1.
My younger sister was born sick, so she has always been frail. Our whole family doted on her as if she were a precious treasure.
Whatever my younger sister liked, no matter how precious it was, we would find it for her. Even when she liked my fiancé, I generously gave him to her.
He was only a man I had never even met. How could he compare to the sister I had grown up with? But I never expected that this man would one day ascend the throne.
The night he took my younger sister into the palace, our whole family stood together and told her that if she didn't want to enter the palace, we would protect her, even if it meant risking exile.
But my younger sister said, full of excitement, that she wanted to enter the palace. She wanted to become the most honored woman in the world.
Just as she wished, she used our father's official position to enter the palace as a consort. By then, her fiancé, Xue Lin, had already become emperor—and he had made her a promise.
If the general's residence was thrown into prison, he would make her empress. It was an outrageous offer, yet instead of seeing through this man's intentions and warning our family, she nodded and accepted.
Our whole family died a horrible death. My younger sister clutched her belly and wept bitterly. “I had to find a way out for my child. You were the ones who said you were willing to die for me. My child is your family, too.”
In the end, it was the orphan Yun Dao, whom Father had rescued on the battlefield, who buried our whole family, raised memorial tablets for us, and avenged us.
But she was no match for my younger sister. She ruined my sister's beautiful face, but she, too, died a horrible death at my sister's hands.
After her face was disfigured, my younger sister furiously ordered that she be torn apart by five horses. Yun Dao had always been timid. Ever since she came to the general's residence, she had been so meek that she wouldn't dare meet anyone.
But who could have guessed that someone so timid and meek would one day be able to lift a heavy blade and face death without fear?
2.
When I opened my eyes, I realized I had been reborn. I had returned to the day Father brought Yun Dao to the residence.
She had been slapped to the ground by my younger sister and lay there trembling, too afraid to move. My sister stood with her hands on her hips and screamed at Father through her tears. “What orphan? Anyone can see she's your illegitimate daughter from outside!”
Father was so angry he could barely catch his breath, but he couldn't bring himself to scold the daughter he had always doted on. He could only tell me, “Shu Yu, take Yun Dao downstairs and find her a place to stay.”
“Her father died in battle at Bình Nam Pass, and she's all alone now. From this day forward, she'll be the fourth young lady of the general's residence.”
I helped the frail Yun Dao to her feet and held her bony fingers tightly. Then I fixed a cold stare on my beloved younger sister, Shu Yan. “Father, Yun Dao's parents died in battle, so she's the descendant of a meritorious soldier. What gives Shu Yan the right to hit her? Since when did the Shu family have a daughter who can't tell right from wrong?”
Shu Yan stepped back in shock and hid behind Mother. “Mother, I'm scared.”
Father fell silent, embarrassed. Mother smiled and tried to soothe me. “All right, Yu'er. She's your own younger sister.”
In Mother's arms, Shu Yan smugly stuck her tongue out at me, then glared at Yun Dao in challenge. I gave a furious, cold laugh, strode forward, yanked her out of Mother's arms, and slapped her across the face. “That slap was for making trouble on purpose, throwing your weight around, and growing arrogant because you're spoiled!”
She shrieked, tears streaming down her face, and blood ran from her split lip.
My parents were both shocked and furious, but I spoke before they could. “We won a great victory at Bình Nam Pass, and His Majesty is looking to reward those who served him. Father brought home and took in the orphan of a soldier who died for our country. Word of it will reach His Majesty's ears soon enough.”
“If His Majesty learns that Father, as commander-in-chief, failed to treat the descendants of fallen soldiers well, it won't only anger him. Father's own subordinates will grow resentful, too.”
Father sank back into his chair, deep in thought. I turned to Mother. “My younger sister is frail, and everyone already knows she's pregnant even though she's unmarried. If she's also accused of assaulting the descendant of a meritorious soldier, Mother surely understands what that would mean. Not only will she never marry; neither my elder sister nor I will be able to marry, either!”
Mother, too, sat down carefully. Shu Yan got up from the floor and wailed, her mouth full of blood. “What descendant of a meritorious soldier? Her father was nothing but a lowly foot soldier, not even an officer! Second Sister actually hit me for this vile woman!”
Father cherished his soldiers as his own life, and at her words, he looked at her in anger and disappointment. “You! How could you say such a thing?”
Mother shook her head in disappointment, too. Beside me, Yun Dao whimpered timidly, “It's my fault, Second Young Lady. I'm only a commoner. Please don't take your anger out on the Third Young Lady because of me...”
She knelt and kowtowed to Shu Yan in apology, scraping the skin from her forehead until it was streaked with blood. I was bewildered, but Shu Yan still wouldn't let her go. She kept insulting her. “You're nothing but a lowborn commoner! Letting you into the general's residence has dirtied this place!”
I was so angry I laughed. I grabbed Shu Yan by the hair and slapped her across the mouth. “Shut up!”
Blood soaked into my palm. I tossed her into the hands of a maid. “Lock her in the ancestral hall! Let her reflect on her behavior and learn some self-control!”
Then I steadied Yun Dao's trembling body and said, each word firm and clear, “From now on, you're my own younger sister.”
She shook her head in panic, tears pouring down her cheeks. “I-I'd be happy to serve you as a maid, miss... How could I possibly be worthy of that status?”
I saw Shu Yan's jealous gaze and clasped Yun Dao's hand. “You are worthy. From now on, I'll protect you.”
Shu Yan wailed and kept hurling insults at Yun Dao and me. Calmly, I said to my parents, “Shu Yan is of marriageable age, yet no one has come to ask for her hand. Father and Mother, why do you think that is?”
Father held his head and sighed mournfully. “We can support her for the rest of her life.”
Mother had always doted on Shu Yan the most, but for the first time, she disagreed with Father. I asked him softly, “Is Shu Yan your only daughter? Then does my elder brother not need to marry? Do my elder sister and I not need to marry either?”
“Spoiling a child is like killing her! You don’t have only one child! By disregarding Shu Yan’s reputation, you’re making the three of us bear the bitter consequences of her impulsiveness!”
Mother said in a low voice, “Yu’er is right. We spoiled Yan’er too much before. The girl has none of the bearing of a proper young lady, and things can’t go on this way.”
Meanwhile, Shu Yan cursed at the heavens and earth in the ancestral hall, berating the matron who was watching over her. She thought that, given how much her family doted on her, this was just for show and they would let her out soon.
But she was mistaken. Maybe that would have been true before, but it wouldn’t be true anymore.
3.
Father had only told me to find Yun Dao some place to stay in whichever courtyard I chose.
But I remembered what she had stubbornly said as she lay dying in my previous life: “The master saved me from dire straits. He took me in despite my lowly status. I have nothing with which to repay him—my life is all I can give in return!”
But in truth, we had treated her no differently than anyone else. We had simply given her a place to live and a meal to eat.
That one casual kindness had been enough to make her brave fire and water for us. And Shu Yan was our own flesh and blood, cherished in the palm of our hands and held close to our hearts for eighteen years!
And how had she treated us? In this world, whether someone is close to you or shares your blood no longer matters. Some family members are enemies, while some strangers are closer than family.
I arranged for Yun Dao to stay in the courtyard my elder sister and I shared. When she heard what I’d done that day, my elder sister didn’t blame me.
Instead, she gave a wry smile and said, “It should have been this way long ago.” My elder sister had been the one who suffered all these years. She’d had a fine marriage arranged, but Shu Yan’s overbearing behavior had led to the engagement being broken off.
Whatever my elder sister liked, Shu Yan would brazenly snatch away. Our parents said she was still young and frail, so we had to give in to her—whether we wanted to or not.
My elder sister liked Yun Dao very much.
She had learned directly from the renowned master Yun Huizi. Her skillful brushwork was unrivaled in the capital, and she was often praised at home as well.
Only Shu Yan was always making sarcastic, backhanded remarks. She even sneaked over to bother my sister, scribbling all over the painting she had worked so carefully on.
If anyone scolded Shu Yan, she would immediately wail, and she wouldn’t be appeased until she’d torn up my elder sister’s painting.
After Yun Dao arrived, my elder sister began teaching her to paint. Yun Dao was gifted and learned quickly. No matter what my sister painted, Yun Dao would clap like a child, earnestly searching for every possible word of praise.
My elder sister had been depressed over the broken engagement, but she’d been feeling much better these past few days. We could often hear her laughter from inside the courtyard.
Yun Dao was frail, but she rode and practiced martial arts with me. Even when she was exhausted, she never complained. If she fell off her horse, she got right back up.
She would even jump around and laugh as she told me she was fine, just so I wouldn’t worry.
My elder brother taught her to read and write. She often stayed up late, secretly practicing calligraphy by copying model texts.
The next morning, she’d wake with puffy eyes and yawn over and over. When we asked her about it, she only smiled sheepishly.