He didn't believe that Wei Qinglou wouldn't harbor resentment over this.
Call him despicable or selfish, he was willing to end his life as atonement and repentance. But he couldn't bear to watch Zhu Jiayu be with Wei Qinglou like that.
He thought of the way Zhu Jiayu looked at him last night. She didn't love him, but even her hatred for him was gradually fading away.
A voice kept telling him that they would live happily ever after, have children, and grow old together. She would gradually forget that such a person had ever appeared in her life. That someone had loved her hopelessly for many years.
He cannot accept it.
He no longer hoped that Zhu Jiayu would love him, but he hoped that she would remember him.
He thought that by saying this, he would be touching a nerve with Wei Qinglou.
To everyone's surprise, Wei Qinglou simply smiled faintly and said, "You are quite confident."
"This reminds me of something. She used to love eating fish, but after getting a fish bone stuck in her throat a few times, she never ate it again. Once, I remembered this and asked her whether she wanted to eat fish but was afraid of getting a fish bone stuck in her throat again, or whether she simply didn't like eating fish anymore."
She said that she used to eat fish all the time and thought it tasted good. But after not eating fish for a long time, she gradually forgot what it tasted like. So naturally, she couldn't say whether she liked it or not. If she had to say, she would probably say she didn't care. Bear paw mutton soup, I can eat whatever I want, so I don't need to always think about a plate of fish.
He smiled at Rong Heng, whose expression was gentle and seemed to have everything under control: "I will tell her your wish, but whether or not she sees you is not something you or I can decide. Besides, so what if you die in front of her? When you were alive, she was already prepared to marry me. Do you think she will change her mind just because you are dead?"
“She loves me. I have no doubt about that, and of course, I will cherish her feelings for me very much.”
Rong Heng lazily raised his eyes: "Is that so?"
However, Wei Qinglou no longer looked at him and turned to leave the prison with the charges against him.
After he left, Rong Heng finally couldn't hold back anymore. He lowered his eyes and gave a bitter laugh.
He knew he had lost completely.
...
Having received Wei Qinglou's instructions, Shu Jian was on his way to find Zhu Jiayu, but unexpectedly, he bumped into Zhu Jiayu's carriage as soon as he left the Ministry of Justice.
He greeted Zhu Jiayu through the carriage curtain before saying, "Miss Zhu, the young master just interrogated Rong Heng, and Rong Heng said he wishes to see you again."
"What did your young master say?"
Shujian replied, "Young Master said it's up to you. You can see Rong Heng if you want, or it doesn't matter if you don't."
He paused, then said, "The young master also said that since Rong Heng has confessed his crimes and accepted punishment, he should be executed immediately. However, in order to avoid the mourning period for the late emperor, it is not appropriate to carry out such an extreme punishment, so he was granted the privilege of committing suicide."
Zhu Jiayu chuckled: "In that case, it would be most appropriate for me to send him on his way."
She got off the carriage and, together with Shujian, took the poisoned wine, white silk, and dagger to the prison.
When Rong Heng saw her arrive, his eyes revealed a look of longing and satisfaction: "You still came."
He reached for the dagger, raised it above his head, looked up at the dim candlelight reflecting off the dagger, and laughed, "Ayu, I gave you a half-hearted bet. In this life, you've beaten me."
He smiled knowingly, and with a swift movement, the knife fell.
As he slowly fell, the bamboo tube at his waist rolled out. Zhu Jiayu recognized it as a signal flare he used to communicate with his men. In his previous life, when he was imprisoned, he relied on such a signal flare to order his soldiers to rescue him.
Blood splattered onto the ground, slowly spreading like fallen red plum blossoms in full bloom. The white jade pendant shattered, falling into the pool of blood like scattered snowflakes.
In a daze, Zhu Jiayu recalled her past life. When they played chess, he would never let her win, always saying that the way of chess is like the way of the world. If you soften your heart once and lose a game, you will never be able to walk your own path again.
But this time, he ultimately abandoned his escape route, allowing her to win this round.
Between them, the real enmity of death was resolved.
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