Lady Hou is reborn and, by pampering her illegitimate son, reclaims her life of wealth and privilege

Inside Mai Xiyue's cozy and elegantly decorated boudoir.

With tears welling up in her eyes, Mai Xiyue, overwhelmed with grief, cried out to her loyal maid Hongying, "My mother intends to marry me off to the Duke of Huguo as his concubine."

Upon hearing this, Hongying was shocked and her face turned deathly pale. After all, her young lady came from a prestigious family. How could she possibly humble herself and marry a Duke of Protectorate who was over fifty years old as a concubine?

"This...how is this possible?"

Hongying asked incredulously, her heart filled with doubt and indignation.

"Miss, why did Madam make this decision?"

Mai Xiyue's eyes were red and swollen, filled with despair and sorrow. "Why...it's all for the Marquis's mansion, so that she can enjoy wealth and honor for the rest of her life."

“But we can’t just ignore your happiness, Miss…” Hongying’s voice grew lower and lower, sounding powerless and helpless.

Mai Xiyue gave a sad smile. "Yes, they plan to sacrifice my future in exchange for their wealth and comfort."

Hongying silently lowered her head, her heart heavy. Even a noble lady from a prominent family like hers could not escape sorrow. What Mai Xiyue found hard to accept was that her parents were so indifferent to her, treating her merely as a pawn in a game of exchanging favors.

As autumn deepens and the weather grows colder, withered yellow leaves struggle on the edge of life, as if protesting against the arrangement of fate, striving to break free from the branches, drifting down, and going away with the wind.

Hongying looked at the young lady who was still kneeling before the Guanyin statue in the dead of night, praying devoutly, and felt an endless melancholy welling up in her heart.

Since two days ago, Miss has been praying day and night, after she begged Madam to bring back a Guanyin statue from Rongen Temple.

"Miss, why have you suddenly started believing in Buddha?"

Mai Xiyue slowly opened her eyes, her whole being seemingly shrouded in a twilight atmosphere.

“I didn’t believe in Buddhism before, but now that I have something to ask for, I have no choice but to believe.”

Hongying remained silent after hearing this. Perhaps a woman's fate is bound to this world, and no matter where she escapes, she cannot break free from the constraints of this world.

Hongying picked up a soft wool blanket and gently draped it over Mai Xiyue's shoulders. Although she couldn't solve her mistress's current predicament, draping this blanket over her mistress in this chilly autumn night was the only thing she could do for her.

Mai Xiyue looked at the blanket on her shoulder and a rare smile appeared on her face. She whispered to Hongying, "In this world, I only have you."

Hongying knelt beside Mai Xiyue, held her hand tightly, and said firmly, "Miss, rest assured, I will always be by your side."

……

Inside the Moyou Hall of the Duke of Wei's Mansion.

Jiang Huaiyu stared at the falling leaves outside the window, her heart churning with emotions.

A few days ago, her new shop officially opened, and business is booming just as she had predicted. Now, she has accumulated nearly 50,000 taels of silver and has entrusted Steward Zheng to send a team of capable merchants to various places to purchase grain, hoping to earn more profits from future business opportunities.

Next year, the south will suffer a rare drought. The golden rice will wither and die before it ripens, corpses will litter the countryside, and cries of despair will fill the air. The people will be plunged into misery, and displaced people will flee to the capital. Jiang Huaiyu's memories of how he resolved this disaster in his previous life are now hazy.

The only thing she remembered was the mountains of corpses piled up on the outskirts of Beijing after the disaster. To prevent the corpses from rotting and causing a plague, raging fires consumed the darkness for three days and three nights. And this was only for those disaster victims who were lucky enough to reach the capital; countless others had already perished before even reaching Beijing.

"Madam, the young master has arrived."

The warbling of a nightingale gently broke Jiang Huaiyu's reverie.

"Please come in quickly."

Wei Fengyun was dressed in a magnificent purple flying fish robe, while Feixue wore an exquisite light purple plum blossom Shu brocade Confucian skirt. The two entered the room together.

"Feixue is here too."

Jiang Huaiyu watched the increasingly close young couple with a warm smile. She thought to herself that when the time was right, she could arrange a marriage for them. Seeing her son find a good home filled her with happiness.

The two bowed to Jiang Huaiyu.

"Greetings to mother."

"Greetings to the Duchess."

"Get up quickly," Jiang Huaiyu said kindly, helping the two of them up. "Did you come together because there's something you want to discuss?"

Wei Fengyun and Feixue smiled at each other, their eyes revealing a warm affection.

“Mother, Feixue is returning to Sichuan to celebrate the New Year. I have come to say goodbye to you today.”

"Are you leaving so soon? Why not stay in the capital a little longer? When will you come to the capital again?"

Jiang Huaiyu knew that her son, Jingfan, was busy taking care of the Emperor's health in the palace and had no time to attend to Wei Fengyun's illness. Therefore, she secretly hoped that Feixue could stay by Wei Fengyun's side.

Feixue bowed respectfully and said, "Reporting to the Duchess, I have returned to Sichuan to celebrate my father's birthday. I will have the opportunity to return to the capital after the New Year."

"Father?" Jiang Huaiyu asked in confusion.

Feixue glanced at Wei Fengyun, then smiled and explained, "Please forgive me for concealing my identity, Madam. I am actually the daughter of the King of Shu, Situ Feixue."

Jiang Huaiyu's expression instantly turned to shock, utterly astonished by Feixue's true identity.

Although she had never cared about Feixue's identity before—after all, the Duke's mansion was wealthy enough that it no longer needed to rely on the woman's family—if Feixue was the daughter of the Prince of Shu, then a marriage between Wei Fengyun and her was absolutely out of the question. The Prince of Shu harbored wolfish ambitions and would soon lead his army in rebellion; all of this forced her to think deeply about the matter.

Jiang Huaiyu's support for Wei Fengyao is unwavering and beyond question. In the future, Wei Fengyun will find himself caught between Wei Fengyao and Feixue, a situation that would undoubtedly be a disaster for the entire Duke of Wei's mansion. Wei Fengyun himself will also be caught in a painful dilemma. Whether Wei Fengyao will be able to ascend the throne as smoothly as he did in his previous life will be uncertain.

Wei Fengyun noticed the look of surprise on Jiang Huaiyu's face and asked in confusion, "Mother, what's wrong?"

Jiang Huaiyu awkwardly suppressed her emotions and stammered, "Ah...no, it's nothing..."

Wei Fengyun didn't delve too deeply into it, simply assuming that Jiang Huaiyu was surprised by Feixue's identity.

"Then, let us wish Princess Feixue a safe journey, and let our Duke's Mansion also present a generous gift to the Prince of Shu for his birthday."

Wei Fengyun was actually quite pleased to see how much his mother valued Feixue. Jiang Huaiyu then instructed the servants, "Cuiying, go to the storeroom and select four valuable gifts, pack them carefully, so that Princess Feixue can take them back to Shuchuan."

"As ordered."

Feixue smiled shyly, then turned to her maid Mengqin and handed her an exquisite brocade box, saying, "Madam, this is Feixue Jade Dew Pill that I specially made for Fengyun. If his old illness relapses while I am away, taking one pill will suppress the toxins and restore his health."

Jiang Huaiyu smiled as she accepted the brocade box and said gratefully, "Thank you, Princess. You have really gone to great lengths."

Princess Feixue glanced at Wei Fengyun, then lowered her head, a girlish shyness on her lips, and said softly, "No need to thank me, this is something I did voluntarily for Fengyun."