Chapter 1 — In this life, I won't fight anymore, I will personally bring White Moon Light back to the Marquis' Palace

I married Luc Than, the Marquis of Vinh An, for fifteen years. During those fifteen years, I raised three children who did not have my own bloodline to become adults on his behalf. One person passed the exam, one person achieved a glorious victory, was appointed a general, one person became a wealthy merchant in the world. I originally thought that the most difficult years were finally over, that if I just waited a little longer, I would see the end of suffering. Who would have thought that when they became famous, the first thing they did was not to repay me for raising them, but to welcome their birth mother, who is also my biological sister, back from the cold palace. They say I'm taking a position that doesn't belong to me. They scolded me for being an evil woman, narrow-minded, and jealous. Hearing those words, I just burst out laughing. If you insist that I am that kind of person... Then what you have longed for day and night, I will personally return it to you. So, right at Kim Loan Palace, when they were still preparing to attack me, I took a step forward and knelt down in the middle of the golden palace.

“Your Majesty, I beg your Majesty to grant me permission to allow my sister to leave the cold palace, so that she and the Marquis family can reunite.”

“Your Majesty, my father begs you to show your kindness and allow your eldest sister Hua Nhu Gia to leave the cold palace and return to reunite with the Marquis of Vinh An Palace.”

My voice is cold and clear, echoing throughout the magnificent Thai Hoa Palace. Each sentence and each word was like cold ice falling onto the surface of still water, causing underground waves to silently roll up in the middle of the street. In that moment, the whole electricity was as silent as a sheet of paper. All civil and military officials held their breath, no one spoke. I felt countless eyes focusing on me. There was surprise. There are doubts. There were also looks that carried some gloating that was hard to hide. I knelt on the cold metal floor, my spine straight, like a pine tree in the winter wind, from beginning to end never wavering. The corner of my eye lightly glanced at the row of people in front. Luc Van Uyen, the person wearing the red robe of Trang Nguyen, who should have been the character attracting thousands of people's attention today, now stood frozen in place. The words he had prepared in advance were stuck in his throat. His face changed from white to red, from red to pale. Next to him, Luc Vo, the young general who had just returned triumphantly from the border, gently tightened his grip on the sword hilt at his waist. The blue veins on the back of the hand stand out clearly. As for Luc Nguyen, the youngest son standing at the end of the line of civil servants, who was so rich that he could rival the country, he just looked at me silently without blinking. That look was confused and complicated like a skein of silk with no clue. As for Luc Than. During the reign of Vinh An Marquis, he is also my husband. His body shook slightly. On his face, which had been cold and majestic all year round, for the first time a look of panic appeared that could not be hidden. He seemed to want to say something. But with just one cold glance from me, every unspoken word was blocked in my throat. They all thought that we would be the same as before. Because of keeping the position of Marquis, the mother cried and argued. He didn't even hesitate to threaten his life. They have prepared all their arguments. Using filial piety as a shackle. Use gratitude as a blade. Every step presses me bowed his head in concession. It's just a pity... They don't know. I've already died once. Last life, same day. Also at this Thai Hoa Palace. Also this scene. Luc Van Uyen stood in the middle of the court, tears streaming down his face, loudly accusing me of my sins in front of the civil and military mandarins. In his words, I am the evil stepmother. The one who stopped his biological mother. Everything he did was just to exchange for the freedom of Hua Nhu Gia - the person who was exiled to the cold palace by the previous emperor, who is also my biological sister. But behind him. Luc Than and his two remaining sons stood there. Quietly support him. The four fathers and sons used their coldest eyes. Use your sharpest words. One by one, each stab shattered the fifteen years of dedication and suffering I had poured out for the Marquis Palace. Only then will we know. It turns out that all those years of paying the price, in their eyes, were not worth a penny. To this day, I still remember that feeling clearly. It was as if an invisible hand was squeezing my heart so tightly that I couldn't breathe.