Blood.
It soaked the white silks of her wedding robes, blooming like cruel red lotus petals across her chest. The incense in the ancestral hall still burned sweet, masking the stench of betrayal.
Ye Liuyue fell to her knees, Her hands trembling, Pressed to the wound over her heart. The golden phoenix hairpin, The one she once worn with pride, was now buried deep in her flesh. And the hand that held the weapon…..was his.
"Why...?" Her voice was barely a whisper.
Prince Rui stared down at her with cold, Heartless and unreadable eyes. "You should never have learned about the things not meant for your ears. Your curiosity has forced my hand. Your bloodline ends here."
Behind him, her half sister, Ye Qingyin, Laughed softly, Leaning into his arm, Her lips painted the same crimson as the blood pooling around Liuyue. "You've always been in the way, elder sister. I've always tried my best trying to make people see you in a better light, But, Eldest sister you've always been ignorant of my goodwill for you, Even going as far as mixing yourself with men and making his highness wear a green hat, And you also went as far as to tarnish your reputation as well as that of our family, And Also the things you were never meant to know, so I'm doing you the goodwill of keeping you away from the shame by giving you a quick death, But don't worry. I'll take good care of your title… and your prince."
The pain wasn't only in her chest, it was also in her soul. Not because of the wound, but because she had loved blindly. Protected loyally. Believed stupidly.
She had let her junior sister scheme against her, Again and again, She let her sister ruin her reputation and also believed that her fiance loved her, Ahhhh, What a joke, She was actually so miserable to even foolishly believe that her taking her sisters place in stopping those men would make them treat her better only for all these.
Darkness crept in, slow and heavy.
But as the world faded, A single thought screamed through her veins…..
If I live again, I will make you all pay.
*****
The heavens seemed to answer.
A sharp, slicing wind howled outside the temple. The incense went out. Thunder cracked, once, twice, before a blinding bolt of lightning struck the ancestral altar. Her body convulsed.
Then everything went black.
*****
She gasped.
Her fingers clawed at silk sheets, her lungs struggling to breathe. Cold sweat drenched her body.
And then she heard the sound of laughter. Young, sharp, girlish laughter.
Her eyes flew open. Confusion setting in her eyes, as she looked around feeling shocked, she climbed down from the bed and stretched her hand towards the mirror.
The face in the bronze mirror across from her was… hers. But younger. Sixteen years old. No scars. No blood. No pain. Just soft, untouched innocence.
She was back.
A wave of fury surged through her chest. Her past life's pain, every lie, every wound, They were carved into her soul like brands. But now? Now she knew the truth. She knew who the snakes were. And this time, she would not fall. Heaven gave her a second chance to change her Fate
A knocking sound came from the door, startling her from her thoughts, The maidservant knocked once before entering, her head bowed low. "Miss Ye, the physician has arrived to check on your poison symptoms."
Poison.
She remembered now, this was the week Ye Qingyin had first poisoned her tea, the slow acting kind that would make her frail and disgrace her in front of the imperial family during the selection banquet.