Chapter 96 [VIP]

The boy in the snake cave fell into a deep sleep.

Hongying: "Your Highness's injuries are very serious. Four ribs are broken, the abdominal wound has not healed for a long time and has resulted in excessive blood loss, and Your Highness treated the wrist bone himself... but not very properly."

Jaeger: "...Take him back first."

He didn't let the maid do it, but carried the boy on his back himself. The boy was on his back, the heavy smell of blood lingering beside him. When he turned his head, he could see Murong Yue's profile. The curve of his nose, from his eyebrows down, was exactly the same as his sister's.

They wandered through the labyrinth, the sound of the wind from the land lingering in their ears as it passed through the caves. Everlasting lamps lit their way along the walls, the winding paths leading to coal mine caverns and kilns. The air was damp, and dewdrops dripped from the walls, blurring the murals inside.

The cave is carved with some mythological stories. Some are related to the sorcerer Jialing, and some are animal folklore of their Hu people. Every time the sorcerer Jialing appears, the human world is bound to experience turmoil. The Hu people can foresee the future through sacrifices. Legend has it that a thousand years ago, when the glaciers melted and they migrated, the priests left behind a book. That book was written in their ancient symbolic script and recorded the future of the Hu people and the Han Dynasty.

He had sent people to search for the scriptures left behind by the priests, but to no avail. His sister, however, had mysteriously told him that she had deciphered a prophecy left by a priest a thousand years ago. Later, his sister went to the Central Plains, and the matter was left unresolved.

They traversed the entire Grass Fin Mountain, where a cave led to the outside exit. When they emerged from the cave, the vast snowfield was a pristine white, bathed in soft sunlight that cast a golden glow, coating them entirely in a golden dust.

Wei Ning was waiting for them there.

Jaeger carried his nephew out, and from afar he saw the woman from the Central Plains. He had already witnessed her flamboyant manner in the capital, and now, seeing his nephew on her back, he was surprised to see her shed tears. Those tears illuminated the flame-like lines on her cheeks, and a single tear melted into the snow, scorching a patch of land.

"—Your Highness!"

Wei Ning saw the child on Yege's back, the little figure soaked in blood. Whether it was the enemy's blood or his own, it was impossible to tell; frozen in the sub-zero temperatures, it had fused with the skin, forming deep red clots. The child had fallen into a deep sleep, motionless on Yege's back, only a faint breath detectable.

When she saw Murong Yue, the image of Murong Qing immediately came to mind. The woman in her memory had willow-leaf eyebrows and phoenix eyes, wore simple hairpins and powdered makeup, and a pink gauze dress; she truly had the bearing of a crown princess. When the princess was alive, she rarely smiled; she was usually dignified and composed, but at times she was worried about the people, and her face was always filled with melancholy.

Too much time had passed; perhaps because the eldest princess rarely smiled in life, her death was shrouded in a tragic undertone. When she recalled the eldest princess, she always remembered her smiling face. It turned out that Murong Qing had held her young ninth brother in her arms while writing a letter to her. Her ninth brother was lively and adorable; he would surely be exceptionally intelligent in the future.

The girl and boy from her memories overlapped before her eyes, and the same blood flowed through the Murong family. A single glance filled her with unbearable pity; her heart was gripped tightly by something unfamiliar, and she gradually suffocated in the icy snow.

"I heard that the day before yesterday was His Highness's birthday."

Yege replied, "You'll be eighteen after the New Year. Miss Wei... why are you crying?"

Yege: "This is very common among our Hu people. It is common for men to get injured when they go hunting before they reach adulthood. Some may lose their lives or limbs while hunting, but his injuries are relatively minor, so Miss Wei can rest assured."

Hongying glanced thoughtfully at Yege. The king rarely spoke so much to outsiders, and seemed to be very concerned about this Miss Wei.

Wei Ning quickly wiped away her tears. She must have caught Cui Ruhao's infection and was now embarrassing herself in front of outsiders.

Jaeger: "We should not linger here. Miss Wei, come with us, we will take him to a safe place."

Tick-tock—

A drop of water fell from the cave, hitting the ground and piling up in a small pit. From that pit, a green bud sprouted. A tiny green shoot peeked out, out of place among the cold stone.

"General! This is it! Look... the caves below are interconnected. Our men have searched for a long time on the surface; the Ninth Prince must be hiding in these caves. He's injured, so he can't have gone far!" the soldier said.

Huge snake totems are carved on the walls, with the cobra's body raised in the air, facing the sun, its forked tongue flicking out, causing the darkness to recede and revealing the original vitality of the ground.

Xiao Qi's expression was not good. They were unfamiliar with the terrain of Lidu and had wasted three days on the ground. Three days was enough time for the Ninth Prince to escape from Lidu and reach a hundred or so nearby cities.

"Search along the entire tunnel... don't miss any corner," he ordered.

Their current actions were nothing but a last-ditch effort. A cold glint flashed in Xiao Qi's narrow pupils as he glanced at the mural and saw bloodstains beneath the withered vines. There lay a discarded longsword, its blood already dried. He took two steps forward, then stopped abruptly at the sight before him.

The opening at the top was sealed, and a huge body bag tilted downwards, dumping out countless corpses. The corpses were frozen in the snow, forming a thick layer of thin ice that shone through like jewels, revealing the bluish-purple cheeks of the bodies inside. Those countless faces, facing downwards, with their bloodshot eyes wide open, piled up and fell slowly in a distorted posture.

This scene of hell is utterly terrifying. Vast expanses of crimson, frozen corpses, and an icy aura of fear—a heavy, oppressive dread seals away the light, leaving only darkness and decay. Simply standing here is enough to make one gasp for breath at the sight before them; the pervasive dread and horror emanating from all directions send shivers down the spine. The blood-soaked earth strips away the skin, leaving only trembling spirits on the verge of turning to ashes.

Xiao Qi stood before this hellish scene, motionless for a long time. He noticed the bloodstains dragging on the ground, and the image before him materialized spontaneously.

He saw the boy, fearless before this hellish scene, clumsily taking his weapon and slowly crawling out of the overwhelming shadows. Though his movements were slow, they were as bright and dazzling as blazing flames, threatening to burn the entire cave to ashes.

The boy crawled out of the depths of hell, his eyes burning with fury, and he would come to take revenge sooner or later.

Xiao Qi seemed to have foreseen the brief future and the past. He couldn't help but laugh, his eyes bloodshot and twisted with a look of unbridled pleasure. He felt his blood boiling; he always entered this state whenever a worthy opponent appeared on the battlefield.

"Ninth Prince... Fine, Ninth Prince! You've got guts! This general will be waiting for you right here!"

"The next time I see you... I will definitely tear you to pieces—"

Xiao Qi took a torch and had the soldiers gather firewood and straw, which they spread at the bottom of the cave. The fire illuminated the cave, and as the flames burned, the ice covering the fallen soldiers' corpses melted, crackling and popping as they burned. The dead soldiers' bodies melted together in the flames, and the overwhelming stench of their carcasses billowed away as thick smoke.

Lu Xuejin and Xue Yi arrived in Liancheng.

With Song Fangting in charge, the government funds were used to help the people store grain for winter. Song Fangting also initiated a canal-digging project, providing jobs for the people and promoting economic development through labor. A new north-south road was established connecting Liancheng to the north, encouraging the people to trade with surrounding cities. As a result, Liancheng's drought and poverty were alleviated.

When Lu Xuejin passed through this city, it was still a desolate place. In just over a month, it had been restored to its former vitality.

Xue Yi: "When I passed through this place, I heard that the official silver allocated earlier was barely delivered to Liancheng. Changyou escorted the official silver safely to Liancheng this time... The people of Liancheng all praised Changyou's good name."

"I must have been lucky to have met Lady Song Fangting. She governs well and helped me a lot in Dingzhou," Lu Xuejin said.

At this point, he noticed a subtle change in Xue Yi's expression. Xue Yi looked at him, paused for a moment, and asked, "Was Changyou injured in Dingzhou?"

He paused slightly, recalling Li Miaosuo and her daughters. He had not written to Xue Yi about his injury, nor had the passing messenger known about it.

He couldn't help but ask, "Brother...why do you ask that?"

"After Changyou left, I fell ill. When I was sick, I kept having nightmares, dreaming that Changyou was being chased by ghosts and monsters... In the dream, Changyou's stomach was stabbed open, which worried me, so I traveled south."

Xue Yi said quietly, "Perhaps it is because I have been ill for a long time and have been hovering between life and death. Affected by those long nightmares, my worries have taken real form... If I cannot see you, I will be worried every day and will not be able to rest easy... I must see you."

A faint emotion welled up in his heart, a subtle emotion that filled his heart. The wound in his abdomen had healed, but now it was aching again, and it was beginning to take shape as Xue Yi described it.

“I was indeed injured when I was in Dingzhou… and my dream was almost identical to my brother’s. Perhaps this is what the book refers to as the ability to sense when a loved one is suffering from illness or pain.”

"..." Xue Yi's eyes tightened, but he maintained his composure and asked him, "Where were you injured? Why didn't you write a letter... I instructed the prefect of the south that if anyone dares to harm you, I will not let them off the hook."

He replied, “Even a long whip has its limitations. Brother, you may not know this, but the situation in the south is far more complex than in the capital. Many religions are flourishing here, so I know you wouldn’t let them harm me… My injury was just an accident, and I’m all better now. There’s no need to worry.”

Xue Yi lifted his wrist and looked down at the scar on his left wrist. After several months, new skin and flesh had grown over the stitched wound, but the new flesh was a different color from the original, making the stitches clearly visible. The scar was etched on his wrist like a brand.

Xue Yi touched the scar on his wrist, his thumb gently caressing the delicate area. He looked at Xue Yi's lowered gaze. A layer of pity shrouded his downcast eyes, as if he cherished his wrist. He sensed certain emotions within it. Such as taking him to suffer... such self-destructive emotions.

He realized... many times. The psychological pain a person endures far outweighs the physical pain. The sense of responsibility he felt when he was young to take care of Xue Yi was far heavier than the wounds he had suffered. He had this thought since childhood: if only he could take Xue Yi's place when he was sick. This willingness to sacrifice his physical body was far better than the pain of watching a loved one suffer day after day without being able to help.

But things in this world are never that easy. Just like his naive idea... Heaven will never allow someone else to bear the pain that someone else should have borne. No matter how worried those around you are, it only casts a shadow of gloom over the surroundings. There's nothing you can do except wait for a tragedy to happen or for the disaster to pass.

Human patience is worn down day by day, and time becomes a great fire that refines true gold and true feelings, burning away all the empty worldly desires... until nothing is left.

They fell silent. He walked through Xue Yi's subtle thoughts and could almost guess what Xue Yi was thinking.

He said to Xue Yi, “Brother, there is no need to blame yourself. This is a trial I must go through. No matter how many heavenly eyes and wings you have, there are places you cannot see. I have never complained about you, and I know that you never intended to hurt me... You should not blame yourself.”

“I do hope that Changyou will blame me,” Xue Yi said. “Changyou always takes everything upon himself. As a result, he is becoming more and more distant from the people around him.”

But that's just who he is. He and Xue Yi are too similar; neither of them likes to reveal their feelings to others, nor do they like their thoughts to be guessed. They can always guess what the other is thinking, and they always hesitate to speak to each other because of their worries.

He thought for a moment and said, “How far away have I been? I am still by my brother’s side, still in this world, within my reach.”

“Brother, you don’t need to have so many thoughts. If your mind is cluttered, it’s hard to be happy. Think less about things like whether someone is happy or not, or whether they still care about you. Just think about where that person is and whether they are by your side. This will help you avoid a lot of trouble.”

His words softened Xue Yi's eyes considerably, and the deep, dark depths of his eyes relaxed, filled with warmth. A butterfly, like a ball of ink, sprouted in his previously gloomy heart, fluttering around the withered flower branches.

"I understand. Changyou is now... by my side."

Lu Xuejin watched as Xue Yi's face flushed a sickly red with a faint joy, those two pale, rosy patches lingering in his eyes for a long time. A red figure emerged from the carriage; it was his younger self, who had somehow reappeared, looking exactly like him.

I was just much more naive when I was younger; I've matured now.

"Are you telling the truth? You want to go back to your brother's side?" the boy in red questioned him.

The boy in red circled around him and whispered in his ear, "Don't lie to me. You liar, your heart is clearly in Caoqi Mountain and in Lidu. Now you have neither family nor the people of Liancheng in your eyes."

He gazed at the red-clad youth without speaking. The red robe was soaked with blood, flowing out in large patches of deep crimson. On the sleeves, brilliant yet dark plum blossoms bloomed, their vibrant red petals contrasting beautifully with his handsome features. His dark brown eyebrows and slightly deep-set eyes reflected a hint of a smile.

He put his index finger to his lips and gestured for silence to his younger self.

"Shut up."

A note from the author: