Chapter 97 The Sea of Fire is Gone Forever, Meng Shutai
After downing a cup of sweet wine, his face flushed, he grinned and said, "Your Highness, you don't know, before Miss Qingsi came, Xuan Shengzi would make things difficult for us every few days. And whenever we did something like climbing on the roof or tearing off tiles, he would make us take the blame and be punished by copying ancient books. But things have been different since Miss Qingsi came!"
Sheng Er picked up where he left off, saying, "Really!" He stood up excitedly, swaying slightly. "Every time we get scolded, Qing Si would stand up and argue with Xuan Shengzi, saying, 'You're just throwing a tantrum, what business is it of others? Others have their own things to do, you should solve your own problems.' Hahahaha... Your Highness, you have no idea how funny Xuan Shengzi is when he's speechless!"
On this joyous occasion, Jiang Yingyun and Yuan Jingming specially brought their homemade wine to share with everyone. After drinking the wine, everyone abandoned their usual manners and status. Sheng Yi and a few others chattered excitedly with Consort Wen about Yuan Fang's past experiences at Chenji Mountain, causing everyone to burst into laughter and creating chaos.
"So we're all so happy that Qing Si and Xuan Shengzi are together! They can finally keep our dignified Seventh Prince in check for the rest of his life!" Sheng San smugly shook his head, as if Le Jin were some kind of hero who had fallen from the sky and helped them overturn the mountain that was pressing down on them.
Yuanfang sat down next to Consort Wen, and no matter how many times he tried to wink at them, it was no use. In the end, he could only blush and sulk to the side.
It's truly a case of what goes around comes around. He bullied them before, and now they've all paid back! Is this the time to say such things in front of Mother?! What if Mother misunderstands...?
He leaned close to Consort Wen's ear and whispered, "The Green Rhinoceros isn't fierce."
Upon hearing this, Consort Wen burst out laughing. "You're afraid I won't like her controlling you? I'm actually hoping Qing Si is a bit fierce, otherwise you—"
With her stained fingers, Consort Wen pointed at Yuan Fang Sui, her smile gentle and loving, showing no trace of the heartache of losing her son.
She knew why Yuanfang had been so eccentric and withdrawn when he was at Shenji Mountain. Such a young child, going from a life of luxury and pampering to a desolate mountain wilderness, spending his days in the company of ancient temples and lamps, would probably have driven him mad. Thankfully, this Qing Si came along, twisting his crooked branch and filling the void of his loneliness. Otherwise, Consort Wen would never have agreed to let a girl of unknown origin be with her son.
"Alright, don't stay out too long on your wedding night and make your bride wait there for nothing."
Yuanfang's eyes lit up. He had finally heard what he wanted to hear. He grinned and nodded vigorously. Without saying another word, he rushed to the bridal chamber.
Just as he turned around, a woman's voice suddenly came from outside the winery.
"Your Highness, please wait. The bridal chamber upstairs is on fire. If we go there now, Your Highness may be harmed."
The lively and joyful atmosphere in the hall vanished in an instant. Yuanfang turned around in confusion, wanting to see who was talking nonsense, but when his eyes fell on the woman, he realized that he did not recognize her at all.
Why would this person, with whom he has no grudge or connection, come to disturb his wedding banquet?
He was about to order Sheng Yi to drive the man away when Yuan Jingming spoke first: "General Pingyi?"
General Pingyi? Xie Lianhui, who inherited her family's fighting spirit and repeatedly made outstanding contributions to the war against the enemy despite being a woman, and was appointed as a general by the imperial court.
Although Yuanfang admired this woman, he suppressed his displeasure, but his tone was still impatient: "General, what makes you say that? Did you come here to ask for wine or to cause trouble?"
The winery is now his and Qing Si's place. Tonight, apart from her, all the people who came were relatives and friends. How could it have caught fire?
Xie Lianhui walked leisurely into the winery with her hands behind her back, her eyes fixed on the direction of the bridal chamber, a cryptic smile playing on her lips.
"Let's skip the wine request. I have too many old injuries and shouldn't drink. As for causing trouble..." Xie Lianhui tilted her head slightly, looking very apologetic: "It is indeed causing trouble, but it's not aimed at Your Highness or everyone else. That's why I kindly advised everyone not to go to the bridal chamber and to leave this place now."
If it's not aimed at them, then it must be aimed at... Qing Si?!
She was the only one in the bridal chamber!
With a loud thud as the long sleeves of his wedding gown fluttered, Yuanfang resolutely ran towards the bridal chamber.
Jude Winery has many rooms, and he specially chose the largest one to decorate as their wedding room. However, now he only regrets it. Because the more spacious the room, the deeper it is on the second floor. Not only do you have to climb a long staircase, but you also have to run through the winding obstacles of other rooms to see it.
Even before reaching the bridal chamber, Yuanfang's heart sank. Thick black smoke billowed from the chamber, like jet-black dragons writhing in terrifying ways.
Inside the room, Le Jin grabbed Meng Shutai's hand and rushed outside: "Quick, let's go! This fire is not normal, it's burning too fast, it looks like someone threw oil into it!"
She coughed from the black smoke and her eyes ached so much she could barely open them, but Meng Shutai remained motionless, still sitting on the wedding bed.
Let's go!
She urged him on, but he retorted, "Wouldn't it be better if I died?"
Meng Shutai grasped Le Jin's hand in return and asked inappropriately, "If I die, will you forgive me and accept me?"
Neuropathy!
Le Jin choked and couldn't stand it. She covered her mouth and nose with her arm and mumbled, "Why bother with all this lovey-dovey stuff when the person is already dead!"
Besides, is it really necessary for her to act on her words so readily? She just said in bed that unless he dies, he'll die right now?
Le Jincai had no intention of getting involved in his death; the best outcome for them was for them to go their separate ways.
"Are you leaving or not? If you're not leaving, let go, I still need to live!"
She shouldn't have instinctively saved him; she should have rushed out first.
Before Le Jin could pull her hand away, Meng Shutai suddenly got up from the bed, pulled Le Jin into his arms, and used his body to shield her from the thick smoke and leaping flames.
With a "smack," Meng Shutai kicked open the door to the bridal chamber and gently pushed it open with both hands. The next moment, Le Jin opened her eyes and found herself outside the bridal chamber.
The fire inside was blindingly bright, and the flames were growing larger and larger, burning fiercely on the red curtains and drapes that were decorated in the room. It seemed that the fire could not be extinguished.
Le Jin coughed violently, her lungs feeling like they were about to burst, and shouted hoarsely at Meng Shutai, "Come out here!"
He was still inside the bridal chamber, standing behind the door gazing at her. In the firelight, her cascading black hair seemed to be studded with starlight, its edges sparkling like a dream.
Meng Shutai smiled faintly and shook his head at Le Jin.
The two of them already knew what he was going to do.
Le Jin stared blankly at Meng Shutai, the firelight flickering behind him, his handsome face half in shadow and half in red light, as eerie as a red lotus.
He was exceptionally handsome, and even in this moment, he remained remarkably beautiful. But at this moment, Le Jin clearly saw the intent of death in his faint smile.
Perhaps he should have died long ago; he should have paid with his life when he killed "Jiu'an" on Tiger Head Mountain. Those who trample on life deserve a bad death, and Le Jin didn't think he was wrong.
But he was truly about to die, and Le Jin suddenly couldn't bear to witness it. The deathly aura emanating from him was like black butterflies, fluttering their wings and swirling towards her. If she saw it, her midnight dreams would surely be filled with Meng Shutai's strikingly beautiful face.
"Qingsi!"
Yuan Fangsui's call was tinged with a sob, as if he was about to burst into tears at any moment.
He rushed over and hugged the somewhat stunned Le Jin.
"I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have left you alone..."
"I'll take you away. Don't be afraid, everything will be alright."
Yuanfang grabbed Lejin's arm, focused on getting her away from the fire, but the next moment, there was a loud bang behind them, and the door that had been wide open suddenly closed.
"What's going on? Is someone inside?"
Yuanfang turned around to look, but did not see Le Jin biting her lower lip, tears falling like beads, quietly without making a sound.
Like everything before, there was no sound; they were engulfed in flames and never heard from again.
Yuanfang looked on in confusion. The only sound in the bridal chamber was the thunderous roar of a raging fire. If anyone were alive, they would have been burned to a crisp by now. How could it be so quiet?
He was no longer in the mood to care, and helped Le Jin downstairs to a safe place.
At this moment, only Xie Lianhui remained at the wedding banquet. When Le Jin saw her with red eyes, her heart sank.
"The Imperial Concubine and Prince Pingning have gone to inform the Prefect of the Capital. Someone will be here soon, Your Highness, so there is no need to worry."
She spoke so casually, which infuriated Yuanfang, who retorted angrily, "Pah! Did you do this? Don't think you're safe just because you've been given some fancy general title! If your brother can die, so can you!"
The Prince of Zhennan disappeared without a trace seven years ago, and the next news of him was that he had hanged himself. How could a perfectly healthy person suddenly be gone? At that time, Xie Lianhui was far away on the battlefield in Ganzhou. He submitted more than ten memorials to the court requesting a thorough investigation, but the court ignored them and simply held a perfunctory funeral for the Prince of Zhennan.
Consort Wen told Yuan Fangsui about this matter, and said earnestly, "Your father's mind is unpredictable, so you must be very careful in the future. The death of the Prince of Zhennan was suspicious, but it was exactly what His Majesty wanted. The court will not tolerate a prince of a different surname, let alone a prince whose merits overshadow the emperor. Thus, the suspicious can become not suspicious."
Yuanfang had originally kept his mother's instructions in mind, but now that he saw Xie Lianhui about to harm Qingsi, he didn't care about anything anymore and decided to tear off the mask of civility, regardless of anyone's dignity.
Xie Lianhui raised an eyebrow at his insults, remaining noncommittal, and slowly walked up to Le Jin with her arms crossed.
"Madam, hasn't the one inside come out yet?"
She tilted her chin slightly in the direction from which the smoke was coming, and Le Jin looked at her, shaking her head expressionlessly.
Xie Lianhui chuckled with satisfaction, clasped his hands in a fist and said to Le Jin, "I'm sorry, my wife, for ruining your wedding with His Highness. But the blood feud must be avenged, and I hope you will forgive me."
Yuan Fang looked completely bewildered. "What grudge? Who's inside?"
"The court refused to investigate my brother's death, so I investigated it myself. In the end, I found out that Meng Shutai was the murderer of my brother. When the Buddha's relics were being welcomed, the court did not arrange for my brother to go. It was Meng Shutai who secretly arranged to trick my brother and kill him on the water! Don't you think this is a blood feud?"
The events of that year flashed before Le Jin's eyes in their entirety. Her head throbbed with pain, as if her brain was being chopped by an axe, and she kept hearing terrifying muffled "dududu" sounds.
“My men tracked him down and found that he had sneaked into His Highness’s bridal chamber tonight. Wasn’t this the perfect opportunity? So I threw in some oil and set the place on fire.”
Yuan Fang, in disbelief, grabbed Le Jin's forearm: "Qing Si, he's in our bridal chamber???"
Le Jin looked disheveled, her mind in turmoil. She looked up at Yuan Fang, but couldn't say anything. Her eyes were red, pitiful, and confused.
"Ha, what goes around comes around. Meng Shutai hated my brother for having an affair with his wife back then, and now he's secretly eyeing someone else's wife himself."
Xie Lianhui laughed loudly, laughing at these men who thought themselves so precious and righteous, yet in the end they were just pulling each other's hair and pinching each other's arms. Where did they have any ability compared to women?
She left with a smile, while the black smoke from the bridal chamber gradually approached Le Jin and Yuan Fang.
"Qing Si, don't stay here, let's go!"
"I……"
"What's wrong?"
"My name is Le Jin."
A weak yet clear voice reached Yuan Fangsui's ears. He turned around in surprise and saw Le Jin with her head down as if she had done something wrong, her lips twitching slightly, as if she wanted to say something.
"It's Meng Shutai, the one who died..."
"No."
Le Jin's heart skipped a beat, and she timidly raised her face to look at Yuan Fang Sui.
What do you mean, "I don't need it anymore"? Does he not want to hear it? Or does he not want to marry her anymore?
Tears welled up in Le Jin's eyes, but the next moment, Yuan Fang gently rubbed her face.
"We're not going to concern ourselves with the past."
He wasn't stupid; he already knew that Qing Si was the former Le Jin. As for how she had "shed her skin" and changed her appearance, Yuan Fang didn't care.
The moment the firelight appeared before his eyes, only one thought occupied his mind:
Whether she is Qing Si or Le Jin, he only wants her to be safe.
She's doing well, that's more important than anything else.
Yuanfang pinched Le Jin's soot-covered face and, with tears in his eyes, teased her, "Little dirty cat, think about where you're going to sleep tonight?"
Meng Shutai perished in the fire, and the Meng family mansion will likely be in chaos tonight, making it uninhabitable; Yuanfang currently has no land or property, so where they will stay tonight is truly a problem.
Le Jin was silent for a moment, then grabbed Yuan Fangsui's hand and said, "As long as we're together, we can sleep anywhere, even on the street, it's really okay."
She was incredibly serious, and Yuanfang laughed helplessly, poking her forehead: "How could I let you sleep on the streets? What kind of man would that be? There's no time like the present, let's go buy a house!" "Now?!"
"Hmm, is it strange to buy a house on your wedding night?" Yuanfang asked knowingly, shrugging and smiling as he replied, "I have no taboos, so none of this is strange."
He led Le Jin by the hand, step by step away from Jude Winery, away from the billowing smoke and the blazing sea of fire.
He Mengshutai.
Le Jin quietly turned around, silently thinking: Meng Shutai is gone forever.
She quickened her pace and caught up with Yuan Fang. The two of them stood shoulder to shoulder, both covered in soot and looking disheveled, but anyone could tell they were a loving young couple.
The fire drew the attention of every household, who opened their doors to watch. Le Jin and Yuan Fang finally managed to squeeze out, only to be met by a speeding carriage that came to pick them up.
Sheng Yi and Er jumped down and ran towards them crying, "Xuan Shengzi! Qing Si! You scared us to death!"
After the ordeal, when relatives and friends reunited, Yuanfang was surprised to see that several of them had tears in their eyes.
Le Jin was also smiling, but when she saw the person getting off the carriage, her smile froze for a moment.
Jiang Yingyun walked towards her with a cloak draped over her arm, her calm and gentle eyes fixed on Le Jin.
She unfolded the cloak and personally draped it over Le Jin.
"The bride shouldn't travel too much, otherwise her future will be unlucky."
Despite the chaotic and absurd night, she still remembered that Le Jin was the most important person tonight.
“You two will stay at your sister-in-law’s place tonight. I’ve already told Jingming to go back and pack.” Jiang Yingyun quickly resolved Le Jin’s biggest problem. She said, “Here’s the carriage for you. This winery is the result of Madam Zhang’s life’s work. I need to go check on the fire.”
Before leaving, Jiang Yingyun smiled at Le Jin and gently tucked her messy hair behind her ear.
"It's beautiful. Don't worry, let's go home with Fang."
The carriage glided smoothly along the moonlit, serene blue street, leaving all the noise behind.
A cool night breeze blew in through the car window, and Le Jin felt weak all over, only then realizing how dramatic the night had been.
"Fang Sui, I'm a little sleepy."
She leaned against Yuan Fang, her head feeling dizzy.
Yuanfang wrapped his arm around Le Jin's back, put his arm around her shoulder, and moved a little space so that Le Jin could lie on his lap.
Yuanfang gently patted Le Jin's arm and whispered soothingly, "Go to sleep, I'm here for you."
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Author's Note: It's not over yet!! There are probably two or three more chapters to go [Let me see][Let me see][Let me see] Finally, we're almost at the end! [Crying emoji]
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