After a night of mountain rain, the fresh morning mist lightly enveloped the palatial eaves and blue tiles, the red railings dazzling in the sun, and the cypress and pine trees refreshed with new green leaves.

The young lady, Zanying, had slept soundly throughout the night and, upon waking on the soft couch, instinctively reached up to check if the hairpin on her head was still there.

Last night, Chun Jin had helped her to bed without removing the black jade hairpin, so not only was the hairpin still in place, but the scalp was also sore from being tightly bound.

“Miss Zanying is awake. Would you like to wear this hairpin today, or shall we choose another style?” Chun Jin asked as she approached with water and a handkerchief to attend to her.

Zanying couldn’t remember when she had fallen asleep last night.

Rubbing her drowsy eyes, she got up and sat at the mirror table.

She touched the phoenix-shaped copper mirror that her mother had used, adjusting the angle to view her face.

She turned her left side and then her right, looking at the man’s style hairpin on her head.

After a while, she reluctantly removed the jade hairpin and gently placed it on the table, then raised her hand to loosen her long hair, letting it cascade over her shoulders.

“Find a sandalwood box to store it properly. This is my coming-of-age gift, and it’s not something I can wear every day.”

Chun Jin sensed Zanying’s affection for the hairpin.

Only when she was relaxed did Zanying’s soft and delicate voice reveal a hint of sweetness.

Chun Jin felt both heartache and relief.

Usually pampered and adored, Zanying had not received any birthday gifts or celebrations the previous day, and no one had been there to celebrate with her.

Fortunately, Grand Marshal had made up for this shortfall for the young lady.

“Also,” Zanying’s eyes were clear, “I have left the palace, so you don’t need to call me ‘Miss’ anymore. I am not a princess.”

Chun Jin agreed and picked up a comb to style her hair into an elegant cloud-and-snow hairdo. “Then I shall call you ‘young lady.’”

Mrs. Ren, who had brought several sets of clothes, entered the room and heard this.

She smiled and added, “And don’t call me ‘auntie’ either. I’m not that old. If you don’t mind, call me ‘sister.’ Did you sleep well last night?”

“I slept very well. I am truly grateful to you, Aunt Ren, and Sister Chunjin for all your trouble,” Zanying said as she stood and greeted them.

She was very fond of Mrs. Ren’s free and cheerful demeanor.

This unrestrained and vibrant personality was something she had never seen in the palace over the years.

After that, Zanying pretended to be troubled. “Should I call you sister, but refer to Manager Du as ‘uncle’?”

Mrs. Ren laughed heartily. “What’s the matter with that? I don’t mind him acting old-fashioned, and he shouldn’t delay my youthful years.”

Chun Jin found Mrs. Ren’s words quite amusing and couldn’t help but laugh.

After some playful banter, Mrs. Ren’s expression became serious as she dismissed the servants and spoke on official matters.

“Young lady, there have been some developments at the morning court session.”

She informed Zanying about the morning court session, where there were accusations against the Crown Prince and other matters, including how the Prime Minister Wang subtly reminded the Emperor that Zanying was no longer the Crown Princess after her engagement was annulled.

Zanying’s eyes brightened at this news.

She unconsciously pressed down on her right arm and murmured, “Better than I expected.”

When she first planned to break off the engagement, Zanying was aware that with her weak position and apparent wealth, merely having determination would not be enough to completely escape the royal family.

Although Manager Du had taken over the Tang family’s business, which could serve as her backing, there were two issues.

First, after years of living in the palace under Yu Shi’s sheltered upbringing, she knew little about her family’s assets, connections, power, and abilities.

Being confined in the palace, she couldn’t gauge the outside world.

Second, she didn’t want to put Uncle Du and the Tang family directly in the crosshairs of royal pressure and harassment.

How could she, just because she had support, simply lean on that backing and leave everything to Manager Du?

No, the Tang family was protecting her, and she wanted to do her utmost to safeguard the Tang family’s business in return.

Therefore, she needed to borrow strength; she needed the involvement of a third-party force to divert the palace’s predatory attention.

That force would be the Wang family.

Zanying knew nothing of state affairs, had no idea who were the Fu family’s political enemies, nor did she understand the grudges and struggles between noble families.

She only remembered from her previous life that two years after she was confined to Luo Zhi Yuan, the emperor fell gravely ill, and Chancellor Wang Xiao maneuvered to replace the Crown Prince with the Second Prince, Li Xinglang.

Back in the Yuzhu Hall, Nurse Lu guarded against all sorts of gossip, making Zanying feel like she was living in a glass cage—able to see the vast sky yet unaware of the movements of wind and clouds.

Later, when she was thrown into the Cold Palace, perhaps deemed useless, the restrictions loosened, and she managed to piece together bits of news about the court from Chun Jin and some gossipy young eunuchs.

She still remembered lying with a high fever when she heard about it, fervently hoping Chancellor Wang Xiao would succeed.

She didn’t care about treason or rebellion; she simply believed that if the Eastern Palace were replaced, she might be able to leave Luo Zhi Palace or even the entire palace.

But alas, Wang Xiao ultimately failed.

This led to Li Jinghuan’s crackdown on the noble families upon his ascension, the aristocracy’s backlash, internal chaos in the Jin Dynasty, and eventually, the rise of peasant uprisings across various regions.

But no matter what, one thing was certain: the Wang family did not wish to see the Crown Prince thrive.

Thus, when news spread of her breaking off the engagement, it was only natural that the Wang family, who were pleased to see this development, would throw in some obstacles.

This would force the Emperor and Empress Yu to redirect half of their focus from her onto dealing with other matters.

Previously, when she returned to the Fu residence and made a big scene emptying out the Rui Garden, it was also to stir up as much noise as possible.

Jiankang City was only so big; if this incident could spread throughout the capital, that would be ideal.

Then she went to Xishan Palace, leveraging its undeniable historical ties to remind the court of her engagement to the royal family, an arrangement made between her mother and Lady Wei—unrelated to the Crown Prince of Empress Yu. If this could spark some public debate, even better.

These were the moves she devised after regaining memories of her past life, spending four or five days and nights in the Yuzhu Hall, thinking carefully without stepping outside.

She was slow, naive, her mind as blank as a sheet of paper, so she had to mull over her plan for a long, long time.

In the end, she decided to try and muddy the waters.

The key to muddling the waters was to draw more people into the fray.

That’s why she had to wear white—a color bound to draw criticism; she had to let guests witness the Crown Prince’s affair with Fu Zhuangxue; she had to break off the engagement publicly, create a fuss at the Fu residence to spread the news across the streets, and go to the Xishan Palace with much fanfare.

Zanying knew that this plan might not be perfect and could face unforeseen complications, but it was the best she could come up with after exhausting all her wits.

Fortunately, the outcome had been much better than expected.

Zanying walked out of her bedchamber with a bright expression.

Her skirt flowed like lotus petals, her wide sleeves billowing in the wind.

She used both hands to push open the palace doors, letting the fresh, rain-washed air fill her lungs.

It was a fine day.

Standing beneath the high pavilion roof with its soaring eaves and atop the long steps, the girl lifted her face to embrace the golden, radiant sunlight.

Today was the first time in her life she truly felt that even the fragile flapping of a butterfly’s wings could stir up a storm.

It was just a small change, but it set Zanying’s heart alight.

Opening her eyes, she saw specks of gold shimmering in her gaze.

This was only the beginning, Zanying told herself.

There was no time to lose—she still needed to ask Uncle Du for a detailed account list.

“Where is the young lady going?” Chun Jin hurried after her, calling out, “The palace steps are high; be careful not to fall!”

Mrs. Ren, observing Zanying’s expression carefully, lowered her voice and said, “Young lady, are you frightened? Don’t worry, Uncle Du is outside. Besides, if the Crown Prince has indeed acted improperly, it’s not something that we can be blamed for.”

“I’m not afraid,” Zanying replied with a smile as she turned around. “I want to discuss something with Uncle Du.”

She stepped down the stairs and saw a group of about ten people gathered around the banana trees in the central courtyard.

Among them were young maidservants and middle-aged servants, lined up in two rows.

At the front was a young maid with a long face, holding a thin copper tray with gold inlay.

She was instructing everyone to take good care of the young lady while distributing rewards.

Zanying had seen palace maids receive their monthly wages before, but they were given silver coins, not the copper coins in the tray.

She paused for a moment, walked over, and picked up a copper coin with her delicate fingers, examining it curiously in the sunlight.

The maidservants, who had been urgently summoned to serve Miss Fu, were seeing the legendary young lady in person for the first time.

They hurried to greet her or offer their respects.

Zanying, who had long lived in the palace, asked, “Is this a wuzhu coin?”

The maidservants were quite surprised.

Among them was a round-faced, green-clad maid with a youthful appearance.

She looked enviously at the young lady’s fairy-like beauty and, hearing her soft voice like sugary candy, felt a fondness.

Boldly, she replied, “Yes, it’s a wuzhu coin. How could the young lady not recognize it?”

=