Where exactly did things go wrong?
When those people obtained her birth date and time, as well as her grandmother's indenture, An Ran had no choice but to accept the reality. The ninth young lady of the Nan'an Marquis's mansion felt no joy whatsoever.
The power struggles within the inner quarters of her previous life had left her exhausted. As the saying goes, entering the gates of a noble family is like entering a deep sea; all she wanted was to live a peaceful life in this one.
An Ran was still lost in thought when she suddenly felt someone tug at her sleeve, which brought her back to her senses.
"Ninth Miss, the last post station before entering the capital is just ahead. Would you like to rest?" The carriage had come to a smooth stop at some point, and a middle-aged maidservant dressed in a dark blue jacket stood in front of An Ran and her brother's carriage to ask for permission.
The sapphire blue curtain woven with dark gold patterns was lifted by a pair of slender, fair hands, revealing a beautiful face.
"Aunt Shi, how much longer until we arrive?" Unlike Aunt Shi's cheerful Beijing accent, An Ran's voice was soft and gentle, with a touch of the graceful charm of the Jiangnan water towns.
The maid, known as Mama Stone, replied with a smile, "If we don't rest, we'll definitely arrive before noon."
He was courteous but lacked respect.
After traveling for over a month, An Ran had come to a conclusion about what she thought of them. Perhaps in their eyes, she was just a country girl from a small town in Yangzhou, with little experience in the world!
Shi's mother's words were loaded with meaning, as if she was afraid Anran wouldn't understand, and her hints were exceptionally clear.
An Ran asked about the time it took to get to the capital, but this Madam Shi directly told her when she "didn't rest." Although it was a polite inquiry to her "Ninth Miss," it also gave her plenty of hints about how she should behave to avoid being disliked.
On the surface, he respects Anran as his master, but in his heart, he probably looks down on her a lot. He can make decisions for her in his words and actions.
An Ran understood perfectly. She nodded readily and smiled shyly, saying, "Thank you for your hard work, Mother and sisters. Let's continue on our way."
"Yes, as you say, young lady." Madam Shi, having received a satisfactory answer, turned and boarded the first carriage.
An Ran gently lowered the curtain and sat back down without making a sound.
Anxi and Anmu, who had relaxed somewhat after being comforted by her, panicked again. To calm themselves down, the two siblings, who had been sitting properly upon hearing Shi's mother's voice, now pretended to look out the window by lifting a corner of the carriage curtain, but their fingers unconsciously clenched the hem of their clothes.
An Ran couldn't help but chuckle.
Fortunately, she didn't bring the two maids and old women who came to pick her up with her; otherwise, the two children would probably be even more nervous! Although when she made the request, the servants' eyes flashed with contempt, which further confirmed their original image of An Ran.
That would be even better.
The only family she considered were these two children.
The shadow of the city wall gradually appeared outside the partially lifted carriage curtain.
We're almost at the Marquis of Nan'an's residence.
Chapter 2 Entering the Mansion
“Ninth Miss, please get out of the carriage.” When the carriage stopped again, the three siblings all became serious.
An Ran reached out and straightened An tide and An Mu's clothes, then carefully tidied her hair in front of the mirror, gently touched the gold flower on her chest, and let out a long breath.
A maidservant had already lifted the carriage curtain and set out a small stool, and two other people came over to help the people in the carriage get off.
An Mu was carried out of the carriage by strong maids. An Xi, though mature, was still a child and was a little nervous when getting out of the carriage, almost tripping over the hem of her skirt. Fortunately, she kept her composure, only blushing slightly and lowering her eyes to wait for her sister. As soon as An Ran appeared, a series of clear and rhythmic gasps could be faintly heard.
Ninth Sister, you are absolutely gorgeous!
The ninth daughter of the Marquis of Nan'an went missing when she was young, but fortunately, she was well protected by the loyal servants of the old lady. Although they later made contact with the Marquis's mansion, the ninth daughter was too weak to withstand the arduous journey and was not brought back until she was thirteen years old. Today, upon her return to the mansion, many people who had heard the news came to see what was happening and to watch the excitement.
"I thought the Sixth Miss was pretty enough, but I didn't expect the Ninth Miss to be just as beautiful as the Sixth Miss." Two maids whispered not far away. The Sixth Miss, who returned to the manor a few days ago, and the Ninth Miss, who returned today, are both far more beautiful than the Seventh Miss and the Tenth Miss, who grew up in the manor.
An Ran, already seated in the light blue sedan chair, was unaware of the discussions outside. She placed her hands on her knees, and even inside the sedan chair, she kept her back ramrod straight without the slightest slackening.
On the way back to the capital, An Ran had already heard some stories about the Marquis's mansion from the maid who came to pick her up.
The Marquis of Nan'an's family is a prominent clan in the capital. The current matriarch of the family, Madam Su, is her grandmother. She has only one legitimate son, An Yuanliang, who inherited the title of Marquis of Nan'an and married Zhao, the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Jingbei's family. Zhao gave birth to two legitimate daughters and one legitimate son. The daughters are now married, and the son is only three years old.
Besides her, there were six other children born out of wedlock. One daughter was already married, while the other two sons and three daughters were unmarried.
She was the seventh daughter of a concubine and the ninth among her sisters. Her birth mother had long since died of illness.
An Ran went over the matter in her mind again, and still wanted to sigh. The few bits of information she knew now left her feeling completely lost.
We can only take it one step at a time.
Rong'an Hall.
The Dowager Lady Su and Lady Zhao of the Marquis of Nan'an's residence were talking in the inner room.
Suddenly, a maidservant's voice was heard outside announcing, "Ninth Miss's carriage has arrived."
Upon hearing this, Madam Zhao stood up, her smile froze, and then she smiled again and said, "The old lady has been praying for several days, and Ninth Sister has arrived safely today, so you can rest assured."
As she spoke, she stepped forward and helped the old lady to her feet with utmost respect.
The Dowager Lady did not miss the fleeting anger that crossed Zhao's eyes. She frowned slightly, feeling somewhat dissatisfied, but did not point it out.
“My daughter-in-law had Ningxue Courtyard all set up a couple of days ago. Ninth Sister and Tenth Sister are about the same age, so I’m sure they’ll get along well.” As Zhao helped the old lady out, she rambled on, “Ninth Sister has just arrived home, so it’ll be good for Tenth Sister to give her some pointers.”
The old lady nodded, seemingly casually saying, "You are their legal mother, so just handle it as you see fit."
Zhao quickly replied, "Yes."
When the two came out, the three concubine daughters were already waiting in the main room of the Grand Madam. The legitimate son, An Yu, was still too young and was being held by his wet nurse.
"Ninth Miss has arrived!" A commotion came from outside, and a maidservant lifted the curtain to announce her arrival.
As they were talking, An Ran was already being escorted in by the crowd.