When the Imperial Decree arrived at the General's Manor, the Second Prince, Xiao Yu, was still sprawled on the courtyard bricks like a pile of wet mud. The aftershocks of the micro-current pulses left his body convulsing in spasms; his throat felt blocked, rendering him unable to utter a single syllable.
"Miss Chu, this... how did His Highness end up in such a state?!"
The head eunuch leading the envoy gasped as he stepped into the courtyard, horrified by the mess before him. Xiao Yu lay across the ground, half his body twitching neurotically. Where was the arrogant royal poise he usually flaunted? The eunuch's face paled as he shrieked, "His Highness is of noble blood! How dare you leave him lying on the cold ground?!"
"Officer..."
Chu Zhaoning's cold gaze flipped instantly. Her eyes grew rimmed with red, her slender frame trembled slightly, and her voice became as faint as a mosquito's hum—laced with thirty percent terror and seventy percent grievance.
"You don't understand... Last night, His Highness burst in with his mistress. He said that in the absence of my father and brothers, he would personally instruct me on 'Feminine Virtue' and 'Rules of Conduct.' I am dull-witted and could not learn quickly, so His Highness tirelessly taught me until the middle of the night..."
She lowered her head to hide the flash of mocking coldness in her eyes, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of her sleeve.
"Perhaps His Highness was simply exhausted from his worries for the country. Just moments ago, as he moved to leave, his legs gave way, and he lost his balance, falling to the ground. This courtyard is filled only with women, and my position is delicate—I didn't dare touch him. I had already sent for the manservants, but I didn't expect you to arrive so soon, Officer..."
The explanation was airtight, even carrying a hint of "virtuous" concern.
But to the eunuch's ears, every word was a thunderclap: Intruding into a maiden's chamber, bringing a mistress publicly, late-night harassment, and debauched behavior. This wasn't an accident; it was ironclad proof of a Prince's depravity and his desecration of a war hero's legacy!
The eunuch broke into a cold sweat. His gaze toward Xiao Yu shifted from respect to pity—the Second Prince had officially dug his own grave.
"...By the Grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The Second Prince, Xiao Yu, is found lacking in virtue; the marriage contract is hereby annulled. Chu Zhaoning of the Chu family is recognized for her purity and devotion. She is granted a new union with the Third Prince, Xiao Zhan, as his primary consort. The wedding shall be held on an auspicious day. So it is decreed!"
As the words "changed to the Third Prince" fell, the pupils of the paralyzed Xiao Yu contracted sharply. It was a humiliation that pierced to the bone. He had intended to destroy Chu Zhaoning; instead, he hadn't just lost a consort—he had handed her over to his most hated rival, his third brother Xiao Zhan, who already surpassed him in everything. He wanted to roar in fury—but found he still had no voice.
"I accept the decree. Long live the Emperor, long live, long live."
Crimson Nine accepted the decree with a detached expression, her fingertips feeling the texture of the bright yellow silk as she arched an eyebrow.
The eunuch didn't dare linger. He quickly ordered his men to lift the incapacitated Xiao Yu onto a litter and fled the eerie atmosphere of the General's Manor.
As the noise faded, the vast manor returned to a deathly silence.
General Chu Zheng—a man of peerless martial skill who once shook the four seas—had once personally guided his three sons in spear techniques under the pear trees of this very courtyard. Back then, the manor echoed with the neighing of warhorses and the spirit of ambition. Now, with her father and brothers dead in battle, the estate seemed to have lost its soul.
Chu Zhaoning stood alone in the empty courtyard, her finger lightly brushing her tactical bracer.
[Detection: Host heart rate rising abnormally. Analyzing residual consciousness and memory fragments...]
A scene buried deep within the original host's memory condensed in her mind like smoke swirling in the wind.
It was a strikingly handsome youth.
Back then, Xiao Zhan wasn't the inscrutable Third Prince he was today; he was a boy who respectfully called her father "Master." On a summer evening after martial arts practice, he had patiently wiped the dirt from a young Chu Zhaoning's face, promising to bring her palace pastries on his next visit.
Because her mother had died young, Chu Zhaoning had grown up with a bird-like attachment to her heroic brothers and this beautiful older boy.
However, as the border wars intensified, her father and brothers returned home less frequently. Their final campaign had become a permanent farewell. And Xiao Zhan, along with the Chu family's decline, had gradually faded from her world.
I thought this was a dead end, but it turns out I'm dealing with an old acquaintance, Crimson Nine analyzed coldly in her mind.
To her, this wasn't a romantic reunion; it was a reorganization of resources. Since Xiao Zhan owed the Chu family a debt of gratitude, that "sentiment" was her bargaining chip. Yet, by the same token, Xiao Zhan knew the old Chu Zhaoning too well—making him her biggest threat of exposure.
"Xiao Zhan, since this marriage has fallen into my hands, I'll be the one setting the rules of the game."
"Miss, the night is deep and the wind is cold. Your body has just begun to recover; don't catch a chill again."
A warmth spread across her back as a thick brocade cloak was gently draped over her shoulders. The speaker was her wet nurse, He Meiniang, whose eyes carried an unerasable shadow of worry. Meiniang had been her mother's dowry maid and loved Zhaoning like her own daughter.
Chu Zhaoning turned around, a pang of bitterness surfacing in her heart—one that didn't belong to the agent Crimson Nine, but to the original "Chu Zhaoning." Meiniang's husband, Huo Yan, had been General Chu's most trusted personal guard; he, too, had vanished without a trace after that horrific battle.
"Nanny, I'm fine," Chu Zhaoning softened her tone.
"I heard the Palace changed the decree to the Third Prince..." Meiniang hesitated. "His Highness was indeed close with the eldest young master and the others back then. But the Imperial waters are deep now. I fear that if you enter those high walls, you will suffer again."
"Mother! Stop worrying!" A round-faced young maid ran over with hot tea. This was Meiniang's daughter, Huo Xi. Though her eyes were red, they sparked with defiance. "The Third Prince is a hundred times better than that bastard Second Prince! I saw how Miss taught that scoundrel a lesson just now—it was so satisfying! Miss is so powerful now, no one will dare bully us!"
Meiniang sighed and whispered to Zhaoning, "No matter what Miss chooses to do, my life and Huo Xi's belong to you. We will stand behind you until the end."
Looking at the mother and daughter, Chu Zhaoning held the warm tea cup. Her eyes, through the rising steam, became cold and resolute.
In the modern world, she was "Crimson Nine," a cold-blooded machine. But here, she had inherited more than just Chu Zhaoning's shell—she had inherited a loyalty forged in blood and tears.
"Nanny, Xiao Xi." Chu Zhaoning took a sip of tea and spoke slowly.
"The old Chu Zhaoning died in the humiliation of that broken engagement. From now on, I will uphold the lintel of this General's Manor. I will find the bodies of my father, my brothers, and Uncle Huo. This position of the Third Prince's Consort... to others, it is a supreme fortune. To me... it is nothing more than a blood-stained stepping stone."