Chapter 22 Dowry: “In your past life, I saw you once after you died.”

Chapter 22: Betrothal Gifts: "In your past life after you passed away, I visited you once."

The Yu residence was bustling with activity for several days straight, with a steady stream of guests coming and going, and the Xu mother and son visiting frequently.

Xie Tanwei didn't make his presence known at the Yu estate. For one, he was there just to keep his wife company; for another, with the Xu mother and son calling so often, as a chief examiner, he couldn't privately meet with a scholar before an official introduction, to avoid getting criticized.

Master Yu was so swamped with work that he had no time to entertain him. Xie Tanwei felt like a ghost, invisible and watching, quietly observing the Yu household's bustle—just passing through.

He'd heard talk of the marriage between the Yu and Xu families: the Yus were planning to marry off their fourth daughter, Kuju, to the new top scholar, Xu Junzheng. All these visits were probably setting things up for the wedding.

A wedding is a happy thing, plain and simple.

Xie Tanwei didn't hold a grudge over being ignored. He just stayed in Xian Qiu's courtyard day after day, practicing calligraphy and handling state affairs, rarely venturing out. Now and then, he sensed the tension beneath the surface of the Yu estate's calm exterior.

But one thing bugged him: he hadn't seen Tian Qin.

At family banquets, they ate at the same table. From a distance, he glimpsed her smiling like a blooming flower as she poured wine and chatted with Yu Yuan, flitting about like a butterfly, her laughter like silver bells and her skirt swirling. She never even glanced at him or said a word, as if completely cut off from his world.

It seemed she didn't even know him.

Kuju, on the other hand, kept coming up to him, refilling his wine and making conversation, the nasty scar on her face still hard to miss.

After the banquet, stepping on the scattered tree shadows under the moonlight, Xie Tanwei asked offhandedly, "The marriage between the Yu and Xu families is drawing near, isn't it? The estate has been so lively these days."

Xian Qiu's gaze froze. After a pause, she said vaguely, "We're thinking about a marriage alliance, but it hasn't been decided which sister yet."

Xie Tanwei lowered his long lashes. "Could it be anyone else? With your four daughters, Kuju is the only choice."

The message was obvious: Tian Qin was to enter the Xie household as a concubine.

Xian Qiu pressed her lips together, not saying yes or no. In truth, she hadn't yet told Xie Tanwei about the swap of concubines.

She had intended to, but she felt a nagging unease. The words lingered on her lips, yet she couldn't find a way to bring them up.

Luckily, Xie Tanwei didn't push it.

A gut feeling already told him something was off, and given Xie Tanwei's sensitivity, it was hard for him not to guess.

Back in the late emperor's day, the Xie family was at its peak, with five marquises enfeoffed in a single day—a famous "Five Marquises" family, known everywhere.

Xie Tanwei's dad died young, so he never got the title, and Xie Tanwei couldn't just goof off like other rich kids. As a young man, he kept his head down and studied, accumulating knowledge and ability.

Gradually, everyone at court and on the street saw him as a model of Confucian virtue—a man of exceptional talent and moral integrity. They held him up as a moral example, and his standing at court soared, making him the Grand Marshal running the show.

At the time, the Yu family was living abroad. To secure their return to the capital, they sucked up to him nonstop, marrying their eldest daughter, Yu Xianqiu, to him. They begged him to put in a good word for them and to support the son-in-law of their eldest daughter, Suanzhi—the Prince of Huainan—as the crown prince.

Later, when the late emperor died, Xie Tanwei kept his word and made the Prince of Huainan emperor. Amid the solemn proclamation of the imperial edict, the prince knelt in front of the late emperor's coffin to receive the seal, ascending as sovereign, and Yu Suanzhi, the Yu family's eldest daughter, became the empress.

That was all in the past, better left alone.

But the Yu family's betrayal was cold. Having climbed other high branches, they now treated his past favors like trash.

…

Yu Ye flunked the imperial exams. The Yu family should have been dejected, but they got a new lease on life from this alliance with the newly minted top scholar, Xu.

Having a future big shot as their son-in-law brought glory to the Yu family, adding another pillar of support at court.

Yu Yuan kept bragging about his sharp eye and foresight, making up for the disappointment of Yu Ye's failure.

Compared to that, Xu Junzheng was a rising star in politics, while Xie Tanwei was a has-been relative of the imperial family fading into the background. Anyone with eyes could weigh the difference.

The court was about to get shaken up.

Tian Qin moved into the embroidery pavilion, focusing on her upcoming marriage. Each day, she was busy trying on wedding gowns and preparing betrothal documents, a million things to do.

Xu Junzheng, fresh off passing the exams, was busy paying respects to his teachers and networking with colleagues, his social calendar full.

The engaged couple could only sneak in time to see each other, never staying long. They swapped love tokens, talked about how much they missed each other, and whispered sweet nothings in honeyed tones.

Xie Tanwei and Tian Qin were separated by an invisible wall—unseen, untouchable, like a chasm. He became an outsider, as if she had never known him.

All those promises they'd made were like clouds in the sky, dreamlike and illusory, gone overnight.

Kuju visited him daily, attentive and obedient, while Xian Qiu actively facilitated introductions. The situation had completely reversed: Kuju would become the concubine, and Tian Qin would marry into the Xu family.

He had guessed as much.

Xie Tanwei didn't confront Xian Qiu or Yu Yuan. Instead, he sought out Tian Qin directly. Whatever the truth, he wanted to hear it from her own lips.

Tian Qin was clever enough. When she decided on something, she saw it through, no matter the external pressure. If the swap had occurred, she must have subtly pushed it along.

Had she replaced him during his absence?

To marry that scholar from a humble background?

The irony was that he had just covered up Xu Junzheng's plagiarism and fraud, giving the man a favorable ranking.

Xie Tanwei, under the guise of a brother-in-law, humbly requested to see Tian Qin—nothing more than a meeting, a walk together.

But he was refused. The maids Zhaolu and Wan Cui brushed him off, saying Tian Qin was too busy to meet with an "outside man." How had he, the "brother-in-law," become an outsider? He who had been closest to her, saved her life, and helped her beloved reach the top?

Two days later, he deliberately brought up Xu Junzheng's exam paper, and only then did Tian Qin reluctantly agree to meet.

When they met again, their relationship had subtly shifted. A thick wall of distance stood between them, hard to breach.

Tian Qin walked side by side with Xie Tanwei to the lake pavilion. A gentle breeze swept around them, waterbirds circled low, and the rustling pines created a serene atmosphere—the tacky Master Yu's proudest creation.

In early summer, spring garments felt warm against the skin. The sky was bright as a mirror, sunlight filtering through layers of fresh green leaves, casting a hazy, radiant glow over them both.

"Sister, you're quite the busy one now. It's no easy feat to see you," Xie Tanwei remarked softly.

"Caught up in mundane affairs," she replied, her words far fewer than before, her demeanor distant and devoid of her former ingratiating smile. "Brother-in-law is the truly busy one."

Xie Tanwei glanced at her sideways. Her eyes were fixed on a red-beaked bird catching prey over the water, utterly indifferent.

Once—at least at Fahui Temple—they had been the closest, leaning on each other. Now, they were strangers.

"A few days apart, and Third Sister seems changed."

Tian Qin lowered her chin. "Sister hasn't changed."

"Really?"

Xie Tanwei gazed at her—so close yet so far. His lips, sharp and defined, quietly drew near, his index finger gently tracing her earlobe, their shadows intertwining perfectly.

Tian Qin closed her eyes, accepting his rhythm. She knew she couldn't avoid it, and there was no need to. Even if she feigned distance on the surface, they both knew the truth in the dark.

Slowly, she opened her clear, penetrating eyes, resolute and lucid.

"My brother-in-law wanted to see me, and I failed to keep you company right away—my bad. There's been much to do lately, but once this busy spell passes, things will settle."

She lied without batting an eye.

Xie Tanwei didn't fully believe her, but he didn't call her out on the spot. The cold wind off the lake chilled him to the bone. She had no clue that during those days at the exam hall, he had been thinking of her constantly.

"Okay, I'll wait for you."

After a pause, he seemed to bring it up on purpose:

"In your past life, after you died, I went to see you once. Your face was pale and grim, and you could no longer smile."

"Later, I had you buried in a coffin in a scenic spot within the Xie family ancestral grounds, where I could see it from a distance. Every spring, your favorite peach blossoms would bloom there."

"Tell me, has your brother-in-law been good to you?"

Tian Qin felt like she'd been struck by lightning, all the color drained from her face. She stumbled back two steps, breathing hard like she was stuck in a nightmare.

She stared at him in disbelief, her eyes bloodshot, struggling to stay calm: "What are you talking about, brother-in-law? I'm leaving."

She hurried off like she was escaping a snake.

"On your deathbed, you wanted to see me one last time."

Xie Tanwei calmly watched her flustered retreat, his words fading into the wind over the lake, gone without a trace.

He let out a soft snort, remaining where he stood, alone, gazing at the clear scenery of the lake. Those feelings seemed to have vanished too.

He muttered to himself, "Now that we've met, you still run off."

...

With his skyrocketing success in the imperial exams, Xu Junzheng was in high demand—schmoozing with colleagues, paying respects to his examiners, and juggling a million things.

Xu's mother urged him to lock in the marriage first, one thing at a time. They'd been talking about the engagement for a while; otherwise, his daily visits to the Yu residence, always preoccupied with thoughts of the Third Young Lady, would never end.

Xu Junzheng naturally agreed. This exam success was mostly thanks to Tian Qin—she was both his beloved wife and his lucky charm. He brought this up with Yu Yuan, who was happy to go ahead with the wedding first.

The two families got busy preparing in earnest.

The Xu family showed up with the betrothal gifts, a sea of red covering the ground. What was once a poor family that couldn't afford a big dowry was now rolling in money.

Xu Junzheng, riding high on his success on a fine horse, offered an insanely lavish bride price to betroth the Yu family's fourth daughter, Yu Tianqin, as his principal wife.

Firecrackers exploded thunderously at the Yu residence, and the marriage contract was read aloud by the officiant, the words "betrothing Yu Tianqin" echoing through every corner of the Yu mansion. The host family responded with "accepted."

Tian Qin's face flushed peach-blossom pink as she bowed respectfully to Xu's mother, who beamed with joy, slipping a gold-inlaid jade bracelet onto Tian Qin's wrist. The hall erupted in laughter, brimming with joy.

Xu Junzheng and Tian Qin stood side by side, watching the elders draft the marriage contract, exchange the birth charts, sign and press their fingerprints, and swap the betrothal gifts.

A perfect match, a union made in heaven.

Yu Yuan, He Shi, Yu Ye, Kuju, Concubine Yao, Xu's mother, the Xu household servants, and Tian Qin's trusted aides—Zhaolu, Wan Cui, and Nanny Chen—were all present, the place packed to the brim.

Xu Junzheng whispered softly in her ear, "Tian Qin, my dear."

Tian Qin was radiant beyond compare: "Mr. Xu."

Boundless sweetness overflowed endlessly.

Only the bride's laughter is heard, not the old flame's tears.

Xian Qiu could no longer hide it from Xie Tanwei. She rushed over hastily, only to find him leaning behind a pillar, unmoving, watching the ceremony.

"Husband..." Xian Qiu tried to speak.

Xie Tanwei cast her a cold, indifferent glance, saying nothing.

In his eyes, a faint glint of snow shimmered.

Before long, Yu Yuan, He Shi, and the entire family saw the Xu mother and son out. Tian Qin, arm in arm with Xu Junzheng, happened to cross paths with Xie Tanwei, who stood there in his chilly, snow-white attire.

Seeing that the facade was about to shatter, Tian Qin had no way to retreat. She forced a brilliant, beautiful smile and, stepping forward with Xu Junzheng, faced Xie Tanwei directly, bravely introducing him:

"Brother-in-law, this is—"

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