Jiang Zhaohua never imagined this was only the beginning.
In the years that followed, she continuously heard news about her second younger sister and brother-in-law.
Duan Jinxing rose swiftly through the ranks, eventually becoming the Prime Minister! He secured for Jiang Yunshu the title of First-Rank Noble Consort!
Duan Jinxing remained steadfastly devoted, loving only his wife—without a single concubine or maidservant in his household!
The maidservants around Jiang Zhaohua spoke of Duan Jinxing and Jiang Yunshu with such admiration and reverence… as if they were describing an immortal couple descended from the heavens.
"Prime Minister Duan is truly loyal, sharing a lifetime with his wife alone."
"How could there be such a perfect man in this world?"
"Prime Minister Duan’s wife is so fortunate!"
"She must be an extraordinary woman to have captured Prime Minister Duan’s heart so completely. I’ve heard she’s stunningly beautiful and undoubtedly virtuous…"
"Of course she is…"
Listening to their words, Jiang Zhaohua felt a fire burning in her chest!
She wanted to scream—what virtue? She had never met anyone lazier than her second sister!
Back in the Marquis's Mansion, her second sister slept in every day. Their mother, being kind-hearted, excused the concubine-born children from daily greetings, and her second sister took full advantage, never showing up unless summoned!
Jiang Zhaohua excelled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting—her second sister was inept at all of them.
Even in needlework, her second sister was clumsy; the embroidered pouch she once gifted was so hideous Jiang Zhaohua couldn’t bear to wear it.
With such a temperament, how could her second sister possibly be a virtuous wife and mother after marriage?
Duan Jinxing’s unwavering devotion wasn’t because Jiang Yunshu was exceptional—it was simply because her second sister had stumbled upon a man like him, a rarity in this world!
Jiang Zhaohua broke down in tears.
Heaven had no eyes! How could someone as mediocre and lazy as her second sister be so blessed?
Meanwhile, she, with all her talent and virtue, was left to suffer in darkness.
Years of hardship had already weakened Jiang Zhaohua’s health. Upon learning her second sister had become a First-Rank Noble Consort, she was so overcome with rage that she fell gravely ill.
A maidservant reported her condition to the steward, who summoned a physician from the streets to prescribe medicine.
But what skill could a random physician from a street clinic possibly have?
Jiang Zhaohua recalled her days as the eldest daughter of the Marquis's Mansion—whenever she had so much as a headache, her parents would anxiously summon imperial physicians from the palace…
The medicine from this street physician couldn’t possibly cure her.
Sure enough, bowl after bowl of bitter decoctions did nothing. Her illness lingered, flaring up again and again…
Feverish and delirious, she opened her eyes—only to find herself back at seventeen years old!
She hadn’t yet entered the palace. Her second sister hadn’t yet married Duan Jinxing…
Everything could still be changed!
After weeping bitterly, Jiang Zhaohua resolved to make her second sister take her place in the palace.
She knew this would doom Jiang Yunshu, but… she couldn’t endure another lifetime trapped in the Nine Thousand-Year-Old Lord's Mansion, living a fate worse than death.
In her past life, she had suffered for decades while her second sister enjoyed boundless fortune.
This time, their roles would be reversed.
Heaven had granted her this second chance—surely it was to correct the mistake of her previous life and compensate her!
And even disregarding the past, her second sister, a mere concubine-born daughter, had lived in comfort in the Marquis's Mansion for years. Wasn’t it time she repaid the family?
When Jiang Zhaohua told her mother she wouldn’t enter the palace and that Jiang Yunshu should go instead, Lady Hou thought her daughter had gone mad!
Unable to explain the truth, Jiang Zhaohua lied, claiming she had dreamed of the future.
Returning from death was too unbelievable—she dared not confess it.
Instead, she said she dreamed the emperor would die on their wedding night, with all his consorts forced to follow him in death… Lady Hou paled in horror!
Jiang Zhaohua didn’t mention her subsequent abduction by the Nine Thousand-Year-Old Lord.
Such disgrace was too shameful to speak of!
If her mother knew, she would be heartbroken. If her father knew, he would demand to know why she hadn’t taken her own life…
She had failed the Marquis's Mansion’s teachings! She had tarnished its reputation!
Fortunately, no one else knew of her past life’s suffering. She would take those secrets to her grave.
By revealing only half the truth, Jiang Zhaohua ensured her mother misunderstood—believing she had been buried alive with the emperor.
Though skeptical, Lady Hou still clutched her daughter tightly, weeping in distress.
Jiang Zhaohua insisted, "Mother, this wasn’t just a dream—it was real! The emperor is about to die!"
Lady Hou hastily covered her mouth in terror.
Pulling her mother’s hand away, Jiang Zhaohua urged, "Mother, summon Father. There are things I learned in the dream…"
Secrets of the court that a sheltered noble daughter like her could never have known.
When the Marquis of Anping arrived, Jiang Zhaohua selectively shared the most critical details.
His expression grew increasingly grave.
Lady Hou, watching anxiously, whispered, "Could Zhaohua’s dream be true?"
The Marquis stared at his daughter. "You dreamed all this?"
Jiang Zhaohua nodded. "How else would I know such things?"
Seeing her husband’s reaction, Lady Hou nearly collapsed.
"Her dream is real?"
"She cannot enter the palace! We cannot send Zhaohua to her death!"
The Marquis agreed. "Of course not. Even if there’s only a sliver of truth to this dream, we won’t risk it."
At last, Jiang Zhaohua’s heart settled.
Overcome with joy, she wept—this time, she would live a blessed life!
Her father, too, had misunderstood, assuming she had dreamed of being buried with the emperor.
But Jiang Zhaohua dismissed her omissions as insignificant.
She hadn’t died in her past life, but if Jiang Yunshu entered the palace now, she would surely perish with the other consorts…
After all, the Nine Thousand-Year-Old Lord had coveted her eyes—not Jiang Yunshu’s. He wouldn’t abduct her sister.
Though their eyes were strikingly similar—both inherited their father’s peach-blossom gaze…
The thought flickered through Jiang Zhaohua’s mind, but she pushed it away, unsettled.
Her second sister would die with the others… but a quick death was kinder than prolonged suffering.
Jiang Yunshu would be spared decades of torment.
And in these final days, Jiang Zhaohua would make sure her sister was treated well.
She was certain Jiang Yunshu would be the one sent in her stead.
But the Marquis of Anping was still deliberating.
He had only one legitimate daughter, cherished like the apple of his eye. He would never let her face such danger.
Though the imperial decree had been issued, substituting another daughter wasn’t impossible…
But that didn’t necessarily mean the second daughter.
Which girl to choose required careful consideration.
He felt no particular attachment to any of his concubine-born daughters. Sending any of them would be no loss—if they could shield Zhaohua, it was their good fortune.
But if the emperor didn’t die as foretold… then the daughter he sent would need to be carefully selected indeed!
He was determined to choose the one most likely to gain favor, someone who could later assist the family!
The Marquis of Anping had one legitimate daughter and four illegitimate daughters. Behind the Second Miss were the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Misses.
These three illegitimate daughters often vied for their father’s attention.
Only the Second Miss never showed herself in daily life—so much so that the Marquis had nearly forgotten what she even looked like.
At this thought, the Marquis frowned. With such a temperament, could this daughter even win favor if sent to the palace?
Yet when the Marquis summoned the Second Miss and laid eyes on her appearance, he changed his mind.
A gentle disposition was nothing compared to beauty.
The Second Miss’s looks were simply too striking!
The emperor was still young, at an age where he would naturally be drawn to beauty. If the emperor didn’t die, it would be impossible for the Second Miss not to gain favor!
With that, the Marquis of Anping made his decision—Jiang Yunshu would replace Jiang Zhaohua in entering the palace.
Jiang Zhaohua let out a long sigh of relief.
Lady Hou stroked her daughter’s silken hair. "Now, are you at ease?"
Jiang Zhaohua nestled into her mother’s embrace and nodded happily.
Lady Hou smiled. "Since you won’t be entering the palace, we must arrange your marriage quickly."
"Don’t worry, Mother will find you a good match."
At her mother’s words, Jiang Zhaohua abruptly sat up.
"I want to marry Duan Jinxing!"
To her surprise, her mother was startled. "What? Duan Jinxing?"
"Which Duan Jinxing?"
Jiang Zhaohua was baffled. "The one you were planning to arrange for Second Sister… Mother, what’s wrong?"
Lady Hou’s expression darkened. "No! You cannot marry him!"
Jiang Zhaohua’s eyes reddened with grievance. "Why can Second Sister marry him, but not me?"
Lady Hou’s heart ached with bitterness.
How could she explain this to her daughter?
How could she possibly tell her that the Duan Family was a trap she had deliberately set for Jiang Yunshu—a family that appeared sweet on the outside but was bitter within?
Duan Jinxing was scholarly, handsome, and a promising scholar with a bright future.
No one could accuse her, as the legitimate mother, of mistreating an illegitimate daughter when they saw the match she had arranged.
But once Jiang Yunshu actually married into the Duan Family and began her life there…
She would learn what it meant to suffer in silence, unable to voice her pain!
How could she possibly allow her own precious daughter to marry into such a family?
