Chapter 2: 第2章

Bai Min nodded. Hearing the sound of voices outside, the door was pushed open, and several people entered one after another.

It was Chun Tao again, who stood by the bed bringing a gust of cool air with her, announcing loudly, "Miss, the Master and Madam have arrived."

Bai Min frowned. She had appeared in this place inexplicably and had inexplicably become Murong Feng. Seeing Chun Tao’s raised eyebrows and the unmistakable disdain hidden in her apricot eyes, a sense of loathing welled up in Bai Min's heart. She blurted out, "I can see for myself. There is no need for such shouting. Stand far away; I have just woken up and cannot bear the chill you've brought with you."

As soon as these words were spoken, not only was Chun Tao startled, but Chun Liu and the others who had just entered were also stunned. When had the usually weak and soft-spoken Third Miss become so formidable?! Chun Tao walked aside sullenly, stealing a glance at Bai Min on the bed. Had her temper grown along with her recovery from this illness? She truly did not act like the usual Third Miss; her words were cold, instilling a sense of trepidation in those who heard them.

"Feng'er," Madam Murong said softly, looking at her daughter, "Chun Tao said you had awakened. Mother is truly happy. How are you feeling? Do you want me to ask Imperial Physician Cao to come and take another look?"

Bai Min looked at the woman in fine clothing before her. She was not yet forty, and there was still a lingering charm in her eyes and features, making her look quite lovely. "I am awake, but I remember nothing of the past," Bai Min said indifferently.

The hurriedly summoned Physician Cao looked at the young girl lying on the bed. After a diagnosis, he shook his head. After a moment of deliberation, he said slowly, "Your daughter's precious body is no longer in any great danger. As for her inability to remember past events, it is likely due to her recent recovery from a major illness. I expect she will recover after a few more days of rest."

Madam Murong frowned slightly and accompanied Physician Cao out of the room, her tone filled with worry. "But there are only three days left until her wedding date with the Fourth Prince. The Imperial decree is difficult to defy; what are we to do?"

"The Crown Princess is also worried about this matter. That is why she ordered this old official to come and treat the Third Miss a few days ago. Upon learning that the Third Miss is out of danger, the Crown Princess was very pleased. The matter of the Third Miss refusing the marriage must never be known by Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, Her Majesty the Empress, or the Fourth Prince; otherwise, it would be the crime of deceiving the Emperor, punishable by the execution of nine generations. If the Third Miss still cannot remember the past before the wedding, then Master and Madam will simply have to explain everything to her in detail. Perhaps it might even be a good thing; at least she will no longer be so resistant to the marriage with the Fourth Prince." Physician Cao pondered for a moment before continuing, "Judging by the Third Miss's current condition, her body is merely a bit weak, but nothing else is wrong. A few more days of good rest should suffice. I must return immediately; the Crown Princess is waiting for me to report the news."

After seeing Physician Cao off, Madam Murong returned to the room.

Bai Min had already lain back down and closed her eyes to rest. Since it had come to this, whether it was a dream or something else, she would take it one step at a time.

Madam Murong looked at her daughter on the bed, whose eyes were closed and whose breathing was steady. After a pause, she stepped away and said softly yet sternly to Chun Liu, who was standing nearby, "Chun Liu, you must take careful care of Miss these next two days. Do not leave her side for a moment. If anything else goes wrong, I will not forgive you! If Miss asks about anything, you must explain it to her in detail, but you are absolutely forbidden from mentioning anything related to the Fourth Prince, especially those rumors. There are less than three days before she marries the Fourth Prince; no more mistakes can be made, otherwise, even the entire Murong Estate will not be able to withstand the consequences. Master, let us return to our room first."

From beginning to end, Master Murong had not uttered a single word. He merely stared at his daughter on the bed with a deep frown. Only when he heard his wife calling him to leave did he speak stiffly, "Listen to me carefully, Murong Feng. Since you were born into the Murong family, you do not get to decide for yourself. This marriage—you must marry whether you want to or not. In three days, you must appear at the Fourth Prince's manor! Otherwise, the hundreds of people in this entire estate will go to the grave with you!" Having said that, he turned and left.

"Is it really just getting married?" Bai Min opened her eyes and quietly watched the agitated middle-aged man. She spoke slowly, calmly, and without any emotion, "I will marry, and then it will be done. However, before I leave the estate, please do not disturb me again, except for Chun Liu. Otherwise, if I were to lose my wits and cause an accident, taking hundreds of people from this estate down with me would be a true sin. Now, Chun Liu, please escort Master and Madam out. I have just woken up and it is truly inconvenient to converse with others."

"You—!" Master Murong was nearly choked by his own indignation as he turned to glare at Bai Min.

Bai Min closed her eyes again, assuming a state of sleep, and did not speak another word.

Madam Murong lightly tugged at her husband's sleeve and said softly, "Master, let her vent. After all, she is our own flesh and blood. Though she is not as lovable as the others, I truly cannot bear to send her to such a fiery pit. You know how the Fourth Prince is..." She sighed softly and did not finish her sentence, instead pulling her husband away. Before leaving, she glanced back at her daughter lying on the bed, wondering privately: *Could it be that this illness truly turned our habitually weak third daughter into a different person?!*

Aside from Chun Liu, everyone else also quietly departed, leaving only the sound of the autumn rain outside the window, rhythmic and ethereal.

Bai Min had less than three days to adapt to her current identity before she had to marry. She truly did not understand what had happened to bring a person from the twenty-first century to this inexplicable place.

This was a dynasty that did not exist in her historical knowledge: the Daxing Dynasty. If time could be converted, this was an era nearly a thousand years removed from the world she lived in.

Her memory loss had been "validated" by the Imperial Physicians. She had a full three days to recover her memories. Hadn't Physician Cao said she would be fine after a few days of rest? Therefore, she could use this as a reason to learn everything about her current self—everything about Murong Feng—from Chun Liu.

In truth, this was a woman with almost no story.

Murong Feng, sixteen years old, was at the age when women of this dynasty married. Fortunately, this era was not so foolish as to have girls marry at thirteen or fourteen; sixteen, in the twenty-first century, was the age of puppy love, which was acceptable.

She was the Third Miss of the Murong Estate. Since childhood, she had been raised by the Madam's mother—that is, Murong Feng's maternal grandmother. After her grandmother passed away, she was brought back to the estate, but due to her weak character and silent nature, she had never quite won her parents' favor. Chun Liu was a maid who had been with her since childhood, while Chun Tao was a maid Madam Murong had assigned to her after she returned to the estate.

As for her father, Master Murong, he was the current Prime Minister and also the mentor to the eldest Crown Prince. His relationship with the Crown Prince was akin to that of a father and son, and he had married his beloved daughter, Murong Qian, to the Crown Prince as a consort. The second Miss, Murong Yu, was married to Wu Meng, a Great General of the court who held military power. Her two elder brothers were also married: the eldest son, Murong Hua, had married the current Emperor's biological niece, and the second son, Murong Min, had just wed the youngest daughter of the wealthiest man in the empire. As for the youngest, Murong Xue, she had long since become famous throughout the land for her exquisite beauty; combined with her illustrious family background, the young talents coming to propose were practically trampling over the threshold of the Murong Estate.