The engagement between the two families was broken. The eldest daughter of the Ningyuan army general did not guard her chastity. She had such a malicious heart that, pregnant with another man’s child, she devised an evil plan for her younger sister to take her place in marriage.
The news snowballed as it spread.
Within half a day's time, the entire city of Jiangzhou was talking about it. In a matter of hours, the eldest Miss Qin despised, universally agreed to be the most shameful girl they’d ever heard of. Some even weaved her story into a ballads. When the news reached Qin Huaiyong, he quickly sent men to suppress the rumor, but it was impossible to completely stop people from talking. The Qi family was secretly protecting and spreading the story.
By now, the news had even spread far beyond Jiangzhou...
The Ningyuan army general was furious. Qin Yuru wailed and cried and even tried to commit suicide. She had shaken the foundation of her entire household.
As the rest of the house was in chaos, Qin Wanru still enjoyed some quiet in her grandma's house. However, Qin Wanru's heart was not at peace, although what was troubling her had nothing to do with Qin Yuru.
Frowning slightly, seated beside her grandma's bed, she wondered if she had been seeing things. Was it really him?
In her past life, she’d only had a glimpse of him.
But why would he be here? Considering his status, shouldn’t he have been under house arrest, far away in the capital city right now?
Last time, she didn’t remember seeing him here...
"Miss, there's a guard at the gates asking to meet you, but I've never seen him before." Qing Yue came into the room quietly to pass the message.
Qin Wanru took in a deep breath, trying to quiet the sudden racing of her heart.
"Where is he?" she asked, lifting her pale face.
"He's just outside the gates," replied Qing Yue.
"Let's go and have a look!"
Qin Wanru made sure old grandma was properly covered by her blanket before she stood up and turned to walk out of the room.
There was indeed a guard standing outside. He looked around seventeen or eighteen years old. He was smiling as he watched Qin Wanru approach.
"Second Miss Qin, my master had asked for you!"
"Who is your master, may I ask?" said Qin Wanru. She took a deep breath, balling her trembling hands into fists.
"You’ll find out when you see him!" said the guard with a smile as he gestured where she could go. "My master is residing in Lanxiang Pavilion within your family grounds, but please don't be wary of my master. It was the Ningyuan army general himself who invited my master to stay here. However, please keep this a secret from others!"
After finishing explaining, the guard stood patiently, waiting for Qin Wanru's response.
It seemed she had no choice but to follow him.
Although the guard was polite, the request was quite assertive. Qin Wanru was in her own home, but she was still unable to find an excuse to turn the invitation down. She could only nod her head in agreement as she held on to her injured arm.
Lanxiang Pavilion directly to the right of Qin Wanru's room. The pavilion was the closest to the corner of the back garden wall. The pavilion was usually unoccupied because of its location, and few people visited it. It was because of this the current guests had been able to stay undiscovered.
Strangely, while Qin Wanru was within the family’s grounds the entire time, she did not hear any news about this matter, so she supposed her father had kept this a secret deliberately.
She was puzzled as to why this man wanted to meet her since she had no business with him. It wasn’t as if she was the one who invited him.
When they arrived, the guard went in to inform his master of their arrival while she waited outside the door. After a while, the guard emerged and politely invited Qin Wanru into the pavilion, but stopped Qin Yue from following her mistress in.
"Miss..." Qing Yue cried out anxiously.
Qin Wanru took a deep breath to calm her nerves, then turned to Qing Yue.
"You remain here and wait for me!" she said, trying to look confident so Qing Yue wouldn’t worry.
A young man sat on a chair in the center of the room. He look just a bit older than Qin Wanru, fifteen or sixteen. The first thing Qin she noticed was his eyes. The pupils of his eyes appeared to be filled with tiny pieces of sparkling precious stones which emitted strange, mesmerizing lights. He was clad in a purple coat with dragons embroidered on the sleeves. Something about him emanated a peculiar charm.
His cascade of thick hair was tied neatly, topped with a purple crown. The young man was indeed stunning, but Qin Wanru could sense danger.
His face broke into a smile. Despite his eerie eyes, the warm smile almost set Qin Wanru at ease.
His face was exceptionally pale, lips far lighter than most people. He looked frail, but somehow there was beauty in his frailness. It gave him an air of elegance that suggested high status.
When Qin Wanru met him in her previous life, he was a grown man, but she could still recognize him now.
This was Chu Liu Chen, a boy who was once crown prince.
Chu Liuchen was the crown prince when the late emperor was still alive. He was only a few months old when his uncle usurped the throne and scraped his status as the crown prince. He became Prince Chen, half locked up under house arrest in the South Court in the palace. This was why he was also known as the Crown Prince of South Court.She remembered hearing about him in her previous life. Some said he was a handsome, distinguished gentleman. Other claimed he was a sly and bloodthirsty man. Either way, Qin Wanru didn’t see it as any of her business who he was. She’d only seen him once from far off.Back then, he was the high and mighty crown prince, looking down at her like she was some kind of lowly creature.Right now, on the other hand, she had no choice but to face up to this younger version of Prince Chen.She wanted to keep her distance from him as much as possible, but she couldn’t help but perk at the chance to be recognized by somebody so powerful.
By the time Qin Wanru regained consciousness, it was evening. An old woman bent over the lamp, holding scissors to cut the wick.This was her grandmother, the only member of her family who doted on her. The bandages on her arm had been rewrapped."Are you feeling better, Grandma?" she said, almost in a whisper. Old grandma looked up and saw that Qin Wanru had opened her eyes, her face brightened immediately and she got up to walk toward Wanru, and with a gentle voice, she said, “Zhuozhuo, you're finally awake. Quick, will someone prepare her dinner?"Qing Yue emerged from behind the screen and came up to Qin Wanru help her sit up on her bed and slipped a cushion behind her for support. Her injured arm seemed to have been re-bandaged and so she could not see any blood soaking through the gauze, and it was not hurting as much as before.Another maid came into the room to place a bowl of porridge and some dishes in front of Qin Wanru.Qin Wanru was indeed
"Don't meddle with this affair, you're just a kid..." Qin Huaiyong said as he frowned and waved his hand as if to dismiss what Qin Wanru said. "Asking a kid not to meddle with this affair. How about me? Am I too old to meddle with this?" Old grandma cut in. Qin Wanru indicated for Qing Yue to help old grandma to the chair to sit down. "Mother, something did not add up here..." Qin Huaiyong tried to explain when he heard old grandma's angry tone of voice. "What are you doubting? As a father, would you rather believe the words of an old maid or your own daughter?" said Qin Wanru as she looked up at Qin Huaiyong with a pair of bright eyes. Mammy Fang followed Mrs. Qin when she married into the Qin family. Qin Wanru would like Mammy Fang's arm to be severed by Mrs. Qin personally. She wanted to see how many maids would remain faithful to their mistress if the mistress could not even protect her own henchmen.
Aunt Shui was none other than Shui Ruolan, Qin Huaiyong's cousin, the daughter of old grandma's younger sister. She had come to take shelter under the Qins from a young age when old grandma's younger sister passed away. When she came of age, she got married, but her husband passed away later on before they bore any children. For this reason, old grandma brought her back to the Ningyuan Army General's house to be with her. Shui Ruolan was a woman with a gentle spirit who had never said a word of complaint even though she had a sad life. Qin Huaiyong had always had a soft spot for this cousin of his. Unfortunately, they each had their prearranged marriages respectively since young for this reason, they kept their distance in honor of their commitments. When Shui Ruolan returned to Qin Huaiyong's house as a widow, they continued to treat each other honorably. In fact, they did not see each other much within the manor grounds. Even when the need arose, they a
"You want that Fenghua glass light?" marveled Mrs. Qin. "Yes!" Qin Wan blinked and nodded. "You really want it?" Mrs. Qin asked again. "I really want it!" Qin Wanru said with resignation. Actually, it was not what she wanted, but Prince Chen who wanted it. Even if she did not ride on his coattail, she dared to offend him. Since a Fenghua glass light could satisfy him, why not giving it to him! "Why does Prince Chen want the Fenghua glass light? His role is so extravagant. He must have seen all the good products, so why does he want my Fenghua glass light? There must be something to do with it." "Fenghua glass light is certainly precious. As a prince, what treasures cannot he own?" Now look at grandmother's behavior, Qin Wanru gained a deep understanding that this Fenghua glass light was probably not simple. But she did not want to ask! "Grandmother did not have the Fenghua
"Qin Wanru, you want to go out to fetch Fenghua glass light?" Prince Chen said in a mild tone and raised his black eyes with his customary elegance. He turned over and coughed weakly and sickly. One day was enough for him to know Qin Wanru. Of course, Qin Wanru knew that the so-called gentleness was actually an illusion. "Yes, I hope that the prince can help!" Qin Wanru requested sincerely though she was nervous. If there is anyone in the house who can persuade father to let me go, he must be prince Chen in front of me. "Is this related to me?" The young man raised his beautiful eyes and looked at her with his head tilted. His smile was still elegant but his tone was a bit of ironic. "It is the Fenghua glass light that the prince wants." Qin Wanru said respectfully with her fist clenched. It seemed that she did not see the irony in his eyes. "I wanna see whether you can go out on your own or not!" Pr
Qin Wanru stood on the swing and felt it safe by pulling the ropes of the swing. "Old grandma ordered people to fasten the ropes in case of my playing it secretly. Since the swing was safe, Qin Wanru sat on it. However, she hesitated after sitting on it." She touched the place where her arm was injured, not knowing whether she would misplay. Looking up at the tall courtyard wall, she found when the swing swayed, it was likely to hit the courtyard wall. "Anyway, I have to try it." She held the ropes on both sides with her feet slammed back. Then the swing swayed, slipped down later and was about to hit the trunk behind it. When Qin Wanru felt right, she kicked the trunk behind. Then, the swing went out again. Then the swing came back again. She kicked it again. She was familiar with the swing, so she kicked almost at the same position. As the swing was getting higher and higher, she was closer and clo
Seeing that the prince also jumped into the wall, Xiao Xuanzi was scared. "Fortunately, my master did not like lady Wanru who was lying on the wall. He was standing still and seemed to be stable." Chu Liuchen stood on the wall of the courtyard, seeing a drop of blood on the wall with his eyebrows wrinkled and then seeing a drop of blood outside the courtyard. From the wall to the tree was a trail of blood which could be seen until somewhere along the trunk. Over there was a rut so it was possible that she left by carriage. Prince raised his eyes and looked ahead, only to see the back of a carriage. She was a clever little girl who left through this method. Then there was nothing interesting to see. He had his feet diverted and fell from the wall. Xiao Xuanzi was scared when he saw his master falling from the wall, reaching for the high wall on one side and coughing up with sharp pain in his chest. "P