The situation was completely different from what Jiu Yue had imagined.
She even felt somewhat bewildered.
Turning her head to look at Dan Ruo… she was already embracing Old Madam Fu and weeping bitterly.
Jiu Yue: "……"
It made her feel completely out of place in this room.
Wasn’t she supposed to be the one in control, steering the situation? How had she ended up feeling like an outsider here?
Jiu Yue fell into a daze.
Beside her, Old Master Fu said, "They have some things to talk about… You must be hungry. Let your grandfather take you fishing. We’ll have the kitchen prepare something nourishing for lunch—you’re far too thin."
Jiu Yue: "……"
Fine.
She could use some quiet time too.
……
Inside the room, Meng Dan Ruo was kneeling on the floor, choking back sobs.
"This servant, Dan Ruo, has failed Old Madam."
"Get up and speak." Old Madam Fu had already been given a heads-up when Old Master Fu returned last night. By now, she had mostly guessed the outcome. Wiping silent tears, she reached out to pull Dan Ruo up.
"This isn’t your fault. I know your grief is no less than ours." Old Madam patted Dan Ruo’s back.
Dan Ruo’s tears flowed even harder.
She had served Muling since childhood—to Dan Ruo, Muling was both her mistress and her sister.
Old Madam wiped her face gently. "Now, tell me what exactly happened."
"Replying to Old Madam, that night when the princess learned of the marriage alliance…"
Dan Ruo recounted the events of that night in detail, followed by their escape all the way to Tianqi.
When she mentioned Qi Xiuyuan, Dan Ruo’s voice turned venomous. "That beast must have realized early on that the princess’s identity was unusual, which is why he kept her bound to his side."
"Prince Ping of Tianqi?" Old Madam Fu snorted coldly. "This is a debt we will settle with Tianqi!"
Dan Ruo nodded firmly. As she wiped her tears, she pulled out the silver hairpin tucked in her collar.
Just one glance at it blurred Old Madam Fu’s vision again.
Sniffling, Dan Ruo remembered something important.
"Old Madam, that girl Jiu Yue…"
"Jiu Yue?" Old Madam murmured the name, her eyes still damp. A faint smile appeared. "It’s a lovely name."
Dan Ruo was taken aback.
Old Madam wiped her face clean and looked toward the pond outside, where the grandfather and granddaughter stood. Her clouded eyes seemed to clear slightly.
"Muling’s sister will avenge her," she said.
Dan Ruo turned dazedly to the window.
By the pond, Grandfather Fu held a fishing rod, but his gaze lingered on Jiu Yue, who sat beside him, chin propped in her hands—as if he found her utterly fascinating.
Meanwhile, Old Madam’s eyes held a mix of heartache and warmth as she watched Jiu Yue.
Dan Ruo: "……"
Dan Ruo: "?"
Wait… weren’t they supposed to be suspicious?
This didn’t look like suspicion at all!
Dan Ruo fell silent.
……
Jiu Yue was equally puzzled.
She wasn’t one to keep her thoughts to herself, so when Old Master Fu glanced her way, she blurted out, "Do you really believe I’m your granddaughter?"
Old Master Fu chuckled. "How could it be false?"
"……" Jiu Yue gave him a strange look and pulled out the hairpin from her hair. "You’re not basing this just on this hairpin, are you?"
Old Master Fu nodded cheerfully.
Jiu Yue: "……"
She stared blankly at the hairpin.
If it was this simple… what was the point of her carefully prepared witnesses? What about the story she and Dan Ruo had rehearsed?
Had she just been wasting her time???
Unable to hold back, Jiu Yue frowned and spoke seriously, "Isn’t this too reckless? If this hairpin fell into someone else’s hands, would you just accept them as your granddaughter just as easily?"
Old Master Fu looked surprised. "What’s wrong? Aren’t you happy that we recognize you?"
Jiu Yue: "……"
Old Master Fu laughed again. "Young people are so full of energy—and overthink things. You’re just like your cousin."
Jiu Yue sighed and said gravely, "When you reach my age, you’ll understand—people out there are cunning."
Thanks to Sima Qing and Prince Ping, even her own heart wasn’t so pure anymore!
She thumped her chest dramatically.
Old Master Fu: "……"
He handed her a fishing rod. "Let’s have a competition."
Jiu Yue side-eyed him and shook her head. "No, I’m a sore loser."
Old Master Fu was amused. "Don’t worry, your grandfather will go easy on you."
Jiu Yue pouted and took the rod half-heartedly, her mind drifting.
Suddenly, she remembered what the system had told her earlier—if the original host hadn’t awakened, the plot would have led her to accidentally reunite with the Fu family in Great Yan…
Jiu Yue’s expression turned skeptical.
Accidentally…
Did that mean last night’s chance encounter with Old Master Fu at the Fu residence was the "accident"???
"Exactly! The reunion isn’t supposed to be difficult," the system chirped, now free from its studies and back to its lively tone. "Besides, the Fu family has been searching for you all along."
Jiu Yue froze.
It wasn’t until after dinner that evening that she learned more details—
"Child, you’ve suffered all these years." Old Madam Fu stroked her hair lovingly, her eyes brimming with tears. "Thank goodness you kept the hairpin your mother left you. Otherwise, who knows how much longer we would have waited to be reunited."
Jiu Yue wasn’t good with tears, especially from this woman who was family to the body she now inhabited. Silently, she wiped Old Madam’s tears away and flashed a bright smile.
"It’s all in the past. Isn’t it a good thing that we’re together now?" Her tone was light, her voice clear.
Old Madam clasped her hand and smiled through her tears. "You’re right. Reunion is a joyous occasion—something to celebrate."
"Your eyes… they’re just like your mother’s," Old Madam said softly, drying her face. "Especially when you smile."
She then took out the silver hairpin Dan Ruo had given her earlier.
Jiu Yue paused and instinctively removed her own hairpin, handing it over.
Old Madam placed the two hairpins side by side, her fingers tracing the carvings at one end. "Aside from your grandfather and me, only your parents knew these hairpins were a pair."
Jiu Yue tensed.
No wonder Dan Ruo had been so shocked when she dug out both hairpins.
Her gaze fell on the two hairpins in Old Madam’s hands—one left, one right. On opposite sides, they bore intricate dragon and phoenix patterns, while the front featured the entwined heads of the two creatures, topped with a single, unremarkable gemstone.
They looked utterly ordinary—in fact, similar designs could easily be found in half a dozen shops in Yan capital.
Even after crossing paths with Fu Yan’an several times at the Fu residence, he hadn’t reacted beyond giving her hairpin a second glance…
Hers and Muling’s hairpins were mirror images of each other.
Relying solely on the hairpins for identification might seem reckless—unless only a handful of people knew they were a pair.
"When your mother gave birth to you, it was premature," Old Madam said, gripping her hand tightly. "The news we received was that she had delivered a stillborn."
Jiu Yue frowned in confusion.
When she was born, she must have been taken by her master... so how could there have been a stillborn child left in her place?
"That's what everyone believed," Old Madam sighed. "It wasn't until your mother fell gravely ill that she finally told me where you were."
...
Jiu Yue returned to her room, her heart heavy with thoughts.
Dan Ruo, as was her habit, came to check on her, only to find the room unlit. Pausing in surprise, she turned and saw Jiu Yue slumped over the windowsill, listless and weary.
Worried, Dan Ruo approached and couldn’t help but ask, "Miss, are you uncomfortable here?"
Jiu Yue shook her head. After a moment, she murmured, "I’m going up to the roof for a while. Don’t wait for me—rest early."
