Chapter 48 Song Hui's Past Life

As Lady He confronted Vice Minister Song and Lady Zhang, a figure flashed in the shadows.

A nimble old woman quietly slipped out, crossed the garden, and quickly entered Song Hui's courtyard.

This person was Song Hui's dowry attendant and also her trusted confidante, Mother Zhou.

Song Hui paced anxiously in the room. When she saw Zhou's mother come in, she hurriedly asked her questions.

"Have you found them? How's it going?"

Zhou's mother's hair and clothes were soaked by the rain, and her face was a little pale.

"The person is right outside the side gate. The two old women that Madam sent failed to deliver him. I took a peek from afar, and the person... should be dead."

"Dead!"

Song Hui's voice suddenly rose, and she subconsciously covered her mouth.

He glanced around, then slumped into a chair, somewhat dazed, unable to react for a moment.

Is Song Yizhen dead?

Wasn't she reborn?

How come there was no warning at all?

Song Hui felt a pang of unease, vaguely recalling events from eight years ago.

On the day she and Song Yi were to be betrothed, she accidentally tripped and fell, and when she woke up, she found that she had been reborn.

In her previous life, her father arranged two marriages for her and Song Yi at the same time.

On one side is Zhao Hong, a scholar from a poor family, and on the other side is Li Mu, the heir of the Marquis of Anping.

Zhao Hong came from a poor family and had a widowed mother. She had also secretly observed him from behind the screen and found that although Zhao Hong had regular features, his skin was slightly dark.

Li Mu, the heir of the Marquis of Anping, was fair-skinned, handsome, dashing, and dignified.

She fell in love with him at first sight.

Moreover, if she marries the heir of the Marquis's mansion, she will become the dignified wife of the heir, and later the wife of the Marquis, the mistress of the household.

Relying on her parents' favor, Song Hui chose Li Mu without hesitation, allowing Song Yi to marry Zhao Hong.

However, married life was completely different from what she had imagined.

Li Mu was obsessed with romance and poetry, and had no interest in officialdom. He was also indifferent to her.

The relationship between husband and wife is better than that between strangers.

What she found most unbearable was that the Marquis of Anping's mansion was already an empty shell, with no extra money in its accounts.

The Marquis of Anping forced her to use her dowry to support her entire family.

She endured all of this, but later Li Mu's entire family was exiled because of embezzlement.

On her way to exile, she suffered endless torment, being dragged into the bushes and humiliated by the yamen runners day and night.

Li Mu and her two children also died of illness on the way to exile.

She was the only one who gritted her teeth and persevered all the way to Qianzhou, where she endured many years of hardship in exile until Song Yi redeemed her and brought her back to Bianjing.

It was then that she learned that Zhao Hong, the poor scholar she had once looked down upon, had long since become the prime minister, second only to the emperor, and was deeply respected by the new emperor.

At a young age, Song Yi became the wife of a prime minister, enjoying immense prestige. Every day, the line of wives who sent invitations to the Zhao residence to see Song Yi stretched almost to the south of the city.

She lived in the Zhao family for more than two months, watching helplessly as Song Yi lived a life of wealth and luxury, with servants at her beck and call.

Listening to Song Yi recount Zhao Hong's rise through the ranks and how he gained the new emperor's favor, jealousy made her restless day and night.

In addition, her body had already been ruined by the hardships of exile, and she contracted tuberculosis not long after being taken back by Song Yi, vomiting blood and dying.

When she opened her eyes again, she was reborn back to the day her father was choosing a husband for them.

Song Hui remembers that she was so excited that she almost fainted. Her first thought was that if she could live again, she would live a life of wealth and luxury.

What's so great about Song Yi? She's just a little prettier than her.

Why is it that Song Yi enjoys such a glamorous life, while she suffers a tragic death?

So when her father asked for her and Song Yi's opinions this time, she couldn't wait to choose to marry Zhao Hong.

Although life was tough at first, she used her memories from her previous life to help Zhao Hong pass the imperial examination and become a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest level of the imperial examinations).

He persuaded Zhao Hong to become the magistrate of a remote county where it would be easier to achieve political success. Sure enough, within three years, Zhao Hong was transferred to the prefectural city as the assistant prefect because of his outstanding political achievements.

Now he has been transferred to Bianjing to serve as an imperial censor.

Song Hui was confident enough to believe that she could help Zhao Hong ascend to the position of prime minister sooner.

She wanted to become the glamorous Prime Minister's wife as soon as possible, and trample Song Yi under her feet.

But this confidence was gradually shattered a few days ago when the Marquis of Anping's family did not follow her planned plan of confiscating their property and exiling them.

She guessed that Song Yi might have also been reborn, which was why she was so eager to take this opportunity to poison Song Yi.

I just didn't expect...

"How come the poison took effect so quickly? Didn't I tell you to give me strychnine? Didn't you control the dosage?"

Song Hui questioned Zhou's mother.

Madam Zhou shook her head, "I did indeed use strychnine, and I used half a packet as you instructed."

The servant even specifically asked the doctor at the clinic, who said that the main symptoms after taking the Chinese medicine would be dizziness, nausea, and difficulty breathing, but that the person wouldn't die immediately.

Mother Zhou exclaimed in surprise, "Could it be that I bought fake medicine?"

Song Hui was upset and confused.

"Does it matter whether the medicine is fake or not now? What matters is figuring out how to clean up the mess."

Although she desperately wanted Song Yi dead, she couldn't let her die in the Song family.

This is also why she secretly instructed Zhou's mother to go to the street to buy strychnine.

Strychnos nux-vomica can relieve pain, reduce swelling and dissipate nodules, but if taken in excess, it can cause symptoms such as dizziness, nausea and vomiting.

People who are poisoned often initially think it's due to improper diet, but by the time they realize it's poisoning, it's too late to treat them.

Her original plan was for Song Yi to die from the poison after returning to the Marquis of Anping's residence, so that no one could trace her back to Song Yi.

But now Song Yi is dead in the Song family...

"When I came back, I heard Lady Anping was making a fuss about reporting it to the authorities. If she does, will the investigation lead to us?"

Mrs. Zhou looked panicked.

Song Hui glared at her, annoyed.

"What's the panic? We haven't even reported it to the authorities yet. Let me think about how to handle this."

Song Hui paced restlessly around the room.

Corner entrance.

Madam He was so angry that she was trembling all over.

The people she brought were all surrounded by the Song family.

“This is my eldest daughter-in-law of the Song family. She died in your house under mysterious circumstances, yet you are preventing me from reporting it to the authorities. You are clearly guilty.”

"Minister Song, if you have even a shred of fatherly conscience, get out of my way!"

Vice Minister Song looked impatient.

"It is precisely because I am her biological father that I cannot report it to the authorities, because if I do, the coroner will have to perform an autopsy."

"She's already gone, so let's not desecrate her body anymore. Wouldn't it be better to let her rest peacefully?"

Madam Zhang also put on a painstaking and earnest expression, persuading, "Whether it's the Marquis's mansion or the Song family, they are both prominent families in Bianjing."

If Song Yi were reported to the authorities in this state, who knows what kind of rumors would spread, and both families would lose face.

If this were to jeopardize the future of the Marquis, his son-in-law, and your second son, wouldn't it be a losing proposition?

He used all his strength to take a big gulp.

"Pah! Compared to the future of the living, justice for the dead is more important."

"Even if we die today, we will report this to the authorities."

The sounds of arguing buzzed in his ears as Li Nanke knelt there, stunned.

She was so overwhelmed with pain and grief that she cried until she almost fainted.

As he swayed precariously, a cold, mocking laugh suddenly rang in his ears.

"You think you're so capable? Tsk, you're nothing special!"

She trembled and looked up to meet a pair of narrow eyes.