Chapter 8

Chapter 8

As Xie Run fell to the ground in the scorching June heat, waves of hot air beat against her face, her mind still preoccupied with the thought that she hadn’t gone to see the Second Young Master who had fallen into the lake. No one would cause trouble for her over that, would they?

When she opened her eyes again, Xie Run saw Yuli and Dan Tao standing by her bed, sobbing. An elderly imperial physician was taking her pulse.

Xie Run’s heart sank. “I… am I okay?!”

In her past life, she had fainted out of the blue like this and been diagnosed with cancer. If the same thing happened in this life, Xie Run felt she might as well grab a knife and slit her throat.

She might as well not live at all!

The elderly physician stroked his beard and said placidly, “Lady Xie is just suffering from heatstroke, nothing serious. Just rest up.”

Xie Run let out a huge sigh of relief.

Then, realizing something was wrong, she quickly tugged on Dan Tao’s sleeve and asked, “What’s the situation at Secondary Consort Ning’s place?”

Dan Tao, holding a handkerchief and sobbing, replied, “I’m so sorry, my lady. The Second Young Master… he’s gone.”

Xie Run was dazed.

She slowly leaned back against her pillow, raised a hand, and said, “I need some time alone. Please see the physician out.”

Dan Tao and Yuli bowed simultaneously. “Yes.”

Xie Run tugged at the quilt over her and let out a deep sigh.

She had only walked a few steps today; how could she possibly have heatstroke?

At the moment she fainted, a flood of images appeared in Xie Run’s mind.

She learned that Shiqie Fang, who had entered the mansion with her, was also a time-traveler, and that she held the role of a vicious cannon-fodder female supporting character.

In the original book, Fang Yuaner and Xie Run had entered the mansion together.

Fang Yuaner was beautiful and graceful, with tens of thousands of taels of silver at her disposal, and she thrived in the prince’s manor’s sprawling compound.

Later, when Prince Jing ascended the throne, Fang Yuaner successfully became an Imperial Noble Consort. Relying on the emperor’s favor, she grew arrogant, overbearing, and domineering, antagonizing the novel’s heroine, which led to a miserable end.

Thus, the modern-day Fang Yuaner, by chance, traveled into the book and decided to begin a new life.

Fang Yuaner studied the reasons for the original character’s tragic death and resolved to take the good and leave the bad. Taking advantage of the heroine’s absence, she quickly used her own strengths to capture Prince Jing’s heart, win over the manor’s concubines, and bear a child as soon as possible, planning to get rid of the heroine as soon as she appeared.

In the original book, Fang Yuaner was no pushover, and the time-traveling Fang Yuaner was even less kind.

After all, the moment she arrived, she set her sights on the position of empress, already seeing the Princess Consort as her biggest rival.

It was a thoroughly ambitious stance.

Xie Run was silent for a long time, composing herself, and immediately extracted several key pieces of information.

First, Prince Jing was destined to become emperor in the future?!

Xie Run’s head spun, but she felt no joy, only unease.

The waters of the prince’s manor’s back courtyard were already deep enough; if Prince Jing became emperor, they would become even deeper.

Could she really live a healthy, peaceful life into old age?

Second, she was actually living in a book, and this book even had a heroine?

The information in Xie Run’s mind only concerned the cannon-fodder character Fang Yuaner, with no information about the original heroine.

All she knew was that the original heroine was a candidate who emerged from the imperial selection three years after Prince Jing’s ascension, later winning the emperor’s favor, overcoming all opposition, and being elevated to empress.

Xie Run wondered if she should make some preparations.

After thinking it over, she realized that Fang Yuaner’s method was actually quite good.

Before the original heroine first appeared, she should have a child with Prince Jing to secure a reliable future, and build good relations with the manor’s concubines to avoid being a target.

As for targeting the heroine... Xie Run had no desire to become empress.

Anyone who has read novels knows you should stay away from the heroine, or else you’ll end up very unfortunate.

If she had a child, she could then live as an invisible person in the palace while not seeking Prince Jing’s favor.

Occasionally, she could also watch the drama unfold between the original heroine and the heroine. Wasn’t that a good idea, too?

Third, she was an Nth cannon-fodder supporting character in this book...

The original Xie Run had hanged herself on the second day after entering the manor, bringing the entire Xie family into Prince Jing’s disfavor. Later, she disappeared without a trace entirely.

Xie Run couldn’t help but sigh. The original Xie Run was truly ruthless.

Ruthless toward herself, and even more so toward her family.

Yet she couldn’t bring herself to be ruthless toward the scumbag, jumping into a lake for the sake of a worthless guy—truly a pity.

Now that Xie Run hadn’t died, and she had taken her place... for now the Xie family was safe, but what would happen later was unknown.

In any case, Xie Run intended to live well, and to live healthily.

Having sorted out her thoughts, Xie Run finally called Yuli and Dan Tao back in to ask about the Second Young Master’s death.

“I fainted just now and don’t know exactly what happened. How did the Second Young Master die?”

When she first received the news, it was only that he had fallen into the lake, which meant he was still alive at the time.

She had fainted for only a short while—how could he be gone already?

Yuli, quick to speak, couldn’t help herself. “Lady, thank goodness you fainted and didn’t go to Orchid Fragrance Garden. I heard that garden was a river of blood today. If you had gone, you would have been terrified for sure.”

Xie Run rubbed her forehead and said helplessly, “Get to the point!”

Yuli said, “The prince used torture to get to the truth. It turns out the Second Young Master’s wet nurse had evil intentions and deliberately killed the young master.”

Xie Run opened her mouth in shock. “How could a wet nurse have the audacity to murder a prince’s son? What exactly happened?!”

In this era, the weight of social hierarchy could crush a person alive.

Unless pushed to the brink, ordinary people would never dare to challenge those in power.

Dan Tao said slowly, "It's all because Cefei Ning treated people harshly... When the wet nurse was first brought into the manor, it was agreed that she would be sent home after the baby turned one, if she wanted to stay, she could. But a year later, Cefei Ning refused to let her go and insisted she continue nursing until the child was two. The wet nurse's own son had been unwell recently, and she had begged for leave several times, but Cefei Ning rejected each request."

Xie Run asked, "So something happened to the wet nurse's family?"

Dan Tao nodded. "The wet nurse was rarely at home, and her husband used the money she earned to take a new concubine. The new concubine became pregnant and deliberately mistreated the wet nurse's child. Last night, news came that the wet nurse's son had fallen into a well and died. Just then, Cefei Ning punished her again for the Second Young Master's recent cold. The wet nurse, in a fit of rage, jumped into the lake holding the Second Young Master."

Yuli wiped away tears. "When they were pulled out, the Second Young Master was still breathing. But after returning, he seemed to have been terrified, suffering from nightmares. Within half an hour, he had stopped breathing. Such a young child..."

"So... how did the Prince deal with the wet nurse?"