Chapter 2

After I received the news, I sat by the window all night.

I wanted to find something to remember her by, but I found nothing.

I wasn’t lucky enough to transmigrate to a more open and prosperous era, nor did I become a princess or a noble consort.

Intrigues in the inner chambers, struggles for power, tales of gifted scholars and beautiful ladies-all of these were unrelated to me.

Or rather, they were unrelated to the vast majority of women in this era.

Ritual Teachings and the Three Bonds and Five Constants weighed heavily above our heads.

I feared pain, and I feared death.

I no longer dared to think of standing out; all I wanted was to keep myself alive.

Gradually, my precociousness and understanding of propriety were recognized by my teacher.

After all, my soul was already over thirty years old, so I learned things faster than others.

I diligently memorized the Female Virtues and Women’s Precepts, even though I rolled my eyes a thousand times in my heart.

I diligently practiced embroidery.

I diligently accepted my fate.

I was about to have my Coming-of-Age Ceremony, and it was time to discuss marriage proposals.

My teacher’s praise for my manners and intelligence became my bargaining chip for choosing a good husband.

Many matchmakers came to propose, and even several sons of noble families inquired about me.

For the first time, my father was so happy he could not stop smiling.

Every day, he bragged about how wise he was to propose to my maternal grandfather’s family back then.

Having married my mother, even a rough military man like him could have a talented daughter.

Though my maternal grandfather’s official rank wasn’t high, the family had been upright civil officials for generations.

My mother was well-read and cultured, possessing a unique bearing.