Chapter 97 You are an adulterer
With a sullen face, Chi Qin led Chi Li back to Mei Village. Lu Jinlan followed behind them, with a vague sense of foreboding.
As they entered, Chi Qin stopped Lu Jinlan, saying, "My son and I need to talk alone. Please, young lady, make yourselves at home."
Chi Li said urgently, "Mother, she is Lu Jinlan."
Chi Qin retorted angrily, "Even if she is Zhao Mincheng, it won't work!"
As she spoke, she turned around and looked Lu Jinlan up and down, saying sarcastically, "Who do we have here who can abduct my son from the palace? It turns out to be the famous and powerful Marquis Jing'an of Hua Kingdom."
Lu Jinlan cupped his hands in greeting, glanced at the hostility in her eyes, curled the corners of his lips, and replied in a sarcastic tone, "A little bit of fame is nothing to mention, senior is too kind."
Chi Qin snorted coldly, "Lord Lu has already displayed his might on the battlefield and escaped unscathed by abducting the Imperial Consort from the palace. Isn't that enough? Chi Li is already home. Please be merciful and let him go."
"I think, Lord Lu, you are renowned throughout the land, and you wouldn't bully us, a widow and her orphan. Do you intend to massacre the Demon Village and forcibly abduct us?"
Chi Li hurriedly replied, "I went with her voluntarily."
"Shut up!" Chi Qin frowned and shouted sternly.
Lu Jinlan sighed, "It seems that you have many misunderstandings about me. If I try to explain myself, it will inevitably seem like I'm just making excuses. Let Chi Li explain to you himself. You and your son can go inside and talk. I'll wait here."
With the door tightly shut, Chi Li knelt before the ancestral tablets and told his mother the whole story.
Chi Qin remained silent for a moment after listening. "So, you're saying you're going to betray the Jiang Kingdom, the Holy Church, and your people for her sake?"
Chi Li sighed with a bitter smile, "For the past ten years, I have lived in the deep palace and made no contribution to the country, the religion, or my people. I am nothing more than a symbol or a totem, no different from the statues of gods on the altar."
“But I am a person. I don’t want to be that idol. I just want to be an ordinary man. When you sent me to the palace, you all said it was a great thing. Now that I am about to disappear, let someone else do this great thing.”
"I know I'm going to disappoint my mother and my clan. But a person can't live their whole life just for others, can they?"
Chi Qin was stunned. "How could you say such a thing? You've never said anything like that before. Did Lu Jinlan teach you? What kind of spell did she cast on you?"
Chi Li said, “She’s right, isn’t she? I’m very clear-headed now, extremely clear-headed. Mother, I’ve always listened to you. At first, I didn’t want to become a holy man, but I did anyway. Later, I didn’t want to marry the emperor either, but I did anyway.”
"I'm twenty-eight years old now, and I've lived more than half my life, yet I haven't even lived for myself. It's really pathetic. Mother, please have pity on me this once."
"I just want to go with her now. Please let me make my own decision about my life this time, okay?"
He crawled a few steps on his knees, grabbed Chiqin's clothes, and pleaded with tears streaming down his face, "Mother, please have mercy on me just this once. Let me go, please!"
Chi Qin lowered her eyes in pain, her eyes filled with helplessness. "You are my own son, how could I not love you? But things in this world are full of twists and turns. Everything is fate, and nothing is up to us."
“If I could have prevented you from becoming a holy man, I definitely wouldn’t have let you. If I could have prevented you from entering the palace, I definitely wouldn’t have let you. You suffered in the palace for ten years, and your mother missed you for ten years outside the palace. I know you resent me, but your mother had no choice.”
“Lu Jinlan is a remarkable person. Since you have won her favor, she will certainly not treat you badly. Of course, your mother hopes you can find a good home, but… but…”
Chi Qin sighed repeatedly, and Chi Li hurriedly asked, "What is it?"
"But your brother has already learned to feed poisonous creatures with his own body..."
Chi Li was stunned for a moment, then collapsed to the ground in despair.
*
Lu Jinlan sat on a wooden bench, and soon a young man who looked somewhat similar to Chi Li ran over.
He looked to be only fifteen or sixteen years old, with a venomous snake wrapped around his neck. The two of them, one human and one snake, stared at her with wide curiosity.
Lu Jinlan had heard Chi Li mention that he had a younger sister and a younger brother, and this was probably his younger brother, Chi Cheng.
Lu Jinlan then said, "You must be Chi Cheng? I'm a guest who came here with your mother and brother."
Chi Cheng nodded. "I know. When I was little, my brother would hold me every day. You have my brother's scent on you. I can smell it."
Lu Jinlan thought to himself: These Meizu people are like dogs, their noses are different from normal people, how come I can't smell anything?
Chi Cheng then asked, "Are you the emperor?"
Lu Jinlan shook her head. "No, I am Lu Jinlan from Huaguo."
Chi Cheng's eyes widened immediately. "Huh? Then... how come you smell like my brother? Didn't he marry the emperor?"
Lu Jinlan smiled. "You wouldn't understand, would you? Do you even know what an affair is?"
Chi Cheng took a moment to react, "You're an adulterer?"
Lu Jinlan nodded frankly, "That's right, you can understand it that way."
"Ah!" Chi Cheng exclaimed in shock and admiration. "No wonder everyone says you're amazing. You even dared to do something like this. You're really amazing. I've only ever heard of adulterers, I've never seen one before."
Lu Jinlan chuckled, "That's because some people dare to do it but not to admit it; they're all cowards. I, Lu Jinlan, am not afraid at all. Anyway, I've always had a mixed reputation, so I don't care about adding another charge. Cowardice is something you men do; I dare to do it and I dare to admit it."
"Cough!" Chi Qin coughed loudly, interrupting their conversation.
Lu Jinlan quickly got up and saw Chi Li following behind his mother with red and swollen eyes.
Chi Qin said, "Lord Lu, please stay for a simple meal. I heard you are going back to Hua Kingdom. My daughter, Mo Yao, is a minor official in Yezhou City. Perhaps she can find a way to send you back. I will make the arrangements right away."
Chi Qin's attitude towards Lu Jinlan changed completely, leaving Lu Jinlan astonished. She whispered to Chi Li, "Your mother wouldn't be thinking of poisoning my food, would she?"
Chi Li smiled and shook her head, "No, actually... she admires you a lot."
As soon as Chi Qin left, Chi Cheng immediately rushed over with joy, "Brother, you're finally back. I've been looking forward to your return every day. I'll show you my scorpion now."
As Chi Cheng spoke, he spat out a pale blue scorpion.
Lu Jinlan leaned back slightly, feeling unaccustomed to the Meizu people's uninhibited lifestyle.
Chi Li patted Chi Cheng's head, forcing himself to cheer up, and praised, "Very good."
"Brother, take out your red centipede and play with my poisonous scorpion for a while."
Chi Li then handed the red centipede to him, saying, "Go play."
Chi Li looked at Lu Jinlan, "What would you like to eat? I'll make it for you. It's getting late; after we finish eating, we should set off."
Seeing his voice choked with emotion and his unusual expression, Lu Jinlan quickly grabbed him, "What's wrong? What happened?"
With tears in his eyes, Chi Li told her helplessly, "I can't go with you."
Lu Jinlan was taken aback: "Why?"
"Because...because my brother has learned to feed poison to animals. If I leave, he will become the new Holy Man. He will be imprisoned in the deep palace, just like me, until he dies of old age."
Chi Li's tears streamed down her face as she embraced Lu Jinlan and wept silently.
"You have no idea how much I want to go with you. I've long since grown tired of being a saintly man. I don't care about being a saintly man or a royal consort. I'd rather be an anonymous man by your side, as long as I can stay with you..."
"But... but Chi Cheng is still so young, I really can't bear to let him suffer in the palace in my place. I'm sorry, please don't hate me, I really have no other choice."
Lu Jinlan hugged him tightly, her eyes moist. "I don't blame you, but neither of you should suffer in the palace. There must be another way to resolve this."
Chi Li said in despair, "There's nothing we can do. This is our family's fate. But I have nothing to complain about anymore. These days with you have been the happiest days of my life."
"I will always think of you and miss you. You are the only woman in my life. I will remain chaste for you until I die."
Lu Jinlan kissed his cheek tenderly, "Don't say such things yet, let me think about it."
"Don't think about it, it'll just be a waste of time. We don't have much time left, so spend some quality time with me. Let me have more memories, because I'll barely be able to get through the rest of my life with the memories we share."
Chi Li took out a black gold token from his bosom. "This is a holy decree. All my followers who see this token will see me. If there are any accidents on your return journey, they will help you."
Chi Li leaned on Lu Jinlan's shoulder and said gently, "You haven't named Chi Gong yet. Let me name it. How about 'Nian Li'?"
“I cannot leave Jiang Kingdom, so I give Nianli to you. Let it stay by your side in my place; perhaps it can help you. When you see it, you will remember me.”
Lu Jinlan's nose stung with tears, and she refused, "No, then what about you?"
"I can raise it again. I can sense its presence, so I'll know if you're doing well, okay?"
In the end, Lu Jinlan nodded helplessly.
*
Before long, Chi Qin brought Chi Moyao. Chi Moyao was dressed in military uniform, about twenty years old, and looked quite burly, with a scar more than ten centimeters long on his face.
Seeing that Lu Jinlan and Chi Li were still embracing, Chi Qin frowned and urged, "You can set off now. Mo Yao knows a way to secretly send you out of the pass. You should go quickly."
Chi Li wiped away the tears on her face, put Nian Li in a bamboo cage and tied it to Lu Jinlan's waist. "Let's go, we need to hurry on our way. Don't let me delay us."
Lu Jinlan gritted her teeth, grasped his hand, and said, "Okay, I'll go back first. Take good care of yourself. Wait for me, I will definitely come back for you."
Chi Li nodded repeatedly, "I'll wait for you."
Chi Qin said angrily, "Don't come again!"
Lu Jinlan waved her hand, "It's none of your business!"
Seeing the atmosphere had turned out this way, Chi Moyao frowned and looked at her mother with a troubled expression, "Should I still see her off?"
Chi Qin said, "Send her away! Quickly send her away, send her far away, and don't let her come back!"
Chi Moyao sighed helplessly, "Lord Lu, please."
*
Lu Jinlan was forced to separate from Chi Li, and she was very unhappy. She remained silent the whole way until they finished traveling by land and switched to water, rowing together in a boat. Her anger gradually subsided.
Seeing that Chi Moyao remained silent, Lu Jinlan spoke up and chatted with him for a few moments.
"Can this waterway get us out of the pass?"
"Yes, you can cross the moat by sneaking across and you'll be in your Hua Kingdom's territory."
"Won't anyone find out?"
"The person guarding the city wall tonight is my sworn sister. I have already spoken to her."
"Okay, thank you for your help."
"Need not."
"Oh?" Lu Jinlan found it a bit strange. She felt that Chi Li and Chi Cheng were both quite outgoing and enthusiastic, so why was Chi Moyao so cold? He only answered questions and kept a cold face the whole way.
The journey was long and arduous, and paddling in silence was rather boring. So Lu Jinlan decided to find a topic to start a conversation.
How did you get that scar on your face?
Chi Moyao gave her a cold look. "I was injured during the war with your Hua Kingdom."
"..."
Lu Jinlan fell silent instantly. Why did she have to bring up such a sensitive topic? This conversation had turned into a feud.
"Um... I didn't hurt you, did I? Well... when two countries are at war, injuries are inevitable. Nobody wants this, so... try to take it easy."
Chi Moyao said calmly, "It wasn't you, it was your friend who wields a long sword. That day, during the great battle outside Qiulong Pass, the guy surnamed Yan was wielding a sword and hacking people around, and he scratched my face."
Lu Jinlan said awkwardly, "This whole thing is a mess, like the flood washing away the Dragon King's temple. We're relatives now, so next time you mention me to her, she definitely won't kill you."
Chi Moyao nodded. "It's alright, I don't hold grudges. I'm lucky to be alive, and I think this scar looks pretty good too; it makes me look more feminine."
"Yes, yes, yes, that's right." Lu Jinlan echoed repeatedly, secretly sighing: Luckily, the Meizu people are simple and honest, and their way of thinking is different from normal people. If it were someone else, they might have pushed her into the river by now.
The two paddled until nightfall, and under the cover of moonlight, they finally passed safely through Yezhou City.
Lu Jinlan bid farewell to Chi Moyao, glanced at the bright moon hanging high above her head, and quickly quickened her pace, running all the way back to Qiulong Pass.
Before they even reached the pass, they ran into a small group of people.
"Lord Lu?"
Lu Jinlan recognized the voice and quickly asked, "Who is it?"
"I!"
Torches lit up in the shadows, and Zuo Suizhi smiled as he led his men to greet them.
Zuo Suizhi said with delight, "General Xiang said you would be returning tonight, so we split into seven or eight small teams to welcome you from all directions, and I actually ran into you."
Lu Jinlan breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, you're finally back. Nothing happened here while I was gone, right?"
Zuo Sui said, "It's nothing serious. The delegation that went to Jiang Kingdom sent back a message saying that the other side does not agree to give three cities. They are planning to reduce it to two cities and are still negotiating with them. General Yan told them to keep dragging it out and wait for you to come back before we talk about it."
Lu Jinlan nodded. "Where are the two of them?"
Zuo Suizhi: "I said I'd go to the wilderness to meet you."
Lu Jinlan's expression changed, and she suddenly froze. "We agreed that if I didn't arrive tonight, they would go to the woods to look for me. Why did they go in early?"
Zuo Suizhi didn't know why Lu Jinlan was so nervous, and explained blankly, "They heard that there was something strange about that forest, and they were afraid that you would fall into a trap, so they sneaked in beforehand."
"Damn it! The most dangerous thing about that forest isn't the traps, it's the poison!"
Lu Jinlan quickly tossed all her letters, bundles, and weapons to Zuo Suizhi, snatched a torch from a soldier, and said, "I'll go call them out. You take some men back to get gas masks and go in to provide backup!"
Lu Jinlan snatched a horse and galloped into the desolate forest. On the way here, he could see what looked like torches flickering in the forest, but now they were all gone.
She felt a pang of panic, swallowed an antidote pill, and began to head into the forest with a torch.
"Ru Zhen! Wu Xin!" The dense forest was eerily quiet, without even a sound from an animal.
Lu Jinlan anxiously searched through the thick layer of fallen leaves, occasionally popping an antidote pill into her mouth.
But she also knew that taking this stuff beforehand would be useless. The crucial problem was that she didn't know where the poison was or where the trap was.
There was no response from any direction. Could they have fallen into a trap? Or been poisoned?
Lu Jinlan broke out in a cold sweat the more she thought about it, and her pace quickened.
Turning around abruptly, I finally caught a glimpse of light.
Lu Jinlan shouted, "Wu Xin! Ru Zhen!"
She ran toward the light, and heard a cracking sound under her feet, as if something had been broken.
Lu Jinlan sensed something was wrong and instinctively leaped up to dodge the attack, but when she landed, she felt that her feet were as soft as mud, and her body felt as if it had been drugged and lost all strength.
Alarm bells rang in her mind, and she knew something was wrong. This time, it was truly terrible.
A series of hurried footsteps approached, blurring Lu Jinlan's vision. She hurriedly tried her best to stop them, shouting, "Don't come any closer! It's poisonous smoke!"
However, the direction Xiang Ruzhen and the others rushed from was precisely the direction from which the smoke was dissipating. Xiang Ruzhen was at the forefront, and she didn't even have time to hold her breath.
She felt her knees buckle and she knelt on the ground. She quickly said to the people behind her, "Quickly, lie down!"
But it was still too late. Everyone had inhaled the toxic fumes to varying degrees and felt weak all over.
Yan Wuxin, who was behind, could barely stand by holding onto a tree, and asked anxiously, "How are you?"
Lu Jinlan gasped for breath, "I fell into the swamp and I'm sinking. I... I inhaled too much poisonous smoke and can't move at all. You guys get out of here first. Wait for Sui Zhi to bring people and then we'll figure out a way to rescue me."
The mud had already reached Lu Jinlan's waist. The bottle of antidote pills that was just in her hand was now nowhere to be found.
She was still relatively lucid, but now that she had obtained the antidote, she couldn't move her hands or put it in her mouth.
She felt herself falling, and in her daze, she heard Xiang Ruzhen tell Wuxin to go back and get a rope to call for help.
Lu Jinlan felt herself falling very fast; it was probably too late.
Is Heaven going to kill me? That shouldn't be the case.
With her remaining consciousness, she tried to contact the system's customer service for an explanation, but the live agent was not online at that time.
The robot coldly replied, "Sorry, the system cannot provide assistance."
"What use is this useless system? I'm giving you a bad review and filing a complaint..."
The swamp's silt had reached her chest, and Lu Jinlan felt it becoming increasingly difficult to breathe.
In my daze, I heard someone shouting from above: "Hang in there!"
Ru Zhen's voice was so loud, where did she get the strength? Was Ru Zhen born immune to all poisons?
Lu Jinlan felt warm, bloody liquid fall on her face. She suddenly opened her eyes and saw Xiang Ruzhen with her feet tied to a tree, hanging upside down above her head.
Xiang Ruzhen, with a sharp dagger in her mouth, reached out her hand.
Sweat mixed with blood streamed down Xiang Ruzhen's face, and the poison in her body made her feel extremely heavy.
Whenever she felt weak, she would cut her arm to bleed out the toxins, but the blood and toxins would gush out together, which was tantamount to suicide.
Lu Jinlan felt as if something was blocking his throat, and could only let out a low growl: "Xiang Ruzhen, are you crazy? You'll die!"
Xiang Ruzhen grasped her hand, biting the cold blade tightly, and mumbled, "But I can't watch you die."
Lu Jinlan tried to hold her hand tightly, but she really didn't have any strength at all, and couldn't even break free.
Lu Jinlan said anxiously, "It's no use. I'll die if I want to. Don't give me the 'buy one get one free' offer. Go back now!"
"No, I have to save you! At least... at least I have to hold on until Wuxin comes back!"
Lu Jinlan's tears welled up. "It's too late, too late... Let go, don't do anything foolish. We've finally made a name for ourselves, and now two great generals are dying in the swamp, making us a laughingstock."
"I don't care, laugh all you want, but I just can't let you die in front of me."
As Xiang Ruzhen spoke, she gripped the dagger and made another cut on her arm. Hot, bright red blood flowed down their clasped arms, soaking even Lu Jinlan's clothes.
Xiang Ruzhen gritted her teeth and used all her strength to lift Lu Jinlan two inches out of the swamp, but then she and Lu Jinlan fell down several centimeters together.
Xiang Ruzhen sighed in relief, "You're right, I was indeed doing something foolish. I can't save you anymore, let's die together."
Looking at the wounds on her arm, Lu Jinlan felt utterly helpless, her voice trembling uncontrollably with sobs.
"Why...why are you doing this? It's not worth it, not worth it at all. Sometimes I really want to ask you, Xiang Ruzhen, what on earth are you thinking?"
Xiang Ruzhen smiled wryly and said, "I also want to ask you, is chicken soup with plaster on the wall delicious? I saw it when I was washing the dishes."
Xiang Ruzhen's eyes were bloodshot. "Lu Jinlan, you did such a foolish thing to protect my fragile self-esteem. What does it matter if I risk my life for you and do something foolish?"
Lu Jinlan said angrily, "Then you don't need to die for me."
Xiang Ruzhen said, "You and Wuxin have done so much for me, and I've always wanted to do something for you. This time, I'll accompany you on your journey to the underworld."
Lu Jinlan said urgently, "I don't need you to keep me company. Xueqing is pregnant, and you're about to become a mother. If you live, take care of my family for me. Stop the bleeding quickly!"
Xiang Ruzhen shook her head. "It's too late, but it's okay. Wuxin will take care of our family. It's a pity I haven't named the child yet, and I don't know if it's a boy or a girl. What should I name it?"
The hand holding hers was gradually loosening, and Xiang Ruzhen's consciousness was beginning to fade.
Lu Jinlan hurriedly said, "Ruzhen, Ruzhen, don't sleep, I have something important to tell you."
"Let me tell you, I'm not from this world. I really do have cheat codes."
Xiang Ruzhen mumbled a confused reply, "Um, can it... can it be hung on a tree?"
The dagger fell from Xiang Ruzhen's mouth, and she swayed precariously.
Lu Jinlan frantically called out to her, "Ruzhen! Wait for me, I'll show you a giant centipede."
Xiang Ruzhen didn't have the strength to answer. She was just thinking: Jinlan is too deeply poisoned and has started to talk nonsense.
Xiang Ruzhen heard Lu Jinlan muttering incoherently, "That's right! Nianli! Nianli, Nianli, my dear daughter, crawl out quickly... Mother needs you now, come and bite me, I'll go out and catch some poisonous snakes for you to eat..."
Xiang Ruzhen thought: This toxic smoke is really powerful; it even has hallucinogenic effects.
She murmured, "I've got it, let's name the child 'Hate It'."
Lu Jinlan didn't seem to respond to her, continuing to talk about Nian Li. Before losing consciousness, Xiang Ruzhen was still wondering: Who exactly is Nian Li?
Sensing the call, the red centipede crawled out of its cage, struggled through the mud, and followed the scent of blood as it climbed upwards.
Lu Jinlan felt a bite on her neck, and her mind cleared up a bit. She regained her strength and immediately grabbed Xiang Ruzhen to get out of the swamp.
The two of them fell to the ground. Lu Jinlan quickly put Nianli on Xiang Ruzhen's body, saying, "Be good, save your aunt first."
Xiang Ruzhen had lost too much blood, and her face was as white as paper. Lu Jinlan trembled as he took out the hemostatic medicine and poured the whole bottle into Xiang Ruzhen's mouth.
She had not yet cleared the toxins herself and lay exhausted next to Xiang Ruzhen.
In my drowsy state, I heard footsteps.
Lu Jinlan thought: We should be saved.
*
When Yan Wuxin arrived with his men, all they saw was a fallen dagger and blood on the ground.
Yan Wuxin's heart skipped a beat. "Where are they? Where are they!"
Zuo Suizhi helped her up and hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Marquis Lu and General Xiang will surely be safe and sound. I'll take people to look for them right now. We'll dig three feet into the ground to find them."
Yan Wuxin found the antidote pill that Lu Jinlan had dropped by the swamp. She knew it was Lu Jinlan's medicine and quickly swallowed one.
Her body quickly returned to normal, and she hoped that Lu Jinlan and Xiang Ruzhen had also taken the medicine, but... but why was there so much blood?
Yan Wuxin looked at the swamp and said, "Give me the rope, I'll go down and take a look."
The guards on both sides hurriedly said, "You're injured, let's go down."
Several soldiers quickly tied ropes and jumped into the swamp. They only found a few pieces of white human bones, who had been dead for countless years.
General Yan, there's none down there!
Yan Wuxin's expression was frighteningly calm. She knelt to the side with a sullen face, not saying a word, and no one knew what she was thinking.
A short while later, Zuo Suizhi returned with his men to report, "There are none in the woods."
“How could there not be?” Yan Wuxin said coldly, “Cut down all the trees and burn down the forest, I don’t believe we can’t find it.”
Sun Le said, "With so much blood here, they must have had some injuries and couldn't have gone far. How come there's no trace of them?"
Yan Wuxin nodded. "It's possible that someone took them away."
Sun Lewen hurriedly asked, "Who else could it be but us?"
Yan Wuxin shook his head. At this moment, Kong Luan's squad hurriedly returned to report, "Reporting to General Yan, we searched all the way out and found this at the edge of the forest!"
-----------------------
Author's Note: I cried so much this chapter I used up half a pack of tissues, and my head hurts. Today's long chapter is to celebrate receiving the first long review for this story. I invite everyone to go to the comments section of the first chapter to enjoy Professor Yu's paper. As always, I thank every reader for their love and support for this story. I'm going to go cry for a while longer.
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