Chapter 10 010 He was angry, loved life, wanted to die, loved death...

"I seem to have never asked you whether you harbor any resentment?" The Prince of Dingxi leaned down to examine the person beneath him. His body was devoid of any warmth, and he coldly pressed her, "Don't try to deceive me. Whether it's true or false, I can tell at a glance."

Qingli's exposed shoulder felt slightly cool, and the pain of her ankle being pressed beneath her was piercing to the core. Their bodies were entwined in a passionate embrace, yet the atmosphere was tense and strained. Her round eyes were wide open, and tears quickly welled up, framing a shimmering beauty that prevented the Prince of Dingxi from seeing her true thoughts. She stubbornly turned her head away, only to be pulled back by the Prince. They tugged at each other three times. The Prince of Dingxi pinched his chin, where bruises had already appeared, and commanded without room for argument, "Speak!"

"Resentment!" Qingli shouted, a sudden sharp pain shooting through her jaw. Forgetting all sense of hierarchy, she repeated the words in anger, "Resentment!"

The Prince of Dingxi recoiled at the resolute look in her eyes and the finger she was pointing at, as if it were burning him, yet he couldn't bear to let go, his heart filled with gloom and fear.

The voice beneath her was filled with sorrow, unlike Jiang's hysteria and self-righteousness. Instead, it was a voice of rebirth from despair, containing both grievance and stubbornness: "What is resentment! I only wish for a peaceful life, but things never go as planned. Who doesn't resent? But even though I am a woman, I have principles and know that I should not serve two masters. You gave me time to think back then, and now that I have figured it out, I will not be pretentious and still regret it now."

Her words left the Prince of Dingxi speechless. He had heard countless grand pronouncements and vows of unwavering loyalty, but her words, though not a matter of life and death, inexplicably made him want to believe her.

Qingli's heart pounded as she nervously watched the Prince of Dingxi's face. As he leaned closer and closer to her eyes, she suppressed her subconscious annoyance and prepared herself to calmly endure it.

A voice rang out from outside, "Your Highness? Shen Yongning has urgent business to discuss!"

The Prince of Dingxi suddenly stopped, looking at her with a complex expression. He sighed twice, as if giving up in despair, and stood up, comforting her, "Rest well, I will come again later."

Having experienced such a dramatic turn of events, Qing Li felt a sense of relief and her heartstrings relaxed. Her whole body was exhausted, and her ankles were stiff and numb, unable to feel any pain. Without even saying a word of farewell, she just stared blankly as he left the house.

Jiang Zhao and Jiang Yue waited at the door, waiting for the sound of the Prince of Dingxi's footsteps to be heard on the stairs. They rushed into the house, their eyes red as they checked on their master.

"Hurry up and help me up."

Qingli gripped the window frame tightly with both hands, the splinters digging into her flesh, but she didn't feel it at all. Listening to Shen Yongning's abrupt actions below, disregarding the occasion and the abrupt explanation, the Prince of Dingxi listened for a moment, then strode forward. Suddenly, Shen Yongning, like a startled mouse, turned around and looked out the window.

She couldn't afford to attract Shen Yongning's attention any longer, so she immediately leaned back. Jiang Yue and Jiang Zhao caught her tightly and helped her to the bedside. When they saw her ankle was even more swollen, they both lowered their heads and busied themselves. Jiang Zhao turned around, wiping away her tears, to get the medicated oil, while Jiang Yue blew on it gently.

Qingli didn't feel miserable. She was only doing everything for the purpose in her heart, and now was not the time to be sad and cry.

She focused her attention on the news she had just heard that Meng Qingshan had welcomed the Crown Prince. If this was the case, then the Emperor's plan to pacify the feudal lords, as mentioned in her grandfather's letter, seemed to be a done deal. Since ancient times, the feudal lords who were pacified never had a good ending.

She had to leave the Prince of Dingxi's mansion before the charges against her were substantiated. Otherwise, if the prince's family was implicated, she would not know how to deal with them. The most terrifying thing was that a crime with a name and a surname would be impossible to escape.

What she needs to do now is to heal her ankle before seeing Meng Qingshan again, so that he can help her escape, and the timing must be neither too early nor too late.

Five days later, the Prince's mansion was in an uproar. Two hours later, it fell into an eerie silence. Jiang Yue returned with a worried expression, closed the doors and windows tightly, and said, "The imperial decree orders the Prince to hand over the soldiers of Yanmen City to the Longxiang Army to fight against foreign enemies."

For many years, the two border cities of Yunzhou have been harassed by Beigu, causing great suffering to the people. Only in the last two years has the war begun to improve. Logically speaking, it is a good thing for the country and the people for the vassal king to send troops to support them. However, it is still possible to resist when the war is difficult. Now that Beigu is showing signs of decline, if she takes this action again, it is a blatant relinquishment of military power.

If the Prince of Dingxi received the imperial edict, the other eight vassal kings probably did as well. Having been local tyrants for so long, relinquishing military power would not be easy. So why would the emperor use such an obvious tactic? If she were Meng Qingshan, as a pawn in suppressing the vassal kings, how could she have turned the tide and usurped the throne in this situation?

She thought about it for a long time but still couldn't figure out what he would do. The Prince of Dingxi was not a defenseless rabbit, but a powerful lion with a large army. Meng Qingshan was only a tiger fighting a lion, and a tiger whose wings were not yet fully grown.

She thought about it for a long time but still couldn't come to a conclusion. With a headache, she thought that as long as he could free her from this vortex, his fate was none of her concern.

Qingli looked up from her deep thoughts and saw a tall figure in the room. Her heart jumped into her throat, and she trembled with fear. Just a moment ago she was cursing and even wishing death upon others, and now she was being stared at like this. Anyone would be startled. She inwardly complained that Jiang Yue was too careless and didn't even remind her when a stranger entered the room.

Qingli had been airing her ankles these past few days, and now her jade feet were laid bare in front of him. He quickly pulled the brocade quilt over her and covered them, scolding, "You were so quiet, you scared me to death."

When Meng Qingshan heard Qi Zhaoxin say that there was a smell of medicinal oil in the room, he was worried that she was hurt, so he came to visit her as soon as he returned. He did not expect her to be so engrossed. It was rare that she did not treat him coldly, so he quietly stayed to the side and enjoyed the rare quiet between the two of them.

She scolded him, but Meng Qingshan seemed not to hear. He took the medicated oil from the cabinet, moved a low stool from behind the bed, sat on the edge of the bed, and pulled her ankle out from under the quilt. He rubbed the medicated oil in his hands to warm it up and vigorously rubbed the injured area. His strength was comparable to that of ten Jiang Zhaos. Qingli immediately burst into tears from the pain, but she dared not make a sound. She just bit her lip tightly and endured it.

After a short while, Qingli's ankle loosened, and she immediately pulled her leg back, her eyes red as she glared at him angrily, "Don't you know how to avoid suspicion? How dare you interfere in my affairs?"

"Your ankle is still a bit red and swollen. If the bruising isn't cleared up, it could cause problems later." Meng Qingshan completely ignored her flailing arms and legs, calmly retorting, "It's not like I haven't seen and treated this before. Is the illness more important, or is this unfounded concern more important?"

Qingli didn't want to bring up the past and was too lazy to argue with him, but she couldn't help but recall how he used to nag her more than a gossipy old woman no matter what she did, constantly giving her instructions, forbidding her from doing this or that, saying that this person had ill intentions and that person was not kind. She was annoyed by his words and would always agree verbally, but then turn around and do things her own way.

No matter how good the past was, it has come to this end. She doesn't want to dwell on the past and wants to move on.

Seeing that she had returned to her aloof demeanor, Meng Qingshan's eyes darkened. He straightened up by the bedside, creating some distance between them. An atmosphere of estrangement filled the room. After a moment, he said solemnly, "There are indeed guards stationed there. We've figured out the approximate location, and we'll begin our operation after dark."

Qingli was taken aback, not expecting him to bring this up. She hoped that person could be rescued, but she didn't know how to express it to him. Apart from cooperating with each other, it seemed that they had nothing to say to each other. After hesitating for a long time, she only said softly, "Oh."

After a long while, when the awkward atmosphere had become increasingly thick, Meng Qingshan suddenly stood up, his lips pressed into a straight line, the veins on the back of his large hands bulging, and he said in a stiff tone, "Take good rest."

He disappeared through the window like a gust of wind. Qingli knew he was angry. When he was furious, his whole body was tense like an arrow on a bowstring, and his sharp aura was overwhelming. But what did it have to do with her? Let him live if he wants.

Qingli called out, "Jiang Yue."

Jiang Yue entered with her head down. After clearing away the teacups, she tidied the chairs. She was very busy, and it was obvious to anyone with eyes that she was feeling guilty. Finally, she couldn't bear it any longer and said fearfully, "Madam, I wanted to report this, but when General Meng glared at me, I slunk out the door."

Jiang Yue looked at her frosty face and her completely dejected voice, "This servant doesn't know what I'm afraid of, but I'm terrified."

Qingli chuckled helplessly. Well, it was understandable that Jiang Yue was afraid of Meng Qingshan's domineering aura. However, she still instructed, "Next time you come, you can at least pay your respects to him, right?"

Jiang Yue understood that this was another kind of reminder from the lady, but when she thought of General Meng scrutinizing her with his brown eyes every time, and when she was caught talking badly behind her back, she felt guilty and didn't dare to speak. She closed her eyes and weakly agreed.

Qingli instructed Jiang Yue to open the window. The snow outside had melted, and as February arrived, the wind had lost its biting cold and began to become gentle. Occasionally, green shoots would sprout from the branches, and another spring had come.

That evening, Qingli felt inexplicably nervous. As she felt uneasy, the sounds of fighting came from outside, seemingly both near and far. A fine layer of sweat appeared on Qingli's palms. She got up and opened the window, only to vaguely see people moving about in the back garden, with the sounds of weapons clashing continuously. As her gaze widened, she suddenly clenched her fist. A large number of guards from the front yard, carrying torches, rushed towards the back garden like fiery snakes.

Meng Qingshan is in trouble!

Qingli's heart was gripped so tightly by a large hand that it could barely beat. She felt dizzy and could only watch helplessly as the guards surrounded the back garden, and the fighting gradually subsided.

A tear suddenly welled up from the corner of her eye, one after another, flowing silently and uncontrollably. She couldn't describe the feeling in her heart. Meng Qingshan was hateful and despicable, but in this vast Dingxi Prince's Mansion, because of their childhood friendship, he still held a more unspoken expectation for her than others.

A noise behind her caused Qingli's eyes to redden, her face streaked with tears. Through the mist, she saw Meng Qingshan's image superimposed on hers. Realizing something, she was startled and then retreated abruptly, almost leaning half her body out of the window, her tears falling like pearls into the darkness.

The next instant, she was suddenly pulled back and slammed into a hard chest. A muffled groan came from above her head. Qingli smelled a strong stench of blood, looked up abruptly, and asked anxiously, "Are you injured?"

Meng Qingshan hadn't expected the defenses to be so tight, and the situation inside to be even more dire. He knew the layout of the Dingxi Prince's Mansion and had escorted people out as the rearguard, but he was now trapped in the encirclement. Shen Yongning was ruthless and immediately tightened the encirclement, so he had no choice but to seek her protection. Looking at her pale face, bloodless lips, and fear in her round eyes, he comforted her, "It's just a minor injury."

For a moment, she was speechless. Meng Qingshan thought she was terrified and was about to say a few more words of comfort when he saw her tilt her head and look him up and down, her small mouth opening and closing, "Then what are you doing here?"

Meng Qingshan's blood stopped flowing and rushed to his head. For the first time, he felt a lump in his throat and couldn't make a sound. He actually chuckled softly.

"If I were discovered in this situation, I would be doomed." Qingli did not find this laughable.

Her words were like poison, piercing Meng Qingshan's speechless state. After a long while, he still couldn't find the words, and for the first time, he tried to bluff his way out with an ambiguous answer, "I can only trouble you."

At the brink of life and death, she helped him to this extent, but not only did she not receive any benefit, she was also dragged into a dangerous situation by him. Qingli suddenly felt a little regretful, with a sense of defeat as if she had lost both her wife and her army.

"You should leave quickly, this is not a place for me to stay."

"The Prince of Dingxi's residence is now surrounded, and no one is allowed to enter or leave."

Caught between breaths, Qingli choked, "You!"