# Chapter 1: Does He Know I Bring Misfortune?
On the eighth day of the first lunar month, icicles hung from the temple eaves, sharp as blades.
Inside the cramped room, a pot of tea bubbled quietly.
Suiying sat upright in plain robes, her black hair loosely secured with a wooden hairpin. Across from her was the stepmother she had not seen in three years.
Third Madam Gu was wrapped in fine clothes and sable fur, her plump, well-kept appearance a stark contrast to the austerity of the room.
“For the sake of your father’s career,” she said, “he accepted an imperial decree arranging your marriage.”
Suiying showed no reaction.
She asked only, “Does his family know that I’m said to bring misfortune?”
Third Madam Gu’s expression stiffened.
How could they possibly tell the groom’s family something like that?
Suiying had lost her mother when she was four.
At thirteen, she had been betrothed for the first time, only for her fiancé to suddenly fall ill and die.
At sixteen, the Gu family began discussing another marriage for her. Before the match could be settled, that young man got into a fight and lost his life as well.
After that, rumors spread throughout Luoyang.
People said the Gu family’s Sixth Miss brought misfortune not only to her relatives, but to any man unfortunate enough to be matched with her.
That same year, Old Master Gu passed away.
The rumors only grew worse.
Some said Sixth Miss Gu was a calamity star incarnate, so cursed that even the grandfather she depended upon had been taken from her.
The groom’s family knew none of this.
Whether the people who had arranged the marriage knew was another matter entirely.
But whether they knew or not hardly mattered to Third Madam Gu. If marrying off this ill-fated stepdaughter could secure a better future for the Gu family’s third branch, then at least Suiying had finally proved useful for something.
She glanced at Suiying and said, “Pack your things and come down the mountain. There are men from the northern frontier heading to the capital to make their official report. You’ll travel with them. Consider them your bridal escort.”
Suiying understood immediately.
The Gu family did not even want her returning home before her marriage. They would rather send their ill-omened daughter straight from the temple.
She rose and walked toward the bookshelf.
“Wait a moment. I’ll gather my things.”
There was very little to gather.
Three small bundles held everything she owned: some bamboo slips, several medical texts worn nearly to pieces, and a few changes of clothes.
Even those medical books and bamboo slips had come from the Gu family three years earlier.
Strictly speaking, they had never been hers to begin with. They were merely things no one in the household wanted, and the family had eventually agreed to let her have them.
Rather like her.
After her mother, grandmother, and grandfather were gone, there had been no one left in that household who wanted her either.
Once she had gathered the three bundles, Suiying put on her veiled hat.
“Let’s go.”
Her voice was just as calm as it had been three years ago, on the day she first arrived at the temple.
She had come here carrying these same three bundles.
Now she was leaving with them again.
Only the destination had changed.
Third Madam Gu quickly rose and left the room, as though remaining near Suiying for too long made her uneasy.
The two descended the mountain one ahead of the other.
After they passed the temple grounds and started down the mountain path, Third Madam Gu’s voice drifted back toward her.
“Once you marry into another household, things won’t be the same as they were at home. You can’t lose your temper whenever you please. Whatever happens, you must learn to endure it. Once you bear a child, you’ll finally have a secure place in the household.”
“You’re thinking much too far ahead,” Suiying replied lightly. “There’s no guarantee I’ll even make it there. And even if I do, I doubt I’ll remain for long.”
The northern frontier of Great Yuan lay more than a thousand li from Luoyang.
She would have to pass beyond the mountain pass and travel through unfamiliar territory. Anything could happen along the way.
And that suited her perfectly.
If an opportunity presented itself during the journey, she could disappear and finally escape this cage.
Then she could still honor the final words her grandfather had spoken while gripping her hand with the last of his strength.
“Live well. You mustn’t do anything foolish…”
And even if she safely reached her husband’s home, word of the two prospective husbands who had died before marrying her would eventually follow her north.
When that happened, she would probably have to find another temple and shut herself away again.
The only difference was that this time, she would be doing it as a wife who had been cast aside.
Suiying’s breezy reply left Third Madam Gu speechless.
After a moment, she glanced at the nanny beside her.
The nanny understood. She bowed to Suiying and took down the bundle hanging from her shoulder.
“Sixth Miss, please accept this. Inside are the deeds to the shops your late mother owned in Luoyang, along with the land deeds to her estate. There are banknotes and jewelry as well. Everything is here.”
Beneath her veil, Suiying’s gaze cooled.
She looked at the green brocade bundle, then at her stepmother walking ahead with the support of a maid.
After a moment, she asked, “Did Father say anything when he heard I was leaving Luoyang?”
Third Madam Gu clasped her hands a little tighter.
She turned toward Suiying, embarrassment flashing across her face, but said nothing.
Suiying lowered her eyes.
“He must have said something like, ‘At last, we’ve sent that ill-omened calamity star far away. My career should finally prosper now.’”
She lifted her gaze again.
“Am I wrong?”
Third Madam Gu stared at her in surprise.
It was unsettling how well Suiying understood her own father.
But then she remembered the uncertain journey awaiting her stepdaughter, and her heart softened despite herself.
“How can you say such a thing about your father? He was worried about you too.”
Suiying’s face gave nothing away.
Inside, however, she almost laughed at herself.
She had known what the answer would be.
Why had she bothered asking?
Perhaps, somewhere deep inside, she had still clung to the smallest shred of hope that her father cared.
Now that the last of that hope was gone, she found that she was not particularly heartbroken.
A gust of winter wind swept past, lifting the veil around her hat.
Suiying gathered her thoughts and continued calmly.
“After Grandfather died and the family divided its property, things haven’t been easy for you either. Now you’re going to the capital, and everything there will cost money. Ah Heng is already thirteen. His expenses will only increase as he gets older, and before long, you’ll have to arrange his marriage too.”
She glanced at the brocade bundle.
“Keep it.”
Her thoughts went to her younger brother.
Ah Heng had once risked his life to protect her.
The journey to the northern frontier would be dangerous. She might not even live long enough to make proper arrangements for the property her mother had left behind.
Better to leave it to him.
At least then, the only person in the Gu family who had ever truly treated her as kin would have something to fall back on.
With that, Suiying walked past the nanny and continued down the mountain.
She did not stop even when she passed her stepmother.
Third Madam Gu remained where she was, stunned.
She had only told Suiying that her father had accepted the imperial marriage decree for the sake of his career, yet Suiying had immediately realized that the entire third branch of the Gu family was preparing to move to the capital.
Put that way, it really did sound as though her father had traded his daughter for a brighter official future.
It took Third Madam Gu a moment to recover.
She hurried after her.
“Aying, wait!”
Suiying continued walking as though she had not heard.
Third Madam Gu was unaccustomed to mountain paths and soon fell behind. Left with no other choice, she ordered the servants to take the brocade bundle and chase after Suiying.
Those things had belonged to Suiying’s mother in the first place.
The girl’s life had already been difficult enough.
How could they possibly keep what rightfully belonged to her?
The servants eventually caught up.
One hurried in front of Suiying and bowed, holding out the green brocade bundle with both hands.
“Sixth Miss, please take it. None of us knows what things are like at the northern frontier, and Master gave us no further instructions. Your marriage contract is inside as well.”
He lowered his head.
“Please take good care of yourself, Sixth Miss.”
Hearing him refer to her father as *Master* only irritated Suiying further.
This time, she took the bundle without another word and quickened her pace.
By the time she reached the foot of the mountain, she was carrying four bundles.
Through the veil of her hat, she looked toward the official road.
A group of people waited in the distance.
Two carriages stood in the middle of the road, flanked by tall, broad-shouldered men leading horses. Sabers hung at their waists, and they were dressed in practical clothes suited for a long journey.
The moment they noticed her coming down the mountain, several of them turned to look.
One man was speaking to the only maid standing beside the carriages.
His rough voice carried easily through the cold air.
“Go ask if that’s our new madam.”
The maid bowed and hurried over.
She stopped near the stone stele at the foot of the mountain and bowed to Suiying.
“May I ask if you are the Gu family’s Sixth Miss?”
Suiying gave a slight nod.
The maid looked at her with a flicker of surprise before reaching for the bundles she carried.
Suiying instinctively stepped back and studied her through the veil.
Seeing her hesitation, the maid bowed again.
“Madam, let me carry those for you.”
Suiying looked past her toward the men waiting on the official road.
Then, seeing that the maid had no intention of giving up, she handed over three of her four bundles, keeping the green brocade one with her.
“It’s cold outside, Madam. Please get into the carriage.”
The maid gestured toward the carriage, unable to resist stealing another curious glance at her new mistress.
Under the watchful eyes of the men waiting beside the road, Suiying walked forward and climbed into the carriage.
“Set off.”
The same rough voice came from outside.
A moment later, the wheels began to turn.
The horses moved forward, and the group headed north.
Suiying reached out and pushed open the carriage window.
Outside, the dark silhouettes of the trees slid steadily past.
Before long, she could no longer see the road behind her.
And the road ahead had yet to reveal itself.