Chapter 59 - 58: In Both Past and Present Lives, It Was Your Majesty Who Saved Her
Chapter 59: Chapter 58: In Both Past and Present Lives, It Was Your Majesty Who Saved Her
Remembering the past too clearly was sometimes not a good thing. Because for a very long time, her past life had been devoid of color.
She was from Meizhou. The name Meizhou was beautiful, derived from its abundance of plum blossoms. But because it was located on the border of Jiuzhou, Barbarians frequently invaded. Qingyuan didn’t know whether the Barbarians pillaging Meizhou were the Galuo or the Tiele; she couldn’t distinguish between these Barbarian tribes’ names. She only knew that she never had enough to eat. To survive, she had to follow her parents, constantly fleeing and hiding.
No one could endure such a life. When she was six, her mother ultimately died under the blades of the Barbarians. That same year, her father sold her to a theatrical troupe. Just because Qingyuan had been a beautiful child from a young age, during their years on the run, her father would always violently pinch her face. While pinching her, he would curse, "You lowly wench! This is all your fault! Why don’t you just die?" He wouldn’t stop until her face was bruised, purple, and swollen.
The female troupe leader had also noticed her beauty, so she bought her for one tael of silver, teaching her how to sing opera and dance. As long as she could earn money for the troupe, she would be able to eat her fill. Occasionally, if the audience was large and generous, she could even earn some tips. But if no one came to listen to the opera that day, or if she accidentally sang a wrong note, she would suffer a brutal beating. Still, this life was better than before. Qingyuan was already quite satisfied.
Years passed like this. When she turned fourteen, she became the troupe’s star performer. Many people traveled hundreds of miles to Meizhou just to catch a glimpse of her grace. Her fame grew, and she was never beaten again.
However, the glory was merely temporary. Another year passed. The female troupe leader caught a cold that wasn’t treated in time, and just like that, she passed away. The next leader to take over the troupe was the woman’s son. He knew nothing about opera; he only wanted money. He forced her to dance and sing for the Barbarians invading Meizhou. He even wanted her to sell her body, all in exchange for more gold, silver, and jewels.
Qingyuan knew she was a low-class actress in a chaotic world. Everyone looked down on her, seeing her as nothing more than a prostitute. But she had her pride. There were two things in this world she would absolutely never do: betray Jiuzhou, and sell herself. Even if it meant death.
Consequently, she was bound hand and foot and drowned in a lake. The freezing lake water engulfed her, suffocating her. She had nearly drowned when she was little, leaving her with an intense fear of water. She was going to die. Qingyuan thought that this was fine too. Someone like her never belonged in this world to begin with. No one liked her; everyone she met only saw her as a commodity to be bought and sold.
Qingyuan never expected to open her eyes again. She had been saved. The person wore red clothes and silver armor, their face surprisingly young. But their aura was immensely powerful. The people around them knelt on the ground, trembling, not daring to look up, much less speak. Until a nonchalant command was given: "Colluding with the Tiele. Kill them." Only then did Qingyuan realize that the Barbarians occupying Meizhou were the Tiele.
The people kneeling on the ground began to kowtow incessantly, frantically begging for mercy, "Your Highness, spare our lives!"
Hearing this title, Qingyuan suddenly realized who had saved her. Prince Jing, the Emperor’s seventh child. At this time, Prince Jing had not yet ascended the throne, changed the era name to "Taichu," or become an eternal Empress. At this time, Qingyuan also never imagined that with her lowly status, she would one day enter the royal court to become a female official.
A hand covered her eyes, and the young Prince Jing’s voice was icy cold. "Don’t look."
Blades pierced through flesh and blood. The people who wanted to harm her died just like that. The young Prince Jing returned to a languid demeanor and said to a trusted aide nearby, "Ming Yue, take her back and change her into new clothes."
Qingyuan froze. Pursing her lips, she whispered, "Your Highness, I am of lowly slave status, I dare not..."
The young Prince Jing paused and said, "Remember this. The ’Yuan’ in your name means the kite bird soaring into the heavens. Your destination should also be the vast sky."
Others said, "Qingyuan, you were born lowly. With your overly conspicuous beauty, you cannot possibly survive in this chaotic world." But the one she called Your Majesty had said that her "Yuan" meant the kite soaring into the heavens. She was a bird that could spread its wings and fly. Even if she were to die, she should die while soaring, absolutely not in the water.
"A Yuan! A Yuan!" Someone was calling her. Who was it? Qingyuan struggled, trying to open her eyes, but the next second, she completely lost consciousness.
At this moment, the "Dragon Flying Phoenix" production crew was in complete chaos. Everyone was anxious; after all, the one who had an accident was Lu Qingyuan.
"It’s already been three minutes, and we still haven’t found Teacher Lu!"
"Stop talking nonsense and keep looking!"
The manager never expected that just stepping out to answer a phone call would result in something like this. "A Yuan! A Yuan!"
"Yingying? Yingying!" Xu Shuangqiao lay on the riverbank, her heart in her throat. She had only seen Shi Changying dive headfirst into the water, and then disappear without a trace. If anything happened to Shi Changying, she would never be able to forgive herself!
SPLASH—
Shi Changying broke the surface of the water.
"Changying!" Xu Shuangqiao scrambled forward frantically. "You..." Before she could finish her sentence, she saw that Shi Changying was holding someone. It was exactly the person the crew was desperately searching for—Lu Qingyuan. Xu Shuangqiao was stunned. So many people had jumped in to search for Lu Qingyuan but failed to find her, yet Shi Changying had actually saved her.
A staff member cried out in pleasant surprise, "Teacher Lu has been found!"
"A Yuan!" The manager stumbled, her voice cracking. "A Yuan? Can you hear me?" After the accompanying medical staff performed a series of emergency first-aid measures, Qingyuan still kept her eyes tightly shut, completely unresponsive.
"Hurry up and take her to the hospital!" the manager ordered sternly. "If you don’t give us a proper explanation for what happened today, you’d better start thinking about how to handle the consequences!"
As soon as these words fell, fine beads of cold sweat broke out on the director’s forehead. "We are already investigating the props department. We will definitely give Teacher Lu an explanation."
The manager said coldly, "I warned you time and time again that A Yuan is terrified of water and absolutely cannot be allowed to touch it. But what did you do? Why did the wire snap?"
"W-we did inspect everything and confirmed there were no issues with the props," the director stammered, shuddering and feeling powerless.
"You inspected everything and such a massive problem still occurred? Is this how your crew treats A Yuan?" The manager’s voice grew even sharper. "If she hadn’t been lucky, A Yuan would be dead!"
The director’s expression changed drastically. "Could it be... someone wanted to harm Teacher Lu? Rest assured, we will definitely investigate this thoroughly!"
The manager pressed her temples, beginning to search for names in her mind. "Who would want to harm A Yuan..."
"Is there even a need to investigate? Whoever benefits from this is the one who wanted to harm Teacher Lu." Meng Miaoyan walked over, her gaze landing on Shi Changying. "Wouldn’t you agree?"