The Concubine Will Not Die a Beautiful Death

Chapter 1

Spring came late to Dingtao (*).

In the turbulent years following the death of Qin Shi Huang, even spring seemed somehow slow and reluctant to arrive.

In the sunlit courtyard of the Qi family residence, patches of white snow still remained like cobwebs.

A carriage draped in silk stood in the middle of the courtyard. It was the carriage she would ride to Pei County, where the King of Han’s residence was located. Beside it, several maids and porters were finishing their preparations for departure.

Qi Ji stood on one side of the courtyard, dressed in her wedding attire. It had been made by seamstresses renowned for their skill in Dingtao and older women who had borne many children.

The garment was densely embroidered with patterns wishing the new bride happiness, longevity, and many children.

The entire family had gathered in the courtyard.

Her mother took Qi Ji’s hand and released it two or three times. Her father stood beside them without saying a word.

The news that the daughter of the Qi family, a young woman renowned throughout the surrounding area for her exceptional beauty and talent in song and dance, was entering the King of Han’s household as a concubine had caused quite a stir in the region.

Yet the courtyard from which she was departing showed no signs of that commotion.

Qi Ji clasped her mother’s hand once more before taking a step back.

“Mother. Is becoming the King of Han’s concubine not a position rarely attained in all the world? Please do not worry about me, and take good care of your health.”

Qi Ji deliberately spoke lightly.

Her mother nodded a moment later.

Her father cleared his throat twice before adding a few words.

“Stay well and take care of yourself.”

Qi Ji bowed deeply.

Her older cousin, Qi Huang, held Qi Ji’s hand as she climbed into the carriage.

To Qi Ji, who was an only daughter, he was no different from a real older brother.

Seeing that her cousin’s face had stiffened, Qi Ji opened her mouth.

“Older Brother, if you have something to say, please say it. Once the carriage departs, I won’t be able to hear it anymore.”

Qi Huang hesitated before letting out a deep sigh.

“…Ji.”

His words stopped there.

Qi Ji waited silently.

Qi Huang clenched and unclenched his hand once before speaking again.

“I heard the King of Han is over forty. He’s thirty years older than you.”

“I suppose so.”

“The place you’re going to…”

Qi Huang’s words broke off once again.

Qi Ji thought she understood what her older cousin wanted to say.

He was worried that his cherished younger cousin was entering the household of a man thirty years her senior as a concubine.

Standing on the carriage step, Qi Ji firmly grasped her cousin’s hand and smiled.

“Older Brother Huang. This is a marriage Father chose for his daughter. How could you doubt it? Moreover, would becoming the King of Han’s concubine not be an honor for the Qi family?”

Qi Huang studied Qi Ji’s face for a long while.

His gaze seemed to be trying to discern his younger cousin’s true intentions.

Qi Ji maintained a gentle smile as she tightened her grip on his hand.

In the end, Qi Huang nodded.

“…If you ever need help, write a letter to this older brother of yours.”

“Thank you, Older Brother.”

After bowing her head in farewell, Qi Ji gathered the heavy folds of her wedding attire and sat inside the carriage.

A soft silk cushion had been laid on the seat.

It was the last luxury her family could bestow upon their only daughter before she left home.

Soon afterward, the carriage began to move with a jolt.

Qi Ji looked out at the courtyard through a gap in the curtains.

Her mother followed the carriage for several steps before stopping, and her father placed a hand on her shoulder from behind.

Qi Huang stood a short distance away, silently watching the carriage recede.

The courtyard of the Qi family residence grew distant.

The well in the courtyard, the plum tree beside the well, and even the withered petals still clinging to its branches—all of them faded into the distance at once.

She recalled the days of her childhood when she had caught cicadas beneath the plum tree while riding on Qi Huang’s back.

The carriage passed through the streets of Dingtao.

Qi Ji withdrew her gaze from the curtains and straightened her posture.

The sounds and the carriage wheels fell out of rhythm with each other, rocking Qi Ji’s body.

Qi Ji let out a short sigh.

‘So it has come to this after all.’

She still vividly remembered the moment her memories of her previous life awakened when she was five years old.

In the middle of the Qi family’s courtyard, at midday when the sunlight beat down fiercely, amid the deafening cries of cicadas, her mind had suddenly become clear.

And within that newly illuminated mind lay the life of another person.

Seoul, Republic of Korea.

A fourth-year office employee at a small or medium-sized company.

One evening, on her way out of the office after finishing overtime work…

Her memories ended there.

However, one thing was certain.

The place where those severed memories began again was within this young body of a five-year-old child.

At first, she was so overwhelmed by the weight of that realization that she fell ill for several days.

Her father summoned a physician to examine her pulse.

After enduring those few days, Qi Ji accepted one thing.

‘Whether it’s possession, reincarnation, or time travel, there’s nothing I can do now that I’ve ended up in this world. If I have to live, I have no choice but to live in this body.’

From then on, the question was how she would survive.

Fortunately, the Qi family cherished their only daughter dearly.

Her father had even personally given her the name Ji, using the character meaning “joy.”

Even when Qi Ji occasionally hummed strange songs or created dance movements no one had ever seen before, her father simply adored her, calling her clever.

Her mother never entrusted the task of combing her daughter’s hair to another maid.

When her father noticed his daughter’s talent for song and dance, he invited teachers to instruct her in music and dancing.

Before long, Qi Ji had gained quite a reputation for her singing and dancing throughout Dingtao.

She did not neglect her studies, either.

Although she had not acquired an extraordinary level of scholarship, she had learned enough to study and compose songs.

Having grown up without lacking anything under her family’s care, Qi Ji never took everything she had been given for granted.

As an only daughter, she made every effort in all things not to go against her parents’ wishes, not to become a burden to her older cousin, and not to bring disgrace upon the Qi family.

And the result was becoming the King of Han’s concubine.

Qi Ji sighed once again.

Of course, from the perspective of a modern person, it was difficult to accept.

To enter the household of a man approaching fifty as his concubine at the age of eighteen.

However, in this era, there were occasionally cases even more extreme than that.

The world was that chaotic, and for a family to survive, it was important to rely on the protection of someone powerful.