Yong’an, Year 27 — Third Month of Late Spring
Deep within the Yongning Marquis Manor in the capital stood a secluded courtyard known as Evening Sunshine Court.
Ten-year-old Shen Weiwan sat quietly by the window. In her hand was half of a dry, hardened wheat cake. Patiently, she broke it into crumbs and fed a few skinny sparrows perched on the windowsill.
Her features were delicate and understated. Her skin was porcelain-pale from years of insufficient sunlight. Yet her eyes were strikingly bright—far too calm and composed for a child of ten.
No one knew that within that small body resided the soul of a mature adult from thousands of years in the future.
She was no ordinary young lady of the inner chambers.
She had been reborn into this world from the moment of birth.
The instant she opened her eyes, she found herself in the Great Jing Dynasty—a society rigidly divided by rank and status.
And she had become the daughter of Shen Jingzhi, a concubine-born son of the Yongning Marquis Household.
Her father, Shen Jingzhi, was the old marquis’s illegitimate son.
His mother had died early, and he had never received much attention within the family. After reaching adulthood, he had obtained only a minor seventh-rank post as an Assistant Director in the Court of Imperial Entertainments—a position with neither authority nor opportunities for extra income.
Among the marquis household’s many distinguished and accomplished descendants, he was the most inconspicuous.
Her mother, Madam Liu, came from a modest family.
She had no influential relatives and no powerful backing.
Years ago, she had merely been a bedchamber maid serving Shen Jingzhi. Only after becoming pregnant was she elevated to the status of concubine. When she later gave birth to Shen Mingxuan, the legitimate matriarch promoted her to the position of principal wife.
Yet within the strictly regulated marquis household, she could never truly hold her head high.
Gentle and submissive by nature, she always chose to endure rather than resist. In this manor where people devoured one another without drawing blood, she lacked even the confidence to speak loudly.
Above Shen Weiwan stood an older brother, Shen Mingxuan, three years her senior.
He was diligent and studious, but because of his low birth, he was frequently bullied by the legitimate sons in the family academy. He could not even afford a proper set of writing brushes, inkstones, and stationery.
The family of four lived within the marquis household like dust beneath people’s feet.
From the day she was born, Shen Weiwan had understood the importance of concealing her talents.
With the mind of an adult, she saw clearly through the warmth and coldness of human relationships, through the fickleness of worldly affairs.
The household’s most powerful woman was her legitimate grandmother, Madam Xu.
Born into a prestigious clan, Madam Xu was cold-hearted and severe. Her eyes held room only for the legitimate branch of the family—namely Shen Jingshan, Shen Weiwan’s eldest uncle.
Her uncle had inherited the family’s title and influence.
He was cunning, selfish, and ambitious.
Madam Xu ruled the household with absolute authority. Her children and grandchildren were treated like precious treasures, living lives completely different from Shen Weiwan’s branch of the family.
The servants were experts at flattering the powerful and trampling the weak.
The legitimate young masters and ladies wore fine silks and satins, enjoyed delicate pastries, received their full monthly allowances, and were attended by crowds of maids and servants.
Meanwhile, Shen Weiwan’s family regularly had their stipends reduced.
Their clothes were altered hand-me-downs.
Their meals consisted of inferior grain.
Even during winter, they had to ration their charcoal carefully.
Madam Liu often cried in secret, feeling that her children had suffered unfairly.
Shen Jingzhi could only sigh and comfort his wife.
“We are of the concubine branch. Having enough food to eat is already the marquis’s generosity. We must not demand too much, nor harbor resentment.”
Shen Mingxuan was young and hot-blooded.
Whenever he saw his mother and sister being wronged, he would clench his fists in anger.
Yet there was nothing he could do.
Only Shen Weiwan never cried or complained.
She simply observed.
And remembered.
She understood that in this marquis household, tears were useless.
Complaints were useless.
Only strength could protect those she loved.
From the age of three, once she could walk steadily, she had already begun secretly saving money.
When her grandmother rewarded her with pastries, she rarely ate them herself. Instead, she quietly traded them to familiar servant girls for a few copper coins.
During festivals, whenever her grandfather, grandmother, or distant relatives gave her small pieces of silver, she carefully stored them in a wooden box buried beneath the old locust tree in the courtyard.
Her parents often laughed at her for being so obsessed with money at such a young age.
Only she knew the truth.
In this world, money determined everything.
Without money, one could scarcely take a single step forward.
Dignity.
Respectability.
A path to survival.
Which of them did not require silver?
She never actively provoked conflict, nor did she deliberately curry favor with anyone.
Toward Madam Xu, she remained respectful but distant.
Toward her eldest aunt, polite but indifferent.
Toward the other children in the household, neither close nor cold.
Quiet and unobtrusive, she resembled a blade of grass growing unnoticed in a corner.
Invisible.
Yet steadily taking root.
Everyone in the manor believed that this girl from the concubine branch was dull, timid, and lacking in spirit.
One day she would simply be married off to some ordinary family and spend the rest of her life in obscurity.
Only Shen Weiwan knew otherwise.
She was not timid.
She was waiting.
Waiting for a chance to leave the marquis household.
For her family, this seemingly magnificent estate was not protection.
It was a cage.
If they remained here, they would forever live with lowered heads.
Forever be trampled beneath others’ feet.
One day her father would grow old.
Her brother would have no support.
And her own fate would be even more miserable.
What she wanted was never a scrap of charity from the marquis household.
She wanted complete freedom.
She wanted to rely on her own hands to carve out a secure future for her parents and brother.
That afternoon, chaos suddenly erupted throughout the estate.
Servants hurried back and forth with anxious expressions.
Fragments of whispered conversations drifted through the air.
“The Old Marquis…”
“He won’t last much longer…”
“The imperial physicians have been summoned…”
Shen Weiwan’s hand paused slightly over her sewing.
The Old Marquis.
Her grandfather.
At last, he could hold on no longer.
His health had been failing for half a year. He had remained bedridden throughout that time.
Every day, Madam Xu stayed beside him.
Not out of concern.
But to maintain her absolute control over the household and prevent anyone from taking advantage of the situation.
The entire marquis estate appeared calm on the surface.
Beneath it, dangerous currents churned unseen.
When Shen Jingzhi received the news, he hurriedly straightened his robes and prepared to go to the main courtyard.
Madam Liu looked uneasy.
“Husband… do you think something might happen?”
“Our father is critically ill. As his son, how could I not go?” Shen Jingzhi replied with a furrowed brow. “But given our status, even if we go, we’ll only stand at the outer edge. There’s little point in saying anything.”
Shen Weiwan raised her head.
There was no trace of panic in her clear eyes.
Only calm calculation.
Softly, she said,
“Father, you should go. No matter what happens, proper etiquette must be observed. Just remember…”
She paused.
“Speak less. Observe more.”
Shen Jingzhi froze.
He had not expected such words from his ten-year-old daughter.
Looking at the little girl whose composure seemed far beyond her years, he slowly nodded before hurrying away.
The courtyard immediately fell silent.
Madam Liu could not sit still.
She paced anxiously.
“Weiwan, tell me… if the Old Marquis passes away, what will become of the household? Will life become even harder for us?”
Beside her, Shen Mingxuan also looked worried.
“Mother, Grandfather never favored our branch to begin with. Once he’s gone, Grandmother will only favor Uncle’s family even more. Our future will probably be even worse.”
Shen Weiwan rose and walked to her mother’s side.
She gently took Madam Liu’s hand.
Her fingers were cool.
Yet remarkably steady.
“Mother. Brother. Don’t be afraid.”
Her voice was soft, but every word was clear.
“While Grandfather was alive, we were already overlooked.”
“If he passes away…”
She paused.
“The worst that can happen is that we are separated from the household.”
“Separated?” Madam Liu’s face immediately turned pale. “How could that be a good thing? Once we leave the marquis estate, your father is only a seventh-rank official. We have no relatives, no land, no support in the capital. How would we survive?”
In the eyes of most people, leaving the protection of the marquis household was little different from being cast onto the streets.
But Shen Weiwan felt no fear.
On the contrary—
A faint sense of anticipation stirred within her heart.