Lin Jingyue glanced at the two lines of text on the severance agreement and nodded. Without waiting for Lin Jingyan to call a pageboy to chase her away, she took the initiative to bid farewell to Lin Hengan and his wife:
"From now on, we have nothing to do with each other. I hope you both take care."
Seeing that the matter was settled, Lin Jingyan resumed her usual haughty posture and sneered indifferently:
"Let me give you a piece of advice: do not covet wealth, nor let glory blind your eyes. The Marquis Manor is fine, but after all, it is not something you can manage."
Lin Jingyue looked at her with a smile that was not a smile: "I hope you understand this logic as well."
This remark was better said to herself.
Had Lin Jingyan truly understood these words, she wouldn't have made Lin Jingyue take her place back at the Marquis Manor upon her rebirth, forcibly snatching away her path to the title of noble lady and glory.
Well, let her snatch it if she wanted to. Did she really think that marrying a military officer as a merchant's daughter was anything good?
Especially since that military officer was a rare "good person" who loved to use family silver to subsidize his brothers and friends, willing to go through fire and water for his sworn brothers, yet wronging his own family in every possible way.
His younger biological brother was ungrateful and unruly, his younger sister hid a knife in her smile while tormenting others mercilessly, and his mother-in-law harbored no good intentions whatsoever.
As for the military officer bringing back a pair of orphans and a widow every time he returned to the Capital after a battle, showering them with silver, manors, and shops—not to mention how utterly distressing that was.
"Alright, good riddance. If you head back now, you'll just in time catch the whole Marquis family reuniting."
Lin Jingyan ordered the pageboy to escort Lin Jingyue and her maid away, and Lin Hengan did not stop them.
Along the way, Lin Jingyue turned her head to look at the harmonious Lin family before turning back to ponder the meaning behind Lin Jingyan's words.
In her past life, Lin Jingyan had been reluctant to leave the Lin family and delayed for quite a while. When she finally arrived at the gates of the Marquis Manor, she happened to run into the Old Madame returning from offering incense at the temple, allowing her to smoothly enter the Chengyuan Marquis Manor.
When she cried and complained upon returning home, she had briefly mentioned it, but Lin Jingyue hadn't taken it to heart back then.
Thinking about it carefully now, I'm afraid even entering the gates of the Chengyuan Marquis Manor involved unspeakable trouble—no wonder Lin Jingyan didn't want to return and forced her to assume an identity.
Upon receiving the pageboy's report that Lin Jingyue had left in a carriage, a flash of a smile crossed Lin Jingyan's eyes.
Madame Lin chided: "You child! Even if Lin Jingyue is no longer a member of the Lin family, she is still recognizing her ancestry at the Marquis Manor, holding a lofty status. There will surely be times in the next two years when she comes in handy. By driving her away so impatiently, aren't you making an enemy of her?"
Lin Jingyan snorted, summoned the steward to prepare the carriage to inspect the shops, and then pacified the two elders who both looked somewhat disapproving:
"Mother, you overestimate Lin Jingyue. With her petty, narrow-minded appearance, how could the Marquis Manor ever think highly of her? Even if she manages to step foot inside the Chengyuan Marquis Manor, she'll never amount to any noble lady; she's probably even worse off than the servants of the manor."
In her previous life, when she rushed to the Chengyuan Marquis Manor, it happened to be a day off for the household, and the entire family was entertaining distinguished guests, leaving the main gates closed to visitors.
Steward Wang of the Marquis Manor had forced her to enter through the back door. Out of anxiety, Lin Jingyan had agreed, but the moment she stepped inside the back door, she was mocked by the manor's maids and pageboy for having an improper background—so furious that she made the driver pull back out to the entrance.
Then she happened to run into the Old Madame returning from offering incense and followed her in through the front gates.
Although she ultimately entered the Marquis Manor through the front gates, the servants spread gossip throughout the manor, and even the young ladies and young masters of the household looked at her with a hint of mockery. Yet she couldn't do a thing about it, making her swallow a bellyful of humiliation and grievances.
In this lifetime, she would let Lin Jingyue suffer the exact grievances she had endured, be looked down upon by servants, and be mocked and sneered at by her own kin until she died of suppressed frustration!
*
The carriage swayed and jolted, unsettling Bochun's heart.
She cautiously glanced at Steward Wang from the Marquis Manor driving the carriage outside, lowered her voice, and said with trepidation: "Miss, the Master and Madame are truly too cruel. He..."
Lin Jingyue half-lifted the carriage curtain. The streets were teeming with people, dotted everywhere with shops and stalls, far more prosperous than Jiangnan:
"Watch your words and behavior. Entering the Marquis Manor is not like being unruly at home. Complaining in private is one thing, but you must not ruin important matters."
What important matters?
Her assuming Lin Jingyan's identity to return to the Chengyuan Marquis Manor was the paramount matter at present, and not a single word must ever leak out.
Bochun hurriedly nodded. After a long while, unable to suppress the anxiety in her heart, she repeatedly looked toward Lin Jingyue.
Lin Jingyue dropped the carriage curtain, looked up to touch the Blood Jade Bead around her neck, and said indifferently:
"Rest assured, as long as I can bring sufficient benefits to the Marquis Manor, no one will care who I am; they will only hold me high with utmost respect."
The Lin family of her past life was a vivid example.
Lin Hengan and his wife had always favored Lin Jingyan since childhood, but when she, Lin Jingyue, managed shops and earned a fortune, didn't Lin Hengan still have to treat her with a pleasant expression, terrified she would throw down her hands and quit, and even begging her to manage more shops?
Who would ever go against silver?
A merchant family was like this, and the Chengyuan Marquis Manor was no exception.
Besides, the Chengyuan Marquis Manor had taken half a month to visit and only dispatched a steward, which clearly showed a lack of importance.
Without importance, how could they possibly investigate deeply?
Bochun half-understood, but she had made up her mind to follow her young miss all the way.
"Stop the carriage."
A voice came from inside the carriage.
The moment Steward Wang heard it, he knew it was that young miss recognized just today. Her voice was icy cold, like melting snow on a spring day, sending a sudden shudder through a person.
"Miss, we'll reach the Marquis Manor in two more streets. Stopping here now is rather inconvenient."
Lin Jingyue lifted the carriage curtain and spoke calmly: "Arriving at the Marquis Manor for the first time, how can I enter without bringing some tokens of greeting? Stop the carriage by the roadside; I'll pick out a few things to present to my father, mother, and eldest brother."
Steward Wang couldn't help sneering softly. Truly someone who had seen nothing of the world—what did the Marquis Manor lack that she needed to bring gifts?
She was probably feeling anxious inside upon returning to the Marquis Manor and wanted to use greeting gifts to curry favor with the Marquis and Madame.
"It's not my place to talk too much, Miss, but this shop sells nothing but expensive items. You cannot afford them."
He had heard from the Lin family that the ties were severed, no silver was given, and only a single shop was handed over.
The master of the Lin family even complained that he had raised the Marquis Manor's daughter for all these years for nothing and demanded the silver back.
Lin Jingyue glanced at Steward Wang, and Bochun immediately glared with great boldness:
"Whether we can afford it is up to a servant like you to manage? Just stop the carriage. Or are the servants of the Marquis Manor so audacious that they dare make decisions for their young miss?"
Steward Wang's face darkened. Knowing Bochun was putting him in his place, he glared viciously at her and slowly brought the carriage to a halt by the roadside.
Bochun jumped down from the carriage and helped Lin Jingyue into the shop bearing the plaque inscribed with the words "Jingya Pavilion".
Jingya Pavilion was a renowned bookstore in the Capital, offering everything from writing brushes, ink, inkstones, old books, and ancient relics to landscape paintings and more.
The moment one stepped inside, a dazzling array of goods met the eye.
Bochun had only followed the Lin family to the Capital half a month ago and had never been out before, so she found everything novel and fresh.
Seeing Lin Jingyue walking with familiar ease toward a corner, she hurried to follow.
After taking just two steps, a scholarly-looking shopkeeper immediately stepped forward to greet them:
"This young miss, these are some worthless old books and damaged writing brushes, ink, and inkstones that can still be used. For just ten copper coins, you can pick one and take it away."
Lin Jingyue's gaze swept over a few scholars huddled in the corner rummaging for good finds, and she called out: "Bochun."
Bochun paid the money and curiously examined the old books on the shelves and the items piled on the floor: "Miss, this place is full of dust. What good things could possibly be here?"
Lin Jingyue pulled a yellowed book from the shelf and smiled: "Try our luck and pass the time along the way. In case we unearth some good treasure, it can happen to serve as a greeting gift for the eldest brother."
In her previous life, Jingya Pavilion had suffered a terrible fate, getting entangled in a cheating scandal and coming close to bankruptcy. Lin Jingyue had spent a heavy sum to buy it out and accidentally discovered an unmatched, sole-surviving manuscript.
It was by presenting this sole-surviving manuscript that she established a connection with that fifth-rank official, and taking advantage of it, that official's career flourished, and before long he was promoted to Senior Vice Minister of the Rites.
Reborn into this life, to prevent any prolonged delays leading to trouble, Lin Jingyue intended to secure the unrivaled unique manuscript into her possession early so she could rest easy.