The Great Song Dynasty's Soul-Forging in Progress

As tensions rose in Bianjing, Wang Zhonghua and his two companions, traveling day and night along the official road from Junzhou to Dongjing, were making their way through the night. Their horses' hooves crunched through the remaining snow, each crack of the whip carrying a chilling anxiety and resentment. Wang Zhonghua's heart had already flown to the state prison where Qin the blacksmith and Liu Xinyi were imprisoned, and to the side of Qin Tiehua, who had single-handedly ventured into the lion's den.

He didn't know what Liu Xinyi was going through at that moment, but he knew that the aloof and cold woman would never bow her head.

……

In the back garden of Chenzhou Prefecture, in that secluded courtyard "guarded" by Princess Zhao Jinyu, the atmosphere was as oppressive as the deathly silence before a storm. The old plum tree in the courtyard had lost all its blossoms, its bare branches stretching towards the gray sky like a silent cry.

Liu Xinyi has been imprisoned here for a full month.

For the past month, Prince Zhao Zongyuan had visited almost daily. He considered himself a womanizer and a man of unparalleled talent, believing there was no woman in the world he couldn't win over. In the first few days, he sent over fine writing materials, as well as the latest collections of poems and stories. He even personally copied several of his "masterpieces" and had a maidservant deliver them to his inner chamber, saying he wanted to "exchange literary ideas with Miss Liu." Liu Xinyi didn't even glance at them, simply saying, "Your Highness's refined taste is beyond my reach."

Zhao Zongyuan wasn't annoyed; on the contrary, he found her aloof nature even more charming. He changed his approach, coming to the courtyard every few days to "admire the plum blossoms," standing under the eaves, swaying his head and reciting poems, from "Guan Guan Jujiu" to "The One I Long For," and from "The Reeds Are Green" to "The Moon Rises Brightly." He believed that his gentle, jade-like voice and dashing demeanor would surely win over this cold beauty's heart.

Liu Xinyi sat by the window, flipping through a medical book, without looking up.

Zhao Zongyuan recited the poem for a while, but seeing that she had no reaction, he couldn't help but ask, "Miss Liu, what do you think of my poem 'Ode to the Plum Blossom' just now?"

Liu Xinyi turned a page of her book and said calmly, "Your Highness's poem mentions plum branches lying horizontally, but you don't know that plum trees bloom before their leaves appear, and there are no leaves on the branches. So how can there be the line 'green leaves set off red flowers'?"

Zhao Zongyuan blushed and said awkwardly, "This... I used a metaphor."

Liu Xinyi stopped talking and continued reading.

Zhao Zongyuan was rebuffed, but he remained undeterred. The more the woman ignored him, the more infatuated he became. He began sending her gifts in various ways—pearls from the South China Sea one day, spices from the Western Regions the next, and brocade from Sichuan the day after. Liu Xinyi refused them all, instructing her maid to return them untouched. Annoyed by the rejections, Zhao Zongyuan personally brought the gifts, placed them on the table, and said with a smile, "Miss Liu, I have offered you my heartfelt gifts, and you are so ungrateful?"

Liu Xinyi looked up at him, her gaze cold as frost: "Your Highness, I am imprisoned and my life hangs in the balance. How could I have the mind to appreciate such worldly things? If Your Highness truly pities me, you should restore my innocence."

Zhao Zongyuan's smile froze on his face.

He was speechless with shock, then turned and stormed off.

Back in his courtyard, Zhao Zongyuan grew angrier the more he thought about it. His handsome face was contorted in pain, and he gripped the folding fan so tightly that it creaked, and the fan ribs bent slightly.

"You shameless wretch! You don't know what's good for you!" He slammed the folding fan to the ground and kicked over a flowerpot under the eaves, scattering shards of porcelain all over the floor.

The maid Cui'er was carrying in a tea tray when she saw the scene and turned pale with fright. She carefully squatted down to pick up the broken porcelain shards. She dared not raise her head or make a sound, hoping that the prince would calm down soon after he finished venting his anger.

But just as she picked up two pieces of the tea, a foot kicked her hard in the shoulder. She fell backward, the tea tray flew out of her hand, and tea spilled all over her.

"You lowly servant!" Zhao Zongyuan grabbed her hair and dragged her up from the ground. Cui'er cried out in pain, tears streaming down her face, but she gritted her teeth and dared not make a sound. She knew that the more pitiful she screamed, the more excited the prince would become.

"Were you eavesdropping outside the door just now, laughing at me too?" Zhao Zongyuan's face drew closer to hers, his eyes filled with malice. "Speak! Were you also laughing at me for not being able to win over a country woman?!"

"This servant dares not...this servant dares not..." Cui'er stammered, her voice like a withered leaf in the wind.

"Dare not?" Zhao Zongyuan sneered, loosened her hair, but stepped on the broken porcelain shards she had just picked up, grinding them hard. The shards pierced her palm, and blood immediately gushed out.

Cui'er let out a muffled groan, biting her lower lip tightly, not daring to pull her hand away.

"Kneel down."

Cui'er knelt down on her knees, her forehead touching the ground, her whole body trembling like a leaf.

Zhao Zongyuan paced in front of her, looking down at her. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed her chin, forcing her to raise her head. Cui'er's face was streaked with tears, her lips were bitten until they turned white, but she dared not cry out.

"Tell me," his voice suddenly softened, a softness that sent chills down one's spine, "What's wrong with me? What makes me unworthy of her? I am royalty, I have everything I could ever want, and she, a murder suspect, dares to refuse me?"

Cui'er trembled and couldn't speak.

Zhao Zongyuan's hand suddenly tightened, his nails digging into the flesh of her cheek: "Speak!"

"Your Highness... Your Highness is a dragon from heaven..." Cui'er's voice trailed off, "It's that Miss Liu... who has no good fortune..."

"Unlucky?" Zhao Zongyuan released his grip and suddenly laughed. That laugh was chilling, sending shivers down one's spine. "You're right, she's unlucky. What I offered her, she refused. Then I won't give it to her."

He turned around, walked to the table, and picked up the jade-ribbed, gold-painted fan that he had just dropped on the ground; the fan ribs were cracked. He stroked the crack and suddenly glanced back at Cui'er.

That one glance sent a chill down Cui'er's spine.

"come over."

Cui'er dared not disobey and crawled over on her knees.

Zhao Zongyuan squatted down, used his fan to lift her chin, and gently patted her face: "Tell me, haven't I been too good to you? So good that you've forgotten who the master is?"

"This servant wouldn't dare...this servant would never dare..."

"You dare not?" Zhao Zongyuan stood up and suddenly kicked her in the chest, knocking her to the ground. Cui'er curled up on the ground, clutching her chest, panting heavily, but dared not cry out.

Zhao Zongyuan walked over, stepped on her hair that was scattered on the ground, and ground it hard: "Let me tell you, there is nothing in this manor that I cannot have. Whether it is Liu Xinyi or you, if I want you to live, you will live; if I want you to die, you will die."

He loosened his grip, turned and walked to the door, then suddenly turned back, looking at Cui'er curled up on the ground, a cruel smile appearing on his lips:

"Get out of here. Change into clean clothes. Tonight... you will serve me in bed."

Cui'er's body trembled violently, as if all her strength had been drained away. She lay on the ground, unable to even cry anymore.

Zhao Zongyuan strode out the door, and the night wind blew in, extinguishing the last lamp in the corridor.

In the darkness, Cui'er curled up alone on the cold ground, her palms still bleeding and her chest still aching. She bit her sleeve and cried silently for a long time. She knew that none of her former sisters had escaped the clutches of the young prince; every one of them who entered his room had their private parts mangled and bloodied. She knew even more that she would not escape the same fate.

She didn't know how much time had passed before she slowly got up, picked up the broken pieces of porcelain from the ground, and placed them one by one into the tray. Her fingers were cut in several places, and blood dripped onto the ground, but she didn't feel any pain.

She stood up and staggered towards the door. Reaching the doorway, she suddenly stopped and glanced back at the lamp that had been blown out by the wind.

Then she lowered her head and whispered something only she could hear:

"Miss Liu...you must not fall into his hands."

She's gone. Only broken porcelain and a few drops of blood remain in the room.

Outside the window, Zhao Zongyuan stood under the eaves, gazing towards the small courtyard in the back garden. He squinted and muttered, "Liu Xinyi... I'd like to see how long you can keep this up."

The night wind lifted his clothes, scattering the chilling whisper.

Another half month has passed in the blink of an eye.

Zhao Zongyuan's patience finally ran out. He stopped pretending to be a charming and refined gentleman and began to put pressure on his sister, Princess Yaoji.

He came to the courtyard almost every day to pester her, using every trick in the book to coax and cajole her.

"Sister Wang," he said, waving his jade-ribbed, gold-inlaid fan, his tone intimate yet carrying an undeniable pressure, "she's just a commoner healer, why the need for such protection? I genuinely admire her aloof nature. You know, Father has always doted on me; if I asked him for her, he would surely grant it. This is merely doing Chen Shimei a favor, allowing him to 'legitimately' hand this woman over to me, saving me a lot of trouble. Sister Wang, please nod?"

Zhao Jinyu looked at his spoiled younger brother and felt a chill in his heart.