Chapter 3:Awakening to Abuse in a Baffling New World

　　Guided by a mysterious force, Qianli Xun didn’t dare to open her eyes. The sheer speed, combined with her fear, robbed her of any chance to experience it mindfully. Her mind was a complete blank until the force flung her out…

　　She heard a voice: “Miss, wake up, please wake up! Sob… Master Lin, you couldn’t have beaten my Miss to death, could you? Sob…!”

　　Miss? The lord? Surely this is a dream—no. I, Qianli Xun, died in an earthquake. Could I have crossed into another world? Is this the realm of the dead? Would it be terrifying?

　　She kept her eyes closed, yet her eyelids could sense a faint glow around her. Could even the realm beyond death hold light? There was only one way to find out.

　　Qianli Xun forced her lids apart and found a maid in ancient dress crouching at her side, weeping.

　　The moment her Miss stirred, the maid’s grief gave way to joy. “Thank heavens, Miss, you’re still alive!”

　　“Am I dead?” Qianli Xun asked. “Is this the world of the dead? Who are you?”

　　“Miss, you haven’t died—you are very much alive,” the maid insisted. “I am your maid, Kuqiao!”

　　“My maid? Kuqiao?” Qianli Xun had penned quite a few transmigration web novels in her time, and this scenario felt pulled straight from her own pages. Could I actually have crossed over? Was I never truly dead?

　　At this thought, her spirits lifted. She found herself lying on the ground. Kuqiao helped her up. There was a sharp pain on her forehead, and upon touching it, she found blood on her fingers. When had Qianli Xun ever been injured in her life? She was on the verge of lashing out. Then the image flashed back: her own corpse, lying in a pool of blood during the earthquake. Getting another chance at life was gift enough; her anger ebbed considerably.

　　After steadying herself, she saw a man and a woman standing before her. The man appeared to be around twenty—average-looking, yet his burly physique marked him unmistakably as a trained fighter, his eyes carrying an air of displeasure. Beside him stood a woman decked out in gaudy finery, her hair smoothly combed, exuding a seductive charm as she regarded Qianli Xun with undisguised contempt.

　　They were both in ancient attire. Qianli Xun couldn’t figure out what the clothing was called; after all, she belonged to another era. She looked around. Although the interior decoration was far from modern, it seemed that this family was quite wealthy.

　　She glanced at herself and found she was also wearing ancient clothing. She ran a hand over her head and felt a hair bun pinned with a gold hairpin. So I really have crossed over.

　　Qianli Xun pulled Kuqiao aside. “Did you just say you’re my maid, and your name is Kuqiao?”

　　Kuqiao nodded with wide eyes. “Miss, has Master Lin beaten you senseless? Why would you ask me this question?”

　　“Kuqiao, tell me, who am I?”

　　“Miss, it seems Master Lin really has knocked the sense out of you, to not even know who you are.”

　　Kuqiao didn’t rush to answer. She walked up to the man. “Master Lin, Master Zhu is at least the Prefect of Lin’an, a much higher ranking official than you. How dare you lay a hand on my Miss! Be careful, or I’ll go back to Zhu Manor and tell the Old Master to punish you!”

　　Unfazed by her threat, the man replied calmly. “She married into the Lin family, so she belongs to our household now. Beating her is just my way of disciplining her. A married daughter is like water poured out; even the Prefect of Lin’an has no right to interfere.”

　　The more Qianli Xun listened, the more confused and uneasy she grew. Married into the Lin family—could the woman she had crossed into already be wed to that man? Ignoring everything else, she pulled Kuqiao aside again. “Tell me quickly, who am I?”

　　Looking at her pitiful Miss, Kuqiao told her, “Your name is Zhu Shuzhen. You are the daughter of Zhu Manor.”

　　Zhu Shuzhen? Could it be Zhu Shuzhen, the female Ci poet of the Song Dynasty? Qianli Xun had read many of Zhu Shuzhen’s poems and loved them dearly—most of which she knew by heart. “What era is it now?”

　　The woman beside the man said in a honeyed, affected voice, “Military Training Officer, it seems you really have battered her wits away. She doesn’t even know who she is or what era it is. Let me tell you.”

　　The woman walked up to Qianli Xun. “It is now the 4th Year of Xuanhe of the Great Song Dynasty.”

　　The 4th Year of Xuanhe of the Great Song—so it truly is the Song Dynasty. The realization settled over Qianli Xun. Then I have genuinely crossed into the body of Zhu Shuzhen, the female Ci poet herself. In my own era, so little was recorded about her: birth and death dates unknown, her period disputed between Northern and Southern Song alike. But Xuanhe… that would place her squarely in the Northern Song.

　　Drawing out her words, the woman added, “Young Miss of the Zhu family, since you’ve married the Military Training Officer, you should properly fulfill your duties as a wife. Not that I should be the one saying this—but he is a vigorous, hot-blooded man. Keeping a woman as lovely as a flower at home, only to look at but never touch—of course he’d get angry and strike you.”

　　“What? Punching and kicking?”

　　Qianli Xun looked at the man before her. Kuqiao had called him Master Lin, and this woman had said the Zhu family’s daughter married the Military Training Officer. It seemed he was indeed the husband Zhu Shuzhen had married. According to what Qianli Xun had read, Zhu Shuzhen was exactly twenty years old at the time of her marriage. Didn’t that mean she had suddenly become nearly ten years younger after crossing over?

　　Just as she was feeling a bit happy, something felt wrong. Qianli Xun hadn’t even been in a relationship until she was thirty. Crossing over into Zhu Shuzhen—who had married at merely twenty—meant the innocence she had worked so hard to preserve was flushed down the drain just like that. Moreover, she had been punched and kicked by the man standing right before her.

　　At this thought, Qianli Xun walked up to the man. “You are Zhu Shuzhen’s husband? What’s your name? What do you do?”

　　All the man could tell was that after punching and shoving his wife into a pillar—knocking her out cold—she had woken up looking strange, speaking with a far harder edge than before. He was suspicious, yet having witnessed everything himself, nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Her face was unmistakably Zhu Shuzhen’s, no one else’s. To save face, he turned his head away and refused to acknowledge her.

　　The woman went over to explain, “He is your husband, Lin Jue. He is the illustrious Military Training Officer, in charge of training and drilling all the troops in Lin’an. You should quietly count yourself fortunate to have married Military Training Officer Lin!”

　　Military Training Officer? Qianli Xun pondered. What she had read stated that Zhu Shuzhen had married a minor official and was highly dissatisfied with the marriage, living in constant melancholy. Looking at the arrogant Military Training Officer before her, who didn’t take his wife seriously in the slightest, even she, Qianli Xun, couldn’t stand him—let alone Zhu Shuzhen, one of the Twin Jewels of Ci Poetry.

　　[TN: Twin Jewels of Ci Poetry refers to the two greatest female Ci poets of the Song Dynasty, Li Qingzhao and Zhu Shuzhen.]Qianli Xun decided to teach Lin Jue a lesson on behalf of Zhu Shuzhen, starting with the woman in front of her. “Since I married him, I am his legitimate wife. Where did you spring out from? Could you be a concubine he took in?”

　　Lin Jue and the woman were even more astonished. Zhu Shuzhen had always been delicate and timid. How had she suddenly become so tough and rude?

　　Kuqiao hurriedly explained, “Miss, she is the woman Master Lin brought back from the Qinglou. [TN: Qinglou, or pleasure quarters, were elite entertainment establishments in ancient China.] She is a Merchant Courtesan from Chunxiang Pavilion, named Chun Jinqiao. Master Lin often brings her home to provoke you. Today, it was precisely because he brought her home again—and you wouldn’t give him the time of day—that Master Lin laid hands on you.”

　　Hearing this, Qianli Xun was seething. She hated men who beat women most of all—let alone one who openly brought a Qinglou woman home.

　　“Lin Jue, are you even a man? To actually beat your wife over a Qinglou woman! If you have the guts, come to the courtyard and fight me!”

　　Lin Jue grumbled inwardly. Why is she completely different from the old Zhu Shuzhen?

　　Lin Jue believed that the Zhu Shuzhen before him had simply undergone some strange shift in demeanor after waking from her faint, and that it was impossible for her to have developed any new skills. She was merely suffering from amnesia, forgetting just how formidable he was. He might as well give her another thrashing to jog her memory, reminding her that a wife’s duties must still be fulfilled.

　　“In that case, your husband will practice with you. This time, I won’t knock you unconscious; I’ll at most put you in your place.”

　　Everyone arrived in the courtyard. Soon, the servants of Lin Manor gathered around. They were very curious. In the past, the Master had always beaten his wife behind closed doors in their room. Why had the commotion moved to the courtyard this time?

　　Lin Jue said disdainfully, “Zhu Shuzhen, as your husband, I will let you have the advantage. You go first.”

　　Qianli Xun tightened her fists. “Since you let Zhu Shuzhen go first, don’t blame me for being impolite.” With that said, Qianli Xun threw a punch.

　　Lin Jue didn’t take it seriously, believing Zhu Shuzhen was an inherently delicate person. What force could her fists possibly contain? With just a gentle push, she would surely fall.

　　He extended his palm to push the incoming fist. But the moment his palm connected, he felt tremendous force and couldn’t help but startle inwardly: How did she suddenly become so powerful?

　　Before he could react, Qianli Xun’s other fist had already struck Lin Jue squarely in the eye, instantly raising a bruise. She followed with a kick that sent him sprawling. Taking advantage of the momentum, she pressed her leg down on his torso and pinned both his arms to the ground. “With moves like these, you still have the nerve to call yourself a Military Training Officer? Kuqiao!”

　　Seeing how fierce her Miss had become, Kuqiao was struck with equal parts amazement and delight—she need never fear being bullied again. She answered crisply, “Here!”

　　“Bring a rope!”

　　Soon, Kuqiao fetched a thick rope and handed it to her Miss.

　　Qianli Xun took it and swiftly bound Lin Jue’s hands. Noticing two servants standing nearby, she ordered, “You two—escort him to a room and lock him in. You are only allowed to deliver his water and meals; do not let him out under any circumstances.”

　　The two male servants were very obedient and helped Lin Jue up.

　　Even though Lin Jue was tied up, his mouth remained unforgiving. “Careful, or I’ll report you to the authorities for mistreating your husband!”

　　“And I’ll sue you for violating a husband’s way!”

　　“You are not Zhu Shuzhen!” Lin Jue finally blurted out what had been nagging at him.

　　Qianli Xun stepped close to Lin Jue and whispered in his ear: “You’d best accept that I am Zhu Shuzhen. Otherwise, she died from your domestic violence. A human life is a serious matter; take this to the authorities, and you will face a lawsuit.”

　　Lin Jue had no choice but to fall silent; the servants led him away and locked him in a room.

　　Qianli Xun cast a glance at Chun Jinqiao, walked over, and slapped her hard across the face. “That was on Zhu Shuzhen’s behalf. Now scram back to your Qinglou!”

　　Chun Jinqiao tried to return the slap, but Qianli Xun blocked her with ease. Having clearly come out the worse, she could only press her stinging cheek and leave Lin Manor, crying as she swayed her hips on the way out.