Chapter 482 Reminiscing about the Past
"Yes, sister is right. It's all thanks to you. If it weren't for your repeated guidance... I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to escape my original fate on my own, and would have slid into the abyss long ago."
She grasped Yuan Hongqu's hand, her voice sincere, "Sister, you have no idea how grateful I am to you. In this godforsaken place, to meet you, to know that I, Wang Xifeng, am not alone in my madness, to know that there is someone who understands where I come from... this is more important than anything else!"
Yuan Hongqu grasped her hand in return and smiled:
"Don't talk nonsense. It's fate that we met here. You did a great job, even better than the righteous Wang Xifeng I imagined."
Wang Xifeng was a little embarrassed by what she said, then raised her chin again, displaying some of her usual smugness:
"That's right! After all, I've been exposed to modern... uh, 'other world' culture!"
The two exchanged a smile, their unspoken understanding unspoken.
Wang Xifeng picked up a soft pastry, took a small bite, savored its sweetness, and suddenly exclaimed:
"Sister, to be honest, sometimes I think, after going through all this, in such a place, living such a dramatic life as Wang Xifeng, experiencing all the ups and downs, power struggles, the coldness and warmth of human relationships, and even coming back from the dead... I've experienced it all."
A strange light flashed in her eyes, a mixture of mockery and seriousness.
"You tell me, if I could travel back in time and return to my status as a nobody actress, with this experience, this mindset, and this acting skill, winning a Best Actress award wouldn't be an exaggeration, would it?"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Hongqu was taken aback at first, then chuckled and pointed at her, saying:
"You! You actually think like that!"
She shook her head, her tone laced with teasing, yet also with a hint of barely perceptible pity.
"However, if we're really talking about 'method acting,' your experience is probably deeper than that of ten Best Actress winners combined. You've witnessed and avoided Wang Xifeng's shrewishness and ruthlessness; you've experienced the heartache of motherhood; you've deeply felt the fear and relief of surviving a desperate situation; and you've also experienced the calm and composure that comes after shedding all pretense... Aren't all of these excellent subjects for a role?"
Wang Xifeng's eyes lit up as she listened, as if she were truly imagining that scene, but then the light gradually subsided, turning into a complex tranquility.
She gazed at the clear autumn sky outside the window and whispered:
"It's just a thought. I can't go back. Even if I could... what would I care about there? My parents passed away early, I have no relatives, and my career is... a complete mess. On the contrary, here I have a family and children, and you, my confidante... my roots are already planted here."
The flower hall fell silent again, with only the aroma of tea and sweet pastries quietly filling the air.
Two souls from another world share a tacit understanding and peace in this ancient courtyard that no one else can comprehend.
“Sister,” Wang Xifeng suddenly said with a smile.
"When Daiyu and the Prince return to the capital, we must have a good get-together. I heard they did several very satisfying things in the south. You must tell us about them then, just like... listening to the latest 'travelogue'!"
Yuan Hongqu nodded with a smile: "Okay, definitely."
As the sun began to set in the west, it cast long shadows of the two people.
Those memories of modern, bizarre times are like looking through frosted glass—distant and blurry.
But the tea in front of us, the snacks in front of us, and the close friends with whom we can laugh and reminisce about the past and live peacefully together—that is the real, tangible, and precious present.
When Wang Xifeng got up to take her leave, Yuan Hongqu saw her off to the courtyard gate.
Watching Wang Xifeng, supported by Ping'er, gracefully board the elegantly decorated carriage and disappear into the alleyway strewn with golden fallen leaves, Yuan Hongqu stood under the ginkgo tree, motionless for a long time.
The autumn wind swept by, lifting a few strands of silver hair at her temples and bringing with it the rustling of leaves throughout the courtyard.
Life in the deep palace is like still waters running deep.
In the warm pavilion of Fengyi Palace, Empress Zhao Huajing often sat alone.
The wisps of smoke rising from the incense burner were graceful and elegant. The flowers outside the window bloomed and faded year after year, and unintentionally, they would bring her thoughts back to many years ago, back to the person with whom she had the deepest entanglement in her life—her mentor, Yuan Hongqu.
Everyone knows that Yuan Hongqu was Lin Daiyu's governess and the spiritual pillar of the Women's Academy, but few people remember that in the earlier years in Yangzhou, she was the mentor of Empress Zhao Huajing and the only light to shine into her life during those dark years.
At that time, Zhao Huajing was not yet the empress who ruled the world, nor even a young lady of the Zhao family who enjoyed great success.
She was just an orphan disliked by her stepmother. She was taken to Yangzhou by her maternal grandparents, but she was always an outsider and her life was not very happy.
Even so, her stepmother in the capital would still send someone over from time to time to give her a dressing down.
This made Zhao Huajing's already difficult life even more precarious.
Just when she was at her most lost and helpless, almost swallowed by despair, Yuan Hongqu appeared.
On that day in Yangzhou, a thinly dressed girl was ridiculed for not being able to pay for her medicine, but she stubbornly refused to shed a tear.
It was the young woman in the moon-white dress who came to her rescue, gently wrapping a plain cloak around her trembling shoulders.
Yuan Hongqu had only recently started working at the Yangzhou Women's Academy. She was only a few years older than Zhao Huajing, but her eyes possessed a calmness and wisdom beyond her years.
“My surname is Yuan, and I teach at a girls’ academy. If you have nowhere to go, would you be willing to come back with me?”
His gentle voice carried an undeniable firmness.
From then on, Zhao Huajing became the first disciple personally selected by Yuan Hongqu.
What Yuan Hongqu taught her went far beyond poetry, literature, and needlework.
She discovered that the girl had an amazing understanding of economics and practical matters, so she spared no effort in collecting account books and cases, and even took her to visit the salt and silk markets. She sensed the surging resentment in her disciple's heart, so she used the rise and fall of history and the ups and downs of people to enlighten her, telling her the true meaning of "When a common man is insulted, he will draw his sword; when a king is angry, millions will die and blood will flow for thousands of miles", guiding her to sublimate her personal hatred into a grander ambition.
In those years, Yuan Hongqu took meticulous care of Zhao Huajing.
She sought out dietary therapy recipes and personally treated her weak disciples; she would leave a lamp lit and watch over them when they had nightmares in the middle of the night.
She would often comfort her, saying, "Hua Jing, a person's value is never determined by their birth, but by the kind of person they become."
The space at Yangzhou Women's Academy became a rare moment of tranquility in Zhao Huajing's life.
She grew up under her husband's wing, almost believing that she could stay away from the hustle and bustle of the capital forever.
However, the seeds of hatred will eventually sprout.
When Zhao Huajing came of age, she learned that the daughter of the Zhao family's stepmother in the capital was about to participate in the imperial examination, and that her father was planning to use this opportunity to curry favor with the Zhao family. All of Zhao Huajing's peace was shattered.
She knew she had to go back, back to that cannibalistic place, and reclaim everything that belonged to her.
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