Chapter 4 Demand Justice It was the night before the wedding. Ma Ting worked without rest until she finished stitching the last thread of a dazzling bridal gown. Ding Jie helped her slip into the dress. The golden glow made Ma Ting's striking beauty even more radiant. "Ms. Ting, wearing something this gorgeous yet marrying into that family... It's so unfair for you." Ding Jie spoke angrily, though she knew the imperial decree couldn't be defied. Ma Ting admired the gown for a moment, then folded it neatly and set it on the table. She didn't want this marriage, but she had poured her heart into the gown. Tomorrow, she would walk through the streets in it, and it had to capture every eye. "Bring me Father's memorial tablet." Ding Jie didn't question her, assuming Ma Ting only wished to pay respects before leaving. Before bed, Ma Ting placed the tablet engraved with "The Loyal Noble Ma Lin" at the head of her bed. Her fingers brushed gently across its surface. Tomorrow I will have to trouble you again, Father , she thought. Please aid me once more, or the family will fall into disgrace. Before the sky lightened up and shook the blanket of night off, Ding Jie pulled Ma Ting up to dress and prepare. Red candles glowed in every corner of the house, filling it with a festive light, yet no one smiled. This marriage shamed the Ma family. It was nothing close to a celebration, much less a festival. The matron sent by the Li family arrived early. She fussed with Ma Ting's hair, brushing it over and over. "The marquis' residence men have sent a carriage. They're waiting at the gate. A four-man carriage! For any ordinary family, that would be such an honor." She forced a smile, still trying to speak well of the Li family. Ma Ting gazed at her reflection in the bronze mirror. Her stunning face curved into an icy smile. "You know as well as I do that a four-man carriage is grand only for ordinary families. Are you calling the Li family ordinary?" There was no need to dress up their stinginess. The matron's smile stiffened. Her face tightened with awkwardness. She was paid by the Li family, so she had to praise them. Even so, she thought it cheap for the marquis' household to send only a four-man carriage. "He Xinying-she had an eight-man carriage, didn't she?" Ma Ting's voice cut sharply. The matron avoided her eyes, refusing to answer. That was enough. Ma Ting understood what the answer was. Good. She wanted the insult to be clear. She pressed a silver ingot into the matron's palm. "Do me a favor. Go back and tell Li Han that a four-man carriage is an insult. I won't marry him like this." The matron froze. She didn't move or speak for a long time, until someone dragged her out. Now? She's refusing to marry now? When the residence is already decorated and she'd worn her gown? Yet she chooses this exact moment to refuse the marriage? the matron thought. Ding Jie shoved the matron out and felt a surge of satisfaction rise in her chest, but it faded as quickly as it came. This marriage was decreed by the emperor. If Ma Ting refused it, she'd be defying the emperor himself. "Ding Jie, tell Tang to take down the plaque in the main hall. Call every servant who signed a contract with the family." Ma Ting spoke calmly, leaving Ding Jie confused but unable to disobey. Soon, the courtyard was full of servants. At the front stood the imperial plaque gifted by His Majesty himself, carved with the words "A Family of Loyalty and Honor." "The Sunfair Marquis insults my family with a four-man carriage. They are treating us like we are nothing. "And I shall demand justice from His Majesty. You shall come along with me. This will be a great opportunity for you to see the world." ... Over at Marquis Sunfair's Residence, the matron leaned in and whispered Ma Ting's refusal into Li Han's ear. He laughed, his grin full of arrogance. "His Majesty decreed this marriage. Refusing it is defiance. Do you think she really has the courage? "She will marry me sooner or later. If not today, then another day. And next time, I'll send only a two-man carriage. Let's see if she still acts so proud. Don't waste the auspicious hour. Bring Xinying into the residence first." Li Han didn't care. His only thought was the promise he made to He Xinying's parents. If He Xinying entered the household even one day before Ma Ting, then her status would be higher by a full rank. Marquis Sunfair's Residence was crowded with guests. Li Han and He Xinying each held a strip of red silk as they stepped into the hall to prepare for the wedding ceremony. Outside, noble ladies had gathered to watch, but they suddenly scattered in fright as alarming news spread through the crowd. When the time came for the first part of the ceremony, the courtyard stood empty. Only the Li family's servants remained. "First, bow to heaven and earth!" The matron's voice rang sharp through the hall. Before the couple could bend, a eunuch carrying a whisk strode in. Li Han spotted him and instantly lit up with excitement. He forgot the ceremony, turned, and dropped into a deep bow. "You honor us with your presence, Eunuch Pang! My family welcomes you with open arms. Please, sir, take the seat of honor!" Li Han stepped aside in haste, his face glowing as he tried to contain his joy. Eunuch Pang was no ordinary servant. He was the chief eunuch who stood closest to His Majesty, a man of immense influence. If he had come to this wedding, then perhaps it was at His Majesty's command. But Eunuch Pang's expression stayed cold. "I did not come for your wedding. His Majesty has given a decree. You will come with me to the palace." His gaze cut toward He Xinying, his sneer filled with disdain. "And you will bring your precious new bride with you." Li Han's chest tightened. Something in that tone felt deadly wrong, but he did not speak. He had no courage to. It was his wedding day, yet when His Majesty summoned him, even if he were sitting on the privy, he would have to clean himself up and run. ... The sun burned overhead at the palace gates. The emperor sat on a narrow stool, his face shadowed with grief and anger, staring at the girl who knelt before him. Ma Ting led dozens of Ma family members, kneeling in a long row at the gates. Half an hour earlier, she had ordered the Li family's four-man carriage to be carried here. On her back, she bore a plaque carved with the words 'A Family of Loyalty and Honor'. In her arms, she clutched her father's memorial tablet. She wore a bridal gown as she paraded through the streets. The Ma family beat drums and gongs, spreading word of the Li family's betrayal across the city before kneeling at the palace gates. The plaque had been written by the emperor's hand. The memorial tablet had been carved by the emperor's own knife. The guards would never strike her or scold her. They were scared. These were imperial gifts. To touch them meant courting death. At first, the emperor sent Eunuch Pang to talk to her, but Ma Ting refused to rise. She said she would only stand once Li Han appeared, so the emperor remained there with her as she knelt. She was the orphan of a loyal minister, and she carried the plaque he had written himself. He could not turn his back on her. If he ignored this, then both the court officials and the people of Ming City who saw it with their own eyes would curse him behind his back. At last, Eunuch Pang returned with Li Han and He Xinying. The moment Li Han saw Ma Ting kneeling in a bridal gown before the gates, his vision swam, and he nearly collapsed. She had said she would not marry him. She had never said she would drag their conflict straight before the emperor. "You made me wait, heir of Sunfair Marquis!" The moment the emperor saw Li Han, he erupted with fury. Under the scorching sun, he had sat for two hours, and the heat made him dizzy and sick. Now that Li Han had come, Ma Ting finally rose, leading her family servants into the palace. Inside the hall, they knelt. She pressed her father's memorial tablet to her chest, her tears falling in steady streams. Each tear made Marquis Sunfair's heart sink deeper as he stared at the tablet. That foolish son of his had dragged calamity onto their house. When Ma Ting had first knelt at the gates, news had already swept through the court. One by one, ministers ordered their wives and daughters to withdraw from the wedding. The guests had all fled, yet the Li family stayed blind to it. They had the gall to carry on with the ceremony.