"She might be a bit chubby, but that skin is so white and tender, probably tastes delicious..."
Awaking to a sleazy voice, Qi Yue struggled to open her eyes and, through a blur, saw the man's face grinning maliciously at her.
She squirmed, sensing something amiss.
This wasn't her body!
Two coarse hands had already slipped inside her collar, gradually making their way downward.
Clothing was being peeled off one piece at a time, exposing more and more of her skin as pale as milk—
"You, stop—"
Qi Yue struggled, but her voice was as small as a cat's meow, and her body felt limp like dough.
Who had drugged her?
"...Hehe, Miss Qi, don't bother struggling. You may be fat and ugly, but for the sake of silver, I, Li San, will make sure you become a real bride… After all, with the Young Marquis's condition, there's a ninety-nine percent chance he can't consummate..."
Li San quickly undid the sash, his mouth moving straight to her neck.
The man's hot body pressed against her; she wanted to scream, but what came out of her mouth was instead a soft moan.
"Ah... don't..."
"Good girl, soon I'll take you to experience heaven!"
Suddenly, Li San's eyes bulged, and he froze motionless as if made of clay!
A hairpin was deeply embedded in his chest!
Qi Yue looked at her right hand, feeling both shocked and relieved.
It was fortunate she had a hairpin on her head, or her purity in this new life would have been truly ruined by such an ugly man.
She slowly moved off the bed and approached the dressing table.
Upon raising her head and seeing the reflection of a face as wide as a washbasin in the copper mirror, she almost choked.
"Who is this?"
Other people with chubby faces might be called little buns, but hers... looked like the sum of ten large buns!
After catching her breath, Qi Yue couldn't help but tremble at the corners of her mouth as she glanced down.
Lucky for some with peaks resembling twin mountains, hers were simply wrapped into one mass.
No wonder breathing was so difficult for her!
And then her gaze fell on her round arms and thick legs, which were frightening indeed!
She must weigh at least two hundred pounds!
At that moment, Qi Yue's mind thundered, and memories flooded in instantaneously.
She had transmigrated.
Her last memory in the modern world was of a rural epidemic outbreak, working until dusk when she suddenly fainted.
Next, she found herself in a country called Beiyuan.
This time, she was no longer the resident doctor sent to provide medical care to rural areas, but the late Great General Qi Yunzhang's daughter, also named Qi Yue, in the Beiyuan Kingdom.
Half a shichen ago, she was carried into the Ducal Mansion on a sedan chair to become the legitimate eldest son of the Duke, Zhao Xiyan's, bride of fortune.
This Zhao Xiyan was rumored to have been exceptionally handsome in his youth, often mistaken for a woman, which is why he always wore a mask when going out, and no one had seen his real face.
Even more rare was his intelligence and strategic mind.
Famed throughout Beiyuan at 15, he joined the battlefield at 18, charging into enemy lines alone to decapitate the enemy general.
His fame soared after that battle, and he was conferred the title of Marquis.
Unfortunately, fate is unpredictable.
Two years ago, Zhao Xiyan had a fall from his horse while hunting and has been paralyzed in bed ever since.
A month ago, he contracted a severe cold, and his life was not expected to last long, leading to this marriage of fortune.
...
After a moment, she finally accepted her current self!
Now was not the time to worry about her figure, she needed to regain her strength first!
Qi Yue searched the dressing table and found an old ironwood hairpin.
Bearing the pain, she plunged the hairpin into the middle fingers of both hands and pressed it into several acupoints on her body.
Minutes later, the floor was stained blood red, and Qi Yue could feel her strength gradually returning.
At that moment, a pile of a maidservant's clothes on the ground caught her attention.
According to her memories, this Li San was a maidservant given to her as part of her dowry who had dressed as a woman to sneak into the Ducal Mansion, aiming to ruin her virtue.
With a thought, Qi Yue quickly made sense of the situation.
Before the original host's marriage, the malicious soup given by her wicked step-aunt was meant to suppress her strength and arrange for Li San to enter the Mansion, all to defile her so she'd be disgraced and unable to remain in the Marquis Residence.
In those times, the only recourse a woman had after being violated was death!
What a malicious scheme!
Qi Yue felt a rush of blood to her head and wished she could immediately rush to the General Residence and tear that wicked step-aunt to pieces!
After a short bout of rage, Qi Yue calmed down.
She walked over to Li San and pulled out the hairpin from his chest.
A gush of blood spurted out, and Li San's eyes suddenly opened wide.
"You fat pig..."
Fat people hated being told they're fat the most, and feeling annoyed, Qi Yue reached out and grasped Li San's throat.
It was one of the most vulnerable parts of the human body.
A light grip was enough to make a person go limp and not dare to resist.
"Say one more word, and believe it or not, I'll take your life!"
The fierce voice, like that of a ghost from the underworld, coupled with blood-covered hands, terrified Li San beyond measure.
He couldn't understand how Qi Yue, who had already lost her strength, suddenly became so forceful and fierce!
However, he was used to playing to the wind, and now his neck was tightly clamped, so he immediately started confessing.
"Miss, please spare me, it was the lady who sent me. That evil woman said that only if you die, could the General Residence truly belong to her."
Qi Yue's pupils contracted, indeed it was the same as the original host's memory.
In order to monopolize the General Residence and possess the original host's dowry, the evil second aunt not only drugged the original host to make her fat and ugly, arranged for the original host to wed a disabled man in a rush, but she also wanted her dead!
This was truly intolerable!
The resentment in Qi Yue's heart rose again!
She applied more strength, and Li San's face immediately turned ginger red, his mouth opening and closing like a dying fish.
"What else? Keep talking!"
"The lady said, when the people come to confiscate our property, let the soldiers know you and I had been up to something improper in the bridal chamber, that way I could escape!"
"What?" Qi Yue was shocked, her fingers tightened, "What confiscation? Speak clearly!"
Li San rolled his eyes several times before catching his breath.
"The lady has made connections with the steward of Consort Lin, and heard that the Emperor plans to move against the Zhao Family. That's why she devised a plan for your marriage… She also said that the Zhao Family has generational merits, they will not be put to death, most likely they will be exiled… She even said that she wants Miss Qi to suffer humiliation and die on the road to exile..."
Before Li San had finished speaking, a noisy commotion came from outside.
"Run quickly! The soldiers are coming to confiscate our property!"
Seeing Qi Yue distracted, a sly look flashed in Li San's eyes.
He suddenly pulled out a dagger from his sleeve and stabbed towards her hand.
"Seeking death!"
Qi Yue coldly snorted and with force hurled Li San away.
Bang!
Li San knocked over a stool and tumbled down beneath the opposite window.
For a moment, blood flowed from his mouth and nose, and he gasped in his throat.
"Such strength!"
Qi Yue's heart chilled, and she couldn't help but look at her hands that were as puffy as steamed buns.
Was this the strength of a powerful warrior?
"Run quickly!"
The footsteps outside grew even more chaotic.
Qi Yue opened the door, and indeed, she saw many servants with bowed heads running about in disarray on the nearby corridor.
They were really confiscating property?
No, she had to run!
Qi Yue quickly turned to close the door, taking off her eye-catching wedding dress, when suddenly there was a loud pounding from outside.
"Yueyue, Yueyue, my daughter-in-law!"
The voice of the Duchess was weak and trembling with fear, reminding Qi Yue inexplicably of a cornered rabbit.
She hurriedly opened the door and a beautiful woman rushed in, grasping her hand.
"Yueyue, you must run now! They're confiscating property! I can't look after you anymore!"
The Duchess was pale, her delicate shoulders trembling uncontrollably, making Qi Yue's heart grow increasingly anxious.
"…What exactly happened?"
"Quite a few soldiers have come outside, they took your father and Yanyan away…"
Talking about her husband and son, the Duchess wiped away a tear, her eyes gradually becoming determined.
"I must find a way to save Yanyan! Yueyue, you find a chance to run quickly!"
After speaking, the Duchess rushed out of the door and ran away fast.
Qi Yue fell silent.
This stepmother had actually come to urge her to run? She seemed not so bad, after all?
But where could she run to?
Even if she could escape the Marquis Residence, she couldn't leave the Capital City and would soon be caught and brought back.
In Beiyuan, if one person is guilty, the whole family suffers. It would be better to wait obediently for disposal.
Li San was right, An Guogong Zhao Yongzhe and Zhao Xiyan had merits, the Emperor wouldn't let them die without considering the impact on his reputation, and would likely exile them.
Following the Zhao Family to the Place of Exile could perhaps lead to a different fate.
Thinking of this, Qi Yue swept away the despair in her heart and immediately began rummaging through her belongings.
She had to see if there was any money for protection on the road to exile.
The original host's dowry was pitifully meagre, just a silver note worth a hundred taels and a few Gold Melon Seeds.
There were several pieces of jewelry that were still quite valuable. Qi Yue collected these items, planning to hide them.
Then she pulled out five hundred taels' worth of silver notes from Li San's embrace!
Looking at Li San's drooping hands, Qi Yue felt a chill in her heart.
"Disgusting!"
She kicked Li San several times in disgust and continued searching.
One by one, she found three Gold Hairpins, two Jade Hairpins, and several Gold and Silver Ingots.
Qi Yue didn't hesitate, taking everything without leaving a single item behind.
She was just about to hide these items on her body when she realized that she couldn't.
This body was too fat; wrapping even a little something showed conspicuously and could never escape the eyes of those search officials!
What to do?
Was she really going to set out empty-handed?