I woke up as the Villainous Empress

"I am eager to meet the person Master Jiang has selected as his disciple. However, I can't see him here. Did he go somewhere else?" Yang Ning asked about the disciple that Master Jiang was boasting about, her eyes scanning the room curiously.

Before the old man could respond to her curious question, they all turned toward the door, where a soft and sweet voice was emanating, drawing their attention and adding a new layer of intrigue to the scene. "Master."

Standing at the door was a beautiful woman in a plain dark blue dress. She smiled brightly at them while holding a tray in her hands. Her long hair was tied in a neat braid, and her big eyes sparkled with kindness. Despite her simple attire, she radiated an inner glow that made her shine.

Her face was gentle and sweet, and even in the most unadorned appearance, her purity and grace were evident.

Yang Ning's eyebrows shot up in surprise, and she tilted her head to the side, confusion written all over her face. It was the same woman she had saved in Xinling City when she was involved in an argument with a thug.

'If she remembers correctly, the woman did say she was going to the capital. But Yang Ning had never expected that she would end up in the palace, and specifically in the Dragon Pavilion. What is she doing here?' Yang Ning wondered, her mind spinning with questions.

While Yang Ning was lost in her bafflement, Master Jiang smiled warmly at the woman and waved his hands at her, and said, "Hou Wei, what took you so long? Come and greet His Highness and the Princess." He beckoned her inside, his tone full of affection and warmth.

The young woman, Hou Wei, nodded at her Master, and, while keeping her gaze lowered to the floor, politely bowed before hesitantly entering the study room. Her face was graced with a gentle smile as she held a tray in her hands.

Approaching the table, she carefully put the tray on the table and bowed deeply to greet Zheng Liang and Yang Ning, her eyes fixed on the surface before her. Her respectful demeanor and careful avoidance of direct eye contact with the royal couple conveyed a clear understanding of her place in their presence.

"Greetings to His Highness. Greetings to the Princess," she said, her voice soft yet clear, echoing the grace and humility that had been evident in her appearance.

"Master Jiang...this is…," Yang Ning's eyes were fixated on the woman in front of her as she asked with a hint of hesitation in her voice. She recognized the woman, and the unexpected encounter threw her for a loop.

On the outside, Yang Ning looked calm and composed, but inside, the panic was bubbling. How could she not be startled? She had kept her escape from the royal residence a secret from Zheng Liang, and this woman had crossed paths with her in the market that very day.

What if she unintentionally revealed it in front of Zheng Liang?

The trust she had painstakingly built with Zheng Liang could crumble if he found out. After all, with so much effort, she had finally convinced him that, despite being the daughter of Yang Luoyang, she was a friend and not a foe.

As these concerns whirled in her mind, another question loomed large: What was the connection between this woman and Master Jiang?

Master Jiang looked up at Yang Ning and then at Zheng Liang and said, "Your Highness, didn't I mention earlier that I wanted to introduce my new disciple to you? Here she is."

"Her name is Hou Wei. I have accepted her as my last precious disciple. From now on, she will work in the palace as a nurse and will learn about medicine under my guidance," he announced with pride in his voice and eyes.

He was pleased with how things had turned out. Even though he had lost a great assistant like Bai Jiang, he had found Hou Wei, who he knew would carry on his legacy. Her generous heart would surely do justice to the noble profession of a physician.

"So it's a woman?" Yang Ning asked in disbelief, her eyes fixed on the young woman, who was smiling shyly at Master Jiang's praises.

'Nurse? She is not the same person I am assuming her to be?' She frowned, trying to control her emotions in front of everyone.

Master Jiang nodded, his face gleaming with joy, "Yes. Although we've never had female nurses or assistants in the past, I wanted to make an exception. I want her to become the first-ever female nurse in the Zheng Empire. After she learns from me, I believe she'll become a great disciple in the future. Your Highness, Princess, please bless this humble girl with your good wishes."

His words were filled with a blend of hope and conviction, reflecting his strong belief in his new disciple's potential. While Master Jiang was smiling proudly, Yang Ning on the other hand had complicated expressions on her face.

Upon hearing Master Jiang's words, Yang Ning experienced a sensation of lightness in her head, accompanied by a faint buzzing sound.

'Hou Wei?' she thought to herself, recalling the name. Realization dawned as she remembered that the woman had introduced herself by that same name in Xinling City. The name had seemed familiar at the time, but only now did she fully grasp where she had heard it before.

It was none other than the name of the female lead in the novel where the female lead enters the palace as the first and only nurse to assist Master Jiang. In the novel, by the coincident turn of events, she ended up serving Zheng Liang and later he made sure that she always stayed by his side.

Their relationship, which started from nothing, blossomed into a passionate relationship. This romance gave rise to the sinister schemes of the novel's antagonist, Yang Luoyang, who orchestrated the entire game from behind the scenes. Yang Ning was manipulated into becoming the bait for carrying out these evil deeds in his stead.

The ultimate result? Yang Ning, the villainess of the story, met a tragic and miserable death. This grim turn of events paved the way for the joyous conclusion of the tale, marked by the happy union of Zheng Liang and Hou Wei.

'So she finally came.' Yang Ning's complexion turned pale, disbelief washing over her as she realized that the female lead had finally entered the main story. She had been living her life so blissfully that she'd forgotten she was in a fictional world, subject to the predetermined plot of a novel.

More alarming was the fact that she was not the heroine but the villainess of the story. Now that the female lead had arrived, would Zheng Liang's attitude change? Or—

The mere thought of events unfolding as they did in the novel sent a shiver down her spine, raising goosebumps on her skin. She was doing everything within her power to avoid the novel's end, yet why did events keep mirroring the story? She couldn't help but wonder.