Chapter 4: Cocoon

"Knock, knock—" Changge was resting her chin on her hand, gazing at the Four Seasons Orchids in the room. Looking at those precious ink-colored orchids, the sharp coldness in her phoenix eyes receded slightly. Hearing the knock, she snapped back to her senses, judged who the visitor was by sound, and softly uttered, "Come in."

The door opened at the sound. Fuyin was carrying a food box. After closing the door and turning around, the woman, who was usually as cold as ice, always carried a smile when facing Changge. Changge knew that the woman's smiles had increased since she first saw her, and her heart felt a slight warmth. Though her expression remained aloof, the gaze she directed at Fuyin carried a sense of gentle intimacy.

"Mistress, it is time to eat." When Fuyin first followed Changge, Changge was still just a young girl, merely the little County Princess of the Pingyang Prince's Mansion. Even after she married a monarch and became the most noble Empress of the Li Kingdom, Fuyin had never quite abandoned the title of "County Princess." It was thought that among Changge's four great beautiful maids, Wenbi and Yinyu were responsible for her daily life, while the two martial maids, Nongyue and Fuyin, were known to outsiders only as her personal guards. In reality, the two were also two of the three leaders of the secret organization Changge had established, the Fengge, making their identities far different from ordinary maids. Yinxue... that silly girl who had been utterly devoted to her was dead. Changge had never wanted to mention her or dare to think of her. For all these years, Yinxue had accompanied her longer than anyone else, yet... but that girl's temperament was too straightforward, lacking Yinyu's meticulousness; however, the latter's excessive sensitivity and attention to detail made Changge find Yinxue's nature more cute and pure. Consequently, she had entrusted many matters to Fuyin, who appeared the coldest and least intimate among the four. Fuyin was reserved, yet extremely reliable. Thinking back now, it had been a very correct decision not to tell Yinyu, or even Li Zhan, about the existence of the Fengge.

"Back then, I thought that since Yinxue and Yinyu were, after all, weak women, it was better not to tell them about certain bloody matters. That man—I always thought that I should be the one to handle these shady, murderous dealings, so that he could simply be an upright and honorable monarch. Privately, I also hoped to preserve some beautiful things in front of him... Looking back now, thanks to my considerations and devotion at that time, at least the Fengge was not exposed."

Changge didn't even know how she had spoken her inner thoughts aloud. After speaking, there was a moment of daze, and when she looked up, she met a pair of pitch-black eyes.

Fuyin set down the food box and gently opened the lid, allowing the aroma of food to drift out. Changge recognized the scent of several dishes she usually loved most, and a warm current surged in her heart. Fuyin took out the bowls and chopsticks, set them properly, and said, "Mistress, I am happy that after experiencing so much, you are willing to trust me. Rest assured, those who harmed you—Fuyin will tear them apart one by one, even if it costs me my life!" Every word was powerful and resonant. Changge believed her; Fuyin would not rest until she had avenged her in this lifetime.

The corner of Changge's mouth curled up slightly. "A-Yin, my vengeance, I will take upon myself." Giving a reassuring look to the woman whose face had paled for a moment, Changge's gaze fell upon the appetizing dishes. "In the future, try having someone make fish."

Fuyin's expression changed. "You cannot eat fish—" You are allergic to fish! Before the words could leave her mouth, Changge cut her off, "To figure these things out, I must return to that place."

"No!" Fuyin protested loudly without a second thought. She had thought Changge would stay in the Fengge this time to slowly uncover the truth, but she hadn't expected her to intend this. How could someone who had barely returned from the gates of hell go back to that place again? "Mistress, it is too risky. Even if you are no longer allergic to fish, even if you have this mole under your eye that can never be forged—the one you didn't have before—even if you have changed bodies, but..."

Changge stood up, walked to the window, pushed it open, and then turned back to look at Fuyin with burning eyes. The rising steam from the food was dissipating bit by bit, but clearly, neither of them had the leisure to care.

"My mind is made up. A-Yin, rest assured, I will not leave you behind again."

After a long silence, Fuyin let out a long sigh. "You always know how to strike my weakness." These words no longer carried the intent to stop her.

Changge reached out her hand, staring at the indistinct veins in her palm. Her features were shrouded in a mist of sorrow, and she appeared somewhat lost. "Is Li Zhan the mastermind? Who exactly betrayed the Pingyang Prince's Mansion? Who is behind Xueji, helping her scheme so that she actually had the ability to lead me to my death... And, who is the mastermind behind the Soul-Severing Hall, working in collusion with the palace to move Nongyue and you away from my side one after another, leaving me surrounded by enemies on all sides? All of this, I still don't have a single clue. Currently, I can only guess that Xueji used Yinyu's ambition to climb the social ladder to bribe her. They killed Yinxue and the child in my womb. I—will never let them go!"

Perhaps because the pain and hatred in her eyes were too intense, even her voice changed tone.

"That dog emperor—" Fuyin had never dared to mention Li Zhan, because she had witnessed this favored daughter of heaven build the Li Kingdom's empire bit by bit for Li Zhan, assisting such an unfavored prince to ascend to the throne. She had loved him so deeply, yet received an end where she died with eyes wide open in resentment. How heartbreaking it was. How had the County Princess accepted this reality back then?

Changge, however, looked at her without emotion or joy. Her gaze shifted down to her own palm, and a smile curled at the corner of her mouth, a smile of unknown meaning. "A-Yin, everything from yesterday is as if yesterday died. I am now Zhou Fusheng, a Zhou Fusheng born for revenge. Gao Changge is already dead."

She had already endured the most difficult pains. Changge even admired herself; many emotions seemed to have been exhausted after the death of that "Gao Changge" body. She had been reborn through blood; what else was there besides vengeance? Nothing.

"I feel as though there is a massive conspiracy behind this, and the target is you, Mistress." After thinking for a moment, Fuyin decided it was better not to mention Li Zhan.

Changge's eyes flickered slightly. "Indeed, it is like a cocoon," she paused, looking at the scenery outside, "but one only needs to pull the silk, and the cocoon can be peeled away."