Minglan's New Tale: Turmoil in the Wei Household

That year, the crabapple blossoms at the Sheng estate in Yangzhou withered unusually early. As Wei Xiaoniang drew her last breath in a pool of blood, she clutched her younger sister’s hand tightly. “Take Minglan away... Don’t let them chew her up until not a bone is left.”

Amid a blizzard, the fierce Aunt Wei stormed into the Sheng household and insisted on taking eight-year-old Minglan away from that elegant cage. From then on, the Sixth Miss of the Sheng family gained another identity: the niece lovingly raised by Wei Shuyi of Quanzhou. Her aunt taught her not to tread cautiously around the Sheng household, but to study poetry, books, and medicine, to understand people and navigate the world, and to live with her head held high.

The palace coup in the third year of Jianyuan changed countless lives, including the course of these two women’s fates. Amid the chaos of battle, they rescued the gravely wounded imperial clansman and general Zhao Zongquan. Their bond, forged through adversity, eventually led Aunt Wei, as a remarried woman, to become the mistress of the Zhao household. Minglan, meanwhile, entered the notice of the capital’s nobility.

The Empress Dowager was especially fond of this clever yet genuine young woman and often summoned her to the palace for company. Before long, “the Zhao family’s young cousin” became the talk of the capital. When the Sheng family saw Minglan again, she was no longer the concubine-born girl who had to hide her talents to protect herself. She was now a radiant young woman who could speak freely before the Empress Dowager, manage the Zhao household, and win the crowd’s applause on the polo field.