Meeting You Again by the Bridge of Helplessness

Heaven above or earth below, all she wants is freedom; heaven above or earth below, he will not let her have it.

In one life, in the realm of immortals, she lived freely and carefree, envied even by the gods, until she met him. Through eighty-one tribulations, she tasted every flavor of life, from sweet and sour to bitter, spicy, and salty.

In her next life, among mortals, she lived freely and carefree, envied by everyone, until she met one man, as if an immortal had descended to earth; then another, unfathomable and breathtakingly beautiful. In the first half of her life, she loved fiercely and woke to the truth with devastating clarity. In the second half, she loved cautiously, and her pain was numbingly intense.

For her eighty-first tribulation, she dragged a coffin to the top of his city wall. Dressed in a blinding red gown that made her look stunning, she leapt down. At last, the tribulation ended, and their fate was severed.

In her third life, for someone, she brewed a bowl of Meng Po Soup to sever their bond of love, becoming Meng Po, the ghost goddess renowned across the Three Realms and reviled by all.

When the hibiscus flowers bloomed, she stood by the Naihe Bridge, holding a bowl of Meng Po Soup. In a daze, she watched him cross the bridge toward her, carrying a zither and exuding refined elegance. Her mind crackled with indecision: should she kick him into the River of Forgetfulness, or put the bowl over his head and roar, "Enough! It's been thousands of years. Heaven or the underworld, are you ever going to stop?"

He said, "Never."