Volume I, Chapter 1: The Day of the Grand Wedding

"Why is it you?" In the joyous and bustling bridal chamber, the groom's single sentence of disgust instantly plunged the atmosphere into freezing depths. Having traveled for an entire month, Xiao Yuanyi looked terribly pale; even the heavy layers of cosmetics could not conceal the exhaustion etched between her brows and eyes. A lump formed in her throat. She yanked the red veil from her head and threw it to the floor, her eyes reddening as she glared at the mountain of a man before her. Disappointed that you didn't marry my sister, are you? Well, she was disappointed too. The man before her lacked even a trace of Xie Jingyi's noble elegance and gentle warmth. With his rugged face and sharp features, the wedding robes looked more like battle armor on him, exuding a violent, biting aura of slaughter, as if he might tear her to pieces at any moment. Yet Xiao Yuanyi was not afraid in the least, stubbornly holding his gaze. "Get out." Lou Hejing furrowed his brows. To be driven out on one's own wedding day was truly unprecedented; she was indeed as ill-bred as they said. "General, it's bad! Something's happened!" The ceremonial music outside suddenly ceased. Lou Hejing tossed aside the ceremonial scale and strode out without looking back. "General, you haven't drunk the nuptial wine yet!" the wedding matron cried out anxiously. Longyu supported Xiao Yuanyi's swaying figure, equally furious. "If he won't drink it, then so be it! My lady traveled thousands of miles under imperial decree to marry into your family, yet you humiliate her like this. Let's see how you explain yourselves to the Emperor and the Nan'an Princely Estate!" The wedding matron had never seen a newlywed couple so fraught with tension. Fortunately, the Lou family's servants were quick-witted; they pulled the matron away and hurried off to report to the madam. Only Xiao Yuanyi and Longyu remained in the bridal chamber. The more Longyu thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. She glanced around the table, seeing only dry pastries, with just a few apples that were fit to eat. She held an apple to Xiao Yuanyi's lips. "My lady, please eat something to regain your strength. I doubt they would dare slip any more tendon-softening powder into your food." Xiao Yuanyi opened her mouth but could only manage to nibble a tiny bit of the skin. The tears Longyu had been holding back immediately spilled over. "How could the Prince and Princess treat you this way? You are their flesh and blood too, cherished like a precious pearl for all these years. Even if Lady Baopan, who was snatched away by a treacherous servant at birth, has been found, she shouldn't surpass you in their hearts. How can they be so cruel!" "You were on the verge of discussing marriage with Young Marquis Xie, only to be tied up and sent off to this remote Dingzhou. Who knows if you'll ever..." Longyu turned her head away. Xiao Yuanyi took the apple and began to eat it in small bites. "She is not my sister. I asked the physician who took Mother's pulse back then; Mother was never pregnant with twins." "My lady, please don't say such things anymore. It is precisely because of this that the Prince, the Princess, and the young masters have gradually grown resentful toward you." "Even you don't believe me?" Xiao Yuanyi's voice trembled with tears.

When Xiao Baopan was found and the blood affinity test confirmed she was their parents' flesh and blood, Xiao Yuanyi had been both overjoyed and heartbroken for her. Even though they were unlike other twins, sharing few resemblances, and she felt no immediate closeness to her, she still did everything in her power to treat this sister, who had suffered in the outside world for fifteen years, with kindness. She not only gave her the most precious clothes and jewelry, but when Xiao Baopan merely mentioned she liked her courtyard, she gave that up too. Yet in the eyes of others, this was seen as her showing off. Her mother, who doted on her the most, lost her temper with her for the very first time. "Think of how much your sister Baopan has suffered out there while you enjoyed every comfort at home! She was raised by peasants and has never seen anything fine. How could you humiliate her like this!" No matter how Xiao Yuanyi tried to explain, her mother simply wouldn't believe her. When her eldest brother returned, he reprimanded her as well. "Baopan knows nothing of the world. She is not as well-versed in poetry, literature, and etiquette as you are. She won't compete with you for anything, and even if she tried, she couldn't win. Just let it be." To be so misjudged by her closest family, Xiao Yuanyi experienced the unbearable agony of heartbreak for the first time. She went to find Xiao Baopan, wanting her to clarify things in front of their mother and eldest brother. But Xiao Baopan merely stroked the exquisite porcelain on the table, saying, "Such fine things would be treated as sacred relics back in my county." Her mother and brother immediately teared up, unaware that the porcelain vase was merely the most inconspicuous spittoon in Xiao Yuanyi's room. "My poor Baopan, from now on, you shall live in the Qingxi Courtyard." "Tomorrow, Big Brother will take you out to buy new clothes and jewelry. We won't accept anything that has been used by others." As they embraced in a display of deep familial affection, Xiao Yuanyi hesitated to speak. What did they mean by "others"? Weren't they all one family? She couldn't understand how her good intentions had been twisted into this. Just then, Xiao Baopan looked up from her mother's embrace and flashed her a cunning smile. Xiao Yuanyi's expression froze as realization dawned on her. From then on, she avoided any contact with her. But one day, she inadvertently overheard Xiao Baopan talking to herself under a tree. "What a tacky, awful name. And the clothes and jewelry Xiao Mingcheng bought are just as tacky. Xiao Yuanyi's things are so much better. Tell me, how can someone be born with such a good life!" "Powerful and wealthy parents, two brothers obsessed with their little sister, and a childhood sweetheart lover. Tsk." "But thankfully, I have you to help me defy heaven and change my fate." Xiao Yuanyi clamped her hand tightly over her mouth. Who was she talking to? And what did it mean to defy heaven and change her fate? Could it be that she wasn't her parents' daughter at all? Then what was her purpose in infiltrating their family? Could she be a spy from an enemy nation?

But before she could figure it all out, her reputation, her pride, and her future were utterly destroyed at a single banquet. It happened that the Emperor issued a decree, selecting a young lady from the Nan'an Princely Estate to marry into the Lou family, who had guarded the frontier for generations, as a show of imperial grace. Her parents were thoroughly disappointed in her, and the Xie family showed no intention of proposing. Unwilling to let Xiao Baopan marry far away, they simply tied her up and put her on the wedding carriage. Before her departure, Xiao Baopan nestled in their mother's arms and flashed her that same smile. "Sister, I will visit you in Dingzhou often." They all praised Xiao Baopan for being sensible, turning a blind eye to her departure, as if the one marrying far away was merely someone insignificant. Once Xiao Yuanyi calmed down, her face was filled with desolation. "I know you believe me, but it's a pity. Just as you said, I may never return in this lifetime." No matter what Xiao Baopan intended to do to her parents and brothers, she could not stop it, nor did she have the power to. Longyu wept even more bitterly. Humiliated by Lou Hejing on the very day of her marriage, with no way to return home, how was she supposed to live out the rest of her days? "My lady, it's terrible! Outside... outside..." Sirui rushed in in a panic, leaning against the door and gasping for breath for quite a while. She, along with Nanny Liu, had been sent by her parents to keep watch over her. Xiao Yuanyi gave her no warm looks and had absolutely no interest in the affairs of the Lou family. It was Longyu who finally asked, "What's happening outside?" "Coffins..." "How can there be coffins on such a joyous day? Spit it out clearly!" "I heard that... General Lou has died in battle!" Xiao Yuanyi stood up, her face a mask of shock. To be precise, both General Lou and the Eighth Young Master Lou had fallen in battle. Dingzhou was the border between Southern Xiao and the Northern Di; outbreaks of war were commonplace. General Lou was a seasoned veteran who had guarded Dingzhou for twenty years, known by the Northern Di as a tiger and wolf among generals. Yet he had died at the hands of a band of Northern Di bandits, which made no sense at all. Had someone betrayed them?