Chapter 2: If She's Changed, Then So Be It—The Second Young Master is Even More Suitable

Yu Yuanzheng did not dare to truly fall asleep; she merely rested her mind while pondering and assimilating the memories of the original owner. It was not until dawn that she fully accepted the reality of her transmigration. At the same time, she had to contend with a sister who had been reborn.

“Miss, may I come in?” a voice sounded outside the door.

Yu Yuanzheng instantly recognized it as Qinghe, Yu Chaoyang’s chief maid.

This was a full performance.

“Come in,” Yu Yuanzheng feigned ignorance.

Then she heard footsteps.

“Miss, why are you still covered with your veil? It’s already dawn. Have you been sitting by the bed all night?” Qinghe asked with concern.

Yu Yuanzheng cooperated and yanked the veil off.

“Ah! You, you—you’re the Second Miss?” Qinghe exclaimed dramatically.

Three other maids who had heard the commotion outside rushed in.

“Where are your maids?” Yu Yuanzheng asked with a bewildered expression.

“Second Miss, this is the heir’s bridal chamber,” Qinghe kindly reminded her.

“W-What’s going on?” Yu Yuanzheng deliberately stammered.

“Sister Qinghe, disaster! The brides were sent to the wrong bridal chambers,” another maid, Bihe, suddenly realized.

“Quick, let’s go check the Second Young Master’s courtyard,” Qinghe said and hurriedly led the others out.

The four maids scattered in a flurry.

In an instant, the entire inner courtyard of the Wang Mansion was in an uproar.

The elders were all waiting in the grand hall of the main courtyard, the Honghao Courtyard, where the prince and princess resided, to receive tea from the two newlywed couples.

When the news reached the main courtyard, Qin Yuyan, the Princess Consort of Rong, suddenly stood up with a sharp movement.

“Bring that person to me immediately!”

“Yes, ma’am,” two senior maids from the main courtyard hurried away.

Yu Yuanzheng, still clad in her wedding dress, was brought to the main courtyard.

Upon seeing her, Qin Yuyan’s eyes snapped shut in anger. After taking a deep breath, she opened them again. “What exactly is happening?”

“Your Highness, I don’t know either. After the wedding ceremony at dusk yesterday, I was sent into the bridal chamber and waited for my husband to lift the veil, but he never came. I rested against the bedpost all night. Then the maid came in to call me, and I found out I had entered the heir’s bridal chamber, not the Second Young Master’s,” Yu Yuanzheng said pitifully, her eyes full of grievance.

Her tone lacked the usual timid submissiveness, causing her two maids to exchange glances.

But Qin Yuyan, unfamiliar with her, merely stared at her silently for a long moment.

“If you say you didn’t know, then wait until those two arrive to explain clearly,” the princess consort said, struggling to suppress her anger.

“What’s going on here?” A woman in her fifties, holding a cane and radiating an imposing aura, stepped forward.

She was the second matriarch, Jiang Qingqing, the old prince’s concubine.

“Second matriarch, let’s wait for the two of them to arrive before discussing,” Qin Yuyan narrowed her eyes, her thoughts in turmoil.

She had been kind and magnanimous all her life, yet at this critical moment, she had been outmaneuvered.

She was no fool; she understood perfectly well.

If the Yu family was unwilling, they could have made it known. The Yu family could not force the emperor to rescind the decree, but the Shangguan family could petition to cancel the engagement.

This was a cunning scheme.

Soon, Shangguan Zishu arrived, leading Yu Chaoyang.

They looked like a loving couple, clearly consummated the marriage the previous night.

Yu Chaoyang’s face was flushed with a rosy glow, dazzling to the eye.

Moreover, her gait betrayed the signs of an unrestrained bridal night, evident to any experienced observer.

The two knelt directly before the prince and princess consort with utmost respect upon entering.

“Son-in-law greets Father and Mother,” they said.

“Explain what happened,” Shangguan Hongyi, the prince, asked sternly from his seat.

“Your Highness, last night I went to the Yu residence to fetch the bride and also on behalf of my elder brother. When we got off the carriage, both brides were dressed identically, so perhaps that’s when the mix-up occurred. The bride I married was the eldest daughter of the Yu family’s main branch, while the bride I escorted for my brother was the Second Mistress of the Yu family’s second branch. When I lifted the veil last night, I noticed something was wrong. We considered swapping, but it would be improper since we had already completed the wedding ceremony. Chaoyang does not disdain me for being illegitimate and is willing to be my husband, so we consummated the marriage,” Shangguan Zishu explained logically.

“Father, Mother, as the saying goes, ‘Marry the chicken, live with the chicken; marry the dog, live with the dog.’ I have married the Second Young Master and entered the bridal chamber, so we are husband and wife. Besides, the younger sister has entered the heir’s chamber. This was an accident, not a disrespect to the imperial decree. I believe His Majesty would not blame us; this is fate,” Yu Chaoyang said, tears glistening in her eyes, feeling wronged.

“Fine, since the swap has happened, the Second Young Master is a better match for Chaoyang anyway. The heir is unconscious and unable to wake; having a wife is already fortunate,” the second matriarch said with a smile, though her words sounded unpleasant.

She had been given a big surprise by the Yu family.

“Since things have come to this, let the tea ceremony proceed,” the second matriarch decided, clearly pleased.

Qin Yuyan felt as if her lungs were about to explode from anger.

There was no one to complain to. The couple had already consummated their marriage and then informed her afterward.

Could she really force them to swap back?

How could her son marry a wife who had lost her purity?

Qin Yuyan knew her son was despised by the Yu family’s main branch but was reluctant to lose the status of the Wang Mansion.

They had resigned themselves to the fact that her son would never awaken and that the mansion would eventually pass to a concubine’s son.

Very well, very well indeed!

“Chaoyang, since you have already consummated the marriage, you will be the Second Young Mistress of our mansion from now on. I am glad you will live with the Second Young Master,” said the secondary consort Luo Xinyi smiling warmly at her daughter-in-law.

Her son had accomplished such a major matter without consulting her—he was growing bold.

“Prince, what do you intend to do about this?” Qin Yuyan asked coldly, struggling to control her emotions.

“What else can be done? The swap has been made. The heir is as he is; can he still wake? The imperial physicians have treated him for half a year with no improvement. From now on, the Second Young Master will inherit the mansion, and Chaoyang is more suitable as the heir’s wife. The Second Miss, who is of no standing, can serve as a maid; having her attend to Ziqi is already generous,” the second matriarch took over rudely, “And Princess Consort, you are the legitimate mother, and Chaoyang is still your daughter-in-law.”

Yu Yuanzheng found the second matriarch’s words harsh.

Then she recalled—the second matriarch had a daughter in the palace, the current Shufei, who had borne a prince.

No wonder she was so confident.

Qin Yuyan’s breathing grew heavier with anger.

She naturally looked down on Yu Yuanzheng, a legitimate daughter of a concubine.

She also knew Yu Yuanzheng’s nature—timid, weak, easily bullied, and unfit for public display.

But the second matriarch’s words left her speechless.

“Mother, I will be sure to honor you from now on. My husband will also be filial to you,” Yu Chaoyang said, holding Shangguan Zishu’s hand as they knelt before the princess consort pledging their sincerity.

Yu Yuanzheng watched their performance; in such a setting, she had no voice.

No one cared about her feelings.

However...

“Prince, Princess Consort, if the heir wakes and finds me unsuitable, I will request to leave the mansion. If he does not mind, I will live harmoniously with him.”