Chapter 2: Rebirth
1716 Words
(Four o'clock in the afternoon).
The other maid, Cai Sang, instead of returning to the Situ Residence, discussed with Cai Qin and they went their separate ways.
Cai Qin went back to the Situ Residence to deliver the message, while Cai Sang went to the Shen family, Situ Yingxiu's maternal family, to seek help.
The old master of the Shen family was the recently retired Grand Chancellor of the Dongyuan Kingdom. The Shen family was a scholarly family, and their former students and old friends were scattered throughout the court of the Dongyuan Kingdom.
However, the relationship between the Shen family and the Situ family was not very good. When Cai Sang knocked on the door, the doorman simply ignored her.
She waited at the gate of the Shen family for a long time before she saw a green sandalwood carriage stop in front of her.
A slender and delicate woman held a silk fan in front of her face, lifted the carriage curtain, glanced at her, and asked, "Cai Sang, why are you here instead of staying by Xiuxiu's side?"
"Second Miss Shen! It's so good to meet you! " Cai Sang was almost crying with anxiety. "Please save our young lady quickly!"
This woman was Shen Yule, the legitimate second daughter of the eldest branch of the Shen family, and also Situ Yingxiu's close.
"What happened?" Shen Yule put down her silk fan and asked in a serious tone.
Cai Sang quickly told her what had happened that day.
"The Flying Fish Guards?!" Shen Yule's heart sank. "Don't worry. I'll go back and find my father and grandfather right away!"
In the Cong'an Hall of the outer courtyard of the Shen family, the retired Grand Chancellor Shen Youxing and the newly appointed Grand Chancellor Xie Dongli were enjoying wine and having a good time.
"Grandfather! Grandfather! Yingxiu has been taken away by the Flying Fish Guards! Please find someone to save her quickly!" Ignoring the obstruction of the servant at the door, Shen Yule forcefully barged into the Cong'an Hall.
Shen Youxing put down his wine cup and said unhappily, "Yule, where have you learned your ladylike manners? This is the outer hall, and there are honored guests here. You just rushed in so recklessly. Do you know you've made a mistake?"
Shen Yule gasped for breath and said, "Grandfather can punish me, but there is a matter of urgency. As the saying goes, in urgent situations, one can act flexibly. Cousin Yingxiu has been taken away by the Flying Fish Guards. This matter is extraordinary. Grandfather, you must..."
"The Flying Fish Guards?" Xie Dongli, who was sitting beside Shen Youxing, frowned. "The Flying Fish Guards are directly subordinate to the Emperor and monitor all officials. Who is this Miss Yingxiu?"
There was no news of any woman holding an official position in the Dongyuan Kingdom.
Shen Youxing stroked his beard and said reluctantly, "I have already retired. I can't interfere in the affairs of the court." As he spoke, he looked at the newly appointed Grand Chancellor Xie Dongli beside him.
Xie Dongli stood up. "I'll go and take a look. As far as I know, His Majesty the Emperor has been seriously ill in bed recently and hasn't seen anyone. Where did the Flying Fish Guards get their imperial decree from?"
...
(Six o'clock in the afternoon).
Bang!
The door of the single-cell prison on the highest floor of the White Pagoda Prison was suddenly pushed open and then closed.
Several burly and foul-smelling men burst in with sinister smiles.
"Haha, there really is a little girl here! Look at how fragrant she is. Later, brothers, we have to take it easy. If we use too much force and kill her at once, it won't be fun. We three have been locked up here for a year and haven't tasted a woman's touch. I've been thinking about it day and night!" The leading man laughed loudly as he looked at Situ Yingxiu, who was sitting with her knees hugged in the corner.
Situ Yingxiu slowly raised her head and looked at the three men in front of her. Her heart sank.
It was over. She couldn't escape...
Situ Yingxiu stood up, leaning against the wall, and said in a deep voice, "How did you get in? This is the White Pagoda Prison. Aren't you afraid that if I call out, the prison guards will come?"
"Ah -? Hahaha!" The three men were taken aback and laughed uproariously.
"Did you hear that, bros? She's really a newbie! - Prison guards? Doesn't she know that we three can get in because we are... 'the prison guards'?!"
While they were laughing uncontrollably, Situ Yingxiu suddenly picked up the small stool beside her, threw it forward, then ran to the nearest ladder and quickly climbed up.
When she was just locked up in the afternoon, she had seen this ladder and knew that there was a small door above it, but she didn't know where it led.
"Eh? She climbed up?" One man stopped laughing and looked at Situ Yingxiu's back as she climbed up, as if looking at a fool.
"Hehe, she climbed up? Great. The scenery up there is even better. The three of us can have a clearer view..."
Situ Yingxiu climbed to the top of the ladder and pushed with her hand. The small door above her head opened with a sound.
A ray of sunset glow shone in.
Situ Yingxiu climbed up and took a look. Her heart immediately sank to the bottom.
It turned out that this was the platform at the very top of the White Pagoda Prison.
Standing on the platform, she could even see the setting sun opposite, which seemed to be at the same height as her.
The three men climbed up from the ladder entrance with strange laughs.
"Eh? This place is nice, spacious and bright. It will definitely be very comfortable later..." The leading man walked towards Situ Yingxiu.
Situ Yingxiu couldn't hold it in anymore and trembled as she said, "How dare you! My maternal grandfather is Grand Chancellor Shen Youxing! My fiancé is General Murong Changqing! If you dare to touch me, they will definitely make you die a horrible death!"
"Die a horrible death? - Miss, I think you're mistaken. We've all been sentenced to the most severe punishments." The leading man picked his ear and pointed at the man on his left behind him disdainfully. "He has been sentenced to be cut in half at the waist." Then he pointed at the man on his right behind him. "He has been sentenced to be torn apart by five horses. And I have been sentenced to be sliced to death. - Tell me, what other way of dying is more miserable than the punishments we've been sentenced to? And someone has promised us that as long as we have our way with you, we can die comfortably and won't have to suffer these cruel tortures anymore!"
Situ Yingxiu knew that those who had been sentenced to such severe punishments must be extremely vicious and had committed very serious crimes.
To actually use these villains to deal with her, the person behind it must hate her to the core and only want to t*****e her in the most cruel way. Not only did they want her to die, but they also wanted to wipe out her reputation both before and after her death. Even if her grievances were later redressed, her family would still lose face...
In an instant, Situ Yingxiu was determined to die.
However, the leading man seemed to see through her thoughts and said slowly, "Want to die? Even if you're dead, we won't let you go. We'll have our way with your corpse and then hang your n***d corpse upside down at the highest point of the White Pagoda Prison so that everyone in the capital city can see it, hahaha..."
Situ Yingxiu sneered. "Want my corpse? Then let's see if you have the ability!" As she spoke, she put one hand on the half-person-high low wall behind her, leaped over it, and jumped down.
The White Pagoda Prison was hundreds of feet high, and white clouds were passing through the highest part.
Situ Yingxiu's red clothes were like fire. She jumped down from the top of the White Pagoda like a phoenix.
...
"Yingxiu!"
"Yingxiu!"
"Elder Sister!"
Xie Dongli, Shen Yule, Murong Changqing, and Situ Anxiang rushed over from three directions and happened to see Situ Yingxiu's red figure as she jumped!
They rushed over, but it was still a step too late.
She fell in front of them, like a blood-red mandala blooming vigorously on the other side. Her long dress in the color of rosy clouds slowly covered her pale and blood-stained little face.
Situ Anxiang pounced on her like crazy, knelt in front of her, and wailed loudly.
Shen Yule was a step slower. She rushed over and pushed Situ Anxiang aside, then fell to the ground and cried bitterly.
...
However, Situ Yingxiu only felt her body lighten, and then she fell into the water. The water above her head was sparkling, as if there were lights flashing.
She opened her eyes and saw a handsome little boy holding her up. He looked at her reluctantly, then pushed her up with all his might!
Situ Yingxiu was greatly shocked and stared blankly at that familiar face, the face that had never left her dreams for ten years!
That was her younger brother, her own younger brother, Xiao Lei, Situ Chenlei!
But didn't her younger brother drown in the water when their family moved from Jiangnan to the capital city ten years ago? And he gave her the hope of survival while he himself sank into the river...
Why did he appear again?
Situ Yingxiu's mind was in a daze, not knowing what time or day it was. Without thinking too much, she instinctively grabbed her younger brother's hand with her backhand and refused to let go. At the same time, she held her breath and kept treading water with her feet, bringing her younger brother to the surface together.
Younger brother, elder sister can swim now. Elder sister is here to save you!
- Writer
