How Did You Do It?

"You all stand guard two zhang away. Don't come any closer, and don't let anyone else get close either," Zhao Ruxi instructed as she entered the courtyard.

"Your Majesty..." Lady Luo called out to her somewhat disapprovingly.

Zhao Ruyu is currently in a vulnerable position; if she were to harm Zhao Ruxi, it could lead to serious trouble.

"Don't worry, even if I'm just a novice in martial arts, she can't beat me," Zhao Ruxi said.

Lady Luo: "..."

Okay, she forgot that her master's skills were now far superior to hers. Not only was he agile, so fast that he could only be seen as a blur, but he was also incredibly strong. Slapping a burly man away was no big deal for him.

She immediately shut her mouth.

Zhao Ruxi then entered the hall.

Zhao Ruyu was already waiting at the door when she heard her voice.

"What do you want with me?" Zhao Ruxi asked.

If Zhao Ruyu had lured her here just to persuade her to support her and become the Prince of Jingping, Zhao Ruxi would have turned and left immediately.

Zhao Ruyu and Zhao Ruxi had interacted quite a bit. She knew that Zhao Ruxi was a person of her word and a person of firm will. If she said she wouldn't interfere in the affairs of the Prince of Jingping, then she definitely wouldn't. If she made a fuss, Zhao Ruxi could crush her with a single finger, making sure she could never leave the Prince Jingping's Estate again, just like Zhao Rurui was in the Marquis of Pingnan's Residence.

Therefore, after learning of Zhao Ruxi's attitude, she gave up the idea of becoming the official wife. That's why she regretted her initial choice.

This time, she didn't dare beat around the bush. After bowing, she said directly, "I realize I was wrong. I should have listened to your advice instead of being so focused on marrying into a wealthy family and becoming a wife."

"I'm just... extremely lost right now. Is this how my life will just go on?"

Zhao Ruxi then softened her expression, sat down, and gestured to Zhao Ruyu, "Sit down."

Zhao Ruyu knew that this was probably the last time she would ever see Zhao Ruxi.

As Zhao Ruxi rose higher and higher, her status as a concubine would bring Zhao Ruxi criticism. Even if Zhao Ruxi herself didn't care, others wouldn't allow her to get close to Zhao Ruxi anymore.

She sat down sideways and looked at Zhao Ruxi. Seeing that Zhao Ruxi was only focused on drinking tea and ignoring her, she carefully spoke up.

"I regret not listening to Your Majesty's advice back then, which led me to this predicament. But it's too late now. The Prince Jingping's Estate will never release me, and even if they do, I don't know where to go."

As she said this, her eyes were filled with confusion.

Returning to her parents' home is impossible. She wasn't originally a daughter of the Zhao Family, and she had insisted on becoming someone's concubine despite Zhao Jingli and Zhao Jing'an's objections. Zhao Jingli and Zhao Jing'an would never allow her to enter the family.

If she remarries, who would want her?

No family with even a little wealth would marry a woman who had been a concubine and then kicked out. If she were to marry, she would either become a concubine in a moderately wealthy family or marry into a poor family that couldn't even afford to eat.

As for becoming a teacher at the academy, she knew that the opportunity was now gone.

She was a concubine, and even after leaving the Prince Jingping's Estate, she remained a discarded concubine. Which academy would want someone like her as a teacher? Even if they did, the students would look down on her.

In short, after leaving the Prince Jingping's Estate, she couldn't think of any way out for herself.

Thinking of this, she lowered her head and sighed deeply, "But staying in the manor, thinking about spending the rest of my life like this, I'm a little unwilling. Having been given a second chance, I've ended up worse off than in my previous life..."

As she spoke, she raised her head and looked at Zhao Ruxi, a strange light suddenly flashing in her eyes. "Can you tell me how you were able to stay as a ghost for so long after you died in your previous life, and how you became so powerful? When I die, I will definitely learn from you and study hard. Maybe when I am reincarnated in my next life, I can become more powerful too, and not be as useless as I am now."

Zhao Ruxi: "..."

As expected of a naive and innocent female lead, Zhao Ruyu actually took her ridiculous words seriously.

She wanted to say that intelligence is innate. Being reborn doesn't turn a fool into a genius. Rebirth doesn't bring intelligence, but rather perspective, experience, and character.

But what can be done? The lie we told back then, we have to crawl to cover it up, no matter what.

She said, "I don't know either. Maybe I harbored too much resentment back then, and it just happened by chance. If everyone could do that, then everyone who gets reincarnated would be incredibly powerful."

Zhao Ruyu opened her mouth, but couldn't refute it.

That seems to be correct.

After she died in her previous life, she didn't become a ghost wandering the human world; instead, she returned directly to the age of thirteen.

People like her, who can be reborn with their memories intact, are extremely rare, let alone someone like Zhao Ruxi, who died and became a ghost, wandering the human world for several years before being reborn at the age of thirteen with memories of her past and present lives.

Before she could finish her reflection, Zhao Ruxi added, "But I'm puzzled, why did you have to wait until you were dead to learn it?"

"Huh?" Zhao Ruyu looked at Zhao Ruxi in confusion.

"You feel that leaving the Prince Jingping's Estate and remarrying is unrealistic, but you're also unwilling to continue living like this, right?"

"Yes." Zhao Ruyu nodded.

"You're only nineteen now, and you have decades to spend in the inner quarters of the Prince Jingping's Estate's mansion. Why don't you use that time to learn something?"

Seeing the confusion still in Zhao Ruyu's eyes, Zhao Ruxi continued to guide her, "For example, your zither. If you master it and become a great master, even if you are a concubine, others will respect you, and the people of the Prince Jingping's Estate's Mansion will look at you with more respect, right?"

Zhao Ruyu felt as if she had seen a bright light in the darkness, and her eyes lit up instantly.

Yes, the system has Pitch Discrimination Pill. She can work hard to earn points and then buy Pitch Discrimination Pill to take. With Pitch Discrimination Pill, plus her own efforts and comprehension, her piano skills will definitely improve significantly, and becoming a master of the piano is not impossible.

But thinking about her status, she felt dejected again. "Even if I become a master, who will know? I can't attend banquets or participate in competitions. I'm just a concubine; no matter how good my skills are, I can only play for myself."

"Is there a rule in the court that concubines cannot participate in the year-end skills competition?" Zhao Ruxi asked.

"Uh, no," Zhao Ruyu.

She said no, but in her heart she began to have doubts. Since no concubine would participate in such a competition, she really didn't know if such a rule existed.

Because of their lowly status, concubines were looked down upon wherever they went, and no one would associate with them. Therefore, they could only stay in the inner quarters and avoid attracting attention.

Thinking about this, Zhao Ruyu felt an overwhelming sense of regret for the first time, wondering why she had been so foolish as to become a concubine.