Chapter Text
The couple loaded their carriage with a few choice items. After many years of living in the countryside, they had decided to move to Lanling City for better prospects.
The young woman’s husband was handsome and smart. Although they were both orphans from a young age, somehow the young man had a knack for making money. The wife wasn’t too bad either – she was an excellent cook, and quite frankly, with her skills she could open her own restaurant in a city.
Therefore, the two loaded up and prepared to leave. Halfway through the journey there, however, the horses suddenly neighed loudly and began to run. The driver was unfortunately thrown off the carriage. He gave chase after the runaway carriage, but to no avail. Down a short ravine it went, right off the edge with the couple in it.
“Master! Madam!” wailed the man over the cliff. Nobody answered, so he ran off to get help.
The young man in the carriage got up and rubbed his head. His mind was in a whirl. When he blinked, it suddenly all came back to him.
“Just calm down! A-Li’s waiting for you— ah?”
Jin Zixuan sat up suddenly, staring at his hands. What was this? They were a little rough and didn’t look like his own at all. His voice was also different.
Jin Zixuan looked around. The last thing he remembered was rushing out of Carp Tower to stop a fight from erupting. Of course, he wasn’t successful. He felt something pierce his back and the world go black. Now that he had awoken, he was somewhere else.
Beside him came a rustle. Curious, the young man lifted the small box from on top of a figure. The young woman groaned and stirred, getting up.
“A-Xian…”
Her eyes snapped open.
“Who are you?” she gasped. “A-Cheng, A-Xian… where are they? Where’s everyone?”
Jiang Yanli didn’t remember hitting her head. She had no idea why it hurt so much, but she finally recollected bits and pieces after waking up. The last thing she remembered was protecting Wei Wuxian from a lethal blow. How she was in an upturned carriage with an unknown man was a mystery to her.
“You… you’re A-Li?” asked Jin Zixuan, his eyes round. This young woman didn’t look like his wife at all, yet for some reason she felt so familiar.
“A-Xuan, it’s you?” she stared back at him. “But you… at Qiongqi Path…”
Jin Zixuan calmed down and drew a breath. So he really did die at Qiongqi Path. Somehow, he was back in a different body. Jiang Yanli also seemed to have been reborn. But how could it be? Did his wife die prematurely?
“A-Li, what about you?” he asked. Jiang Yanli shook her head.
“I think I might have also passed away,” she replied, holding her husband’s hand. “But what a dream – we’ve been reborn and found each other again. A-Xuan, let’s live together forever.”
“Let’s,” said Jin Zixuan, squeezing his wife’s hand. “You, me and A-Ling——A-Li! Where’s our son?”
At this, Jiang Yanli also jumped up. That’s right, they had left a one-month old baby behind!
Forgetting their pain and wounds, the two crawled out of the wreckage. Miraculously, they weren’t too injured. There were scratches and bumps here and there, but other than that, they were perfectly fine.
Instinctively, Jin Zixuan reached for Suihua. However, there was no sword by his side. He frowned and clicked his tongue. Jin Zixuan couldn’t feel much spiritual power in his meridians. It seemed like he had been reborn as someone who hadn’t cultivated at all.
“A-Li, I don’t seem to be able to fly,” informed Jin Zixuan. “Come, let’s try to find another way to get to Carp Tower. I’ll go and ask someone where we are.”
At that moment, a man came up with several others. They called down to the two.
“Master! Mistress!” cried the man. “Oh, thank god you’re alright! Come, let us take you up. The others here have offered to help take you to Lanling City.”