Song Ting took a few more steps forward and stood in front of the memorial tablet, where he could clearly see the words engraved on it:
[The memorial tablet for Dong Junxi was erected by his father, Dong Maolin]
Perhaps it was because the temperature in the cellar was too low, but Song Ting also felt a chill down her spine.
He opened his mouth, his voice low: "Lord Dong, aren't you afraid that Dong Yunxi will be heartbroken in the afterlife by going to such lengths to destroy the homeland and country that he wanted to protect?"
"Hahahaha... Heartbreaking? When Chu Minghuan and his mother ascended to the throne and enjoyed wealth and honor by stepping over the corpses of tens of thousands of soldiers, did they ever think about whether Yunxi and those soldiers would feel heartbroken?"
"And you, Song Ting, a treacherous villain like you who will stop at nothing for power and status, a dog under that old thief Zhang Bingzhi, what right do you have to judge me? Bah!"
Dong Maolin's eyes were wide with anger, and he was breathing heavily, which reminded Song Ting of Zhou Lin, whose throat had been slit.
That was the old steward of the Prince Duan's mansion. On the day the incident occurred at the mansion, he led the Imperial Guards to arrest the person. The old steward stood in front of him and was slit in the throat by one of the Imperial Guards, blood splattering everywhere.
The old butler remained standing, clutching his throat and struggling painfully for a moment, making a gurgling sound. He then collapsed to the ground, lifeless.
Chu Huaixu was right next to him.
He seemed not to have reacted to the changes that had occurred in the Prince's mansion, and could not believe what he was seeing. After a long pause, he rushed towards him like a madman.
But he forgot that he had drunk the muscle-relaxing powder and had no strength left in his body, so he fell heavily to the ground.
Then he was captured by two Imperial Guards.
Those eyes, filled with shock, deep hatred, and loathing, appeared repeatedly in Song Ting's dreams, each time waking him up in a cold sweat.
"Since you've discovered me, I've lost. I couldn't defeat you. Do whatever you want with me. You don't need to put on this act."
“But…” While Song Ting was still in a daze, Dong Maolin rushed up to him and shoved him hard in the chest. His eyes were filled with crazy hatred and disgust, as if Song Ting was some kind of filthy thing and was not worthy of being near this memorial tablet.
But as he spoke, a hint of vulnerability appeared in his expression. He looked at the dark memorial tablet and said softly, "I just hope you won't forget why my son died."
That push used up almost all of Dong Maolin's strength, and he quickly collapsed to the ground, where he simply sat down.
His thin, trembling hands gently stroked the memorial tablet, extremely light and careful, his cloudy eyes filled with loving affection.
These past five years have been very difficult for Dong Maolin. On one hand, he had to secretly communicate with the Turks, on the other hand, he had to manage the Red Lotus Sect, and more importantly, he had to guard against the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
That guy surnamed Song is a complete mad dog. If anything goes wrong, he might be discovered. At that time, forget about avenging Yunxi; what awaits him is only eternal damnation.
He knew that bringing down the mighty Zhou Dynasty was no easy task, so he walked on thin ice every day, never daring to slack off for a moment. And what was the result?
As a result, all the hard work and effort went down the drain in one fell swoop.
All his forbearance and all his planning have become a joke.
And all of this is thanks to the person in front of me.
And then there's Chu Huaixu.
That fool who only cares about his children. He can even forget the blood feud between his own family members so easily.
At this moment, Dong Maolin only regretted trusting the wrong person. He was filled with hatred and resentment, so he assumed that the person surnamed Chu would feel the same way.
Unexpectedly...
"My son, it is I who have failed you, failed you so badly..."
This should have been a heartbreaking scene, but Song Ting gradually lost patience. Dong Maolin's uncontrollable sobs reminded him of Chu Huaixu, whose whereabouts were now unknown.
Although he admired Dong Yunxi, and thus patiently talked with the old man surnamed Dong for so long, Huai Xu's whereabouts were still unknown, and the antidote was nowhere to be found either. He really didn't want to waste any more time.
He has already suffered the pain of loss; he must not suffer it again.
Even the most cold-blooded and ruthless person will have moments when they can't bear it anymore.
"Where is Chu Huaixu?" He grabbed Dong Junxi's memorial tablet. Dong Maolin tried to snatch it from him, but of course he couldn't win and it was easily taken away.
This would undoubtedly be the old man's death. Dong Maolin's face was filled with hatred and tension: "What are you going to do? Give it back to me! A person like you doesn't deserve to touch it!"
"Lord Dong, I will ask one last time, where is Chu Huaixu? If you still refuse to tell me—"
As he spoke, he raised the memorial tablet high, his meaning clear: if Dong Maolin still refused to speak, he would smash the tablet down.
Having served in the same court for many years, Dong Maolin knew all too well just how ruthless this man was.
Anyone who could cut open this person's chest would surely find a black heart and rotten lungs, so he had no doubt that Song Ting would keep his word and really smash Yunxi's memorial tablet.
"I don't know! How would I know where he went! We hadn't been in contact since before the palace coup! I really don't know..."
He seemed to be greatly agitated, repeating the same words over and over again.
—It seems that Huai Xu's disappearance really has nothing to do with Dong Maolin.
"Where is the antidote? Hand over the antidote to the poison, and I can give you a quick death."
Song Ting had already interrogated him once in prison, but got nothing out of him. The entire Dong family, inside and out, had been thoroughly searched, but still no clues were found.
Dong Maolin paused for a moment, then burst into laughter as if he had heard a joke. His laughter was hoarse and slurred, making Song Ting very uncomfortable.
Those eyes, filled with hatred, stared straight at him: "Song Ting, you and the young emperor took my son's life, and now I'm going to take yours too."
"Although Chu Huaixu's worthless life is incomparable to my son's, since I can't kill you, it's good to let you, this heartless and ruthless commander, feel some pain. It's good, it's good, it's good..."
"Lord Song, you don't need to go to any trouble. I destroyed the antidote long before I gave Chu Huaixu the poison!"
"Chu Huaixu is doomed, and nobody else will survive either, hahahahahaha... The Gu poison in his body will kill him!"
Just moments ago he could barely stand, as if he might die at any moment, but suddenly, with a burst of strength from who knows where, Dong Maolin lunged forward, grabbed Song Ting by the collar, and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Song Ting, he won't survive!"
"My lord!" The old man's sudden action caught Xiao Wu off guard. When he tried to make a move, Song Ting stopped him with a raised hand.
He pried open his fingers one by one at the collar, his icy gaze piercing Dong Maolin: "If you dare utter another word, I will crush Dong Yunxi's memorial tablet into dust, so that he will not find peace even in death..."
Upon hearing these words, Dong Maolin almost instinctively trembled, and his lifeless eyes suddenly seemed to overflow with endless hatred.
"Song Ting, you are truly despicable and shameless!"
His body was already at its limit, and when Song Ting said that, he could no longer suppress the metallic taste in his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, a mixture of red and black, onto his chest.
"Song Ting, you will go to hell! The wronged souls of the 100,000 Xuanjia soldiers will come to haunt you! I will haunt you even as a ghost!"
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