Chapter 77 Extra Chapter: Clash
Adultery, with its taboo connotations, makes even the less desirable things seem more appealing.
Not to mention having an affair with the woman he loves.
Three days before the wedding, the bride and groom could not meet, so Fan Qi simply stayed in Nanluo Lane and spent his days with Zuo Qinghou.
The rain in early summer is heavy, with thunder, a dark sky, and stagnant air. But once you get through all that, the downpour begins, a refreshing and invigorating rain that makes you feel good too.
Zuo Qinghou straddled Fan Qi's lap. The room was so stuffy that her hair was sticking to her neck. She brushed her hair aside, frowned, and muttered, "It's hot."
Fan Qi paused his hand as he untied her clothes, then carried her to open the window. It was just as stuffy outside, but at least it was much better than inside.
Zuo Qinghou suddenly asked, "If you go back, won't those so-called aristocratic families cause you trouble?"
This is indeed a problem, but Fan Qi is a distant cousin of the Qiu family. The relationship is so distant that if Fan Qi doesn't mention it, no one will remember. However, if he really has done something, they would be happy to take the credit.
Moreover, in order to erase any trace of Fan Qi, Jiang Linzhi told everyone that he had disappeared. As the rumors spread, some people naturally said that he had died long ago, but was trampled into a pulp by horses and was unrecognizable. The only thing that was not mentioned was that he had been taken prisoner.
Heaven helps Fan Qi.
Fan Qi smiled and kissed Zuo Qinghou's forehead, saying, "Don't worry, they can't touch me. You're not originally from Sui, so I'll find a good family to give you an identity, and we can be together openly, okay?"
A sudden gust of wind blew outside, indicating that it was about to rain. Zuo Qinghou took the initiative to kiss Fan Qi, as if in response.
Sure enough, a torrential downpour began in an instant. The rain was blown into the house by the wind and soaked Zuo Qinghou's bare, white back. She chuckled and said, "Listen, what a heavy rain."
Fan Qi was annoyed by Zuo Qinghou's distraction. He kissed the two dogwoods in front of him, making Zuo Qinghou giggle with ticklishness.
Suddenly, even heavier rain, accompanied by wind, swept in.
As quick-witted as Zuo Qinghou was, she turned her head and, as she wished, saw the woman standing in the rain, disheveled and disappointed. As their eyes met, Zuo Qinghou held the man's head, which was lost in passion, and smiled alluringly, "Sister is here."
Fan Qi wasn't intimidated by this. She nudged Zuo Qinghou hard, as if punishing her for not paying attention, but quickly draped a coat over her to cover her private parts. Then, she stared intently at the uninvited guest at the door with cold eyes and whispered in Zuo Qinghou's ear, "Pay attention."
Jiang Linzhi strode in, grabbed Zuo Qinghou's arm, and dragged him out. Fan Qi, however, protected Zuo Qinghou, saying, "You should know that we are just taking what we need. If it's not yours, you shouldn't touch it."
Jiang Linzhi was still pulling Zuo Qinghou, her fingernails almost digging into Zuo Qinghou's flesh.
Fan Qi was displeased and was about to make a move. Unexpectedly, Zuo Qinghou released her hands from around his neck and pushed away his large hands that were wrapped around her waist: "I forgot to tell you, I invited her here."
Under Fan Qi's incredulous gaze, Zuo Qinghou withdrew from Fan Qi. The embarrassing, sticky sound of water made Jiang Linzhi's face turn even paler. She pulled Zuo Qinghou and walked outside.
Just as they turned the corner outside the west wing, Jiang Linzhi slapped Zuo Qinghou across the face. Zuo Qinghou didn't dodge and took the slap squarely, saying, "What's the use of hitting me? This is the man you're about to marry. How filthy, how disgusting."
Jiang Linzhi pressed down on Zuo Qinghou's shoulder and said, "Are you crazy to risk yourself for a man you hate?"
"But you like him, right? You keep saying it's exploitation, but you don't exploit so many people, why are you exploiting him?"
"That's my business!" Jiang Linzhi looked at Zuo Qinghou with sorrow. The heavy rain washed over her, making it impossible for Zuo Qinghou to tell whether she was crying or not, or if she was crying, whether she was crying for herself or for Zuo Qinghou.
Jiang Linzhi wiped the rain off his face and said, "No one is more important than yourself. You shouldn't sacrifice yourself for someone like that."
"I did it for you."
"That shouldn't be!" Jiang Linzhi became even more hysterical. "It shouldn't be! I stole your military merits, caused you to break your tendons, and locked you up in this place! I was also using you. If you weren't so capable, why didn't I slaughter you and all those people from the tribes? Zuo Qinghou, let me tell you, the most important thing I should have taught you was to live for yourself, not for others!"
After saying that, Jiang Linzhi turned and left, leaving Zuo Qinghou alone in the heavy rain, repeatedly pondering her words. At least Jiang Linzhi was angry because of her, not because of Fan Qi.
fine.
Later, when Zuo Qinghou finally recovered and came out, he discovered that the snuff bottle had not made the State of Sui any better; people were just existing, nothing more.
Even her former comrades, those who didn't know how to choose sides or chose the wrong side, all became impoverished and some even turned into withered bones in the wilderness.
Zuo Qinghou couldn't understand why something she did that seemed like a catastrophe.
Until she found her former deputy general, who was being held captive in the slave market at the street corner, being bought and sold at will as government slaves. Zuo Qinghou used his connections to buy his entire family.
Zuo Qinghou wanted to drag him to the imperial court to question those wearing official hats about what they were doing.
But the lieutenant stopped her, saying, "No need to go, it's useless."
"What do you mean it's useless! How is it useless? You've fought for the Sui Kingdom for many years, why are they treating you like this?" Zuo Qinghou said excitedly.
But the deputy general grabbed Zuo Qinghou with his old, scarred hands and said calmly, "Because I also sold snuff bottles, and I also seized the people's land. I was involved in everything you saw."
Regardless of which side they stand on, none of them are innocent.
Zuo Qinghou gave the deputy general a lot of money, but he only took ten taels of silver. Before leaving, he patted Zuo Qinghou on the shoulder and said, "It's not your fault."
Zuo Qinghou didn't say anything. She didn't blame anyone, but she couldn't forgive herself either.
She gathered the people one by one, some surnamed Qi, some surnamed Zhang, some surnamed Li. Some became generals and marquises, while others were reduced to commoners. But fortunately, they all shared the same heart: they all wanted to burn the Crimson Flower.
The Zhu Yan Flower Field was guarded by soldiers. They had devised an extremely meticulous plan, but Zuo Qinghou still felt it wasn't enough. Although he could now wield a sword, his physical strength was still far from what it used to be.
Her gaze finally fell on the snuff bottle confiscated from the table, and she made her decision.
The night before the plan, she went to the General's Mansion. Jiang Linzhi and Fan Qi were not there, and she occasionally teased Jiang Jinyi. Today, as she went to see Jiang Linzhi, she was still particularly uneasy.
Will she see me? Will she not want to talk to me? Will she...?
Jiang Linzhi returned on horseback only after the sun had set. She glanced at Zuo Qinghou, sighed silently, and said, "Shall we come in and talk?"
"No, thank you," Zuo Qinghou waved his hand. Jiang Linzhi tucked a small box into his arms. Inside the box were Zuo Qinghou's land deeds and house deeds from all these years. Before Jiang Linzhi could ask, Zuo Qinghou continued, "I want to go somewhere else to relax. I probably won't be going back to the capital. I don't need these things, so I'll leave them to you."
Where are you going?
"I don't know yet, let's just wander around." Zuo Qinghou said casually, but in Jiang Linzhi's eyes, he didn't want to explain things clearly and was deliberately keeping his distance.
So Jiang Linzhi stopped asking and said, "Then be careful and take care."
Zuo Qinghou nodded, but ultimately didn't say what she wanted to say. Only after the General's Mansion door closed did she let out a long sigh of relief. She didn't feel the pain she had imagined. She never belonged here, while Jiang Linzhi always did. Now that she had successfully separated herself from those things, she felt only a sense of relief.
Zuo Qinghou whispered in the direction of the General's Mansion, "Take care."
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