The woman looked to be twenty-five or twenty-six. Her long hair was coiled up, her lovely temples like clouds. A sweeping crimson gown trailed across the ground, like red maples in late autumn. Her figure could not be made out, but her mature, graceful charm was displayed beyond doubt.
Looking more closely, Xiang Yang saw a face extremely similar to Ning Ke's—pretty yet exquisite. To be precise, her beauty surpassed Ning Ke's, though she was slightly less pure and innocent. Were outsiders unaware of the truth, they might have taken the two for blood sisters at first sight.
But Ning Ke's father had died early, and she had only her mother. This woman clearly could not be her elder sister; she could only be her mother—the full-blooded younger sister of the current Fifth Family head, Fifth Zhongqi: Fifth Zuirong.
"Mother, I'm back."
Upon first seeing Fifth Zuirong, Xiang Yang was both astonished by her peerless splendor and silently lamenting the twists and turns of her fate.
Though she had been born noble, possessed beauty without equal, and eclipsed every flower in bloom—enough to make ninety-nine percent of the women in the world jealous—she had not been granted a happy life. One could only say that Heaven envied beauty.
Ning Ke, however, had no idea what her beloved was thinking. Mother and daughter had rarely been apart from childhood to adulthood, and as a daughter, she had instinctively overlooked her mother's beauty.
Like a little sparrow returning to its nest, she lightly fluttered to Fifth Zuirong's side and affectionately clutched the corner of her mother's robe. Half coquettish and half shy, she spoke while shooting Xiang Yang a sharp little look, signaling for him to hurry up and pay his respects.
"This one is Xiang Yang of Yongzhou. Greetings, Auntie. I