Awakening (Revision)
"A Startling Spring" by Zhixi Yaoyao / First published by Banxia Novels
Summer 2024
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In the eighteenth year of Yuanzhen, Mu Jing.
A bustling crowd had gathered outside the Lin Mansion in the south of the city. The common people, who always loved to join in the excitement, fell silent in fear after smelling the strong stench of blood emanating from inside the mansion. Heavy dark clouds pressed down on the dark blue rooftops, and a sudden downpour seemed imminent. The oppressive heat made it hard to breathe.
"What happened?" A passerby, seeing the large red "double happiness" characters still pasted everywhere, was puzzled at the back of the crowd.
Those at the front scoffed without turning their heads. A kind voice answered in a low voice, "The Lin family committed a crime and were all executed..." The voice gradually faded until it was barely audible.
Some people, finding it unlucky, straightened their clothes and left without looking back, spitting on the ground as they went to prove their innocence.
Some people sighed deeply, harboring a bit of resentment.
"Right Chancellor Lin is upright and honest, how could he possibly commit fraud and cause trouble for no reason..." Someone next to him made a gesture of beheading, and the voice then changed direction and became hoarse in his throat.
Amidst the commotion, someone suddenly remembered something, slapped their thigh, and said:
"This...this is that good-for-nothing—"
He was interrupted before he could finish speaking:
"That's right, this Lin family daughter is a good-for-nothing who knows nothing. She thought she could marry into the Zhou family and enjoy a life of ease, but I always said she was unlucky. Now that the Lin family has lost power, even her in-laws have been ruined."
The word "bad" was drawn out and pronounced very loudly, which made people gradually burst into laughter.
Lin Xu floated in the air, resting his chin on his hand, looking down at all living beings, and couldn't help but sneeze.
Since the incident, she has been hovering over the Lin residence for three days, facing these sarcastic remarks every day, and after listening to them, she has become numb.
It's true that she was a good-for-nothing in her past life.
Spoiled by his father, he became arrogant and domineering, and lacked discipline due to the loss of his mother at a young age. Over the years, he has indeed failed to amount to anything.
The people of Dayu valued elegance and often gathered for poetry and music. Noble ladies frequently hosted small banquets, and as the legitimate daughter of the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, she was invited twice. Once, she was tricked by her aunt and embarrassed herself; the other time, she lost her composure in public. From then on, the reputation of a "good-for-nothing beauty" followed her like a shadow, one she could never shake off.
But to say that he would relentlessly pester Zhou Weikan is utter nonsense.
Although she was illiterate, she inherited her mother's beauty. By chance, she met Zhou Weikan by the Nine Wonders Lake, where he rescued her. Her delicate beauty caught the eye of the jade-like trees in the forest, and that's how they developed feelings for each other.
The Zhou family's silk weaving was exclusively for imperial tribute, making them as wealthy as princes and nobles. When the news spread, it became a case of Lin Xu climbing the social ladder. Many noble ladies in Mujing admired Zhou Weikan, but they were too proud to force her into marriage, so they turned their attention to Lin Xu.
Since Zhou Weikan couldn't protect her every time, he proposed marriage to the Lin family, determined to cut off all troubles.
Lin Xu died on the day of his appointment to the Zhou family.
July 16th was her birthday, and it also happened to be the day when the Six Gods were in charge, making it an auspicious day for everything. Master Zhou stroked his beard and calculated for a long time before finally deciding to present the betrothal gifts on this day. She got ready early in the morning and waited excitedly in her boudoir for the betrothal letter, but she did not expect that the imperial edict to confiscate her family's property would arrive before the betrothal procession.
Lin Xu, who had been pampered since childhood, had never seen such a terrifying situation before.
At the gate of the mansion, Lin Fu kowtowed and wailed, while the eunuch slowly and methodically read out the entire imperial edict. She only remembered that her mind was in a constant whirl, and before she could even hear her father's crime, she watched helplessly as the guard ended his life with a single stroke.
That slash was brutal, piercing through the father's chest and leaving a gaping, bloody hole.
Seeing the crimson blood gushing out like a spring for the first time, she was so frightened that she lost her voice.
On her deathbed, her father's voice, barely audible amidst the thunder and rain, was etched into her heart like a dagger.
"Happy birthday, Xu'er. Father... I couldn't see you get married..."
The blade is coated with poison; every word is written in blood.
She watched helplessly as her father, whose temples were now streaked with gray, slowly collapsed into a pool of blood. Before she could even shed a tear, a guard rushed up and slit her throat.
On the 16th day of the seventh month of the 18th year of the Yuanzhen era, Lin Fu, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was executed along with his entire family for cheating in the imperial examinations. All 116 members of his family perished.
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She lost her mother at a young age, was publicly humiliated, her father was wrongly accused, and her husband's family was implicated...
Looking back on her life, Lin Xuzhen felt a tightness in her chest.
Perhaps due to deep resentment, after her death she turned into a wandering soul, with nowhere to go and no home to return to, and could only hover alone above the Lin residence.
The constant cold remarks from passersby made her realize the fickleness of human nature.
My father was a renowned and virtuous official of the dynasty, known for his tireless work and lack of merit. Apart from his good-for-nothing daughter, he was practically flawless. He was in charge of the ceremonies of the six ministries and the selection of personnel for the three ministries and twelve departments. He was highly praised for his ability to recommend talented people. Yet, after his death, no one spoke up for him or exonerated him.
Everyone has to protect themselves, so no one is to blame.
What she resented was that the person who had submitted a memorial accusing her father was unharmed.
Dou Huaisheng led a mediocre life, spending many years in the lowly position of registrar in the Secretariat. He was promoted by chance due to his outstanding writing, and later gained the favor of the princess's husband, eventually rising to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. However, after only half a year in office, before he could even settle in, he submitted a memorial to the emperor, falsely accusing his father of cheating in the imperial examinations.
Ironically, Emperor Su believed it.
With treacherous officials in power and their eyes gouged out, Lin Xu gazed at the dark clouds overhead that obscured the blue sky and bright sun, each stroke of the pen clearly writing a tragic tale.
If she could do it all over again, she would definitely turn over a new leaf and avenge her family. Even if she couldn't help her father in politics, she would never let that treacherous dog get away with it.
However, having already become a lonely soul, how could she still have the power to turn things around?
...I'm afraid it's all just wishful thinking.
Lin Xu sighed softly.
Her sigh was mournful and plaintive, radiating utter despondency, and somehow it attracted a gust of evil wind. Before she could even muster her strength, she was violently slammed against a crooked willow tree in the Lin family courtyard.
Bang--
Looking up at the sky and then at the large willow tree beside her, Lin Xu hesitated for a moment before finally reaching out to gently stroke the gnarled trunk and leaves, and two tears fell silently from her eyes.
This willow tree was clearly planted by her mother before she passed away, with her teaching her how to plant it. In her memory, that person was as gentle as jade, and her cool breath brushed against her then doughy little face, making her dodge and cry out that it tickled.
In just ten short years, the crooked willow has grown into a lush, verdant tree, quite tall and imposing.
Lin Xu closed her eyes and leaned against the crooked tree trunk, lost in her grief, when suddenly she heard a fierce wind and thunderous roar. In the blink of an eye, several bolts of lightning struck, and she felt a dull pain in her chest. Before she could even cry out, she heard another loud "bang"—
She fell to the ground.
Unexpectedly, he could still feel pain after becoming a soul. Lin Xu gritted his teeth and waited for the pain in his internal organs to gradually spread to his limbs before opening his eyes.
My head still hurts terribly.
Through the hazy light, all I could see were lush green branches overhead and birdsong all around—a tranquil scene. Before I could see anything more clearly, a frantic female voice came from afar.
"Miss is climbing a tree again!"
The voice, a mixture of complaint and heartache, came closer. A moment later, a pair of hands reached out and helped her up.
Lin Xu stared at the person before him, stunned for a long time before finally managing to utter two words: "Qingwu..."
The little girl gave her an almost reproachful look before sighing:
"Miss is always playing around. I only kept an eye on her for a little while, and she's up climbing the tree again. This tree is already crooked; what are you doing sitting on it all the time? Now look what happened—she's fallen hard. When Master finds out, she'll definitely be in for a beating..."
Qingwu had been by her side since childhood, and shared the same temperament. Her constant worry and nagging gave her a splitting headache.
Lin Xu took a deep breath, and when he opened his eyes again, the situation in front of him had not changed at all.
She couldn't resist pinching Qingwu's cheek; it was soft and warm. Then she looked down at herself, dressed in ordinary young lady's attire, clean and presentable, without a trace of blood. She then felt around her neck for a while, remembering how the fierce-looking guard's knife had been swift and clean—but now she couldn't find a trace of the wound.
·
It took Lin Xu more than half an hour to barely accept the fact that she had been reborn back to three years ago. She had never believed in ghosts before, but her experience of becoming a ghost after death was real. She had never believed in reincarnation before either—but what she saw before her left her no choice but to accept it.
But why exactly three years ago...?
Lin Xu looked around at the furnishings, which were almost identical to what she remembered, her brow furrowed. But as her thoughts returned, she felt a dull ache in her forehead. Even after several years, she had never forgotten anything from the past. Especially this year—the year that changed her life.
In the fifteenth year of Yuanzhen, she was exactly fourteen years old.
At the beginning of the year, the Weihe River experienced a once-in-thirty-year flood, causing a severe disaster. His father, Lin Fu, encouraged him to work diligently, earning the favor of Emperor Su, who appointed him to oversee the resettlement of disaster victims north of the capital. Lin Fu stayed in the disaster area day and night, distributing porridge and helping the poor, earning widespread praise from the people, who respectfully called him Right Chancellor Lin. After several days of disaster relief, when he returned home, a pitiful woman named Qi followed him, saying she was a displaced disaster victim.
Who would have thought that after a few months, Qi would become a concubine in the household.
Lin Xu's birth mother passed away when she was seven years old, and Lin Fu never remarried for many years. Therefore, a weak concubine did not attract her attention. However, a year later, it was this Qi who set a trap, causing her to lose face in front of all the noble ladies of Dayu and become the laughing stock of everyone. At that time, Qi was already a concubine in the mansion who assisted in handling household affairs and was quite favored by her father.
Coincidentally, it was on the Shangsi Festival of that year that she met Zhou Weikan for the first time.
The banks of Jiuqiao Lake were filled with young girls celebrating the festival, singing and dancing. The clear water rippled gently, reflecting their graceful figures. She tripped and fell by the lake, wetting her clothes. As she hesitated, a stranger presented her with a piece of soft, cloud-like brocade with a dark pattern.
Looking up, the magnolias in the distance are in full bloom, and a person stands amidst the clusters of blossoms, seemingly floating like an immortal through the mist.
It was just a cliché story of mutual love and lifelong commitment, one that had long been told to death in traditional storybooks. She had no other ambitions at the time; finding a suitable husband, one who was also exceptionally handsome and from a good family, was something to be grateful for.
Looking back now, all the tragedies of her past life were foreshadowed in this year. If everything three years ago led to her later tragedy, then returning to the fifteenth year of Yuanzhen...
It seems like the will of Heaven.
Lin Xu tapped her fingers lightly on the table, but after only a moment's thought, she felt a headache coming on. Qingwu stepped forward at the right time and brought out the tea and snacks that had been prepared beforehand, all of which were her favorite foods. Lotus root candy, cherry cheese, plum blossom pastry... The kitchen at home was already very skilled, and she had always had a sweet tooth, so the tea and snacks she ate every day were always different.
But she merely glanced at the plate piled high with pastries, her delicate eyes lowered, a chilling aura emanating from her.
Prepare some things for me.
This instruction came out of nowhere. Qingwu couldn't figure out her mistress's temper these days, only that her personality had changed drastically since she woke up, and she was always gloomy. Just as she was wondering about this, she heard Lin Xu's voice, which was as cold as a clear spring in the forest, mixed with an undeniable determination.
"I want to offer incense to my mother."
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Liang Shuangyu's memorial tablet stood solemnly in the Lin family ancestral hall, with fresh fruits and other offerings placed beneath it. The maids who were usually responsible for guarding and cleaning had all quietly left, leaving only her in the huge ancestral hall.
As instructed, Qingwu stood guard outside the ancestral hall, and could faintly hear Lin Xu's prayers and murmurs through the crack in the door.
Since losing her mother in an accident when she was seven, the young lady's temperament gradually became eccentric, completely lacking the grace of a well-bred young lady. Everyone said that the young lady was no longer the charming and adorable child she once was. Having served the young lady closely for many years, she knew that the Lin family ancestral hall had always been a forbidden place for her; even during festivals, she had never been seen to set foot there. Let alone come to offer incense and prayers in her spare time.
Qingwu pondered for only a moment, but suddenly realized that the prayers in the ancestral hall had gradually faded into silence.
The surroundings were so quiet that only her increasingly rapid breathing could be heard.
A sense of surprise and doubt arose in Qingwu's heart, and she hurriedly and carefully pushed open the tightly closed door. However, before she could even get a good look at it, a white light suddenly flew towards her, and at the same time, she felt a sharp, hard object pressed against her neck.
It was an extremely sharp dagger, the tip pointed directly at her neck, and Lin Xu, holding the handle, had icy eyes filled with a chilling aura.
"Confess yourself."
Qingwu's throat tightened, and just as she was about to open her mouth to refute, she caught a glimpse of Lin Xu's knuckles turning white as he gripped the knife, and he tightened his grip even more.
How long have you been drugging me?
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