Chapter 410 Destruction
Seeing Pei Jingyun's words and actions becoming heated, Shen Yuexi thought that if they continued to confront each other like this, it would be troublesome if she lost her mind. She was still hoping that Pei Jingyun would tell her how to leave, so she stopped Xiao Zhuo and said, "Husband, please stop for a moment."
"Don't stop, let him question me, let him ask." Pei Jingyun held her white hair with both hands and looked at Xiao Zhuo with a smug look on her face. "At this point, there is nothing to hide. I can tell you that Emperor Yongde didn't kill that bitch. He just locked her up in the cold palace. I sent an assassin to kill her."
"You...what did you say?" Xiao Zhuo raised his eyebrows and pulled out the sword half a foot with a clang.
"Haha, of course I killed her. How could someone as smart as you not have guessed that?" Pei Jingyun slowly walked towards Xiao Zhuo. "I hate her so much that I can't describe it. Do you think I would let her live? I had an assassin hang her, but Emperor Yongde foolishly thought she committed suicide."
"You!" Xiao Zhuo roared, drawing his sword and rushing towards Pei Jingyun, "You actually killed my biological mother."
He had a deep affection for Empress Wen, especially after learning from Yu Zhongling that she had endured twenty years of torture to protect him. He felt a deep sense of gratitude towards his mother. Initially believing it to be Emperor Yongde's doing, he felt conflicted for a long time. After all, Emperor Yongde had raised him, and everything he had was due to him. Later, when he decided to send troops to rescue Emperor Yongde, he felt a surge of guilt towards Empress Wen.
Only now did he know that the real murderer was Pei Jingyun. He was immediately filled with anger and threw his usual composure to the wind. He just wanted to kill Pei Jingyun on the spot and avenge his mother with his own hands.
Seeing Xiao Zhuo's face flushed, Shen Yuexi lost his composure in a rare moment. She quickly grabbed his arms and tried to pull him back:
"Husband, calm down. We are now imprisoned in here, and only mother knows how to leave!"
Xiao Zhuo ignored him and continued walking towards Pei Jingyun, sword in hand. Shen Yuexi pulled at his arm, but was dragged along with him. She could only shout to Mei Dai and Shen Lan in the corner of the hall, "Sister, come quickly! I can't hold you back."
Chen Lan didn't know what to do. All she had learned came from military manuals, but those didn't contain any strategies for calming people down. She could only shout, "Brother-in-law, calm down! Put down your sword!"
Xiao Zhuo ignored him and continued walking.
Pei Jingyun nonchalantly thrust her chest forward to meet Xiao Zhuo's sword. "Your sword-holding hand is shaking, so just vent your anger and kill me, just like Heng'er killed his father. I don't know martial arts, so I'll just sit here and wait to die, haha."
Xiao Zhuo's teeth chattered as he advanced slowly and firmly, his sword in hand. Seeing she couldn't stop him, Shen Yuexi turned in front of Xiao Zhuo and stretched out her arms, trying to block him. But Xiao Zhuo lifted her up like a kitten and set her aside, staring intently at Pei Jingyun as he continued walking. He was less than ten steps away.
The parrot Liuli, who was originally standing on Mei Dai's arm, also flew over and circled around Xiao Zhuo, shouting, "Gee, gee, gee..." Shen Yuexi was so angry that she waved her hand to drive it away, "Stupid bird, go away." She drove Liuli to Shen Lan's side.
Seeing Xiao Zhuo getting closer, Pei Jingyun was not afraid, but instead showed a smug smile.
Mei Dai saw Pei Jingyun's expression and immediately understood what was going on. She ran to Xiao Zhuo, opened her arms and blocked his way, saying seriously, "Prince An, Madam Pei wants you to kill her. Don't fall into her trap."
Xiao Zhuo was startled, stopped, and said hesitantly, "Is this a trap?"
Mei Dai said, "Prince An, Madam Pei hates Empress Wen to the core. She is imprisoned here with us and has always wanted to die. If you kill her, you will become a patricide and matricide like Xiao Beiheng."
After a pause, Mei Dai turned back to look at Pei Jingyun and continued, "This is exactly what Madam Pei wants. She wants you to be ruined."
Xiao Zhuo was a man of exceptional intelligence, but his hatred clouded his mind, so he didn't consider Pei Jingyun's motives. Mei Dai's reminder immediately made him understand, and though his hatred burned, he was able to control it and slowly lowered his sword.
Shen Yuexi let out a long breath and said to Mei Dai, "Sister Mei, I'm lucky to have you."
If Xiao Zhuo truly killed Pei Jingyun, firstly, he would completely eliminate any possibility of escape. Secondly, even if he escaped alive, he would no longer be qualified to be emperor. Pei Jingyun's move was a double-edged sword. It seemed like he was seeking death, but in reality, he was killing someone and destroying their soul.
Pei Jingyun's smile suddenly disappeared after Mei Dai revealed her secrets. She looked at Mei Dai with hatred and said to Xiao Zhuo:
"You don't want to kill me anymore, right? Can you understand the pain of your mother being killed? Then have you ever thought about how I felt when Emperor Yongde wiped out the entire Peiguo Mansion? If that bitch hadn't been unable to contain herself and exposed herself, how could my parents have died tragically?"
Xiao Zhuo lowered his head, a look of pain on his face. The past right and wrong, grudges, and grievances could no longer be explained in a few words.
Pei Jingyun said, "You were furious when you heard I killed your mother. But I couldn't show any abnormality at that time. Whether in front of my husband, in front of Heng'er, or in front of the servants. I am the 'daughter' of the Wen family. What relationship do the Duke and his wife have to me? Hahaha... My whole family died because of that bitch. It's my whole family. Was it wrong for me to kill her?"
Shen Yuexi listened in silence and just hugged Xiao Zhuo's arm tightly.
Even though Pei Jingyun knew that Emperor Yongde had executed the entire Pei family, she couldn't show any abnormality. This torture was truly unbearable. Even a strong woman like Mei Dai almost went crazy after her brother Mei Pu's death. You can imagine how painful Pei Jingyun was at that time.
But think of Empress Wen. Not only did she have to conceal the fact that she was a body double, she also had to conceal the fact that Xiao Zhuo was not Emperor Yongde's son. Twenty years later, even steel would be dented, let alone the fragile human heart. Empress Wen's final collapse was simply the result of her inability to bear the pressure any longer.
Who was right and who was wrong? Her mind was completely confused. Perhaps there was no absolute right or wrong in this world?
Pei Jingyun flicked his sleeves, turned around and walked towards the sarcophagus, whispering as if in a sleep.
"You all think you're the ones suffering the most. Your mother died, his wife was insulted, your identity was stripped away, her brother was killed... and all of this happened to me. You only have to endure a portion of the pain, but I have to bear it all. Heaven is so kind, how can it be so unkind to me?"
Chen Lan shouted to Shen Yuexi in the corner of the hall: "Sister, I checked the wall and didn't find any traps."
She and Mei Dai had been paying attention to the walls in the corridor before, but hadn't noticed the trap at the corner. This time, they were even more careful, searching up and down, even checking the ground, but found nothing unusual.
"I told you that you will die soon," Pei Jingyun said with a smile, "I lit this glass lamp on the wall myself. The oil in the lamp can only last for about a quarter of an hour. When the lamp goes out, the seawater will flood into the mausoleum. Now there is only half a quarter of an hour left."
The lights on the wall were much dimmer than before they had just entered, and the originally bright tomb chamber had become somewhat eerie. Shen Yuexi swallowed hard and thought of a solution in her mind.
If Big Bear had enough energy, she could have him collect the iron gates and ascend the stairs. But now Big Bear said he didn't have enough power to continue the construction, which was much more troublesome. What if he ran out of power after collecting just a few gates? Then the seawater would flood into the tunnel and into the tomb, and everyone would die faster. However, even if he didn't do this, Big Bear couldn't recharge in the dark tomb, and the air would quickly run out.
"If you want to avenge your mother, come and kill me," Pei Jingyun sat in the sarcophagus and looked at Xiao Zhuo. "If you don't want to do it, then let's say goodbye to each other while we're still alive. I'm tired and need to rest."
After saying this, she slowly lay down in the sarcophagus.
She has imprisoned all her enemies in this deep underground tomb. In half an hour, the sea will flood here, and even gods will not be able to escape.
She had been living in self-torture all along. The better Xiao Ming treated her, the more painful she felt. When she started this amazing plan at the age of nine, she had no idea it would turn out like this.
If you look closely, she did everything perfectly, her plan flawless. Her only mistake was sending Wen Yi that night to comfort Xiao Ming, who was about to leave. It was this small act that turned a successful plan into an eternal destruction, destroying not only Wen Yi but also her.
Wen Yi has been liberated, but she has not.
"Count four hundred more, and you won't have to endure this pain anymore," she smiled, closed her eyes and chanted, "One, two, three, four..."
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