Chapter 269: Extra Chapter 4: When They Return to the Modern Era Together (Part 1)

In the Twenty Years of Shuo Long, Princess Consort Hao fell gravely ill.

The Emperor Emeritus and the Emperor were overcome with grief. They ordered high-ranking monks to chant scriptures for her day and night, and the Imperial Hospital dropped everything to focus solely on her treatment.

Only Jiang Xian knew that her life was coming to an end.

The system had told her so, and she had no intention of trying to prolong her life—in truth, she suffered from no other ailment. Her only sickness was old age.

And she calmly accepted her own aging, and death.

…

But Xie Che could not accept it.

After they moved to Xihua Garden, the ranks of the Concubines had become less important. Since Queen Chu’s passing, Jiang Xian had remained at the rank of Princess Consort Hao, with no thought of changing it. She preferred to use her energy for more important matters, and it also spared the Young Emperor from the court’s criticism—they would have claimed he couldn’t wait to elevate his birth mother to Supreme Empress Dowager right after ascending the throne, showing no filial piety toward the late Queen Chu.

At first, the Young Emperor refused to listen.

He appeared amiable, but he was very strong-willed and, secretly, his mother’s biggest admirer.

‘Everything his mother said was right. He wouldn’t just make her the Supreme Empress Dowager; he’d gladly let her sit on the Dragon Throne itself.’

But Jiang Xian felt it was unwise to cause unnecessary trouble for her son’s reign over a meaningless title, so she personally refused the promotion.

But now, Xie Che was insistent on proclaiming Princess Consort Hao as the Supreme Empress Dowager.

He knew that even after Jiang Xian passed away, as the mother of the reigning Emperor, she would still be posthumously named an Empress and worshipped for generations to come. But being elevated while still living was far more honorable than a posthumous title. He was adamant about this detail, wanting only the best for her.

When the imperial edict for her promotion arrived, Jiang Xian heard a system notification rewarding her with Palace Fighting Points.

The voices of others sounded muffled and distant, but the system’s synthetic voice, which spoke directly into her mind, was exceptionally clear—a constant throughout her entire life.

System: [Host, are you sure you don’t want to exchange for any more life-extending consumables?]

Jiang Xian silently selected no.

‘If I keep extending my life, will I even be human anymore?’

She had already outlived so many people, seeing off the Supreme Empress Dowager, Grand Princess Consort Rong, Chen Guiren, Zhenqiu, Mian Xia… Innumerable partings made her feel the gradual deterioration of her body all the more keenly. She wanted to cash in all the sleep she had sacrificed in this lifetime for one long, uninterrupted rest.

BEEP—

[Congratulations, Host, on completing the “Have the Last Laugh” palace intrigue mission. You have obtained the Emperor’s exclusive favor, your son has ascended the throne, and you have become the mother of the nation…]

[We are pleased to inform you, Host, that you may now return.]

[Completion Reward]: The Host has worked hard for two lifetimes. After an evaluation by the system’s AI, we have decided to let the Host experience what it’s like to be the boss. Upon your return, you will receive an ace employee. All his efforts will be for your benefit. You can take the fruits of all his labor, bestowing upon him a small reward called a ‘salary’.

…

When Jiang Xian opened her eyes again, she was struck by a surprising chill in the air.

In her later years, she had used ice sparingly even on the hottest days, placing just enough in her chambers to keep the temperature pleasantly cool. The air was so cold now, however, that she suspected she had blinked and woken up in the underworld.

Jiang Xian sat up, and her vision was filled with a brilliant light.

It was a brightness that ordinary candlelight could never produce…

“Jiang Xian, could you follow up on this project?” Before she could even process what was happening, a colleague walked past her, placing a USB drive in her hand. “The client needs it by the end of the day. Luckily, it’s still early.”

“Okay.”

Jiang Xian took it instinctively, then glanced at the time on the computer screen.

10:41 PM, Beijing Time.

‘Nearly eleven at night, and he calls that early?’

She had spent an entire lifetime in Yan Chi after transmigrating and had nearly forgotten how to use a computer. She sat bewildered at her workstation for a moment and called out for the system, but there was no response.

‘Couldn’t I have used my remaining Palace Fighting Points to exchange for some kind of Golden Finger?!’

‘It could at least help me finish this pile of work!’

‘Where’s that ace employee I was promised?’

For the first time in a long while, the Day Sky Imperial Concubine felt a surge of resentment.

Drawing on her immense willpower, Jiang Xian sat at her desk for half an hour, forcing herself to recall the knowledge from the life before her last. After accessing the contents of the USB drive, she stumbled her way through the task. By the time she finally finished, it was already three in the morning.

She got up and went downstairs. As she swiped her card to leave, the night security guard greeted her in surprise. “Miss Jiang, heading home so early today?”

“Yeah, finished my work early.”

“Get some rest!”

…

Stepping out into the night, she got into the car she had hailed. The sudden leap across a millennium of civilization felt surreal. She had just been watching the pedestrians hurry past; not a single person had stopped to bow or pay their respects, and there were no palace maids to carefully support her. Habits cultivated over decades could not be changed overnight. As she settled into the car, she had to rely on the address saved as “Home” in the phone’s ride-hailing app just to confirm her destination.