Chapter 128 Awakening

“The fate of a nation can sometimes be understood as the fortune of a dynasty, so the energy I need is essentially a kind of fortune.”

"When Da'an was in turmoil, going back was a way out, but it could only be used once."

The White Group revealed the truth: "I was indeed unable to stabilize the energy of the Great Peace and Stability, so I borrowed the fortune that belonged to them."

“Wu Yue, the Four Elders of Jianghu, Yan Qing, Fang Mu, Zhou Chaoyun, the Cui siblings, the Yi sisters, Huo Shengge, Lin Mingshan, Lin Quan…” Bai Tuan recited many names she had heard of and had never heard of, as if she were counting soldiers. “Different people can borrow different kinds of luck from me. Among them, there are three people who are the most special—Mo Xin, Cheng Xiao, and [Jiang Xiqu].

Upon hearing the names of these three people, Shang Yuji's long eyelashes blinked faster than usual.

Unexpectedly, Bai Tuan denied it again: "Mo Xin and Cheng Xiao are actually products of the nation's attempt to save itself."

"Mo Xin was a martial arts prodigy, and in her previous life, she actually became the youngest martial arts alliance leader in history based on her strength. She was given the mission of restoring order. In short, she was born to fight against Jiang Xiqu and, if necessary, take his life. But Jiang Xiqu's strength exceeded everyone's expectations, and Mo Xin failed."

"Cheng Xiao was born to solve the food crisis in Da'an, to increase grain production, and to solve the population problem... With his destiny, his achievements will benefit thousands of generations, and he will become a renowned agricultural scholar. Unfortunately, the nation's fortune gave him talent, but it failed to provide him with a safe environment to grow up in. The country was unstable, and bandits were rampant. Even though he escaped the Cangzhou horse racing incident, he could not escape the coercion of bandits and the lingering illness. Before he grew up, he was buried in a deep mountain valley."

Shang Yuji rested her chin on her hand and poked its head: "So, you were behind my meeting him in Cangzhou?"

"You can't call it haunting! You were the one who said you wanted a great agricultural talent, so I'm just packing Cheng Xiao and Granny Cheng together for you!"

"As for [Jiang Xiqu]..." Bai Tuan's simple little black bean eyes could actually express complex emotions. "He was an existence outside the plan. If he doesn't die, I can't start a new life. So, I both ask him to die and ask him for his share of the rich fortune."

Shang Yuji slapped him down: "You want it all? He's someone I'm protecting now. You're saying all this outright. Aren't you afraid I'll beat you up?"

Bai Tuan simply laid out his mess on the ground: "I'm a good player, I won't force anyone, so I made a deal with him too."

"Although it's not very kind of him, he agreed, willingly [died], and willingly gave up his life force. His life force was very strong, but he was really suffering."

“Growing up in such a harsh environment, it’s hard enough for him to survive. It’s too much to expect him to grow up to be upright. Besides, wasn’t it you who caused his bitter fate?” Shang Yuji retorted with dissatisfaction.

"That's what they say... but I can't change it. I don't have the power to alter their fate. Once it's decided, it's the end." The soft light of the entire dumpling visibly dimmed, so the Great An of the previous life was like a stagnant pool. No matter how hard they tried, the cart of national ruin was unstoppable, rushing towards the abyss, and they couldn't be dragged back.

What kind of deal did you make with him?

“I showed him the future. I don’t know what he saw, but then he agreed to die.”

On the day of his death, countless Gu worms burst forth from his body, and millions more birds and beasts rushed towards the imperial city. The insects and birds blotted out the sky, plunging the world into darkness. The person at the center of the upheaval smiled strangely, but it was indeed a sincere and pure smile. His eye sockets were torn and bleeding, and two streams of bloody tears flowed down his face. He mumbled something awkwardly, and the tremor he caused was so great that Bai Tuan could only vaguely make out what sounded like two words.

Looking back now, it seems that when he saw her in the future, he called out her name.

“Ah… Ji…”

The more Bai Tuan thought about it, the gloomier it became, and he said with some difficulty, "Looking at it now, he agreed to exchange his death for a future where he could meet you."

"What a fool, how could he be so easily fooled?"

"...Shang Yuji, thank you. You did a great job, much better than we originally planned. Thank you for your hard work."

"Don't think that just because you praise me, you can avoid paying me."

The white ball pretended not to hear and replied with a sobbing voice. The round pancake, which had been spread out on the ground, inflated and became perfectly round. It put its hands on its hips and said, "Of course not! I'm a good ball who follows the rules! You did such a good job, I should give you a reward!"

I chatted with Bai Tuan for a while longer, asking all my questions. It's not easy to find someone as knowledgeable as Bai Tuan who can answer all my questions, so I'm determined to use up all of its knowledge!

Therefore, Shang Yuji understood that Zhou Ao was the one who ascended the throne in the previous life. Zhou Ao was dissatisfied with Zhou Yun and sent Jiang Xi to kill Zhou Yun in advance. However, he did not know that Zhou Yun had secretly refined Jiang Xi into a "Gu Man," which can be understood as an upgraded version of a monster with consciousness. Zhou Yun did not expect that the "Gu Man" and Jiang Xi, who served the Gu with her body, were not under his control and could even control the monster to kill him.

In order to survive, Zhou Yun activated the poison and Gu in the brains of the three elders of the martial arts world, and made them fight Jiang Xi. As a result, the four of them were unable to determine a winner, and Zhou Yun died first from the burning of his heart. After Zhou Yun died, the three elders, in their confused state, even though they recovered their remaining memories, also died from the poison, unable to talk to Jiang Xi, who was suspected to be the son of an old friend.

Zhou Ao had a small amount of nerve-affecting poison in his body, administered by Zhou Yun, which caused him great emotional fluctuations and instability. Zhou Yun's original plan was to wait for the right moment for Zhou Ao to be poisoned so that he could ascend the throne, but he died prematurely and was instead taken over by Zhou Ao.

However, the poisonous Gu that Jiang Xiqu released when he died, without his suppression, ravaged the entire imperial city, and Zhou Ao could not escape his fate either.

In the harem, the deceased Empress was the unforgettable figure of the entire harem, and Consort Shu could be considered her friend, though the Emperor was unaware of this. Knowing that the Empress was ill and that the Emperor was intervening, Consort Shu waited for an opportunity to avenge her friend and herself, but unfortunately, Consort Shu also did not meet a good end.

The poison that caused the emperor to fall ill was made by Zhou Yun, and the beauty who poisoned him was also his man. The palace had long been riddled with holes, yet the emperor was still keeping a close eye on his own little territory.

Two people know about their past lives: Zhou Ao and Jiang Xiqu. Da'an needs a memory anchor, but Jiang Xiqu voluntarily gives it up. The dissipated memory anchor transforms into a dissipated fortune, which protects the little Shang Siya in Shangjia Village and is then used by Bai Tuan to guide Shang Siya to the capital.

Therefore, Zhou Ao has memories of his past life, while Jiang Xiqu, although he can recall them in his dreams, will forget them completely when he wakes up.

Even in his memories, Zhou Ao wouldn't know things he didn't know in his previous life. His life in his previous life was too smooth sailing, which made him complacent in this life. He thought the throne would eventually belong to him, but in the end, it was just a pipe dream of becoming emperor.

After listening, Shang Yuji concluded, "No one has a good ending."

Ultimately, in turbulent times, a tiny speck of dust in history can become an insurmountable mountain when it falls on a person, and no one can find peace amidst turmoil.

"That's why everyone is willing to lend me their luck, to try and see if we can change the ending for Da'an!"

Having learned too much inside information at once, Shang Yuji needed some time to process it. Before that, she picked up the white ball of fluff, brought it in front of her, and looked it in the eye: "You have to take me back now. If it gets any later, Elder Yan will give me the Thirteen Ghost Needles. It wouldn't be good if he forced me to turn into a hedgehog."

"Yeah! It's been so long since we last talked, I accidentally said 'so long'! I'll take you home~"

...

"Hey, Shang Xiaoni, wake up quickly, I can't handle this crybaby of yours."

Yan Qing looked distressed. No matter how you looked at it, Shang Yuji was clearly exhausted and had fallen into a deep sleep. Whenever he tried to wake her up with acupuncture, that annoying Jiang boy would immediately block his way.

Shang Nizi won't wake up, and all Jiang Xiaozi does is cry. He can't beat Jiang Xiaozi, so he can't wake Shang Nizi up. Things are at a stalemate. What a mess!

But Jiang said that the girl felt perfectly normal before she fainted, and that she wasn't sick and didn't need injections, but when asked to explain in detail what was normal, he couldn't give a clear answer.

Yan Qing even considered sneaking through the window at night to give Shang Nizi acupuncture, but Jiang Xiaozi was very wary!

As soon as he entered the area of ​​the palace gate, he was spotted by Jiang Xiaozi. When he sneaked in, he was met with a face staring straight at him.

He had no expression, but his eyes were extremely alert. If it weren't for his friendship with Shang Nizi and his nighttime intrusion being for her sake, Jiang Xi would have taken his life if he had made any rash move.

Two days have passed since the great battle at Zhengqing Hall. The heavy clouds that had been hanging over the area for days finally cleared up two days ago, and now the sky is clear and the weather is sunny and breezy – a rare treat.

As consciousness returned, the sunlight warmed my body, a gentle breeze carried the fragrance of flowers and grass, and the occasional chirping of insects and birds could be heard.

With her hand tightly clenched, Shang Yuji opened her eyes. Her eyelids were sore and heavy, indicating that she had slept for two days and her body was numb.

Fang sensed the change in her breathing rhythm, and the person holding her hand quickly stood up and leaned closer to examine her face for any unusual movements.

Then she met those all-too-familiar eyes: "Old Yan has been complaining to me, saying that you've annoyed him with your crying. Why are you crying like this?"

Jiang Xi's tears, which had dried up from crying, welled up again: "Aji, I miss you."

Shang Yuji had no choice but to apologize and quickly explained, "I didn't expect to be gone for so long. Please bring me a bowl of water; my throat is so dry."

After drinking the warm water, Shang Yuji barely recovered. A palace maid brought over some warm porridge, and Jiang Xi, while crying, fed her with a spoon.

He didn't cry so hard his hands were shaking. On the contrary, she was weak all over from sleeping for so long and needed to sit up with her head on a pillow to save energy, eating the porridge he fed her little by little.

With faint dark circles under her upturned fox-like eyes, Shang Yuji laughed and said, "What will you do without me?"

Just as he put down the bowl of porridge, he heard Aji's sigh. He said slowly, "We can't live without Aji."

"Yes, I have to take good care of myself, even if it's just for your sake."

"Thank you, Aji... Aji will definitely be alright."

Before leaving, Bai Tuan looked at her deeply with his black bean eyes: "Fate should have only acknowledged the existence of [Jiang Xiqu], but when you changed it to [Jiang Xiqu], fate recognized the legitimacy of [Jiang Xiqu]. Perhaps from that moment on, the wheel of fate began to turn rapidly."

Shang Yuji had him sit on the edge of the bed. She had just taken his right hand in her hands and was racking her brains to come up with some nice words to coax Jiang Xi and soothe his anxiety of the past two days.

Before the palace doors could be pushed open in a great hurry, Yan Qing shouted with a strong voice:

"I knew you were tough, little girl. I haven't even become a specially appointed teacher at Da'an Medical College yet, so you can't leave us fellow students to clean up your mess!"

"Hey, what are you doing?!" What are you doing holding hands and gazing at each other so affectionately in broad daylight?!

Shang Yuji was both amused and exasperated: "I was just about to coax you when you arrived."

Speaking of Jiangxi, Yan Qing had a lot of grievances to tell!