The Long Night (11)
Chapter 11 The Long Night (11)
There was silence in the car for a while before Feng Siji said, "Impossible."
It was another expected firm rejection, and Li Qi smiled.
Feng Siji looked at her in confusion. Her cracked lips were bleeding, and her eyelashes drooped like fans, covering her gray eyes.
She suddenly sniffed and found that a crystal tear had gathered on her chin, which fell down and hit her shackles heavily.
"Back in Qianzhou, didn't you ask me why I always wore that multi-treasure necklace?"
Feng Siji's gaze swept across her empty chest at her words. In his memory, she wore that necklace, never taking it off even at night. When he saw her yesterday, she was still wearing it, and today...
Not knowing why she suddenly took it off, Feng Siji didn't say anything.
Her sighs and sobs echoed in my ears: "I never told you the origin of the necklace. In fact, it was given to me by a noble person I met in Qianzhou."
She told him about finding someone to treat Dong Mingrong's illness, without leaving out any details, the origin of the necklace, and how she had been waiting for that person all these years.
Feng Siji was silent for a long time.
He slowly clenched his fists. He felt a little unwilling. He couldn't help her in the past, and he couldn't help her now.
His throat was bitter. "How could you place your hopes on someone you've never met and only spoken a few words to?"
"In order to recapture Yunzhou, I have no other choice."
She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I know I shouldn't place my hopes on someone I've never met. But the world is like this, and my life is so difficult. I know it's impossible, but I still can't help but hope in my heart that there will be someone to help me and make my road smoother.
"But why did that person, who gave me hope, never show up? Feng Siji, I've come all the way from Yunzhou to Qianzhou and then to Kyoto. Can you just have pity on me and show me some favoritism?"
Feng Siji's fingers hidden in his wide sleeves slowly tightened.
For many years, there was no news from her. He had spent countless days and nights searching for her imagining what it would be like to see her again. He had imagined many things, but he had never imagined it would be like this.
She was shackled and in tears, hated by the entire Kyoto city, and became a criminal who was about to be executed by him.
In his bag was the petition concerning the case that would decide her life or death. The bamboo slips happened to hit his heart. Although there was clothing and flesh between them, he felt as if the bamboo slips had penetrated everything, leaving a dent in his heart. Bleeding wouldn't stop, and the dent was bloody and empty, and could never be filled or closed no matter what he did.
He used to think that if he saw Li Qi again, and if she was not doing well, he would definitely applaud.
Now he was not as happy as he had imagined.
While he was lost in thought, the shackles creaked and her sleeve was suddenly grabbed. He lowered his head and looked into her tearful eyes: "Feng Siji... don't be silent..."
What she feared most now was his silence.
Feng Siji was stunned for a moment, then gently lifted her chin. The heat from his fingertips startled him, and he forgot what he wanted to say. He quickly put his hand on her forehead.
Just as hot.
Feng Siji held her face in his hands and noticed that her pale face had turned abnormally red and her breathing had become long and weak.
"What's going on?" Feng Si asked quickly.
Li Qi was halfway between opening her eyes, as if she would fall asleep in the next second. "I just feel very uncomfortable."
His voice was hoarse, like sand rolling over the bark of a dead tree.
But she still held on to his sleeve tightly and whispered, "Feng Siji, please promise me... I saw yesterday that you really like me kissing you. I can kiss you like that every day from now on."
As soon as she finished speaking, she was suddenly hugged by someone. The embrace was warm and generous, and the clear sandalwood scent filled her nostrils.
She greedily pushed deeper and felt him hold her tighter, almost drowning her.
His hot and moist breath fell on her ears, and the ups and downs sounded soothing. She drifted off to sleep in his arms.
She fell asleep with deep breaths, her long eyelashes casting a shadow, like a butterfly flapping its wings about to fly.
Feng Siji couldn't help but reach out and gently stroke her eyebrows. She seemed uncomfortable and frowned and twisted her eyebrows.
Feng Siji was so frightened that he quickly withdrew his hand, fearing that he would make her uncomfortable.
Her wrists were rubbed red by the shackles. Feng Siji couldn't bear it and gently took off the shackles for her.
He put the shackles aside, unconsciously hugged her tighter, and said to Ye Shu outside the carriage: "Go back home."
Ye Shu sighed, "Aren't we sending her to the Dali Temple Prison—"
"I said, go back home."
An extremely cold voice interrupted, oppressing and solemn.
No one dared to say anything more outside.
As soon as he returned home, Feng Siji took off his snow-white coat and wrapped Li Qi up to protect her from the cold wind before carrying her out of the carriage.
Ye Shu stood beside the car, stunned: "Master, Master, Master..."
"Go get the doctor."
Feng Siji said this and strode into the mansion holding Li Qi.
He harbored selfish motives and did not send Li Qi back to the county lord's mansion.
This is a bit dirty, even he hates himself.
But he couldn't control himself because he still had expectations for Li Qi.
-
Li Qi took the medicine and went to sleep, and Feng Siji stayed with her every step of the way.
There are only servants in the mansion, so it is inconvenient to take care of her. People have been sent to pick up Ye Lan and Sheng Xiang, but they have not arrived yet.
The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
From time to time, two or three sparks popped out from the stove, making a crackling sound. The tightly closed window frames were hit by the heavy snow, making a rustling sound.
With a creak, the door was pushed open, and a plate of food was placed in front of him. Ye Shu said beside him, "Eat something. The master hasn't eaten anything all day."
Feng Siji supported his head with one hand, held Li Qibing's cold hand with the other, and said nothing.
Seeing this, Ye Shu sighed, put down the dish, and walked out silently.
Feng Siji was the only one left in the room. He felt the cold hand in his palm, looked at Li Qi's pale and bloodless face, and began to wonder if he was wrong.
When they were in Qianzhou, he could do too little to help her. Now that he has the ability to help her, why doesn't he lend a helping hand?
There were two knocks outside the dark door.
Feng Siji turned his head and stared at the tightly closed door being pushed open. Ye Shu walked in and said, "Sir, someone is coming from the palace."
Ye Shu glanced at Li Qi lying on the sickbed with a sullen look, then lowered his head and said, "Yes, His Majesty wishes to see you."
Feng Siji frowned. Li Qi was just a woman who had nothing to do with the imperial court, but Emperor Liang summoned her at such a late hour?
Ye Shu added, "It was Eunuch Li Ke who came to receive her personally, so there's no mistake. He said that His Majesty had often summoned the County Lady in this way in previous years, so it wasn't unusual. Besides, the County Lady would soon become a Royal Consort, so no one at court seemed to have anything to say about it."
Feng Siji sneered. In the end, he didn't say anything, or he didn't dare to say anything. He still remembered what He Mu said, that His Majesty and Zhang Zhouzhu were protecting her.
There was a rustling sound beside him. He turned his head and saw Li Qi had woken up at some point. She supported herself on the bed and stood up. Her voice was hoarse: "Please tell Eunuch Li that I'll be right there."
She threw off the quilt and tried to get out of bed, her face pale as she glanced at Feng Siji. She moved her lips, wanting to say something but stopping herself. In the end, she said nothing, staggered, straightened her clothes, and walked out the door.
Feng Siji reminded: "You are still sick."
Li Qi said nothing and continued walking forward. As she was about to step out of the door, Feng Siji behind her said coldly, "Don't you have anything you want to tell me?"
Li Qi stopped.
"You haven't even married into the palace yet, and you've been to see Emperor Liang so late so many times. What have you been doing?"
Li Qi's hands gripped the door frame tightly, her white nails trembling slightly. She wanted to ignore everything and turn around to hug Feng Siji, tell him about the ups and downs of the past years, and reconcile with him without holding any grudges.
But with His Majesty's decree before her, she gritted her teeth, feeling her body tremble without rhythm. She knew from the time Yunzhou City fell that people tremble when they are sad. She always huddled in the streets with Dong Mingrong and Dong Linche, shivering.
"County Lady, time is running out." Li Ke, who had been waiting in the yard, reminded her.
Li Qi's grip on the door frame loosened, and in the end, she walked into the dark winter night without saying anything.
The bright red figure walked further and further away until it was completely swallowed up by the night. Feng Siji sneered. The room was so quiet that he could even hear the sound of falling snowflakes.
Her words before she fell asleep seemed to echo in my ears again: "My journey has been so difficult. I know there is no hope, but my heart cannot help but hope. Feng Siji, I have come all the way from Yunzhou to Qianzhou and then to Jingdu. I have made this journey with great difficulty. Can you please have pity on me and only show favoritism to me for this one thing?"
At that time, her eyes were blurred with tears and she was trembling, but every word she spoke was powerful and not humble.
Ye Shu cautiously leaned in and said, "Master? The county lady is not here. Please have your meal now."
"No need." Feng Siji stood up from the armchair. His tall figure swayed, and he held on to the back of the chair to avoid falling.
He stumbled across the threshold as if in a trance, "Prepare the horse, I want to enter the palace."
Ye Shu exclaimed, "What are you doing?" Could he be planning to enter the palace and snatch the county lady back? Seeing how abnormal he was today, it might be possible.
Ye Shu was frightened and hurriedly caught up with him. He followed him all the way and tried to persuade him, repeating over and over again that impulse was the devil, but he didn't respond at all and just walked forward with his head down.
The figure in front of him suddenly stopped, and Ye Shu also stopped, but saw that he went to the study.
Ye Shu followed him in and saw him pick up his pen again, writing something at a rapid speed. Afterwards, he threw the case report he had written into the brazier.
Ye Shu immediately realized what he was about to do, and a chill ran down his spine. He warned him firmly, "You just burned the resignation you just wrote. Master, have you really thought it through? Do you still trust Li Qi's heart?"
Feng Siji stood there in a daze, his hand hidden in the dark, tightly grasping the new resignation letter.
In his new resignation letter, he protected Li Qi.
His vision obscured by the burning fire, Feng Siji recalled the winter when his father's body was brought back to Beijing amidst the frost and snow. He knelt in the snow and swore before his father's spirit tablet:
"As my father's spirit in heaven bears witness, I, Feng Siji, hereby swear that in my lifetime as an official, I will never show favoritism, accept bribes, or shield others. I will be upright in conduct and heart, and be an honest official loved by the people. If I violate this, I will be punished with the utmost punishment and die an unpleasant death."
The light in the brazier went out, and Feng Siji's mind returned to reality. He felt that the new resignation was even hotter than before, as if he was holding a red-hot iron, burning his skin and causing blood and flesh to roll out. The pain was so severe that he almost lost his breath.
He used the hand holding the resignation letter so hard that veins popped out. After a long silence, he spoke hoarsely, "Whether you can trust me, it's like this. Whether you can't trust me, it's like that."
Ye Shu was anxious: "Master, why?"
“Because no matter what you do, the result is the same.”
Even if he really put her in jail, could he watch her die?
He saw how popular the Qingqi Temple was and heard how unbearable the bad words were.
Almost everyone in Kyoto wanted her dead.
She seemed to care nothing, but she made herself look haggard - she had to wear bright and flamboyant red clothes to cover up her haggardness.
Feng Siji looked towards the green bamboo in the courtyard and said, "I didn't suppress the case. I just bought time for her—"
Ye Shu interrupted anxiously, "Have you considered the consequences if you're exposed? Are you going to lose the oath you swore before Elder Feng's tablet, and the praise and admiration you've received from the people?"
"I'm sorry for my father's spirit in heaven. As for the rest, it doesn't matter."
He seemed possessed. Ye Shu was so anxious that he turned around and around: "But the truth will come out sooner or later. Li Qi will be punished one day——"
Feng Siji interrupted him and said seriously, "When the time comes, I will accompany her to the execution platform."
He walked away, "I've made up my mind. You don't need to persuade me anymore."
The dark black cloak fluttered across the white snow, leaving behind a dull shadow.
-
As they staggered into the carriage heading to the palace, Li Ke put a thick cloak on Li Qi and said, "County Lady, everything is planned. Tomorrow at Qingqi Temple, we will take He Mu's life."
Li Qi paused as she gathered her cloak, then asked after a moment, "Will it work?"
Li Ke bent down and said, "They are all assassins hired by Empress Ming in the past. There will be no problem. Even if they fail, they will kill themselves and will not expose you."
Li Qi clenched her fingers. "No, since I'm taking action, I must succeed. I'll personally lead the team there tomorrow."
The candle in the car jumped, as if a cold wind was blowing.
The carriage had already arrived outside the palace gate. Li Qi stood up and blew out the candle: "There are too many stumbling blocks. I want to kill one more Feng Siji."
Li Ke, who was about to get out of the car, was stunned. He held onto the car door and turned back: "Master Feng? Why?"
"He's unwilling to cover up for others and is a bigger stumbling block than He Mu. I have no choice but to get rid of him."
"But... I heard from people in Kyoto that he is a good official and a good man."
"So what?" Li Qi said calmly as he got off the carriage.
"Throughout history, good people have never had a good ending. Just think of him as being too kind, and that's why he can't survive in this world."
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