Chapter 98 The Previous Life

In that chaotic darkness where lips and teeth intertwined and breaths mingled, Ji Yun's mind was in turmoil, with countless images and memories surging forth.

In that memory, his marriage to Meng Yutong remained unchanged, and they married as scheduled on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.

On their wedding night, red candles burned brightly, filling the room with a festive red hue. He stood in the room, dressed in his wedding attire, gazing at the figure in her phoenix coronet and embroidered robes beside the bed. The veil obscured her face, and he felt a weight of responsibility rising on his shoulders.

That night, they consummated their marriage.

After that, there was one more person in the household. At first, he thought it was just another pair of chopsticks, and life would continue as usual.

Later, I gradually discovered that this was not the case.

She was a gentle and considerate girl who treated him very well, but there seemed to be a hint of caution hidden in that kindness.

After Meng Yutong married into the family, she managed the household affairs in an orderly manner.

Even he himself didn't realize that the sleepless nights that had plagued him for years were gradually decreasing. With her sleeping beside him, he always fell asleep quickly and had a peaceful night.

He didn't know when it started, but his thoughts changed. This marriage was originally just to fulfill his duty, and he only wanted to treat her with respect.

But as he spent more time with them, he realized that what he wanted was more than that.

He was grateful to have met such a wonderful woman. For the first time, the man who had closed himself off and refused to change began to have the desire to change.

But after that incident, his personality became so awkward. He clearly wanted to get close to her and enjoyed the time he spent with her, but every time she approached, he would pretend to be indifferent.

Afterwards, however, they always regretted it, wondering if their attitude had been too cold.

Will it upset her?

He was determined to make a change, but it wasn't enough time.

Less than six months after their marriage, Gui, the old woman who served Meng Yutong, passed away in the countryside. She was heartbroken for a long time.

He sent Yunzhou to the countryside to investigate, but found something strange.

Not long after, when he examined Jin'an, Jin'an showed him an ebony hairpin.

That was Granny Gui's hairpin, carved by Meng Yutong himself. He had seen it on Granny Gui's head on the day she got married.

He asked Jin'an why she did this.

Jin'an laughed, her pale and beautiful face appearing particularly eerie with that laugh: "Do you know how I've lived these past years? Because of you, A-Zhao died. Such a good person, he's dead."

Her smile grew increasingly distorted: "Why should he die while you live well? No, you can't die. Letting you die would be too easy. You have to live, but you can't live well. Only by seeing you suffer can I feel any satisfaction."

That was the first time Jin'an had clearly warned him.

From that day on, he began having nightmares all night again. He dreamed of his brother's death, of Jin'an's eyes, of countless pigeons flapping their wings and surging towards him from all directions...

Perhaps disturbed by him, Meng Yutong also couldn't sleep well at night and kept tossing and turning.

He moved to the study. He didn't know what to do.

He couldn't sort out his thoughts, but time kept pushing him forward.

Her aunt died of poisoning at the spring banquet the following year. Jin'an risked her life to save the emperor during an assassination attempt, and from then on, she enjoyed the emperor's favor and was no longer the neglected princess she once was.

With power, it became easier for her to manipulate Meng Yutong.

Ji Yun began to study the prescription for treating heart disease even more diligently, day and night.

He thought that if he could cure Jin'an, perhaps her obsession would dissipate. If he couldn't cure her, at least he could use this prescription as a bargaining chip to beg her to let Meng Yutong go.

During this time, he dared not approach Meng Yutong.

But one's true feelings can never be hidden.

On the night of Granny Gui's death anniversary, she drank alone and passed out drunk in the house.

The maid was about to help her to rest when he happened to see it, so he dismissed the servants and carried her to bed himself.

Only at times like these does he not have to pretend.

He lowered his head and kissed her.

When I woke up the next day, I was covered in red rashes.

Fortunately, he had someone put away the other jar of wine, using the excuse that it was a problem with the wine, and managed to cover it up.

That winter, a plague spread through the city. While treating patients, he himself unfortunately contracted the disease.

My grandfather said that the treatment for his illness required a special herb called Purple Snow Ginseng, which grows on cliffs. No one had ever seen this herb before, and the entire medical staff was at a loss, including my grandfather.

A few days later, Meng Yutong, covered in mud and bruises, delivered the medicinal herbs to her grandfather. Her grandfather said that she had almost fallen off a cliff while trying to gather them.

In his hazy state of consciousness, his grandfather presented him with the Purple Snow Ginseng and told him how the herb was obtained.

He held the purple ginseng, still warm from her body, and felt a tightness in his heart. In the end, he said coldly, "Ignorant and reckless! What kind of image would it be if something went wrong?"

He took the Purple Snow Ginseng and rested for a while, and soon recovered. After he recovered, he went to the palace as usual to treat Jin'an.

When Jin'an brought up his illness, her tone was calm, but her words were cutting: "You're lucky to have survived such a disease. Your wife truly treated you with all her heart."

She looked up at him, her eyes devoid of warmth. "How come you're so lucky to meet someone who truly cares for you?"

She paused, then softened her voice: "Ji Yun, do you know what it feels like to lose someone you love?"

He lowered his eyes, concealing many emotions in his heart. Perhaps all that had happened today was what he had to bear. He sensed Jin'an's unusual obsession.

She used to be able to kill Granny Gui silently, and now that she has power, dealing with Meng Yutong is an extremely simple matter for her.

Ji Yun forced himself to say, "I don't love her. I live in pain every day, just like you."

Jin'an chuckled softly, "Don't lie to me. I hate it when people lie to me."

He had no choice but to repeat himself: "I don't love her."

After returning from the palace that time, he became even more distant from Meng Yutong.

He watched as the light in her eyes dimmed little by little. She stopped approaching him and became quiet and submissive, like a delicate puppet.

They lived under the same roof, yet it was as if an invisible wall separated them. Many nights, he stood in the yard watching her window with the lights off, suppressing all his emotions, thinking that this was how he was protecting her.

He eventually managed to concoct a prescription to treat his heart ailment.

On Jin'an's birthday, he went to the palace for a banquet and handed her the prescription.

He said he had done what he promised his brother and hoped she could also let go of the past and start anew.

Jin'an took the prescription, a genuine smile appearing on her face for the first time in years. She promised him that she would live well and no longer dwell on the past.

He believed it.

As soon as the banquet ended, he rushed back to his residence. He thought everything could finally start anew.

The mansion was eerily quiet. Qing Shu knelt in the courtyard, while Bai Zhi's sobs came from inside the house.

He rushed into the room and saw her lying on the floor, her face ashen and withered, almost unrecognizable, with black blood still dripping from her lips.

Bai Zhi cried so hard she almost fainted.

Beside her lay a divorce agreement, the ink long since dried. The agreement stated that she would have no further connection with him.

He stepped forward to pick her up and see her, but before he could touch her, Bai Zhi pushed him away with all her might.

He collapsed to the ground, a metallic taste rising in his throat, and everything before his eyes shattered in an instant.

These memories surged up like a tide, overwhelming him.

The care he deliberately ignored, the cold words he thought he could use to protect her, her silent dedication, and the icy touch of her body... all of it all came back to me clearly at this moment.

He abruptly pulled away from Meng Yutong's lips, gasping for breath in the darkness, his heart feeling as if it were being torn apart, the pain making it hard for him to breathe.

So that's how it is.

It turns out that there was a life separating them. It turns out that all her estrangement, resistance, reluctance to owe him favors, and unwillingness to have anything to do with him in this life were all because of the foolish decisions he made in his past life.

He looked at Meng Yutong, who was still fast asleep on the bed, his eyes filled with remorse. He slowly reached out and touched her cheek very lightly, his fingers trembling.

"Ah Ying..." he called again, this time his voice filled with the fear of losing her and the deep guilt, "I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

The moonlight was blocked out of the window, and the room was pitch black, with only his heavy breathing remaining.

He sat for a long time before finally standing up dejectedly and stumbling out.

It was midnight when he left Zhaoyutang.

The long street was deserted and silent, with only a few fallen leaves swirling in the autumn wind on the bluestone pavement.

Every household had its doors tightly shut, and the occasional hanging lantern cast a dim, yellowish light that echoed the desolate full moon in the sky, making him appear even more alone. His long shadow stretched out in the moonlight, conveying an indescribable loneliness and desolation.

He wandered aimlessly through the empty streets like a puppet with a lost soul, unaware of where he came from or where he was going.

He walked on like that, and when he came to his senses, he found himself unknowingly walking to the west of the city.

Before me stood Zhang the Blind's storytelling stall, which had long since closed, leaving only an empty counter and a few haphazardly placed benches, appearing particularly desolate under the moonlight.

He remembered that he had passed by this place with Meng Yutong that day and heard the play "The Broken Mirror's Mistake".

They heard the final act, but not the ending. To this day, he still doesn't know what happened to the couple in the play who were separated by a misunderstanding, or whether the woman... ever looked back.

The two protagonists in the story are so similar to their situation.

But Meng Yutong said that if she were that woman, she would choose to stay away from trouble and let each other live in peace.

That's definitely her personality. If she knew I had regained my memories, she would definitely stay far away from me. The way she treats me now is finally a little different from before.

Ji Yun was instantly jolted awake from his delirious remorse. A clear pain flashed across his face, then his eyes suddenly became sharp and resolute.

No, he cannot wallow in past guilt.

Now that Heaven has given him a second chance and allowed him to recall all his past experiences, he absolutely cannot stand by and watch tragedy repeat itself.

He wanted to rewrite the ending, whether it was the ending of the couple in the play, or his and A-Ying's.

He knew that Zhang the Blind had been telling stories here for many years. Because of his leg problems, his home was located in the narrow alley behind the storytelling stage, which was very easy to find.

Ji Yun no longer hesitated and went straight to the low tile-roofed house. He didn't care about etiquette and pushed the door open, pulling the still-sleeping Zhang the Blind Man out of bed.

Zhang the Blind was so startled that he was wide awake. His eyesight had been ruined by years of reading, and he could only see blurry outlines. He was completely bewildered and had no idea who it was.

Ji Yun ignored them, his face cold, his voice hoarse from suppressing his surging emotions: "What is the ending of the final act of 'The Broken Mirror'?"

Zhang the Blind Man rubbed his sleepy eyes and mumbled a reply: "The woman was heartbroken and did not turn back. They went their separate ways."

His face paled instantly, and a hint of fear crept into his usually cool eyes.

"Change it." Ji Yun's voice was firm and unquestionable. "Change it to: They reconcile, mend their broken relationship, and from then on, the couple lives in harmony and grows old together."

Having lived to such an old age, this was the first time Zhang the Blind Man had encountered such an absurd request. Half-awake, he instinctively wanted to refuse: "This...this ancient script cannot be changed so easily..."