Mr. Tao has arrived.
Chapter 49, Mr. Tao Arrives
"Chirp," the kite was chained up in front of me and led away by the guard.
It looked dejected, turning back every few steps, which made my heart ache. I smiled at it and comforted it, "It's okay, 'squeak,' it's okay."
Lan Feiyu didn't leave. She was still holding my hand, looking at Yuanzi, and shaking her head.
"Are you really that short-sighted?" Yuanzi's face was mottled and iron-like in the firelight. "Is your grand cause so fragile? Lan Feiyu, are you going to abandon the people of Bozhou for a man from Dongchu?"
Lan Feiyu bit her lower lip tightly without making a sound. She simply moved my hand from "holding" to "grasping" it, increasing the pressure with each step.
"She didn't abandon the people of Bozhou." I couldn't help but interject. That vague thought that had been lingering in my mind finally burst out under Yuanzi's pressure on Lan Feiyu: "It's not only Tuluo who the people of Bozhou can rely on—"
"Relying on Dongchu?" Yuanzi interrupted me rudely, her tone icy, but her eyes blazing with anger. She stepped forward, pulled me close, and stared at me, saying, "Look at your brother's fate. The Xie clan devoted themselves to the Li family's rule, and the result was the extermination of the entire clan..."
“That’s not my brother!” I retorted, not to be outdone. “You’re saying the Xie clan was wiped out? That’s ridiculous! The current Crown Prince of Eastern Chu was born to Empress Xie. If the Xie clan committed heinous crimes, how could the Crown Prince not be implicated?”
As soon as I said those words, I was stunned. Yes, I had never thought of this before, and it was only after Yuanzi's prompting that my thoughts flowed naturally.
My elder brother, the Crown Prince, has been the Crown Prince since I was old enough to understand things. Compared to his biological father, the Emperor, he was closer to my uncle. When I was little, he and another prince would occasionally come outside the palace to play with me. Later, I learned that he was the son of the former Empress and the Emperor's eldest son, so it seemed only natural that he should be the Crown Prince, the one who would inherit the throne.
One thing I find quite interesting is that, often, the older brother is more like an emperor, while the crown prince is more like an uncle—gentler, but also less likely to smile.
Seeing that Yuanzi was speechless after my rebuttal, I became even more certain of my thoughts and turned to Lan Feiyu, saying, "Yu'er, if you want peace in Bozhou, relying on Tuluo is going in the opposite direction..."
However, before I could finish speaking, Iris stopped me in a terrible way. She forcibly pulled me into her arms and covered my mouth with her hand.
With her own mouth.
I was stunned, completely stunned. My ears were ringing, and my vision was going black in waves.
The next instant, I was suddenly pulled back. Before I could react, Lan Feiyu pulled me back and stood in front of me, her face pale, but the anger in her eyes was something I had never seen before: "You've already decided to sacrifice Zhao Xi to win over Xi Shu and Xie Kun, so what are you doing now? Aren't you the most ridiculous one?"
Iris took a half step back, stared at me intently for a moment, and then suddenly raised her hand: "Lock them both up separately. This time, let's see who can save them!"
Several guards quickly stepped forward and forcibly separated me from Lan Feiyu. I knew that crying and wailing would be useless at this point, so I simply followed the guards. Before leaving, I glanced at Lan Feiyu, my eyes welling up with tears, but I was glad that I didn't let them fall. I even smiled.
Rain, I said in my heart, thank you. I will not become a pawn of the kite. I would rather die.
She died as a dignified and innocent daughter of the Eastern Chu.
I was taken back to that room, but this time I knew there would be no savior. I turned the small room upside down, but still couldn't find anything to write on. I slumped onto the bed, thinking that it seemed I had no choice but to write a letter in blood.
So I rummaged through my drawers again, and this time I found quite a few exquisitely embroidered handkerchiefs, slightly larger than my palm, with all sorts of patterns—fish, insects, flowers, birds, and more. I picked one embroidered with a bird about to take flight, took the hairpin from my hair, stared at my left index finger, took a deep breath, and plunged it in hard. Blood immediately welled up, and the pain made me gasp. My hand trembled like a leaf in the wind. I gritted my teeth, dipped the blood in the handkerchief, and wrote my name: "Zhao Xi."
Although I have a thousand words stuck in my heart, it seems that all the unspoken meanings are contained in this name.
"Zhao" is my final destination, and "Xi" is the sun. My uncle named me "Xi," meaning the bright and warm morning sun. If this blood-stained handkerchief reaches my mother and uncle, I hope that these people connected to me by blood will know that if this ray of sunshine is extinguished, it is not my fault.
But writing a letter in blood wasn't so easy. After just two strokes, the blood on my fingertip congealed, so I had to prick myself again, wincing in pain. After struggling for a while, I finally finished writing "Zhao Xi," the ink spreading across the handkerchief, a glaringly red stain. I let out a long sigh, only then realizing my face was already smeared with tears, snot running down my face, making me look utterly pathetic.
I carefully folded the handkerchief soaked in blood and tears, tucked it into my bosom, placed it against my heart, then hugged the blankets, buried my face in them, and cried my heart out.
When I groggily woke up, I rubbed my eyes and was surprised to find that it was already daylight. The light streaming in from the window spilled onto the floor, giving it a cool, pale glow. I sat up, my heart still heavy with the bitterness of last night, but my mind felt completely empty.
Turning my head, I noticed a food plate had been placed on the round table in the room sometime during the night. The plate was white porcelain, with delicate hibiscus patterns painted along the edge—quite exquisite. I frowned, slowly got out of bed, and walked to the table to examine it closely. The plate contained few items, but they were arranged neatly: a small bowl of crystal-clear glutinous rice porridge, steaming slightly, with two small dishes beside it. One dish contained emerald-green pickled bamboo shoots, sliced as thin as paper; the other contained several pieces of glistening braised tofu, which smelled slightly sweet. There was also a palm-sized piece of Shu brocade cake, pink and white, topped with a few red beans—it looked quite adorable.
I stared at the food for a while, then looked up at the gate, still able to clearly see the guards. These things, I suppose, could only have been brought in by Yuanzi.
I was going to ignore it out of spite, but then I thought it over and realized there was no need to get angry over the food, so I grabbed the pastry and ate it in two bites. It was so sweet and delicious that I couldn't help but lick my lips after I finished eating. I just regretted that they were stingy and only gave me one piece.
The days were long and tedious. Even when I needed to cross the Qinggu Road, four maids guarded me. This "grand" hospitality made me both laugh and cry. Fortunately, around noon, when the fully armed guards escorted the maids with food and other necessities, they brought a picture book. I casually flipped it open. The cover was made of silk, smooth to the touch, with subtle hibiscus flower patterns along the edges—quite exquisite. The pictures inside caught my eye—not court ladies' paintings, nor landscapes, but a whole bunch of strange and exotic creatures! The first page depicted a palm-sized golden monkey, its fur shiny, perched on a branch eating a peach, its round eyes incredibly lively, just like a chirping monkey. I chuckled, thinking: Has the artist actually seen a chirping monkey?
As I flipped through the pages, I found strange and unusual things that I had never seen before, or even imagined. For example, there was a cat with wings, a tail like a peacock's tail, and claws that gripped the clouds as it flew. Next to it was written, "This is called the Cloud Cat, which likes to chase the moon." Further on, there was a drawing of a snake with a red crest on its head, coiled in a bamboo forest, flicking its tongue. Below it was written, "Red-crowned snake, which feeds on dew and spits flames when it encounters an enemy."
I was engrossed in the book, and before I knew it, I was completely absorbed in it. When I turned to the last page, I saw an old plum tree with gnarled branches and red plum blossoms that looked like fire. Standing beneath it was a little girl, dressed in what was probably a skirt from Western Shu, holding a lantern and looking up at the flowers. The lantern was drawn in such detail that even the candlelight inside seemed warm, which made me smile as well.
Then I heard a soft cough, which startled me so much that I almost dropped my book. When I got up, I saw that it was Yuanzi who had come in at some point. She was leaning against the door, silently watching me.
"What?" I asked, a little annoyed, but inwardly I wondered if Xie Kun wanted to see me again? Had the ceremony already been prepared?
Perhaps because I had already made up my mind, I was no longer as anxious as before. I put down the sketchbook and waited for her next move.
"Come with me." Without another word, I took two steps forward, when she suddenly said coldly, "Stop crying. Crying won't help, will it?"
After a moment of surprise, I replied, half-laughing and half-crying, "So you even want to control my tears?"
Iris didn't answer, but simply turned and opened the door.
I followed her listlessly, no longer paying attention to my surroundings. After walking for a while, I suddenly realized this wasn't the way to see the King of Western Shu. Just as I was wondering about this, Yuanzi led me to a heavily guarded house. At a glance, there were at least ten guards standing at the entrance, each with a straight back and a face as blue as stone. Yuanzi pushed open the heavy ebony door, the hinges creaking, and a blast of cold air rushed out.
In the center of the room was a long ebony table, with three high-backed chairs on each side. To my surprise, I found Lan Feiyu sitting at the table. She looked serious and her brows were slightly furrowed, but when she saw me, she smiled at me without any attempt to hide it. I was overjoyed and wanted to run to her, but I was blocked by Yuanzi.
There was another person inside, the mysterious Mr. Tao, whose skin was as white as snow. He stood quietly to one side, his posture upright, his face as cold and aloof as frost. When he saw me, his gaze sharpened slightly, a fleeting, almost imperceptible emotion flashing in his eyes—a mixture of worry and contemplation. He then nodded slightly as a greeting. His lips were pressed tightly together, his chin slightly taut, exuding an air of seriousness.
I was even more confused. What was this all about?
Iris pulled me to sit down opposite Lan Feiyu and Mr. Tao, and said coldly, "Was everything you said before true?"
Mr. Tao spoke with a cold expression: "Of course it's all true. The Pavilion Master sent me a message by carrier pigeon, instructing her and the Envoy to continue taking that secret medicine powder these days. However, that substance can only delay the mutation, but it cannot cure it. Now that the deadline is approaching, I rushed here without stopping. Does the Envoy think I'm joking?"
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