooden wheelchair, bathed in the dim candlelight from inside his room. His sharp face had a stiff, cold expression as his dark eyes fell upon the petite lady asleep right across his threshold.
Without her heavy golden crown, her long black hair spilled messily over her shoulders and the pale stone floor. Her face looked small in the moonlight, her breath coming out in faint white puffs against the freezing air.
Zhengyu stared down at her for a long, silent moment. His expression remained unreadable, his eyes dark and icy. He didn’t offer a cloak, nor did he call his guard to carry her inside. Without a single word, he pulled the heavy wooden doors shut once more, the lock sliding back into place with a sharp clack. He turned his wheelchair around and rolled back into the darkness of his quiet room.
The next morning, the bright sun hit Yimei’s face, waking her up.
She opened her eyes slowly, squinting against the light. As she tried to sit up, a sharp, dull ache ran straight down her back and neck. Her whole body was stiff and sore from sleeping on the hard stone ground all night.
She looked at the tightly closed wooden door behind her.
"He really didn’t let me in," she whispered to herself with a quiet sigh.
She sat up, rubbed her cold arms, and called out to the system in her mind: ’Nine, what are his favorability points right now?’
A soft chime rang inside her head:
[SYSTEM 009 ACTIVATED]
[TARGET: BAI ZHENGYU]
[Favorability: 0%]
Yimei stared at the big zero on the screen.
’He is really tough to crack,’ she complained mentally, stretching her sore back. ’He didn’t even care that a petite woman was freezing to death right outside his door.’
[Nine: A heart made of ice, Host! Did you think sleeping on the floor for one night would make him fall in love? He peeked at you at midnight, saw a frozen dumpling, and went back to sleep! You have a lot of work to do.]
Before Yimei could answer, Qinqin came running into the courtyard.
"Miss! Oh, Miss! You are awake!" Qinqin cried out, running to Yimei with tears in her eyes. "Come quickly! Let me take you to your assigned room!"
Qinqin helped Yimei stand up and guided her away from the locked door, taking her to the side room assigned to her in the Northern Courtyard.
When Yimei stepped inside the room, she stopped and looked around.
The room was completely dry, dark, and dusty. Thick cobwebs hung in the corners, the furniture was covered in dirt, and the air felt freezing cold with no warmth at all.
Yimei walked over to the wooden table, wiped a finger across the thick dust, and turned to look at Qinqin.
"Qinqin," Yimei asked calmly. "How many maids and servants are at the Northern Courtyard?"
Qinqin looked sad and lowered her head. "Miss... there are only three people in total. There is you, me, and one young maid named Xiao Lan."
Qinqin set down a bucket of cold water with a heavy sigh.
"Miss, your dowry chests are full of fine silk, warm blankets, and gold," Qinqin whispered, looking at the dirty table. "Should I open one of the small boxes so we can buy fresh charcoal and hire a few outside workers to clean this place?"
"No," An Yimei said, her voice smooth, calm, and absolute.
Qinqin blinked. "No?"
Yimei walked over to the wooden window, looking out into the cold courtyard. "If I open my dowry chests to clean this room today, Second Aunt and the concubines will learn that they can treat the First Branch like beggars, and I will pay for my own food and shelter. They will cut our monthly allowance to zero and drain us completely."
She turned back to Qinqin, a cool, clever smile on her lips. "This compound belongs to the Bai family. The Old Master and Old Madame are still alive. According to family law, every branch receives a set monthly allowance for charcoal, food, tea, and six assigned servants. Where is our share?"
Qinqin lowered her head. "Second Aunt Madame Liu manages the household distribution... she gave it all to her own children and Lady Chen’s branch."
"Then she is stealing from the main estate," Yimei said softly. "Xiao Lan!"
The young maid, Xiao Lan, stepped into the room nervously, bowing low. "Y-Yes, Young Madame?"
"Go to the central accounting office," Yimei ordered calmly. "Ask the head steward for the official distribution ledger for the Northern Courtyard for the past six months. Tell him the First Daughter-in-Law wishes to review the records before evening."
Xiao Lan gasped. "Young Madame, the head steward belongs to Second Aunt! He will never give it to us!"
"He doesn’t have to give it to us," Yimei replied, her dark eyes glinting with sharp intelligence. "His refusal is all the proof I need."
An Yimei sat before a small, cracked bronze mirror while Qinqin carefully brushed her long hair.
Yimei looked at her pale reflection. Her shoulders ached from sleeping on the stone porch, but her eyes were sharp and clear.
"Miss," Qinqin whispered nervously, holding a simple silver hairpin. "A servant from the main hall just came by. Old Madame has ordered everyone to gather for the morning meal."