“Third Miss has come back!”
“Hey, did you hear? Third Miss is back!”
“Let’s go to the front to greet her!”
“I’ve just embroidered a new pattern. Third Miss gave me some advice on it last month. I want to show her.”

…

Chatter and laughter filled the hallway as the maids and servants bustled out. This was the ancestral residence of the Gu family in Wuxi. After resigning from his government post, Gu Zhenguan had settled here long-term. Though they also had a residence in the capital, it hadn’t been occupied for a while. The family had thought that after going to Tongcheng in Anhui a few days ago, it would be some time before Gu Zhenguan returned. However, a message had arrived the previous day, and today, here they were.

The Gu household had twenty or so maids and servants, and most of them had rushed out to see what was happening. The back courtyard, by contrast, was now unusually still.

In the east wing, within the main room, three maids could hear the commotion outside, but they didn’t dare to act out of line. They stood attentively beside the chaise longue.

Seated on the chaise was a woman with a pale face, her delicate brows furrowed as if in worry. Her clear, solemn eyes shone like autumn waters, enhancing her small, palm-sized face. Though her features were rather delicate and pretty, she wore only plain white undergarments. Her personal maid Qingxi held a bowl of medicine in one hand and a small spoon in the other, cautiously feeding the medicine to Gu Yaofang.

Two years earlier, a mad Taoist priest had come to the Gu family mansion, spitting on the large doors and behaving wildly. He was caught by the gatekeepers, but he had proclaimed a dire omen for the family. When pressed further, it turned out he specifically mentioned the eldest daughter of the family, Gu Yaofang. Coincidentally, since the Kangxi Emperor’s southern tour, Gu Yaofang had fallen ill.

Doctors had come and gone, all baffled by her condition. Her pulse showed nothing unusual, yet she wasn’t getting better. It was a strange illness that no one could treat, and despite bringing in every renowned physician from Wuxi, no one could discern the cause of her affliction.

Faced with a disease that couldn’t be cured, Gu Yaofang had told her father Gu Zhenguan, “It’s fate.”

By chance, that Taoist priest had prescribed an unusual remedy: ground pearl mixed with glutinous rice, boiled into porridge with snow water collected in the depths of winter. She was to drink a small bowl of this porridge each morning. In addition, she was to take daily doses of an herbal concoction made from a mix of rare and peculiar ingredients. After two years of this regime, if she could pass the age of twenty, she would be safe thereafter.

At first, nobody believed the priest’s ramblings, dismissing them as the ravings of a madman. But when he pointed toward Gu Yaofang’s room and prophesied that she would soon cough up blood, people were stunned. Sure enough, she did.

From that moment on, no one doubted the Taoist priest.

At that time, the Gu family’s financial situation was still relatively comfortable, and they could afford such extravagant treatments.

Thus, Gu Yaofang’s illness proceeded, slowly and steadily treated over the course of two years. During these two years, she passed the time writing poetry, painting, and doing needlework with the maids. Her days were peaceful. A month ago, she had miraculously recovered, just as the priest had predicted. Everyone in the household praised the Taoist as a divine figure.

However, only a few days after Gu Zhenguan sent a letter from Tongcheng, the illness returned, striking Gu Yaofang down once more.

This development had terrified the maids who served her. Fearing for their mistress, they attended to her every need with heightened anxiety. They watched as their young mistress remained heavy-hearted, and all their attempts at comforting her had been in vain.

Today, as the lively sounds from outside filled the air, Gu Yaofang lifted her eyes to the view through the window. How beautiful the spring scenery was.

Pushing aside the medicine bowl, she said, “My father and younger sister… they returned together, didn’t they?”

That younger sister—their arrival had drawn the attention of the entire household.

Ha.

The whispers about Third Miss not being a proper young lady weren’t simply about her lack of talent. After all, society teaches that ‘a woman’s virtue is in her lack of talent.’ Gu Huaixiu’s reputation had been ruined not only by how frequently she ventured out but also because of her association with unsuitable men.

If it was indeed Gu Huaixiu who had been caught in that scandalous situation, then she deserved to be discredited.

Suppressing her thoughts, Gu Yaofang gazed coldly at the four maids in her room. “Do you all wish to go, too?”

In the entire mansion, only Gu Yaofang had four personal maids. Because of her chronic illness, her father, Gu Zhenguan, doted on her and ensured she was treated differently from the others.

By comparison, Gu Huaixiu had only one maid, Qingdai, who attended to her directly. The other, Xiang’er, was merely responsible for cleaning her quarters. Gu Huaixiu had always disliked the mess of having too many people around her—and all the inevitable scheming and calculations that came with it—so she had chosen to do away with so many servants. As a result, her quarters seemed rather frugal compared to Gu Yaofang’s crowded room.

Yet Gu Huaixiu was easygoing by nature. With no disasters or illnesses to speak of, she had more interactions with everyone in the household. Thus, everyone in the household recognized her and cheerfully greeted her as “Third Miss.” Gu Huaixiu herself could easily call out people’s names when they greeted her, leading to her being a favorite among the maids, despite her bad reputation.

However, Gu Yaofang’s room was of a different kind entirely.

The two sisters didn’t interact much, one being constantly ill and bedridden while the other was full of life; one with an impeccable reputation, the other infamous. No one would believe there was no tension between them.

The four maids, led by Qingxi, trembled with fear, lowering their heads and speaking in hushed voices, “We wouldn’t dare.”

“Wouldn’t dare? Does that mean I’m in your way, blocking your chance to go? I know you all think my third sister is unreliable, but she sure is popular. Go on, then,” Gu Yaofang spoke in a soft, delicate voice, her pale fingers gently clasped together. “Go.”

Although her tone was gentle, the maids quivered as if they were standing on thin ice.

Tearfully, Qingxi pleaded, “Miss, you mustn’t say that. We truly care for you. Everyone in this household loves and respects you. Once you recover your health, how could Third Miss possibly overshadow you? Please, drink your medicine…”

Gu Yaofang smiled, but an ironic gleam flickered in her bright eyes. Taking the bowl from Qingxi’s trembling hands, she stared at the light brown liquid, her heart filled with bitterness.

“Overshadow me… You mean to say I, Gu Yaofang, am being overshadowed by Gu Huaixiu?”

Her voice stretched out the words with a hint of laughter.

Qingxi’s face went pale as she realized she had misspoken. “I’m a fool, Miss! I’ve said something terribly wrong—ah!”

She cried out as she felt the hot contents of the medicine bowl splash over her head.

Gu Yaofang had poured the still-warm medicine directly onto Qingxi’s head, her grip on the bowl slackening immediately after. The bowl rolled off the chaise and hit the floor with a soft clunk. Coldly, Gu Yaofang said, “Leave me. You’re all starting to irritate me.”

Though Qingxi’s hair was soaked, and the scalding liquid had trickled into her collar, burning her skin, she dared not show her pain before her mistress.

Biting down on her suffering, Qingxi knocked her head on a nearby wooden stool in apology before withdrawing with the others in tow.

Left alone in the now silent room, Gu Yaofang leaned back on the chaise. She reached under her pillow and pulled out a small embroidered pouch, untying it to reveal a jade-green jade thumb ring. It was of the highest quality, with characters faintly engraved on the inside.

Clutching the jade ring to her chest, she suddenly began to cry.

She was over twenty now, yet the man who had promised her still hadn’t come.

And now, Gu Zhenguan wanted her to marry into a family as unremarkable as the Zhangs. How could she possibly agree to that?

Clenching her teeth, a flicker of ruthlessness broke through her otherwise demure and sickly façade. But as quickly as it appeared, it faded. Closing her eyes, she listened attentively to the sounds from outside.

It was approaching noon, and though the sun wasn’t very bright, three carriages had come to a stop at the entrance of the Gu residence. In the first carriage was Gu Zhenguan, in the second was Gu Huaixiu, and the last one carried some simple gifts, along with their returning servants.

As Gu Huaixiu got out of her carriage and entered the mansion, she immediately heard voices welcoming her.

“Greetings, Third Miss!”
“Oh, thank heavens Third Miss is back!”
“We humbly greet Third Miss!”

All of them were young maidservants, and looking around, she saw there were about seven or eight of them gathered around. Smiling, she said, “All of you are gathered around me hoping I brought you something fun, aren’t you? But I’m rather tired right now.”

“I’ll fetch you some tea, Miss.”
“I can massage your legs for you.”
“I’ll massage your back.”
“Me too… and I’m good at it…”

Qingdai, Gu Huaixiu’s maid, interrupted them, shooing them away. “Pah! This is my mistress. If anyone’s going to serve her, it’s me! What are you all crowding around for? Go back to your own mistresses and stop being so bothersome!”

Her possessive demeanor earned her a chorus of jeers and laughter from the maids, who playfully argued with her.

Watching the merry scene, Gu Huaixiu playfully tapped her neck with her fan.

The trip back from Tongcheng had been tiring—traveling by boat and carriage took its toll. Even the grandeur of the Zhang family couldn’t compare with the comfort of home. Gu Huaixiu found her own house much more agreeable.

On the journey, there had been some troubles. They had heard rumors of bandits in Anhui, so they delayed by a day, waiting for the officials to quell the unrest. But, as it turned out, the unrest had not been caused by bandits at all—instead, it was a breach in the river dikes due to the spring floodwaters. Many laborers and prisoners working on the dike had drowned, and there had been uprisings among the survivors demanding justice.

Gu Zhenguan had been deeply worried throughout the trip and had gone straight to his study after arriving home.

As for Gu Huaixiu, she gently fanned herself, her movements more a means of gathering her thoughts than cooling herself down.

While her maidservants played around, Gu Huaixiu headed towards the east wing, where she saw the lone figure of a girl wearing a green dress, surrounded by three other maids in discussion. At a glance, Gu Huaixiu recognized the disheveled maid–wasn’t this Qingxi, her eldest sister’s favorite? Known for how capable she was, Qingxi handled both internal and external matters with precision and care. Qingdai often half-complained, half-admired her in conversation.

Yet today…

Gu Huaixiu let out a soft cough. “Is Eldest Miss still in her room?”

The four maids immediately stood aside. Qingxi, being the leader of the east wing, stepped forward and bowed. “Yes, Third Miss. Eldest Miss is in her room. Shall I announce your visit?”

Gu Huaixiu nodded, folding her fan and straightening her somewhat loose attire as she followed Qingxi into the room.

Qingxi bowed low before the chaise, “Eldest Miss, Third Miss has come to see you.”

Gu Yaofang still looked the part of the sickly patient, her frail appearance as fragile as water itself. She smiled weakly, her tone bitter. “So, you’ve come home, huh, Third Sister? The house has been quite lively since your return. I never thought you’d come to see me. I thought you’d avoid me like the plague, but I guess I was wrong.”

Whenever she was around her eldest sister, Gu Huaixiu always felt uncomfortable. She didn’t move any closer but seated herself on an embroidered stool that a maid placed nearby. Sitting about three feet away from her sister, she laid her closed fan across her knees, flashing a faint smile. “What are you saying, Eldest Sister? Haven’t the maids been spreading tales that I bring bad fortune to you and that my presence interferes with your recovery? How could I dare to come and visit you with all that gossip swirling about? Now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, let’s not dwell on it anymore.”

Qingxi discreetly signaled to another maid to fetch her a change of clothes, lest the eldest Miss reprimand her later.

The two sisters, however, continued to stare at one another, ignoring Qingxi altogether.

After some time, Gu Yaofang curved her lips into a bitter smile. “As if I’m someone blessed. When have I ever had a day free of worries?”

Taking advantage of the change of topic, Gu Huaixiu remembered her father’s instructions. Seizing the moment, she decided to cut to the chase, “How can Eldest Sister say that? Perhaps your fortune wasn’t good in the past, but aren’t things starting to turn around now? Your luck is thickening again.”

Seeing her sister’s confused expression, Gu Huaixiu smiled coolly, her tone remaining kind as she explained, “On this trip to Tongcheng, Father arranged a good marriage for you.”

The moment these words left her mouth, Gu Yaofang’s expression drastically changed.