She Was Written to Die, So She Seized the Throne Instead

Though the original owner of this body was a Princess, fate had not been kind to her.

Her mother, Xu Zhaoyi, was of low status. Gentle and kind, she lacked the cunning to win the Emperor’s favor, but at the very least, she loved her daughter.

Although their days were lonely back then, the mother and daughter relied on each other, and in retrospect, they must have had their moments of happiness.

Unfortunately, Xuanyang was too young at the time and didn’t remember much of that warmth. In fact, after endless days and nights of torment, she had even forgotten what her own mother looked like.

Xu Zhaoyi’s death was an accident. With no illness or pain, she simply died without warning.

And her death prompted the Emperor to grant his daughter his one and only show of favoritism.

He bestowed upon her the name Xuanyang and had her adopted by the Empress, making her a legitimate princess.

But this favor was both an honor and a deadly poison.

The Empress had no desire to raise another woman’s child. She doted on her own son, the Crown Prince, and her favorite girl was her niece from her maternal family, Chen Pingting. Xuanyang’s presence only reminded her of Xu Zhaoyi, whose noble character the Emperor had praised on more than one occasion.

Chen Pingting constantly bullied Xuanyang. But no matter how malicious Chen Pingting was, she was just a child under six years old. How much scheming could she really be capable of?

It was merely the Empress deliberately taking sides, using the opportunity to vent her own dissatisfaction.

Those around the Empress saw her attitude and took note. The servants naturally adopted the same attitude as their mistress.

’What Princess? She’s just some girl with a title. With the Empress’s dislike for her, she’s lower than even a palace maid.’

Xuanyang suffered torment under the Empress’s roof, unable to speak of her grievances. Yet outsiders thought she was living a blessed life—Princess Jia Ruo, for instance.

She was half a year younger than Xuanyang, but her mother was the doted-on Consort Hui, and their Imperial Father also showered her with affection.

She looked down on all the other princesses, believing herself to be her Imperial Father’s most beloved daughter, the most noble princess of all.

But now this older sister, who was inferior to her in every way, had suddenly become the Empress’s daughter, a legitimate princess, far surpassing her in prestige. How could she possibly swallow that insult?

They were of similar age and attended the Imperial College together. Jia Ruo, along with her study companion and palace maids, would torment Xuanyang. At first, it was just spilling ink or hiding her brushes to keep her from studying properly.

Later, it escalated to catching bugs and throwing them on her, or pouring dirt into her food.

Xuanyang was miserable beyond words and reported it to their tutor. The tutor punished Jia Ruo with three smacks on the palm.

Jia Ruo immediately ran crying to her brother. Seeing his sister’s reddened hands, Xiao Jingzhao assumed Xuanyang had hit her. He charged over, kicked Xuanyang to the ground, and then picked up a stick and beat her viciously.

The beating was so brutal that the matter was brought before the late Emperor.

Consort Hui ran to plead for leniency, the Empress was indifferent, and the late Emperor didn’t particularly value a daughter anyway. In the end, he merely gave them a lecture and punished the siblings, Xiao Jingzhao and Jia Ruo, by making them copy texts.

The two were punished but felt no remorse. Instead, they blamed Xuanyang for everything, believing she had made a mountain out of a molehill and gotten them in trouble.

Afterward, Jia Ruo continued to bully Xuanyang, but her methods became much more sophisticated. At least she wouldn’t be caught red-handed anymore. Sometimes, she would even lie through her teeth and turn the tables, getting Xuanyang punished instead. It was obvious she was being coached.

For Xuanyang, those years were a living hell in the mortal world.

It wasn’t until the late Emperor was on his deathbed that things changed. He enfeoffed Xiao Jingzhao as Prince Yanping, and with the siblings’ departure, Xuanyang finally got a chance to breathe.

Later, Xiao Jingyun ascended the throne. In accordance with the late Emperor’s final edict, he summoned Lu Yanzhi to become Xuanyang’s Prince Consort. Xuanyang was finally able to leave the Imperial Palace and move into the Princess Mansion. Only then did her life become somewhat more comfortable.

Even though the people around her were all spies for the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, and even though her Prince Consort was cold and ignored her, at least no one could bully her freely anymore. She could sleep peacefully until dawn in her own mansion, in her own room.

Trapped in this world, Xiao Li hated Lu Yanzhi, hated the male and female leads, and even hated the world itself.

But the original owner... even though all the pain she felt came from the original, she didn’t hate her.

To have survived under such conditions was already a testament to her resilience and courage.

Her only mistake, perhaps, was treating Lu Yanzhi like a real husband, giving him her true heart, only to be damned for all eternity.

Xiao Li refused to admit she and the original owner were the same person, nor would she accept the original’s pain and grudges. She would always be Xiao Li, never the Xiao Xuanyang of this world.

But her determination was one thing. If those people insisted on bullying her as if she were the original, then she didn’t mind helping the original settle some of those old scores.

"Did you think you could just hide, Xiao Xuanyang!"

’Tsk, what unpleasant barking.’

Xiao Li slowly emerged. She wore a deep purple cloak with a fox-fur trim that framed her fair face. Her features were delicate, her eyes bright, and her teeth like pearls.

Even without makeup or jeweled hairpins, she possessed a graceful and noble beauty. Her gaze was imperious, making her seem utterly unattainable.

A flash of astonishment crossed Xiao Jingzhao’s eyes. He almost didn’t recognize her. ’Is this Xiao Xuanyang?’

Jia Ruo was just as surprised, but her eyes instantly filled with venom. "Xiao Xuanyang, hurry up and tell him to get lost! The murder of a princess is punishable by the execution of nine generations!"

Xiao Li turned to look. Jia Ruo was a complete mess. Her decent features were hideously twisted with resentment. She wanted to move away, but Rong Qing was closing in on her step by step, and she didn’t dare make a move for fear of actually being cut down.

The original’s memories told her that these two siblings were simply born bad.

They could bully others for fun, but the moment someone fought back even slightly, they would fly into a rage, feel like they were the ones being bullied, and retaliate with double the force.

You couldn’t show weakness against people like this, or you would become a plaything for them to trample at will. And you couldn’t fight back too weakly, because it wouldn’t hurt them at all. It would only annoy them and lead to even more frantic bullying.

The correct method was: fight fire with fire, meet violence with violence, and never stop until one of you is dead.

"Rong Qing," Xiao Li said slowly, her voice calm and detached.

"Kill her!"

Her words exploded like a clap of thunder.

Jia Ruo was dumbfounded. Rong Qing made his move. The nearby guards lunged forward desperately as Xiao Jingzhao roared, "Are you courting death?"

In the next instant, a guard was decapitated. Blood sprayed up to the ceiling. Jia Ruo, who had narrowly escaped death and collapsed to the floor, was drenched in a rain of blood, turning her crimson from head to toe.

A sinister glint flashed in Xiao Jingzhao’s eyes as he instantly drew his sword and charged toward Xiao Li.

Xiao Jingyi tried to pull Xiao Li back, but she didn’t budge an inch.

A guard blocked Xiao Jingzhao’s strike, and Rong Qing immediately fell back to defend her. There was no need for Xiao Li to retreat even half a step.

Drenched in blood, Jia Ruo shrieked, "What are you all standing around for? Hurry up and help my brother!"

The guards from both sides joined the fray, and the small tavern instantly became a battlefield.

Neither of the siblings was the type to listen to reason. Coincidentally, Xiao Li didn’t like to reason with people either.

Since they were the ones who had started it, there was no reason for her not to fight back.

It would be rude not to return the favor.

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