Chapter two

The big black-and-white courtyard was quiet, bluestone slabs slick from the rain, vermilion pillars and carved railings engraved with intricate crabapple patterns. The night’s rain still dripped from the banana leaves to the ground.

A small purple-gold incense burner shaped like a delicate beast exhaled the faint fragrance of water-wood, fresh and cooling in the early autumn air.

The four corners of the bed were hung with bright tassels, and on the soft couch, two young attendants carefully fanned the figure lying on the bed.

“The weather is cold, and falling into the water would make the fever unbearable. Young Master has slept for an entire day and night. The physician said he should have woken by now. Why is there still no movement?” The maid in green could not hide the anxiety in his voice, and his scent of worry—sharp and fleeting—tingled in the air.

“Gu Yu, it’s been more than an hour. Why hasn’t the physician arrived yet?” The purple-clad attendant asked, his Omega scent mingling faintly with the cool autumn air, masking the panic underneath.

“Second Furen is watching closely. This could become a scandal, and the residence is trying to cover it up,” Gu Yu said, his voice low. “Master and Furen are not in the capital, Eldest Young Master is away, and Old Furen favors the Eastern courtyard. Bai Lu and Shuang Jiang went to find the physician and haven’t returned. Perhaps they’ve been stopped… Young Master is being forced into a dead end. I… I must go see for myself.”

Before he could move, a weak groan came from the bed.

“He’s awake!” the purple-clad attendant exclaimed, rushing forward. The young man on the bed rubbed his forehead and slowly propped himself up.

“Jing Zhe…” Taehyung whispered, voice hoarse.

“I’m here.” The attendant smiled gently, taking Taehyung’s hands in his own. “Do you feel better? You slept for an entire day and night. The fever seemed to have subsided, but you didn’t wake. I was going to go find the physician again.”

“Do you… want some water?” Gu Yu handed over a cup of tea, the faint scent of tea leaves calming but unable to suppress the faint rise of Taehyung’s Omega hormones.

Taehyung looked at the two attendants, confused.

He had once had four first-ranked attendants: Jing Zhe, Gu Yu, Bai Lu, and Shuang Jiang. All had been clever, capable, sensitive. And yet… none had survived.

When he was a hostage in the Qin kingdom, Gu Yu had died protecting him from the Crown Prince’s cruelty. Bai Lu and Shuang Jiang had perished—one on the way to Wan Yu’s marriage, the other in the Inner Palace, struggling for favor against Jimin.

Jing Zhe had been the most beautiful. Originally, he had become a concubine to assist Yoongi in consolidating power, using his beauty to sway the ministers. But in the end, he had been scolded to death by the wife of a powerful minister.

When Taehyung learned of Jing Zhe’s death, he had cried until his body ached, nearly losing his own unborn child to despair.

And now, Jing Zhe stood before him, perfectly fine, his brows still sculpted like a painting. Gu Yu smiled faintly beside him, and the other two attendants, only fourteen or fifteen, gave off a delicate, youthful scent that left Taehyung momentarily dazed.

After a moment, he smiled bitterly and closed his eyes.

“This… illusion before death is too real,” he whispered.

“What do you mean, Young Master?” Gu Yu asked, placing the cup aside and reaching out to touch his forehead. “Could it be the fever is still affecting you?”

The hand on his forehead was cold, comforting, real. Taehyung’s eyes snapped open, sharp and alert. He lowered his gaze to his own hands.

They were not his hands.

They were white, slender, nails neatly trimmed, round and delicate—hands that had clearly been pampered.

Not the hands that had wrestled through court politics with Yoongi, held pens to examine account books, and endured the indignities of the Qin kingdom as a hostage. Not the hands that had fought alongside the Crown Prince, or washed clothes in the Cold Palace. His hands were rough, calloused, swollen from decades of labor, endurance, and survival.

“Bring me a mirror,” Taehyung said, voice weak but firm, tinged with the sharp undertone of rising Omega instinct, suppressed but threatening to break free. The faint scent of dominance from Yoongi still lingered in the air, mixing with Taehyung’s suppressed heat, making his body ache and pulse with a confusing mix of fear, rage, and desire.

...***...

Gu Yu and Jing Zhe exchanged worried glances. Finally, Jing Zhe went to fetch a mirror and handed it to Taehyung.

In the bronze mirror, the young Omega’s face looked impossibly delicate: round and soft, a full forehead, large almond-shaped eyes tinged slightly red, a round nose, and a small mouth. Though not conventionally striking, his features radiated innocence and timidity, the kind that had once caused the Imperial family to praise him as bringing good fortune to his mate.

The mirror slipped from Taehyung’s hands and shattered on the floor with a crisp sound. Each fragment seemed to strike at his heart, sending a storm of emotion racing through him.

He pinched himself fiercely, and hot tears streamed down his face.

The Heavens had not abandoned him. The Heavens had truly not abandoned him.

He had returned.

Gu Yu and Jing Zhe jumped, stunned. Gu Yu hurried to pick up the shards, anxiously murmuring, “Young Master… be careful not to cut your feet.”

“Why are you crying, Young Master?” Jing Zhe asked, taking a handkerchief to wipe his tears. But Taehyung’s expression was strange, a mix of laughter and sorrow, muttering, “I… I have returned…”

He grabbed Jing Zhe’s hands, shaking slightly. “What year is it now?”

Jing Zhe hesitated, then replied truthfully, “Ming Qi, sixty-eighth year. Young Master… are you feeling unwell?”

Taehyung’s eyes widened. Ming Qi, sixty-eighth year…The year he was fourteen, the year he first met Yoongi and became infatuated, the year he had begged his father to let him marry Yoongi…

And now… the words of Gu Yu echoed in his mind: “Young Master must not scare the servants. The fever has only just subsided. Could it be that your mind is still muddled? Eldest Young Lady is truly ruthless… is this not an attempt to end Young Master’s life?”

Most of his past days had been spent running errands and attending to Yoongi’s whims. Life in the Kim residence had been dull and tasteless, yet he remembered every incident clearly—the humiliations, the manipulations, and all matters involving Yoongi.

He remembered the time Kim Qing had dragged him along to watch Yoongi secretly visiting the Second and Third branches. When they reached the garden, Kim Qing had shoved him into the rockery pond.

Yoongi had been fished out, dripping wet, the other officials laughing, treating it as a joke. Word of Taehyung’s infatuation with Prince Ding—Yoongi—had spread across the capital months before. It had been a cruel prank.

In his last life, after awakening, he had accused Kim Qing of the push—but no one believed him. He had been punished by Old Furen, grounded in the temple, forbidden to leave during the Mid-Autumn Festival. It was only Kim Yue who secretly released him, bringing him to the Chrysanthemum Appreciation Banquet at Yan Bei Tang, where he had been humiliated yet again.

Taehyung closed his eyes, exhaling slowly.

The Kim family had three branches. The First household, led by Kim Xin, his father, was the eldest son of the Old General’s first wife. The first wife had died young, and the Old General remarried, giving birth to the Second and Third households—Kim Gui and Kim Wan. After the Old General passed, the second wife became the present Old Furen. Though divided in branches, the three households had traditionally supported each other, their relationships often praised as exemplary.

The Kim family had served in the military for generations. In Kim Xin’s generation, the First household maintained military power, while the Second and Third branches pursued civil affairs. Kim Xin spent most of his time on expeditions, with Kim Furen accompanying him. Taehyung had always been under careful tutelage in the Kim residence by Old Furen and the two Kim Jiu.

He had been taught well but treated indulgently—until it had become a tool to control and manipulate him. The favors, the flattery, the “care” from family elders—it had been a trap to weaken his resolve.

Bullying and betrayal had always lurked in the wings: some openly before him, others behind his back. Every time Kim Xin and Kim Furen returned to the residence, their favor only reminded him of how stubborn and helpless he had been.

This lifetime, he vowed, he would watch. He would see exactly how these people would shamelessly repeat their old tricks—and he would not be deceived.

Just as he was lost in thought, the sound of hurried footsteps reached his ears.

“Young Master! Second Young Lady is here to see you!” called the maid sweeping the courtyard.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***