Yu Zhi, a modern woman who died from overwork, transmigrated twice. Her first life ended in the Cultivation World, where she became an Inner Sect Disciple of Qingyun Sect. Despite possessing a rare single spiritual root and being encouraged to strive for immortality, she adopted a philosophy of moderation, limiting her cultivation to six hours daily to avoid the dangers and pressures of the sect. She maintained average grades to escape attention while enjoying the luxuries of her position. After fifteen years, she reached the Golden Core stage, only to be struck by heavenly lightning during a tribulation and transmigrate again, this time into the body of a sixteen-year-old concubine in the Da Qing Dynasty.
The new body belonged to a girl named Yu Zhi, originally a maidservant sold to a noble known as Third Master, Wen Jiuxiao. The original owner had fallen ill and died after being abandoned in a small, remote courtyard. Yu Zhi, now a kept woman with no dowry and incompetent servants, faced a precarious existence. She discovered that Wen Jiuxiao was a prodigy who had topped the imperial exams at fifteen and now served as Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. He was young, unmarried, and seemingly indifferent to her, having left her in a shabby dwelling with minimal funds. Determined not to rely on a man who might discard her, Yu Zhi resolved to achieve financial independence.
With only twenty-three taels of silver and two servants, Jiang Mama and Ying Tao, Yu Zhi launched a business venture. She introduced savory sauce pancakes to the local market, a recipe inherited from her grandmother. The pancakes were an immediate success, selling out daily and generating significant profit. Yu Zhi incentivized her servants with a twenty percent share of the profits, which motivated them to work diligently. The business expanded to include velvet flowers and hairpins, further increasing their income. Yu Zhi also used her modern knowledge to forge paintings, selling a counterfeit work for six hundred taels of silver. She used the proceeds to purchase medicinal herbs for a marrow-cleansing bath, restoring her physical health and allowing her to accumulate qi once more.
Two months after bringing her to the capital, Wen Jiuxiao unexpectedly visited the courtyard. He had forgotten the details of the girl but felt a vague obligation to check on her. Upon meeting her, he found her different from his memory—more confident and self-sufficient. Yu Zhi, recognizing an opportunity, maintained a respectful but independent demeanor. She revealed that she was supporting herself through her business, which impressed Wen Jiuxiao. He agreed to provide monthly financial support, which Yu Zhi accepted while continuing her enterprises. Their interactions were marked by Wen Jiuxiao’s aloofness and Yu Zhi’s strategic pragmatism. Meanwhile, tensions within the Wu’an Marquis Manor, Wen Jiuxiao’s family, were escalating due to conflicts between his brothers and their wives, highlighting the political complexities Yu Zhi sought to avoid. As Yu Zhi settled into her new life, she balanced her desire for a quiet, comfortable existence with the growing entanglement in the noble household’s affairs.
