Chapter 3

By then, dusk had fallen.
Xiao Changyuan was still injured, so Yun Pianpian supported him as they walked toward the direction of the rising smoke.
Where there was smoke, there would be people.
Yun Pianpian's entire body was icy cold, unsure how long this body had been soaking in the stream. Fortunately, it was late summer and early autumn, and the weather had not yet turned cold. Otherwise, if it were autumn or winter, even if she and Xiao Changyuan hadn't died from the fall or drowning, they would have frozen to death in the frigid stream water.
Xiao Changyuan spoke very little, as cold and silent as an iceberg.
Along the way, he did not initiate any conversation.
In the quiet mountain forest, only Yun Pianpian's incessant, chirping questions could be heard.
“Husband, are you tired? Do you want to sit down and rest? Does your wound hurt?”
Although Xiao Changyuan was taciturn and not fond of speaking, he answered every one of Yun Pianpian's questions.
“Not tired.”
“No need.”
“Doesn't hurt.”
Yun Pianpian was overjoyed.
Despite her chattering, he hadn't told her to be quiet or shown any impatience.
It seems the tyrant's temper has gone missing along with his memory.
How wonderful.
The two made their way through the dense forest and arrived at a village where cooking smoke curled upward.
The houses here were all made of earthen walls, each surrounded by a fenced yard with haystacks piled by the gates. Before Yun Pianpian even got close, she could hear the sounds of dogs barking and chickens clucking. An elderly man at the village entrance was scattering rice to feed the chickens. He looked up and saw Yun Pianpian and her companion.
“What happened to this young master?”
Yun Pianpian explained, “My husband and I encountered bandits on the road. He was injured while protecting me.”
The elderly man wore coarse gray linen clothes and had a snow, white beard, giving him a kind and gentle appearance.
Hearing Yun Pianpian's words, the man glanced at the sky and said to them, “It's getting late, and the mountain paths are treacherous. It's not safe to continue your journey. If you don't mind, why not stay at my humble home for the night?”
This was truly a timely rescue.
Yun Pianpian said gratefully, “Thank you, uncle. We’re sorry to trouble you.”
“Don’t mention it, young lady.” The old man opened the fence gate and led them into the yard, speaking as they walked. “There’s a Doctor Zhou in our village who lives just behind my house. Why not have him come take a look at this young master’s injuries to prevent them from worsening?”
Yun Pianpian had no money and hesitated. “But my husband and I were robbed by those bandits. I’m afraid we can’t afford.”
“What’s there to worry about.” The old man waved his hand. “Meeting is fate. I’ll cover the consultation fee for the young master.”
People in ancient times were truly simple and kind.
Yun Pianpian smiled, her eyes curving. “Thank you so much.”
The old man chuckled and turned to call into the house, “Cuicui, go to Doctor Zhou’s house and invite him over. Tell him Grandpa has guests and would like him to check on an injury.”
“Grandpa, why do you bring every stray cat and dog home?”
A petulant, willful voice came from inside the house, followed by a girl of about fourteen or fifteen, delicate and lovely in appearance. Hearing her grandfather’s words, Jiang Cuicui looked displeased. “What if you’ve brought bad people home?”
Before she could finish speaking, Jiang Cuicui caught sight of Xiao Changyuan’s coldly handsome face.
She froze, staring at him in a daze, her small face suddenly flushing bright red.
Grandpa Jiang frowned at her words. “Cuicui, watch your tone! Hurry and invite Doctor Zhou over!”
Jiang Cuicui snapped out of her trance, realizing her earlier rudeness, and blushed even more deeply. She quickly lowered her head, her voice softening like spring water. “Please wait a moment, both of you. Cuicui will go fetch Uncle Zhou right away.”
With that, Jiang Cuicui, her face still flushed, lifted her skirt and dashed out of the yard.
Yun Pianpian turned her head and gave Xiao Changyuan a meaningful look.
“...”
Beauty truly is the world’s best passport.
For both men and women.
Xiao Changyuan noticed Yun Pianpian’s gaze and lowered his long, dark lashes to look at her.
“What is it, wife?”
His eyes were as dark as an inkstone, deep, cold, and distant.
Impossible to read.
She couldn’t sense his emotions.
Yun Pianpian averted her gaze and said vaguely, “It’s nothing.”
Grandpa Jiang turned around and apologized to Yun Pianpian and the others, “I'm truly sorry to both of you. My granddaughter has been spoiled since childhood and speaks without restraint. If she has offended you in any way, I hope you can forgive her.”
Yun Pianpian smiled and said, “Uncle, you're too kind. Miss Cuicui is lively and adorable, and I find her very endearing.”
Before long, Jiang Cuicui brought Doctor Zhou over.
Doctor Zhou had regular features, was around thirty years old, wore a blue robe, and carried a medicine chest slung over his shoulder.
When he saw Xiao Changyuan, Doctor Zhou was momentarily stunned.
But he quickly suppressed his shock, calmly set down the medicine chest, and bent down to take Xiao Changyuan's pulse.
Yun Pianpian hadn't told anyone about Xiao Changyuan's amnesia, only mentioning that they had encountered bandits.
After checking the pulse, Doctor Zhou said, “The young master's pulse is steady. His injuries are all external, and fortunately, no internal organs were harmed. I will prescribe some medicine for him. After a month of internal and external treatment, he will fully recover.”
Xiao Changyuan, with his cold and aloof temperament, would never thank anyone.
Yun Pianpian spoke on his behalf, “Thank you, sir.”
Hearing Yun Pianpian's words, Doctor Zhou finally turned his gaze to her. He paused briefly and nodded at her.
Xiao Changyuan noticed this and frowned almost imperceptibly.
Doctor Zhou took out paper and a brush, wrote a few prescriptions, and handed them to Yun Pianpian. The medicine chest contained emergency wound medicine, which Doctor Zhou applied to Xiao Changyuan's injuries before wrapping them with bandages. Only then did he slowly pick up his medicine chest and leave.
After Doctor Zhou had gone, Jiang Cuicui suddenly slapped her forehead, remembering something, “Oh no! Grandpa told me to pay the consultation fee, but I forgot to give it to Uncle Zhou.” She pouted with a distressed expression, “How could I forget? And why didn’t Uncle Zhou ask for it?”
Hearing this, Xiao Changyuan's eyes turned icy.
He tilted his head and looked in the direction Doctor Zhou had left.
His dark, cold eyes were filled with frost.
Grandpa Jiang came out of the kitchen carrying dishes and, upon hearing this, pretended to scold Jiang Cuicui, “You scatterbrain! You really can’t be relied on. Remember to take the money to your Uncle Zhou after dinner. The food is ready, go to the kitchen and help your parents serve the rice.”
Yun Pianpian followed Jiang Cuicui to the kitchen to help bring out the dishes and serve the rice.
The two people cooking in the kitchen were Jiang Cuicui’s parents, whom they had already greeted earlier.
Everyone enjoyed a cheerful dinner together in the main hall.
Yun Pianpian’s social skills were impeccable.
By the end of the meal, she had finally pieced together the current situation.
It turned out this village was the Jiangjia Village from the original story, and Grandpa Jiang was the village chief.
Grandpa Jiang was not originally from Jiangjia Village. Sixty years ago, during the great famine of the Mo Dynasty, Grandpa Jiang fled with his parents, surviving by begging until they stumbled upon the remote Jiangjia Village. The village chief at the time took pity on them and offered them shelter. From then on, Grandpa Jiang’s family put down roots in the village. When he grew up, Grandpa Jiang married the village chief’s daughter. After the old chief passed away, he became the new village chief. Upon taking over, Grandpa Jiang often helped others, aiding those in poverty to overcome their hardships, passing on the kindness he had received.
After hearing this story, Yun Pianpian had only one thought in her mind.
.Xiao Changyuan’s villain aura was overwhelmingly powerful.
An ordinary character falling off a cliff might die from the fall, drowning, freezing, illness, starvation, or any number of tragic ends.
But when the great villain fell off a cliff, not only did he not die, he even encountered a living bodhisattva like this.
It really was infuriating how some people had all the luck.
But then again.
Xiao Changyuan’s villain aura ultimately couldn’t compare to Chu Yi’s protagonist halo.
In the original story, after losing his memory, Xiao Changyuan lived in Jiangjia Village for three years before accidentally regaining his memories. Once his memories returned, he swiftly made his way back to the capital and reclaimed everything that belonged to him. The male lead, Chu Yi, was consequently thrown off a cliff by him.
Yet, when Chu Yi fell off the cliff, not only did he not die, but thanks to his powerful protagonist halo, he unexpectedly gained eighty years of inner strength from a peerless master and a legendary martial arts manual. From then on, Chu Yi seemed to have activated cheat mode, gathering followers everywhere.
In the end, Chu Yi rallied forces from all sides, united the strength of five nations, killed the great villain Xiao Changyuan, and won the beauty’s heart.
So the difference between a protagonist halo and a villain aura probably boiled down to a martial arts manual and eighty years of profound inner strength.
Yun Pianpian let out a long sigh.
After the meal, Yun Pianpian helped Jiang Cuicui wash the dishes and tidy the courtyard.
The village chief arranged for Yun Pianpian and Xiao Changyuan to rest in the house next door, which belonged to Jiang Dalang.
Grandpa Jiang had three sons. Dalang and Erlang had moved to the town, leaving only his youngest son’s family still in Jiangjia Village. Jiang Cuicui was the daughter of Grandpa Jiang’s youngest son. After the two older sons left the village, their houses were left vacant.
After washing up, Yun Pianpian stared at the only bed in the room and began to worry.
She had claimed to be Xiao Changyuan’s wife, so naturally, she couldn’t sleep in separate beds from him.
But she had never in her life shared a bed with a man before.
Moreover, the man in question was a bloodthirsty, tyrannical emperor.
The very thought was terrifying.
.Ah, what a miscalculation.
If only she had claimed to be his master and him her servant instead.
Song of the Pipa, that classic tragic romance, mainly focused on the bittersweet love story of the male and female leads. As for how the great villain Xiao Changyuan lived in Jiangjia Village for three years, the author only glossed over it briefly. Thus, Yun Pianpian didn’t know much about this village.
Xiao Changyuan and the little palace maid had relied on each other for survival, sharing both hardships and joys for three years in Jiangjia Village, yet they never fell in love. Yun Pianpian guessed that a major reason for this was likely because both of them had lost their memories and didn’t know each other’s identities.
They could have been friends, sworn enemies, or even siblings.
Under such uncertain circumstances, neither of them dared to cross that line, let alone fall in love.
But now it's different, Yun Pianpian hasn't lost her memory.
She could easily lie and claim that she and Xiao Changyuan are in a master, servant relationship. That way, she wouldn't have to share a bed with him, endure the hardships of farm work, and could even enjoy the pleasure of being served by the tyrant.
Why had it taken her so long to think of something so delightful?!
Yun Pianpian sighed deeply, lamenting and regretting the more she thought about it.
She wished she could immediately find a block of soft tofu to crash into, reset the timeline, and transmigrate into this book all over again.
Just as she was lost in thought, Xiao Changyuan's deep, pleasant voice suddenly came from behind her.
“Wife, what's wrong?”
Yun Pianpian was startled and hurriedly turned around to find Xiao Changyuan standing right behind her.
“When did you come in?”
Why doesn't this guy make any noise when he walks?!
Xiao Changyuan gazed at her quietly, his pitch, black eyes as cold and dark as a tranquil winter night.
“From the moment you sighed for the first time.”
Yun Pianpian felt a chill run down her spine.
Thankfully, she didn't have the habit of talking to herself.
If Xiao Changyuan had discovered her muttering and complaining about the truth.
She was afraid that even ten lives wouldn't be enough to save her.
The more guilty she felt, the more Yun Pianpian rambled. She looked at Xiao Changyuan with dissatisfaction and began to chatter incessantly.
“Husband, why didn't you make any noise when you came in? Don't you know that your wife is delicate and weak, unable to withstand such fright? What if I were scared to death? Then you wouldn't have a wife anymore.”
Just as Yun Pianpian was about to seize the opportunity to launch into a long, winded lecture aimed at educating the evil tyrant, the tyrant interrupted her.
“Wife, what sound should I make?”
Yun Pianpian was taken aback. “For example, before you enter the room, you could say to me, 'Wife, I'm coming in.'“
Xiao Changyuan said, “Alright.”
Yun Pianpian was stunned again. This guy was surprisingly easy to train.
He was even more obedient than a puppy.
Was this really the bloodthirsty, murderous, and tyrannical emperor she knew?
For a moment, Yun Pianpian felt confused.
The darkness in Xiao Changyuan's eyes was so profound it seemed almost pure.
“Wife, what were you worried about just now?”
Yun Pianpian snapped back to reality and thought to herself, What am I worried about? Naturally, I'm worried that you, the tyrant, might lose control of your desires and take advantage of me while we're sleeping at night.
A man and a woman alone together, like dry wood meeting a fierce fire, it's just too unbearable.
“Nothing, I was just worrying about the future.”
Yun Pianpian tried to divert Xiao Changyuan's attention: “Husband, have you ever thought about where we should go in the future?”
Xiao Changyuan replied, “I haven't thought about it.”
Yun Pianpian looked at him with concern: “We've been robbed of all our money by the bandits, and our household registration and travel permits are gone too. Now we're essentially undocumented and can't go anywhere. The world outside is so chaotic, full of bandits and refugees. I think it's better to stay in this secluded paradise, farming, raising chickens, and keeping a little dog, rather than wandering aimlessly and living a life of uncertainty. What do you think, husband?”
Xiao Changyuan's gaze was deep and dark: “Whatever my wife says.
Meanwhile, Doctor Zhou returned home, closed the door, and locked it, only to realize that his back was drenched in cold sweat.
He hurried into the inner room, his face pale as he looked at the sickly young man lying on the bed.
“Your Majesty, I saw Xiao Changyuan!”