After Rebirth, My Wife Turned Out to Be Myself - Chapter 53

The Jinghe City Lord finally led the Imperial Envoy and her party to reunite with the two countries’ envoys who had gotten separated.

“My sincerest apologies,” the Jinghe City Lord said with a smile. “Today happens to be the Winter Flower Fest, and it’s also because our Da Yue Empire has so many people. When a festival comes around, everyone comes out to enjoy themselves.”

At first listen, these words seemed fine, but upon closer thought… was the Jinghe County Magistrate implying that the people of East Ming and West Jin were few?

Having figured this out, the East Ming envoy’s expression became somewhat subtle.

The West Jin envoy, as if not understanding, chuckled slightly. “The Da Yue Empire is powerful, and its people naturally live in joy and peace. It’s just as lively during festivals in our West Jin. Is East Ming not?”

These words were highly targeted. The East Ming envoy was very displeased upon hearing them, but having just signed a truce agreement, no matter how dissatisfied, he could only suppress it.

The East Ming envoy forced himself to say, “…East Ming naturally is as well.”

It wasn’t surprising that East Ming was targeted by West Jin. The West Jin Emperor was dead, and a struggle for the new emperor was about to begin. The culprit behind these disturbances was the ‘assassin from East Ming’.

If West Jin didn’t target East Ming, then the Da Yue Empire should be surprised. However, for now, everyone was just engaging in verbal sparring; it hadn’t reached the point of demanding accountability.

On this trip, to show West Jin’s sincerity, the delegation of envoys sent by West Jin included a Princess.

She was currently standing in the West Jin delegation with her head lowered, remarkably quiet.

West Jin’s Second Princess, Ajirui.

Compared to the Eldest Prince, who had the greatest chance of winning the West Jin throne, the Second Princess Ajirui’s presence was almost negligible.

Ajirui’s birth was not noble; her mother was merely a servant in the West Jin Imperial Palace.

After a night with the Emperor, her mother conceived Ajirui.

Her maternal family had no significant power, so Ajirui’s presence in the palace was almost non-existent.

Yet, she was still West Jin’s Second Princess.

The Eldest Prince sent Ajirui to the Da Yue Empire to sign the truce agreement. Firstly, her noble status could demonstrate West Jin’s sincerity. Secondly, Ajirui couldn’t participate in West Jin’s struggle for the new emperor anyway.

But only Xie Wan knew.

In her previous life, when the struggle for the new emperor in West Jin concluded, this Second Princess was the final winner. The result of the struggle was that the Eldest Prince and several other relatively powerful princes and princesses killed each other, until they were all dead, leaving only the Second Princess.

A Second Princess with no power or influence, yet she ultimately ascended to the throne of West Jin. Such a coincidence? Who would believe it?

Xie Wan naturally didn’t believe it either.

As the Regent King of the Da Yue Empire, she had dealt with Ajirui quite a bit.

At the very least, the other party was definitely not as weak and silent as she appeared now.

Ajirui seemed to notice that someone’s gaze had been fixed on her. She lifted her eyelids and followed the gaze—

It was the Da Yue Empire’s Imperial Envoy.

A young woman, who looked somewhat frail, but her eyes were so deep they felt unfathomable.

Yes, unfathomable.

Not an ordinary Imperial Envoy.

After exchanging a glance with her, Ajirui lowered her head again.

“The Imperial Envoy bought flowers.” The East Ming envoy didn’t notice the exchange of glances in this corner, but he did notice the flowers in Xie Wan’s hand.

The Jinghe County Magistrate smiled and explained the customs of the Winter Flower Fest again.

After listening, the envoy was surprised. “So that’s how it is. No wonder I saw so many people giving flowers.”

This little interlude didn’t bring any change to the group’s stroll through the streets.

Xie Wan played with the flower in her hand, walking within the group and listening quietly. The Jinghe County Magistrate was very eloquent and always managed to make the East Ming envoy feel stifled.

As they walked, the group suddenly stopped.

The crowd ahead had all stopped and gathered together, seemingly watching some excitement.

Discussions were buzzing—

“Isn’t that ‘Bully Wang’?”

“Who has he set his sights on this time!”

“It’s Miss Li from the cloth shop in the west of the city.”

“Miss Li is only fifteen, that Bully Wang is really ruining people…”

Before the crowd could piece together the sequence of events from these scattered words.

‘Bully Wang’, who was buried within the crowd, suddenly shouted, “Everyone else mind your own business! This Li Chun’er and I exchanged flowers, so naturally I’m taking her back to get engaged. This isn’t some forced abduction; her father agreed to this marriage. This is a matter of mutual affection, so you damn people stay out of it!”

Having said that, he shoved aside the people blocking his way, dragging the crying Miss Li behind him.

“I didn’t accept your flower, and I won’t marry you! You snatched my flower by force!” Miss Li cried out, but she had no strength to resist at all.

Everyone in Jinghe City knew that Bully Wang’s family had already taken seven concubines.

Bully Wang was lustful, and unfortunately, his family was rich. As long as he didn’t commit murder or arson, his family could settle things for him.

Judging by the people’s reactions, this was probably not the first time he had ‘forcibly abducted a girl’.

“Let go of me! Let go of me!”

Bully Wang dragged her away, followed by several servants who seemed accustomed to such scenes.

Seeing this, the people became anxious. “Should we report it to the officials?”

“Report what? The Wang family is rich! Didn’t you hear him? The Li family agreed to the marriage. They probably bribed her parents with money long ago. Even if she’s taken to the officials, the magistrate won’t be able to settle this family matter.”

Xie Wan frowned slightly, and Zhou Ning was also ready to step forward. Just then, a figure stepped forward faster than they did.

The girl flashed forward and appeared before everyone, directly seizing Bully Wang’s wrist that was holding Miss Li.

Before Bully Wang could react, there was a crack, and intense pain shot from his wrist.

The next second, a pig-slaughtering scream shook the heavens and the earth.

After screaming, Bully Wang glared fiercely at the girl who was shielding Miss Li behind her. “You little slut…”

Before he could finish speaking, he froze in place again.

Because the girl who rushed out to ‘rescue the beauty’ looked only sixteen or seventeen. Although her face was young, her features were beautiful, and her eyes were exceptionally bright.

Bully Wang had lived in Jinghe City since birth and had never seen a girl from the south, let alone one with such an ethereal aura.

Bully Wang narrowed his eyes, certain that the person before him was indeed of extraordinary birth.

He was lustful, but he also knew quality. The cloak on this girl… was no ordinary item.

Beautiful, and from a wealthy family.

Seeing this, the servants were about to step forward, but Bully Wang raised his hand to stop them—

“Where is Miss from?”

The anger in Bully Wang’s heart vanished instantly, and greed quickly surfaced on his face. He could even ignore the pain in his wrist.

Seeing his expression, everyone immediately felt uneasy.

This young girl who had intervened was probably going to be targeted by Bully Wang.

“I didn’t ask you, yet you ask me first,” the young girl scoffed. “Forcibly abducting a girl in broad daylight, does Jinghe City have no laws?”

Upon hearing this, the Jinghe County Magistrate immediately wanted to step out.

He naturally didn’t approve of Bully Wang’s actions, but every time it escalated, the family whose daughter was taken would compromise for the sake of money.

He was an honest official, but it was difficult for him to resolve such matters.

But now that it was causing a scene on the street, this Bully Wang was truly lawless.

Just as he was about to step out, he heard Bully Wang say, “Miss, what you said is incorrect. I gave her father a thousand taels of silver, and her father agreed to marry his daughter to me.”

The young girl sneered, “Then I should report it to the officials even more! A thousand taels of silver? Since when does the Da Yue Empire allow you to openly engage in human trafficking?”

Bully Wang was stunned, blocked by her words. He hadn’t expected this pretty girl to be so articulate. But now that there was someone even better looking in front of him, he couldn’t care less about the tear-streaked Li Chun’er.

Bully Wang immediately smiled. “Miss, you speak well. This marriage is settled, but for Miss’s sake, it’s not impossible to cancel it. Today is the Winter Flower Fest. If Miss is willing to find a restaurant with me for a couple of drinks…”

“Drink your head!”

A phrase in the Jinghe dialect burst from the crowd.

Before Bully Wang could react, a roasted sweet potato fell from the sky and landed with a thud on top of his head.

It knocked him off balance.

Suddenly, several girls darted out from the crowd. Every single one of them was agile.

In a flash, several people subdued him, pinned him to the ground, and shoved his face into the snow.

“What kind of toad! How dare you set your sights on our Anyu! You like drinking? How about I treat you to some horse piss?!”

They had only been separated from Anyu for a little while, and a toad actually came knocking?!

Bully Wang swallowed a mouthful of snow, his arm still twisted. The pain contorted his face. “You… you just wait…”

“Still spouting nonsense?” A tough girl kicked him. “What if we wait?”

This kick was not light; it made Bully Wang recoil completely, and his eyes rolled back from the pain.

The servants tried to rush forward to rescue him, but they were easily restrained by the girls.

This scene happened too quickly; the people hadn’t expected it.

The girl who had acted earlier wasn’t afraid at all upon seeing this scene. Instead, she stepped forward, frowning. “Take him to the yamen.”

Just then, Anyu felt her sleeve tighten.

She turned around; it was Miss Li’s pale face.

“Sister, thank you for saving me, but…” Miss Li closed her eyes, and tears fell pattering down. “My father took money from the Wang family…”

If they went to the yamen, they wouldn’t be in the right.

It wasn’t that her father didn’t love her or her mother didn’t care; it was just that their shop still relied on the Wang family, and her father had no other choice.

Anyu quickly wiped away her tears. “Don’t cry, don’t cry. We won’t accuse him on this charge.”

Miss Li looked up at her blankly.

“There are other ways I can punish him.” Anyu reached out and gently stroked her head. “Don’t be afraid. I promise, this fellow will definitely not bother you again in the future.”

Anyu grinned, like the warmest ray of sunlight in the cold northern winter.

Miss Li stared blankly, unable to recover.

Seeing this, the other girls also exchanged glances, and everyone spoke up as if by telepathy—

“Deputy General, I’ll take him to the yamen then.”

“Deputy General, we’ve walked around the street enough. Let’s head back to camp after we escort him.”

Everyone called her ‘Deputy General’.

The people were also surprised.

Deputy General…

They knew that there were troops stationed outside Jinghe City guarding the border.

“Is it the Northern Army?”

“Are these girls from the Northern Army?”

“This Bully Wang kicked a steel plate! Excellent!”

The people all breathed a sigh of relief.

Bully Wang, who hadn’t fainted yet, was greatly alarmed upon hearing this. Coupled with the physical pain, his eyes rolled back, and he truly fainted from fright.

As Bully Wang was taken to the yamen, the excitement gradually subsided, and the crowd also dispersed.

Anyu let out a breath and turned back to look at Miss Li. “I’ll have someone escort you home.”

Having encountered such a thing, she thought Miss Li probably wouldn’t want to continue strolling.

Miss Li, however, seemed reluctant. She gently wiped away the tears from her face. “Thank you, Sister. You don’t need to escort me; I can go back myself.”

Anyu sighed helplessly. “Okay.”

Today was the Winter Flower Fest. Girls in the north must value this festival greatly. Leaving with such a memory, this girl was quite pitiful.

Miss Li pursed her lips and picked up the Snow Plum Blossom that had fallen on the ground.

“Sister, could you please accept this?” She bravely handed over the flower branch. The flower had fallen on the ground earlier and was a bit dirty.

Anyu was stunned.

“This… I…”

Anyu hesitated for a moment, then finally took it. “Okay.”

Miss Li smiled again. Seeing Anyu holding the flower in her hand, her cheeks flushed slightly. “Thank you, Sister!”

Having said that, she jogged back home.

Anyu rubbed her nose, watched her run into the distance, and tucked the flower into her embrace.

This entire scene was observed by someone.

And the person watching this scene had a half-smile on their face, with a hint of displeasure in their eyes.

Standing not far away, Guard Zhou glanced at the seemingly displeased ‘Lord’ beside her, keeping her eyes down and her thoughts to herself. It was best not to speak now.

However, there was always someone who couldn’t help but speak.

“This is a Deputy General of the Northern Army? Truly impressive. The Da Yue Empire having such talent is truly enviable for East Ming.”

The East Ming envoy’s voice was not low.

Anyu also heard these words. People from East Ming? Right, today was the Winter Flower Fest, and also the day the three countries signed the truce agreement.

She immediately turned back. As the crowd dispersed, the group of watching envoys stood out particularly among the chatting and walking people.

Anyu’s gaze swept over them, originally just a fleeting glance, but after seeing that familiar face in the crowd, she couldn’t move.

She blinked sharply.

The face in the crowd had not disappeared.

Astonishment hadn’t even had time to surface on her young face.

The shock lasted only a moment before Anyu hid the astonishment in her eyes.

Because that person made a gesture of placing their index finger between their lips—

Shush.

Afterwards, that person looked at her, the smile in their eyes completely unconcealed, even the corners of their mouth curved upwards slightly.

As if saying—

Xiao Anyu, it’s been a while.

At that moment, Anyu felt that the snow was falling a bit too heavily.

So heavily that even the surrounding sounds became muffled. In her ears, she could only hear the frantic pounding of her own heart.