A strange story was making the rounds in the capital. The Jiang family, who prided themselves on being upright officials and loyal to the emperor, had suddenly brought home a Second Miss. They said she was frail and had been raised by her maternal relatives, and that they had only brought her back now that she was old enough to settle in. But a maid who handled the household shopping let a few details slip: the Second Miss's face was rough and sallow, her hands covered in calluses and tiny scars, and her manner timid and sluggish. She was coarse and dull, not even as refined as the second-tier maids serving other families' concubine-born daughters.
Everyone clicked their tongues. Good grief, could she be an illegitimate daughter born to some mistress kept outside the household? Had Master Jiang, Jiang Yuanchuan, been carrying on like that too? Tsk, tsk, tsk. You really couldn't tell from the way he usually acted.
Somehow, the rumor reached the Seventh Prince's ears. He flew into a rage and immediately swept the exquisitely beautiful porcelain displayed in his inner chamber to the floor. They said it shattered everywhere with a tremendous crash.
That left everyone wondering: could the Seventh Prince have some history with that Second Miss, whoever she was?
Or had he simply been in a bad mood, happened to overhear the gossip, and lost his temper in a fit of reckless fury?
