The night was colder than usual, as if the heavens themselves mourned with her.
Li Yue knelt on the icy jade tiles of the imperial courtyard, her thin silk robe clinging to her skin. The moonlight revealed her pale face, the bruises on her arms, and the trembling of her lips. All around her, the concubines and palace maids whispered, their voices laced with contempt.
"The forgotten one has finally met her end.""Poor thing, to die without leaving even a trace in His Majesty's memory."
At the center of it all stood Lady Wan, the newly favored beauty. Her snow-white gown shimmered in the lantern light, and her eyes glistened with feigned sorrow. In her hands, she held a jade hairpin—the very weapon used to frame Li Yue for attempting to harm the emperor.
"Your Majesty," Wan's gentle voice quivered, "I discovered this in Lady Li's quarters. She must have intended to strike you during tonight's banquet. How fortunate that I discovered it in time…"
The emperor's gaze, once distant but indifferent, turned sharp with fury. "Li Yue, you dare betray Us?"
Her lips parted, but no words came. How could she defend herself? She had been nothing but loyal, even when forgotten, even when mocked as cannon fodder. Yet loyalty meant nothing in this gilded cage.
Her execution was swift. Guards dragged her to the palace gates at dawn. She remembered the taste of blood in her mouth, the cold steel against her neck, and the laughter echoing from behind her. The last sound she heard was Lady Wan's soft sigh, pitying yet triumphant.
Darkness swallowed her.
But death was not the end.
A piercing pain split her skull, and Li Yue gasped, jolting upright. She found herself lying on a narrow bed, the familiar scent of sandalwood lingering in the air. Her gaze darted around the room—she recognized the worn furniture, the peeling lacquer, the small bronze mirror cracked at the corner.
This… this is my chamber. But…
Her trembling fingers touched her throat, smooth and unbroken. No wound. No blood. Her body was whole.
Rising unsteadily, she looked into the mirror. The reflection staring back at her was younger—two years younger. Her eyes widened as realization crashed over her.
She had returned. Returned to the time before Lady Wan entered the palace. Before the betrayal. Before her execution.
Her chest heaved as she clutched the edge of the table. I have been reborn.
Memories of her past life flooded her mind: the endless humiliation, the loneliness of being a concubine forgotten by both emperor and court, and finally, the cruel end orchestrated by another woman's hand.
Her fists clenched. Heaven has given me another chance. This time, I will not be forgotten. This time, I will not allow her to destroy me.
The door creaked open, and a timid maidservant slipped inside. "My Lady, the morning audience has ended. Breakfast is prepared."
It was An Ruo—her only loyal maid, who in the past life had been poisoned while trying to warn her of Lady Wan's plot.
Li Yue's throat tightened. She strode forward and grasped the maid's hands. "An Ruo… you're alive."
The maid blinked in confusion. "Alive? My Lady, of course I am."
Tears threatened to fall, but Li Yue forced herself to smile. "Nothing. Just… I am glad."
From that moment, she swore silently: she would not let An Ruo die again.
Later that day, Li Yue wandered through the palace gardens. The plum trees were just beginning to bloom, their fragrance carried by the breeze. Servants passed by, hardly sparing her a glance. In their eyes, she was still the forgotten concubine—insignificant, powerless, a shadow meant to fade quietly.
But inside, she was no longer that same weak woman.
Her gaze lingered on the towering halls in the distance—the emperor's residence, and beyond it, the chambers where the future heroine, Lady Wan, would one day arrive. Li Yue's lips curved into a cold smile.
You think you are the chosen one, the heroine destined for glory. But this time, I will not stand aside. This time, I will fight.
She knew her greatest weapon was knowledge. She remembered every scheme, every betrayal, every step that had led to her downfall. She would twist them all to her advantage.
As dusk fell, she sat by the window of her chamber, candlelight flickering across her determined features. An Ruo placed a bowl of steaming porridge before her, but Li Yue barely touched it.
Her mind was already weaving plans.
"I was given this life again not to repeat the past," she whispered, her voice steady and low, "but to rewrite it."
The flames reflected in her eyes. From this night onward, the forgotten concubine would rise.
And those who once laughed at her downfall… would learn to fear her rebirth.