The big front yard of the Bai Manor was filled with red silk, stone pillars, and sweet smoke.
Servants stood in straight lines along the stone paths, while guards stood by the heavy wooden doors. Under the roof, the women of the family Madame Liu, Madame Zhang, Lady Chen, and Lady Lin stood together. Their faces looked polite, but their eyes were full of mean thoughts.
They waited eagerly, expecting to see the poor, illegitimate daughter step out of a cheap, ugly carriage, while the proud, rich daughter arrived with a mountain of treasure.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The heavy doors of the Bai Manor swung open, and the loud noise of drums, horns, and firecrackers filled the air.
A porter shouted in a loud voice that everyone could hear:
"The Marriage Procession of the First Branch! The Eldest Daughter of the An Family has arrived!"
Madame Liu sneered, leaning over to whisper to Lady Chen. "Listen to that silly man. He got confused and read the wrong announcement."
Lady Chen covered her mouth with her fan, laughing softly. "Let him shout all he wants. A concubine’s child is still a concubine’s child. Loud drums cannot change her poor blood."
But as the smoke from the firecrackers cleared away, the mean smiles on their faces completely froze.
Stepping over the front gate was not a small, cheap carriage.
It was a giant, beautiful carriage made of dark polished wood, covered in heavy red silk and shiny gold ribbons. Eight strong porters carried it with proud, easy steps.
Before anyone could understand what was happening, a long line of workers marched through the gate behind the carriage, carrying heavy wooden chests on their shoulders.
One box. Two boxes. Ten boxes. Twenty boxes!
The workers lined up across the big yard, setting the heavy chests down onto the stone floor with loud thuds. A few boxes were left slightly open, showing shiny gold coins, green jade, soft silk, and fine tea sets shining under the sun.
The whole yard became deathly quiet.
Madame Liu dropped her paper fan onto the ground. Her mouth opened wide in shock.
Lady Chen’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. Her proud smile broke into pieces as she stared at the mountain of gold. "T-That... those are the rich boxes of the First Daughter! Why are they in front of her carriage?!"
Madame Zhang stood frozen, her face turning pale as a ghost. "Where... where is my nephew Wenliang’s carriage?"
At the very end of the line, slipping quietly through the gate, came a tiny, plain carriage carried by only four men.
Behind it followed four skinny workers carrying three cheap, empty wooden boxes.
The curtain of the small carriage was pushed open, and An Yulan stepped out. Her hair was messy, her face was covered in tears, and her eyes were red and swollen. She wore the plain, cheap red cotton dress looking like a poor servant girl sent away in shame!
"Wenliang’s bride!" Lady Chen screamed in horror, running forward two steps. "Yulan! Why are you wearing that plain trash?! Where is your gold dress?! Where is your treasure?!"
An Yulan looked at Lady Chen, then looked at the mountain of gold sitting on Yimei’s side of the yard, and burst into loud, sad tears.
Before Lady Chen could demand an answer, the big red carriage stopped in the center of the yard.
Qinqin stepped forward, holding her head high with a happy smile. She pulled back the heavy red curtain and held out her hand politely.
"Young Miss, we have arrived at the Bai Manor."
A soft, pale hand with delicate fingers reached out from the carriage, resting gently on Qinqin’s wrist.
An Yimei stepped out onto the stone floor.
Everyone in the yard gasped at the same time.
An Yimei wore the heavy, beautiful red dress woven with real gold thread. The golden crown sat on her head, its pearls framing her quiet, pretty face. Beneath her thin red veil, her dark eyes were completely calm. She did not look like a weak girl pushed into a forced marriage she looked like a queen stepping into her palace.
Madame Bai stood at the front, her cold eyes opening wide in surprise.
Then, slowly, a sharp, happy smile appeared on Madame Bai’s face. She looked at the giant pile of treasure, looked at Yimei’s proud posture, and then shot a victorious look at the pale, shaking Lady Chen.
"It seems," Madame Bai said, her clear voice cutting through the quiet yard, "the An family knows the rules after all. The First Daughter’s glory belongs only to the Eldest Branch!"
"No! This is wrong! This is a mistake!" Lady Chen screamed, her voice cracking in wild anger. She ran to An Yulan and grabbed her arm. "Yulan, speak! What happened at home?! Why did you give her your dress?! Why did you give her your gold?!"
An Yulan choked on her tears, her voice full of shame. "F-Father... Father ordered it! He said... he said since I insisted on taking the second son, I must take the second daughter’s plain dress and small share! He said... he said I was not worthy of the head wife’s gold!"
Lady Chen felt like she had been slapped. She stumbled back, her head spinning. She had boasted for weeks that her son was marrying the rich daughter and her huge fortune! Now, her son was left with a crying girl in a cheap dress and three bare boxes, while the crippled eldest son got all the gold!
Madame Liu and Madame Zhang stood frozen, their earlier mean pride completely gone. The greedy cousins lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.
An Yimei paid no attention to the crying Yulan or the angry Lady Chen.
She walked forward with smooth, light steps, her long golden dress trailing behind her. She stopped directly in front of Madame Bai and bowed politely.
"Daughter-in-law An Yimei greets Mother," Yimei said softly, her clear voice echoing across the yard. "I have brought the dowry of the An family to honor the First Branch."
Madame Bai’s heart filled with immense pride. She stepped down from the platform, using her own hands to gently lift Yimei up.
"Good. Very good," Madame Bai said, her sharp eyes shining with warm approval. "You are a smart, good child. From today on, this house is your home."