Transmigrated as a Wicked Old Matriarch, Taking Control of the Whole Family

Ye Manshu, a modern doctor specializing in traditional Chinese medicine, dies from overwork and transmigrates into the body of a thirty-eight-year-old matriarch in ancient times. She awakens to find herself surrounded by a chaotic family that refers to her as "Mother" and "Grandma," despite her having lived a single life in her previous existence. The original owner of this body was known for her extreme favoritism toward sons and grandsons, having already sold her two daughters for dowries and treated her granddaughters with cruelty. The family is in a state of disarray, with the eldest son scheming to embezzle property, the second son being weak-willed, and the youngest son, Cheng Qian, a selfish scholar who demands money for his studies while planning to sell his nieces to fund his imperial exam preparations.

Upon regaining consciousness, Ye Manshu immediately confronts the family's toxic dynamics. When Cheng Qian insists on selling the four-year-old Erya to raise ten taels of silver, she violently rejects the proposal, beating him with a wooden pillow and kicking the overly filial second son, Cheng Kang, for suggesting it. She discovers that the second daughter-in-law, Sun Shi, is pregnant and has been severely beaten by the original owner during the struggle to protect her child. Ye Manshu uses her medical knowledge to diagnose the pregnancy and treats Sun Shi’s injuries, establishing her authority as a competent and decisive leader. She orders Cheng Qian to be tied up and publicly reprimands him for his lack of filial piety, revealing that he has been wasting money on luxury and false tutors rather than genuine study.

Determined to reform the household, Ye Manshu withdraws Cheng Qian from the county academy and forces him to work in the fields. She also disciplines the eldest son, Cheng Yuan, after discovering he has been skimming medical fees meant for Doctor Li. To address the family’s poverty, Ye Manshu begins learning to identify and gather medicinal herbs under Doctor Li’s guidance. She develops a unique thirteen-spice seasoning using local ingredients, hoping to generate income. Although her initial business efforts are thwarted when wealthy competitors steal her recipe and flood the market, she persists by focusing on herbal gathering and teaching. She opens a small village school with Cheng Qian as the teacher, using the tuition to stabilize the family’s finances while keeping him under strict supervision.

Ye Manshu implements a new system of rewards and punishments, ensuring that everyone contributes to the household’s well-being. She treats her granddaughters, Daya and Er Ya, with kindness, buying them clothes and food, which contrasts sharply with the original owner’s abuse. She also disciplines her spoiled grandson, Cheng Yunfan, beating him for stealing from his sisters and forcing him to join the adults in gathering herbs. When her eldest daughter’s husband, Wang Lin, suffers a life-threatening abdominal injury, Ye Manshu steps in to perform emergency surgery. Using her modern medical knowledge, she cleans the wound, stitches it with sterilized needles, and administers pain relief, saving his life despite the primitive conditions. This act further cements her role as the family’s protector and the central figure who transforms their fortunes through discipline, medical skill, and strategic management.