On the bustling streets of the Imperial Capital, the clamor of gongs and drums and the joyous sound of suona horns filled the air.
Crowds of commoners gathered along the streets, watching the procession approaching from one end of the long avenue, and couldn’t help but express heartfelt admiration.
“Truly worthy of the Crown Prince! This dowry procession stretches as far as the eye can see!”
“I wonder which young lady is so fortunate to marry the Crown Prince.”
“Isn’t it obvious? It must be Su Yurou, the number one talented lady of our Imperial Capital! Who else could possibly be worthy of the position of Crown Princess?”
“What a perfect match—a talented man and a beautiful woman!”
The onlookers’ exclamations were suddenly interrupted by a sharp female voice:
“Xiao Zirui! Are you truly going to abandon our engagement?”
The crowd turned in surprise toward the sound and saw a slender figure dressed in plain white standing outside the railing at the center of a nearby bridge, looking as if a gust of wind could send her tumbling into the rushing waters below.
When they caught sight of the woman’s face, many gasped in shock.
Most of her face was covered in lumpy, swollen, and ugly scars, some areas oozing with pus, making anyone who looked at her feel nauseated.
So hideous!
“Oh my goodness! Which family’s daughter is this? How dare she come out looking so terrifying!”
“What did she just say? That she has an engagement with the Crown Prince? Is she joking…”
“This is like a toad lusting after swan meat. This woman must be insane!”
At the front of the dowry procession, the dashing and elegant Crown Prince, Xiao Zirui, raised his hand to signal the procession to stop. He looked at the woman with undisguised disgust and contempt.
“Yun Qingqing, a person’s worth lies in self-awareness. Look at yourself now—do you really think you still deserve the position of Crown Princess?”
“But my face was ruined because of you!” the woman screamed in disbelief. “Half a year ago, during that fire, if it weren’t for me…”
“You dare mention half a year ago!” Xiao Zirui coldly interrupted. “Don’t think I don’t know that you deliberately set that fire! It was Rou’er who saved me. Now we are in love, and I will marry no one but her! Stop daydreaming!”
“You and her are in love? Hah…” The woman let out a bitter, sorrowful laugh. “To get rid of me, you would twist the truth and pin the blame on me. I must have been blind to believe you truly cared for me back then…”
The woman closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as if she had made up her mind.
“Enough…” A desolate murmur drifted on the wind.
Xiao Zirui said sternly:
“Yun Qingqing, I’m telling you, stop pestering me. The way you look only disgusts me even more! Even if you die here today, I will never marry you!”
“Hahahahaha…”
The woman burst into a shrill, hysterical laugh, crying out in anguish:
“Xiao Zirui, today I…”
Her words were left unfinished as her body suddenly tilted and plunged into the river like a kite with its string cut!
Gasps erupted from the crowd:
“Ah! She really jumped!”
“Why go to such extremes? Failing to marry him and resorting to suicide to force his hand…”
“Marriage should be based on mutual affection. The Crown Prince doesn’t like her, and she chooses to drown herself right when he’s delivering the dowry. Isn’t she just trying to cause trouble?”
“Exactly! Such an ugly and malicious woman isn’t even worth one of Miss Su’s toes. Good riddance!”
Amid the flurry of comments, a guard behind Xiao Zirui reminded him:
“Your Highness, if this truly results in a loss of life, it could bring trouble. It would be best to send someone to rescue her from the water.”
Xiao Zirui stared at the water’s surface with utter disgust, snorting coldly:
“If she truly wished to die, would she deliberately choose such an occasion? She’s merely putting on an act, trying to force this Crown Prince to yield! Even if we fish her out, she must first taste some bitterness!”
…
Yun Qingqing struggled ashore purely by instinct, coughing violently and shivering all over from the cold wind, her mind filled with confusion.
Shouldn’t she have been utterly annihilated, her very soul completely dispersed? How could she be here?
And where exactly was this?
The commoners around were pointing and whispering among themselves:
“She actually pretended to drown herself to deceive the Crown Prince, yet she swims so well—how cunning!”
“Fortunately, the Crown Prince wasn’t fooled. Such a treacherous woman is truly despicable!”
“Why does such an ugly and malicious woman even continue living? It would be cleaner if she just drowned!”
“If she wants to die, she should do it decisively. I might have respected her for having some backbone, but this hypocritical act is truly disgusting!”
Yun Qingqing frowned as she surveyed her surroundings, pondering what was happening.
One thing was certain: this was no longer her original world. Otherwise, given her status as the most talented sect leader in the history of the Mystic Sect, how would anyone dare show her such disrespect!
Suddenly, a cold laugh came from not far away:
“So you do know how to swim, yet you pretended to drown yourself. Did you truly think this Crown Prince would be fooled by you?”
Yun Qingqing looked up to see a handsome man in ceremonial attire, mounted high on a steed, looking down at her with contempt.
Around him, faintly visible, was a crimson-black Karmic Thread, mist-like and entangled, its other end wrapped around her own body.
A sharp pain pierced her heart as unfamiliar memories flooded in like a tide.
She finally understood: she had crossed over.
For some reason, her soul had not dissipated but had entered the body of this woman who shared her name.
The man before her was the childhood sweetheart to whom the original owner had been betrothed since youth. Half a year ago, during a great fire, the original owner had rushed into the flames and desperately carried him out, only to be burned and fall unconscious.
When she awoke in her own room, her face was thickly bandaged with medicinal paste. Ignoring the pain, she tried to find Xiao Zirui to see if he was safe, but what awaited her was news that the Crown Prince’s residence intended to annul their engagement.
The original owner rushed madly to the Crown Prince’s residence, demanding an explanation from him face-to-face, only to witness him in a tender moment with Su Yurou, the legitimate daughter of the Prime Minister, vowing to marry her…
“Yun Qingqing, I tell you for the last time: I will never marry a treacherous and malicious woman like you! If you continue to pester me, don’t blame me for being impolite!”
The man’s scornful voice snapped Yun Qingqing back to reality.
Her gaze turned cold as she smiled mockingly at Xiao Zirui:
“Your Highness, don’t overestimate yourself. From now on, marry whoever you wish. This young lady has no interest in a scoundrel like you!”
The man was enveloped in a faint but dense Aura of Fortune, and he was soon to face great misfortune. She couldn’t wait to sever the karmic ties and stay as far away from him as possible.
Xiao Zirui’s face darkened abruptly:
“Failing to coerce me with threats of death, now you resort to this game of playing hard to get. Do you truly think this Crown Prince will be manipulated by you?”
Yun Qingqing rose to her feet with a cold laugh, pulling out a marriage contract from her robe. She unfolded it and shook it toward him.
Xiao Zirui wore an expression that said “I knew it”:
“You’re really going to use the marriage contract to threaten me again, utterly shameless…”
He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes suddenly widening.
He saw Yun Qingqing cast him a disdainful glance, then tear the marriage contract in half and throw it on the ground!
She even stomped on the torn pieces a couple of times!
“I don’t care for this marriage contract anymore!”
The woman’s clear, crisp voice echoed through the entire street, heard clearly by everyone!
“I am no longer the Yun Qingqing of the past. Today, I have personally destroyed this marriage contract, and I ask everyone to bear witness! I, Yun Qingqing, have no further ties with Xiao Zirui. From now on, even if I marry a cat or a dog, I will never marry him! And I ask the Crown Prince to stop bothering me!”
Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, Yun Qingqing patted her damp clothes and turned to leave.
Xiao Zirui watched her retreating figure, his expression shifting several times, before he suddenly shouted sharply:
“Stop! You may fool others, but you can’t fool me. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re scheming!”
“Today, no matter what, I will become engaged to Rou’er. I won’t allow you to interfere again!”
“Guards! Yun Qingqing has insulted the royal family in public! Seize her at once!”
Yun Qingqing paused in her steps and turned to glare angrily at Xiao Zirui.
Hadn’t she made herself clear enough? What kind of illness did this scumbag have?