In the thirty-third year of the Fengyi reign, in June, the Empress was assassinated on her way back to the capital after praying for blessings. The Empress was shocked and fell ill, and the eldest princess was also seriously injured. The Left Prime Minister stepped forward to take charge and maintain order in the court.
In July, the Empress's health improved, but upon waking up, she was furious and ordered a thorough investigation into the murderer. The eldest princess, however, showed no improvement and her health deteriorated. The imperial physicians could not find the cause of her illness, and the eldest princess remained bedridden.
In the same month, the Third Princess returned to the capital after completing her disaster relief mission.
The power struggle within the imperial court reached a fever pitch. At this time, the Empress's secret guards discovered that Ji Xiaozhu had hired someone to assassinate Ji Xiaozhu. Enraged, the Empress demoted Ji Xiaozhu to a commoner and exiled her to the frontier. Feng Jun pleaded for her life multiple times, and the result was that she was allowed to retain her status and guard the imperial tombs, but was forbidden from ever entering the capital again.
With the downfall of the sixth princess, the court officials regrouped and split into two factions: the eldest princess and the third princess. The eldest princess was suffering from a strange illness and was now waking up for shorter and shorter periods each day, clearly nearing her end.
Ji Yuze, who had gone to provide disaster relief for several months before returning, never expected that the capital city would change so drastically. She, who was not favored before, had become the person with the best chance of ascending the throne.
Life is unpredictable...
Subsequently, Ji Yuze received help from a remarkable person who repeatedly offered her advice and strategies. Despite her usually impulsive and reckless nature, she presented several excellent plans to the Emperor and was thus given important responsibilities.
In August, the capital city underwent a complete transformation.
The eldest princess somehow managed to cure her strange illness. Knowing she was powerless to reverse the situation, she took a desperate gamble and forced the palace to surrender.
The third princess rushed to the emperor's rescue, and the eldest princess was beheaded on the spot.
Subsequently, the third princess was named Crown Princess, thus bringing the power struggle within the imperial court to an end.
——
Six months have passed since Ye Jiu fell into a coma, nearly 180 days, and the capital city has welcomed its first snow.
Snowflakes fluttered down from the sky, the snowfall was light, and the ground looked like it was covered with a white blanket.
The windows were wide open, the stove inside was burning brightly, and the servants had all been dismissed, leaving only a man and a woman sitting inside.
The woman had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and a handsome appearance. She wore a royal blue brocade robe with gold embroidery. Her every move was elegant and graceful. She was clearly from a high-ranking family. This person was none other than the Crown Princess Ji Yuze!
The man sitting opposite her was pale-faced, with delicate features but his eyes revealed a desolate look. He was thin and wore a cloak even indoors, clearly extremely sensitive to the cold. This man was Yun Jia.
Seeing Yun Jia's expression, Ji Yuze was about to close the window when Yun Jia noticed her intention and interrupted her, "No need to close it, just leave it open. I want to see the snow."
Ji Yuze sat back down and sighed, "Sir, you don't take care of your health like this. If you..." She paused, observing his expression carefully before continuing.
"If your wife saw this, she would be heartbroken, wouldn't she..."
She spoke the words "wife" very softly, as if afraid he would hear them.
Six months ago, after returning to the capital, she met Yun Jia by chance. At that time, Yun Jia was determined to die, but after discovering that she was the Third Princess, his eyes shone with a strange light. He gritted his teeth and asked her, "Do you want to become the Empress?"
These words were too outrageous. Ji Yuze immediately ordered everyone around her to step back. She nodded as if possessed. Who wouldn't want that position?
Yun Jia laughed out loud, "If you want it, I'll help you."
Then the third princess suddenly became enlightened and repeatedly offered good advice to the empress, winning her favor.
She addressed him respectfully as "Sir," and he taught her how to govern a country and bring peace to the people.
The current Third Princess—no, she should be called the Crown Princess now—reflects on this experience and feels it was all destined. Fortunately, she answered him truthfully back then.
Later she learned that his wife had been suffering from amnesia at that time, and there was no cure. If he had not met her by chance, he would have died with his wife.
The one who caused his wife to be in this state was none other than the eldest princess, Ji Huali.
He was consumed by revenge, and by chance he met her, who was also a princess. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement between them.
But all that remained of her life was revenge... Since the death of the eldest princess, his body had become increasingly frail, so thin that he seemed to be nothing but bones, ready to die at any moment.
Ji Yuze thanked him for his guidance, saying that without him, she wouldn't be where she is today.
Whether Yun Jia heard those two words or not, she continued, "Now that Your Highness has become the Crown Princess, she will ascend the throne no later than next year. I can say that I have avenged my great grudge. It's just a pity that Ji Huali was beheaded too easily."
Ji Yuze hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped. Ji Huali was tormented by a strange disease to such a terrible state before she died, and yet she said she "died too easily"?!
Yun Jia stood up. “Your Highness has already learned the way of governing the country. I have nothing more to teach you. Your Highness no longer needs to come.”
Ji Yuze stammered, "Can't I even visit you during holidays?"
Yun Jia walked slowly out, saying, "Your Highness has people more important than me to visit. I am but a man, and Your Highness need not trouble yourself with me."
Once Yun Jia's figure disappeared from her sight, she gave a bitter smile. Looking around the world, only he would dare to abandon her like this.
——
Leaving the main hall, Yun Jia walked out. As soon as he entered, a servant rushed out in a panic and knelt down with a "plop" when he saw him.
He stammered, "My...My lord, the master has moved!"
Despite her thin frame, Yun Jia possessed an unexpected strength as she gripped the servant's wrist and demanded, "Really?! If you dare to lie..."
Yun Jia's eyes flashed with ruthlessness. "Fang Liang, this is your fate."
Fang Liang was a servant who said a month ago that Lord Ye was about to die. His master overheard this and had him beaten to death.
"No...no, no, I absolutely didn't, I'm not talking nonsense, I saw it with my own eyes!" the servant stammered, partly out of fear and partly out of the cold.
Everyone in the manor knew that Lord Ye was a taboo subject for the master. Anyone who dared to utter a single careless word would be flogged, and in severe cases, like Fang Liang, would be beaten to death. But aside from that, the master was considered one of the more approachable officials among the high-ranking nobles.
"Take me there quickly!"
The servant scrambled to his feet and said, "Please, my lord."
The servant led the way, and Yun Jia gritted his teeth and followed. He had now reached the point where he would be out of breath after walking just a few steps...
As he reached the door, he became hesitant. "You can go down now."
The servant was taken aback. Although he didn't understand, he bowed and withdrew, leaving him alone in front of the second bedroom door.
The snow outside was falling heavier and heavier, just like the snow on the day he arrived in the capital. He thought of their first meeting, when she cheerfully asked him about his teacher's wife, and even bluntly said that she wanted to marry him...
Yun Jia bit her lower lip. She had clearly promised to marry me, so why did she suddenly lose her mind? If she had died then, he would have gone with her. But she was alive and breathing, yet she wouldn't open her eyes to look at him.
He stayed by her side day after day. She was kept alive by the Gu worms, and he barely survived by feeding the Gu worms his blood.
It's been almost half a year, and Ji Huali is already dead. They say that when a person dies, they vanish like smoke. How can they vanish? He wished he could dig her out of her grave and tear her to pieces.
If he had pretended to be asleep back then, if he had stopped her, none of this would have happened. They would be married, he would have given her a child, and they would be living off that shop.
But there are no "what ifs".
Two lines of clear tears fell, tracing down her cold cheeks, and finally dripping to the ground.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
