Build a golden house (2)
The light flashed before his eyes, and Feng Siji squatted down. In the darkness, his expression could not be seen clearly, only his pair of deep and cruel eyes. He moved down with the dagger in his hand.
Here it comes again. He is going to torture himself while asking that question. Wang Mo's urge to urinate suddenly collapsed, and wet stains seeped out of his crotch.
He was so confused that he cried out, "I was wrong. I shouldn't have knocked on the door. It was that cruel woman who made me treat you like that in Qianzhou. Can you please forgive me... Ah ah!"
Feng Siji took the dagger and cut towards Wang Mo's calf. The knife penetrated so deep that the sound of bones cracking could be heard. Blood dripped down the blade. Wang Mo howled in pain and subconsciously wanted to cover his leg, but when he looked down and saw the blurred flesh and blood, he dared not move.
He huddled on the ground, trembling, the chains that bound his limbs creaking, his eyes bloodshot, as if covered by a layer of blood mist, making everything he saw blurry.
But Feng Siji continued to dig deeper with the knife, and the knife made a crackling sound when it bit the bones. Wang Mo grabbed the iron chain tightly with both hands and cried out unbearably: "It hurts, it hurts so much..."
Feng Siji's voice sounded like it came from the Avici Hell: "What is the relationship between Li Qi and Wei Ming?"
Hearing his voice, Wang Mo trembled even more violently, as if his whole body was about to fall apart. He trembled and said, "They really have nothing..."
Wang Mo cried out in despair: "Why, only use, this one question to torture me..."
Feng Siji would come to see him every few days and ask the same questions.
He answered countless times, but Feng Siji seemed unsatisfied and continued to ask every few days, cutting him with a knife every time he asked.
They cut him once but didn't let him die. They asked someone to bandage him and wait until he felt better before continuing to cut him. Wang Mo was almost going crazy after being tortured like this. He wished he could just hit his head against a wall and die.
But he underestimated the extent of Feng Siji's madness. Whenever he was about to collapse, he would pull himself out for a walk and see the outside world, giving him the desire to go out and gain freedom, so that he would never completely collapse and die in prison.
Feng Siji has mastered the art of giving ten slaps and then stuffing a candy into someone's mouth. Wang Mo is so angry, but no one can save him.
He knew that Feng Siji had gone crazy, so crazy that he wanted to take revenge on everyone.
He still pretends to be the honest official he used to be outside, but only Wang Mo knows his true face now.
At this time, Feng Si asked aloud: "Wei Ming was the governor of Qianzhou. He had so much gold in Qilitang and was very powerful in Qianzhou. Since he liked Li Qi, why didn't he force her to marry him, but instead tried to please her and make her agree on her own initiative?"
"He organized a fireworks show for her, protected her from being bullied in Qunfang Building, and even gave her some money from time to time, and you tell me they have no relationship?"
Feng Siji scoffed, not knowing who he was mocking. "Have she and Wei Ming long been in love, secretly vowing to be together forever, and then teamed up to deceive me, plot against me? And then, when Wei Ming blocked her path to Kyoto, she killed him without mercy?"
It was always the same question and the same speculation. Wang Mo could even recite his words by heart.
He was speechless, sad and desperate, and couldn't help crying out loud. He really wanted to say that Feng Siji had the ability to write a storybook.
He cried and said, "I have told you countless times that Li Qi is beautiful and there are countless people around her who covet her.
"The world is so chaotic now, and she's so beautiful. How could she survive without a shelter? How could she protect so many people in Tingzhuyuan? So she never angered or offended those powerful men who had feelings for her, just to protect herself.
"Later she said that as long as she could make Wei Ming happy, no one else could touch her. After that, she only dealt with Wei Ming, but she would never agree to be involved with him. Wei Ming was happy because of her coaxing, and seeing that she had no one else and was also very proud, he didn't do something as shameful as forcing her to marry him!"
Feng Siji still didn't believe it and asked with a sneer, "If that's true, then why did he force Li Qi to become his concubine on the first day I arrived in Qianzhou?"
Feng Siji will never forget that day. When Dong Linche got up in the morning, he took his sword and went out, saying that he wanted to seek revenge on the governor.
He was worried that something might happen to Dong Linche because of his young age, so after following her, he found out that Li Qi was oppressed by Wei Ming. He began to feel pity for her, and he couldn't stop himself and gradually fell into her trap.
If she and Wei Ming hadn't teamed up to deceive and plot, how could it be such a coincidence? Why did it happen at that time?
Wang Mo replied, "I don't know what Wei Ming was thinking! Maybe Li Qi saved you. You're the first man she's kept close to her in all those years. Maybe Wei Ming panicked?"
Feng Siji snorted, still not believing it, and picked up the dagger to cut him again. He was so scared that he started to talk nonsense in desperation: "I know, Li Qi must like you, and Wei Ming panicked, so she changed her mind and tried to force her!"
Feng Siji paused.
Wang Mo breathed a sigh of relief, but still stared nervously at the knife in his hand, and continued, "Although Li Qi pretended to be submissive in order to protect the people in Tingzhuyuan, you are the only one she has ever been sincere to.
"Because our original plan was for you to die in Jinshan, but she unexpectedly took the blame. It's true that she planned it, but it's also true that she took the blame for you."
He wailed, "What does this prove? It proves that she couldn't bear to see you die. She loves you! Otherwise, think about it, with her ability to climb walls and stab you, would you still be able to survive?"
Wang Mo didn't know if this was the answer he wanted to hear. It had happened too many times. Wang Mo really couldn't stand the torture of this question. He just wanted to give him the answer he wanted as soon as possible. He would feel better if he stopped asking.
Wang Mo's heart was beating fast as he looked at the black shadow squatting in front of him, as motionless as a mountain. Feng Siji just stood there, not saying a word, and no one could hear him breathing.
The cramped little room fell into deathly silence. After a long moment, the dagger fell to the ground with a clang. Feng Si quickly stood up and walked out slowly.
Wang Mo exhaled heavily, and the fear in his heart slowly receded.
Feng Siji said to Ye Shu from outside, "Go and wrap him up. Don't let him die."
"yes."
-
Xu time, outside the city.
Li Qi lifted the carriage curtain and waved to Feng Siji: "Envoy Feng, come here!"
Feng Siji paused, lifted his sleeves, and walked over to get into her carriage.
She glanced at his shoulder and asked softly, "Is your injury feeling better?"
Feng Siji nodded lightly.
He understood without asking that she killed him and He Mu in Qingqi Temple just to eliminate those who wanted to make the truth about Concubine Li's death public.
Now that He Mu is dead and she has protected her, there is naturally no need for her to take action again.
The carriage creaked towards Qingxi Village. Feng Siji remembered something and asked, "You and Concubine Li had a deep friendship. Why did you kill her?"
Li Qi said: "I didn't kill him."
"At this point, is there any point in lying?" Feng Siji asked coldly.
"I really didn't kill her. Didn't you hear that the night she died, all the candles in her palace were extinguished. They said it was the gods who killed her, and the candles were extinguished to prevent mortals from seeing the gods' true form."
"Really?" Feng Siji glanced at her sideways. "But I feel like if the gods really want to take action, they should take you away."
Li Qi pursed her lips and said nothing.
If gods really exist, with so many worshippers in Qingqi Temple, she should be the one who should die.
Feng Siji then added, "And I don't see any sadness in you. I've already protected you. We're all on the same page. What else can you not say to me?"
"I really didn't kill her, so I have no comment."
Feng Siji looked at her quietly for a while and said no more.
On this point, she was still the same as before, hiding it deeply, pretending to be true, never mentioning it, confusing people's eyes and ears, and covering up all the facts.
Amidst the creaking sound of the carriage, we arrived at Qingxi Village.
As soon as we got off the carriage, we saw the Treasury, which was almost reaching the sky. It was so high, with glazed golden tiles and walls made of golden bricks. It was luxurious and exquisite, and dazzling to the eyes.
Standing at the highest point of the Gold Storage Pavilion, you can see the distant capital city shrouded in a layer of frosty white fog, majestic and quiet.
You can also see a large snow forest right in front of you. A few wild geese are perched on the treetops covered with frost and snow, calling and grooming each other.
Li Qi looked down and saw that there were many small houses surrounding the treasury. She counted them and found there were nine in total.
She suddenly remembered something, looked back at Feng Si from the window and laughed, "If those houses weren't so ordinary, I would have thought they were ten golden houses you gave me."
He 'lost' in the Laba Festival, and Li Qixu's wish was ten golden houses.
Feng Siji looked at her steadily, his eyes so deep that they made people shudder, and said slowly: "Knock open the wall and see, maybe there really is gold hidden inside."
His gaze made Li Qi stunned for a moment, and she quickly turned her head away to avoid his gaze: "I think this wall is quite ordinary, don't knock it down. Besides, you gave me all your family fortune when you were in Meilin, how could you possibly have enough gold to build a new house?"
Feng Siji didn't say anything.
There was a strange silence in the air for a moment. Li Qi felt a little uncomfortable. It seemed that since entering the Treasury, he had become very quiet and his eyes were strange.
A branch grew too high and reached the window frame, blocking her view. Li Qi pushed it aside and saw Ye Lan Shengxiang and Dong Linche coming in carrying large and small bags. Ye Lan looked up and waved at her.
Li Qi turned around and called Feng Siji, but he didn't respond. She stretched out five fingers and waved them in front of his eyes, and he suddenly came to his senses: "What's wrong?"
"What are you looking at?" Li Qi looked in the direction he was pointing. There was the branch she had just parted. She didn't understand what was so interesting about it. She walked around him and went down the treasury. "Follow me, Ye Lan and the others are here."
Each small house under the Treasury was equipped with side rooms and a small kitchen. Ye Lan chose the largest one and put all the New Year gifts and goods he had bought into it.
Feng Siji rolled up his sleeves and walked into the small kitchen, saying calmly, "When we were in Qianzhou, you asked me to cook the New Year's Eve dinner. I didn't have the chance then. Although today isn't a proper New Year's Eve, it's still a complete success."
Several people began to paste window flowers and couplets and hang red lanterns.
The branches of the bare trees in the yard were also hung with countless red ribbons. When the wind blew, the ribbons floated gently, like clouds flowing in the sky.
They set off firecrackers together in the yard. When the firecrackers crackled, Ye Lan and Sheng Xiang plugged their ears and looked at the flashing firecrackers with smiles on their lips.
Li Qi walked to Feng Siji's side, quietly stretched out her little finger and hooked it with his hand.
He froze for a moment, then held her hand tightly, his eyes still fixed on the firecrackers.
Li Qi used both hands to pull him, and he held her hand even tighter. His shackles wrapped her hand in his palm, so tight that her fingers could not move. However, she did not feel pain but laughed instead, secretly scratching his palm to observe his appearance.
His face was expressionless as he stared at the setting off firecrackers, motionless, as if he was just looking at the firecrackers, but he held her hand with great strength.
Li Qi did not expose his disguise. She turned away and looked at them, as if she had returned to Tingzhuyuan. She didn't know when she no longer missed Yunzhou's home without her parents' attention, but missed her and their Tingzhuyuan.
-
The snow in Kyoto always falls until the first month of the lunar year. Now is the time when the snow is the heaviest. The sky and the earth are covered in silver. Apart from the white snow, there is no other color.
After the bloodbath outside the county lady's mansion last time, Li Qi didn't dare to show off in public anymore. She changed to a low-key carriage to avoid being attacked by angry people.
The things in the gold and silver house of the county lady's mansion have been moved to the treasury pavilion. Those were all looted from the governor's mansion in Qianzhou with great difficulty. They were all they would use to retake Yunzhou in the future.
The county lord's mansion has been vacated for a long time now, but in order to keep it looking good, Li Qi still found someone to renovate it.
Li Qi was busy moving the gold and silver house and renovating the county lady's mansion, and was repeatedly delayed and never entered the palace to see Emperor Liang.
But when raising fish, the fish food must not be interrupted.
So three days before the Chinese New Year, Li Qi dressed up and went to the palace to meet His Majesty.
When passing by He's house, I saw white banners hanging outside the house, paper money scattered all over the ground, and the servants were dressed in white. There was no sadness on people's faces. I guess the saddest time had passed, and it seemed that the funeral was coming to an end.
Apart from Feng Siji, Li Qi did not feel any guilt. To her, He Mu deserved to die.
Everyone said that He Zhangjing was a good official like Feng Siji, but Li Qi knew that he was not, and he was not even worthy of being compared with Feng Siji.
He Zhangjing is He Rucheng's only son.
He was born of a legitimate wife and had been talented since childhood. He took the top spot in the imperial examination and was appointed Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. He was five years older than Feng Sichi and was thirty years old this year, but he was still unmarried.
He has been placed with high hopes since he was young and has done everything well.
When Emperor Liang ascended the throne, the court changed hands, wars broke out everywhere, and refugees poured into the capital. He used his own salary to set up a refugee resettlement center and personally distributed porridge every seven days.
While working in the Ministry of Revenue, he was sympathetic to the people and personally visited families living in difficult circumstances, doing his best to help them.
In just three years in office, he has won the hearts of the people.
He had a bright future, but because of his legs, he was confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. His bright future was ruined from then on. The He family was heartbroken, and the people also hated Li Qi to the core.
But Li Qi knew clearly that the refugees he saved by giving out porridge were later recruited into his army.
At that time, Yunzhou and Southern Yan were still at war, and Emperor Liang kept looking for young and strong men to serve as soldiers. Some people were unwilling to go to the battlefield, so they collected enough money and found He Zhangjing. He Zhangjing cooperated with Zhang Zhouzhu to cross these people off the roster and then use the old, weak, sick and disabled refugees they had rescued to fill the numbers.
For the old, weak, sick and disabled to go to the battlefield is nothing more than giving away their lives, so even if reinforcements arrived in the battle of Yunzhou, it could not be saved.
He Zhangjing also had a hand in the fall of Yunzhou City. Even if it wasn't for those innocent refugees, for the sake of Yunzhou, Li Qi would not tolerate this brother and sister.
He Mu clearly knew the truth, but he pretended everything and pretended to know nothing.
This matter was done in secret and happened a long time ago during the war in Yunzhou, so not many people knew the truth.
It was only after Li Qi came to Kyoto and had been investigating the real reason for the fall of Yunzhou City for Feng Siji that he found out.
The good officials in the eyes of the people are nothing but parasites in the court.
It wouldn't be a pity if a hundred people like this died.
She lurked beside Zhang Zhouzhu, on the one hand to protect Shengxiang, and on the other hand to deal with He Zhangjing.
She did something to sow discord, causing some information about what He Zhangjing and Zhang Zhouzhu did to leak out.
Zhang Zhouzhu hated the feeling of being out of control the most. He believed that He Zhangjing was incompetent and that the big fish he raised had bitten He Zhangjing's legs and broken them.
But everyone thought it was Li Qi's fault because that's what He Zhangjing said outside.
He didn't dare to offend Zhang Zhouzhu, so he could only put the blame on her.
Li Qi sometimes wondered why in this world, truly good officials and good people were demoted to Qianzhou and had to live a hard life. She tried desperately to save the people of Yunzhou from dire straits, but everyone hated her and wanted her to die.
The county lady's mansion was smashed to pieces, and her reputation was ruined forever.
As my thoughts became increasingly distant, the carriage arrived at the palace.
Li Qi got off the carriage and walked to Yongshou Palace.
Just then, Li Ke opened the two carved golden doors of Yongshou Hall, and a white figure walked out from inside.
Zhang Zhouzhu's white clothes almost blended into the snow between the sky and the earth. His eyebrows and eyes were very delicate, just like the tender buds in early spring. When he was dressed in moonlight white, unlike Feng Siji's cold and distant demeanor, his temperament was clean and clear, like a light evening breeze.
pity.
Li Qi knew him too well and could never associate him with cleanliness.
Sometimes she couldn't help but wonder, if Zhang Zhouzhu had not been born in such a complicated family as the Marquis' Mansion, would he have grown up to be an upright person like Feng Siji.
She didn't intend to talk to him, but when they passed each other, he stopped and called her: "County Lady, have you been very busy these days? Why don't you come to see me?"
In front of many eunuchs, he spoke without any reservations.
Li Qi stopped and said, "It's true that I'm a bit busy."
"No matter how busy you are, you must not forget something as important as surrendering."
Zhang Zhouzhu tucked his hands into his sleeves, smiled and glanced over at him, his eyes malicious. "Don't forget, after the bloodshed outside the County Lady's Mansion, everyone will think that you and I are in the same boat. If you don't surrender to me, if someone wants to kill you again, who will dare to protect you?"
He paused, then added, "Could it be Feng Siji? After all, I just found out yesterday that the Jueyin he asked me to buy was actually a gift for you."
The word "Jue Yin" made Li Qi startled. After a moment, she looked up at him and asked, "What did you say?"
"Eh, don't you know?"
A deeper smile flickered in Zhang Zhouzhu's eyes, and he said meaningfully, "I accompanied His Majesty and His Majesty to Qianzhou earlier and brought Jueyin with me. It was originally worth only a hundred gold coins, but he bought it from me for a thousand. Yesterday, someone told me that Jueyin is with you. Could it be that he gave it to you?"
Li Qi was in a daze and didn't say anything. Zhang Zhouzhu took two steps closer to her. This time he was no longer arrogant, but whispered in a voice that only the two of them could hear:
"He clearly knew that his father, Feng Yijun, died at my hands, and that I was responsible for the fall of Yunzhou City. He hated me to the core and declared that he would never tolerate a traitor like me, and that he would one day personally take my head.
"But that time he took the initiative to look for me. I didn't see him, so he stood in the snow in Qianzhou for many days, just to buy a deadly sound machine from the murderer of his father with a huge sum of money."
Li Qi's legs went weak and she almost fell. Zhang Zhouzhu reached out and gently supported her, saying with a smile, "You said you didn't know me. Do you think I'm a fool? Kill him, or I'll kill you."
Li Qi took a deep breath to calm herself down, then shook off his hand and said, "You have to give me some time."
Without waiting for his reply, she walked towards Yongshou Palace.
"Li Qi."
After taking only two steps, Zhang Zhouzhu called her. She didn't want to listen to his nonsense, so instead of stopping, she quickened her pace.
He shouted, "Don't you know that Qingxi Village is Feng Siji's hometown? How dare you use it as a so-called shelter?"
Li Qi was stunned and accidentally tripped over the threshold of Yongshou Palace, losing his balance and falling to the side.
Someone held her arm, and she looked up to see Li Ke's face. Li Ke lowered his voice and said to her, "County Lady, don't let the traitor distract you."
Li Qi hummed softly, stood up straight, and looked sideways at Zhang Zhouzhu: "Are you spying on me?"
"Don't get me wrong, I was just paying attention to Shengxiang and stumbled upon the Treasure House."
Zhang Zhouzhu laughed out loud. That smile was so clear and pure that it didn't match his heart at all. He said:
"I know everything about what happened between you and Feng Siji in Qianzhou. I just wanted to remind you, seeing that you have been loyal to me for so many years, that men understand men best. To me, the Treasury is just a cage for revenge. You should think about it yourself."
He then turned and walked away, leaving behind a trail of deep and shallow footprints on the snow. Li Qi watched, her mind in turmoil. Suddenly, she remembered Feng Siji's words: "Tear down the wall and see if you can find gold inside."
I remembered that he had been silent and had a strange look on his face since he arrived at the Treasury.
Li Qi was frantically eager to verify the facts and said to Li Ke, "Go and tell His Majesty that I will come to see him later."
After saying that, she ran out of the palace following the footprints left by Zhang Zhouzhu. She ran to the carriage parked outside the palace and galloped to the Treasure Pavilion.
Qingxi Village was too far away and it took her quite a while to get there. When she arrived, it was already dark and gloomy. As soon as she entered the door, she heard the sweet laughter coming from the yard.
She walked into the house, took out her weapon and put it on Dong Linche's sword. She didn't respond when Ye Lanshengxiang called her. She walked straight out of the yard and swung her sword at a wall.
With a crackling sound, a thick layer of the outer wall collapsed, revealing the glittering gold inside.
Ye Lan, who had followed him out, saw it and exclaimed, "How could there be gold in this wall?"
Li Qi's heart sank to the bottom of the valley, and fear surged like a tide, covering her body from head to toe. She felt very cold and shivered.
Standing on the eleventh floor, the highest floor of the Gold Storage Pavilion, and looking down, it turns out that there are actually ten golden houses here.
Feng Siji fulfilled the wish she made casually in Qianzhou, but it was used to trap her in the Golden Mansion.
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