Read Novel Full Chapter 962.2: Family Reunion
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S T E L L A R C L O U D
[Galetron]
O R A N G E S T A R
[Alma S.] [Azurixa] [Christine G.-L.] [K.Rom]
[Lily J.] [Michelle N.] [Ziana K.-P.]
Y E L L O W S T A R
[Anasi] [Jwyla C.] [Passerby] [Xena]
G O L D S T A R
[Anne C.] [Rose Ky]
R A I N B O W S T A R
[Debra W] [Smurfinbatik]
T H E S U N
[Kiiayame]
C E L E S T I A L C O N Q U E R O R
[Ava C.] [kuroneko_chan] [Leeyue] [Manon]
[Raquel G.] [Sophia W.] [Val Nes] [Woon Li Ying]
Also, many thanks to everyone who bought me coffee (*≧∀≦*)
A person’s temperament would inevitably change with a shift in status. Since ascending the throne as a Female Emperor, Shangguan Yan had, perhaps without even realizing it, acquired an unshakable aura of authority and sharpness that came with power.
She knew very well how unjust this dynasty was toward women. Her own rise to become Crown Princess had only been possible through a rare convergence of favorable circumstances: first, her father had been a tyrant strong enough to suppress all opposition; second, she had been the Empress’s only legitimate child, with pure imperial blood; and third, the Xuanyuan Family had been powerful enough to give her solid backing.
Yet even with all that, resentment against her position had always existed. After she ascended the throne, those buried issues gradually surfaced one by one.
She could not afford to show even the slightest hint of weakness, or those who watched with ill intent would seize the opportunity to attack.
Only before those she truly trusted and cared about could she remove her mask of composure and authority.
“Ah Heng!”
She reached the doorway of her bedchamber, and at the sight of Xiao Heng teasing the dragon-and-phoenix twins, all the imperial sharpness in her demeanor melted away, replaced by boundless tenderness in her eyes.
Xiao Heng turned his head and smiled faintly at her. “Mother.”
Shangguan Yan’s eyes grew moist.
Shangguan Qing, unaware that his annoying younger brother had entered the imperial palace that day, had gone out to play. Shangguan Yan shared lunch at Fenglin Palace with the young couple.
It was the first time she had seen Gu Jiao without her birthmark, and the sight struck her deeply. She had expected Gu Jiao to be beautiful without it, but she had never imagined such ethereal and captivating grace.
With this face, if she were to return to the military camp, wouldn’t all those young men go mad?
“JiaoJiao, have some food.” Shangguan Yan picked up a piece of soft, glutinous braised pork glazed in rock sugar and placed it in Gu Jiao’s bowl. “Ah Heng said you like this.”
Gu Jiao took a bite. The sauce made from rock sugar and spices was thick and fragrant, complemented by a touch of chili pepper. The flavor had completely seeped into the meat, sweet without being cloying, spicy without being harsh.
Gu Jiao liked it very much.
Remembering something, she asked, “By the way, Mother, how is your injury? Does it still hurt?”
Xiao Heng turned his gaze toward Shangguan Yan. Gu Jiao was referring to the eight screws that had once been driven into her back.
Shangguan Yan shook her head. “It hasn’t hurt for a long time. I feel exactly the same as before the injury.”
Gu Jiao said, “Then later, let’s go to the Imperial Advisor’s Hall. I’ll remove the screws for you.”
Shangguan Yan thought for a moment and asked, “Will it hurt?”
Gu Jiao replied, “We’ll use anesthesia. It won’t hurt.”
That afternoon, the three of them went to the Imperial Advisor’s Hall.
Yu He came to receive them. When he saw Gu Jiao, he froze and almost didn’t recognize her. Of course, he had already learned Gu Jiao’s true identity from their senior brother and had also heard that she had regained her original appearance, but wasn’t this transformation a little too much?
Was she sure she wasn’t a fairy descended from the heavens?
Gu Jiao curved her lips slightly. “It’s been a long time, Little Disciple Yu He.”
Even her voice was different now!
When Gu Jiao disguised herself as a man, she had used the voice of a teenage boy.
Yu He was utterly shocked. Thankfully, Ye Qing arrived just in time.
Ye Qing led them into a secret chamber.
Shangguan Yan’s condition was good. All her examination results came back normal, and the surgery to remove the pedicle screws went smoothly and successfully.
She stayed in the operating room for observation for twelve hours, and Xiao Heng remained by her side the entire time.
After leaving the secret chamber, Gu Jiao said to Ye Qing, who was standing guard outside the door, “Take me to pay respects to your master.”
Ye Qing was stunned.
He opened his mouth slightly. “You…”
Gu Jiao’s gaze swept over the mourning cloth wrapped around his arm. “Let’s go.”
Ye Qing’s throat tightened. A wave of emotion surged in his chest, his throat burned, and an urge to cry suddenly welled up within him.
He didn’t ask Gu Jiao how she had guessed. If she hadn’t been this perceptive, she would never have become the first Lord of the Shadows.
He led Gu Jiao to the grove of purple bamboo.
The small study there had been carefully cleaned and arranged. Aside from the clay figurines and the portrait that had been handed over to Gu Jiao, nothing else had been changed. Jing Yinyin’s doodles on the walls remained.
It felt as though the man had never truly left them, that he was still living somewhere in their lives, and if one were to turn around, they might still see the elegant and ethereal Imperial Advisor standing quietly at the doorway.
Gu Jiao gently ran her hand over Jing Yinyin’s sketchbook. “Did your master pass peacefully?”
Ye Qing said with sorrow, “Yu He told me he did, very peacefully.”
He lied to Gu Jiao. In truth, he had not seen his master for the last time. The one who had gone to Hidden Night Island was not the Imperial Advisor himself, but Yu He, who carried his master’s final letter.
Gu Jiao asked softly, “Was it because of Xuanyuan Qi?”
Xuanyuan Qi’s life had already been at its end in Ghost Mountain. In the Battle of Pucheng, he had burned away all his strength.
The fact that he survived and even improved day by day was perhaps not merely the miracle of the purple herb poison.
Ye Qing choked up and nodded. “Master said he owed the Xuanyuan Family a debt. He gave his life to Xuanyuan Qi… it was his way of repaying the Xuanyuan Family.”
He had only come to understand later why his master had sent him to the border and entrusted him with the purple herb poison. The Imperial Advisor had already foreseen Xuanyuan Qi’s calamity and had also foreseen Ye Qing’s nature, that he would never abandon Xuanyuan Qi no matter what.
Everything had been part of his master’s plan.
From the day Ye Qing left the Imperial Advisor’s Hall for the borderlands, his master had already been waiting peacefully for death to come in Shengdu.
Gu Jiao murmured, “No wonder, when I saw him after returning from the border, he had aged so much.”
He had defied fate to change Xuanyuan Qi’s destiny and in doing so had exhausted his own life.
Ye Qing turned away to wipe his tears. After calming himself, he continued, “Master knew that you were Jing Yinyin. He told Xuanyuan Li about it. When you were a child, Supreme Commander Xuanyuan would secretly carry you home, and the reason for that was to raise the Lord of the Shadows himself. That was both Master’s and the Supreme Commander's greatest wish.”
In that instant, many things became clear to Gu Jiao. So that was why Xuanyuan Li had melted down his armor to gift it to Jing Yinyin, and why, no matter how frail she had been as a child, he had still insisted that she practice martial arts.
Thinking of his master again, Ye Qing’s tears flowed uncontrollably. “Master said he failed to protect Yinyin. He hoped that all of them could protect you instead.”
To defy heaven for Xuanyuan Qi’s sake had not been solely out of guilt toward the Xuanyuan Family, it had also been because he hoped that there would be someone stronger than himself left in this world to protect her.
Gu Jiao brushed her fingers over the name “Yinyin” written by the Imperial Advisor’s own hand upon the cover of the sketchbook, then pressed a hand lightly against her chest, feeling a faint ache there.
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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Description:
In the suspenseful supernatural novel “Records of Mortals,” Jiang Baiyan, once a solitary and impoverished youth, finds refuge in the Shi family of Chang’an due to his extraordinary bloodline. With his clear and captivating peach blossom eyes, this seemingly innocent young man conceals a fanatical and malevolent lunatic within. Destined to succumb to darkness amidst hardship and degradation, he becomes a harbinger of chaos.
When Shi Dai suddenly transmigrates, she takes on the role of the Shi family’s young lady, the one who subjects him to countless trials, eventually leading to her demise.
The twist? She never got to finish reading the novel.
From what she knew of the plot, Jiang Baiyan was just a silent, timid, and often bullied pitiable character.
***
Jiang Baiyan had never encountered someone like Shi Dai.
After he had slaughtered all the evil creatures in the garden, the blood-stained young man, exuding a murderous aura, approached her step by step, his lips curling into a malicious smile, "Scared?"
Shi Dai responded, “You’re really amazing! I applaud you until I spin like a spiral and fly around the moon three hundred times! And also——you have dimples when you smile!"
Jiang Baiyan: ...?
—
After seeing her at a lantern festival with another man, Jiang Baiyan lowered his eyes, his fingers twirling her hair. He said in a mocking and sinister tone, "The mansion in the western suburbs...if I hide you there, no one will find you, right?"
Shi Dai replied, "Does it come with meals and lodging? Can I sleep in everyday? Oh, and your cooking is the best!"
Jiang Baiyan: ...?
—
Jiang Baiyan was supposed to dislike her, even hate her, but as their separation drew near, his eyes turned red and he grabbed her sleeve, pleading, "Don't abandon me, alri—”
Shi Dai responded, "Alright, alright, I’ll only have you. Mwah."
Jiang Baiyan: ...?
He hasn't finished his lines yet though…