However, Ah Wu hadn’t expected that after Nie San left, it would start to rain, and the cave would leak, leaving everything damp and soggy.
Her Taoist robe had long been discarded, and Nie San had somehow found her a simple white blouse with delicate embroidery and a green silk skirt.
Though plain and elegant, it was too thin for such a dreary day.
She shivered uncontrollably, her teeth chattering, and her feet were so numb she could barely feel them.
The cave was dark and bone-chillingly cold.
She clutched her bundle tightly, but it was filled with cold, hard gold ingots.
For the first time, she felt that gold ingots were cold and unfeeling, utterly useless.
They couldn’t warm her, nor could they fill her stomach.
She looked around with a sense of grievance.
Rainwater trickled down the moss-covered stone walls, and half-withered vines intertwined densely, seemingly covered with spiderwebs or other insects.
The jagged rocks in the corner looked particularly menacing in the night.
She stared wide-eyed, the more she looked, the more they seemed like man-eating monsters, ready to leap out at any moment and devour her with their gaping maws.
Just then, a mountain breeze blew through, stirring the vines and making faint sounds, as if someone was crying.
Ah Wu’s scalp prickled.
She sat rigidly, clutching her bundle, her eyes darting around in alarm.
Suddenly, something darted out of the darkness.
Ah Wu let out a shriek and jumped to her feet.
When her heart finally settled, she realized it was just a mouse.
A mouse, again!
The mice in the mountains were truly bullying her!
Ah Wu slumped to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.
She wanted to leave this place, she had had enough.
Even if she were to die, she would rather die among people, not in this eerie, desolate place.
She wiped her tears and stumbled out of the cave, looking around in confusion.
The autumn rain had lightened to a drizzle.
Ah Wu, carrying her bundle, looked around with tearful eyes, her gaze finally settling on a grove of pine trees not far away.
There stood an ancient pine tree, its base softened by the rain and fallen leaves.
She hurried over, searching for a sharp stone to dig with.
She had always been known for her extraordinary beauty, which was both a blessing and a curse.
Now, with all this silver, even if she managed to escape the mountain, she would surely attract unwanted attention.
Besides, the bundle was heavy, and she was already weak.
The steep, slippery mountain paths offered no advantage; the gold was nothing but a burden.
She had no choice but to abandon the gold for now, burying it here in hopes of retrieving it later when the noblemen had left.
It was all up to fate.
But digging the hole was no easy task.
The soil was mixed with leaves, gravel, and weeds, some of which had sharp thorns.
The stone she had hastily picked up was awkward to use, so she resorted to using her hands.
Her hands, usually well-cared for, had never done such labor before.
Soon, her fingers were sore and nearly bleeding.
The mountain night was cold, and the icy rain-laden wind whipped against her face, stinging painfully.
Ah Wu felt more and more aggrieved, tears streaming down her face.
But she knew she couldn’t rely on anyone else.
She stifled her sobs and carefully hid her gold.
Men in this world were unreliable.
Lu Yunjian was no good man, Nie San was incompetent, and the Crown Prince was even worse.
She could only rely on herself, hiding the gold and planning for the future.
After finally burying the gold, she covered it with scattered rocks and dead leaves.
Then, using the sharp end of a stone, she made a mark on the pine tree, hoping to return one day to retrieve her treasure.
This was her secret hoard.
Having done this, she tightened her skirt with the sash, wiped her tears, and set off down the mountain.
With guards stationed nearby, she had no choice but to pretend to be a lost commoner from the town, hoping to slip by unnoticed.
If she couldn’t, she might have to accept her fate.
Fortunately, she was young and beautiful.
She might have to sacrifice her virtue, but at least she would survive.
She wasn’t overly concerned about chastity.
In her village, men would go out to sea for months, even years, and the women would fend for themselves.
Some, losing hope, would find new partners.
When the men returned, they would part ways with their new lovers.
Her mother, before passing, had told her to survive at all costs, even if it meant not carrying the child of a rapist, to protect her body.
So, if she had to use her body to save her life, she was willing.
With this resolve, she felt less afraid, carefully making her way down the mountain.
But the path was steep and muddy, each step requiring careful consideration, her eyes and limbs barely keeping up.
Suddenly, her foot slipped, and she felt herself tumbling down.
She was terrified, her mind blank, her eyes tightly shut.
But there was no sharp pain.
Instead, she fell into water with a splash, her body embraced by the warm, soft current.
She knew how to swim; even the weakest women from the coast could swim.
Despite her panic, her body instinctively floated in the water.
She looked around in a daze, realizing she had fallen into an open-air hot spring.
Under the moonlight, spring water bubbled from a nearby source.
Around the pool were various items: an incense burner, golden vases, and clothing.
From the furnishings, it was clear that the person who bathed here was of no ordinary status, and likely… a man?
As she pondered this, she felt a gaze upon her.
Her heart quickened, and she instinctively looked toward the source of the gaze.
It came from a figure shrouded in the mist, a sharp, scrutinizing gaze that seemed to look down upon her like a god.
Ah Wu clutched her clothes, frozen, staring helplessly in the direction of the gaze.
She was exhausted, her body stiff and cold.
Though she stood in the comforting warmth of the hot spring, she felt no warmth.
She didn’t know where she was, who she had encountered, or what awaited her.
With this thought, she stumbled, barely able to stand, her frail body swaying unsteadily.
Her mother was gone, buried by her own hands.
Her father and brother had boarded a ship to distant lands, never to return.
At such a young age, she had been passed from one man to another.
What was the point?
When her beauty faded, would she even have a thin wooden board to call her own?
What was the point of it all?
Tears slowly welled up in her eyes, and she felt a desire to die.
Just then, the man stepped forward.
With a splash of water, the mist thinned, and Ah Wu saw the man’s muscular upper body.
His chest was broad and chiseled, as if carved by a blade.
To Ah Wu, this was an overwhelming sense of oppression.
A man, yet another man, strong and powerful, capable of holding her down and taking her body as he pleased.
Ah Wu’s legs felt weak.
She clutched the scant fabric that barely covered her, trembling like a leaf in the wind.
She wanted to flee, but knew she couldn’t escape.
Then the man finally spoke,
“Where did you come from?”
His voice was deep and mellow, even pleasant.
Ah Wu felt a strange sense of familiarity, but couldn’t place where she had heard it before.
She bit her trembling lip, unable to speak, only staring at him with pleading eyes.
The man asked again,
“Are you cold?”
At the word “cold,” Ah Wu’s tears flowed more freely.
She shivered and nodded timidly.
The man bathing in the hot spring was none other than Emperor Jingxi.
He had come to Nanqiongzi to offer prayers and, in the evening, had decided to bathe in the mountain hot spring, seeking a moment of peace without the company of his concubines.
He hadn’t expected a young woman to fall from the sky into his hot spring.
As the water splashed, his personal guards, hidden in the shadows, were ready to act at his command.
But as he looked at the woman before him, with her misty, frightened eyes, she seemed so helpless and pitiful.
She reminded him of a fledgling fallen from its nest, fragile and innocent, thrust into an unfamiliar world.
Having ruled for many years, Emperor Jingxi had a heart of steel.
Yet, seeing this timid little fledgling, he felt a rare sense of protectiveness and compassion.
He raised his hand, making a subtle gesture.
The guards hesitated for a moment, then withdrew along with his attendants.
The drizzling rain had stopped, and the mist in the hot spring spread, with the copper lamp on the carved wooden table casting a soft glow.
Fireflies flitted in the dim light of the forest.
Everything was serene, moist, and hazy.
Ah Wu looked at the man before her in a daze.
He stood naked in the hot spring, yet exuded an innate nobility, the kind that only came from being born into a great family, the calm and composure of someone long accustomed to power.
In her panic, she wondered, who was this man?
Then, the man reached out to her and commanded in a low voice,
“Come here.”
Ah Wu clutched her clothes, cautiously looking at him.
His shoulders were broad, his waist firm, his arms well-defined, and his fingers elegant, with
a shimmering object on one of them.
Ah Wu recognized it as a ring.
Having been with Lu Yunjian and the Crown Prince, she had seen some fine things and sensed that this ring was made of high-quality jade, with exquisite craftsmanship.
A man who wore a ring even while bathing must be of considerable status, especially here in the emperor’s domain.
A glimmer of hope rose in Ah Wu’s heart.
In her desperate fall into the water, she had found a floating log.
Should she cling to it?
Then, she felt an intense gaze, scrutinizing her.
Her lashes fluttered, and her eyes met his.
They were a pale tea color, calm and rational, looking down at her with no emotion.
Ah Wu’s heart raced, and she stumbled, nearly falling into the water.
She vaguely sensed that she couldn’t control this man.
He wasn’t the young Crown Prince, nor was he the easily manipulated Nie San.
The man’s thin lips parted again,
“Come here.”
Just two words, but they were sharp and commanding, with an authority that brooked no refusal.
Ah Wu dared not disobey.
Trembling, she took a step forward, toward the man.
The closer she got, the more frightened she became.
This man had an air of superiority, so much so that as she approached, her body shook uncontrollably.
Suddenly, her foot slipped, and she tumbled forward.
Emperor Jingxi stepped forward swiftly, his long arm reaching out to catch Ah Wu.
She was light, barely requiring any effort.
Emperor Jingxi looked down at the delicate figure in his arms.
In the misty rain and swirling steam, her pale body resembled fine white porcelain from Dehua’s dragon kiln, smooth and lustrous.
The wet blouse clung to her like a sheer veil, and the soaked green silk skirt floated in the hot spring like scattered orchids.
It was all like a dream, and Emperor Jingxi felt as if he had entered the mythical realm of Mount Wu’s mists and rain.
His strong fingers gently lifted her chin, and he gazed into her watery eyes.
Her tears sparkled, innocent and helpless.
He looked into her eyes and said in a deep voice,
“Did you fall from the moon, or rise from the Milky Way?”