" I had no future, no title, I was a slave. I had no family left; I was all alone, but a single encounter changed my life, and I became the sword of my own glory."
My name is Xian Yue and my story begins with my father's death.
I still remember it as if it were yesterday, the night my father was on his deathbed. It was raining and it was so cold.
The doctor had just left. My father was there, looking at me, but I could see in his eyes how much he regretted leaving me alone.
"Yue..."
"Yes, Father, I'm here," I said.
I took his hand. It was so cold. In a weak voice, he called out my name once more.
"Yue... Yue... I feel my strength fading away. My body can no longer carry me. Seeing you all alone, without me or your mother, hurts me deeply. If only..."
"Father..."
With tears in his eyes, he caressed my face.
"Yue, you are my daughter, my blood, the fruit of my love for your mother. If only my family hadn't forced me to take a second wife after your mother left... and if I hadn't ended up on this deathbed, your life would have been better."
"Father, you mustn't blame yourself for grandmother's mistakes. You were good to my mother right up until her death. I hold nothing against you."
He looked at me and said,
"Yue, you must live a better life. Take care of yourself while I'm gone. Don't stay in this house, nor in this village. You must find happiness."
I replied with a heavy heart, "But where would I go?"
"Yue, there is something you must know: your mother had a hidden identity. She belonged to the Xuan family, a clan of renowned generals in the Empire. She had to leave her family and the capital for my sake, and she decided to change her name from Xuan Rong to Yue Rong."
"Father... do you mean my mother was from the capital?"
"Yes, Yue, your mother was from the capital. Yue, I forbid you from staying with that woman and her children. Go to the capital and find a young man named Zhen Yu; he was a friend of your mother. Yue, promise me you will go to the capital and never return to this village."
"Father, I can't leave everything behind... you are all I have."
He replied firmly, "Promise me that you will go and find this man and never come back here, never again, as long as that woman is alive. You must never..."
With tears in my eyes and a heavy heart, I accepted and promised him I would never return.
"My daughter, I feel death calling me. I wish you an easy and happy life. Always stay strong. Never bow down to those who wish you harm, but rather fight for your honor and your life. Above all, stay alive..."
He began to vomit blood.
"This is the end for me, my dearest Xian Yue. Looking at you, I see your mother's face. Yue, with all my heart, I hope you will remember me, and if I have ever unknowingly hurt you, may your forgiveness go with me... I am sorry. I love you."
And suddenly, my father closed his eyes. He was still holding my hand when his grip suddenly went limp.
"Father! Father, no... please, Father, don't leave me!"
My maid, Li Wei, who was standing right outside the door, heard my cries. She opened the door and saw me beside my father...
"My lady, please get up. Let me check..."
After a moment, she stood back up in silence and said, "My lady, Master is no longer breathing. I am so sorry for your loss."
I still couldn't believe it... Li Wei pulled me into her arms and comforted me, then went to break the news to my stepmother Mei Lin and her two children, my half-brother Xian Baichen and my half-sister Xian Ruolan. They arrived, feigning tears... My stepmother threw herself onto my father's body, wailing loudly, and her two children did the same.
The servants took my father's body away after wrapping it in a shroud. Li Wei and her brother followed behind the servants. From a distance, I gazed at my father's face one last time, my eyes overflowing with burning tears. Then my stepmother stood up, approached me with a dark glare filled with malice.
"At last! Ha ha ha... He is gone! Yue, I can finally get rid of you!"
A cruel smile spread across her face as she added,
"You will disappear without a trace. Your father shielded you all these years after your mother died, but now he is gone too. You are entirely alone now, Xian Yue."
Xian Ruolan pushed me, laughing darkly, as she spoke.
"Big sister, big sister, big sister... I wonder what we shall do with you."
"The neighbor's son is looking for a wife. He'd make a fine husband for you especially since he's so old. Or why not just reduce you to dust?"
I stood up with a look of sorrow, consumed by rage. My half-brother looked at me with a smirk.
"If we are to eliminate her, we must not soil our own hands."
"You are right, my brother," Xian Ruolan replied.
"Mother, I have a splendid plan to get rid of our poor sister."
My stepmother summoned her men to seize Li Wei and her brother. Then she asked Ruolan for her plan to get rid of me.
"Ruolan, tell me... What is this brilliant scheme of yours?"
She answered,
"Mother, we need money. Why not sell our dear sister, her maid, and her manservant to the slave merchant? She has been in our village for two days looking for slaves. Our poor, dear sister will do just fine."
Xian Baichen took my hand, smiling.
"Ruolan, what a wonderful idea! We'll take her tomorrow morning after our father's funeral. We are going to make a fortune."
I raised my left hand and brutally slapped Baichen across the face, shouting in a firm voice, "Get rid of me? I promised Father I would do whatever it takes to survive. You had better pray I don't come back alive because I will make you pay dearly. I know one of you is behind Father's death, and if I survive, I will take all of you down and avenge his name."
My stepmother struck my face with a harsh blow, spitting out.
"Shut up. You won't survive. All your father's wealth will be mine. You're going to become a good-for-nothing. And to begin with, you are going to taste the bitter flavor of the suffering that awaits you."
"Chain her up with her maid, as well as that good-for-nothing servant! Yue, you aren't going to attend your father's burial. We will do it, and you will kindly stay right here until tomorrow, when we sell you off as a slave."
Li Wei cried out,
"My lady... They have no right! You cannot deny her a final goodbye to her own father! You are nothing but monsters!"
Laughing, Ruolan said with a mischievous grin,
"Say whatever you want, servant... I have a little idea. Why not have you beaten all night long until dawn?"
My stepmother agreed. We were taken to my mother's old house. My stepmother's men beat us mercilessly. But only one thing echoed in my heart: "Above all, stay alive..."