PNB Chapter 46 Rebirth is a dream? She became Chu Yuning's mistress?
Chapter 46 Rebirth is a dream? She became Chu Yuning's mistress?
"Yuanyuan, you're finally awake. Do you know how many days you've been unconscious?"
Seeing Shen Yuan open her eyes, Chu Yuning's face flashed with a hint of smugness. He took Shen Yuan's hand and said gently, "Yuan Yuan, you scared me to death. I thought you would never wake up again!"
Shen Yuan stared at the man in front of her in disbelief. How could she...?
Wasn't she sleeping in her room just now? How come Chu Yuning is in her room?
"Yuanyuan, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Chu Yuning asked with concern.
Shen Yuan coldly pulled her hand away from Chu Yuning's. "Who told you to come to my house! Get out! Otherwise, I'll call the authorities and report you for trespassing!"
“Yuanyuan…” Chu Yuning blinked in confusion, “This is my home! Don’t you remember?”
"your home?"
Shen Yuan froze. She stared at Chu Yuning's smile and felt a chill run down her spine. Goosebumps crawled from her arms to her back.
Why is she at Chu Yuning's house? What exactly is going on?
Shen Yuan threw back the covers and got out of bed, saying as she looked for her shoes, "I want to go back to my pharmacy!"
"What pharmacy? What nonsense are you talking about? Have you lost your mind from being flooded?" Chu Yuning suddenly grabbed Shen Yuan's arm as she tried to put on her shoes, her strength making it impossible for her to break free.
He held Shen Yuan's arm tightly and coaxed, "Be good! Lie down properly. The doctor said you caught a cold after falling into the water. You can't be exposed to the wind, and you absolutely can't go outside!"
"Fell into the water?" Shen Yuan was startled. She clutched Chu Yuning's robe, the smooth feel of the brocade sending a chill down her spine.
This is the finest cloud-patterned brocade, costing ten gold coins per foot. Chu Yuning could never afford it before she passed the imperial examination! Unless, of course, the person before her was Chu Yuning, who had already passed the examination with top honors and become the princess's consort!
How can this be?
Didn't she die and go back to seven years ago?
Was her so-called rebirth really just a dream?
Now, it's time to wake up from the dream.
Seeing Shen Yuan's confusion, Chu Yuning said softly, "Yuan Yuan, I'm sorry! I know that the princess and I pushed you into the water and hurt you. But I really had no choice at the time."
“I come from a poor family and have no official position or real power, how dare I disobey the princess? So I can only wait until the princess has vented her anger before secretly pulling you out of the lake.”
"Fortunately, the princess thought you were dead and didn't know that I was keeping you in this house. Just stay here peacefully, I will come to see you every month."
"From now on, you will be the mistress of this house. When you recover, we will get married in this house, with heaven and earth as our matchmaker and the Milky Way as our betrothal gift. I only wish that you will be my one and only wife."
"absurd!"
Shen Yuan shouted and pushed Chu Yuning away.
How could she possibly be kept in this private residence by Chu Yuning as his mistress?
That's absolutely impossible!
Shen Yuan ripped the silver hairpin from her hair and stabbed it at Chu Yuning without hesitation. "You're dreaming! I will never marry you in this lifetime! Even if I die, I will never marry you!"
"Why?" Chu Yuning held Shen Yuan's hand tightly. The silver hairpin pierced their palms a little further, and blood flowed out, staining Chu Yuning's moon-colored robe red.
Shen Yuan's pupils contracted; she hadn't expected Chu Yuning to shove that hairpin into her heart.
"Why don't you want to marry me? Haven't you always wanted to marry me? Yuanyuan, have you forgotten that you used to like me a lot? You liked me for so many years. Have you forgotten all of that?"
Chu Yuning's eyes were red and bloodshot, and a tear slid down from the corner of his eye, landing on the back of Shen Yuan's hand that was holding the silver hairpin.
Shen Yuan suddenly felt a little flustered.
No! This isn't right! This is all fake!
Suddenly, a loud banging on the door rang in her ears. Shen Yuan sat up abruptly in bed, her chest heaving. She gasped for breath and looked at the familiar furnishings in the room.
She returned to the pharmacy.
It was a dream!
Everything I just saw was a dream!
Shen Yuan clutched her chest, finding tonight's dream utterly ridiculous. If she had truly died at Tranquil Lake in her previous life, Chu Yuning would have felt no regret or remorse.
"Yuanyuan! Cough cough cough! Fire! Get out quickly!"
Outside the door, Granny Liu pounded on the door loudly.
Shen Yuan turned to look out the window. Through the paper window, she could vaguely see the firelight outside. She quickly got out of bed and ran to the door to open it.
When Granny Liu saw Shen Yuan come out, she quickly grabbed Shen Yuan's hand, "Oh my! You're finally awake! The fire has spread from the backyard to the frontyard! If we had been any later, none of us would have been able to get out!"
Outside the door, flames soared into the sky.
It's unclear where the fire started, but the woodshed, outhouse, and kitchen in the backyard all caught fire. Flames leaped everywhere, burning most of the eaves of the backyard to ashes, and the fire seemed poised to spread to the two-story building in front.
The downstairs area is full of the medicinal herbs she collected!
Shen Yuan's heart tightened suddenly. She took Liu Mama's hand and ran downstairs quickly.
Just as she was about to descend the steps, Granny Liu lost her footing and stepped into the air, instantly losing her balance and falling forward.
"Grandma!" Shen Yuan exclaimed, falling to the ground first.
Granny Liu crashed heavily onto Shen Yuan, and the two of them tumbled down the stairs.
Shen Yuan coughed twice in pain, but fortunately Liu Mama was alright. She was old and couldn't withstand such a fall.
Shen Yuan helped Liu Mama up, and the two ran to the street outside the pharmacy. Shen Yuan told Liu Mama to sit for a while in the shed in front of the jewelry shop across the street, then turned around and ran into the courtyard.
Granny Liu quickly grabbed her, "Why are you going back? The whole place is on fire!"
"We can't let the fire reach the pharmacy; there are still so many medicinal herbs here!"
Shen Yuan didn't explain much, leaving behind the instruction that Liu Mama was not allowed to follow, and then limped into the backyard.
Granny Liu was anxious and flustered, but she didn't dare to go in to help. She was old and not very nimble. She had just caused Shen Yuan to fall, so she didn't dare to go in and make things worse.
Granny Liu could only call out to people on the street.
Shen Yuan ran into the backyard; the fire had spread from the kitchen to the stairs.
The kitchen beams and the bottom axis of the stairs in the front building were supported by the same piece of wood. When a house with a wooden structure is exposed to a fire, it's like adding fuel to the fire. The flames spread along this piece of wood, and the wooden planks of the stairs were burned and fell down one after another, which made Shen Yuan's heart pound with fear.
If she and Granny Liu had come downstairs any later, they might have been trapped and died in the fire.
Shen Yuan dared not think any further. She picked up the bucket in the yard, scooped water from the water vat, and splashed it onto the stairs.
She poured bucket after bucket of water tirelessly, but it only dampened the wooden planks and did little to help in the raging fire.
Shen Yuan looked at the stairs in front of her and suddenly realized that if she pulled out the wooden stake connecting the stairs to the front hall, cutting off the connection point of the fire, the fire would not spread to the pharmacy in front.
She had to save the medicinal herbs in the pharmacy!
Thinking of this, Shen Yuan wet her clothes and climbed the stairs.
The steps of the staircase had been burned through, and there was fire on every floor. Shen Yuan carefully avoided the flames as she climbed up. The flames burned her face, but she dared not retreat.
As she approached the wooden stake, Shen Yuan was overjoyed and reached out to pull it up, but the two-hand-wide stake was not something a girl like her could easily move.
Shen Yuan used all her strength to pull it out, and the wooden stake swayed, causing Shen Yuan to fall backward.
The ground was covered with broken planks and flames; if you fell on it, you'd probably get a burn on your back.
Panic and fear instantly overwhelmed her. Shen Yuan closed her eyes helplessly, but at this critical moment, a dark figure flashed behind her and pulled her into an embrace.