Chapter 199 The Curtain Falls
Nymph had a dream.
In the dream, my brother and Zong Si were only in their teens, at the peak of their teenage years, and I was also very small, probably around seven or eight years old.
The two men were competing in horseback archery.
Her appearance made both men jump off their horses.
"Afu, you're here." Zong Si said with a smile.
"You are a foreigner, why are you calling me Afu?" Ning Zheng said with some caution, "You have always looked down on our Duke's Mansion."
"It's my fault." Zong Si admitted his mistake.
"Why, do you want to be our Afu's husband in the future?" Ning Zheng asked.
"Of course I do." Zong Si said softly, "Very much."
Ning Zheng seemed to be stunned for a moment, and then his figure quickly disappeared, leaving only the little Nymph, looking up at the man in front of her who was much taller than her.
Zong Si squatted down, picked her up, smiled, and said reluctantly: "I want to see you when you were a child."
She lay on his shoulder, small as a bee, with her eyes closed and her eyelashes trembling.
"Our Afu is truly the cutest lady." He stroked her back tenderly. "It's a pity that when you were little, you called me brother out of kindness, but I didn't take it seriously."
Nymph whispered, "Brother."
Zong Si seemed to have not expected her to have such a reaction. For a moment, he was somewhat moved. Then he kissed her forehead lovingly and said, "Good boy, Afu."
She said nothing, but just let him hold her obediently, not moving a muscle. Perhaps she had anticipated something in this dream.
"I have returned your brother to you. Can you please stop being angry with me?" he asked her in a low voice.
Nymph couldn't hold back her tears, hugged his neck, and nodded vigorously: "I want you to be well, too."
Zong Si said: "We met at the wrong time. You married me when I was the coldest and most heartless. That's why I have so many regrets. Now I have made up for my mistakes. In the next life, let's live a good life together, okay?"
"Okay." Nymph said.
"Don't make the mistake of admitting me." He touched her head lovingly.
"good."
"who I am"
"My dear." Nymph said quickly.
Zong Si laughed and said, "Afu, I have always been a petty man. I can't even accept another me. But I know that you like him more and he does better. He is just... luckier than me. He was saved by you after he already liked you. He was lucky that he couldn't live without you very early on."
"But it's good that you know I'm not always so cold-blooded. I can still be saved." Zong Si said, "In my next life, I will definitely behave well."
Nymph hugged him tightly, tears streaming down her face.
Zong Si wiped away her tears and said reluctantly, "Don't be too sad. This is the final ending for me. With me here, I'm afraid it will be awkward between you and him."
He put her down and made a kite for her.
Ning Zheng once asked Zong Si for it on his behalf, and later this kite appeared in Xie Ruyi's hands. She envied it for a long time.
"I have to go." Zong Si said after accompanying her to fly the kite.
"My dear, when I married you in my last life, I loved you very much," she said, "much more than you can imagine. Since I was your age, I have felt that you are the most outstanding gentleman in the world. At that time, I thought it would be great if you could be my husband in the future."
He was stunned for a moment, then smiled, but his figure gradually became blurred and finally disappeared like a puff of mist.
Faintly, I could vaguely hear his sigh.
"If I could be reborn in Zong Si's body... how great it would be."
When the dream is over, it seems as if all the grudges have disappeared with the dream.
The surroundings were empty, and Nymph's heart was also empty. Perhaps it was because she already knew that some people and some things would never come back once they were gone.
…
When Ning Fu woke up, Zong Si and Ning Zheng were standing in front of the bed.
"You're awake." Zong Si saw her open her eyes and quickly leaned over to feel her forehead. He then gave her some water and said, "You slept for quite a long time this time, for four whole days."
Ning Fu was held in his arms, but she only looked at Ning Zheng behind him. He was injured, but in good spirits.
"Brother." Nymph called him softly.
Ning Zheng said: "I'm fine, it was... Lord Lu who saved me."
"Lord Lu...what's wrong?" she asked after a long silence.
Zong Si and Ning Zheng looked at each other, hugged her tighter, and said softly: "Lord Lu is seriously injured now. I will talk to you about him when you are better."
"He's dead, right?" Nymph said.
Zong Si didn't say anything.
Ning Zheng's mouth twitched. He was afraid that she would find it difficult to accept it for a while, so he wanted to make up for it with a few words. But in the end, he did not lie to her. Perhaps it was because her tone was too calm.
Ning Fu lowered her eyes and said nothing, nor did she cry. She said, "Who wants to harm my brother?"
"It's Meng Che." Zong Si said.
Ning Fu was not surprised, as she had guessed it was Meng Che.
"I accidentally learned from Lin Shicheng that the Fourth Prince was involved in the war with Northern Qi. Lin Shicheng advised me to go along with him, but I am definitely not a villain who betrayed Dayan, so the Fourth Prince would not tolerate me." Ning Zheng said.
Ning Fu then thought about why her brother was able to remain safe and sound when facing Northern Qi the previous two times. This might not have been unrelated to Meng Che's contribution. His brother was his man, so he naturally had to keep him safe. However, he could not tolerate the fact that his brother had something on him.
If his brother was involved, it would be a different story, but the bad thing is that he just stayed out of it.
What's more, my brother will definitely feel resentful towards him because of this matter, and he will definitely report this matter to Emperor Jingwen.
With an adjutant like Lin Shicheng, it was no wonder that Northern Qi was able to enter the interior of the country so easily. Zong Si did not have a deep foundation outside the Great Wall, so he could not easily detect it, and was also blocked everywhere.
"The Fourth Prince wanted the Northern Qi's secret guards to kill me quietly on the way to find General Ye. It was Master Lu who showed up, saved me, and asked me to go find General Ye first..." At that time, Ning Zheng heard him say that reinforcements would arrive soon. He was not afraid of death, but was worried that Meng Che's matter would not be conveyed, so he had to leave first.
However, no one expected that when Lu Xingzhi was rescued, he was already lifeless. His body was pierced by a sharp sword, and he was kneeling on the ground with his head down. Even though he was dead, he looked neither humble nor arrogant.
Later, when he was disposing of his body, he found a portrait of his own sister in his arms. The portrait was very old, and it was obvious that he had looked at it often. The sister in the portrait was also different from the sister he had seen, and looked like a married woman.
Ning Zheng was a little curious. He was not Afu's husband, so how did he know what she looked like in the backyard?
A Fu was already married, and Ning Zheng was afraid of being gossiped about and also afraid that Zong Si would think too much, so he secretly kept the painting.
"Eat something," Zong Si asked in a low voice, looking at his wife in his arms.
Nymph nodded. For the sake of her child, she also had to eat something.
Zong Si was worried that he would be depressed, but unexpectedly she was quite calm and cheerful, which made him feel relieved.
Ning Zheng was now seriously injured. Seeing Ning Fu wake up, he felt relieved and went back to rest.
While dining, the nymph asked: "When is his funeral?"
"Mrs. Lu hasn't made any arrangements yet." Zong Si said.
Nymph paused but said nothing.
Zong Si didn't disturb her either.
"In fact, someone as aloof and noble as you can't be someone else." Nymph said softly, "It would probably be painful to keep pretending to be someone else."
Zong Si knew what she meant, and after a moment's silence, he said, "If it were me, in that situation, I would make the same choice as him. As long as you live well, that's enough. But for him, there is probably no place for him to stay in this world."
The reason I want to live is simply to see whether she is living a good life. If not, I might rather die.
Nymph was silent.
"I want to be with you and don't want to go back to Beijing." Ning Fu said. She was getting more and more worried now. She even lost Zong Si in this life.
"Okay." said the man. Zong Si now felt at ease keeping her under his nose.
"Lin Shicheng..." Ning Fu hesitated whether to ask.
"He committed suicide by taking poison."
Ning Fu nodded: "Mrs. Lin is also dead."
"Among the group of Northern Qi people sent to the interior, there were people from Lin Shicheng. Madam Lin probably recognized them. Before she died, she couldn't understand why her husband, whom she loved so much, would not let her go." Zong Si said.
Ning Fu was not surprised. For the sake of power, they killed their wives and murdered their families. Lin Shicheng, Ning Yu, and King Xuan did the same. What can't these people do?
In the following days, although Ningfu ate well every day, Dongzhu still felt that her girl talked less and slept poorly, and sometimes was woken up by surprise.
"Dongzhu, do you believe that people have an afterlife?" Nymph asked her one day.
"If the Crown Princess says there is one, then there is one." Dongzhu said with a smile.
Nymph smiled, thought for a moment, and said without reason: "If there is reincarnation, I hope he can forget his past, be born into an ordinary family, live a peaceful life, and not be so tired anymore."
Dongzhu thought to herself that the Crown Prince's Consort was probably talking about Master Lu. She grew up with Ningfu, and in fact, she had noticed something from her sleep talking recently.
For example, my daughter may not only live this life.
However, Dongzhu doesn't care about these things and won't mention them to others. Her own girl will always be her own girl, and that's enough.
…
After this month, the weather gradually became warmer.
The war outside the Great Wall gradually subsided.
By the time I returned to Beijing, it was already June.
The entire capital city was immersed in the joy of victory, and the meritorious officials were rewarded.
In addition, there was also a sensational event. Meng Che was demoted to a commoner for treason and is now on trial in the Dali Temple.
Ning Fu, however, did not want to think about this man at all. She knew that whether this happened or not, Emperor Jingwen would punish him sooner or later. He must have known what he had done and just wanted to use him. But now that his brother was alive, the plan to alienate the Duke's Mansion and the Prince's Mansion had not succeeded.
Having gotten used to the sandstorms outside the Great Wall, I felt a little uncomfortable when I first returned to Beijing and didn't want to see people.
Only when Madam Ning came, Ning Fu seemed to have regained her confidence. She hadn't cried for a long time, but she hugged her mother and cried.
"You're going to be a mother now, why do you still act like a little girl when you see your mother?" Madam Ning joked with a smile.
Nymph thought, now that her brother was still alive, her mother didn't have to suffer as much as in the previous life. It was great. She had changed a lot of things after all.
Madam Ning has been much more diligent since coming to the palace.
Princess Xuan was naturally very welcoming. When a woman is pregnant, she wants her mother to be by her side.
One day, Mrs. Ning accidentally talked about Lu Xingzhi, and her eyes turned red for a moment. She sighed and said, "It's a pity for such a good young man."
How can we not feel pity when a hero has such a tragic fate?
Nymph lowered her eyes.
Not long after, she went to the Lu Mansion.
Mrs. Lu had always treated Lu Xingzhi as her own son. Now that her son was dead, she could not bear the blow and became seriously ill. She has now returned to her hometown to recuperate.
Shuiying was wearing mourning clothes. When she saw her, she was moved and bowed, saying, "Crown Princess."
"I want to burn some incense for him," said Nymph.
Shuiying took her to the study, which had now been converted into a small ancestral hall. Shuiying lit incense for her and said, "Master Lu left a letter saying that he did not want to hold a funeral and asked me to bring his ashes back to Beijing, probably to make it easier for the Crown Prince's wife to visit him."
Nymph forced a smile and said nothing.
"Mr. Lu and I are not real husband and wife. He married me in a fake marriage because he felt pity for me and was afraid of criticism if we didn't get married." Shuiying explained, "Although we slept in the same room, Mr. Lu always slept on the floor. He only had the Crown Prince's Consort in his heart."
She also told Ning Fu many things about Lu Xingzhi, such as that he had already made arrangements for his affairs after his death, and that Lu Xingzhi had already made arrangements for Madam Lu and herself, so he would surely have no worries in this life.
As for the Lu family, because of his contributions, their descendants in this life will also have a bright future.
He had planned everything already.
It was as if he knew early on that he would not live long.
He came into this world just for her and stayed in this world for a few years.
After five or ten years, I am afraid that no one will remember that there was a Mr. Lu in this world who was extremely talented and handsome.
No one would know that he was her husband.
The ending of the story is just like this, which is regrettable.
"Princess, can you burn this stick of incense for him in the name of Mr. Lu's wife?" Shuiying said carefully, "In Mr. Lu's eyes, you are his only wife."
Nymph paused but did not refuse.
Meng Che's case was soon thoroughly investigated. In addition to treason, he was also guilty of taking bribes, forming a clique for personal gain, and punishing dissidents. He had persecuted many meritorious officials. Emperor Jingwen was furious and sentenced him to death.
Meng Che remained indifferent to his impending death. It was just a matter of success or failure. As a prince, he had long guessed that this day would come. Facing Meng Ze, he just smiled calmly: "If I lose, it doesn't necessarily mean you win."
But when he saw Xie Ruyi for the last time, he couldn't help crying.
"I'm sorry that I didn't get that position and also caused trouble for your father." Meng Che said, "Ruyi, you don't have to remember me anymore. Find someone else to marry. There is no shortage of people who like you in this world. If you remain a widow in the name of my wife, you will suffer a lot in the future and be bullied."
Xie Ruyi shook her head and said softly: "You haven't done anything wrong to me. I chose to marry you, knowing that there might be such a day, but it's me who lost the bet with you."
"In my next life, I will definitely not be born into a royal family." Meng Che said, "If I were just an ordinary citizen, would you still be willing to marry me?"
Xie Ruyi smiled and said, "Of course I am willing."
"Live well." Meng Che said, "I have left you a way out and money with my third brother. You just need to put all the blame on me in front of the emperor and say that you were coerced by me. He has no evidence and will not embarrass you."
A few days later, Meng Che committed suicide in prison.
As a prince, he is proud by nature and naturally cannot stand humiliation.
Xie Ruyi heard the news with a calm expression. She went to the Third Prince's residence and knelt down to beg, "Third brother, my husband has always told me that you have a good relationship with him. I will trouble you to take care of my child in the future."
She didn't want to tarnish Meng Che's reputation. He was not a good man, but he was her best husband.
That night, Xie Ruyi also committed suicide by taking poison in her bedroom.
Ning Fu learned the news from Meng Yuan.
When Ning Fu saw Meng Yuan again, her feelings became much more complicated.
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