May of the 20th year of Kangxi's reign
“My lady, you have just recovered from your illness. You must not go out. If you catch a cold again, it will be terrible.”
The young palace maid, Sangzhu, said with concern, afraid that the person who was still sick in bed might catch a cold and get sick again if they got out of bed.
Youqing smiled and said, "It's too stuffy inside, I'll just sit by the door for a while, okay? Besides, it's May, how can I catch a cold?"
Sangzhu was still worried and kept nagging, "Your Highness just doesn't take care of yourself. You always do the opposite of what I do. Our place is deserted. If you fall ill again, I'm afraid the Imperial Hospital will really turn me away..."
Youqing's head was buzzing from her nagging. Sangzhu was the first person Youqing met after transmigrating, and also the only palace maid. She was very loyal, but she talked a lot.
The original owner of this body shared the same name as her, Youqing. Her name was Shu Youqing, and the original owner's name was Shu Mulu Youqing. You could tell from their surnames that they were Manchus.
Shumulu is considered one of the major Manchu surnames, but the original owner's father was just a marginalized official in the Ministry of Rites. He got his current status by relying on his maternal grandfather. Later, her maternal grandfather was implicated by a friend, and her mother passed away soon after due to poor health. Her father then married a new woman.
One can imagine what kind of life the original owner lived at home. With a stepmother came a stepfather, and the original owner's father didn't care about her at all.
Fortunately, her status was high enough to be selected for the imperial concubine selection. Knowing the consequences of being rejected, she performed her best and was eventually selected. Her name was kept in the palace and she was given the lowest rank of concubine. She was already satisfied. Compared to being sent by her stepmother and biological father to be someone's second wife or a concubine to someone who could be her father, she felt that she had made it through.
When she entered the palace, her stepmother was terrified, fearing that she would retaliate against her after gaining power in the palace, so she didn't give her a single coin. Her father was easily swayed, and after hearing his stepmother say a few words about her being an ungrateful wretch, he didn't give her anything either.
The original owner entered the palace penniless, without any money to bribe officials, and was relegated to a lowly position.
It was finally her turn to serve the emperor, but then she fell ill, which was quite a coincidence.
After it got sick once, the green sign was naturally taken down, and it was never put back up again.
The original owner entered the palace more to escape the schemes of her stepmother and father. She didn't want to marry as a second wife or become an old man's concubine. If she didn't have to serve the emperor, she could at least live a peaceful life.
In the end, this peaceful life was just the original owner's "self-righteousness". Once she entered the palace, there was no peaceful life to speak of. As a concubine of the lowest rank, and one who had never served the emperor, she was not even sure if the imperial physicians could be summoned when she fell ill. Although medicine was free, she couldn't even afford to give any money as a reward, so she couldn't expect the imperial physicians to treat her with care.
He was never fully recovered and spent his days lying in bed, weak and sickly, just getting through the days. In the end, he wore himself out and passed away.
Then, the modern-day Shu Youqing came to life.
With a sigh of relief, Youqing said, "It's so stuffy staying indoors all the time. It's good to bask in the sun at the door for a while."
Sangzhu couldn't refuse Youqing, so she agreed: "This servant will move a chair for you at the door."
Youqing smiled and said, "Sangzhu is the best."
Her tone was soft, cute, and charming, indescribably pleasant to the ear, and Sangzhu's ears turned slightly red.
"Please wait a moment, my lady. It will be ready soon."
Sangzhu moved swiftly, and soon brought over a chair. She then helped Youqing to sit down on the chair by the door.
The weather in May was neither too hot nor too cold, just right. The spring sunshine was bright and warm. Youqing sat in the chair, thinking that the chair was a bit hard and uncomfortable. She wished she could have a recliner instead.
All her food, clothing, and daily necessities had to come from the Imperial Household Department. Without money and without favor, why would the Imperial Household Department bother with her? Let alone asking for an extra reclining chair, it would be good enough if they didn't deduct the expenses she was entitled to.
A recliner is, of course, just a pipe dream for her now.
Although the chair was uncomfortable, the sun felt wonderful! Youqing asked Sangzhu to bring a soft pillow to put on the chair, and leaning back, Youqing dozed off.
Upon waking, she felt a sense of disorientation and asked, "Sangzhu, what time is it?"
"My lady, it's almost noon."
Youqing touched her stomach; she was a little hungry.
"Go to the kitchen and see if it's possible. For lunch, we need an Eight Treasure Duck as a meat dish."
The seasonings available during the Qing Dynasty were already quite abundant. The chefs in the imperial kitchen were always able to maximize the effects of these seasonings. With seasonings and fresh ingredients, I recently ate an Eight Treasure Duck, and the taste was indescribably fresh and delicious, leaving me with a lingering fondness for it.
If it weren't for the fact that her illness wasn't fully cured and her stomach couldn't withstand the strain, she would have loved to eat like this every day until she got sick of it.
When Sangzhu heard that she wanted the Eight Treasure Duck, she smiled and said, "Yes, my lady."
Youqing has been sick these days and has a poor appetite, so it's good that she can eat something.
Sangzhu helped Youqing into the house before going to the kitchen to discuss lunch.
Youqing was left alone in the room, and it was very quiet. At this moment, Youqing called out in her mind: "System, how can I improve my weak body?"
The system coldly replied: "According to the system scan, the host's body should have no life force. Although the system's energy can keep you alive, you need yang energy to improve your constitution."
Youqing asked, puzzled, "Yang energy? What does that mean?"
System: "Yin and Yang are in harmony; woman is Yin, man is Yang."
Youqing's eyes widened in disbelief: "You mean you need a man to have yang energy??"
System: "Strictly speaking, that's true."
Just as Youqing was shocked, the system continued, "As a Yin-Yang system, the Yang energy is currently insufficient, so the system cannot circulate. The system only has Yin energy, and the Yang energy is insufficient. It is already extremely difficult to keep you alive."
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