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墨書 Inktalez
On the morning of Winter Day, the sun peeked out like someone tugging at its beard, half of its head exposed, while the clouds changed with it, donning a golden hue.
The morning light shone on the hillside, illuminating a woman lying there, as beautiful as peach and plum blossoms.
Perhaps the sun was too warm; she woke up and opened her eyes to look around.
"Where is this?" She rubbed her slightly aching head, which seemed to have a large bump—big and swollen.
She couldn't remember how she had hit her head, only that she remembered how she had died.
At the Battle of Chengyang, she had suffered a crushing defeat and intended to return to Jiancheng to regroup and reorganize her troops for another battle against the Wei Army and Chu Army. But as she reached Horse Riding Slope, she was suddenly ambushed.
The attackers wore Yan Kingdom attire, and at first glance, she thought they were reinforcements sent by Pang Wan. Caught off guard, it was too late when she realized they were shooting arrows at her.
These people spoke the language of the Yan Kingdom; they could not possibly be disguised soldiers from another country.
She vaguely guessed that these might be Uncle Wang's men. Uncle Wang had always harbored ambitions to usurp her position as crown prince and inherit the throne of Yan. Her father had been trying to keep him in check for the past two years, and under her father's intimidation, he dared not act recklessly. If these people were sent by him, it could only mean one thing: her father had already passed away.
The thought pierced her heart with pain, and in that moment of distraction, she was struck by an arrow. She swung her sword to sever the arrow shaft and gritted her teeth, determined to break through. All she could think about was returning to Jiancheng to meet Pang Wan and rally the Yan Soldiers for revenge.
But how could one person compare to thousands of soldiers?
She was injured and ultimately failed to break through. Her beloved Fire Dragon Steed was shot dead, and she was struck by three arrows.
Chased up the mountain, with a sheer cliff ahead and thousands of Yan Soldiers behind her, she found herself with no way out.
Her character had always been one of defiance; she would rather jump off a cliff than be captured and humiliated. Even in death, her body could not be seen by others; her secrets as a woman must never be revealed.
With a resolute heart, she jumped off the cliff. The wind rushed past her ears, causing them to ache painfully. She landed hard against a sharp rock that shattered her back. The jagged stone pierced through her back straight into her heart.
She knew she would not survive; while a broken bottle could be glued back together, a shattered person could never be pieced together again.
With just a breath left, she lay quietly waiting for death. She prayed for Heavenly Will to grant her another chance at life. There were still many things she needed to do; there were many unfulfilled wishes remaining.
But Heavenly Will did not hear her plea; instead, a pack of green-eyed wolves caught the scent of blood and came rushing in. They surrounded her, countless pairs of green, glistening eyes staring at her menacingly.
She sighed. Although she did not want her corpse to be found, she also did not wish to die this way, devoured by wolves. She struggled to stand up, wanting to swing her sword at these wolves. But she could not get up, and it was clear she would never stand again in this lifetime.
The wolves bit off her arm, severed her leg, and their long claws tore open her chest. She could hear the sound of chewing and feel her body wracked with intense pain. She endured unprecedented suffering until she could bear it no longer and took her last breath.
If her head had not been eaten, if her eyes had not been gouged out, she thought, in that moment she would surely have died with her eyes wide open.
Thinking about the horrific fate she had encountered back then made her feel a lingering pain throughout her body. She felt as if some part of her still bore the bite marks of the wolves, but no matter how much she touched her arms, legs, and belly, she could not find any traces of teeth.
Her entire body was intact; there were no broken legs or feet, and both of her eyes were still there. Not only that, but what she was wearing was not the battle armor from that time but a complete Female Attire, an outfit she had once dreamed of wearing.
She felt quite strange inside. Clearly, she was at war with Wei Kingdom and Chu State; how could she be lying here dressed in Female Attire?
She tried hard to think but could not make sense of it. She decided to stand up and leave this place first.
Climbing up the dirt slope, she suddenly noticed many bloodstains on the ground. Lying in a pool of blood was a gigantic python, its seven-inch mark severed; it had been dead for quite some time. She had never seen such a large snake before; it was astonishingly huge, as thick as a thousand-year-old tree trunk, with a head that seemed as big as a cart wheel.
How could such a colossal creature lie in a pool of blood? What kind of hero could have killed it?
With confusion in her heart, she looked around but found no sign of the snake's slayer. No matter how she looked at it, this snake did not seem to have died from an accident.
What exactly happened here? Was it because of the war among the Three Kingdoms that a brave warrior killed the Giant Python?
Leaving the Giant Python behind and moving forward only deepened her doubts. This place was unfamiliar to her; every aspect of this strange environment felt odd.
After walking for two days in the Mountain Valley, she finally left this area and found herself outside, even more astonished to discover that she was within the borders of Yan State.
Wasn't she supposed to be fighting on the border of Chu State? Yaya, had she encountered a ghost or had a ghost encountered her?
Her sense of direction had always been poor; after wandering around for a while without finding a way out, she even lost track of whether she should head toward the battlefield or return home.
She thought for a moment; the military situation was urgent, and every inch of Yan territory was precious. There could be no allowance for foreign invasion. She needed to find the Yan army first before making any further plans.
On the way, she asked several people where the Crown Prince's army was located. They looked at her with strange expressions, which made her feel uncomfortable.
She coldly asked, "Do you truly not know where the Crown Prince's army is?"
One person scoffed, "The Crown Prince is dead; where would the army come from?"
She was even more astonished. He was clearly still alive; how could they say he was dead? Could it be that after her fall in Mountain Valley, the army had searched everywhere and spread such news?
She continued to press for the location of the Yan army. The man, annoyed by her questioning, pointed down the road and said, "Follow this road for three miles, and you'll reach Jian City. There are troops stationed to the west of the city."
She naturally knew about Jian City; it was the southern gate of Yan, and most enemy invasions came through there. When she had ventured deep into Chu territory, she had also passed through Jian City. Once there, she hoped to find the garrison she had left behind.
After bidding farewell to that man, she continued on her way alone. After walking for a while, she felt hungry. Just ahead was a small town that, although not large, had a bustling market. There were vendors selling fruit and fried cakes, others selling buns and steamed bread, and several inns with delicious aromas wafting from their kitchens that made her even hungrier.
She saw a stall selling baked cakes by the roadside but realized she didn't have a single coin on her. She wanted to ask for one but couldn't bring herself to do it; instead, she could only drool at the stall.
The vendor selling baked cakes noticed her standing there for a long time without buying anything. Seeing her dusty clothes made it clear that she had no money.
He waved his hand and shouted, "What kind of beggar are you? Go beg somewhere else."
She was taken aback; someone who had always been in high positions had never been scolded like this before. Even when she was a hostage in Chu, people treated her politely; they would bow down when they saw her pass by and wouldn't dare raise their heads.
Angered, she shot him a glare that radiated coldness, instantly exuding an imposing aura.
The vendor shrank back in fear, puzzled by how a girl could have such a terrifying gaze. He forced himself to remain calm and shouted, "Why don't you hurry up and leave?" His tone was noticeably weaker than before.
"Hey—" she shouted loudly, startling him so much that he almost wet his pants.
With her head held high and an air of someone used to being revered by thousands, she surveyed her surroundings before declaring loudly, "I am Crown Prince Yan! You all should kneel upon seeing me!"
A moment of silence fell over the crowd, and then those who had gathered to watch quickly hushed and dispersed.
The vendor, whose legs had been trembling, immediately straightened up and continued calling out, "Baked cakes—" to attract customers. Occasionally, she cast disdainful glances, probably thinking she was some kind of lunatic.
She was incredibly astonished; her status as the Crown Prince was a prestigious title, highly revered among the people. How could she be treated this way?
Lowering her head, she suddenly noticed the Female Attire she was wearing and understood at once that these people must have seen she was a woman, which prompted their hushing. After all, how could a woman possibly be a Crown Prince?
In fact, until she turned ten, she had no idea she was a girl. From the moment she was born, she was Crown Prince Yan, and naturally, a Crown Prince should be a man. Every time she wore men's clothing and learned men's etiquette, she naturally assumed she was a man.
In Yan Palace, an old Eunuch took care of her daily needs. He served her meals and bathed her with utmost caution and trepidation, never showing any sign of discomfort even when he saw her naked body.
This old Eunuch who cared for her was named Neren. She never understood why her parents chose that name; there were so many better options than Neren. However, he was thin and wiry, which suited the name quite well. She often fantasized about feeding him enough to change his name to "Fat Man." When she shared this thought with him, his face turned so green that it seemed he disapproved.
Her Mother always told her not to let anyone see her body and not to play with the palace maids. She couldn't understand what was wrong with playing with the maids. She liked them very much and enjoyed watching them gather to play. Whenever new maids entered the palace, she would sneak peeks at them, enviously admiring their braided hair. Although she didn't know why she felt envious, it certainly looked better than her own short hair.
She loved swords, enjoyed sword dancing, liked running around wildly, climbing trees, and especially loved jumping in front of those maids to scare them into shrieking in panic.
The games the maids played were simple: catching butterflies, flying kites, kicking shuttlecocks, and sometimes each holding a blade of grass to duel. After finishing her studies or practicing swordplay, she wanted to join in such games. However, Mother wouldn't allow it; she could only secretly watch them having fun from the sidelines.
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