After saying this, Jiang Xuening didn’t care what expression she wore and simply turned and left.

Many times she couldn’t distinguish exactly what kind of feelings she had toward Wanniang.

But in her previous life, all her tragedies were fundamentally related to Wanniang.

By rights, she should hate her.

Yet whenever she thought of how the daughter Wanniang had cherished and remembered had never asked about her even once, she felt Wanniang was ultimately both hateful and pitiable.

In her previous life, Jiang Xuening had stolen Jiang Xuehui’s opportunity and her marriage prospects, fighting stubbornly to squeeze herself into the palace as Shen Zhiyi’s companion reader. In this life, she clearly wanted nothing more than to avoid the imperial palace, yet everyone seemed to be rushing to push things in front of her. Even this matter of entering the palace as companion reader had fallen upon her head when her name hadn’t even been submitted—completely the result of someone pushing her toward the palace from behind.

Everything seemed not much different from her previous life.

This made her unable to stop herself from thinking: In this life after being reborn, could she truly change anything? Or was she merely repeating the same mistakes of her previous life?

—

Early the next morning, before dawn had even broken, Jiang Xuening was attended by maids as she rose, washed and dressed, then went to bid farewell to her parents. Taking a small amount of luggage, she boarded the carriage.

Ministers entered and exited the palace through the Meridian Gate.

Palace ladies or companion readers like them all entered through Zhenshun Gate at the northeastern corner of the palace.

This batch of selected companion readers were mostly between seventeen and twenty years old—all young ladies in the prime of their youth.

When Jiang Xuening arrived, some people were already there.

She rarely appeared at gatherings of noble daughters and wasn’t familiar with them, but they were familiar with each other, currently standing near the palace gate conversing in low voices.

But as soon as the Jiang manor’s carriage arrived, the discussion ceased.

Everyone turned to look at her.

Their gazes revealed varying degrees of curiosity or wariness: The Jiang manor had initially submitted Jiang Xuehui’s name, but later the one selected to enter the palace as companion reader had suddenly become Jiang Xuening. This matter wasn’t only known within the Jiang manor—word had long since spread outside. How could young ladies from these aristocratic families not pay attention to such things?

Others had fought desperately without success.

Yet this Jiang Xuening had it good—sitting at home, doing nothing, a meat pie had simply fallen from the sky and hit her on the head.

It was truly difficult to feel calm about.

As soon as Jiang Xuening descended from the carriage, one glance showed her several familiar faces: They really were all those who had been companion readers in her previous life.

One was You Yue from Count Qingyuan’s manor.

At the Double Ninth banquet that day, Jiang Xuening had rather embarrassed her, creating enmity between them.

At this moment she wore beautiful palace attire with a dignified and virtuous appearance, but the gaze she directed over contained undisguised hostility, even vaguely carrying a few traces of viciousness.

Jiang Xuening thought to herself that she’d better not come seeking death in front of her, otherwise in this life her circumstances entering the palace were far better than in her previous life—if her temper flared and she accidentally crushed her, it wouldn’t sound good if word got out.

Beside You Yue was Fan Yilan, daughter of Minister of Rites Fan, who had been named first in poetry at the recent Double Ninth banquet. She wore the plainest clothing of everyone, not even wearing a single earring, her brows and eyes carrying an air of detached etherealness.

Entering the palace seemed not worth getting excited about for her.

Others looked at Jiang Xuening with somewhat strange gazes, but Fan Yilan only looked over calmly, showing neither curiosity nor jealousy.

Jiang Xuening knew this was the only person among the twelve companion readers this time who had no yearning for glory and wealth, and who ultimately didn’t remain as a companion reader.

Next was Zhou Baoying, third daughter of the Dingyuan Marquis household, the youngest of everyone and the Dingyuan Marquis’s pampered pearl. Her small face still had baby fat, round and plump, with large black grape-like eyes that were quite bright.

The girl stood before the palace gate looking around in all directions, not the least bit afraid.

Her pale, tender hand still clutched a small oil paper package from which she continuously pulled out candied fruits to eat, her cheeks moving like a little hamster as she blinked and stared fixedly at Jiang Xuening.

This was a girl who could be won over with just any snacks.

But she also had one flaw—

Namely, whoever gave her snacks could win her over. Probably because she was still young and naive, she had absolutely no principles.

The remaining few were Yao Rongrong, Fang Miao, and three others.

Those three looked unfamiliar to Jiang Xuening—she had no impression of them.

Because they seemed to have all been sent back by the palace female officials during these few days of entering the palace to learn etiquette and familiarize themselves with the palace environment, due to poor etiquette and inadequate scholarly qualifications.

She still remembered something about the first two.

One, Yao Rongrong, was among those entering the palace the one with the lowest birth—the daughter of Hanlin Academy Lecturer Yao Duping. She had a delicate, modest appearance, and her clothing and adornments were inevitably somewhat shabby compared to the other young ladies from great families.

When looking at people, her brows and eyes were also meekly lowered.

When she looked over, as soon as she met Jiang Xuening’s gaze, she immediately withdrew her own and didn’t dare look at her again.

Jiang Xuening remembered Yao Rongrong because in her previous life she had been the slowest and dullest learner among everyone.

Finally there was Fang Miao.

A delicate face, clean and neat; a pair of lively eyes, but somewhat too clever. At the tip of her brow was a tiny red mole that made her look rather charming. If one looked carefully, one would discover that today she wore an outfit of water-blue clothing. Because September belonged to metal in the five elements, its lesser yin energy moist and flowing, it generated water.

That’s right—Fang Miao was the only daughter of the Director of the Imperial Observatory.

Growing up immersed in this environment, besides learning from her father to observe celestial phenomena and calculate seasonal periods, she was also absorbed in the study of the five elements and eight trigrams, and could even read fortunes and divine for people.

Whether she was accurate or not, Jiang Xuening didn’t know.

In any case, in her previous life, because of this hobby, Fang Miao was well-liked by others, constantly getting together in the evenings to calculate matters of marriage and fortune, thriving like a fish in water.

Jiang Xuening didn’t care what kind of looks they all gave her, because in this life her plan was very clear—

Learn etiquette?

One couldn’t wake someone pretending to sleep, so even the best female official couldn’t possibly teach someone whose heart was set on staying far from the palace.

She couldn’t be bothered to deal with these people.

So after getting off the carriage, she didn’t go talk to them, just maintained a not-too-close, not-too-distant distance and stood by the palace gate.

The eunuch guarding the gate glanced at her, counted on his fingers, and said: “Nine people now. Still waiting for three more who haven’t arrived. Please wait a moment, young ladies, and this servant will be able to lead you into the palace shortly.”

Yao Rongrong timidly asked: “Who hasn’t come yet?”

Zhou Baoying lowered her head, picking through the candied fruits in her oil paper package, pouting her small mouth and answering offhandedly: “The latest to arrive will definitely be Elder Sister Xiao. Sister Chen and Sister Yao are with her, so they’ll probably come together.”

The others’ faces all showed subtle strange expressions.

Zhou Baoying was a legitimate daughter of a marquis manor and had always been close to Xiao Shu and the others. Her thoughts were simple, so saying such words, she felt nothing was wrong. But the other people’s family status was difficult to compare with theirs.

Now most people were waiting here, yet some still hadn’t arrived.

Who wouldn’t feel that those few who hadn’t come yet were putting on airs?

However, just as they were speaking, a rather luxurious-looking carriage came driving toward Zhenshun Gate from the distance, stopping in front of everyone.

The coachman took a footstool down from the carriage and placed it.

The eunuch who had been speaking with Jiang Xuening and the others earlier immediately hurried over upon seeing this carriage, his face blooming with smiles. He bowed by the carriage: “The Eldest Miss has finally arrived.”

Inside the carriage was indeed Xiao Shu.

Today she wore an apricot-yellow broad-sleeved Liuxian dress, waist pendants jingling. Supporting herself on the hand the eunuch offered, she descended from the carriage, smiling: “Today it’s actually Eunuch Huang who came out to receive people. Grand Princess didn’t even tell me.”

Huang Renli also smiled: “Her Highness knew that many playmates would be coming this time and was very happy. She specially sent this servant today, both to see and to tell the Princess about it afterward.”

Everyone could tell that this Huang Renli was a eunuch from Grand Princess Leyang’s side and was evidently greatly trusted by the Grand Princess.

Yet such a eunuch had stepped forward to help Xiao Shu down from the carriage.

The prominence of the Xiao family and the closeness of Xiao Shu’s relationship with the Grand Princess were evident at a glance.

There wasn’t only Xiao Shu in that carriage.

After she descended, two more people came down from the carriage.

Jiang Xuening looked and her eyebrows rose slightly.

Chen Shuyi, daughter of Grand Secretary Chen Yunjin, although she rarely entered the palace and wasn’t particularly close to Grand Princess Leyang, had an extremely good relationship with Xiao Shu.

Simply because the two had equivalent status in the capital.

Though her appearance wasn’t as bright and lovely as Xiao Shu’s, she lived up to her name with a natural air of dignified elegance. The corners of her lips always held a faint smile, but her eyes when looking at others showed considerable thought and calculation—she was someone with a reserved and cautious temperament.

The remaining one was interesting.

She had almond eyes and willow brows, her hair in a single spiral bun, a pair of crescent-shaped white jade earrings hanging from her ears, and an exquisite jade lock pendant at her chest. She looked beautiful, and her adornments showed her origins weren’t ordinary. However, as she descended from the carriage, this official’s daughter knit her brows with faint irritation, even a trace of gloom, as if she’d encountered some difficult and unpleasant matter.

Jiang Xuening’s impression of her was far too deep.

Yao Xi—daughter of Minister of Personnel Yao Taishi—

She had nearly married Zhang Zhe as his wife, but when the marriage discussions were already halfway through, she’d adamantly broken off the engagement, even having people spread rumors throughout the capital that Zhang Zhe “brought death to wives,” and having her father suppress him thoroughly at court, angering Zhang Zhe’s elderly mother Lady Feng into a serious illness.

As a result, after picking and choosing endlessly, she’d married Zhou Yinzhi.

From then on she had her maternal family help Zhou Yinzhi rise smoothly all the way. But unexpectedly, after merely three years, she died of “difficult childbirth” in Zhou Yinzhi’s manor teeming with wives and concubines.

At this time, Yao Xi should be in marriage discussions with Zhang Zhe and troubled by this matter, right?

After all, Zhang Zhe had just fought with the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

From any angle, he didn’t look like someone with good prospects.

Jiang Xuening didn’t know why, but although she knew she herself hadn’t been anything good in her previous life, her methods really weren’t as despicable as this person’s. She looked up and down, left and right, and just found Yao Xi quite displeasing.

Abandoning Zhang Zhe and choosing Zhou Yinzhi…

Truly wasting such a beautiful pair of eyes!

Her gaze was calm yet deeply meaningful as she simply stared at Yao Xi this way.

Yao Xi had just descended from the carriage and was raising her eyes to survey the others.

But inadvertently meeting Jiang Xuening’s gaze, her eyes paused, and she was immediately stunned.

Yet Jiang Xuening suddenly curved her lips. Standing beside everyone else, she revealed to her a brilliant smile, hiding her earlier sharpness and mockery, seeming instead to have great fondness for her, very friendly, even nodding in greeting.

Yao Xi was completely bewildered.

But when someone as beautiful as Jiang Xuening smiled at people, even women couldn’t resist. Though puzzled, she couldn’t help but instinctively return the smile.

Jiang Xuening’s face showed pure kindness, but in her heart she was leisurely pondering: In her previous life at this time she hadn’t yet known Zhang Zhe and didn’t pay attention to Yao Xi. But in this life, this young lady had better not cause trouble right under her nose. Otherwise, for certain matters, she might not be able to restrain herself from standing by and watching…