Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

In July, the heat in Beijing is unbearable.

Mingyi was taking a nap when she was woken up by the noise outside. She asked her maid, "What's going on outside? Why is it so noisy?"

Logically speaking, her place was remote and usually quiet, but now she could hear laughter and chatter, which meant that there must be some happy occasion at the Zong family's residence.

"Lord Zong is coming back!" Yuegui exclaimed excitedly.

Mingyi asked in confusion, "Which Lord Zong?"

"It's Second Master Zong!" Yuegui placed the chestnut cake on the table. "Second Master has been away from home for half a year and will be heading to the capital tomorrow. Everyone is busy preparing to welcome him back!"

It turns out that Zong Xian is coming back.

Mingyi was stunned. He realized that he had been living under someone else's roof in the Zong family for more than half a year.

For some reason, my eyelid twitched.

Yuegui added, "I've heard that Second Master has an otherworldly appearance and is incredibly handsome. All the young ladies in the capital want to marry him. Would you like to go and see him tomorrow, Miss?"

Mingyi's expression immediately changed, and she said seriously, "I'm not going, and you're not allowed to go either."

Yuegui paused for a moment, but didn't ask why, and reluctantly said "Oh".

Mingyi sat in front of the dressing table, her fingers gently stroking her temples, gazing at her porcelain-white, beautiful face in the bronze mirror. This face bore a resemblance to her original face.

She is seventeen years old this year. Now, it turns out that seven years have passed since she transmigrated to this other world!

Back then, she was just slacking off at work, hiding in the bathroom to read novels.

As a result, she accidentally fell asleep and when she opened her eyes, she found herself transmigrated into a male-oriented novel, transforming from a vibrant young woman into a ten-year-old girl.

Unfortunately, she encountered war as soon as she transmigrated, the country was in ruins, her parents died, and she was left with only a sickly younger brother and a useless maid.

She was born in a peaceful era, where she only saw dead people on television, yet she had to experience the chaos of ancient wars. It was truly remarkable that she survived.

It took the imperial court a whole year to send people down to quell the rebellion. She barely escaped with her life and returned home, only to be nearly tricked by the original owner's relatives and sold to a perverted official.

With no other option, Mingyi had to flee to Jiangzhou with her two children and seek refuge in the Xie family, a prominent clan in the Qingliu region. She became the adopted daughter of Xie Huaiyu, the eldest son of the Xie family, and only then was she able to save her life and live in peace for a few years.

Later, Xie Huaiyu passed the imperial examination and was able to enter the capital to serve as an official.

Master Xie was genuinely worried that Xie Huaiyu's straightforward and simple nature would cause him trouble in officialdom, so before his death he wrote a letter and sent it to the capital, entrusting the Zong family to take care of him.

And so, Ji Mingyi, along with her younger brother and maid, followed the eldest son of the Xie family into the now powerful and influential Zong Mansion.

The Second Master Zong, Zong Xian, whom the maid mentioned earlier, was a great hero who quelled the rebellion of Prince Zhao six years ago.

At that time, he was only in his early twenties, yet he had already achieved such great feats. Everyone would say that he was a promising young man.

If it weren't for him, Ji Mingyi might have died in that terrible war long ago.

But this generation of heroes met a tragic end, with his entire clan being wiped out by the new emperor.

Mingyi didn't read the whole novel; she skimmed through the table of contents and skipped around, so she only knew the general plot.

She hadn't even paid attention to the original owner of this body, but she figured it wasn't an important role.

But what she was certain of was that Zong Xian was definitely not the male lead. The male lead was from Xiliang, and he was currently hiding somewhere, developing his strength.

So in the end, the Zong family mansion was not her final destination, and she had to plan her escape again!

Mingyi hadn't slept enough, so she took another nap.

...

Later that evening, the head maidservant of the matriarch of the Zong family came to deliver a message, asking Mingyi to come over.

"Strange, the eldest mistress doesn't often summon the young lady. What could it be about this time?"

How could Mingyi possibly understand?

"You'll find out when you get there."

After dressing properly, she left her secluded Frosty Garden with the laurel in her arms, turned and walked along a shady path, and then passed through several hanging flower gates to reach the inner garden.

The garden is filled with pavilions and towers, with layered halls, scattered rocks, and lush trees, creating a secluded and orderly landscape. Every blue brick underfoot is imbued with the aura of power.

When a maidservant met Mingyi, she respectfully called her "Miss Cousin," but the respect did not reach her eyes.

After Mingyi had walked a distance, the maidservants stared at her departing figure and began to whisper among themselves.

"Why did she come this way? What bad luck!"

"I heard she killed her parents. Look at her sickly brother, he might kill him someday too!"

"Alright, Sister Chuntao, say no more. She's practically a mistress after all..."

The maid in pink spat softly, "What kind of mistress is she? Did the young master marry her? She has no title or status, yet she lives in someone else's house. I've never seen anyone so shameless."

Mingyi, of course, couldn't hear these idle words.

Upon arriving at the main hall of the courtyard, they saw the eldest mistress, Madam Liu, sitting on a rosewood couch, wearing a crimson brocade jacket with gold and flowing clouds. Her face was dignified, exuding the majesty of a matriarch.

The room was cool and refreshing, and two maids were fanning the room from the side.

After a few pleasantries, Madam Liu got straight to the point: "Tomorrow is the Second Master's welcome-home banquet, and everyone in the manor is making preparations, with the food being the most important. Unfortunately, the cook in charge of making soup in the kitchen has caught a cold, so we absolutely cannot let him handle the master's meals."

As Liu spoke, she glanced lightly at the woman in front of her.

She wore a plain-colored ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) without any elaborate decorations, but her bright face was radiant, like a pearl standing alone in the world, making people subconsciously overlook her simple attire.

"Grandma says your soup-making skills are superb, especially your fresh and flavorful soups. Second Master usually prefers light flavors, so do you know how to make lotus root and pork rib soup?"

Mingyi sat to the side and said respectfully, "I can, but my skills are rudimentary."

Madam Liu waved her hand, saying, "Since the old lady said you did a good job, it must be good too. I'll leave this matter to you."

Having said that, Mingyi had no choice but to agree, leaving her with no option to refuse.

After Mingyi left, the maidservant beside Madam Liu massaged her shoulders and said with a puzzled look, "Preparing a banquet for the Second Master is a big deal. If the kitchen is short of cooks, they can simply hire someone from outside. Isn't it too hasty to entrust it to her? What if something goes wrong, and the Old Madam will..."

Liu glanced at her: "Do I need you to teach me how to do things?"

The maid immediately lowered her head, "This servant wouldn't dare."

Madam Liu said, "It's just giving her something to do. It wouldn't be right to forbid her from going out tomorrow, would it? People would complain."

Upon hearing this, the maid remembered that tomorrow was not only a welcome dinner for the Second Master, but also a day to choose a divination site for him. She couldn't afford to make any mistakes!

Madam Liu picked up her teacup, gently blew away the tea foam floating on the surface with the lid, and slowly said, "That girl is too beautiful. No matter how well-behaved she is, her looks alone will make her a troublemaker. I just don't want anything to go wrong tomorrow, so I have no choice but to make do with her for now."

-

The next day, before dawn, the servants of the Zong family were busy, and Mingyi also got up early to dress and help in the kitchen.

From the main courtyard at the other end, voices gradually rose.

The masters of the manor arrived one after another, speaking in hushed tones.

Madam Liu and her two concubines from the first wife's side arrived early, along with the young masters and ladies who had been dragged out of their sleep. They all waited respectfully, while Old Madam Zong arrived last.

A steward hurried over, bowed respectfully, and said cheerfully, "Madam, the Second Master is outside!"

Before long, a tall and slender figure appeared slowly in everyone's sight, bathed in the morning light.

Zong Xian was dressed in a crimson-purple embroidered python official robe. He had a handsome and sharp appearance, with a pale complexion, thick, sword-like eyebrows, light lips, and a cold and composed expression.

He strode forward, his voice steady, and bowed, saying, "Mother, sister-in-law."

With tears welling up in her eyes, Madam Zong carefully looked the person in front of her up and down.

Liu was also deeply moved.

Finally, Madam Zong reached out to help him up and said gently, "It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back. Did things go smoothly?"