Who would put a green hat on themselves? - Chapter 1

In the deep of the night, with everything quiet and still, a few clouds covered the moon. The moon climbed to the treetops, its tip peeking out again, pure and white like a jade disk, as if it intended to cleanse all the filth in the world.

The surroundings were silent, as if even time had halted in the night’s darkness. Only the moonlight filtered through the tree shadows, casting a faint silver glow that flickered, subtly indicating that time was still flowing amidst the stillness.

The rustling sound came from the trees, belonging to the wings of a night owl. The delicate sound broke the silence, passing through the window and into the ears of the little girl in the bedroom.

Yun Yue pulled the brocade blanket up to her chin, revealing a pair of beautiful eyes. Because of her nervousness, all the sounds seemed more pronounced. Besides the sound of the night owl’s wings, Yun Yue could hear her own heartbeat.

Thump, thump, like a drum, faster than the footsteps of a dancer performing the Hu Xuan dance.

Her chest tightened, and it felt as if her erratic heart was about to leap out of her ribcage.

This was the Yun Junwang Mansion, in the Huan Cui Pavilion.

Yun Yue was wearing a thin nightgown, her delicate and graceful body shivering uncontrollably.

Before the evening meal, Aunt Qiu from the Huaiwen Hall had visited, leaving a tray. On the tray was this nightgown she was wearing, which barely served any purpose in covering her body.

“The Shizi ordered that the Third Young Lady leave a light on for him tonight.” Aunt Qiu was the wet nurse of the Shizi of the Junwang Mansion, and had served Yun Qing for many years. She was deeply trusted by him and was utterly loyal. Although she was a woman, she sympathized with Yun Yue, but on the other hand, the Shizi was the child she had nursed, and she could only do her best to compensate for the wrongs he committed.

All she could do was take meticulous care of the young girl’s body and mind after each night of rain and cloud.

“Gugu, could I… not leave the light on?” The little girl, naive and unaware of the ways of the world, still harbored hopes that she could escape her fate by pleading.

Aunt Qiu’s heart almost melted at the sound of her soft voice, but she was helpless in the face of the Shizi’s firm decision. She could only sigh lightly. “The Shizi’s orders cannot be defied.” The Shizi’s words were ironclad law.

Aunt Qiu looked at the young girl’s beautiful face with pity, sighing deeply at how beauty itself could be a sin.

The Third Young Lady of the Yun family was not born of the Yun Junwang. Her mother had once been the most famous beauty in the capital, and Yun Yue had inherited her mother’s peerless looks. Any man would be bewitched by her appearance.

Her smooth forehead, delicate brows, teeth like stringed pearls, hands as soft as tender shoots, shoulders that seemed sculpted, and a waist like a drawn ribbon. Her figure was slender like a willow, just like a shy yet blossoming flower bud, waiting for someone to approach and pluck it.

“The Shizi has always cherished the Third Young Lady. If you are more compliant and sweet-tongued, you might suffer a little less.” As these words left her mouth, even Aunt Qiu herself felt a deep sorrow in her heart, as if she were a madam forcing a good girl into a life of vice.

“But…”

Since Yun Yue’s coming-of-age ceremony, leaving a light on had become the secret code for her legitimate brother’s nightly visits.

Yun Yue’s coming-of-age ceremony was held in the warm and blossoming spring. On that day, Yun Junwang was exceedingly delighted, inviting the Chang Gong as the main guest, gathering almost all the nobles of the capital, renting out the Changchun Garden, and hosting a grand banquet with a hundred tables. In the capital, even the daughters of the princes did not receive such honor.

Yun Junwang was somewhat muddle-headed. He was weak-willed and had a strained relationship with his former wife, the Junwangfei, so he was not very concerned with his biological children. Instead, he doted heavily on Yun Yue, who was not related to him by blood.

This coming-of-age ceremony was even more grand than that of the Second Young Lady.

Because of this blatant favoritism, the Second Young Lady had always disliked Yun Yue.

Fortunately, the Second Young Lady was married off to Jiangnan and was not in the capital, so she did not have to witness this unpleasant scene.

Yun Junwang was a prince of another surname, ennobled by the state of Hui. The old Yun Junwang had been rewarded with a hereditary title for his merits in founding the dynasty, and his fief was in Huiyang. Although his foundation was not deep, his wealth was substantial, making him one of the new nobles of the capital.

The Yun Junwang Mansion had been in decline for several years until the Shizi went to battle at the age of thirteen, achieving his first merit at fourteen, and thereafter fought his way to restore the family’s honor.

Everyone knew that the true master of the Yun Junwang Mansion was no longer Yun Junwang, but the Shizi.

Such a grand banquet could never have been held without the approval of the Shizi.

The Shizi of the Yun Junwang Mansion, Yun Qing, was someone whom the noblewomen of the capital most feared.

Five years ago, when the northern nomads launched an attack on the State of Hui, advancing all the way to Youzhou, Yun Qing, the Shizi of the Yun Junwang Mansion, set aside his scholarly pursuits and joined the army, following them to the harsh and bitter north, where he participated in brutal and inhumane battles.

By the time he returned to the capital, everything had changed. Not only had a coequal concubine, on the same level as his mother, been added to the household, but there was also a new sister who was not related to him by blood.

Everyone assumed that this cold-blooded man, known as the “God of Slaughter” on the battlefield, would deeply resent this new stepsister. Little did they know that Yun Qing harbored a lot of care for this newly added sister.

Even Yun Yue herself never expected it.

It turned out that this elder brother had improper desires toward her.

“Shizi” (世子) is a Chinese title that refers to the heir apparent, typically the eldest son, of a noble or royal family. In this context, “Shizi” refers to Yun Qing, who is the designated heir to the Yun Junwang (a prince with a title granted by the emperor). As the Shizi, Yun Qing is the one expected to inherit his father’s title and estate.