Chapter 1013: Traces from Back Then

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

That was the place where she decided to burn herself and commit suicide in her previous life. Nobody knew this place better than she did.

There still seemed to be a faint burning smell in the air, feeling heavy and deserted.

Chu Liuyue walked forward.

After walking a distance, it was a flight of stairs. There was a night pearl beside the stairs, and the light they had seen before clearly came from this.

She continued upward and quickly touched a marble floor.

The marble floor had a circular dent on it.

Chu Liuyue thought for a moment and placed the night pearl at the side atop it—it fit perfectly!

Kacha!

The marble floor started moving away slowly, and a ray of light shone in through the cracks!

Chu Liuyue raised her hand to cover her eyes. When the marble floor completely moved away, she jumped up!

Qi Han and the rest followed closely after!

…

After suddenly jumping out of the pitch-black passageway, Chu Liuyue had to adjust to the light before she surveyed her surroundings.

Upon taking one glance, she could confirm that this was the royal family’s ancestral hall.

Due to that fire two years ago, this place was in a state of mess. There were many scars and damaged items, and it was cold and quiet.

This was the first time Chu Liuyue came into this place after she was reborn.

She pressed her lips against each other tightly. Back then, I just thought of wanting to drag Jiang Yucheng and the rest down with me. However, I didn’t expect that fire to burn so long and directly destroy the entire ancestral hall.

“So that passageway actually connects Huayang Palace straight to the royal family’s ancestral hall…” After Qi Han came out, he stood behind Chu Liuyue and softly muttered this as he surveyed his surroundings. They definitely had a motive for doing this, but… What exactly was it?

Chu Liuyue was also thinking of this problem. She carefully took a look at that marble floor, and the scratch marks at the edges could be clearly seen. This passageway… might’ve appeared earlier than I had expected! The ancestral hall is an important place to the royal family, so it is very hard for outsiders to get in. Why would they take such a huge risk and dig out such a passageway?

And there was one point that Chu Liuyue really didn’t understand: If they wanted to kill me, they could do it at a lot of places. However, why did they choose the royal family’s ancestral hall?

…

Chu Liuyue was stuck for a while and didn’t discover any worthy clues. Everything here was destroyed in that fire, and the royal family’s ancestral hall is a sacred area. Even if Shangguan Wan came here silently from the passageway, she must’ve done it very carefully.

After taking a look in the room, Chu Liuyue went out and walked toward the main hall.

Once she stepped out, Chu Liuyue realized that the exterior of the western hall seemed to have fresh signs of being renovated. This was clearly requested by Shangguan Wan before. But before the renovation could be done, something happened to Shangguan Wan. Thus, the tasks here were delayed. Looking at it again now, it just makes people sigh.

Chu Liuyue stood at the door for a moment and realized that something had landed on her face. She looked up and realized that the sky had turned dark, and raindrops were falling gradually.

Very quickly, these raindrops formed a line as if countless lines had connected the ground and the sky.

Chu Liuyue looked forward. Even after the main hall was burned in the large fire, it still looks rather complete from the outside. This was because Ancestor had once personally set up a barrier outside the ancestral hall. Once one met with danger, they could activate it. It’s a pity that the fire back then was started from the inside.

From here, they could still vaguely see some traces.

“Master.” Qi Han followed over and looked at her with a complicated gaze. He didn’t know how Her Highness felt when she decided to burn herself and commit suicide here back then. Now that she is back again, how will she feel when she sees this scene? For Her Highness, this is the place where she had spent the most painful day in her life. If not to investigate that strange passageway, Her Highness wouldn’t be willing to come here again, right?

Chu Liuyue said, “Guard the corridor. I’ll go in to take a look.”

Qi Han wanted to follow her in, but he just nodded when he saw her calm and nonchalant side profile. “Yes.”

…

Chu Liuyue had never thought that she would come back here again. Even after her rebirth, even though she kept thinking of taking her revenge and was filled with hatred, she had never thought of returning to this place.

She seemed to avoid this issue instinctively. Perhaps it was because she had once experienced the deepest betrayal and gone through the most heart-wrenching pain here.

In the past, she couldn’t come near her due to her status. Now, she had already recovered her original name and could casually come here as and when she wanted. However, she had done so at all.

She didn’t expect that she would come back due to a mysterious passageway.

The rain outside got increasingly heavier, and the raindrops pitter-pattered as they landed on the roof.

Chu Liuyue took a deep breath in, pushed open the door, and walked in.

It was like a box that had been sealed for a very long time, and the air was filled with a deserted and old aura.

Chu Liuyue looked over.

Other than the ancestors’ memorial tablets that were placed in the innermost area, the rest were all burned.

She walked over and kneeled down before the prayer table, respectfully kowtowing thrice. I was determined to die in the beginning, but I almost burned the ancestors’ memorial tablets as well. If it were really so, I couldn’t save them even if I regretted it.

A translucent figure appeared beside Chu Liuyue—it was Shangguan Jing.

He stared at the memorial tablets for a while before kneeling on the floor and lightly sighing toward Chu Liuyue, who hadn’t stood up in a while. “Girlie, you don’t have to blame yourself. Jiang Yucheng and Shangguan Wan did wrong. Even if we want to punish somebody, the two of them should suffer the consequences. It has nothing to do with you. I don’t blame you, and if these people knew, they wouldn’t blame you either.”

Chu Liuyue then stood up, and there seemed to be something tumbling in her chest. All the words in the world only manifested into one sentence. “Thank you, Ancestor!”

Shangguan Jing smiled and touched her head through her hair. “You’re a good child. It’s our Shangguan family’s blessing to have you!”

Even though he was only a soul now and this kind of contact didn’t feel like anything, Chu Liuyue’s heart still felt fuzzy.

She surveyed her surroundings and lightly breathed out as if wanting to let go of all the emotions she had gathered. “I’ll go back today and get someone to refurbish the ancestral hall.”

“This isn’t urgent. What’s the point of me staying in this ancestral hall? I’m happier if I can accompany you and go places,” teased Shangguan Jing.

Chu Liuyue was caught between laughter and tears. The previous hint of guilt and sorrow became much better. I really am too fortunate to be able to get Ancestor’s love.

“Hm? What’s that?” Shangguan Jing suddenly focused forward and looked at a corner of the study.

There was a dark-red bloodstain left there.

Chu Liuyue glanced at it. “I hit it back then, so I left this—”

Just as Chu Liuyue was about to explain, she suddenly felt the water droplet in her dantian intensely moving!