The Master had long held a lingering resentment toward the Ninth Concubine based on rumor. Now, after hearing the words of the Fifth Concubine and Cuihua, he was utterly convinced, filled with both fury and exasperation. He ordered that the Ninth Concubine, who had just given birth, be beaten nearly to death. He briefly considered having the student seized and punished by family law as well, but then realized that apprehending the student would escalate the matter, exposing his own humiliating cuckoldry to everyone. Thus, he suppressed his anger, sending a message to the Abbot to have the student pack his belongings and leave the following day, under threat of death.

The next day, filled with bitter grief and rage, the Ninth Concubine found a length of white silk, changed into the red dress she wore on her wedding day, and hanged herself in her chamber, vowing to return as a vengeful spirit. From that day forward, no child was ever born in that household again. But that, as they say, is a story for another time.

When the student discovered Cuihua was missing, he didn't grasp the gravity of the situation. He only found it strange that this family, having delivered a son, was not properly caring for him but carrying him out for outsiders to see. The student, barely out of boyhood and naive to the world's cruelties, entertained no dark thoughts. He carried the infant to the main house, intending to return him to the Ninth Concubine.

Just as he reached the doorway, about to knock, he ran into the Ninth Concubine’s personal maid, who was emerging with a bundled satchel. This maid was named Huihui; she was simple and honest, and it was she who had fetched the doctor when the Ninth Concubine went into labor. As it turned out, once the rumor of the green hat surfaced, the First Mistress, fearful of implicating others, immediately ordered Huihui sent away. When Huihui saw the student standing at the door holding the infant, she was struck by both shock and terror. She quickly pulled him aside and recounted everything that had transpired that day, exactly as it happened.

Every time the Ninth Concubine visited the temple to offer incense, Huihui was by her side. Although Huihui was the person best able to prove the innocence of both the Ninth Concubine and the student, the weight of public accusation was immense. With the contradictory testimony from the Fifth Concubine and Cuihua, the Ninth Concubine could offer no defense. Especially since the Master had recently taken a Tenth Concubine, he was in no mood to waste energy determining the truth. Thus, one dead and one banished—the affair concluded in the Master’s household.

The student returned to the temple holding the infant, saw the eviction notice left beneath the door crack by the Abbot, and recalled the fate of the Ninth Concubine, his heart remaining deeply unsettled. Realizing he was likely the only person left for the baby to rely on, he packed his meager belongings and took the child back to his ancestral village.

Eighteen years passed. The Master had grown frail and elderly, while his eighteen sons and only daughter, Mingmei, were all grown adults. The matter of inheriting the family fortune was gradually moving to the forefront of discussion. The promise the Master made when taking his first concubine was often brought up. Yet, whether due to a curse laid by the Ninth Concubine before her death or some karmic debt incurred by this household in a past life, though the Master had eighteen sons, not a single one proved capable upon reaching manhood. Some lacked common sense, others suffered chronic illness, or had physical deficiencies—problems of one sort or another always plagued the elder young masters. Looking around, it seemed that only the daughter, Mingmei, with her quick wit and proper demeanor, was fit to manage the estate for the Master. Although the Master preferred sons, realizing the ancestral legacy could not be ruined by his hand, he resolved to cultivate his daughter. He summoned Mingmei, shared his intentions, and arranged for her to study abroad, planning for her to return, marry a suitable son-in-law, and inherit the family business.

Upon hearing that her father intended for her to inherit the estate, Mingmei naturally agreed wholeheartedly, readily accepting her father’s request. Soon enough, she packed her bags and sailed across the ocean to the United States.

Accustomed to being waited upon since childhood, Mingmei found it extremely difficult to fend for herself in the U.S. and briefly considered abandoning her studies to return home to the life of effortless command she once knew. Just as she hovered on the brink of giving up, she encountered a person—a person who would alter the destiny of both herself and her entire family.