Rebirth and Rewriting Fate

And so the day went by, the night gradually turning from black to light, and then from light to black again. Ye Xingchen sat motionless behind the door. She seemed isolated from the world around her, like a sculpture forgotten by time, immersed in her own thoughts and memories, no matter how the outside world changed, it could not touch the despair and collapse in her heart.

Footsteps came from outside the door, and a moment later someone spoke.

“Master, Miss Ye has locked herself in her room all day and hasn’t eaten anything,” Chiwu said.

Gu Ruoxiao remained silent.

“We have to set off tomorrow, or we’ll miss the main group,” Chiwu added.

A moment later, it became quiet outside.

The next morning, Ye Xingchen opened her door, and Gu Ruoxiao was standing outside. He looked at her and said, "It's time to go."

As the carriage traveled along the road, Ye Xingchen closed his eyes, his mind filled with the smiling faces of his relatives and friends from Xiyan Mountain.

Grandma asked her with a smile, "Are you hungry?"

Uncle San asked helplessly, "How's your kung fu learning going?"

My aunt, holding a plate of pastries, said, "These osmanthus cakes are fresh out of the oven today. Eat them while they're hot."

The little one came running over, asking, "Have you bought the best candy and pastries in the capital?"

Ye Xingchen's closed eyes were filled with tears, and she pinched her arm hard.

After traveling for about half an hour, the carriage stopped.

"Master, we've arrived," Chiwu said from outside the carriage.

"Let's get out of the car," Gu Ruoxiao said, getting up and getting out first.

Ye Xingchen reluctantly got out of the car with him, and when she looked up, her eyes instantly welled up with tears again.

She then realized that she had come from the vines on the back of Xiyan Mountain.

The mountainside was now blackened by the fire; the vines had all burned away, their once lush greenery reduced to charred remains, scattered across the slope like scars on the earth, silently telling a story. The area beneath the vines had been cleared, revealing dozens of mounds of varying sizes. There were no tombstones, but the words "Xiyan Mountain" were inscribed in front of the graves.

Gu Ruoxiao's voice came from behind, "Xiyan Mountain doesn't have a good reputation, so I didn't erect a tombstone for fear that someone would cause trouble. Compile a list for me, and I will erect a new one on the day of the exoneration. Don't worry, I have already arranged for people to come and clean and repair this place regularly, and to burn paper money for them."

Ye Xingchen stood there, listening, tears streaming down her face like broken beads. Then she knelt down heavily, kowtowing to the graves, silently vowing, "I will avenge you! Wait for me."

Ye Xingchen knelt for a long time, while Gu Ruoxiao stood quietly behind her without disturbing her.

After a long while, she stood up, walked to Gu Ruoxiao, and curtsied. "Thank you." Her voice was hoarse and tired; this was the first sentence she had uttered in over a day.

After getting on the bus, she kept her eyes closed and didn't say anything. The person opposite her said, "I'm sorry, I didn't keep my promise to you."

Ye Xingchen suddenly remembered that on Xiyan Mountain, Gu Ruoxiao said, "I promise you, I will help you protect Xiyan Mountain."

Tears welled up in her eyes again and slid down her cheeks. She turned to the side.

Chiwu's voice came from outside the carriage, "Master, we have to travel through the night today, otherwise we won't reach the camp before tomorrow morning."

The carriage sped through the night, as dark and boundless as Ye Xingchen's heart, as if all light and color had been swallowed up by the night, leaving only pitch black.

The next morning, they arrived at the location where the main force was stationed in the field.

Inside the carriage, Ye Xingchen opened his eyes. Although Gu Ruoxiao across from him seemed to be in relatively good spirits, the dark circles under her eyes did not lie.

She remained silent, took out the half-roll of parchment from her bosom, put it in his hand, and turned to get off the car.

Ye Xingchen quickly found her carriage. Not far away, Ping An was feeding the horses, Xu Li was stroking the horses' manes, and Nan Rao and Zhu Ling were busy washing up and getting ready.

Ping An turned around and saw Ye Xingchen, then quickly greeted everyone. Immediately, the four of them surrounded her, chattering away.

"Miss, you're back!"

"Miss, are you alright?"

"Are you hungry, miss?"

"Miss, you look terrible."

Ye Xingchen smiled faintly at everyone, "I'm sleepy, I want to sleep for a while." After saying that, she climbed into the carriage and buried herself in the quilt, but how could she fall asleep? Every time she closed her eyes, all she could see was the great fire on Xiyan Mountain and her relatives in the fire.

Perhaps sensing their young mistress's unusual behavior, everyone kept their voices down and didn't disturb her even when they broke camp and set off.

Ye Xingchen didn't touch his breakfast or lunch. When they parked and set up camp in the evening, the four of them gathered together and discussed things quietly.

"What's wrong, Miss?"

"Go and ask."

"I can not."

"Miss has never done this before."

"What should we do?"

The crowd looked at each other, completely at a loss.

Nan Rao glanced in Gu Ruoxiao's direction and said, "I'll go ask the Prince."

Zhu Ling asked anxiously, "Will the Prince see you?"

"Don't worry, I have a way," Nan Rao patted Zhu Ling reassuringly.

Prince's Camp

"Your Highness, Nanrao reports that Miss Ye wishes to see you," Chiwu said.

Gu Ruoxiao closed the memorial. "Let her in."

Then, Nanrao approached and knelt down.

"Where's your lady?"

“I, Nanrao, am using your name to request an audience with Your Highness. I am guilty and accept punishment. But before I am punished, I would like to ask Your Highness a few questions. Is that alright?” Nanrao said, neither humble nor arrogant.

"Go ahead," Gu Ruoxiao gestured.

"Has the Prince been with my young lady these past few days?" After receiving confirmation, Nan Rao continued to ask.

"Then you must know what happened to Miss, right?"

Gu Ruoxiao looked at Nan Rao without saying a word.

“The young lady is acting very strangely since she came back. She hasn’t eaten all day. We are all very worried about her, but we don’t know what to do.”

After a moment of silence, Gu Ruoxiao looked up and said, "Your young lady has just lost someone very, very important. You should spend more time with her these days."

Nan Rao's gaze shifted from doubt to shock, and finally to deep heartache.

"Nanrao understands." She lowered her head.

"Go back. If you want to see me next time, just go to Chiwu."

Nanrao bowed and took his leave.

"Sister Zhuling, that Doctor Luo is here again." Ping An tugged at Zhuling.

Xu Li quickly stepped forward to block Luo Yan's approach to the carriage.

"How is your young lady's typhoid fever?" Luo Yan asked. "Have she finished her medicine?"

“My young lady is still ill and will not receive guests,” Zhu Ling quickly replied.

"Let me take your pulse first. Doctors rely on observation, listening, questioning, and palpation; that will be more accurate," Luo Yan said thoughtfully, her words tinged with worry.

"No need, my young lady is much better today. She just took her medicine and went to sleep," Nan Rao, who had just returned, quickly replied.

“But…” Luo Yan frowned.

"Dr. Luo, thank you for your concern. I'm fine, just a little tired and exhausted," Ye Xingchen's voice came from inside the carriage.

"Then I won't bother you any longer. If you need anything, just send someone to call me." Luo Yan thought for a moment and then took his leave.

After Luo Yan left, Zhu Ling hurriedly asked Nan Rao silently, only to be met with Nan Rao shaking his head. Everyone looked helplessly at the carriage.