Chapter One: Giving Birth in the Wilderness

The night was thick, the solitary moon hung high in the sky. Near the mass graveyard on the outskirts of the capital, only the cries of vultures pierced the darkness, chilling and sinister.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed through the gloom, startling the vultures from their roosts. They flapped their wings in panic, screeching as they took flight.

Tan Qingjiu, clutching her belly and gasping for breath, slid down against a tree, her moon-white inner garment soaked in blood from the waist down. Another wave of agony seized her; she furrowed her brow, gripping the tree behind her to steady herself. Surely, she had outrun the pursuers by now?

Even if she hadn't, there was nothing more she could do. She couldn't hold on any longer—the child was coming!

The pain was unbearable. Tan Qingjiu clung desperately to the tree, summoning what little strength remained. Half an hour later, as the newborn's cry rang out, relief flooded her body. She hastily untied the dagger from her ankle, cut the umbilical cord, and cradled her child in her arms.

"My child, my precious child..."

But suddenly, a pair of hands reached out from behind the tree, snatching the baby away. "Hahaha, sister, you're mistaken. The child you bore belongs to me!"

Tan Qingjiu's eyes widened. She staggered forward, her voice raw and hoarse: "My child, give him back!"

Tan Yunge stepped back, watching as Tan Qingjiu collapsed from exhaustion, her expression cruel. "Yours? Sister, do you know who orchestrated your disgrace, the reason you fell pregnant before marriage?"

"Do you know who suggested to Father that you be drowned in the pond?"

"It was me—all of it! Hahaha!"

"I've been married to the heir apparent for two years without conceiving, so I turned my attention to you. I schemed to make you pregnant. Father ordered your drowning, but I saved you, kept you hidden in a secluded courtyard, all for this child. Unfortunately, today you overheard my plans and tried to run, you little wretch. Did you think you could escape me?"

"You see, in the end, you couldn't slip from my grasp."

Tan Qingjiu shook her head, desperate. "No, no, don't!"

"I'm taking the child. As for you..." Tan Yunge sneered. "Nanny Li, kill her."

"Yes, madam."

As Tan Yunge turned to leave with the baby, Tan Qingjiu was overwhelmed by anguish. She mustered her last ounce of strength, lunging at Tan Yunge. "Give me back my child! Give him back!"

Tan Yunge nearly lost her balance, furious, and kicked Tan Qingjiu hard. "Get out of my way!"

Tan Qingjiu fell heavily, her head striking a sharp stone. Silence fell.

"Madam, she's dead. No breath left," Nanny Li said.

Tan Yunge's face remained unmoved. "Clean it up."

"Yes, madam."

...

Pain!

Tan Qingjiu frowned as her consciousness slowly returned.

A muttering voice sounded at her ear.

"Second Miss, please don't blame me. I was forced—I'm just a servant, all the decisions were made by the masters. I had no choice but to obey."

"If you bear hatred and wish for revenge, remember to seek out the heir apparent's wife, not me."

"Oh, and if you see Madam down below, please plead for me, ask her to stop haunting my dreams. Though Madam died at my hands, the true culprit wasn't me."

"It was the master who favored Madam... No, at that time, Madam was merely Concubine Chen. The master doted on her and wished to elevate her to the status of wife, but lacked justification. So he allowed Concubine Chen to arrange Madam's humiliation."

Second page

"Madam endured the disgrace for your sake, Second Miss, since you were young. She chose to live, requesting to be demoted from wife to concubine."

"But Concubine Chen had me switch Madam's birth control decoction for ordinary tonic, so Madam conceived a bastard. To protect the master's reputation, he had me deliver poison wine and white silk to Madam."

"In truth, the real culprit was Concubine Chen, and the master was her accomplice. I was powerless..."

Tan Qingjiu heard Nanny Li's words clearly, though her mind was still muddled.

Nanny Li dragged Tan Qingjiu into a patch of grass, whispering, "Second Miss, I'll leave you here. Farewell..."

With that, Nanny Li hurried off toward the carriage, stumbling.

Tan Qingjiu felt the chill beneath her, but her mind was gradually clearing.

Hadn't she died? On her way to treat a high-ranking official, she was ambushed and blown to pieces. Connecting these memories, Tan Qingjiu frowned—had she transmigrated?

A flood of memories surged in her mind.

She was the daughter of the Deputy Minister of Rites in Qingning. She had been manipulated into intimacy with a stranger, then fell pregnant. Her father thought she'd disgraced the family and ordered her drowning. Her "good" sister, Tan Yunge, saved her and hid her away in a small courtyard...

Until today, when her child was due.

Wait—the child!

Tan Yunge had stolen her child!

And now, Nanny Li's words became clear.

After her mother's death, everyone claimed her mother had been unfaithful, consorting with men and bearing a bastard, then committing suicide in shame.

No one suspected the hidden truths.

Mother...

Child...

The hatred surged violently, causing Tan Qingjiu to tremble all over.

Though she was not the original owner of this body, she could feel the overwhelming rage within.

Suddenly, pain struck her belly—it felt as if something inside was trying to force its way out.

Tan Qingjiu's eyes widened. Was there another child?

Cold sweat broke out across her body. Though skilled in medicine, she could not deliver her own child, especially here in the wild with nothing at hand.

She had already exhausted all her strength during the previous difficult labor.

As she flailed helplessly, faint sounds reached her ears—the rumble of a carriage wheel and the tinkling of bells.

Someone was coming.

Tan Qingjiu gritted her teeth and looked toward the source of the sound. She caught a faint glimmer of light.

She had to seek help.

Mustering her last strength, she stood, only to fall again. Gritting her teeth, she crawled on her knees onto the main road, blocking the path.

Third page

"Stop!" Tan Qingjiu shouted loudly.

A "whoa" rang out as the carriage halted.

The driver glanced at Tan Qingjiu, then turned to report to the passenger inside. "Sir, someone is asking for help."

He jumped down, opened the carriage door.

Tan Qingjiu lifted her gaze to see a man seated within, about twenty years old, with striking features and a cold, deep gaze.

"Help me, I'm about to give birth," Tan Qingjiu croaked.

The man's eyes lingered on her face, then moved to her swollen belly. He curled his lip in a mocking smile. "A blood-soaked, beautiful pregnant woman seeking help in the dead of night, alone in the wilderness, claiming she's about to deliver—who would dare to help under such circumstances?"

"I'm neither ghost nor monster," she insisted.

He nodded, "I know."

"I could help, I dare to help, but I... don't want to."

He turned away. "Close the door. Move on. If she won't let us pass, drive right over her."

"Yes, sir."

The driver shut the carriage door, climbed atop, and flicked the whip. "Giddy up!"

Tan Qingjiu scrambled to the roadside in desperation as waves of pain seized her...

She bit her lip, cold sweat beading on her brow.

Very well, she would remember this.

Her last strength drained away, and soon, she lost consciousness.

Six years later, Qingning, the capital.

The street was bustling, carriages rolling past.

"Mother, look! Someone's performing fire-breathing and sword-swallowing!"

"Tsk, I think his act is mediocre, not as good as Third Grandmaster's. Let me off, I'll go expose him."

A soft, childlike voice rang out, quickly followed by another, similar but cooler: "Tan Xingyou! Sit properly!"

"Mother, see? Brother is so boring."

Tan Qingjiu looked at the two identical faces before her—one lively, one serious—and smiled. "Xingqi is right. We shouldn't disrupt someone's livelihood. That's the code of the martial world."

"Alright," Xingyou pouted, reluctantly sitting back down.

No sooner had he settled than the carriage abruptly stopped.

"What's happening?"

Xingyou jumped up, lifted the curtain, and outside, cries and pleas could be heard. "Please, save my husband..."

Xingyou leaned out, anxious. "Mother, come quickly! Something's happened..."