Aping was a maidservant who accompanied Ji Shi in her dowry. The original owner of this body was raised by her from dawn till dusk. The original owner could not bear to see Aping, who had worked hard for her for half her life, die, so she had no choice but to endure the humiliation.
Six months later, the original owner left the State of Jiang with the wedding procession and arrived in the State of Zhao.
Upon arriving in the State of Zhao on the first day of the Lunar New Year, the original owner of this body was determined not to serve the King of Zhao. For this reason, she specially moved to the most remote and simple courtyard from the Yiling Palace where Princess Duanyang resided.
Princess Duanyang didn't care about the status and position of the concubines. In her eyes, they were all trying to steal her man. She wished there were more hypocritical and aloof people like the original owner of this body.
Princess Duanyang's silence allowed the original owner to live a peaceful year. A year later, Princess Duanyang was defeated by Yuan Yun from the State of Wei. King Zhao grew tired of Princess Duanyang's beautiful and arrogant feast and switched to Yuan Yun's lively and charming congee.
In her frustration and resentment, Princess Duanyang thought of the original owner of the body who was unassuming, aloof, and independent.
Duan Yang ordered someone to find the original owner of the body and asked her to serve the King of Zhao. The original owner naturally refused. In a fit of anger, Duan Yang cut off her monthly allowance. Although the original owner was also bullied by Zhou Shi and her two children in the Shi family, she had never gone hungry. She persevered for a few days, but when she was on the verge of death, she had no choice but to compromise.
One day later, through Princess Duanyang's efforts, the original owner of this body accidentally met King Zhao, who was immediately captivated by her stunning beauty.
After one night, King Zhao, having tasted the sweetness, became interested in the original owner of the body. He not only bestowed a title upon the beauty but also favored her for three consecutive days. Upon hearing this, Yuan Yun immediately played the zither and flaunted her charms, forcefully pulling King Zhao back.
Three days later, a group of palace maids barged into the original owner's courtyard. After searching the place, they tied the original owner up and brought her before Prince Zhao and a group of concubines. Seeing the little figure and Yuan Yun's birth date and time in the hands of the palace maids, the original owner had no way to defend herself and could only beg Princess Duanyang for help. However, Princess Duanyang only glanced at her coldly and actually told Prince Zhao to act according to the rules, which won Prince Zhao's praise.
Looking at Duan Yang, who stood by indifferently with her hands in her sleeves, and Yuan Yun, who nestled beside King Zhao, feigning weakness but laughing extremely arrogantly, what did the original owner not understand? King Zhao's sudden change of heart and special treatment made these two wary. Yuan Yun made a move to harm them, while Duan Yang chose to watch coldly from the sidelines.
The original owner was dragged away by palace maids in despair. She was ordered by Duan Yang to serve King Zhao, but she was treated as an insignificant pawn and discarded at will.
The original owner stared at the towering palace in front of him, filled with deep resentment, and was beaten to death on the stone steps. His bright red blood flowed like a beautiful ribbon on the cold bluestone slab.
After accepting this memory, Shi Lan let out a long breath. The red stains all over the ground seemed like an inescapable red veil, lingering before her eyes, making her feel as if a stone was stuck in her heart.
Faint footsteps could be heard outside the door. Aping placed the cooked millet porridge on the table beside the bed. "Young lady, this millet porridge is cooked until very soft. It's served with a freshly pickled cucumber. Please have some."
Shi Lan responded softly, lifted the blanket, and moved closer to the table. The original owner of this body had been starving for who knows how long, but Shi Lan, who had now possessed this body, felt like she could swallow a whole cow.
The food in this era was far too simple. Millet was not a very palatable food. Shi Lan frowned slightly as she drank the warm porridge, pondering how to seek justice for the original owner of this body.
Having lived through several worlds, the original owner was the one who died the most tragically Shi Lan had ever seen. He was brutally beaten with a wooden staff, his internal organs shattered. The pain of wanting to die but being unable to, only able to wait for all his blood to drain away, was unbearable for Shi Lan based solely on the memories she received, let alone for the original owner, who experienced it firsthand.
After finishing the porridge without any taste, Shi Lan put down her spoon, looked up at A Ping, and said in the manner of the original owner, "Old woman, A Lan is ignorant and has made you sad."
Aping's throat tightened, and his eyes immediately reddened with tears. "Please don't say that, young lady. As long as you are well, I would be willing to die."
Shi Lan sighed softly, understanding that her words came from the heart. Back then, A Ping had also gone to the Zhao Kingdom with the original owner, but she fell ill on the way due to the change in environment and died before even reaching the Zhao Kingdom. Before she passed away, she was still worried about the original owner.
"Your health is good, and you will surely live a long and peaceful life. Please don't say such discouraging things anymore," Shi Lan said softly, lowering her eyes to hide the complex emotions within them.
Ah Ping quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes and forced a smile, saying, "What you say is true, young lady. I was just being disrespectful."
Shi Lan sighed inwardly, but said nothing more.
The next morning, Shi Lan loosely tied her waist-length hair in front of the mirror and examined her reflection.
In the dim, unclear mirror, one could vaguely see a fair, jade-like, delicate face, with dark, indifferent eyes that coldly observed everything outside the mirror.
Shi Lan silently gazed into her dark eyes in the mirror. After a long while, she smiled faintly, flicked her long, knee-length sleeves, put on a bamboo hat covered with a thin veil, and stepped out.
Following closely behind Shi Lan, A Ping passed through the bustling streets and alleyways. Finally, unable to contain his doubts, A Ping asked, "Young lady, where are we going?"
Shi Lan tilted her head slightly, squinted at the solemn and imposing buildings not far away, and said in a low voice, "Let's go pay our respects to my maternal uncle."
Aping stared in surprise, her mouth slightly agape, at Shi Lan, whose face was veiled by a thin gauze, and couldn't help but feel a sense of unease.
Shi Lan did not turn around, and she knew the doubts in A Ping's heart. The original owner had disliked this unconventional cousin since childhood and did not understand his behavior of abandoning his aristocratic status to become a priest. In addition, Shi's father always showed his half-hidden disgust for him, which resulted in the original owner only seeing this cousin two or three times in his life.
But it was only in these two or three meetings that Shi Lan sensed her cousin's affection and love for the original owner of the body. Moreover, Shi Lan was very interested in the witchcraft he knew.
This era has a deep understanding of ghosts and gods. If Shi Lan wants to fulfill the original owner's wish, it will be difficult with her current knowledge alone. However, if she adds mysterious and unpredictable witchcraft, it will be much easier.
She gently knocked on the tightly closed door, and after a few moments the door opened from the inside. A child of about seven or eight years old looked at Shi Lan with his bright, darting eyes. Before Shi Lan could answer, he said, "My master is unwell and is not receiving guests. Please leave, young lady."
Shi Lan looked at the little boy with his chubby cheeks and smiled slightly. "My surname is Shi. Please tell him that a junior from our clan has come to visit."
The child frowned, gave Shi Lan a disgruntled look, slammed the door shut, and the sound of hurried footsteps faded into the distance.
A moment later, the boy reopened the door, his face flushed from running, and said, "Master, please come in and talk."
Shi Lan nodded and followed the child through the lush bamboo forest to the small building made of bamboo and wood.
The boy respectfully bowed to the bamboo building and slowly retreated.
Shi Lan took off her straw hat, turned her head to signal A Ping to wait on the ground, and walked into the small building alone.
As soon as Shi Lan entered, she saw a jade-like man in white robes with black hair sitting casually on the couch. His long, narrow eyes were looking at her sideways, and his rosy lips were slightly upturned, as if he was happy or pretending to hide it.
Shi Lan smiled and slowly walked to the bedside, curtsied, and said, "Greetings, Uncle."
Ji Lang put down the black chess piece he was playing with, straightened his posture slightly, and raised his hand to signal her to stand up. "It's been a long time. A-Lan is more polite than before."
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