Rong Cang’s pupils suddenly contracted. Just as he was about to step forward, he saw Chu Yunfei move as if she had eyes in the back of her head. She nimbly dodged Chu Yun Jiao’s attack with a side-step, then followed through with a kick, sending Chu Yun Jiao crashing into the lake with a bang.
Thump!
Water splashed everywhere.
Rong Cang’s footsteps froze. He watched in disbelief as Chu Yunfei displayed such fluid, effortless movements, momentarily unsure of how to react.
“Ah! Help!” Chu Yun Jiao splashed around in the water incessantly. “Come… someone! Ah… help, help… help…”
Chu Yunfei stood by the lakeside, watching coldly. Only after Chu Yun Jiao had struggled enough in the water did she raise her voice to command: “Sheng Xia, fish her out.”
“Yes!” Sheng Xia leaped forward, her toes skimming the surface of the lake, and with a clean, swift motion, she fished the water-choked Chu Yun Jiao out of the lake.
Back on the shore, Sheng Xia raised her hand and tossed the bedraggled Chu Yun Jiao directly onto the ground.
Chu Yunfei squatted down before her, a cold smile on her face: “Chu Yun Jiao, although the position of Concubine is a grievance to you, if you truly like your brother-in-law so much, why not suffer a little grievance for his sake?”
After saying this, Chu Yunfei stood up and coldly instructed: “Sheng Xia, Baochan, pack up immediately. This Princess Consort is going home to visit relatives.”
“Yes, Princess Consort!”
“Cough! Cough, cough, cough…” Chu Yun Jiao half-propped herself up, coughing heart-wrenchingly. “Cough, cough… Chu Yunfei, you damn bitch! I will definitely make you die without a burial ground!”
“Miss, Miss!” The maidservant squatted anxiously by her side, looking at her with distress. “Are you alright, Miss?”
Chu Yun Jiao was about to roar: “Are you blind?!”
But as she looked up, she saw the hem of a black robe.
Accompanied by a pair of high-quality black deer-skin boots embroidered with auspicious cloud patterns, they slowly entered her field of vision.
Chu Yun Jiao’s anger vanished instantly. Feeling aggrieved and pained, she clutched her chest and coughed softly: “Cough, cough, cough…”
Rong Cang gazed down at her for a long time before reaching out to help her up from the ground. A gloomy look appeared on his handsome face: “This Prince will resolve this matter soon; do not be anxious for now.”
“Your Highness!” Chu Yun Jiao stumbled, falling into his arms. Her eyes turned red, and she wept like rain. “Wuwu, your subject almost drowned just now, wuwu, I was so scared, I was so scared…”
She was dripping wet, and the spring lake water still carried a chill; Chu Yun Jiao was shivering, her complexion pale.
Rong Cang endured his disgust and patted her shoulder: “This Prince will seek justice for you—”
Before he could finish, Chu Yun Jiao’s body suddenly tilted, and she fainted softly.
Rong Cang’s movements stiffened, his thin lips pressed tight, and ferocity surged in his eyes.
Turning to look at Chu Yun Jiao’s maidservant, he said indifferently: “Take your Miss to Haoyue Tower to change clothes. This Prince will send her back later.”
Without waiting for the maidservant to respond, he pushed Chu Yun Jiao into her arms and turned to leave.
“Second Miss!” The maidservant Taoyue supported her worriedly. “How are you?”
Chu Yun Jiao, who was faking the faint, opened her eyes. Finding that Rong Cang had already left, she gritted her teeth in hatred: “Chu Yunfei, I will not share the same sky as you!”
……
Chu Yunfei returned to the Shuanghua Courtyard and directly instructed Sheng Xia and Baochan to pack: “Just bring a few changes of clothes.”
“Yes.”
Chu Yunfei walked to the window and stared blankly outside as overwhelming memories surged in like a tide.
She closed her eyes and leaned against the window frame, her thoughts returning to her previous life.
It was also at this time in her previous life that Rong Cang suddenly changed from his usual gentleness and firmly insisted on divorcing his wife, all to marry Chu Yun Jiao, demanding that she, his Main Consort and Legitimate Sister, make room for her.
She did not know why Rong Cang had suddenly changed his heart, nor did she understand how someone like him could have taken a fancy to Chu Yun Jiao. But at that time, she was arrogant and unwilling to lower herself to beg for his return, so in a fit of anger, she left the Prince’s Estate while pregnant.
After returning to the Chu Family with the letter of divorce, her father cursed her for ruining the family reputation, claiming she must have been narrow-minded and morally corrupt, having done something the Prince could not tolerate, which was why she was divorced and sent home.
He never mentioned that his favorite Concubine's Daughter had snatched her own brother-in-law.
Concubine Chen ridiculed and mocked her daily, sneering that Yun Jiao was the woman most worthy of Prince Zhan.
To cover up Chu Yun Jiao’s base behavior, Concubine Chen spared no effort to ruin her reputation, claiming she was promiscuous and unfaithful, which was why she was divorced by Prince Zhan.
Overnight, she lost her reputation and became the laughingstock of the entire Capital City.
Her mother had long been disappointed in the entire family, including her father. When she was in dire straits, she finally decided to divorce her husband to make room for his most precious concubine.
Afterward, mother and daughter left the Capital City overnight, heading for Langya City, thousands of miles away.
A loving husband and wife turned against each other, a heartless and unfaithful husband changed his affections, and the rumors outside were like knives… All of this left Chu Yunfei in pain and despair.
Coupled with the fatigue from travel, the day she arrived in Langya City, the child was gone.
That day, a sky-high hatred grew in Chu Yunfei’s heart.
The bright red blood, the stinging red, the feeling of the most important thing in her life slipping away from her body bit by bit… it was so unforgettable that she could never put it out of her mind.
In the years that followed, she frantically learned various skills in Langya City: medicine, poison, archery, and music.
She wanted to use this method to temporarily forget the events in the Imperial Capital, to forget the desolation of being divorced while pregnant, to forget the pain of being betrayed by a heartless and unfaithful person, and to forget the heart-tearing pain of losing her child.
She desperately wanted to make herself strong, unwilling to hand her fate over to others again. She hoped that one day she would return to the Imperial Capital to personally deal with that pair of scum and seek justice for herself.
However, when she heard news of him again, it was that Rong Cang had suffered a sudden manic episode at a palace banquet and committed treasonous regicide. In the emergency, his full sibling, the Sixth Imperial Brother Prince Chen, and Princess Consort Zhan, Chu Yun Jiao, both threw themselves forward to block the blade for the Emperor.
The coup d'état caught everyone off guard, but it inevitably triggered the Emperor’s wrath.
Rong Cang was shot to death on the spot by the Imperial Guards. Prince Chen, having performed meritorious service in saving the Emperor, gained imperial favor and was soon named Crown Prince.
Princess Consort Zhan, Chu Yun Jiao, was spared from implication due to her meritorious service in saving the Emperor, and an imperial decree granted them a divorce, allowing Chu Yun Jiao to remarry.
And later…
Concubine Chen was elevated to the position of main wife that year. Chu Yun Jiao naturally became the Legitimate daughter of the Chu Family and was even bestowed upon the new Crown Prince as a Secondary Consort, causing public criticism.
Prince Zhan’s Estate was exterminated overnight.
The former generals under Prince Zhan and those related to the Prince’s Estate were almost all rooted out, while only Prince Zhan’s opponents were either promoted or became wealthy.
And the ultimate beneficiaries were, naturally, Consort Gu, her son, and Chu Yun Jiao.
But in fact, Prince Chen and Prince Zhan were both sons of Consort Gu. One son assassinated the Emperor, and the other was responsible for saving him?
Moreover, Consort Gu was not only not implicated in the slightest, but she also fulfilled her wish and became the Empress Dowager.
Even Chu Yunfei’s smooth and sophisticated father was promoted, controlling the financial hub and becoming the Minister of Revenue, a second-rank official in the Imperial Court.
The Chu Family rose to high positions, becoming the new favorites of the Imperial Court.
Scenes from her previous life flashed through Chu Yunfei’s mind like light and shadow. Her brow furrowed, and a familiar sorrow surfaced in her heart, yet she felt inexplicably ironic.
It really was a very absurd and clumsy play, wasn't it?
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