Chapter Two: Double Rebirth on a Rainy Night, Severing Ties
In the western part of the capital city, there is a small courtyard.
A thunderclap struck, and a bright flash ripped through the dark night sky.
The room instantly brightened, its furnishings simple yet cozy, candlelight flickering softly, and behind the bed curtains, two overlapping shadows were elongated.
The woman in his arms trembled slightly, her long, curled raven feathers blinking incessantly, revealing her unease.
Zhao Yu did not want to force anyone to do something against their will. He straightened up, his broad and well-defined shoulders exuding power. He raised his phoenix eyes slightly and scrutinized Xu Chumian's flushed cheeks.
The man's voice was low and husky as he frowned: "Unwilling?"
Xu Chumian looked up, her eyes brimming with deer-like water, and she tried her best to force a smile.
"The thunder was very loud."
Zhao Yu smiled slightly, his tall figure almost covering two Xu Chumian.
"I'm here, what am I afraid of?"
He released the woman's fists, which were tightly gripping the mattress, and pressed his long, slender fingers inside the pillow.
The man leaned closer, and the tent was filled with the unique scent of cedar wood that Zhao Yu wore.
The taste was refreshing, yet it almost scalded Xu Chumian's eyes.
First her earlobes, then her slender, fair neck...
A warm, slightly large, and rough palm gently touched that soft edge...
Xu Chumian trembled all over and dared not move.
Instantly, a deafening clap of thunder struck, seemingly shattering the sky.
Xu Chumian's eyes widened at that moment.
The room was quiet, and she could hear her own heart pounding.
Her body was stiff, and although she couldn't see the face of the person on her body, she could recognize them by their unique scent.
Zhao Yu...
Almost instinctively, Xu Chumian bit Zhao Yu.
Zhao Yu stopped in his tracks, pinching Xu Chumian's cheeks to force her to let go.
Xu Chumian was shocked and saddened. Even with her body in such a state, Zhao Yu still only had this kind of thing on his mind.
"Zhao Yu, get out of here!!!"
Zhao Yujian, who could see at night, wiped away the tears from Xu Chumian's eyes.
His voice was icy: "If you're so unwilling, then why did you seduce me in the first place?"
Outside, the rain poured down like pillars.
Xu Chumian's voice choked with emotion, and she couldn't say a word.
Zhao Yu rolled out of bed and pulled the blanket over Xu Chumian's body.
He moved swiftly, dressed quickly, and without glancing at the person on the bed, pushed open the door and stepped into the rain.
Xu Chumian struggled to get out of bed, and the moment she stepped onto the ground, she suddenly realized something was wrong.
Lightning flashed and thunder roared outside, illuminating the furnishings inside the house, instantly brightening the interior.
Isn't this... the courtyard she rented when she first arrived in the capital?
Xu Chumian's body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.
Hearing the commotion in the main room, the maid Xiaotao came to the door with a candle in her hand: "Miss, how are you?"
Xu Chumian, however, looked as if she had seen a ghost.
Xiao Tao passed away a year ago...
Xu Chumian stood in front of the mirror. The person in the mirror had a beautiful face and a lively spirit. She stared at the mirror with her eyes slightly wide open, and her expression still carried a hint of naivety.
This is what she looked like as a young girl before she got married!
She remained rooted to the spot, motionless for a long time.
After a long while, she leaned against the dressing mirror, both crying and laughing.
She was reborn...!
Absolutely true.
Xiao Tao was startled and almost cried, so she draped an outer robe over her.
"Xiao Tao, what's the month and day of the month now?"
"Miss, it's the second day of the tenth month."
It was the second month since Xu Chumian brought Mu Mu to Beijing.
"Xiao Tao, thank goodness, we're still alive, we're still alive..."
Xu Chumian didn't have time to open an umbrella; she braved the rain to go to the west wing.
She gently pushed open the wooden door and saw her younger sister still fast asleep. She covered her mouth, and tears streamed down her face.
Mu Mu is the daughter of her father and stepmother Zhao. She was born with a serious illness. From birth, her right eye was much larger than her left eye. When she was two years old, her right lower eyelid grew longer and longer and connected to the side of her nose.
To this day, his entire right cheek looks like it's hanging on his facial bones, and outsiders think he looks like a monster.
This terrible illness also ruined Mumu's voice, and now at five years old, she still cannot speak normally.
The little girl has been plagued by illness for many years and has very shallow sleep.
These past two days, she has had a high fever and can't get out of bed. When she heard her sister crying, she rubbed her left eye and tried to get out of bed, but she could only open her mouth and utter "ah ah" without being able to speak.
In her past life, she was with Zhao Yu. Zhao Yu found a divine doctor who treated her for two whole years. The malignant flesh on Mu Mu's face disappeared, and she gradually recovered.
In the third year of her marriage to Zhao Yu, Zhao Yu's mother took Mu Mu to a temple to worship Buddha. Suddenly, a heavy rain fell, and Mu Mu was forgotten in the abandoned temple. When people went to look for her, they only found clothes that had been torn apart by wild animals in the mountains.
Xu Chumian felt both pain and hatred.
Her younger sister suffered hardships from a young age and shouldn't have ended up like this.
Xu Chumian gently patted her younger sister's thin back, a determined light appearing in her eyes.
In her past life, one wrong step led to another. In order to survive, she seduced Zhao Yu, which ultimately resulted in the tragic deaths of her sisters.
Looking back on those two or three years in the inner quarters, Xu Chumian felt as if the world was plunged into darkness.
Heaven has eyes, and gave her a second chance.
After some consideration of my current situation, I realized it's not too late to turn the tide of fate back on track.
Xu Chumian no longer wanted to have anything to do with Zhao Yu. Zhao Yu had someone he loved, and who he wanted to be with was none of her business.
Xu Chumian remembered the residence of the divine doctor in her previous life. The most important thing now is to cure her sister's illness so that the two sisters can live peacefully.
-
The rain has not stopped.
When Zhao Yu returned to the Zhao residence, the man went into the bathroom and took a long shower. The teeth marks on his shoulder still had traces of blood, showing how much force he had used.
Water droplets slid down the firm texture.
For a whole month, he was manipulated by a young woman.
Zhao Yu's deep and handsome face grew increasingly cold and indifferent.
That's all.
It's just a timid rabbit after all. No matter how fiercely it bares its teeth and claws or pretends to be calm, when it's time to be eaten, it can only reveal its cowardly true nature.
This was a matter of mutual consent; if it involved any other implications, Zhao Yu would find it meaningless.
There was official business to attend to the next day, so Zhao Yu lifted the covers and went to bed.
The rain was drizzling outside the window.
Just like the scene in Zhao Yu's dream.
When he rode back to his residence, he only found Xu Chuming's cold body; his wife and child had left him.
After that, Zhao Yu deposed the young emperor, supported the new emperor, and seized power in the court. He spent more than ten years in the political arena, and the Liang Dynasty expanded its territory to the greatest extent in history. Zhao Yu was appointed as the Prime Minister, and the Zhao family rose to a higher level.
Later, Zhao Yu's old illness recurred, and he politely declined the emperor's favor and was buried in the Imperial Ancestral Temple. He died before he was forty years old in the Heyun Courtyard, with a chessboard half-finished in front of him.
He died on a rainy day like this.
The emperor escorted the coffin and buried it in the Zhao family ancestral tomb, where it was placed in the same coffin as his first wife.
After an unknown amount of time, the man on the bed opened his eyes.
The man's eyes were deep and dark, as if they held a dark abyss, impossible to fathom.
The night fades on the horizon, and the moonlight breaks through the darkness.
The sound of sweeping echoed in the courtyard, and sunlight streamed into the house, casting a dark shadow on the already tall man's figure.
The servant Guan Yan entered the room to serve.
"Sir, it's a quarter past the hour of Yin."
I still need to attend court today.
Zhao Yu's face was half-lit and half-shadowed. He turned to the side, his imposing and cold gaze sweeping over Guan Yan, making people feel intimidated and trembling.
Guan Yan's legs went weak. How could the master have changed so much in just one night?
It must be because of that Miss Xu.
Last night, when Master came out of the Xu family's courtyard, he had a dark face and didn't look too good.
Zhao Yu concealed his intimidating gaze; he could hardly remember himself from nearly twenty years ago.
"Let's change your clothes."
"yes."
After breakfast, Zhao Yu left Heyun Courtyard and met up with Duke Zhao, who was waiting at the gate. The father and son then entered the palace together.
Duke Zhao, being a military general, noticed his son's unusual behavior almost immediately, but upon closer inspection, it seemed as if he were mistaken.
My son is only a year past twenty, how can he have such a look in his eyes?
Duke Zhao thought to himself that he was seeing things.
Let's go.
Zhao Yu gazed at the majestic and tall figure of the Duke of Zhao, pursed his lips, and stepped forward.
At the end of the Si hour (9-11 AM), Zhao Yu was finally able to leave the palace.
Guan Yan waited at the palace gate in his carriage.
"Sir, shall we return to the yamen now?"
Zhao Yu hummed in agreement, then sat inside the carriage, closing his eyes in deep thought.
A year later, the Western Di in the north were in turmoil. The Prince Ding, who was originally stationed in the north, colluded with the new king of the Western Di and led his army across the Mingsha River to attack the capital.
Duke Zhao received the imperial decree to resist, and two old friends fought each other on the battlefield.
In the end, King Ding was driven back to the north and led his old troops to surrender to the Western Di.
The imperial court won, but what was sent back to the Zhao family were the fragments of the Duke of Zhao's body.
Zhao Yu opened his eyes, his expression unreadable. He lifted the curtain and caught a glimpse of a family of three strolling hand in hand outside.
Having been given a second chance at life, I should set things right and make amends for the regrets I've made.
Thinking of Xu Chumian, a faint smile appeared in Zhao Yu's eyes.
Last night, perhaps she was afraid.
"Go to the Xu family."
Guan Yan, holding the reins, replied, "Yes."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
