“How are you feeling now, madam? If you ask me, you might as well just cancel tonight’s banquet altogether. After all, that old man’s villa isn’t far from here, and there’s no way he hasn’t heard about your carriage being startled this evening.” The young maid Rose walked in carrying a gold-painted lacquer tray, on which lay two pieces of vermilion lacquered sheepskin, a blue gauze robe, and a pile of glittering bracelets, anklets, bells, and chains. Four maids, all younger than her and each as lovely as a budding flower, followed behind. They helped Martha Washington up from the bedside and led her to the dressing table, serving her as she dressed and adorned herself.

Just as Rose had said earlier, this set of Tazi clothing offered little difference in warmth whether worn or not. However, it made Martha Washington’s skin appear even fairer and more delicate, and her waist even more slender and shapely. Martha Washington shook her head, picked up a heavy chest ornament, and hung it around her own neck. “Can I really not go? If that old man holds a grudge, it’ll take at least three to five years to shake him off…”

The chest ornament was a net made of amber and pearls, with countless tiny silver bells hanging from the lower edge. Each one was attached to the edge of the dark red sheepskin bodice, bringing a faint chill like scattered stars.

Looking at the beauty in the mirror, growing more alluring by the minute, Martha Washington let out a slight, cold laugh. For more than ten years, this face had never changed. Still capable of turning all heads, still breathtakingly beautiful. She remembered when her husband died—it was also a cold autumn like this. She hadn’t even taken off her mourning clothes when her father-in-law had already climbed into her bed.

That night, Martha Washington didn’t know how she managed to get up from the bed again. In any case, from that moment on, Pearl Young was dead. From then on, she became the most “outstanding” daughter-in-law of the Pei family of Hedong, the widow of the talented man from Shu, Peter Bell. Perhaps blessed by her late husband’s spirit, she not only grew more beautiful, like a begonia after the rain, but also became skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, her reputation as a talented woman spreading far and wide.

All of this was because the Pei family’s power was too great. Her own father, Edward Young, held too low a position, and her brother Franklin Young was not accomplished. Those without prospects were destined to be bullied—Pearl Young had once believed this deeply. So, she used a very simple yet effective method to send her lecherous father-in-law to his grave, and took control of the Pei family’s branch in Shu. But she soon discovered that even in Shu, above the Pei family were the Wang, Xiao, and Li families—any one of which she could not afford to offend.

So, she continued to dance among the powerful and influential, hoping to use her beauty to win greater prospects for her family. Her younger sister was selected for the Prince of Shou’s household, and her brother managed to become a scribe under the military governor.

It took great effort for her sister Pearl to become the Princess of Shou. Now, at last, the The Young Family had a legitimate connection to the royal family—surely they could finally hold their heads high? But who would have thought, above the Prince of Shou was still the Emperor, and above the military governor were the Grand Chancellors.

So, her dance continued, spinning from the Kaiyuan era all the way to the Tianbao era. Her sister Pearl Young became the Emperor’s most beloved woman, for whom he often canceled morning court. Her brother Franklin Young, rising by his sister’s favor, held seventeen prominent posts and wielded power over the court. Yet, accustomed to a life of social maneuvering, she could no longer stop her steps.

Her brother Franklin was not a man of great depth; though he held high office, he still couldn’t shake the habits formed in his days among the common folk. He was skilled at petty tricks behind the scenes, but lacked the wisdom and courage to face trouble head-on. Her sister, favored in the harem, had no powerful family backing her, and unwittingly made countless enemies. All these rumors and cracks needed her to dance with long sleeves, to inquire and to mend. If she was even a little lazy, her sister and brother would gain yet another unexpected enemy. The The Young Family, and the Pei family of Shu that she once hated to the bone, would have another cold knife at their backs.

Sometimes, Martha Washington felt that she hadn’t really solved any problems for her siblings. But without this grand and righteous excuse, she no longer knew what she was living for.

Rose picked up the pearl relic cream from Yangzhou, a tribute to the royal family, and carefully applied it around Martha Washington’s eyes. “Madam, you probably didn’t sleep well just now!” she murmured softly as she gently massaged the cream into the skin around her eyes, like an elder sister carefully tending to her willful younger sibling.

“I just had a dream. A very strange dream!” Martha Washington grabbed a thick, long silver chain from the tray and, with the maid’s help, fastened it around her waist. This exotic item from Tazi had a very alluring name—‘Locking the Slender Waist.’ Its bold style, paired with her delicate waist, made her seem all the more pitiable beneath her charm.

“What did you dream about, madam? Can you tell me?”

“I’ve already forgotten. Knowing dreams are false, who would bother to remember them?” Martha Washington shook her head and turned aside, letting the maid drape a thin gauze robe over her shoulders.