Yining met an untimely death.
In the radiant spring of March, her elder sister-in-law invited her to a temple to burn incense and enjoy nature. While admiring azaleas halfway up the mountain, someone pushed her off. Before Luo Yining could identify her assailant, her soul had already departed.
As an ordinary legitimate daughter with a deceased mother and numerous sisters, both legitimate and born of concubines, Yining’s marriage to Lu Jiaxue, the son of a concubine of the Marquis of Ningyuan, was no small feat. Though born to a concubine and rather weak-willed, he came from a prestigious family. While not as impressive as her second sister’s marriage, it was still a respectable match. Unexpectedly, Yining’s life ended so abruptly.
After death, Yining’s soul lingered, attaching itself to her sister-in-law’s jade hairpin.
For decades, she witnessed astonishing events unfold. Her supposedly weak husband, Lu Jiaxue, turned out to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Five years later, he orchestrated his elder brother’s death, eliminated threats, and inherited the title of Marquis of Yongning. Within two years, he became the Commander of the Left Guard, wielding immense power and inspiring fear in all.
Attached to her sister-in-law’s hairpin, Yining often heard people lament before her memorial tablet: “Poor thing. If she hadn’t died so young, she’d be a marchioness and the Commander’s wife now, revered wherever she went.”
Whenever Yining heard this, she longed to leap up and jab them in the spine.
By now, she understood the cause of her death. She had stood in Lu Jiaxue’s way, so he eliminated her ruthlessly, framing her sister-in-law and burdening her with lifelong guilt.
It was a case of the strong overpowering the weak, with one wave crushing the one before it.
Even when people spoke of how he never remarried out of respect for his late wife, Yining scoffed inwardly, disbelieving.
Fifteen years passed, and Lu Jiaxue maintained his power. Only Luo Shen Yuan, the Chief Grand Secretary, could rival him. These two influential ministers controlled the court, locked in a stalemate that shook the political landscape. However, Yining’s sister-in-law was nearing her end. Having accompanied her for a lifetime, confined to the inner quarters, Yining hadn’t seen Lu Jiaxue in years.
As her sister-in-law lay dying, Lu Jiaxue came to see her one last time.
The Grand Commander cut an impressive figure in his silver fox fur robe and dark straight-collared gown, with a black jade ornament at his waist. The years had only enhanced his handsome features. He spoke softly, “Sister-in-law, rest easy. Elder brother awaits you below…”
Her sister-in-law’s eyes widened, then slowly closed as she departed this world. Her hand fell, and the jade hairpin she clutched shattered into pieces.
The vengeful spirit that had inhabited the hairpin for over two decades finally dissipated along with the broken jade.
In late April, as spring waned and temperatures fluctuated, the Luo family in Baoding was in a frenzy.
The legitimate seventh young miss of the Luo family had fallen gravely ill with typhoid fever, even losing consciousness at one point.
The entire household was distraught. The seventy-year-old Madam Luo sat by her bedside, dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief. Her sisters gathered around, watching anxiously as expensive medicines were brought in continuously, sparing no expense to save the young miss.
Madam Luo, seeing her plump-cheeked granddaughter so thin, felt her heart ache: “If my Meimei doesn’t recover, you might as well let me go too. She’s my only precious granddaughter; nothing can happen to her!”
The other granddaughters’ expressions stiffened slightly. From the beginning, the old madam had favored the seventh young miss, treating her as the only granddaughter worthy of her affection while disregarding the others.
Though they harbored such thoughts, they still stepped forward to console her.
“Grandmother, please take care of yourself.”
“At your age, you shouldn’t exhaust yourself so.”
Madam Luo wiped her tears and asked coldly, “Is that wretched boy kneeling in the ancestral hall?”
The nursemaid nodded, “Yes, the tutor is watching him. He’s kneeling and admitting his mistakes.”
Madam Luo’s expression hardened further. She took the nursemaid’s arm and said, “Come with me to see him.” The nursemaid complied, supporting the old lady as they left. At the door, she turned back to survey the room, packed with people—hardly a place for a patient to recover. She sent the young misses away and instructed the servants attending to the seventh young miss: “Take good care of the seventh young miss.”
Luo Yining, just regaining consciousness, heard these words. But her mind was still foggy, and she soon fell unconscious again.
Another day passed, during which she had moments of clarity. The maids occasionally cried by her side. Luo Yining’s mind now contained the memories of a young girl. They were fragmented and incomplete, mostly centered around various foods like stewed squab, sugar-glazed pears, and braised lion’s head meatballs. The child was hungry, having not eaten for two days.
She realized she had been reborn seven years after her death when Lu Jiaxue had already become the Commander of the Left Guard. This child was the seventh young miss of the Luo family in Baoding fifteen years ago, sharing her name, Luo Yining, with the nickname Meimei. She too had lost her mother early.
Now seven years old, she had nearly died from a cold after falling into the water. Her status was prestigious—her father was a fourth-rank official, her eldest sister Luo Yihui had married into a marquis’s family, and she was doted on by her grandmother. This pampering allowed her to have whatever she wanted and bully whoever she pleased, causing much trouble and incurring jealousy. If not for her young age, which could excuse her behavior as childish mischief, she would have been seen as utterly arrogant and domineering.
The incident of falling into the water occurred because she had threatened her third brother, Luo Shen Yuan, to take her out to play. Her disobedience led to the accident, from which Luo Shen Yuan had rescued her. Upon returning home, she fell gravely ill.
When Madam Luo heard the news, she flew into a rage and ordered Luo Shen Yuan to kneel in the ancestral hall for half a month as punishment.
Luo Yining was shocked by this revelation.
How could she not be? This little girl was Luo Shen Yuan’s sister.
Fifteen years later, Luo Shen Yuan would become the renowned Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Cabinet, Minister of Personnel, and Chief Grand Secretary—the only person capable of rivaling Lu Jiaxue.
Indeed, this young girl’s status was significant, but unfortunately, she had died young.
Luo Yining remembered that this future Chief Grand Secretary was born to a concubine and had endured many hardships in his youth, rising to prominence only due to his extraordinary talents. He was known for his cold and gloomy disposition, not unlike Lu Jiaxue.
From the child’s memories, she was legitimate while Luo Shen Yuan was born to a concubine. He was typically silent, and Yining looked down on this brother, often setting traps for him behind his back. Their relationship was quite poor, and even the nursemaids didn’t take Luo Shen Yuan seriously.
Luo Yining shuddered internally, marveling at the Luo family’s audacity to torment the future Chief Grand Secretary.
She wondered if it was too late to make amends… After all, he would become the Chief Grand Secretary in fifteen years.
Lost in these thoughts, Luo Yining grew tired. In her weakened state, she gradually drifted off to sleep.
Half a day later, Yining stirred awake, hearing voices nearby.
Several young maids with their hair newly put up wept joyfully at her bedside. Had she not awakened, they would have been sold to matchmakers as child brides. Their excitement was understandable.
Luo Yining looked at these young maids in confusion. She tried to speak but her throat was swollen and painful. Unable to form words, she could only watch as the maids clutched her hands, asking, “What does the young miss wish to say? We’re all here.”
She wanted water. Couldn’t someone be perceptive enough to realize?
The latticed door opened, and another maid entered. Her attire—a blue-green jacket, white embroidered skirt, silver lilac earrings, and a fine jade bracelet—marked her as a senior maid.
Delighted to see Luo Yining awake, she quickly brought water to her. She then scolded the younger maids, “The young miss is awake, and you don’t even think to bring water? How careless!”
The young maids promptly knelt to apologize.
Luo Yining’s thirst was finally quenched. Never had water tasted so sweet, though her throat still troubled her. She glanced at the senior maid, noting her oval face, delicate arched eyebrows, and lotus-like complexion. This maid was strikingly beautiful.
Her name was Xuezhi, a maid left to Luo Yining by her eldest sister, Luo Yihui, who had married.
Xuezhi adjusted the pillows behind Luo Yining and said, “I’ll inform the old madam that you’re awake. Please rest well.” She then turned to the younger maids with a cold expression, “Now’s your chance to redeem yourselves. Attend to the young miss diligently. Any negligence, and you’ll be sold to some backwater village where you’ll never taste good food again. Understood?”
Her stern gaze swept over them, and the young maids lowered their heads, trembling as they acknowledged her words.