Tiger Owl

Chapter 316 Cao Jie Enters the Mansion (Part 1)

On the afternoon of the twelfth day of the first lunar month, Cao Jie's boat slowly docked at the Chaisang Wharf.

Cao Jie stood on the ship's railing, silently gazing at the towering city of Chaisang in the distance, the city where she would live from now on.

"Miss, it looks like someone is here to pick you up!"

Cao Jie then noticed a tall woman standing on the shore, stronger than any man, with a long sword at her waist.

Cao Jie knew that this must be a female guard, as they also had one in their household.

After the planks were laid down, Cao Jie, accompanied by her maid Xiao Ping, disembarked. A female guard stepped forward, bowed, and asked, "Are you Miss Cao?"

Cao Jie nodded. "I am Cao Jie, and I come from Hefei County."

“Miss Cao, I am Sang Zhi, the head of the guards of the Marquis of Chu’s mansion. I have come to fetch you on the orders of the Madam.”

Sangzhi presented Cao Jie with a gold medal, the Chu Marquis's gold medal, her token. Cao Jie didn't say much and followed her into a large carriage adorned with the Chu Marquis's triangular flag.

Cao Jie and Xiao Ping entered the inner carriage, while Sang Zhi sat in the outer carriage. The carriage slowly started moving and headed into the city.

Cao Jie sat by the carriage window and pulled back the curtain. To her surprise, she discovered that a huge transparent crystal was embedded in the window. Through the crystal, she could see the street scene clearly, but it kept the cold wind out.

Chaisang was bustling with activity and thriving commerce. The sounds of vendors hawking their wares filled the air, and the streets were teeming with people. Cao Jie was a little surprised. She had originally thought that Chaisang was just a quiet and backward small town in the south, but she did not expect that Chaisang's prosperity even surpassed that of Yecheng.

She suddenly felt a sense of unreality, as if her marriage was not what she had imagined.

The carriage slowly came to a stop in front of the Chu Marquis's mansion. The female guard leader, Sang Zhi, jumped off the carriage, opened the door, and helped Cao Jie out of the carriage. The maid, Xiao Ping, also jumped off the carriage and followed closely beside her mistress.

Cao Jie looked up and examined the gate. The gate was very unassuming, just like the gate of an ordinary wealthy family's residence. A plaque with gold trim and a black background hung above it, with three large white characters: "Chu Hou Mansion".

As Cao Jie stepped onto the stairs, a large group of women approached, almost all of them servants and maids, surrounding a beautifully dressed young woman who appeared to be no more than twenty years old. Cao Jie was somewhat stunned; she hadn't expected to see such a beautiful woman here. Her skin was like jade, her face as exquisite as a peony, her eyes like pools of autumn water, and her beautiful eyes as bright as jewels—a beauty that could topple kingdoms.

Cao Jie suddenly thought of his sister-in-law Zhen Mi; both of them were women whose beauty was breathtaking.

"Miss Cao"

Sangzhi whispered from behind, "This is our mistress, Lady Da Qiao."

So this was Lady Qiao, the principal wife of the Marquis of Chu. Cao Jie took a deep breath, stepped forward, and gave a curtsy, saying, "Cao Jie greets Lady Qiao!"

Da Qiao sized up Cao Jie. He was quite good-looking, with skin as white as a peeled egg, extremely delicate features, a petite figure, and a pair of large, clear eyes.

Da Qiao looked behind her again and found that she had only brought one personal maid. Da Qiao had thought that she would bring hundreds of servants and was worried about how to arrange them, but she did not expect that there was only one maid.

Based on this, Da Qiao had a good first impression of her.

"Miss Cao, there's no need for such formalities. Please come with me!"

Da Qiao brought Cao Jie to the inner courtyard and said to the housekeeper, "Let's take Miss Cao to her courtyard to settle down and get some rest before we talk."

The housekeeper led Cao Jie to her courtyard. A very beautiful young woman, dressed in samurai attire and carrying a long sword on her back, walked towards them. She looked Cao Jie up and down and smiled, "You must be Miss Cao?"

Cao Jie was taken aback. Who was this?

The housekeeper quickly bowed, "Fourth Madam!"

Cao Jie then realized that this woman was also a concubine of the Marquis of Chu, and she seemed to practice martial arts. Cao Jie actually knew nothing about Gan Ning's family; she only knew that the Marquis of Chu had four wives, with his principal wife surnamed Qiao, and knew nothing else.

Cao Jie quickly performed a full curtsy, saying, "Cao Jie greets the Fourth Madam!"

The person who came was Sun Shangxiang. She had just returned from practicing swordsmanship in the backyard and happened to run into Cao Jie.

She handed the sword to the maid and said to the housekeeper, "Aunt Wu, I'll take Miss Cao to her courtyard!"

"Ok!"

The housekeeper readily agreed and turned to leave.

Sun Shangxiang led her along, laughing as she said, "I know your name is Cao Jie, and you are supposed to marry me as part of a marriage alliance. I just didn't expect you to arrive so quickly."

Sun Shangxiang has a very straightforward personality. She was quite depressed before because of the fall of Jiangdong, but now she has completely recovered and returned to her former straightforward self.

Cao Jie asked cautiously, "May I ask how I should address you, elder sister?"

"My name is Sun Ren, and my courtesy name is Shangxiang. You can just call me Shangxiang."

Cao Jie stopped abruptly, and asked in astonishment, "You...you are the sister of the Marquis of Wu?"

Sun Shangxiang chuckled self-deprecatingly, "The former sister of the Marquis of Wu!"

Cao Jie was in a state of utter confusion. His third brother had been searching everywhere for Sun Shangxiang, who was actually hiding here and had even become the fourth wife of the Marquis of Chu. It was simply unbelievable.

In fact, Cao Cao and his son Cao Zhi had known for a long time that Sun Shangxiang had married Gan Ning, but no one told Cao Jie.

Cao Jie suddenly turned pale. She thought of something: Jiangdong was destroyed by her father, and Sun Quan was assassinated. Wasn't she her enemy?

"Madam Sun, I...I'm sorry!" Cao Jie lowered his head.

Sun Shangxiang was taken aback. Suddenly she understood and said with a faint smile, "Jiangdong has nothing to do with you!"

Sun Shangxiang would certainly not associate national and personal grudges with Cao Jie. It is true that she is Cao Cao's daughter, but she will eventually have to serve the same husband as her. If their relationship is like fire and water, how can they get along?

The two entered Cao Jie's courtyard, and Sun Shangxiang said with a smile, "My courtyard is next door. Let's visit each other more often in the future."

"Thank you, Sister Shangxiang!"

Cao Jie looked around the courtyard. The courtyard covered an area of ​​about two acres and had two courtyards. The central courtyard was a large garden, covering an area of ​​about one acre. The forsythia was in full bloom, a bright yellow expanse. In the corner of the courtyard, there was a vigorous wintersweet that had not yet completely faded, carrying a faint fragrance.

"Miss Cao, it's still chilly in early spring, please go inside and tidy up! I won't disturb you any longer."

Sun Shangxiang turned to leave, and Cao Jie whispered, "Sister Shangxiang, you can call me A-Jie!"

Sun Shangxiang glanced at her and smiled, "Alright, I'll call you A-Jie!"

Sun Shangxiang left, and Cao Jie entered the room. The room was already furnished with all kinds of brand-new utensils, and even the bedding on the bed was new. There was a brazier in the main room, and the charcoal fire was burning brightly, making the room warm as spring.

A maid came in and served tea. Cao Jie drank the hot tea and felt much better. After resting for a while, the maid came in and bowed, saying, "Miss, Madam requests your presence."

Cao Jie quickly got up and followed the maid to the main courtyard of the inner residence.

(End of this chapter)