The tall man entered quietly, closed the wooden door, and bowed. Feng Qing said casually: “No need for formalities. How did things go?”
The tall man reported: “Everything is arranged. In seven days, three princes and two generals will meet with us.”
Feng Qing’s frown deepened: “Let’s hope everything goes smoothly.”
“My lord, please don’t worry. We will follow you to death.”
“You may go,” Feng Qing said.
I looked back and forth at their expressions, secretly amused.
Feng Qing had been emperor since childhood, with all power in his uncle’s hands. Now at coming-of-age, reclaiming imperial power was inevitable. Encountering such an interesting event during a mission was truly delightful.
But seven days later was also when Qin Fei would be reborn.
Qin Fei’s rebirth moment was when they first met. Missing that encounter meant they would never meet again. But that might be good – even if Feng Qing became a true emperor with many concubines, Qin Fei would still spend her life in the Cold Palace.
I stretched and ran back to bed.
Waking up, my waist made a crackling sound. The nearby palace maid covered her mouth and laughed: “Xiaohua, you must have been a delicate lady before entering the palace.”
After washing up, I rubbed my waist and went to Qin Fei’s room to serve her morning routine.
Qin Fei stood like an immobile jade person, letting me dress and tie her clothes. Though her clothes were plain, she was as elegant as jade, looking better than other women in elaborate garments.
“Xiaohua,” Qin Fei suddenly spoke, her voice sweet as a bell, “Do you think there’s reincarnation in this world? After death, will one cross the Bridge of Helplessness?”
I quietly helped her tie her waistband and said, “Perhaps.” I glanced at her quickly, wondering if she was determined to end her life.
I wouldn’t let her die so easily, as that would violate the rules of rebirth. “But I don’t believe drinking Meng Po’s soup can make one forget everything from their previous life.”
Qing Fei’s expression darkened: “Wouldn’t that be painful?”
I smiled: “Why is Your Highness talking about this?”
Qing Fei said calmly: “Curiosity.”
I laughed inwardly. No matter how much you want to commit suicide, you won’t succeed. How could the spell be broken so easily? You’ll obediently wait six days and let this divine lord send you off.
As the seven-day limit drew closer, I visited the royal study more often and understood Feng Qing’s plan better. He sent confidants to persuade the princes and generals with military power to agree on a time to enter the imperial city and capture the rebels. The plan sounded simple, but most of the palace guards belonged to the imperial uncle. I feared that as soon as the reinforcements reached the city gates, the imperial uncle would kill Feng Qing.
As an observer, I naturally couldn’t interfere.
“How is Qier lately?”
I stopped when I heard the emperor mention a name.
The man said: “I’ve been in contact with various generals. I’ll ask about the consort’s matter tomorrow.” He added with slight confusion, “If Your Majesty still cares for her, why… not bring her back to the palace? The Cold Palace is too desolate.”
Feng Qing’s sword-like eyebrows moved slightly, and his eyes filled with vicissitudes closed: “If I did that, Mu Empress would immediately tell the imperial uncle that I’m cold-hearted.” He suddenly laughed coldly, “The imperial uncle dotes on his distant niece.”
The man said nothing and withdrew.
I sat nearby, propping my chin and looking at his now-open, tired eyes.
Qifen emerged from her bath, dressing herself while saying, “Xiaohua, why did you enter the imperial palace?”
I lowered my eyes and answered, “My family is poor. I have an eighty-year-old grandmother and a three-year-old younger brother. I entered the palace to earn more silver to support my family.”
Qifen let out a light laugh, “The imperial palace is dangerous. One wrong step, and you could lose your life.”
I smiled along with her, but felt a sudden tightness in my chest, almost unable to breathe. Qifen continued to smile lightly, looking innocent. Her bright eyes fixed on me as she spoke: “You’ve been poisoned. A poison that will certainly kill you.”
“Qifen is changing maids again.”
“Five have already died.”
“Qifen eats people.”
The words the palace maids had told me before surfaced in my mind, and I suddenly understood: “Were the five maids before me all poisoned by you?”
“Yes.”
I gritted my teeth, “Why would you do this?”
Qifen spoke softly, “I want to die, but that beast Feng Qing never lets me. I’ve survived. If I keep killing people, perhaps Empress Lu wouldn’t sit idly by. Forcing him to kill me might be better.”
My mortal body is so fragile. If I stay in it, I might die with it. But it’s not yet the seventh day, so I’ll keep up the act and persist! I looked up and asked, “Don’t you love the master?”
“The person I loved is already dead, killed by Feng Qing. He brought me to the palace, and all my dreams have turned to dust,” Qifen sat down weakly. “He said he loved me, so I’ll die to make him suffer forever. Rather than letting him die, I’ll make him live in torment. The struggle for imperial power is so difficult that even an outsider like me can see how painfully he lives.”
By the end, Qifen was laughing, tears streaming down her face. I felt a tremor in my heart – such a heartbreaking laugh, I hadn’t heard its like in a hundred years.
Hatred and resentment intertwined, creating an overwhelming aura that made the objects in the room seem to float.
” Dark blood sprayed from my mouth onto the floor. My hand could no longer support me on the table, and I collapsed onto a wooden stool, breathing heavily and staring at her.
“I do,” Qifen actually smiled lightly. “That’s why I’m waiting for him to kill me every day.”
Damn, if Feng Qing succeeds in seizing power tomorrow, he won’t care how many people you’ve killed.
As the palace bells rang, I silently recited a spell to leave this mortal body.
Qifen leaned down, covering Xiaohua’s face with a plain handkerchief, sighing, “I’m sorry. I’ll make up for your life soon.”
I floated nearby, coldly laughing, “I’m afraid you won’t be able to.”
Qifen looked startled, glancing around, trembling, “Who?”
I slowly revealed my true form, completely transformed, sitting on a cloud and yawning lazily: “I am the Reincarnation Lord from the divine realm. The rebirth intention you’ve sought has been received by the divine realm. Now, I will perform a space-time conversion to send you back to the past.”
Qingfei listened to my words, suddenly bursting into rage, angrily pointing at me and saying harshly: “Cruel! Beast! What meaning is there in this rebirth! I only want my third brother to be alive. Since he cannot live, what’s the point of me going back!”
I twitched my cheek, this has nothing to do with the God of Barriers: “So you mean to give up?”
If one could change the fate of everyone around them by their own power, this world would probably fall into chaos. It’s not even easy to control one’s own destiny; giving up would be better, I could save myself a lot of trouble and go back to the divine realm to play mahjong.
“I…” Before she could finish her sentence, a sudden cracking sound came from outside.
I floated out the window and narrowed my eyes to look. The palace gates had been broken through, with thousands of troops rushing in.
A palace coup?
Feng Qing’s reinforcements had finally arrived. I needed to quickly make this greedy woman choose, and then go watch the show.
But when I returned to the room, she was already gone.
Damn this woman!
I angrily followed her breath, planning to use a tiger trap!
The palace was already in complete chaos. Screams and cries from near and far floated around my ears, mixed with the sounds of weapons clashing.
