Senior Sister Chapter 1
I am not a kid, I am Ming Qin (Entering the Shadow Guard Camp for the first time)
All of this has to start from a bottle of wine and excessive empathy.
If she hadn’t seen a helpless kitten meowing on the road, if she hadn’t just had a little wine and felt slightly tipsy and dizzy, twenty-five-year-old Song Shuqing wouldn’t have chosen to climb over the fence after attending the company’s evening party, rushing alone onto the asphalt road, nor would she have frozen like a stone and failed to dodge the truck running the red light. (LP: Truck-kun!)
Even the little cat was more agile than her. Upon seeing the approaching headlights, it immediately jumped out of the woman’s arms and swiftly hid in the bushes.
Indeed, those who meddle in others’ affairs don’t have a good ending…
Forget it, at least the cat is safe.
This was Song Shuqing’s final thought before closing her eyes.
In the darkness, after experiencing such a horrific car accident, Song Shuqing initially thought she would either miraculously wake up in a hospital bed or go to heaven to say hello to God.
But life is always full of surprises. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a rudimentary wooden hut, surrounded by a dozen children covered in wounds that clearly indicated they were minors.
Just as she looked shocked, preparing to call the child welfare center to report child abuse, she noticed that her fingers had suddenly become stubby like chubby sausages.
No way?
No way, no way?
I just spent five hundred yuan on a manicure?
How did this happen?
Just like a child’s hands…
Song Shuqing hurriedly got up, but because of her limbs being weak, she accidentally fell off the bed, reaching out to touch her forehead, feeling like she had a fever.
“Is anyone there? What kind of damn prank is this…”
Hoarse, Song Shuqing called out, struggling to get up from the ground, swaying unsteadily. “Is anyone there?”
“Shh!” A tall boy sat up, glaring at her sternly. “Quiet down, do you want to deprive everyone of their food?”
“Sorry… so fierce.” Song Shuqing, astonished, wanted to go outside to see but felt her body weak and reluctantly climbed back onto the bed. “This must be a dream, it must be a dream…”
Repeating to herself, as if hypnotized, her head heavy as lead, she drifted off to sleep.
“Wake up! Wake up!”
Before dawn, a boy with braids shook the still-sleeping Song Shuqing awake.
“…Let me sleep a little longer…” Painfully rolling over, Song Shuqing brushed away the boy’s hand, grumbling.
Frowning, the boy persisted in calling out, “Junior Sister! Wake up quickly, being late will earn you a spanking.”
Perplexed by the unmoving girl, he reached out to feel her forehead, only for twelve-year-old Cao Yun to startle and shout to a tall boy outside, “Da Linzi, trouble! Junior Sister Song has a fever!”
Fourteen-year-old Lin Yan walked in, looking at the pale-faced girl with a troubled expression, “Oh no, our master is not here today, and the one overseeing our training is Qin Shibai, he is the strictest…”
“So… what should we do?” Cao Yun pursed his lips, looking worried.
“Anyway, let’s go over there first, we can’t be late by ourselves…” Lin Yan decided helplessly, casting a sympathetic glance at the uncomfortable Song Shuqing on the bed before leaving with a sigh.
As the feverish Song Shuqing lay in a daze on the bed, she vaguely saw a stern man yelling at her, and the next moment her mouth was gagged with a rag, lifted up roughly, and a bamboo stick mercilessly struck her shin.
Startled by the instant pain, the young girl struggled to her senses, tears welling up in her eyes, letting out a painful muffled groan from the throat.
“You made us late! You made us late!” The more the girl resisted, the harder Qin Shibai hit her. “Just a group of orphans, you should learn to earn your own keep, you won’t be eating today!”
Almost knocked unconscious by the beating, Song Shuqing was thrown into a narrow wooden hut filled with debris. The disheveled girl felt hungry and in pain all over, her mind frozen.
What kind of place is this?
Abusing and starving children.
It hurts so much, darn it, could it be that I’ve traveled through time?
“No, I just got promoted, just moved out of that annoying house. Damn…”
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Continuously reminding herself that she was a mature adult of twenty-five, Song Shuqing couldn’t suppress the tears trickling down her cheeks as she lay on the ground. The skin-splitting pain in her legs made it unbearable, causing her to struggle even more.
『Clang』
A stacked wooden crate suddenly fell, startling the emotionally turbulent Song Shuqing. “Oh…”
“Could it be a mouse?” Her voice hoarse, dragging her feet, she twisted trying to move backward.
Just then, illuminated by the moonlight streaming through the window, a disheveled and skinny little girl suddenly peeked out from behind a crate, holding a mysterious package. Swiftly, she jumped next to Song Shuqing.
Realizing it wasn’t a mouse, Song Shuqing breathed a sigh of relief, nonchalantly closed her eyes, and continued lying on the ground, allowing the strange little girl to tinker with something beneath her.
Feeling the cool balm being applied to her burning wounds, momentarily easing the pain, Song Shuqing opened her eyes in surprise, swallowing hard. “As a child, how do you have medicine…”
The little girl tilted her head, replying, “First in training, reward.”
“You would give me such a precious reward, don’t you find it a pity?” Song Shuqing raised an eyebrow, looking at the expressionless child before her, covered in bruises similar to hers.
“Getting first place is easy,” with a carefree expression, the little girl put away the ointment, then rummaged in her pocket and handed a dry and bland steamed bun to Song Shuqing. “Eat.”
Although the appearance of the bun in front of her was not appetizing, the hungry Song Shuqing couldn’t be picky at that moment. She cautiously took the bun and started nibbling.
Halfway through chewing, as she looked at the girl squatting nearby observing her, Song Shuqing asked, “Why are you so concerned about me?”
“Brother Ah Yun and Da Linzi asked me to find you, because I’m the best and won’t be caught,” the little girl replied, propping her chin up, being honest.
“Is that so? Are those the two boys who woke me up this morning?” Song Shuqing recalled, taking the last bite of the bun. “Kid, do you know how to leave this place?”
“I’m not a kid, I’m Ming Qin.” Introducing herself proudly with a straight face, the girl gestured confidently, “My name was chosen by the master.”
“Okay, Ming Qin.” Not too concerned about what was said to the person in front of her, Song Shuqing just reassured her casually, then asked again, “So, Ming Qin, do you know how to leave this place?”
The girl tilted her head in thought, “Wait for Qin Shibai to calm down tomorrow, if he still remembers you, he will let you out.” Speaking frankly, Ming Qin nodded along.
Trying to keep calm, Song Shuqing took a deep breath, mustering her dwindling patience. “I mean, how can I leave this darn place… without being beaten up or participating in any crappy training?”
“Just graduate.” Ming Qin stated matter-of-factly, counting on her fingers, “Graduate from Night Mist Courtyard and become a shadow guard of the Emperor, then you won’t be beaten, you’ll get paid, have your own room, and can eat whatever you want…”
Upon hearing this, Song Shuqing’s eyes lit up. “So, how can I graduate?”
“Just finish the training.” Ming Qin remained matter-of-fact, “If you don’t pass the training, you can’t graduate. You’ll be sent away, maybe sold to a wealthy household as a maid, or if you’re pretty, you might be chosen for the Qing Pavilion.”
“With your looks, you’ll definitely be sent to the brothel first.” It seemed like a compliment, yet not quite, as seven-year-old Ming Qin confidently said something that was more perplexing than amusing.
Overwhelmed by the flood of information, Song Shuqing’s mind stalled for a moment, looking at the girl before her with shining eyes, feeling as if she was trying to drive her crazy.
(Only later, after getting to know Ming Qin better, did Song Shuqing realize that her straightforward junior sister had no ill intent, just the most genuine responses…)
Formerly a corporate slave, Song Shuqing, locked up for three days and nights, finally reluctantly accepted the fact that she had crossed over and landed in the harshest Shadow Guard training camp.
TV dramas would usually show someone crossing over as a princess or a wealthy lady, or at the very least, a prince’s concubine…
Why was her situation so miserable?!
She had thought that with her advanced 21st-century wisdom, she could easily navigate any challenges, but growing up in a civilized world left her trembling at the sight of a blade gleaming before her nose, watching in horror as a lock of her hair was sliced off.
“Sister, this won’t do, you have to dodge!”
Ming Qin looked at her sparring partner, her expression filled with confusion.
Ever since this senior sister got a fever and was beaten, her once quiet demeanor changed drastically. She now incessantly murmured incomprehensible words, and her mediocre martial arts skills became incredibly lacking. If Ming Qin hadn’t sheathed her blade in time, she might have accidentally chopped off the person’s head.
“I… I… I want to dodge too, but I’m afraid…”
With a furrowed brow, Song Shuqing felt tears welling in her eyes, shaking her head repeatedly. “I’ve never harmed anyone, I can’t even cut meat, I can’t do it, I can’t…”
Looking up at the girl five years older than herself, Ming Qin scratched her head, feeling that Song Shuqing, despite looking much older, appeared pitiful.
Hmm… I seem to have taken on quite a responsibility.
The little girl put away the blade in her hand, clumsily stood on tiptoe, and awkwardly patted the head of Song Shuqing, who was much taller, consoling her with a stutter, “Oh… it’s okay… don’t be afraid, I won’t ever hurt you, let’s just practice more…”
The two of them hid from the gaze of others, each night, as Ming Qin patiently taught her senior sister.
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Watching the blisters on her hands break and reform, Song Shuqing, teary-eyed, complained, as Ming Qin, with a stoic expression, applied the healing ointment she had as a reward.
“Phew, phew, sister, it doesn’t hurt… Once I apply the ointment, you’ll feel better.”
The seven-year-old girl puffed her cheeks and gently blew on the wound, carefully applying the medicine.
Knowing that her senior sister disliked wielding swords and detested bloodshed, the innocent Ming Qin, relying on her excellent Qinggong, secretly stole a manual on hidden weapons from the Shadow Guard Camp’s collection and discreetly showed it to Song Shuqing.
“When I learn it, I’ll teach you… so even if you avoid blades, you can still defeat opponents from a distance in the assessment!” joyfully shared her plan with Song Shuqing, Ming Qin practiced diligently every night, studying the techniques, and secretly passing them to her senior sister at dawn.
With time, although not as gifted as Ming Qin, Song Shuqing could at least hold her own in sparring with peers, occasionally using her wit to win unexpectedly.
Even so.
Song Shuqing still believed that she was just a passerby in this unfamiliar era.
She thought that no matter how long it took, she would not let herself become emotionally attached to anything in this world.
Perhaps on a stormy night, or at the moment a comet descended, she might just suddenly return to her original world.
Therefore, Song Shuqing only observed everything around her with indifference. Her sole goal was to escape from the hellish Night Mist Courtyard.
And so, three years passed in the blink of an eye.
“Eh? Da Linzi, where’s Qinqin?” Song Shuqing, who had just finished dinner, looked around and stopped Lin Yan in the corridor. “I went to the training ground just now and didn’t see Qinqin there?”
“Ah, don’t mention it.”
Lin Yan sighed, looking helpless. “Qinqin stole something before, a martial arts manual it seems, it was discovered yesterday. You know, stealing in the camp is a serious offense, getting expelled from the sect would be a light punishment…”
“Fortunately, Master values her talent, just gave her a severe beating, but I heard it was really harsh. She’s probably still locked up tightly…”
Song Shuqing took a sharp breath, no longer saying anything to Lin Yan, and hurriedly rushed to the small wooden house without looking back.
Frantically prying open the door lock, a pale-faced Song Shuqing discovered the bloodstains from the whip on the back of the barely ten-year-old Ming Qin, lying on the ground with weak breath.
“Ming Qin, you’ve gone crazy.”
Bending down to inspect the injuries of the person in front of her, Song Shuqing nervously trembled, “Why didn’t you tell Master and Senior Brothers the reason you stole? Just allowed them to beat you like this?”
Pale-faced, Ming Qin opened her eyes and weakly grinned at the person in front of her, “If I had spoken… you would have been punished too, Senior Sister.”
“You’re so afraid of pain, you’ll cry again later…”
Before she could finish her sentence, the young girl felt her body overwhelmed with exhaustion and couldn’t help but faint.
“Ming Qin… you!”
She’s truly a lunatic!
Damn it!
Song Shuqing recalled the knowledge she had learned in her medical class and searched in the forest for familiar herbs.
Chewing the bitter leaves into a paste, Song Shuqing applied it to Ming Qin’s bleeding wound, feeling a sharp pain in her heart, a woman who had always been somewhat aloof.
It seemed she could no longer remain indifferent.
At least for the girl in front of her, Song Shuqing had established a bond deeper than blood, something so similar to family ties that she couldn’t just stand by.
“You arrogant little brat… you better stay alive!”
The author has something to say:
Hi everyone, it’s been a while, this is Forest Changchun~
There are a few things I want to explain to everyone.
First of all, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but yes, I’ve signed a contract (although I still don’t feel much about it).
Just as I was busy moving and preparing for a Christmas night, I suddenly received a notification. My initial reaction was probably, “Huh, now?” Is this really the magical law of “you can never find something when you’re in a hurry, but it’ll suddenly appear when you’re not looking for it?”
Nevertheless, after signing the contract, it’s more likely to make the bestseller list, giving more people a chance to see my story, which truly makes me happy! Thank you to all the readers who have been with me along the way, I appreciate every word of encouragement and every bottle of nutritional support. Also, thanks to the mysterious person supporting my story, you’ve given me more motivation~
(If you're not reading on littlepandatranslations.com, it means this has been stolen)
Could it be that I am the legendary cultivation genre author? (laughs)
Secondly, the plan is to update on Fridays, so be careful not to make duplicate purchases once the main text is completed! Of course, if you want to read it again or occasionally flip through it, I would be very welcome to that (laughs). I roughly calculated that the full text subscription is about four dollars (cheaper on the app, more expensive on the website). Feel free to sponsor my milk tea money, warming my winter~
Next is about the future extras. Besides the senior sister’s romantic storyline, there will also be the sweet daily life of the main couple, from the perspective of Hu’er, and the whereabouts of the minor characters (you might not be interested, but my brain has its ideas, so I must write it), totaling about 70,000 words. Since the main text has already ended, I plan to update five days a week to have some time to prepare new drafts.
Lastly, about this chapter, it is the long-awaited storyline of the senior sister! In this chapter, I quickly explained the childhood of several people in the Shadow Guard Camp and revealed the bond between Ming Qin and Song Shuqing, but that’s not the focus!
The focus is that we will officially enter the senior sister’s romantic storyline (throws confetti). I am really looking forward to everyone’s reactions to reading it since when I was writing it, I was laughing like crazy.
The complexity of Song Shuqing’s character is not lower than the two main characters. I hope that when you see the senior sister looking cool and a bit cheeky in love, you can feel her unique reversal charm.
Once again, a reminder to everyone, the secondary couple is not Shuangjie. If you can’t accept it, are too serious, critical, or dislike the courtesan setting, I suggest not reading it. If you choose to continue, I hope everyone can be gentle, after all, there are too many things beyond our control in this world, and Zi Yan is indeed a pitiful person.
Although I say this, the tone of the two characters’ story is comedic (with the senior sister present, it’s hard not to laugh), and it’s undoubtedly a sweet HE. Even though Song Shuqing herself is quite mischievous, likes to talk nonsense, she is also very gentle and redeeming…
Well, I won’t say more, you’ll find out as you read on!
Wishing you all a happy New Year~
I hope that in the new year, everything goes smoothly for everyone.
May good things come to you, and may you also bring goodness to others.
As always, I pray for you.
LP: Re-translated on April 17, 2024