He Jingyan slightly raised his chin, using the act of hugging He Yunce to conceal his dark and unfathomable eyes.
He hugged He Yunce tightly, his sorrowful voice filled with boundless hatred, and he seemed utterly helpless:
"Zhizhi is dead! She died beneath the Crown Prince! Her body is not in the capital; it is currently in Fengning County!"
"The only thing I can do is catch this lecherous worm for Zhizhi!"
"Now I have no other choice but to ask my father for military strength! As long as I capture the Crown Prince, I will return the soldiers to my father, which is also the Empress Dowager's wish!"
He Yunze was taken aback when he heard this.
His body stiffened slightly as he broke free from He Jingyan's embrace, staring at him in disbelief: "Brother?"
His voice was hoarse and unpleasant; one had to listen very carefully to roughly guess what he meant.
“Brother…how could you bear to abandon…sister-in-law? Leaving her body all alone in Fengning County while you returned to the capital?”
As He Yunze spoke, imagining the scene, the veins on his neck bulged, and he roared, "That's where she was cruelly hurt, that's where she was raped!"
How could you bear to leave her there alone?!
He Jingyan stiffened as he listened to his repeated accusations.
Overwhelmed with emotion, He Yunze felt a heart-wrenching pain and was crying uncontrollably: "What exactly happened when Zhizhi died?"
"...How could His Highness the Crown Prince have raped her...They clearly had a history..."
They clearly have a good relationship...
He Yunze asked tearfully, hoping to get an answer from He Jingyan.
Seeing that He Jingyan remained silent for a long time, he assumed that he couldn't express himself clearly, so he bit his finger.
He wrote words on the floor tiles in front of him with his own blood, while looking up and waiting for He Jingyan's reply. He was both flustered and apprehensive.
How did she die?
Does it hurt a lot? Does it feel very cold?
As He Yunze wrote, tears welled up in his eyes again, falling onto the floor tiles and mingling with the blood-stained words on the ground.
He Jingyan had no interest in answering He Yunce's sentimental questions. He pressed down on He Yunce's shoulder, forcing him to calm down.
Then he turned directly to look in the direction of Marquis An Ding: "Father! Please allow me to send troops!"
He Yunze's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing He Jingyan's words.
He stopped what he was doing and shouted excitedly at He Jingyan, his eyes turning bloodshot, his voice like a sinister ghost:
"She's dead, and you still want her body to wander outside? You're completely indifferent?!"
"Aren't you afraid that outsiders will harm her? Aren't you afraid that the Crown Prince will be driven to desperation and use her as a threat? Aren't you afraid that people will point fingers at her remains?"
If the Crown Prince uses Zhizhi's remains as a threat to force his elder brother to surrender, what good will it do if his elder brother brings troops?
This is a huge loophole and weakness!
He Jingyan didn't quite understand what he was saying, and didn't reply. Instead, he urged the Marquis of Anding again, "Father, please send all your troops to me!"
He Yunze found it extremely strange that He Jingyan ignored him, and his mind went completely blank.
He stood stubbornly in front of He Jingyan, even forgetting to cry, his body only convulsing.
He gestured with his hands, pleading desperately: "Brother? Why won't you give him a dignified death?"
"Do you want her to die in rags, covered in blood, with her eyes wide open in disbelief?"
If Heaven has eyes and Zhizhi is able to be reborn, she will surely blame herself for this.
Thinking of this, He Yunze became even more determined. He said to He Jingyan, "Brother, if you don't bring her back, I will give up being the heir."
"I'm going to Fengning County to protect Zhizhi's body."
Seeing that Marquis Anding couldn't agree for a long time, and that He Yunce was still insisting on the matter of the corpse, He Jingyan became impatient: "Yunce!"
"You're so soft-hearted! You're the same as before! You'll never grow up, you'll never amount to anything!"
"Now is the time to do great things! Now is the time to avenge ourselves! Why are you being so willful?!"
Upon hearing He Jingyan's words, He Yunze's eyes narrowed sharply, and he subconsciously became uneasy.
His elder brother was the person he respected and admired most. At this moment, when his brother said such things, He Yunze really began to doubt whether he was being too petty.
But He Jingyan ignored him and instead spoke to Marquis Anding in a sorrowful tone.
At this moment, Marquis Anding finally couldn't bear it anymore.
He had always felt indebted to his eldest son, who had always been loyal to the emperor and loved his country, but now he had suffered such a great shock, especially since he was just doing what the Empress Dowager had instructed him to do...
Moreover, his eldest daughter-in-law is so good to the Marquis of Anding's mansion, he really can't bear to see her like this!
Thinking of this, Marquis Anding also stood up, intending to hand over the military tally to He Jingyan.
But at that moment, He Yunze suddenly jolted awake. His swollen, red eyes widened, and he spoke again, word by word:
“Brother, if Zhizhi’s body is left outside, and the Crown Prince uses it to blackmail you, it will definitely become your weakness.”
"If you don't bring her body back first, I'll report you. I'll also tell His Majesty about your request to borrow troops from your father!"
Upon hearing this, Marquis An Ding paused abruptly in his grip on the military tally, then withdrew it.
He Jingyan stared at the military tally in his hand and took a deep breath.
But Marquis An Ding simply patted him on the shoulder, his tone comforting: "Yun Ce is right."
“Jingyan, don’t be too hasty and leave a loophole for the Crown Prince. Your daughter-in-law’s body is outside and unprotected. If he uses the corpse to blackmail you and insults it in front of all the soldiers, forcing you to retreat, you will have a weakness!”
“This is also evidence of a crime. Su Yi cries every night. Only by bringing back her daughter-in-law’s body can she appease everyone’s hearts and demand that His Majesty thoroughly investigate the truth.”
"I don't want you and your daughter-in-law to get hurt anymore. Go and bring back your daughter-in-law's body first, to give her a proper final rest. Then I will send troops to you so that you have no worries."
Upon hearing this, He Jingyan couldn't help but close his eyes, trying his best to calm himself down.
When he opened his eyes again, he had already returned to his previous sorrowful appearance: "Okay, then I'll go and bring Zhizhi's body back now."
"...It's not that I don't care about Zhizhi's body, but her death was too gruesome. When you see it, you'll understand why I'm so eager to bring the Crown Prince back."
Upon hearing this, He Yunze's heart clenched painfully again, and his pale lips trembled.
He couldn't help but sob, his stomach aching so badly he could barely stand up straight.
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