Chapter 78 Extra Chapter: The End of the Clash
The moon is high in the sky, the air is dry, and people are tired.
It was a good time to start a fire.
Many of their own people had already infiltrated the guards of the Crimson Flower, and they had thrown saltpeter and sulfur into the Crimson Flower field long ago.
As the fire raged, Zuo Qinghou's smile slowly froze. Behind the fire were tens of thousands of Imperial Guards, who were already arrayed and advancing towards them step by step.
They were betrayed, it could be anyone, it could be Jiang Linzhi, because Zuo Qinghou had put a letter at the bottom of the box, and Jiang Linzhi would definitely see it as soon as she sorted through those land deeds.
Thinking this, she felt almost no disappointment left. Zuo Qinghou, with a death wish, tilted her head back and gulped down half a bottle of snuff. Instantly, she felt power surge through her limbs and bones. She picked up her knife and charged at her own people.
That night, blood bloomed like crimson flowers, spreading throughout the blazing sea of fire.
Considering they were his own people, Zuo Qinghou didn't kill them, but instead scratched their legs one by one, preventing them from getting up for the time being.
People surged up like a tide, never to retreat, piling up layer upon layer like a human wall, binding Zuo Qinghou's hands and feet.
After an unknown amount of time, the effects of the snuff bottle seemed to have worn off, and Zuo Qinghou slowly felt her hands and feet become weak and sore, and she could no longer even hold the knife she was used to.
Suddenly, Zuo Qinghou felt a sharp pain in her back. Years of combat experience made her instinctively swing her knife behind her back. But as Zuo Qinghou turned to draw her knife, she saw Jiang Linzhi.
The knife pierced Jiang Linzhi's neck horizontally, as if it were embedded there, a sight that chilled the heart. Zuo Qinghou froze on the spot, and in that instant of hesitation, the knife was snatched from her and she was pinned to the ground.
Pushing through the surging crowd, Zuo Qinghou stared intently at Jiang Linzhi, his eyes filled with a hatred that wished he could tear her to pieces, yet he also regretted why he had swung his knife in return. Zuo Qinghou wanted to ask her why she had betrayed him, why she had stabbed him. But her head was firmly pressed to the ground, and she couldn't move an inch.
The people slowly pressed down on him, like a mountain pressing down on him, making it impossible for Zuo Qinghou to see Jiang Linzhi anymore.
"Kill her, just kill her."
"She's still useful, wait for what the higher-ups say."
“You just saw how terrifying she was. If we don’t kill her, she’ll break free and then come to kill us.”
...
So many words, so many people.
The weight was so heavy that Zuo Qinghou couldn't stand up. She had never been so exhausted before, not even when she crossed snow-capped mountains to find the Crimson Flower.
Hopefully, the remaining fields of Crimson Flower Garden have all been burned down.
But Jiang Linzhi's voice easily bypassed the crowd and reached everyone's ears: "I am willing to give my life to bind Zuo Qinghou and Zhu Yan together, to live and die together, to live forever and never grow old."
This was a method Zuo Qinghou taught Jiang Linzhi to protect herself, yet she used it to save Zuo Qinghou's life. What was her life worth? She herself loathed everything she did, so why should she be forced to live alongside something she hated?
No one dared to harm Zuo Qinghou anymore, and the pressure on her gradually loosened.
Jiang Linzhi, standing outside the crowd, finished speaking and was at his last gasp. Like a charred old tree, he collapsed to the ground, shattering into pieces of charcoal.
No one had ever seen such a scene before, and they silently retreated several feet away.
Zuo Qinghou had long since lost her strength. Blood streamed down her forehead, blurring her vision. She tried her best to crawl towards Jiang Linzhi, but before she could reach him, someone pinned her down again and severed her tendons in her hands and feet.
The third wave of Taoist priests was driven out. The elderly emperor understood that he could not break the curse, and he could only hope that this person could be bound to the Sui Kingdom.
But such savages are shameless and devoid of integrity, let alone loyal to their ruler.
The elderly emperor said, "Switch Jiang Linzhi's child with the thirteenth prince... wait a minute... swap the two children's faces. She's suspicious, she'll definitely think I switched the children, and she'll definitely do her best to assist the thirteenth prince."
As if he had finally made up his mind, the emperor said, "Quickly, bring back a Taoist priest to change his skin."
Although no one dared to touch Zuo Qinghou, fortunately, after she regained consciousness, she simply lay in the room, living like a maggot. However, her body recovered completely, and even the old knife scars disappeared. But what she truly cared about was gone. She lay in the dirty brocade quilt, numbly staring at the ceiling.
In her moment of despair, she found Qi Lingjun, whom Cui Jiu had picked up in a ditch by the roadside, and also found many strange people and strange things.
It wasn't until she cast a divination for herself that she discovered the Crimson Earth Sword in the prophecy was the one Zuo Qinghou had given to Jiang Linzhi, but unfortunately, Zuo Qinghou had given it to Fan Qi, and now it had disappeared along with Fan Qi.
Zuo Qinghou turned around and saw Qi Lingjun. Perhaps because his expression was too gleeful and ferocious, Qi Lingjun was stunned for a moment before saying, "What are your orders, Miss? Do you want to find the person and then kill him?"
“No rush, I can handle this myself. You just need to keep this secret to yourself,” Zuo Qinghou leaned closer, making a shushing gesture with his index finger to his lips. “Fan Qi doesn’t have that ability. I want to see who does.”
She used Jiang Linzhi's name and disregarded her reputation to amass wealth for wartime reserves. She controlled the sale of snuff bottles, allowing both overt and covert attacks to come at her. After all, she wouldn't die, and she could handle those assassinations that were as insidious as ghosts.
So the day Zhu Huantang stepped into the capital, Zuo Qinghou knew he was probably the one who could end her life. She just wanted to see what he was capable of doing. Zuo Qinghou deliberately provoked Nan Jinping, saying he was looking for a handsome young man, and casually pointed to Zhu Huantang. Nan Jinping immediately took the bait and even handed over her token.
She taught him about wealth, how to lead troops, and how to manipulate people's hearts, making him just like herself, who had never had any weaknesses.
When Zhu Huantang, already at the pinnacle of his power, was still relaying messages to the Wu Kingdom, she finally understood that she was not sacrificing herself, but merely saving herself by creating another version of herself to do this act of atonement.
Death is like fruit on a roadside tree; no one knows whether it's sour or sweet until they taste it.
But Zuo Qinghou was certain that it was sweet.
The most disappointing moment was when he came back to her. How could such a perfect killing machine be trapped by "love" just like her?
Fortunately, that "affection" was so hypocritical and fragile, and Zuo Qinghou's years of training were not in vain.
The only regrettable thing is that when she was dying, she saw a glimpse of snow-white clothing through the gap in Fan Qi's fluttering robes. It blended into the vast world with the snow, yet it was so clear that one could not take their eyes off it.
What a pity! If those things hadn't happened, he would have been a scion of a noble family, would have long since begun to realize his ambitions in the imperial court, and would have had a harmonious family. He shouldn't have…
As I closed my eyes, a single, glistening tear slid down from the corner of my eye and vanished in an instant.
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