Hanging Knife (5)
The next day, a spring rain fell, and small puddles formed in the courtyard, reflecting the dome covered with dark clouds.
Feng Siji got up at daybreak, grabbed a sweatshirt from the rack, and slowly put it on. There was also a red official robe hanging on the rack, which he took and put on over his sweatshirt, then sat on a footstool and bent over to put on his shoes.
After getting dressed, Qinglan came into the room with some water and placed it on the table. Feng Si hurried over, wrung out the towel and washed his face.
Qinglan stood aside with her head bowed. "Sir, are you going to have breakfast now?"
Feng Siji threw the handkerchief back into the basin and shook his head: "No need."
Qinglan said "oh", walked forward to take the basin of water, and slowly retreated.
Feng Siji followed her out of the room and down the wet steps. The corner of his official robe brushed against the dark blue bricks, staining them with dirty water. He casually lifted his robe and walked to the front yard, where he suddenly noticed that the grape vines in the yard had already sprouted leaves.
Small, green pieces are crowded on the vines.
It was just a bud a while ago, but now it has grown into tender leaves. Feng Siji was slightly stunned. Spring had come so unknowingly.
The streets outside the courtyard were noisy. The vendors began to shout, the carriages taking children to school creaked, the aroma of morning restaurants wafted over, and amid the bustling voices, there was more discussion about the county lady's parade through the streets today.
"I have prepared the carriage and am waiting outside the mansion. Do you want to go out now, sir? If you go now, you can still get to the prison and should be able to catch up with the county lord and the others..." As Ye Shu spoke, he saw that the expression on Feng Siji's face was becoming increasingly indifferent, and his voice gradually weakened.
Having been with Feng Siji for so many years, Ye Shu understood his temperament. The more expressionless he looked like now, the more turbulent waves were beating in his heart.
Feng Siji said nothing, his robe lifted, and he stood slenderly under the grapevines, a little dazed. He thought he could avoid the past by deliberately not mentioning or thinking about it, but there were always people who heard so many things about her.
Whether it is the street discussions outside the mansion or the voices of people inside the mansion.
Feng Siji was stunned for a long time before he started to walk out of the house.
The carriage stopped in front of the gate, and the horse occasionally pawed its hooves back and forth. Feng Siji took a look and then walked on foot.
When Ye Shu saw his back, he suddenly understood something. The county lady was being paraded through the streets, and he must have wanted to take the blame for her. How could he have a Type 2 carriage?
After thinking about it, Ye Shu hurriedly took twenty or so palace soldiers and quickly caught up with Feng Siji.
-
The parade started from the East Market and ended at the West Market.
The East and West Markets were the busiest markets in Kyoto. As she paraded past here, Li Qi, leaning back in the prison van, could see all kinds of people.
Those people pointed at her and spoke ill of her, their eyes filled with disgust as if disgusting pus could flow out.
Several children gathered together, staring at Li Qi with curiosity, their big eyes full of confusion.
The adults each pulled their children away and covered their eyes with their hands, "Don't look at the witch casually, or she will come and eat your brains at night!"
When the child heard this, he immediately hugged his black little head and cried, and kept asking the adults how to avoid having his brain eaten by Li Qi.
Li Qi couldn't help but laugh out loud.
He Mu, who was riding in front, turned around and looked at Li Qi with a frown.
Li Qi was wearing prison clothes, her hair was messy and sticking up on her head, her hands and feet were shackled, she was leaning against the prison van, her hands, feet and body were covered with broken things that people had thrown at her as she walked along.
There were rotten eggs from hens, rotten vegetable leaves left over from restaurants, and mud balls that children had made to play with during the rain. All of them were black, dirty, and messy and scattered around her.
A ball of mud hit her left cheek, and her cheek was immediately covered with mud, dirty and red.
She was already in this state, yet she still smiled with her white teeth. He Mu looked at her as if she were a madman: "I hope you can still smile on the execution platform of Qingqi Temple. Then I, He Mu, will truly admire you."
Li Qi glanced over indifferently when she heard the voice, with nothing in her eyes, and didn't take He Mu seriously at all.
He Mu snorted coldly, thinking that Li Qi was just pretending to be strong. She turned her head away and stopped looking at Li Qi.
She and Chen Hu led a team of people, surrounded Li Qi's prison car from the front and back, and slowly marched through the East Market.
The people around me are becoming more radical.
"I've finally waited for this day. This witch will not die a good death!"
"Before, outside the County Lady's Mansion, she and Prime Minister Zhang killed so many of our brothers. We must avenge them!"
"Beheading her is nothing. How can beheading her calm our anger? I think we should hijack the prison van and torture her to death ourselves!"
“…”
Someone shouted this, but the crowd's voices began to drift astray. They all thought that simply beheading the witch was too easy and too lenient for her. They all wanted to raise their knives and strike for the so-called justice.
The crowded and cursing crowd was getting closer and closer to the prison van, wishing they could pull Li Qi out of the van and eat his flesh and blood raw.
Li Qi just watched all this coldly.
A child in the crowd picked up a larger stone, replaced the original mud ball, and threw it into the prison van.
When Li Qi saw the stone flying towards her, she suddenly raised her hand and accurately grabbed the stone that almost hit her forehead, then glanced sideways at the child.
The child was frightened by the murderous intent in her beautiful eyes and stood there motionless.
Suddenly, something emitting a cold light flew in her hand. Before the child could see what it was, a dagger with a cold murderous aura flew towards him.
The child screamed, and the next moment he collapsed to the ground, with a pool of light yellow liquid flowing out from under his buttocks.
The scream attracted Chen Hu's attention. He quickly jumped off his horse and grabbed the flying dagger. Blood immediately flowed from his fingers. He turned his head angrily and looked at Li Qi: "Where did you get the dagger?"
He Mu also dismounted and walked over to Chen Hu, standing shoulder to shoulder with him. He frowned at Li Qi in annoyance, "Why are you still so restless after all this?"
Li Qi smiled grimly, and looked at them with an extremely sinister look.
He Mu felt a chill down her spine, as if ice-cold rain had seeped in. She pointed at Li Qi and said, "What are you laughing at?"
"Oh my son!" A cry erupted from the crowd. A woman ran over, picked up the child who was frightened by Li Qi and was crying and weeping. She coaxed him with heartache for a long time, then turned around and glared at Li Qi fiercely: "You witch, why don't you die yet?"
Li Qi just smiled and remained silent.
She was clearly a prisoner, but her attitude of not taking anyone seriously completely infuriated the others. They lost their minds and rushed to the prison van, raising their fists to hit her. Some even picked up their own kitchen knives and threw them into the van.
Chen Hu's men didn't react in time and couldn't stop him at all. The situation suddenly got out of control. Chen Hu was so scared that he broke out in a cold sweat. If he really let the people hack Li Qi to death here, he would probably have to go back to the prison he had just escaped from!
He was wiping the sweat from his forehead and running around anxiously. At this moment, someone shouted in the distance: "Master Feng, General Dong is here!"
Just as he finished speaking, with a "whoosh" sound, two arrows flew over at the same time and pierced the heart of the man holding the kitchen knife.
The man spat out a mouthful of blood onto the prison van, then fell to the ground with his eyes wide open.
There was an uproar all around, and the impulsive crowd suddenly calmed down and stepped back several steps away from the prison van.
Li Qi wiped the blood sprayed on her cheek by the man, and looked back while sitting in the prison van.
The dark clouds were so thick that the light in the dome of the sky was extremely dim. Dong Linche, wearing a blue short shirt, was riding a horse under the dim light of the sky. He had a bow and arrow in his hand, aiming at anyone outside the prison car who was ready to make a move.
The wind blew his hair into the air. The reckless, impulsive but high-spirited young man grew up under Li Qi's guidance and regarded her as his only guide.
Behind him followed Feng Siji, who was wearing an official robe. The two of them came to the prison van one after the other. Feng Siji squatted in front of Li Qi, reached into the prison van and took her hand, "Are you hurt anywhere?"
Li Qi looked at him without saying a word.
Feng Siji didn't ask any more questions, but lifted his sleeve to wipe the stain off her face. She suddenly reached out and grabbed his sleeve, staring at him coldly.
Feng Siji's eyes turned red and his heart beat faster. That feeling of anxiety came again, sweeping over him from all directions. He couldn't control his hands and feet, which became cold and sweaty, and even his body was a little stiff.
He gasped almost inaudibly and wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Dong Linche standing beside him: "The county lady is the elder sister who raised me. No matter who she is now or what she has done, if you dare to harm her, my sword will not recognize anyone!"
As he spoke, Dong Linche swung the sword in his hand, and the sharp sound of the wind scared away everyone.
Everyone had heard of his battlefield exploits and was afraid of him.
Only Chen Hu and He Mu did not retreat at all, still standing there and looking at him.
Dong Linche brought a large number of soldiers and surrounded the two of them. Dong Linche said coldly, "Either today's matter ends here, or you two will shed blood in the East Market. Your choice!"
Chen Hu was so angry that his teeth were itching, but he didn't dare to go against the person who held the military power. The world was not peaceful now, and Emperor Liang was doing nothing. No one knew who the country would belong to in the next moment, but it would not belong to him.
Chen Hu led He Mu back to the side of the horses. They both climbed onto their horses and gnashed their teeth unwillingly as they said, "Let's go!"
He Mu raised his whip and glared at Li Qi, "I just don't believe he would abandon the military camp and stay in Kyoto every day to protect you!"
After saying this, she spurred her horse and followed Chen Hu, and the two of them left one after the other.
After they left, Dong Linche squatted beside the prison van and looked at Li Qi. He hadn't seen her like this in a long time, and he couldn't help but feel furious, wanting to cut the culprits into pieces. But this time, he took Li Qi's teachings to heart and suppressed his impulse.
"Sister, just wait. Feng Siji and I will rescue you as soon as possible." Dong Linche said solemnly.
Feng Siji stood up and ordered his men to send Li Qi back to the prison. When he was about to follow, someone among the onlookers shouted, "Master Feng, why are you protecting this witch?"
This caused an uproar and everyone became angry.
"What else could it be? That enchantress must have seduced even our Feng Qingguan!"
“…”
"What nonsense are you talking about!" Dong Linche stood up suddenly, turned around, and brandished his sword at the man who had said this. He shouted angrily, "If you say another word of nonsense, I'll kill you!"
The man subconsciously raised his hands in surrender, trembling as he looked at the big knife across his neck, and hesitantly called out, "Master Feng, Master, save me..."
Feng Siji glanced at him coldly and did nothing. This time, he did not stop Dong Linche from saying that he was impulsive. He just reached out and patted Dong Linche on the shoulder: "I'll go see her in prison."
Dong Linche hummed.
Feng Si quickly caught up with the prison van, stood in front of it, and accompanied Li Qi all the way to the prison.
The road was wet and the air was filled with a chilly spring breeze. No one spoke along the way. Dark clouds accompanied them all the way, and the only sound they could hear was the creaking of the prison van.
The prison van was parked outside the prison. Feng Siji ordered someone to open the van, bent down and reached out to help Li Qi out.
He supported Li Qi all the way and sent her back to the cell.
There was no one else in the cell. As soon as he entered, Feng Siji couldn't help but hug Li Qi in his arms, resting his chin on her shoulder, and tears rolled out of his eyes and hit Li Qi's shoulder.
Li Qi felt his unusual trembling and reached out to gently pat his back to comfort him.
"I'm sorry," Feng Siji hugged her tighter and tighter, wishing he could rub her into his body from now on, so that he could protect her from now on. As long as he lived, she would be there, and if she died, he would die too. "Li Qi, I'm sorry."
The dim candlelight in the cell flickered, stretching the shadows of the two people and casting them on the ground. Looking at the shadows alone, they looked like two lovers embracing each other.
Li Qi felt a little breathless in his embrace. She reached out to push him away, but suddenly felt a wet and cold sensation on her shoulder, and she paused in her attempt to push him away.
Feeling that she did not refuse, Feng Siji hugged her tighter, pressing her lungs against his chest, making it difficult for her to breathe.
"What have you done to me?" Li Qi put her hand on his shoulder and comforted him gently.
Feng Siji said: "If General Dong hadn't shot that arrow..." He couldn't imagine whether the man's kitchen knife would have chopped into the prison car.
Feng Siji was so frightened that his whole body was cold. He couldn't accept Li Qi's death in front of him. Fortunately, it didn't happen, but he didn't dare to have any luck.
He turned his head and buried his face in her neck, sniffing the faint sweet fragrance on her body, and trembling, he said, "Now I feel that you are right. There is no point in being a good person. I have neither the ability to save all living beings nor the ability to be free from desires and pure to the point of six senses. I want you, only you.
"From now on, I will only live for you. I will be a bad person like you—at least a bad person in the eyes of outsiders, so that they will be in awe and fear of me, and never dare to throw stones at anything I care about again."
Li Qi was stunned. In fact, she didn't care about what happened today. Even if the knife really flew towards her, she had the ability to kill the other party.
But it seems that this is not the case for Feng Siji.
She pushed Feng Siji away, and just as she was about to push him away, he suddenly turned around and faced her with his back: "Don't look at me."
Li Qi suddenly dreamed of returning to Qianzhou. At that time, Feng Siji followed her to Qunfang Tower and learned that she had saved him only to use him. He broke down and questioned her until he cried, and said this: "Don't look at me."
Li Qi didn't force him to face her. Instead, she took a few steps forward and hugged Feng Siji from behind: "You've upheld your innocence and justice for so many years, and you're going to destroy it all for me?"
Feng Siji fell silent.
Li Qi leaned her head against his back, as warm and generous as before. "In the eyes of others, I am a witch, a monster."
"That's nothing," Feng Siji said, "Just think of it as..."
It's like he's infatuated with a monster, and in order to be with her, he's willing to become a monster too.
I can accept being spit on and scolded by thousands of people.
Feng Siji turned around, his tear marks gleaming softly in the candlelight. He held Li Qi's face in his warm hands and gazed at her deeply: "Li Qi, I will take the blame for you, marry me."
Li Qi's blood froze, she reached out to grab his wrist, and looked up at him in disbelief: "What did you say?"
Although Feng Siji had made such plans before, and it was Qinglan who told her, Li Qi thought that after she lied to him last time, he would not make any sacrifices for her again.
But unexpectedly, he still insisted and spoke to her solemnly in person.
His blue veins were clearly visible in her palm, so warm, and the hand holding her face was also warm, reminding her of the time when Yunzhou and Dong Mingrong were lying on the roof together watching the sunrise. The first ray of sunlight shining on her face was as warm as his palm.
"Give me one last moment, and I will take the blame for you before your execution. In the next few days, I will ask Dong Linche to allocate troops to me. I will lead the troops to besiege the prison and will not let them parade you through the streets."
Feng Siji lifted her face higher, bent down and kissed her lips deeply, his tongue sweeping across the corners of her lips and every white tooth.
Li Qi struggled to turn away, staring at him in shock. "You led troops to besiege the prison? If you did that, you wouldn't even need anyone to accuse you of a crime; you'd be charged with treason!"
Feng Siji stubbornly hugged Li Qi, pinching her chin and kissing her without allowing her to refuse. "I've thought about it, I've thought about it all. Treason doesn't matter. If those soldiers are assigned to me, I will disguise them and will never implicate General Dong in the crime of treason.
"Call me treason or whatever you want, but I can't let them parade you through the streets like this. I want to clear your name and return the glory that rightfully belongs to you."
Feng Siji's throat was dry and his voice was choked with sobs. "I want you to be remembered through the ages as the first person to recover the lost territory. I don't want you to be displaced anymore, and I don't want you to be labeled a witch anymore."
Li Qi's eyes gradually turned red. Looking at his serious and obsessed look, her nose felt sore. For the first time in her life, she actually had the urge to cry for this man.
Unconsciously infected by Feng Siji, Li Qi choked up and said, "Once you do this, the innocence and justice you've upheld for over twenty years, your reputation as an honest official, and the promise you made to your late father will all be gone."
She looked at Feng Siji with equal seriousness, and for the first time in her life, she genuinely considered his interests. "If you do this, you will be condemned by thousands of people, cursed and hated by millions."
Feng Siji saw tears rolling down her eyes, so he lowered his head to lick her eyes, and finally hugged her. He moved his lips and kissed her between the eyebrows without any lust.
"I don't live to be remembered forever, I just want you."
Li Qi couldn't hold back any longer and burst into tears.
She lived for twenty years, and walked a difficult path with Mingrong and Linche. Along the way, she had never been sincere to anyone, and naturally, she had never received sincere treatment from anyone.
But from Feng Siji, Li Qi felt an abnormal and deformed love that was almost destructive, disregarding everything and only caring about her.
And she felt that this deformity actually... gave her an inexplicable sense of peace.
"Don't you hate me?" Li Qi tried to awaken his reason. Why was it different from what his mother said? She felt that Feng Siji was no longer the tool his mother said.
"Hate, of course I hate."
Feng Siji gritted his teeth in disgust, but he didn't say it. What he hated more was himself who couldn't live without her.
Feng Siji loosened his arms, took two steps back and asked her, "Where did you transfer Ping'an Village to? I need them."
She had clearly been thinking so much about him just a moment ago, but as soon as Ping'an Village was mentioned, Li Qi's vigilance immediately rose: "What do you want to do?"
Feng Siji reached out and stroked her face, saying seriously, "You can trust me at any time."
Li Qi was silent for a while, and finally gave him an address.
Feng Siji gave her another dagger for self-defense, told her to wait patiently, and then left the prison.
-
-
Feng Siji took the token given by Li Qi and led people to Ping'an Village.
The new Ping'an Village is even more secluded, built against the mountain, like a primitive tribe. The small village is hidden by dense woods, and nothing can be seen from the outside. It is hidden and safe.
It was very quiet all around, only the singing of birds and the sound of the wind could be heard, but any outsider who came in would be able to hear it clearly.
As soon as Feng Siji arrived, he attracted Shan Min's attention.
Shan Min had been guarding the village outside with a few brothers of his own age these days. When he saw Feng Siji coming with his men, he and his brothers jumped down from the tree trunk and stood in front of Feng Siji, asking, "Why are you here?"
The tone is not good.
Feng Siji glanced at Shan Min. This man had been with Li Qi all these years since she came to Kyoto. When he thought about the days when he was absent and Li Qi was always accompanied by him, Feng Siji felt very unhappy.
He dislikes Shan Min very much.
Even though he knew that Li Qi would never fall for Shan Min with her personality, he still didn't like Shan Min.
Shan Min's presence makes Feng Siji feel his dignity trembling.
Almost in order to stabilize his trembling dignity, Feng Siji took out the token given by Li Qi as if to show off. It was a larger dagger shaped like a snake.
Shan Min saw this and his face darkened: "What did you do to the county lady?"
"I am her husband, whom she has sworn to heaven and earth for," Feng Siji said without thinking, "We were married in Qianzhou long before you."
Shan Min and Ye Shu who was following behind Feng Siji were both stunned.
Ye Shu looked at his master in confusion and asked, "Why do you want to do this?"
Shan Min clenched the crossbow in his hand, frowned, and asked, "So?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
