It is said that one who does good deeds in a past life will be blessed with good fortune in the next.
As Shen Feiwan knelt before the mortuary tablet of the Heir of the Yongan Marquis Manor, she mused that this must be the good fortune heaven had bestowed upon her. Promotion, wealth, and a dead husband—she had been looking forward to such delightful events for forty years!
At the mere thought that her younger half-sister had been reborn half a year earlier than her, swapped their marital prospects to wed the Heir’s younger brother—the Third Young Master, Xiao Nian’an—and would likely adopt those two shameless foster sons of hers tomorrow, she couldn't help but smile.
In her previous life, the states of Qi and Sheng had gone to war. On the very night she and her sister married into the Yongan Marquis Manor, before the nuptials were even consummated, the Heir, Xiao Ling, and Xiao Nian’an were ordered to the front lines. Half a year later, the manor received only a cold coffin and the wounded, impotent Xiao Nian’an. The Yongan Marquis Manor’s bloodline had effectively been severed.
Her mother-in-law, Madam She, was devastated, and they had no choice but to adopt heirs from the clan. Shen Lianxin chose two daughters, hoping they would marry into prestigious families and restore the manor’s reputation, but the results were far from ideal. Her eldest daughter, Xiao Zhizhi, was born under a cursed star; she withered away only half a year after marrying into the Prime Minister’s residence. Her second daughter, Xiao Yanran, was arrogant and self-centered, lacking the wisdom to cherish her own reputation; she incited several noble heirs in the capital to brawl over her, ultimately ruining her name and wasting her life in bitterness. In the end, Shen Lianxin lost her mind and died in a state of deep depression.
Shen Feiwan, however, had been a devoted daughter-in-law, a strict disciplinarian to her sons, and had persuaded them to trade the sword for the brush. Under her guidance, her eldest son, Xiao Huanyu, rose to the rank of Prime Minister and became the new Emperor's right-hand man. Her youngest, Xiao Aoshi, became a Vice Minister; after marrying the Princess of Anqing, he started a family, allowing the Yongan Marquis Manor to rise once more.
Yet, every cup of bitterness is known only to the one who drinks it.
After returning from the battlefield, Xiao Nian’an could not perform as a man. Obsessed with his pride, he pretended his virility remained intact, spending his days in brothels and gambling dens, squandering fortunes. He even became fixated on using sinister rituals to "recharge his life force," forcibly taking three concubines. He nearly died in the process, yet failed to leave behind a single child, soon becoming little more than a husk who spent his days in a wheelchair. And as for those two foster sons...
Shen Feiwan pondered the past. Had it not been for her holding the Yongan Marquis Manor together, it would have collapsed long ago. She clicked her tongue. "Shen Lianxin, you really ought to grow a brain." Raising children with a man like Xiao Nian’an was nothing short of a living hell. The title of Noble Consort she had earned was something she had traded her life to secure—it was also the new Emperor’s way of exerting pressure and control over the Yongan Marquis Manor.
But Shen Lianxin did not understand this.
Dawn was approaching. Shen Feiwan had been kneeling on vigil all night and felt an ache in her lower back. As she looked up, she suddenly saw the candles flicker out, and a faint sound seemed to emanate from the tightly sealed coffin before her.
A haunting?
Shen Feiwan suddenly recalled her previous life. During the night of the vigil, Shen Lianxin had also encountered something strange. After that night, she had raved and ranted, refusing to take another step into the mortuary, and was summoned by Madam She for a long reprimand, after which she fell ill for over half a month.
At this time, the Yongan Marquis Manor held enough power to threaten the throne, and the eyes of the palace were fixed upon them; the slightest disturbance could destroy the family. This was the very reason why Shen Lianxin had been scolded by Madam She back then.
This coffin had been brought back from the battlefield, a sign of the Emperor’s vast benevolence in having the Heir’s body dug out from a pile of corpses. What could possibly be amiss? Could a perfectly dead corpse really return to life?
Shen Feiwan gritted her teeth, stood up, and walked toward the coffin. She had weathered a lifetime of storms; there was nothing she had not seen. She was confident she could handle whatever came.
When Shen Feiwan reached out to rap on the wood, she felt a flicker of regret. He was dead, how could he...
Shen Feiwan walked around the coffin. The night wind brushed past, making her white mourning robes look forlorn and adrift. She clenched her hands into fists and summoned the soldiers guarding the hall. "You lot, come in."
"What are your orders, Eldest Young Mistress?"
"Open the coffin."
Shen Feiwan’s expression was calm, her words resolute. "I am taking the risk of desecrating the Heir's memorial to have you do this. Regardless of the outcome, I will shoulder the responsibility. But if anyone dares to whisper a word of tonight’s events, I swear in the name of the Yongan Marquis Manor and the Shen family: I will not let you off!"
It was widely rumored in the capital that the eldest daughter of the Shen family, Shen Feiwan, was a woman of peerless beauty and brilliant wit. At this moment, her presence was truly formidable.
"By daybreak, this coffin will be interred. If he is still alive..."
Then it would be a live burial!
Her eyes grew moist. Even if she were wrong, and were forced to kneel in punishment or face the wrath of Madam She, it did not matter. She could not watch a man die in vain while still drawing breath.
Was this what had frightened Shen Lianxin into an illness in her past life?
She was not so fragile. As a first-rank noble lady, what was there to fear from a mere...
Half an incense stick later, Shen Feiwan watched with her own eyes as the lid was pried open. A blood-stained hand emerged, the knuckles distinct, clutching the edge of the wood, weak and trembling.
Shen Feiwan’s heart turned cold. Her life as a blissful widow had come to an end.
***
By morning, the Yongan Marquis Manor finally felt a spark of vitality due to Xiao Nian’an’s return.
Madam She sat in the high seat, watching as he took Shen Lianxin’s hand to offer her tea. "Good, good. That An’er could return safely is a blessing from our ancestors. You two must support and look after one another from now on; our Yongan Marquis Manor relies on the two of you."
"Yes, Mother."
Xiao Nian’an coughed a few times, looking listless and frail. He had tried quite hard with Shen Lianxin the previous night, and now his body felt even more hollow. Because Shen Lianxin knew his body had been capable in her previous life, she had tried to stimulate him, hoping to help him regain his vigor and thereby triumph over Shen Feiwan, finally standing tall in the manor. But Xiao Nian’an was useless; there had been absolutely no reaction.
Madam She was a woman of experience; how could she not know what had transpired? She hoped for his recovery too, but one could not be so hasty. Shen Lianxin was far too reckless.
"Lianxin, An’er’s health is not what it once was, and you are newlyweds, but remember: do not be impatient. I think it is better for you to keep some distance for now. Once we have laid your eldest brother to rest, we will seek out famous physicians after a time to examine An’er carefully. Surely, a remedy can be found."
The accompanying military physician had said that Xiao Nian’an had no external injuries; his condition was likely due to mental trauma, resulting in his impotence. Put plainly, he had been frightened on the battlefield and needed a period of quiet recuperation at home. Perhaps... perhaps he could still be of use.
Madam She only had this one son left; she did not want him to lose his life over marital duties.
Hearing this, Shen Lianxin had no choice but to lower her head and agree, despite her deep resentment. She could not fathom why, after being reborn and living as a widow for half a year, the Xiao Nian’an who returned was a cripple. Why was the Xiao Nian’an of her previous life able to take three concubines, but when it came to her, he was useless?
Could it be that Shen Feiwan possessed some extraordinary secret to controlling men?
If so, she was determined to find it. Even if she had to feed him every potent tonic under the sun, she would bear the bloodline of the Marquis Manor with her head held high!