Chapter 282 Grandmother and Brother, siblings finally reunited!

Li Qingluo looked at Pei Sanlang.

I saw him close his eyes, and tears streamed down his face.

"Then what exactly is the burden I've carried all these years?"

He cried and laughed, a struggle of confusion and bewilderment gradually appearing on his face.

Only then did everyone realize how heavy the burden he was carrying was.

The lives of all the young men in the Pei family rested on his shoulders. No wonder he was always so lifeless; it was because he had lived in the darkest shadow of the Pei family since childhood.

So he killed people.

He works for the Crown Prince.

He stirred up trouble in the murky waters of Nanjing.

He turned a blind eye and even tacitly approved of the evildoers' torture and murder of Twelve Sister.

He simply wanted the Pei family to survive in the cracks...

Zaina: "Sanlang, you don't have to do this."

“If your great-grandfather and I were to pass away, how could you bear all this alone?”

"Now, apart from you, no one in your family, including your uncle, knows that you have been poisoned. Can you keep it a secret for them for the rest of your life? Can you withstand all fate?"

"Sanlang, this matter is too painful."

“Your great-grandfather and I have suffered so much, and we have also dragged you into the vortex of the Pei family’s fate, where you have been trapped until now. We know it has been extremely cruel to you, but there are some secrets that we should tell your great-aunt.”

"She won't turn a blind eye, she won't abandon the entire Pei family, will she, Xiuzhen?"

Madam Pei's face was gloomy. Hearing this nonsense, she only gave a cold laugh: "This child has already been ruined by the two of you. Now what are you pretending to be a good person for?"

"All the misfortunes of the Pei clan are brought about by you, you vixen!"

"You have bewitched my brother; otherwise, how could the Pei family have embarked on such a treacherous path!?"

"If you hadn't caused trouble in the Pei family all these years, why would your elder sister have targeted all the young men of the Pei household, harming them as leverage against you?!"

"Zayna, in the end, it's all because of your selfishness and self-interest back then that the Pei family has come to this!"

"Stop spouting those high-sounding platitudes and trying to drag me back into this abyss!"

Zaina laughed bitterly.

"As expected... as expected, Pei Lang is the one who understands you best in this world. He once said that if you knew that I saved his life back then, the price was that the entire Pei clan would have to lie dormant from then on, and that it was a method that required taking other people's lives to prolong his life, you would definitely not agree."

"He said that if that were the case, you would rather his brother be dead than have him living like that..."

“But he did come back to life, Xiuzhen.”

"He lived for over thirty years!"

Madam Pei was so enraged that she wanted to rush forward: "I'm going to kill you, Zaina—"

Li Qingluo quickly grabbed Old Madam Pei tightly: "Grandmother! Grandmother, please don't be impulsive—"

Li Qingluo was somewhat wary of these people who knew witchcraft and sorcery. She was afraid that her grandmother might fall into their trap if she was not careful, so she did not want Madam Pei to get close to Zaina.

Madam Pei was panting heavily with anger, while Zaina remained calm and unresponsive.

Just then, the door opened, and the doctor who had entered first came out with a joyful expression, announcing, "Your Highness, you're awake!"

Duke Pei has woken up.

It was only through the combined efforts of Doctor Luo and Doctor Du that he was temporarily pulled back from the brink of death.

However, his life had already come to an end.

For years, he had relied on the lives of others to prolong his life, but now that the mother blood worm was dead, his life had naturally come to an end, and there was truly no way to reverse it.

Zaina was the first to rush in upon hearing the noise.

“Pei Lang—Pei Lang!!”

She buried her face in the old Duke's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

The old Duke: "Zayna, how come you... have aged too?"

He raised his hand and stroked her temple.

Everything within reach was pure white.

Zaina shook her head and smiled nonchalantly: "Does Pei Lang find me too old to look at?"

The old Duke said, "How could that be? Aren't I just a decrepit old man now? Even when I was at my worst, you never looked down on me, so what right do I have to look down on you for being old?"

"But...we've reached the end, haven't we?"

The moment Zaina lowered her eyes, tears streamed down her face.

"yes……"

"I'm sorry, Pei Lang, I've ruined you all these years..."

The old Duke sighed: "I don't blame you."

"Tell me, how much time do we have left?"

Zaina looked dejected: "At most... three days!"

Upon hearing this, both Doctor Luo and Doctor Du nodded silently.

Doctor Luo: "It seems you already knew his fate. Three days is indeed the limit of what we can do."

Duke Pei: "Three days is enough."

Zaina had no desire to face it.

"Pei Lang! We...we haven't finished anything yet, I'm just unwilling to give up...!"

Madam Pei came out from behind: "Then how far do you want to go?"

The old Duke trembled when he heard her voice.

He looked up in disbelief at his own sister, whom he hadn't seen for thirty years.

"Show...Show?"

"I never imagined I'd see you again in this lifetime. With that, brother has no regrets..."

Madam Pei, who was originally full of anger, completely lost her temper when she saw the old Duke Pei looking so frail, lifeless, and with his hair all white and messy.

"Brother...!"

After calling out, Madam Pei burst into tears.

Li Qingluo quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe her grandmother's tears: "Grandmother, do you want to go over there? Luo'er will help you."

Madam Pei nodded, took the handkerchief, and then, with Li Qingluo's help, went to the bedside.

"Brother, why did you...do this!"

At this point, Madam Pei was unable to utter any words of blame.

"Why didn't you tell me the truth back then? I would have faced it with you no matter what! You've suffered so much all these years, and what have you gained? You've even taken so many lives!"

The old Duke said, "I know I have failed the ancestors of the Pei family and the people of the world... But I, my Pei clan, have done right by the Duan family! It is the Duan family that has wronged us!"

After Duke Pei finished speaking, he looked at Prince Su, who was leaning against the crowd.

"Your Highness, tell me, are what this old minister said right or wrong?"

Prince Su: "Yes."

The old Duke couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"I never expected that Duan Changyan would have a son who could distinguish right from wrong!"

"Unfortunately, it's all too late now..."

Madam Pei: "Brother, what exactly did you do?"

The old Duke slowly closed his eyes: "After I was resurrected from the dead, I was filled with resentment and hatred. So all these years I have been secretly planning how to completely destroy your Duan Dynasty!"

"It's a pity that my health is not good, so I can only plan for the long term. That's why I nurtured Sanlang and made him my right hand."

“Even the Lotus Sect’s rapid growth in recent years has been aided by the secret influence of my Pei family.”

“I sent Sanlang to the Eastern Palace to pledge allegiance to the Crown Prince and secretly work for him. Even Bu’er thought we were part of the Crown Prince’s faction. As long as we can put the Crown Prince on that throne, our Pei family can rise again.”

"But actually... I know that the Crown Prince is just another Duan Changyan."

"He is shrewd and calculating, possesses both literary and military talents, is the legitimate heir, and his scheming and strategy are second to none. Indeed, he is the most qualified candidate for Crown Prince of Liang."

"But even if he ascends to the throne, how could he not abandon the Pei family again, just like Emperor Yan?"

"So, the huge mistake that the deposed crown prince was framed for was actually my doing!"

"If I want to overthrow the Duan Dynasty, then there can be no second Duan Changyan on the throne. I would rather the next emperor be a foolish and incompetent ruler, so that the Duan Dynasty will gradually erode and decay itself, destroying its own foundation!"

"At that time, whether it's the Lotus Sect or any other sect, wouldn't it be a piece of cake for them to overthrow the Duan family?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Sanlang, who was standing outside the door, turned deathly pale.

He knew that if even a single word of these words were to leak out, the entire Pei family would be completely finished.

And the great-grandfather actually said these things to Prince Su in person... Does this mean he is going to abandon the Pei clan?

Did he suddenly realize his mistake on his deathbed and feel that he had done something completely wrong?

Then what about all those dark years I've lived?

The old Duke said, "Over the years, I have indeed been secretly cultivating my own power. Originally... I was just one step away from the finish line. All I had to do was find the most useless prince to support as a puppet, and it would only take another twenty years to bring down the Great Liang..."

"Unfortunately, before we could accomplish anything, others had already seized control of our lives."

"Zayna's sister poisoned all the sons of my Pei family with a curse."

"Man proposes, God disposes, hahaha... Isn't this my retribution?"

"If I had simply raised an army and rebelled back then, even though my entire clan might have been implicated, it would have been better than this pathetic state I am in now!"

"Living a pathetic life, being pathetically controlled... living a pathetic life that turned into a demon."

"Hahaha, hahaha... It's all karma, karma never fails!!"

Seeing her beloved in such pain, Zaina could only hold his arm and try to comfort him, saying, "Pei Lang, don't be like this, Pei Lang... I was wrong, I was really wrong... Pei Lang!!"

The two looked at each other sadly, clearly regretting what they had done over the years.

Madam Pei could not bear to see this scene and turned her head away.

Li Qingluo couldn't help but ask, "What kind of poison is this 'Tethering Silk'? And why did Zaina's sister do this? What is her intention?"

Zaina looked at the old Duke.

The old Duke nodded, and she slowly replied, "The so-called 'Pulling Silk' is an extremely poisonous medicine from the Miao region, made from thousands of poisonous insects."

"It is also a unique secret formula that only the sect leader can possess and control within my sect."

Li Qingluo: "So your sister is now the head of your sect? Is she colluding with the Lotus Sect, or is she currently working for the Crown Prince?"