Shen Chu died five times and was reborn four times, each time as a different person, and each time meeting a tragic end.
In her first life, her own family framed and rejected her, and she took her own life in despair.
In her second, her entire village was massacred. Her parents pushed her out of a sea of flames, but she still couldn’t escape the blade.
In her third, she was brutally murdered as soon as she opened her eyes.
In her fourth, she fought bloodily on the battlefield, only to die from an arrow fired from behind.
In her fifth, her companion drew a sword without warning and cut off her head.
Only one thing never changed.
Every time she died, a mysterious man carrying a lantern appeared right on time to silently gather her remains. His eyes were so full of compassion, it was as though he owed her several lifetimes’ worth.
After enduring her fifth rebirth, she finally returned to her own body.
Even more absurdly, her father had been reborn too.
Shen Shikun had witnessed the entirety of her tragic deaths in her past lives, and was terrified to the core. To protect her, he wanted only to marry her off somewhere far away, well clear of the dangers of the imperial power struggle.
But Shen Chu refused.
She didn’t want to spend her whole life running away and merely surviving. She wanted to fight against fate.
So Shen Chu turned down marriage proposals from the Crown Prince and other princes, choosing instead a royal clansman whom no one favored.
Everyone laughed at her for being blind and bringing misery upon herself.
Only Shen Chu knew the truth:
This pitiful man whom everyone could bully was the very person who had gathered her remains every time she died, waiting year after year for her return through all five of her reborn lives.
Even more astonishingly, he and her reborn father were already connected by countless threads.
Her father hid a desire to protect her, while her husband concealed a destiny to guide her through.
In this life, she would no longer be a pawn for others to move. She would face the game and become the one moving the pieces.
Theme: I hold the pen that writes my life.
