Nurse Zhou praised her “Good child”. I’ll go make some soup for you—you must be hungry.”
Lin Jingchu nodded.
Once everyone had left, she pushed herself upright and surveyed the room.
Layer upon layer of gauze curtains hung around her. Porcelain ornaments were displayed on staggered wooden shelves, alongside scattered books and scrolls.
The low-cut ruqun she had worn earlier had been replaced with a white cross-collared long dress. She walked to the bronze mirror and raised a hand to touch her face.
The woman reflected in the mirror looked seventy to eighty percent like her in her previous life, but her features were more refined, her skin smooth and luminous like polished jade. Even the slightest movement of her lips carried a delicate charm—it was obvious she had been raised with great care.
Her death in her previous life had not been by choice.
There had been surveillance cameras in the office, and modern laws were strict. The guilty person would definitely be punished.
Thinking that way made her feel much better.
She had never been someone who mistreated herself. Conveniently, it had been the end of the month when she died—her salary had already been spent, the rent was due, and she hadn’t even gotten around to paying the first installment on her iPhone 17 yet.
Honestly… not bad.
The happiest thing in the world was probably dying at the exact moment your money ran out—not a cent more, not a cent less.
Living was good, but dying was normal too.
Now that she had been given another chance at life, she had no desire to become some savior or living saint in this era. She only wanted to live comfortably, take things easy, and coast through the rest of her life in peace.
The room had been locked from outside.
Lin Jingchu familiarized herself with the room, carefully comparing everything to the original owner’s memories. On the dressing table sat a jewelry box containing all of the original owner’s private savings.
She opened it.
It was empty.
Lin Jingchu: …
Just as broke as me.
The memories resurfaced again: after the original owner’s father discovered her feelings for her cousin, he had driven the young man out of the residence. Feeling sorry for him, the original owner had secretly given him all her savings accumulated over the years.
Love-brained girls really were hopeless!
At that thought, Lin Jingchu disliked this cousin even more.
He clearly knew the relationship was impossible, yet he still took a young girl’s money. What a scumbag.
A brazier burned in the room. The yellow brass vessel was engraved with auspicious cloud patterns, yet no smoke could be seen. The room remained pleasantly warm.
Then came the sound of a lock opening.
Nurse Zhou pushed open the door.
“My lady, I made your favorite osmanthus soup. Drink some before sleeping.”
“Lie back down—I’ll feed you.”
After refusing several times, Lin Jingchu finally managed to take the bowl from Nurse Zhou herself.
She wasn’t used to being waited on. One bowl filled her to about eighty percent.
Nurse Zhou wiped tears from her eyes with a handkerchief.
Lin Jingchu asked in confusion, “What’s wrong, Nurse Zhou?”
“You’ve grown up. You’ve become sensible.”
Lin Jingchu was speechless.
Eating herself counted as becoming sensible?
For the next three days, Lin Jingchu stayed obediently inside her room—eating, taking medicine, recovering her injuries. She behaved so properly, it was almost unbelievable.
Whenever she was bored, she did simple exercises like push-ups and sit-ups.
In her previous life she had been too much of a homebody and disliked exercise. If she had been physically stronger back then, maybe she would have had the strength to defend herself during that tragedy.
Meanwhile, Xia Ning summoned the maids and servants from Lin Jingchu’s courtyard for questioning.
“You’re saying she hasn’t caused trouble?”
“Second Young Lady spends every day reading and practicing calligraphy in her room. Sometimes when she gets bored, she hops around inside the room a little.”
Every mention of this daughter exhausted Xia Ning mentally. Hearing that she had finally stopped causing trouble, she let out a relieved sigh and merely instructed the servants to continue taking good care of her.
After Lin Jingchu recovered, Nurse Zhou reported back to the main courtyard’s mistress, then brought Lin Jingchu along to apologize.
Earlier, Nurse Zhou had already taught her exactly what to say, and Lin Jingchu followed the instructions obediently.
With such a delicate and lovely face speaking soft, submissive words, it was hard for anyone to remain harsh toward her.
Sure enough, Xia Ning’s expression softened considerably.
“The maids around you saw you doing wrong, yet instead of stopping you, they helped cover for you. I’ve already ordered them beaten to death. As for the Lu family, I compensated your stepmother with ten times the amount in silver so she can purchase new servants.”
The latter half of Xia Ning’s sentence carried gritted anger.
A bottle of aphrodisiac had been found among the servants’ belongings. They truly deserved their deaths.
Lin Jingchu’s pupils shrank.
Human lives could simply be beaten to death like this.
For the first time, she truly understood that this was no longer the equal society she had once lived in. Her heart became much more cautious.
If anyone discovered she wasn’t the original owner, she might very well be treated as a monster and beaten to death.
She absolutely had to hide her identity.
According to the original owner’s memories, the maids by her side had treated her extremely well, indulging her every whim. Unlike Nurse Zhou, who sometimes opposed her decisions, those maids always agreed with her. As a result, the original owner trusted them with everything while gradually distancing herself from Nurse Zhou.
And every one of those maids had been carefully selected by her stepmother.
Ancient household intrigue really did kill without spilling blood.
“Mother may decide as she sees fit,” Lin Jingchu said obediently, blinking eyes as clear as morning dew.
Without those servants around her, her change in personality would likely attract less suspicion.
Sure enough, Xia Ning’s gaze became more affectionate. Seeing Lin Jingchu so meek and well-behaved, completely lacking her former hysterical temper, she felt even more convinced that disposing of those servants had been the correct choice.
“That Lu family is a nest of wolves,” Nurse Zhou said bitterly, hatred grinding in her voice. “Our Second Young Lady was originally gentle and well-mannered, but that vile woman raised her crookedly. She encouraged those little sluts to ruin Second Young Lady’s reputation all across Bianjing.”
On another level, she was also defending Lin Jingchu, hoping she would not lose her biological mother’s favor.
Lin Jingchu quickly picked out the key point in those words and mentally categorized the Lu family’s stepmother as a dangerous person.
“Don’t say such things in front of the child,” Xia Ning stopped Nurse Zhou with a look.
Then she said seriously, “If not for your elder sister a few days ago, your entire life would have been ruined. Since you’re well now, go thank your elder sister properly.”
Lin Jingchu looked up, misery welling inside her.
After a long pause, she squeezed out a single word:
“Yes.”
Good news: she survived the first hurdle after transmigrating.
Bad news: she seemed to have become the self-destructive villainous supporting character.
Thinking back, she had initially assumed Lin Shuyi was framing her for an affair. The woman had genuinely saved her.
Overcome with shame, Lin Jingchu lowered her head and followed Nurse Zhou out like a little quail.
Biyuan Pavilion.
Several plum trees bloomed outside the courtyard despite the winter chill. They passed through a covered corridor.
Lin Shuyi wore a light green fox-fur sleeveless jacket over her clothes. Her hair was styled in an elegant pearl-drop bun, decorated only with flower hairpins matching the color of her robes. She looked graceful and ethereal.
She stood respectfully before a woman in her early thirties.
“That is Madam Xu, the etiquette instructor from the palace whom Madam invited to teach the eldest young lady. She’s very prestigious,” Nurse Zhou explained quietly.
During the past few days, Lin Jingchu had read every book she could find in her room and discovered this was a fictional dynasty, though its structure closely resembled the Song Dynasty.
She waited beneath the corridor while Madam Xu’s voice drifted leisurely from the flower hall.
“The art of managing a household is not merely about money and provisions. The family’s reputation and moral atmosphere are of utmost importance. Whether one is a young lady in the inner chambers or a minister at court, if one’s reputation is tarnished, the road ahead in life only grows narrower…”
Lin Jingchu’s face grew hotter.
By nature, she had always been proud and self-reliant. In her previous life, she had supported herself independently and lived freely.
Madam Xu’s words were clearly aimed at the original owner.
But now that she inhabited this body, the original owner’s honor and disgrace had become her own.
And she couldn’t even argue back.
After all, the original owner really had done those things. Every bit of food, clothing, and comfort she now enjoyed relying on the Marquis Manor. Inevitably, she lacked confidence.
As a model citizen of the modern age, she silently swore:
She would absolutely change the way these people viewed Lin Jingchu.