1 Sunny and snowy

["When I was very young, Wan Niang told me that the most honorable woman in the world was the Queen, and the palace where the Queen lived was called the 'Kunning Palace'. I asked Wan Niang what the Kunning Palace was like.Wanniang said, she doesn't know either.

I was sitting under the rainy roof in the countryside.I thought if I could turn into the wild geese that flew that day, I could fly to the prosperous capital, fly to the Forbidden City, and see what Kunning Palace is like. How good is it?"]

The palace gate was claustrophobic, with only one window on the left side open.The sky was overcast and the light was dim.

In the bustling Kunning Palace of the past ,not a single palace servant could be seen at this moment.Only Jiang Xuening sat kneeling in front of the table, holding the incense stick with her slender white fingers, and gently fiddling in the Jinbo Mountain furnace placed on the table.Silky smoke floated upwards from the pores of the furnace and mixed with the surrounding air adding a bit a fragrance to it.Her robe woven with gold and rust phoenix stretched out long behind her and the intricate cloud patterns towards the end of her robe swam faintly in the gloom with little brilliance.

["Later, I really arrived at the capital. God made a big joke with me. He gave me a delusional mindset that I shouldn't have had and let me grow up in the countryside.I neither got raised like other noble ladies nor the aristocratic ladies. With such a maganimous attitude, he just put me in this prosperous place, the arena of battle and only gave me a good pair of skin..."]

Jiang Xuening's appearance was extremely bright and fiery, burning like a flower.Her moth eyebrows were tactful.The tail of the eyes were slightly raised and the sandalwood lips were pointed with red which was naturally charming.And because of being the phoenix seal incharge these years and the high position as a queen she had cultivated a three-point rare grace and dignity.With her eyebrows lowered and the eyes closed, it could make people's hearts pound.

You Fangyin stood silently behind her for a long time listening to her voice that sounded like dust and remembering her life in the eyes of the world where she was exhausted, fighting for fame and fortune.She suddenly became a little dazed.There was a kind of sadness that arouse in her heart.They all knew that she could not escape.

Jiang Xuening suddenly smiled and said,["Fang Yin, during this time, I have been thinking, am I really wrong?"]

When she was a child, she was raised by Wan Niang. She didn't know her own background. She was a bird that no one could control. Only Wanniang's rouge and gouache could make her go home.Wan Niang was born on a thin horse, a woman among women.She said that the world is the world of men, and only men can conquer it.Women can conquer the world as long as they conquer men.

After returning to Beijing, she met Yanlin, the young marquis of Yongyi Hou's mansion. He took her to disguise herself as a man and played around in the capital. Even her parents didn't dare to discipline her too much. He was her childhood friend.

Later, the Marquis of Yongyi was implicated in the case of King Pingnan's rebellion.Yan Lin's family was exiled thousands of miles.In the night, the young man who had not yet reached the crown climbed over the high wall of Jiang's residence to find her. With a hoarse voice, he squeezed her hand hard:[ "Ning Ning, wait for me, I will definitely come back to marry you."]

Jiang Xuening said to him,[ "I want to marry Shen Jie .I want to be the queen."]

She still remembered that she said this Yan Lin was a teenager. He looked at her with a heart-wrenching look; like a struggling beast with red eyes and gritted teeth.That night, the boy lost all his youth, let go of her hand, and turned to escape into the darkness.

Five years later, she was Shen Jie's queen.The road to the post was not so smooth, so in her short life, there were many people like Yan Lin.

For example, Xiao Dingfei, the servant of the Ministry of Personnel.

For example, the Jinyiwei commander Zhou Yinzhi.

Even, there was Shen Zhiyi, the eldest princess of Leyang who later died at the barbarian's hands.

However, no one expected that the young boy would make a comeback one day. After making military exploits at the border gate, Yan Lin voted for Xie Wei under the banner of "Qingjun's side".He returned in armor,led the army to surround the capital, controlled the entire Forbidden City, and put her under house arrest.

Shen Jie was poisoned.He lingered on the sickbed and ignored the government.Yan Lin would enter and leave her court in a grand manner.And every time he came, he would withdraw from the palace.

Inside and outside the hall, no one dared to speak.

Everyone knew that he was Xie Wei's right-hand man.When Xie Wei slaughtered half of the palace, he led his troops to guard the palace gates to prevent anyone from escaping.When Xie Wei slaughtered the nine clans of the Xiao clan, he led his men to break open the closed gates and took men and women away. Old ones and young ones were caught...

Now, he and the former imperial teacher Xie Wei stood outside her palace gate.

Shen Jie had already passed away, leaving an edict ordering her to fall behind the curtain.However, the crown prince, who was adopted from the clan, had not yet been promoted to the throne. On his way to the capital, he was cut off by the rebels of the rebellion and hung at the city gate.

Now, it's her turn.

Jiang Xuening blinked lightly.Her long and curled eyelashes cast a faint shadow under her eyelids, making her expression at the moment a bit desolate and unpredictable.

You Fangyin looked at her with a bit of disappointment.However, she had already put down the incense stick and covered the incense burner.She took the big brocade box on the desk and opened it. Inside were the Chuan Guoyu Seal, and a decree that she had written and stamped an hour ago.It was written in the decree that she volunteered to be buried for the late emperor and asked the crown prince, Tai Shi(Xie Weikuang) to help the society, assist government, and elect a virtuous ruler to succeed him.

Jiang Xuening suddenly raised her head and glanced out the window.At some point, the snow that had fallen overnight had stopped.The dazzling sun shone through the gloomy clouds and shone into the window of this gloomy palace, casting a bright beam of light.

She murmured:[ "If I had known it will come to end like today, why bother? It's better to travel thousands of miles, see the thousands of miles of rivers and mountains, and be like a free bird. In this life, I entered the palace by mistake. A wall, a cocoon of prosperity..."]

You Fangyin was silent.

Jiang Xuening asked, ["Fangyin if you were given a chance to choose, would you still come?"]

You Fangyin was the strangest one among all the people Jiang Xuening had ever known.She was originally a prostitute in her uncle's house.Clumsy and pitiful but she changed her temperament when she fell into the water. Since then, she made public appearances.She soon became rich in business, issued a ticket number and established a chamber of commerce. In just a few years, she had become the leading businessman in Jiangning Prefecture.

It's not an exaggeration to call her "You Bancheng".

It's just that she was unlucky. In this court battle, she was on the wrong team first and although she surrendered to Xie Wei later, she was being guarded and placed under house arrest in this palace these days.The two were so miserable together that they became confidants who had nothing to say.Jiang Xuening listened to her talk about her self-made experience, many of which were novel, and complained that the overseas barbarian countries she visited when she was doing business did not even have a steam engine.

What is a steam engine? Jiang Xuening didn't know.But You Fangyin always said that she was not from here, but from a faraway place that she could no longer go back to.She also said that there is a huge secret in the previous dynasty. If you knew it, no one with a little brain would make mistakes in the ongoing battle.It's just a pity that she knew it too late.

You Fang sighed faintly and smiled bitterly.["In this era when birds don't poop and get angry, whoever likes to wear them will wear them!"]

Jiang Xuening hadn't heard such vulgar words for a long time. She was in a trance, but she remembered the time, and she suddenly shouted: ["Thank you, Lord!"]

The scarlet palace walls were covered with white snow.A crowd of people were outside the palace gate.Yan Lin pressed his sword to the side.

The leader stood tall but did not answer when he heard the words.Jiang Xuening knew he could hear.This was the person with the deepest scheming in the whole gang.The one with skin of a saint, but the heart of a devil.The emperors and teachers of the two dynasties, the prince and the master, how many people respected him and admired him? But she didn't know, under this noble and clean appearance like the clear wind and bright moon, there was a heart full of slaughter and murder.The sword of Shang Fang given by the emperor, was stained with the blood of the royal family, killing the moat. The water turned red; in the hands of Fuqin writing the pen, the lives of Xiao Shi's family were tightly clasped, and the bodies of those involved were piled up like mountains.This was the only person she couldn't please with all her powers.

["You killed the royal family,killed the Xiao family, and destroyed the Heavenly Sect.You are the one who holds the power and my life. Logically speaking, I am not not even qualified to negotiate with you."] A tear suddenly fell from Jiang Xuening's eyes on the back of his hand.

["I have used a lot of people in my life, but if you think about it carefully, I lost Yan Lin, and Yan Lin also took revenge on me. I used Xiao Dingfei and Zhou Yinzhi ,and they also took advantage of me. I calculated Shen Jie, now I will also die for him and go to Huangquan together. I don't owe them…"]

The shaky fate of her life passed by like this.

The dagger was in her sleeve.She gently pulled it out, and the flickering blade surface reflected the gorgeous golden step in her eyes and temples.

Jiang Xuening's body trembled.Her voice trembled and her eyes were full of tears but she did not have the right to cry.

She only said word by word, weeping like blood["But there is only one person who had a clean life and strict rules. It was I who coerced him, led him astray, and tarnished his reputation for the rest of his life. He is a good official. I sincerely hope that Sir Xie would take care of Xuening's kindness to you for feeding you blood on the way to Beijing and exchange my life for him. One life, let him live..."]

Who would have guessed that the empress, who was so ruthless and cold as if she had no heart, would one day be replaced by a minister of punishment at the expense of her own life?

Was it because she had no heart, or did others fail to warm that heart?

The man outside the palace gate stood still for a long time.

After a long time, she heard the plain word["Yes."]

Really nice sound.

Still like a long time ago.

Jiang Xuening smiled relievedly and decided to raise her hand——

 Pfft.~

When the sharp dagger cut through the blood on her slender neck, there was a sound like cracking paper, accompanied by the clanging sound of someone's long sword falling to the ground outside the palace gate.She also fell.

The delicate golden step smashed to the ground, and the deep ruby ​​inlaid on it shattered and splashed out. The warm blood slowly soaked up the icy ground along the steps;much like the shallow stream she used to play with bare feet when she was young.

She somehow stumbled into the palace wall and became a cocoon of prosperity.This Kunning Palace eventually became a tomb that swallowed her bones and buried her life.The sunny sun came out of the window, shining on the snow, little by little, it slowly melted...

 ***

It was a long dream.The cause and effect of the whole life in the dream were all chaotic and only the feeling of the blade passing over the neck was extremely clear.

It hurts.Jiang Xuening thought, if she knew earlier, she should choose a painless way to die.

~cough

There seemed to be something pressing on her chest in the dream, making her breathless, so she coughed and finally opened her eyes with difficulty.

However, this was frightening.She was lying on a messy couch.More precisely, between two men. A few feet away was the face of a handsome young man, almost in contact with her breath, and he even raised a hand to embrace her carelessly.

Jiang Xuening's scalp exploded.

This scene reminded her the time when Yan Lin returned to the court.She was placed under house arrest and he always quietly stepped into her palace,making her unable to sleep well...She threw the man's hand away, rolled over, and stood up from the couch.The young man opened his eyes in a drunken dream and was surprised by her behavior. He only half sat up and stretched out his hand to pull her:

["Well, Brother Jiang, let's continue to sleep_"]

 Presumptuous!After all, she was a person who had been an empress and even ordered hundreds of officials. Jiang Xuening heard his rude remarks, and when he saw his reckless behavior, she slapped him in the face completely subconsciously!

 "Snapped~

The sound was very loud, and finally arouse the young man in Xuanpao who was sleeping soundly with the sword on the other side of the soft couch.

He opened his eyes ,long eyebrows,nose and thin lips with full of energy. When he saw this scene, he was at a loss for a moment.But then he saw the messy robe of the young man in Chinese clothing.The five reddish fingerprints on his right cheek and Jiang Xuening's shocked and angry face.

With a bang, the young man reacted and instantly stepped in front of Jiang Xuening.He pulled his sword out of its sheath and pressed the tip of the sword against the young man's neck!

Frost covered her still green face.

He asked in a cold voice, ["What did you do to her?!"]

The young man was surprised that he was so impulsive and dared to draw his sword to him.The other was wronged and innocent, so he couldn't help covering his cheeks: ["What can I do? This king keeps his sleeves!"]

The boy's brows wrinkled, looking at him suspiciously.

This king...

Jiang Xuening was suddenly stunned.

It was only then that she smelled the smell of alcohol on her body, and realized that she was wearing a green robe embroidered with silver threads and bamboo patterns.She was dressed as a teenager and there was a burning pain in the palm of her hand just now.

Women dressed as men.

Not in a dream.

And the face of the young man pointed at by the sword, and the figure of the young man standing in front of her, finally emerged from her memory.One was the king of Linzi who later became emperor, and the other was the young marquis.The chaotic little Hou Ye Yanlin!

Is this the 'rebirth'that You Fangyin often talked about? She couldn't help but think about it.

She was cautious in her previous life and coaxed the men around.And she slapped the future emperor at the very beginning of this life...?? 

To kneel down and apologize now, is it too late?