Chapter 1: Transmigration

“Retreat! Retreat! Now!” 

Deep in the night, within a tropical rainforest, a group of Country A special agents clad in camouflage uniforms were carrying out a secret mission. 

Upon arriving at the rescue site, they had expected to extract the hostages, only to be met with a hail of bullets instead. 

“We’ve been ambushed!” As the team leader, Shang Ruoyi immediately ordered her teammates to fall back. 

“A’Lan, take the others and go, now!” Seeing her frozen in place, Shang Ruoyi frowned. “A’Lan, what are you thinking?” 

A’Lan curled her lips into a vicious smirk. The gun that should have been aimed at the enemy was now pointed at Shang Ruoyi’s heart. “Let’s end it here, Captain. Don’t blame me when you reach hell.” 

Just as she was about to pull the trigger, Shang Ruoyi vanished like a ghost from where she stood. In the next instant, she seized the barrel of the gun, twisted it with a sharp flick of her wrist, and disarmed A’Lan. 

With a swift kick, she sent A’Lan sprawling to the ground. 

“Captain! A’Lan!” The other teammates, hearing the commotion behind them, rushed back. “What happened?” 

“Why?” Shang Ruoyi’s gaze was as sharp as a blade, her icy stare boring into A’Lan. “We were comrades who shared life and death.” 

“Comrades?” A’Lan sneered. “Who the hell are you calling a comrade? If you had saved him in time, A’Feng wouldn’t have died! We were about to get married! Your medical skills are among the best in all of Country A—why didn’t you save him first before completing the mission? If you had, he would still be alive!” 

Shang Ruoyi’s brows furrowed slightly. “A’Feng gave his life for the country. As agents, our priority is the mission. Our lives belong to the nation.” 

“Then I’ll bring this nation down.” Madness flashed in A’Lan’s eyes. “And now, you’ll all join him in death!” 

With that, she pulled out a piece of special ammunition with the pin already removed. 

“Boom!” 

A towering blaze lit up the night sky. 

— 

Tianshun Dynasty. 

The Prime Minister’s residence was bustling with celebration, adorned with lanterns and red ribbons tied around the servants’ waists. 

“Hurry! Go wake the Second Miss!” 

“Second Miss? Not the Eldest Miss?” 

“What Eldest Miss? How could our Eldest Miss marry that cripple?” The maidservant’s chin lifted arrogantly. “Our Eldest Miss is destined to marry the Crown Prince and become the future Empress.” She pointed at the tightly shut door of a secluded courtyard and barked, “What are you standing around for? Go get her out! If we miss the auspicious hour, don’t blame me when the master punishes you all!” 

The maidservant hurried to knock, but after pounding for a while, there was no response from inside. 

The messenger maid scowled and shouted, “What airs is this bastard daughter of a concubine putting on?” She snapped at the servants behind her, “What are you gaping at? Break the door down! Or do you want the Eldest Miss to punish you instead?” 

Shang Ruoyi lay on the bed, the relentless banging outside making her frown. 

“Crash!” The already dilapidated door couldn’t withstand the force. 

Both wooden panels collapsed to the ground. 

Shang Ruoyi, who had been lying still with her eyes closed, suddenly snapped them open. 

In one swift motion, she leaped from the bed and appeared at the doorway, her right hand clamping around a servant’s throat like a steel hook. 

The sheer force made the servant’s eyes roll back instantly. 

“You have a death wish?” Shang Ruoyi’s frigid gaze swept past the servant and landed on the maidservant behind him.

Meeting her gaze, the maidservant took a step back. 

Perhaps feeling this reaction was somewhat shameful, she took a deep breath and stepped forward again. “Second Miss, the auspicious hour has arrived. The master has ordered you to dress quickly—the groom will soon arrive to fetch the bride.” 

Shang Ruoyi snorted coldly. “What Cat-headed dog-eared creature from which courtyard dares to make a scene in my yard?” 

“I am Cai Pin from the Eldest Miss’s courtyard.” 

“Heh, Shang Yufu couldn’t raise anything decent if she tried.” Shang Ruoyi sneered. “What, has Shang Yufu been injured? Disfigured? Can’t find a husband? Or was she rejected by her betrothed?” 

“You—how dare you curse the Eldest Miss!” Cai Pin pointed a finger at Shang Ruoyi. 

The next second, a sharp scream echoed through the courtyard. Cai Pin collapsed to the ground, clutching her limp finger as she wailed, “My hand! My hand!” 

“I despise nothing more than being pointed at. Consider this a small lesson. Next time, whichever hand you raise, you won’t need it anymore.” 

The servants in the courtyard stared in horror at this unfamiliar version of the Second Miss. 

No one dared to step forward. 

Hadn’t the Second Miss always been timid? So much so that even the lowest maids and servants could bully her at will. 

What had happened today? 

Shang Ruoyi saw the confusion in their eyes. 

A cold smirk curled her lips. 

Did they still think she was the meek and cowardly Shang Ruoyi of the past? 

Beneath this skin now resided the soul of a top-tier agent from Country A. 

When she had transmigrated here yesterday, she could hardly believe the original host’s memories were real. 

The Second Miss of the Prime Minister’s household in the Tianshun Dynasty—starved to death. 

Born of a concubine, she had been oppressed by the legitimate wife since childhood. 

Her mother had been the daughter of a wealthy merchant. In the early days of entering the household, her scum of a father had doted on her mother—after all, she provided him with a steady stream of silver. 

But after her maternal family fell into ruin and the money dried up, his true nature emerged. 

Not only did he relegate mother and daughter to the most remote courtyard, but he also allowed the servants to mistreat them. Her mother had died of depression when she was ten, and she had spent the next six years alone in this desolate place—only to end up starving to death. 

Faced with this reality she had no choice but to accept, she swore to change Shang Ruoyi’s fate. 

The first step? Leave the Prime Minister’s Residence and establish her own independence. 

But before she could even begin her plans, her scum father decided to marry her off? 

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the courtyard. 

“Shang Ruoyi, what are you dawdling for?” Prime Minister Shang Nian stormed in, taking in the mess in the courtyard before bellowing, “You disgraceful girl! Look at what you’ve done!” 

Shang Ruoyi laughed coldly. “Oh? Am I not allowed to discipline ill-mannered servants in my own courtyard now, Father?” 

Her sharp retort stunned Shang Nian. 

His second daughter had always been meek and submissive—since when did she dare to talk back? 

“Shang Ruoyi, how dare you question me!” 

She flicked her ear lazily and smirked. “What, are your words imperial edicts now? Maybe you shouldn’t be called Shang Nian. Shang Tian would suit you better.” 

“You—!”

Just as he was about to angrily raise his hand to strike, the first wife hurried over and stopped him: “Master, you mustn’t hit her. The bride cannot leave the house with red marks on her face—people would gossip about our Shang family if they saw.”

Especially since she was going to marry that cripple from the Dingguo Prince’s Residence in place of her own daughter! Not a single mistake could be allowed.