Volume One, Chapter One: Rebirth, the Child Missing Without a Trace

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Xu Zhiyi slowly opened her eyes, greeted by the familiar sight of the sheer silk canopy and a pearwood dressing table by the window.

She frowned, her hand instinctively reaching toward her flat abdomen.

The burning pain from her final moments seemed to linger in her body, yet the child she once carried was nowhere to be found.

Suddenly sitting up, a splitting headache overwhelmed her, and she let out a muffled groan.

Barefoot, she wrapped herself in her robe and sat up on the bed.

The room was modest and simply furnished; an embroidered silk screen depicting plum blossoms divided the inner and outer quarters, while a crane-headed copper incense burner emitted curling wisps of fragrant smoke.

This was the boudoir where she had lived for fifteen years!

Hearing the movement, a round-faced maid pushed aside the beaded curtain and entered.

Seeing Xu Zhiyi standing barefoot, the maid pouted.

“Miss, why are you barefoot again? Though the weather is hot now, you must be careful. Your engagement day is just around the corner.”

Muttering as she spoke, she took an embroidered shoe and carefully helped Xu Zhiyi put it on.

“Xiao Yu’er! You must be Xiao Yu’er, right?”

The maid tilted her head in confusion.

“Miss, are you still foggy-headed? I am Xiao Yu’er!”

Xu Zhiyi’s pale fingers gently brushed Xiao Yu’er’s cheek, and a thin veil of mist rapidly filled her eyes.

She remembered—in her previous life, Xiao Yu’er had died protecting her, pierced through the chest by the sword of the Marquis of Ding’an. Even in death, Xiao Yu’er’s hands clutched the blade tightly.

Lowering her gaze, Xu Zhiyi concealed the storm raging in her heart and asked casually, as if by chance, “Xiao Yu’er, who did you say I am betrothed to?”

“To the Marquis of Ding’an, naturally! In three days, both families will set the wedding date. Are you feeling unwell, miss? How could you forget such a thing?”

Xu Zhiyi clutched her chest, her face pale as all the light in her eyes swiftly dimmed.

She had been reborn three days before her engagement to Qin Huisheng!

In her previous life, she was the unloved legitimate daughter of the Xu family.

Her mother had come from a merchant family, and her dowry had been so lavish it caused a sensation in the capital.

Everyone in the Xu household took her mother’s wealth for granted but looked down on her origins.

When Xu Zhiyi was born, she too was unloved.

The concubines’ influence grew as more were brought into the household; her mother wept day and night and eventually fell ill from sorrow, passing away.

Without her mother, Xu Zhiyi, though bearing the title of legitimate daughter, was treated little better than a servant.

Later, the Marquis of Ding’an’s household sent word for marriage. Her father, overjoyed, agreed without hesitation.

An arrangement made by parents, a match brokered by others!

No one asked Xu Zhiyi if she consented.

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Her father, Xu Huaian, was eager to climb the social ladder; with the Marquis of Ding’an’s backing, he had no time to care about his daughter’s fate.

Qin Huisheng was handsome, refined, and gentle-mannered.

Xu Zhiyi had seen him from afar once and thought marrying such a man might not be so bad, and it would be her escape from the suffocating Xu household.

At first, Qin Huisheng treated her very well, attentive to every detail.

Xu Zhiyi was content, devotedly managing the household affairs.

When her mother-in-law fell ill, she stayed by her bedside through the night, tending to her without rest.

A year passed, yet she had still not conceived. By his mother’s command, Qin Huisheng took a concubine.

At first, Xu Zhiyi argued with him, but as second and third concubines entered the household, her heart grew cold.

Since ancient times, having multiple wives and concubines was normal, especially in noble families like the Marquis’s!

Even if not Qin Huisheng, it would have been someone else.

Her mother-in-law began to make life difficult, subtly insulting her at morning and evening greetings, never showing a kind face.

Eventually, she spoke openly, telling everyone Xu Zhiyi was a hen that wouldn’t lay eggs.

Insults, humiliation, and scheming—Xu Zhiyi endured it all.

After two years of tense peace, Xu Zhiyi unexpectedly became pregnant.

Overjoyed, she was devastated when Qin Huisheng showed no sign of happiness and, despite her pleading, left in anger.

The family doctor said the child was most likely a boy, but due to excessive worry, she needed to rest.

She rested for over three months, during which Qin Huisheng never once visited.

Lost in the joy of impending motherhood, Xu Zhiyi ignored his strange behavior.

Only Xiao Yu’er occasionally reminded her.

“Madam, doesn’t the Marquis’s attitude seem too unusual? Perhaps you should have a serious talk with him.”

Xu Zhiyi merely replied perfunctorily.

After six months, Xu Zhiyi finally saw Qin Huisheng again. He sat briefly in her room, then left in haste.

This time, even without Xiao Yu’er’s hint, Xu Zhiyi detected the scent of makeup on him.

She was pregnant and no longer used powders or perfumes.

Nor did the concubines in the rear quarters use such a scent.

Yet this fragrance felt strangely familiar.

The most famous fragrance in the capital, sold at the City of Beauty, cost over ten taels of silver per box—worth several years’ expenses for an ordinary family.

She recalled one person who used this fragrance regularly—her half-sister, Xu Yunwan!

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Xu Yunwan was born of a concubine, beautiful and skilled in poetry, music, and literature.

She was adept at playing the obedient and charming daughter before their father.

Xu Huaian doted on her like the apple of his eye.

He had long sought to curry favor with the Crown Prince, and Xu Yunwan was the perfect candidate to become a favored concubine.

For years, the best and most expensive items in the household were sent in an endless stream to the Pearl Courtyard where Xu Yunwan lived.

But these were only suspicions. There was no need to trouble herself over Qin Huisheng.

Besides, she had no deep feelings for him.

Qin Huisheng caroused outside; she paid it no mind.

Xiao Yu’er, seeing her languid and listless on the couch, worried about complications during childbirth and often accompanied her for walks in the garden.

“Madam, I find something strange. Should I tell you?”

Xu Zhiyi smiled lightly and poked her smooth forehead with a finger.

“There’s nothing you can’t tell me. Speak, what have you discovered?”

Xiao Yu’er glanced around, then leaned close to whisper.

“Madam, the concubines have been in the household for years but have yet to conceive. Don’t you find that odd?”

Only after Xiao Yu’er’s reminder did Xu Zhiyi realize how unusual it was.

Yet she remained calm.

“It is strange, but it’s not our concern. For now, I only hope the child is born safely. The three of us living together afterward will be fine.”

Xiao Yu’er was frustrated by her passivity.

But with Xu Zhiyi’s advanced pregnancy, she could not let her worry.

Even if she gave birth to a son, without the Marquis’s love, life in the Marquis’s household would be no better.

Xiao Yu’er began secretly contacting the maids in the concubines’ quarters.

Countless hairpins and ornamental flowers were sent out...

Only then did a maid muster the courage to reveal the truth.

The concubines had not conceived because the Marquis had been ordering poison to be slipped into their food to prevent pregnancy!

Not only now, but likely from the very beginning—and from now on, the concubines would hardly conceive at all!

This news struck like a thunderbolt on a clear day.

Xiao Yu’er was stunned, unable to recover from the shock for a long while.