A carriage galloped across the land of Anguo, gradually heading in a certain direction.
"What are you looking at?" the young master asked Anning.
Anning lowered her hand, and the curtain fell, blocking the last trace of scenery from the outside world.
"After all, I've lived here all my life, and to suddenly leave one day, it's just a bit emotional."
The young master heard this and said, "Emotions stirred by familiar sights."
Anning turned her head and asked, "Tell me about your situation."
The young master nodded, "I am Shen Yunxuan, from Huangze Zhaoping. My father is Shen Congwen, the Prefect of Huangze Zhaoping, and my mother is the daughter of the richest family in Zhaoping, the Yang family. My father has two concubines, and I have an eldest illegitimate brother and two illegitimate younger sisters."
Shen Yunxuan said a lot, and Anning's head started to ache. She couldn't help but hold her forehead. "Your family is truly prosperous."
Shen Yunxuan nodded, "Since we haven't divided the family, there are more people. However, you don't need to worry about any of them. Just complete the task I've given you."
Anning nodded, "If something unavoidable happens, you must protect me."
"You don't need to worry about that, miss. I will be the first to stand by your side."
"Even if it causes chaos in your household, is that alright?" Anning asked with a raised eyebrow.
Shen Yunxuan chuckled softly, raised his head, and his eyes sparkled with amusement. "If you can, miss, I will be very grateful to you. I haven't asked for your name yet."
"Ning An," Anning said.
Shen Yunxuan was slightly taken aback. "That surname is truly rare."
Anning said, "Yes."
After these words, the two fell into silence. Except for meals, Anning closed her eyes to rest.
To be honest, she was a little afraid. Having rarely left the palace since she woke up, she was now leaving Anguo to go to Huangze.
It would be a lie to say she wasn't scared.
After half a month, the carriage entered the land of Huangze.
Upon stepping onto the land of Huangze, Anning felt a sense of familiarity, as if she had lived on this land before.
However, she had never been here.
"Huangze is more prosperous than Anguo," Shen Yunxuan said slowly, looking at Anning who was gazing out of the window.
"Indeed," Anning did not refute. Good is good, bad is bad.
Shen Yunxuan heard this and sighed, "It was more prosperous before."
Anning heard this, turned to look at him, and asked, "Before?"
Shen Yunxuan nodded, "Yes, but that's all in the past."
Anning didn't understand. Seeing that Shen Yunxuan didn't continue, she didn't ask further.
After another ten days of travel, the carriage finally entered Zhaoping.
A group of people stood at the entrance of the Prefectural Governor's mansion in Zhaoping. Indeed, it was a crowd.
Leading the group was a slightly older woman with graying hair. She anxiously asked the woman beside her, "Yunxuan should be arriving soon, shouldn't he?"
The woman replied, "Mother, please don't worry. Yunxuan said in his letter that it would be today. It's still a bit cool now. You should go back and wait, don't..."
"Enough, this old woman is just old, not useless. Standing here is not a problem." The old woman had no intention of returning.
"Old Madam, it's fine for you to stand, but we are all standing here with you?"
The old woman didn't turn her head, only said coldly, "This old woman didn't ask you to accompany her. If you are unwilling, you can return to the mansion."
Although the speaking woman was displeased, she had no intention of returning.
"Mother, when will Eldest Brother be back?" a little girl asked the woman beside her.
The woman stroked the little girl's head and said, "Don't rush, he'll be here soon."
Someone in the crowd shouted, "They're here, they're here!"
Seeing this, the old woman quickly stepped forward a few steps. The woman beside her quickly supported her. "Mother, please go slower."
The carriage stopped, the driver got down, the carriage curtain was lifted, and a handsome young man stepped out. He came before the old woman and knelt down with a thud.
"Your grandson is unfilial and has made you worry, Grandmother." The old woman's eyes were filled with tears of emotion. "Yunxuan, you're finally back."
Old Madam Shen stepped forward to help Shen Yunxuan up. Shen Yunxuan dared not let Old Madam Shen help him up and quickly got up, saying, "Grandmother, why are you waiting outside? It's windy, quickly go back inside."
Before Old Madam Shen could speak, someone behind her spoke, "Isn't it to wait for you? We've been waiting for over an hour."
Shen Yunxuan looked up and his gaze fell on the speaker. He sneered and was about to speak when Madam Shen spoke, "If Feng Yiniang is unwilling to wait, she doesn't have to come out. Since you are out, are you complaining that the Old Madam made you suffer in the cold here?"
Feng Yiniang was stunned. Seeing the Old Madam's increasingly dark expression, she quickly curtsied and said, "This concubine did not mean that, this concubine..."
"Enough, go back," Old Madam Shen snorted and said coldly to Feng Yiniang.
Feng Yiniang resentfully snorted and left.
"Yunxuan, don't go out again now that you're back. Stay at home obediently. Grandmother and your mother have chosen a good marriage for you," Old Madam Shen said with a smile.
Upon hearing about the marriage, Madam Shen's face lit up with joy. "Yunxuan, do you remember your Xue Ling sister?"
Shen Yunxuan frowned, "Xue Ling sister?"
Madam Shen nodded, "Yes, she's your cousin from your maternal uncle's family."
"Yang Xueling?" Shen Yunxuan finally remembered.
Madam Shen was overjoyed and said, "It's her. She's willing to marry you. Yunxuan, you should be happy. Xue Ling is a good child, and she doesn't care that you were previously engaged."
Mentioning the engagement, Shen Yunxuan's expression turned unpleasant. Madam Shen sighed upon hearing this, " Nangong Yue did indeed go too far, but your father has already made the Nangong family suffer greatly, so they can never rise again. You should calm down."
"Yes, Mother is right," Shen Yunxuan said, not refuting Madam Shen for the first time.
Madam Shen was somewhat surprised. Striking while the iron was hot, she asked, "Yunxuan, what do you think of Xue Ling?"
Marrying someone else was not as good as marrying into one's own family. That would be a true union of kinship.
Moreover, Xue Ling was willing, and she also liked Xue Ling. She hadn't thought of it in that direction before, as her maternal family were merchants, and she was afraid her husband wouldn't approve. Now that Yunxuan's engagement was broken, it was an opportunity for Xue Ling.
"Not bad," Shen Yunxuan said. His memory of Yang Xueling was from before, that quiet little girl who liked to follow him.
She wasn't annoying, but would marriage be dull?
"However..."
Madam Shen raised her head and asked, "However, what?"
Shen Yunxuan smiled, and a hint of mischievousness appeared on his handsome face. "Uncle, Aunt, can I marry someone else into the mansion first?"
Madam Shen was stunned and took half a day to react. "Who?"
Amidst everyone's surprise, Shen Yunxuan leaned down and said, "Grandmother, Mother, during my travels, Miss Ning An and I developed feelings for each other, and our hearts are connected. Therefore, I wish to marry Miss Ning An into the mansion."
Madam Shen didn't think much of it and said, "It's just taking a concubine, what's not possible?"
"Mother, it's not taking a concubine, it's marrying," Shen Yunxuan corrected Madam Shen.