The Long Night (3)
Chapter 3 The Long Night (3)
Li Qi slowly put away the last bit of her needlework and said to Shengxiang, "Don't return to the capital for the next two days. Go to Lin Che and deliver the winter clothes I made for him. I'm worried Feng Siji will find out about you. You're not good at lying, so don't reveal anything."
Shengxiang responded and got up to pack her belongings.
Li Qi sent Shengxiang outside. The snow outside did not stop but got heavier. The sky was dark, but because the road was white, a faint layer of cold white light was reflected, illuminating Shengxiang's carriage which was gradually moving away.
Li Qi didn't turn back until her carriage completely disappeared at the end of the street. Seeing the finished snow-blue dress next to the stove, she was a little dazed.
In the past, Feng Siji liked the color snow-blue. This cold color was as cold and lonely as he was.
I wonder if his preferences are still the same as before?
Thinking back to the palace banquet tonight, he was wearing light blue, as gentle and harmless as the green grass, seemingly non-aggressive, but he was very likely about to cut off the road between her and Dong Linche.
Dong Linche was the son of the governor of Yunzhou. When Yunzhou fell, he and his sister Dong Mingrong fled. With them was the mansion's servant, Li Qi.
When the three fled to Qianzhou, Dong Mingrong's golden body could not withstand the wind, frost, rain and snow, and he fell seriously ill on the way.
Dong Linche is three years younger than Li Qi. After his sister Dong Mingrong fell ill, he regarded Li Qi as his backbone.
Although Li Qi was a servant, she was of similar age to Dong Mingrong and had accompanied her throughout her childhood. She was quite talented and intelligent, and had greatly helped Dong Mingrong with both schoolwork and housework. Consequently, she was treated like any other young lady from an official family.
Dong Linche did not feel ashamed to regard her as his backbone.
He cried and begged Li Qi to save his sister, but what could Li Qi do? Yunzhou City was broken, and all the valuables were exchanged for food to escape. They had no money left and could not afford to treat Dong Mingrong.
Li Qi had no other choice but to beg for survival on the roadside when a luxurious carriage happened to pass by. She thought that the person inside must be able to save Dong Mingrong, so she rashly stopped the carriage and handed Dong Mingrong to the adult in the carriage.
Perhaps it was because the gentleman was kind-hearted, or perhaps it was because Dong Mingrong was good-looking. In any case, the gentleman not only took her away, but also left a bag of silver for Li Qi.
Li Qi pulled Dong Linche to kneel before the noble's carriage and said solemnly, "The young lady is seriously ill. I have no money, so I have no choice but to do this. I only ask you to treat her illness and save her life. If I accept this money, it will be like I am selling the young lady. I will not accept it, so I beg you to take it back."
The nobleman had not yet appeared. He sat in the tall, luxurious carriage, and his voice, as clear as glass, came through the curtains:
"You only ask me to cure her illness and save her life, and you don't care about anything else. Aren't you afraid that after I save her, not only will I not return her to you, but I will also treat her in a despicable way, making her unable to recover forever?"
"You saved her life, and you are her second parents. No one else has the right to interfere with your actions. If she can't stand the humiliating treatment, she can just end her life.
"She's so sick she can't speak or hear, but I think she wants to live, so I made this decision for her. When she wakes up, it's up to her to decide whether she lives or dies."
The man asked, "Since you said she couldn't speak, how do you know she wanted to live?"
Li Qi said, "She was originally the daughter of the Governor of Yunzhou, who died defending the city. Yunzhou was lost, and her hometown was no longer recaptured. As the descendant of a heroic general, how could she dare to die before Yunzhou was recaptured?"
At this point, the man in the carriage laughed twice and asked, "From what you say, I'm sure you're not an ordinary slave?"
"I grew up with the young lady, eating, sleeping, reading books, and writing with her. Perhaps I am luckier than other slaves because I know a little bit about poetry, literature, and etiquette."
"Not being overly humble, nor overly conceited, is excellent. If there is anything else you'd like to do but can't, please tell me. If I'm able, I'll certainly help you."
Li Qi said without hesitation: "I want to recapture Yunzhou, no matter the cost."
Young voices, heavy wishes.
Maybe it sounds incongruous, maybe it’s a fairy tale, but that’s what Li Qi thought.
There was silence in the carriage for a long time. Li Qi thought he would laugh at her. After all, they were born in troubled times with smoke of war everywhere. It was a blessing for men, let alone women, to be able to survive safely. How could she, a weak sixteen-year-old girl, talk about the ideal of regaining lost territory?
This was not realistic at all, so she was mentally prepared to be laughed at.
After a long while, the noble man said, "If you can survive in Qianzhou with this young man by your side and make it to Kyoto, I will help you ascend to the sky and conquer Yunzhou."
A necklace of gold beads and precious stones was thrown out of the car window. "This is a token of trust."
The man left a word "goodbye" and the carriage hurried away in a cloud of dust.
When passing by Li Qi, she couldn't help but stare at the curtain, hoping to get a glimpse of his face.
The wind really blew the curtain open, and she looked inside desperately, trying to see and remember what he looked like, but the gap in the curtain was too small and she saw nothing.
Later, Li Qi wore the gold pearl necklace every day, looking forward to the promise of the noble man she had never met, and led Dong Linche to live a hard life in Qianzhou.
Now she finally arrived in Kyoto. Except for bathing and resting, she never took off her golden pearl necklace. However, she never saw the noble man appear, but met Dong Mingrong instead.
He sent Dong Mingrong into the palace and she became the favorite concubine of Emperor Liang, Empress Li.
-
When Feng Siji's carriage arrived at Feng Mansion, it was already late in the evening. The deep night pressed down from the sky like ink, without a trace of light.
There were three or five lamps lit on the path inside the mansion, illuminating the snow on the road with a layer of cold white light. Feng Si walked quickly over, and the hem of his clothes swayed in the light, casting a half shadow.
When I walked into the courtyard, I found that there was light coming from the flower hall, and several figures were projected on the transparent window paper.
He had just returned to Kyoto, so there wouldn't be any regular customers coming, so how could there be anyone in the flower hall?
Just as Feng Siji was wondering, he saw Yeshu coming around the corner from the corridor and bowed politely, "Master, there is a guest who insists on seeing you."
Feng Siji's doubts deepened: "Who is it?"
"It's He Rucheng's daughter, He Mu," Ye Shu said. "She's been waiting for you for three or four hours. She said she has something important to discuss with you in person."
Feng Siji looked at the shadow on the window paper, thought for a moment, walked down the stairs and went to the flower hall.
-
There were three or two maids serving in the hall. He Mu, wearing a milky white jacket, sat at the bottom. His hair ornament was only a plain silver hairpin. His face was pale, but his lifeless eyes sparkled with colorful light when he looked at him.
Feng Siji didn't understand where her brilliance came from. He frowned slightly, stepped forward with his hands behind his back, and sat down opposite her.
Ben was also of the same age, so he was no stranger to her.
When he left Kyoto, she was still a proud and conceited girl who loved beautiful clothes and jewelry. Now when he saw her again, her temperament had become like a pool of water that was about to dry up, lifeless.
As soon as Feng Siji sat down, He Mu stood up hastily, approached him, and looked at him eagerly: "His Majesty has handed the Empress's case to you, right?"
Feng Siji avoided her gaze and nodded silently.
"So what did you find out?"
He asked back, "What?"
The light in front of him was partially blocked by He Mu. Her voice floated from above, anxious: "I know who killed the queen. I saw it on New Year's Eve."
Feng Siji paused, then slowly raised his eyes to look at her.
For some reason, a gloomy hatred covered her brows. "I know that you and your father are both rare honest officials. Your father died because of Yunzhou's case. After you took over his unsolved case, you would rather be exiled to Qianzhou than submit to Zhang Zhouzhu."
Hearing Zhang Zhouzhu's name, Feng Siji's eyes suddenly narrowed into a shadow. He stroked the teacup on the table beside him lightly and rhythmically, thinking silently.
It was indeed Zhang Zhouzhu who was responsible for his demotion.
Maybe he has helpers, but Feng Siji doesn't know who they are.
Zhang Zhouzhu is the youngest prime minister of this dynasty. He holds great power, but he is also greedy and cruel. To Feng Siji, he is a worm in the sewer, dirty and filthy.
"Except for you, I don't know who else can handle this case." He Mu suddenly spoke.
Feng Siji came back to his senses and looked at her. She seemed to want to gain his trust, and her tone was strong: "Feng, my father and I both believe that you are an honest official. If I tell you who killed the queen, will you catch the murderer no matter what, just like before?"
Feng Siji was silent for a long time, but he didn't respond directly. He waved his hand and asked the maid to come forward and make tea, as if avoiding the topic.
The steam rising from the freshly brewed hot tea made He Mu's face look a little hazy.
Feng Siji picked up a teacup and gently flicked the tea leaves with the lid, making a crisp tinkling sound. He took a slow sip before sneering, "Your father is the head of the Ministry of Justice and was involved in this case. Since you know who the murderer is, he's got plenty of power. Why don't you tell him? Instead, why do you come to me and ask me to arrest him? Are you, the He family, being honest, or are you trying to use me as a scapegoat?"
He had a leisurely posture and spoke in a casual tone. He looked at her with a slightly slanted glance while drinking tea. His eyes, which showed through the teacup, were filled with obvious disdain and suspicion.
He Mu felt uneasy. How difficult would it be to make him believe in himself?
He Mu clenched his fists and said, "The murderer has many people protecting her. In addition to His Majesty, there is also Prime Minister Zhang Zhouzhu. Even my father can't compete with her. My father doesn't have the courage to be innocent like you. He is afraid of offending others, so he can't catch the murderer.
"My hope lies in you."
After He Mu finished speaking, he looked at him expectantly, hoping for his response.
However, he just drank tea quietly without saying a word.
He Mu became anxious and said, "If you don't believe me, I can tell you my family's biggest secret."
Feng Siji paused in his tea sip. She was so sincere. Was she doing this for the Empress' sake, or because she hated the murderer so much?
He remembered the hatred in her eyes and eyebrows when she entered the flower hall just now.
I think it's the latter. Who could possibly make this arrogant, conceited young lady hate him?
He put down the teacup and began to look He Mu straight in the eye.
Her expression didn't seem like a joke. There was a calmness in her expression that made her ready to risk everything, and a hatred as sharp as a blade.
He asked slowly, "Do you have a grudge against the murderer?"
"A vengeance that will never be resolved in a lifetime."
He Mu's eyes were red. "But someone is protecting her. My father and I are helpless. In the government and the country, I can't find another person like you who is willing to be demoted for the sake of innocence. You are our only hope now."
Feng Siji tapped the teacup lightly with his fingers and asked thoughtfully, "Tell me, who is the murderer? Perhaps I can consider it."
"Li Qi."
Feng Siji suddenly laughed. It was an unexpected yet expected answer.
He Mu was confused, "What do you mean?"
"Do you have evidence?"
"Yes." He Mu said, "Mr. Feng, my father said that if you remain as honest and selfless as before, we will give you evidence. After you solve the case, he will give you a fortune and help you bring down Zhang Zhouzhu. Haven't you always hated Zhang Zhouzhu?"
Feng Siji ignored her temptation and asked, "Where is your evidence?"
"I can't give it to you now. I'll give it to you when you really start to catch her and need evidence.
"So, do you agree?"
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