My elder sister forced me to become a concubine; I was reborn and remarried into the emperor's

Although Man Xinghe disliked this kind of occasion, Wei Nanxun was right about one thing: he was the protagonist today, and it would be inappropriate to leave his mother there alone.

He yawned and slowly made his way back to Cining Palace.

As soon as I stepped outside the flower hall, I sensed that something was off about the atmosphere inside; it was so quiet that the only sound was the chopsticks touching the bowls and plates.

Aside from the laughter and chatter, there wasn't a single person talking.

This is too strange. With her maternal grandmother and mother around, how could no one flatter her?

The little eunuch by the door saw him as if he had seen a lifeline and hurriedly stepped forward, saying in an extremely obsequious manner, "Young Master, you're finally back."

"What's going on here?"

He didn't say what he meant to himself. Why were they all acting like soldiers getting ready for battle, not daring to utter a single word?

The young eunuch lowered his voice and said, "The Regent just came by."

When Man Xinghe heard that his uncle was coming, his eyes lit up immediately. At the same time, he looked up at the sky in great surprise: "Did the sun rise in the west? My uncle actually came."

As he spoke, he regretted walking too slowly. If he had known his uncle was here, he should have run back to save time.

He was about to happily go inside to talk to his uncle when he was stopped by the little eunuch.

"The young master returned a step too late; the regent had just left with a dark expression."

Man Xinghe looked completely bewildered: "Why is that?"

Surely my uncle couldn't have left at the last minute because he knew he was coming back?

"How could this servant possibly fathom His Highness's thoughts? I only know that he seemed to be looking at someone, and upon taking his seat, he asked if everyone had arrived."

"Later, the Jiang family girl sat down next to him and toasted him. I don't know what they said, but the prince suddenly lost his temper, threw down his cup, got up and left the table. *** followed him out and hasn't returned yet."

Man Xinghe's first reaction was: "It must be that Jiang woman who displeased my uncle. I don't like her either. She always has that smile on her face like a fake person. If we weren't relatives, I wouldn't even want to talk to her."

The eunuchs and palace servants who served their masters in the palace were most afraid of their masters' unpredictable moods.

They saw that Jiang Qiongzhi was gentle and weak, and seemed fine in every way. Why did she displease the Regent? If even she could be punished for no reason, wouldn't they, the servants who served others, be even more likely to lose their heads at any moment?

Don't underestimate the lowly status of palace servants. In reality, while there are only a few masters in a palace, there are tens of thousands of palace servants.

If word gets out from one person to another, Pei Ji's reputation will only get worse.

Man Xinghe's unintentional remark convinced the little eunuch that it was indeed Miss Jiang who had broken a taboo, rather than the Regent being difficult to please.

Unintentionally, this salvaged some of Pei Ji's already shattered reputation.

Which way did they go?

"It seems they went into the garden."

He didn't even have time to listen to the rest before he lifted the hem of his robe and ran towards the outside of the hall.

She was secretly pleased. Her uncle must have come to this banquet, which was full of women, because of her. He left as soon as he saw that she wasn't there.

His uncle still cares about him the most!

-

At the banquet, Empress Dowager Jiang sat at the head of the table, and Jiang Qiongzhi knelt beside her. It was clear that there were tear stains on her face, and she lowered her head, appearing very depressed.

She was the most prominent member of the Jiang family in her generation. Her grandfather personally taught her to read and write from a young age.

The teachers she hired for music, chess, calligraphy, and painting were the most famous female teachers in the country. She boasted that she was exceptionally intelligent and that not only her sisters in the clan, but also any other woman in the country could match her vision and knowledge.

She even looked down on her father's most valued older brother, thinking he was just a bookworm.

Raised in this way, she naturally became more aloof and arrogant, rarely exchanging intimate words with even her parents, except with her grandfather.

Everyone says she's a talented woman in the capital, but she doesn't care about such empty titles at all.

Some people say that she was the emperor's most favored crown princess, but later she was given to Wei Mingzhao, which made her feel annoyed or sad.

In fact, she had long been certain that the emperor would never allow Lady Jiang to become the crown princess again.

Having frequented the palace since childhood, she could see through the Crown Prince's pretense, even though others might perceive him as gentle and humble.

She looked down on the Crown Prince and would never marry him; if she were to marry, she would marry the most powerful man in the Great Yan.

This person is Pei Ji.

She studied with her grandfather when she was young and was particularly competitive. She felt that she was no worse than her brothers, and even that her knowledge was superior. If she were a man, she would definitely enter the court as an official and become a prime minister.

But she happened to be a woman.

She was still young then, and hadn't grown her hair long, so she dressed like a tomboy and always liked to run around following her older brother.

Once, she begged her brother to teach her to ride a horse. Her brother, who doted on her the most, secretly took her to the horse farm without telling the elders in the family.

She went secretly, so naturally she couldn't go to her own horse farm. She only found out when she arrived that she had gone to a horse farm in a villa on the outskirts of Beijing.

At that time, Pei Ji was just a green teenager, but he already had a unique aura.

He was a man of few words, silently brushing and feeding the horses, yet he wore only ordinary robes, making him impossible to ignore when he stood there.

Her elder brother took her over to greet him and told her to call him "Uncle".

The two are only about five or six years apart in age, but they are a whole generation apart.

This was the first time she had ever learned that he was the emperor's youngest son, the fourth prince, Pei Ji.

Her brother's riding skills were also mediocre, so teaching her was even more of a challenge. It was her brother who traded his beloved scimitar for half a day of riding instruction from this uncle.

She was small at the time and could barely sit still on the horse, so he mounted the horse and rode with her to protect her.

For the first time, she felt the wind whistling past her ears, and before her stretched a boundless grassland that met the sky. She loved the feeling of freedom that felt like flying, and she also loved the feeling of being protected.

After the horse race that day, it got dark, and her brother and he rushed back to the capital with her before the city gates closed.

It just so happened that it was the Flower Festival, and the night market was filled with all kinds of lanterns.

This was also the first time Jiang Qiongzhi had slipped out of the mansion. She had never seen so many dazzling stalls, let alone such interesting lanterns.

She pestered her brother to buy it, but the young master didn't know he needed to bring money when he went out, and neither of them had any money on them.

Finally, Pei Ji paid the bill when he handed over the goldfish lantern.

She could never forget this uncle.

Unfortunately, when she tried to find him again, she learned that Pei Ji was no longer in the capital and had gone to the military camp alone.

Although she lived in her boudoir, she kept a close eye on the young man's movements.

Knowing how many people he killed, how many battles he won, and how many enemy soldiers he captured, his name has not faded but has become increasingly prominent.

As she grew older, she met more and more men, but none of them could surpass the memory Pei Ji had left in her heart.

When her parents started choosing a husband for her, she was dissatisfied with all of them; they were all ordinary, common men.

She was going to marry the most powerful hero in the world.

Pei Ji happens to be just that kind of person.

So what if he's Prince Su? In her eyes, even the emperor isn't as capable as him. It's still uncertain who will ultimately hold onto the throne.

It was that little girl's emotional outburst that made her realize that she already had someone she could never forget.

So what if they are uncle and nephew? They have different surnames, different clans, and different origins. The so-called uncle and nephew are only a few years apart.

Even if they are uncle and nephew and not accepted by the world, so what? She still loves this man she calls her uncle.

She waited and waited, from her innocent childhood to her youthful years, until Pei Ji finally returned to the capital and became the regent.

She greeted him with great joy, only to be met with a vicious slap.

Jiang Qiongzhi did not want to become so vulgar; she considered herself unique and superior to other women in the world.

Even though she admitted that Wei Nanxun was very beautiful and the best woman she had ever seen, she was as vulgar as a flower in a vase, only able to attract ordinary men.

Who would have thought that when they saw her again, she was being held in Pei Ji's arms.

She watched coldly from the pavilion, seeing Wei Nanxun's pitiful eyes redden and her frail body unable to take care of herself.

Were these little tricks what made Pei Ji feel compassion?

Jiang Qiongzhi utterly despised those vulgar men, either uneducated and unable to exchange more than a few words with her, or too superficial and only able to stare at her face.

Therefore, apart from her family, she hardly interacted with outsiders, let alone men.

She has a strong learning ability and subconsciously felt that Pei Ji liked women who were as weak and dependent on him as dodder vines, which is why she stood up to speak for Wei Nanxun.

She then awkwardly feigned weakness and pitifulness, all in order to get Pei Ji to look at her more and talk to her alone.

But none of that happened; his gaze towards her was cold and indifferent.

He looked at her the same way he looked at any other woman, even with a hint of impatience.

This made Jiang Qiongzhi feel lost and disoriented for the first time in her life, as well as a subtle sense of excitement welling up inside her.

His annoyance and dislike saddened her, but also made her tremble with fear; there was never anything she couldn't learn or obtain.

The more unattainable she is, the less he likes her, the more irresistible she becomes.

What does it matter if she doesn't know how to get along with others, or if she's not liked? Her greatest talent has always been studying.

She went from knowing nothing to being proficient in reading, writing, playing musical instruments, calligraphy, painting, and chess. Now, she's merely learning a woman's manner of speaking, which is relatively easy.

As she watched that tall figure walk in from outside the hall, her heart pounded wildly.

Holding her cup, she walked awkwardly to the man's side and forced a timid smile: "Uncle, I'd like to toast you."

But Pei Ji didn't even glance at them, and said to himself, "Are they all here?"

Since his appearance, the room fell silent. The women all lowered their heads, not daring to speak or look up, and naturally no one dared to answer him.

"Uncle, Qiongzhi saw the young master leave with the young lady..."

Before she could finish speaking, the bronze cup grazed her shoulder and fell to the ground, spilling wine all over the floor.

When she opened her eyes, all she could see was a dark sleeve flashing past her.

Jiang Qiongzhi knelt there blankly, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings. She looked as if she had been abandoned, a truly pitiful sight.

Although Empress Dowager Jiang did not have much contact with other members of the Jiang family except for her brother, this was still her brother's granddaughter, and she could not stand by and watch her be bullied.

"Good boy, come here. You must be scared by your uncle."

Jiang Qiongzhi blinked her dry eyes, moved her cold fingers, and slowly shook her head.

She said in a very soft voice, "Grandmother, Qiongzhi is alright."

"It was Qiongzhi who misspoke, it's not Uncle's fault."

"That's just his temper. He gets angry so easily, and he's made you suffer."

Empress Dowager Jiang held Jiang Qiongzhi's hand and patted it gently. Of course, she also wanted to be close to her family, but she knew in her heart that distancing herself was the best way to protect them.

"Qiongzhi is not wronged."

"What a good child, he looks most like your grandfather. These past few years, my legs have become weak and I don't like to travel around anymore. I will be resting in the capital from now on. When you have time, come and keep me company."

Jiang Qiongzhi sat obediently with her head down. After hesitating for a moment, she mustered up her courage and said, "Grandmother, may I stay in the palace to serve you?"

Empress Dowager Jiang showed a slightly surprised expression: "Oh? You really want to stay in the palace?"

"Yes, Qiongzhi wishes to stay by her great-aunt's side at all times."

-

As soon as Wei Nanxun got into the carriage, he heard some good news.

“Miss, Steward Qiu brought back news yesterday, saying that the Second Master will be back in the next few days.”

Wei Nanxun was both surprised and curious. Her father would only return to the capital around the end of the year each year. In her previous life, her father had indeed returned at this time, because she and Wei Mingzhao got married at the same time.

Upon returning to Beijing, she also received a letter from home. Her father had clearly said that he wouldn't have a chance to come back until next month, so why did he suddenly return?

"Manager Qiu didn't mention that; perhaps something came up unexpectedly."

Her rebirth seemed to have changed a lot, yet it was also full of unspeakable coincidences.

For example, my younger brother was also bullied and injured, and our father returned to Beijing ahead of schedule...

Does this foreshadow something?

Seeing Wei Nanxun's somewhat solemn expression, Zhixia couldn't help but wonder, "Didn't you say you were looking forward to seeing the Second Master soon? Why do you seem unhappy?"

"I am happy, but I feel a little uneasy."

"Miss must be overjoyed because she hasn't seen the Second Master for so long."

"I hope so."

When Wei Nanxun returned home, she first checked on her younger brother and saw that his injuries were gradually improving. In the past two days, while she was in the palace, no one had bothered him to recuperate.

"Is my elder sister being mistreated in the palace?"

"The Empress Dowager is an extremely kind person, and the Crown Prince and the Empress Dowager get along very well. What could possibly happen to me?"

Hearing this, Wei Heyu finally felt relieved.

She told him that their father was coming back soon, and a bright smile appeared on the boy's weak face: "That's great! When Father comes back, we can move out, and Sister won't have to worry anymore."

He is clearly younger than her, but he has grown up very quickly recently, and it seems that he has also taken her, his older sister, as his responsibility.

Wei Nanxun didn't want him to bear so much at such a young age, so she told him about the fun things in the palace and had lunch and dinner with him.

She only stood up when she saw that the boy's tightly furrowed brows had completely relaxed.

"Have a good rest. I'll come see you tomorrow."

Although nothing bad happened during her stay in the palace these past few days, she still felt exhausted.

Back inside, Zhixia had already asked someone to prepare hot water. She took off her outer garment and immersed herself completely in the hot water.

The fatigue of the past few days finally eased at this moment.

She was getting drowsy in the bath, her arms draped over the edge of the tub, her head resting on her arms, and she drifted off to sleep without realizing it.

In a daze, she felt cool fingertips brushing her cheek. Before she could react, something heavy entered the bathtub and pressed against her.

Hot water, billowing white steam, overflowed the bathtub and soaked the floor...