Transmigrating into the Female Supporting Character with a Good Life in a Laid-Back Novel

As the sun set in the west, Ruan Xi entered the Earl Chengyi Residence with her two maidservants under Wen Ting Zhou’s watchful gaze.

“Oh, si mei is finally willing to return?” Ruan san niang was wearing a blatant sneer on her face.

Ruan san niang stared at Ruan san niang and her servants who were standing in front of her on the wide pavement. Quite evidently, she was trying to block her. Ruan Xi gave her a placid look before she brought Su Yu and Su Zhu to walk past Ruan san niang directly.

The ignored Ruan san niang felt a burst of anger. With rapid strides, she went up to stop Ruan Xi, interrogating her in an aggressive tone.

“Si mei, what are you walking so fast? Do your eyes still have me, your san jie, or did you do something that can’t be seen in the light and now you’re feeling guilty?”

“There is nothing good for me and san jie to speak about.” Ruan Xi’s tone of voice was apathetic. 

“I already saw how you and Wen gongzi were wandering around the capital. You must be feeling very complacent about the fact that Wen gongzi was willing to be your carriage driver, but one wonders what Wen furen will think when she learns of it?” Ruan san niang said, full of bad intentions.

Which mother would be happy to see her own remarkable son submit and lower himself to a girl?

Once Ruan san niang thought about the discussions that the common masses were having in private, and the romantic scene she personally witnessed, she felt her jealousy combust and rage in her heart, which nearly drowned out her rationality. 

She had lived for three lifetimes, but why had she never met a good man like Wen gongzi?

The Wen gongzi who had remained unmarried his whole life and was deemed a cutsleeve in her previous lifetime, was unexpectedly taken down by her fourth sister in this life. Ruan san niang suspected that the Heavens was being unfair once more, and vehemently wished that she could expose the fact that her fourth sister had consumed infertility medicine right now. 

Ruan Xi observed Ruan san niang, as well as the jealousy and malice she could not hide. Her gaze was calm. “San jie, is there any point to you constantly staring at me like this?”  After saying that, she brought her two maidservants to go to the main courtyard.

Ruan san niang did not block her path this time around. She laughed coldly. As her fourth sister continued to rely on her fiancé Wen gongzi, her arrogance was growing bigger and bigger, increasing to the point where she did not put her in her eyes. Hmpf, without her, her fourth sister did not need to think about having children in this life.

She would be receiving some interest first.

The relationship between a mother- and daughter-in-law was the most difficult relationship in the world, especially in the ancient era where filial piety was prized.

Si mei, I will help you publicise this matter properly in your stead.

Ruan Xi remained outside for the entire afternoon, but her legitimate mother Zhang shi only asked a few questions perfunctorily before sending her back to her courtyard, to say nothing of Lao Taitai who did not seem to care about anything.

Honestly speaking, Ruan Xi was quite satisfied with this atmosphere in the Earl Residence, she hoped that Zhang shi could continue directing all her attention towards Ruan san niang.

She returned to Limpid Heart Garden as the sky gradually darkened, and Mama Yang had already asked the servants to light the candles. 

After Ruan Xi washed up, she felt refreshed all over as she sat on the short couch and ate her fruits. The small ill-intent that Ruan san niang harboured had already been tossed to the back of her mind.

Based on Ruan san niang’s personality, she would just be employing small tricks like spreading rumours. She and Wen Ting Zhou were an affianced couple; wandering the capital together was not some kind of shameful thing, Wen furen wouldn’t mind such a small thing.

Ruan san niang was thinking too much.

As reality would prove it, someone had already informed Wen furen of this matter early on, and not only did Wen furen not mind, she was even overjoyed to see that they had a good relationship. 

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While eating the fruits, Ruan Xi listened to Mama Yang talk about the events that occurred within the residence, and she learned that Ruan san niang had brought a group of guards to make a trip to the Mu Family this afternoon.

Ruan Xi did not even have to think about it. Ruan san niang must have heard that the Fourth Prince was admitting Mu Qing Ci as his concubine, and she had rushed over to mend their relations, full of joy and expectations. But why didn’t she take a moment to think about how she had not even bothered to offer a line of explanation when the other party had been pushed to where the winds and waves were the fiercest, and when her reputation had been completely ruined? Now that Mu Qing Ci had caught a lucky break, she was rushing to be her good sister again. Ruan san niang’s series of actions was really suffocating.

Poor Mu Qing Ci.

Even if she knew that Ruan san niang was a transmigrator, she still had to tolerate how she was as adhesive as sticky candy. Before she could shed all pretences of cordiality with her, she needed to have the capital first, and she only needed to endure until the Fourth Prince ascended to the throne. 

Apart from this, there was another big happy occasion: her Earl Father finally got rid of the two words ‘stand-in’, and he was officially and genuinely seated as an Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Works.

Being an Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Works was a fourth-grade official post, and it could be considered an influential official in the capital that was neither big nor small. Zhang shi had sent word that all of the servants would receive threefold of their monthly allowance this time, and all the servants were overjoyed. 

Ruan Xi was elated in her heart too. It was better to be a daughter of an influential official with no conferred title than a concubine-born daughter of a declining Earl Residence. With her Earl Father becoming an influential official today, her identity and position would be like a boat floating on rising waters.

That night, Ruan Xi slept well, but she had a strange dream. 

In her dream, she unexpectedly became a clumsy little white rabbit and then she met a sleek, big bad wolf. Dim-witted, she was held in the mouth by that scheming and profound big bad wolf and brought back to its den to eat… to be eaten.

By which, she meant she was swallowed into its stomach whole.

When Ruan Xi woke up, she realised that it was already daylight outside, and she could faintly hear the servants pacing back and forth in the courtyard. She pulled away the muslin canopy in front of her bed and stepped on the ground, taking an outer jacket to drape over her body. When she recalled the dream about the big bad wolf eating the small white rabbit, Ruan Xi could not help but laugh in surprise.

“I didn’t expect that I would still have dreams that are full of childish fantasies.” 

When Su Yu and Su Zhu heard movement from her end, they came in to help Ruan Xi make herself presentable.

“Young Lady, the list of the successful candidates for the imperial civil service examination will be released today, are you going to look at the public roll?” Su Yu could not help but ask as she combed her Young Lady’s hair.

“Indeed. One wonders what rank Wen gongzi will obtain, it would be great if he was in the top three.”  Su Zhu walked over after she tidied up the bed.

Ruan Xi stared at the young girl in the bronze mirror as she said in a calm and composed tone. “There will be a lot of people looking at the list of names today. Send a few male servants over to have a look, mn, go straight to red list, they don’t need to check the white list.”

Su Yu and Su Zhu: “……”

Their Young Lady had a great deal of faith in Wen gongzi.

Then, the duo thought about the conversation that Wen gongzi and their Young Lady had yesterday, and they secretly hoped that Wen gongzi would rank first among the successful candidates.

Apart from Ruan Xi, there were quite a few people paying attention to Wen Ting Zhou’s ranking in the metropolitan examination, and the people related to Ruan Xi were not few either. For example, there were the patriarch and sons of the Earl Chengyi Residence, Li Xiang Xiang who had yet to give up on Wen Ting Zhou despite having a marriage with the Fourth Prince bestowed on her, and of course, there was also Mu Qing Ling who had her engagement broken off by Wen Ting Yi.

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When Ruan Xi went to the main courtyard to pay her respects after partaking in her breakfast, Ruan san niang was unexpectedly present apart from Zhang shi. Ruan Xi was slightly surprised as she strode forward to bow and pay her respects.

“This daughter pays her respect to Mother.”

“Si niang, the Ministry of Rites will be releasing the public roll of successful candidates today. I have dispatched a few servants to wait at the doors of the examination hall to look at the list of names, you can wait here for Wen gongzi’s good news.”

The Earl being able to sit in the position of Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Works could not be separated from the Wen Family. 

Once more, Zhang shi regretted giving si niang infertility medicine for a counterfeit. Along with the Earl’s official promotion, her murderous intentions towards the counterfeit became stronger.

The matter of the infertility medicine had to be concealed.

“Yes, Mother.” Ruan Xi sat at the side obediently. Mama Sun steeped a pot of tea and came over. 

Zhang shi said smilingly, “Si niang, Wen gongzi is a giant among men, he will definitely obtain the first rank in this imperial civil service examination.”

“Mother, you’re regarding Wen gongzi too highly. There are people beyond people, and skies beyond this sky; there are more than ten thousand names participating in this imperial civil service examination, and people who have taken the examinations numerous times but never made it. Their reading comprehension and experience is abundant, and perhaps they did not succeed in the past because they were of inadequate standards or their luck was not the best. No matter how amazing Wen gongzi is, it’s not possible for him to take the first rank.”

Ruan san niang remembered what her older brother had said about individual luck and fate. In addition to the fact that it was a special imperial civil service examination, and how she did not want to see her fourth sister being pleased, she could not resist splashing them with a basin of cold water.

In the previous lifetime, Wen gongzi merely took the tenth rank. The top three scorers were people around the ages of thirty to forty. After the palace examination, Wen gongzi did not even manage to place first in the second rank of candidates that passed the imperial service examinations, and he was merely within the second rank of successful candidates.

二甲 (pinyin: er jia)  refers to the first hundred successful candidates after the top three, of whom make up the ‘second rank’. 传胪 (chuan lu) is the title for the fourth top scorer/first in the second rank.

Zhang shi: “……”

While the counterfeit’s words were damnably true, Zhang shi abhorred it to the extreme.

She hoped that Wen gongzi would rank first among the successful candidates. Once he seized the first place of the imperial civil service examination, he would be accredited as one of the first-rank successful candidates in the palace examination if there were no unforeseen circumstances, and his road in officialdom would be bright. Since the Earl’s official post had been cemented, the Ruan Family would be thriving more in the future. Presently, Zhang shi was no longer interested in Shen xiaojie who was also from an Earl Residence, she hoped that she could garner a better marriage for her da lang.

“San jie’s words are reasonable, but no one can predict the results accurately right now. Perhaps we should wait for the servants who are checking the public roll of successful candidates to come back first before talking.” Ruan Xi smiled leisurely, not taking Ruan san niang’s words to heart. Ruan san niang was basking in the light of her rebirth and knew the results of the imperial civil service examination, but the future was not stagnant and unchanging. Ruan Xi still remembered Wen Ting Zhou’s casual attitude when he was talking about the imperial examinations. In all likelihood, Wen Ting Zhou had hidden himself and kept quiet, and she had faith in Wen Ting Zhou.

Ruan Xi had not forgotten the single request that Wen Ting Zhou asked for. If he did not have the confidence, would he have uttered those words?

Ruan san niang only felt that her fourth sister’s unperturbed smiling expression was extremely piercing to the eye. The more outstanding Wen gongzi was, the more incompetent her fiancée Qi Yue An appeared, and she could stop herself from speaking out impulsively again.

“I advise si mei to not harbour such high hopes for her own good; sometimes, the greater your expectations are, the greater your disappointment.”

“San niang, shut your mouth.” Zhang shi glared at the counterfeit viciously. 

This counterfeit was truly lacking in tact, she had no sense of filter even as she was speaking in front of a group of servants.

Ruan san niang pursed her lips, “I’m doing this for si mei’s own good, lest Wen gongzi does terribly, and she can’t accept the results!”

Just as she was done speaking, a young male servant sprinted inside, gasping for breath as he said: “Fu– Furen, Fourth Young Lady, the gongyuan has released the public roll of successful candidates, Wen gongzi has passed successfully…”

贡院 (pinyin: gong yuan) – the name of the examination venue.

Zhang shi stood up from her chair abruptly as she asked with an excited tone, “What was his rank among the successful candidates?”

“First place, on top of the list, Wen gongzi is the top scorer in this imperial civil service examination.”

Once the young male servant’s words landed, it slapped Ruan san niang’s face violently. Her complexion became exceedingly ugly, and she blurted out her words of doubt immediately before she even processed it with her brain.

“How is that possible, why is Wen gongzi on top of the list, black screen, there was definitely a black screen!”

黑幕 (pinyin: hei mu) – fig. hidden details, dirty tricks, dark secrets.

Ruan san niang’s voice was extremely loud. The main hall plunged into silence instantaneously. 

The overjoyed expressions on everyone’s faces froze, and they looked at Ruan san niang with extremely peculiar gazes.

“San niang, shut your mouth for me!” Zhang shi shouted loudly with a dark expression. 

That damnable counterfeit actually dared to suspect that there were dirty tricks employed in the imperial civil service examination, was she not afraid that was bringing a calamity to the Earl Residence?

Since she had already voiced her doubts, she might as well topple over the broken jar. Hence, Ruan san niang yelled without fearing death, “It’s not like I’m wrong, there’s definitely a black screen! Wen gongzi’s father is the Minister of Rites, it’s highly likely that he obtained the examination questions first and cheated!”

It would be better that the issue was blown out of proportion. Ruan san niang had not forgotten the hatred she felt from being pulled to accompany the old Emperor in his burial. Perhaps, without even needing to wait for the palace examinations to conclude, she would hear about the good news of the old Emperor falling ill first. 

In any case, her doubts were reasonable. She did not believe that the other candidates did not have their suspicions; who told Wen gongzi to have an overly illustrious background?

It was clear to her that Wen gongzi only placed tenth in her previous lifetime, and yet he became the top scorer in this lifetime. If there was no trick, who would believe it?

Either way, Ruan san niang did not believe it.

Wen gongzi either cheated or he had a black screen. 

“Men come hither, quickly cover san niang’s mouth.” Zhang shi was so angry her entire body was shaking, vehemently wishing that she could kill this filter-less counterfeit. 

Mama Sun and Mama Gao stepped forward hastily to restrain Ruan san niang and cover her mouth. 

Ruan Xi glared at Ruan san niang coldly. The questions in this special imperial civil service examination’s exam papers were given by the Emperor and several great Confuscian scholars of great virtue and prestige. The confidentiality was top-notch, and there was absolutely no possibility of there being a leak.

With Ruan san niang’s huge reaction, Ruan Xi guessed that Wen Ting Zhou must have arbitrarily taken his examinations to get a placement in his previous lifetime. 

There were far too many people paying attention to their Earl Residence right now. With Ruan san niang’s sudden protest, Zhang shi could not seal the lips of her servants in time even if she tried, and it was highly probable that Ruan san niang’s suspicions were already being disseminated. Public clamour was capable of confusing the truth, and in addition to people who had ulterior motives fishing in these troubled waters, there was bound to be more people doubting the results.

众口铄金 (pinyin: zhong kou shuo jin) – lit. public opinion is powerful enough to melt metal.

Ruan Xi could not help but worry for Wen Ting Zhou.