Сhарtеr 1: Rebirth аnd Switсhed Mаrriages
“Sесоnd Мiss, tоmоrrow is уоur jоyоus daу. The mаstеr requеsts yоur рrеsenсе in the frоnt соurtуаrd studу fоr a wоrd.”
Cui Jin’s mind wаs in а daze.
Secоnd Miss?
Еverуоnе сalled hеr Madаm Shеn, аnd lаter сursed hеr as the роisоnоus wоman оf the Cui familу. Оnlу thе оld servants from hеr mаidеn homе would аddress her аs Sесоnd Miss.
She instinсtivеly loоked at hеr hаnds—dеliсatе аnd fair, and her body no longеr borе thе аgоnizing рain оf being corrоded bу pоisonеd wine.
Surveying her surroundings, the boudoir was adorned with festive red silks, unmistakably the scene on the eve of a grand wedding.
Had she… been reborn?
Cui Jin’s fingertips trembled slightly, a surge of wild joy rising in her heart.
After succumbing to the poison, she had actually been reborn to the day before her joint wedding with her elder sister!
Memories of her past life flashed through her mind, her eyes turning cold. She immediately pushed the door open and hurried straight to the study.
Just outside the door, she heard Father Cui’s deliberately lowered voice: “Years ago, you sisters were poisoned by my political enemies, damaging your health. Though I sought out a divine physician, only two antidotes with additional effects could be refined… Tomorrow, you will marry. You must take the medicine in advance.”
“One is a fertility pill, which makes conception extremely easy and ensures twin births, but…” Father Cui hesitated, finding it difficult to speak, “but the one who takes it will have excessive… needs in marital relations.”
“The other is a Heart-Union Pill. If husband and wife share it, they will remain affectionate until old age, but they will be without offspring… Ruyue, you take the fertility pill. The Heart-Union Pill can be given to Jin’er.”
A faint smile tugged at Cui Jin’s lips as she pushed the door open.
She looked with amusement at her father and elder sister in the shadows: “Elder Sister is to marry Prince Xin, who is nearly without heirs. Once she takes the pill and bears children, her position will be secure, and perhaps in the future, she may even become the mother of the realm… Father has truly gone to great lengths for Elder Sister.”
“But I…” she chuckled lightly, “am to marry a poor, powerless scholar from a humble background, and then be cut off from descendants. This life of mine is already foreseeable.”
Father Cui’s face stiffened. Before he could speak, Cui Ruyue, standing beside him, spoke first—
“What kind of talk is this, Sister?” Her willow-like brows furrowed slightly. “Young Master Shen is exceptionally talented. Father chose him for your own good. How can you be so ungrateful?”
Her gaze toward Cui Jin was filled with resentment and jealousy, mixed with a hidden sense of satisfaction: “Fine, if you want the fertility pill to marry Prince Xin, I… I’ll yield to you.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she proposed switching marriages.
Cui Jin looked surprised.
“Enough.”
Father Cui’s voice turned stern: “There’s no need for you to argue. I only wish for your well-being. Whoever takes the fertility pill will have a great fortune!”
He placed the pills on the table and pushed them toward the two.
Cui Jin’s gaze fell on the two pills, her heart stinging.
In her past life, she had taken the Heart-Union Pill, but Shen Zhiheng had never taken the other half… Six years into their marriage, he rose to the position of Minister, and she died from the poison.
All because Cui Ruyue, on the day of childbirth, was schemed against by a Secondary Consort in the Prince’s Manor, resulting in the deaths of both mother and child.
That was the first time Cui Jin saw Shen Zhiheng’s eyes redden with hatred as he glared at her: “On our wedding night, the Heart-Union Pill you gave me was swapped out long ago. I didn’t take it… How could I betray Ruyue and fall for a shameless woman like you!”
“You stole her marriage, caused her tragic death in Prince Xin’s Manor. This life is what you owe her!”
Only then did Cui Jin realize that Shen Zhiheng had long been enamored with Cui Ruyue.
He had also believed Cui Ruyue’s lies, thinking that it was Cui Jin who had stolen the marriage, causing the two lovers to miss each other.
But the fertility pill had been prepared by the family for Cui Ruyue from the start, and the marriage to Prince Xin was decreed by imperial edict. Why blame her?
Cui Jin closed her eyes.True sincerity is hard to find. Since she was starting over, she might as well live up to the accusation of stealing someone else’s marriage—choose Prince Xin and scheme for the position of Empress!
She took two steps forward, snatched the fertility pill, and swallowed it. Immediately, a wave of heat surged through her body.
Father Cui was so shocked he slammed the table and stood up.
“Cui Jin! How dare you!”
Cui Ruyue was also stunned, but when she regained her composure, the corners of her lips curled almost imperceptibly.
Cui Jin smiled as she looked at them. “What a great fortune! Aren’t you happy for me, Father?”
Father Cui trembled as he pointed at her, his lips quivering, unable to speak for a moment, his mind buzzing.
His eldest daughter now only had the Heart-Union Pill left to choose. Could she really feed it to Prince Xin, who was deeply favored by the Emperor?
Would the nine clans… still be safe?
Cui Jin stared at him for a moment before speaking. “Whoever wants Shen Zhiheng can have him. I will only marry Prince Xin!”
The room fell silent for an instant.
Cui Ruyue’s eyes flickered. She lowered her head, her voice choked with emotion. “Although the imperial decree betrothed me, given Father’s status, if it’s treated as an accidental mistaken marriage, the royal family won’t blame us. If my sister wants this marriage, she can take it. I… I’ll yield to her.”
Her tear-reddened eyes made Father Cui’s heart ache, but there was nothing he could do.
There was only one fertility pill, and it wouldn’t be wasted only if it was given to Prince Xin, who struggled to have children.
Switching the marriage was the safest option. Both were legitimate daughters of the Cui family, merely distinguished as the daughter of the first wife and the daughter of the stepmother. The Emperor wouldn’t care.
After a long pause, he nodded with a grim expression.
Seeing this, Cui Ruyue’s eyes, lowered as they were, were filled with triumph.
Everyone in the capital knew that Prince Xin already had someone in his heart. So what if Cui Jin snatched the fertility pill? Without his favor, how could she possibly get pregnant?
Even if they did consummate the marriage, in the rear courtyard of the Prince’s Manor, the fertility pill would become a death warrant.
That person wouldn’t tolerate even a grain of sand in their eye—Cui Jin was doomed!
…
After leaving the study, Cui Ruyue blocked Cui Jin’s path, her face now devoid of any trace of grievance.
“Do you know, sister, why Shen Zhiheng despises you so much?” Her tone was both pitying and smug. “Half a year ago, he agreed to Father’s proposal to become engaged to you and came to stay at our manor. By chance, he met me and fell in love at first sight.”
She smiled, her voice soft and delicate:
“He told me then that he had never met a woman as vulgar, dull, and shameless as you.”
Cui Jin looked at her calmly and suddenly asked, “I’ve taken your position as Princess Consort of Prince Xin. Don’t you hate me?”
“Hate you for rushing to your death?” Cui Ruyue’s tone was dismissive and haughty. “Since the marriage is settled, I might as well tell you: Shen Zhiheng will surely rise to the position of Minister within five years and become a Grand Secretary within ten!”
As for Prince Xin… in the struggle for the throne, his entire manor will be destroyed.
The schadenfreude in her eyes was impossible to hide.
Cui Jin keenly sensed something amiss.
Cui Ruyue seemed very certain that Shen Zhiheng would rise to prominence…
The thought that the other might also have been reborn flashed through her mind, but she dismissed it instantly.
—With Cui Ruyue’s limited cunning, if she truly had been reborn, Cui Jin wouldn’t have failed to notice even a hint of it.
Just then, Cui Ruyue’s gaze fell on someone behind them. Suddenly, her face lit up with a smile as she called out sweetly, “Shen Zhiheng!”