The stunning beauty of Qing Dynasty

In the capital city, at Minister Lin’s residence, the atmosphere was strangely depressing.

The story probably started from the day when Lin's mother met the old woman who delivered her baby. Since she found out that her biological child was taken away by mistake, although the Lin family told the outside world that a second daughter was lost, many people in the family who knew the situation knew that the daughter was the real daughter who was swapped with the eldest son.

In the east room, Lin's mother looked at her little daughter who was walking towards her angrily.

After she gave birth to her first child, she gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, two years later. Perhaps because these twins were crybaby and noisy, she always loved them more.

"What's wrong? Who made my Yu'er angry?" Mother Lin looked at her little daughter lovingly with gentle eyes.

The cute girl in a light yellow dress pouted angrily, threw herself into Mrs. Lin's arms, and said in a muffled voice: "Mother, I went to the He family's banquet, and He Qingya actually laughed at me for having a village girl sister, saying that my participation in the banquet was because of my village girl sister who lowered the reputation of the banquet..."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Lin's face turned cold.

Even if she disliked her daughter who was taken away by mistake, it was not the right of outsiders to belittle her.

"Okay, my Yu'er, don't be angry. Being angry is harmful to your health. Those people are just envious of your good family background. Be good. Mother has a set of your favorite ruby jewelry. Can you bring it back to our Yu'er later?"

"Really?" Lin Wanyu's eyes lit up. She liked rubies, but natural rubies were rare. Where could she get the raw materials to make a complete set of jewelry?

"Of course, let Yu'er wear it later to show mother how beautiful our Yu'er is, okay?"

Lin Wanyu blushed, and now that her attention was diverted, she felt happy again.

Seeing her little daughter being coaxed into submission, Mrs. Lin finally breathed a sigh of relief, but what her little daughter had just said also left some impression on her.

Mrs. Lin, who had been a noble lady in the capital since childhood, had never been embarrassed before. This time, the daughter of a village girl was involved. Even though she knew that it was not the fault of her daughter who was taken away by mistake, Mrs. Lin still couldn't help but feel displeasure towards her daughter who had not yet arrived in the capital.

Especially the news brought back by the people who were sent to look for the eldest daughter.

The real daughter was not only a village girl, but also married a farmer. The man was conscripted and died in battle on the frontier, which means that the real daughter not only had a low status, but also became a widow.

After hearing the news, not only Mrs. Lin, who already disliked her, frowned, but even Lin's father frowned.

Originally, Father Lin thought that having an older daughter would be a good idea, even if her appearance might not be well-received by the people. He could raise her and use her to arrange marriages to gain some benefits. But now it seems that this older daughter has become a widow, and no nobleman in the capital can accept her. It is feared that she will even have difficulty getting married. Thinking in this way, this older daughter cannot bring him any benefit at all.

Father Lin's expression turned cold.

Lin Nanxu, who was sitting aside, had a cold look on his face. Even when he heard the news about the real daughter who was adopted by mistake, his expression did not change at all.

But in his heart, Lin Nanxu had predicted a definite ending for the real daughter.

This woman who was born on the same day as him was indeed not lucky enough. The end of her life was foreseeable. She was not liked by her biological parents and was despised because of her status as a widow. It was very likely that she would be married off by Lin's father within a few days of being adopted.

Lin Nanxu thought leisurely, with no emotion in his eyes.

He still has a calm and gentlemanly demeanor.

People can't help but admire the excellence and calmness of this eldest son who was raised in the Lin family.

Father Lin looked at the calm and handsome young man standing beside him and nodded secretly with satisfaction. It was indeed satisfying to exchange an eldest daughter for such an outstanding eldest son.

On this side, Qingyin finally arrived in the capital after dozens of days of journey.

After seeing with her own eyes that the frail young lady's condition was getting better day by day over the past ten days, Nanny Wang also put aside her contempt.

This girl is worthy of being the master and mistress's real daughter. Even though she is still frail, she is very smart and quick-witted. If this young lady takes good care of her health, with her abilities and character, she may not be a bad girl in the future.

Thinking of this, Nanny Wang became even more respectful to Qingyin.

"Miss, according to the instructions of the Madam and the Master, you will be assigned the second daughter, who... is your eldest brother - Lin Nanxu. In addition to your remaining brothers and sisters in the mansion, your husband is Ren and the Master gave birth to a pair of twins, the third daughter Lin Wanyu, the fourth son Lin Yanwei, and the others are born to the concubines. The only thing you need to pay attention to is that the recently favored concubine Xiang and the Madam have always been at odds, and she also gave birth to two sons. The second son is playful, but the third son is different. He is not only good at studying, but also intelligent and polite. However, no matter how capable the third son is, he can't compare to the eldest son..."

Nanny Wang spoke proudly, but Qingyin did not respond. She suddenly remembered that this eldest son was the reason why he and this real daughter had exchanged lives. Thinking of the hardships that this real daughter had suffered, Nanny Wang's face turned bitter. She could say anything else, but she had to talk about the eldest son in front of this person. Wasn't this just poking at the real daughter's heart?

Nanny Wang's face turned pale and she looked at Qingyin cautiously. It happened that Qingyin was so absorbed in listening to her words which were full of privacy that she missed Nanny Wang's nervous gaze.

Nanny Wang's words revealed quite a lot of information, not to mention the twin brother and sister that we already knew about, but also that Concubine Xiang was probably at odds with Mother Lin.

If it weren't for her capable half-brother, her biological mother would have been at a disadvantage.

Qingyin was thinking about it, and suddenly she felt the sounds of the surroundings disappearing in her ears. She looked at her in confusion.

Why don't you talk about it? Are you tired?

The master and servant, who had completely opposite ideas, fell silent tacitly.

With the introduction from Nanny Wang in the mansion, Qingyin also had some preliminary understanding of the Lin Mansion that was about to arrive.

In the magnificent capital city, even while sitting in a carriage, Qingyin could hear the clamor of the crowds hawking their wares outside.

The heaven and earth, the feet of the emperor, cannot be compared with any other place.

Qingyin thought calmly.

The carriage swayed all the way and did not stop until it had traveled for another two hours.

We have arrived at the Lin Residence.

Nanny Wang's voice came to my ears, "Miss, you have to wait here for a while. I will inform you and come to pick you up."

Qing Yin listened and replied calmly, "Yeah."

The sound of heavy footsteps gradually became lighter and lighter, which must be Nanny Wang walking away.

It was a while before Qingyin heard a commotion coming from outside and thought it was Nanny Wang who had returned.

Qingyin lifted the curtain and looked out, just in time to meet a pair of eyes as bright and sharp as a knife. Qingyin paused, and his eyes lingered on the person for a moment.

The man had black hair, sword-like eyebrows, a high nose and thin lips, and an extremely handsome face with cold eyes. He exuded a cold temperament, like the cold snowflakes on an iceberg, and like the wind blowing through in autumn, which was puzzling and intriguing.

Qingyin vaguely saw the shadow of her adoptive parents' appearance in that pair of deep and seemingly affectionate peach blossom eyes. Lin Nanxu, her outstanding civet cat brother, was indeed good-looking. He absorbed all the advantages of his adoptive parents' appearance and was born so outstanding.

Qingyin thought absentmindedly that even if her adoptive parents saw her, they would not dare to believe that this outstanding young man in every aspect was their biological son.

Facing the man's gaze, Qingyin calmly lowered the curtain.

Outside the carriage, Lin Nanxu paused.

Lin Nanxu was surprised as early as when he met this real daughter.

Before they met, Lin Nanxu had formed an impression of this widowed daughter. She was probably a woman who was thin and pale due to being tortured, and who was probably depressed because of the unexpected death of her husband...

But all these stereotypes were broken when they met.

Although this real daughter was not good-looking and was indeed thin, her facial features vaguely resembled those of her adoptive mother. Her eyes were particularly clear and bright, but there was no trace of sadness in them. Her clear eyes were not clouded by her outstanding appearance, and she was not moved at all. She was so calm that she did not look like a country girl.

Lin Nanxu thought doubtfully, and his impression of this real daughter changed little by little. He also subconsciously felt a hint of curiosity towards this real daughter.

Looking at the motionless curtain, Lin Nanxu's eyes moved slightly. He looked at the carriage in front of him and said in a voice as clear as ice and snow: "Hello, second sister. I am your eldest brother Lin Nanxu. Father and mother asked me to pick you up."

Lin Nanxu didn't care whether his identity was known to the woman inside or not, or whether the woman would be angry and unwilling to come down because his identity was revealed. He still honestly told his true identity.

The nobleman, who has always been among the top in the capital, has his own pride and disdains to conceal his identity.

In the carriage, Qingyin's lips curled slightly.

When the eldest daughter who had been living outside returned, her biological parents should have come out to greet her, confirm her identity, and then announce her to the public. However, the Lin family sent a fake civet cat that was replaced by a prince to pick her up. This is really... cold and indifferent.

Qingyin complained about the cruelty of her original parents in her mind, but she responded calmly to the cold young man outside.

"Thank you, brother. I'll be down right away." The female voice coming from the carriage was as gentle as water, like the clear sound of spring water flowing over rocks, or like the clear cry when the haze dissipates at dawn.

Graceful and beautiful.

Lin Nanxu's ears moved slightly. Although he was not a sound control freak, he had to admit that this real rich girl had a good voice.

It makes people listen attentively for a while.

However, although he said he would get off the carriage immediately, it actually took him a long time to get off.

Looking at the pretty and thin woman who got off the carriage, Lin Nanxu keenly noticed that she was not as weak and simple as she looked.

Lin Nanxu stared at her for a while.

Qingyin, who got off the carriage, also let him watch.

There was always a faint smile on his face, looking at Lin Nanxu calmly.

The atmosphere between the two of them gradually became weird because of this gaze.

The servants around seemed to sense the strange atmosphere between the two masters and did not dare to urge them. They just stood there stupidly, looking around and staring at the ground silently, as if there was a flower growing on the ground.

Finally, Nanny Wang came back and couldn't stand it anymore. She coughed lightly and reminded Lin Nanxu that it was getting late.

Lin Nanxu retracted his inquiring gaze, still with that expressionless and dignified look, and said to Qingyin: "Father and mother are already waiting for you in the main hall of the East Courtyard. I will take you to the main hall to meet them now."

Qing Yin nodded politely with a smile on his lips: "Okay, thank you brother."

Lin Nanxu paused when he heard the sweet voice of the pretty girl beside him.

Looking at the pair of clear eyes that were looking at him without any gloom, Lin Nanxu began to wonder if the people sent by Lin's father and mother did not tell this person his and her true identities, so this person could look at him so emotionlessly.

Looking at the stern young man who suddenly stopped, the girl turned her head in confusion and looked up at him. Although the girl did not speak, her moving and expressive eyes showed her confusion.

Why don't you leave?

Lin Nanxu suppressed all his fluctuating emotions and turned back into the cold and reserved nobleman in the eyes of outsiders.

"Just a little further on."

Qingyin nodded silently and followed his half-brother who seemed to have an expressionless face to the main hall.

A series of people were sitting in the main hall. Above them were a pair of middle-aged people in gorgeous clothes, one man and one woman. Next to them sat a pair of young boys and girls with different temperaments. The girl sitting closer to them had a pretty face and a lively temperament. She was playing with a handkerchief in one hand and the other. Next to them sat a young man with a rebellious look, sitting in his seat with an impatient look on his face, looking left and right. It was obvious that he was not willing to stay here on his own initiative.

There was a group of handsome young men and beautiful women sitting in the back, and they were obviously the illegitimate sons and daughters of Lin's father.

Looking at such a huge crowd, Qingyin suddenly had the illusion that she was sitting in the yard watching monkeys, except that she was the monkey being watched in the yard.

Following behind the young man, Qingyin thought carelessly.

Without noticing that the cold young man standing in front of him had a barely perceptible pause, Lin Nanxu seemed to see the owner of those moving eyes again through the hairy head beside him in his peripheral vision.

This woman... is really calm. How many times has she been distracted? She should be nervous and scared when she sees him, or the luxurious Lin's father and others...

Now, Lin Nanxu looked at the distracted woman beside him.

I couldn't tell that she looked nervous or scared at all.

"Father, mother."

Lin Nanxu called out to his father and mother above him in a very calm tone.

Lin's father and mother were not angry either. The eldest child has always been like this. He has been like this since he was old enough to understand, cold and silent as ice.

Following the tall figure of the young man, the two of them saw the figure behind him who was shorter and had only a small section of frizzy black hair exposed.

The young man took a step back, completely exposing the girl walking behind him.