A Qing Transmigration Tale: The Concubine's Hard Life

One morning, Meng Siyu, who had transmigrated to the Qing Dynasty years ago, unexpectedly gained a memory that let her foresee the future.

In the future, her parents would marry her off to a fellow townsman who had passed the provincial examination, all to clear the way for her eldest brother. The candidate would then offer Meng Siyu to various officials, trading her beauty for career advancement. Later, he would rise rapidly through the ranks, and the Meng family would prosper along with him. Only Meng Siyu would die in a fire, her life cut short in her prime.

At that moment, the candidate was doing everything he could to trick her into attending a banquet, while a lecherous official regarded her as his prize.

She turned the jade thumb ring on her finger and said with a half-smile, "Gentlemen, does Fourth Master know about this?"

Everyone stared at the rare jadeite ring in terror. "..."

Using the name of an "old friend" to bluff her way out, Meng Siyu frightened everyone off and left unscathed.

But she never expected to turn around and run into the very person she didn't want to see.

Yinzhen had thought that when he reunited with Meng Siyu, he would humiliate her thoroughly to avenge her abandoning him after leading him on. But when he saw her surrounded by enemies on all sides, his heart softened and he blurted out, "Would you be willing to stay by my side?"

At least he could protect her and give her a worry-free life, far better than being that candidate's wife!

Meng Siyu fell silent. The future Yongzheng Emperor was very petty. Was he planning to take her back and get revenge?

Later, Meng Siyu entered his household as a Han Chinese girl. She rose step by step from a concubine to a secondary consort and then to an imperial noble consort, enjoying his favor without end and drawing the jealousy of others.

Meng Siyu: Being a favored consort is so hard! He really did have ulterior motives!

Yongzheng Emperor: Being a favored consort is hard? I had ulterior motives? This is infuriating! Arrange for her to become Empress, and I'll prove myself!

Coming soon: "Imperial Noble Consort Chen"

Yao Minrou came from the illustrious Duke of Wei's family on her father's side and the powerful maternal relatives of the Duke of Cheng'en on her mother's. With the prestige of both families behind her, she was also the future Crown Princess.

She seemed to hold a winning hand, destined for a life of wealth and honor. But her birth mother died young, and her father ignored her. Her stepmother, who was also her second aunt, schemed to secure the Duke of Wei's title for her own son. Wary of Yao Minrou, she joined forces with Yao Minrou's maternal family, intending to replace her with her cousin Li and steal her position as Crown Princess.

Her future mother-in-law, the Empress who was also her maternal aunt, watched coldly and tacitly approved the change of Crown Princess.

It was all because her mother was the eldest daughter of her father's first wife, who had died young, while her stepmother, her aunt, and her uncle were siblings born to the same second wife, bound together by blood.

Her only hope lay in her betrothed, her cousin the Crown Prince. But he was weak and timid, and urged her to become his mistress. "Once I ascend the throne, I will bring you into the palace and make you Empress."

Yao Minrou was utterly disappointed.

Her grandfather, stepmother, and the Empress's family all wanted to eliminate her once and for all. They plotted in secret, driving Yao Minrou to the brink.

At the moment of danger, a refined and handsome emperor arrived in haste and held the beautiful young woman tightly. She was a treasure he cherished in the palm of his hand, too precious to let suffer even a little. How dare they treat her like this?

"Minmin, I want to take care of you for the rest of your life. Will you enter the palace?"

No one knew that the composed and reserved emperor was as nervous now as he had been during the coup in which he seized the throne.

Yao Minrou bit her lip. "I don't want to bow to the Empress. Can you agree to that? If you can, I'll enter the palace."

Later generations would say: Emperor Wu of Qi, Han Yue, governed with diligence throughout his life, reclaimed the sixteen prefectures of the northern frontier, expanded the realm, and laid the foundation for six hundred years of the Great Qi dynasty.

The only unconventional thing he did was to grant both empresses equal status in the central palace, welcoming Yao Minrou of the Yao family as Imperial Noble Consort Chen with the rites due an empress. She occupied Beichen Palace and enjoyed his exclusive favor. Throughout the Great Qi dynasty, no one else ever received such honor and distinction.

Theme: To live well, keep a calm and collected outlook.