Chapter 3: Whipping the Lady of the House

Chapter 3: Whipping the Lady of the House

Everyone thought Song Zhao didn't want to enter the palace,

But no one knew that she actually wanted to enter more than anyone else.

Because only by entering the palace could she completely escape the hellish life in the Song family and seek revenge for her unjustly deceased mother.

Song Zhao's birth mother, Bai shi, was a concubine of Song Shicheng.

Bai shi was strikingly beautiful and became the favored concubine upon entering the Song household.

Consequently, after her arrival, the main wife, Jiang shi, harbored resentment towards her.

When Song Zhao was still young, Jiang shi framed Bai shi for theft and, in front of Song Zhao, mercilessly whipped her to death.

Jiang shi's family provided significant support to Song Shicheng's career, so even though he knew Bai shi was wrongfully killed, he never inquired or said a word about it.

Witnessing her mother's tragic death, Song Zhao learned a lesson early in life:

Men must have power, but women must hold real power in their hands.

Relying solely on men means when love fades and beauty wanes, one could be beaten to death and be dismissed as a worthless life, with no one to care.

Therefore, she refused to be someone at the mercy of others,

If she had to choose, she would be the one holding the whip.

Late one night, Song Zhao visited the woodshed.

She saw that Jiang shi and her daughter had indeed suffered,

Their faces were pale, their bodies marked with numerous bloody welts, and they now lacked even the strength to speak.

Seeing this, Song Zhao frowned slightly and scolded the executing steward,

"Father ordered you to administer the whipping, not to beat my elder sister and mother to death. If you cause visible injuries, how will they face others or entertain guests in the future?"

The steward scratched his head, "But the master ordered thirty lashes, and ten are still due."

"Women are fragile, if you continue like this, they might lose their lives."

Song Zhao rolled up her sleeves, took the whip from the steward's hand, "Enough, I'll handle the remaining ten lashes. Just make a show of it, so you can report back to father."

Lady Jiang was, after all, the lady of the house, and the steward was reluctant to perform such a disagreeable task.

Seeing Song Zhao taking over, he quickly handed her the whip and fled as if for his life.

Song Zhao slowly approached Lady Jiang and her daughter, holding the whip in both hands, snapping it through the air,

Lady Jiang and her daughter, terrified, huddled against the wall, "What... what are you going to do?"

'Crack'

Song Zhao brought the whip down fiercely, striking Lady Jiang across the face,

A dark red welt immediately appeared on her left cheek, causing her to scream in pain and collapse to the ground, clutching her face.

Song Yue threw herself protectively in front of Lady Jiang, glaring furiously at Song Zhao,

"Wretch! All of this is your scheming against us! You... Ah!!!"

'Crack'

Another lash struck Song Yue on the forehead.

"My scheming? Ha~ Compared to the humiliation you've heaped on me over the years, and your mother killing mine, these few lashes today are far from enough!

If it weren't for the rule that the family of a new palace maiden cannot be in mourning, do you think I would have spared your lives? But no matter, my entry into the palace will be the start of your nightmares."

"Pah!" Lady Jiang spat a mouthful of blood at Song Zhao, "To frame us, you've disfigured your own face, ensuring you won't be favored in the palace tomorrow!

You may be beautiful, but the palace is never short of beautiful women. Being born a concubine's daughter, there's no precedent for someone like you becoming a consort. Resign yourself to being a mere maid, awaiting death in the palace!"

Song Zhao twirled the whip in the air, suddenly laughing,

"A consort's position? Ha! I'm entering the palace to become the Empress, why else would I go? To cook for others?"

Her eyes flashed fiercely, and suddenly with fury, she lashed out at Jiang shi and Song Yu with a flurry of whips,

Only after releasing the pent-up anger of all these years, did she take a deep breath and say:

"If I could endure you for so many years, you should know the lengths I would go to get what I want.

I am not like my mother, who lost her life for a mere empty promise from Song Shicheng.

I know exactly what I want, and anyone who stands in my way, I will ruthlessly eliminate, one by one.

And you two today, are the perfect example of this!"

With that, she casually threw the whip onto Jiang shi’s face, dusted off her hands, and strode away.