Union

Chapter 1 001 Cloud Oriole
"Miss, miss, it's time to get up and wash. Today is a big day, you can't delay any longer."

Yunying was fast asleep when she suddenly heard a slightly unfamiliar female voice. Something in her mind snapped, and she immediately woke up from her hazy dream.

He raised his head, sat up, and looked around.

The things around her were still unfamiliar to her.

A peach-colored canopy, a four-panel screen with flowers and birds in the distance, and an antique-style dressing case around the corner... Even the canopy bed beneath her was antique-style, carved with orchids and auspicious cloud patterns, the kind of thing that could be placed in a museum as a treasure for people to appreciate.

Yunying withdrew her gaze, put on her shoes, stood up, and asked, "What time is it?" As she did so, she picked up the clothes placed on the screen and began to put them on slowly.

"It's just past dawn, Miss." The little maid, Que'er, was very perceptive. Seeing that Yun Ying looked distracted, she didn't approach her, afraid of displeasing this promising young lady.

But the little maid was also very clever and quick-witted, and she tidied up the bed that Yunying had just slept in.

In a short while, with the help of Que'er, Yunying sat in front of the dressing table and began to do her hair and makeup.

Que'er was thirteen or fourteen years old. She was lively and cheerful and always talked a lot. At this moment, she saw that although Yun Ying's face was still pale from recovering from a serious illness, this weakness did not affect her beauty at all. On the contrary, it made her look even more delicate, calm and aloof, like a fairy from heaven.

The girl is so beautiful that anyone would like her.

It's a sure thing; this time, the girl is definitely going to rise to a high position and become a phoenix.

Sparrow was happy and became more talkative.

First, she said that Yunying should be dressed up beautifully today, so that she could be chosen immediately; then she said that the clothes that the young lady had chosen today were just right, neither matching Yunying's style nor color, otherwise Yunying would be overshadowed by her and would be disrespectful to the young lady...

Yunying's thoughts followed Que'er's words, and her heart was once again on edge.

Yes, she'll be going to the front hall to be chosen in a little while.

Yunying was not a native of the Xia Dynasty. To be precise, her body belonged to this dynasty, but her soul did not.

When Yunying arrived, the original owner of this body was no longer there.

The original owner died from a high fever.

When Yunying came over, she used all her strength to throw a jade pendant from beside her pillow to the ground, which startled the sparrows guarding the night outside and saved their lives.

The sparrow thought that the original owner was very lucky and would definitely become rich and powerful after getting through this hurdle.

Yunying knew, however, that the original owner of this body was gone.

She didn't dare to dream of great wealth and status. As long as she could escape this den of wolves and not fall into another pit of fire, she would be grateful.

Let's go back to the topic of "selection".

Yunying learned from Que'er these past few days that the place they were currently staying in was a villa outside the city belonging to the Marquis of Chang'an. This villa was very spacious, with a building every five steps and a pavilion every ten steps, complete with artificial hills and flowing water, and the scenery was very beautiful.

However, this is not a place for the owner to come and rest or play in their spare time.

This place is home to beautiful girls of all ages; it is truly a haven for beauties.

These beauties all shared a common purpose: to be presented to powerful and influential people in order to strengthen their relationship with the Marquis of Chang'an's household and achieve various overt or covert objectives for the Marquis of Chang'an's household.

Yunying not only became one of them, but also one of the best.

She was highly regarded and carefully nurtured and cared for, with the intention of being put to great use in the future.

Today, that day has finally arrived.

With so many thoughts racing through her mind, Yunying's relaxed mood suddenly tightened again.

She chewed her food gently, slowly calming her breathing, finally suppressing her agitated thoughts and allowing herself to gradually calm down. After breakfast, the previously gloomy sky cleared up.

Just then, a commotion arose outside.

A maid came to inform us that the master would be coming soon to select people, so Mama Chen told the girls in the courtyard to go to the front hall in advance.

Yunying took Que'er out.

The master and servant had just stepped out of the door when they heard a strange, sarcastic voice coming from the west, "Is Sister Yunying better now? Can she go out?"

Before Yunying could reply, he said in a stingy tone, "Sister Yunying, you must take good care of yourself. Your life is very precious. If you lose it, Mother Chen will be so angry that she will have a terrible illness."

Yunying turned her head to look at the person who had come in without making a sound.

Judging from her voice, you could tell she was not someone to be trifled with. Judging from her appearance, she was indeed a proud and shrewish girl with a rather domineering demeanor.

She wore a red dress, her figure was curvaceous, and her eyes shone brightly. Although her shrewdness was obvious, making one hesitant to get to know her, one had to admit that this girl was truly stunning.

Yunying nodded slightly to her and continued walking forward with Que'er.

"Sigh, did the high fever make you mute? You used to at least call me 'sister' when we met, but now that you think you're finally going to make it big, you don't even want to pretend anymore? Humph, I knew it, you're two-faced, you're the one with the deepest ulterior motives..."

Yunying looked at Jin Kui who had caught up with her, neither angry nor annoyed, and said in a gentle tone, "Sister is joking. My throat is uncomfortable, which is why I don't want to say more."

Jin Kui said lazily, "Whatever you say goes. Since you don't want to talk to me anymore, I don't want to talk to you either. After today, we'll all go our separate ways. It'll save me from getting annoyed seeing you in the future, and you from having to think about how to brush me off when you see me..."

Yunying was speechless for a moment, and just as she was thinking about how to reply, two more girls emerged from behind the rose bush at the corner.

One of them wore a pale yellow dress and looked at people with a timid expression. Her small face, no bigger than a palm, had a pair of clear, doe-like eyes. She looked pitiful and weak, and when she looked at Yunying and Jinkui timidly, her appearance was very endearing.

The other girl wore a peach-colored dress. She was slightly plump, with a chubby face. When she smiled, her two dimples looked like they were filled with pear juice, sweet and heartwarming.

The timid girl was named Xiangling, and the girl in the peach-colored dress was named Qiuning.

Yunying replied to them, and Jin Kui also greeted the two of them lazily. The four of them then walked out of the courtyard together.

As they walked, they encountered several other girls.

These girls, some plump and some slender, each had their own unique charm, and they were all dressed in flamboyant attire, almost bewitching Yunying.

She couldn't help but sigh inwardly: she wondered where the Marquis of Chang'an's mansion had gathered so many beauties. Each of them was so strikingly beautiful, and the Marquis of Chang'an had even carefully selected matrons to raise them, resulting in beauties who were either lively, charming, feisty, aloof, scholarly, or gentle and virtuous. Now, they were going to give these beauties away one by one; the scale of their scheme was undeniably grand, and their intentions were equally ambitious.

If it were her, she wouldn't be able to bear it.

However, beauties are fleeting, how can they compare to wealth and power? If one could exchange beauty for benefits, it is likely that anyone would be shamefully tempted.

Yunying's thoughts were racing, and the other girls were also exchanging greetings absentmindedly.

During this period, Yunying pretended not to see any of the open or veiled sarcasm, vigilance, flattery or suppression.

Her face remained calm, but inside she was in agony.

Beautiful women are pleasing to the eye, and she finds them enjoyable. But if these beauties were to scheme against each other, she wouldn't be able to handle it.

If you add the girls in the other courtyards, and Steward Chen who is eyeing her covetously on the estate, she is so tired that she just wants to escape this place of trouble as soon as possible.

A new book is out! Welcome to check it out, everyone! Also, I recommend my completed novel, "Second Marriage," if you're interested.

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(End of this chapter)