Chapter 009: Invitation To The You Mansion

Although Jiang Xuening had been reborn, the only two benefits were that her mind was more mature than this body and that she had a sense of foreknowledge about some events that would happen in the future. In terms of her situation, however, it was actually worse than in her previous life.

She thought about it seriously for a moment.

In this life, if she could form a connection with Princess Leyang, it would undoubtedly provide an additional layer of security for her, beyond the protection of Yan Lin.

However, she wasn’t a man, and if she disguised herself as one to make Princess Shen Zhiyi fall for her, only for the truth to be revealed later, the outcome would probably be similar to her last life.

Heaven knew how much effort she had put into securing the opportunity for Jiang Xuehui to enter the palace as an attendant reader.

Yet, on the first day in the palace, she encountered Shen Zhiyi.

It was then that she learned the girl Shen Jie had brought to the lantern festival, who seemed so distant, was actually Princess Leyang Shen Zhiyi, the sister of the current Emperor, Shen Lang.

Thus, Jiang Xuening was doomed.

Once Princess Shen Zhiyi discovered she was a woman, her expression darkened, likely because she felt her feelings had been misplaced and couldn’t accept the truth. Her pride was hurt, and as a result, she began to make things difficult for Jiang Xuening at every turn.

Yan Lin had grown up with Shen Zhiyi, and they had argued several times.

Shen Zhiyi, in turn, resented Jiang Xuening, believing she had incited discord between Yan Lin and herself, and became even more aggressive in making her life difficult.

Although Princess Shen Zhiyi had no real methods of tormenting others, to Jiang Xuening at the time, it was unbearable. Even now, when she thought back on those days, they seemed dark and difficult to endure.

The bright pink wood hibiscus was held delicately in her hands. As memories related to Shen Zhiyi from her past life flashed through her mind, Jiang Xuening looked up at Yan Lin and suddenly realized that his youthful nature was reflected perfectly in his words.

He was domineering and unrestrained.

The moment he arrived, he said to her, “I want to take you to see,” instead of asking, “Do you want to go see?”

Jiang Xuening smiled slightly, and a teasing thought crossed her mind. She asked him, “The Chongyang Lantern Festival is on the ninth day of the ninth month, but today is only the seventh. You’re already here to find me?”

Yan Lin, who had been sitting casually on the wall, immediately became flustered at her words. His eyes shifted uncomfortably, and even the fingers gripping his sword tightened slightly. After a moment, however, he reminded himself that he had no reason to feel guilty, and his demeanor grew confident again. “It’s none of your business. I want to! I just wanted to see you, what’s wrong with that?”

Lian’er, standing next to Jiang Xuening, was left dumbfounded. She quickly lowered her head, not daring to look up again.

Jiang Xuening hadn’t expected him to speak so boldly, and remembering the events of her past life, she fell silent.

Yan Lin was displeased. “Are you going or not?”

Jiang Xuening gave a faint smile of apology. “I’m not going this time. But if you want to go to the lantern festival next time, come find me, and I’ll go with you then.”

She could still dress as a woman and go out.

That would avoid being seen by Princess Leyang.

However, going out as a woman would inevitably attract attention, which would be inconvenient. It was better not to go at all, especially since she had no real interest in lantern festivals.

Yan Lin furrowed his brow. “You’re speaking strangely. Why say ‘not going this time’? What’s the difference between this time and next? It’s only the lanterns that are different. Or do you have something else to do on Chongyang, so you can’t go?”

Jiang Xuening thought for a moment and decided to make up an excuse for herself. “I felt a bit dizzy when I returned this morning, so I wanted to rest for a couple of days at home.”

Yan Lin quickly assessed her expression.

It wasn’t exactly good.

His Ning Ning was much fairer than others. Standing in the light, her skin resembled translucent jade, making one want to reach out and gently caress it. After returning to the house, she changed into a dress, no longer wearing the men’s attire he was accustomed to seeing. At eighteen, her figure had already become graceful and exquisite. Now, standing beneath the flowering tree, she held the hibiscus he had just thrown down. Her delicate fingers, like the roots of green onions, rested lightly on the vibrant red petals, and her small face, about the size of a palm, was slightly tilted upward as she gazed at him with a gentle and clear look. There was an air of enchanting beauty and tenderness about her.

He hadn’t noticed it at first, but now, this observation stirred the young man’s feelings.

He couldn’t wait for the day of the ceremony to come sooner.

He wanted to marry her, bring her home, and pamper her.

Yan Lin met her gaze, then coughed lightly, stepping back a bit before saying, “It’s my fault for not being careful last night, and not looking after you. I let you sneak a few drinks and got you drunk like a lazy cat. Well, take a good rest at home for the next few days. I’ll find out when the next lantern festival is and make it up to you then.”

Jiang Xuening was about to respond when, unexpectedly, a voice shouted from afar, “Ah! Caught you again, climbing the wall! Do you believe I’ll not go report this to the Marquis and let him judge your actions? Is this how a noble son behaves?”

It turned out that Jiang Boyou happened to see what was happening as he passed by.

Yan Lin immediately felt a headache coming on.

Without saying a word, Jiang Boyou marched over, shaking his sleeves as though he wanted to poke Yan Lin down with a long bamboo pole. “Young Marquis, you’ve gone too far! My household doesn’t have only Ning’er as a daughter!”

Yan Lin didn’t understand. “But I only have eyes for her.”

Jiang Boyou was so angry his beard seemed to flutter. “I forbid you from climbing this wall again! You’re the son of a Marquis—if you have something to say, use the front door or have your servants send a message. I won’t say anything, but this—what kind of behavior is this?”

Yan Lin and Jiang Boyou were old acquaintances. With a quick twist of his wrist, Yan Lin unsheathed his sword, half-jokingly replying, “Lord Jiang, no need to get angry. Isn’t the wall built for climbing? If you’re unhappy, just raise the wall higher. It’ll be a good way for me to practice.”

Jiang Boyou was so furious he couldn’t find the words.

Yan Lin, however, noticed that the sky was getting late. Although he wanted to stay and look at Jiang Xuening for a while longer, he had to return to the manor to greet his parents. He glanced back at her and said, “I’ll leave for today, but I’ll come again another day.”

Jiang Xuening nodded.

Yan Lin supported himself with one hand, then leapt over the flowering wall with ease, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.

Only Jiang Boyou remained, fuming with anger.

Jiang Xuening smiled at the sight and, for some reason, felt much more at ease. She saluted Jiang Boyou and then turned to return to her room.

She could hear Jiang Boyou muttering behind her, “What kind of nonsense is this!”

When Jiang Xuening entered the room, Tang’er had already been waiting for a while. Seeing her, she said, “I went to find Lord Zhou as you instructed. As soon as Lord Zhou heard it was you looking for him, he waited outside. But since you were called by the madam and didn’t come back for a while, Lord Zhou had something to attend to and left. However, he left a message for you—if you have something to discuss and it’s inconvenient at the residence, you may go to Xiejie Alley to find him. He won’t dare to neglect you.”

It was already late in the day, and Jiang Xuening no longer expected to see Zhou Yinzhi.

However, at least he had left her a message.

If she looked at things from the perspective of her past life, this period in Zhou Yinzhi’s life was when he was doing everything he could to get close to Yan Lin. He probably would have wanted to meet her as well.

She simply said, “I understand,” and planned to find a convenient time to go out without drawing attention, then meet with Zhou Yinzhi for a talk. She then sat on the bed by the window.

As she reached out to pick up the tea, she suddenly noticed a letter on the table.

Jiang Xuening raised an eyebrow slightly and picked it up. “What is this?”

Earlier, when Tang’er had been startled by Lian’er and rushed into the room, she had actually been holding this letter. But after attending to Jiang Xuening’s bath and serving tea, she nearly forgot about it. Now, seeing it again, she quickly remembered and said, “It’s an invitation from the young ladies of the Qing Yuan Duke’s residence, inviting you to their house for a chrysanthemum viewing on the Double Ninth Festival. The invitation was delivered this morning, and I meant to tell you earlier, but got delayed and almost forgot.”

“Qing Yuan Duke’s residence?”

Jiang Xuening’s eyelids twitched.

“Is it the residence of Duke You?”

Seeing her reaction, Tang’er was a bit surprised and unsure of the reason behind it. She said, “Yes, it’s the You residence. The Qing Yuan Duke’s residence isn’t very prestigious in the capital, and their title has been passed down for generations, but they’re not as influential as before. The two young ladies in the household are good with flowers and plants, but this invitation coincides with the one from the Cheng Guo Gong’s residence for the chrysanthemum viewing. Those who have received the Cheng Guo Gong’s invitation will likely not go to the Qing Yuan Duke’s residence. The messenger just said that the invitation from Cheng Guo Gong’s residence has also arrived at the madam’s side, and it seems that they will take you and the eldest miss along. You don’t need to worry about this Duke’s invitation.”

“Not worry?”

How could she not care!

The Qing Yuan Duke’s residence.

In her previous life, the woman named You Fangyin, whom she knew, was the illegitimate daughter of this family. She was known as “a person who changed after falling into water” and later became a successful businesswoman, eventually becoming the wealthiest person in Jiang Ning, one of the richest cities in the Great Qian Dynasty.

But that fall into water happened exactly on the day of the Qing Yuan Duke’s chrysanthemum viewing event!

This meant that the You Fangyin she knew, who later dominated the business world, had not yet fallen into the water in this life, and had not truly arrived in this world yet!

The You Fangyin of now, the one in the Qing Yuan Duke’s residence, was not the same person as the one from her previous life, nor the one she hoped to meet again in this life.

You Fangyin had once said that she was “from another world.”

At the time, Jiang Xuening hadn’t understood what she meant, only knowing that she was from a distant place she could never return to, and was not one of them.

But now, after her rebirth, she faintly began to understand You Fangyin’s meaning.

You Fangyin was ultimately a lonely person. Others only saw her actions as unconventional, thinking she was audacious and reckless, but only she knew she was different from everyone around her.

Perhaps they weren’t even in the same “world.”

From Jiang Xuening’s understanding, the term “world” was often used in Buddhist teachings, but You Fangyin seemed to prefer using it in place of the word “realm.”

At this moment, looking at the exquisitely designed invitation in her hand, the subtle smile that had been on Jiang Xuening’s face earlier gradually disappeared.

Another choice was now before her.

If You Fangyin was to arrive in this world as she did in her past life, she might be one of the few people who could understand her. After all, during those days of house arrest in her previous life, they had become close confidantes, proving that they truly connected. With You Fangyin’s skills, combined with her own advantage of having been reborn with foresight, they could cooperate carefully and wisely, and it might be possible to compete with Xie Wei.

In the words of You Fangyin:

She would become Jiang Xuening’s “golden thigh.”

But Jiang Xuening knew well: deep down, You Fangyin despised this world.

That night, lying beneath the light gauze of the bed curtains, she tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

Memories of her past life surged in her mind.

As soon as she closed her eyes, in the blurred haze of her dreams, she returned to the days when she was trapped in Kunning Palace, playing chess, drinking wine, playing card games, and speaking heartfelt words with You Fangyin.

At times, she remembered wearing coarse cloth clothes and tossing books of classics and histories into the fire, feeling a sense of satisfaction.

At times, she remembered walking barefoot on the ground, singing those songs she had never heard before, feeling carefree as the night air was as cool as water.

At times, she remembered being drunk, holding a wine jug, sitting on the windowsill, gazing mournfully at the full moon outside the palace walls.

You Fangyin lay on the couch, saying, “Your Majesty, I come from a faraway place, a time much better than this one. I am an outsider, you are in the middle of it. I never think it’s wrong for a woman to have some ambition. If you want to be empress, then be empress. You haven’t done anything to harm the heavens or the people. The mistake isn’t yours; it’s this world!”

You Fangyin raised her wine cup and sneered, “Pitiful, laughable!”

She pointed to the full moon in the sky, saying, “Others see me as rich and powerful, with my money nothing I can’t buy. But when I look at myself, I’m just a pitiful creature. A heart longing for freedom, but trapped in this cage, suffering and unable to escape. Your Majesty, do you know, in that faraway world, there are friends who miss me, and parents who await my filial piety…”

Every word, every sentence in Jiang Xuening’s dream gradually turned into sobs, and her heart was filled with tears.

The night passed, and still, she couldn’t sleep.

The next morning, when Jiang Xuening got up, there were faint blood vessels in her eyes, and a sense of hesitation, even she could not fully grasp, seemed to linger.

She truly needed You Fangyin.

Yet at the same time, her rebirth had given her the opportunity to change the fate of this close friend.

Tang’er saw her and was deeply worried.

Jiang Xuening, however, only asked, “Is the invitation from the Marquis of Qingyuan’s residence still here?”

Tang’er carefully replied, “Yes, it’s still here. Do you plan to go?”

Jiang Xuening blinked, and after a long pause, she said, “I’ll go.”

She had to go.

But what should she do after she went?

She didn’t know.