The early summer breeze, wrapped in the sweet fragrance of the old locust tree, transformed the clamor outside the general's mansion into a boiling porridge. Leaning on a thickly patinated jujube wood cane, the doorman, Old Zhou, squinted at the dense, honeycomb-like crowd before him. In the long line stretching from Zhuque Street to the old locust tree at the alley's entrance, scholars in lake blue brocade clad in thread-bound book bags squabbled fiercely. Old Wang, the sugar-painting vendor, seized the opportunity to introduce a novel "chicken and rabbit in a cage" design. The syrup from the copper spoon drew golden arcs across the bluestone slabs. Even the patrolling Jinwu Guards reined in their horses, their armor plates clashing as they pressed forward. The red tassels on their helmets swayed amid the crowd like a maple forest in the wind.

"Make way! Everyone, make way! My young lady is about to reveal the answer!" Chun Tao, holding a delicate round silk fan, pushed her way into the crowd. The moon-white hem of her skirt swept the melon seed shells scattered on the ground. The newly replaced pearl hairpins on her temples trembled with her movements, and the broken diamonds splashed with tiny glint in the sunlight. "Everyone, listen carefully! My young lady said that anyone who answers incorrectly...will be punished by copying the 'Instructions for Women' a hundred times! You won't be allowed to go home until you finish!"

These words were like pouring a bucket of cold water into a cauldron of boiling oil, and the clamor froze instantly. Wang, the editor of the Hanlin Academy, leaped to his feet, his goatee trembling like dry grass in the autumn wind, his ivory ring creaking against his palm. "Men must have come first! The Book of Changes says, 'Qian represents heaven, Kun represents earth.' Qian represents yang, male, Kun represents yin, female. Yang comes first, Yin comes second. This is the clear law of heaven!"

"Bullshit, you sour-minded Confucian!" Zhang the Butcher, the pork seller, banged his greasy shoulder pole on the ground, startling the old hens on the roadside and causing them to flutter their wings and dart into the crowd. "Without women, where would men come from? When my mother gave birth to me, my father was still drinking yellow soup under the old locust tree at the entrance of the village! Without my mother's ten-month pregnancy, there would be no such thing as that damned Zhang the Butcher!"

"Silence!" Chuntao raised her voice, pointing her round fan fiercely at the carved railing on the second floor. "My young lady is about to speak!"

On the second floor of Tinglan Courtyard, near the window railing, Chen Weiwan sat in a water-green, embroidered kilt. The silver-threaded lotus flowers embroidered on the hem gently rose and fell with her movements, like two water lilies swaying on the blue waves. She clung to the carved railing, a sly glint in her eyes as she deliberately cleared her throat, her voice sweet enough to drip honey: "Aiya, everyone, please be quiet for a moment—"

The crowd below instantly fell silent; even the noisy chirping of cicadas in the trees seemed to be frozen in place. Shen Weiwan blinked her sparkling almond-shaped eyes, glancing at the corner where Liu was hiding. She deliberately drew out her words, "As for the question 'Which came first, men or women?', my answer is..."

Liu hid in the third row of the crowd, her jade armor digging deep into her palms, blood seeping from between her nails. She stared intently at Chen Weiwan, who was standing on the railing, muttering through her teeth, "The man must have come first! This little bitch knows nothing!" Beside her, Shen Ruoruo hunched her neck, the old scratches on the back of her neck reddening from her scratching. Her voice was as tinny as a mosquito's: "Mother, what if the Seventh Prince..."

"Shut up!" Liu glared at her fiercely, but she caught a glimpse of a dark figure at the entrance of the alley out of the corner of her eye. The seventh prince Xiao Yu came galloping towards her on a tall horse, his moon-white brocade robe fluttering in the wind. Her heart instantly rose to her throat, and unspoken curses rolled in her throat.

Chen Weiwan looked around at the countless upturned faces below, and suddenly grinned, revealing two neat rows of small white teeth, like a little fox that had stolen honey: "I'll tell you! The gods sent me a dream - first I, Chen Weiwan, was born, then my destiny was born!"

The whole room was silent for three seconds, then erupted in thunderous laughter. Editor Wang, his beard rising to the sky in anger, waved his sleeves and cursed, "Nonsense! It's like a hen crowing at dawn, absolutely ridiculous!" Butcher Zhang, however, slapped his thigh and laughed so hard that his spittle splashed onto the blue cloth gown of the scholar in the front row: "Young lady, you're right! Without a beautiful woman like you, how could there be a marriage!"

Chen Weiwan put her hands on her hips and waved her hands in a serious manner: "So, whoever pleases me is my destiny!" As she spoke, she deliberately glanced at Xiao Yu who had just dismounted, her eyes full of smiles, "For example... the person who sends me osmanthus cake every day?"

Xiao Yu handed the reins to his attendant, the hem of his moon-white brocade robe brushing the bluestone slabs. He stepped forward, carrying a gilded food box. His folding fan swung open, covering half his face. A smile lingered in his voice: "Miss Shen's answer is quite frank and endearing, like freshly baked osmanthus cake, so sweet it makes you panic."

Liu was so angry that her face turned purple. Unable to contain herself any longer, she screamed, pushing through the crowd and rushing out. The red gold headband on her bun fell to her temples: "Chen Weiwan! You shameless little bitch! How dare you speak nonsense in public!"

Shen Weiwan raised her eyebrows and looked at her, smiling innocently: "Oh, Auntie is here again? Do you know the answer to 'which came first, the chicken or the egg'? Come on, tell us so that we can broaden our horizons."

Liu was choking with a breath stuck in her throat, her face flushed like a purple eggplant. She argued, "I...I'm here to announce the decree! The Empress Dowager has an imperial decree!"

"The Empress Dowager's decree?" Shen Weiwan covered her mouth in feigned surprise, and the crowd erupted in a clamor of discussion. She felt a chill in her heart, but her smile grew even sweeter. "Oh, I didn't expect the Empress Dowager to be concerned about my puzzle, too?"

Xiao Yu calmly stepped forward and stood in front of Shen Weiwan. His gaze was as cold as ice as he glanced at Liu's shaking hands: "Liu, where is the Queen Mother's decree?"

Liu trembled as she pulled a bright yellow scroll from her sleeve, her fingertips practically crushing the jade scroll. "The Empress Dowager has decreed... ordering Chen Weiwan, the legitimate daughter of the General's Mansion... to marry Lord Wang, the Minister of Personnel, as his successor!"

"Minister Wang?" Shen Weiwan's voice suddenly rose, filled with disbelief and surprise. "Is he the Minister Wang who is over fifty, has married three wives, and needs a maid to support him when he walks?"

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!