The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

Xia Dongchun's face turned green then white, then white then green again.

She was used to being the boss at home, and had never suffered such humiliation before. How dare the daughter of a county magistrate from some remote, impoverished place embarrass her in front of so many people!

"I'm speaking to you, are you deaf!"

She stepped forward and reached out to overturn the incense table—

But as soon as he reached out, his hand was pulled back!

Two tall palace maids appeared out of nowhere, grabbed her arms from the left and right, and lifted her up.

Xia Dongchun struggled to yell and curse, but a handkerchief was stuffed into her mouth, and she could only make muffled whimpering sounds.

The surrounding women stared in disbelief, but none of them dared to utter a word.

An Lingrong caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of her eye, and her heart leaped with joy. Her hand movements veered off course by a fraction of an inch, and she almost spilled the spices she had just prepared.

Startled, she quickly regained her composure, took a deep breath, and focused on the present moment.

I don't know how much time passed.

An Lingrong completed the final step and gently closed the incense box.

I brought it close to my nose and smelled it carefully again and again.

Confirmed.

A joyful smile finally appeared on her lips.

-

On the high platform, Yanzhi glanced at the sky, then at the young women in the garden, some sitting, some standing, some nervous, some expectant. He smiled and said to the wives around him, "It's about time. It's time to test their abilities."

Songzhi understood and immediately led the palace servants down to let the young ladies take their seats, and then collected all the things they had just finished.

Calligraphy, paintings, account books, pitch-pot tokens, ballot scores... all sorts of things piled up on the table.

The wives looked at each one in turn, but their expressions were somewhat perfunctory.

The Tenth Princess Consort didn't even glance at the paintings and calligraphy. She waved her hand and said to the palace servants, "Take that rubbish away. My family are all roughnecks; nobody cares about this." She paused, then raised her voice, "Just let me know who the best archers were just now."

As soon as he finished speaking, two women from military families in the audience of the imperial concubines' seats lit up and sat up even straighter.

The Ninth Princess Consort was quite refined. She held Shen Meizhuang's cursive calligraphy and looked at it again and again. Then she picked up Shen Meizhuang's painting of the autumn scenery in the Imperial Garden and examined it carefully, her eyes full of appreciation.

The Thirteenth Prince's wife had a calm expression, revealing no particular likes or dislikes. She simply looked at each person, sometimes nodding, sometimes shaking her head.

The sixteenth princess was in no hurry; her child was not even a year old yet. She had only come to join in the fun and go through the motions with her sisters-in-law. Bored, she picked up the items on the table and began to look through them one by one.

Suddenly, her hand stopped.

She picked up a small, delicate fragrance box, brought it close to her nose, and smelled it. A look of delight appeared on her face: "This smells wonderful!"

She turned to Yanzhi, her interest piqued, and said, "Sister-in-law, smell this! It smells somewhat similar to the incense you used to make!"

An Lingrong, sitting at the table, felt her heart race upon hearing these words.

Was the Empress also a master incense maker?

She couldn't help but raise her head, looking at the platform with expectant eyes.

Yanzhi took the incense box, held it to his nose, and took a gentle sniff.

His eyes subtly changed.

The incense uses common, not expensive, spices, but the proportions are so precise they're almost perfect.

Thinking back to An Lingrong's incense-making movements just now, from unfamiliarity to proficiency, her progress was rapid.

As expected of the only person in the original story who could smell the ingredients of the Joyful Fragrance in Nian Shilan Palace just by smelling it.

This is a gift from heaven—a sense of smell.

If one were born in the Song Dynasty, into one of those perfume-making families, one wonders how much they would be valued and treasured.

Yan Zhi thought this in her heart, but her expression showed no sign of it. She simply nodded and said lightly, "That's right."

He then put the incense down.

An Lingrong's expectation dimmed slightly, but she still tried her best to remain calm.

Yan Zhi then quickly glanced at the works of the other candidates.

There are only two things that can make her gaze linger even a little longer.

First, there's Shen Meizhuang's cursive calligraphy.

Secondly, there was an account book. The handwriting was clear, the entries were distinct, and every single detail was recorded without a single error.

Yan Zhi withdrew his gaze and stood up.

"It's getting late," she said with a smile. "Let's call it a day and head home early to await good news."

The young women rose and bowed, saying in unison, "Respectfully seeing off Her Majesty the Empress."

"Waaaaah! Waaaaah!"

A sudden sound rang out.

Yan Zhi paused, looked in the direction of the sound, and saw Xia Dongchun still being supported by two palace maids.

The latter's mouth was still gagged, his face was flushed red, and his eyes looked pitifully at Yan Zhi as he desperately tried to make a sound.

Yan Zhi raised an eyebrow: "Oh, I almost forgot about you."

She waved her hand, and the palace maid then removed the handkerchief from Xia Dongchun's mouth.

Xia Dongchun, panting heavily, looked at Yan Zhi with a face full of grievance, half reproachful and half coquettish, and said, "Your Majesty! What did I do wrong? Why are you treating me like this?"

Yanzhi looked at her and smiled genuinely.

I knew he was stupid, but I never imagined he could be this stupid.

"What did your father say to you about your candidacy?" she asked slowly.

Xia Dongchun was taken aback, then hurriedly pledged her loyalty: "Of course, my daughter will follow Your Majesty's lead! Your Majesty is the Empress, the Empress of the Great Qing, the Mother of the Nation. Although my daughter is not as subservient as some from humble families, and may know some tricks to flatter people..."

As she spoke, she glared fiercely at An Lingrong.

"But this servant truly wishes to serve Your Majesty with utmost loyalty!"

Yan Zhi looked at her, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes.

Xia Wei was a bondservant captain, a major parasite in the Imperial Household Department.

Just by looking at what Xia Dongchun is wearing today, you can tell how fat and bloated the Xia family has become over the years.

The reason Nian Shilan took action against her was not only because she was reckless and publicly sided with the Empress, but also because she wanted to use this to intimidate the Xia family and take the opportunity to let Huang Guiquan, who was related to the Nian family, take sole control of the Imperial Household Department.

She originally intended to follow Nian Shilan's method and punish him with a severe beating.

He was just an idiot, so what if he's dead? If he can at least intimidate the newcomers present, that would be great.

But now it seems...

This person may have other uses.