The night was cold, with a howling wind.
“Your Majesty, please don’t!”
“Your Majesty, I am not my sister…”
When Liu Chan instinctively opened her eyes and cried out these words, her entire back was instantly drenched in cold sweat.
She looked at the large hands tearing at the clothes on her delicate body. The man before her was all too familiar, reeking of alcohol as he pressed down on her.
It was the current emperor!
Her brother-in-law, Xiao Lin!
Liu Chan’s mind went blank. Staring in terror at the man’s face, she felt as if her heart were being wrung by an invisible hand. The dull ache made her hold her breath.
Her first thought was: Why does Xiao Lin look so young?
Before she could ponder further, she saw Xiao Lin grab her stiffened hands, his gaze dazed as he kissed her neck, murmuring a name.
“Jing’er, Jing’er, don’t leave me…”
Hearing that name, Liu Chan’s pupils contracted, and her body trembled almost uncontrollably.
She had been reborn!
Reborn to the time when she was sixteen and summoned to the palace by the noble consort to keep her company!
A month ago, her legitimate elder sister, Jing Guifei, claimed to miss her family and had them send her, the illegitimate daughter, to the palace as a companion.
After entering the palace, Jing Guifei showered her with care and attention, even providing her with food, clothing, and daily necessities identical to those of a noble consort. Naive by nature, Liu Chan deeply believed in her sister’s kindness and grew heavily dependent on her.
Until she was violated by the drunken Emperor Xiao Lin!
She tried to call for help and resisted desperately, but it was all in vain. After it was over, her “dear” legitimate sister barged in with her attendants, accusing her of seducing Xiao Lin.
When Xiao Lin sobered up, he declared that he despised women who seduced others.
However, since she came from an official family and was not a palace maid or servant who could be casually executed, he sent her to the Cold Palace with a single command.
But what plunged her into even deeper despair was this:
In the Cold Palace, she discovered her belly growing day by day. When it could no longer be concealed, she was finally discovered and taken out of the Cold Palace. She was granted the lowly title of Yu Nu and given a remote residence to await the birth of her child.
These events had long since crushed her spirit. By then, she only hoped to safely give birth to the child in her womb and raise them.
However,
During childbirth, the midwife tampered with the delivery. After her daughter was delivered, she suffered a massive hemorrhage and died.
For some unknown reason, her soul did not pass on to the afterlife after death. Instead, it wandered the palace, often forced to linger near Xiao Lin.
She watched helplessly as Jing Guifei naturally took her daughter under her care. By day, she used the obedient child to win favor from Xiao Lin, but behind the scenes, she pricked the girl with fine needles to make her compliant.
She also watched as Jing Guifei selected another illegitimate daughter from their family to enter the palace, attempting to use the same method to bear a prince for herself. But when Emperor Xiao Lin grew suspicious, Jing Guifei coldly shifted all the blame onto the illegitimate daughter, causing her to be strangled with a white silk cord by their legitimate mother upon returning home.
Yet none of this hindered Jing Guifei’s favor. It was only after Xiao Lin’s death that her numerous crimes were exposed by others. She was force-fed an entire bottle of hedinghong and died from the poison.
And she—after witnessing Jing Guifei’s death—had been reborn!
…
Memories flashed through her mind in an instant. Liu Chan clenched her fists.
If she allowed Xiao Lin to take her now, she feared she would not escape the tragic fate of her previous life.
She had to make Xiao Lin stop and prove that she had no intention of seducing him.
Xiao Lin’s drunken strength was overwhelming, and with his entire body pressing heavily on hers, the disparity between them made it nearly impossible to break free.
With a tearing sound, Liu Chan’s shoulder was exposed as her garment was ripped open, revealing a glimpse of her delicate skin.
In her past life, when this happened, Liu Chan had been utterly panicked. Timid by nature, she had only dared to struggle, push, and cry out.
But after death, she had lingered by Xiao Lin’s side for a lifetime, her spirit hardened by the experience. She had even witnessed his preferences in bed clearly—what was a torn garment to her now?
Liu Chan stopped resisting and instead wrapped her arms around his waist.
Softly, she murmured, “Your Majesty, you’re hurting Jing’er…”
At these words, Xiao Lin seemed to recall something. He snapped back to reality, gazing at the woman pinned beneath him, his eyes filled with conflict.
Seizing the opportunity, Liu Chan shoved him away forcefully.
Her eyes swept the room before she clutched her half-exposed shoulder and dashed toward a nearby table, grabbing the long-cold teapot.
Without hesitation, she turned and splashed the tea directly into Xiao Lin’s face!
Perhaps the icy shock of the tea sobered him slightly; the haze in his eyes finally receded, no longer burning with the same fervor as before.
Liu Chan watched him calmly for a moment, ensuring he would not lunge at her again.
“Your Majesty!” She dropped to her knees with a thud, her voice trembling. “Your Majesty, please see clearly—this humble subject is not my sister. I beg Your Majesty to… restrain yourself!”
Xiao Lin sat at the edge of the bed, brushing the tea leaves from his hair, and stared at her intently for a long while.
The young girl kneeling before him clutched her torn garment tightly, though much of her skin remained exposed. Her shoulders trembled slightly, head bowed as if she were weeping in fear.
Yet, for some reason, his body burned with heat, and the urge to devour her whole still lingered.
It seemed he had been drugged with something unclean in Weiyang Palace.
But judging by the girl’s reaction, she was unaware of it. After all, what woman seeking to seduce would dare douse someone with tea—let alone the Son of Heaven?
“It was my impulsiveness,” he said coldly.
He stood up abruptly, intending to leave, but a wave of dizziness struck him, nearly sending him stumbling forward.
“Your Majesty!” Liu Chan gasped in alarm, scrambling to her feet to steady him.
Perhaps too flustered, she stepped on his foot while simultaneously crashing into him, sending them both tumbling onto the bed. As she lost her balance and fell toward him, she gritted her teeth and braced her arms to the side, forcing herself to roll away at the last moment.
Then, Liu Chan let out a sharp cry, her face paling instantly as fine beads of cold sweat dotted her forehead.
She rose, clutching her ankle.
“This humble subject has been disrespectful. I beg Your Majesty’s forgiveness!” Liu Chan knelt once more, suppressing the pain.
Xiao Lin rose somewhat awkwardly from the bed and stood, watching her.
He frowned, a complex emotion flickering in his eyes, but in the end, he said nothing and strode out of the room.
Only Liu Chan remained inside.
The panic on Liu Chan’s face vanished instantly. She gently touched her ankle as if feeling no pain, then stood up and hobbled around the room in circles.
Until she spotted an exquisite incense burner nearly burnt out in a hidden corner.
She smiled bitterly.
It was this very incense burner that had led Xiao Lin to conclude in her previous life that she had deliberately schemed to seduce him…