12
In Yue Haili’s third reincarnation, her heart was still incredibly tender.
She believed that with true love and a little effort, her feelings would eventually be reciprocated.
Such naive innocence was truly pitiable.
At the time, her father was a low-ranking county magistrate, and by chance, they were to welcome the emperor and the sixth prince, who was Yongyuan in that life.
They were traveling to inspect the land and strengthen the people’s faith across the kingdom.
Yue Haili, who had acquired some skill in playing the zither from her previous reincarnations, was chosen to perform a piece at the banquet held in honor of the emperor’s visit.
As with every lifetime, the moment she saw the sixth prince at the banquet, love bloomed uncontrollably within her heart.
Overwhelmed with excitement, she didn’t stop to think and played the piece ‘Longing of the Lonely Phoenix.’
Her zither performance was filled with sweetness and yearning.
Each note her fingers plucked was like a love confession, without a single word spoken.
The music was so soft and enchanting that all the listeners were moved and praised its beauty.
But, just like in previous lives, Yongyuan only responded with cold indifference when he saw her.
The sixth prince showed no sign of appreciation for her performance, not even the slightest hint of pleasure.
However, despite the prince’s lack of interest, another person was captivated by her music.
That person was the emperor.
Her father, Magistrate Qian, was so overjoyed that he wept when the emperor issued a decree, making her one of his concubines, bestowing upon her the title of Li Pin.
In an instant, she went from being a lowly commoner to a noble consort.
Yet, at the same moment her status elevated, her heart shattered.
She cried day and night, tears flowing until none were left.
But divine power cannot be defied, and she was taken into the palace, becoming Li Pin.
Yue Haili was not one to resist fate, so she resigned herself to the situation.
Her gentle compliance and lack of guile won the emperor’s favor.
With her exceptional zither skills, alluring beauty, fair complexion, and youth, she quickly became favored, even though she did not desire it.
Yet the more favor she received, the more jealousy and hatred she drew from the other consorts and the empress.
Word spread that she once harbored feelings for the sixth prince.
It was true—Li Pin still loved him with all her heart, but she was not without sense.
How else could such a naive person survive in the imperial palace?
No matter how much she yearned for him, all she could do was steal glances from afar, never daring to approach him for even a single conversation.
But the imperial palace was a place of countless schemes.
It wasn’t long before Li Pin and the sixth prince began to have ‘chance’ encounters, orchestrated repeatedly.
Back then, Li Pin was still inexperienced in the ways of the world.
She was simply happy to see the person she longed for, never noticing how the eunuchs and maids around her subtly made way for these meetings.
Then one day, she had secretly taken a box of sesame-filled sweets from the kitchen, intending to eat them in her chambers without the maids seeing, as she had done many times before.
But unexpectedly, she bumped into the sixth prince.
The box slipped from her hands and fell to the ground.
She quickly apologized, frantically gathering the sweets, fearing that he would find them dirty and be repulsed.
To her surprise, this time, he picked up a piece, wiped it off, and spoke with a tone that had a hint of gentleness.
“These sweets are all spoiled now.
If Li Pin doesn’t mind, why not give them to me?”
How could she possibly refuse?
At that moment, her beautiful face flushed with embarrassment, her heart swelling with joy.
It was the first time he had spoken to her without showing signs of disgust or annoyance.
That night, she slept with a heart full of happiness.
However, that fleeting happiness, the sliver of hope in her heart, ultimately turned out to be part of someone else’s scheme.
She was accused of having an illicit affair with the sixth prince.
Such a scandal, even if untrue, was catastrophic for a woman, and even more so for a palace concubine.
She tried to deny it, but her handmaidens testified that she had indeed committed the shameful act, and Yongyuan himself was brought forth as evidence, along with the box of sweets she had given him.
That very box became the damning proof that they had been secretly involved.
No matter what she said to defend herself, no one believed her.
Perhaps deep down, they knew the truth was more complex, but in a nest of venomous vipers, who would dare offer her a helping hand?
Li Pin gazed at the handsome face of the man she loved, but all she saw in his eyes was anger and resentment, cutting her heart as if by a thousand knives.
He must have believed that this entire situation was her doing.
In desperation, she knelt before the emperor, willing to endure any punishment, and confessed that it was she who had feelings for the sixth prince.
She claimed that she alone had harassed him, seduced him, and led him astray.
She begged the emperor to spare him from punishment.
As the emperor began to soften, she caught a faint scent of blood from the empress, a smell so nauseating that it caused her to vomit.
Misfortune struck again when the imperial physician examined her and discovered that she was two months pregnant.
The timing aligned perfectly with when her handmaidens had claimed she began ‘accidentally’ encountering the sixth prince.
Li Pin knew that the child in her womb was the emperor’s, but she also understood that she would never be allowed to give birth to this child.
How pitiful this unborn child was.
His father was a man without a heart, and everyone in the palace was heartless.
Yue Haili now realized just how foolish she had been to think she could live peacefully in such a place.
Li Pin fully understood that there was no chance of seeking mercy for Yongyuan.
The empress had planned everything perfectly, likely knowing about her pregnancy all along.
She had been trapped, transforming the emperor’s heir into the illegitimate child of an affair.
Any small mercy the emperor might have had for her was now completely gone.
She was sentenced to be executed by three thousand cuts, while Yongyuan was arrested.
His eyes burned with a deep, furious resentment.
That was the last time Li Pin saw the sixth prince.
Her frail body was dragged into the imperial prison, where a foul stench filled the air.
Chains were tightly fastened around her wrists and ankles, with heavy iron rings tethered to a bolt embedded in the wall, leaving Li Pin suspended in a standing position.
When the first cut sliced into her skin, she jolted and screamed in agony.
The second cut, the third—they all brought the same searing pain.
The deep wounds and the blood flowing profusely were more than a delicate woman could bear.
Her cries of anguish grew hoarse, and her body burned with unbearable torment.
Yet, she did not die.
No matter how much she suffered, she continued to breathe.
This punishment would continue every day until she had endured three thousand cuts—unless she died before then.
If she survived, the torture would persist indefinitely.
In the cold, damp prison, her stomach throbbed with excruciating pain, and blood poured down her legs, pooling on the floor.
She let out a piercing scream as she saw a small clot of blood lying beneath her.
She screamed, roared, and thrashed in anguish, struggling so violently that the sharp edges of the chains cut deep into her bones.
Her child—her first child—was right there, beneath her battered body, under the weight of her foolishness and helplessness.
Could her already shattered heart break any further?
This pain, this agony of being unable to die, made Li Pin truly understand what it meant to live a fate worse than death.
She finally realized that she would continue to live until the day she turned twenty-five, which would not be long now…
Her vision blurred, and the pain across her body started to fade into numbness.
Her throat had no voice left to scream, and her tearless eyes were stained with blood.
Her heart beat sluggishly, and her toes were numb.
The overpowering scent of blood, once unbearable, now seemed like the only companion she had.
The moonlight streaming through the small barred window indicated that her release from this lifetime was near.
My child, because your mother was a coward, you never had the chance to see the world.
I mourn for you and beg your forgiveness.
No matter how many times I am reborn, I vow never to carry another child.
Rest peacefully now.
If there is a next life, may you be born strong and healthy and find everlasting peace…
Yongyuan, Yongyuan, I apologize to you.
Yongyuan, in the next life, will I be granted my wish?
Will you care for me then?
Next time, I…
Her thoughts were abruptly cut off, the silence enveloping her.
The blade sliced into her flesh once more, but Yue Haili had already closed her eyes.
She felt no more pain.
There was only the eerie sound of thick blood dripping onto the cold stone floor, echoing like a ghostly whisper.
Suddenly, the door to the imperial prison burst open with force.
A squad of soldiers, led by a valiant young man, stormed inside.
The guards overseeing the cell were swiftly decapitated by the soldiers’ swords in the blink of an eye.
Amid the jeering of prisoners in the dungeon, one figure collapsed to his knees before the lifeless body of the once-beautiful woman, as delicate as a blooming peach blossom.
The woman who had once smiled softly and blushed in embarrassment now lay still, her large eyes closed, with no smile, no breath, leaving only thick drops of blood spilling onto the ground.
Her body was covered in deep, grievous wounds, her once-smooth skin now torn beyond recognition.
Her limbs, suspended in chains, bore severe abrasions, and beneath her legs lay the small mass that had once grown in her womb.
The faint warmth remaining from her body indicated she had passed only a breath ago.
He had just missed her—by a mere breath.
He had missed her once again…
“Your Highness…
Li Pin…
she…”
One guard stammered in disbelief, shocked at the horrific sight before him.
Even the battle-hardened soldiers turned their faces away, unable to bear the tragic scene.
A sharp blade sliced through the body of the executioner, ripping the man apart like a savage beast.
Prince Sixth roared in fury like a wounded animal, “How dare you!…
How dare you!”
The moon hung high in the night sky, and the cry of the eunuch announced the third watch.
Yue Haili’s time in this life had ended.
However, it seemed as if chaos had erupted in the imperial palace.
In a single night, the entire royal family was overthrown.
All the princes and princesses were hunted down and slaughtered, even Princess Eleven, who had just been born to the Empress a month prior.
It was said that the infant was killed by the mad prince with his bare hands, crushing her skull in front of the Emperor and Empress, and he stomped on her body until nothing remained but a bloody lump of flesh.
Blood splattered across the lavishly crafted stone floors, the exquisite halls stained with the scent of death.
The people trembled in fear at the ruthless cruelty of Prince Sixth.
On the night of Li Pin’s death, the royal dynasty came to an end, just as she had.
“We’ve reached the resting point,” Li Zhengqing’s voice came from outside the carriage.
“Mother, Ying Ying, let’s eat.
I’m starving after traveling all day.”
Li Yue Haili snapped out of her reverie, instinctively turning her gaze to Feng Yongyuan’s face.
As soon as her eyes met his, she saw his sharp gaze return hers immediately, along with a warm, gentle smile, like a refreshing stream.
“Let’s go down.”
The young girl quickly withdrew her gaze, composing her emotions swiftly.
She responded with a faint smile, “Yes, Your Highness.”
Feng Yongyuan waited for Furen Li and her daughter to step down from the carriage first, following behind them as a sign of respect.
However, he kept his eyes fixed on Li Yue Haili’s every movement, never letting her out of his sight.
A moment ago, when she had looked at him, her eyes had revealed a myriad of emotions.
No matter how skilled she was at masking her expressions, her large, round eyes were incapable of deceit.
He was now certain—this little girl was hiding something, some secret he did not yet know.
There was a reason she was so eager to avoid him, as if she wanted to flee far away from him.
But…
Ying Ying, Yue Ying, Li Yue Haili—whether in this life or the next, do not even dream of escaping from me.