Chapter 192: The Flowing River Eastward
Sikong Zhaixing had already reviewed the first half of his life in the night breeze.
He stood by the window, using the face of Lu Xiaofeng. The dashing and debonair face of the rogue exuded a certain carefree air under the moon. With his brows lowered, he appeared even more deeply troubled. He was indeed troubled; whether he was using his own face or not, the sorrow was real, and that was enough for Sikong Zhaixing.
Memories of his early days in the martial world resurfaced, stirring up trouble in his mind. He recalled the first time he met Wuqing, how he couldn't escape, how he was struck by a hidden arrow and fell from the roof, and how, thanks to his ancestors—though he didn't know who his ancestors were—Wuqing was a man of principle who ultimately let him go. Recalling these events, Sikong Zhaixing wanted to shout, "Why didn't I run away back then? If I had, none of this would have happened!"
He was never one to reflect on his actions, and asking him to swear he shouldn't have stolen was a pipe dream, even more impossible than asking him to swear he was inferior to Lu Xiaofeng. Sikong Zhaixing sighed deeply. If only he hadn't been caught by Wuqing, he wouldn't be spending his time in Bianjing, risking his life to gather clues. And even if he found something, it wouldn't be his; he'd have to send it to Wuqing.
As the investigation became increasingly dangerous, with his life hanging by a thread, Sikong Zhaixing felt uncertain and constantly worried that he would fall and be smashed to pieces.
But he had no choice but to cooperate. He knew all too well that he was now in a situation where he couldn't extricate himself. At least Wuqing had kept him in the dark, which was a form of protection for him.
After waiting for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, there was a knock on the door. Having finished her brooding, Sikong Zhaixing moved away from the window and sat back down. The people who entered were not only Wuqing, but also a man and a woman who looked very similar. Sikong Zhaixing stared at them for a while, feeling that he had heard of the two red moles under the girl's eyes somewhere, but he couldn't remember where.
He stared at the girl, and she stared back at him, carefully observing the human skin mask of Lu Xiaofeng, before shaking her head.
Sikong Zhaixing felt a sudden surge of displeasure. He vaguely felt that he was being looked down upon, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. After thinking it over, he remembered that it was Lu Xiaofeng who was being looked down upon, and his face lit up with a smile. He spoke first with a grin, "Who did the head constable bring? Why don't you introduce him? And why are you looking at me like that?"
“No need for introductions.” Xie Huailing spoke up before Wuqing could. She had heard Lu Xiaofeng talk about his grudge with Sikong Zhaixing, and she found it quite interesting. She wanted to tease this person on Lu Xiaofeng’s behalf, so she said, “I know ‘you,’ but I don’t know you either.”
Sikong Zhaixing was slightly taken aback. Before he could react, Xie Huailing shook his head again, called out his full name, and said, "Sikong Zhaixing, do you know that there is one thing about you that is far inferior to Lu Xiaofeng?"
More than being shocked by her identity being exposed, Sikong Zhaixing was concerned about the shortcomings Xie Huailing pointed out. She was not convinced in the slightest and disregarded Lu Xiaofeng's character. She immediately stood up and said, "Oh? Where am I inferior to him? There is nothing about me that is inferior to him."
"You have."
Xie Huailing said this and sighed: "If Lu Xiaofeng is Sikong Zhaixing, then Sikong Zhaixing would not continue to play Lu Xiaofeng after meeting me, because he would definitely recognize who I am and have heard the rumors about me and Lu Xiaofeng."
Upon hearing this, Sikong Zhaixing could no longer misunderstand. Looking closely at Xie Huailing's face, he realized why he felt he had heard of those two moles in some story before, and exclaimed in surprise, "'Hands that can cut the sky'?"
Xie Huailing didn't immediately agree: "You only realized it now, which is why I said you are far inferior to Lu Xiaofeng."
Sikong Zhaixing was unconvinced and snorted twice. He naturally had some twisted logic, but after glancing at Wuqing, he dared not continue speaking in front of Wuqing. Instead, he said, "That's not how it works, and you can't judge the outcome like that. Look at this, what I can do, Lu Xiaofeng may not be able to do."
After saying that, he took out the item. They had been arguing so much that they forgot the time, and only then did he remember that he had important business to attend to tonight, and this item could not stay in his hands for too long: "Chief Constable, please take a look quickly. I will send it back after you have read it. If they find out that the letter is in my hands, it will be terrible."
The letter was only a thin sheet, carefully placed in the envelope. Wuqing carefully took it out and saw the first line of text: "...In order to restore our dynasty's lost territory, wipe away the shame of the past century, and reclaim the lands of Yan and Yun, we have decided to form an alliance with Jin to jointly plan great things. I hereby order you to act in secret."
The anger simmering in his chest grew stronger and stronger, making it almost impossible to breathe. It wasn't just that he couldn't go up or down; it was almost squeezing his lungs. He felt as if the world on his shoulders was broken and heavy, and he himself was about to be crushed into a piece of paper. Meanwhile, Sikong Zhaixing was still talking, proudly explaining how the letter came about.
"I originally intended to search the study and take whatever I could find, but while I was hiding on the eaves, I happened to run into the owner of the house returning. He mysteriously took this letter and put it in a hidden compartment. I immediately suspected something was amiss and stole it." As for whether he had read it or not, Sikong Zhaixing definitely hadn't. He knew that if he had, he would be completely trapped, so he preferred to remain oblivious. "Captain, please write down what's written in the letter. I'll return it quickly."
Wuqing knew the letter couldn't stay in his hands for long, but when he saw the emperor promising the annual tribute and the national treasury at the end, he couldn't control himself. Through the letter, he saw the foolish man in the palace who was indulging in his own ideas. He pressed his fingers on the paper, almost leaving marks on it.
It was Xie Huailing's understanding gesture that led the letter away, preventing anything from being left behind. With a calm and detached mind, I closed my eyes and opened them again, feeling utterly powerless. In that moment of powerlessness, I felt even more exhausted, yet my resolve only strengthened.
"Send it back," Wuqing said. "After you've sent it back, leave Bianjing under the cover of night. If you ever commit the same offenses again and they come before the authorities, I will deal with it for you, but you must never repeat them."
Upon hearing this, Sikong Zhaixing, finally free, was overjoyed. He quickly put away the letter and turned to run away. It was impossible for him to steal again, but he could certainly avoid Bianjing for the rest of his life. He immediately bid farewell to Wuqing and climbed out of the window.
The moonlight streamed through the window, bright and clear, yet the heart grew increasingly empty, and the more empty it became, the heavier it felt.
Wang Lianhua knew it was no longer appropriate for him to stay in the house. He was the one who gave the will to Xie Huailing. Even if he didn't know the box contained a will, he should have realized it later. Not to mention Shen Lang's changes, which had also left a mark on Wang Lianhua's mind. He truly didn't know what Xie Huailing was planning, but did he really not know?
He didn't want to get involved in these things, or he could simply say he hated them—these were the things Xie Huailing held in his heart. Wang Lianhua stepped back, pushed open the door, and went outside.
All that remained was a long sigh, a sigh as luminous as moonlight.
He called her name ruthlessly and praised her, saying, "Miss Xie is a woman of profound wisdom."
The praise he offered only made him appear more desolate, not to mention the moonlight that shone on half of his body. He was the kind of man who could easily feel lonely even when he smiled, as if he were covered in snow all year round. Under the moonlit water, he was like both the moon and the water, equally quiet, equally light, and equally ethereal.
Are there still some sighs, unspoken sighs, melting into the night? Words of compassion have run dry; what more can he say? He finds no answers in the events themselves, only lamentations for the people's plight amidst the surging tides. The mighty river flows eastward, carrying countless grievances.
Regret and indignation also mean hatred.
"The chief constable is a little sad," Xie Huailing said.
She's absolutely right. She's always right about people and things. She doesn't believe she can fool the other party.
"I'm not the only one who's sad," he said.
There was no need to finish the sentence, because Xie Huailing would understand. This was something Wuqing was actually grateful for; thankfully, he had made plans with her tonight. How had she become the source of all his ease? Someone he could talk to, someone who understood without him having to explain everything, and even someone who had absolutely no doubts about the matter.
She had chosen her path, imbued with a unique wisdom that allowed her to answer all his questions while also allowing him to retain some final sighs, a thin veil of paper, not demanding an immediate decision from him, but willing to wait for him to remain silent for a while.
He could no longer tell if he was really a few years older than her. Wisdom is different from intelligence. Wisdom itself brings a kind of gentleness that is just right. It is the most precious kind of gentleness, which is to help others without doubt. It seems that nothing is more perfect than this. It all depends on whether she is willing to give it and on her thoughts.
Wuqing probably had something more to say, but he couldn't express it himself. Xie Huailing spoke for him: "And the chief constable isn't just grieving for himself."
How strange, he couldn't explain it, but she could. Her merciless eyes were like a pool of water, reflecting tonight's moon, but at the bottom lay countless stones, threatening to crush even the fish.
He finally replied, "Yes."
“I am sad, sad that even though I have always known that the world is difficult and the world is tough, and I thought I had done my best, I only realized that things have come to this; I am also sad that there are still people standing here, and many people standing here. The sober ones have to take a risky path. The poison has penetrated deep into the bones of the country.”
The voice was as faint as a whisper, carried away by the wind, yet Xie Huailing could still hear it clearly, saying, "But at least we still have this path, and at least it's not too late."
She was fearless. She had waited for far too long, and she was the one who knew best that the river flowed eastward. But what did it matter? "I don't believe that what is destined will not come to pass, nor do I believe that ambition will not lead to success."
The past cannot be changed, but does that mean there was a Xie Huailing in the past?
Suddenly, Wuqing felt a sense of reality, the real sensation of breathing. He gradually heard his own breathing, not the sound of water under the moonlight. Even more suddenly, he laughed very softly, a laugh like the white breath exhaled in winter, its warmth contrasting against the white snow. Fortunately, it was a summer night. Even if autumn came, it would still be a summer night, allowing his laugh to endure, to endure in silence and solitude.
“I just realized I was wrong.” Wuqing laughed. “It was never Miss Xie who invited me with a game, nor was it me who invited Miss Xie. It was Miss Xie who had been waiting for me for a long time, and for the Divine Marquis’s Mansion for a long time.”
"Did I wait for it?" Xie Huailing asked.
In his eyes was a moon, hanging in the sky, flying like a mirror, and his eyes reflected what he saw, sinking westward into the water.
Suddenly, Wuqing longed to hear her smile.
The moonlight is so beautiful.
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The ruthless storyline is finished!
Surprisingly, the one who stayed until the end was the original poster, but the ending of the original poster's storyline has nothing to do with the original poster (whistling).
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