Chapter 1

Chapter 1

June was exceptionally hot this year.

Xie Run came back empty-handed from the flower nursery with her maids, and after just a few steps, her back was already soaking wet.

When she got to Linxuan Pavilion, she saw all the maids in the courtyard kneeling in greeting, barely hiding their excitement.

Yuli said with a big smile: "Congratulations, mistress! Good news! Eunuch Shi'an from the prince just came by, saying that His Highness will visit Linxuan Pavilion tonight. He said you should get ready."

Xie Run froze for a moment, then she remembered she was a concubine of Prince Jing, and she had to wait on him at night.

She raised her hand slightly and said, "I see. Alright, help me get dressed then."

The maids' smiles grew even wider, making Linxuan Pavilion feel all festive: "Yes, mistress!"

The maids helped Xie Run back to her room.

Linxuan Pavilion had four maids: Dan Tao and Yuli were Xie Run's dowry maids, while Xiaoshu and Xiao Ci were from the prince's estate.

One fanned Xie Run, another brought cold water, wrung out a cloth, and gently wiped her sweat.

Another brought tea for her to rinse with, and the rest helped her change shoes, clothes, and do her hair.

Throughout the whole process, the most work Xie Run had to do was walk a few steps.

Cool air came from the ice chest nearby, chasing away the June heat.

As the maids fussed over her, Xie Run silently called herself spoiled, but she couldn't help sinking into this lifestyle.

Even though Yuli smoothly called her "mistress," Xie Run was just a lowly concubine in Prince Jing's mansion in the Great Yu Dynasty.

Status-wise, she was only a step above the maids and servants.

Above her were the secondary consorts, side consorts, the princess consort, and Prince Jing—any of them could decide her fate.

Xie Run could only console herself: Since I'm here, I might as well take it as it comes.

At least this time she had a healthy body, free from pain and the agony of barely surviving.

In her modern life, Xie Run's life had been dark and hopeless.

When she was nine, she was suddenly diagnosed with cancer, and after that, she never had a normal life.

Needles, pills, chemo—each time the side effects got worse, making her weaker and weaker.

As she saw more and more tubes and machines attached to her, Xie Run's will to live slowly faded.

She tried to kill herself, but when she saw her parents cry and beg her to stay, she just had to keep suffering.

She lived like that until she was twenty, when she reached the terminal stage, worn out, wishing every day for death to come.

But when she closed her eyes, and opened them again, she was Xie Run, the youngest daughter of the Xie scholar from Chen Commandery.

When she realized she had a healthy body, Xie Run cried tears of joy.

She silently made a vow.

No matter how hard this life got, she would stay healthy!

Just as her parents from her past life had hoped, she would live a long, worry-free life without illness.

Xie Run came from the Xie clan of Chen Commandery.

The Chen Commandery Xie clan was a renowned great family, but Xie Run's father's branch had been separated from the main family for five generations. Besides having the same last name, they had no real connection—they'd long fallen from grace.

To be honest, it was merely a scholar family that had once been rich.

Xie Run's older brother, Xie Jing, passed the county exam young and was expected to pass the provincial exam this year. He had a bright future, until the local magistrate took a liking to him and tried to force him into being an adopted son-in-law.

The magistrate tormented the Xie family until they were nearly destroyed. Just then, the steward of Prince Jing's residence came to select concubines for the prince.

The Xie family came up with a plan: offer their youngest daughter, Xie Run, as a concubine to the prince's mansion, hoping to use Prince Jing's power to save Xie Jing's future and the family's lives.

The original Xie Run was an innocent, headstrong young girl who had already secretly promised herself to the boy next door.

When she suddenly learned she was to be sent to Prince Jing's residence as a concubine, she'd rather die than go along with it.

Overwhelmed with grief, she arranged to elope with him.

But on the day of the elopement, the boy failed to show up, and in anger, she threw herself into a lake.

When Xie Run's father fished her out of the lake, the shell inside had already been replaced by Xie Run from the modern world.

After learning what happened, Xie Run could only sigh before being hastily sent to Prince Jing's residence, becoming one of its concubines.

Entering the residence at the same time as Xie Run was another concubine, a Ms. Fang, said to be the daughter of a wealthy merchant from Jiangnan. She was exceptionally beautiful and well-off.

Ms. Fang had been favored by Prince Jing as soon as she entered the residence, serving him for five consecutive nights.

Later, Prince Jing never thought to visit Xie Run. Day by day, Xie Run gradually became invisible.

No one paid attention to her, and Xie Run was quite happy about that. She closed her courtyard gate and lived her own quiet life.

In this era, floods and droughts often caused deaths, and famines and plagues erupted from time to time, killing countless people each day.

Though Xie Run could only stay in this small, square courtyard, she was spared from natural disasters, had enough food and drink, and wouldn't die from untreated illnesses.

That was already very good.

Having been ill for over a decade in her previous life, Xie Run didn't dare to hope for anything more.

As Xie Run finished changing her clothes, she heard Yuli say softly, "Mistress, someone from the flower nursery has arrived."

Xie Run was puzzled. "What for?"

Yuli snorted lightly. "What else could the flower nursery want? They've come to deliver flowers. They must have heard that His Highness is visiting tonight and are trying to make amends."

Earlier, Xie Run had gone to the flower nursery with two maids, hoping to get some inexpensive honeysuckle and jasmine to plant in the courtyard.

But the flower nursery steward didn't take Xie Run seriously. He took her silver but refused to do the job, making endless excuses and taunting her.

Dan Tao was steady and asked softly, "Mistress, should you go see them? After all, you've just entered the residence, and it's not good to offend anyone."

Yuli pouted. "But if you see him right away, it'll make you look too easygoing. No one will respect you in the future."

"You both have a point." Xie Run recalled the scene and smiled faintly. "Then let him leave the flowers and go. No need to see him."

Dan Tao smiled and said, "As expected, the mistress's method is the right one."

Leaving the flowers behind meant Xie Run would not pursue the matter further.

Refusing to see him signaled that Xie Run was indeed displeased with the flower nursery steward and still upset.

After Dan Tao dismissed the steward, Xie Run followed Yuli to the main hall to look at the flowers. There, lined up along the corridor, were rows of tender, fresh blossoms.

Peonies, roses, orchids, lilacs, honeysuckle, and jasmine—two pots of each.

Xie Run remarked, "This flower nursery steward certainly knows how to handle people."

The quantity was too generous; Xie Run felt hesitant to accept it.

Neither too much nor too little, it wouldn't affect the supply for others in the prince's mansion, yet it could still win Xie Run's favor.

It had to be said that anyone who could become a steward in this mansion was a shrewd and seasoned operator.

Xie Run ordered the flowers moved to the right corridor, planning to find time to clear a flower bed and plant them.

After fussing for a while, she looked up and saw that it had grown dark.

Dan Tao said, "Mistress, it looks like rain."

Xie Run replied, "As the old saying goes, 'June's weather is a child's face—it changes in an instant.'"

A worried look crossed Yuli's eyes. "I wonder how long this rain will last. Will it affect the prince's visit to see you, mistress?"

Xie Run was taken aback; she really hadn't thought that far ahead.

But Yuli's concerns weren't unfounded—after all, Prince Jing was high and mighty; he wouldn't brave the rain just to sleep with a concubine.

Still, Xie Run wasn't particularly looking forward to attending to him either.

"With such heavy rain, I actually hope the prince doesn't come." Xie Run feigned a considerate expression. "For one thing, the roads would be muddy and slippery, making it easy to slip and fall; for another, it's easy to catch a chill after the rain. A cold is truly miserable."

In these times, there was no effective medicine for a cold. Even a mild one required a period of recovery and was a real ordeal.

"Prince..."

Hearing Yuli bring up the prince again, Xie Run smiled gently. "Don't worry. It's fine if the prince doesn't come..."

Just as Xie Run was about to comfort Yuli and Dan Tao, she looked up and met a pair of eyes as cold and deep as an icy pool.