𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒆

The air in the Phoenix Palace hung thick with the scent of medicinal herbs, a stark contrast to the opulence of the royal chambers. Xu Yang stirred, a dull ache throbbing behind her eyes, and a voice, laced with familiar worry, pulled her from the depths of unconsciousness.

"Miss? Young miss?" Ji An's voice trembled, her face a blurry smudge above Xu Yang's.

"Ji An?" Xu Yang murmured, her throat dry, the name a comfort and a sharp pang of memory. A bitter laugh escaped her lips, hollow and without humor. She was dead. She had been executed, accused of a crime she didn't commit, by the man she had loved, the Emperor Zhang Wan.

But here she was, alive. A second chance, perhaps? Or merely a cruel jest of fate, returning her to the very beginning of her downfall? Her gaze swept around the familiar room, her heart sinking as recognition dawned. This was her royal chambers, at the Phoenix Palace. The very place her nightmare had begun.