Chapter 01: Past Fate

In the winter of the twenty-seventh year of Zhaohua, heavy snow fell in the capital.

Marquis Mu En wrapped himself in fur coat, raised his chin under the flattering smiles of the palace servants, ignored the servants, and strode into the palace gate.

After he left, the eunuch, who had been smiling flatteringly, instantly changed his expression and spat on the ground with disgust.

"Bah, what a thing! He's just a merchant, but he thinks he's a master just because he puts on official uniform!"

The eunuch next to him saw this and quickly restrained him, "You are trying to kill yourself!"

He looked around and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw no one was paying attention. "Forget it, after all, he has a good daughter. As long as the imperial concubine is here, who can do anything to him?"

The eunuch had only been upset for a moment, but now he had recovered, still feeling a bit scared. But it was freezing cold, and a break was rare. He waved to the young eunuch, motioning him over, and whispered, "I heard the Imperial Concubine doesn't seem well."

The young eunuch was so frightened that he covered his mouth and said, "How dare you say such nonsense? Have you forgotten what happened not long ago? It took three days to clean the blood in front of the Xuanzheng Hall."

Three months ago, the ninth prince, Prince Rui, born to the Imperial Concubine, died of a cold. Overwhelmed with grief, the Imperial Concubine fell into a coma. His Majesty, enraged, executed a number of concubines and palace maids, including those who had previously advised against the situation. Even the white bricks in front of the Xuanzheng Hall were dyed red. This kind of scene had only occurred seven years prior, when His Majesty issued the decree to confer the Imperial Concubine. For a time, everyone in the palace was in a state of fear, their words and actions held in a state of dread. It wasn't until the Imperial Concubine awoke from her coma three days later that the situation began to improve slightly.

His Majesty's love for the imperial concubine has reached the point of madness. Because of his love for the imperial concubine, the imperial concubine's biological father was promoted from an ordinary merchant to the Marquis of Mu En. As a result, the Song family became extremely prosperous, and even the real princesses and princes dared not compete with them.

If what I said today reached His Majesty's ears, I would probably be cut into pieces.

Recalling the tragedy of that day, the eunuch's eyes showed horror, but when he thought of the rumors that had been circulating in the harem recently, he became a little bolder.

"I'm not talking nonsense," he glanced around and lowered his voice, "I heard that the imperial physician has been frequently in and out of Fengwu Palace these past few days, and His Majesty has also stopped attending court and stayed with the Imperial Concubine from morning till night. It is said that... the Imperial Concubine may be gone in the next few days."

The Song family had no foundation, relying entirely on the Imperial Concubine for their current status. The Song family members were often arrogant and domineering in the capital, and many aristocratic families had long since disliked them. With the Imperial Concubine gone and no one to look after them, the Song family's prosperity and wealth would come to an end.

The young eunuch let go of his hand and couldn't help sighing: "In fact, the imperial concubine is also very good. She never beats or scolds us servants." Even most of the time when His Majesty was angry, it was the imperial concubine who persuaded him to stop.

"What a beautiful woman with a tragic fate..." The eunuch couldn't help but sigh. Thinking back to the Imperial Concubine's appearance he had seen before, she was truly a peerless beauty, whose mere frown could melt anyone's heart. No wonder His Majesty, despite all the criticism, took her into the palace and doted on her.

"I'm afraid that after the Imperial Concubine leaves, there will be more bloodshed in the palace."

But the lives of their slaves are the least valuable.

On the other side, Marquis Mu En finally arrived at Fengwu Palace.

He looked at the gold and jade decorations all over the palace. Any one of them he picked out was something he had never seen anywhere else. He had a further understanding of how favored his daughter was, and at the same time, he felt even more regretful.

How could His Royal Highness Prince Rui die of illness when he was fine? If it were another ten years, with His Majesty's love for his daughter, the throne would be in Prince Rui's hands, and the power of the Song family would be even greater by then.

What a pity! He took a sip of tea and couldn't help shaking his head.

After waiting for a long time, the palace maid finally came with the imperial concubine and took her seat.

"Why is father here?"

Hearing the voice, Marquis Mu En quickly put down his teacup, stood up and saluted: "Your Highness, I pay my respects to the Imperial Concubine."

"Father, why be so polite? Get up."

He heard the Concubine's voice, weak and limp, as if floating in the air. He looked up with some concern, and was even more shocked when he saw her appearance. He remembered that the Concubine had looked unwell the last time he came, but not as pale and thin as she was now, with sunken eye sockets and dark pupils that looked lifeless. Even then, she looked charming, but too cold, like a puppet without a soul.

"Is the imperial concubine okay now?" he asked worriedly.

"Are you okay?" Chan Zhen looked at the nervous expression in his father's eyes that didn't seem fake, tilted his head and chuckled, "Why not? With His Majesty here, how could I be okay?"

Marquis Mu En was relieved to see that she seemed to be in better spirits. He advised, "Your Majesty, please take better care of your health and don't worry too much. I am also deeply saddened by the matter of His Royal Highness Prince Rui, but the dead are gone, and it is the living who are more important. I heard that Your Majesty has been staying by your side for the past few days while you were in a coma. Your Majesty..."

Chanzhen listened to him ramble on again, his words showing no sadness for Prince Rui, but instead full of praise for His Majesty. Her heart went cold. Look, this was her good father. He thought it was wrong for her to be sad and heartbroken over her Zhao'er's death. Only His Majesty's feelings mattered. What did she and Zhao'er matter?

"Father, please tell me why you came here today." Chan Zhen forced himself to stay calm and interrupted him.

Seeing her surprised expression, Marquis Mu En stopped talking in anger.

Chan really didn't want to get entangled with him anymore. Her relationship with her family was not as good as outsiders thought. Her father only cared about his wealth and glory, but she had seen through her father's face and didn't want to interfere.

A sudden surge of air surged in his chest, and Chan Zhen couldn't help but cough twice. Seeing this, the maid Lu Zhu beside him hurriedly brought a cup of hot tea. Chan Zhen waved his hand, signaling her to leave.

Marquis Mu En didn't notice it. He was thinking about the instructions from his family and hesitated for a long time before speaking.

"Does your Majesty still remember Jiayin?"

Jiayin? Having been in the palace for so long, and unwilling to interact with his family much, Chanzhen felt a bit unfamiliar with the name. After thinking for a long time, he finally had a vague impression. "She's my cousin from my third uncle's family."

Zenzhen was born out of wedlock, brought home by her father at the age of eight. At that time, Jiayin was a newborn, a tiny ball cradled in the arms of her third aunt. She stood on tiptoe, curiously touching Jiayin's tiny hand. Jiayin smiled back at her, soft and adorable, a perfect match for her own Zhao'er. Later, because of her striking appearance, her father confined her to the courtyard and forbade her from leaving the house, and she and Jiayin rarely saw each other again.

Thinking of the girl who was as cute as Zhao'er when she was a child, Zen Zhen's heart softened and his expression eased.

"Jiayin is about to enter adulthood, right? I'll have the palace maids prepare some gifts later, and please take them back with you, father."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your concern. Jiayin will be entering college next month. I would like to thank you for your kindness on her behalf." Marquis Mu En felt relieved when he saw that she seemed to be quite fond of Jiayin. He then probed further, "Your Majesty seems to be somewhat fond of Jiayin. Why not ask Jiayin to come to the palace to accompany you for a few days to relieve your fatigue?"

Zen Zhen refused without thinking: "No need. The palace has strict rules and regulations. A little girl like her might not be able to adapt."

The palace is not a good place. The palace walls are tall and long, like a cage, imprisoning everyone inside. She knows that she will never be able to fly out in this lifetime, so how can she pull others in?

When Marquis Mu En heard her refusal, he became anxious: "Your Majesty, you have to think about yourself too."

Chanzhen heard something hidden in his words, and it seemed that he really wanted Jiayin to enter the palace. A guess suddenly appeared in her mind, making her feel cold all over.

"Father, what do you mean?"

Marquis Mu En didn't hide his feelings anymore and said directly, "His Royal Highness Prince Rui has passed away. Your Majesty is now childless and I am deeply saddened. I have asked Jiayin for her opinion, and she is willing to come to the palace to help Your Majesty. When Jiayin gives birth to a prince, Your Majesty can take him in and raise him under her name. His Majesty loves Your Majesty and will surely love this child very much..."

"Cough cough!" A surge of anger rushed to his chest. Zen Zhen couldn't help but cover his chest and cough violently. His body was shaking and he was about to fall down.

"Your Highness!" Lu Zhu rushed forward and quickly supported her. She also felt a bit of resentment towards Marquis Mu En. She turned around and said coldly, "My Lord, Your Highness is not feeling well. I will help you go back."

Blatantly driving away customers.

Marquis Mu En hadn't been treated so badly in a long time, so he scolded her, "How dare you, my servant!"

Luzhu was about to retort, but Chanzhen held her back. After catching his breath, he looked up at his father with a sorrowful look in his eyes: "Father, my Zhao'er just passed away, and you can't wait any longer?"

She couldn't wait to find someone to replace her, to replace her Zhao'er to maintain the prosperity of the Song family.

Marquis Mu En didn't dare to look his daughter in the eye, but said stubbornly, "This is all for the good of Your Majesty!"

If Prince Rui had not died young, and if the imperial concubine had not been in poor health, he would not have let others take advantage of him.

"Really?" Chan Zhen shed tears, all the suffering she had endured since childhood flooding back to her heart. She tearfully questioned, "Training me as a tool was for my own good? Sending me to be the Prince of Jin's concubine was for my own good? Forcing me into the palace was for my own good? And now sending Jiayin into the palace is also for my own good?"

She hated it. She hated that she had been abandoned in the outer courtyard since she was young, hated that she had been locked in her boudoir after returning home and could not go out, hated that she had been offered to the bed of Prince Jin like a commodity, hated that she had been forced to marry into the palace by the emperor, and even more hated that she could not protect Zhao'er! Her Zhao'er, so young and so well-behaved, why did God take him away!

It was she who had no sense of shame and it was she who deceived the king. If God wanted to punish her, he should punish her. Why should he bring retribution upon her Zhao'er?

Hearing her mention the past of Prince Jin, Marquis Mu En was horrified.

"Your Majesty, the Prince of Jin is already in the past. Why bother bringing it up? If His Majesty knew..."

"So what if he knows?" Chan Zhen no longer cared. She just wanted to vent the hatred in her heart. "He was shameless enough to seize Zi Shi by force. Why doesn't he let people talk about it? Does he think that if he silences everyone, this matter will disappear?"

"Your Highness!" Lu Zhu realized the situation had gotten out of control. The fact that Your Highness had been a concubine of the Prince of Jin before entering the palace had been kept secret for years; no one dared to test the Emperor's wrath. But now it was Your Highness who was being mentioned. Since His Majesty favored Her Highness, nothing would happen, and the only ones who would suffer were the palace maids.

"I won't let Jiayin enter the palace!" Chanzhen looked at his father, tears streaming down his face with every word. "No one can replace my Zhao'er!"

After she finished speaking, she finally couldn't bear the heat in her chest anymore, a mouthful of fishy-sweet taste gushed out of her mouth, and her body went limp.

"Your Majesty!" Lu Zhu was really anxious now, "Quickly call the imperial physician!"

The imperial doctors, who had not slept for several nights, once again stepped into Fengwu Palace with trepidation, and their Majesty, as expected, was already guarding the imperial concubine's bedside.

After taking the imperial physician's pulse, he felt his heartbeat pause with the slow and silent pulse. The imperial concubine's pulse...

"How's the Imperial Concubine?" Chen Dingyao, halfway through his court session, rushed in upon hearing the news, still in his court attire. He had been on the throne for years, wielding immense power and prestige. He had been worried about the Imperial Concubine for days, and though his face was dark and sallow, he didn't appear tired. His brow was furrowed, and his sharp eyes seemed to suppress a surging tide, rushing towards him like a tidal wave.

The imperial physician, not daring to meet the emperor's gaze, dropped to his knees with a thud, "I am incompetent. Your Majesty is beyond help!"

Then, everyone who was standing, except the emperor, knelt on the ground together.

The room was filled with silence, as if even the air had frozen. Everyone trembled, thinking that they would be faced with the emperor's wrath in the next moment.

However, the emperor seemed stunned.

The moment he heard those words, he felt as if he had fallen into a world of ice and snow. The cold wind whistled past him, and snow began to fall on his heart, and the surging black tide froze.

Then a touch of red appeared in his sight. He followed the red and saw the woman on the bed.

Her eyes were tightly closed, her face had lost its color, and her petite body was sunken in the quilt. No matter if it was love or hate, shock or fear, the eyes that made his heart beat would never open to look at him again.

After a long time, he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he had restrained his emotions and his eyes were as cold as ice.

"What on earth happened?" He pointed at the imperial concubine's personal maid and asked with suppressed anger, "The imperial concubine was clearly getting better when I left this morning. How could she become like this in just a short while?"

Luzhu was drenched in sweat, and the emperor's gaze seemed to show a desire to cut her into pieces. She tried her best to keep her voice from trembling, and whispered clearly what had just happened.

Marquis Mu En then met the emperor's cannibalistic gaze. His legs went limp and he could barely kneel. "Your Majesty..."

"You deserve to die!" Chen Dingyao was so angry that he kicked him hard in the chest. He never thought that he would be so bold as to have such an idea and even run to the imperial concubine to say it.

He had practiced martial arts for years and had personally fought on the battlefield before ascending the throne. In his rage, he used almost all of his strength in this kick, sending Marquis Mu En sprawling headfirst and feetward. But he ignored the pain and quickly knelt at the emperor's feet, kowtowed and begged for mercy, tears streaming down his face. "I know I was wrong. Your Majesty, please forgive me. For the sake of the Imperial Concubine, please spare me!"

"You dare mention the Imperial Concubine?" Chen Dingyao laughed in anger. He pointed at Marquis Mu En and cursed, "I named you Marquis Mu En so that you would remember that this is the Imperial Concubine's favor, but not only are you not grateful, but you even want someone to take the Imperial Concubine's place! What a good Marquis Mu En!"

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please spare my life!" Marquis Mu En could not say anything except to spare my life.

Chen Dingyao felt only disgust when he looked at his face. This was Chan Zhen's father, an unkind, greedy and shameless man. He should have cut him into pieces long ago to avenge Chan Zhen's years of suffering.

"Come here, drag him away!" He gnashed his teeth in hatred and said word by word, "If anything happens to the imperial concubine, I will make everyone in the Song family go down to be buried with her!"

Marquis Mu En's face turned pale and he said in a frightened voice, "Your Majesty!" He didn't expect that His Majesty would be so angry. The Song family is the concubine's maternal family!

"If you dare to say another word and disturb the imperial concubine's peace, I will pull out your tongue." Chen Dingyao bent down and grabbed his neck and threatened coldly. Seeing that he really kept quiet, he threw him aside in disgust.

When Marquis Mu En was dragged away, he offered no resistance, with only one thought remaining in his mind.

It's over, everything is over.

Even the imperial concubine's own father met such a fate, and others dared not make a sound, fearing that they would be the next to suffer.

Chen Dingyao's heart was burning with anger, and he couldn't find any outlet. He paced back and forth angrily in front of the window, looking at the imperial physicians and palace servants kneeling down. Besides resentment, he also felt a sense of powerlessness in his heart.

Why is it so difficult for him to keep one person even though he is already an emperor with great power?

He remembered how Chanzhen knelt on the ground and trembled when they first met, her fragility made him feel pity for her for the first time; he remembered how she looked back inadvertently in the hunting ground, and how stunning she was at that moment; he remembered how she was frightened by the carriage on the street and accidentally bumped into his arms, and when she looked up, her eyes were as confused as a deer; he also remembered the sadness and despair in her eyes when he forced her into the palace.

A strong feeling of powerlessness surged in his heart. What could he do to keep her?

"His Majesty."

A faint voice sounded, and he was instantly saved.

"Zenzhen!" Chen Dingyao rushed to her window almost immediately and held her hand tightly.

Normally, Zenzhen would have shaken his hand off, but she simply didn't have the strength. She glanced at the people kneeling on the ground, knowing he must be furious again. He was an unwavering tyrant, always decisive and unwavering. Zenzhen didn't want to risk her life in her final moments.

"Your Majesty, let them all go down and don't hurt them."

He closed his eyes, suppressed the rage rising in his heart, and said calmly as much as he could, "I will obey you."

As the imperial physician was leaving, he couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. He finally survived. He hoped that the imperial concubine would say more good things to His Majesty, otherwise he didn't know how His Majesty would go crazy again after the imperial concubine left.

Finally, everyone left and only the emperor and his concubine were left in the room.

Chen Dingyao held her hand and put it to his ear. Her hand was already very cold, so he held it tightly with his hand in an attempt to transfer his body temperature to her.

Chan Zhen looked at him calmly, realizing she hadn't really looked at him in ages. She didn't even realize how many white hairs had appeared on his head. She remembered how she had admired him at first. After all, he was still the wise and powerful emperor in her heart. If he hadn't forced her to do so, she would probably still admire him now.

"Your Majesty, I am leaving." She said calmly.

An inexplicable chill quickly spread throughout his body, and his heart felt like a huge hole had been stabbed. The pain made his eyes go black. Then he subconsciously tightened his grip on her hand and replied without thinking, "I won't let you go."

Zen Zhen smiled. This was the first time she smiled so softly at him.

"Your Majesty, you can't stop me this time." She looked up at the ceiling, her eyes filled with joy. "I'm going to find Zhao'er. I just dreamed of him, and he said he missed me very much."

When he heard the word "Zhao'er", his heart was hit hard again.

Yuan Zhao, this was the name he chose for their child after reading through poetry and books. He had been looking forward to his birth and taught him how to write and read. He even thought of passing the throne to Yuan Zhao as soon as he grew up to be eighteen years old. He would then take Chan Zhen to visit famous mountains and rivers and go with her to see the beautiful country under the rule of their child.

But he never lived to see Yuan Zhao grow up. He was heartbroken when Yuan Zhao died, and then Chan Zhen fell ill from grief. He didn't have the energy to worry about the child anymore, only wanting Chan Zhen to survive. Now, suddenly hearing the child's name from Chan Zhen's mouth, the overwhelming sadness flooded his chest again.

"You're going to find Zhao'er, but what about me?" He choked up, looking at her with eyes that were filled with both love and hate. "You still hate me and want to get rid of me."

Zen Zhen was not moved by him at all, and said calmly: "Your Majesty, we should not have had this ill-fated relationship."

Chen Dingyao was extremely angry, but he couldn't bear to get angry at her. He stared at her with his dark eyes: "Chanzhen, do you still think that there is a bad fate between us?"

Chan Zhen was originally extremely afraid of him, but now that he was about to leave, he became bolder and poured out many things that he had not dared to say before.

"Isn't it? I was originally the Prince of Jin's man, and you are the Prince of Jin's father. You can silence the world's gossips, but I know it in my heart. I have been unable to sleep or eat for so many years. I even think that Zhao'er's death is retribution from heaven."

"Enough, Chanzhen!" Chen Dingyao didn't want her to continue. "I am the Son of Heaven. Even the heavens cannot punish my prince. I am the one who wronged Yunyi. I know I was wrong, but I will never regret it."

"But I regret it." Chan Zhen looked at him coldly, "I shouldn't have met Prince Jin, and I shouldn't have met you."

Chen Dingyao's heart was shocked, and he lost all ability to speak in an instant.

Chanzhen felt very tired. In her life, from being a concubine raised in an alley, to being the daughter of the Song family detained in the mansion, from being a favored concubine in the Prince of Jin's mansion, to being the most famous imperial concubine in the six palaces, she had always been the one who was abandoned and forced. There was not a single step she wanted to take.

Only Zhao'er was the one she chose to bring into the world, but Zhao'er eventually abandoned her.

"I'm tired." Chan Zhen slowly closed his eyes and said in a faint voice, "Your Majesty, please let me go..."

The hand that was gradually getting cold finally fell from his palm. After a long silence, a tear fell on the edge of the bed.

"Zen Zhen." Chen Dingyao lowered his head and leaned closer to her face. The distance between them was so close that it felt like a fingertip, but he could only feel his own breath. The other breath that had once haunted him was gone. He suddenly burst into laughter, tears in his eyes, as if he was mad.

"I will never let you go, ever!"