Chapter 37: Token of Love Xie Qianli felt an inappropriate, lingering thought...
Xie Qianli had a good constitution and recovered quickly. In addition, Feng Yong's knife completely avoided vital points. Even though he was still unconscious, his face was gradually regaining color.
Xie Qianli stayed in Weiyang Palace for as many days as he was unconscious.
Food and other necessities were provided by the Weiyang Palace, and rare medicines were obtained directly from the emperor's private treasury. This exceeded all limits.
This matter naturally attracted the attention of the censors who impeached him.
However, Ying Xi ignored them all.
He saved this person because the other party needed to train his troops for battle. Given the situation at the Xie residence, Xie Qianli's return to work was a long way off.
Ying Xi was certainly able to calculate the accounts.
During her recovery, Ying Xi naturally visited Xie Qianli many times.
But I never stay for long.
Firstly, bandaging and changing dressings for the wounded requires removing their clothes, which is inconvenient for him to be nearby.
Furthermore, he is not someone who can easily let go of hatred. Xie Qianli killed him in his previous life, so it's impossible for him to be completely unprepared and vigilant.
Therefore, whenever Ying Xi visited, he would not sit down, but would stand and inquire about the condition of the imperial physician, standing a dozen steps away from the sickbed.
Even though the black falcon cried pitifully and nudged Ying Xi closer with its fluffy head, it was all in vain. The black falcon could only land alone between the two of them and look around.
The only exception was during a spring rainy day when the weather was still chilly.
Many nobles in Chang'an fell ill and sought out imperial physicians, leading to a severe shortage of staff in the Imperial Hospital.
When Ying Xi passed by the study after court, she overheard two junior physicians hurriedly handing over their duties. The physician taking over muttered that the medicinal herbs were almost gone and rushed to the storeroom to get more medicine, leaving Xie Qianli alone in the room.
Patients should not be left unattended.
Ying Xi pushed open the door and went in without making a sound.
The study was filled with the bittersweet aroma of medicine, and You Long'e leaned against the corner of the wall.
Xie Qianli seemed to regain some consciousness, coughing a few times, which attracted Ying Xi to come closer to observe. The black falcon on the roof beam happily spread its wings.
He must have been asleep for several days and should be waking up by now.
Ying Xi stood by the couch with her eyes downcast. Xie Qianli was only wearing a snow-white outfit, and his exposed dark tan skin was covered with crisscrossing brown scabs.
His scars made him appear heroic, while his slumber made Xie Qianli appear calm and lonely.
Yingxi looked at his numerous wounds, and knew that he must have suffered many new ones now.
Ying Xi's pupils flickered.
After waiting for a long time, no one woke up. The room was so quiet that you could hear the pattering spring rain outside.
As Ying Xi shook his head to leave, his index finger suddenly felt warm. In the chilly, late-spring weather, Xie Qianli's hand grasped his fingertip.
The man's palms were covered in calluses, making them particularly noticeable to the touch; when they touched the skin, they caused a slight stinging sensation.
It was probably an instinctive reaction. In the chaos, life and death were uncertain, and the will to survive made him hold on to the living things around him. His consciousness wanted to return to the world of the living.
"..."
Ying Xi didn't want to cause Tian Tong to misunderstand and keep nagging, so she forced herself to calm down and looked away.
Little did I know that it amplified the tactile sensation transmitted through my fingertips.
His lips were pressed tightly together, but they were trembling.
He had once grabbed Xie Qianli's arm tightly when he was most helpless, and under Xie's protection, he found a moment of peace.
Ying Xi did not pull her finger out.
Xie Qianli had protected him countless times, so he should repay him in kind; it was a matter of tit for tat.
The warmth emanated from the overlapping palms, and a stinging sensation spread from the fingertips to the heart.
Ying Xi felt his eyes burning, and a strong lump rose in his throat, the bitterness almost burning through his internal organs!
His fingernails dug deep into his palms, forcing back the tears that were about to burst forth, turning them into trembling eyelashes, and his vision gradually cleared.
Xie Qianli was someone he both relied on and resented.
The dragon-shaped sword gleamed coldly in the corner of the wall.
He could still recall the excruciating pain when the spearhead pierced him, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He was in so much pain.
He was killed by Xie Qianli in his previous life, but Xie Qianli has saved him many times in this life.
Their entanglements across two lifetimes are inextricably intertwined.
Ying Xi trembled as she accused Xie Ji in her heart: Xie Ji was not harmed by me. I was forced to lie to you back then. You punished me afterward. For years, apart from official business, we have never communicated.
Why must you assassinate me?
You hate me so much, don't trust me, and think I'm a villain.
Now, open your eyes and look at me?
Right in front of you is the person you hate the most.
Let's see if you'll still have the nerve to lead me around like an abandoned wolfhound.
I can't stay here any longer.
Ying Xi controlled her breathing, suppressing the second wave of tears that welled up.
He forcefully pulled his finger out, leaving a streak of rosy red on his porcelain-white skin.
He didn't look back, his steps were so quick they seemed a little hurried, and then he pulled up the roof beam, where the black falcon pitifully poked its head out and cooed a few times.
Black Falcon watched Ying Xi's departing figure with lingering affection.
***
"..."
Tiny points of light appeared in my field of vision.
The spring rain pattered softly. In the latter half of the night, the physician on night duty was not in the study. Xie Qianli slowly regained consciousness on his own, feeling a little thirsty.
Xie Qianli habitually went to find water himself. With his long, slender fingers, he reached for the headboard but couldn't find a teacup. When he opened his eyes, he saw a five-clawed dragon painted on the ceiling of the study.
Xie Qianli's heart clenched suddenly.
It wasn't that he overstepped the bounds, nor did anyone rebel on his behalf. Xie Qianli recognized this as the study of Weiyang Palace, where Ying Xi handled court affairs.
He quickly glanced at the furnishings of the study. The writing brushes, ink, and memorials on the table were almost all gone. Medicine bottles and jars were neatly arranged on Ying Xi's desk, indicating that he had been staying there for more than just one or two nights.
Xie Qianli got up to inspect his well-bandaged and healed wounds.
The Xie family did not have a physician.
As a subject, he was temporarily staying in the emperor's territory to recuperate from his injuries.
The emperor's favor was unprecedented.
Xie Qianli's mind lingered on the words "I believe in you" many times, and he felt increasingly ashamed.
At this moment, the black falcon flapped its wings and carefully landed on the edge of the bed. It pressed its glossy, smooth beak against Xie Qianli's palm, as if trying to remind him of something.
Xie Qianli, however, recalled his father's message delivered by a flying eagle, and the dying wish it left him:
"Strive to serve the country and be loyal to the emperor."
It's a pity he wasn't able to do it completely before.
Xie Qianli felt intense remorse.
Now that he's leaving this door, he wouldn't even blink if asked to go through fire and water for the emperor.
Generals, especially young generals, are sometimes so unruly that they are difficult to tame, and at other times, they can be easily subdued by a monarch who values and appreciates them.
Xie Qianli sat on the edge of the bed with an air of authority, processing his various emotions.
She even went back further, recalling how Ying Xi'er had pretended to be a little girl to deceive him, embarrassing him and causing him to be brutally beaten...
Back and forth, Xie Qianli went over their past countless times, adding and subtracting details, unable to figure out who was right more.
He admired his father's discerning eye for talent, recognizing Ying Xi as a wise ruler long ago, while he himself had been blinded by hatred.
Xie Qianli remained unmoved, his thoughts wandering aimlessly.
The black falcon felt it hadn't fulfilled its responsibility to its master. Since pawing at Qianli's palm was useless, it had to find another way. It hopped around on the edge of the bed and finally bent down to pick up a hair.
The eagle raised its head as if presenting a treasure: "Coo."
Xie Qianli fell silent instantly.
He ran his fingers through the long hair, the strand shimmering with a golden-brown iridescence in the candlelight. It was both soft and very, very long.
He recognized it as Ying Xi's hair, of course. Ying Xi had light-colored hair, pale skin, and eyes that resembled diluted ink, due to her poor health.
The king must have visited him; they were very close by.
Xie Qianli's throat bobbed, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously lifted slightly, as if he were seeing the emperor's thin and slender figure by the bedside.
His heart raced.
A single strand of hair in the bed curtains stirred up even more boundless imagination in Xie Qianli.
However, Xie Qianli, being a gentleman, immediately calmly and composed himself, telling himself that the person was now the Emperor of Qin, not Miss Xiaoxi, and that the other party was a man, so he should no longer regard her as an orphan girl from Fanglan Palace.
Moreover, the bright moon is unattainable.
He endured a severe beating to rescue Ying Xi, precisely so that she could freely dangle in the sky.
Xie Qianli nodded slightly, trying to convince himself, and murmured "Your Majesty" several times.
However, seemingly unintentionally, his fingers tucked the strand of hair into his sleeve, then tied the two ends of the hair into a knot, securing it to his wrist without anyone noticing.
Xie Qianli looked around with a cold expression, but there was no one else around.
"Gurgle."
It was probably upon seeing Xie Qianli that it became very interested in the items related to Ying Xi. The falcon, being very intelligent, flapped its wings knowingly.
Having observed this place for so long, it had already figured out everything. Since its master had shown this intention, it began to search the entire study.
Yingxi's hair ribbon was hanging on the wall.
Ying Xi's personal seal was placed on the corner of the table next to the inkstone.
The eagle's talons pulled out a drawer under the desk, revealing the books Ying Xi had been secretly reading... and they were all proper stories.
Xie Qianli was filled with fear and unease, and of course he could not touch the emperor's belongings without permission.
If he were to break something, or if His Majesty were to mistakenly believe that he was trying to spy on some court secrets, then he would be considered ungrateful and could be said to have repaid kindness with enmity.
Xie Qianli immediately stood up, casting a tall shadow on the ground.
The bad falcon took it in front, and he put it down behind.
Fortunately, the emperor's office had been temporarily moved elsewhere. Important and frequently used items had been removed long ago. Only a few scattered memorials remained on the bookshelves, not yet organized and stored away in the secret archives; none of them were recent documents.
A falcon hovered on the bookshelf, its head darting inside to grab a bookmark.
The bookmark had a tassel at the end, which was quite eye-catching.
With its target clear, the falcon hooked its talons and proudly retrieved the bookmark, a piece of openwork gold with a shimmering surface; birds probably all like bright and eye-catching colors.
But it swept down several memorials in a flurry.
Xie Qianli hurriedly bent down to pick up the fallen memorial, not daring to touch it—it was Ying Xi's personal belongings.
However, when he saw the familiar handwriting in the memorials that had been laid out, he paused, and his expression became very solemn.
That memorial was submitted by my father during the campaign to quell the Qingniu Army. It concerned the fact that nearly 10,000 new soldiers had been recruited into the army for the court, which had led to a shortage of military funds.
Xie Qianli was beside his father when he wrote this memorial.
The image of his father holding the pen, his solemn expression and dignified demeanor, brought a deep sorrow to Xie Qianli's heart.
That was only two months ago.
He still had his father back then.
With a heart full of remembrance, Xie Qianli absentmindedly unfolded the memorial.
He rubbed his fingertips hard against his father's strokes, his nails turning pale white, which aggravated the pain in his wounds, like a young lion who had matured but still longed for the old lion king who died protecting his territory.
Xie Qianli hopes to transcend life and death and feel the warmth left by his father once again.
Nothing was left behind.
Even if the misunderstanding is cleared up and the great revenge is achieved, the dead cannot be brought back to life.
Xie Qianli closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath.
He opened his eyes heavily again, and then saw Ying Xi's comments in a corner of the memorial.
There were two lines of small, vermilion-inked annotations appended to the end of the memorial.
The handwriting is powerful, flowing like clouds and water.
"I am well aware of the hardships endured by the soldiers at the front. Even if the expenses of the palace are reduced, the military supplies at the front will not be neglected. I hope you will focus on the battle and not worry about the rear."
"Furthermore, with the approach of winter, you often suffer from headaches. You can boil mugwort leaves in water and use the steam to fumigate and dispel cold and dampness. The army can use local materials, which is simple and easy to do."
Xie Qianli twirled the pages between his fingers, feeling an immense weight on his wrists and in his heart.
His hands trembled, his knuckles turned pale and bluish.
Presumably because his father died in battle, this memorial was never sent to the Duke of England's mansion.
It turns out that His Majesty has been diligently raising military funds and heavily relying on the Xie family.
He even remembered casual gossip from his youth, knowing that his father had a chronic illness that often flared up in autumn and winter.
Calluses on Xie Qianli's fingers embedded in his palms!
The bright moon hangs high above, unreachable.
But because the moon seemed to take pity on him and always shone on him, Xie Qianli finally couldn't suppress the urge to have these inappropriate thoughts. He really wanted to reach out and touch the moon.
—To carry on my father’s legacy and serve the Qin Dynasty with loyalty.
—We must also help His Majesty change the current situation and ensure his stability on the throne.
The lanterns in the study cast flickering shadows, highlighting Xie Qianli's resolute features. He pursed his thin lips and solemnly closed the memorial.
...
Volume One: The Death of Xie Ji (Completed)
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