Chapter 1 Chapter 1 A Vicious Snake

"She's just a peasant girl who's trying to repay a favor. She's so lowly, how could she be in my eyes?"

A man's arrogant voice drifted across the wall, as if sentencing someone to death.

The noble young man from aristocratic family is obsessed with and loved by too many women. The world-famous Xie Qillang is like the sun and the moon, attracting thousands of fireflies to come closer.

How could he ever care about a humble peasant girl, even though she had saved him, even though she had accompanied him through the most difficult times, and even though they had a beautiful promise.

She slowly closed her eyes, accepting the cruel truth. Then, a sharp pain came over her chest, and her body gradually became cold.

It was raining heavily, and a peasant girl died quietly at this time.

Insignificant, no one cares.

-

It was early in the morning, and a mountain rain had just fallen. The slight chill kept penetrating into people's chests.

Zhang Jingxian changed into a pair of straw sandals, opened the door, and walked out on the rough green stones, counting them silently in her heart.

When she counted to fifteen, a familiar voice sounded beside her.

"Ah Xian, you're going out so early, are you going into the mountains?"

Zhang Jingxian raised her head, curled up the corners of her mouth to reveal a smile, and greeted Uncle Liu who was passing by the door, "Yes, Uncle Liu, I buried the straw cage a few days ago, and I went to take a look today."

A middle-aged man in a short brown shirt was thin and had a wrinkled face. He walked along a muddy path with lush grass and trees on both sides, carrying a hoe on his shoulder, obviously preparing to weed the fields.

"You just can't sit still. I wish the kids in my family were as hardworking as you." Uncle Liu was full of admiration when he saw the short bow in her hand and the arrows on her back. He didn't notice the trance in the girl's eyes when she heard him say this.

It seemed like this wasn't the first time I heard it.

"...Uncle, I saw one of your chickens ran away. It should be in the valley." Zhang Jingxian paused, the smile on her face sincere and nostalgic.

She wasn't dreaming; she was truly alive again.

God was very kind to her. When Zhang Jingxian closed her eyes, her last thought was to return to her hometown. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in her own yard.

Everything is real.

Under the brilliant sunset glow, a total of fifteen uneven bluestones were quietly embedded in the soil, instead of the path she later carefully paved with polished wood.

When she returned to the house from the yard, she saw that only the painted arrow feathers were missing from the table. She was stunned for a long time before she realized that she was in the past, just the day before she met him.

Physical and mental fatigue washed over her like a tide. Without time to think, she lay down on the simple yet comfortable bed and fell into a deep sleep.

The next day, she was awakened by several loud crowings. Her neighbor Liu Erbo raised several majestic roosters at home, and they would crow one after another before dawn every time.

Zhang Jingxian got up at the sound of rooster crowing, sat at the table and drank a few sips of cold tea, and was distracted for a full half hour.

It was not until the sound of raindrops outside the door stopped that she woke up as if from a dream. She took a deep breath and found the straw sandals she wore when she went into the mountains with trembling hands.

No matter what, she had to go to that place and take a look. She had to save...she had to save her, even if her death was because of him.

Zhang Jingxian had no other choice, especially after seeing Liu Erbo.

The neighbors of Xishan Village, and even the millions of people living on this land, all long for a stable and peaceful life.

For decades, wars had been frequent, and the Five Barbarians of the north were restless, never giving up their invasions and plundering from the south. Four years earlier, Pu Gu, a Di tribe, had conquered the states of Yan and Liang, unified the north, and, armed with a million-strong army, led his southern expedition against the Zhou court. A major battle ensued along the Huai River.

Xie Yun, the seventh son of the Xie family, was the governor of Changling at the time. At the critical moment when the court was losing ground, he turned the tide and defeated the Di army, making him famous.

But this is not the end. Zhang Jingxian knows that there will be an even bigger battle soon.

As the key to victory, Xie Yun cannot die.

While Uncle Liu was stunned, she closed the wooden gate, turned around and walked towards the emerald green mountains. In the hazy clouds, the girl's back looked like a fairy in a painting.

Uncle Liu was stunned for a moment, then he realized that his chickens had run to the valley. He stopped weeding and hurried back with his hoe.

The villagers of Xishan Village are not rich, and it is a turbulent time. A chicken is a very important property of the family!

He was in a hurry and didn't think about it carefully. His home and the valley were on the other side of the yard he had just passed. How did Ah Xian see the chicken running away?

Of course, Zhang Jingxian couldn't see the scene in the valley, but to her, the chickens running away from Liu Erbo's house was something that had already happened.

Or should I say, her previous life.

It’s not far away, but the memory is very clear.

She not only remembered the big rooster that ran away, but also remembered turning into a small path at her feet and finding an unconscious man half-lying in the spruce forest in the mountains.

Xie Yun, son of the Xie family.

On the same day in the previous life, Zhang Jingxian found him on the way into the mountains. Noticing that he was still breathing, she carried him down the mountain and took the trouble to invite a doctor to treat him.

She wanted to save his life and send him back to his home, but after waking up, he said that he had forgotten all the past and asked gently and politely if he could be allowed to recuperate here.

Zhang Jingxian looked at his slightly sad expression, her heart softened and she agreed.

However, it was not until her death that she realized that his gentleness and politeness were fake, his sadness was fake, and his amnesia was a complete deception of herself.

It was ridiculous that she was so stupid that she couldn't see through the contempt and disgust behind his smile. After he regained some of his memory and said that he was not yet married, she even said that they could live a simple life together in the mountains.

Zhang Jingxian has been lonely for too long, so long that her eyes have been blinded and she has developed delusions in her mind.

Reality dealt her a heavy blow, but the price of her awakening was death.

Somehow, she got a chance to start over, and this time, she thought she would never make the same mistake again.

Zhang Jingxian stood at a narrow fork in the road. The green grass with water droplets brushed against the hem of her skirt, leaving wet marks. She looked at the spruce tree not far away, and her mood was unexpectedly calm.

She only needed to rescue the person, and her subsequent actions would be just like her humble status: respect, keep a distance, not take the initiative, and not get close. She thought that she would not end up with the same result as in her previous life.

She came to the spruce forest and, following her memory, found the seriously injured and unconscious Xie Qillang at a glance.

He was half-leaning under a tree, his tall figure had a distinct presence, his dark bloodstained robe was slightly disheveled, and even though he was not conscious, the danger that was looming was still suffocating.

From Zhang Jingxian's perspective, the man's closed eyes, high nose bridge, and sharp jaw all made her heart stop.

This is a kind of handsomeness that tends to the extreme. The shadow of the treetops covers his face, which is gloomy and cold.

Zhang Jingxian looked at him for a while, and suddenly, she pulled out an arrow from behind her and firmly raised the short bow in her hand.

She aimed the polished arrow at the man under the tree, exerted force with her fingers until the bowstring was taut, and without hesitation, she shot.

In a flash, the man suddenly opened his tightly closed black eyes and stared at the girl holding the short bow with a gloomy look.

The arrow grazed his ear and pierced into the hard tree trunk. He stared at Zhang Jingxian motionlessly.

An eerie silence spread across the spruce forest. A bead of sweat appeared on the tip of Zhang Jingxian's nose, and she smiled bitterly in her heart.

She was indeed very silly and stupid. It turned out that he was not completely unconscious. He was conscious when she rescued him. How could she mistakenly think that such a sinister and cunning person was gentle and good-tempered?

“Tick-tock.”

The smelly poisonous blood slid down from the arrow and dripped onto the back of the man's hand. He looked away and saw a colorful black snake nailed to the tree trunk.

The more colorful the pattern, the stronger the toxin. It was obvious that the black snake was poisonous and almost took his life.

He turned his head to look at the beautiful girl one last time, and his eyes were exactly the same as the one of the black snake that was shot, which made people terrified.

Seeing this, Zhang Jingxian couldn't help but curl her lips. If she wanted him to die, she could just wait for him to fend for himself in the mountains. Why bother with all this unnecessary effort?

Maybe it was because of a moment's difference in time, and there was no poisonous snake crawling down in the previous life.

She slowly lowered the short bow and opened her lips, "Your Excellency is injured, but can you still move?"

Zhang Jingxian was born in Dongshan Village and grew up in Xishan Village. She has never left Wuyang County since she was a child. Wuyang County is a jurisdiction under Wuling County.

Her voice has the unique rhythm of the people of Wuling County, and is also like a clear spring in the mountains, slightly cool and slightly sweet.

The man raised his eyebrows slightly, then closed his eyelids again.

Only then did his body truly relax.

The girl in front of him was a native Han Chinese, not a member of the Hu tribe who were enemies of the Great Zhou.

"My Lord, are you still able to move?"

Seeing that he not only did not answer but closed his eyes, Zhang Jingxian asked again in a stern tone.

But he still didn't respond, his face was pale and he looked a little sick.

"My lord, please wake up."

"My Lord, you are awake."

"My dear!"

…

She called out several times, but the man under the tree turned a deaf ear, as if he had truly fainted. But Zhang Jingxian didn't believe him at all. She had been deceived by him too many times, even losing her life.

However, no matter how many times she called out, loudly or softly, only her voice echoed in the spruce forest.

Zhang Jingxian was tired of shouting and had no choice but to give up.

She was filled with anger and walked forward as if to vent her anger, reaching out and pushing his shoulder.

The man still didn't react, and even fell heavily against the tree trunk due to the force, looking quite embarrassed.

Zhang Jingxian saw the blood seeping from his robe, pursed her lips and paused.

After all, the old grudges between them could not be settled at this time. She thought about it, took off the cloth bag containing arrows and the short bow and placed them in front of her.

The mountain road was steep, so she could only choose to carry him back, just like in her previous life.

Fortunately, she has been strong since she was young, and she can bear the weight of an adult man with a gritted teeth.

The girl bent down and tied him behind her back with the vines she carried with her. She took a deep breath, stood up, and returned the way she came.

Her steps were sometimes deep and sometimes shallow, extremely slow.

The wild grass pulled at the robe, and the sun hiding behind the clouds shone through, bringing a steaming heat.

Xie Yun smelled the fragrance of green grass and orchids. He raised his eyes and saw a drop of crystal sweat sliding down from the girl's chin and also dripping onto the back of his hand.

Wonderful touch, soft body.

Xie Yun's dark gaze finally fixed on the girl's fingers. Because of the force, the slender joints were tinged with white and light blue.

He stared for a long time until he completely lost consciousness.

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A story about pride and prejudice. If you like it, please collect it~