Pampered Consort's Acting Awards - Chapter 2

“This is not Kunning Palace.”

“She’s awake! Miss is finally awake!”

An unfamiliar voice rang in Su Ling’s ears.
She opened her eyes slowly, and soon after, she felt burning pain tearing the depths of her throat. With a hoarse voice, she said: “Water.”

“T-This servant will pour some water for Miss immediately.” It was a servant girl with a long green garment.

Su Ling half-supported her body and took the cup. With a sip, the fresh water entered her throat, as if discovering an oasis in the middle of a desert.
Afterward, the world before her eyes gradually became clearer.

Su Ling lifted her eyelids and looked around.
Entering her sight was a long rectangular table made of red sandalwood and birch with its legs fully gilded in copper, on which was placed a flower pot made of holly glaze with bamboo leaves pattern on its surface, and a set of teacups. On her left side was a pair of huge red sandalwood cabinets, and on the right side was a standing screen with colored silk embroidery of deer and cranes in spring.

So simple and crude.
This is not Kunning Palace.

However, before Su Ling could fully grasp what was going on in front of her, she saw a man pushing the door angrily, followed by a woman who was over 30 years old.

Su Ling did not know a lot of people, but she knew official clothes.
This person was wearing black gauze on his head, dressed in a dark red official uniform with a silver pheasant pattern, and equipped with a silver germanium flower belt around his waist…

Oh. It’s a fifth-ranked small official.

The fifth-ranked official moved two steps forward, lifted his hand to overthrow the teacups, and said in anger: “It’s not enough to just throw a tantrum, isn’t it! Haven’t lost enough face, have you! You even dared to take poisonous wine today, tomorrow what else you won’t dare to do! In the end, do you still have me as a father in your eyes!”

Father.

As soon as the voice fell, Su Ling felt as if she was struck by a lightning.
Even the word “impudent” that was about to follow was stopped on her lips.

The fifth-ranked official continued: “This is the first draft since the emperor ascended the throne, the whole court is staring at this matter. The two words ‘Qin Ling’ were already submitted to the Ministry of Rites, it’s already beyond your control! What do you think the royal family is! Our front entrance that you can come and go at will?”
After the words were said, he slapped the table firmly three times with his palm.

Su Ling held her breath. The cup in her hand was almost crushed in her shock.
From childhood to adulthood, no one had ever dared to slap the table in front of her, even the emperor had never done that.

“That one surnamed Zhu is merely a son of a merchant. Is he worthy for you to degrade yourself like this!” The fifth-grade official saw that Su Ling had no expression of remorse, only a blank look and some part of indescribable haughtiness. He could not refrain himself from gnashing his teeth: “Good, very good. From now on, don’t think about getting out of the door even for half a step. If you meet with that brat from the Zhu family once again, I’ll break his legs in your presence! This grand scribe position, I won’t even care anymore!”

At this moment, the woman quickly pulled at the fifth-ranked official’s arm, and said softly: “The eldest miss has just woken up, the body is still weak. Master doesn’t need to say anymore.”

The fifth-ranked official took a deep breath and threw the door open to leave, leaving only a sentence.

“You’re the same as your mother, for your own sake, you don’t care about the life and death of others.”

After that, the woman also followed him out.

Father?
Mother?
The draft?
What attempting suicide because of what man from the Zhu clan?

Su Ling sat on the couch while pondering over the things that were said by the fifth-ranked official.

Did she not die?
If she did not die, then who was Qin Ling?

Thinking until here, Su Ling got up and walked barefoot to the rectangular table. She opened the dressing-case and took out a copper mirror…

After a look, the whole person fell onto the stool.

The woman in this mirror, apart from the mole on the lower jaw, the eyebrow, eyes, lips, and nose were exactly the same as… her 16 years old self.

While looking around, she suddenly felt a dull pain in her temple and lost consciousness once again.

By the time she was up again, it was already evening on the next day.
The memories continued to strike her intermittently. From time to time, she could see some people whom she had never met, sometimes she also heard voices she had never heard before. Although not coherent enough, it was enough for her to sort out her current situation.

Today was the 4th year of Yanxi era. August 16th.

She did not die, but she was also not herself.
The owner of this body was the legitimate eldest daughter of the Qin family, Qin Ling.

The impudent fifth-ranked official who berated her yesterday was called Qin Wang, the master of the Qin family, who was also Qin Ling’s biological father.

And as for the reason how she became Qin Ling, we had to start from the beginning—
Qin Wang was born into a poor family. In the early years, he was just a poor scholar from Qian’an County. His mother was seriously ill, while his father had died early. The condition of Qin family at that time was just like that, not to mention about learning from a master, marrying a decent wife was also a mere foolish dream.

Even though the Qin family was impoverished, fortunately, Qin Wang’s face was neater than his pocket. Even in coarse clothing, he was a handsome young man.

At the lantern festival, the daughter of the richest man in Qian’an County, Wen Shuanghua, had fallen in love at the first sight with Qin Wang.
Wen Shuanghua had been spoiled since she was a child. If she wanted the wind, then she would get the wind. She had thought that as long as she wants to marry, then Qin Wang should come and propose the marriage.

However, things turned out contrary to what she had wished. The Qin Wang on that year was poor yet ambitious. He would not move the slightest bit even in the face of danger. He was determined to marry the girl he had taken a fancy to, Jiang Mingyue.
It was a pity that Jiang Mingyue was born unlucky, they had not been married for half a year before she died.

Qin Wang’s heart died like ashes, but Wen Shuanghua’s heart was rekindled.
In the end, the two Qin and Wen families still came together.

With the support from the Wen family, within two years, Qin Wang passed the imperial exam, and Mother Qin’s illness also got better. After Qin Wang became an official, Wen Shuanghua gave him a son and a daughter—The eldest son was called Qin Suizhi, and the eldest daughter Qin Ling.
Life had been pretty good.

Until one day, Jiang Mingyue’s blood sister, Jiang Lanyue, came to the front door out of desperation.
Thus Wen Shuanghua’s nightmare began.

One should not look at Qin family as being a small family. The drama in the courtyard was no worse than those of the high families. It could even be said that it was more exciting than the scripts she had read before.

Qin Wang brought Jiang Lanyue to the Qin family. At first, he only took care of her a little, but soon, he took care of her on the couch. It was not that Wen Shuanghua did not make trouble, but even after making trouble, they were futile. After all, when a man was obsessed, even 10 oxen would not be able to turn his head.

The husband and wife were at odds, and Wen Shuanghua bathed her face in tears every day.

Qin Wang had lost his wisdom in the face of lust. Fortunately, there was still Old Madam Qin in the house. Old Madam Qin had one duty throughout her life. She could not persuade her son, however, she remembered the kindness of the Wen family. Before dying, the old madam only said one sentence, “Wang’er, as a person, we could not forget our roots. Mother wants you to swear, this Jiang shi, forever and ever, can only be a concubine.”

Since ancient times, the word filial piety was a serious matter. Qin Wang could only kneel at her side and swore.

One had originally thought that the Qin family would calm out after this, but who would have thought that this oath was like an immovable mountain. Aside from crushing Jiang Lanyue’s painstaking ambition, it had also planted a calamity for the future.

This Jiang Lanyue’s tricks were excellent. She changed her face faster than one could turn a book. She cried to Qin Wang in one second and smiled at Wen Shuanghua the next second. Qin Wang, who had been living in widowhood, could be hooked and would easily forget.

[living in widowhood: because he’s at odds with the wife, so it is like living as a ‘widow’.]

Wen Shuanghua became crazier and crazier in the backyard, and after a long time, she fell ill.

She had been in a half-insane state until her end approached. She could not strive as Qin Wang’s first wife, and also could not compete with that Concubine Jiang who could faint with a cry. She had been spinning around in the whirlpool of hysteria all her life, could not let go of the other person, also could not let go of herself.

On her deathbed, Wen Shuanghua suddenly recalled the scene of the old madam before her death.
She summoned her eldest son and made Qin Suizhi kneel in front of her.

With tears in her eyes and pale lips, Wen Shuanghua said hoarsely: “Suizhi, Mother is about to leave. You have to swear to me, in this lifetime, you have to protect the Wen family, and you must not participate in the imperial examinations.”

Once these words left, Qin Wang was completely dumbfounded.
Qin Wang was a scholar. Without a little bit of talent and vision, he would not have been able to get transferred from Qian’an County to the capital this day. What he valued most was the child prodigy from his first wife.

Once Qin Suizhi swore the oath, it would be all over.

But Wen Shuanghua was a woman who had been wandering in love all her life, she had long been irrational.

While crying, she forced Qin Suizhi to swear.

Looking at his dying mother, Qin Suizhi slowly bent his knees, raised his hand, and swore every word. Just like that year, when Qin Wang swore in front of the old madam.

Jiang Lanyue looked at the grieving Qin Ling, and slowly raised her mouth.
She finally got her revenge that day.

A human’s life. If you asked Jiang Lanyue, would she regret it?
She would certainly answer no.
In her eyes, in the backyard, it was not about first come, first served. Only the capable ones would be the top priority, and the quality of life depended on one’s own ability.
What could a woman like Wen Shuanghua who was willing to give everything for a man do?

After Wen Shuanghua died from illness, Qin Wang never lost his temper to Qin Suizhi and Qin Ling. The word “guilt” was like a tide, nearly drowning him.

However, Qin Ling’s temper was similar to Wen Shuanghua. She blamed the death of her mother and the future prospects of her elder brother to Jiang Lanyue and her daughter, even the father-daughter relationship with Qin Wang had long since fallen apart.

On more than one occasion, Qin Ling flipped the table in front of Jiang Lanyue, cursing her a vixen and the cause of her mother’s death. She also hit the illegitimate sister Qin Rong more than once. Many times, when Qin Wang was about to teach her a lesson, Jiang Lanyue would pat his chest softly and said, “The eldest miss is still young, so she is not sensible. Madam left early, this concubine often sees her cries secretly in her room… in the end, isn’t it all this concubine’s fault…”

The tone would be soft, just like yesterday.

Qin Ling had been raised up to be arrogant and willful, undisciplined, and out of control. Qin Wang decided to turn a blind eye on many things, however, at the time of the general election, she made a friendship with a merchant’s son in private and even attempted suicide, saying if it was not him, she would not marry.

Qin Wang could not just sit and watch.

And yesterday, he had endured to his limit.

Following the Qin family’s affairs, Su Ling raised her hand and rubbed the space between her eyebrows.

This daughter of Qin family was really being played around by little Jiang shi.
If she continued to meet with that youth surnamed Zhu, something bad would happen next. Qin Wang would not make fun of his official career. If something really happened, he could only let Qin Rong, the other daughter of the Qin family, enter the palace instead.
At that time, little Jiang shi who was not able to raise her status from a concubine to a wife would be able to do so.

Su Ling stood up and pushed the window open. She glanced at the full moon outside and sneered from the corner of her mouth.

4th year of the Yanxi era, the harem general election. It was truly the will of Heaven.

Qin Wang had been promoted to the grand scribe position for less than half a year and coupled with his inconspicuous identity, it could be assumed that he had never seen her… The late empress.
She could not imagine what kind of uproar would be caused if this face entered the palace.

While she was thinking, the door of the inner room was pushed open with a ”bang” and a person walked in.

Su Ling knitted her brows slightly and turned around—

Only to see a young man dressed in a black robe, with a jade-like face, appeared before her eyes.

After staring at each other for a short time, he advanced in large strides, held Su Ling’s shoulders with both hands, and then hugged her, “It’s good, it’s good that you’re alive.”

Su Ling subconsciously wanted to dodge, but the young man’s embrace was especially firm, so she could not struggle at all.

She knew who this person was.
He was Qin Ling’s blood brother, Qin Suizhi.

Since his path to imperial examinations was broken, Qin Suizhi had taken over the business of the Wen family in Qian’an County. This travel-worn appearance was because he had rushed over after hearing that Qin Ling had taken poison to suicide.

After a long time, Qin Suizhi finally released her.

Lifting her eyes, Su Ling could clearly see his bloodshot eyes.

Qin Suizhi hung his head and said softly: “Ah Ling, that Zhu Ze approaches you for impure purposes. Why won’t you believe me? You know that if today’s matter spreads out, it will ruin your life.”

Ah Ling.
Su Ling knew that Qin Suizhi was not calling herself, however in that split second, she could not help thinking of Su Huaian.

Her eldest brother used to call her this way.

Qin Suizhi squeezed his fist, looking defeated, and his voice trembled, “He’s just that, but in order to be with him, you are even willing to part with me?”