The Long Night (8)
Chapter 8 The Long Night (8)
Feng Si quickly walked up the stairs to the main room, one step, two steps, firm and hard.
Behind him, Li Qi shouted, "Feng Siji!"
He paused, but did not turn around.
Ye Shu also stopped, but he couldn't help but looked back at Li Qi.
Li Qi's eyes were red as she hissed, "The Empress's case isn't complicated, so why did they use you? He Rucheng and Chen Hu, they're both veteran officials, don't they have any skills? Why did they wait until you returned to Kyoto to investigate?"
Feng Siji clenched his fists and pressed his thin lips into a straight line.
He knew it better than anyone else, because no one dared to investigate, no one dared to interrogate Li Qi in front of His Majesty, and no one dared to arrest Li Qi and put him in prison in front of the emperor.
He finally turned around and looked at Li Qi. She stood with her back straight, like a green pine or cypress, neither humble nor arrogant in the raging snow, no longer looking pitiful.
He stood on the steps, looking down at her condescendingly: "Now that you see that covering up has no results, you're going to stop pretending?"
Li Qi ignored him and said, "You're shielding me, pretending the truth can't be uncovered, so everyone is safe. Otherwise, His Majesty won't let me be punished. He'll find a scapegoat in the palace, whether it's a eunuch or a maid. You've been investigating cases for so many years, you know what the scapegoat's fate will be.
"You say you never handle wrongful convictions, but once you report the truth, wrongful convictions will immediately appear in your hands."
Feng Siji's originally sharp eyes gradually turned gray after she said this, like the ashes left after burning straw, dead and silent.
Li Qi understood that it was disappointment.
The look in his eyes when he looked at her was full of disappointment.
He was an upright official, lived a just life, and was glorious for generations. He was not the same kind of person as someone like her.
Disappointment was just expected, so she had no reason to be sad. There was no affection between her and him since she left Qianzhou.
But why couldn't she control the feeling of chest tightness, shortness of breath, swollen eyes and sore nose, and an inexplicable urge?
Feng Siji clenched his fists and asked through gritted teeth, "What do you mean?"
Li Qi said, "As long as Envoy Feng protects me this time, I can hand over the truth about the unjust case you were investigating while you were exiled."
"Do you think I can't find these out myself?"
"With Feng's ability, it wouldn't be difficult to find out. But you're just an envoy. Once the Empress' case is solved, will you still have a place in Kyoto? You'll still be the demoted Dali Temple Minister. By then, will you have the chance to investigate what you want?"
Li Qi approached him step by step, stopped at the two steps where he was standing, looked up at him and said, "As long as you protect me this time, I can not only help you investigate, but also let you stay in Kyoto forever and do whatever you want."
Clusters of snowflakes hit the umbrella above Feng Siji's head, making a dull thud.
She waited quietly for his answer, hoping to get it.
But Feng Siji was silent for a moment, then extinguished all her hopes as soon as he spoke: "Li Qi, don't forget, there is Shengxiang by your side. If His Majesty really wants to find a scapegoat for you, then I will push her out."
Li Qi was stunned and even forgot to speak. She watched Feng Siji turn around, step onto the last step, and walk away from her resolutely.
Ye Shu held an umbrella for him, so that not a single snowflake could fall on him. He was like a banished immortal or a god, clean and untainted by dust.
He didn't look at her again until he pushed open the main door.
Ye Shu put away his umbrella and closed the door.
Li Qi watched the door close mercilessly in front of her, just like what she had done to Feng Siji in Qianzhou. In return, she received Feng Siji's cold treatment now. She could not blame anyone.
He brought up Shengxiang, and she could no longer speak those words asking him to cover up for her.
-
There was a warm fire burning in the main room. Feng Si asked Ye Shu, who was warming himself by the fire, "Have you finished buying the clothes I asked you to buy?"
"They've all been put into the warehouse. Master, do you want to wear them?"
"No."
Feng Siji waved his hand and said, "Bring me some pen and ink."
"Master, you still want to review the files so late at night?"
"No, write about Concubine Li's case and report it to His Majesty."
Ye Shu quickly took out the pen and ink and spread them out on the table.
Feng Siji was writing at his desk, while Ye Shu was watching from the side. The more he watched, the more relieved he felt.
The facts of the case were written in black and white, every stroke of the pen, without any exaggeration or any intention of covering up.
His argument was fair and just, well-organized, and with solid evidence and the He family as witnesses, he was able to capture Li Qi.
Ye Shu breathed a sigh of relief. "Fortunately, fortunately, I thought the young master wanted to..."
"Protecting her?"
Feng Siji interrupted, staring at the drop of ink gathering at the tip of the brush. If this drop of ink fell, it would stain his entire white petition. "Although her conditions are very tempting, I won't do it."
"Looking at Li Qi's expression just now, do you really have no sympathy at all?"
"No."
"Then when this is done and Li Qi can be apprehended, how do you plan to sentence her?"
"That's He Rucheng's business."
Ye Shu said, "Yes, how could I have forgotten this? He Rucheng hated her to death. He paid for the temple built to pray to the gods to get rid of her."
Feng Siji pondered for a moment and said, "He Rucheng was sentenced. With such a grudge, Li Qi will at least be beheaded."
"Will the master be there to see you off?"
"No." His voice was cold. "It's too bloody and doesn't make sense."
The conversation between the master and servant could be heard outside the door. Li Qi's hand, which was about to knock on the door, stopped in mid-air. After a long time, she slowly put down her hand.
-
Only three or two houses in the dark and long streets still had lights on. The warm yellow candlelight shone through the thin window paper, casting a cold white reflection on the snow on the road.
Li Qi didn't know what time it was, and only with the help of the faint light, he walked numbly towards the County Lady's Mansion.
She had come here by carriage, but the snow was too heavy and the road was too white, so the Kyoto guards temporarily closed the road and she had to walk back.
The cold wind whistled past her forehead, and a name popped up in her mind: He Mu.
This person is the illegitimate daughter of the He family. She has been looked down upon and treated harshly since she was a child.
Until she was ten years old, she fell into an icy lake due to neglect by a servant and narrowly escaped death, which alarmed her legitimate brother He Zhangjing.
He Zhangjing learned about her miserable life for the past ten years and severely punished all the servants who had taken care of her.
From then on, He Zhangjing protected her everywhere.
He Mu's life as a concubine who was bullied by others finally ended, and she lived like a legitimate daughter.
She respects and is grateful to He Zhangjing. To her, her brother He Zhangjing is everything.
At the beginning of last spring, Li Qi caused He Zhangjing's legs to become disabled. He Mu cried and made a fuss countless times, shouting that Li Qi must pay the price.
At that time, Concubine Li had not been killed yet. Relying on the favor of Emperor Liang, Concubine Li had always protected Li Qi.
He Mu failed in his revenge and hated Li Qi to the extreme.
She followed Li Qi day and night, trying to find a fault that even Concubine Li could not cover up.
At the New Year's Eve banquet, Concubine Li was murdered, and everything Li Qi and Shengxiang did was witnessed by He Mu who was following them.
He Mu thought that this would put Li Qi to death, but unexpectedly Emperor Liang protected her.
He Mu only then realized that Emperor Liang and Li Qi had been having an affair for a long time. Perhaps the murder of Concubine Li was also the instruction of Emperor Liang, just to fulfill the promise he made to Li Qi: among the three thousand concubines in the harem, he would only favor Li Qi.
Even the Emperor protected Li Qi, so how could He Mu take revenge on her?
He Mu was worried that she would be silenced if she knew too much, so she spread the story of Li Qi and Emperor Liang throughout Kyoto City, and then claimed to be seriously ill and stayed indoors.
As long as she doesn't go out, no matter how long Li Qi's hands are, they can't silence her.
Li Qi's reputation was ruined. She became the culprit who caused He Zhangjing to become disabled, and she was also known as a coquettish and slutty woman who stole the favor of her good sister. She was treacherous and vicious.
He Mu spent money and ordered people to build a temple, named "Qingqi Temple", where King Yama was enshrined and everyone offered incense to him, begging him to take Li Qi away.
Suddenly, the scene in front of him fell into darkness. Li Qi looked up and found that the few houses that had lights on had also turned off their lights.
In the long darkness in the distance, a little light shone through. She walked closer to the source of light and found that it was two lanterns.
She looked up at the two lanterns, and after a moment, she forced a wry smile.
It turned out to be Qingqi Temple.
Before I knew it, I was here.
The lantern swaying in the cold wind was like a pair of sharp eyes of the King of Hell. While Li Qi was looking at it, it was also staring at her, as if thinking about how to meet the people's request and take her away.
He Mu ordered people to light these two lanterns at the entrance of Qingqi Temple. She asked them to keep burning day and night, saying that they were to guide the King of Hell so that he could get rid of Li Qi as soon as possible.
Li Qi felt a cool sensation on her cheek. She raised her hand to touch it and found it was covered with tears.
The weather was too cold, and the hot tears in my palms instantly turned cold, chilling me to the bone.
Her fingers, frozen purple, clutched the necklace on her chest tightly, and she spoke to herself with difficulty: "When we were in Qianzhou, you promised to help me recapture Yunzhou. Why haven't you shown up yet?"
He did not show up, but Feng Siji had already returned. He Mu also hated her. With He Mu's help, Feng Siji could catch her tomorrow if he wanted to.
But she had waited too long, and the anticipation of waiting had long been worn away by time and turned into resentment.
Li Qi ripped Yingluo off her clothes and slammed her hair against the lantern in anger, "Liar! You're all liars!"
With a crackling sound, the lantern shattered and fell to the ground. The candle wick buried in the snow and went out in the blink of an eye.
The only light went out, and the streets fell into endless darkness.
At this moment, someone called out from behind her: "Princess Yun'an?"
Li Qi was slightly stunned. She raised her sleeve and wiped away her tears. She turned around. There was a vague outline in the darkness. She couldn't see the face clearly, but she recognized it out of familiarity. "Eunuch Li?"
Li Ke had just finished his shift and was returning home when his carriage passed by and heard some noise. He got out of the carriage and saw that it was Li Qi.
He saw the shattered lantern and necklace lying on the snow. After a moment's thought, he bent down to pick up the necklace, wiped it carefully with his sleeve, and then handed it to Li Qi: "Since the county lady is sad, why bother coming to Qingqi Temple to cause trouble?"
Li Qi didn't answer and turned away as if to escape. His pale and thin profile was hidden in the darkness.
She suddenly choked up and raised her sleeve to wipe her eyes vigorously: "Eunuch Li, Feng has asked He Mu to be a witness. We... are almost done."
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