Imperial Capital, Guangde Ward.
At dusk, footsteps echoed through the quiet Tianshui Lane as an agency broker led a young woman toward the depths of the alley. Turning back every few steps to cast a pitiful glance at her, the broker said, "Young madam, this is the only lodging I can find for you right now. One string of copper coins a month is already dirt cheap. In the Imperial Capital, finding a place like this is practically impossible."
The woman was dressed somewhat plainly and held a child in her arms, yet her voice was exceptionally clear and pleasant: "Thank you so much."
Seeing how destitute she was, the broker hurriedly shook his head. He even helped her open the door and carried her meager luggage inside.
"Thank you, good sir." She handed over a string of copper coins, feeling a pang of heartache as she did so.
Two months ago, she suddenly learned that Yueya Town, where she had lived for so long, was not her home, and the Lin family couple who had raised her for years were not her biological parents!
Her father turned out to be the Zhenbei Marquis of the Imperial Capital!
Before Lin Shanyue had even begun to process this truth, the Marquis Estate sent people to fetch her to the Imperial Capital. Later on, however, she discovered the real reason they acknowledged her and taught her the zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, and elite etiquette: they intended to mold her into another young lady of the estate—a substitute bride to take the place of the fake daughter.
Over half a year ago, the Emperor bestowed a marriage alliance between the Zhenbei Marquis Estate and the Prince Regent. Everyone in the Imperial Capital knew that the Prince Regent's face was disfigured, his temperament was eccentric, and he was rumored to have violent tendencies. Unwilling to let Jiang Wanyue—the apple of her eye—marry him, and hearing that there was a biological daughter named Lin Shanyue living in the countryside, the Marchioness immediately seized the opportunity while the Marquis was away on a military campaign in the south to bring Lin Shanyue back, rename her Jiang Shanyue, and force her into the marriage.
This colossal joke left her heart instantly chilled to the bone. Lin Shanyue wanted to confront the Marchioness, but right then, an old woman arrived at the doorstep carrying a two-year-old child in her arms.
This child was someone Lin Shanyue had happened to save by a twist of fate on her journey north. For reasons unknown, the old woman had tracked her down here, and because she spoke with a heavy regional accent, the doorkeeper maid misheard the word "child" as "son." The maid's expression changed instantly, and by that very day, the news that Lin Shanyue had a son had spread throughout the entire Marquis Estate.
Her biological mother dumped her luggage outside without a second thought: "Vile creature! Had we known you were defiled and even gave birth to a son, we never would have brought you back! A waste of time!"
And just like that, she was driven out of the Marquis Estate.
Was she heartbroken...? Not really, just profoundly ironic.
Xiaobao had been found by that old woman, but since the old woman had to go search for her own relatives, she had no choice but to entrust the boy to Lin Shanyue. The old woman's hidden anguish and utter sincerity reminded Lin Shanyue of her own adoptive parents...
Ultimately, her heart softened, and she agreed.
In the dead of winter, it was simply impossible for Lin Shanyue to travel far away from the capital again with a half-grown child. After much deliberation, she decided she had no choice but to settle down here first.
The broker accepted the money, exchanged a few polite pleasantries with her, and turned to close the door behind him.
Lin Shanyue carefully inspected the courtyard. Outside stood a well, next to a simple bathhouse and privy. The interior was rather small, and the roof was somewhat dilapidated. In the bitter winter cold, it was obvious it wouldn't block much wind and snow. But this was already the best place she could find right now. Holding the little boy tightly in her arms, Lin Shanyue stepped inside and cleared a small space for themselves.
The child was about two years old, with exquisite features—handsomer than any toddler she had ever laid eyes on—and Lin Shanyue couldn't help but feel a swell of fondness.
As for his origins... remembering the old woman's hurried entrustment, she paused in a daze, then shook her head and stopped dwelling on it.
She herself had been rescued by a couple in the countryside during the dead of winter when she was a baby, allowing her to grow up healthy and strong. This child and she shared the same unfortunate fate; so be it, she would raise him.
Lin Shanyue tidied up her bundle, which contained very few items to begin with, when her hand suddenly brushed against something hard.
She opened it to look.
It turned out to be a Silver Mirror!
She was quite surprised. The Silver Mirror looked rather valuable, adorned with intricate patterns and exquisite carvings. Although small, it was just the right size to set on a table.
After a moment of thought, Lin Shanyue placed the mirror on the bedside cabinet.
Though she was desperately short of money right now, this might be something left behind by Xiaobao's family, and it could prove useful in the future.
She had no intention of selling it.
Having settled the inside of the room, she turned and went back out to the courtyard to continue cleaning. Dusk was fast approaching, and she had to sweep the courtyard clean as soon as possible so they could settle in for the night.
The two-year-old boy, who had been curiously observing his surroundings, suddenly had his attention caught by the Silver Mirror.
Using his hands and feet, he crawled over. When he lifted his head, the Silver Mirror underwent a change.
"Who are you?"
A man's voice suddenly came from inside, sounding startled by Xiaobao.
Xiaobao wasn't scared off by the other party at all. Hearing the voice, the toddler, a little over two years old, seemed to grow excited. He babbled incessantly and pointed his little finger at the mirror. At the same time, a face appeared on the glass surface—
It was a man whose attire clearly did not belong to this dynasty. He stared out of the Silver Mirror, looking with bizarre curiosity at Xiaobao and the room around him.
"What kind of place is this? A movie set?" The man looked around in astonishment. "And it looks pretty realistic."
Xiaobao made bubbling noises and clapped his little hands, appearing overwhelmingly excited. The man continued, "Who on earth left such a tiny peanut of a kid here? So irresponsible! Where are his parents?! Is this some kind of reality show? And why is there an iPad inside my mirror?"
Of course, Xiaobao couldn't give him an answer, but the boy suddenly fixed his gaze on a biscuit in the man's hand, let out a couple of soft whimpers, and bit his finger—
Baby was hungry, baby wanted to eat.
"Hungry... hungry..."
Hearing those whimpers, the man on the other side caught on: "You want to eat this?" Pondering for a second, he tentatively tossed the item toward the mirror—
The biscuit actually passed right through the mirror and landed in front of Xiaobao!
"Damn! That actually worked." The man was utterly shocked, finally realizing this was a supernatural phenomenon. Just as he was about to test whether he could toss anything else through, Lin Shanyue walked in from outside.
Having just fetched water and swept the courtyard, her pretty, delicate face was smudged with a bit of dust, which did nothing to conceal her beauty. Not noticing Xiaobao's corner, she walked straight over to the table and took out the account book and coins from her bundle.
Hot water was heating on the stove, and she began to calculate her remaining money while pondering her future path.
"Ten strings and three hundred cash, minus one string spent..." Lin Shanyue concentrated deeply, laying out all her worldly possessions.
She now had to consider her future livelihood. Both she and Xiaobao needed to eat and drink, and living off past savings without replenishment would never work. She had to figure out a way to earn money.
"The vegetable plot in the courtyard seems like a good place to grow some greens, which means I'll need to buy seeds... There's nothing in the kitchen, so tomorrow I'll need to buy at least some rice, flour, grain, and oil. There isn't much place to chop firewood around the capital either; I'll need to find a farmer to buy some fine firewood..."
Calculating it all, money had to be spent at every turn. Muttering to herself, Lin Shanyue furrowed her delicate brow.
She closed the account book.
"Xiaobao, what are you doing?" Walking over to the bed, she suddenly spotted the biscuit in front of Xiaobao. Clearly, she had no idea what it was, and picked it up with curiosity to inspect it: "Huh, where did this drop from? Did the previous tenant leave it behind?"