Volume One, Chapter One: After Five Years, He Finally Emerged from the Mysterious Forest Tower

For half a month, the capital had been shrouded in unceasing snow.

The Xuanlin Tower lay in a cold corner, as silent and menacing as a beast lying in wait.

Inside, all was deathly still.

Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps crunching through the snow broke the silence.

"Su Zhi, what luck you have! The Emperor himself has issued a decree, permitting someone from the Duke’s household to fetch you home!"

The speaker was Madam Li, a plump old woman clutching a hand warmer. She tugged anxiously at the snowy fox-fur collar around her neck, as though afraid the slightest draft might invade her skin.

In the past, Su Zhi was accustomed to Madam Li's scoldings echoing through the tower's bleak halls. But today, Madam Li’s demeanor had shifted, her voice unexpectedly gentle.

How rare.

Su Zhi rose abruptly, leaving behind the decrepit spinning wheel and setting aside her pristine thread. Head bowed, she silently followed Madam Li.

Five years—she had been imprisoned in this devouring Xuanlin Tower for a full five years.

And now, at last, someone from the Duke’s household had come to bring her home.

The Xuanlin Tower—a cage so confining even birds could not escape—held only the daughters of noble families condemned to death. Here, they toiled endlessly at weaving and washing, sometimes even serving as test subjects for poisons.

Some perished during the trials; the lucky ones were left to eke out a miserable existence within these walls.

Of those who ever walked out of Xuanlin Tower alive, Su Zhi was the first.

Five years ago, on the Winter Solstice, the true daughter lured her to the lakeside pavilion, then intentionally fell into the water. The true daughter could not swim, while Su Zhi was as adept as a waterfowl.

Everyone claimed Su Zhi had pushed the true daughter in.

With her pitiful demeanor, the true daughter won the entire Duke’s household to her side.

Thus, the Su family condemned Su Zhi to death, accusing her of being a false daughter who had stolen sixteen years of the true daughter's life and even attempted to murder her.

Her crimes were unforgivable.

So grave were her sins that even the elder brother who had loved her for sixteen years forced her to kneel before the true daughter and beg forgiveness. The second brother, for the sake of the true daughter, slashed her delicate face with his sword. The third brother personally sent her to Xuanlin Tower, instructing her to "enjoy" the life within.

Snow swirled in the air, and the blood-red plum blossoms within the tower bloomed in full splendor.

With a great creak, the unyielding doors of Xuanlin Tower were pushed open by a dozen burly guards.

A single plum blossom drifted down, settling on Su Zhi’s shoulder. She lifted her head slightly, gazing out at the boundless snowscape, a mysterious smile curving her lips.

There was no trace of fear in her eyes; instead, they shone with a chill more biting than the winter itself.

As expected, just as in her past life, today was the day she stepped out of this cage.

Five years ago, the prodigious physician Su Zhi had transmigrated into the body of this doomed imposter, moments before her suicide. Barely clinging to life, she opened her eyes—only to find herself reborn, at the very moment the original Su Zhi reached Xuanlin Tower.

In a single day, she experienced both transmigration and rebirth; it took her quite a while to recover from the shock.

She remembered everything of the original’s past.

In the previous life, the original Su Zhi was arrogant and foolish. When the true daughter returned, she still believed she could act as willfully as before, basking in the family’s affection. But the true daughter’s gentle and humble demeanor quickly won over her brothers and parents. With a few subtle moves, the true daughter orchestrated Su Zhi’s downfall, sending her straight to Xuanlin Tower.

In the original’s memory, the one sent to fetch her home today would be her second brother, Su Zhe—the very one who had scarred her face.

The reason for bringing her home was to marry her off in place of the true daughter to the recently returned, dying Prince Jin.

Rumor had it Prince Jin was monstrously cruel; the eight princesses before her had all died unnatural deaths. To marry him was to dig her own grave; to marry a man already at death’s door was to plunge into the abyss itself.

When Prince Jin died, his princess would be buried alive with him.

In her past life, Su Zhi had not even made it to the burial—she broke down long before and hanged herself.

But now, she was the leading figure in the world of medicine. After five years of rigorous training in Xuanlin Tower, there was no poison in all the realm she did not understand.

If her medical skills were second, none could claim the first.

She straightened her thin white garments, took a deep breath, hands on her hips, tilting her head—curious to see what this second brother, descending from the carriage, truly looked like.

A white cloud-toed boot stepped out first, followed by a man whose face bore a strained smile as he braved the snow.

That smile, on closer look, was anything but natural.

"Zhi, little sister, Second Brother has come to fetch you."

His deep voice, surprisingly pleasant, matched his upright appearance.

How could such a brother have dealt such a cruel blow?

Su Zhi stood still, letting the snow turn her dark hair white.

Su Zhe assumed that, true to her nature, Su Zhi would rush into his arms sobbing, then rage at him like an angry wildcat.

After all, his sword had left a scar upon her left cheek—twisted and glaring like a centipede.

Five years, and the scar remained vivid.

"These five years, you have suffered," he said, his tone tinged with pity yet betraying indifference.

In his mind, the suffering was simply the just deserts of a false sister.

Su Zhi was no fool; she would never mistake this faint pity for real remorse.

Her face expressionless, she forced out two stiff words: "Not suffered."

Her composure left Su Zhe momentarily stunned.

"Not suffered?"

"I usurped the life that should have belonged to Sister Su Wanwan. My sins are unforgivable; what is my suffering compared to hers?"

A tremor passed through Su Zhe’s heart.

The clarity in Su Zhi’s eyes was so sincere that anyone who looked would feel a pang of pity.

Could five years have truly transformed his once arrogant sister into someone so gentle and understanding?

Staring at her slender figure against the snow, Su Zhe felt something catch in his throat.

He had taken her from the darkness of Xuanlin Tower, but would life in Prince Jin’s manor be any better?

A sudden wave of guilt swept over him. Hesitantly, he asked, "You… do not hate…"

"I do not." Su Zhi’s reply was unyielding.

"Nor should you, Second Brother, harbor hatred for your sister," she added softly, stepping forward and bowing low.

She had to appear even gentler and more fragile than Su Wanwan—for her three blind brothers would only respond to such a display. She had no choice but to play the part.

Her silhouette on the snow was delicate, lonely, and unbreakably strong.

Just then, a plump shadow loomed behind her.

"Zhi, once you return to the Duke’s household, do not forget the care this old woman gave you over these five years!" Madam Li's cheeks bunched with her smile.

Her heart leapt with joy—she had longed for this day, when she could finally see the living terror that was Su Zhi sent away. She could not help but smile secretly, pleased that no one would ever again defy her under this roof.

Su Zhi turned slowly, her gaze passing over Madam Li’s greasy, smiling face, settling instead on the gates of Xuanlin Tower.

They stood still open, and within, her companions of five years watched her departure.

One by one, frail figures stood in the snow like white butterflies, too fragile to fly.

"Zhi, after you leave, you must live well for us. We… will never see the day when we are free," Ling’er had said through tears—words that lingered in Su Zhi’s mind.

These women’s only crime was to offend the powerful; now, they were but pawns, sacrificed in the games of noble families.

Their hands had never been stained with blood, yet they were castaways, forsaken by all.

Five years she had endured, biding her time for the day she could see places like Xuanlin Tower erased from the world, that Ling’er and all the women here might know freedom, and that the Su family’s blind fools might see at last their own folly.

Su Zhi’s gaze sharpened, fixing on Madam Li’s black eyes.

"Thank you, Madam Li, for your five years of care. You made me drink ice water in winter, eat leftovers, wash and spin cloth through the night, and test countless poisons. You forged my body and tempered my mind. I am truly, deeply grateful."