IBTSOME Chapter 1 Part 1: Rebirth

I BECAME THE STEPMOTHER OF MY EX-HUSBAND 

Chapter 1 Part 1: Rebirth

 

 ^^

The wind was cold and the night was breaking dawn early in winter, the person in the low room was delirious. Lin Wei Xi was lying on the bed with her fine eyebrows frowning, at once you could see that she didn’t have a peaceful sleep.

　
The sound of cooking gradually could be heard from the village, the farmers did not have a fortune to be idle. Even on such a cold day, many people got up to burn wood and cook. There’s also noise in the brightest room in the main courtyard. It seemed that Aunt Lin had risen. Lin Wei Xi had a vague thought, but her limbs were weak and confined in a dream, unable to break free. 　

In the dreamlike vermilion courtyard, there was a maid wearing double bun hairstyle and the fabric of her clothes were crisp and bright lu silk, she lowered her head as if she did not dare to face the person in front of her, her voice was as fine as a mosquito: "Shizi Consort, the front yard come over and pass the words, saying that shizi¹ is busy today, and he was just arrive. If madam is uncomfortable, to call the imperial doctor to come and have a look."

 

The woman opposite seemed to have stopped for a long time, with hoarse voice before faintly sounded: "Busy? I don’t know what is so important that even more important than I this dying wife."
　　

"Madam..."

　　
"Stop talking, I don't want to listen." The woman coughed twice. She seemed to try to suppress the cough, and refused to show weakness in front of others. The maids standing outside also knew the master's rules, held their breath and lowered their head, not looking at the other side's sickness appearance. After a while, the cough finally eased a little. The woman didn't care about moistening her throat with tea, but insisted on asking: "Who came to pass the message?"

The maid couldn't bear it: "Shizi consort..."
　　

"Say it! "

The maid sighed and said, "It's Miss Yun Hui."

　　
"Yun Hui..." The woman laughed lightly, unsure whether it was sarcasm or mocking herself, "It turned out to be her, can’t compete, really can’t compete with her. She serve shizi for many years, bestow by Shen Wangfei² herself, this mutual affection for many years, do I as an outsider can match it?"
　　

Obviously the Shizi Consort, but she said she was an outsider, if other people heard they would thought that was a joke, but in the Yan Wang Mansion the maid knew that the consort did not speak wrong.
　　

Shizi and his consort had been married for one year, but they were even worse than strangers. The Shizi Consort was seriously ill, and these servants secretly went to the front yard and invited Shizi three or four times, but the result was chilling. The maid knew that although Shizi Consort was tough and forbid them to intercede with her problem, but she turned a blind eye to their little actions, showing that she also wanted to see him. But no, Shizi never came.

　　

Lin Wei Xi was still lying on the simple wooden bed with her eyes closed, tears continued to flow from the corners of her eyes, making the pillow wet. Lin Wei Xi knew that she had been caught by a nightmare. Even in the dream, the memories of the past would not let her go. It took her back to the Yan Wang³ mansion and her failed marriage.
　　

In fact, she was not originally called Lin Wei Xi, nor was she a girl from this small village. Her former family was very prominent. She was originally named Gao Xi, the eldest di⁴ granddaughter of Duke Yingguo Mansion. Her biological father was the only di son of the duke. Her biological mother was the only daughter of Grand Princess Shou Kang⁵. She was born in this kind of family and she came from quite a good background.
　　

Because of her high status, Gao Xi was very strong minded since she was a child. Later, her marriage didn't make her lose honor. Relying on the face of her grandmother, she actually married Gu Cheng Yao, the only son of Yan Wang. After the announcement of the marriage, the whole capital was shocked that Grand Princess Shou Kang was able to make Gao Xi married the only son of Yan Wang, and the face of Princess Shou Kang was very real.
　　

Speaking of Yan Wang, in the land under heaven regardless if it was men, women, young and old, even ignorant baby had heard of his prestigious name. The previous emperor’s final years of Jianzhao was very turbulent, Bu Guifei⁶ with the help of powerful eunuch controlled the court, if it weren't for Yan Wang to send the troops to the capital in time, corrected the chaos and killed the eunuch, afraid that the future would change drastically.

 

Yan Wang protected the emperor and calm the upheaval, and after the death of the previous emperor, he supported the new emperor who was only eight years old to succeed the throne. The Great Zhou Dynasty’s vassal state in the border took advantage of the new emperor young age. In the second year, many places in the border were becoming restless. Yan Wang took the initiative to ask for battle and brought the troops out of the capital to pacify the chaos. At that time Gao Xi was seriously ill bedridden for several days. The front line heard the news that Yang Wang had great victory, after the good news came, the court cheered. To put it more bluntly, the little Emperor was young, the Empress Dowager was cowardly, and the bureaucrats in the court were in chaos. Now the whole Zhou Dynasty was guarded by Yan Wang.
　　

Yan Wang had only one son, Gu Cheng Yao. As Gu Cheng Yao's wife, when father-in-law repeatedly made military achievement, Gao Xi should feel proud. It was a pity that the glory of Yan Wang Mansion belongs to Yan Wang Mansion and had nothing to do with her.
　　

Gao Xi sometimes wondered, when she first married Gu Cheng Yao, he had a deep affection, but why did he became cold all of a sudden?
　　

She still remember that on the first night of their marriage, when Gu Cheng Yao lifted up her veil, he deliberately avoided everyone and said to her with a smile: "Look, I still found you."

　　

Gao Xi was confused. What does that mean? However, the newlyweds were already thin-skinned, and Gu Cheng Yao regarded her silence as shy and stopped mentioning it with a faint smile. Which girl didn't cherish spring, Gao Xi grew up listening to Yan Wang’s achievements, and now she married Yan Wang’s only son, and the other person was such a deity, Gao Xi’s small heart was instantly hit, and she became both anxious and happy to be Gu Cheng Yao's wife. In the next month, the two of them were very affectionate, almost inseparable, Gao Xi was so happy like she was falling into a honeypot. Since she was a child she grew up seeing her mother suffer from concubine's tricks. She never thought that her marriage would be an unexpectedly happy one.
　　

But she still miscalculated God's kindness. The flowers will wither, a beautiful face will grow old, and things that are too good will never stay long. In just one month, Gu Cheng Yao's attitude took a sharp turn. That day, he looked at her coldly and asked: "Why did you lie? Why become an imposter?"
　　

What?
　　

She was sewing clothes for Gu Cheng Yao at that time. She was not very good at female's art, because she was always compared to Gao Ran, she didn't like doing it even more. But now, she wanted to make a set of clothes for Gu Cheng Yao with her own hands, even piercing her fingers with needles. Hearing Gu Cheng Yao's words, Gao Xi was confuse, what lie? What imposter?
　　

Since then, Gao Xi and Gu Cheng Yao's husband and wife relationship had cooled down. Gao Xi was the eldest granddaughter of a Duke mansion, and had a princess grandmother that always spoiled her so she had stubborn personality. If Gu Cheng Yao didn't want to come then don’t come. Don’t expect her to be like a concobine, fighting for favor to make him stay.

　　

Later, the husband and wife became more and more alienated, and they turned into enemies. In the end, when Gao Xiyu fell ill and couldn't get up again on the sickbed, Gu Cheng Yao refused to even look at her.
　　

Gao Xi was a very proud person, but this failed marriage completely destroyed all her pride.
　　

Gao Xi was not reconcile when she’s facing death. Where did she not do well? Why Gu Cheng Yao didn’t like her? Even if he didn't like her, how could he not even give her the last dignity as his wife?
　　

Because of remaining grievances her soul was not taken away by the Ox-head and Horse-face⁷, she floated for a while and then she returned to the world again.
　　

This time, Gao Xi finally knew why Gu Cheng Yao asked her those two questions and why she suddenly fell out of favor.
　　

Gao Xi saw a book amidst the vast expanse of whiteness. She was puzzled and flipped through it tentatively. Then she was shocked and trembling by the contents.
　　

There was Gao Xi's life in the book, but unfortunately, the protagonist was not her, but Gao Xi's shu⁸ younger sister, the torn on her side since childhood, Gao Ran.
　　

The book said that Gao Ran was a transmigator and Gao Xi didn’t understand what transmigator was, but this was just a passing point in the book and it was not important. What Gao Xi really care about was the following story.
　　

According to the description in the book, Gao Ran transmigrated into an unfavored concubine daughter in Duke Yingguo Mansion when she was six years old. She had just gotten a serious illness and almost died. Perhaps she was already dead, so that Gao Ran could replace her.
　　

Gao Ran reincarnated into the body, the shell was only six years old, but the soul was a 26-year-old adult. With the help of modern knowledge and adult experience, she pretended to be stupid, pretend to be a pig and eat tiger, and not only helped herself, but also her biological mother Han shi⁹ became the favorite concubine of the Duke Yingguo Shizi, and even taught her own younger brother, who would later be established as the heir of Yingguo dukedom. Gao Ran saved a masked man in a Buddhist temple when she was 13 years old. She didn't want to reveal her identity, but the other party held her hand and refused to let go. Gao Ran had no choice but to remove a jade pendant from her body. Let him find her by himself if he was capable.
　　

Gao Xi laughed mournfully when she saw this, and burst into tears. No wonder when she was a child Gao Xi always accused by her elders to be not as sensible and caring as Gao Ran. No matter what she learned, Gao Ran was always ways ahead. Gao Xi originally thought that Gao Ran might really born smart. Now she understand that Gao Ran was not a child at all, her age was even comparable to Gao Xi's mother, an old ghost who lives in a child's body, it's not surprising that she was so well-rounded.
　　

No wonder Gu Cheng Yao said to Gao Xi that day in the bridal chamber, "Look, I still found you." No wonder Gu Cheng Yao later said she lied.
　　

That's it, that's it!
　　

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1 Heir of prominent family, usually conferred to the eldest son.^↩
2 Princess consort, the primary wife of a Wang or prince.^↩
3 Wang can be translated as King or Prince, to put it simply in here wang is prince and Yan is the title.^↩
4 Born from primary wife, not from concubine.^↩
5 Grand Princess usually conferred to the sister of the emperor, Shou Kang is the title.^↩
6 High ranking imperial concubine.^↩
7 Two Guardians of the underworld.^↩
8 Concubine-born.^↩
9 Refer to the surname of married women, like here Han is the surname it can roughly translated as Madam Han.^↩

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