The early morning mist still clung to the hills when Chen slammed the wooden bucket down beside the well, pouting so hard his cheeks looked like steamed buns.
"I can't believe it!" he huffed, glaring at the house. "She got married and didn't even tell us?!"
Ran, kneeling nearby to sort the beans, crossed her arms. "She's Mother! She should've said something! I even helped her pack her robe that day! If I knew it was for a wedding—!"
"She tricked us!" Chen declared, pointing dramatically at the sky. "Unforgivable!"
From the porch, Lin nearly dropped his teacup."Wait—what?"
Both children froze, then turned toward him with identical suspicious glares."You!" Ran said. "You're the one she married, aren't you?!"
Lin coughed, almost spilling his tea. "Now, that's— ah— not exactly how—"
"Don't 'not exactly' us!" Chen said, puffing up. "We're her children! We have the right to know!"
Lin sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "It was... a misunderstanding. Your mother—"He stopped, the memory flickering in his eyes like a blade under sunlight."—handled things in her own way."
Flashback — The Banquet Hall
The imperial court glittered beneath the chandeliers, each noble dressed in silks as bright as butterfly wings.Music drifted through the air — elegant, false, suffocating.
At the head of the hall, the Empress smiled serenely.Before her, Achu stood in her simple peasant garb — plain brown robes, loose hair, straw sandals. The contrast was almost insulting.
But her eyes was calm, unblinking — made even the gold-draped ministers avert their gaze.
"Today," the Empress said sweetly, "we celebrate both the empire's peace and the long-awaited return of my daughter. As promised to the heavens and her late mother — Achu shall fulfill her duty to the royal line."
Whispers erupted among the courtiers."An arranged marriage?""With Prince Zhen?""Her? The peasant girl?"
Then came the voice that cut through the room like ice.Prince Zhen, Achu's imperial cousin, sneered."So this is the famed country bumpkin of Anning Village. Tell me, cousin— do your illegitimate children know you're finally returning home?"
The hall went still.
Achu didn't flinch. Instead, she smiled — slow and almost kind."So what if I'm a peasant?" Her voice echoed through the marble chamber."Is it wrong for me to live? Do you really think I live there because I'm poor?"Her eyes burned with gold light."You're wrong!"
The ground trembled.A faint ripple of spiritual pressure swept through the hall — gentle as a breeze, yet the tapestries quivered, the chandeliers chimed.
Even the guards stepped back.
One of the royal enforcers fell to one knee. "Forgive me, Master, but this young lady— she's capable of annihilating at least a country."
The room erupted in gasps.
"Annihilate—?""Impossible! She's been sealed for years—"
"No," the Emperor's voice boomed across the room, silencing them."She was never sealed. She was approved. By me."
His eyes softened, watching his daughter — the one who chose exile over power.
"She was never banished for her weakness," the Emperor said. "She was freed because of her strength."
Prince Zhen, trembling, stammered, "W-what are you saying—"
But before he could finish, Achu's gaze turned to him, serene but sharp as a blade.A spark of her qi brushed past him — and he fainted instantly, a shriek escaping before his knees hit the floor.
"Ekkkkkkkkk!"
Achu sighed, flicking her sleeve. "I only glared at him. How disappointing."
The ministers scrambled, bowing, muttering apologies.
And in that silence, Achu looked to the Emperor — her father — and said quietly,"You promised me peace, Father. If you can't keep the court from turning my home into their experiment field, I will."
Then she turned, disappearing into thin air — leaving the scent of mountain wind and wild herbs behind.
Back to Anning Village
"...And that's what happened," Lin finished awkwardly, setting his cup down.The children's mouths hung open.
"So... you're not married?" Ran asked slowly.
Lin blinked. "No."
Chen squinted. "But the rumors said—"
"Rumors," Lin muttered, sighing. "Travel faster than truth."
Ran's cheeks flushed red. "Then why didn't you say something! We were worried!"
Lin smiled faintly. "Would you have believed me?"
The two exchanged a look — then huffed in unison. "...Maybe."
A moment later, Fei toddled out from the house, clutching a spoon."Papa?" she mumbled sleepily, pointing at Lin.
The air froze.
Lin froze.Chen blinked. Ran gasped.Achu, who had just stepped out carrying a basket of herbs, almost tripped.
"Fei!" she sputtered. "W-who taught you that word?!"
Fei only giggled and reached out to Lin, who turned scarlet.
The children burst into laughter."So she is your wife!"
"Congratulations, Papa Lin!"
"Wha— that's not—" Lin's protest drowned under their laughter.
Achu groaned, setting down her basket. "You three are impossible."
But as she watched them — her little family loud and unafraid — a small smile tugged at her lips.
The laughter carried through the golden fields, mingling with the rustling wind.For the first time in a long while, Anning felt like home again — even if the world outside had already begun to stir.