How boundless is the love of parents for their children.

There’s an old saying: children are the debts their parents owe from previous lives.

Lord Xu Da, the Duke of Grace, was a man whose life had been blessed with unbroken good fortune from birth through the inheritance of his title, even his marriage was perfectly to his liking. For the first decades of Xu Da’s life, the phrase “smooth sailing” could not have been more apt. This untroubled existence naturally shaped his temperament to be exceptionally mild—what was there to contend for when life offered no obstacles?

But everything changed once he reached forty and began to worry over his children’s marriages. It was then that frustration crept into his life; nearly every one of his children’s matches became a source of his ire.

For his eldest daughter, Xu Guangyan, he had scrutinized countless suitors before settling on the eldest son of Grand Preceptor Cao. The Cao family was renowned for its upright values, and all their offspring were known for their integrity and unyielding character.

Yet Xu Guangyan found the Grand Preceptor’s son too rigid and dull, and her heart was instead captured by someone from the Wen family of Donghai. Donghai lay a full six or seven days’ journey from Guangling, even traveling day and night without rest. Such a distant marriage was something Xu Da and his wife opposed with every fiber of their being.

“Back then, eldest sister used every trick—crying, making scenes, threatening to hang herself—she tried them all. It took over half a year of this before our parents finally relented. She got her wish, but Donghai is so far; to see her even once is to gaze until our eyes run dry,” Xu Zhouyan recalled, who had also opposed her sister’s distant marriage at the time.

“I heard that over the years, our eldest sister has had a decent life in Donghai. Her husband and children are obedient, and brother-in-law has never taken a concubine—she alone holds his affection,” remarked Xu Guiyi, who had never met her cousin but often heard her spoken of by their grandmother and the Lady Hua while in Lanzhou.

Xu Zhouyan sneered, her tone odd and biting, “Her husband and children are obedient, yes—but if eldest sister didn’t have the skill, how could she subdue that mother-in-law of hers, fierce as a demon? And while her husband may not have taken a concubine, his household is full of handmaids attending to him—if not ten, then at least eight.”

A mother-in-law fierce as a demon, eight or ten handmaids… The Xu family’s influence, though considerable, stretched only as far as Guangling and Jiangdong, not a thousand miles to Donghai. Had Xu Guangyan truly spent these years in the Wen household living such a life? Xu Guiyi lowered her head, her nose stinging—she couldn’t tell if it was for her uncle and aunt’s forbearance, or for her cousin’s stubbornness.

“Enough,” said Xu Zhouyan. “Third sister, don’t waste your sympathy on her. She brought it on herself, refusing to listen to us and insisting on marrying far away. All those years enduring her mother-in-law’s torment were what she deserved. Heartless girl—she gave everyone up for a man.” Harsh words, yet tears filled her eyes.

“Third sister, I heard from Mother about you and the Ren family’s son. Uncle and aunt were truly unjust in their actions; fourth sister is young and ignorant, unaware that such sordid means will leave her marked for life, even if she does marry into the Ren family. Her troubles are just beginning—but you were the one caught in the crossfire. If she hadn’t interfered, you wouldn’t be marrying into the Eastern Palace,” Xu Zhouyan continued.

Xu Guiyi smiled gently, “Second sister, I despise their methods, but I don’t regret it. After this, it’s clear that the young master of the Ren family would never have been a good match. Perhaps, in the end, that is my good fortune.”

Xu Zhouyan rolled her eyes at her naïve sister. “Don’t tell me you consider marrying into the Eastern Palace a blessing? If it truly were, the young ladies of Guangling’s noble houses would have snatched it up long ago. It would never have fallen to you.”

Xu Guiyi knew her sister was trying to provoke her, but she only blinked and smiled, “Then, Second Sister, was marrying Prince Jiancheng your good fortune?”

If Xu Guangyan married for love, then what had driven Zhouyan to forsake the match their parents had arranged and choose Prince Jiancheng, a man seventeen years her senior? Ambition? Xu Guiyi could not believe it.

With a finger, Xu Zhouyan tapped her forehead: “You little imp—always with a sharp tongue.”

Xu Guiyi pulled a face, making Zhouyan all the more reluctant to scold her.

“I am not like eldest sister. She married for love, I married Prince Jiancheng for reality,” Xu Zhouyan’s voice grew soft with a tinge of nostalgia.

Xu Guiyi was puzzled, tilting her head to look at her sister. “Second Sister, I heard that back when your marriage was being discussed, so many suitors came to propose that they nearly wore out the threshold of our home.”

“That’s right,” Zhouyan mused with a wry smile, “Back then, so many came to propose, but Father fixed his gaze on a poor scholar with nothing to his name. He even said that if I were willing to marry him, my dowry would surpass even Eldest Sister’s.”

“Did you refuse him because you couldn’t stand his poverty?” Guiyi asked.

Zhouyan laughed softly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her gaze distant. “Yes, and no.”

After a long wait, they finally spotted the Wen family’s carriage. Delighted, Zhouyan and Guiyi hurried over, stopping beside it, eager to be the first ones their sister saw.

Sure enough, from the wide and luxurious carriage stepped a youthful matron, dazzling and radiant, garbed in silks and brocades, appearing to be in her early thirties. Before she could get a good look, Zhouyan was already embracing her—this, no doubt, was the Xu family’s eldest daughter, Xu Guangyan.

“So this is Third Sister? Truly a beauty destined to captivate nations—looks nothing like the rest of us, far more handsome!” Guangyan’s voice was forthright and cheerful, her manner equally direct.

“Eldest Sister,” Guiyi greeted shyly, performing the full courtesy expected at a first meeting.

“Ah, that won’t do,” Guangyan quickly stopped her, “You’re soon to be part of the royal family, how could I accept your bow?”

On the side, Zhouyan coughed meaningfully, “Eldest Sister, if you accept Third Sister’s bow, you must return the courtesy.” She winked at Guiyi as she spoke.

It was funny—both Guangyan and Zhouyan had inherited their mother Xue’s fiery, lively temperament, but their appearances were entirely different: one took after their father, the other their mother. Only Xu Chengzhen was a true blend of both parents’ features.

Guangyan glanced at Guiyi’s bashful face, then laughed at Zhouyan, “This is your doing, isn’t it? Don’t think I don’t know.” With that, she took Guiyi’s hand to introduce her to her Wen cousins and two children.

Guangyan had been married for ten years, with two children—the elder already eight, the younger just turned six. As for her Wen husband, their meeting was brief and courteous, with all the formalities observed.

Later, at dinner, as they sat around the same table, Guiyi took the opportunity to discreetly compare her two brothers-in-law. The elder brother-in-law came from a long line of merchants—his face was round and fair, his manner polished and attentive, quietly commanding the conversation with effortless skill. The second brother-in-law, a career soldier, was tall, dark-skinned, with chiseled features, sword-like brows and starry eyes, a man of few words, but always patient and earnest in his replies.

After observing both, Guiyi could not help but think of the Crown Prince—and her heart turned cold.

On the third day of the seventh month, five days before the Crown Prince’s wedding.

In Jiaxu Palace, the heir of Marquis Yongjia, Shen Yu, lounged carelessly on a rosewood chair, idly turning over a fine white jade ornament shaped like a hidden-footed black tortoise. With a lazy air he remarked, “Crown Prince, I hear Prince Qi has left the capital. Is the situation on the northern frontier truly so dire?”

Fu Lanchen was organizing books and paintings just returned from Gangli Palace. At this, he snorted, “All this fuss over a mere regional governor in Xinzhou. The Dragon Guard sent just one Wen Liting, and now even a prince is dispatched. I wonder what they’ll find?”

Shen Yu snorted, but at the prince instead, “Prince Qi is widely praised for his loyalty and patriotism—unlike you, Crown Prince, who idles away the days.” Having grown up close to Fu Lanchen, Shen Yu was always irreverent in the Eastern Palace.

“Have you finished packing for your return?” Fu Lanchen shot back, annoyance clear in his voice.

Shen Yu sprawled out even further, “How would I know? The palace maids are handling it; it’s not as if I need to worry.” Shen Yu’s life was even more pampered than Fu Lanchen’s; what concern could he possibly have?

“Crown Prince, shouldn’t you be worrying about yourself? You’re about to be married—aren’t you nervous at all?” He picked up another trinket, playing with it cheerfully.

Fu Lanchen scoffed, “What’s there to be nervous about? She’s marrying into the Eastern Palace, not I into her family.”

Shen Yu laughed, “I’m quite curious about my future sister-in-law’s looks and character. I heard she’s a great beauty. My mother says the Xu family is upright, and the Duke of Grace’s daughters are renowned in Guangling—surely she’s remarkable.”

“The palace attendant who brought her portrait said the Crown Princess chosen is the eldest daughter of Xu Yan, the magistrate of Lanzhou. What does that have to do with the Duke of Grace’s family?” His tone was icy, as if speaking of a stranger.

“They’re all Xus,” Shen Yu replied languidly. “Don’t you know the Lanzhou Xu family and the Duke of Grace’s household in Guangling are the same clan? Duke Xu Da is Xu Yan’s elder brother.”

“Is that so? I pay no attention to such matters,” Fu Lanchen responded airily.

“The Crown Prince never meddles in state affairs—how would you know?” Had the Marquis Yongjia himself not delivered the imperial marriage edict, Shen Yu wouldn’t have known either.

Fu Lanchen cast Shen Yu a contemptuous glance and was about to leave the study when he suddenly turned and asked, “The Princess of Jiancheng… she’s the Crown Princess’s cousin, isn’t she?”

Shen Yu thought for a moment. “A first cousin. Their fathers are brothers.”

Fu Lanchen gave a small, surprised “Ah.”