Rebirth and Rewriting Fate

Only the Emperor, the Empress, and Eunuch Cao remained in the hall.

The Empress tucked the blanket around the Emperor and said, "I think Yun Chu is a good child. It's just that Lin'er is not fortunate enough to have her. But after all, she is still a member of our royal family, so we shouldn't let the good stuff go to outsiders."

The Emperor smiled and said, "If Xiao can find someone he likes, I will be happy for him." Perhaps because he was happy, the Emperor seemed to be in better spirits today.

"That's right. Speaking of which, our royal family still owes her a favor. If Ruoxiao hadn't said that she drank the poisoned wine that the Northern Princess had drunk, I would have really made a big mistake." The Empress felt a wave of fear; she was the one who arranged for that wine.

"But she really has guts. Didn't Ruoxiao say before that she didn't want to acknowledge the imperial decree of marriage and asked Your Majesty to turn a blind eye? How come she was willing to help the royal family? And later, I didn't see her come to claim credit." The Empress asked, puzzled.

The Emperor shook his head. "Everything boils down to love."

"What do you mean by that, Your Majesty?" the Empress asked.

"Didn't you notice the way she looked at Ruoxiao at the autumn hunt?"

"Your Majesty, you mean she was already..." the Empress exclaimed. "No wonder they said at the banquet that she fell into the water and Ruoxiao saved her. I thought Ruoxiao would end up with the Shangguan family!"

The Emperor shook his head. Having seen countless people, he sighed, "Sometimes, you can't hide your feelings for someone. But at that time, it's probably just liking someone but suppressing it. Such a woman is prone to self-harm."

"However, in the end, true love prevails," the Empress said with a smile.

As you exit the palace gate, you pass through a long palace path, where the green tiles and red bricks on both sides appear serene and beautiful under the illumination of palace lanterns.

Gu Ruoxiao tied the cloak around Yun Chu's neck, then took her hand and asked, "Would you like to take a carriage ride?"

Yun Chu shook her head and looked at the palace road. "I want to take a walk with you."

She pulled him forward, hopping like she was playing hopscotch.

"In a good mood?" Gu Ruoxiao asked.

"Mmm." Yun Chu nodded, a happy smile spreading across her face. She looked at their intertwined figures on the ground and made hand gestures.

"You met with Xiao Ba Shao while I was away."

Yun Chu looked up at him and said, "He's your own nephew!"

“If he weren’t my nephew, he would have lost his hand today.”

Yun Chu couldn't help but laugh in exasperation, and pulled him forward.

Light snowflakes drifted down from the sky, falling gently like willow catkins. This was the first snow of the year.

Yun Chu raised her hand, and a six-petaled snowflake landed in her palm, crystal clear.

"Ruoxiao, the first snow has arrived," Yun Chu muttered.

Gu Ruoxiao put his arm around her and asked, "Are you cold?"

Yun Chu shook her head, wrapped her arms around his waist, and said earnestly, "It's so good to have met you."

Her eyes shone in the darkness, her slightly parted lips full and round. Gu Ruoxiao stared at the person before him, smiling, his eyes sparkling with tenderness. Then he slowly lowered his head and gently kissed Yun Chu's lips.

The snow fell thick and fast, and they embraced in the snow, they kissed in the first snow.

Yun Chu didn't see Gu Ruoxiao for the next few days, and she was slightly worried, thinking that it was probably only a few days away.

On the evening of the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, Yun Chu was reading in her study. The weather outside was not good. It had been sunny in the morning, but now it was gloomy and a cold wind was blowing.

"Dong~ Dong~ Dong~" The long, melodious sound of a bell came from outside the valley, a sound that had not been heard for many years.

Zhu Ling, who was outside, asked in confusion, "What is that sound? Why is it so loud?"

Yun Chu stood up, her hands supporting her on the table.

The Emperor is gone; that is the death knell of an emperor.

Her heart was pounding; she was very worried about Gu Ruoxiao.

On the morning of the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, when the Emperor awoke, he saw Gu Ruoxiao sitting by his bedside, just as he had when he was a child. The difference was that when he was a child, Gu Ruoxiao always held a knife and a piece of wood, but now he was carefully reviewing the memorials one by one. Since the Emperor had fallen seriously ill, Gu Ruoxiao had been the one reviewing most of the memorials presented to him.

The little boy he had always watched had grown up, the emperor thought, and he raised his hand to pat the boy's head as he had when he was a child.

Gu Ruoxiao turned to look at him, "Brother, you're awake!"

The Emperor nodded.

"Your Majesty's sister-in-law has gone to cook you some porridge. I'll wash your face first." Gu Ruoxiao stood up, took the handkerchief handed to her by Eunuch Cao, and carefully wiped the Emperor's face. Then she handed him some tea to rinse his mouth.

"I want to go out and bask in the sun."

"Alright, I'll push you out." Gu Ruoxiao lifted the Emperor into the wheelchair and then pushed him out of the bedchamber. Gu Ruoxiao's heart ached; his elder brother was now skin and bones, practically floating on air.

The sky was clear and the sun was shining warmly, making people feel comfortable.

Gu Ruoxiao took the blanket handed to her by Eunuch Cao and draped it over the Emperor's legs.

"Is Your Majesty hungry? The porridge is ready." The Empress came over with the porridge.

"Let Ruoxiao come; I wish to speak with him," the Emperor said.

"Yes, the concubine is retiring."

Gu Ruoxiao picked up the porridge and slowly fed the emperor spoonful by spoonful, occasionally wiping the soup that dripped from his mouth with a handkerchief.

His heart sank. The emperor was unusually clingy to him today, and he had a bad feeling.

"Enough." The Emperor pushed the porridge aside. "Sit down and talk to me."

Eunuch Cao moved a chair and placed it next to the Emperor, and Gu Ruoxiao sat down.

"Cao Ze, go and summon Shangguan Xuan to an audience," the Emperor ordered.

"Brother, are you feeling unwell?" Gu Ruoxiao asked anxiously.

The Emperor waved his hand and said to Eunuch Cao, "Go."

"Ruoxiao, you used to love causing trouble around your older brother when you were little. Don't cause trouble in the future."

"Brother Royal."

"These days, I keep thinking about the past. Now, I'm afraid my time is coming to an end."

"Royal brother," Gu Ruoxiao said, unable to bear it any longer.

His Majesty waved his hand and continued, "Last night, I had a dream. I dreamt that when I was about to leave, you were not by my side. At that time, you were leading troops in the east to fight against Dongchi. I held on, hoping to wait for you to come back so I could see you one last time, but alas, in the end, I still didn't see you."

"Fortunately, it was just a dream. And now, you are still by my side." The Emperor raised his hand and patted Gu Ruoxiao's head again.

Gu Ruoxiao's heart trembled, his eyes welled up with tears, and he grasped the Emperor's hand. It wasn't a dream; it was something that truly happened in his past life.

The Emperor spoke intermittently to Gu Ruoxiao about the past, and as he continued talking, his head slowly leaned back in his chair.

"Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Shangguan has arrived." Eunuch Cao returned.

The Emperor opened his eyes, smiled, and said to Gu Ruoxiao, "Help me to bed."

Gu Ruoxiao pushed him into the hall and then carried him to the bed.