The 16 sisters made up, and the prince got married in a grand ceremony.

  The winter days in Yandi were always extremely cold, Gu Yunxi was wrapped in a thick down jacket, even so, the whole person looked still thin and weak, the cold wind swept over, her lips had already frozen purple.

  Gu Yingxue stood by the side of the road, wearing a luxurious fox fur coat and looking high and noble with her elegant makeup. Jin Xin's face was red and swollen as she stood behind Gu Yingxue, her eyes filled with resentment and venom as she glared at Gu Yunxi.

  "It's freezing cold, how can sister stand here?"

  Gu Yingxue looked at Gu Yunxi's calm face, her eyes slightly dimmed. She spoke in a soft voice, dignified and serious, "Sister is truly skilled, in just a few days, the people in my household have been reduced by more than half. Now she has become a staff member under Duke De's command, with a higher status than mine as an unmarried princess. It's really impossible for me not to admire her."

  Gu Yunxi raised an eyebrow, shaking her head as she sized up Gu Yingxue, "Sister, you're wrong. Although many things have indeed happened in the manor these past few days, what does it have to do with me? It's probably because heaven has eyes and feels that I've had a tough life since childhood, losing too many things, so now it's taking pity on me and helping me get them back one by one."

  Gu Yingxue narrowed her eyes slightly, "What do you want to do?"

  "Why is sister so tense?" Gu Yunxi's mouth curved slightly, and she took a step closer to Gu Yingxue. She leaned in close to her ear, "Sister still remembers that winter day ten years ago?"

  Gu Yingxue's body trembled slightly, Gu Yunxi smiled with a deeper intention, "Sister may not know, in ten years' time, the scars on my back have faded..."

  Her voice was faintly submerged in the cold wind, and Gu Yingxue's body suddenly retreated a step. A crack appeared on her elegant face, "What do you want to do? The imperial edict has been issued, do you think your words alone can change anything?"

  Gu Yunxi's eyebrows furrowed, and her smile faded. "Sister, don't worry, I'm not interested in the position of queen for now. I'm just worried that the phoenix mark on your back will eventually fade away, and the pain of drawing it with cinnabar every day is really hard to bear. If you marry into the Duke's household in the future, the Duke will inevitably discover this secret. At that time, although the overall situation may be settled, but judging from the Duke's temperament, he might look down on and treat you coldly."

  "Moreover, although my sister may not say anything, if this matter is exposed by someone with ill intentions in the future, the Prime Minister's residence will inevitably be accused of deceiving the emperor. At that time, you, elder sister, will be the one to bear the brunt of it. Won't your entire life be ruined because of this?"

  Gu Yingxue's hands tightened slightly, and the color in her eyes deepened. Gu Yunxi let out a heavy sigh. "Yunxi knows that there is a type of medicinal herb called Purple Blood Wisteria in the Eastern Sea region. When used with Cinnabar, it can ensure that the mark will not fade for ten years. If sister uses this medicine, she can keep the Phoenix Mark on her body forever. Even if someone threatens sister with this matter in the future, sister only needs to say that we two sisters are both auspicious signs."

  Gu Yingxue looked at Gu Yunxi suspiciously, pursing her lips. "Why do you want to help me? And why should I trust you?"

  Gu Yunxi smiled coldly, "If it were usual times, I naturally wouldn't help you, sister. However, now that I've pledged my allegiance to the Duke of De and acknowledged him as my lord, in the future when you become the Duchess of De, we'll be under the same master. Moreover, sharing honor and loss together, I also hope that you can bring more glory to our household."

  Gu Yingxue stood silently, Gu Yunxi adjusted her collar, "Whether you believe it or not is up to you, sister. I've said all I can say. I just hope you'll consider the bigger picture and put away those overt and covert attacks."

  As soon as the words fell, Gu Yunxue walked past Gu Yingxue towards Su Yue Xuan. Before she took a few steps, her mother-in-law came up to her. She looked at Gu Yingxue who was still standing there and said, "Master, why do you want to help Big Miss? If it weren't for Big Miss back then, now the one enjoying wealth and glory would be you..."

  Gu Yunxi's mouth curved up slightly, "After all, she is my sister, and it would be more convenient for me to do things if the sisters get along well."

  The more she listened, the more suspicious she looked, Gu Yunxi let out a deep sigh, and a cold glint flashed in her eyes. The purple blood wisteria had an effect, but only a very small number of people knew that if young women who were still married used it for a long time, it would have a terrible effect - damaging their yin and making them infertile!

  Even if she was given a life of glory and wealth, what would be the point? A woman without children in an imperial household has only one fate. The future is long, let's just watch and see how this play unfolds.

  The howling cold wind was bone-chilling, Gu Yunxi wrapped her small jacket tightly around herself, but it was of no use. Her dark eyes lightly closed, and when she opened them again, they were bright and cold as usual. Since she had already started, there was no turning back!

  The cold wind had not yet subsided, and Gu Yunxi hastened her pace towards Su Yue Xuan.

  In the 472nd year of the Imperial Calendar, on October 23rd, the grand procession of Princess Liang Huaguang arrived outside the city of Yanjing. This princess from the distant land of Liang was the most beloved younger sister of the Emperor of Liang, with a noble status unmatched by any other. Two years prior, she had been betrothed to the current Crown Prince of Yan, Gongsun Longqing, and on this winter day, dressed in her red wedding attire, she entered the imperial capital of Yan.

  When the carriage of Duke's mansion arrived at the gate of Xiang's mansion, Gu Yunxi, who was wearing a light-colored brocade, was standing at the gate waiting. The coachman was Sun Zhe, beside Gong Sunmo. Gu Yunxi saw that it was actually Sun Zhe himself coming to pick her up and couldn't help but feel somewhat surprised.

  "Miss Gu, hurry up and get on the carriage, Prince Wang is probably already at the East Palace now."

  Gu Yunxi nodded, and with the support of Yue Niang, she got into the carriage. As the wheels turned, she went alone to the imperial palace. Today was the day of the Crown Prince's grand wedding, and for her, it was also the first time she had ever been so close to entering the center of power in the Yan Kingdom.

  Due to the Crown Prince's grand wedding, the entire imperial capital was under martial law. The wide streets were empty except for the cool breeze, and the horse carriage galloped all the way to the Shenwu Gate. From a distance, someone hailed, "Sun Shih-wei, this is..."

  Sun Zhe took out a bright yellow gold plaque and hooked his mouth, "At the order of Wang Ye, I accepted Miss Gu into the palace."

  "Ah, indeed it's a deep affection between the mandarin ducks. Come on, Sun Shih-wei, hurry up and go in! The curfew in the palace is early today, and the gate will be locked soon!"

  The commander of the imperial guard was apparently mistaken, and Sun Zhe didn't bother to explain that the "Gu Niang" he mentioned was not the same Gu Niang who had just become the princess consort of the Duke of De. Just as the front wheels of the carriage from the Duke of De's mansion entered the palace gates, another carriage arrived at the gate, and Lin Zhu shouted, "Who comes?"

  The coachman, a short and dark-faced man, pulled out a token upon hearing this. "His Excellency Chu is not feeling well during the day, that's why he came late. The prince's wedding banquet is about to begin, General Lin, please let us pass quickly."

  Lin Zhu looked at the sign for a moment, and then knew who was in the car. She was about to go forward and lift the curtain to take a look, but suddenly there were several loud coughs from inside the car. Lin Zhu listened and waved her hand, "Your Highness Chu, please hurry up and get in, take care of your body."

  "Thanks, Lin!"

  As soon as the person in the carriage dropped a sentence, the horse-drawn carriage quickly drove into the palace gate. Gu Yunxi was originally bored and sat in the carriage, but when she heard that person's cough, she lifted the curtain to take a look outside. Her line of sight only saw a small red top carriage speeding away from them.

  She slightly stunned, looked through the gap of the carriage curtain, and found that there was a flash of black ink in the carriage. She frowned, how did this black ink look like the uniform of the De Wang Fu's personal guard? Who was sitting inside?

  ——