In a dungeon of the ancient world, where light barely reached, Chu Yi was covered in wounds. Blood seeped through her faded, unrecognizable clothes, staining them a dark, reddish-black.
She stirred with difficulty, straining to lift her head and look toward the cell's only small window. The window let in sunlight, casting a golden glow upon a patch of the floor, making that spot seem much warmer.
Chu Yi squinted her eyes, fighting an uncontrollable urge to sleep.
Footsteps echoed from outside. Following the sound, Chu Yi saw a woman in splendid, ornate robes approaching. The woman stopped at the cell door. A jailer hurried forward, bowing low to unlock it before swiftly retreating.
The lavishly dressed woman entered the cell and stood in the shaft of sunlight.
The sunlight made her garments appear even more resplendent.
Chu Yi looked up at Xu Siyu, but her mind's eye saw the days when they shared a dormitory, commuting to and from work together.
As they were both intern doctors at the hospital, their bond had been exceptionally close—so close they could swap clothes and borrow money from each other without a second thought.
After transmigrating to this era, they had relied on each other to survive. Later, they chose different paths. Chu Yi continued practicing medicine in this ancient time, while Xu Siyu, after meeting a man, swiftly fell in love. They married not long after, and her life seemed quite comfortable.
Now, meeting again, they were worlds apart—one in heaven, the other in hell. Yet, seeing Xu Siyu one last time before death made dying feel less unbearable. Many people had recently asked if she regretted her choices. She thought she did not—not refusing that man's marriage proposal, nor healing and saving lives. Though if she were given another chance, she wouldn't save just anyone.
As the sound of footsteps faded into the distance, Xu Siyu plopped down beside her, heedless of the filth in the cell soiling her magnificent robes.
"I'm sorry. I can't save you," Xu Siyu's voice was soft, tinged with an indescribable sorrow.
Her hands trembled as she reached for Chu Yi's, tears falling as she saw the wounds covering them.
Chu Yi tried to return the grasp, but with her tendons severed, she lacked even the strength for a feeble hold.
Xu Siyu's tears fell drop by drop onto Chu Yi's hand.
"Don't cry. You won't look pretty if you cry," Chu Yi's voice was faint, weak, as if it might break at any moment.
Xu Siyu sobbed uncontrollably, gasping for breath. She had always been prone to tears, and whenever she cried, Chu Yi would comfort her just like this. The thought of never hearing these words from Chu Yi again made her grief unbearable.
She turned and embraced Chu Yi, weeping bitterly, her voice filled with anguish.
Chu Yi touched her face, leaned against her shoulder, and whispered, "When I'm gone, you must be more careful. Seize power if you can; if not, secure wealth. Raise your children well. There are many books at my place—textbooks I've transcribed over the years. Have them read them, whether there's a need or not."
"Don't be sad. Remember how we used to wonder if we could transmigrate back after dying? Now I'll go test it out first. If I really make it back, I'll look after your parents for you. Don't grieve."
Xu Siyu shook her head vehemently. "Chu Yi, what will I do? You're leaving me alone in this world. What will I do?"
Tears also streamed down Chu Yi's face. If possible, she too wished to stay with Xu Siyu, to be together always. But it was too difficult.
She possessed medical skills considered exceptional in this era, yet she lacked the power to protect herself.
This time, she had been framed. She was foolish, she was naive. Her only regret now was agreeing to that man's marriage proposal.
Now he was at the frontier, and she was in a dungeon, unable to see him one last time. Chu Yi felt a pang of regret.
How could she not? He was the only man she had ever felt anything for, both before and after transmigrating. She knew they were ill-suited, that the trivialities of life would erode their love, which was why she had refused him so firmly back then.
A year had passed since. Who could have known that their last parting in anger would be their final meeting?
Had she known, she would have been gentler, would have spoken a few more kind words to him.
Chu Yi felt her eyelids growing heavier. Her life flashed before her eyes like slides.
Her tears not yet dry, she managed a smile. "Siyu, do you remember our first meeting? We were lugging huge luggage, meeting for the first time at the hospital entrance. You were holding a cup of soy milk, walking so fast it spilled all over you."
Chu Yi took a deep breath. The memory of her first encounter with that man surfaced. She was taking a patient's pulse at the clinic when he galloped past on horseback.
His silver-white armor gleamed under the sun. Perhaps noticing her gaze, he turned back and looked directly at her—unexpectedly young, with strikingly handsome features and detached eyes.
"Help me give him a message. Tell him that Chu Yi hopes for his remaining years to be filled with health, peace, and happiness."
Before her eyes appeared the image of that young man standing under a pear blossom tree, dressed in black. Amid the myriad white blossoms, only the peach blossom branch in his hand was red.
Another scene floated into her mind: in an eighty-square-meter apartment, her parents sat snuggled together on the sofa watching TV, while she played with her phone nearby.
It was so good, so nostalgic. A pity she would never see it again.
[Ding~ Detected critically injured transmigrator Chu Yi. Do you agree to join the Transmigrator Chat Group? Yes/No.]
A floating screen appeared before Chu Yi's eyes, accompanied by a faint electronic tone. Chu Yi smiled.
With her last shred of consciousness, she selected 'Yes,' then slowly closed her eyes. Xu Siyu held her body, weeping inconsolably.
She didn't even notice when Lin Xi arrived.
"Give her to me. I can save her," Lin Xi stated calmly. Xu Siyu whirled around.
Lin Xi was still wearing clothes from a previous world, starkly different from the attire of this one.
Xu Siyu watched Lin Xi warily, carefully laying Chu Yi down and positioning herself protectively in front of her.
"Who are you?" As she spoke, she glanced at the cell door behind Lin Xi. It showed no signs of having been moved.
"Really won't let me save her? If we wait any longer, she will die."
Xu Siyu pressed her lips together, then finally stepped aside. Lin Xi took out a Nine Revolutions Soul-Returning Pill, a medicinal pellet given to her by Chu Qianmo.
There weren't many; he didn't have many to begin with. This was Lin Xi's first time using one.
Xu Siyu watched silently from the side. As a doctor, even though she had not been in the medical profession for long after her transmigration, she hadn't forgotten the basics.
She had already checked earlier—Chu Yi had even lost her faint breath.
She was afraid that Lin Xi, who had appeared so suddenly, might harm Chu Yi. She even considered that this might be a plot by their enemies to frame her.
But she had no other options now. She wanted Chu Yi to live. Having transmigrated to this unfamiliar world, they were each other's closest family here.
If Chu Yi died, she would truly be all alone in this world.
The effect of the Nine Revolutions Soul-Returning Pill was evident. In just this short while, Chu Yi's complexion instantly became somewhat rosier.
Leaning against the wall, Xu Siyu covered her chest. This time, she wept for joy.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you," she choked out her gratitude to Lin Xi.
Lin Xi looked at her. Her phone had been vibrating continuously. She took it out; the screen showed that the group chat system had temporarily unlocked a face-to-face function to invite someone into the group.
Lin Xi tapped on it for her. The ring on Xu Siyu's finger grew hot. She instinctively reached to touch it, and an invitation message popped up before her eyes.
At that moment, she finally saw the phone in Lin Xi's hand. In that instant, she was stunned, frozen.
"Agree to join the group," Lin Xi's voice snapped her out of it.
Xu Siyu fumbled to tap "agree." Then, a system welcome message appeared before her.
Footsteps sounded from outside. Xu Siyu knew the jailers outside were growing impatient and were coming in to fetch her.
Lin Xi also heard the footsteps. She had come to this world on an emergency basis and knew nothing about it. She nodded to Xu Siyu.
"I'll take her away first. Contact me in the group for anything." She lit a talisman, then, after a thought, tossed another talisman paper onto the ground.
That talisman paper fell and transformed into the likeness of Chu Yi, huddled in the corner.
This was a puppet talisman given to her by Bai Qingting from the immortal cultivation world. She had never used it before, and today was the perfect opportunity.
She tore the talisman, took Chu Yi's hand, and instantly vanished from the cell.
Xu Siyu stood in the cell for a while longer. Her eyes were still red, but the worry had mostly faded from her face.
The jailer arrived, unlocked the door for her, and she walked out calmly. After a few steps, she turned back to look at the puppet in the corner.
Her ring pulsed with heat intermittently. She wanted to check it but knew now wasn't the right time. She had so many, many questions. Clutching the ring, she strode out of the prison. Outside, her husband stood waiting at the entrance.
He was still wearing his burgundy official robes. Seeing him, Xu Siyu's emotions—grievance, fear, joy—burst forth, and tears fell like scattered pearls.
Her husband, the current Vice Minister of Rites and also Xiao Tianlang of the Duke Xiao's estate, stepped forward, took her hand, and led her towards the carriage.
Once inside the slowly moving carriage, Xiao Tianlang said, "The Grand Princess has been making a great fuss. The Emperor dotes on her and has already issued an edict to execute Chu Yi. Civil and military officials at court have pleaded for mercy one after another, but it's useless. The Emperor is acting autocratically."
"Several who pleaded most vehemently have already been imprisoned." It had been three years since their transmigration, and Chu Yi had been healing and saving people all along. The reason Xu Siyu could visit her in prison today was also due to an order from someone she had saved in the past.
Through tear-blurred eyes, Xu Siyu looked at her beloved. Xiao Tianlang wiped her tears and said, "As I was leaving court, Wang Dafa from the Emperor's side sought me out. He said Chu Yi's life could be spared if she is willing to enter the imperial harem."
"In his dreams! If my Chu Yi were willing, she would have agreed long ago. Emperor Lin himself once told Grand Princess Zhaoyang, 'Better to be a poor man's wife than a rich man's concubine.' How many years has it been since Emperor Lin passed away? Has the current Emperor already forgotten the teachings he received back then?"
"And Grand Princess Zhaoyang, has she forgotten who pulled her back from death's door? How can she treat Chu Yi so despicably? Can she even sleep at night?"
