The Daily Life of a Chang’an Maid

Shen Hui transmigrates into the body of a malicious supporting female character in an ancient farming novel, finding herself in the service quarters of Prince Chu’s manor estate outside Chang’an. The original Shen Hui was gluttonous, lazy, and greedy, destined to fail in her schemes and end her days in a temple. Her younger sister, Shen Wei, is the novel’s female lead, a naive and overly filial girl who blindly serves their gambling-addicted father and selfish stepmother, Lady Jiang. Upon waking, Shen Hui assesses her dire situation: she is bedridden, her family is exploitative, and her only path to survival is to escape the manor estate immediately.

Shen Hui devises a plan to flee with Shen Wei to seek refuge with their aunt, Madam Xu, who serves as the wet nurse to the Third Young Master in the Chu Wangfu. She manipulates the truth by claiming their father was involved in their birth mother’s death, a lie designed to sever Shen Wei’s blind filial loyalty and motivate her to escape. Shen Wei, though initially hesitant, agrees to run away with her sister. They leave the manor estate under the cover of night, bribing a sympathetic senior maid, Granny Duan, to help them board a supply cart heading to Chang’an. The journey is arduous, but they arrive in the capital safely.

Upon reaching Madam Xu’s residence in Chongren Ward, Shen Hui performs convincingly, feigning distress and using diluted ginger juice to induce tears. She and Shen Wei are welcomed into the household, where they receive better food and care than they have ever known. Madam Xu, though initially suspicious of the sudden change in her niece’s demeanor, is swayed by Qing’er, her trusted aide, who reveals the extent of the abuse and deception inflicted by Shen Father and Lady Jiang. Madam Xu, harboring her own suspicions about her sister’s death, becomes convinced that the couple is guilty of murder and resolves to protect her nieces.

Madam Xu secures positions for the sisters within the Chu Wangfu. Shen Hui is assigned to the Beast House, a surprisingly leisurely post under the supervision of Aunt Duan, a former palace maid who has fallen from grace. Shen Wei is placed in the Servants’ Kitchen. Shen Hui quickly adapts to her new environment, discovering that the Beast House offers ample free time and the opportunity to interact with a tame, aging leopard named Jinyun. She adopts a strategy of lying low, avoiding the factional conflicts between Aunt Duan and a rival maid named Shiwu, who has ties to Consort Zheng.

Meanwhile, political tensions rise in the capital as the aging Mingde Emperor falls ill, and Prince Chu is tasked with supervising the state. Madam Xu envisions a future where her nieces enter the palace as female officials, securing their independence and status. Shen Hui, content with her quiet life in the Beast House, focuses on survival and maintaining her low profile, unaware of the larger political currents that will soon sweep through the palace and her own life.