Horror
She thought that her wasted life in the past was due to Yan Ji's tyranny and cold-heartedness. The Prince of Jin was a heartless lover and a deadly ghost... Who would have thought that there was someone else behind her, also dreaming of a thousand generations?
In this life, however, the Prince of Pingnan stands out from the crowd, with the east wind prevailing over the west wind.
She skimmed across the water like a butterfly, creating ripples, and this chance for rebirth was undoubtedly given to her by her husband, Liu Chengzhi.
It was through these experiences—spending time with Liu Xu in Fragrant Hills, traveling with Liu Xu to Jingzhou, and hiding with Liu Xu in the Brothel—that I was able to glimpse this hidden corner of the world.
These subtle and insidious schemes and plots, if not actively investigated, will, like in a previous life, never see the light of day again after death.
Why didn't you discover this in your past life until you died?
Is it because of arrogance?
Xie Lingxi clenched her teeth, revealing an unbreakable, cold and hard arc in her lower jaw. She thought to herself: How can she blame herself? The perpetrators were in the first place, yet she is blaming these ghosts whose bones were ground to dust in their previous lives.
In the end, it all boils down to those four words!
What grudge do you hold against me?
She suddenly spoke up: "Your Highness is mistaken. Your Highness and my Xie family have never had the kind of discord you mentioned."
"My aunt loves His Highness so much, how could she marry someone else?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Yuan frowned imperceptibly.
Just moments ago, the Prince of Pingnan was shamelessly recounting his passionate love affair with Xie Wanjun, and saying he would skin Xie Yuan alive and torture his family and children to death.
Upon hearing this, he strode forward, grabbed Xie Lingxi's collar, and shouted with fury, "What did you say?!"
Xie Lingxi was pulled so hard that she almost lost her balance. Her body swayed like a soft, weak willow branch. Liu Xu frowned, staring at the mischievous hand. He was about to step forward when Xie Lingxi stopped him with a look.
"Your Highness doesn't understand human language? I said my aunt—"
The words were cut off, and the restraint on her neck instantly loosened. "Ha..."
Xie Lingxi breathed heavily, supporting Liu Xu's hand. Despite their tender affection, he had just received a sharp glare from the Prince of Pingnan. Now, he finally calmed down a bit, his eyes sharp: "Yes, Wan Jun loves me, so why would she marry He Ren? Isn't this exactly the work of your good father?"
What kind of scheme is this? Nonsense!
Xie Lingxi straightened her clothes and wiped a few drops of something that she couldn't tell was rain or sweat from her forehead. She trembled and withdrew her hand to the side, her face showing what seemed to be fear: "That's not the case. Your Highness, do you know that in my aunt's makeup box, there are hundreds of letters, all signed 'Yan Lang'?"
Yan Li, Li Yan.
Yan Lang.
This title clearly stirred up memories for the Prince of Pingnan, and his gaze drifted through the rain outside the window to a more distant place.
On the distant green hills, a young woman could be seen sitting on a tree, swinging her feet, the tips of her embroidered shoes touching the shimmering stream. Her face was as beautiful as a flower. "My love, what are you going to do today?"
"..."
Yan Li suddenly remembered that he had come to kill someone.
His pure love for Xie Wanjun was something he would never allow to be tainted, nor could he tolerate the slightest deception. Cui Jue's use of such lies to deceive him was no unjust death.
Cui Jue is dead, and Cui Wenying was no better. He lifted his sword hilt, and the group of Xie in front of him were the epitome of fools and scoundrels.
Old Master Xie died young, otherwise we would have seen how he tormented his children and grandchildren, sending them one by one to hell to atone for Wan Jun's sins!
After killing the Xie family member, then the Cui family member, I will soon ascend the throne and kill those few pig-brained nephews and nieces, so that the late emperor will die with regret in Chang'an!
Thinking of this, he lowered his head slightly, involuntarily covering his face and chuckling softly, "Heh... so what?"
Xie Lingxi's eyebrows twitched slightly, and she changed the subject: "After Your Highness left, my aunt waited for you for five whole years, weeping day and night. How many five-year periods are there in a lifetime? A young woman's youthful years pass in the blink of an eye. How can you waste them like this?"
"Does Your Highness dare to say that you are without the slightest fault?"
Yan Li certainly didn't think she had done anything wrong.
The fault lies with the world, with others, with wolves and tigers, with power. How could it be Yan Li? His journey to the Southern Frontier was not of his own volition, and his inability to return was not his intention either.
These words sounded harsh, and his eyes were filled with a fierce light, as if they were filled with the shadows of swords and spears.
The rain continued into the night.
Xie Lingxi lowered her eyes slightly, glanced at her father and the closed-eyed Prime Minister Cui beside her, and said, "Does Your Highness not know that my aunt and Prime Minister Cui once discussed marriage?"
This is why he hates Cui Wenying.
Back then, the Xie and Cui families were a perfect match. One was a distinguished young man, and the other was a refined and elegant lady. They were also a handsome couple. Everyone knew that Cui Wenying was in love with Lady Wanjun from the Xie family.
Xie Wanjun only waited for him for five years. During those five years, she suffered so much injustice, and Cui Wenying just ignored it all. What a load of rubbish!
If he had any sense of responsibility, he would have married someone instead of Wan Jun, who would have ended up marrying a mere cloth merchant!
Yan Li thought that the so-called "banished immortal" Cui family son, who was famous for a time, was just a coward who judged people by their appearance. Once Wan Jun grew old and lost her beauty, did he stop loving her?
Xie Lingxi inwardly spat.
What do you mean by "old and faded beauty"? What do you mean by "pure love"? Just as Father said, it's all just Yan Li's pretense of deep affection.
She suppressed her disgust and said, "Prime Minister Cui admired my aunt, but he married a merchant's daughter named He, who was He Ren's own sister. Your Highness, do you think that a successful and renowned young man like him would have preferred to marry a woman from a noble family who seemed a bit older than a merchant's daughter, even if it was for the sake of his reputation?"
That's a good point.
Cui Wenying slowly opened her eyes and happened to meet Yan Li's gaze as he looked over.
A sense of foreboding suddenly welled up in Yan Li's heart. Just then, lightning struck down from the sky, knocking a red tile off the eaves and clattering it between the mourning hall.
Then, a series of raindrops seeped in from the cracks in the tiles, soaking Yan Li's face.
Xie Lingxi's ghostly voice rang in his ears, "Doesn't Your Highness understand? Cui Jue said he is his aunt's child, and that's no lie."
"Madam He didn't reveal any of this to him. He somehow heard about this past event, thought himself clever, and tried to set a trap for His Highness to gain more favor. Who knew that he would actually guess correctly by sheer luck..."
“In this world, women will eventually get married. Even if she comes from a noble family, commerce is the lowest of the four trades. How can the son of a merchant compare to the son of a noble family?”
"If she hadn't been so devoted to her lover, why would my aunt have refused to marry Prime Minister Cui, only to be forced to marry He Ren years later? Prime Minister Cui gave that child unparalleled honor and a noble status, but what did you do?"
"..."
The soft, feminine voice mingled with the patter of rain, making Yan Li dizzy and lightheaded. He felt as if he were being drawn into an endless black vortex. In a daze, Xie Wanjun's beautiful face appeared before him, her cherry lips moving as she spoke—
"Yanlang... I've suffered so much... You killed my child, my child..."
"Yanlang, Yanlang——!"
"ah!"
Yan Li was stunned. He unconsciously wiped his face and spread his fingers to see that his hands, which had been touching the sword and spear, were covered with calluses and now covered with thick, red blood!
This blood, is it his, or Xie Wanjun's...? Neither is correct!
He rushed to the coffin, his eyes bloodshot, his appearance terrifying.
He had split the coffin open, leaving a large crack. Inside lay a mangled corpse, its body cold and still, already lifeless.
Beneath him, blood flowed gently, staining the coffin red and extending to the floor tiles, before rushing up to his clothes!
A group of headless little ghosts danced hand in hand around him, giggling. The sound seemed to come from the underworld, both distant and close at hand, like a dream, like entering the Yellow Springs—
"What a failure! He probably doesn't even know that the person lying in that coffin is his own son... Hahahaha...!"
His son...
The child Wan Jun bore for him?
Suddenly remembering something, Yan Li let out a short, sharp scream, startling several crows on the branch. The crows cawed strangely twice, then flew away in the rain.
"Failure, failure, failure—"
"The Empress's legitimate son couldn't even sit on the throne, losing to his brother... His wife married someone else... died, his son died too, and his family members are always thinking about killing me and becoming the Emperor..."
"Making wedding dresses for others, making wedding dresses for others..."
Thump—
He loosened his grip on the sword hilt and slammed it to the ground with a dull thud.
The Prince of Pingnan, feeling dejected, laughed three times: "Cough, cough... Hahaha... The world has humiliated me, the world has humiliated me!"
His coughing intensified until blood filled his chest and mouth, soaking his robes and suddenly blooming into a large red peony.
Xie Lingxi's pupils contracted as she suddenly recalled the governor who had died behind the stone gate...
She instinctively raised her hand to stop him, but saw the general sway violently, his head hitting the ground like a towering mountain, crashing into the torrent of illusion.
The rain accumulated until it soaked through the robes of the Prince of Pingnan. Water droplets danced on the sharpened sword, bursting into sparkling sprays.
A powerful and ruthless figure, just like that... died?
Even those present who held different views from him were all filled with sighs of regret at this moment.
Cui Wenying was clearly caught off guard by this turn of events. He was filled with unease and, after a long silence, spread his hands at Xie Yuan: "Another one has died."
Another one of the spirited young men who once rode horses together in Chang'an has died.
Xie Yuan: "If he dies, then neither of us will have to die."
Cui Wenying: "..."
While the two were lamenting the passing of spring and the coming of autumn, on the other side, two juniors bowed and checked the Prince of Pingnan's breath.
The man was bleeding from all seven orifices; he was definitely dead.
For some reason, Liu Xu breathed a sigh of relief and subconsciously reached out to grab Xie Lingxi's hand. The latter remained calm and handed him an embroidered handkerchief.
"You have blood on your hands."
"Oh." Xie Lingxi felt unlucky for accidentally getting blood on the ground, but Liu Xu wiped it clean and then happily grasped the slender wrist.
He had always known that his wife was eloquent and persuasive.
Before marriage, Xie Lingxi was taciturn and gloomy, but when she was "fiery," she was very lively and her clever words left people speechless. After marriage, she gradually became more gentle and tender, and while she remained self-assured and beautiful, she rarely displayed her verbal skills anymore.
Unexpectedly, this attack on the mind was like a venomous snake, driving the mighty general to his death.
Beside him, his wife's palms were soaked with cold sweat, her face unusually calm. She looked up at him, as if seeking confirmation, "Is he dead?"
Liu Xu understood what she meant, "Dead."
The wolf and the jackal have colluded, and now that the wolf is dead, it's finally Yan Ji's turn.
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