The Prime Minister's residence had not been this lively in years.
Red silk draped every beam and pillar, fluttering gently in the spring breeze. Lanterns glowed even in daylight, their warm light reflecting off polished stone paths. The scent of incense lingered thick in the air, mingling with expensive wine and blooming flowers imported from the south.
It was a celebration meant to be remembered.
Li Xinyue's coming-of-age banquet.
Nobles arrived in endless streams officials, their wives, daughters wrapped in silk and jewels, laughter spilling freely as if this residence were theirs to command. Servants hurried back and forth, heads bowed, feet light, afraid of making the slightest mistake.
And among them stood Li Yue.
She was dressed neatly, her pale blue robe simple but clean, her hair pinned with nothing more than a modest jade clasp. There was nothing wrong with her appearance on the contrary, many would say she was breathtaking.
But beauty without favor was a dangerous thing.
"Eldest Miss, stand further back," a senior maid whispered sharply. "Do not block the guests' view."
Li Yue obeyed without argument, stepping closer to the servants' line.
She had learned long ago that protest achieved nothing here.
Her gaze lifted, drawn instinctively to the center of the courtyard.
Li Xinyue had arrived.
Her stepsister was radiant rose-colored silk embroidered with gold thread clung to her figure, her hair adorned with pearls and jade. Every movement was elegant, every smile practiced to perfection. She bowed gracefully, accepting praise as if she had been born beneath applause.
"Second Miss Li grows more beautiful each year."
"Such elegance no wonder the Prime Minister dotes on her."
"How fortunate Madam Zhao is, to have such a daughter."
Each compliment landed like a needle beneath Li Yue's skin.
She remembered another woman once standing there her mother, calm, dignified, commanding respect without effort. This courtyard had once echoed with admiration for her.
Now, that past felt like a dream she alone remembered.
A noblewoman's voice rang out, curious and careless.
"Isn't there an elder daughter in the Li household?"
The air shifted.
Li Xinyue's smile faltered for the briefest moment before softening again. "Ah… Elder Sister Li Yue? She insisted on helping the servants today. She says she prefers it."
A gentle laugh followed.
"How humble."
"What a pity, though."
Humility.
Li Yue's fingers tightened slowly at her side.
She stood in full view, yet invisible. Spoken of as if she were not present. Reduced to a footnote in her own home.
Her gaze moved, unbidden, to the main seat beneath the canopy.
Prime Minister Li sat there, composed and dignified, dressed in dark official robes. Her father.
His eyes passed over the crowd.
Over Li Xinyue.
Over Madam Zhao.
They did not stop on her.
Not once.
That silence was worse than any insult.
She had prepared herself for ridicule. She had expected cruelty from her stepmother and stepsister.
But her father's indifference carved deeper than words ever could.
The banquet continued.
Music played. Dancers moved gracefully. Wine flowed freely.
Li Yue stood still, like a shadow pinned to the ground, until a sharp voice cut through the noise.
"Eldest Miss Li."
Madam Zhao approached, her smile warm, her eyes calculating.
"Come," she said kindly, taking Li Yue's hand as if guiding a beloved daughter. "You should greet the guests. It would be improper to hide."
Li Yue's heart sank.
She knew this script. She had lived it many times before.
Still, she stepped forward.
As she bowed to the guests, murmurs rippled again some curious, some judgmental, some indifferent.
Then it happened.
"Oh!"
Li Xinyue gasped softly, eyes wide. "Elder Sister your sleeve!"
Red wine spilled across Li Yue's robe, blooming like a wound.
The servant who had brushed past her collapsed to the ground in terror. "I, I beg forgiveness"
Li Xinyue rushed forward, voice trembling with concern. "How careless! Elder Sister, are you hurt?"
Her performance was flawless.
The whispers grew louder.
"How embarrassing."
"That robe was so plain to begin with."
"She truly doesn't belong in such a grand setting."
Li Yue straightened slowly.
Her chest felt tight. Her ears rang. Every gaze burned.
She met Li Xinyue's eyes and saw it.
Satisfaction.
Hidden carefully behind innocence.
"I'm fine," Li Yue said softly.
Li Xinyue bit her lip, eyes glistening. "Elder Sister, why didn't you change before coming out? Today is important. People might misunderstand and think Father neglects you."
Neglects.
Li Yue's breath caught.
She turned instinctively toward Prime Minister Li.
For the first time that day, he looked at her.
His gaze was not angry. Not cold.
It was warning.
"Enough," he said. "Do not disrupt the celebration."
That was all.
No defense.
No reassurance.
No explanation.
The message was clear.
Endure.
Li Yue bowed deeply, her spine straight despite the tremor in her hands. She stepped back, retreating into the shadows where she had been allowed to exist.
As she turned away, she felt it a presence.
At the edge of the courtyard stood a man in dark robes, tall, composed, his expression unreadable.
Prince Xiao Jinchen.
Their eyes met for a fleeting moment.
There was no pity in his gaze.
Only sharp, quiet assessment.
Li Yue looked away first.
She refused to be seen as pitiful.
That night, rain fell heavily against the tiled roofs.
Li Yue knelt alone in her chamber, opening an old chest hidden beneath her bed. Inside lay ledgers, seals, letters her mother's handwriting clear and precise.
Proof.
Her mother had not been weak.
She had been powerful.
The wealth the Prime Minister flaunted.
The businesses under his name.
They had belonged to her mother.
Stolen politely.
Claimed silently.
Buried with her death.
Li Yue pressed a hand to her mouth as tears finally fell.
So this was the truth.
This was why Madam Zhao smiled.
Why Li Xinyue was indulged.
Why her father feared her growing up.
She laughed softly broken, bitter.
"So that's how it is…"
Thunder roared outside.
Li Yue wiped her tears away and stood.
From this night onward, she would endure no longer without purpose.
She would bow when needed.
Smile when required.
Remain gentle when watched.
But she would remember everything.
Every humiliation.
Every betrayal.
Every stolen breath.
"They think I am harmless," she whispered into the dark.
Her reflection stared back,beautiful, composed, burning.
"Good," Li Yue said softly. "Let them."
Because when she fought back,
She would take everything.