Hunt
If the Jing family had not participated in any conspiracy to collude with the enemy and rebel against the country, then why was the Jing family's mansion confiscated and the entire clan exiled...
And why, everyone in the world knew that the Jing family had met their end because they had colluded with the Prince of Jin in a rebellion? And for so many years, she had been ridiculed as the daughter of a traitor...
"Think about it yourself. Without your family's support, who would be the best person to control you? And who would benefit the most from being able to eliminate such a large faction as the Jing family without bloodshed?"
Si Cheng sneered. His mother had always said he was big-headed but foolish and arrogant, but now Jing Yao couldn't see what he could figure out. He couldn't help but sigh that among the Jing family's current generation, he and his cousin seemed to have no brains to care about state affairs.
No wonder I was defeated when dealing with Si Pei and was fooled around by him.
"So, cousin, why should you worry about someone like Si Pei, who is so hypocritical and heartless?"
Jing Yao looked stunned, not knowing how to react.
She glanced sideways at Si Pei, who was always quiet. That handsome face had smiled at her gently and sincerely countless times, and repeatedly told her to believe in him.
But now someone told her that everything was fake.
It was only deception from the beginning.
Jing Yao couldn't tell, she really couldn't tell. Which of Si Pei's words were sincere confessions, and which were just lies?
It's not that she couldn't see what Si Pei had done for her in her past and present lives, nor did she doubt him just because of Si Cheng's words. She believed that Si Pei truly loved her, loved her enough to die for her, and put her in a more important position than himself. These were promises Si Pei had fulfilled, and Jing Yao didn't want to doubt them.
But there seems to be more to this love than just that.
“Why…why?”
Jing Yao couldn't control his emotions and even hit Si Pei's chest with his bound wrists.
Why lie to her?
"Si Pei, say something!"
Was it fun to lie to her? Was he feeling proud that she had to rely on him for survival?
When you knew that she was moved and responded, were you still smug?
Jing Yao's mind was full of random thoughts and he couldn't stop imagining Si Pei's behavior in the most vicious and paranoid way.
But every time I said it, it felt like a sharp knife was cutting through my heart.
What you say does not match what you mean, and your words fail to express your ideas.
"Miss……"
"cousin."
The two men outside the curtain were hesitant to speak, especially Si Cheng. He never expected that Jing Yao's feelings for Si Pei could be so deep.
It is true that he was shocked when he first learned that Si Pei was deeply in love with Jing Yao, but when he thought about it carefully, it was normal. As the saying goes, heroes have always been tempted by beautiful women.
But it is indeed rare to see such a romantic person in an imperial family.
So he was also waiting to see how Si Pei would deal with the Jing family. It could only be said that Si Pei's cruelty and paranoia were beyond his imagination.
"In my opinion, he also sent people to kill my uncle's family, but he disguised it as an accident by bandits."
Jing Yao shook his head: "That's impossible."
The bandits are Yue Ningning and Si Jue's men.
"How can you be so sure that you have evidence?"
"I……"
Jing Yao hesitated to speak. This was the most unsettling thing for her. She knew the truth but couldn't find any evidence. She couldn't say that she had seen it in a storybook.
"Even if he's not the mastermind, he's certainly not immune to responsibility."
Si Cheng swore so confidently that Jing Yao was speechless.
Indeed, if Si Pei was responsible for the Jing family's downfall, then the subsequent tragedies could not be said to be entirely unrelated to Si Pei. Furthermore, the fact that the true culprit remained at large for so long was strange enough.
Did Si Pei also deliberately condone this incident?
The more Jing Yao thought about it, the more disheartened she became. Si Cheng struck while the iron was hot: "Cousin, he's not worth your worry. Once we get rid of this hot potato, we'll go to Jieyang immediately. Si Jue will definitely not be able to find us..."
"No!"
Si Cheng was happily imagining a wonderful life after regaining his freedom. He had been suffering terribly under Si Pei's control for the past few years, and finally the day of turning things around had come.
Before he could finish, Jing Yao interrupted him: "We can't send him back to Shanghua. He can't die yet."
"But he's as good as dead."
Si Cheng shook his head helplessly.
Jing Yao's eyes were gleaming with determination and even madness. "He won't die. I can't let him die so easily. When he wakes up, I want to hear it from his own mouth."
She didn't want to end it in such a muddled way, having died together in a daze in her previous life. This time, she would do whatever it took to make Si Pei hold on until he could wake up and tell her everything. Besides, she still had some things she had been hiding that she hadn't had time to tell Si Pei.
In this life, Jing Yao wanted to be truly honest with him for once.
"you!"
Si Cheng was speechless and could only threaten: "If we don't hand him over, how can we hide from Si Jue with him as a burden?"
"Si Cheng, you are such a heartless wretch! Your life was saved by Si Pei, and now you covet his power. Now you are even sending half of his life to die!"
"If it weren't for him, would I have rebelled?"
Jing Yao laughed angrily: "You think you have a point in rebelling? Anyone can see that the emperor favors Si Pei. He's been the crown prince for eighteen years. Can you steal his place?"
Si Cheng certainly knew how overestimating he was at the time, but he just couldn't swallow this.
"You don't understand. Born into an imperial family, how can you survive without striving? If my mother didn't strive, how could she protect me? If I didn't strive, I wouldn't have a good ending in the future. Moreover, as a prince, I am the child of my father. How could I not yearn for the throne?"
Jing Yao sneered, "But even if you rebelled, Si Pei didn't kill you. You, like Si Jue, are both self-absorbed and regard Si Pei as a cold-blooded enemy. I really hope he can be more cold-blooded, like he pretends to be. Then he can kill you all without any scruples."
Her eyes sparkled with tears as she leaned towards Si Pei in pain. This man, whom she loved and hated at the same time, was actually the only one who could truly understand him.
If the Si Dynasty wanted a truly heartless, ruthless, and vicious emperor, Si Pei was definitely not suitable. He was too deeply involved in his children's affairs; he also repeatedly tolerated and indulged his former siblings.
"Aunt had to fight to survive in the palace because the emperor was incompetent! The old emperor couldn't control his harem, which made it difficult for the women to move forward, and they could only fight each other to the death. Isn't Si Pei a victim? But he never hated you, let alone Aunt. Even if Queen Yue favored Si Jue and abused him, he only hated Queen Yue and never thought of killing Si Jue. Cousin, did he target you before you rebelled? It was you and Si Jue who betrayed him first!"
Si Cheng looked away: "How can there be betrayal between mortal enemies?"
"Are you worthy enough to be his enemy? Everyone in Xijing knows that Si Pei is the crown prince, and how much the emperor values him? The old emperor never even gave you any sign that you could replace him. You are just being too sentimental. As a brother, as a king, has Si Pei done anything wrong? And you two... are disrespectful as brothers, disloyal as ministers, and unkind people. What is there to argue about?"
Si Cheng's emotions suddenly collapsed, and he roared, "I hate the fact that my father values him so highly! Why was he born the crown prince? Why don't we even have a chance to compete with him?"
It is a dilemma. In the previous dynasty, those who did not decide on an heir early on often ended up in a situation where multiple sons fought for the throne and brothers killed each other. In order to avoid this situation, the old emperor chose Si Pei from the beginning, but he still could not avoid this situation.
It really proves what Si Cheng said, that as a prince, he may be born with the desire to become emperor.
Jing Yao had leaned against the curtain at some point, so close to Si Cheng that he could even hear his heavy, angry breathing.
"Don't you know why you're not qualified? You don't have the slightest bit of what it takes to be an emperor, nor do you have the talent to rule. The person you should hate the most is the emperor, but as his son, you dare not hate him. You're just like Si Jue, you're incompetent, so you want to shirk responsibility and put the blame on Si Pei, and everything will be fine."
Si Cheng snorted stubbornly: "Of course, if he wasn't there, who would be the crown prince is still unknown."
"Cousin, even if there's no Si Pei Crown Prince, it won't be your turn." Jing Yao pulled the corner of his mouth with a hint of helpless sarcasm, "Maybe the emperor will have to fight for a younger son to become the young emperor."
Si Cheng sighed: "Cousin, you have become more and more eloquent since following Si Peike. I can't argue with you."
"I just don't want to admit that I lost." Jing Yao nodded in understanding, "I'm a good talker anyway. It has nothing to do with Si Pei. He doesn't argue with me."
"Actually, I know everything you just said, but... well, I still admire Si Pei." Si Cheng nodded, "If I were him, I would want to kill everyone."
"Because Si Pei is different." Jing Yao nodded, so she couldn't believe one side of the story. No matter what, she had to wait until Si Pei woke up and explained the whole story to her in person.
Zuo Yuanwu, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke: "Then continue to take His Royal Highness the Crown Prince with you."
"You!" Si Cheng widened his eyes to express his extreme dissatisfaction with Zuo Yuanwu's violation of the agreement, but after all, most of the real power was in Zuo Yuanwu's hands, and he would be at a disadvantage if they fought. So after discovering that Zuo Yuanwu had made up his mind and was not afraid of him at all, he had to calm down.
"Forget it, he's just a burden, just take him with you."
Si Cheng pretended to be indifferent, snorted twice, and when he saw that no one paid any attention to him, he had to give up in disappointment and pretend nothing had happened.
"wrong."
Zuo Yuanwu frowned, as if he heard some strange noise.
Jing Yao swallowed nervously: "Are Si Jue's men catching up?"
"I guess... yes."
Almost at the same time, as Zuo Yuanwu finished speaking, dozens of arrows were fired at the carriage from both sides.
Zuo Yuanwu acted decisively and opened the iron protective cover of the carriage, which barely blocked the rain of arrows.
The sounds of horse hooves hitting the ground and neighing and roaring came from behind, and it seemed to be getting closer and closer.
"I told you not to take Si Pei with you, but now the people behind you are chasing you and won't let you go."
"Be prepared to jump off the carriage. This group of people are well prepared. My people are already blocking them, but the situation is not optimistic."
Seeing Zuo Yuanwu's serious expression, Si Cheng lost his playful mood and just complained inwardly.
I have such bad luck.
Jing Yao said anxiously: "Help me untie the rope!"
The situation was urgent and Si Cheng didn't care about the quarrel with his cousin. He got into the carriage and used his dagger to cut the ropes that bound her hands and feet.
As soon as Jing Yao regained his freedom, he pinned Si Cheng down and punched him several times: "You are really capable. You even tied me up!?"
"Ouch... This is why we tied you up! Stop hitting me, auntie!"
Si Cheng protected his handsome face tightly and quickly hid to the other side.
"Si Pei has spoiled you like this. You didn't even dare to hit me before!"
"hehe."
Jing Yao sneered. When he was young in his previous life, he was quite afraid of this useless cousin, but now it seems that he is just a complete fool and there is nothing to be afraid of at all.
Seeing Jing Yao raise his hand to hit him again, Si Cheng begged for mercy: "Don't do it! You have a broken palm, it hurts so much when you hit someone, cousin!"
Then he handed over the dagger and said, "Wake up your little maid."
Jing Yao glanced at him and ignored him. He took the dagger and quickly cut the ropes on Si Pei and Zhiyue.
"Zhiyue! Zhiyue!"
After patting the girl's cheek twice, Zhiyue suddenly woke up from her sleep: "Ah! Miss!"
Zhiyue sat up and found that the back of her neck was very painful.
“Hiss…Waaaaaah!”
For some reason, the carriage suddenly sped forward at a speed so fast that it scared everyone in the carriage.
There were two loud bangs, the sound of swords hitting the outer protective shield.
The killer caught up.
Si Cheng was so frightened that his face turned pale: "Zuo Yuanwu, what should we do now?"
Jing Yao suddenly asked, "Is there a forest nearby?"
"What do you mean?" Si Cheng didn't understand, but Zuo Yuanwu, who was separated by a curtain, understood.
The hand holding the reins suddenly swung to the right, and the frightened horse screamed and rushed into the dense forest on the other side.
The terrain of the dense forest was rugged and the trees were distributed in a strange manner. Zuo Yuanwu's calligraphy skills were superb and he quickly shook off the pursuers behind him. The Eastern Palace secret guards who finally arrived were also lurking in the dense forest, waiting for an opportunity to strike and kill people without anyone noticing.
It seemed that everything was going in a good direction, except that the dense forest was equally rugged and unpredictable. Zuo Yuanwu misjudged a big tree that lay ahead in the darkness, and turned right suddenly to avoid hitting the tree.
I never expected that there was a steep hillside on the right.
“Ahhhhhh!”
Jing Yao felt that the carriage seemed to...fly.
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