Chapter 1: Go Kneel in the Ancestral Hall
Her head throbbed with excruciating pain.
Agony pierced through her heart and spine.
Yun Chu struggled to lift her eyelids.
A face slowly came into focus before her—it was Xie Shi'an, the eldest son of the Xie family.
Scenes from before she lost consciousness replayed in her mind: the Yun family's property confiscated, her grandfather's suicide, her parents imprisoned, and over a hundred members of the Yun family sentenced to execution...
All of this was thanks to the person standing before her.
Without a second thought, she raised her hand and delivered a fierce slap.
Caught off guard, Xie Shi'an was struck to the ground.
"Mother?"
His face was filled with disbelief.
Yun Chu was equally stunned.
It dawned on her that the Xie Shi'an before her appeared young and immature, bearing none of the authority and imposing presence he would later command as a high-ranking official.
How could the twenty-six or twenty-seven-year-old Xie Shi'an look so much younger?
She looked at her own hand—its skin was porcelain white, without a single trace of burn scars.
An absurd thought surfaced in her mind.
Xie Shi'an stood up from the ground, cupping his hands respectfully. "What have I done wrong, Mother? Please enlighten me."
Yun Chu's lips moved slightly. "How old are you this year?"
Xie Shi'an didn't understand why she was asking but answered dutifully, "Twelve."
Yun Chu's hand clenched abruptly.
She was only eight years older than this son—so, had she returned to the year she was twenty?
Her gaze fixed on Xie Shi'an's face. The slap had used almost all her strength, leaving his cheek red and swollen.
Yet, it couldn't begin to extinguish even a fraction of the hatred in her heart.
"You're already twelve, and you still don't know what you've done wrong?" She suppressed the overwhelming hatred and spoke calmly. "Go kneel in the ancestral hall and think carefully about exactly where you went wrong!"
Xie Shi'an's eyes widened in astonishment.
He had been raised by his mother for four years, and she had never once laid a hand on him—not even spoken a harsh word.
But today...
He opened his mouth to say something but met Yun Chu's gaze, which was filled with terrifying coldness.
He lowered his head. "Yes."
He had no choice but to obey his mother's command.
He turned and walked out.
Yun Chu waved her hand wearily.
The two maids in the room didn't dare to breathe loudly, bowing their heads and quietly retreating.
She sat on the edge of the bed, looking out at the courtyard. The crabapple flowers by the wall had been planted in her first year of marriage into the Xie family.
Reflecting on her previous life, she found it pitiful, laughable, and utterly tragic.
She was the legitimate eldest daughter of the General's Manor, born with a silver spoon in her mouth.
Her grandfather was a great general, her father was also a great general, and the Yun family enjoyed deep public support. Fearing their achievements would overshadow the emperor, her marriage was chosen with extreme caution.
After two years of selection, her mother finally picked a suitable match for her—Xie Jingyu, that year's Number One Scholar.
The Xie family came from humble origins, making it a marriage beneath her station. Her family believed it was an excellent match—it wouldn't draw the emperor's suspicion, nor would she suffer mistreatment from her in-laws.
After their wedding night, she became pregnant, and every day she fantasized about what her child would look like.
Unexpectedly, during her eighth month of pregnancy, she fell, suffered heavy bleeding, and gave birth prematurely. The child died, and the physician said she would never conceive again.
Childlessness was one of the seven grounds for divorce, yet the Xie family not only refrained from divorcing her but also cared for her well, granting her the respect due to a lawful wife.
At that time, she felt deeply grateful to the Xie family.
So, when she learned that Xie Jingyu had a child even before their marriage, she dared not harbor any resentment.When Xie Jingyu proposed raising all his children by concubines under her name, she felt grateful that her husband was helping her establish her position in the Xie family.
Thinking of this, a scornful smile appeared on Yun Chu's face.
She had died at thirty-four, with the Xie family flourishing with numerous descendants.
All these children had been personally raised and educated by her. She had exhausted her heart and mind, sparing no effort, and the scars on her hands were from saving a child... As the eldest daughter of a general's household, she had learned how to be a virtuous wife and taken on the responsibilities of a legal mother, giving everything she could in the hope that the children would grow up safely and bring honor to the family.
Indeed, they had achieved that.
However, after the Xie family rose to become newly prominent in the court, they turned their spearhead against the Yun family.
The eldest son orchestrated the Yun family's rebellion incident.
The second son hid evidence in the Yun family.
The third son personally handed the poison to her, his legal mother.
The fourth, fifth, youngest sons... Those children watched coldly as she drank the poison.
As the poisoned wine went down, the pain pierced her to the bone.
She thought she had died.
But she had returned to the year she was twenty, with Xie Shi'an having been by her side for four years.
After Xie Shi'an was registered under her name, she had poured endless effort into him.
If not for her planning and paving the way, how could Xie Shi'an have achieved his later success? How would he have had the opportunity to scheme against the Yun family?
In the end, it was she who had brought disaster upon the Yun family.
Yun Chu forced back her tears.
The Yun family's confiscation of property would happen over a decade later. Since she had been reborn, she would never allow it to happen again.
Xie Shi'an, who would later achieve the top three honors in the imperial examinations, join the Grand Secretariat, and hold great power, was now merely a twelve-year-old child.
There was still time for everything.
Yun Chu sorted out her thoughts and slowly fell asleep.
When she woke again, the orange twilight sun shone from the windowsill into the bedroom, as if she were dreaming.
"Madam, you're awake?"
Hearing the noise, a maid lifted the curtain and entered.
"Half an hour ago, Mama Zhou from Old Madam's place came by. She asked you to go to Anshou Hall when you wake up."
Yun Chu looked at the two maids who had entered.
Of the four personal maids she had brought from the general's household to the Xie family, only Ting Feng and Ting Xue had remained by her side.
Ting Yu had become Xie Jingyu's Concubine Yu the year Yun Chu was pregnant.
Later, Ting Shuang had died saving her during the great fire at the Xie residence, crushed by a collapsing beam.
Yun Chu looked in the mirror. Ting Shuang was doing her hair, her face full of concern as she said, "Madam, Old Madam must be summoning you about the young master. You had the young master kneel in the ancestral hall for less than fifteen minutes before Old Madam had him get up. She's probably going to demand an explanation now."
Yun Chu smiled. "I'm a bit hungry. Serve the meal first."
In her previous life, because she had no children of her own, she felt guilty and would force herself to go whenever the Old Madam summoned her, even when she was ill.
If after being reborn she remained as cautious and put the Xie family first in everything as before, what was the point of living again?
Ting Shuang quickly had someone bring the food.
Looking at the full table of dishes, Yun Chu found her appetite returning.
After eating her fill, she changed clothes and then headed to Anshou Hall.
In her previous life, the Old Madam had died of old age after Xie Shi'an joined the Grand Secretariat. The number of mourners nearly wore out the doorstep, making it an extremely glorious affair.
But now, Xie Jingyu was only a minor fifth-rank official, and Xie Shi'an was just twelve years old.
The Xie family was still just an insignificant minor clan in the capital.
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