Only in the final moments before her death did Shen Zhiwei realize she had been a joke for twenty years.
She had emptied her dowry to pave the way for Xiao Chengyu’s career. She had been gracious and generous, personally bringing Liu Rumei into the household as his second wife.
In return, she received a letter of divorce, with “jealousy and intolerance” given as the reason.
In a ruined temple, she breathed her last, vowing never to be a virtuous wife in her next life.
When she opened her eyes again, she was fifteen.
At the flower-viewing banquet, she dazzled everyone in red and treated Xiao Chengyu’s attentions with indifference.
But she never expected that the emperor, rumored to be cold-hearted and uncaring, would kneel before her in public:
“I’ve waited two lifetimes for you. Will you give me an answer?”
Very nice, I like it