Chapter 2

It really was happening like this. The realization that the narrative was repeating itself gripped him painfully, and the whirlwind of a haunting déjà vu left him caught in the storm of resurging emotions.

His marriage was arranged with the fifth Prince long ago. But the only one who seriously took marriage matter was probably himself, as nobody else seemed to care whether or not he lived or died, as long as things went along their way. Just how oblivious was he to not even be able to understand these simple things, which were in front of his eyes.

To be honest, he had some hunches, but he chose to let it go in ignorance. Maybe he was trying too hard not to be disappointed with this family as they were the only ones whom he could call his close people in this world. But now.... what close family and whatnot. He would be grateful if they didn't become the cause of his death.

As Wei Yichen was trying his best to calm down and face this situation, his thinking was interrupted, by a light call from Song Yuhua. He braced his heart and stepped in.

Song Yuhua said with 'worry' in her eyes, "Yichen, why are you standing at the door? Is everything OK, was the breakfast not palatable? Do you need Mother to ask the kitchen to make something different?"

He greeted them without showing any difference in attitude. She had always been saying this kind of things in front of his father ever since she came into this house. She was really good at it. Even he didn't suspect her before.

This was just one of the 'normal' dialogues of her. This sounded so caring but the results it yielded were very different. 'Hypocrisy' would be a mild word to describe it. Wei Yichen sneered in his heart. How couldn't he see it before, he was really blind.

Wei Huan retorted," What is he, a child? Do you need to worry about these things? Sit down and talk."

The last sentence was directed at Wei Yichen. He sat down in the seat offered by a servant. He doesn't expect anything good from them in the first place. Still belated anger and hatred slowly began to rise. Yet he suppressed it in time.

He can't lose it here, he doesn't have enough status or power to face off this directly. He'll need to take some detours. It's useless to be angry. Least he startles the snake by beating the grass. If he wants to get out of this quagmire he'll need to take it slow.

He took a deep breath to calm down. After brief mentel adjustments, Wei Yichen had calmed down a lot.

 Now that he confirmed, he is reborn. So, can he change the direction of fate? Doesn't matter, he has to give his all if he wants to be alive.

Wei Yichen looked up at his 'father'. Saw the indifference in those eyes, which he was trying to ignore all these years. A glimmer of cold light passed through his eyes. And firmly decided to take responsibility for his own life. He won't let these people control him anymore.

Wei Yichen had calmed down a lot with all the facts before his eyes. He inquired about their health and tried to act as normal as possible. It would be unwise to let them suspect him at this juncture.

He inquired about his marriage just like in his previous life, like he really valued it. While inside he was planning out his next move. And also got a familiar response from them about how he'll be able to spend time with the fifth prince, Wang Xuan, in the near future.

He pretended to be happy and expectant. And took his leave under the indifferent eyes of Wei Huan and Song Yuhua's superficially sweet smile which was laced with unknown intentions.

Wei Yichen stepped out of the courtyard and sped up his steps towards his courtyard. He didn't know if he could suppress the chill in his eyes any longer, so he kept his head lowered until he entered his room. He started to think and sort out his thoughts. There's still a month or so to go for the hunting competition. There's no hurry. He'll take it slow but still, he needs to make efficient use of time. In the end, it's just a month.

Reflecting on how events unfolded, Wei Yichen still found it somewhat unbelievable. As his marriage was decided. He never objected either as it was his elders' decision.

Afterward, his father tossed him to be familiar with the fifth prince. During that hunting competition in the mountain wilderness.

He was pretty skeptical as he never went out in the wilderness let alone hunting grounds. And why did we need to get familiar in such a dangerous place anyway? Still, he thought he'd simply sit in the tent and wouldn't be going into the forest anyway.

After reaching hunting grounds Wei Yichen was hurriedly taken to get familiar with Wang Xuan by Wei Huan. They got along fine, but who knew what went on in a prince's mind?

They got a bit familiar with each other, yet he could tell, the prince didn't show much interest in him, even though he said how much he loved and treasured Wei Yichen. But except for his words, he still appeared pretty indifferent to Wei Yichen in his deeds.

There was a banquet for the first day's big hunt celebration and Wei Wenwen got drunk, it just so happened that she thought it was some sort of mild fruit wine but it clearly wasn't. That night Wei Wenwen appeared in front of Wei Yichen and told him how he was unworthy, how he occupied her position, and how she just met the prince and all. Their love and blah blah.. in the end, her speech started to get slurred. She didn't get much time to go on either. As Song Yuhua arrived and got a pale face after listening to her daughter. And made an excuse and took her away.

While smiling with a white face she said, "Wenwen is drunk and speaking rubbish. She's really out of it, you also know she is a lightweight. You are also tired, so go take a rest. We'll leave."

He was tired from all the socializing and there was also the influence of wine. Hence, he didn't even question it further.

That was the first time he saw how they thought of him actually and how dark of a heart they had. He didn't quite believe Wei Wenwen about her and the prince's relationship as she was a girl from the back courtyard, where would she be able to talk with Wang Xuan, his father won't let her be in such a position either.

Also, she just turned sixteen and couldn't go to any flower appreciation banquets either. But Wei Yichen underestimated Song Yuhua's scheming mind.

On the next day itself, he was taken into the deep forest by the fifth prince with the excuse of showing Wei Yichen some rare and cute rabbit breeds. He questioned Wang Xuan along the way, as he felt more uneasy with the denser the trees grew.

"Why are we going so far into the wilderness?"

And got a response," Those rabbits are rare and only appear in deep forest. I'm sure Yichen will like them."

Really, what kind of rabbits live in deep forests, where most of the deadly animals reside in? Even though he thought so, he didn't have much time to react to it. As after reaching deep wilderness Wang Xuan changed his face and told Wei Yichen how he liked Wei Wenwen and couldn't accept another person. And just like that, he was left there and Wang Xuan himself left on a sprinting horse...

Then Wei Yichen remembered the most terrifying and disgusting incident of his life that followed. When those men in Black chased him. At first, he thought it was an assassination, but the thirst in their eyes terrified him to his core. At that time he thought, " How could the fifth prince do this to me?"

And the thoughts along these lines with anger and helplessness surged in him. Even though he jumped to his death without falling into their hands.

As death appeared more feasible than the helpless situation in front of him. It still gave him chills just thinking about it. This left a deep scar on his mind. And he will neither forget nor forgive the ones who inflicted it on him.

If you want him out of the way of you two, why do you need to use such sickening methods? They could have just asked, and he would willingly withdraw from this marriage. It's not like he was deeply in love, in fact, he hadn't even met the fifth prince more than three times before.

But then again even after being the official wife, Song Yuhua couldn't make Wei Wenwen's status higher than himself due to his father's face. And a prince couldn't marry an unofficial daughter as his official wife and could only keep her as a concubine.

But if he was humiliated and no longer useful for connection to the fifth Prince through marriage, then Wei Wenwen would certainly be given higher status by his father and could marry the fifth Prince as his official wife.

He shuddered subconsciously. Wang Xuan was really inhumane, he knew royals can go to any lengths to achieve their goals. But this was still a shock for him. He was ignorant about the world, and also oblivious to how brutal humans can be and how much lower humanity can go.

He didn't know, how much involvement his 'family' had in it, but he was sure it was significant. And he'll remember this account.

Wei Yichen doesn't have any doubts anymore about what his stepmother and sister thought of him.

But how could someone be so cruel to their own blood? His own father, even though they weren't the closest in the past few years, they were still father and son. Was he always this replaceable in Wei Huan's heart? Or he simply doesn't care as long as his interests are fulfilled...

This indifference of his towards Wei Yichen is also one of the biggest reasons the mother and daughter dared to act so presumptuously and plot ploys against him.

Wei Yichen sighed. He supposedly saw his own downfall in the near future. But the real question is, even if he saw the future, can he still change the fate? Even if he can't, he'll try his best to change the direction of it.

If he was really able to see the future or went back in time then he should be able to make a difference and save himself, right? Otherwise, what would be the point of his rebirth?

He needs to get out of here. As soon as possible. He won't be able to run away with just himself. He'll be caught easily by the guards. And even if he managed to escape this wall, there would be a higher one next. Capital is a mix of fishes and dragons. With his current capabilities, he can't challenge it. Instead of outside, he'll need to try and crack this wall from inside.

Thanks for diving into the story! Remember to share your thoughts in the comments. See you in the next chapter.