Ants' Will to Sacrifice Themselves to Death

Outside the palace gates, the wedding procession was already prepared, and the sounds of gongs, drums, and flutes resounded once again, shaking the heavens.

Zhiwei changed back into her favorite plain clothes, removed her hairpins and jewelry, and climbed the palace wall step by step.

The wind was strong at a high place, causing her clothes to flutter.

She stood at the highest point, looking down.

This was the first time she had ever looked down upon such a grand sight—a vast expanse of palaces and pavilions stretching as far as the eye could see, their golden glazed tiles shimmering like scattered gold in the afterglow of the setting sun.

The palace was originally a four-sided compound, with deep halls, flying eaves and brackets, and every brick was exquisitely carved. No wonder so many people rushed to it, and no wonder the palace walls swallowed so much blood and tears.

An ant under the power is too insignificant; her youth and freedom are even less worth mentioning.

But at this moment, instead of feeling sad, Zhiwei felt a strange emptiness in her heart that she had never felt before.

It was as if the pent-up emotions of many years had finally found an outlet, flowing away with the departing wedding procession.

A smile uncontrollably crept onto her lips, and for the first time in many years, she felt that breathing could be so easy.

Or perhaps life is meant to be this light and carefree.

——

Zhiwei quietly returned to the side hall of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, carefully and almost ritualistically washing her hands and face. The little princess was still fast asleep, her breathing even and long, her small chest rising and falling slightly. Zhiwei sat by the cradle, rocking gently and slowly, swaying with the flickering candlelight.

As night fell, the palace servants and eunuchs who were usually on standby were nowhere to be found, and for a moment, the palace was eerily quiet.

"Bang--!!!"

With a deafening crash, the door slammed against the wall, groaning in pain.

Zhu Liji's face was gloomy, like the dark clouds pressing down on a city before a storm, and his whole body was filled with a more terrifying aura than ever before.

He seemed to be burning, and Zhiwei's blood was boiling and roaring along with him.

Bringing a gust of cold wind, Zhu Liji strode up to Zhiwei in a few steps, his eyes blazing with fury. Without giving Zhiwei any time to react, he slammed a bright yellow scroll at her!

It was a memorial submitted by Jiang Tan.

Zhiwei was slightly swayed by the scroll, but she lowered her head, showing no sign of panic.

Zhiwei gave a casual, full yawn and finally stopped rocking the cradle: "No need to look anymore."

Zhiwei's face remained indifferent.

It's an admission without being asked.

"Why?!" Faced with Zhiwei's attitude of not even offering an explanation, Zhu Liji almost roared. He suddenly bent down, grabbed Zhiwei's collar, and lifted her up from the cradle.

Those scarlet eyes churned with a destructive storm: "Haven't I been lenient enough with you? What more do you want?! You actually... you actually dared to lay a hand on Consort Ling! She was so close to you and trusted you so much! She relied on you for everything! Yan Zhiwei, what is your heart made of?"

"If I had known you were such a stubborn rock, I should have... I should have killed you back then!"

The furious roar instantly startled Zhaoyang, who was fast asleep in the cradle. The little baby was so frightened that he jumped up and burst into a loud, terrified cry.

Zhiwei did not immediately respond to Zhu Liji's question. Instead, she bent down and took the crying Zhaoyang into her arms, gently patting her back.

The child's crying subsided slightly, turning into a plaintive sob.

Zhiwei then raised her eyes and met Zhu Liji's eyes, which were almost spitting fire.

"You should have killed me back then? No, Your Majesty can kill me now."

"But, can His Majesty kill me now?" Zhiwei suddenly laughed, though she was talking about losing her head, her words carrying a hint of relief and joy.

It was as if she had been waiting for this day for a long time.

For some reason, Zhu Liji felt a chill in his palms.

Could it be that Zhiwei thinks that because she has served him for so many years, she has a get-out-of-jail-free card?

It's absurd. He is the ruler, while she, powerless and a mere servant, can only be considered a half-subject at best.

"You think I wouldn't dare kill you? But there's no one in the world I can't execute," Zhu Liji said through gritted teeth. It was time for him to remind the man before him who held the real power.

Whipping and then submission. Zhu Liji glared at him.

Zhiwei shook her head, as if she had anticipated his reaction.

“This servant knows her place and has never dared to dream of Your Majesty’s favor or affection,” Zhiwei paused, “This servant only wants to remind Your Majesty that if this servant dies, Your Majesty will probably not be able to live on alone.”

Zhu Liji was taken aback, then became even angrier: "What do you mean?"

Zhiwei finally put down the swaddled baby in her arms and slowly straightened up: "I killed Consort Ling. That precious life-extending pill was indeed poisoned by me and fed to her by hand."

"As for why I wanted to kill her, can't Your Majesty guess?" Zhiwei walked closer and closer, finally standing directly opposite Zhu Liji.

She spoke each word carefully, afraid that Zhu Liji might have misunderstood her:

"Because I hate you, I want you to taste what it feels like to lose a loved one! I want you to experience firsthand the despair and pain I felt when I was pinned to the ground and my hand was crippled in the Sinzheku!"

Zhiwei held her head high, standing only inches away from Zhu Liji, yet she felt no fear whatsoever, like a warrior who had long since disregarded life and death, with even a smile playing on her lips.

Zhiwei continued, "Besides, there are many things I've been hiding from Your Majesty. Far more than you can imagine. Your Majesty...would you like to know?"

The person in front of him was already half an inch away, with rosy lips and white teeth. For a moment, Zhu Liji wanted to pounce on her and bite her, to pry open her lips and tongue, to figure out why this mouth was so powerful.

But he didn't do that. He just stared at her intently, his jaw clenched, and squeezed out two words through his teeth: "You say it!"

"Your Majesty, have you been feeling lethargic, drowsy, and lethargic lately, and the imperial physicians have been unable to cure you?"

Zhu Liji's expression froze for a moment.

Zhiwei noticed this unusual phenomenon and lowered her voice: "Because I poisoned it."

Her voice was as soft as a lover's whisper, yet every word was piercing: "Your Majesty, it was poison that was carefully and meticulously planned over time."

Zhiwei stopped, admiring her masterpiece. The emperor's face finally drained of color, and for the first time, he showed panic.

"The calming incense you use is not poisonous when smelled alone; your daily meals and soups are also not poisonous when consumed alone. But when the two come together, over the years, they will become a kind of slow-acting poison that corrodes the bones."

Zhiwei slowly, as if delivering a verdict, uttered the last sentence, which was also the most fatal: "Your Majesty has been addicted to this for so many years, not only have your internal organs been damaged, but what is even more terrifying is that... you have already unknowingly become dependent on this poison and addicted. You can't quit."

"If you don't quit, you can live for another five or ten years, but if you force yourself to quit, it will be worse than death."

For an emperor who held everything in his hands, to suddenly find his life and death no longer in his own hands, and instead have to beg for survival from others, was undoubtedly the cruelest punishment for Zhu Liji.

It is known that Wei has been trapped in this involuntary vortex for countless days and nights.

From planning to make a living to its initial implementation, from Afu to Litai, from buying medicine to extracting poison, Zhiwei walked on thin ice at every step.

Zhiwei thought of Consort Ling again. On the day Consort Ling died, when she poisoned her, her feelings were exactly the same as today.

It was a genuine sense of relief, an unparalleled sense of relief. She had originally worried that thinking of how good Consort Ling had been to her, she would feel pity and be unable to bring herself to do it, but in reality, she acted decisively.

It was as if she was born to be such a heartless person.

She seems to have changed, but she's happy to have changed. As long as she remains as cold-blooded as those in power, she'll be closer to individual freedom.

Zhiwei raised her head, wanting to admire Zhu Liji's horrified face again, but what she met was an unexpectedly profound look.

Zhu Liji had already adjusted his mindset and was now gazing intently at Zhiwei.

"Are you doing this for Zhu Mingyu?" Zhu Liji asked.

Zhiwei frowned but did not answer.

Zhu Liji suddenly laughed, a very loud laugh.

“You’re doing this for yourself!” he affirmed. “I knew it, I knew it.”

“Yan Niang, you and I are essentially the same kind of people!”

A selfish, self-serving person who insists on finding a benevolent reason for his selfishness.

Zhu Liji followed Zhiwei's averted gaze: "You think you're seeking revenge? No, you're just satisfying yourself." His voice was hoarse yet burning, like embers burning endlessly in the dark night.

"You enjoy this thrill of controlling life and death, just like me. You hate me, but you are also imitating me—using scheming, poison, and people's hearts as pawns."

He wanted to kill him simply to prove that he too could stand at the pinnacle of power, coldly looking down upon all living beings.

She didn't hate him; she hated her own incompetence.

Zhu Liji composed himself, gazing intently at Zhiwei's trembling fingertips: "What do you want?"

Is it the power to look down on all living beings, or something else entirely?

He'll give it to you!

After all, there were still many things he wanted to do. He wanted to expand his territory, he wanted peace in the world, and Zhu Liji wanted the world to remember him. He was not that lowly hostage trapped in the imperial city. He was his own master, the emperor of the world, and a wise ruler for all time!

Let alone ten years, five years will be enough.

Zhu Liji slowly closed his eyes, as if he could already see the vast land unfolding before him, the beacon fires extinguished and the smoke rising from the chimneys, and the people looking up to call for their king.

Death is not to be feared; what is to be feared is to perish before one's grand ambitions are fulfilled.

He was willing to risk his remaining life to fight Zhiwei to the very end, as long as he could hold power for another five years and fulfill his wish.

Since he had nothing to begin with, having an opponent he admired and personally trained who could fight him was a kind of good fortune.

While he was alive, the two played chess; after he died, he wanted her to be buried with him.

It's a fight to the death. That's also the response Zhiwei sees.

“As long as I can live, you can name your terms,” Zhu Liji said again.

Love, money, freedom? Humans always have desires. As long as there are desires, there will be weaknesses, and there will be a chance for them to turn things around.

Zhu Liji waited quietly for Zhiwei's choice, watching her slowly put the dagger into her sleeve, and a smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.

Zhiwei gazed at Zhu Liji's unwavering composure, and simply shook her head.

“You’re wrong.” Zhiwei’s voice was very soft. “You and I have never been the same kind of people. At least for now, I don’t want your so-called power, I just want your fear right now.”

Zhiwei said solemnly again: "Now that things have come to this, I have no other request but... to take you to your death."