Ji Mingzhu was reborn.
One moment she was in the delivery room, in excruciating pain, and the next she was amidst a banquet.
Every face she saw was familiar.
Amidst the clinking of glasses, laughter rushed into her ears.
In a daze, she spilled her wine, soaking her sleeve.
The cold sensation clearly registered, startling Ji Mingzhu into realizing this was not a dream.
"Look at this girl, she's drunk before she even drank the wine."
The beautiful woman beside her leaned over, using a handkerchief to wipe the wine off her.
"It's cold in winter; what if you catch a chill?"
The woman was so close, her concern was evident in her eyes.
Ji Mingzhu whispered, "Aunt, I'm fine."
The woman called aunt was the head mistress of the secondary branch of the Xie family, and had no blood relation to Ji Mingzhu.
Ji Mingzhu was born to a military family; her father died in battle when she was young.
Three years ago, her mother fell seriously ill, fearing she would be left alone and bullied by relatives.
Her mother entrusted her to her close friend, Mrs. Guan.
Under the protection of Mrs. Guan and the Xie family, Ji Mingzhu retained most of her family's estate.
Now she had reached marriageable age and could consider potential suitors.
Ji Mingzhu sat dazed, and Mrs. Guan thought she was upset about what happened earlier.
She consoled warmly, "We're all family, don't be nervous."
Reborn, returning to a time before she'd interacted with that person, Ji Mingzhu felt disoriented.
These words seemed to enter her ears, yet also seemed not to.
Mrs. Guan found it strange; Mingzhu was usually quite composed and wouldn't be so unsettled by a small mistake.
"Hurry back and change your clothes; today is Ah Zhen's big day, losing face is not an option."
Ah Zhen…
A tall silhouette instantly appeared in Ji Mingzhu's mind.
The man, with elegant and noble features, possessed both the literary talent to bring peace to the land and the martial prowess to command armies, was the object of admiration for countless noble ladies in the capital.
If her memory was correct, today's banquet was to celebrate his triumphant return.
Thinking of the man who made her feel a mix of love and hate, Ji Mingzhu felt a sharp sting in her heart.
A slender, aching pain.
There was no time to feel sad, as Mrs. Guan had already instructed the maids to help her up.
"If you're not feeling well, just rest in your room. When the main guest arrives, Auntie will congratulate him on your behalf."
Ji Mingzhu didn't want to meet Xie Yunzhen anyway, so she curtseyed deeply.
"Aunt, I'll take my leave now."
"Yes, be on your way."
With a graceful bow to the noble ladies in the main seats, Ji Mingzhu took small steps and exited the hall.
The whole rebirth thing was too bewildering, her mind was in turmoil, and she walked faster along the covered corridor.
As if a beast were chasing her from behind.
"Miss, please slow down, watch your step."
Earlier, it snowed again, and snowflakes fell onto the corridor, forming a thin layer of ice, which could easily cause a fall.
Just as the words left her mouth, Jinzi saw her Miss tumble into the embrace of a tall man at the corner.
The man, dressed in a black cloak, had features as striking as jade, but his aura was colder than the icy world outside.
Just a casual look from him was enough to make one's scalp tingle.
Jinzi hurriedly curtsied, "Greetings, Young Master."
When Ji Mingzhu came to the Xie family, Xie Yunzhen had already gone to fight on the battlefield.
If not for memories from her past life, today should have been their first meeting.
The familiar scent of cold pine wafted into her nose, and Ji Mingzhu's body felt frozen.
Even her reactions were delayed by a few beats.
Suddenly, a soft object collided into his embrace, carrying the unique fragrance of a lady, and Xie Yunzhen's eyes darkened suddenly.
An intense look flashed across his face.
Just as he was about to scold, the soft object quickly left his embrace.
"Unintentional offense, please don't take it to heart, Young Master," she quickly stepped back two paces, apologizing with a curtsy.
Xie Yunzhen, being tall, could see clearly the pearl ornaments on the woman's head from his angle.
Every piece was a luxurious item.
Looking at her attire, she wore nothing but the finest materials, not what a maid or concubine would wear.
Awhite fox fur scarf draped around a slender neck, with white jade drop earrings that made her face appear even smaller, but with eyes lowered, no one could see her true expression.
Xie Yunzhen's gaze lingered for just a moment before he walked quickly forward.
His attendants followed closely, softly reminding, "Young Master, that was the Miss from the Ji family, who sought refuge with the Second Madame three years ago."
Xie Yunzhen's footsteps halted.
Ji family... then she likely did not deliberately throw herself at him.
The ice in his eyes lessened somewhat.
Reaching the corner, for some unknown reason, Xie Yunzhen turned back for a glance.
The woman stood under the eaves, the dim light rendering her with a sacred glow.
She still maintained her saluting posture, revealing half of her beautiful profile.
Given the distance, Xie Yunzhen had an instinct that this face should have snow-white skin, with cheeks like peach blossoms, and a texture like jade.
This thought startled Xie Yunzhen himself.
When had he ever had such thoughts about a woman?
The ice that had finally melted in his eyes reformed once more.
The Duke Mansion was so vast, and yet they ran into each other, and she had even collided into his arms.
Was all of this truly a coincidence?
In her past life, she had been married to him, and he was someone she liked; Ji Mingzhu had spent a lot of effort on Xie Yunzhen.
Therefore, though his glance was fleeting, Ji Mingzhu still caught it.
The corners of her mouth curled into a mocking smile.
In Xie Yunzhen's eyes, she might once again be seen as a woman with ulterior motives.
The rebirth had happened so suddenly, Ji Mingzhu's feelings of love and hate for Xie Yunzhen were stuck at their peak.
Thinking that he would misunderstand her, her heart couldn't help but ache.
Taking a quiet breath.
Ji Mingzhu told herself that in this life, she would never repeat the same mistakes.
No matter who he was thinking of, it had nothing to do with her.
In this life, she would stay far away from Xie Yunzhen.
The corridor was completely devoid of Xie Yunzhen's figure, and Jinzi instinctively patted her chest.
"The Young Master has become scarier than before, Miss, in the future, we must be careful not to run into the Young Master."
"This time we were lucky; the last woman who collided into the Young Master's arms was thrown out in public."
Ji Mingzhu nodded, "Don't worry, in the future, I'll avoid wherever he is."
Jinzi explained, "I didn't mean it that way, just that you must know the Young Master is not someone to provoke."
Xie Yunzhen was the legitimate son of the main house.
His father was Duke Dingguo, and his mother was the Commandery Princess.
His status was already noble enough, and with military achievements, he truly was someone not to be provoked.
Ji Mingzhu didn't even know where she got the courage in her past life, not only to pursue him but also to think she could melt this block of ice.
In reality, she was wrong.
Otherwise, how could Xie Yunzhen remain indifferent even when she was in difficult labor?
After her death, Xie Yunzhen might even light fireworks in celebration, then happily marry his true love.
Ji Mingzhu cleared her thoughts, and turned to go in the opposite direction.
She wore a fiery red cloak, the most striking color in the icy and snowy world.
She walked further and further away, never looking back even once.