Chapter 2 Rebirth
"Miss, Miss, something terrible has happened!"
Jiang Wan Ning was shaken awake. "Peony, have we reached the Bridge of Helplessness yet?"
Before she died, Peony always said that she was most afraid of going to the Bridge of Helplessness to drink Meng Po soup, so that she would forget her.
"Miss, what are you saying? What Bridge of Helplessness?" Peony pulled Jiang Wan Ning up to sit up.
Haitang, carrying a bowl, lifted the curtain and came in. "Peony, please shake Miss slowly."
As she spoke, she walked to the bedside and handed the bowl to Jiang Wan Ning, "Miss, I noticed that you kept talking in your sleep while you were taking a nap just now."
"You must have had a nightmare. Drink this calming soup to soothe your nerves."
"Don't drink the soup yet, Miss, something terrible has happened."
Peony held Jiang Wan Ning's hand and said, "Just now, the Second Miss accidentally fell into the water while trying to pick lotus flowers for you."
"The young master happened to be nearby, so he jumped down to save the second young lady."
"The person had just been rescued when a group of ladies and young women who were on good terms with the household suddenly arrived to congratulate the young lady on her marriage to the young master."
"By sheer coincidence, I witnessed this scene. Now the Second Miss is crying and trying to kill herself. You should go and see for yourself."
Haitang was also startled upon hearing this.
Jiang Wan Ning then realized something, looked around at the room's furnishings, and pinched the back of her hand hard.
"hiss--"
"What are you doing, Miss?" Haitang quickly put down the bowl, cupped Jiang Wanning's hand in her palm, and gently blew on it.
Jiang Wan Ning suddenly laughed, but then she started crying again.
Holding the crabapple and peony, she thought, "I knew it, I knew it, God wouldn't be as blind and heartless as I am."
"Haitang, did you do something to Miss?"
Peony looked at the herbal medicine on the table.
Haitang glared at her.
Jiang Wan Ning hugged the two of them, crying and laughing for a long time, until Shao Yao said she couldn't breathe, and then she let go.
"Good peony, quickly help me change my clothes and put on makeup, I need that crimson dress."
“Miss, don’t you dislike brightly colored clothes?” Peony said, but still obediently took out the only red dress in the closet.
This was commissioned by the lady at great expense, but the young lady has never worn it. She always wears white, saying that the young master likes white.
"On a joyous occasion, one should naturally dress joyfully." How can being given a second chance at life not be a great joy?
To my utter surprise, when I opened my eyes, I was back on the day I was engaged to Pei Anqing.
In her previous life, Jiang Wanru deliberately picked lotus flowers for herself and fell into the lake. She also said that she did not want to separate Pei Anqing from her, and that she did not want to be a concubine. She kept trying to kill herself.
She was considerate and caring towards her in daily life, and even helped her communicate with Pei Anqing, constantly telling her how much Pei Anqing loved her.
It turns out they had been having an affair all along, and the messages were just a way for them to meet more often.
He was foolish enough to think she was sincere to him and couldn't bear to see her suffer humiliation for the rest of her life without finding a good husband.
She then proposed that he marry her and enjoy the position of a secondary wife. Later, when Pei Anqing inherited the throne, she would become his concubine.
After much refusal, she 'reluctantly' agreed, and after the marriage, she actively kept her distance from Pei Anqing, treating him only as her brother-in-law.
The only contact she had was when she often hitched a ride with Pei Anqing in his carriage back to the Marquis's residence to 'fulfill her filial duties' on her behalf.
Having lived a second life, many things have become much clearer.
Jiang Wan Ning looked at herself in the bronze mirror, her red lips and dark eyebrows, her long hair as black as ink, and her skin as white as snow.
"If you ask me, this is how Miss should dress. I'm afraid no one in the entire Eastern Mausoleum can compare to Miss's beauty."
Haitang followed up on Shaoyao's words, "Of course, not to mention that the Marquis is handsome, our lady was once the most beautiful woman in the capital."
"Her talent and appearance are both first-rate. The young lady looks like the lady and also has the heroic spirit of the marquis who came from a military background. She is gentle yet strong, and naturally beautiful."
"You two have the sweetest tongues." Jiang Wan Ning gently pinched their noses.
He whispered a few words to Haitang.
"Miss, you mean...?" Haitang stared wide-eyed at Jiang Wanning in disbelief.
"I'm just guessing. You go look for it first. Peony and I will wait for you in the front hall."
Haitang nodded, lifted her skirt, and quickened her pace to run out.
As soon as Jiang Wanning arrived at the entrance of the front hall, she heard Jiang Wanru and Aunt Liu crying.
“Master, Madam, Ru’er is truly devoted to her sister, but as her mother, I can’t bear to see her suffer.”
"In public, although the prince did it to save Ru'er, the two of them still had physical intimacy."
“If Ru’er were to die, I, as her mother, would be heartbroken. But if she doesn’t die, I’ll spend the rest of my life with only the ancient Buddha and the dim lamp.”
As she spoke, Aunt Liu hugged Jiang Wanru tightly and wept bitterly, "My poor Ru'er..."
"Mother, this is my fate. Please let me go."
Jiang Wanru cried, "Ru'er is willing to pick that lotus flower for her sister, and she is willing to die for her sister's happiness."
The mother and daughter embraced and wept bitterly.
Marquis Jiang Zheng and Lady Zhou frowned deeply, while Prince Pei Yanchuan of Langya, sitting in the main seat, remained silent with an ashen face.
“Father, Uncle,” Pei Anqing began, “Ningning has always had a very good relationship with her younger sister.”
If she knew that her sister would be unable to marry for the rest of her life because of her, she would probably be heartbroken and depressed.
"What does Your Highness think should be done about this?" Marquis Jiang Zheng asked Pei Anqing.
The best way to handle this matter would be to marry Ru'er off to you as well, but that would hurt both Ningning and Ru'er.
Jiang Zheng's daughter could marry an ordinary man, but she could never become a concubine.
Pei Anqing glanced at Pei Yanchuan and whispered, "Why don't we wait for Ningning to come over before we talk about it?"
Jiang Wanning sneered. In her previous life, when she arrived at the front hall, Jiang Wanru and her daughter, along with Pei Anqing, sang in unison, and in the end, she was the one who begged Jiang Wanru to marry her as a secondary wife.
“No, bringing Ningning over now would only cause her more grief,” Zhou refused outright.
Suddenly, a bright red figure rushed in.
Pull Jiang Wanru out of Aunt Liu's arms.
*Smack! Smack!*
By the time everyone realized what had happened, Jiang Wanru's cheeks were already red and swollen from being slapped.
"Ningning?" Zhou called out.
"Young Miss, Ru'er was only picking flowers for you, she didn't intend to have any physical contact with the young master, how could you do that?"
Aunt Liu emphasized the words "skin-to-skin intimacy" very heavily.
Helping Jiang Wanru cry with heartache.
Jiang Wanru looked at Jiang Wanning in disbelief.
She knew Jiang Wan Ning too well. Like her mother, Jiang Wan Ning had manners and etiquette ingrained in her bones, and would never clash with her in public.
How's it going today?
"Sister, I'm sorry, it's my fault. You can hit me or scold me, I'll accept it." Jiang Wanru covered her face and cried pitifully.
"Ningning, this is not Ru'er's fault." Pei Anqing's voice contained a hint of anger.
Those who had come to offer their congratulations now looked at each other in bewilderment, not daring to utter a word due to the status of the Prince of Langya and the Marquis, but feeling even more sympathy for Jiang Wanru.
On the contrary, I don't have a good impression of Jiang Wan Ning.
Jiang Wan Ning ignored everyone and forcefully shoved Aunt Liu away.
"Young Miss, what are you doing? I am, after all, a concubine in this household. I was just crying a couple of times for my poor daughter..."
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