In the city of Bianjing, power and privilege abound. Among the elite, the Yongyi Marquis Manor stands out in prestige and influence. As the legitimate eldest daughter-in-law of this noble house, Xie Rongying was the very model of feminine virtue—graceful in conduct, speech, and appearance.

One month after her wedding, her husband donned his armor and led troops to war. Half a year later, he died on the battlefield, his body wrapped in horsehide.

From that moment on, she lived by the light of oil lamps and the shadow of ancient Buddhas. The arch of c*astity erected in his honor became the shackle that bound her for life.

On her deathbed, she seemed to glimpse a vision—her husband, who had died decades ago in war, now growing old alongside another, surrounded by children and grandchildren.

In this life, she looked down at the man kneeling before her.

She smiled. “You want me to spare you?”

—A truly skilled master leaves no blood in their wake.

From a widow trapped in the inner chambers, shackled by virtue, to the revered matriarch of the powerful Xie clan—

She rose not only through cunning, but through sheer, unrelenting malice.

“I want to see the Yongyi Marquis Manor buried beneath a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Only then will this lifetime of scheming be worth it.”