"When I was very young, Wanniang told me that the most honorable woman in the world is the queen and the palace where the queen lives are called 'Kunning Palace.' I asked Wanniang what the Kunning Palace is like."

"Wanniang said that she didn't know either."

"I was sitting under the leaky eaves in the countryside, and I thought, if I could turn into a swan goose flying by that day, fly to the bustling capital, fly to the Forbidden City, and see what the Kunning Palace looks like, it would be wonderful. How good would it be?"

The gate of the palace is claustrophobic; only a window on the left remains open.

The sky was overcast, and the light was dim.

In the bustling Kunning Palace of the past, there is no one in the palace at this moment.

Only Jiang Xuening was left kneeling in front of the table, holding the chopsticks with her white and slender fingers, and lightly fiddling with the wrong Jinboshan stove on the table. Wisps of smoke floated slowly from the pores, creating a smoky atmosphere. Her robes, woven with gold and rusty phoenix patterns, spread long behind her, and the complicated moiré pattern floated faintly in the darkness with little brilliance.

"Later, I went to the capital. God played a big joke on me. He gave me a delusional mind that I shouldn't have, but he let me grow up in the countryside. He didn't raise me as one of the famous ladies in the capital, nor did he grant me their magnanimous attitude. Instead, he placed me in this bustling place, the arena of battle, and only gave me a good appearance.

Jiang Xuening's appearance is extremely bright, burning like a flower.

Her crescent eyebrows are tactile, the corners of her eyes are slightly raised, and her sandalwood lips, tinged with vermilion, exhibit natural charm. Over the years, due to holding the Phoenix Seal and being in a high position, she has developed rare grace and dignity.

When she lowers her eyebrows and narrows her eyes, it can make one's heart skip a beat.

You Fangyin stood quietly behind her for a long time, listening to her faint voice and considering her life in the eyes of the world, where she was full of tricks, fame, and fortune. He suddenly became a little dazed.

A kind of sadness arose in his heart.

They all knew that she could not escape.

Jiang Xuening suddenly smiled. "Fang Yin, during this period of time, I have been thinking, am I really wrong?"

When she was a child, she was brought up by Wanniang, not knowing her own background. She roamed wild in the rural landscape outside Zhuangzi. She was a bird that no one could control, and only Wanniang's rouge and gouache could bring her home.

Wanniang was a remarkable woman among women, born on a thin horse.

She said that the world is dominated by men, and only men can conquer it, while women only need to conquer men to conquer the world.

After returning to Beijing, she got to know Yan Lin, the young master of Yongyi Hou's mansion. He took her to disguise herself as a man and play around in the capital. Even her parents didn't dare discipline her too much.

Later, the Yongyi Hou Mansion was implicated in the rebellion case against King Pingnan.

Yan Lin's family was exiled for thousands of miles.

The young man, who had not yet reached the crown, climbed over the high wall of the Jiang Mansion to find her at night. With a hoarse voice, he squeezed her hand vigorously. "Ningning, I will definitely come back to marry you."

But Jiang Xuening said to him, "I want to marry Shen Jie, and I want to be a queen."

I still remember that when Yan Lin was a teenager, he looked at her with a piercing gaze, like a struggling animal. His eyes were red, and his teeth were clenched.

That night, the boy shed all his youthfulness, let go of her hand, turned around, and escaped into the darkness.

Five years later, she became Shen Jie's queen.

The road to her current position was not smooth, so in her short life, there were still many people like Yan Lin.

For example, Xiao Dingfei, the servant of the Ministry of Officials

For example, Zhou Yinzhi, the commander of Jinyiwei

Even Shen Zhiyi, the eldest princess of Leyang, who later died in Yidi,

However, no one expected that the boy from the past would make a comeback one day. After making military exploits at the border, Yan Lin aligned himself with Xie Wei and, under the banner of "the side of the Qing emperor," returned in armor. He led the army to surround the capital, take control of the entire Forbidden City, and put her under house arrest.

Shen Jie was poisoned, lingering on the sickbed, ignoring the affairs of the government.

He entered and exited her palace grandly and often avoided the palace attendants when he came.

Inside and outside the court, no one dared to speak.

Everyone knows that he is Xie Wei's right-hand man.

When Xie Wei slaughtered half of the palace, he was the one who led the soldiers to guard the palace gates, preventing anyone from escaping and catching young and old.

Now, he is standing outside the gate of her palace with the former imperial teacher, Xie Wei.

Shen Jie had passed away, leaving an imperial edict ordering Jiang Xuening to listen to the government from behind the curtain.

However, the crown prince, who was next in line to ascend the throne, had not yet been supported and was killed by the Tianjiao rebel party on his way to the capital. His head was hung at the city gate.

Now it was Jiang Xuening's turn.

Jiang Xuening blinked lightly, and her thick, curled eyelashes cast a faint shadow under her eyelids, giving her a desolate look amidst the unpredictable changes in the world.

You, Fangyin, looked at her with some regret.

But Jiang Xuening had already put down the incense chopsticks, covered the incense burner, and taken the large brocade box from the table. She opened it to reveal the Jade Seal of the Chuan Kingdom and an imperial edict letter that she had written and sealed an hour ago.

The letter stated that she voluntarily sacrificed herself for the late emperor, requesting the prince and the grand teacher Xie Weikuang to serve the country, assist the government, and choose a virtuous monarch to succeed her.

Suddenly, Jiang Xuening raised her head and glanced out the window.

The snow that had fallen all night had stopped at some point.

The bright sun broke through the gloomy clouds, shining through the windows of the somber palace and casting a beam of light.

She murmured, "If I had known this would be the outcome, why would I have wasted so much time? It would have been better to travel thousands of miles, see the rivers and mountains, and be like a free bird. In this life, I entered the palace by mistake, surrounded by walls, a bustling cocoon."

You, Fangyin, remained silent.

Jiang Xuening then asked, "Fangyin, if you were given a chance to choose, would you still come?"

You, Fangyin, were the strangest person Jiang Xuening had ever met.

She was originally a concubine's daughter from the uncle's mansion, clumsy and pitiful. But after falling into the water, her temperament changed drastically. She showed her face, became successful in business, opened a billing account, established a chamber of commerce, and became the leading businessman in Jiangning Mansion within a few years.

Calling her "You Bancheng" wouldn't be an exaggeration.

However, she had been unlucky. In this court battle, she initially joined the wrong side. Although she later surrendered to Xie Wei, she had been guarded and under house arrest in the palace.

The two of them shared their miseries and became confidants who talked about everything.

Jiang Xuening heard You Fangyin's stories of her self-made success, many of which were novel. She also heard complaints about the lack of steam engines among the overseas barbarians she encountered during her business ventures.

Jiang Xuening didn't know what a steam engine was.

But You Fangyin always claimed that she was not from here but from a place far away where she could no longer return.

She also mentioned a significant secret within the former court. If they had known it, anyone with a bit of intelligence wouldn't have made mistakes in this battle.

Unfortunately, Jiang Xuening learned it too late.

You Fangyin sighed faintly and said with a bitter smile, "In this era where the birds don't defecate and are only angry, anyone who dares to take a stand will face consequences!"

It had been a long time since Jiang Xuening had heard such vulgar words. She was momentarily dazed but then remembered the time. She suddenly raised her voice and shouted, "Thank you, sir!"

The vermilion palace walls were covered with white snow.

A crowd of people gathered outside the palace gate.

Yan Lin pressed his sword to his side.

The leader stood tall but did not respond to her words.

Jiang Xuening knew he could hear her.

He was the most cunning person in the entire Daqian Dynasty.

A saint's appearance with a devil's heart

The emperor of two dynasties, the prince, and the grand teacher—how many people respected, admired, and revered them? Little did they know that beneath this noble and clean facade was a heart full of rage and murder. Shang Fang's sword, bestowed by the emperor, was stained with the blood of the royal family, turning the moat red. In the hands of the Fuqin writer, the lives of Xiao's family were tightly held, and the corpses of those implicated piled up like a mountain.

He was the only one she couldn't please, no matter how hard she tried.

"You killed the royal family, the Xiao family, and the Tianjiao. You hold the power over my life. It is reasonable that I have no right to negotiate terms with you." Jiang Xuening's eyes suddenly welled up with tears, burning on the back of her hand. "Throughout my life, I have used many people, but upon careful reflection, I betrayed Yan Lin, and he sought revenge on me. I used Xiao Dingfei and Zhou Yinzhi, and they used me to gain power. I plotted against Shen Jie, and now I want to be buried with him and accompany him to the underworld. I don't owe them."

The twists and turns of fate, just like that

The dagger was concealed in her sleeve.

She pulled it out lightly, and the blade shimmered with cold light, reflecting in her eyes and on the splendid golden step rock adorning her temples.

Jiang Xuening's body trembled, her voice quivered, and her eyes filled with tears. But she had no right to cry. Each word she uttered felt like a tear of blood. "But there is one person who has remained righteous throughout his life, upholding strict laws and regulations. It was I who coerced him, led him astray, and ruined his reputation for half a lifetime. He is a good official, and I sincerely hope that Mr. Xie will take care of him. Let Xue Ning offer my blood on the way to Beijing and exchange my life for his, allowing him to live."

Who would have expected that the heartless and ruthless empress would one day offer her own life in exchange for a servant of the Ministry of Punishment?

Was it because she had no heart, or was it because others had failed to warm her heart?

The man outside the palace gate stood still for a long time.

It took a while before Jiang Xuening heard the plain word, "Yes."

What a comforting voice!

It felt like a long time ago.

Jiang Xuening smiled in relief and made up her mind to raise her hand—

"Pfft."

As the sharp dagger pierced her slender neck, there was a sound like paper tearing, accompanied by the clang of a long sword falling to the ground outside the palace gate.

She fell as well.

The delicate golden steps shattered on the ground, and the deep ruby embedded in them shattered and scattered. The warm blood slowly soaked into the cold ground, following the steps, reminiscent of the shallow streams she used to step on and play with bare feet in her youth.

Entering the palace by mistake, prosperity turned into a cocoon.

This Kunning Palace eventually became the tomb where her bones were buried, swallowing her life.

The sunny sun emerged from the window, shining on the snow, gradually melting it bit by bit.

It had been a long dream, where the karma of her entire life was in chaos and only the sensation of the blade touching her neck remained crystal clear.

It hurt.

Jiang Xuening thought that if she had known earlier, she would have chosen a painless way to die.

"Cough."

Something seemed to be pressing on her chest in the dream, making it hard for her to breathe. She coughed and finally struggled to open her eyes.

But what she saw was terrifying.

She was lying on a disheveled couch, or rather, sandwiched between two men. Close at hand was the face of a handsome and refined young man, almost in sync with her breath. His arm lazily wrapped around her.

Jiang Xuening's scalp tingled.

This scene reminded her of how Yan Lin had kept her under house arrest upon returning to the court, sneaking silently into her palace and depriving her of sleep.

She shook off the man's hand, rolled over, and stood up from the couch.

The young man, in his drunken stupor, opened his eyes, surprised by her actions. He half-sat up and reached out to pull her back. "Well, Brother Jiang, let's continue sleeping—"

"How dare you!"

She was, after all, an empress who commanded hundreds of officials, and even though she slapped the future emperor without thinking, she couldn't tolerate his rudeness!

"Smack!"

The sound was loud, finally rousing the young man in black robes who had been sound asleep with his sword as a pillow on the other side of the couch.

As he opened his eyes, his long eyebrows, straight nose, and thin lips exuded a distinctive aura. He was momentarily puzzled upon witnessing the scene but quickly noticed the messy attire of the young man in Chinese clothing, the five red fingerprints on his right cheek, and the shocked and furious expression on Jiang Xuening's face.

With a resounding "clang," the young man snapped out of his daze, swiftly approached Jiang Xuening, drew his sword from its sheath, and pressed the tip against the young man's neck!

His face, which was still somewhat youthful, turned cold.

He asked in a chilling tone, "What did you do to her?"

On the one hand, the young man was surprised by the audacity of this impulsive act. On the other hand, he felt wronged and innocent, involuntarily covering his cheek. "What did I do? I did nothing! This king was merely playing around!"

The young man furrowed his brow, casting a suspicious gaze at him.

My king...

Jiang Xuening suddenly froze.

It was only then that she belatedly realized she smelled of alcohol and noticed that she was wearing a green robe embroidered with silver-threaded bamboo patterns, disguised as a young man. A burning pain lingered in her palm from slapping the man's face just moments ago.

Dressed as a man.

This wasn't a dream.

And the face of the young man targeted by the sword, as well as the figure of the young man standing before her, gradually resurfaced in her memory. One was Shen Jie, the King of Linzi who would later become the Emperor, and the other was the figure of the young man who would later become Yan Lin, the son of a rebellious minister!

Was this the "rebirth" that You Fangyin often spoke of?

In her previous life, she had cautiously maneuvered around men, but in this life, she had slapped the future emperor right from the start.

Would it be too late now to kneel down and apologize?