Chapter 1 Phoenix Nirvana
A deep wintery night, in a frozenndscape.
As the cold winter wind passed through, the candle that was set on the table flickered before ultimately
going out, as it was unable to defend against the strong winds.
"Your Highness, you should go rest." A girl in ragged garments came over to help up the woman sitting
on the ground.
"No matter." A faint trace of mncholy shown through the woman''s voice, as she didn''t hold the girl''s
hand but merely said, "Yizhu, you go and rest, I want to sit here alone."
After hearing the woman''s orders, Yizhu withdrew without turning her head.
As she watched Yizhu leave, her lips helplessly burst into a smile. Perhaps, today will be her death
anniversary.
She, Qilian Qingyan, was the granddaughter of General Qilian Jingyu, who was a founder of this
country.
At 13 years old, she married the Crown Prince as his wife, bing the Princess Consort that
everyone envied, with a lifetime of endless glory and wealth. After the Crown Prince seeded the
throne, she furthermore, became the Empress that was only second to the Emperor, ruling over the
expansive six pces, often covered in wealth.
She''d never thought that this would all end on something called the ''Prophecy Stone''. In the end, even
she was charged with the crime of insurrection and sentenced to the Cold Pce*.
(*TN: Literal trantion of it''s name, it''s the pce where wives that have lost favor with the Emperor
are sent.)
The day and night change, an endless cycle.
Qingyan walked up to the window. Thendscape outside the Cold Pce was beautifully adorned in
silver by the snow, perhaps everything wille to an end today.
This snowfall was sure heavy, so heavy that it could cover up all the sins in this world.
And she too, was destined to fall during this snow.
She wasn''t afraid of death. She just wished that her husband, on behalf on their past love, be kind to
their son and daughter.
"Oh, isn''t this elder sister, the Empress? How did you end up like this?" A sarcastic voice entered
Qingyan''s ears.
The woman was wearing a long dress with a Luanniao* facing the Phoenix embroidered on it in silver
and gold threads. Her skin was as smooth as cream, and in her light smile and low tone was an
indescribable kind of elegance.
(*TN: A mythical bird simr to the phoenix))
Before her was Qilian Qingyi, her younger sister, who once had always liked her husband. And now
with that dream havinge true, she became the current Emperor, Weisheng Junyan''s, most
precious treasure.
As for her, Qilian Qingyan, she was only an abandoned old shoe!
The vows ''a pair for life'', made in the past, have ceased to exist.
"Elder sister, are you getting used to living in the Cold Pce?" Qingyi while looking at the
expressionless Qingyan, mockingly opened her mouth, "You have to know, for you to have ended up
like this, it was all masterminded by myself."
Upon hearing this, Qilian Qingyan stared at her with a face full of shock.
It was......actually her!
Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.
Seeing the change in Qingyan''s expression, Qingyi, looking pleased, lifted the corner of her mouth:
"The assassination of the Empress Dowager, the previous Emperor''s death, even the prophecy stone,
were all by my design. Just so I can steal everything away from you!"
After these incidences had urred, she had thought of almost everyone, but of all people, overlooked
her kind and understanding younger sister. She had always thought she''d treated her well, yet in the
end, she was defeated at the hands of this woman.
How could she be content with this?
Thinking this, a shadow of resentment began to grow on her face.
"Elder sister, you really shouldn''t me me, if you want to me, then me that heartless father of
yours. Always thinking of you, the eldest daughter, and neglecting all of us, the younger ones*." Qilian
Qingyi gritted her teeth as she said this. She looked as if she wanted to sh Qingyan into a million
pieces.
(*TN: [Shù nǚ]- This refers to all the daughters or children that were not firstborn or bore by the legal
wife. In cases where polygamy is practiced, children of concubines were referred to this as well.)
"Qilian Qingyi, he''s also your father too, you shouldn''t be that cruel!" Qingyan angrily said this to
Qingyi, "Even if you hate me, don''t use father and the entire Qilian household to vent out your anger!"
Qingyi let out augh, "Qilian Qingyan, let me tell you right now that his Majesty has already sentenced
the entire Qilian n to death, and in the end I''m thest one standing."
The hatred in Qingyan''s eyes was enough to engulf the person before her. She stood up and rushed
before Qingyi yelling, "WHY? HOW COULD YOU FIND IT IN YOURSELF TO DO SUCH A THING?
WHY?"
Hearing themotion, Yizhu and other men dressed in ck rushed in and proceeded to hold down
Qingyan.
Partially looking at Yizhu, she opened her mouth: "I''d never thought that the one who''d betrayed me
was you!"
Yizhu, not even giving her the time to breathe, directly kicked her before Qingyi, coldly replying: "Your
Highness, the so called wise man submits to circumstances, I hope you do not me this humble
servant!"
"I just wanted to see you fall from grace. You also know that his Majesty is gullible, he''ll believe
whatever I say, so naturally the unlucky one is you." Seeing Qingyan kneeling before her, sheughed
brilliantly.
As if recalling something, she turned to Yizhu beside her, "Say, how should we punish this ''Country
Destroying*'' demoness."
(*TN: The original idiom means something along the lines of ''to cause damage to the country and
cause suffering to the people)
Hearing Qingyi''s words she looked to Qingyan before taking a bow and replying, "I once heard that in
the country of Xiyue, there''s this extremely cruel punishment, where you turn the person into a human
swine for others to toy with."
"What''s a human swine*?" Qingyi looked to Qingyan, still smiling.
(*TN: There''s actually an actual historical precedence of this.)
"Your Highness, it''s said that the four limbs will be cut, eyes gouged, drowning the ears in water to
cause deaf, cutting off the tongue to cause mute, andstly put in a bottle for others to toy with." Yizhu,
while looking at Qingyi, replied politely and respectfully, as if she had never served Qingyan before.
As she listened to Yizhu''s voice, Qingyan suddenly burst intoughter: "Kindness and evil are
wait to see your end!"
Hearing this, Qingyi looked to the men in ck, and coldly said, "Hurry up and do it."
The men in ck forcibly held down Qingyan''s body and poured a bowl of medicine down her throat.
She could only feel the painful burning sensation in her throat.
Seeing Qingyan''s sorry state, Qingyi walked up and whispered in her ear, "Ah, I almost forgot to inform
elder sister. Before I came here, his Majesty told me to tell you, that he will never meet you again in this
life."
Never to meet again in this life!
Qingyan lowered her head, no longer looking at the face of the person before her. In the pce, she
had consolidated her every step, believing that if she could obtain his heart she could obtain the world,
but ultimately still lost. Lost to the point where her whole n has fallen, and ended up with the title of a
''Country Destroying'' demoness.
"Your Highness, do we need to turn the abolished Empress into a human swine for other''s
amusement?" Yizhu carefully said as she watched.
Looking at Qingyan''s half dead state, Qingyi lifted the corners of her lips: "Naturally there''s the need to,
just imagine if her children were see their mother fallen to such a state, what would they think?"
Listening to Qingyi''s words, she lifted her head to look towards Qingyi, her eyes were calm without a
trace of disturbance. But in the next second, she suddenly stood, knocking over the candleholder, and
with the power of the wind, the fire grew. She looked to Qilian Qingyiughing: "Even if you kill me, you
will still never obtain his Majesty''s heart."
Seeing Qingyan''s appearance, Qingyi wanted to give her a kick, however the fire was too big and
unable to be controlled, so instead Qingyi was hurriedly dragged away by the guards.
Qingyan sat amidst the fire, whistling the tune of [Thousand Beasts and Phoenix], and for a moment
the entire imperial pce was covered by ck clouds at first nce, but it was actually an enormous
murder of crows.
She will remember these people, and all those that lead her to ruins. If she had another chance at life,
then she will definitely let them suffer, fall into hell, and sentenced to eternal damnation!
In the historical records of Nanchen*: Kangyuan* year 30, the abolished Empress, Qilian Qingyan, died
at the tender age of 25.
(*TN: [nánchén] - Name of the country; [Kāngyuán] - A historical date marker simr to BC)