The Diligent Princess Consort Is Both Deadly and Skilled in Martial Arts

Gu Qinglu, the Saintess of the Miao Borderlands, dies after accidentally ingesting her own perfected gu poison. Instead of passing into the underworld, her soul attaches to the body of a foolish princess consort who died on her wedding night in the Central Plains capital. The original owner had died from shock upon seeing her groom, the Qin Prince Xiao Xingcang. Gu Qinglu awakens inside a coffin during a mourning ceremony, mistaking the wailing relatives for disrespectful mourners at a funeral she did not attend. She emerges from the coffin to find the prince dying from a Shigu gu infestation, a poison that even the Medicine King Valley could not cure. Recognizing a fellow sufferer of gu poison, she uses silver needles and bloodletting to save him, shocking the household into silence.

After recovering her strength, Gu Qinglu learns she has been dead for two years and is now in the body of a woman two years younger than herself. She possesses no memories of the original consort’s life but retains all her medical and gu mastery. Realizing she needs resources to travel freely and escape the constraints of her former tribal duties, she negotiates terms with Xiao Xingcang. She demands five hundred ingots of gold, a warhorse, a blade, and unconditional protection in exchange for curing him. Xiao Xingcang, suspicious yet desperate, agrees to her conditions. He observes her with growing curiosity as she transforms from a perceived fool into a woman of sharp wit and extraordinary skill.

Gu Qinglu begins the arduous process of extracting the gu from Xiao Xingcang’s body. The treatment involves playing a piercing melody on a purple bamboo flute to lure the insects out, followed by surgical removal. The procedure is brutal and painful, leaving Xiao Xingcang unconscious for hours. As she works, she also refines new medicines and poisons, including a variant that can corrode the organs of enemies. She establishes strict boundaries within the Prince’s residence, particularly in the rear courtyard where she isolates herself to work. Her authority is challenged by Yuan Ziheng, a spoiled young master from a ducal family, who throws a saber at her. Gu Qinglu retaliates by using her gu to swell his face and throat, forcing him to apologize and teaching him a lasting lesson in humility.

The conflict escalates when enemy agents, likely from the Wuyi region near her former territory, detect the death of the gu within Xiao Xingcang. They send swarms of bats to scout and attack the Prince’s residence. Gu Qinglu, weakened from the previous treatment, uses her flute to lure the bats into a prepared pit and annihilates them with sonic vibrations. The exertion causes her to collapse, but she recovers quickly. Xiao Xingcang, realizing the depth of the threat and her unique abilities, decides to test the political waters by announcing his own death to mislead their enemies, specifically targeting a rival warlord named Asina.

As Xiao Xingcang recovers fully, he regains his military and political influence. Court officials inform him that the Emperor is planning to select a new Empress, with the granddaughter of the former Forbidden Army commander as a leading candidate. This move threatens Xiao Xingcang’s position, as it would empower the Qi family. Gu Qinglu, sensing the political turmoil and eager to leave the capital for the mountains, prepares for departure. She requests a horse and insists on scouting the route herself. Xiao Xingcang, intrigued by her independence and power, allows her to proceed while simultaneously maneuvering to disrupt the imperial marriage plans. The story concludes with Gu Qinglu ready to embark on her journey, having secured her freedom and resources, while Xiao Xingcang begins to rebuild his power base, their fates increasingly intertwined.