Rebirth and Rewriting Fate

Since I stopped focusing all my attention on Gu Chengjie, it seems like I have a lot more time. Living a second life, I'm mostly filled with reminiscence, and I've begun to have time to examine everything in the present.

Unfortunately, Ye Xingchen returned too late; his body was now suffering from chronic poisoning.

I've heard that there's a Valley of a Hundred Herbs in Linchuan, where there are medicinal herbs that can cure diseases. This is what Mo Han spent a whole year searching for to find for Ye Xingchen.

Thinking of Mo Han, he couldn't help but feel heartbroken. Where was she now? If things didn't change, Ye Xingchen would be able to meet her in a year. But how to get to Hundred Herbs Valley was something he needed to plan carefully.

One day, Nanrao was restless and knocked over her teacup several times. Ye Xingchen was slightly puzzled, so she told her to go and rest.

He turned and called to Zhu Ling, "What's wrong with Nan Rao?"

“Miss, news has come from Linchuan these past two days that the earth dragon is enraged, causing landslides and cracks in the ground, destroying many houses and causing huge casualties. Nanrao’s hometown is in Linchuan, so she must be worried about the situation back home,” Zhu Ling replied.

Ye Xingchen pondered for a moment, then said, "Zhuling, let's go out of the manor today."

The streets of the capital were just as they had been in the previous life, with vendors' shouts and pedestrians' laughter mingling together. People in the teahouses chatted idly about gossip, indicating that the disaster in Linchuan had not affected the lives of the people in the capital.

Suddenly, a commotion arose: "Have you heard? There's a notice posted at the city gate, offering a large sum of money to recruit people to go to Linchuan for disaster relief!"

"Oh dear, who would go? It's so dangerous over there. What if they don't come back? It's a matter of life and death!"

"Yes, I'm not going."

"This time, the Prince of Jin is in charge. Going there would be a great achievement!"

"So what if he's the Prince of Jin? We're all just small fry. Why would the Prince of Jin care about our lives?"

"Yes, everyone, you're all risking your lives, so take it easy."

Everyone was talking about it.

That's human nature: if it doesn't concern you, you don't care.

Ye Xingchen remembered that in his previous life, it seemed that Prince Gu Ruoxiao of Jin was indeed in charge of the affairs of Linchuan, and it seemed that he had also caught Cui, a royal relative who had embezzled the national treasury, in Linchuan, but he did not know the specific details.

After hearing the gossip, it's time to go home.

Linchuan has the Valley of a Hundred Herbs, which is exactly what Ye Xingchen planned to do. He had to find a way to get there, but how could the prestigious Ye family allow their eldest daughter to leave the capital? Ye Xingchen pondered as he walked.

"Miss Ye, my master requests your presence." A guard blocked Ye Xingchen's path.

Seeing this, Zhu Ling quickly stepped forward to block her way, asking, "Who are you?"

"Your subordinate, Chiwu, requests my master's presence," Chiwu said respectfully.

"Your master?" Ye Xingchen asked.

"This is my master's token." Chiwu handed over the token, which was clearly engraved with the words "Prince of Jin".

Ye Xingchen closed his eyes helplessly. "Let's go."

"Miss!" Zhu Ling quickly pulled her back.

"It's alright," Ye Xingchen reassured her.

In the renowned Juxian Pavilion in the capital, Gu Ruoxiao was sitting upright, sipping tea.

"I wonder what business Your Highness Prince Jin has with me?" Ye Xingchen asked bluntly. When dealing with intelligent people, being direct is the best approach.

Gu Ruoxiao placed a parchment scroll on the table. "Unwrap it."

Ye Xingchen picked it up and opened it; it was the half of the treasure map that had been taken from the bamboo tube. Touching its texture, he realized that Gu Ruoxiao had tried many methods but had not been able to decipher it.

Ye Xingchen looked up at Gu Ruoxiao and said, "Since Prince Jin has taken this thing, it's not appropriate for me to decipher it, is it?"

After examining the situation for a moment, Gu Ruoxiao asked, "Conditions?"

"I'm going to Linchuan," Ye Xingchen said directly.

Gu Ruoxiao was taken aback for a moment but quickly regained her composure, raising her hand to pour a cup of tea. "What is Miss Ye going to Linchuan for?"

Ye Xingchen took a sip of tea. "I naturally did not ask the Prince of Jin what he intended to do with the treasure he took. So I have no right to tell you why I went to Linchuan."

"If Miss Ye wants to leave the capital, she can certainly ask your father. Why would she mention it to me?"

Ye Xingchen thought to herself, "What an old fox!" She smiled and said, "Linchuan is in chaos right now, and the person in charge of disaster relief in Linchuan is Prince Jin. I think Prince Jin has connections everywhere, so he must have a clever way to get me to go to Linchuan with him, right?"

“I also want the other half of the treasure map,” Gu Ruoxiao said.

"How did you know there was half a sheet left?" Ye Xingchen asked, puzzled.

“This is just a section.” Gu Ruoxiao tapped the half-section of parchment on the table with her fan.

To be honest, Gu Ruoxiao is a good person. Rather than giving the treasure map to the Fourth Prince to usurp the throne, it would be better to give it to him to bring peace to the region.

“Okay, deal.” The two looked at each other.

"Prepare salt, hot water, clean water, white vinegar, and an oil lamp," Ye Xingchen said.

Gu Ruoxiao raised her hand to signal, and a moment later, everything was ready.

Ye Xingchen dissolved the salt in hot water, then soaked the sheepskin scroll in it and rubbed it for a while. Afterward, he filtered it in clean water and patted it dry with a handkerchief. Next, he added most of a jar of white vinegar to the clean water, soaked it deeply, drained it, and lit an oil lamp to dry the sheepskin scroll. After a while, the patterns on the sheepskin scroll became visible. Once everything was clearly visible, he handed the sheepskin scroll to Gu Ruoxiao.

"Don't forget what you promised me," Ye Xingchen said again.

The next day, just as Ye Xingchen was about to have lunch, the steward of her father, Vice Minister Ye's, courtyard came to report that she should go to his study to see him.

Nanrao helped her undress, while Zhuling took the opportunity to chatter beside her, "I heard that the morning court session lasted a long time today. Master just returned home. Could it be that there's something bad he wants Miss to do?"

"Is it time for Gu Ruoxiao to make a move?" Ye Xingchen thought to himself.

As I stepped into my father Ye Shilang's courtyard, I happened to run into the First Madam Rong coming out.

"Greetings, Mother." Ye Xingchen bowed.

"Well, good luck to you," Rong said before leaving.

The study door was open, and ironically, this was Ye Xingchen's first time stepping into her father's study.

"Father," Ye Xingchen bowed.

"Please sit down," said Vice Minister Ye.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn has passed, Minister Ye finally spoke. "Have you heard about the natural disaster of the earth dragon in Linchuan?"

"Yes, I've heard the servants talking about it."

"This morning at court, Prince Jin reported the situation in Linchuan to His Majesty. The advance troops have already been dispatched, but unfortunately, the natural disaster is severe, and the required manpower and resources for relief are enormous. The national treasury is already strained. Today, Prince Jin proposed that all officials unite to fight the disaster, contributing money and effort as needed. He also demanded that officials of the third rank and above must send someone from their families to participate in disaster relief." At this point, Vice Minister Ye paused.

Ye Xingchen couldn't say anything, but could only admire Gu Ruoxiao's brilliant move in his heart. It not only made the wealthy ministers bleed, but also taught the spoiled brats a good lesson.

“Chen’er, you know perfectly well that Shu’er is still young, and Huan’er is your younger sister. As her older sister, you should naturally take care of her.” Her father, Minister Ye, gently coaxed her with familial affection. “Chen’er, what do you think?”

After a moment of silence, Ye Xingchen stood up and said, "I understand. As the eldest daughter of the Ye family, it is my duty to shoulder this responsibility."

"Good, good, good, you truly are my good daughter." Minister Ye breathed a long sigh of relief.

"When do we set off?" Ye Xingchen asked.

"The disaster is severe, I'll leave tomorrow." Perhaps feeling that his change of expression was too unbecoming of a father, Minister Ye quickly tried to make amends, "I'll have someone prepare things for you right away."

"Then my daughter will also take her leave and go back to pack her things." Ye Xingchen immediately withdrew.

"Good good."

As Ye Xingchen left his father's courtyard, he couldn't help but sigh, realizing that the fading of family ties had been a long-standing problem.