Chapter 003: Big Sister-in-law is Reborn (Part Two)

Chapter 003: Big Sister-in-law is Reborn (Part Two)

"She was a child bride bought by the Gu family with three jin of beans.

At fourteen, she consummated her marriage with her husband, and by sixteen, she had given birth to a son and a daughter.

At seventeen, her husband’s younger sister caused trouble and squandered all the family’s money. With no funds to bribe officials, her husband was forced to perform corvée labor.

Less than two months later, her husband went missing. Newly widowed, she chose not to remarry out of gratitude to the Gu family, staying instead to work like a beast of burden in her in-laws' home.

After enduring ten bitter years, she saw her husband’s younger sister married off in a grand fashion and supported her husband’s younger brother all the way to becoming a juren through the imperial examinations.

Just when she thought her deceased husband was truly gone, he resurfaced.

But the in-laws despised her. They hid her husband from her, murdered her children behind his back, and sold her into a mountain village, where she was beaten to death by the old hunter who abused her.

Reborn once more, she vowed to repay every grudge and every resentment.

As for that evil mother-in-law, the despicable younger sister, and the ungrateful brother-in-law—back off, back off, back off!

As for a certain man: Hmph, if you still care about your mother and siblings, go to them!

Certain man: My dear, wronged! My heart belongs to you; how could I possibly care about anyone else?

Gu Qingcheng: ......

When she decided to accept the mission, lines of text began to appear on the transparent panel in front of her.

This must be the story synopsis of the script she was about to enter.

However—

Seeing the last few lines, Gu Qingcheng couldn’t help but twitch at the corners of her eyes.

What kind of expression is this?

It feels so awkward just reading it.

'Dear, this is a beginner mission with a low difficulty coefficient, yo.'

'The Wishmaker only has one wish, and that is for her precious daughter to have a happy and fulfilling life.'

The system cheerfully spoke from the depths of Gu Qingcheng’s mind.

Gu Qingcheng was stunned, 'The Wishmaker wants her precious daughter to have a happy and fulfilling life?'

Having been reborn with the life experience of two lifetimes and the benefit of 'foresight,' she had the ability to protect her daughter well.

And from the story synopsis, this child bride from the Gu family should be the protagonist of the script.

Following the pattern of such stories, the protagonist was sure to have a happy ending.

Could it be—

Gu Qingcheng had a thought, and as expected, the system continued, 'Correct! That is the Wishmaker’s wish!'

'Oh, by the way, the Wishmaker is not the child bride Li Xiongniang, but her wicked mother-in-law, Madam Zhao.'

'This story is a "revenge" novel. After being reborn, the big sister-in-law uses clever schemes to divide the family’s property, resulting in her and her husband and children being "cast out"—'

Since it’s a "revenge" story, the mother-in-law, younger sister, and younger brother who wronged her in the previous life naturally met bad ends.

Gu Qingcheng thought to herself silently.

The system continued to babble on about the plot, 'Without Li Xiongniang’s service, the three despicable members of the Gu family either died or became disabled, and Madam Zhao froze and starved to death.'

'Only after her death did Madam Zhao learn that Li Xiongniang was reborn. She deliberately led the younger sister and brother down the wrong path.'

'Madam Zhao’s resentment was immense, and she offered a strand of her soul as payment to hire an Executor to fulfill her wish.'

Gu Qingcheng remained speechless.

What did Madam Zhao have to resent?

Wasn’t it they who wronged Li Xiongniang first?

They hurt others, but others aren’t allowed to seek revenge?

However, Gu Qingcheng was no saint. As for her moral character, well, let’s not mention that for now.

Gu Qingcheng was clear on one point: Madam Zhao had paid the price, and if she wanted to earn points, she had to complete the other party’s wish.

Gu Qingcheng reviewed the mission details again, carefully considering them, and a plan formed in her mind.

'Alright! I’ve got it! I’ll take this mission!'

Gu Qingcheng nodded, not letting the system detect any anomalies.

'By the way! You mentioned I have a "privilege," what is it?'

Gu Qingcheng never overlooked anything.

The system hurriedly explained, 'You can modify one setting of your choice. For example, the starting time of the story, or the character settings.'

'Ahem, as you’ve noticed, this Wishmaker is a villain, and she’ll meet a deservedly miserable end.'

'And the mission target isn’t exactly a good person either. To make her happy might put you at odds with the protagonist, Li Xiongniang.'

Going against the protagonist will lead to trouble.

The Executor's task is to neither offend the protagonist nor fail the mission.

Thus, there is a certain level of difficulty involved.

Moreover, normal people have basic moral values.

Being forced to whitewash a villain is hardly a pleasant experience.

"But since they have presented a soul fragment, they are a customer. Our client, so to speak..."

The system desperately persuaded, "To avoid feeling conflicted, you can use this 'privilege' to adjust the character settings."

"For example, Zhao's 'evil' is just words. You can change her to a 'harsh words but kind heart' character."

Harsh words but kind heart?

Gu Qingcheng sneered, "There's no such thing as harsh words but kind heart in this world."

Those with harsh words definitely have a harsh heart.

Perhaps such people are not bad, but they are certainly not good either.

Due to her appearance, in her previous life, Gu Qingcheng had seen many people described as "harsh words but kind heart" or "straightforward and outspoken."

She was not ignorant; on the contrary, she was both intelligent and sharp.

Therefore, she could see through their masks and expose their ugly hearts.

System: ...I was just making a kind suggestion! Why are you arguing with me?

"No changes to the character settings!"

Gu Qingcheng would not waste her "privilege" on such things.

"By the way, you said I would become beautiful only after completing the mission, but what about in the storybooks? What will my appearance be? Can I become a great beauty according to my wishes?"

Ever since realizing her own imperfection, Gu Qingcheng had become increasingly obsessed with "beauty."

Now, her mind was filled with just one word—beauty, beauty, beauty!

"Yes, but without any special rewards, energy is conserved. If you want to change the attribute values of your appearance, you'll have to reduce other attributes!"

"Also, this setting is only temporary. Once the mission is over, your attributes will return to their original state."

As the system spoke, it opened an interface.

Swish!

The transparent panel in front of Gu Qingcheng updated its content, which was no longer a story outline but personal information—

Executor: Gu Qingcheng (Gu Qing)

Appearance: 46 points (60 points required to pass)

Intelligence: 96 points (75 points and above is considered good, 85 points and above is excellent, 95 points and above is top-notch, 100 points is the ceiling)

Integrity: 57 points

Stamina: 75 points

Gu Qingcheng read line by line, word by word.

The term "Appearance" felt a bit unfamiliar, but seeing the character "颜" (appearance), she deduced it must be related to her looks.

Moreover, Gu Qingcheng knew her situation; she excelled in every aspect except for her appearance, which was her shortcoming.

Only 46 points, still more than ten points away from the passing mark—she was indeed quite ugly.

Intelligence?

Hmm, it has the character "智" (intelligence), so it must be related to wisdom and intellect.

The value is as high as 96 points, which is top-notch, just like her sharp mind.

Integrity is easier to understand.

It refers to a person's moral character and integrity.

"Huh? Executor, why is your integrity so low? It's not even passing!"

Gu Qingcheng was a renowned wise empress; even if she wasn't a saint, she certainly wasn't a bad person.

Gu Qingcheng twitched her mouth, "I am the right-hand woman of Emperor Yuh Wenhang, helping him strategize and handle state affairs. After Yuh Wenhang passed away, I even became the regent empress dowager—"

Those involved in state affairs can't be said to have pure hearts, but they are definitely not saints either!

Therefore, Gu Qingcheng was quite accepting of her integrity value being only 57 points.

Stamina is even easier to understand; Gu Qingcheng was healthy, and as a true noble lady, she was proficient in the Six Arts of a Gentleman.

Perhaps she couldn't reach top-notch levels, but her body was certainly stronger than that of an ordinary person.

If it weren't for the fact that her current body was only six years old, still a child, her stamina value would be even higher.

"System, you just mentioned the conservation of energy. If I want to increase my appearance, I need to reduce the values in other aspects?"

After reviewing her attributes, Gu Qingcheng had a rough idea in mind.

"Yes! What do you plan to use to exchange for beauty?" The system sounded somewhat curious.

Gu Qingcheng had the highest IQ. But it wouldn't be wise to use all of it to exchange for beauty.

Even if she halved it, Gu Qingcheng's IQ would drop below average, turning her into an "idiot"!

If she became a fool, how could she complete her tasks?

The system was slightly worried.

However, Gu Qingcheng didn't rush to answer. Instead, she suddenly said, "I'm going to use the previous privilege to modify the storyline."

"I want to move Li Xiongniang's rebirth timeline to a point before she was bought by the Gu family!"

The system was stunned, unsure why Gu Qingcheng wanted to do this.

Nevertheless, as a rule-abiding system, as long as the Executor's request was within the regulations, it had to be fulfilled.

"Approved! The storyline has been changed!"

Hearing the system's mechanical voice, Gu Qingcheng smiled in satisfaction, "Good! I'll transfer the IQ attribute points to beauty. Max out my beauty!"