She could determine that the person wearing a golden mask in the carriage was the man she met in the mountains when she first came to this world. She couldn't forget his handsome face with the unusual purple lotus birthmark, and no matter what, she couldn't understand why he would wear a mask.

  "Is that person the Ninth Prince?" Feng Yu asked Yao Shi.

  "Is Ah Huang talking about the person sitting in the carriage?" Mrs. Yao also took a look, "Since it's to welcome the Ninth Prince back to the capital, it must be him."

  Sun Auntie had already knelt down on the ground with the common people, constantly kowtowing to that cart.

  Feng Yu's thoughts rose as she stood on the carriage, gazing out. She felt that amidst the slight movements of the carriage curtains, someone inside seemed to have glanced in her direction, yet their gaze didn't linger.

  Perhaps she had forgotten. She smiled wryly and sat back down. As the Ninth Prince, he was a first-rate noble in this feudal dynasty; how could he possibly remember a rustic child like her?

  It's just... why doesn't his team seem joyful despite having won the battle?

  Ninth Prince... Feng Yu Heng suddenly hesitated again, and asked impulsively: "Sun Mama, you said earlier that the Feng family welcomed us back, what was it for?"

  The old lady got up from the ground, with a face full of smiles, "Miss, it's about your engagement to the Ninth Prince!"

  Yao's face also revealed a rarely seen joyful smile, "Ah Huang, the difficult days are almost over. Now that the Ninth Prince has military achievements to his name, even among other princes, he will stand out from the rest. My Ah Huang is blessed."

  Feng Yu Huan never believed in auspicious or inauspicious sayings, urged Yao Shi and Sun Niang to get on the carriage, personally carried Feng Zi Rui into the carriage compartment, waited for the army to enter the city, closely followed behind also entered.

  Some things in her heart had raised question marks, some things were gradually emerging, but there was no time to think carefully.

  A group of people drove the horse carriage towards Feng Fu at a rapid pace, but they didn't know that the pair of eyes under the golden mask had already seen the little girl standing still on the carriage as the curtain was lifted. She was still thin and weak, even more disheveled than when she was in the mountains, it seemed that she had suffered a lot on her way from the far west to the capital.

  "Go check."

  Only one sentence, Bai Ze, who was standing by and attending, immediately understood and bowed his head in response: "Your subordinate understands."

  ……

  Finally standing in front of the Feng Mansion, Feng Yuexia gazed at the four large characters "Left Prime Minister's Residence" written on the plaque above the gate, and a sarcastic smile rose up in her heart.

  The majestic Left Chancellor, unexpectedly did something to seek self-protection and favoritism, abolishing his wife and abandoning his son and daughter in a mountain village without care. She really wanted to know what kind of expression that father would have when facing them again.

  Sun Auntie let out a sigh of relief, muttering "Finally back" as she pulled several people to knock on the door.

  The person at the gate opened it and saw that it was Sun's nanny, clearly stunned for a moment, then suddenly slammed the door shut again with a "bang".

  "Alas!" Mrs. Sun was rebuked, feeling indignant but not knowing where to vent her emotions, and had to turn around to comfort the other three: "Don't worry, Madam, it must be that the servant has gone inside to report."

  Feng Zi Rui grasped Feng Yu Huan's hand and refused to let go, this place that was both unfamiliar yet had a hint of familiarity made him feel both longing and fearful.

  Everyone had been waiting at the door for a long time, Feng Zirui's sentence "Is Father unwilling to see us?" had already been asked three times, and just as he was about to ask for the fourth time, the gate finally opened again.

  He Zhong, the dignified butler, came to greet them with two servants following behind him. His face was filled with a mixture of confusion, stiffness and embarrassment as he forced a smile. Just as he was about to speak, Feng Yu Heng beat him to it, saying, "The gates of the Feng manor are indeed not easy to enter."

  "This He Zhong was also a seasoned person, and as soon as he heard this, he hastily took over: 'Second Miss, you're being too serious. It's just that the gatekeeper is an ignorant servant who doesn't know the rules. Please follow me to the main hall first, where Master and Mistress are waiting, along with Old Lady and all the other masters. If we delay, it won't be good.' With a few words, he cleared himself of any blame."

  Feng Yu didn't want to argue with the steward any further, as she had already entered the Feng manor. She wanted to see what kind of monsters this family was made up of.

  He Zhong led the people to Zhengtang, bypassing the shadow wall, passing through two corridors, and passing by a golden carp pond, where they saw various flowers and grasses, and heard the singing of hundreds of birds.

  Along the way, nearly eighty people were seen, each with a puzzled expression and speaking in hushed tones. A sentence floated to Feng Yu Heng's ears on the wind: "The second young miss has returned to the manor, what about the eldest young miss's engagement?"

  I had long been suspicious of this, the Ninth Prince won a battle and the Feng manor remembered that they still had this marriage arrangement, so they hastily sent someone to bring her back to the capital. But why did they send people to ambush and kill her mother and daughter on the way? Now thinking about it, it's probably because the Ninth Prince's military achievements are growing day by day, and with the engagement between him and the eldest daughter of the Feng family, if Feng Yuexiang were to die, the one who would definitely be able to climb up would be Feng Chenyu.

  Feng Chenyu... She searched for the original master's memories, that girl who was two years older than her back then, indeed had a sinking fish appearance. Nowadays, Feng Chenyu's birth mother Shen Shi has risen to become the mistress of the house from being a concubine, and Feng Chenyu naturally became the legitimate daughter of the Feng family.

  After circling around a sea of peonies again, I finally arrived at the main hall of Feng Fu's residence in Peony Courtyard.

  There were neatly dressed maidservants who had arrived early and were waiting behind the silk curtains, but the smiles on their faces looked forced.

  Yao Shi walked with her head down, her timid appearance making Feng Zirui also feel afraid. Feng Yuhan's face was expressionless, and she found the increasingly luxurious scenery of the Feng manor in recent years to be novel, but after many years of military life, she had long learned to selectively hide her emotions deep within herself.

  Apart from Sun Shangshu stopping at the door due to her status, everyone else entered the main hall and saw a dignified and elegant elderly woman sitting upright. Although she was referred to as an old woman, she was actually less than sixty years old, with not all of her hair turned white yet. However, in order to demonstrate her status and position within the Feng family, she had been carrying herself like an elder for many years, with the makeup on her face emphasizing wealth and stability. She even held a huamu wood cane in her hand, with a large piece of gold and jade at the top, which didn't look particularly good but made her appear even more aged and stern.

  Sitting opposite the old lady was a robust man of about forty years, with a stern expression, tall and slender build, wearing a brown long gown, with silver thread embroidery of auspicious cloud patterns at the collar, cuffs and waist, and a seal pendant hanging from his waist, revealing his ambition.

  Feng Yu Huan knew that was her father, Feng Jin Yuan. She vaguely recalled from the original owner's memories that as a child, she had also been carried on his shoulders and had his half-long whiskers rub against her cheeks. However, those memories couldn't be superimposed onto the cold face in front of her.

  Next to Feng Jin Yuan was a big fat bear sitting down beside him.

  Well, bear. She didn't know what other words could easily sink this woman.

  Under forty years old, she has already become plump and round, her neck replacing her chin, her belly higher than her chest, her waist completely gone, and her palms thicker than a bear's paws. Yet she still loves to wear tight clothes, the silk fabric wrapped around her body, making her breathe heavily, as if you can almost hear the sound of "zip zip".

  This Shen family was born into a merchant's house, and even if she married the prime minister of the current dynasty, she couldn't get rid of that innate coarseness. She loved to show off, afraid that others wouldn't know she had money, so she adorned herself with gold, silver, jade, precious stones, and her head was almost covered in hairpins, her wrists were hidden in her sleeves, but those few fingers all wore rings.

  Standing beside Shen was Feng's eldest daughter and current legitimate daughter, 14-year-old Feng Chenyu.

  This phoenix-like lady indeed lives up to the name given by the Shen family, with hands as soft as lotus leaves and eyebrows like green feathers. Her clever smile and beautiful eyes are captivating. The long, sky-blue dress that drags on the ground perfectly showcases her slender figure, and a white jade bangle adorns her wrist, complementing her fair and radiant skin. When she looks over at the three members of the Yao family, there is sadness and sympathy in her eyes. This gaze evokes love and pity from everyone who sees it, for they all know that Big Sister Feng Chenyu is an angel-like person who treats even the lowest servants with courtesy. How can anyone bear to see this dear relative return in such a wretched state?

  Feng Jin Yuan first felt heartache for his daughter: "Xian Yu doesn't need to stay here, you can go back to the house and rest, we don't need you to entertain us."

  Feng Chen shook his head, "It's been many years since I've seen Aunt Yao, sister Huan and brother Zi Rui, so let me stay here for a while, Father."

  Feng Jin Yuan said nothing more, Feng Yu Huan followed behind Yao Shi, pulling Feng Zi Rui to quicken their pace for a few steps before kneeling down.

  "Your humble servant is Yao Shi, paying respects to Mother."

  "Feng Yu Huan led Feng Zi Rui in unison and said: 'Pay respects to Grandmother.' Yet, no one mentioned Shen Shi."

  The hall was silent, with only a soft hum of discontent from Shen.

  Looking at Ms. Yao again, she still had a humble and reserved demeanor.

  After a while, the old woman murmured "en" and then fell silent again.