[Sweet on the outside, scheming on the inside lucky noblewoman vs. clear-eyed, willingly fallen fake treacherous minister]
The Wei family had a daughter, the sixteenth in her generation.
At her birth, an auspicious star was said to have appeared. As she grew up, even the good things she said came true.
She brought one happy tidings after another to her family. The Wei family rose steadily, becoming a legend in the capital for a time.
And so Wei Shiliuniang became the auspicious one known to everyone in Yanjing.
Everyone adored the little lucky star. They said that even a single strand of her hair could bring you a windfall on the road.
Unfortunately, the Wei family cherished Wei Shiliuniang too much. The only time people could see her out in public was at the annual Bathing Buddha Festival, when she paraded through the streets dressed as Guanyin.
The streets emptied as everyone came hoping to receive a drop of sweet dew sprinkled from Wei Shiliuniang's vase.
But there was one man who did not seek her blessings.
He had come to repay a debt of gratitude.
Yan Huaizhou.
The son of a military household, he had been framed by a jealous superior for poor battlefield command and exiled three thousand li away.
Fortunately, he had stumbled upon a silk handkerchief bearing two characters.
That handkerchief kept him safe from bandits throughout his journey. Later, a general amnesty was declared, and he was able to return home.
He knew he had to repay the favor that had saved his life. After a long and difficult search, he finally found her.
That day, at the Bathing Buddha Festival, a red dot had just been painted between the little Bodhisattva's brows. She wore a Buddhist veil, and her face was as white as jade, yet the head of the Wei family slapped her hard across the face.
It was because she refused to grant blessings to the son of a nobleman the Wei family had just started currying favor with.
She was clearly seated on a lofty lotus platform, yet all around her was the hellfire of sin.
“Have you come to thank me for saving you?” Wei Shiliuniang gave Yan Huaizhou a quiet smile.
“Is a verbal thank-you all you can offer? If you can wipe out the entire Wei family, how about I grant you a lifetime of blessings without end?”
An auspicious star turned into a demon star.
She was never short of people around her. What she needed was a stepping stone to help her rise again from the flames.
Years later, the people lamented that the entire upright and honorable Wei family had been unjustly killed by the treacherous minister Yan Wugui.
Only one daughter escaped that fate.
But have you heard the latest?
That daughter escaped to the mountains, claimed them as her territory, and built up an army of her own.
Theme: My fate is mine to shape, not Heaven's.
