The late winter's cold wind beat against the vermilion lacquered gates of the Shen Estate, making the Jiaotu-patterned bronze ring on the beast-head knocker chime melodiously. Passing through the winding corridors, gilded candelabras illuminated the banquet hall as bright as day. Twelve twin-lotus-shaped candle flames flickered on coiled-dragon-patterned lamp bases, wax tears slowly rolling down the exquisite cloud-patterned candlesticks to congeal into dark red stains on the rosewood long table. The crystal bead curtains hanging from the eaves swayed gently with the drafts, their tinkling sound intertwining with the music of strings and flutes, yet failing to drown out Shen Mingyue's drum-like heartbeat.
Dressed in a moon-white ruqun, she sat upright in her seat, her filigree enamel nail guards tapping lightly against the white jade wine cup to produce a crisp sound. The wine reflected Lady Cao's forced smile opposite her; the tangled-lotus pattern on that dark purple brocade ruqun seemed to come alive, twisting and coiling under the candlelight. Shen Mingyue twirled the jade bracelet on her wrist, deliberately increasing her strength. The crisp sound, like a broken silver bell, successfully overpowered the chatting among the guests: "They say aged fine wine gets more flavorful the more you taste it, just like certain past events—when you ponder them closely, there is always some unexpected truth."
This remark fell like a pebble into a deep pool, sending ripples through the originally lively banquet hall. Shen Qingyao's hand as she reached for a dish gave a violent jerk, sending a piece of braised duck breast tumbling onto the celadon plate and splashing red oil, her meticulously drawn distant-mountain eyebrows instantly twisting into a knot. The maidservant beside her hurriedly handed over a handkerchief, but was brushed aside with a wave of her sleeve. As the cuff slipped down, it revealed half of an inner lining embroidered with dark patterns—the very same cloud-thunder pattern found on the clothing of the man secretly meeting at the Ruined Temple in the West City.
The pearl earrings on Lady Cao's earlobes shook violently, the knuckles of the hand holding the tea cup turning white, yet she still maintained an elegant posture. Beneath the meticulously blended rouge at the corners of her eyes, a flash of panic crossed her gaze, vanishing in an instant. "The Eldest Miss's words are so mysterious; could it be she has read until she's tired and needs a doctor to prescribe a calming decoction?" Her voice was frighteningly steady, but her unconscious action of rubbing the tangled-lotus pattern along the edge of the tea cup while speaking betrayed her inner unease. The personal nanny behind her sensed her mistress's abnormality and quietly reached her hand into her sleeve, where hidden might be silver needles for self-defense or secret notes for passing messages.
At the head of the table, General Shen heavily set down his wine cup, the dragon-patterned jade pendant at his waist striking a dull thud, and his fierce tiger eyes swept across the room: "Today is the family banquet before Yue'er's coming-of-age ceremony, everyone eat properly!" His intentionally lowered voice carried the majesty of a veteran general of the battlefield, yet could hardly conceal a trace of unease. His palms, hardened from years of campaigning and holding swords, curled slightly on the table, his knuckles whitening from exertion and revealing his turbulent inner state. Madam Shen was leisurely stirring lotus seed soup with a silver spoon, her pearl nail guards casting a cold gleam in the candlelight. Seemingly engrossed in the contents of her bowl, the corners of her eyes nevertheless glanced frequently toward the eldest daughter, the silver spoon knocking against the rim of the bowl with a growing frequency and making tiny clicks.
Shen Mingyue took a shallow sip of wine, the pungency blooming on the tip of her tongue mixing with the bitterness of her mother's herbal medicine from memory, and the past surged like a tide. She suddenly stood up, the sweeping motion of her wide sleeves across the table looking casual yet actually calculated with precision—the grape wine splashed onto the hem of Shen Qingyao's skirt at precisely the right spot to reveal the bronze tally pattern hidden in her sleeve. "Look at my memory; Second Younger Sister's outfit happens to bear a seven-tenths resemblance to the beauty in the portrait at the Ruined Temple in the West City." The banquet hall plunged into instant silence, with only the sound of Shen Qingyao's teeth chattering clearly audible. Her elaborately made-up face was blurred by cold sweat, retaining nowhere near its usual gentle appearance.
"Yue'er!" Madam Shen's silver spoon dropped into the bowl with a "clatter," splashing a few drops of lotus seed soup onto her moon-white skirt hem. As she looked at her daughter, her expression held both shock and worry, her lips moved, but in the end she only clutched her handkerchief tighter. General Shen's hand pressed against the sword at his waist, his knuckles white from tension. The gaze he cast upon his eldest daughter carried scrutiny and incomprehension, as if he were re-evaluating this daughter who was both familiar and strange to him.
Shen Mingyue bent down to pick up the wine pitcher, its spout aimed at Shen Qingyao's trembling hand. This action seemed both like an apology and a threat. "Sister, do not be afraid; I was only reminded of when we were little, how you always loved to steal Mother's rouge and dab it on the corners of your eyes to play the adult." Her fingertips brushed against the vermilion mole at the corner of Shen Qingyao's eye. "Now that very mole has become Sister's most striking hallmark." Her words were soft, yet every syllable was like a knife; with every word spoken, Shen Mingyue could see Shen Qingyao's body shrink back slightly.
Lady Cao could no longer maintain her surface composure, slapping the table with a "crack" that made the candied fruit dish jump and plums roll all over the floor. The golden lace phoenix on her hair bun shook wildly with the violent movement, veins bulging at her temples, and her meticulously painted willow-leaf eyebrows twisted almost into a braid. "Enough! Do you think this is a market teahouse?" Her voice was sharp and piercing, completely devoid of the dignity of a household matriarch on ordinary days. The nanny behind her hurriedly stepped forward to support her, glaring fiercely at Shen Mingyue while muttering under her breath, "The Eldest Miss is trying to throw away all of the Shen Family's face."
Yet Shen Mingyue smiled all the more gently, drawing half a bronze fragment from her sleeve and slowly turning it under the candlelight. The cloud-thunder pattern on the fragment flickered in the light and shadow, identical to the pattern of the imperial secret guards' tally: "Does Father know that this pattern is exactly the same as the imperial secret guards' tally? When Mother had a difficult labor twenty years ago, were there also such 'coincidences'?" Lady Cao's pupils suddenly shrank to the size of needlepoints, her hand holding the tea cup trembling uncontrollably. Scalding tea spilled onto her gold-embroidered cuffs, but she was entirely unaware.
General Shen stood up abruptly, making the long table tremble along with him. The look he cast upon his eldest daughter carried scrutiny and incomprehension. Taking advantage of the moment, Shen Mingyue pushed the medical records to the center of the table; the yellowed pages were ruffled by the draft, and the three characters "Shen Zhang Shi" made everyone squint. Lady Cao felt her throat tighten, as if gripped by an invisible hand, making breathing difficult. The overturned tea cup traced winding, dark brown "bloodstains" across the table, the tea soaking the gold thread embroidery on her cuff like a fresh wound, as if heralding that her carefully woven lies were about to be punctured.
"Father, yesterday daughter went to Jiyuan Hall and found the medical records left behind by Doctor Chen." Shen Mingyue's voice suddenly choked up; this choking was not entirely feigned, as the thought of her mother's miserable death felt like a knife twisting in her heart, yet she knew even better that expressing emotion right now was necessary to win more people's sympathy and trust. "Mother's pre-natal symptoms were clearly chronic poisoning. And Doctor Chen, who wrote these down, 'accidentally' lost his life to mountain bandits after leaving the capital." When she said the word "accidentally," she deliberately heightened her tone, her gaze burning as she stared straight at Lady Cao.
Lady Cao felt as though her heart was about to burst out of her chest, and her vision began to darken. Forcing her body to hold up, she dug her fingernails fiercely into her palms to force herself to calm down. "Absurd!" Her voice carried a trace of imperceptible trembling. "Just because you got some forged things from somewhere, you want to frame me?" Turning to look at General Shen, her eyes filled with tears, she said pitifully, "My lord, ever since this concubine entered the Shen Family, I have observed the rules of propriety, managed the household chores, and never harbored the slightest disloyal thought. Now the Eldest Miss has been bewitched by goodness knows who, actually fabricating such shocking lies. It truly breaks this concubine's heart!"
Shen Qingyao suddenly threw herself before General Shen's knees, weeping like a pear blossom drenched in rain: "Father, please investigate! Elder Sister must have had her mind possessed by evil spirits, and got these things from parts unknown..." Before she could finish speaking, Shen Mingyue flung out a sheepskin roll, unfolding a map of the Shen Estate across the table. The eight characters "working from within and without to control the Shen Estate" made everyone gasp aloud. Lady Cao felt a darkness before her eyes and nearly collapsed, relying entirely on the nanny beside her for firm support. Staring at that familiar terrain map, she felt terrified inside, yet forced herself to maintain composure.
"At three quarters past the Tzi hour last night, Second Younger Sister met secretly with an imperial secret guard at the Ruined Temple in the West City, discussing 'the plan proceeds as usual' and 'sending the items into the palace'." Shen Mingyue's voice was as cold as if steeped in poison, ringing out clearly through the banquet hall word by word. "Could these also be the work of evil spirits?" Lady Cao felt her legs go weak, barely able to support her body. Madly searching her mind for a countermeasure, she nonetheless squeezed out a cold smile on the surface: "Empty words have no proof! Can one condemn a person based merely on a few words? In my view, the Eldest Miss is just eager to rise in power, which is why she thought up such a vicious plot to frame the two of us!"
The sound of shattering porcelain suddenly rang out in the banquet hall. Shen Mingyue turned her head to see the Third Branch's cousin looking deathly pale, the red bean porridge in her overturned bowl winding across the green bricks like blood, resembling a bizarre painting. "I—I suddenly have a headache..." Stumbling, the cousin was helped away by a maidservant, casting a terrified glance at Lady Cao before leaving. This look made Shen Mingyue even more certain that Lady Cao's hidden pawns laid within the Shen Estate went far beyond Shen Qingyao alone. Watching the cousin's retreating figure, Lady Cao secretly thought it bad, knowing the Third Branch pawn was likely about to be exposed. Yet she quickly calmed down, deciding to turn the situation to her advantage.
Suddenly collapsing limply into her chair, she covered her face and wept, her crying nonetheless harboring calculation beneath: "My lord, ever since this concubine entered the Shen Family, keeping to the ways of a virtuous wife, how could I..." Her voice came in broken fragments. "It must be that someone is jealous of Yue'er's impending entry into the palace and deliberately concocted these filthy slanders! Perhaps, perhaps it is the Third Branch that cannot bear to see the Shen Family do well, wanting to meddle and shift the blame onto me!" As she spoke, she even stole glances through her fingers to observe General Shen's reaction.
Just as Shen Mingyue was about to refute, General Shen suddenly smashed his fist onto the table, shaking the cups and saucers into a rattle: "All of you be quiet! Tomorrow I shall investigate this thoroughly myself." Looking at Shen Mingyue, his gaze was complex, holding both shock and suspicion. "Yue'er, since you are the legitimate daughter of the Shen Family, you ought to look out for the family's reputation." Shen Mingyue curtsied and said respectfully, "Daughter understands, only she does not wish for Mother to die in vain, nor does she wish for the Shen Estate to fall into crisis." When she rose, she glanced at Lady Cao without a trace, the warning intent in her eyes self-evident.
The family banquet broke up in discord. Standing under the corridor, Shen Mingyue watched Lady Cao supporting Shen Qingyao as they walked away into the distance. The moonlight stretched their shadows long, bearing a striking resemblance to the times of their former triumphs in her past life. As they walked, Lady Cao whispered into Shen Qingyao's ear, her voice icy: "Keep your composure; these are merely petty tricks. Tomorrow's coming-of-age ceremony will be her day of death. We still have people in the palace as our backing; we must not lose our footing at a time like this." Shen Qingyao nodded from time to time, a vicious look surfacing on her face.
Inside Lady Cao's chambers, Shen Qingyao smashed a bronze mirror fiercely onto the floor, sending fragments scattering in all directions: "Shen Mingyue! She actually dared to humiliate me in public!" The vermilion mole at the corner of her eye twisted with fury. "Mother, we cannot just sit here and wait for death!" Staring at her own distorted face within the bronze mirror fragments, Lady Cao suddenly sneered: "Does she think she can topple us with these? Just as I could make Shen Zhang Shi die without a trace back then, I can make her repeat the same fate today." From the bottom of her vanity case, she retrieved a small gold-traced box containing several crimson pills. "Tomorrow's coming-of-age ceremony will be her day of death." Pouring the pills into her palm and studying them against the candlelight, a vicious glint flashed in her eyes. "This 'Soul-Seizing Powder' is colorless and tasteless; it will surely make her disappear without a sound."
Meanwhile, Shen Mingyue was in her chambers studying the strange symbols on the sheepskin roll. Nanny Liu hurried over with a panicked expression: "Miss, this old servant found out that the Third Branch cousin's biological mother was Lady Cao's dowry maid twenty years ago!" The vermilion brush in Shen Mingyue's hand snapped with a "crack," red pigment splashing onto the terrain map like newly added bloodstains. She suddenly remembered how, in her past life, the Third Branch had miraculously escaped unscathed when the Shen Estate was raided. So, from that time onward, Lady Cao had already laid hidden pawns within the Shen Estate. Pacing back and forth in her room, she pondered the role the Third Branch played in this conspiracy and how to use this clue to further dismantle Lady Cao's power.
"Prepare the carriage; I am going to see someone." Pulling on her cloak, Shen Mingyue wore a resolute gaze. The carriage galloped through the night, its wheels grinding noisily over the slate road and startling a wild cat by the roadside. Eventually, the carriage stopped before an unassuming residence. A one-eyed elderly man opened the door, a flicker of surprise crossing his cloudy eyes when he saw Shen Mingyue: "What brings the Eldest Miss to visit in the middle of the night?" "Uncle Wang, I want to know the truth about Lady Cao marrying into the Shen Family twenty years ago," Shen Mingyue stated flatly. "And what connection she has with the imperial secret guards." Her tone was sincere yet eager, her gaze filled with anticipation.
The one-eyed old man remained silent for a long time before retrieving a sandalwood box from the cabinet containing yellowed letters and faded waist plaques. "Back then, Lady Cao's father was a favorite in front of the late emperor, but was silenced for knowing too many secrets. She married into the Shen Family carrying the late emperor's secret decree with the sole purpose of seizing control of the Shen Family's military power." The old man sighed. "Your mother sensed something was amiss, which is why she..." He left the rest unsaid, but Shen Mingyue already understood everything. Gripping the waist plaque tightly, the dragon pattern upon it had long since blurred. The root of it all actually involved imperial secrets. Thanking the old man, she returned to the carriage as the eastern horizon began to turn pale. The coming-of-age ceremony was fast approaching, and an even greater storm was quietly brewing in the shadows. Yet Shen Mingyue had long since prepared herself to welcome everything. Gently stroking the medical records and sheepskin roll in her arms, her gaze was filled with determination and resolve. This time, she would never let Lady Cao and Shen Qingyao's conspiracy succeed; no matter how many hardships and obstacles lay ahead, she would avenge her mother and seek justice for the Shen Family.