Zhuang Shi Yang was startled—hadn’t his legitimate daughter always strongly opposed him taking a new wife? Why had she suddenly changed her mind?
“Father, please don’t be angry with Yan’er anymore.” Han Yan wiped her eyes, her voice trembling helplessly: “Yan’er has already lost mother, please don’t dislike Yan’er. Yan’er just fears the new mother won’t like me…” As she spoke, she began to choke up, sobbing so much she couldn’t finish her sentences. Her whole body started trembling, almost fainting.
“Young Miss, don’t be sad, how can you strain yourself like this?” Mother Chen hurried forward to comfort her.
Zhuang Shi Yang looked at her, thinking this was natural—his daughter had always been timid, so fearing a stepmother was reasonable. Since she was willing to relent, this made things much easier. Thinking this, Zhuang Shi Yang deliberately put on a stern face and admonished: “Nonsense, you are the legitimate daughter of the Zhuang family, a marquis’s daughter—how can you be so childish?” Seeing Han Yan cry harder, he softened his voice to coax: “Your Aunt Zhou is very kind, and Yu-Shan is a good child too. She’ll be good company for you, Yan’er will only be happy.”
Han Yan laughed coldly inside—kind? A good child? In her previous life, she had indeed thought so but only saw their true faces before death. She didn’t know if it was tragic or just stupid. Her fingers curled into a fist inside her sleeve as she raised her head, her face still bearing traces of tears, and asked innocently: “They really won’t dislike Yan’er?”
Such a childish thought indeed. Zhuang Shi Yang smiled slightly: “Yan’er, don’t you trust father? Find a day for them to come to the mansion, and Yan’er will naturally see.”
“Yan’er wants to meet them. Father, can it be tomorrow?” Han Yan’s clear eyes showed undisguised anticipation as she simply hugged Zhuang Shi Yang’s arm, shaking it coquettishly.
Zhuang Shi Yang looked at her with some surprise. Han Yan rarely acted cute with him—Zhuang Shi Yang had been very cold towards his wife, and consequently didn’t pay much attention to his daughter. Han Yan had never been close to him since childhood.
Seeing his surprised look, Han Yan stiffened and lowered her head timidly, her pale little face tinged with red, her bright eyes faintly glistening. She looked like she wanted to please her father but didn’t know how. Zhuang Shi Yang immediately understood—that Han Yan had just lost her mother and was desperately trying to gain her father’s favor, hence trying to please him. This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for him; at least regarding Madam Zhou, things were resolving unusually smoothly. So Zhuang Shi Yang lovingly patted Han Yan’s head: “Tomorrow it is then. Though it’s a bit rushed, as long as Yan’er is happy.”
Han Yan smiled gratefully at him: “Thank you, father.”
After some casual conversation, Zhuang Shi Yang, finding nothing else to say, instructed Han Yan to rest early and leave.
As soon as Zhuang Shi Yang left, Mother Chen came close: “How could Young Miss say such things? How can that Zhou woman enter the door? Only Madam is the Master’s proper wife. Young Miss is too kind-hearted—we only hear of wicked stepmothers, how can Young Miss not be more cautious?” Remembering how Han Yan had deliberately tried to please Zhuang Shi Yang earlier, her nose stung: “If Madam were alive, Young Miss wouldn’t have to compromise like this…”
“Mother Chen, say no more.” Han Yan interrupted her: “I know you mean well, but there’s no room for negotiation in this matter. Even if I disagree today, the father will find ways to bring her in later. Better to go along with it now, not letting her damage my relationship with father, and keep her under our watch so we can better handle whatever happens.”
Mother Chen opened and closed her mouth, unable to believe these words came from Han Yan. They say motherless children grow up early—their Young Miss’s early wisdom was heartbreaking.
“Young Miss, Young Master is here,” Ji Lan entered carrying a plate, and just as she spoke, Han Yan heard a clear: “Sister!”
Zhuang Han Ming stood at the door, his voice urgent. Upon hearing this call, Han Yan’s tears immediately welled up again.
“Fifth Brother,” Han Yan responded.
Ming’er was her blood brother, and in her previous life, they had been extremely close siblings. Zhuang Shi Yang had only Ming’er for a son, yet was oddly cold towards this son too. Han Yan had always thought it was because Ming’er was too mischievous, and Zhuang Shi Yang was a strict father. But thinking carefully now, there were many puzzling aspects—Zhuang Shi Yang seemed to treat his concubine-born daughters better than their brother and sister. His coldness seemed to be specifically directed at his legitimate wife’s children.
Ming’er had been clever since childhood, just a bit too mischievous. After Madam Zhou entered the household, Ming’er opposed them at every turn. At first, it wasn’t much, but after the bandit incident, she began treating the Zhou mother and daughter sincerely and would stop Ming’er when he targeted them. It was precisely for this reason that Ming’er grew distant from her. At that time, her personality had changed dramatically, hiding in the Marquis mansion all day without concerning herself with the outside world. When Ming’er didn’t come to see her, she thought he also despised her for being impure and felt very sad. Unexpectedly, after just a short while, Ming’er got into a fight with an official’s son over a courtesan and accidentally caused a death. That family wasn’t easy to deal with either and filed a complaint that sent Ming’er to prison.
By the time she received this news, Ming’er had already been tortured into delirium in prison. She gave all the dowry her mother had left her to Madam Zhou, and after Madam Zhou used connections to rescue Ming’er, he fell ill for some days before dying. So at her wedding three years later, Han Yan had no brother from her maiden family to escort her.
Lost in thought, she seemed to see again the scene of her mother on her deathbed asking her to take good care of Ming’er, yet this was how she had cared for him.
Seeing Han Yan’s delayed response, Zhuang Han Ming anxiously called out again: “Sister!” Though frustrated by the propriety that required even blood siblings to maintain distance, he couldn’t rush straight into the room.
“I’m fine, Fifth Brother, don’t worry,” Han Yan came back to herself and quickly reassured him.
“When I heard sister had awakened, I came right away. How are you feeling?” Zhuang Han Ming asked anxiously. Han Yan felt warmth in her heart—at least in this world, Han Ming truly cared for her, and that was enough.
“I’m much better, but you rushing here like this—I suspect you’re deliberately avoiding your tutor’s lessons. If Father finds out, he’ll punish you again,” Han Yan said with a smile.
Zhuang Han Ming snorted: “A real man’s ambition lies in all directions—how can spending all day playing with brush and ink make one a hero? When I grow up, I want to fight enemies on the battlefield. How can knowing a few characters help establish merit and achieve great things?”
“You’re thinking about achieving great things at such a young age,” Han Yan said softly. “If you’re truly interested in martial arts, how about I secretly find you a martial arts teacher? But this must be kept secret—if others find out, I’ll likely be punished too.”
In her previous life, Han Yan had not agreed to Ming’er learning martial arts, as Zhuang Shi Yang greatly disdained the military officials at court. Having been raised in seclusion, she was influenced by Zhuang Shi Yang and also felt those military officials were too crude. She thought it would be best if Ming’er excelled in his studies and became a top scholar in the imperial examinations. But after dying once, she no longer thought this way. Life was too short—why spend it all on things one didn’t like? Ming’er liked martial arts, so what was wrong with learning them? Besides, having some martial arts for self-defense was always good. If Ming’er had learned martial arts, perhaps the incident at the brothel would never have happened.