Jiang Yunshu had farewells to bid, not just to Concubine Qiao, but also to Grandmother.
Though Grandmother cherished Eldest Sister more, she still cared for the other daughters born of concubines.
Jiang Yunshu was deeply grateful—it was under Grandmother’s protection that she had lived a life of comfort in the Marquis's Mansion for over a decade.
Her embroidery skills were lacking, yet she still painstakingly crafted a forehead band for Grandmother, stitching it as finely as she could.
As for the brothers in the Marquis's Mansion, they were as distant to Jiang Yunshu as their father—strangers she barely saw once a year—so there was no need for farewells.
Among her younger sisters: Third Younger Sister had always been Eldest Sister’s shadow. Since Eldest Sister looked down on Jiang Yunshu, Third Younger Sister followed suit.
Fourth Younger Sister was gentle by nature, deferential to Eldest Sister but also kind to Jiang Yunshu.
For her, Jiang Yunshu wove a decorative knot as a parting gift.
Fifth Younger Sister was only six, still innocent and carefree. Jiang Yunshu picked out some sweets and pastries she had recently enjoyed and gave her two packages, which delighted the little girl.
Then there was the white cat in the kitchen. Kept to catch mice, it was never fed too well.
Jiang Yunshu found the cat beautiful and intelligent, so she often fed it, and over time, it recognized her.
The cat wasn’t the type to fawn over people, but whenever it saw Jiang Yunshu, its lake-blue eyes would gaze softly at her, blinking slowly.
Jiang Yunshu boiled a chicken leg for it, and after the cat finished eating, she said goodbye: "I’m going to the palace."
The cat seemed to understand. It walked up to her and pressed its head firmly against her palm.
Jiang Yunshu froze. "Are you marking me with your scent?"
"But the palace is heavily guarded. You can’t follow me there."
"Stay here. In the future..." She wouldn’t be able to return to see the cat either.
She trailed off. Though the cat wouldn’t understand, she didn’t want to lie to it.
While Jiang Yunshu busied herself with farewells, Lady Hou and Jiang Zhaohua were even busier!
"The mansion is arranging a match for Eldest Sister!"
The day after Jiang Yunshu heard this news, she learned that the mansion would host a flower-viewing banquet, inviting many noble ladies and promising young gentlemen.
Baffled, Jiang Yunshu asked Zhezhi, "What flowers are there to view?"
It was late spring, early summer—the peach and crabapple blossoms had already fallen, and the lotus buds hadn’t yet formed. What flowers were left to admire?
Zhezhi sighed in exasperation. "Why must you always focus on the wrong thing?"
The point wasn’t the flowers—it was which family’s son Eldest Sister was considering!
Jiang Yunshu: "You don’t know either, do you?"
Zhezhi smirked. "Actually, I do!"
"Eldest Sister is considering the Duan family—Duan Jinxing!"
Jiang Yunshu blinked. "Which Duan family?"
Among the capital’s noble houses, who bore the surname Duan?
Seeing her confusion, Zhezhi realized Jiang Yunshu had misunderstood. She’d done the same at first, racking her brain for prominent Duan families—until she heard Duan Jinxing’s name.
Zhezhi clarified, "Not a noble family. A humble one."
"Duan. Jin. Xing!" she emphasized. "Don’t you remember? Lady Hou once considered him for you!"
Jiang Yunshu was stunned. "What? For me?"
Wait… how could that be?
Her potential matches and Eldest Sister’s would never overlap!
Not only was there the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate daughters, but Eldest Sister was also a renowned talent in the capital!
Before the imperial decree naming her a Lady of Handsome Fairness, many families had sought Eldest Sister’s hand—truly, "a prized daughter attracts a hundred suitors."
Eldest Sister could have married into nobility—why settle for a commoner?
If Duan Jinxing was worthy of Eldest Sister, why would Lady Hou have ever considered him for Jiang Yunshu?
And judging by background alone, Duan Jinxing was barely a match for her. Had Lady Hou lost her mind? Offering Eldest Sister someone who was barely fit for a concubine-born daughter?
What kind of exchange was this?
Eldest Sister gave her an emperor, and in return, she’d give Eldest Sister a pauper?
Jiang Yunshu couldn’t make sense of it. "Eldest Sister agreed?" Eldest Sister was proud—how could she accept a downward match?
"Mother agreed?" Lady Hou doted on Eldest Sister—how could she bear to see her suffer in poverty?
"Father agreed?" The Marquis of Anping was cold and calculating, always scheming to maximize gains through his daughters’ marriages.
Taoye didn’t understand. Zhezhi didn’t understand. No one in the mansion did.
Jiang Yunshu concluded there had to be some hidden reason—something that suddenly elevated Duan Jinxing’s worth in the eyes of her father, mother, and Eldest Sister.
…Unless he’d won some unfathomable fortune overnight?
But the Great Qi Dynasty didn’t even have a lottery!
Amid the mansion’s collective bewilderment, the day of the flower-viewing banquet arrived.
Nowadays, matchmaking couldn’t be too overt—no one-on-one meetings were allowed.
Thus, Third Younger Sister and Fourth Younger Sister had to accompany Eldest Sister.
Fifth Younger Sister was still too young and could go play elsewhere.
As for Jiang Yunshu, her status had changed. She was now a Lady of Handsome Fairness by imperial decree, merely awaiting an auspicious date to enter the palace. No one could order her around.
She’d planned to slip away too—until Jiang Zhaohua unexpectedly invited her along.
How bizarre!
In the end, curiosity won out. Jiang Yunshu agreed, eager to uncover the reason behind Jiang Zhaohua’s odd behavior—and to see the "pauper" she was supposedly returning to her.
A group of young gentlemen were playing pitch-pot by the waterside pavilion. Jiang Yunshu followed Eldest Sister through the winding corridors, pausing at a distance.
Third Younger Sister craned her neck. "Which one is Duan Jinxing?"
"The tallest one."
Jiang Zhaohua’s gaze locked onto Duan Jinxing and didn’t waver.
He wore only a simple dark blue robe, yet Jiang Zhaohua could already envision him in the robes of a first-rank official.
And herself, clad in a first-rank noblewoman’s ceremonial dress, standing proudly beside him.
Jiang Yunshu stole a quick glance, finally getting a look at Duan Jinxing.
He was undeniably striking—not just the tallest among them, but also the most upright, his figure slender and poised like a pine.
His face was refined and handsome.
The classmates surrounding him paled in comparison, looking like a bunch of misshapen melons next to a pristine jade.
Once her curiosity was satisfied, Jiang Yunshu averted her eyes.
Jiang Zhaohua pretended nonchalance, but her peripheral vision never left Duan Jinxing.
Today, she had deliberately brought Jiang Yunshu along.
She wanted to see how Duan Jinxing would react when faced with both of them.
His response pleased her immensely.
The moment he spotted her, his eyes brightened. Though he quickly looked away, Jiang Zhaohua still caught him stealing glances at her.
Best of all—Duan Jinxing didn’t so much as glance at Jiang Yunshu the entire time!
Jiang Zhaohua disliked her second sister, but even she had to admit Jiang Yunshu was slightly more beautiful…
Yet Jiang Zhaohua remained confident. "Poetry in the heart lends grace to the face"—Jiang Yunshu was just a pretty fool.
Still, she knew most men prized looks above all…
Thankfully, Duan Jinxing wasn’t one of them!
From start to finish, his eyes were only for her—ignoring every other sister, including the lovely Jiang Yunshu.
A maidenly blush rose to Jiang Zhaohua’s cheeks.
She and her second younger sister stood before Duan Jinxing at the same time, yet his gaze lingered only on her, ignoring the other.
Indeed, in their past life, Duan Jinxing had married her second sister solely due to their parents' arrangement and the matchmaker's words.
But this time, she would become the wife of Chancellor Duan—and their bond would surely be far more loving!
