HomeSheng Shi Di FeiChapter 1: Broken Engagement? Imperial Marriage Decree?

Chapter 1: Broken Engagement? Imperial Marriage Decree?

“Young Miss! Young Miss, terrible news!”

In the quiet, somewhat desolate courtyard, a figure in light green swept like a gust of wind into the inner chamber, causing the wind chimes hanging by the door to tinkle melodiously.

In the elegantly furnished room, a graceful figure sat by the half-open window, her needlework continuing uninterrupted despite the intrusion. Only after the little maid caught her breath did the young woman set aside her needlework and turn around with a smile. “What have you so alarmed?” The young woman’s features were refined and elegant, though her eyes held a sharpness and alertness that seemed at odds with her gentle exterior. She wore plain clothes, her long hair casually pinned up with a jade hairpin. An outsider would hardly believe this was the eldest legitimate daughter of the prestigious Minister’s household.

“Young Miss! How can you still be embroidering? Do you know… do you know that Prince Li has broken off the engagement?” The little maid snatched away the embroidery, stomping her feet in agitation. She had been anxious for three days since Prince Li’s announcement, yet her mistress maintained an air of indifference.

“Qingshuang, Prince Li broke off the engagement three days ago. Aren’t you a bit late to be getting anxious now?” Ye Li smiled at her maid, not minding the discourteous behavior.

“Young Miss!” Qingshuang glared at her mistress in frustration. “I’m not worried about Prince Li.” Why should she care about Prince Li when her mistress didn’t? But… “Oh, Young Miss! The Emperor has arranged another marriage for you! The Master asks you to receive the imperial decree!”

“Another arranged marriage?” Ye Li started, unable to suppress a frown. She had thought that after Prince Li broke off their engagement, she might have a few peaceful years, as few men in this era were willing to marry a woman whose engagement had been broken. “We’re just a Minister’s family. Why would the Emperor pay such attention?” A broken engagement three days ago, a new imperial decree three days later. Was the Emperor showing excessive favor to the Minister’s household, or did he have something against the prospective groom?

Qingshuang’s eyes reddened with anger as she gritted her teeth: “It’s Prince Ding! It must be the First Young Miss’s doing. She’s always bullied Young Miss since childhood, and now… now she’s making Young Miss marry Prince Ding. Wuwu…”

Ye Li looked helplessly at her maid. Such a crybaby hardly deserved the name Qingshuang (Clear Frost). “That’s enough. Don’t speak such words outside. Come, let’s go receive the decree.”

In the Ye Family’s Main Hall

“By Heaven’s mandate, the Emperor decrees: Ye Li, eldest daughter of the Ye family, being wise and virtuous, possessed of both talent and moral excellence, is worthy to be a fine match. We hereby decree her marriage to Prince Ding of the State, Mo Xiuyao, as his primary consort. An auspicious date shall be chosen for the wedding. This is the imperial will.”

The Ye family members collectively thanked the Emperor for his grace. The eunuch delivering the decree handed the imperial scroll to Ye Li with a smile: “Congratulations to Madam Ye and Young Miss Ye.” Taking the decree, Ye Li endured the eunuch’s somewhat grating laughter and responded with a calm smile, “Many thanks, Sir. You’ve gone to much trouble.”

The messenger eunuch looked at Ye Li with surprise. He had heard that the Minister’s third daughter was infamous in the capital as one of the “Three Nothings” – no talent, no beauty, no virtue. Yet the woman before him, though not as alluring as Imperial Consort Ye in the palace, nor as stunning as the Ye family’s Fourth Miss who was dubbed the capital’s greatest beauty, was undeniably a rare beauty with refined features. Moreover, her bearing was dignified, her speech measured – how could this match Imperial Consort Ye’s description of someone uncouth and unbefitting of proper society? Glancing at the barely concealed schadenfreude on the faces of the other Ye family members, the eunuch understood. Though he felt sorry for this Young Miss Ye, such matters were beyond a eunuch’s concern. He merely said he didn’t dare accept her thanks and took his leave.

The Ye family matriarch eagerly had the steward personally escort the messenger out. Then she cast a sidelong glance at Ye Li, affecting a maternal smile: “Fortunately, the Emperor is wise and has arranged another good marriage for Third Miss. Otherwise… how could a woman with a broken engagement ever find a husband?”

Ye Li maintained her composure while inwardly sneering. A good marriage? Did they think she knew nothing just because she rarely went out? Prince Ding, Mo Xiuyao, had suffered grave injuries at eighteen, leaving him crippled and his face disfigured, confined to his sickbed ever since. He had previously married two primary consorts – one drowned mysteriously within half a month of the wedding, the other died of fright on her wedding night. Rumors said she had been frightened to death by the sight of Prince Ding’s face. Otherwise, given Prince Ding’s status and position, how could he still be without a primary consort at twenty-five? “Madam speaks truly. Regardless, Prince Ding is a hereditary prince of the first rank. This is indeed far above my station.”

The matriarch’s expression stiffened slightly. After glancing at Ye Li, she said, “Since you understand, prepare well for your wedding. Don’t disgrace our Minister’s household. Your Fourth Sister is also to be married soon, and the household will be quite busy these days.”

“I understand. Thank you for your concern, Madam.”

“As the matriarch of this household, of course, I must concern myself with such matters.” Madam Ye said, looking at Ye Li’s composed expression before leaving with a snort.

Ye Li watched the matriarch’s departure with a slight smile, raising an eyebrow but saying nothing. Though she was a legitimate daughter of the Ye family, she was not born to the current matriarch Wang Shi, but to Minister Ye’s original wife, Madam Xu. Born to a scholarly family, Madam Xu’s health had deteriorated after giving birth to Ye Li. Minister Ye favored his first concubine Wang shi, even transferring household authority to her when Madam Xu fell seriously ill. When Ye Li was seven, Madam Xu passed away, and it was then that Ye Li became the present Ye Li. After Wang shi was elevated to primary wife, fearing others would accuse her of mistreating the original wife’s legitimate daughter, she didn’t dare overtly abuse her, but frequent harassment was inevitable. Ye Li had quietly deflected it all, which only made Madam Wang dislike her more.

“Third Sister, congratulations!” As soon as Wang Shi left, the unmarried young ladies of the Ye family all gathered around, their faces bearing various expressions of pity and schadenfreude as they offered their congratulations. The first to speak was Sixth Young Miss Ye Lin, a concubine’s daughter who had always clung to Wang Shi’s legitimate daughters, occasionally causing trouble for Ye Li to curry favor with them. Ye Li usually didn’t bother with her – it was just a concubine-born daughter’s survival strategy. As long as she didn’t go too far, Ye Li didn’t want to quibble with a child barely over ten years old.

“What’s there to congratulate Third Sister about? Marrying Prince Ding – just thinking about it is terrifying. Prince Ding is crippled and ugly, and he even frightened one consort to death. Maybe he killed the first consort too! We should congratulate Fourth Sister instead – in another month, she’ll be Prince Li’s consort.” Fifth Young Miss Ye Shan looked admiringly at Fourth Young Miss Ye Ying, known as the capital’s greatest beauty, her eyes unable to hide both envy and jealousy.

Ye Ying truly deserved her reputation as the capital’s greatest beauty – eyebrows like willow leaves, eyes like autumn waters, jade-like features exuding exquisite beauty in every detail, every movement carrying a delicate grace that made others want to cherish her. Yet to someone like Ye Li, who had seen countless beauties in her previous life, such soft beauty lacked that truly stunning quality.

“We’re all sisters, what’s all this talk of congratulations? Mother will surely choose suitable matches for Fifth Sister and Sixth Sister too.” Ye Ying spoke softly, her voice gentle and sweet as orchids, every movement captivating, making the others surge with jealousy again. “But Third Sister, about Prince Li… I hope you can forgive me.” Her autumn pools of eyes looked at Ye Li full of apology. Ye Li smiled graciously and said to Ye Ying, “It’s fine, I suppose Prince Li and I weren’t fated. We can’t let a man ruin our sisterly relationship, can we?”

Ye Ying started, not getting the reaction she expected. She had thought that upon receiving news of the broken engagement three days ago, her sister would be devastated. But to Ye Ying’s great disappointment, her Third Sister had merely fallen silent for a moment, said she understood and retired to her room to rest. Even now, she showed no signs of being haggard. Prince Li was the dream husband of every noble young lady in the capital – she couldn’t believe her sister truly didn’t care! After a moment, she smiled shyly and said, “I know Third Sister cares for me most. If Third Sister ever needs anything in the future, you can come find Ying’er at Prince Li’s residence.”

Ye Li acknowledged this tepidly, not bothering to look at the poorly concealed triumph on her face. Bidding farewell to the crowd of sisters eager to pour salt in her wounds, Ye Li walked with Qingshuang back to her small courtyard. Along the way, Qingshuang continued muttering indignantly, “What did Fourth Young Miss mean by that? She stole Prince Li, yet she acts all concerned – it’s disgusting!”

Ye Li turned around and looked at her with amusement, “Enough, be careful someone doesn’t hear you and make your skin smart. I don’t care whether I marry Prince Li or Prince Ding.”

“How can you not care?!” Qingshuang glared at her. “Prince Li is the capital’s renowned young gentleman, the Emperor’s brother! Everyone knows Prince Ding is crippled, disfigured, chronically ill… um…” Remembering that Prince Ding was about to become her mistress’s husband, Qingshuang struggled to swallow the word “waste.”

“So what?” Ye Li raised an eyebrow, looking at Qingshuang with amusement. “Don’t tell me you think Prince Li is handsome and want to marry him yourself to become a concubine?” Whether he was handsome or not, Ye Li had no interest in knowing, though her former fiancé was reportedly one of the capital’s four great beauties. But Mo Junli’s character definitely wouldn’t be better than Prince Ding’s. She had heard rumors before about Mo Junli and Ye Ying’s affair, but Mo Junli’s motivation and mindset in waiting until just before the wedding to break off the engagement were worth pondering. Speaking of which… the Emperor’s timing in arranging her marriage to Prince Ding right after her broken engagement also required careful consideration. Wise and virtuous, possessed of both talent and moral excellence worthy to be a fine match… who in the capital didn’t know that the Ye family’s Third Miss was notorious for being ugly, talentless, and clumsy at feminine arts? Were they saying that she, the “Three Nothings” young miss, was well-matched with the “waste” Prince Ding?

“Young Miss!” Qingshuang’s face reddened as she stamped her foot. “I would never! I’d rather marry a servant than become a concubine.” Most importantly, she would never become her mistress’s husband’s concubine. Qingshuang’s mother had been a concubine in a wealthy household, and after her father’s early death, she and her mother were driven out by the primary wife and left homeless. After her mother died of illness, Qingshuang had nearly been sold to a brothel, fortunately bought by Young Miss who gave her the name Qingshuang and taught her to read and write. Qingshuang was not ungrateful – she would never forget this kindness.

Seeing the little maid so anxious, Ye Li couldn’t help but laugh. “Alright, can’t I even joke with you?”

“Young Miss…”

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