The gauze curtains were filled with orioles, the embroidered quilts were scented, the flames on the dragon and phoenix candlesticks flickered, reflecting a pair of gilded wedding cups on the table. Xia Yuanxi sat on the edge of the bed with a bright red wedding blanket on her head, her cheeks flushed as she thought about meeting her newly-wed husband soon.

The sound of the bell whistled the night away, and the night wind that came from nowhere made Yuan Xi feel cold. She rubbed her stiff neck and began to feel something was wrong: tonight was the wedding of the Marquis's Mansion, and there should have been a banquet and a lot of excitement, but why was it so quiet outside? Where did everyone in the Marquis's Mansion go?

Yuan Xi unconsciously tightened the corner of her clothes, feeling a little scared, and tried to call out, but the maids who were supposed to be waiting outside the door did not respond at all. Yuan Xi became more and more anxious and felt a little uneasy. At this moment, she suddenly heard a click: the door opened.

Yuan Xi's heart was pounding. She no longer cared about her bride's reserve and threw off her veil. She carefully walked to the door and looked out. The scene before her stunned her: the courtyard was pitch black. The gauze lamp that should have been on all the time was blown around under the eaves. There was no trace of the servants and guests. In the bottomless darkness, only a light came from a room opposite.

Yuan Xi was anxious, so she quickly lifted her skirt and walked over to knock on the door. Unexpectedly, the door opened immediately. She leaned in and opened her mouth to ask, but she saw a woman sitting with her back to the door, wearing a bright red wedding dress, combing her hair in front of a bronze mirror. This scene was so weird that Yuan Xi was frightened and stunned on the spot. When she moved her eyes to the bronze mirror, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and screamed... Why can't I see her face in the mirror!

At this moment, the woman seemed to chuckle, slowly put down the peach wood comb in her hand, and was about to turn around. Yuan Xi was so scared that her heart almost jumped out. She turned around and rushed out desperately. When she finally rushed back into the room, she took a breath of cold air. This room was not the one she had stayed in before!

Then, she saw a pair of feet, with bright red embroidered shoes wrapped around a small arch. The feet were extremely beautiful, but now they were hanging lifelessly in the air, swaying with the wind. Yuan Xi did not dare to look up, and tried to control her trembling body, and ran out again, but no matter how many doors she opened, she could no longer walk out of this room, and could no longer find her way home.

Finally, Yuan Xi was exhausted and fell to the ground with her knees hugged helplessly, only to find that she had been in tears for a long time. Just when she was about to collapse in despair, there was suddenly a light in front of her. A man in silver armor and a red cape stood in the light and stretched out his hand to her. She stood up happily and was about to take a step forward, but found that there was a bottomless abyss under her feet.

At this moment, someone suddenly pushed her down, and Yuan Xi fell on her back. Her black hair flying in the air entangled her face and neck, making it impossible for her to breathe or shout. At the last moment before she fell, she finally saw the person standing behind her. At that moment, she felt her whole body freezing cold. She opened her mouth, but could not shout out that name...

Yuan Xi sat up suddenly, covering her pounding heart, and then she realized that her whole body was soaked with sweat. Her personal maid An He and her wet nurse Li Ma Ma heard the scream and rushed in. Knowing that she had a nightmare, they hurriedly helped her get up and change clothes, and then soaked a towel and carefully cleaned her. An He was still young and could not hide her thoughts. Seeing Yuan Xi's pale face, she said angrily: "I don't know what kind of intentions this palace has to marry the young lady to the famous evil star in the capital. The decree was issued yesterday, and she has been having nightmares today. I'm afraid she has a heart disease."

Nanny Li was startled and glared at her fiercely. She then walked to the window and carefully leaned out. Seeing that no one was eavesdropping, she felt relieved and spat at An He, "You are not qualified to discuss the affairs of the palace. If others heard it, I don't know how much trouble it would bring to the young lady."

An He had spoken too quickly and now felt a little regretful, but when she thought of the rumor that the evil star ate human flesh and blood, she couldn't help but tear up. She held Yuan Xi's hand and cried, "I feel sorry for the young lady. She has been suffering a lot in this mansion. She thought that if she was promised a good husband, she would be able to get over the hardships. But now, let alone enjoy the good life, I'm afraid even her life will be in danger..."

Seeing that she was getting more and more outrageous, Li Ma grabbed her arm with a cold face and said sternly: "If you keep talking nonsense, I will tell the master to beat you with a stick and expel you from the house." After that, she sent An He to wait outside. Turning back, she saw Yuan Xi still in a daze, so she led her to sit down by the dressing table and combed her hair while saying: "She is too young to understand things, Miss, don't take it to heart. In my opinion, the rumors spread by others are mostly exaggerated. The Marquis Xuanyuan went to war before he was even twenty years old and beat the scoundrels so hard that they dared not to invade the border. It is said that when he returned victoriously, his demeanor attracted many people to praise him. If not, how could he be trusted by the late emperor at the age of 20 and be given the title in advance? It is just unexpected that the disastrous defeat at Pingdu Pass two years ago would make him unable to recover and cause a drastic change in his personality. "When Li Ma said this, she couldn't help but sighed and said, "It's a pity that no one knows what happened at Pingdu Pass. But those rumors outside that he was possessed by evil spirits and brutally murdered his wife are just nonsense made up by people with good intentions, and they can't be taken seriously at all."

Yuan Xi had heard this story at least eight times since she was betrothed. She knew that the nurse had asked about all the details because she wanted her to be free from rumors and wait for her marriage with peace of mind. She was grateful in her heart, but she only smiled faintly and said, "Whether it's true or not, you won't know until you get married. Madam Li, don't worry. Since it hasn't happened yet, it's useless to be afraid. I understand these principles."

Nanny Li knew that she had always been like this. She might have been used to being ignored since she was a child, so she didn't care much about the outside world. Originally, she thought that since Yuan Xi was not favored, it would be a blessing if she could marry an ambitious official and stay away from the inner house struggles. But now, she was given the position of the mistress of the Marquis's mansion by mistake. I am afraid that in the future... Nanny Li sighed in her heart. She really didn't know whether this was an honor or a disaster.

Yuan Xi didn't know what she was thinking, so she casually picked up an earring from her dressing table and asked, "What time is it now? Yesterday my sisters asked me to go to Tingxiang Court for tea, so I can't be late."

When this matter was mentioned, Nanny Li couldn't help but snorted and said, "Your sisters usually take advantage of the master's partiality and never look at you straight. Now that they see you have been given the title of Marquis's wife, they want to get close to you."

When Yuan Xi heard her mention her father, she thought of the dream just now, and her eyes dimmed, but she quickly said: "We are sisters, why bother about these things? Anyway, I will leave the house in two days, and I am afraid that I will not have the chance to see them again in the future. It is good to have a chance to talk to them now." She suddenly frowned and said a little sadly: "It's just that I seldom get along with them, and I don't know what to say or do to be right."

Nanny Li was still somewhat resentful, but as a maid she could not say much about the young lady, so she kept silent, tied up Yuan Xi's hair into a double spiral bun, pinned a white jade hairpin on it, and accompanied her to Tingxiang Courtyard.

Dingxiangyuan is the inner courtyard where the women of the Xiangguo Mansion live. There is a lotus canal in the courtyard, which draws running water from outside the wall and flows around the rocks. Flowers and plants are planted beside the canal, and a pavilion is hidden under the weeping willows. When the wind blows, you can smell the fragrance of flowers and plants while sitting in the pavilion and enjoy the clear stream flowing in the canal. Therefore, the girls and wives in the mansion love to drink tea and chat here in their spare time.

Yuan Xi was born out of wedlock and was not favored by her father Xia Mingyuan. Apart from meals and festivals, she rarely gathered with her sisters and aunts. Now sitting among them, listening to them talking about topics she did not understand, she felt uncomfortable, her thoughts drifted further and further away, and even her eyelids began to feel heavy.

At this time, the girls were looking at the jasper bracelet on the wrist of the third girl Yuan Ruo. Yuan Ruo had been engaged to the second son of the Duke of Dingguo since she was a child, and the Duke's mansion often sent some jewelry to her. This bracelet was emerald green and flawless, and it was obvious that it was not a common item. Yuan Ruo was looking proud and receiving the praises of the girls. Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of Yuan Xi sitting in a daze, so she covered her mouth and smiled, "You are still not as lucky as Sister Xi. You will become a marquis' wife soon. If you give birth to a little prince next year, you will only enjoy happiness in the future." Yuan Xi was wandering in the void, and suddenly found that everyone's eyes were fixed on her. She felt very embarrassed immediately. She had no time to react in her mind, so she had to lower her head and say "hmm" softly.

When the other people saw her like this, they thought she was just being coquettish before getting married. The second girl, Yuan Qing, rolled her eyes and said in a low voice, "But have you heard? This marquis's mansion is not very clean. There are many strange things around the Marquis of Xuanyuan alone." The girls hurried over and heard the second girl continue, "Xuan'er, a maid in my room, has a sister who works in the marquis's mansion. She saw with her own eyes that the Marquis of Xuanyuan, Xiaodu, once married a concubine, but she died tragically in the lake on the wedding night. I heard that her death was extremely tragic. The tongue alone was more than a foot long, as if she was being taken away by an evil spirit." The girls covered their mouths and screamed in shock, and then glanced at Yuan Xi tacitly, secretly looking forward to seeing how she would react. Yuan Xi did not show the fear that one might imagine. He just frowned and thought for a long time before saying, "According to the book, a human tongue weighs ten ounces and is seven inches long. It is impossible for it to be one foot long. Unless the tongue was pulled out before the person died, but if the tongue was pulled out and sunk into the lake, the tongue would definitely slip out of the mouth and float on the lake, so I don't think this story is credible."

The girls looked at each other in bewilderment, and with the rest of their eyes they saw the scarlet petals floating in the canal. For some reason, they looked at the cakes on the table and felt like they couldn't eat them. Yuan Xi saw that the atmosphere at the table suddenly turned cold, and she knew that she might have said something wrong, so she lowered her head and dared not say anything more.

Seeing the awkward situation, the eldest sister-in-law laughed dryly and said, "I heard that Sister Xi stays in her room reading every day. I wonder what kind of books she reads." Yuan Xi became more and more embarrassed, but she couldn't help but answer, so she said softly, "They are not serious books, but just some casual books about autopsies and detective cases."

The second girl pursed her lips, and said with a hint of mockery in her tone, "Sister Xi's hobbies are indeed extraordinary, but I don't know what the book is about. Why don't you tell us about it so that the sisters can learn more."

Seeing that everyone was staring at her, Yuan Xi thought that she finally had a topic that she was good at, so she described in detail a case she had seen yesterday: how a peddler was bleeding and dead on the street, and how his skull was cut off to determine the cause of death. Perhaps because she described it too vividly, the ladies were frightened and their faces turned pale. They had frequent vomiting in their stomachs and could no longer drink the tea, so they had to leave in a hurry.

Yuan Xi looked at the backs of her sisters running away and couldn't help but sigh deeply: "I really don't know how to get along with others. I shouldn't have locked myself up in the house all day. What should I do when I enter the Marquis' Mansion in the future?"

While she was thinking hard, she suddenly saw a figure running towards her in a hurry. She looked carefully and found that it was Baozhu, the maid next to the Seventh Aunt. Baozhu grabbed her arm and said breathlessly, "Miss, go and help persuade her. The Seventh Aunt and the old master are arguing, and it seems to be about Miss's marriage." Yuan Xi was shocked. She lost her mother when she was young, and her father was very cold to her. In the mansion, apart from the wet nurse and the maids, the only person she was close to was the Seventh Aunt.

The Seventh Aunt was originally a concubine, and had given birth to a young master who unfortunately died young. Since then, she has been treated as her own daughter. If it weren't for this aunt, her life in the Prime Minister's Mansion would be even more difficult. But the Seventh Aunt was born in a poor family and had no support from her mother's family. If she offended my father because of this matter, she would have no place to stand in this mansion after she got married. Thinking of this, she quickly lifted her skirt and trotted to the main courtyard where my father was.

Perhaps because she was too anxious, she just ran outside the study and tripped over the root of a ginkgo tree, falling to the ground. The piercing pain in her calf made her sit down by the window, unable to stand up for a long time. At this time, she heard the faint cry of the Seventh Aunt in the room: "She is your biological daughter after all, how could you bear to..."

"Pa", the sound of a heavy slap interrupted the Seventh Aunt's crying, and then came the angry voice of my father: "Remember your identity! You don't need me to teach you what to say and what not to say!"

Yuan Xi quickly stood up with the help of the tree trunk and looked out the window. She saw Seventh Aunt crying with her hands covering her face, and her father staring at her with a clenched fist in anger. She had never seen her father so angry before, and she became more and more worried about Seventh Aunt. She wanted to rush in and grab her and persuade her: Since it is the order of the emperor today, why bother to go against your father?

But the wound on her calf was still bleeding. When Yuan Xi tried to move forward, she felt the pain unbearable. At this time, the Seventh Aunt had already opened the door and rushed out. Yuan Xi could not catch up with her due to her leg injury. She could only turn her head and look into the room in dismay, wondering whether she should go in and ask her father to plead for the Seventh Aunt. At this time, she was surprised to find that another person came out from behind the screen.

The person was wrapped in a jade-colored brocade shawl from head to toe, as if she didn't want anyone to see her true face. Yuan Xi saw that the person had a thin waist and narrow hips, just the body shape of a woman. She also saw a pair of white and smooth jade hands exposed from the wide cuffs, which showed that the owner of these hands must have been pampered and paid attention to maintenance. She looked carefully again and found that there were still faint marks on the fingers, which should be the marks left by wearing armor.

Yuan Xi was puzzled, why would there be such a woman hiding in Daddy's room? With such an identity and manner, she must not be a new concubine. Seeing two people talking in a low voice in the room, Yuan Xi hurried to the window but couldn't hear clearly. She only felt that Daddy's attitude towards that person seemed a little respectful. After a while, Daddy sent that person out. Yuan Xi quickly squatted down and hid in the bushes, trying hard to see the woman's appearance clearly. Who knew that at this time Daddy suddenly turned around and shouted: "Who is it!"