After being reborn, I stole the female lead's cheat ability and raised the empress.

Chapter 49 The Beggar

In reality, Ali was terrified inside, constantly berating herself in her mind: "Everyone around me is too scared to speak. Are you trying to get closer? Do you want to die?"

Xuan Yuansheng, his face dark and foul, gave a merciless order: "Men, cut off one of her arms."

"!!!" This is really going to be the death of me!

Dead legs, run!

Thinking this, Ali's body remained motionless, only her eyes widened, clearly hurt by the male lead's words.

Regardless of the struggle between body and soul, Xuan Yuansheng's men were already approaching him with swords drawn.

Without the slightest hesitation, the man swung his knife at himself...

Ali fell to the ground in fright, her eyes filled with immense terror. Now, her body and soul were truly united.

But Ali felt no joy whatsoever. Her eyes were filled with darkness, seeing only the large sword getting closer and closer, and the cold glint of its blade.

No way, no way? Is she really going to lose an arm right here? She doesn't want to...

What other way is there to save herself? Ali's mind raced, but the more she tried, the more confused she became; she couldn't think straight at all.

Xuanyuan Sheng is the male lead, who dares to contradict him?

Just then, a shrill, hoarse voice shattered the deathly silence and the stench of blood: "Imperial edict has arrived—"

"Announcement: Xuanyuan Sheng must enter the palace to meet the Emperor as soon as possible—"

Upon hearing this, Xuanyuan Sheng snorted coldly and rode off on his horse.

The others followed their master. The man who had attacked Ali ignored her when he saw his master.

"To cut or not to cut?"

He hesitated for only a moment before leaving her behind and catching up with the group.

……

Only when the group disappeared at the end of the street did Ali find her main god again, her eyes filled with the joy of being reborn.

Luckily, I was fortunate that the imperial edict came at the right time and saved me.

But will she be so lucky next time?

Yu Yang observed all of Ali's actions, a mocking expression on his face. So this was how obviously the boss liked someone. How could I possibly believe my former boss had feelings for me too? Based on just a tiny bit of physical contact?

Ah Li was unaware of his ulterior motives, because at that moment Ah Li discovered that she could move freely as soon as the male lead left.

Is it...

Ali tried to move her hands and feet. Ignoring the pointing and whispering of the people around her, she stood up and ran and jumped around.

She tried to hug Yu Yang again, and thankfully, she had fully regained her mobility.

So, in storylines where the male lead isn't present, you can improvise as you please, right?

Looking up, I saw that Yu Yang's face was full of astonishment, but his eyes showed a hint of surprise and bitterness.

Hmm? A surprise?

Bitter?

What's the surprise? And what's the bitterness?

Following Yu Yang's gaze downwards, Ali quickly released Yu Yang's waist.

"Ah! Um, sorry, I didn't mean to, I just..." She trailed off, unable to finish her sentence. Just what? Was it because of the plot? He probably hadn't even heard of that!

A silence fell over the room.

Yu Yang spoke first, tentatively asking, "You...like him?"

"No, no, no, how could I possibly like him? Nobody likes something that's deadly."

Ali waved her hands repeatedly, involuntarily recalling her feelings for the male lead and her actions just now, and her face instantly fell. She couldn't help but think of the power of the plot.

Is she forever unable to defy fate?

The original owner of this body in the book died protecting the male protagonist. If things continue this way, she'll give her life for him!

She doesn't want to!

No, I need to find a way to get out of the plot's influence right away.

"System..." She was about to call the system, but then she thought better of it. The system was created for the plot, so how could it possibly allow her to break free from the plot?

Little did they know that the system inside their brain was also going crazy: this was not part of its plan at all!

Looks like it needs an upgrade soon!!!

Yu Yang, who was standing next to him, was also wondering if the boss liked the aloof, wolf-like type.

The more I think about it, the more likely it seems. Otherwise, why would I be so excited that I couldn't stand up straight when I saw Xuanyuan Sheng?

Pulling herself out of her thoughts, Ali saw Yu Yang's complicated expression and hurriedly explained, "I don't like him at all. I was just... just seduced by his good looks. Yes! I was seduced. It was a mindless act. But he actually tried to cut off my hand. Just for that, I could never like him in my life."

Yu Yang, who already felt wronged, couldn't help but retort: ​​"Beauty seduction? Then wouldn't you fall in love with every handsome man you see? There are so many handsome men in the world."

"No, no, no, how could that be? Am I such a shallow person?"

Yu Yang gave Ali a deep look but didn't say anything.

Ali understood what he meant. She exploded: "!!! Let me tell you, what I like has always been the 'puppy dog'... ugh! The weak scholar, I like a charming, gentle, and loving husband."

"A scholar must be handsome. You'd definitely like him."

"I..." Ali was speechless for a moment. But she suddenly found a counter-argument: "Who doesn't like a good-looking woman? Would you rather marry a disheveled, ugly beggar woman?"

Just as the two were arguing, several little beggars darted out, and Ali naturally seized the opportunity to make a scene.

Yu Yang looked unwell; it was obvious he couldn't answer.

But they soon realized that the group of little beggars seemed to be coming for them. One of the children, who was about half a person's height, even bumped into Ali.

The child hurriedly said "I'm sorry" and ran away. The other beggars immediately dispersed as well.

Ah Li's expression tightened, and she quickly reached for her waist. Sure enough, her purse had been stolen.

Seeing her expression, Yu Yang understood and turned to chase after the beggar, but Ali stopped him: "It's okay, let him take it. I'll get it back from him later."

"……All right."

After this incident, the two actually reconciled.

As Ali walked, she pondered, "Logically speaking, the capital city is the gateway to the Azure Dragon Empire, the center of the empire's power and wealth. There shouldn't be any beggars here."

Yu Yang explained, "The emperor didn't not want to drive them away, but he simply had no choice."

Although the emperor had previously thought it would damage the empire's reputation and had ordered them to be driven out of the city, he eventually found that no matter how hard he tried, he could never get rid of them all.

You know how cutthroat this capital city is. Every day, people are forced to lose their families and lives. Who knows which families will be reduced to beggars tomorrow?

This became an intractable problem in the capital, compounded by the willingness of the black market to take them in. Therefore, the emperor tacitly approved the establishment of a slum across the river by the black market operators to house these homeless people.

"profound--"

That's true; tigers are easy to catch, but flies are hard to swat.

Ali lowered her head and remained silent for a while, then looked up and asked him, "The black market shouldn't be without expecting anything in return, right?"

"Of course. There aren't that many truly selfless good people in this world. People who do charity are either after fame or profit. Many of the new blood in the black market also come from the slums. And these ubiquitous beggars are often unexpectedly helpful."