Destiny Spares No Beauty

Chapter Two: Entering the Prince’s Manor

“Ping’er, where has Nanny Yu gone?” Lin Yizhi sat in his study, his tone casual as he asked the maid.

Though Lin Yizhi held the noble title of Prince, he had always been a free spirit. Rarely did he remain in the imperial capital. In recent years, as war broke out repeatedly, he earned a reputation as an undefeated general and spent more time on the battlefield than in his own manor. Matters within the household seldom concerned him. Since Nanny Yu had arrived three years ago with Zuo Yanxi, she had managed the Prince’s Manor with impeccable order. Now that Lin Yizhi was preparing for another journey, the household would once again fall under her care.

“Nanny left early this morning for the Xuxiu River,” the maid replied softly.

Again? Lin Yizhi gave a faint sigh. Sentimental, loyal Nanny Yu. He gave instructions, “No rush. Tell her to come see me when she returns. I’ve something to discuss.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

By the Xuxiu River, Nanny Yu knelt alone on the ground. She seemed to have aged many years over the past few days.

Zuo Yanxi had been raised by her own hands. Now that the girl had died in the Prince’s Manor, she bore no resentment, no hatred. A beauty doomed to a short life—such was fate. She had once hoped that, with proper care, Yanxi’s weak constitution might be restored in the safety of the manor. But three years of melancholy, three years of grief, and her health had only declined. Now her soul had drifted to the western heavens. Pitiful, truly pitiful. Married by imperial decree at sixteen to a prestigious family, dead by nineteen, her youthful bloom fading so soon—how could one not weep, not lament?

She sighed again, struggling to rise. Gazing at the gentle flow of the river, tears streamed down her cheeks.

When Miss was a child, a Daoist once prophesied that she would not live past twenty. But if, after death, her body were returned to the water at the right time and place, there might be the faintest sliver of a chance for her soul to return.

Ha… Foolish old woman. To think I waited here seven days, clinging to that threadbare hope…

Nanny Yu smiled bitterly, shaking her head. She turned to leave—when a soft voice called out from behind:

“Nanny.”

She froze.

That voice—Miss?! No… it wasn’t quite the same…

Tension gripped her heart. Behind her, water splashed as someone stepped gently along the shallows.

Then again, the voice came: “Nanny.”

It sounded like a melody from the heavens.

There, standing by the shore, was the half-demon from the deep valley—Xier.

Nanny Yu slowly turned. The moment she saw the girl’s face, her breath caught in her throat. That peerless beauty, those breathtaking features—it was her Miss… And yet… why did she feel this wasn’t the same person?

Xier stood on the shallow bank, long black hair cascading freely down her back. Her thin white robe, once meant for burial, clung to her damp figure. She seemed to have emerged from the water itself, smiling radiantly at Nanny Yu. Her face bore no trace of past sorrow—only a newfound charm, part coquettish, part otherworldly.

“Miss…” Nanny Yu murmured, dazed. “It’s truly you… You’ve returned…” And with that, she collapsed to her knees, weeping aloud, caring nothing for decorum.

She’s back—my Miss is back! Surely this is the mercy of the heavens upon the Zuo family!

Xier’s smile deepened. She stepped lightly onto dry land and helped the old woman to her feet. “Come now, Nanny,” she said gently. “Let’s go home.”

“Yes, yes… let’s go home… Allow this old servant to lead the way.”

The resurrection of Zuo Yanxi sent shockwaves through the Prince’s Manor.

Nanny Yu, having settled everything, rushed to Lin Yizhi’s study.

“Your Highness,” she called quietly.

Lin Yizhi set down his book. “You’ve returned.” He was still unaware that Zuo Yanxi was alive once more. “I’ve a few things to entrust you with.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” she replied with lowered gaze.

“I must depart again, perhaps for longer than usual. You will oversee the manor in my absence. See that Miss Zuo’s seventh-day rites are properly held, and tend to her relatives as needed. I owe her far too much. Since I cannot be here, I leave these matters to you.”

“Your Highness, may I ask a bold question?”

He lifted an eyebrow. “Go on.”

She met his gaze directly—something she had never dared before, but this moment left no room for protocol. “Do you truly believe you owe the Miss a debt?”

“I do,” he said plainly.

“If she were to return from the dead, what then?”

“What are you saying?” His voice sharpened—this was not a thought he’d ever entertained.

She bowed again, deeper this time. “Congratulations, Your Highness. Her Ladyship has returned from death. This is your blessing—our manor’s blessing—the blessing of Heaven itself.”

Lin Yizhi stood frozen.

Zuo Yanxi… lives?

“Would Your Highness care to see her?”

“…No. I’ve little time. I must leave immediately.” The surprise faded quickly from his face, replaced by cold detachment once more.

Nanny Yu’s heart sank. So what if she lived again? Some fates would never change.

“One more thing…” he added, his voice cool. “You called her ‘Her Ladyship.’”

“Yes. Forgive me.”

“You were right. She should have had that title long ago. Let her be addressed so from now on. You may go.”

The bitter taste in her throat deepened. Nanny Yu bowed again and left in silence.

Outside, a maid ran toward her.

“Nanny!”

She frowned. It was the girl assigned to serve Yanxi. Had something happened already?

“What is it?”

“Her Ladyship…” the girl began.

“Silence!” Nanny Yu cut her off. “From now on, she is to be addressed with respect—Her Ladyship! By the Prince’s order!”

“Y-yes, Nanny!”

“Now, what were you trying to say?”

She would not accept this as mere fate. Even if the Prince did not welcome her Miss back, she would ensure that everyone else in the manor did.

“It’s… Her Ladyship is… strange.”

“How so? Speak!”

“She doesn’t remember her own chambers… nor the layout of the manor… And… and…”

“What else?” Nanny Yu’s anxiety grew with every word.

“She doesn’t even recognize me…”

“What?” Impossible. This girl had served Yanxi daily for the past year. Yanxi may not recall the halls, but her maid?

“There’s more…” the girl added in a hush.

“What now?”

“Her temperament… it’s changed. I tried to help her dress her hair, but she refused. She won’t wear her usual ornaments…”

Nanny Yu was silent for a long time. “Come. We’re going to see her.”

They hurried down the corridor, their figures vanishing into the distance.

Zuo Yanxi’s chambers lay in the westernmost part of the manor. The setting sun bathed the space in golden light. Outside her room were stone tables and chairs, a bamboo bridge, a quaint pavilion, and a pond where red carp swam lazily.

“A pity there are no lotus blossoms,” Zuo Yanxi remarked.

“Your Ladyship,” came Nanny Yu’s breathless voice.

She entered the garden to find Zuo Yanxi lounging in the stone pavilion. Her long hair fell unbound around her, her bare face stunningly beautiful, her soft blue robe draped loosely over her delicate form, creasing gently like flowing water.

“The stone is cold, Your Ladyship,” Nanny Yu said, alarmed. “Someone, fetch a blanket!”

Zuo Yanxi merely laughed—a rich, haunting sound that seemed to draw the soul from one’s chest.

She sat up with a lazy elegance as the maids scrambled to obey. Nanny Yu stepped forward.

“Your Ladyship,” she said gently, “I was told you’ve… forgotten some things.”

“Oh… so her name is Shan’er?” Yanxi replied with a soft smile, glancing at the maid. Shan’er flushed deeply. She had seen this face countless times—but never had it shone with such mesmerizing allure. There was something different now. Her beauty was no longer simply delicate—it was compelling, almost demonic.

“Shall I summon a physician?” Nanny Yu asked cautiously.

“No need,” Yanxi replied, laughing lightly. “If anything confuses me, you can just explain it to me, can’t you?”

Of course she remembered nothing. She had only gleaned fragments from the fading soul of the true Zuo Yanxi—names like Lin Yizhi, memories of loneliness and sorrow.

“As you wish,” Nanny Yu replied. She had never trusted those physicians anyway. Yanxi had grown weaker with each visit. But now, she had returned from the dead, her body whole—what was a little amnesia, compared to that?

Yanxi gazed at the pond and murmured, “The spring equinox has come. So this… is the hour of my rebirth.”

She was a half-demon who had cultivated for a thousand years in the depths of the valley. Her original form had long been shed. She had yearned for a human life—but lacked a body. Now, fate had handed her one. She would live as a human, and abide by human codes.

“Your Ladyship.”

Yanxi’s thoughts drifted back. “Yes, Nanny?”

“Allow me to dress your hair. His Highness departs soon. You should go and see him off.”

“Why?” she asked, blinking.

The question stunned Nanny Yu. Why?

“I am nothing to him,” Yanxi said with a chuckle. “Why should I bid him farewell? Besides… all those hairpins and ornaments—so heavy! I can’t stand them.”

The maids nearby giggled.

“Who dares laugh!” Nanny Yu snapped.

“Let them,” Yanxi said with a grin. “It’s true. They are heavy, aren’t they?”

“Your Ladyship…”

“Come now, Nanny, don’t trouble yourself. I really don’t want to go.”

She said it lightly, teasing like a child who knew she would be indulged.

Surrounded by laughing maids, she ran off into the gardens.

Nanny Yu watched her retreating figure and smiled.

At last, Miss no longer lay sick in bed.

That… was enough.