past life
……Wolf?
No sooner said than done—
Liu Xu had barely caught a glimpse of Xie Lingxi's beautiful face, like spring water reflecting peach blossoms, when he suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder.
This young girl, who seemed to have stolen divine power from somewhere, restrained him so tightly that it felt like Mount Tai was pressing down on him, making him unable to move.
Although Jingdi has many mountains and plains, with lush spring reeds and majestic green hills, this place is the residence of a governor, not some remote and desolate place. To openly invite wolves into the house like this...
The two suddenly locked eyes, each seeing an unpredictable storm brewing in the other's pupils.
In an instant, dark clouds swept over the city, and a sudden storm caused the pear blossoms in the courtyard to fall and turn to mud. A giant wolf with black fur darted out from behind the two of them, climbed onto the maid's back, and swallowed her head like a gluttonous beast.
Suddenly freed from his restraints, Liu Xu disregarded the bloodstains on his shoulder from the maid's pinching, and with one arm around Xie Lingxi, he fell to the side.
The wolf was nearly ten feet tall and had a terrifying appearance. At this moment, it narrowed its green eyes, as if it could not see, and remained completely still.
The situation was so urgent that Xie Lingxi leaned half of her body against Liu Xu, holding onto his arms to steady herself. She smelled a strange, familiar fragrance in her nostrils.
Before she could think further, the wolf suddenly retreated a few steps, causing the two of them to inhale thousands of dust particles. They couldn't help but cough, and then they saw the giant beast straighten its back and charge forward again.
"Ah Xu!"
Liu Xu cleverly pulled her up a pear blossom branch that barely extended over the wall, thus avoiding the attack.
"This can't go on—"
Xie Lingxi was so gripped by him that she was jumping up and down, her entire liver and bones felt like they were about to shift, and she felt like she was going to vomit up all the pastries she had eaten in the morning.
In her panic, she finally found the butterfly hairpin and was about to aim it at the wolf's eyes when she saw a commotion in the front hall, with several adults hurrying over.
The man in the lead was Yan Ji.
Yan Ji had originally intended to catch up with Liu Xu, but seeing that the two had never returned, he leaned over and was suddenly struck by the tragic scene in the courtyard. Without hesitation, he swung his palm and slammed the wolf heavily against the pear tree.
Xie and Liu were clinging to the branches to avoid the wolves when they were knocked down and nearly fell into the wolves' mouths.
Liu Xu's face turned pale and then red: "...Are you sick?"
Regardless of whether His Highness did it intentionally or with good intentions, the wolf seemed to be enraged and lunged at Yan Ji, only to be thrown away by him. He had no time to care about the poor birds in the tree.
The rain poured down like a waterfall. Xie Lingxi put away her hairpin and pulled Liu Xu down with her.
Like two birds that have fallen into the forest.
"ah!"
When Governor Tan and his guards caught up, this was the scene they witnessed.
The top scholar from the Liu family and his wife were swept into the turbulent Jingjiang River, unable to even grab onto a piece of clothing.
Here, the King of Jin threw the wolf off his body, and the wolf rolled into the river with a "plop," leaving only a deep bite mark on the King of Jin's left shoulder.
"It'll shorten your lifespan!"
In just half a day, he experienced the joy of honored guests visiting and receiving gifts of gold and silver, followed by the immense tragedy of a prince being attacked and a top scholar falling into the river. Clutching the white hem of his clothes, his body trembled, and finally, unable to bear the burden any longer, his eyelids rolled back, and he fainted.
...
When news of the attack on the Prince of Jin at the governor's mansion spread, all the officials were like frightened birds, closing their doors and refusing to receive guests. They even slept with embroidery needles in their hands at night, fearing that this disaster would befall them.
Everyone knew without saying that the Prince of Jin was not the only one injured; the top scholar who had returned home after passing the imperial examination this year, as well as his family, were also among those injured, and their bodies had not yet been found.
Even a skilled swimmer wouldn't be entirely confident of surviving a fall into such a turbulent river, let alone Liu Xu, a scholar with a frail physique.
Furthermore, he had brought along a frail and beautiful woman, and it was said that they had only been married for a short time before this tragedy struck.
It's a pity that "beauty is short-lived and talent is envied by heaven," and they can only go to the King of Hell to become a pair of doomed lovers.
...
Xie Lingxi did not die.
That day was extremely dangerous. She remembered that Liu Xu had told her that he was good at swimming. With all the exits to safety blocked and nowhere to go, she had no choice but to take a gamble.
Liu Xu and she were of one mind, and the two of them plunged into the Silver River.
With flowing robes, the emerald bamboo shoots and vibrant lotus flowers on the fragrant brocade intertwined, like two painted boats on a lake of tiny grasses, now amidst raging waves, stirring up sorrowful partings.
He was lucky to survive, but he accidentally hit his head and went blind. He endured the pain, raised his hand, and touched the bloodstains all over his palm.
Xie Lingxi forced herself to kneel on the ground, her back bent as she went to find Liu Xu.
The current was too strong just now, and it violently separated the two of them.
Fortunately, Liu Xu had already tied the belt around their waists several times. Now, she reached out and touched the necklace on the belt, and sure enough, she touched a warm arm.
"Ah Xu, Ah Xu?"
Xie Lingxi called out a few times, but received no response. She lowered her head and checked Liu Xu's breathing. It seemed that he had just fainted, so she was relieved.
It was getting late, and the sudden rain had just stopped.
Because she couldn't see, Xie Lingxi's hearing was exceptionally sharp. She could hear the sounds of mosquitoes, butterflies, and ants all around her, and the water was flowing slowly, so she must be at the foot of the mountain.
She was experiencing sharp, intermittent pain in her chest, unsure of where she was injured, but she couldn't care less about that at the moment.
Xie Lingxi gritted her teeth and straightened up, placing Liu Xu on her back—
As the saying goes, practice makes perfect, but this time there was no unexpected arrival of Brother Liu. The rain soaked into his clothes, making them even heavier, so he walked with uneven steps.
After an unknown amount of time, they accidentally wandered into a thicket of bushes, where withered branches and weeds covered the ground, leaving several bloody marks on the woman's fair ankles.
Not only that, he also stumbled and fell several times, making him look quite pathetic.
Xie Lingxi secretly groaned, utterly exhausted, and carefully laid the person down to rest.
Her hairpin had long been swept away by the river, and her disheveled black hair, soaked with the summer rain, clung tightly to her bare shoulders and back, which were ripped in half.
Xie Lingxi mocked herself as she combed her hair with her hand. Then, she choked on something, her chest heaving rapidly, and she coughed up several mouthfuls of blood before breathing heavily.
"My dear Liu Lang, how could we have suffered so many calamities since we met?"
She remembered that when she first met Liu Xu, she injured her shoulder; when they met again, they both fell into the Prince of Pingnan's lair; later, they got married and were chased and killed by Yan Ji's men on a rainy night.
Now, even in Jingzhou, I'm being framed and forced to fall into the river...
The wolf rushed over inexplicably and was so easily swept into the river. She would never believe that there was any truth to it.
"What do we do? You're still not awake. Are we really going to die here...?"
Her entire body was cold and sticky, and to make matters worse, the weather turned bad, and it started to drizzle. Xie Lingxi coughed up blood, but instead of getting better, the pain became even more intense.
Like a thunderclap out of nowhere, she clutched Liu Xu's clothes and fainted in a daze.
...
In a dizzying moment, it felt as if I had fallen into an unknown dream.
In an instant, his eyes regained their sight, and all the pain throughout his body disappeared.
Xie Lingxi lowered her head, looking in surprise at herself wearing a pale yellow palace dress, a hairpin in her hair, and holding something in her hand.
What's going on? A nightmare?
Unable to move, she was trapped in this body, watching as "Xie Lingxi" slowly walked forward.
There were faint chirping sounds of swallows and sparrows all around. It was the third watch of the night, and I was wearing a thin shirt, so it was still a bit chilly.
Looking at the object in my hand, it looks so familiar, like a scroll of Buddhist scriptures—
Xie Lingxi still remembered that this was that day!
On that frosty, dewy day in my past life, it was just like this: falling into an ice cellar in the same way, and being pierced through the heart by a sharp blade in the same way.
However, at this moment, Xie Lingxi inexplicably calmed down. She watched as her past self stepped forward, holding the scroll, to meet a young man wearing a hood.
She didn't know much about that person, only that he had suddenly appeared a year ago, and with swift and decisive measures, he had taken over the two prefectures of Jiang and Jing, allowing the people there to live in peace.
While criticizing his rebellion against the Yan family, the scholar-officials secretly abandoned their official hats and followed him.
It's also because Yan Ji's ascension to the throne was ill-timed.
At that time, the late emperor promoted the imperial examination system, and the aristocratic families declined. Yan Ji's actions to eradicate them were too hasty, which broke this fragile balance. Once the incident came to light, he lost the support of the people, and his defeat was inevitable.
Just then, the moonlight in front of her suddenly became brighter, and the hooded man abruptly looked up, allowing Xie Lingxi to see him clearly.
This person is clearly—
Liu Xu.
this……
Xie Lingxi's breathing suddenly stopped. A wisp of willow breeze came from Chang'an City, making the plain white hood rustle.
She had seen this face before her day and night; it was both very familiar and somewhat unfamiliar.
For example, Liu Chengzhi's whole body resembled green bamboo and new willow, his brows were always clear and bright, and his smile was like sunshine after rain. He was truly a happy and content young man.
This person had a face as hard as metal and stone, with a sharp, unapproachable curve to his jawline, and dark circles under his eyes, as if he had been chronically sleep-deprived.
How could it be him...?
Ironically, the most radiant person lived a life of constant danger in their past life.
Where is the poetry? Where is the wine? Where is the title of top scholar?
How could it be Liu Chengzhi who is now braving the torrential rain of arrows and hesitating in the sea of suffering?
Liu Xu took the things, said a few words of comfort, and turned to leave. Just then, Xie Lingxi, as if possessed, grabbed his hand.
Gentle and kind, just like this year.
Liu Xu was clearly stunned for a moment, staring at his wife with tears in her eyes. His expression shifted slightly, and he was about to speak when he saw a pear branch grow from where their palms met. In an instant, the earth shook and flowers fell like rain.
Flowers fall and water flows on.
...
When I opened my eyes again, I saw an inconspicuous wine shop in front of me, where a young man sat at the counter, flipping through a book with a bored expression.
Occasionally someone would come to buy wine, but he would dismiss them with nonsensical ramblings. As he spoke and raised his hand, Xie Lingxi noticed that the skin covered by his sleeve was covered with scars.
This is Liu Xu in his youth.
Liu Xu's childhood was not actually very pleasant.
Because his family was poor and he was the youngest son, his clothes and shoes were all hand-me-downs from his older brothers. He slept on a wooden plank bed and ate coarse food and wild vegetables.
Even so, despite his poverty, he developed a gentle and kind temperament, neither arrogant nor humble, truly embodying the spirit of youth.
At night, Xie Lingxi saw the young Liu Xu squatting in the corner, silently wiping his wounds with water, and she couldn't hide the heartache on her face.
For some reason, Liu Xu's life story was like a blank sheet of paper, laid bare before her without any concealment, allowing her to observe it through sunshine, rain, wind, and frost.
But she could do nothing and could only cruelly watch the years pass by.
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