Chapter 1

Title: Evening Breeze by the River, First Released on Jinjiang

March 30, 2023

It was the time of Jingzhe, with rain and mist outside the window.

The tide of moisture spread into the room, and the attendant waiting on the side secretly raised his eyes to glance at the young girl sitting upright beside the desk.

She was the daughter of the Sang family, Sang Yao.

She was as striking as rumored, with a clear and bright beauty that was unforgettable at first sight.

But when it came to beauty, Sang Yao was not considered the best in the capital.

People nowadays value purity over impurity. Women are supposed to be “light” in color, with a preference for a gentle and graceful appearance, like a weak willow in the wind, or like a distant mountain covered in mist, revealing its beautiful meaning.

However, Sang Yao had a stunningly beautiful face, with black hair and fair skin, a slender and full figure. The waist pinched under the silk and satin was so delicate that it could be held in one hand, arousing reverie.

Lost in thought, Sang Yao’s eyes met his.

She did not feel angry at his offense, her eyes filled with pure curiosity.

She seemed to really think he had something important to say and asked softly, “What’s wrong?”

The attendant’s mind went blank, quickly looked away, and said with difficulty, “Miss Sang, I heard from the master that a prominent figure is coming today, and the master should be going to greet him.”

“Please wait a little longer. The master should be back soon.”

Sang Yao sighed softly at the words, her tone dragging, not sounding happy.

She thought it would be better if he came back later.

After all, her father rarely showed her a good face. Today, he suddenly called her over, probably because things were not going well in politics and he wanted to vent his anger on her.

He was currently in the Ministry of Justice.

Not long ago, her father, the current Ministry of Justice attendant, was sitting there in all seriousness lecturing her about some trivial matters. But after hearing something unbelievable, he hurriedly walked out.

At the moment, she did not know why her father had called her here, and there was no one in front of her.

Top of Form

Sang Yao hung her head, thinking gloomily. It probably wasn’t anything good.

Her father usually looked at her unfavorably, always comparing her to the daughter of the Minister of Personnel, saying that the other girl was dignified and courteous, with both talent and beauty, worthy of the imperial power and noble lineage. In contrast, she was just a useless person.

But was she really that useless?

She did try hard in her studies of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, but she couldn’t compare to others.

Moreover, what counted as not being useless?

Her eldest sister was much better than her. Although her birth was not very decent, her eldest sister was like a lotus in clear water, with a great reputation in the capital in her younger days.

Later, her eldest sister entered the palace and became a concubine in just two years. However, recently, the imperial favor had waned, and her father was anxious, fearing it would delay his rise to prominence.

The more she thought about it, the more annoyed Sang Yao became. She absentmindedly lifted the teacup and took a sip, thinking she shouldn’t have entered the palace today. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been called over for a lecture.

Although today happened to be an idle day, most officials had not yet reported for duty, so the large government office seemed a bit empty. Therefore, her father had brought her along on the way here. But even so, it was inappropriate for a young lady like her to stay in the Ministry of Justice.

Feeling bored, Sang Yao asked curiously, “Do you know which important person is coming?”

Her father usually had a high profile and always had a cold face when dealing with lower-ranking officials. The person he was going to greet was probably not an ordinary person.

The attendant shook his head and said truthfully, “I don’t know.”

But he could guess. Over the past few months, Miss Sang had been trying to get to know that person, but she had not had the opportunity. Today, although it was supposed to be an idle day, Miss Sang had stayed behind, probably to meet that person.

Sang Yao murmured softly, “Could it be a prince or a royal grandson…”

Before she could finish speaking, a dull and slightly messy footstep came from outside.

At the same time, she heard her father, Sang Yin, speaking warmly and trying to please someone.

Sang Yao suddenly fell silent, and the sound from outside could be clearly heard in the room.

“He was supposed to be taken to the prison yesterday. It was only because I heard that my esteemed nephew was visiting today that I specially kept this person until today.”

“Nephew, would you like to sit for a while? Let me have someone bring the criminal to see you.”

She couldn’t help but think that if her father treated her as kindly as he treated this person, she wouldn’t be so afraid of him.

After a while, she couldn’t help but be curious. She quietly moved her feet and took a sneak peek outside.

At the end of the corridor, she saw about three or four people standing there. Sang Yin was slightly bowing, with a flattering smile on his face, talking to the leader.

Sang Yao craned her neck to see, and among the crowd, she saw his face.

Sharp jawline, pale and handsome, dressed in black standing there, with the same indifferent expression as usual, but everyone around him bowed their heads and followed him carefully.

He was tall, standing out among the crowd, and his demeanor seemed cold and unfeeling, but he could easily attract the attention of others without daring to linger.

Facing Sang Yin’s obvious flattery, the man’s impatience was already evident, and he said in a low voice, “Minister Sang, if you have nothing else, I’ll take my leave.”

As he turned to leave, Sang Yao caught a glimpse of his face, and her heart skipped a beat. She had seen him before, but she couldn’t remember where.

He replied with a perfunctory “Thank you for your concern” and continued walking. Sang Yin had to exert some effort to keep up with his pace, but the man showed no intention of waiting for the fourth-ranking high official.

He was as arrogant as ever.

Xie Yun, at a young age, held an important position and had outstanding political achievements.

But this was not the main reason why Sang Yin, the Minister of Justice, flattered him. He had another identity, the eldest son of the Xie family.

A hundred years ago, the Xie family shared governance of the country with the emperor, and most officials in the court had some connection to the Xie family. Even the collateral branches of the family were powerful enough to dominate their regions.

A century later, although the Xie family was no longer the same as before, it was still a top-notch aristocratic family, with immense power and even the potential to inherit the imperial power.

Looking at Xie Yun himself, according to current standards of beauty, he could be called the most handsome man, the dream lover of the women in the capital’s noble families.

Regardless of his family background, there was a world of difference between Sang Yao and him.

She pursed her lips, unwilling to look anymore.

However, just as she was about to withdraw her gaze, he seemed to sense something and suddenly looked over, meeting Sang Yao’s eyes.

His gaze was cold but inexplicably oppressive, like being trapped in a cold pond, making people hold their breath. Sang Yao’s heart tightened, and she quickly withdrew her head.

The attendant asked kindly, “Miss Sang, what’s wrong?”

Sang Yao, still feeling scared, shook her head and sat obediently in her chair, praying that Sang Yin wouldn’t bring Xie Yun here. Then she replied, “It’s nothing, nothing.”

Many women admired Xie Yun, but most of those feelings were kept secret, and no one dared to express them openly. Sang Yao wasn’t sure why either.

She secretly speculated that it was because he had a refined and gentlemanly appearance, but a bad temper, often looking down on others. With such inconsistency, how could anyone truly like him with genuine feelings?

She hung her head and thought that she didn’t like Xie Yun just because of his face.

Strictly speaking, although the Xie family had reached the pinnacle, there was no superior-inferior relationship between Xie Yun and her. There was a time when she was deceived by Xie Yun’s extremely handsome face and thought he was a true gentleman.

But the few encounters she had with Xie Yun were all very unpleasant.

What impressed her most was the last palace banquet, where officials, dignitaries, and young men and women from noble families were present.

Xie Yun happened to be standing next to her at that time.

Xie Yun himself was a highly talked-about figure, and just standing next to him made her conspicuous.

But she was someone who didn’t want to be noticed. Nervous and intending to quietly move to another place, she suddenly felt a bump from someone and lost her balance, falling towards Xie Yun.

In such an urgent situation, even though she tried her best to regain her balance, she couldn’t stop the inevitable.

But it was okay; there was someone beside her.

Obviously, under normal circumstances, it would have been a simple matter for Xie Yun, if he were a normal and courteous person, to reach out and help her up.

With the current liberal atmosphere, a little assistance would not be a big deal, and no one would gossip about it.

In that moment, her mind raced, feeling guilty for not standing firm and also feeling sorry for Xie Yun. She even thought about how to thank him.

But then, she saw Xie Yun glance lightly at her, and then subtly move aside, just enough to avoid her.

Yes, he avoided her, and it was done very naturally.

So, in front of everyone’s eyes, Sang Yao fell into the flowerbed on the side.

Because it had just rained, the soil was wet and soft, so she didn’t feel any pain.

But she knew she had lost face.

The surprised or mocking looks from the crowd were still fresh in her memory.

She was very sure that if Xie Yun had just reached out and grabbed her clothes, she would have been able to regain her balance. But he didn’t move and just subtly avoided her.

In the chaos, she raised her head in embarrassment, and the man looked down at her with a tall and lean figure.

There was no surprise, no ridicule, no emotion at all.

Sang Yao even speculated that he might be a little disgusted by the dirt on her.

From then on, she unilaterally began to dislike him.

Every time they met, she would make a sour face, and when she passed by him, she would deliberately hum to show her anger. But Xie Yun never seemed to care.

Not only that, he seemed to not even know her name.

It was like punching cotton, the more Sang Yao thought about it, the more angry she felt.

After cursing Xie Yun in her heart for a long time, Sang Yin, at some point, had already entered the room.

She had a gloomy face, as if she was surrounded by dark clouds, probably because he had been frustrated by Xie Yun.

Sang Yao was glad that Xie Yun did not follow them in, but when she saw Sang Yin’s cold face, she wisely suppressed her joy. She didn’t ask any more questions, just whispered, “Father…”

Sang Yin had become rounder as he aged, but he didn’t look kind, especially in his current bad mood, which was particularly frightening.

Ignoring her, Sang Yin sat in the main seat.

Sang Yao could clearly see Xie Yun’s aloofness. Although it wasn’t a big deal, she had gone out of her way to help him, but he had deliberately ignored her.

She had heard that he seemed gentle and kind, but in reality, he was heartless and unfeeling. Today, seeing him confirmed this.

But the Xie family was a top-notch aristocratic family, and his career couldn’t avoid this mountain. If she wanted to rise quickly, Xie Yun was a shortcut.

In terms of political affairs, her involvement with Xie Yun was not much.

After this incident, it might not be easy to see him alone again. But what other way could she use to connect with him?

Seeing Sang Yin not speaking, she took the opportunity to bow her head and said, “Father, if there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.”

Sang Yin, who was in a state of irritation, looked up at his daughter.

In his eyes was the beautiful face of a young girl, recently come of age, a unique and beautiful flower in the capital.

For some reason, the air seemed to quiet down for a moment.

Sang Yao felt that Sang Yin seemed to be evaluating her, and she began to feel uneasy subconsciously.

After a moment, Sang Yin said, “What’s the rush to go back?”

Sang Yao gave an answer that Sang Yin might like, saying, “I’m going back to read.”

Sang Yin said, “What’s the use of reading? It’s better to think of something useful.”

Sang Yao didn’t quite understand.

Wasn’t it he who said there is a golden house in books? Why was it not valid today?

Sang Yin sighed and stared at Sang Yao, saying earnestly, “Xiao Yao, you’re not young anymore, you should be smarter, don’t let your father worry about you.”

Sang Yao didn’t understand why Sang Yin suddenly said these things, but it didn’t stop her from defending herself: “…But I’m already very smart.”

Sang Yin pretended not to hear and said seriously, “You have to seize the opportunity yourself. Xie Yun is in the fourth room on the left. Go and bring him a pot of tea.”

he had heard that Xie Yun was not interested in women, whether it was true or not.

But it didn’t matter. Whether successful or not, he would try to gauge his reaction today. Although such behavior was a bit below his dignity, everyone was respectable, and it was okay as long as they understood each other’s hearts.

He glanced at the door, fearing that Sang Yao wouldn’t understand, and added a hint, “After you go in, behave well, no need to knock, understand?”