“Miss, that unscrupulous merchant is going too far! Why don’t you let me teach him a lesson!” Bi Fan trotted after Jiang Yuan, her cheeks puffed up like a little bun, her big eyes wide and glaring. “He really thinks he’s the master.”
Jiang Yuan stopped in her tracks, her smoky-colored skirt tracing a graceful arc as she abruptly halted. Her expression wasn't exactly pleasant. "Tell those little maids in our courtyard that none of them are allowed to peek into the South Garden anymore. If they see him, they should all avoid him! Any disobedient ones should be sold out of the manor!" She added quietly, as Zhu Chuan looked on with confusion, "so as not to break the rules of the manor."
As she spoke, she glanced at the courtyard, as if there was something dirty there. She shivered and quickly looked away, walking towards Chunnuan Pavilion without looking back, her steps as fast as she could get as far away from that courtyard as possible.
That night, Jiang Yuan tossed and turned, unable to sleep. The blood-stained ring on Meng Xizhi's finger kept haunting her.
The room was heated by an underfloor heating system, so she got up and placed her small feet on the purplish-red carpet. Her feet were so white they were startling. The nerves in her forehead were connected to her heart, and they were throbbing. She quickly reached out and pressed them.
The wind howled outside the door, making the windows creak. Jiang Yuan stood by the window, and the bright moonlight shone through the carved window into the room, casting a soft glow on her face.
It's fake! That person's face is fake! If it weren't for the blood-stained thumb ring on his hand, Jiang Yuan would never have dreamed that the future Duke of Zhenguo, who would one day hold sway over the State of Wei, would appear in the capital of Southern Liang! And he'd even changed his name and disguised himself as a lowly traveling merchant!
Jiang Yuan had only seen that thumb ring once in her previous life, yet it was unforgettable; the cold touch seemed to still linger on her neck.
Jiang Yuan's heart roared, but her face grew even colder. She reached out and touched her fair neck. The green magnolia on the windowsill was blooming brightly. Its elegant name was replaced by flame-like petals, so bright red that it sent chills down her spine.
This pot of flowers was the beloved possession of Queen Wei in her previous life, and Queen Wei… Jiang Yuan’s slightly narrowed eyes suddenly widened, as if she had been startled, and she stared at the petals without blinking. She remembered that when she was imprisoned in the water dungeon of Yongming, she had seen a woman in gorgeous clothes next to Meng Xizhi. He called her Lü Qiong.
Before even meeting the King of Hell, they encountered a Rakshasa!
In the following days, Jiang Yuan almost avoided the West Garden, and he always made sure Meng Xizhi prepared his meals. As a nominal gardener, his extravagance greatly displeased Jiang Zhi, who came to confront Meng Xizhi more than once. However, before she could even see him, Jiang Yuan hurriedly led a few quick-witted maids back home, which naturally resulted in her making a scene at her father's place.
As for how harsh the words were, she could guess from Bifan's red eyes when she relayed the message.
Jiang Zhongsi also felt it was inappropriate and contacted Jiang Yuan, but inviting a god is easy, sending him away is difficult, especially since the one invited was an evil spirit. She wanted to, but she didn't dare! If she could be ruthless towards Song Yanji, it was because she knew that man too well and could control his weaknesses. But Meng Xizhi was different; she had only met him once, and she had almost died at his hands.
Chapter 5 Past Events
It wasn't until later that Jiang Zhongsi encountered him once in the pavilion. Meng Xizhi was still young, and no matter how well he pretended, he couldn't help but carry an air of superiority in his bones, unlike the ruthless warrior who had been stained with blood on the battlefield many years later, who was unfathomable and unpredictable.
In just this one encounter, Jiang Zhongsi knew what was going on with his daughter's hesitant expression. She must have gotten into trouble with something she shouldn't have. Jiang Yuan was clever by nature and had her own plans. As her father, he couldn't figure it out, so he couldn't do anything about it. At that moment, it was a crucial time for the change of power, and he didn't have much time to spare, so he just let her be.
When Jiang Zhi went to make trouble again, she inevitably received a scolding from Jiang Zhongsi.
Xuesheng carefully leaned against the windowsill. The kitchen was simmering with fragrant Laba porridge, the aroma wafting straight into his nose. Watching the chaos that had been unfolding in the Jiang family's backyard recently, his doubts welled up like a spring. He was so curious!
"Sir, what exactly is Miss Jiang up to?"
"Who knows?" Meng Xizhi raised his hand and waved it, and a small flame appeared in the incense burner on the table. He held the note between two fingers and watched it burn into a wisp of smoke and ash in the flame. "Second Young Master really didn't forget to trick me even at the last minute."
Xuesheng turned to look at him, and he smiled slightly as he said, "It might be difficult for us to leave the city."
"Is he at the Jiang residence?" Song Yansi asked calmly.
"The news from Xu An's side should be accurate." Seeing that his expression was normal, Fu Zhengyan continued, "Zhongli, perhaps..."
With a slight upturn of his phoenix eyes, Song Yanji's voice carried a hint of coldness. Earlier, when Li Sheng rewarded the generals, he had also drunk some fine wine, and now, feeling quite tipsy, he was in the midst of a drunken stupor. Song Yanji had extremely handsome features, and now, having removed his armor, leaving only a loose drape of dark blue robes over his body, even Fu Zhengyan, who had grown up with him since childhood, would occasionally be somewhat dazed by his appearance. "Ruoyuan, nothing can go wrong at the Jiang residence."
"But."
“No buts.” Fu Zhengyan was interrupted by Song Yansi as soon as he opened his mouth. Fu Zhengyan knew his temperament well. Seeing that he looked tired, he shook his head and stopped talking.
A moment later, Song Yansi's voice drifted over, carrying a slight sarcasm, "Do you still remember when I was being chased by Han's men?"
Hearing him mention this past event piqued Fu Zhengyan's interest. He had asked him about it before, but he had always brushed him off. Now that he heard him bring it up himself, he naturally perked up.
"I was lying in the woods behind Guilong Temple when I felt death was so close to me for the first time." His voice was calm and unhurried, as if he were telling someone else's story. "At that time, I was thinking, have I done too many wrong things over the years? Is Heaven going to kill me?"
Fu Zhengyan seemed to have guessed something and casually asked, "Was it the Jiang family that saved you?"
Song Yansi narrowed his eyes slightly and nodded almost imperceptibly with his chin. "It just so happens that a member of the Jiang family is passing by."
He remembered the first time he met Jiang Yuan. It was March when the peach blossoms were in full bloom. She stood quietly under the peach tree, her pale yellow dress making her look adorable. She looked at him curiously, her small mouth as red as a peach petal that had just fallen from the branch, but the words she spoke were not so pleasant.
She said, "Are you going to die?"
Death? Song Yansi lay in the hay, the arrow already pulled from his chest, its blood staining his robe. Losing too much blood made him dizzy, his pale lips tinged with purple. He thought, how could he die? He hadn't yet achieved anything, hadn't avenged his mother, hadn't trampled those who looked down on him underfoot. How could he dare die? How could he possibly die?
He exerted a great deal of effort to finally manage a smile at the woman before him. "If you, Miss, are willing to save me, I will naturally not die."
"Hmph," Jiang Yuan chuckled, looking down at the ground, her embroidered shoes idly kicking at the pebbles in front of her. "Why should I save you?"
After pondering for a moment, Song Yansi reached for the belt at his waist. Every movement was excruciating. After a long while, he finally pulled out an ancient seal about the size of a thumb from his waist. It was as green as ink.
That was the private property of the young master of the Song family, which could almost mobilize most of the Song family's assets. It was handed to him by his mother before she passed away. Over the years, countless people have coveted this ancient seal. "I am willing to exchange the assets of the Southern Liang Song family for Miss's assistance."
Jiang Yuan's willow-leaf eyebrows twitched slightly, as if she was really thinking. Just when her patience was about to run out, she finally spoke with a smile, "How can a young lady like me, who is not yet married, take the family property of an outsider?"
"That's a real shame."
“No pity, no pity. Living people are more profitable than dead things.” She squatted down with a smile, looked directly into his eyes, reached out and poked the wound on his chest, and pressed a bead into it. Her eyes shone with a brightness he had never seen before. “This bead is an heirloom of my Jiang family, called the Mermaid. It will wrap around the skin when it comes into contact with blood and remain forever in the flesh. If you want to take it, you must cut off a third of your flesh. I just pressed it on your chest.”
The moment the bead entered his body, Song Yansi felt dizzy, and the intense pain seemed to tear his body apart. He managed to regain consciousness with a sliver of his remaining sanity. His brow twitched slightly, and his peripheral vision swept over Jiang Yuan's neck. An uncontrollable murderous aura filled his entire body. Her fair skin was flushed; with just a gentle touch, he could shatter her beautiful head and silence her rosy lips forever.
“I have no ill intentions, so naturally I won’t make you tear out your heart and return it to me.” As if she could see through his thoughts, Jiang Yuan took two steps back warily. “What if I save you and you run away? Wouldn’t I be at a great disadvantage if I had no proof?”
"Oh?" His survival instincts forced him to suppress the murderous intent that was rising within him, and he asked with a smile, "Then what does Miss want?"
“I saved you, so you naturally owe me. If you don’t repay me, I’ll say you stole the Jiang family’s most precious treasure. You should know that the evidence is right in your heart.” Jiang Yuan breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the murderous intent in his eyes dissipate. She casually picked up a branch from the side and slashed it in front of the two of them, demanding an exorbitant sum, “One life, ten thousand taels of gold.”
"Such arrogance!" Song Yansi chuckled, while the little man in front of him seemed oblivious to anything amiss, displaying an expression that said, "This is exactly how it should be."
"nature."
Afterwards, he was hidden in Jiang Yuan's carriage and taken back to the mansion. Jiang Yuan was Zuo Fengyi's legitimate daughter, and she always had many experts with her when she went out, so no one would dare to check her carriage along the way.
Jiang Yuan was a capable ruler who couldn't tolerate any wrongdoing. The maids and servants around her kept their mouths shut. He stayed at Jiang Yuan's Chunnuan Pavilion for more than half a month, and people only said that she had hired an ugly musician. No other rumors spread.
Later, he left without saying goodbye, and Fu Zhengyan knew pretty much everything that happened after that.
"Tsk tsk." Fu Zhengyan gasped, closed his fan, and curiously opened his shirt. On his chest, there was a white spot the size of a longan, which had been fused with the flesh. He couldn't help but click his tongue. "Miss Jiang is really ruthless. If you want to take it out, you'll have to gouge out his chest."
“I have no intention of returning it to her.” Song Yansi casually brushed away the fan handle hanging on his lapel, his eyes shifting as he smiled gently while holding the hand warmer, but his voice was icy, “Although she is a bit ruthless, she is still a good person.”
If these words had come from someone else, Fu Zhengyan would have just listened with a smile. But coming from Song Yansi, the meaning changed. He quickly pressed down on the arm of the person in front of him with his folding fan, his eyes filled with disapproval. "Zhongli, don't you dare to have any thoughts you shouldn't have?"
Song Yansi's dark eyes were clear and bright, but he did not answer him, seemingly not taking his words to heart.
"You...you..." Fu Zhengyan was speechless for a while before continuing, "What about Sijun?" Over the years, Fu Zhengyan had seen how good Gu Sijun had been to him, and he had sighed more than once about the injustice of heaven. Even though she was an arranged wife, the one given to Song Yansi was a heavenly beauty.
Upon hearing him mention Gu Sijun, Song Yansi's previously calm expression became even more unreadable. "I am not a suitable match." After a moment of silence, unwilling to continue the topic, he looked at Fu Zhengyan with a rather serious gaze, "How is Mu Jie doing?"
"What can he do? He can continue to be the young master in the Mu family mansion, staying cooped up in the mansion all day long." When Mu Qie was mentioned, Fu Zhengyan recalled the young master Mu who was always sticking to Song Yansi's side. He said, "Everything else is fine, except he's a bit lazy."
The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month.
Jiang Yuan sat alone on the steps outside the house, holding a small silver bowl. She was wrapped in a thick mink coat, and the pendants on her embroidered shoes were blown up and down by the cold wind.
The Laba porridge in the bowl had long since gone cold. She quietly held the small bowl, watching the fire in the south of the city burn the sky red. The sounds of clashing weapons and the cries of agony in the battle passed through layers of doors and walls and reached Jiang Yuan's ears. Jiang Zhongsi was prepared. A few days ago, he replaced the guards in the mansion with a batch of elite soldiers and generals, protecting it like an iron barrel inside and out.
The firelight shone on Jiang Yuan's cheeks. She kept her eyes tightly closed, her eyelashes trembling incessantly, and the scriptures were recited fluently from her mouth.
Namo Amitabha Buddha Tathagata, Tadyatha Amitabha Buddha, Amitabha Buddha Siddham Buddha, Amitabha Buddha Vikaranta, Amitabha Buddha Vikaranta, Gamini, Gagana, Jitakari Svaha.
She struggled to control the trembling in her body, repeatedly chanting the Rebirth Mantra.
In the later years of her previous life, she often thought about these things. She had taken too many lives—enemies, friends, concubines, princes—so many that she could see them appear before her eyes with ferocious faces whenever she closed them.
So many years have passed, so long that she herself thought she had forgotten. But when the cries and wails reached her ears, she realized that she could not forget. She could not forget those fingers that held onto her sleeve until death, and she could not forget those eyes that wished they could tear her to pieces.
Chapter 6 If Only We Met for the First Time
Jiang Yuan closed her eyes, as fragments of memories rained down on her.
Amidst endless hatred, terror, and resentment, she sensitively caught sight of those pure eyes. No matter how many people she had killed or how many wrong paths she had taken, those eyes always held a smile when they looked at her, so pure that she dared not look directly into them. How could she bear to kill such a good person, how could she bear to let others kill him? She had protected him so much, yet in the end, all she left him was a leap from Guanyun Pavilion.
Suddenly, a cold sensation pressed against her neck, and the voice behind her, tinged with laughter, interrupted her reverie, "Miss Jiang, please escort me out of the city."
Jiang Yuan slightly opened her eyes, momentarily confused, but instinct prompted her to lean forward, keeping two fingers' distance between herself and the blade. She paused for a moment before regaining her senses, "I don't remember saying you were supposed to point a knife at me as we left the city."
Bang bang bang—
An urgent knocking came from outside the courtyard. "Miss, it's—"
Bi Fan had just entered the courtyard and before she could react, everything went black, and she was knocked unconscious with a single slap.
Meng Xizhi was very fast; he made the move almost in the blink of an eye.
Seeing Bi Fan fall, he turned to look at Jiang Yuan again. Behind her was a fire dragon rising from the south of the city, the flames reflecting on her white cloak, making the woman in front of him appear particularly heroic. "Miss Jiang's expression is as if she is going to her death."
Jiang Yuan didn't want to say anything more to him, her pearly teeth lightly biting her lip. She was thinking; she couldn't escape, she could only see him out. Through the peephole, Jiang Yuan tried to see Meng Xizhi's true expression, the figure in her memory gradually overlapping with him.
Jiang Yuan knew that even if she took him out, based on her understanding of Meng Xizhi from her previous life, he would definitely kill her to silence her and prevent future troubles.
After a moment, Jiang Yuan seemed to have thought of something, and a deep smile suddenly appeared on her lips. She was born quiet and had a very beautiful smile. Her eyebrows were curved, and she had a safe and harmless expression. "Mr. Meng, let's make some terms."
“I don’t think this is a good idea.” Meng Xizhi shook his head, walked up to her, and gently slid the dagger toward her throat, laughing, “I can kill you anytime.”
Jiang Yuan stretched out her finger to stop the moving dagger. The blade made a thin cut on her fingertip, from which a few drops of blood seeped out. It hurt a little. "Even if I die, you can't escape."
"Is Miss planning to use the Jiang family to pay for my death?" Meng Xizhi's face darkened, her usual smile vanished, and her eyes turned as cold as ice blades.
“You are welcome to give it a try.” Jiang Yuan said without changing his expression. “My father gifted Jingzhou and opened the capital city, saving the Prince of Fei’an a lot of trouble. So what if he really finds out you are in the Jiang residence? At that time, I can just slit my throat in front of the army and maybe even help my father achieve his goal.”
"Do you know who I am?" Meng Xizhi suddenly asked.
"I don't know." He asked suddenly, and Jiang Yuan almost blurted it out. Fortunately, she was quick-witted, and even though her heart was pounding, she kept her voice quite steady. "My father said that foreign spies have infiltrated Lin'an, and you are in such a hurry to kidnap me out of the city. I suppose that person is Mr. Meng."
Seeing that he didn't speak, Jiang Yuan continued, her voice carrying a hint of ingratiating negotiation, "Why should we fight to the death?"
"You're quite clever." Meng Xizhi sheathed his dagger, the dark scabbard bearing its inherent patterns, much like the man himself. Sooner or later, he would become like this darkness, calm, ruthless, and impenetrable. But for now, he was merely the heir of the Marquis of Ansui's mansion, capable of doubt and hesitation, not the later Duke of Zhenguo of Wei, who could turn the tide of events with a flick of his wrist.
“You have murderous intent towards me, so naturally I must save myself.” Jiang Yuan didn’t mind being honest with him about this.
"What do you want?" Xue Sheng suddenly appeared out of nowhere, startling Jiang Yuan.
"I only need your promise." Jiang Yuan glanced at Xue Sheng, ignored him, and looked up directly at Meng Xizhi's face, as if trying to see through it to see someone else. "If I can safely get you out of the city, I need you to promise that under no circumstances will you hurt or kill me."
"That simple?" Meng Xizhi didn't see anything wrong with it. She was a weak woman, not worth him killing. However, she was a little fox, so he couldn't help but be a little suspicious.
“It’s that simple! A man’s word is his bond!” Jiang Yuan, afraid he would go back on his word, quickly gave him three handshakes, then pointed at Xue Sheng’s nose, “You be my witness!”
Amidst the chaos of battle, Jiang Yuan, dressed in a light blue jacket and with her hair simply tied in a small braid, led Meng Xizhi into the alleyways. This alley was so well hidden that if Song Yanji hadn't taken her there years ago, she wouldn't have believed anyone knew about it.
As for the main road, she dared not walk on it. Now that many things had been sorted out, she could clearly see things that she couldn't see before. The young lady of the Jingzhao Yin family was shot to death by a hail of arrows on Changyang Street in her previous life, probably because of this guy. However, in this life, she had brought him back to her mansion by some twist of fate.
If Meng Xizhi could escape in her past life, he could surely escape in this one too. She might as well make him a promise; if something happened to her later, she'd have somewhere to go. Even if she didn't repay his life-saving grace with eternal love, she should at least repay it tenfold. Jiang Yuan had thought things through thoroughly. Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of the person beside her stopping. Startled, she quickly stopped as well. "What's wrong?"
“There are people ahead.” Meng Xi raised his chin slightly.