Chapter 120 – The Bullied Official Wife on the Path of Exile (Part 1)

Once Lin Qingxue returned to the system space, she finally let out a long sigh of relief.

The early part of the last world had been far too miserable, and even though she survived to the end, living alone had left her emotionally exhausted.

If it weren't for the rule that committing suicide would deduct points, she would've just gulped down poison and forced herself back—after all, she had fulfilled the mission requirement of staying alive in the survival game.

"Host, congratulations on another successful mission! This client is very satisfied—especially with your outstanding performance in the survival game—"

"Spare me the formalities. Just tell me, how many points do I have now?"

"Host, you've earned the maximum reward of 200,000 points from the client. Including what you saved from the previous world, your current balance is 3.2 million points."

Sigh. She hadn't found any treasures to exchange for points in that world, which was a bit disappointing.

Wait a minute—she still had the items from the survival game stored in her space. Maybe they were worth something?

"System, can the items I received from the survival game world be exchanged for points?"

"Host, I'll have to contact the System Headquarters for a decision. This situation is unprecedented."

(System's inner thoughts: If the host weren't so promising, I wouldn't even bother. The longer it takes her to resurrect, the more leftovers I get to sip from.)

The wait felt endless. Lin Qingxue had almost given up hope when a reply finally came through.

"Host, after deliberation by the System HQ, it's been decided that items like your snow hut, workbench, and healing cards can be exchanged for a total of 500,000 points. Would you like to proceed with the exchange?"

"Of course! Right away, immediately!"

There wasn't much use for those items anymore—better to turn them into points while she still could.

With that, Lin Qingxue's personal savings went up by another 500,000, bringing her total to 3.7 million points.

After a short break, Lin Qingxue once again spun the Mission World Wheel. Secretly, she still held on to a tiny hope: maybe this time she'd get a more relaxed world.

But of course, things never went the way she wanted. She could only watch helplessly as the pointer headed toward the very segment she least wanted.

She desperately wished she could make it stop.

Unfortunately, using her abilities to interfere with the outcome was strictly forbidden—doing so would result in points deductions. She had already tested that once and been sternly warned.

And so, as expected, the pointer landed on the "Exile" segment.

Just hearing the name of the world was enough to tell her she was in for more suffering. Ugh, why do I keep getting thrown into these joyless, bitter lives?

She was numb to it now. After this many disappointments, she didn't even expect good outcomes anymore.

Once the mission world was selected, the system quickly brought in the client.

The woman who appeared wore prison clothes in ancient attire. Her expression was blank, her figure thin and frail, with a wooden hairpin stuck in her messy bun—but her bearing still revealed a noble upbringing.

"Miss, I have no other requests. I only beg you to protect my daughter, let her live a life of her own. As for everything else, do as you wish—I have no complaints."

"Understood. I'll do my best to protect your daughter. As for the rest, I have my own plans."

Lin Qingxue entered the mission world once more, becoming Sun Juanfang, the second daughter-in-law of the Minister of Revenue, who was about to be exiled.

Though she held the status of official wife, she had been targeted during childbirth, managing only to give birth to a single daughter. As a result, she was looked down upon by her in-laws, and oppressed by her husband's concubine, who had borne a son.

Later, her father-in-law was found guilty of embezzling grain funds in support of a political faction and sentenced to exile in the northern frontier.

The original Sun Juanfang, due to her fragile health and constant abuse on the journey, died of heatstroke mid-way. Her body was wrapped in straw and unceremoniously dumped by the roadside.

Her daughter, Qian Lanting, who was just four at the time, died shortly after of a fever, neglected and mistreated by the Qian family.

The original host's soul, unable to rest after witnessing her daughter's suffering and death, became filled with resentment, drawing the attention of the System HQ.

After absorbing the original's memories, Lin Qingxue realized she had only one hour before the emperor's envoys would arrive to confiscate the household and arrest them.

It was already too late to stock up from the outside. All she could do was steal part of the Qian family's assets and supplies. Taking everything was out of the question.

After all, Qian Shilang (the Minister) had been convicted of embezzlement—if they didn't find anything when raiding the house, the entire family might be executed rather than just exiled.

And fleeing with her daughter wasn't an option either. Escaping before exile was a major crime, punishable by death, and would implicate her birth family.

So, she brushed off the night-watch servants, snuck into her own room alone, and got to work.

As for her scummy husband? Probably cozying up with his concubine again.

First, she stored the most valuable trinkets from her dressing table into her space, and instructed Xiao Tian to trap the night guards in an illusion.

Then she went to the dowry storage room, gathering compact valuables: gold leaves, jade hairpieces, silver notes…

After that, she raided the private stashes of her husband, in-laws, and other Qian family members—targeting anything valuable without official seals, so it wouldn't arouse suspicion during the confiscation.

In the kitchen, she took the leftover food from that evening and about half of the next day's ingredients.

She only took one-fifth of the grain from the pantry—not enough to be missed, but enough to help her survive.

Running out of time, she abandoned plans to loot the concubines' quarters, returned to her daughter's courtyard, and prepared to face the chaos soon to follow.

She also ended the illusion over the estate and gave Xiao Tian a few spirit stones to replenish its energy.

The important caches had already been taken care of. The rest were just small fish—no big deal.

Author's Note:Here's some world background for this arc:

This is a fictional dynasty called Xuan Dynasty. The emperor is Situ Yu, who follows a benevolent ruling policy.

The female lead's father-in-law, Qian Shouzheng, was the Minister of Revenue, and helped the second prince seize power. For this, he embezzled grain funds and was sentenced along with his family to exile in the northern frontier.

Main Characters Summary (just for reference):

Mother-in-law: Li Qin (40 years old)

Female Lead (Sun Juanfang): 21 years old. Has one daughter, Qian Lanting (nickname: Ting-jie'er), 4 years old. Originally died of fever.

Husband: Qian Mingwu (22)

Concubine Zhao: Has a son, Qian Hongyuan (5)

Concubine Liu: 17, no children

Concubine Sun: Has a daughter, Qian Lanyue (3)

Brother-in-law: Qian Mingwen (24, legitimate eldest son)

Sister-in-law (eldest brother's wife): Li Yuexi (22, has a son and a daughter)

Younger brother-in-law: Qian Mingjun (10, illegitimate, born of Concubine Wang)

Younger sister-in-law: Qian Mingluan (13, legitimate daughter)