Chapter 1: A Hand of Bad Cards

Flames shot skyward.

Lin Yunyan collapsed onto the ground; as far as the eye could see, everything was in shambles.

The burning sensation in the air made it hard for her to breathe; the scorching wind swirled around her, as if her hair might catch fire at any moment.

She had to get out!

Where was the door?

Thick smoke billowed, stinging Lin Yunyan’s eyes until they streamed with tears. Unable to wipe them away, she could only widen her eyes and try to make out her surroundings.

Then, she spotted Xu Jian lying not far away.

“Xu…” Lin Yunyan had barely begun to speak when she was choked by the smoke and began coughing violently.

Xu Jian, however, lay motionless.

Suddenly, Lin Yunyan realized that Xu Jian had fainted.

Memories of the moment before flooded her mind.

Back then, she and Xu Jian had been inspecting the area when, without warning, the roof collapsed.

Xu Jian, quick as a flash, had pushed Lin Yunyan out of the way before she could react; the tiles had all crashed down on him.

Although Lin Yunyan had been away from the center of the collapse, she had still been caught in the fallout and had been dazed for quite a while. When she came to, she found herself in this current predicament.

If she was in this state, one could only imagine how Xu Jian was faring, having been struck directly by the debris.

She had to get Xu Jian out!

Gritting her teeth against the burning pain, Lin Yunyan frantically dug through the broken tiles covering Xu Jian’s body.

The more she cleared, the heavier her heart grew.

She could still feel a pulse at Xu Jian’s neck, but he showed no signs of waking.

Worse still, the shove that had sent her flying had caused Xu Jian to fall from his wheelchair. The wheelchair had tipped over, and he was now pinned beneath the overturned tables and chairs.

Without the wheelchair, how could she move the unconscious Xu Jian out of the house?

Even if Xu Jian woke up, he couldn’t walk—let alone in this state…

Leaving Xu Jian behind and escaping alone would likely be the best option right now.

Lin Yunyan knew this, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

She and Xu Jian were in this together. If she lost Xu Jian, she, Lin Yunyan, wouldn’t survive long.

In fact, it was highly likely that the killer was still waiting outside.

The house had collapsed for no apparent reason—one could perhaps attribute it to “deterioration from age”—but for it to catch fire immediately after collapsing? How could that not be the work of someone?

The killer’s goal was to make her and Xu Jian die right here!

At this thought, a surge of indignation welled up, instantly filling her heart.

Alas, despite giving it their all, they had fallen just short; those truths would be buried once more, never to see the light of day!

Tiles cut into her fingers and palms, bloodied and messy, blurring her thoughts. Lin Yunyan dug and shifted with her last ounce of strength.

Death was inevitable, but at least she could make Xu Jian’s passing a little easier.

His legs were crippled; he couldn’t bear any weight.

With such heavy shards of tile pressing down on him, how agonizing it must be…

If she couldn’t make those bastards taste this guilt and this suffering, she truly, truly would die with regret!

Chirp, chirp—

Chirp, chirp—

The sound surged in from all directions, deafening.

Was that… the chirping of cicadas?

Why could she hear cicadas?

Lin Yunyan suddenly opened her eyes to a blinding white light.

After a moment’s pause, she realized it was sunlight—the mid-summer afternoon sun streaming through the window lattice, bathing the hall in brilliant light.

And there she was, reclining on a four-poster bed beneath the window.

“Your Highness, what’s wrong?”

Lin Yunyan looked in the direction of the voice and instinctively asked, “What’s wrong with me?”

The moment the words left her mouth, the maid’s expression shifted from timidity to sheer terror.

Lin Yunyan frowned. How could Wan Yue have grown younger?

Something’s wrong!

She hurriedly surveyed her surroundings.

The display cabinet was filled with exquisite ornaments; the flowers in the vase were budding; and hanging on the wall was a whimsical scroll—a masterpiece from her childhood.

Every scene and object looked exactly as she remembered.

This was clearly the West Wing of the Cining Palace!

In the past, she had often come to the palace to accompany the Empress Dowager. Whenever the Empress Dowager had business that required her to step aside, she would send her here to rest.

But since the Empress Dowager’s passing, she had never returned.

The young Wan Yue, the side hall she hadn’t visited in years, and the raging fire from just moments ago that left no escape…

A thought sprang to mind—one so shocking it made Lin Yunyan involuntarily draw a deep breath.

“You,” Wan Yue ventured, asking again, “have you been bewitched?”

Lin Yunyan’s eyelashes trembled slightly.

Bewitched?

It had truly been a nightmare—long, oppressive, interwoven with countless schemes and betrayals, with both open and hidden attacks.

Her family had been destroyed, and Xu Jian had been driven to the brink of despair. Over the years, she and Xu Jian had clashed until they were both battered and bruised, desperately clinging to that sliver of hope. In the end, it had all turned into grief, agony, and despair amidst the raging fire, with billowing smoke and scorching flames snarling and mocking their hubris.

It was a vivid, blood-soaked memory!

So much so that when she suddenly awoke from the dream and returned to the brightly lit side hall, recalling that ordeal, even the brilliant sunlight could not dispel the gloom in her heart.

It was all still there, reminding her that even if it was just a dream, it was real and excruciatingly painful.

If she couldn’t turn things around, she would head back to that abyss, reliving every ounce of that agony all over again.

A person must not fall into the same pit twice.

Not only would she avoid falling herself, but she would kick the pit-digger right in, making those who started it all taste this suffering with interest!

Glancing at the cautious Wan Yue, Lin Yunyan said, “I was under a spell. I wasn’t afraid—what are you afraid of?”

Wan Yue was stumped.

That seemed to make sense.

But the princess’s earlier demeanor had truly terrified her.

The princess had been resting her eyes with them closed, but suddenly she opened them, her gaze brimming with a dark, menacing fury, as if she were ready to fight to the death.

Her princess had a pair of beautiful eyes; everyone praised them as smiling, sparkling, and expressive.

When had those beautiful eyes ever held such a murderous aura?

“This servant is timid,” Wan Yue said timidly.

Upon hearing this, Lin Yunyan actually smiled.

The Wan Yue she knew was loyal and resilient; those two qualities alone made her superior to thousands of others.

What did being timid matter?

“Courage is something that grows with practice,” Lin Yunyan said.

After all, hasn’t everyone had to go through this?

Footsteps approached from afar and came to a halt outside the hanging curtain.

“Princess, the Grand Consort has arrived. Her Majesty the Empress Dowager requests your presence.”

Lin Yunyan acknowledged the message but did not rush out. Instead, she made her way to the inner chamber and sat down before the dressing mirror.

The young woman in the mirror was in the prime of her youth, with bright eyes and pearly teeth, her features as delicate as a painting. Pearl flowers adorned her hair, swaying gently with her movements.

She wore a maiden’s hairstyle—this must have been before the thirteenth year of Yongjia.

For in the spring of that thirteenth year, she had married Xu Jian and adopted a married woman’s hairstyle.

Was it the twelfth year, or perhaps the eleventh?

Glancing at Wan Yue, who was tidying stray strands of her hair, Lin Yunyan thought to herself: If the Empress Dowager weren’t waiting, she really ought to ask about it in detail.

However, regardless of the year or the circumstances, she was determined to live her life to the fullest.

Not wanting to keep the Empress Dowager waiting, Lin Yunyan made her way to the main hall.

As soon as she entered the inner chamber, she spotted the group seated around the square table.

On that rosewood table inlaid with bone, featuring the “Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea” design—a piece the Empress Dowager was particularly fond of—were stacked the Mahjong tiles. The Empress Dowager, along with Consort Wen and Matron Wang, sat around the table, all smiling cheerfully at her.

“Quick, quick, quick,” the Empress Dowager beckoned. “We’re one short—we’ve been waiting for you.”

Indeed.

Most of the time she spent with the Empress Dowager was spent playing Mahjong.

She took her seat, rolled the dice, and drew and laid out her tiles.

Lin Yunyan: …

A terrible hand.

It was as if the heavens were against her.

Running her fingertips over the tiles, Lin Yunyan’s eyes narrowed slightly.

No matter how terrible the hand, she would have to sort it out step by step.

Her new life began with this very set of tiles.