Credit: Rosewithguns
In the middle of the valley, a girl seemingly twelve to thirteen years old slowly opened her eyes. Her skin was rough and black, the strands of her hair was in disorder, and her cheeks carried subtle scratches. Only her pair of black and translucent eyes which carried a bright light were one that was difficult to forget once seen.
The crisp sound of the birds chirping was accompanied by the sweet smell of the green grass that fluttered lightly.
Chen Ninghua was violently returned to reality and she subconsciously looked at the surrounding. In front of her was a plain of green and lush vegetation. Not far was a carriage that was overturned to the ground and the horse that pulled the carriage was already dead, even the body of the carriage was very much broken. The mess was all scattered at the side.
How could this be? Did she not die already? Why did she end up here in the blink of an eye? Her head was assaulted with bursts of stabbing pain and Chen Ninghua chirped. But after a moment, she laughed with a low voice: “Hehe, looks like the heaven still has eyes, unexpectedly giving me a chance to go back to nineteen years ago.”
Her mother passed away because she had a difficult process of giving birth to her. Once a hundred days had passed, her father Chen Dong re-married to the Zhao family’s daughter Zhao Rongxiang and in only six months after, Zhao Rongxiang gave birth to a pair of dragon phoenix twin who were Chen Linghan and Chen Xuanye.
Whereas for her, she was born with black skin. When her father Chen Dong saw her for the first time, he almost threw her onto the ground while swearing that she was not Chen family’s flesh and blood. In addition to her stepmother who never liked her, even though she was Chen family’s di daughter, she was treated worse than the servants.
Thinking back, on one side was someone who brought in an auspicious twin into this world, while on the other side was a motherless girl with a plain and ugly appearance. Chen Dong’s heart leaning towards Chen Linghan and Chen Xuanye was not a strange matter at all.
Thirteen years old this year, she accidentally saw a maidservant add something into her meal and felt that the situation was unfavorably dangerous. As such, she requested to recuperate at a village on her own. However, never had she imagined that on the road, the horse would receive a shock and rushed directly down the cliff. Fortunately, she had only sprained her leg during the fall from such a high place while the maidservants who accompanied her were not so lucky as they had all lost their lives.
Checking herself briefly, Chen Ninghua did not stop for long. She picked up the clothes and bundles filled with silvers from the ground before leaning onto a stick to journey northward.
Walking for around an hour, she felt her ankle hurt so much that she could almost not bear it and walked to the side of a creek to rest for a while. In her past life, she alone walked around for a day and a night until she was finally out of the mountain valley, and her ankle became swollen with an injury. A girl with an ugly appearance as well as a disability was already a disgrace to the Shen family. When she returned to the Shen family, she was disliked even more. No matter how intelligent she was, she would only be a laughing stock.
Crouching down by a creek, she washed her face clean with the water. Chen Ninghua slightly smiled. The feeling of being reborn after death felt really good.
“Huala!”
A bloodstained hand stretched out from the bushes all of a sudden in front of the creek and fell into the water with a ‘huala’ sound, the blood was immediately washed downwards by the water from the creek. Chen Ninghua was startled and her whole body trembled as she shouted with a low voice:
“Who’s there?”
Even though the creek was not wide, the vegetations on both sides of the creek were about half a man’s height which grew exceptionally lush. When Chen Ninghua came, she did not realize that there was someone hidden in the bushes opposite of her.
Her words were passed for quite a while before a burst of suppressed cough sounded. The bushes rustled and moved. A man came out of the bushes with great difficulty and directly stumbled into the water.
Chen Ninghua gripped the wooden stick in her hand and stepped two steps back. Her brows tightened and she asked: “Who are you?”
“Ke Ke…..a man who has met with hardship.” The man raised his head. A pair of eyes with no trace of worry evaluated Chen Ninghua over and only then did his stiff body loosen up. “You… for a girl to grow up with such a peculiar appearance in this barren hills, your sudden appearance alone would definitely surprise people. You are not a wild mountain fiend, are you?”
The creek water washed off the blood on the man’s face. Chen Ninghua realized that the man before her was very much like a handsome crown jade, even with his whole body covered in blood and his stature in an awkward position, it could not conceal the air of high dignity. This person must be rich and distinguished; the person able to wound him to this extent was not someone she could offend right now. It was best to leave as fast as possible to escape danger.
“I’m just passing by.” Chen Ninghua finished speaking and took another two steps back before turning her body to leave.
“You….. to have actually seen an injured man yet not willing to help him?” Seeing Chen Ninghua rose up and walked away four to five steps, she seemingly had no intentions of saving him. Chu Junyi immediately spoke up again, “Have you heard of the capital’s Xiao family?”
Hearing this, Chen Ninghua turned her head and her heart was considerably surprised, but it did not show on her facial expression: “You are a member of the Xiao family?”
“Xiao Jingran is my foster father.”
Pondering slightly, Chen Ninghua looked up and asked: “Do you have any proof?”
Chu Junyi raised his eyebrow. The girl before him knew of the Xiao family but did not rush up to any cunning tricks at all. If the heirs of any prestigious families had this kind of bearing, then it was normal, this little girl, was just as so indifferent. His heart could not help but be surprised: “This piece of jade is the Xiao family keepsake. You save my life, I will definitely return the favor.”
Looking briefly at the shape of the jade, Chen Ninghua’s heart slightly moved. This jade was indeed the Xiao family’s keepsake and only the Xiao family’s direct descendants could have this to confirm their identity. The person in front of her who claimed himself to be the Xiao family’s foster son must be one of the capital’s famous ‘Dual Absolute gongzi’ Chu Junyi.
“But how much is Chu gongzi’s life worth?”
She actually knew who he was!
“You obviously know of my identity but seeks only for money?” Chu Junyi was astonished. The act of saving a life generally could be exchanged for greater things but all she wanted was silvers.
Chen Ninghua’s eyes flashed with ridicule: “Does Chu gongzi hope that I ask for something else? That is also possible. How about you state what other things can you give me?”
Chu Junyi choked and evaluated Chen Ninghua from up to down then smiled and said: “There is no need to be angry. I was just saying what was on my mind. If you wish for money, then that is good. I will give you however much you want as long as you help me walk out of this valley.” His body bore severe wounds and he basically could not walk out if there was no one helping him.
“I’ll save your life. After going out, you’ll give me five thousand liang. This jade shall be the mortgage. You hand the money over and I will return you this jade. When that is settled, we will both not owe each other. How about it?” Chen Ninghua lifted her head and asked.
Chen Linghan and Baili Jinze had smeared her reputation, harmed her to the Cold Palace by making her live a life far worse than death, and also killing the people most important to her. This enmity as deep as the sea of blood, she will definitely pay them back! This was only the first step. But before going back to the Chen family, she must have to have the power of protect herself, so fortune was a must to have. Since someone was sending that to her doorstep, then there was no reason to not accept.
“Five thousand liang? Me?” Chu Junyi could not help but went numb. Not minding his identity in the dark, even if it’s in the open, he was Xiao family’s foster son, also the capital’s nicknamed ‘Dual Absolute gongzi’ whom had a place in the court. But he was worth only five thousand liang?
“Gold!” Chen Ninghua spat out this word with a cold voice, her eyes carried some impatience. If it weren’t for knowing that the days ahead she would live like wind afflicting and water rising, she would not have embraced this mess.
“Deal!”
