Chapter 59

Chapter 59

In the days after he left the capital, Lady Liu had been Liu Wenchang’s greatest comfort.

She was young, beautiful, gentle, and considerate. Her meticulous care made Liu Wenchang feel as though he were still the lofty Heir Apparent of Wu, able to summon wind and rain at will. Her resemblance to Lady Tan in her youth made him feel as though he were still living with his beloved wife, before any discord or betrayal had come between them.

But now that illusory dream had shattered.

Lady Liu, who had given him the greatest warmth, had also dealt him a devastating blow. He had lost his son and could never continue the family line. Thinking it over, he realized that Ma Mingyue was now the only child of his own blood left in the world.

Yet he had long since broken his daughter’s heart. She refused to acknowledge him as her father, and his own father had arranged for her adoption into Second Brother’s family.

He had neither son nor daughter. His wife had turned against him. Supreme power had dissolved into a reflection on water, while he had truly become a solitary man with no one left to call his own.

The irony was bitter indeed.

In a single night, most of Liu Wenchang’s hair turned white.

Lady Tan, meanwhile, kept her door shut and never once went to see him. She merely recited sutras in her room, as though she had severed herself from the world.

So they would live out their days.

…

Time flew. In the blink of an eye, spring arrived in the fourth year of the Hongwu Era.

It was the anniversary of the Reigning Emperor’s biological father’s death. The Crown Prince and Crown Princess had been ordered to travel to the Ma Family’s ancestral homeland and pay respects to their ancestors. Though the imperial couple had yet to arrive, the county magistrate and other officials had already sprung into action, each hoping to catch the successor’s eye. If he could remember even one of their names, so much the better.

The Ma Family’s ancestral temple and clan shrine had always been tended by dedicated caretakers. Offerings had been made in every season, with fresh fruit never allowed to run out. Now a crowd suddenly poured in to arrange the ceremonial rites, defenses, and countless other matters. Inevitably, the commotion alerted the people in the neighboring Liu Family residence.

Liu Wenchang was not yet forty, but age already showed plainly on his face. Deep lines lay beneath his eyes. He narrowed them and stared in that direction for a long time, then turned back inside and locked himself in his study.

At that moment, Lady Tan was receiving two unusual guests in her room.

She had aged terribly over the past two years. Her constitution had already been ruined, and she had repeatedly resorted to harsh medicine to prolong her life. Her once-black hair had turned white as snow, and her face was gaunt. Fortunately, her features had always been fine. Even with her youth gone, traces of her younger self remained.

After several years apart, the once-radiant, fair face of Tang Baozhu had also grown weathered, and her hands were no longer as soft and delicate as before. But her natural beauty remained. Among ordinary folk, she was still a rare beauty.

After the truth came to light that year, the Ma Family no longer sheltered her, and naturally took back its surname as well. Whether she chose Li, Meng, or Tang thereafter was left entirely to her.

Tang Baozhu chose her mother’s surname.

At first, she had resented Lady Tang too. In time, however, she came to terms with it.

Lady Tang had been selfish, self-serving, and ungrateful, but as far as Baozhu was concerned, no one could truly say she had not been a good mother.

Baozhu wanted neither the Li Family’s surname nor the Meng Family’s. In the end, she gave herself her birth mother’s surname.

The family that had arranged an exchange marriage with the Li Family was surnamed Huang. They were ordinary farmers and genuinely poor, but at least they were not bad people. Everyone in the Li Family was dead. The Huangs no longer had to marry off their daughter in exchange, and they had gained a beautiful daughter-in-law besides. By any measure, they had come out ahead.

Tang Baozhu could not speak, but she was beautiful, had seen the wider world, and could read and write. In an ordinary farming household, those qualities were already extraordinarily rare.

As for her supposed background and all the bloodline struggles within the imperial family, those matters made the Huangs fearful and uneasy, but also caused them to keep a respectful distance from her.

Just as Zhu Yuanzhang had said on the day they parted, the Ma Family took back everything it had given her over the years. But had everything she gained in those years truly been tangible, something that could simply be reclaimed?

Tang Baozhu was no fool and possessed a little cleverness of her own. Unable to speak or do farmwork, she wrote letters for villagers and taught a few children to read and write. Families nearby knew she had come from a great household, and several wealthy families even invited her to teach their daughters proper etiquette.

What Tang Baozhu knew amounted to little more than the basics, but to the people of a rural town like this, it was already remarkable learning.

Her life was not especially good, but neither was it as bad as she had imagined.

Lady Tan still cared about her, after all. She eventually found a way to contact Tang Baozhu. Once she learned that Baozhu had settled with that farming family, she even forced her ailing body through the journey to visit.

Lady Tan might not have possessed the virtue her station demanded, and she might have failed as both consort of the Heir Apparent and prospective Crown Princess, but she had once stood at the very heights of society. Even stripped of her court rank and status as an imperial relative, ordinary magistrates and prefects still dared not slight her. In a small country town, she appeared almost like a celestial lady descended to earth. Afterward, whenever the locals spoke of the young woman from a great household who had lost her tongue, there was considerably more awe in their voices.
That had been Lady Tan’s purpose in making the arduous journey from so far away.

Tang Baozhu understood her intention. Weeping, she kowtowed to Lady Tan. Mother and daughter spent a few brief days together, then Baozhu and her betrothed saw Lady Tan off.

Lady Tan’s health had deteriorated badly after Ma Hualiang’s death. That journey had already pushed her beyond her limits, and afterward she never left the Liu Family residence again. Tang Baozhu, by contrast, was young and strong. Every year, she and her betrothed traveled to the Liu Family residence to visit Lady Tan.

The Huangs were poor, not stupid. Whatever this daughter-in-law’s former identity might have been, they would cling to any powerful connection they could and ask for whatever favors they could get. No matter how far Lady Tan and Liu Wenchang had fallen, a hair plucked from either of them was thicker than the Huangs’ waists. Why would they turn their backs on such a connection? Did they find a lifetime of bending over the fields with their faces to the earth too comfortable?

When there was not enough food to eat, who had time to worry about such nonsense?

Zhu Yuanzhang knew what was happening, but could not be bothered to intervene. They could do as they pleased.

In the past, Lady Tan had recited sutras only because the old master forced her to. Now that she had let go of everything, she sincerely wished to recite more. Her energy was poor, however, and after shedding so many tears, her eyesight had also weakened. She therefore had servant girls read aloud while she sat beside them and listened.

Several years in the Huang household had worn away Tang Baozhu’s sharp edges. She listened to Lady Tan speak for a while with a smile, then took the hand of the man beside her and laid it over her own for Lady Tan to see.

Lady Tan froze for a moment, then quickly understood. “You are getting married?”

Tang Baozhu smiled faintly and nodded.

“That is good.” Tears slipped uncontrollably from Lady Tan’s eyes. Feeling that she should not cry at a time like this, she hurriedly wiped them away. “Live well together.”

Then she looked at Baozhu’s future husband. “Treat my girl well, understand? Or I will not spare you!”

The man was a few years older than Tang Baozhu. He was not particularly handsome, but he looked honest and straightforward. He hurriedly nodded his promise.

The sound of firecrackers and ceremonial music drifted from the distance and gradually drew closer. Tang Baozhu did not know what was happening and looked at Lady Tan in confusion.

Lady Tan’s gaze dimmed slightly. She said nothing, but a maid beside her explained in a low voice, “Today is the anniversary of the old master’s death. The Crown Prince and Crown Princess have been ordered to come here and pay respects to their ancestors.”

Tang Baozhu lowered her lashes, neither joy nor sorrow showing on her face.

After a while, the ceremonial music drew nearer, seeming to fasten itself around their ears and insist that every note be heard with perfect clarity.

They heard maids talking outside. “Have the Crown Prince and Crown Princess arrived?”

“Soon. They say the couple will be here in another half hour.”

“I heard the Crown Grandson and several County Princesses from the Eastern Palace came too!”

“Really?!”

“Of course. I overheard several officials from the Ministry of Rites discussing it outside. They said the young nobles came on horseback and are ahead of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess. They should arrive in another quarter hour…”

Lady Tan’s gaze stilled at those words. Tang Baozhu had been watching her expression all along. Now she smiled, stepped to Lady Tan’s side, and supported her by the arm as she led her outside.

Lady Tan stared at her in surprise, visibly ill at ease. “Baozhu…”

Tang Baozhu smiled and shook her head. Her expression was serene as she half supported, half urged Lady Tan forward.

The imperial family’s ancestral residence outside had long since been secured behind layer upon layer of guards, and all unauthorized people had been driven away. The Liu Family, however, was exempt because of its unusual status.

That girl… How was the daughter whose heart she had broken?

Would she come?

Had she grown taller? Prettier?

Baozhu had grown taller. Mingyue must have as well.

If she knew I was comparing her to Baozhu, she would probably be upset.

Chaotic thoughts tumbled through Lady Tan’s mind as Tang Baozhu supported her at the gate. Suddenly, Lady Tan spotted dust billowing in the distance and heard the clatter of approaching hooves. Her breathing quickened at once.

A group of young men and women rode toward them. The youth in the lead was handsome and strikingly valiant. The young riders behind him looked slightly younger, probably Commandery Princes and County Princesses from the Eastern Palace and the residence of the Prince of Chu.

Lady Tan recognized her daughter at a glance.

She had grown taller, and her entire bearing had changed. She was still not an exceptional beauty, but confidence and pride shone between her brows. Riding crop in hand, she spoke animatedly to the youth beside her, as bright and dazzling as a jewel, impossible to look away from.

She was nothing like the girl she had been.

She must have lived very well these past few years.

Lady Bai was a good mother. Lady Tan was not.

Sadness filled Lady Tan’s heart, and the light in her eyes slowly faded. Ma Mingyue sensed her gaze and turned. Their eyes met, and both of them visibly froze.

Tang Baozhu stood to the side with her arm linked through Lady Tan’s. Her body stiffened involuntarily.
Ma Mingyue had clearly recognized them, but her gaze did not linger. After one indifferent glance, she quickly looked away. Her expression held neither the joy of reunion after a long separation nor any trace of the hatred born from the past. It was as though she had merely met a stranger’s eyes in passing before they went their separate ways.

Perhaps this was for the best.

Lady Tan sighed soundlessly. “Let us go inside, Baozhu.”

Tang Baozhu supported her as they walked back into the Liu Family residence.

Ma Mingyue’s cousin from the residence of the Prince of Chu, a year younger than her, witnessed the scene. He turned his head and called with concern, “Elder Sister?”

“I am fine.” Ma Mingyue reined in her horse and smiled. “They are merely two people of no importance. Let us go.”

The past was the past. The pain and tangled grievances of those dark years had already come to an end. A brilliant road stretched ahead of her. Why torment herself by forever circling what had come before?

From the very beginning, she had known how to choose what was best for herself.

Ma Mingyue would live a very, very good life. That was all.

…

A wave of dizziness struck without warning. When Zhu Yuanzhang came to his senses, he found himself back in the White Mist Space. He had fully expected a rousing welcome from his old companions. Instead, he stood there proudly with his arms spread wide and held the pose for ages, yet not one of them spared him a glance. They had gathered in a circle to peer at the white silk condensed from the next world’s consciousness.

Zhu Yuanzhang squeezed into the group in a huff and thrust his head forward. Several lines were written across the silk:

When they first met, Li Jiangxue was the pampered young lady of the illustrious Li Family, while Yan Hongguang was a distant cousin taken in by her father after his own family fell into ruin. She disliked his cold, aloof manner, so she had servants force him to his knees and whipped him until his flesh was torn and bloody. He pressed his lips together and never made a sound.

When they met again, she was already dead, slain by the husband she had loved so deeply. For some unknown reason, however, her soul appeared beside Yan Hongguang. She watched as he swept across the realm, united the land, and finally ascended the throne as emperor.

Given another chance at life, she slapped her vicious half sister, kicked her scumbag ex-husband aside, then turned to the cousin ahead. Wait for me! I am coming to cling to your coattails!

But for some reason, the way her cousin looked at her grew stranger by the day. In the end, he even said he wanted to make her his Empress?!

Boohoo! All I ever wanted was to cling to his coattails!

Zhu Yuanzhang: “…”

The other emperors: “…”

Emperor Gaozu frowned in disgust. “Is something wrong with this woman’s head?”

Li Shimin said wordlessly, “If her cousin does not want to speak, then let him be silent. It is not as though he bites. A man’s dignity is worth its weight in gold. He was still a distant cousin and someone her father had taken in. How could she humiliate him like that?”

Zhu Yuanzhang asked, “Are we certain she was not killed because her husband caught her murdering people and setting fires in her previous life?”

Ying Zheng rubbed his forehead as a headache formed, unable to understand. “Yan Hongguang still married her in the second life?”

Liu Che said, “Ummm… This world does not appear to possess much intelligence either.”

The System, which had kept its head down for two whole worlds, ventured weakly, “It was not that serious, was it? She changed later. And everything turned out fairly well in the second life, did it not?”

“Fairly well? What utter crap are you spouting?!”

Liu Che gave a cold, mocking laugh. “The only person for whom it turned out well was Li Jiangxue! So the entire world is supposed to revolve around her?!”

He pointed at Ying Zheng beside him and sneered, “Let us use Shi Huang as an example. Try putting him in that situation!”

The System: “…”

Liu Che spat and continued, “Shi Huang returns to the State of Qin, works himself to the bone, and realizes his grand ambitions. Meanwhile, the young princess of the State of Zhao either chooses the wrong man or brings disaster on herself. Her husband kills her, and then her soul floats over to Shi Huang’s side. That is when she discovers the man she once bullied like a dog has risen to greatness and united the six states!”

The System: “…”

The System struggled to object. “At least they loved each other in the second life, did they not?”

“Sure.” Liu Che clicked his tongue. “In the first life, only his body was abused. A little rest, and it would heal. In the second, she deceived his feelings and took his heart too. Good heavens, that is even worse!”

The System: “…”

As though the thought had only just occurred to him, Liu Che turned to Ying Zheng. “Shi Huang, after destroying Zhao, how did you feel when you saw the people of Zhao who had tormented you and oppressed you and your mother?”

“Thanks for asking,” Ying Zheng said. “I am in Xianyang and have just destroyed Zhao. I dug a pit and buried them together. It felt wonderful.”