The Pheasant Flies South

[wb@The Years Have Fallen into Ruin, There's Something Fun] Winning Her Back After Losing Her|Rekindled Love|Soapy Drama Pei Zhiling died in childbirth in the early winter of the third year of Emperor Yuanguang's reign. Even in death, she had risen no higher than a consort. She had been his first woman. As she watched him ascend the throne and new women continue to enter the palace, Pei Zhiling could do nothing about it. She was careful and discreet, virtuous and gentle, thinking that if she could not have his heart, becoming empress would be a fine alternative. That was the one hope she had left. Emperor Yuanguang gave her a cool glance and dismissed it with a single sentence: "Zhiling, you have always been considerate of me. Why are you being so unreasonable today?" It was because her father and brothers had all died in battle, leaving her family unable to support him at court. So the position of empress was nothing but a fantasy. Pei Zhiling once had a dream. In it, she saw the emperor, usually so stern and aloof, treat a girl in her teens with endless tenderness and consideration. He shared her joys and sorrows, worried over her constantly, and cherished her as if she were a precious treasure in the palm of his hand. He even placed the empress's crown, the very thing she had longed for, before that young girl. When Pei Zhiling awoke from the dream, tears streamed down her face. The things she had begged for in vain came to another girl with barely any effort. In the end, she still died in childbirth. As she crossed the Naihe Bridge, she looked back and saw Emperor Yuanguang, Ji Mo Xun, chasing her all the way into the underworld. Held back on the far bank of the River of Forgetfulness by more than a dozen ghost guards, Emperor Yuanguang, Ji Mo Xun, howled in a frenzy, begging her not to drink Granny Meng's soup. But she acted as if she had not heard him. Calmly taking the bowl from Granny Meng, she tilted her head back and drank every last drop, leaving not a trace behind. Thus she severed all ties with him in life and death. This life had been as faint as flowing water, with just a hint of bitterness. She had nothing to miss. Emperor Yuanguang, Ji Mo Xun, ascended the throne in his youth. Handsome and graceful, he shone like the sun and moon. Throughout his life, his civil and military achievements were many. He led an army south and reclaimed three thousand li of Great Xia's territory, avenging the humiliation of the previous dynasty. He was hailed as a ruler who had ushered in a new golden age. After the emperor had a crown prince in the third year of Yuanguang, he dismissed his harem. The throne of empress remained vacant for nineteen years. Countless people coveted the position, but they waited until their youth had faded without seeing it go to anyone. They all began to think that Emperor Yuanguang's ironwood heart would never blossom. As the crown prince, Ji Mo Huang, grew older, they set their sights on the position of crown princess instead. Emperor Yuanguang kept to the inner palace and rarely appeared in public. Entrusted by others, the eldest princess arranged a flower-viewing banquet. After tremendous effort, she finally persuaded her imperial younger brother to grace the garden with his presence, bringing his nephew, the crown prince, along. At the banquet, the eldest princess saw a young woman: the beloved only daughter of Chancellor Xue, the famed Miss Xue, who was said to be engaged to the son of the Grand Marshal. Surprised, she looked toward her imperial brother. Ji Mo Xun's expression, usually as cold as autumn frost and winter snow, softened with every smile and frown of the girl. His voice was hoarse and barely audible: "Zhiling." Xue Zhiling thought she must have lost her mind. She had actually heard the sixteen-year-old crown prince standing in front of her, his eyes red-rimmed, call her "Mother." *"The Pheasant Takes Flight at Dawn" is a guqin piece said to have been composed by Mu Duzi during the Warring States period. At fifty, Mu Duzi still had no wife. One day, while gathering firewood in the countryside, he saw a male pheasant flying alongside a female. Moved and saddened by the sight, he poured his feelings into the strings of his instrument. The pheasants take flight at dawn, their calls answering one another; male and female flock together over the mountain slopes. Alone, I grieve, for I have no home of my own. The day is drawing to a close; what can I do? Alas, the day is drawing to a close. What can I do? Reader's guide: 1. Ages: The heroine is nineteen and the hero twenty when she dies in their first life. After being reborn, she is sixteen in her second life, while he is thirty-six. 2. The heroine and hero are each other's first. The hero initially has a harem, but never consummates those relationships. After the heroine dies, he disbands it and spends the rest of his life as a widower. In her second life, the heroine will have a fiance, and the villainous emperor will forcefully take her for himself. 3. Both lives will be covered. The story is a slow burn, unfolding gently over time. Please just drop the novel without telling me, thank you. If you dislike something, your comment will be deleted. If you can't accept comment deletion, please click the X in the upper-left corner. (Note: Since the heroine is reborn, the novel is categorized as an ancient-era transmigration story. The heroine is not a modern person who transmigrated.) 4. Cover art credited to "Tingyu Ge: Mao Mao Yu" and "Tao Zhi Yao Yao: Sen Mu Mu" 5. The text may be revised from time to time. Pirated copies may be incomplete, so please refer to the official version. Blurb first written on November 3, 2022 Coming soon: "His Majesty Is Coldhearted" As the daughter of the Grand Tutor, Wen Xuecheng and the Ninth Prince, Xue Yuanzhao, grew up together, studied together, and shared a deep bond. Wen Xuecheng was breathtakingly beautiful, while Ninth Prince Xue Yuanzhao was striking and refined, the most handsome man in the capital. Many said they were made for each other. Xue Yuanzhao promised her that if he could marry her, he would never take a concubine and would remain true to her forever. When Xue Yuanzhao asked the Grand Tutor for her hand, he was refused. The Grand Tutor told him that Xuecheng was already betrothed to Han Zhen, a newly appointed jinshi. The reason was simple: Han Zhen was elegant and distinguished, with a brilliant future ahead of him, while Xue Yuanzhao was caught up in the struggle for the throne, his future uncertain. Wen Xuecheng thought that once Xue Yuanzhao became emperor, he would bring her away from the Han family. Xue Yuanzhao did indeed win the struggle for the throne. In the first year of his reign, he held a grand selection of women to fill the harem. When Wen Xuecheng heard the news at the Han residence, she immediately burst into tears. As the years passed, it seemed as if Wen Xuecheng had been forgotten by him. Wen Xuecheng and Xue Yuanzhao met again at a palace banquet for the Mid-Autumn Festival. By then, Han Zhen had been dead for three years, having died in the line of duty. Her period of mourning was over, and her father had brought her back to the capital from Yunzhou. She had eagerly awaited the Mid-Autumn banquet, hoping to rekindle their old romance. Wen Xuecheng once believed she was the woman Xue Yuanzhao could never forget. Everyone said that once she returned, a storm would sweep through the six palaces. They reunited as she had wished. She thought she could wait for him to honor his promise, dismiss the harem for her, and shower her with all his affection. Instead, all she received was a cold imperial decree appointing her Noble Consort, followed by countless lonely nights in the palace. He had another beloved consort, Xu Wan, and for her sake he neglected the three thousand beauties of his harem. One day, after drinking, he finally came to her palace. As their bodies warmed beneath the covers and they were about to become lovers, he suddenly stopped. Staring at her, he said quietly, "I took you in only because I had a lifelong regret. Now that I've obtained what I wanted, it's nothing special. How laughable that you, a married woman, longed for me day and night. How can you face Han Zhen?" With tears in her eyes, she finally asked what she had been wondering: "Your Majesty, didn't you promise me..." He gave a cold laugh. "What made you think I would never forget a widow?" He swept out of the room. She heard that he had gone to Xu Wan's Hall of Eternal Life. Wen Xuecheng was left on the bed, weeping beneath the swaying red candles. She covered her eyes and finally understood: in the years they had been apart, the world had changed beyond recognition. They could never go back. Later, he disbanded the harem for Xu Wan and allowed the consorts to marry as they pleased. Only Wen Xuecheng was ordered to shave her head and become a nun. Before the Buddha and the green lamp, her heart suddenly turned to ash. She pierced her throat with a golden hairpin, ending her life with ease. As she lay dying, blood poured from her wound. The crimson before her eyes blotted out the sky, and she seemed to see the refined emperor in dark robes break through the door and hold her in his arms, his hands trembling violently. She could no longer remember what he said. Wen Xuecheng thought that in this life, she would never again indulge in wishful thinking or presume that she was the irreplaceable white moonlight in Xue Yuanzhao's heart. Theme: Cherish the present