The Lou family's second branch's boat docked at noon.

It was the Lesser Cold season, and there was still a thin layer of ice on the water. Beijing is located in the north, so spring arrives late. They had come all the way from the south of the Yangtze River, and while peach blossoms had already bloomed in some places along the way, grass buds had yet to emerge in Beijing.

The Lou family's sedan chairs were waiting at the ferry terminal. A sedan chair was prepared for the master and his wife, while a carriage was provided for the young ladies. Quite a number of people had arrived. When the second branch left Beijing, the second master and his wife were only in their early twenties. Fifteen years had passed, and there were some new faces in the family, but the head steward, Huang, remained the same. Knowing the second master, Lou Zijing, was gentle and easygoing, he came up and bowed in unison with the rest of the family, saying, "Congratulations, second master."

"Get up," the second master said with a smile.

They didn't stand up, but instead bowed back, saying, "Good luck to the Second Madam, and safe journey to the young lady."

The Lou family was large and prosperous, and all the members wore the same dark blue clothing, neatly dressed and clean-shaven. They saluted in unison, their voices resonant and conspicuous, drawing the attention of all who passed by. This was Guandutou, drawing the attention of all who passed by.

Lou Zijing was naturally beaming. He had been away from Beijing for over ten years, and the stone archway at Guandutou looked somewhat different from what he remembered, and he couldn't help but stare at it. Second Madam Lou disembarked from the sampan and saw only two carriages besides the two sedan chairs. Her well-kept oval face suddenly sank.

Housekeeper Huang, observing the woman's expression, surely noticed, but pretending to be unaware, stepped forward, cautiously saying, "The wind's strong at the ferry. Master and Madam, please get into the sedan first."

Second Mistress remained motionless, simply asking, "Who's in charge of the mansion now?"

"I heard from my wife that Third Mistress is in charge of the inner quarters." Housekeeper Huang, impeccably apologetic, said, "The old lady has been missing Second Mistress for a long time, ever since the Lantern Festival."

Second Mistress Lou, only regaining consciousness when he heard about his mother, quickly said, "Oh!" Second Mistress stopped asking questions, saying, "Yuexiang, help the young lady off the boat."

The Lou family was strict about etiquette. The male members of the household lowered their brows and eyes, turning away, not daring to look. Only a few daughters-in-law came forward to help, but none of them could. Housekeeper Huang was the fifth child, and his wife, known as Huang Wujia, worked in the third room of the inner quarters.

Although a servant, she wore the same long dresses and gowns, rouge and powder, and jewels as the wives of smaller families. She cautiously stepped forward to support the second daughter, Qingyun, who had already disembarked from the sampan with the help of her maid, Yuexiang.

When they left Beijing, the eldest daughter was only two or three years old, delicate and beautiful. Fifteen years later, she had blossomed into a dignified beauty. Like her mother, she had an oval face, creamy skin, and large, heavy eyes. But like the second master, she had a nose like the beauties in the opera, a Qiong Yao nose. She was naturally noble, and most importantly, she exuded a gentle aura that drew immediate affection. With a smile, she placed her hand on Huang Wujia's and lowered her head to board the carriage.

The next person was probably the fourth daughter, Tanxue, a little girl under ten. Despite her youth, she was very proud. Dressed in red and sheepskin boots, she leaped ashore and boarded the same carriage with her eldest sister.

Huang Wujia was still looking at the Fourth Young Lady when she heard a soft laugh.

The sound was pleasant, crisp and light, like a willow branch brushing against one's face in the wind. Huang Wujia turned and saw the Second Young Lady, Lou Xianyue. She was dressed warmly in a lotus-pink cloak with a white fox lining. With one hand, she tightened the collar of the cloak, leaving only the hem of her flowered satin skirt visible.

With one hand, she clutched a lotus-pink handkerchief, covering half her face, as she trembled and stepped off the boat.

The lotus-pink hue was a chilling purple, making her hands, each with its slender fingers, look like jade. As if afraid of the wind, she clutched her forehead, revealing only half her face. Huang Wujia's heart skipped a beat when she saw this.

Second Miss Lou was born with a pair of thin eyebrows, curved like willows, sweeping down to her temples. Though narrowed, her eyes were peach blossoms. White fox fur clung to her pointed chin, giving her a slightly sickly look. The handkerchief, which she had been biting at a corner, was nearly blown off by the wind, revealing her lips, as pale as petals. She glanced at Huang Wujia's stunned expression and smiled again.

"Why don't you get in the carriage? This is a strong wind across the river; you won't freeze to death!" the person behind her scolded.

She turned out to be a very beautiful girl, with eyes that were particularly powerful, sharp as a knife. She was also dressed in red, but she looked very neat, with a crane cloak tied around her waist. She was tall, but her appearance suggested she was only fifteen or sixteen. She must be Third Miss Lingshuang. With swift movements, she urged her sister onto the carriage and then, lifting the curtain, joined the carriage herself. The look on her face as she slammed the curtain made it seem as if she were arguing with her parents.

The hosts all boarded their sedan chairs. Steward Huang, with Yao Er leading the way, watched as a servant carried a few strings of firecrackers and set them off for a quarter of an hour on the shore.

Soon, news spread throughout the capital that the second master of the Lou family had returned to Beijing with his wife and daughter. Those in the know said, "They're here to look for a husband."

The second master had been exiled for fifteen years, and his daughter had given birth to one child after another, but none of them were engaged. Although Nanjing was far away, he had old friends and colleagues, and they all came to the capital to get engaged. What else could they do but look for a husband?

Some ladies who had close ties with the Lou family guessed it, saying, "Second Madam Lou has returned after holding her breath."

While the Lou family was a family of scholars, they were somewhat proud of their status. After all, they were a family of scholars, and Old Master Lou had served as a minister, a high position.

But Second Lady Lou came from a humble background. She was a merchant's daughter and had come into the world with a large dowry. Her background was truly remarkable.

Her original surname was Mei, and her mother was from the Lower Yangtze River, where women were known for their fierceness.

Her mother was an only child. After marrying into the Mei family, she kept Master Mei in good stead. The Mei family originally made their fortune trading silk, bringing silk from various parts of Jiangnan to the capital. The empty ships that returned were mostly grain, and a shipload of flour didn't bring much profit.

Old Lady Mei was different. She recognized the high prices of spices and furs in Jiangnan, so she asked the shipowners to stock up on these two items. Unfortunately, that year, a typhoon struck the sea, and all the Nanyang merchants' ships were wrecked. By the end of the year, the price of spices had soared higher than gold, and the profits the Mei family could earn from a single shipload were higher than the profits from selling silk.

Master Mei, already fearful of his wife, became even more obedient. His business flourished, and by the time of his death, he was a wealthy man.

Master Mei had no concubines, only one daughter, Second Lady Lou. The story of her marriage to the Lou family is a legendary one.

Master Mei had originally kept her with the intention of finding a son-in-law. Second Lady Lou had a straightforward personality and had learned housekeeping from her mother since childhood. She was adept at both housekeeping and other matters. Although a daughter, she possessed the talent to support the family.

Who knew that the Mei clan was so powerful? After Master Mei's death, they gathered a group of clan members, including the elders, and forced Old Lady Mei to adopt a nephew from the clan as the heir, attempting to seize the Mei family fortune. They blocked the door and refused to let them out. Second Lady Lou was only fifteen years old at the time. Fortunately, her personal maid was able to climb over the wall using a rope and then file a complaint with the prefectural government.

Litigation is a lucrative beast, with both sides vying for compensation. Unfortunately, the elder of the Mei family had a distant nephew who had passed the imperial examination in the third year of the Longqing reign, a place on the same list as the prefect. A single letter of advice resulted in the Mei family mother and daughter losing the lawsuit.

Old Mrs. Mei was so enraged that she suffered a stroke, leaving her paralyzed on one side of her body. The clan elders decreed the selection of a grown nephew to inherit the family business. Seeing her family fortune about to be taken away, Second Madam Lou, determined, sold her private property overnight, bought the year's new tea and silk at double the price, and a shipload of fine goods, and sailed to the capital that night.

Once in the capital, she didn't rush to file a complaint. Instead, under the guise of selling silk and tea, she visited prominent families with whom the Mei family had business dealings. For half a month, she finally found a patron.

　　Today, rumors of her past are still circulating in the capital, describing her as a formidable figure, a fierce and decisive figure, a true heroine among the boudoir.