The Empress Wants It All: The Empire and Me - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Cold eyes, like knives, scraped across her face.

These eyes were so cold that one dared not look at them directly. Lin Yanran gently placed the sachet beside her, stepped back a few paces, and then whispered, “I’ve put the sachet here. Put it on quickly.”

After speaking, she walked quickly to the corner of the wall and plucked some morning glories.

These “King of Hell’s Umbrellas” (mushrooms) and morning glories had been secretly planted by Youqin Mingyue. The former is a red mushroom; as the name suggests, eating it sends you to meet the King of Hell. The latter is a green vine with purple trumpet flowers that possesses severe hallucinogenic effects; consuming too much is equally fatal.

In the original novel, Youqin Mingyue’s unique natural fragrance was exposed on this very day, drawing the greed of Zhang Zhen and the other two. Forced to drink and entertain them, she took the opportunity to drug the wine, poisoning all three into a state of dementia. Unexpectedly, the original owner’s special constitution allowed her to escape this fate. Youqin Mingyue attempted an assassination but was countered, and from then on, she was imprisoned in this small farmhouse, living a life beyond description until the original owner squandered the family fortune and sold her to a brothel…

As a giant in the field of pesticide science, Lin Yanran knew these herbs like the back of her hand.

She returned to the main hall and beckoned the three to continue their revelry. Soon, the morning glories took effect. Zhang Zhen, Li Qing, and Zhu Shiyu slumped into their chairs one after another, their faces contorted, their gazes blurred. Then came the screams. They stared in terror at the empty air, began slapping their own faces frantically, and eventually knelt on the ground in tears, begging for mercy in a wretched state.

Lin Yanran unhurriedly found rags to gag them.

The dosage this time wasn’t enough to kill, but it was enough to leave them with lifelong nightmares and erase all memory of Youqin Mingyue’s extraordinary fragrance.

About fifteen minutes later, the screaming stopped, and the three fainted from exhaustion.

Lin Yanran poured the remaining wine all over them to fake the appearance of a drunken stupor, then dragged them one by one to the front gate.

Youqin Mingyue stood in the corner, watching this scene coldly. Her ink-colored eyes were as deep as water, showing not a single ripple.

Lin Yanran found a neighbor and entrusted them to take the three back to their homes.

They wouldn’t wake up for at least three days and nights. Even when they did, they would be dizzy and weak, and whenever they tried to remember, they would be plagued by nightmares. They would get what they deserved!

Having finished this, she went to the nearby house of Liu Zhenzhen. Liu Zhenzhen was also an Omega (Kunze), upright and kind, who made a living as a physician, traveling to nearby towns to save lives.

“Is Physician Liu home?”

After a moment, the heavy wooden door opened, and a woman in a blue dress with light makeup peeked out. She had an oval face and a dignified, elegant look, with a small cinnabar mole at the right corner of her mouth. Upon seeing Lin Yanran, her face instantly darkened, and she moved to shut the door.

Lin Yanran quickly reached out to block the door panel. “Physician Liu, my wife is injured. Could you please come and take a look?”

Liu Zhenzhen glared at her fiercely. “You beat her again, didn’t you?”

Lin Yanran looked embarrassed. The original owner’s reputation for domestic violence had spread across the entire region; she was the kind of boogeyman used to stop children from crying. Thus, medical practitioners had zero goodwill toward her.

Liu Zhenzhen loathed her especially.

But Youqin Mingyue had coughed up blood; she had to be treated immediately.

“Physician Liu, your skills are brilliant. My wife is severely injured and needs diagnosis. Please lend a helping hand. Lin will be deeply grateful!”

She bowed deeply.

“Lin Yanran, I practice medicine to save people, not to heal them just so you can insult and beat them again. Get out!”

Liu Zhenzhen’s face was ashen; she was one step away from telling her to rot.

Seeing that the soft approach failed, Lin Yanran had no choice but to say, “As the saying goes, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. My wife is spitting blood. If you don’t go now, Physician Liu, she might…”

Bang! The door slammed shut.

Lin Yanran rubbed her nose, which had almost been hit, and gave a bitter smile. It seemed she would have to find another doctor. Just as she was about to turn, the door opened again. Liu Zhenzhen stepped out with her medicine box, her expression as dark as a thunderstorm.

Lin Yanran quickly led the way.

As they passed each other, she caught a fresh, slightly sweet scent of citrus mixed with a faint medicinal aroma. It was likely the scent of Liu Zhenzhen’s pheromones.

Pushing open the gate, Lin Yanran’s expression changed. Youqin Mingyue had fainted on the ground again, the black dog pacing anxiously around her.

When Liu Zhenzhen saw the footprints on Youqin Mingyue’s body and the blood on the ground, her face paled as well. She immediately stepped forward to check. When she saw the silver chain around Youqin Mingyue’s ankle had bitten deep, bloody marks into her skin—the red blood contrasting shockingly with the snow-white flesh—she finally lost her temper.

“Lin Yanran, she is your wife after all! How can you torture her like this? You are… too much!”

Lin Yanran remained silent.

Liu Zhenzhen’s lips trembled as she wanted to say more, but she eventually pursed her lips in gloom. Lin Yanran was a notorious gambler who beat her Omega whenever she lost money; her infamy was well-known. As an Omega herself, Liu Zhenzhen didn’t have the power to change this. She could only do her best to treat Youqin Mingyue.

“Where is the key? Her internal organs are injured; she needs to lie in bed and rest.”

Lin Yanran had wanted to open the chain long ago, but she simply couldn’t remember where the original owner had hidden the key. One end was tightly looped around Youqin Mingyue’s ankle; unless opened with a key, any violent removal would damage her foot. The other end was attached to a pillar.

Liu Zhenzhen said, “If you can’t find it, find a way to smash the chain.”

Lin Yanran paused and said, “This chain is made of Profound Iron.”

Liu Zhenzhen blurted out, “The Profound Iron chains specifically used for high-security prisoners?”

Lin Yanran didn’t speak. Liu Zhenzhen’s face turned ashen. If Profound Iron could be easily smashed, Youqin Mingyue would have escaped this cage long ago.

Lin Yanran turned and went into the inner room. Soon, she dragged out a bamboo bed. Fortunately, since the original owner came from a line of hunters, dragging it wasn’t difficult. She moved it under the porch and laid out a quilt.

Youqin Mingyue lay quietly on the ground, her hair disheveled. The blood at the corner of her mouth had been wiped, but a few traces remained. Her face was abnormally pale, possessing a translucent chill like the finest bone china—beautiful yet fragile, as if she would shatter at a touch.

When Lin Yanran picked her up, she realized the woman was impossibly light. For her tall stature, she had almost no weight in her arms, as if she could be blown away by a gust of wind.

Lin Yanran’s heart felt heavy. She silently placed her on the bamboo bed, tidied her hair, and then stepped aside.

Liu Zhenzhen’s expression was still poor as she ordered, “Go boil some hot water.”

Lin Yanran complied and left immediately.

After the diagnosis, Liu Zhenzhen said, “She won’t die.” Her tone was cold and stern, clearly suppressing her rage. She paused and then said, “She is very weak and needs nutrition. Boil some porridge, add some minced meat and eggs to feed her… Never mind, how could an Alpha (Qianyuan) like you be willing to cook for an Omega? I’ll cook it and send—”

“I’ll cook it,” Lin Yanran cut in. “Rest assured, Physician Liu. When I was boiling water earlier, I already started a pot of porridge. There’s no meat at home, so I only put in eggs and vegetables.”

Liu Zhenzhen shot her a surprised look but remained grim-faced. “In that case, feed her some first.”

She paused, staring at Lin Yanran with great distrust. “Her body is severely injured. She must not be harmed again. Even if you are… you must endure for some time.”

This was as good as pointing at Lin Yanran’s nose and calling her a lecher.

It seemed that in the eyes of outsiders, the original owner’s imprisonment and frequent brutal beatings of Youqin Mingyue had made her a notorious, violent sexual deviant. Unfortunately, the original owner was a “useless” Alpha who couldn’t perform a “marking.” Not only that, she had almost no reaction to the pheromones Youqin Mingyue released. Earlier, Zhang Zhen and the others had lost control, yet she had felt nothing.

Lin Yanran felt a bit stifled, but she didn’t explain. She simply nodded.

“Okay.”

Liu Zhenzhen rose to pack her medicine box. As she reached the door, she added, “I will return tomorrow morning for a follow-up.”

After finishing the porridge, Lin Yanran’s eyes suddenly lit up. She finally remembered where the key was! The original owner had actually thrown the key into the well in the courtyard!

She looked at the dark, deep water and gave a bitter smile.

By the time she finished feeding Youqin Mingyue, the sky was pitch black. Youqin Mingyue was still on the bamboo bed under the porch, unconscious. She had to watch over her. That being the case, she might as well clean out the well.

Lin Yanran was a woman of action. As dawn broke, she finally scooped the well dry and salvaged the shimmering silver key.

Just as she reached the bamboo bed, her body suddenly stiffened, and her expression turned into one of shock and uncertainty. This was because a line of blood-red text suddenly appeared in her mind:

“Youqin Mingyue, having had her shackles opened, regains her freedom. That very night, she slit the throat of her scum wife. Afterward, she was escorted back to the palace by secret guards. Having been reborn, she became even more brutal and bloodthirsty. Not only did she slaughter all members of the imperial family, but upon ascending the throne, she immediately ordered the massacre of the entire county where her scum wife lived. Wherever her army passed, corpses littered the fields. The scum wife’s body was dug up and lashed for three days and nights. Still unsatisfied, the Empress ordered her guards to grind her bones to dust and bury them in a cesspool, ensuring she could never be reincarnated for all eternity!”

Lin Yanran’s hand, clutching the key, shook uncontrollably.

“So… she’s been reborn.”

The sky was faintly bright.

Youqin Mingyue woke up and found herself lying on a bamboo bed. She was dazed for a moment. That piece of trash was actually willing to let her sleep on a bed?

She remembered that since Lin Yanran imprisoned her, she had slept in the woodshed for over two months with only the black dog for company. Even for bathing, she had to wait until Lin Yanran went out carousing to secretly draw well water and wash in the shed. Because of the chain’s length, she could only reach as far as the woodshed.

A proud daughter of heaven, reduced to a prisoner living with animals. A total humiliation.

She closed her eyes gently, then opened them again. A flash of murderous intent flickered in her dark eyes before returning to a calm that resembled a bottomless, frigid pool.

Footsteps sounded from the porch. Lin Yanran approached carrying a tray.

The two made eye contact. Lin Yanran’s long robe was soaked at the hem, and her cloth shoes were covered in mud. Only her hands were clean. She looked very disheveled.

Youqin Mingyue’s expression showed no ripple. She watched her with an abnormally calm and icy gaze.

“You’re awake?” Lin Yanran took the initiative to greet her. Receiving no response, she placed the tray on the small wooden table next to the bamboo bed and began setting out the food.

She felt a prickly sensation on her side, like needles on her back. Without turning around, she knew it was Youqin Mingyue’s gaze, cold as a blade.

Lin Yanran’s heart sank rapidly. She knew Youqin Mingyue hated the original owner—reading the book, she could feel that bone-deep hatred between the lines—but now that she had transmigrated into the body, she truly realized how deep that hatred ran.

A bowl of steaming vegetable and egg porridge, a plate of stir-fried tofu with greens, and a cup of hot water. The original owner only cared about drinking and gambling and never looked after the house, so there were few ingredients. These greens and tofu had been borrowed from the neighbor.

She set the utensils and looked at Youqin Mingyue, whispering, “The food is ready. Eat some.”

“Do you want me to help you out of bed?”

Youqin Mingyue sat upright without moving or speaking. Lin Yanran tentatively approached. Just as she was about to lift the corner of the quilt to check her ankle, her arm was grabbed.

The hand gripping her was too pale, but it didn’t diminish its beauty. The snow-white skin had a crystalline luster like snow, with faint blue veins visible. She held her extremely tight, her fingertips almost digging into the flesh.

Lin Yanran noticed from the corner of her eye that Youqin Mingyue’s other hand was hidden in her sleeve, and a cold glint flashed briefly. Youqin Mingyue was hiding something.

Her heart trembled slightly. If she remembered correctly, Youqin Mingyue carried a dagger that could “cut iron like clay,” a self-defense weapon gifted by her mother. Lin Yanran hadn’t witnessed its sharpness, but her own hand was certainly not as tough as iron. Especially thinking of that line of blood-red text, her throat was likely slit by this very dagger.

“I have no ill intent. I want to help you open the chain.”

Cold sweat broke out on the tip of her nose. She hurriedly opened her palm, revealing the key inside. After much thought, she couldn’t ignore Youqin Mingyue’s plight. She decided to save her first.

Youqin Mingyue’s cold gaze slowly moved from Lin Yanran’s face to the silver key in her palm. A dark gloom surged in her eyes. This was the key that had locked her up like a dog.

Shame, rage, hate! Various dark emotions intertwined in her eyes, making her emanate a grim chill.

Lin Yanran became increasingly uneasy, a feeling of her hair standing on end looming over her. She was never a hesitant person. With a thud, she knelt down decisively.

She held out the key, looked up at Youqin Mingyue, her eyes firm and sincere.

“I know I’ve done many terrible things, but everything… I can explain.”

“The person before was possessed by a ghost.”

“The person now is the real me.”

“From now on, I will never harm you in the slightest.”

“If anyone dares to harm you, they will have to step over my corpse first.”

The gloom in Youqin Mingyue’s expression didn’t change at all, only her eyes flickered slightly.

What new trick was this scum playing?

In her previous life, she had sentenced her to death by a thousand cuts, which she considered a mercy. In this life, what kind of torture should she use to appease the hatred in her heart?

She narrowed her eyes slightly and stared at Lin Yanran’s fair neck. At this moment, they were extremely close. In her kneeling position, Lin Yanran would be unable to defend against a sudden attack.

One strike would be fatal.