The Day Her Son Died in Battle, Her Mother-in-Law Smiled

**The Day My Son Died in Battle, My Mother-in-Law Smiled**

During the Tianbao era, Xiao Mingyuan, a Yunhui General who had struck fear into the Western Regions, died on the battlefield. The terrible news reached the Xiao residence in Chang’an. At the funeral hall, the old madam Cui Zhaoning, renowned for her harshness and severity, smiled faintly as she rested a hand on the coffin, leaving everyone stunned. No one knew that Cui Zhaoning was no longer the woman she had been yesterday. She was a reborn avenger, carrying the blood-soaked memories of her past life.

In her previous life, after Xiao Mingyuan died in battle, “letters to the enemy” were found in the funeral hall. Every man in the Xiao family was sentenced to death, while the women were exiled to Lingnan. It was on the journey into exile that Cui Zhaoning learned just how cruel people could be and how cold the world was. What she regretted most was that her daughter-in-law, Pei Luoniang, whom she had mistreated and tormented for half her life, had risked her own life to protect her in a moment of danger, taking a fatal blade for her and dying in the freezing snow. Cui Zhaoning eventually froze and starved to death as well, consumed by endless regret.

Upon returning reborn, Cui Zhaoning’s first goal was to prevent her family’s destruction. Fighting through her grief at losing her son, she used her memories of her past life to destroy or replace the incriminating letters before they could be discovered. The letters had been planted by political enemies, led by the treacherous chancellors Li Linfu and Yang Guozhong and their followers, and her quick action averted the crisis that threatened to wipe out the family. At the same time, she changed her attitude toward Pei Luoniang, reaching out to make peace instead of treating her with the same cruelty as before. At first, Pei Luoniang was wary and bewildered. But after Cui Zhaoning stood up for her at several crucial moments and candidly revealed some of the secrets of her rebirth, Pei gradually lowered her guard. They discovered the wisdom and resilience each had kept hidden. Moving from mutual suspicion to trust, they eventually forged an unbreakable alliance.