Chapter 1 (Revised) "Hmm... I only like my cousin..."

At the end of the year, in the depths of winter, heavy snow fell.

In the dark, secluded room, Shen Yunzhi, bound by iron chains, huddled in a corner of the bed, her whole body shivering with cold.

She stared blankly at Cui Huai's departing figure.

His head was buzzing, his face was deathly pale, and his slightly parted lips had lost all color.

The warmth of Cui Huai's fingertips still lingered on her chin, and the words he had spoken as he leaned down echoed in her ears: "Impossible. In this life, the next, and for all eternity, Yunzhi can only stay by my side."

Every word and phrase exuded a dangerous aura, like the spitting tongue of a venomous snake.

Cui Huai grasped her ankle, his fingers lightly tracing the iron chain. She saw a terrifying light flash in his eyes, tinged with a secret and eerie satisfaction.

The last glimmer of hope was utterly shattered.

He's getting married.

The woman he married would naturally not be her.

However, even so, he still showed no intention of letting her go.

They wouldn't let her go, and they certainly couldn't keep her around forever.

She was a stain on the life of the noble and proud Crown Prince of Chu, a stain that would eventually be erased.

Today, she is beyond saving.

After she tricked Cui Huai into escaping and was then caught by him, Cui Huai no longer trusted her.

All she could do was calmly accept everything.

Shen Yun sesame wood thought to himself.

When he saw that the person who delivered the poisoned wine was Cui Huai's younger brother, Cui Hong, his heart trembled.

Cui Huai is a complete madman!

"Cousin, I'm sorry."

“I…” Cui Hong hesitated, his face full of reluctance.

Shen Yunzhi's gaze swept over Cui Hong's injuries inch by inch. Looking at his bruised and swollen face, she shook her head: "Second Young Master, it's my fault for dragging you down." If she hadn't helped her escape back then, Cui Hong wouldn't be in this state.

It's probably time to end this.

So much regret, resentment, and grief were silently swallowed back down with a cup of poison.

As the poisoned wine went down her throat, Shen Yunzhi closed her eyes.

A sharp pain gradually began to afflict my body, my consciousness became scattered, my thoughts became blurred, and I could no longer clearly hear the sounds around me.

The cacophony seemed to accompany Cui Huai's voice.

But it doesn't matter anymore.

As she drifted away from consciousness, Shen Yunzhi couldn't help but think that if she had known Cui Huai was inherently filled with obsession and madness, she would never have coveted him or provoked him. She would have, absolutely stayed far away from this person...

·

In the warm spring season, the spring sunshine is bright and beautiful.

A gentle breeze carrying a sweet floral fragrance brushed past my nose.

"Miss, wake up! The young master is here!"

The maid Qiuyue's urgent voice rang in her ears. Shen Yunzhi heard it clearly, but her eyelids felt extremely heavy and her thoughts were in complete chaos.

Wasn't Qiu Yue betrayed by Cui Huaifa?

At that time, Cui Huai imprisoned her. Qiu Yue helped her escape, but Cui Huai and his men captured them. She and Cui Huai had a fierce argument about this, and in a fit of anger, Cui Huai sold her, his only maid, without letting her know where he sold her.

Why did she hear Qiuyue's voice again...?

Besides, didn't she just drink poisoned wine and die from the poison?

Shen Yunzhi opened her eyes with a dazed look.

The sun shines brightly, and the flowers and trees are lush and verdant.

Nearby, several peonies are in full bloom, while in the distance, clusters of pink and white flowers adorn the branches of several peach and apricot trees, like clouds and mist.

The bright spring scenery made Shen Yunzhi's heart flutter and her thoughts froze.

Is she dreaming, or...?

"Miss, the young master has arrived!"

Seeing her young mistress lost in thought, Qiuyue quickly tugged at Shen Yunzhi's sleeve and whispered a reminder.

As her sleeve was tugged, Shen Yunzhi awoke as if from a dream, finally realizing her predicament. She was in a covered walkway in the Chu Prince's residence, outside of which lay a small garden—the path that Prince Cui Huai, the heir apparent, always took to his study. In the past, she often waited here for Cui Huai to pass by.

At that moment, Cui Huai was walking over from the other end of the covered walkway.

Their gazes fell on that tall, slender figure.

A young man, as graceful as a pine tree and as radiant as the moon, wore a dark blue robe and had his hair tied up with a golden crown.

Upon seeing his figure in the distance, her mind was instantly flooded with all her experiences. Whether it was a dream or not, Shen Yunzhi just wanted to leave.

"Hurry up."

Shen Yunzhi, who was sitting on the balustrade of the veranda, suddenly stood up.

She whispered something to Qiuyue, then lifted her skirt and descended the stone steps, leaving the veranda and hurrying into the small garden.

Qiuyue was confused. Wasn't it that Miss wanted to send the young master some newly made pastries?

But her young mistress had already left, so she could only carry the food box and follow.

Stepping into the covered walkway, Cui Huai could see Shen Yunzhi in the distance.

He had some recollection of this cousin.

After all, there was no one else around him who liked to wait for him in this corridor.

It was clearly a deliberate attempt to block him, but he would always find a clumsy excuse to say it was a "coincidence." Sometimes he would give him a food box containing pastries, sometimes he would give him an exquisite sachet, and sometimes he would ask him to teach him painting or calligraphy. Once, he even gave him a clay figurine.

What is today?

His gaze swept over the food box carried by the maid, and Cui Huai calmly guessed that it contained snacks.

However, his guess was not confirmed this time.

My cousin suddenly fled as if she were escaping, her pink skirt billowing behind her in her hurried steps, like a delicate flower blooming in spring.

A new trick?

Cui Huai remained expressionless, his heart indifferent, but out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of a handkerchief left under the beauty's armrest.

The handkerchief is embroidered with beautiful crabapple blossoms.

After a few moments of silence, Cui Huai glanced in the direction Shen Yunzhi had left, then tucked the handkerchief he had picked up into his sleeve.

...

"Miss, wait for me!"

After passing through the small garden, Qiuyue could hardly keep up with Shen Yunzhi's hurried pace.

Upon hearing this, Shen Yunzhi slowed her pace and looked back at her personal maid, who had fallen quite a distance behind. She stopped in her tracks, waiting for Qiuyue to catch up. In this brief moment, she calmed herself down and suppressed the panic and helplessness in her heart.

It wasn't the dead of winter, nor was it a dimly lit, enclosed room.

Even Cui Huai didn't pay attention to her and didn't come to arrest her.

"Qiuyue, what happened just now?"

With no one around, she looked at her maid who was running up to her and asked in a low voice, feigning confusion.

Qiu Yue, panting and even more bewildered, said, "I also want to know what's wrong with you, Miss. You never fall asleep on the chaise longue while waiting for the young master like this. And now that the young master has arrived, you're leaving. What should we do with all these pastries?" As she spoke, she held up the food box in her hand. "Miss specially made these pastries according to the young master's taste. Wouldn't it be a waste not to send them away?"

She fell asleep on the chaise longue...

Shen Yunzhi's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she secretly pinched herself.

The pain struck, and she shuddered, yet this pain brought her joy.

It's not a dream!

Did she actually travel back in time?!

Shen Yunzhi was shocked and had no mind to talk about anything else; she just wanted to figure out what was going on. Forcibly ignoring Qiuyue's words, she mumbled, "I think I'm still half asleep. I just felt like I'd forgotten something important. What day is it today?"

"Today... isn't a special day." Qiu Yue was even more confused.

After a brief pause, Qiuyue hesitated again, "The Prince's family banquet is in a few days. Is this what you wanted to ask, Miss?"

The Prince's family banquet is held on the fifteenth of every month, and now it is springtime again.

Shen Yunzhi's thoughts were slightly sluggish.

It must be in February.

It was her fifth month at the Chu King's residence.

because--

After the family banquet at the Prince's Mansion in February, she hadn't been there for a long time and had a chance encounter with Cui Huai.

It seems she has truly gone back to the past.

Go back to when I was sixteen.

Shen Yunzhi lowered her eyes, concealing the bitterness in them.

Memories flooded my mind, and all sorts of old things came to mind vividly.

Years ago, a great flood caused the accidental deaths of her parents and elder brother. Her aunt rushed to the funeral, held her in her arms, and wept bitterly. Knowing that she was all alone, she left someone to take care of her. After the mourning period, she specially sent someone to bring her back to the Chu Prince's Mansion. From then on, she became a cousin living in the Chu Prince's Mansion.

Her aunt treated her very well, caring about everything she did, and also considering that she was almost sixteen years old and was thinking carefully about her marriage.

But she was suddenly overcome with girlish feelings and began to secretly admire Cui Huai.

The Crown Prince of Chu had long, bright eyebrows and a handsome face, with deep eyes that often held a smile. He was always kind and gentle. In the eyes of the world, this young man, of noble birth yet gentle, refined, and courteous, easily captured the hearts of countless young women.

She was one of them at that time.

When she first arrived at the Chu Prince's residence, she was invited to a snowball fight and ended up covered in snow. It was Cui Huai who stepped in to stop her and end the prank.

Therefore, she, like everyone else, always thought that Cui Huai was a gentle and polite person. She coveted him, forcibly claiming to be his cousin, and went to great lengths to get close to him and attract his attention.

How can they really be considered cousins?

The Prince of Chu had two sons and one daughter.

The eldest son, Cui Huai, who is also the heir of the royal family, was born to the late queen, while the second son, Cui Hong, and the only daughter, Cui Lizhu, were born to different concubines.

Her aunt did not bear any children for the Prince of Chu and was merely Cui Huai's stepmother.

The two of them are not related by blood.

She deliberately called him "cousin" to try and get closer to him.

Cui Huai initially refused as well.

later……

It was on the night of the Prince's family banquet in February, when she first stepped into Cui Huai's study.

At the family banquet, Cui Huai drank some wine.

She went out of her way to curry favor and specially prepared a hangover soup to send to his study.

At that time, she had heard that no young lady had ever entered Cui Huai's study before, so when Cui Huai called her in, she was overjoyed and did not hand the hangover soup to his attendant. She clearly remembered that when she entered the study alone, she walked around a screen with green pines and bright moonlight. In the dim light, under the deep candlelight, Cui Huai sat on the couch, his clothes slightly open, and he looked somewhat disheveled.

This was the first time she had stepped into Cui Huai's study, and the first time she had seen him like this.

As she approached, her heart pounding, Cui Huai suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist through her sleeve. He looked up at her, his gaze burning as intensely as his scorching palm.

"Cousin Zhi, please help me."

Cui Huai's low, husky voice echoed in the study as he used her hand...

That night, Cui Huai was drugged for some unknown reason.

For a long time, she didn't know how to face him, but she was secretly pleased with herself, thinking that she was different from him.

Until she discovered that Cui Huai was acting as usual, treating her no differently than before, as if nothing had happened in his study that night.

She finally realized, belatedly, that Cui Huai had no feelings for her.

But they still made a mistake.

At first she couldn't understand it, and it was only through repeated reflection and testing that she realized that that night might have been the beginning.

Cui Huai was disgusted that she had seen his pathetic side and saw through his gentle facade.

What followed served as a punishment.

Whether it's a dream or not, this event has not yet occurred.

If it weren't a dream, if she had truly returned to the past, she would still have had a chance to avoid this incident and change her fate.

"Miss?"

When Qiu Yue saw Shen Yunzhi lost in thought, she found her behavior very strange.

He couldn't help but reach out to check the temperature of her forehead.

Coming to her senses, Shen Yunzhi grasped Qiuyue's wrist, shook her head, and smiled, "I'm fine." The thought of being able to completely escape Cui Huai not only made her feel alright, but also filled her with boundless anticipation.

With a bright future ahead and a sudden sense of openness in her heart, Shen Yunzhi's eyes curved into a smile.

"Let's go back."

Shen Yunzhi lived in Yunxi Courtyard, located in the southwest corner of the Chu Prince's Mansion.

The familiar courtyard and everything she knew filled her heart with a bittersweet feeling; she never wanted to live those dark and hopeless days again.

As I walked to the Luohan bed, I noticed a sachet on the table that was about to be embroidered.

The fabric has a dark bamboo leaf pattern, on which a lifelike crane is embroidered. It took her a lot of effort to complete the embroidery.

The original intention was to give it to Cui Huai under the guise of the Shangsi Festival.

But it's no longer necessary.

"Put all of these away," Shen Yunzhi instructed Qiuyue, her lips slightly pursed.

Qiuyue asked in confusion, "Is Miss no longer embroidering?"

“There’s no need to embroider anymore.” Shen Yunzhi’s eyes were full of sincerity. “Qiuyue, I’ve thought it through. I will no longer covet people I shouldn’t covet. His Highness is indeed not someone I can aspire to.”

...

"Cousin Zhi, who is the person you like?"

"Cousin, cousin..."

"You only like your cousin?"

"Hmm...I only like my cousin..."

After receiving a satisfactory answer through a barrage of threatening questioning, burning kisses continued to fall upon him.

Then it was another frenzied and unrestrained outburst.

Shen Yunzhi suddenly opened her eyes in a panic. Her consciousness slowly returned, and the scene from her dream flashed through her mind, but she was still shaken. She raised her hand and gently pressed it to her chest. After a long while, she managed to drive away the shadows of the past that lingered in her heart.

It is the third day.

Although she had been having such dreams every night for days, the fact that they were just dreams only made Shen Yunzhi more certain that she had returned to the past.

How wonderful, but it was just a dream.

Shen Yunzhi raised her hand to wipe the thin layer of sweat from her forehead. Seeing that it was already bright daylight, she called out to Qiuyue to help her get up and wash.

Just as she was getting ready, Liu, the old woman who served her aunt, arrived.

Granny Liu came to deliver a message: her aunt wanted her to come to the main courtyard for breakfast and to check if she was satisfied with the new spring clothes made by the embroidery workshop.

However, Shen Yunzhi knew that it was not just that.

On this day, her aunt would bring up the matter of finding a suitable husband for her.

"Okay, I'll be right there."

Shen Yunzhi smiled and agreed to Liu Mama's words. After dressing up, she left Yunxi Courtyard and headed to the main courtyard.

In her past life, she had other plans and hesitated to agree to the marriage proposal.

The lessons learned have been too painful; we should make plans as soon as possible.

Fortunately, although she had previously shown her goodwill towards Cui Huai in many ways, Cui Huai never appreciated it.

Since he had no interest, it's not surprising that she was disheartened and gave up on the idea.

Let's set aside what happened that night at the family dinner.

Then, under the guise of meeting her future husband, she gradually distanced herself from Cui Huai.

Everything proceeded smoothly.

I suppose he wouldn't care too much about it now.

The more Shen Yunzhi thought about it, the more she felt that getting rid of Cui Huai wasn't difficult at the moment, and she could even focus her energy on thinking about the future. As she pondered, she inadvertently looked up and suddenly saw Cui Huai standing tall and elegant in a black robe at the end of the lush path.

She paused in her steps.

In a single glance, the shadows of the past surged into her heart, and she pulled Qiuyue behind a tree.

A note from the author:

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