Qu Fulan didn't know that someone was thinking about her.
She had a dream that night.
She dreamed that the female lead in the original novel was crying in a desolate and empty room.
In stark contrast, there was red makeup for ten miles outside the house, and the wedding candles.
...
When Qu Fulan woke up in the middle of the night, she felt that her cheeks were a little cold. When she touched her face, she realized that her tears had wet the pillow.
Was it the memory of the original body? Did she stimulate her to be empathetic?
She still remembered that dream. To be precise, it was a plot she had read in a novel.
Perhaps it was because the Pei family's happy event was approaching and red lanterns were hung everywhere, she was 'reminded of the scene.'
But the scene in the dream was not in the Pei family.
Instead, it was about what happened to the female lead after she left the Pei Residence.
Qu Fulan still remembered how she felt after reading this novel.
Toward the female lead, she felt sad for her misfortune and angry at her for not striving.
She only had two words for the male lead.
Trash.
However, Qu Fulan also knew that it was very difficult for women in ancient times to live a decent life unless their family conditions were good. Otherwise, for a woman like the female lead whose family had fallen and both her parents had died, she basically had no other choice but to rely on men.
Besides, that man was her childhood friend, so it was normal for her to want to rely on him.
Take the marriage of the third branch of the Pei family as an example. The Yao family was a rank four official, but Third Master Pei could not even pass the Imperial Scholar Examination. He relied on his relationship with the Pei family's first branch and donated to a rank seven official to act as a façade.
The Yao family had actually agreed to this marriage even though their family backgrounds were so incompatible. There could only be one reason-the Yao family wanted to establish a relationship with the Pei family's first household.
For this reason, the Yao family had a daughter in exchange for long-term benefits, which was a very cost-effective deal.
Other than that, if the Yao family's daughter were to marry into the Pei family's third household, the third household would not dare to oppress her in the future.
To the Yao family, there were only benefits and no harm in facilitating this marriage, so how could they disagree?
So here came the problem. Miss Yao's own wishes were not important. Whether she was willing or not, this marriage had to be successful.
Even if the Third Young Master of the Pei family was scum.
The women of official families didn't have the right to decide their lives, not to mention those who didn't have good family conditions.
Therefore, they could only pray that they could marry a man worthy of their trust, and then they would have hope in this life.
A man worthy of being entrusted with a lifetime was extremely difficult to find.
In the modern era, because her parents valued sons over daughters, Qu Fulan had never even felt the love of her parents. How would she have the time to pray for a love that would last until death?
That would be too extravagant.
She couldn't afford it.
On the other hand, when the young lady of the Yao family learned that the Pei Residence had two outstanding maidservants, her heart was filled with all kinds of discomfort.
She brought this up to her mother.
"Mother, Old Lady Pei's hobby is really harmful. They're all just servant girls, but she keeps some vixens by her side. Isn't she afraid of causing trouble in the rear residence?"
Mother Yao was an experienced person, and her view of things was not so one-sided.
"It's normal for an old person to like to look at beautiful things. Just like your grandmother, didn't she have two beautiful servant girls by her side? Because they're old, they like to look at eye-pleasing things. Otherwise, she's afraid that those ugly things will affect their meals."
Seeing that her daughter didn't understand, she continued, "You can rest assured. Just like your grandmother, the two servant girls are well-behaved. The old woman still has the means to restrain the servants."
Miss Yao still couldn't let it go. "It's hard to guard against a thief. She seems to be well-behaved now, but who knows if she'll have other thoughts one day? If it were up to me, I would have driven those vixens out to prevent any future trouble!"
"It's fine if you say this kind of words in front of me, but if you go to the Pei Residence, Old Lady Pei is not someone you can mess around with."
"Isn't it just kicking out two maidservants? How is that a crime?" Miss Yao didn't understand.
Madam Yao was afraid that her daughter wouldn't understand if she didn't point out the relationship, and it would ruin things.
"Why don't you think about it? Do you think you can touch the people around Old Lady Pei? Your father is still hoping to have a good relationship with the Pei family's first household. If you ruin your father's good things, see how he will punish you later."
Miss Yao bit her lip and stopped talking, but she was still unconvinced.
How could Madam Yao not see through her own daughter's thoughts? She comforted her.
"You should also learn to be more open-minded. Which man doesn't have three wives and four concubines? Instead of spending your time on this kind of thing, it's better to think about how to maintain the relationship between husband and wife. This is the most important thing. As long as you can control husband, won't the other concubines be at your disposal?"
"It's none of my business if other men have three or four wives, but my man can't. I'm the daughter of a fourth-grade official. It's already a grievance for me to marry someone of lower status. My future husband should respect me and not take in concubines!"
Madam Yao frowned. Her daughter's personality was arrogant and she had never put the illegitimate siblings in her eyes. She would destroy anything good and would not give it to the illegitimate children. She also did not care about the illegitimate children, so she did not notice that her daughter's behavior was inappropriate.
She didn't want her daughter to have the same attitude toward marriage, so Madam Yao had to raise her attitude and teach her daughter how to be a wife.
As for whether Miss Yao would be convinced or not, only she would know.
On the other hand, the Pei family's happy event had already reached its final juncture. They only had to wait for the bride to be married in seven days, and everything would be settled.
Now, people were coming and going in the Pei Residence, and everyone had happy smiles on their faces.
The joy of a newly married couple was really infectious.
Qu Fulan walked in the midst of the celebration. She had a smile on her face, but her heart was calm.
She wasn't influenced by it. After witnessing her parents' failed marriage in the modern world, she had no expectations for marriage, so it was difficult for her to develop a sympathetic mentality.
To her, freedom and money were the most important. If someone in the Pei family were to be merciful and give her a lot of money and set her free, she would smile more happily than anyone else.
Only a bird in a cage could understand her feelings.
Under a thousand-year-old Chinese scholar tree in the courtyard of Fushou Hall, a bird was locked in a cage.
Although they were fed full every day, the chirping of the birds was obviously not as cheerful as the birds outside.
Freedom was clearly in front of them, but because they were trapped in a cage, they could not soar in the sky.
In this way, even if they had wings, it would be futile.
At this time, night had fallen, and the festive and lively atmosphere in the Pei Residence slowly subsided. Qu Fulan stood under a tree to feed the birds.
This was the most relaxed moment of her day. Perhaps it was because they were in the same boat, but she pitied the bird from the bottom of her heart.
Perhaps the bird could sense something. Every time she came to feed it, it would become unusually active and jump up and down, which made her smile from the bottom of her heart.
A tall figure strode in from outside and saw this scene.
Under the ancient Chinese scholar tree, where the lights were dim, the woman was graceful and elegant.
When Qu Fulan heard the sound of footsteps, she subconsciously turned her head. The person was already very close to her.