Cage (11)
"What's missing?"
"Miss your husband."
Feng Siji raised his head and looked at her with drunken eyes.
It seemed like he had been waiting for this voice for a long time. Li Qi remembered the first night when she seemed to hear him asking her to call him "husband" while she was floating in the air.
She raised an eyebrow and said, "If you promise not to trap me like that again, I'll call you."
Feng Siji pursed his lips and murmured softly: "This is not good."
She snorted softly, knowing he would be like this.
She deliberately didn't let him get close to her, moved to the carriage window, and watched the people coming and going outside.
But he caught up with her and held her tightly in his arms.
It was already pressed tightly against the window, leaving no room for Li Qi to move. She shook her shoulders deliberately, causing Feng Siji's neck to drop and his head to slide off her shoulders.
He frowned and opened his eyes, and saw her peach blossom eyes full of affection and trying not to smile under the bright night light. In an instant, an idea came to his mind, and he reached out his hand, pulled off her veil, turned her face, and leaned forward to kiss her lips.
Almost at the moment their lips touched, he lifted her lips and rubbed and bit them, and his tongue nimbly slipped in.
As they were breathing heavily, a gust of night wind blew up the loose hair on Li Qi's temples, brushing across her nose and bringing a slight itch. Li Qi then realized that the window of the carriage was not closed!
Passersby outside could see the two men biting each other without even looking up.
"The world is going downhill, the world is going downhill!" Sure enough, a sigh hit my ears.
Immediately afterwards, there was a bang, Feng Siji reached out his hand and slammed the window shut, then he took his hand back and hugged Li Qi, holding her in his arms and kissing her passionately.
He didn't shield her eyes as usual.
Instead, he opened his eyes and looked straight at her. Even though he couldn't see clearly because they were too close, he still stared at her blurry outline right in front of him.
In her sight, her eyes slowly closed.
He had read in a book that closing your eyes during a kiss signifies total acceptance, response, and devotion.
Li Qi's closing of her eyes made his heart warm. He pressed her against the thick wall of the carriage and kissed her more deeply. Her breathing became more and more rapid, like the low roar of a night beast.
No kiss has ever been so full of passion as this one. Every inch of penetration and every bite is full of strong sexual color.
Li Qi's breathing was completely taken away, and that lewd tongue was still raging wildly in her mouth. The tip of her tongue was numb and painful from his sucking and biting. She pushed his chest with her hands, but he did not let go.
She felt that his enthusiasm and excitement were different from usual, which was a little unbearable, so she turned her head away to avoid his kiss.
Bian Kai's eyes were reflected in the crimson-purple curtains embroidered with delicate cloud patterns and colorful phoenixes. Their intertwined shadows happened to be cast on them, creating an endless tenderness.
"Shout." He pressed his lips against my ear, his hot breath rushing towards me, insisting on a name.
She stubbornly refused to shout, so he deliberately pecked her earlobe again and again. She felt itchy, and waves of tingling sensation spread from the earlobe that he pecked to her whole body.
She couldn't bear it any longer and tried to turn her head away, but he grabbed her chin and turned her back, staring at her with his dark eyes and said:
"There's no such thing as no name between husband and wife."
He bent down to kiss her ear again, and said in a somewhat unclear voice, "I should have a name too."
Li Qi didn't want to shout and tried to push him away. He reached out and held her in his arms, holding her face with both hands and kissing her slowly.
From her forehead to her nose, then from her nose to her lips, and the last kiss fell on her hair.
Tender and gentle, leaving behind endless attachment.
Li Qi once again felt the same strange feeling she had just had. She looked him in the eye and asked, "Are you really not worried?"
Feng Siji shook his head and finally calmed down. He held her in his arms and remained silent.
The carriage creaked and bumped out of the city and arrived at the Zangjin Pavilion.
As soon as she got off the carriage, Li Qi felt a little nervous.
From my observation of Feng Siji during this period, I can see that he is not the cold and gentle man he appears to be. He is very lustful.
Today I promised him that we could be an ordinary couple, so he must still be thinking about that matter in his heart.
But last night in the hot spring, she really couldn't stand it anymore.
As soon as she reached the door, she saw the tall screen with paintings of ghosts and monsters, and she thought of the huge hot spring pool behind the screen, and suddenly she felt as if there were ripples under her.
Li Qi's legs went limp and her abdomen felt sore. She stood still at the door frame, unable to move.
Feng Siji had already caught up with her and stood behind her and asked, "Why don't you go in?"
Then he took her hand and walked inside.
It was a cold spring night. Feng Siji bent down and lit the brazier with a fire starter. The cold and quiet room gradually became warmer, and his face felt warm.
He squatted beside the brazier and looked back, his face lit by the warm light of the fire: "Go take a bath, I'll find clothes for you."
When Li Qi heard the word "bath", her calves trembled and she stood still.
Feng Siji realized something was wrong and asked her with a frown, "What's wrong with you?"
Li Qi carefully grasped her hands and whispered, "Can I...have a free night tonight?"
After she said this, she saw Feng Siji's face stiffen for a moment, as if he disagreed. She hurriedly walked in front of him, pulled a stool and sat down, crossed her arms and looked at him, like a teacher sitting on a high platform teaching a student, and said earnestly:
"Even though we're an ordinary couple, we don't sleep together every night. Besides, if you do that too often, it's bad for your health. When you get older, you'll become listless and your mind will become dull, which will easily shorten your lifespan."
Feng Siji looked up. From his angle, he could see the warm light from the brazier shining on her entire face from bottom to top. Her fair cheeks showed incredible tenderness, as if she was a wife who really loved her husband and was earnestly trying to get him to take care of himself.
Teach him how to refuse such a wife, and the corners of his lips curled slightly: "Okay."
Li Qi was slightly stunned. She didn't expect him to be so easy to talk tonight.
Looking at the spring-like smile in his eyes made Li Qi a little dazed. This was very much like him in the past, who would agree to anything and blush if teased.
She wanted to say something, but he had already slowly stood up, walked to the closet, opened the door, and saw countless red clothes neatly stacked inside.
With the change of seasons in spring, he had prepared some thinner spring clothes for her earlier.
Next to her red dress was his clothes, mostly snow-blue, with a few black and red robes interspersed, and at the innermost layer was the wedding dress they wore.
Whenever he had time, he would take them out, wash them, and dry them in the sun. They could be kept there for a long time without any dust gathering on them.
Feng Siji looked at their clothes piled together, like an intimate couple. He was a little dazed, because he had been dreaming of this scene for a long time and thought he would never see it in his life.
But I didn't expect that the gap in my heart would be filled.
Feng Siji came back to his senses, took out a red shirt, turned around and handed it to Li Qi: "Go take a shower."
Li Qi took the red shirt but refused to move.
She had developed an inexplicable resistance to the hot spring, unwilling to look at it or think about it.
But now that spring has arrived and the temperature is gradually rising, it is no longer as cold as the previous winter, so she still groped her way behind the screen.
Seeing the pool of steaming water, her heart trembled and her calves felt numb.
She didn't think she was a timid and delicate person, but Feng Siji was too cruel last night. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he was crazy.
She had been in pain for most of the night, so how could she remain calm when she saw the hot spring again?
Li Qi jumped in with gritted teeth, closed her eyes as if to cover up her mistake, and scrubbed the floor roughly.
Because she had her eyes closed, she didn't see Feng Siji slowly walk out from behind the screen that blocked the hot spring.
He leaned against the screen, his cold and gloomy eyes almost blending in with the monsters on the screen, even more terrifying than them. He stared at Li Qi without blinking.
She scrubbed without any method, rubbing here and there, and the purple kiss marks or pinch marks on her neck, collarbone and arms were clearly visible. Those were the marks he left.
Feng Siji still felt that it was not enough. He longed to tear her apart and swallow her up, merging her into one with himself, so that his life would be complete.
Seeing her stand up, Feng Siji slowly retreated behind the screen without letting her notice him.
Feng Siji sat down on the edge of the bed and saw Li Qi wiping her moisture-covered long hair as she walked out from behind the screen. She let out a barely perceptible sigh, as if she had just ended some unbearable torture.
She sat by the mirror, picked up the towel and twisted her hair. Seeing him motionless by the bed, she looked at him in the mirror and asked, "Aren't you going?"
Feng Siji bent down silently and took out a box from the long drawer under the footrest.
Li Qi stopped twisting her hair with her fingers and turned to watch him open the box. Inside lay a silver chain emitting a cold glow.
She seemed to be pricked by the cold reflection, and she shuddered unconsciously. She asked cautiously, "What are you going to do?"
Feng Siji took out the chain, and it made a crisp sound when it collided with the other chain.
Only after the entire chain was taken out of the box did Li Qi see that the chain was extremely long, at least long enough for the person tied up to move between the two rooms. The two locks on it were in the shape of a tiger's head, and one could vaguely see the tiger's eyes emitting a cold green light.
She shuddered, feeling as if the undried moisture on her scalp had frozen, making her scalp numb.
Fortunately, Feng Siji had no intention of locking her up. He just showed her the chain and put it back.
He closed the lid with a click, looked over coldly and warned, "Tomorrow, follow my instructions. If you dare to move without permission, escape unexpectedly, or make me unable to find you or anything else, this chain will become one made just for you."
After saying this, Feng Siji didn't even look at Li Qi's reaction. He stood up and walked behind the screen.
His figure disappeared before Li Qi could react, staring blankly at the footrest.
How long had the chain been there? Had he planned everything all along? Even if tomorrow's incident hadn't happened, the chain would have been on her body sooner or later?
Because, it looked like it was made for her.
Li Qidi's breathing quickened a little.
The sound of water bathing behind the screen brought Li Qi back to her senses and she continued twisting her hair in a restless manner.
After she had finished braiding her long hair, she lay down on the side of the bed first, turned over to face the wall, listened to the sound of slowly flowing water, and fell asleep out of extreme exhaustion.
For some reason, she slept extremely deeply. She didn't dream and didn't hear any noise. When she opened her eyes, it was already bright outside.
She turned over to the outside, expecting to see Feng Siji, who liked to sleep with her, but there was no one around her except a ray of sunlight falling through the window.
Li Qi reached out to touch it, it was ice cold, without any residual warmth.
She slept too deeply last night, and now she was not sure whether Feng Siji had rested here last night.
She lifted the bed curtain and stood up, and saw a bowl of porridge, a plate of Qianzhou's unique braised meat, and a few peeled kumquats on the round table in the room.
On the shelf at the head of the bed was a set of convenient tights, and on a small stool under the shelf were two daggers that had been polished to a shine.
Li Qi changed into tight clothes, which surprisingly fit her well. She put two daggers on her waist and walked towards the door.
Just as she was about to push the door, someone had already opened it. She looked up and saw Qinglan, who was also wearing tight clothes and carrying a dagger.
It was the first time that Li Qi saw Qinglan without a skirt. Her black hair was standing tall, she wore a curved sword on her waist, and carried a quiver and a longbow on her back. She was dressed in a neat and clean black outfit, and there was a heroic air between her eyebrows that she had never seen in her before.
Qinglan spoke, her tone more cold and serious than usual: "County Master, you're awake. Yeshu has already prepared everything. Do you want to go to the mass grave now?"
Li Qi looked downstairs and saw Ye Shu leading a hundred or so warriors, standing in line with swords in hand, standing upright in the courtyard, looking ready for a fierce battle.
There was no sign of Feng Siji.
Li Qi turned back to look at Qinglan: "Where is Envoy Feng?"
Qinglan seemed afraid to look Li Qi in the eye and lowered her head: "My lord entered the palace last night."
"Last night?" Li Qi frowned. "What were you doing there?"
Qinglan looked embarrassed and hesitated to speak.
Li Qi soothed him, "Just tell me, I won't let him blame you."
Qinglan then lowered her head and spoke slowly, "Chen Hu, the Minister of Justice, has strongly defended He Zhangjing and is seeking to exonerate him today. His father, He Rucheng, is the head of the Ministry of Justice, and he has the support of Prime Minister Zhang's remaining forces. They plan to join forces today to encircle and suppress Lord Feng, who left last night."
Li Qi was stunned: "Encirclement and suppression?"
"If you rescue He Zhangjing, they will accuse you of mishandling the case and work together to have him thrown into prison. After his downfall, He Mu will produce evidence that the county lord murdered the empress and hand it over to Chen Hu to have you imprisoned."
Li Qi felt dizzy. She knew this Chen Hu.
Before Feng Siji was exiled, he was his deputy.
Later, when Feng Siji was exiled to Qianzhou, he took over the position of Dali Temple Minister. Now thinking about it, Feng Siji's exile was probably also caused by Chen Hu.
Li Qi felt dizzy and staggered a few steps, holding onto the door frame to avoid falling.
After a while, she finally heard her own heartbeat and trembling voice: "Where's Li Ke?"
"Eunuch Li has disappeared. Your Excellency has been searching for him for a long time but to no avail."
The sudden news that came one after another was deafening, making Li Qi's ears buzz. She felt drowsy and forced herself to wake up and said, "How come I don't know anything..."
"These are the news Jiao Lan got in the palace. Lord Feng may have his concerns, so he kept it secret from the county lady.
"Jiao Lan has now taken control of Your Majesty. However, with the separatist regimes, Your Majesty has long lost real power. His only role now is to issue imperial decrees of appointment and removal, and to conduct grand ceremonies and sacrifices. Otherwise, why hasn't he taken you into the palace as his consort after the one-month deadline? It's simply because that imperial decree has lost its effect."
After Qinglan finished speaking, she observed Li Qi's expression and explained, "Jiao Lan has been with the Master along with me. But unlike me, she practices sorcery and was sent to the Master's side long ago. That's why the Master hasn't had time to visit you these days, which is why you've been staying here for so long."
Li Qi asked, "Is there anything else I don't know?" Her eyes reddened as she gritted her teeth, "If you hide even a single word, I won't forgive you."
Qinglan said, "If He Zhangjing and the others succeed, Lord Feng is imprisoned, and He Mu also hands over the evidence of your murder of the Empress to Chen Hu, then Lord Feng will take the blame for you. He promised Lord Feng that he would not show favoritism, so he can only take the blame for you.
"By then, you will be innocent—although you are innocent now, but no one thinks so. You can take the weapons and food that the adults gave you, and cooperate with General Dong to launch a war against Southern Yan and reclaim Yunzhou."
Qinglan looked at her gradually pale face, feeling reluctant, but continued:
"Before, the master forced you to reveal the whereabouts of the queen. He wanted to find the queen to prove that you didn't kill anyone and be exempted from this crime. He was so angry because you didn't tell him.
"But then he figured it out and said that the worst that could happen is that he would die for you. He had already died once in Qianzhou three years ago, so there was nothing to be afraid of now."
Li Qi couldn't hold it in any longer, her legs went weak and she fell towards the door frame.
It turned out that Feng Siji had already decided to die for her again. No wonder he looked so worried last night, which was very abnormal.
So gentle, as if he had returned to Qianzhou, actually because he was trying to leave a better impression on her if he couldn't come back.
Qinglan held her up and prevented her from falling, saying, "My Lord said that you don't have to worry about He Zhangjing. Even if he dies, he will hand He Zhangjing over to you personally for you to deal with.
"But as for Prime Minister Zhang, he can't accompany you, so I leave it all to you, the County Lady. You promised that if he shielded you in the Empress's case, you would avenge him. He believes that you are capable enough to deal with Prime Minister Zhang, and Ye Shu and I will follow you."
After Qinglan finished speaking, she looked at Li Qi with a firm and sincere look, the loyalty in her eyes almost overflowing. She said excitedly, "County Lady, shall we set out now to attack Prime Minister Zhang?"
He didn't even bring the page book with him. He was determined to die and give her all the people he had left who could be used to help her retake Yunzhou.
She remembered what he said when he was furious that day. He knew that she had an obsession in her heart, and he would risk his life to help her fulfill it.
But he hoped that if she completed it, she would be able to risk her life for him once more when they met again.
How could someone be so cruel that he would show no mercy when taking revenge on her?
But he is also very stupid, so stupid that he would make selfless sacrifices for love.
If it were her, she would definitely put her own interests first and then consider the cost.
They are indeed not the same kind of people.
Gradually, Li Qi could no longer see Qinglan's face clearly.
My eyeballs were covered with tears, and everything I saw looked blurry and had a red edge.
Her mother's words kept echoing in her mind:
"Men are like tools in your hands, to be used, not loved. You must not entrust yourself to them, nor waver in your heart. You must be as beautiful and brilliant as your name."
She held on to the door frame with one hand and tightly grasped the dagger at her waist with the other. Thinking of her mother's face and teachings, she slowly and with difficulty made up her mind.
She wiped her eyes hard, pushing back the rising heat, and said in a gritted voice, "To the mass grave!"
Without any hesitation, Li Qi resolutely led Qinglan down the Treasure Pavilion, one after the other.
In the yard, the wild flowers that were still buds a few days ago have now bloomed, dotted colorfully among the weeds, like pieces of colorful jade fallen among them.
Li Qi jumped on the horse and rode past. The wild flowers did not break off their branches, but were bent by the horse's hooves. When the wind blew, they swayed and raised their heads.
-
Feng Mansion.
Feng Siji stood under the grape trellis in the courtyard. The vines had begun to sprout. He looked at the vines covered with buds and wondered how long he had been waiting here. If he waited any longer, the buds in front of him would probably sprout tender leaves.
He clenched his palms and asked, "Isn't she here?"
"No," Jiao Lan whispered back from behind, "Liu An Hua Ming has sent a message, and the county lady has taken people to see Prime Minister Zhang."
Feng Siji looked at the new vines, was silent for a long time, and then laughed softly.
This was clearly within my expectations, but my heart felt as if someone had hollowed it out, and then filled that empty space with something called disappointment. I no longer knew what hope was.
But it was also unexpected. Since the Treasure Pavilion, this was the first time she was so obedient and went there obediently.
He finally collected his thoughts and said calmly, "Let's go."
When Jiao Lan heard him say these two heartless and almost calm words, she felt a little sad.
She has never liked anyone, but she and Qinglan went their separate ways to study. She practiced charm and has met all kinds of men over the years.
Most of them are all show and no substance, either fickle and talking nonsense, or scheming and only seeking benefits.
She had never seen anyone with such a noble character as him. There was a red plum blossom embroidered on the collar of his snow-blue robe. The robe was very old and had been washed white, giving off a sense of poverty.
But he has a feeling of being as pure and simple as pine and cypress, and evergreen all the year round.
I have never seen anyone like him. Even if he died alone, he would arrange everything for that person and try his best to help in some way after his death.
Jiao Lan was not moved, but she felt pity.
She felt pity for all such men, otherwise she would not be able to practice the art of charm.
Seeing the spring breeze blowing up Feng Siji's robe, making it rustle, he stepped out of the Crescent Moon Gate with a firm and resolute step, without a trace of sadness.
She followed closely.
As he left the house, he saw a horse neighing and rushing towards him in the busy street in the distance, knocking passers-by away and making them flee. The rider on the horse screamed, "Get out of the way! Quick, get out of the way!"
The voice sounded very familiar. Feng Siji and Jiao Lan thought they had misheard and looked up at the same time.
But the person on the black horse was indeed Ye Shu.
He was covered in smoke and dust, his face was covered in dirt, and a hideous wound from his cheekbone to his temple was bleeding. His wide-open pupils were filled with anxiety and panic.
The horse under him was running so fast that it could not be stopped. It was about to rush past Feng Mansion. He suddenly jumped up, let the horse go, and fell heavily to the ground.
He fell right at Feng Siji's feet. He stretched out his hand, which was stained with dirt, smoke, and blood, and grabbed Feng Siji's clothes. Under Feng Siji's intense and uneasy gaze, he spoke:
"Sir, there's an ambush. The county lady..."
After saying this, Ye Shu spat out a mouthful of blood foam, which splashed onto Feng Siji's boots.
Feng Siji's ears buzzed and he couldn't even hear the breeze blowing past his ears.
"What are you talking about?"
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