Chapter 59 Nightmare The sunlight in the valley lazily spread across the lawn. Xiao Chen lay on his back, chewing on a stalk of foxtail gra
Chapter 59 Nightmare
The sunlight in the valley lazily spread across the lawn. Xiao Chen lay on his back, chewing on a stalk of foxtail grass, its tip swaying gently with each breath.
In the azure sky, a few clouds drifted slowly by, just like the ones he used to see in the Xiao family's backyard as a child.
The Xiao family...
He grew slightly dazed, thoughts drifting back to the past. At that time, after falling from the status of genius, he was neglected and mocked, not only outside but even within his own clan. During every clan test, he could feel those pitying or mocking gazes upon him.
But now...
His master Chen Chang'an treated him like his own son. The newly arrived junior Han Yu treated him with deep respect. Even the cold-natured Li Hanzhou would actively seek his guidance during sword practice. Such days felt almost unreal in their beauty.
What was Ling'er doing now?
The image of Xiao Ling'er suddenly surfaced in his mind—that cousin who had always encouraged him, one of the few in the Xiao family who treated him sincerely. She had left two years ago; she must have already entered some sect. With her talent, surely she was already shining brightly...
"Senior brother!"
Han Yu's voice called from the distance, breaking his thoughts. Xiao Chen turned his head to see Han Yu standing on the slope, waving. "Time for lessons!"
"Coming!"
He sprang up like a carp, brushed the grass from his clothes, and could not help but smile.
The shadows of the past had long since dispersed. Now, he had a new family and a new beginning.
Ling'er, I hope you are also living well.
He strode quickly toward Han Yu, the two brothers' figures fading into the lush valley, leaving only the chewed foxtail grass swaying gently in the breeze.
...
Just as peace and harmony filled the valley—
Far away, in the imperial capital of the Central State...
"Ah—!"
Ji Lingxiu jolted upright from her gilded bed. Her snow-colored nightgown was drenched in cold sweat, the thin gauze clinging to her graceful curves.
The brocade quilt slipped down to her waist, revealing a pair of jade-like legs. Under the glow of luminous pearls, her skin shone with the luster of cool porcelain, faint pink marks pressed at the knees from sleep.
"Princess?"
The night-serving maid hurriedly lifted the gauze curtain, only to see her mistress clutching her chest in a daze.
Moonlight slanted through the carved window lattice, just covering the length of her thigh exposed from beneath the nightgown, as if silver edges had been traced upon white jade. Even the seasoned maid, long accustomed to beauty in the palace, held her breath—such panic-stricken beauty was even more bewitching than her usual composure.
"Leave me, I… am fine."
Ji Lingxiu lifted a hand to push her disheveled hair back over her shoulder. The motion caused her nightgown to slip open further.
Her right leg bent unconsciously, knee pressing against the bed's edge to form a delicate hollow. The line of her calf extended into shadow, and as her toes touched the floor, the arch of her foot drew an exquisite curve.
Once the maid retreated, the beloved Princess of Great Zhou gasped for breath, her slender fingers gripping the brocade quilt so tightly her knuckles whitened.
Just now, she had dreamt a long, long dream—in it, her invincible forefather suddenly collapsed and died at her birthday feast! Afterward, sects and clans, as if long prepared, invaded the capital of Heavenly Jing in unison...
Though her mind was clear now, the bloody scenes of the dream lingered vividly—the raging flames at the fall of the city, the anguished screams of royal kin...
Most of all, she remembered her own fate. After narrowly escaping Heavenly Jing, she was betrayed by her most trusted maid and killed miserably on the road to Qingzhou.
Ji Lingxiu stared blankly at her trembling hands.
(This dream... was too real.)
She suddenly leapt barefoot from the bed, rushing outside without even a robe. Pushing open the red-lacquered doors, she nearly collided with Wei Qing, the grand chamberlain who had long served her father.
"Chief Wei!" She clutched the sleeve of the old servant who had spent half a lifetime in service to the Great Zhou. "What time is it now?"
Wei Qing was stunned by her sudden grip. "Reporting to Princess, it is now the one hundred seventy-first year of Chengping, in the fourth month... Have you forgotten? Tonight is His Majesty the Supreme Emperor's birthday celebration..."
"Tonight!?" Her voice sharpened suddenly. "And Father?"
"His Majesty is currently in the Purple Dawn Hall, meeting with an inspector from Qingzhou. It was said he carries urgent matters that must be reported face to face..."
Before he finished, Ji Lingxiu felt as though struck by lightning.
(The Qingzhou inspector!)
Memory surged back like a tide—it was from this very man's arrival in the capital that everything began!
"Prepare the palanquin! To the Purple Dawn Hall at once!"
She spun back into her chambers, and as her bare feet touched the icy golden bricks, a shocking realization struck her—
This was not a dream.
She—Ji Lingxiu, the Splendid Princess of Great Zhou—had been reborn!
"Princess, your shoes..." A maid hurried after her with embroidered slippers.
But Ji Lingxiu had already seized a crimson palace robe from behind the screen.
(It's not too late! It mustn't be too late!)
When she rushed out of the sleeping palace, the eastern sky was already bright.
In the morning mist, she seemed to glimpse that very maid who had once betrayed her—Li'er...
Her fingernails dug deep into her palms, blood seeping from between her fingers, yet she felt no pain.
(Li'er...)
The memories cut through her mind like blades—that childhood companion, eyes always filled with gentle warmth, who combed her hair so carefully she would not tug a single strand.
On the road of escape, it was those soft hands that draped the last dry cloak over her shoulders on a stormy night...
"Princess, please drink some hot soup."
The remembered voice still lingered in her ears—yet in an instant it twisted into the cold metallic ring of a dagger leaving its sheath!
Ji Lingxiu pressed a hand hard against her chest, where phantom pain lingered. She remembered with perfect clarity how, when the pursuers' torches lit up the rainy night, Li'er had clung to her back, speaking in the gentlest tone: "Princess, don't be afraid..."
And then drove the poisoned dagger inch by inch into her heart.
"This time..."
She knew full well—anyone capable of scheming against her grandfather, who had stood unmatched atop the Heaven Stele for ten thousand years, was beyond anything she alone could contend with.
Yet in Ji Lingxiu's eyes, a firm light flared.
"No! Even if it costs me my life, I must stop it from happening again!"
...
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