Transmigrated Female Official

Dr. Li, an elderly physician, conducted a series of thorough examinations, including taking her pulse, examining her eyelids, and looking at her head, but he was at a loss and could only conclude that Chu Qingluo's amnesia was caused by excessive stimulation. Lin Xia, of course, knew that even if Hua Tuo were alive, he couldn't cure her illness, because it wasn't an illness at all.

"If all else fails, you can ask the palace physicians to take a look. You're going to court soon anyway." After seeing Doctor Li off, Madam Chu didn't give up. She was determined to cure Chu Qingluo's amnesia. She looked at Chu Qingluo's little face with heartache and said, "Eat something first, and I'll come see you again tomorrow."

"Okay." Lin Xia nodded obediently.

No sooner had Madam Chu left than Lin Xia turned to the Nine-Tailed Fox beside her and asked, "What does this mean? Am I to enter the palace?"

Nine-Tailed Fox: "Yes. In a few days, it will be the auspicious day for Miss to enter the court as an official."

Lin Xia's first reaction was, "Can we not go?" There were female officials in the Empress's dynasty, so there's nothing to be surprised about.

"Miss! You took the exam for three years before finally passing the official test!" Nine-Tailed Stare widened her eyes, with an exaggerated expression that said, "Are you kidding me?" She then emphasized, "On the day the results were announced, Miss was so happy that she fainted!"

What? She fainted from joy? Like Fan Jin passing the imperial examination?! Lin Xia rolled her eyes.

Entering the palace is like entering a deep sea, everyone knows that, so why is this girl still rushing in? Although it's about becoming an official, serving under a female superior is not an easy task, especially since this girl took the exam three times, which shows that she's not very talented.

"Is there any way to avoid going? ...Pretend to be sick and stay in bed or something?" Lin Xia was making a last-ditch effort.

"Except for death. You have to go once you're better. If you stay too long, it won't be good. The palace female physicians will come to treat you personally. If things are exposed, you'll die even more miserably." Nine-Tailed really didn't understand why she didn't want to go anymore. She had worked so hard to get a job that brought honor to her family, a job that others envied.

Lin Xia could only sigh heavily. She didn't want to challenge authority yet, so she decided to eat something first before making any plans.

……

After Jiuwei's earth-shattering and tear-jerking explanation, she finally understood—this wasn't the ancient Chinese history she remembered at all! This place had always been a matriarchal society, where women were emperors and officials, while men did manual labor and toil. To put it bluntly, they only knew their mothers and not their fathers; women were the dominant force in this society. Lin Xia realized with shock that this was purely a matriarchal clan society.

Fortunately, she was a woman.

Lin Xia didn't know if she would ever suddenly travel back in time. But from He Yun's words, she sensed that if she hadn't died, she would probably be crippled. For her, being paralyzed on one side was... worse than death.

Besides He Yun, their close friend, they also had a mutual gay best friend named Momo. They recalled a casual conversation about time travel before, during which Momo jokingly said that if he were to time travel, he would definitely become a woman and take revenge on all the scumbags. Who would have thought back then that time travel actually existed?

Now, bearing Chu Qingluo's body, she must do what Chu Qingluo should do. She can only—hope for the best.

……

In just one day, she had a general understanding of the Chu family's situation. Chu was her mother's surname. Chu's grandmother had once served as an official in the palace, while Chu's mother, having failed the official examinations, eventually became a merchant and placed all her hopes on Chu Qingluo. The Chu family compound had fewer than thirty people, with only Chu Qingluo and Chu's mother being women; the rest were all men—from the steward to the attendants, and of course, Chu's mother's eight male servants and her two older brothers and one younger brother. Her grandmother had her own residence and male servants and did not live with them.

Chu Qingluo met with them all very solemnly. She first needed to remember a few key figures: Steward Li, Chu's mother's eight male servants, Chu Qingluo's two attendants, and three brothers. She didn't know which of the eight male servants was Chu Qingluo's biological father; Jiuwei said it didn't matter, as it wasn't important at all. The one most favored by Chu's mother was Uncle Sihan; knowing that was enough.

Besides Nine-Tailed Fox, Kirito is also Chu Qingluo's follower, and is about the same age as Nine-Tailed Fox.

"Is this a gesture of respect?" Chu Qingluo gestured. When the servants and her eight uncles saw her, they all did the same thing—crossing their arms in front of their chests, fingers at shoulder height, and bowing slightly.

"Yes, Your Excellency." Nine-Tailed Fox smiled and bowed to Chu Qingluo with perfect form.

"Then why didn't you bow to me yesterday?" He even lifted her mosquito net.

"It's all because Miss spoils him. He's almost forgotten his place, all he thinks about is being Miss's male servant." Tongmu teased Nine-Tailed Fox while standing to the side.

Nine-Tails blushed slightly and retorted defiantly, "Kiriki! You dare say you don't want to be Miss's male servant?!"

"To be a male servant for Miss is a blessing from my past life, and I dare not even dream of it. If Miss takes a liking to me, I will certainly do it without hesitation."

"Go away! Miss would even look at you?!" Nine-Tails thought she was better looking than Kirito.

"Hahahaha." Watching these two men vying to become her male concubines right in front of her, Chu Qingluo was already laughing hysterically. She crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair: "No rush, no rush, you both have a chance." Wow, polyandry, is this some kind of crazy idea!

"Third sister, third sister, second brother is back!" A boy ran into Chu Qingluo's room. He was Chu Yinuo, the youngest brother of the Chu family, a cute little boy with a chubby face.

"Oh?!" Chu Qingluo hadn't seen her two older brothers yesterday. Nine-Tailed Fox told her that her eldest brother, Chu Yifan, had already entered into another young lady's household as a male servant. Her second brother, Chu Yilin, was naturally charming and debonair; many young ladies had extended invitations to him, but he had refused to enter any of them. He was probably out spending the next two nights with some young lady.

Chu Qingluo was particularly interested in this playboy second brother. Although his behavior was comparable to that of a modern scumbag, he was smart enough to play around with various rich girls without getting into trouble. So she quickly went to the main room to meet this legendary second brother.

"I heard that Third Sister has lost her memory?" Chu Yilin asked first after seeing Chu Qingluo's calm expression. He was not a servant, so he did not need to bow to her.

Chu Qingluo raised an eyebrow: "Second Brother."

This man had thick eyebrows and big eyes, and was dashing and unrestrained; it was obvious that he and Chu Qingluo were born from the same mother.

He casually took a sip of tea and said, "It's good that you didn't get stupid from the fall."

"Absolutely not."

Chu Yilin's sarcastic way of speaking really reminded her of Momo, only not as effeminate. Because of this, she felt an immediate increase in her affinity for Chu Yilin.

"What are you grinning at me for? Did you bump your head and become even dumber?"

"No, I just think my second brother is very handsome, just a little bit less handsome than me." Chu Qinglu smiled at him, stretching out her hands to show how much more handsome he was.

"Pfft—" Chu Yilin spat out a mouthful of tea. "Third Sister, you're something else! That head-banging was worth it! You even developed a sharp tongue from it." In his eyes, Chu Qingluo had always been a silly, infatuated girl. She used to deliberately maintain a friendly relationship with him, but only for one purpose. Now, however, her expression was calm, her gaze intense. It was as if she had become a completely different person.

"Second brother knows that I have amnesia. Please forgive me if I do anything inappropriate in the future."

"..." Chu Yilin's mouth opened slightly, and he nodded mechanically.

Before entering the court, Chu Qingluo needed to cram in all sorts of basic knowledge. So she summoned Jiuwei and Tongmu, hoping they could take on the important task of tutoring her. But they both said that Chu Yilin was close to members of the royal family and suggested that she consult him instead.

Thinking of this, she asked first, "Second brother, I wonder if I have ever offended you in any way?" Although she had already heard from Nine-Tailed Fox that she and her second brother were close, it was still better to ask first.

"It seems...no." Apart from constantly pestering him about the Seventh Prince, which annoyed him a bit, Chu Yilin couldn't think of any other bad things that silly girl could do.

Chu Qingluo was relieved to hear that. She then said, "I will be going to court in two days, and I would like to ask my second brother for some guidance."

"Is there anything you don't understand?" Chu Yilin really didn't know what to teach her.

"I don't understand any of it."

"..." He was completely speechless. But Chu Qingluo looked so sincere, he said helplessly, "Then how will Third Sister repay me?"

"How about introducing a stunning woman to Second Brother?" Chu Yilin is known for his dashing and romantic nature, so this should suit his taste.

He had met some of Chu Qingluo's friends before, but had no interest in them whatsoever. However, he thought that after she entered the court, she might actually meet some good ones. So he readily agreed.

"First and foremost, you must know proper etiquette. You must bow to the Empress, princesses, princes, and female officials of higher rank. Show me how you bow."

Nine-Tailed Fox entered carrying snacks and happened to witness Chu Qingluo bowing. She crossed her arms in front of her, bowed slightly, and looked quite serious.

"Pfft, hahaha—" Chu Yilin burst into wild laughter, and Nine-Tailed Fox covered its mouth and laughed along.

Chu Qingluo looked at them innocently. She hadn't done anything wrong. Last time, Jiuwei had also said that this was a gesture of respect.

"Third sister, are you a man? Hahaha—" Chu Yilin laughed so hard he could barely breathe.

Damn! So this is a greeting only men do. "Then how do women greet each other?"

"Nine-Tailed Fox, show her." Chu Yilin was still smiling faintly.

Nine-Tailed Fox held her hands flat in front of her chest and simply nodded slightly. Chu Yilin explained from the side, "This is the same greeting you give when you meet the Empress."

"Wow! This is so convenient?! This place truly is a model of etiquette!" This means she no longer has to worry about kneeling and getting knee pain.

Chu Yilin and Jiuwei looked at each other, thinking that Chu Qingluo's head was really badly injured.

"Secondly, you need to recognize your own status. Although you passed the official examination, you are only an executive officer, not even a second-rank official. This is very important. Don't think that just because you've entered the court you're on top of the world. There are plenty of women in the palace who are of higher status than you." Chu Yilin's words were very pertinent.

"How are these official ranks determined? And what was our grandmother's rank?"

"Once you enter the court, someone will explain it to you. Your grandmother is a sixth-rank official. If you want to have a mansion bestowed by the emperor like your grandmother, you must be at least one of the tenth-rank officials."

It was clear that Chu Yilin held this grandmother in high esteem. Chu Qingluo nodded repeatedly; she didn't have such grand ambitions, she only hoped to save her life.

Chu Yilin continued, "When you first arrive, they'll definitely let you choose which rank below the fourth rank to be an executive officer. As far as I know, the female official at the tenth rank is the most approachable; you could consider serving under her. Don't look down on her because of her low rank; it's best not to be too eager for quick success." Nine-Tailed Fox nodded in agreement with Chu Yilin's words.

"I understand the principle of seeking progress while maintaining stability, so don't worry, Second Brother." To put it bluntly, she was just working for someone else, and she was quite aware of the situation.