Mu Anran, floating in the air, kept shouting.
"Xuan Yuan Beichen, go! Run away! It's not worth it, I'm not worth you doing this!"
But no one could hear her cries!
Xuan Yuan Beichen looked at Mu Anran, who was being held up on the city wall, now lifeless like a broken rag doll, his eyes bloodshot.
"No, Anran, Anran…"
"Xuan Yuan Haoyu, I will cut you into a thousand pieces!"
Upon hearing this, Xuan Yuan Haoyu laughed and joked with Mu Anfu beside him, "Empress, look, our deposed Crown Prince has gone mad!"
Mu Anfu covered her mouth and giggled, "Hahaha, Your Majesty, he isn't even a deposed Crown Prince anymore—at most, he's just a rebellious traitor!"
Leaning into Xuan Yuan Haoyu's embrace, Mu Anfu glanced at Xuan Yuan Beichen.
"Crown Prince, don't be in such a hurry. When Mu Anran died, she was served by many men—specially arranged by His Majesty…"
Xuan Yuan Beichen had never expected to arrive a step too late, allowing her to suffer such humiliation.
"Shut up, you wicked consort! You deserve to die…"
Hearing this, a flicker of anger flashed in Mu Anran's eyes.
"Throw Mu Anran down…"
Upon hearing the order, the guard holding Mu Anran threw her lifeless body from the city wall.
Xuan Yuan Beichen's eyes widened with rage. "Anran…"
He leaped into the air, barely catching her shattered form.
On the city wall, Xuan Yuan Haoyu roared with laughter.
"Hahaha, Xuan Yuan Beichen, you will forever only be fit to pick up what I discard!"
"Release the arrows…"
A rain of sharp arrows shot toward Xuan Yuan Beichen!
"Your Highness, be careful…"
"Your Highness…"
His subordinates shouted warnings, desperately rushing to his side, swinging their swords to block the arrows!
But he paid no heed, only holding the person in his arms tightly. "Ran Ran, I came too late…"
Floating in the air, Mu Anran shed tears of blood from the corners of her eyes. "Xuan Yuan Beichen, why are you so foolish? It's not worth it, it's not worth it…"
She desperately tried to float toward him, wanting to embrace him and shield him from the arrows, but it was futile—her soul passed right through his body.
His subordinates eventually fell dead or wounded, unable to protect him any longer.
Countless arrows pierced through Mu Anran's soul and struck Xuan Yuan Beichen's body.
He did not dodge, only using his own body to shield Mu Anran's remains as much as possible. "Ran Ran, I'm here to be with you…"
Watching Xuan Yuan Beichen pierced by countless arrows, while the laughter of Xuan Yuan Haoyu and Mu Anfu echoed in her ears, Mu Anran cried out in despair, over and over, "Xuan Yuan Beichen, Xuan Yuan Beichen…"
Finally, she remembered!
She remembered everything. She was not the Mu Anran of this world—she had been reborn here, renowned for her talents since childhood.
When she was twelve, her mother fell ill and passed away. She vowed to study medicine diligently and became a disciple of the master of Tianyigu, studying for four years. Not only did she master medicine, but she also learned some martial arts.
However, upon returning to the capital, she was plotted against and fell off a cliff, losing her memory. When she woke up, she saw Xuan Yuan Haoyu and mistakenly believed he had saved her.
She was the legitimate daughter of the Mu family, the eldest daughter of Prime Minister Mu of the Xuanyuan Wangchao! Marrying her would bring one closer to the position of Crown Prince.
Originally, she had been betrothed to Crown Prince Xuan Yuan Beichen.
But Xuan Yuan Haoyu visited her repeatedly, sweet-talking and deceiving her. Coupled with her belief that he had saved her and Mu Anfu's deliberate matchmaking, she foolishly trusted him.
Xuan Yuan Beichen, with hands stained in blood, was ruthless and killed without batting an eye. Yet time and again, she disregarded the gifts he sent, and even when he was injured and confined to a wheelchair, she looked upon him with nothing but disdain.
On their wedding night, under the arrangement of Xuan Yuan Haoyu, she fled, turning Xuan Yuan Beichen into a laughingstock of the Xuanyuan Huangchao.
Later, his mother, the Empress, was framed by Xuan Yuan Haoyu’s mother, Consort Lan, and was banished to the Lenggong. His maternal clan was falsely accused of treason and collusion with the enemy, and he himself was exiled.
Even then, he still acknowledged her as his wife, despite her tarnished reputation. He led his men to storm the palace, all just to reclaim her!
How could she have been so deceived, harming not only herself but also Xuan Yuan Beichen?
"Ah…"
"No, it shouldn’t have been like this, it shouldn’t have been like this…"
"Xuan Yuan Beichen, you shouldn’t have met such an end. If anyone deserves hell, it should be me. You shouldn’t have suffered this fate…"
Tears of blood streamed from Mu Anran’s eyes as she roared at the sky!
So even a soul could shed tears.
"By the gods and demons as witnesses, I, Mu Anran, was blind in this life, mistaking a devil for salvation, deceived into such a wretched fate.
I am willing to pledge to the gods and demons, using my soul as a curse and my spirit as a guide, to forsake reincarnation for all eternity, remaining in the Wangchuan, forever guarding the Naihe, only begging for time to reverse and grant me another chance!"
In an instant, fierce winds swept across the heavens and earth!
The sky churned with swirling clouds, lightning flashed, and thunder roared!
Chengxiangfu!
Red silk adorned every corner!
The bridal sedan chair had already picked up the bride and was heading toward the Taizi Fu.
Today was the day the eldest legitimate daughter of Chengxiangfu was to marry the deposed Crown Prince. What should have been a celebrated union had turned into a subject of gossip, as the Crown Prince had been injured on the battlefield and lost the use of both legs.
Moreover, rumors had spread that the eldest legitimate daughter, Mu Anran, had always been in love with the Third Prince, Xuan Yuan Haoyu.
People across the land were abuzz with discussions about this marriage!
Some lamented, some snickered, some scorned, and some reveled in schadenfreude.
At this moment, Mu Anran stared in disbelief inside the carriage. She had truly been reborn, returned to the day she was to marry Xuan Yuan Beichen.
Looking at her still-unharmed self, Mu Anran wept tears of joy. Xuan Yuan Beichen, in this life, I will not fail you.
Suddenly, the sedan chair jolted, and commotion erupted outside.
Mu Anran recalled that in her previous life, at this very moment, Xuan Yuan Haoyu had arranged for chaos to be deliberately stirred, and she had taken advantage of the confusion to flee the marriage under his orchestration.
Mu Anran lifted her red veil and gently parted the sedan curtain a crack. Sure enough, the sedan was surrounded, with no way through.
The sedan bearers and the wedding matron were nowhere to be seen!
Meanwhile, the people arranged by Xuan Yuan Haoyu exchanged puzzled glances. Weren’t they told that once chaos was created, the bride would step out of the sedan and follow them? Why was there no sign of the bride?
Listening to the clamor and seeing the street blocked solidly, Mu Anran grew anxious.
Damn it, if this continued, they would miss the auspicious hour!
Fortunately, heaven had eyes. She had regained her memories and been reborn, and her martial arts had returned with her.
Glancing at her wedding dress, which was too ornate and cumbersome for movement, Mu Anran decisively lifted the hem of her skirt and stepped out of the sedan.
The person sent to receive her, seeing the bride emerge, hurried to Mu Anran’s side.
Mu Anran looked at the man who had helped her flee the marriage in her previous life and kicked him squarely.
Then, using her lightness skill, she soared over the crowd.
She sprinted swiftly toward the direction of the Taizi Fu!
Xuan Yuan Beichen, wait for me, I'm coming to marry you!