"Brother Sun, I kindly asked someone to send you a message, but you came to Shengjing without even informing me!"

The young woman who suddenly appeared was stunningly beautiful, her hands playfully clasped behind her back, her large, round eyes fixed on Sun Xingjian. She seemed a little angry, but it was really just a coquettish expression.

The midday sun was still warm, and dappled sunlight fell on the young woman's delicate face, creating a lively rhythm.

Wei Shuwan stared blankly through the half-closed door. The young woman looked to be in her early twenties, yet she was quite lively. Judging from the tone of her voice when she spoke to her uncle, the two must be very familiar with each other.

My uncle actually has a female confidante? How come she didn't know? It was never mentioned in the letter!

Driven by a gossipy impulse, Wei Shuwan waved for the gatekeeper to leave, then stared at the two outside through the half-open door, curious to see how her uncle would respond to the young lady.

Sun Xingjian frowned and glanced into the room, seeing that Wei Shuwan was indeed staring in his direction. Fearing that the young lady might say something shocking that would cause misunderstandings, he simply pointed to Wei Shuwan and introduced her to the young lady: "This is my elder sister's daughter, named Shuwan."

Turning back to Wei Shuwan, he introduced her, "Wanwan, this is the daughter of the Military Governor of Weirong Army. You may call her..."

After a slight hesitation, Sun Xingjian said, "Sister Pan."

This young lady surnamed Pan was indeed lively. After hearing the introduction, she didn't mind that she was a few years older than Wei Shuwan, and even felt a bit superior because she was a friend of her uncle. She greeted Wei Shuwan warmly, saying, "So you are the niece Wanwan that Brother Sun often talks about! Just as your uncle said, you are indeed beautiful and stunning!"

Wei Shuwan was taken aback at first, then burst out laughing. "So that's how Uncle praised me in front of others. I'm flattered."

Sun Xingjian turned his face away uncomfortably and cleared his throat. He usually didn't like to comment on other women's appearances. As the saying goes, all flowers have their own beauty, and it's not his place as an outsider to judge whether a girl is good or bad. But his niece was family, and he was indeed quite familiar with Madam Pan, so he didn't hold back his praise.

I thought that Madam Pan would just offer a polite compliment to Wanwan on their first meeting, but to my surprise, she actually looked herself over carefully and said sullenly, "Oh dear, I didn't expect to meet Wanwan today, and I didn't bring anything to give as a gift."

A greeting gift? This person is being far too enthusiastic! Wei Shuwan quickly waved her hand to politely decline, "Sister Pan, there's no need to be so polite, we..."

"Sigh, this will do!"

Before Wei Shuwan could finish speaking, Madam Pan grabbed her swaying hand out of thin air, and before she knew it, a slippery bracelet was slipped directly from Madam Pan's wrist onto Wei Shuwan's wrist!

Wei Shuwan subconsciously looked down and saw that the bracelet was made of white jade, smooth as cream, and still carried the warmth of Madam Pan's body and a faint scent of gardenias. It was clear at a glance that it was no ordinary item.

Before Wei Shuwan could refuse, she heard her uncle's horrified voice: "Isn't this your family heirloom?"

A family heirloom? Wei Shuwan was shocked, and even more so! Just as she was about to return the item, she heard Madam Pan say with great enthusiasm, "So what if it's a family heirloom? A family heirloom is meant to be passed down from generation to generation. Since Wanwan is your niece, she's not an outsider. Anyway, it won't be passed down to the wrong person!"

These words shocked Wei Shuwan even more than the family heirloom bracelet. Her surprised gaze darted between the two of them: "So Sister Pan and my uncle are..."

"Wenjun! Stop talking nonsense." Sun Xingjian stopped her sternly, then turned to his niece and explained, "Wenjun is just my close friend, we have no other relationship. Quickly return the bracelet to her."

Wei Shuwan's eyes widened like copper bells, but her pupils contracted sharply. However, her shock at this moment had nothing to do with the bracelet or the relationship between the two, but rather with the name of Madam Pan.

Wenjun, Pan Wenjun!

She knew this name in her past life and knew that this person was the daughter of a military governor, but she had forgotten which military governor it was, so when her uncle introduced them, she did not make any connection.

The gentle breeze rustling through the trees before me, and the lively, spirited young woman—it was none other than Pan Wenjun…

A bitter feeling overwhelmed Wei Shuwan, making it hard to breathe. She gripped the white jade bracelet on her right wrist tightly with her left hand, her voice trembling as she spoke:

"Uncle, I like this bracelet, can I not return it...?"

Pan Wenjun was slightly surprised, but very happy. She loves making friends with honest people; it's not tiring.

Sun Xingjian frowned, looking at his niece with great incomprehension. The Wei family clearly lacked nothing, and she was pampered and worldly-wise. How could she be bought off by a bracelet?

Soon, Sun Xingjian realized that Wei Shuwan didn't like the bracelet, but rather liked to play matchmaker for him, thinking that by accepting the gift, she could make the woman her aunt in the future.

Upon realizing this, Sun Xingjian was furious.

But in reality, Wei Shuwan's feelings at this moment were far more complicated than Sun Xingjian thought. She didn't like a bracelet, nor was she so eager for Pan Niangzi to become her aunt. She just couldn't bear to see Pan Niangzi have the same ending as in her previous life.

Pan Wenjun, the only daughter of Pan Wei, the military governor of Weirong Army, lost her mother at a young age and relied on her father for survival. She accompanied her father to guard the border for decades. Now at the age of twenty-five, she has never married and has even publicly vowed never to be a wife.

Just when everyone thought she would never marry again, an envoy from the Ziyi Kingdom came to Daye to sue for peace and proposed a marriage alliance between the two countries. However, the woman they wanted to marry was not the princess of Daye, but Pan Wenjun, the daughter of the military governor of Weirong Army.

For an emperor, sending a woman to secure eternal peace on the frontier is an extremely worthwhile deal, especially since this woman is not his own daughter, making it a win-win situation with no cost!

Emperor Pingjia, Zhu Xian, readily agreed and immediately bestowed upon Pan Wenjun the title of Princess for a peace marriage, ordering her to go to the Ziyi Kingdom for a marriage alliance.

If this were merely a routine marriage alliance, it could be considered a sacrifice of personal merit. However, the Ziyi Kingdom had been harassing the borders of Daye for years, and two of its generals had been killed by Pan Wei, making them irreconcilable enemies. The men who abducted Pan Wenjun were also sent by the emperor of the Ziyi Kingdom, intending to humiliate Pan Wei's daughter and demoralize the Wei Rong army. However, Sun Xingjian single-handedly stormed into the enemy camp and rescued her.

This marriage proposal was a treacherous scheme devised by the emperor of Ziyi Kingdom. Firstly, it was to avenge the humiliation of the past; secondly, it was to sow discord between the ruler and his ministers of Daye.

They hung Pan Wenjun on the city wall to humiliate her and presented her to the Emperor of Daye, claiming that on their wedding night, Pan Wenjun intended to assassinate the Emperor of Ziyi with a silver hairpin. They also speculated that this was Pan Wei's way of disobeying the Emperor of Daye's imperial decree and instructing his daughter to do so.