Zhоu Shаоjin wоkе frоm her sleер in а соld sweat, bolting uрright. Shе had dreаmed of Сhеng Lu аgаin!
Тhе feroсious expression, thе glеaming sсissors, раlе hаnds stainеd сrimsоn with blооd, the skу as cleаr аs washеd jade, the suffоcating аgony... аll intеrtwinеd likе а nеt, trаpping hеr tightlу within.
Hеr еldеr sister sаid she wаs hаunted by sоmеthing malеvolent.
But whу did everything in thе drеаm feеl so real?
Shе соuld evеn vividlу rесаll thе warmth оf blоod sрlattеring on her hаnds and thе раin of bеing сhоkеd.
If this wasn’t a dreаm, how could she havе escaрed Chеng Lu’s grasр, оnly tо open her eyes again and find herself unharmed, back at the age of twelve?
Zhou Shaojin’s heart was filled with confusion, bewilderment, and a touch of unease.
The small lacquered bed was draped with curtains of cordyceps and mermaid silk. Pale morning light filtered through the windowpanes covered with Korean paper, faintly revealing the plum vase, flower goblet, and jade bonsai on the carved red lacquer curio shelf by the window.
This was her bedchamber.
The bedchamber she had lived in for twelve years.
In her memory, she would continue living here for three more years, until she turned fifteen... when Cheng Lu and Wu Baozhang became engaged, and she was tricked by Cheng Jia into going to the back garden, where she encountered the drunken Cheng Xu... Zhou Shaojin shuddered, forcibly cutting off the memory.
Something must have gone wrong somewhere!
After a moment’s thought, she threw off the covers, got out of bed, and went to the adjacent side room.
There, her trunks were stored, along with a half-length Western mirror that her father had recently sent for her and her sister.
The person in the mirror had features as delicate as a painting, a slender and graceful figure, and an elegant demeanor, like a carefully nurtured orchid in a greenhouse, just about to bloom.
This was unmistakably herself.
But it also seemed not to be!
Another face surfaced in Zhou Shaojin’s mind.
Pale and sallow skin, furrowed brows, an exhausted expression, a haggard appearance... the features were seventy to eighty percent similar to those in the mirror, but the vitality was far less than one-third of the mirror’s reflection... as if the person in the mirror had suffered hardships and faded.
That seemed more like herself!
As this thought flashed through her mind, Zhou Shaojin was startled.
But once the idea took hold, it surged like floodwaters breaching a dam, impossible to hold back.
This was no mere nightmare—she had clearly lived her life over again!
But her sister was the person she trusted and relied on most in her life. Could she possibly be deceiving her?
Zhou Shaojin bit her lip, wanting to lean closer to the mirror for a more careful look, when a commotion sounded outside the door, accompanied by her sister Zhou Chujin’s gentle, soothing, yet reassuring voice: "Has Second Miss not risen yet? Did she sleep well last night? Did she talk in her sleep?" "No," replied Zhou Shaojin’s wet nurse, Madam Fan Liu. "The calming incense you personally prepared worked wonders—Second Miss slept soundly until dawn. Shi Xiang and I kept watch by her bedside and only left Chunwan to wash up after daybreak."
Zhou Shaojin hurriedly left the side room and lay back down on the bed.
Just then, the curtain swayed, and Zhou Chujin entered, lightly supported by her chief maid, Chixiang.
"You’ve all worked hard!" she said. "Later, Mama Fan can withdraw five taels of silver from the accounts as my reward for everyone to buy sweets."
Shi Xiang and the others murmured their thanks.
Zhou Chujin approached.
Zhou Shaojin closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep.Zhou Chujin suspected nothing. She gently leaned over to feel Zhou Shaojin's forehead, then tucked the quilt around her before letting out a soft sigh. In a low voice, she instructed Madam Fan Liu, "Since this incense is effective, light it whenever Second Miss rests. I have already received Grandmother's permission to visit Huiji Temple in the southern part of the city today. I hear the abbess there, Venerable Jingfang, has talisman water that can ward off evil and cure illnesses—it’s said to be very potent. I’ll go to perform a ritual for Second Miss and bring back a talisman. All of you, take good care of Second Miss at home, and make sure nothing goes wrong. I’ll return before four in the afternoon. If anyone asks why Second Miss hasn’t been seen these past two days, just say her cold hasn’t fully recovered and it’s not suitable for her to go out. Understood?" By the end, her tone had turned stern.
"Yes!" The maids and matrons, seeing her serious expression, replied cautiously.
Zhou Chujin touched Zhou Shaojin's forehead once more before leaving the inner chamber.
Tears welled in Zhou Shaojin's eyes.
Her father, Zhou Zhen, styled Dacheng, was a second-class jinshi in the bingxu year of the Zhide era’s ninth year. In his youth, he studied at the prestigious Jinling Cheng Clan School. With his striking appearance, upright character, and innate intelligence, he earned the admiration of Cheng Yi, the eldest master of the Cheng family’s second branch, who was also studying there. Cheng Yi acted as matchmaker, marrying his cousin—the eldest daughter of the Cheng family’s fourth branch, Cheng He—to Zhou Zhen.
Madam Cheng conceived soon after entering the Zhou household, but during childbirth, she suffered a hemorrhage and passed away, leaving behind a newborn daughter.
This girl was Zhou Shaojin’s elder sister, Zhou Chujin.
A year later, Zhou Zhen remarried, taking Zhou Shaojin’s birth mother, Zhuang Liangyu, as his wife.
Zhuang Liangyu came from a declining official family. She lost her mother in childhood and was raised by her elderly grandmother. By the time she married, she was already over twenty. Her father had to pawn a family heirloom—a piece of calligraphy and painting—to barely scrape together a dowry of twenty-four trunks.
Zhou Zhen was extremely satisfied with this marriage.
Not only was Zhuang Liangyu breathtakingly beautiful, but she was also gentle and compliant, skilled in music, adept at calligraphy and painting, and fond of epigraphy. Having lost her own mother early, she treated Zhou Chujin as her own, caring for her meticulously and educating her with devotion. She worried about her catching cold in winter and getting sunburned in summer, never letting her suffer the slightest grievance. During festivals like the Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Spring Festival, she would prepare generous gifts and take Zhou Chujin back to the Cheng family to visit her maternal grandmother, Old Madam Guan, keeping her company and alleviating her longing for her granddaughter. Old Madam Guan greatly admired Zhuang Liangyu’s virtue and magnanimity, viewing her with special regard and never forgetting to send her lavish gifts during holidays. Seeing this, the entire Cheng family also held Zhuang Liangyu in high esteem, treating her with great respect.
Zhou Zhen had not only gained a beautiful wife but also a soulmate who managed the household with skill and wisdom. He cherished Zhuang Liangyu so dearly that he feared she might fall if held in his hands or melt if kept in his mouth. He studied even harder, hoping to earn an official rank to secure a phoenix crown and ceremonial robes for her, allowing her to shine with honor before others.
Unfortunately, this happiness did not last long. Zhuang Liangyu suffered a difficult labor while giving birth to Zhou Shaojin. Despite emergency aid from the Cheng family in the form of a century-old ginseng, she could not hold on for more than half a year and eventually passed away, her fragrance fading too soon.
Devastated by the blow, Zhou Zhen decided to observe a three-year mourning period for Zhuang Liangyu.The Zhou family originally hailed from Rizhao in Shandong. Zhou Shaojin's grandfather had once served as the prefect of Jinhua. After witnessing the prosperity of Jiangnan, he was unwilling to return to his hometown and found a way to settle in Jinling, gradually losing contact with his ancestral home. Meanwhile, Zhuang Liangyu's maternal grandmother and father had both passed away one after another, leaving only a distant uncle at home who indulged in drinking, gambling, and all manner of vices. Zhou Zhen, being an only child without any siblings, faced the dilemma of who would care for Zhou Chujin and the infant Zhou Shaojin if he did not remarry. Especially for Zhou Chujin, who had reached the age to begin reading and writing, who would provide her with an education?
After much thought, Old Madam Guan discussed the matter with Zhou Zhen and brought Zhou Chujin and Zhou Shaojin to the Cheng family, raising them in her own quarters.
While Zhou Shaojin understood nothing, the seven-year-old Zhou Chujin vaguely sensed that no matter how good the Cheng family was, it was not her own home, and no matter how kind her maternal grandmother was, she was not her own parents. Her behavior gradually began to imitate Zhuang Liangyu, making her seem like a little adult. The Cheng family remained unaware of this, instead believing that Zhou Chujin's conduct was dignified and graceful, reflecting the demeanor of a well-bred young lady, and they praised Zhuang Liangyu for raising her so well.
Zhou Chujin increasingly restrained herself. She was respectful to her elders, gentle to those below her, and modest and courteous among her cousins. Everyone in the Cheng family spoke highly of her, and even Zhou Shaojin gained the affection of the Cheng family, with everyone respectfully addressing her as "Second Miss."
Seeing that his daughters were being properly cared for, Zhou Zhen devoted all his attention to his scholarly pursuits.
The year after Zhuang Liangyu passed away, he achieved success in the imperial examinations, earning the title of jinshi and was appointed as the magistrate of Pucheng County in Fujian.
For a time, matchmakers flocked to Zhou Zhen like schools of fish crossing a river.
However, Zhou Zhen remained faithful to his promise, politely declining all proposals, no matter how noble the families were.
Old Madam Guan, concerned about the harsh and remote conditions of Fujian and the young age of the two children, wondered how they could endure such a long and arduous journey. She asked Cheng Yi to speak with Zhou Zhen, hoping to keep the two children by her side.
Zhou Zhen was also troubled by this matter, and Old Madam Guan's suggestion aligned perfectly with his thoughts. He immediately agreed, leaving his childhood companion Ma Fushan and his wife to manage the Zhou family's affairs and help look after the Zhou sisters. He then set off for his post with two elderly servants and a private secretary recommended by the Cheng family.
By the fourteenth year of the Zhide era, Zhou Zhen had risen through the ranks to become the prefect of Nanchang in Jiangxi.
He remarried once again.
He wrote a letter back to Jinling, asking to bring his two daughters to Nanchang.
After eight years, even raising a kitten or a puppy would have fostered affection, let alone two lovely young girls who had brought joy to her daily life. The thought of sending Zhou Shaojin and her sister away felt like a knife twisting in Old Madam Guan's heart, and she adamantly refused to let them go. She argued, "Chujin is to marry into the Liao family as the principal wife. The new wife comes from a merchant background and likely cannot even read a few characters. How could she guide Chujin and Shaojin? It would be better for the two sisters to stay with me! This way, it will also be easier to arrange a marriage for Shaojin in the future."
By this time, the fourteen-year-old Zhou Chujin had blossomed into an elegant and dignified young woman, as pure and graceful as a lotus emerging from water. Through the matchmaking efforts of Cheng Jing, the eldest master of the Cheng family's main branch, she was betrothed to Liao Shaotang, the heir of the Zhenjiang Liao family, another prominent official family in Jiangnan. She was to have her coming-of-age ceremony the following year.
For the sake of his daughters' marriages, Zhou Zhen had no choice but to compromise.
And so, Zhou Shaojin and her sister ended up staying with the Cheng family for another four years.When Zhou Shaojin awoke after slipping and falling from the rockery, she opened her eyes to find herself not only back in the Fragrant Garden Residence where she had lived as a child, but also transformed into her twelve-year-old self. She was instantly terrified out of her wits, her face pale as she scrambled to find her sister. Upon seeing her sister—who had changed from a graceful and dignified woman in her thirties into a naive girl of seventeen or eighteen—her vision darkened, and she fainted.
When she woke again, the room was still the same room, and she was still herself. Her sister and the wet nurse were crowded by the bed, one looking deeply anxious, the other with eyes red from crying. Shi Xiang and Chixiang were so frantic they were pacing in circles.
What on earth had happened?
How had she escaped from Cheng Lu’s grasp?
Why had she not been reincarnated, but instead returned to the age of twelve?
Zhou Shaojin didn’t understand, trembling uncontrollably.
Zhou Chujin assumed Zhou Shaojin had been frightened by a nightmare and held her close, whispering gentle words of comfort.
The warm embrace, the soft voice, the familiar scent, and her trust in her sister gradually calmed Zhou Shaojin’s heart. She dismissed the servants in the room and, through sobs, told her sister of her ordeal.
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Sisters, forget everything you’ve read before!
Starting anew with this story, I hope to bring you all a pleasant reading experience.
Oo~
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