Jiang Dun had not established a grave for Jiang Zhuo’s deceased mother in the capital.
Since that was the case, Jiang Zhuo buried her father’s cenotaph beneath the century-old peach tree at White Horse Temple outside the city.
The peach tree was regarded as Jiang Zhuo’s mother; with her father buried beneath it, it could be considered a joint burial.
Out of concern for Jiang Zhuo, Shen Guanzhi accompanied her. Along the way, she kept pulling Jiang Zhuo along to look at flowers and willows, trying to ease her mood.
Yet Jiang Zhuo still looked dispirited and could not muster any interest.
“…Although this was not my intention, I have obtained the position of Prince Jing’s secondary consort. Will younger sister harbor resentment over this?”
After circling around the topic, Shen Guanzhi finally voiced the concern she had been hesitating over.
“I have obtained the title of county lady. Will elder sister harbor resentment over this?”
Jiang Zhuo sighed, lifted her eyes, and asked in return.
“Of course not!” Shen Guanzhi answered without a moment’s thought.
At home, Shen Guanzhi had never been favored. Jiang Zhuo had been her first friend.
Not sisters by blood, yet closer than sisters.
“Then naturally neither will I. At the Qionghua Banquet that day, I both recommended elder sister and publicly expressed my refusal. Elder sister should have known by then that I no longer harbor feelings for Prince Jing.”
“I do understand that…” Shen Guanzhi explained hesitantly. “It’s just that two months ago, younger sister was still determined to marry Prince Jing. I simply don’t understand how you changed so quickly.”
Worthy of being the heroine—she noticed the change so quickly.
Jiang Zhuo paused, then promptly produced an excuse.
“The imperial household is perilous. I am the only daughter of the Jiang family. Since childhood, I have never understood the dangers of inner-courtyard struggles, nor am I as clever as elder sister. If I truly entered the princely residence, I might not even know how I died. When Father resigned his post earlier, he likely understood the principle that extreme prosperity must decline. It is only a pity that he still could not avoid this calamity.”
Shen Guanzhi nodded and was just about to offer some comfort when a fine drizzle suddenly drifted down with the wind.
Both their carriages were parked at the foot of the mountain. Before Jiang Zhuo could react, Shen Guanzhi had already pulled her into a nearby pavilion to take shelter.
Though it was only a light rain, running quickly left their appearances slightly disheveled.
As they helped each other straighten their clothes, Jiang Zhuo—who had been too busy with her father’s funeral to pay attention to anything else—now noticed that since becoming betrothed to Prince Jing, Shen Guanzhi’s makeup, hair ornaments, and attire seemed far more splendid than before.
At that moment, the rain gradually grew heavier.
Seeing that they might be trapped in the pavilion, Jiang Zhuo finally took a closer look at it. Only then did she realize that besides herself and Shen Guanzhi, there was also a ragged beggar lying on the ground inside.
“What a pitiful person,” Shen Guanzhi said with compassion, taking some broken silver from her purse and preparing to give alms.
But the man refused.
“This humble one is not a beggar, but a fortune-teller.”
Jiang Zhuo looked suspiciously at the man who claimed to be a Daoist.
White Horse Temple was a Buddhist temple, filled with monks who expounded Buddhist scriptures. Yet here was a Daoist lying in a pavilion inside a Buddhist temple telling fortunes—it was truly unbelievable.
“Then calculate a divination for the two of us sisters. This will count as your fee.”
Shen Guanzhi, full of interest, noticed nothing amiss.
The self-proclaimed Daoist tossed three ancient bronze coins—so filthy that their faces were almost indistinguishable—into the air. After casting them six times, he finally spoke.
“Upper Xun, lower Li, transforming Kun into Earth. The official star transforms into the imperial seat; the earthly carriage bears the image of Heaven.” The ragged Daoist muttered a few lines, as if awakening from a dream. He suddenly stood up and bowed to Shen Guanzhi. “Miss, this is the fate of a phoenix who will rule the world as mother.”
…So this was the protagonist encountering a plot-driving character.
Jiang Zhuo let out a breath of relief.
This fellow’s calculation was quite accurate.
“If that is so, then let me first congratulate elder sister,” Jiang Zhuo said, feigning surprise and joking with a smile.
“Don’t speak nonsense!” Shen Guanzhi said. This was the first smile Jiang Zhuo had shown since leaving the palace. Though Shen Guanzhi tried to stop her, she could not help but smile as well. “I didn’t even say what I wanted to calculate, and he already cast the coins. How can that be considered accurate?”
“Miss is exceptionally intelligent, with no oversight in her plans. You will surely obtain what you desire,” the Daoist added when he saw Shen Guanzhi did not believe him.
No oversight in her plans? Jiang Zhuo was startled. Did Shen Guanzhi need to scheme at all?
Since the emperor had already bestowed the marriage, the steps of presenting gifts and asking names should have already passed. Jiang Zhuo remembered that it was probably at the stage of accepting auspiciousness—that is, the court ritual officials would place the birth charts of Shangguan Xue and Shen Guanzhi in the ancestral temple for seven full days to present them to the spirits. If no anomalies appeared, the marriage could continue to be advanced.
It was at this point that Shangguan Xue could no longer restrain herself and attempted to tamper with Shen Guanzhi’s birth-chart registry, trying to prevent Shen Guanzhi from entering the household under the pretext of inauspiciousness.
Unfortunately, the clumsy Shangguan Xue ended up burning down the entire ancestral shrine. Her actions were discovered that very night, and she was therefore stripped of her engagement to Prince Jing and confined on charges of arson.
Shangguan Xue had always been willful and arrogant. She would certainly have been unwilling to marry on the same day as Shen Guanzhi, who came from a modest family. Moreover, in her previous life, Shangguan Xue had been caught red-handed, leaving little room for doubt about the truth of the matter.
Perhaps it concerned affairs among the sisters at home? Shen Guanzhi’s household had always been rife with internal strife. One of her illegitimate younger sisters had even climbed into Zhao Mingjing’s bed. Jiang Zhuo silently speculated.
“You really only choose pleasant words to say,” Shen Guanzhi laughed. “Then calculate one for the young lady beside me as well?”
“No need, I—”
Jiang Zhuo froze and immediately tried to decline. If this Daoist truly possessed some ability, and he calculated something like one woman marrying four husbands or reincarnation nonsense in front of Shen Guanzhi, it would be extremely awkward.
But the Daoist had already tossed the coins as Jiang Zhuo spoke.
“Once the divination has begun, there is absolutely no turning back.”
The coins were cast six more times. This time, the Daoist’s expression turned puzzled.
“Upper Zhen, lower Kan, transforming into Fire Lake Opposition. The Dark Warrior entangles the official star; the Heavenly Wolf illuminates a lost path. This young lady’s fate—I cannot see it clearly.”
“Then is it good or bad?” Shen Guanzhi asked worriedly.
“Good and bad intermingle; matters depend on human action.” The Daoist looked directly at Jiang Zhuo’s face, his brows tightly furrowed. “It is only that the young lady’s appearance is striking. With such a fate of rise and fall, I fear that danger far outweighs fortune.”
“It’s all just for amusement. Younger sister, let’s not believe him,” Shen Guanzhi frowned and comforted her.
“Then do you know what it is that I seek in my heart?” Jiang Zhuo asked tentatively.
“Naturally,” the Daoist replied with a smile. “What the young lady intends lies in the south. This journey may not necessarily yield results, but there will always be gains.”
In midsummer, rain came quickly and left just as fast.
A ray of sunlight emerged at the horizon, and the downpour outside the pavilion gradually showed signs of stopping.
Jiang Zhuo’s brows relaxed. She also took out a silver ingot and gave it to the Daoist.
“A-Zhuo, what does he mean by that?” Shen Guanzhi asked, having listened in a haze of half-understanding.
“I haven’t yet had the chance to tell elder sister. I plan to head south to my father’s homeland,” Jiang Zhuo said frankly. “I will set out tomorrow.”