Spring of the tenth year of the Qianlong reign.

In a room in the backyard of a five-courtyard mansion in the capital, a pale and thin girl opened her eyes, covered in sweat.

Ji Huan clutched her chest, calming herself down considerably. Then she stretched out her hands, looking at her shrunken ones, and glanced around at the antique-style house. She finally realized reality: what appeared in her mind was not a dream, but the life of a girl named Guarjia Ji Huan.

The original owner was thirteen years old. She was a member of the Bordered Yellow Banner and the eldest daughter of her family. However, her mother had passed away early, and she was now making a living under her stepmother's care.

Her family had some kinship with Ao Bai, but frequent intermarriage among the Manchus was normal, so she was never implicated. Her father was not yet thirty and worked as a sixth-rank official in the Ministry of Rites in the capital.

His official position was neither high nor low, just enough to have access to ministers and vice ministers. In addition, he had a good family background and was also good at officialdom, so promotion was just around the corner.

The main reason she came here was that the original owner of this body didn't want to live anymore after being reborn.

She not only received the original owner's memories, but also the memories of the original owner's previous life. If Ji Huan were to summarize it, it could probably be described as the first half of Cinderella's life.

However, she didn't have Cinderella's good fortune. Instead of meeting a prince, she was married off by her stepmother to her good-for-nothing nephew, and was tortured to death.

Her only request in giving up her life was to make her stepmother regret it for the rest of her life.

Ji Huan remained silent for a long time, feeling her powerless body, and then called the system.

"System, do you have any medicine?"

"Has the host agreed to have the child?"

"I'll give birth! I'll give birth! Give me the medicine right now, or I'm really going to die!"

"Please sign the agreement, host. Once you've signed, the special medicine will be yours immediately."

"Alright!"

Ji Huan signed an agreement with the system, the gist of which was that she could not have fewer than six children in her lifetime.

Of course, she doesn't need to give birth herself. The system has a breeding pod. All that's needed is to select her high-quality eggs and then obtain high-quality sperm from her partner.

During this period, the system will simulate the pregnancy reactions she needs as required, and at the time of delivery, it will arrange the child's birth method according to her needs.

If she were to actually have at least six children, she would definitely find it unbearable.

This system is called the Childbirth System. It has been with her since the modern era, but in the modern world, she simply cannot bear the weight of six children's lives, so she has never signed an agreement with the system.

She unexpectedly found herself in ancient times. Not wanting to die, she had no choice but to sign an agreement with the system. The original owner's body was already severely depleted, and after being tormented by two souls, she was truly on the verge of death.

She took the potion from the system and drank it all without even looking at what it was. No matter how bad the system was, it was still just one life; it couldn't possibly get any worse.

After drinking the medicine, Ji Huan fell into a deep sleep and slept until the afternoon. During this time, no one realized that she had almost died from her illness.

When Ji Huan woke up, she looked at the silent room. It was understandable that the original owner did not want to go through such a life again. Even if she could do it all over again, how easy would it be for a sick girl trapped in the inner quarters to take revenge without the help of outside forces?

Girls from Manchu families should be pampered, but the reason she was neglected was mainly because of her poor health. Even the original owner's father thought she wouldn't pass the preliminary selection for the imperial concubine selection.

So even though he might know that his daughter wasn't doing well, he chose to turn a deaf ear and not care.

After fully understanding her situation, Ji Huan's first priority was to resolve the issue of her treatment.

The manor couldn't possibly not arrange maids to serve her, but those people felt there was no future for her there, so some left, and those who couldn't leave just slacked off all day.

The maid who hasn't left yet will bring her food every night as long as the original owner doesn't come out, just to ensure she doesn't starve.

"System, do you have anything that can improve one's appearance?"

The original owner of this body had a decent foundation, but she had been mistreated a lot, making her look thin and small with bad skin. She needed to make that snobbish father see her value.

To this family, her current value depends on her looks, talent...

For Manchu girls, the imperial concubine selection was a ladder to heaven. Even if they couldn't enter the palace, they could still marry into the imperial family. If they gave birth to a prince, they would be connected to the royal family in the future.

The system does indeed have it.

System: "Gene optimization drug, which can optimize your IQ and appearance."

Ji Huan was astonished: "Really! I'm so old, how can I still use it?"

Putting aside appearance, it can even improve intelligence. What kind of gratitude potion is this?

"In theory, it can be used even when the body is not fully developed."

Do I need to pay a price?

"No need. The existence of this system is to nurture better life. If the mother is excellent, the child will be even more excellent."

"Use it!"

As I said before, things can't get any worse.

Ji Huan drank the potion but didn't feel anything. The changes from the potion were gradual and wouldn't happen overnight.

She got up shakily. Her body was slowly recovering after some treatment, but it would take some time before she was fully healthy.

She wants to eat.

"System, can you help me track down my cheap father's whereabouts?"

"Can."

From the system's perspective, this is just a teenager looking for his/her parents, which is within its authority.

Soon, the system replied to her: "Host's father is coming to the backyard. Destination: Xiangming Courtyard. The map has been synchronized for the host and the host can check it at any time."

A map appeared in Ji Huan's mind, showing the layout of the five-courtyard house. There were two red dots on the map, one moving and one stationary.

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!