Chapter 1 Disagreement Means Failure "Xinying's parents died saving my father. She's an orphan and has nowhere else to go. I'll take her as my secondary wife and hold the ceremony on the same day we get married." Inside the main hall of the Ma Residence, Ma Ting's gaze lingered on the familiar face before her. She had looked at it countless times since childhood, yet in this moment, it felt strangely unfamiliar. She and Li Han had grown up together. Their marriage had been granted by His Majesty, and all of Ming City knew that in seven days, their grand wedding would take place. Yet now, Li Han spoke of taking the daughter of a servant as his secondary wife. The humiliation burned. This was trampling on Ma Ting's dignity. Her voice turned cold as she spoke. "What if I refuse?" Her beautiful face was like frost, sharp and untouchable. Li Han frowned. The young man, impeccably graceful, pure and elegant, showed his displeasure. "Our marriage was bestowed by His Majesty. If you resist, you'll be defying an imperial decree." His tone turned harsh, but he quickly softened it again. "Letting Xinying marry with you is only to raise her status slightly, so she won't be bullied later. You studied the precepts for women since childhood. You must not go against your husband's will." The chill in Li Han's eyes eased, and he tried to soothe her with gentler words. "I had planned to hold her ceremony earlier, but then our marriage would have been delayed. "You're already growing older. If you don't marry soon, gossip will spread. This way, it benefits you as well." Ma Ting lowered her lashes. Her lips curved bitterly. She had been mourning her parents for three years. After the New Year, she would be seventeen. Other girls her age already had children running about their knees. The thought of marriage made her restless. "I understand you wish to honor He Xinying's parents, but you could arrange a good match for her. "You could give her a generous dowry and let her live in comfort. Why must you marry her?" For the sake of their bond, Ma Ting gave Li Han one more chance. Men taking multiple wives and concubines was common. If he took concubines after their marriage, she would not object to it. But for him to insist on marrying on the same day was another matter entirely. To raise He Xinying's position meant lowering her own. The Ma family had always been praised as loyal and upright. Her parents died proving that loyalty. The praise came from the emperor himself. Even Li Han had no right to step on that honor. Li Han's throat tightened. Guilt flickered across his face. "I planned the same, but Xinying swore she'd rather die than marry anyone else." Before she could ask why, he rushed to explain. "She has already given herself to me. She's my bedwarming maidservant. How could she marry another man?" Ma Ting's chest tightened. The light in her eyes dimmed completely. A bedwarming maidservant? Li Han had once sworn to her that he was clean, that before she entered his household, he would not keep even a single concubine. And yet, hidden away, there had always been this maidservant. Now, not only was that maidservant to be made a concubine, but she would also enter the gates on the same day Ma Ting married him, and that woman would do it as his secondary wife. If word spread, the Ma family's honor would be shattered. Ma Ting fell silent. Li Han mistook it for agreement. "Xinying's title will only be secondary wife. She has no authority to manage the household. You will still be the true lady of the marquis' residence. You don't need to worry." Ma Ting gave a quiet grunt. She'd already made another decision silently. When Li Han finally left, the maidservant Ding Jie burst out with anger she could no longer contain. "Ms. Ting, the Li family is bullying us because our family has no one left but you! They want to shame us completely!" Ma Ting's lips curved into a cold smile. Her heart grew even colder. Even Ding Jie, who barely had any education, could see it clearly. Of course, Li Han knew the requests he made were trampling all over the Ma family's dignity. "Let's go home." Ma Ting said no more. She led Ding Jie back to her room and continued her embroidery, threading gold and silver into her bridal gown. Ding Jie froze in shock, her face pale with disbelief. "Ms. Ting, why are you still making that bridal gown after everything the Li family did to us? Are you going to marry into their family even now? You'll only be humiliated!" Ma Ting's hands never paused. Her slim fingers moved swiftly, threading golden silk through red fabric. The phoenix on the bridal gown took shape, vivid and alive under her touch. "This is His Majesty's decree. Even if we don't like it, do we really have a choice?" Her calm voice carried no anger, as if Li Han's words earlier had never touched her at all. Ding Jie's chest tightened painfully. She wanted to speak but could not form a single word. Yes. His Majesty had ordered this marriage. No one could refuse his decree. Years ago, floods struck Zhu County again and again, leaving countless deaths in their wake. Old Mr. Ma and Old Mrs. Ma were sent to deal with the matter. After six exhausting years, they finally succeeded in stopping the flood.. But their health collapsed from the endless toil. Both died on their way back to Ming City. Only then did His Majesty grant Old Mr. Ma the title "The Loyal Noble" and appoint Ma Ting as a Countess to honor her parents' sacrifice. From that moment on, Ma Ting was the only one left in the Ma family. Once, the Ma family had led the ranks of civil officials. Back then, the Li family sought the officials' favor by requesting the marriage alliance, swearing to protect Ma Ting. "Things change. That's how life is." Ma Ting sighed softly, her voice full of sorrow. Now, the Li family flourished among civil officials. The Ma family had no one left in government, and just like she said, things had changed. She was an orphan. Whether she lived or died, whether her honor was destroyed, no one cared. But if Li Han thought he could humiliate her with a servant girl, she would rather never marry at all. ... Only four days remained until the wedding. The Ma household had few servants, so Ma Ting personally oversaw the preparations. She walked through the streets with Ding Jie when her maid suddenly grabbed her sleeve. Ding Jie's eyes burned with fury as she pointed to a rouge shop. "Ms. Ting, that's He Xinying!" Ma Ting turned and saw her inside, draped in gold hairpins and jade ornaments. He Xinying was born in Li Residence. Her father was only a steward. No matter how much power he held, he was still a servant, yet today she looked like a noble lady. Even before marriage, Li Han treated her with such indulgence. If she entered the household officially, the lady of the house would never know peace. "Let's go." Ma Ting had already made up her mind. She did not want to get entangled with He Xinying now, but as she turned to leave with Ding Jie, a soft, delicate voice rang from behind. "Tingting!" The sound of hurried footsteps followed. He Xinying rushed over, breathless, her frail figure trembling as if she were pitifully wronged. Ma Ting looked at her weak and innocent act and immediately understood why Li Han was so determined to marry her. "What do you want?" Her tone was icy, without a trace of courtesy. In the past, He Xinying always called her "Ms. Ma." Now, before even marrying, she had the gall to call her so intimately. She no longer even pretended to show respect. He Xinying bent her knees and offered a bow before speaking timidly. "I don't mean any malice. I just wanted to ask you, how many people will Han summon to carry your carriage for the wedding?" Ma Ting frowned, her eyes puzzled. This was Li Han's decision. How could she possibly know? Before she could answer, He Xinying lowered her head and smiled shyly. "Han said he would summon eight for me. But since you come from a prestigious family, I thought I should ask. "If you get eight or fewer than that, I'd never try to get the same number or even more." Ma Ting's throat tightened. Beside her, Ding Jie clenched her fists in rage. For nobles, six already meant honor. Everyone knew only the Empress had ten. How could the Ma family surpass the Empress? Eight people for He Xinying already set her status at the peak. Even if Li Han gave Ma Ting the same eight, it would still place her equal to a servant-born girl. That would tear her family's dignity to shreds.