Chapter 1 The Wedding
In the third year of the Hongli reign, in early spring, the capital city of Duyang was a scene of prosperity.
Amidst the dazzling array of goods, the incessant calls of vendors, and the bustling crowd, a girl in a pale yellow dress stood out. She walked and looked around, finally stopping in front of a stall labeled "Fortune Teller."
"Does the young lady want her fortune told?" The fortune teller looked at the girl standing in front of him and asked with a grin.
"Alright! Let's do a divination then. But let's make this clear beforehand: if you get it wrong, I'll ruin your reputation as a fortune teller!" After saying that, without waiting for anyone's response, he sat down rudely and stretched out his hand in front of the fortune teller.
"Young lady, this palm reading indicates great wealth and honor!" The fortune teller lifted the girl's hand and examined it carefully.
The girl rolled her eyes. "Do you even need to tell me? My hands are so delicate and soft. They're plump. You can tell at a glance that I'm a young lady from a wealthy family. What else could I be but a rich and noble lady?"
Seeing the girl's look that said, "You must be a charlatan," the fortune teller secretly wiped away a bead of sweat. He had forgotten to do a divination this morning before leaving home; how had he gotten himself into such a troublesome situation?
After a pause, he continued, "I said this signifies great wealth and honor, a true empress's countenance, and the young lady may soon have good news, but..."
"Good news my ass!" The girl pulled her hand back. She had been having terrible luck lately, and this charlatan actually said she had good news! "I think you're just a money-grubbing charlatan!" The girl glared at the fortune teller. "I'm going to tear down your signboard!" With that, the girl immediately stood up and stood on the chair she had just been sitting on, ready to take down the flag that read "Fortune Teller".
"Oh dear, young lady, you mustn't! You mustn't!"
"Third Miss! Third Miss! Something terrible has happened! You must return to the manor immediately!"
Hearing the shout behind her, the girl stopped what she was doing. She turned around and saw someone running towards her. "Cui'er, what brings you here?"
“Little…Miss,” the girl named Cui’er stopped, panting heavily, “No, no…something’s wrong…Master, Master is discussing your marriage with Madam! You…you…you’d better go back and see!”
Upon hearing this news, the girl was stunned. Marriage? A happy occasion? She looked at the fortune teller. So this was the happy occasion he was talking about. I haven't had enough fun yet, and he wants to marry me off so soon? No way! The girl frowned, jumped off the chair, grabbed Cui'er, and walked back. "Come on, I want to see who can marry me off if I don't agree!"
Watching the girl's departing figure, the fortune teller breathed a sigh of relief, then frowned again. Not everyone possesses the countenance of an empress, and even if this girl did, she had been afflicted by bad luck these past two years. This joyous occasion was an ominous sign. The Third Miss… the Third Miss… the Third Miss? Could this girl be Ye Wanning, the Third Miss of the Prime Minister's family?! The fortune teller was startled and sighed deeply. The Chu Kingdom was likely about to undergo a dramatic change!
“Miss…” Cui’er looked at her third young lady with concern, “I heard that although Prince Jin has the title of a prince, it is just an empty title. Moreover, Prince Jin has been mentally challenged since childhood. Second Miss refused to marry because of this. It’s one thing for her not to marry, but I don’t know what she’s up to. She actually pushed you up and asked you to marry in her place. The Prime Minister actually agreed. Isn’t this too much of a bullying!”
The fortune teller was right; the girl was indeed Ye Wanning, the third young lady of the Prime Minister's mansion. However, this Ye Wanning was not the same as the previous Ye Wanning. The earlier Ye Wanning had committed suicide because she could not bear the humiliation from the people in the mansion. The current Ye Wanning was just an ordinary white-collar worker in modern times.
Ye Wanning couldn't help but sigh. She was really having the worst luck in the world. She could transmigrate while sleeping, and into the body of the unloved third young lady of the Prime Minister's mansion. Being unloved was one thing, but at least she was a young lady. She couldn't wear gold and silver, but at least she was free from worries about food and clothing. She could tolerate the people in the mansion bullying her. She just wanted to be a parasite quietly. But now, she couldn't even be a parasite. Was there no way out for her?
"Miss..." Seeing that Ye Wanning hadn't replied for a long time, Cui'er couldn't help but get anxious. Wasn't Miss worried at all?
"Huh?" Ye Wanning snapped out of her daze and looked at Cui'er. "It's nothing, I was just daydreaming. Let's go back quickly!" With that, Ye Wanning quickened her pace and hurried towards the Prime Minister's residence.
A dreamlike state? Cui'er was taken aback. What was that? When did Miss become connected with immortals? But if Miss really was connected with immortals, that would be great. Then no one would dare to bully Miss anymore. However, ever since Miss attempted suicide and was rescued, she seemed to be different from before. Cui'er pouted. She kept saying strange things, and sometimes she even talked to herself. Could she have injured her head? But she remembered that Miss clearly hadn't injured her head.
Cui'er patted her forehead. How could she think of her mistress like that? If her mistress knew, she would definitely not forgive her. However, she still had to persuade her mistress to see a doctor when she had time. It would be bad if her head was really injured.
"Cui'er! What are you thinking about! Come here!" Ye Wanning frowned as she looked at the little maid behind her who was in a daze. This girl had been acting strangely lately, always absent-minded. Could it be that she had done something behind her back? Ye Wanning looked at her suspiciously. It seemed she had to question her properly.
Cui'er was startled, then came to her senses and hurriedly ran towards Ye Wanning, "Coming, coming!"
When Ye Qingyuan returned to the Prime Minister's residence, he was sitting in the hall drinking tea.
"Greetings, Father."
"Greetings, sir."
"Sit down." Ye Qingyuan waved his hand. "I suppose Cui'er has already told you about the marriage with the Prince of Jin's mansion. The date has been set. The eighth day of next month is an auspicious day. You should make good preparations."
Ye Wanning was stunned. The eighth day of next month? That's only a little over ten days! There's not even enough time to prepare for running away from the wedding! "Father, daughter..."
"I didn't call you here to discuss this. The matter has already been settled. Your aunt will arrange your dowry. You just need to prepare your wedding dress and jewelry." After saying this, Ye Qingyuan got up to leave.
"Father, I heard that my second sister was originally going to marry Prince Jin, but she thought he was a fool and refused to marry him, so she pushed him onto me. We are both your daughters, is it really okay to be so biased? Aren't you afraid people will laugh at you if word gets out?" Ye Wanning was a little angry, not because she wanted to marry a fool, but because of the blood ties between them. They were only different in status, yet they were so clearly divided. Perhaps Ye Qingyuan had never regarded Ye Wanning as his daughter. Ye Wanning was truly pathetic.
Ye Qingyuan turned to look at Ye Wanning. This was the daughter he had with a maidservant while drunk. Although the maidservant was later sentenced to death by his wife, it could not erase this stain on his life. Blood relatives? How ridiculous! What Ye Qingyuan wanted was fame and fortune, not these empty things! But this daughter was still somewhat useful, so it was better not to cause a rift.
Ye Qingyuan slowly walked to Ye Wanning's side, and after a long while, he sighed softly, "Ning'er, more than ten years have passed, and you have gradually grown into a young woman with bright eyes and white teeth. You are becoming more and more beautiful, but what good is beauty? You have come of age and should get married in the next two years. But everyone knows that the third young lady of the Prime Minister's mansion is born out of wedlock. If you go to a wealthy family, you can at most become a concubine. I know you are proud and will definitely not agree. Now you are marrying into the Prince of Jin's mansion. You will be a princess, which is much better than those concubines. Your father has always thought of you, but you say that your father is biased. Your father doesn't know what to say to dispel your prejudice."
Ye Wanning was taken aback. He really was a seasoned veteran of officialdom. Saying such things would make her seem unfilial. She pursed her lips and could only nod slightly, saying nothing more.
Seemingly satisfied with Ye Wanning's reaction, Ye Qingyuan patted her shoulder. "Ning'er, you are, after all, the daughter of the Prime Minister's family. I will certainly not mistreat you. Buy whatever you want these next few days, just put it in the accounts. It's a way of making up for it." After saying that, Ye Qingyuan left.
Watching Ye Qingyuan's retreating figure, Ye Wanning cursed inwardly, "Pah! Old monster! Marrying a fool and this is all the compensation she's worth! You can marry him yourself!"
“Miss…Miss, Master is actually quite good to you!” Cui’er scratched her head. “But even if he is good to you, I think you shouldn’t marry a fool. If you do, how will you live your life?”
"Why can't we live like this?" Ye Wanning squinted. "We'll live like this now, and we'll live like this in the future."
“But…” Cui’er blushed, “Granny Sun said that a fulfilling marriage depends on the intimate aspects of married life… But isn’t Prince Jin a fool… How could he…”
Although Cui'er's voice grew softer and softer, Ye Wanning still managed to hear about 70-80% of it. Looking at Cui'er's flushed face, Ye Wanning suddenly thought of something. "You're just a teenager, and you're already thinking about these things. Aren't you ashamed?" After saying that, she leaned closer to Cui'er's ear and said, "Could it be that my Cui'er has someone she likes? Could it be Steward Liu's youngest son?"
"Third Miss, are you trying to amuse me? I'm not talking to you anymore!" With that, Cui'er stomped her foot and ran away.
"Little brat, I can handle you." Watching Cui'er's retreating figure, Ye Wanning leisurely took a sip of tea. This Prince Jin, she was determined to marry him. After all, he was going to be a princess. Why not take the title? Ye Wanning smiled. She wanted to see what kind of tricks this old monster Ye Qingyuan was up to.
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