The Marquis’s Daughter Returns Late

Shen Guiwan, the eldest legitimate daughter of the Marquis’s household, entered the palace at five to serve as a princess’s study companion. Eight years of palace intrigue shaped her into a woman who remains composed through both glory and disgrace. But when she finally returns home, she finds a father who favors his concubine over his wife, a second branch of the family causing trouble, a frail and helpless mother, and a marquis’s household on the brink of collapse.

She had meant to stay out of it and look after herself, but the villains insist on provoking her. If that’s how they want it, she’ll stop holding back. With a smile, she sets things right; with a flick of her finger, she makes troublemakers suffer the consequences of their own actions. Even the most difficult grandmother can be “angered” into “falling ill” and reflecting on her behavior.

Everyone in the capital says the eldest Miss of the Marquis’s household is stiff and dull. Only the Shen family’s eldest young master, renowned throughout the capital, once happened upon her disciplining the servants with a ruler in hand and a clear gaze. He clapped and laughed. “You’re fierce, my lady. I like that.”

From then on, within the inner residence, she plans ahead and puts an end to turmoil; beyond the gates of the great house, he stands by her side, each the other’s shield and spear. Together, they must not only clear away the rot in the household, but also uncover an old secret buried beneath the dust of time.