Princess's Residence.
Jiang Fei sat in front of the bronze mirror, looking at the woman in the mirror, combing her white hair stroke by stroke.
The green bamboo standing to the side felt a pang of sadness and turned away, unable to bear watching any longer.
The princess used to be incredibly beautiful, but now she's... lifeless, and... her black hair turned white overnight.
“Green bamboo,” Jiang Fei suddenly spoke.
Green Bamboo hurriedly replied, "Princess."
Jiang Fei remained silent for a long while: "Was I ever betrothed to the King of Guangyuan?"
Green Bamboo paused, then said, "...Yes."
Jiang Fei paused, her hand combing her white hair, but her expression showed no surprise: "Did he never have any feelings for me?"
Green Bamboo was stunned. Thinking of all the things the prince consort had done to the princess in the past, each one was a despairing act, and she finally pursed her lips and remained silent.
"I understand," Jiang Fei replied softly.
Just then, a servant came to inform us that lunch had been prepared.
Jiang Fei put down the wooden comb and stood up: "Let's go."
Green Bamboo hurriedly followed behind her, heading towards the main hall.
He paused only when he saw the figure sitting in the main hall.
Chu Mo was already seated at the dining table.
Jiang Fei's expression stiffened for a moment, and her steps faltered before she slowly stepped forward.
Chu Mo watched her movements, his gaze fixed on her white hair, before finally looking away after a long while.
The dining table was quiet, laden with delicious food.
Jiang Fei glanced at the food on the table and reached out to pick up a lotus seed.
Chu Mo looked at her, his fingers trembling slightly: "You didn't like eating lotus seeds before."
Jiang Fei paused, and the lotus seed she was holding between the bamboo chopsticks fell to the ground. She looked at him blankly.
Chu Mo's throat tightened slightly, and he placed a piece of Eight Treasure Duck into her bowl.
Jiang Fei stared blankly at the Eight Treasure Duck: "Thank you."
Chu Mo's hand trembled as he was about to pick up other dishes, and a Buddha's Hand Golden Roll fell back into the bowl.
Both of them were stunned.
Chu Mo lowered his head and casually placed the gold scroll into his bowl.
Lunch was eaten in unusual quiet.
“Your Highness,” Jiang Fei said in a low voice as lunch was about to end, “we are not yet married, and besides… our feelings for each other are already cold. If Your Highness has something to attend to, you don’t need to come here specifically.”
Chu Mo stared at her blankly. In the past, she would always pester him to have lunch together, always chattering away with bright, sparkling eyes. But now she was saying that he didn't need to come...
“It’s alright,” he said in a hoarse voice, and seeing that she was about to speak, he added, “Would you like to go to the study?”
"Huh?" Jiang Fei asked, puzzled.
Chu Mo paused for a moment: "There are your favorite books and pastries there."
Jiang Fei glanced at him, then at the green bamboo beside him, and finally nodded slightly.
The study remained unchanged, as always. Chu Mo followed Jiang Fei inside and felt a pang of sadness when he saw the desk in the center, along with the soft couch and low table beside it.
In the Great Wei, he had imagined this scene countless times, but even if he decorated his study exactly like this one, it would be difficult to dispel the agonizing loneliness.
"Why is there a soft couch in the study?" Jiang Fei suddenly asked, his gaze fixed on the soft couch next to the desk.
Chu Mo snapped out of his reverie, glanced at the soft couch, then looked at Jiang Fei, and after a long silence said in a hoarse voice, "...Someone once said they wanted to stay here with me."
Jiang Fei froze, and after a long while, she slowly walked to the soft couch, looked at the storybook lying upside down above her, and then looked at the pastries on the low table next to her, as if someone had just been lying there taking a nap.
"Then she must love you very much," she murmured.
Chu Mo's eyes welled up with tears, and his throat tightened with a sharp, aching pain.
She doesn't remember.
She didn't regain her memory at all, and didn't remember their past.
She chose him at the palace banquet because of Pei Qing.
In order to make him let go of Jiang Rongrong, and in order to make Pei Qing happy.
However, he was still very fortunate.
"Hmm?" Not receiving a response, Jiang Fei turned to look at him.
Chu Mo quickly turned his gaze away and replied in a hoarse voice, "...I love it."
Jiang Fei lowered her eyes, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with his self-deception.
Chu Mo added, "Rest here for a while. If you get bored, read some storybooks."
Jiang Fei nodded, sat on the soft couch, picked up the storybook and casually flipped through a few pages. Then she was surprised to find that this storybook was the one she had read with Chu Mo in the study the last time before he rebelled.
She looked up at Chu Mo, who was already sitting behind his desk, looking at the letter that his servants had brought.
Jiang Fei raised an eyebrow, said nothing more, and quietly began to read.
Chu Mo couldn't concentrate on a single word. His gaze was slightly dazed. In the past, she would always casually offer him a piece of pastry, but now there was nothing.
The sound of turning pages beside me disappeared, replaced by even, shallow breathing.
Chu Mo turned his head and saw that the book in Jiang Fei's hand had fallen to the side of the couch. She was leaning there, her eyes gently closed, asleep, her snow-white hair disheveled.
He gently got up and walked to the soft couch, squatted down and looked at her intently.
Even in her sleep, her brow was furrowed, and her face was pale, like a piece of transparent white jade, devoid of any color.
Chu Mo unconsciously reached out and gently rubbed the space between her eyebrows.
Jiang Fei shifted his body.
Chu Mo abruptly withdrew his hand.
The next moment, Jiang Fei, half-asleep, squinted her eyes slightly, glanced at him hazily, and whispered in her sleep, "You're back... I thought you didn't want me anymore..." Her voice carried a faint sob.
Chu Mo's body stiffened, and for a moment she felt as if she had returned to the night before the rebellion, when she had murmured the same words softly.
"Feifei?" he called softly in a hoarse voice.
Jiang Fei did not respond, but simply turned over and fell asleep again.
Chu Mo remained squatting beside her, gently stroking her cheeks and hair.
Her body was still very cold, so cold that it made his heart ache.
After an unknown amount of time, Jiang Fei seemed to sense something, frowned, turned to the side, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she was about to wake up.
Chu Mo quickly got up, returned to his desk, and picked up the letter that he couldn't concentrate on reading at all.
Jiang Fei slowly woke up and glanced at Chu Mo.
She pretended to be asleep and acted very affectionately, but her favorability rating fluctuated for a moment and then didn't increase at all.
After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Fei glanced at the pastries beside her, her eyes flashing slightly, and then casually picked one up and offered it to Chu Mo's lips.
Chu Mo smelled the sweet aroma, parted his lips slightly, and then suddenly realized something. His eyes sparkled as he looked at Jiang Fei.
Jiang Fei was startled, dropping the pastry in her hand to the ground. She looked bewildered and said, "Sorry, I just..." She rubbed her temples vigorously, "...something just suddenly flashed into my mind..."
The sound gradually stopped, and she looked at Chu Mo in astonishment.
He bent down to pick up the fallen pastry, gently dusted off non-existent dust, and put it in his mouth.
"you……"
Chu Mo smiled and said, "It's very sweet."
She wasn't entirely without feelings for him, was she?
Suddenly, the sound of fireworks came from outside, and it drifted in through the half-open window of the study.
Jiang Fei was taken aback, and then remembered that to celebrate the peace between the Great Yan and Great Wei, there would be no curfew for three days starting today.
"Would you like to go out and have a look?" Chu Mo asked, looking at her.
Jiang Fei's eyes brightened slightly, then she seemed to remember something, smoothed her white hair that fell in front of her, and gently shook her head.
Chu Mo felt a pang of sadness: "No one dares to speak ill of you, Fei Fei," no one would ever be able to harm her in the slightest again, "I'll take you out, okay?"
Jiang Fei paused for a moment, looked at him, then glanced out the window, and nodded hesitantly.
When she went out, Jiang Fei finally put on a red veil to cover her white hair.
The capital city is bustling, and there are many more people tonight than usual.
As Jiang Fei walked through the market, looking at the lanterns in the distance and the vendors hawking their wares on both sides of the road, her brows and eyes relaxed unconsciously.
"Feifei." Chu Mo suddenly called her from beside her.
Jiang Fei turned her head in confusion, and then followed his gaze—it was a sugar figurine stall, surrounded by a crowd of people.
She looked at Chu Mo, puzzled and confused.
Chu Mo's heart sank, but he still smiled: "Would you like to write it yourself?"
Jiang Fei paused, her expression hesitant.
Chu Mo's smile froze slightly, but he walked forward and said something to the stall owner, who then stood up and gave up his seat.
Chu Mo sat down, picked up a copper spoon filled with sugar syrup, and began writing something on the heated plate in a flowing, natural style.
He finished writing it in no time, stuck the sugar figurine together, and walked up to Jiang Fei with excitement in his eyes: "Here you go."
Jiang Fei looked at the sugar figurine.
"Jiang Fei".
She looked at him in surprise, then reached out and took it: "Thank you."
Chu Mo paused slightly with his smile, then said, "Someone taught me this before."
Jiang Fei pursed her lips, lightly licked the sugar figurine, and continued walking forward.
Chu Mo quietly followed beside her, looking at the familiar street they had strolled through together before.
In that jewelry shop, she once held up that peacock hairpin and asked him, "Is it pretty?"
She once said she liked the soybean cakes from that pastry stall.
A vendor selling candied hawthorns...
She doesn't remember that her steps never even paused.
Only now did he realize with a start that he had so many memories.
Jiang Fei suddenly stopped in front of a shop.
Chu Mo looked at her and saw that her previously quiet eyes now faintly revealed longing.
He turned to look at the shop and then paused slightly. It was a lantern shop, and business was booming tonight. Many children and boys were coming out with lanterns in their hands, their faces beaming.
It's wonderful.
Chu Mo's heart skipped a beat. This was the shop where they had bought lanterns before, and they had even placed lanterns together on the lantern-raising platform...
That night, she desperately protected him.
"Shall we buy one?" Chu Mo asked in a low voice.
Jiang Fei's eyes lit up, and she nodded.
A moment later, Chu Mo came out with the lantern, and the two of them walked together toward the lantern stand.
Once he reached the lamp stand and looked at the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone beside him, Chu Mo paused for a moment and said, "I was wrong before, Fei Fei."
Jiang Fei was puzzled.
Looking at her bewildered gaze, Chu Mo smiled until his eyes warmed slightly: "Someone once told me that if you write your wishes on a lantern and release it, they will come true."
He was wrong before; it's not that he doesn't have desires.
She was his wish.
Chu Mo stepped forward, took the brush, and wrote a few words on the scroll—
May Jiang Fei live a long and happy life.
Jiang Fei stared blankly at the countless astronomical lanterns that had been released, while Chu Mo turned and gazed at her beneath the myriad lights.
Those past events that he thought were unimportant were remembered in his heart in great detail, but... his Feifei had forgotten everything.
He took her along the paths they had walked together, to the places they had been, and to do the things she had done together.
She couldn't remember him at all.
She left him alone in her memories.
The lantern reading has ended.
The two quietly embarked on their journey back home, neither of them uttering a word.
Just then, several martial arts practitioners dressed like ordinary people suddenly rushed out from the crowd. They walked straight towards Chu Mo, and when they got close, they revealed daggers hidden in their sleeves, the blades gleaming coldly.
"You dog prince, prepare to die!" one of them said coldly, and then several people raised their daggers to stab Chu Mo.
The surrounding people were terrified and scattered with screams.
Chu Mo shielded Jiang Fei behind him with one hand and swiftly dodged the dagger with the other. However, at a glance, it was clear that Jiang Fei was one of those useless people from the Great Wei who disliked him but were of no use.
Normally, he would not have paid any attention to these people, but not today.
He couldn't let anything happen to the woman behind him.
Chu Mo pulled Jiang Fei along, saying, "Let's go." With that, he ran off to the side.
Jiang Fei let him hold her wrist and ran forward with him, her face slightly pale.
The two hid in a dimly lit, narrow alley, unable to see anything but the sound of the person next to them breathing.
Jiang Fei said blankly, "Chu Mo."
Chu Mo was taken aback.
For the first time since their reunion, she called him by his name instead of "Your Highness".
"Everything will be alright," he whispered reassuringly.
Jiang Fei didn't respond, then asked, "Did this... happen before...?"
Chu Mo's expression changed drastically: "Feifei..."
Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Fei's expression suddenly changed drastically. She looked behind him with fear in her eyes, and then suddenly hugged him tightly, shielding him in front of her.
The red veil on her head fell down, and her white hair hung down, making her stand out in the dim night.
Chu Mo felt a stinging pain in his eyes from the white light, and he squinted. He suddenly wrapped his arms around Jiang Fei's waist to avoid the incoming sword, but his back was slashed hard, causing a sharp pain.
Chu Mo turned around, his body shrouded in a terrifying killing intent. He then snatched the dagger from the man's hand and forcefully slashed the man's throat with the blade, causing blood to spurt out.
"Your Highness, please forgive us." The guards, having dealt with the remaining people, knelt on the ground to beg for forgiveness.
Chu Mo remained silent, only looking at Jiang Fei: "You just now... wanted to protect me?"
Jiang Fei's face turned deathly pale: "You're injured, go back to the manor first..."
“Feifei,” Chu Mo walked up to her, “Do you remember anything? If you’re not mistaken, do you still remember what happened before…” He became somewhat incoherent at the end.
Jiang Fei stared at him blankly, without saying a word.
"Feifei, please think about it again, okay?" Chu Mo's voice was almost pleading. "Sugar figurines, pastries, hairpins, lanterns..."
"Everything tonight."
He had already given up hope, even if it meant just being alone with the memories of the past. But now, he saw a glimmer of hope.
She instinctively protected him.
Jiang Fei bit her lip tightly, "I...I don't know..." Before she could finish speaking, her body suddenly stiffened, and she rubbed her temples with one hand, "Your Highness, Chu Mo...who exactly are you...?"
She murmured, took a half step back, and the next moment her face turned pale, and a line of blood spilled from the corner of her lips.
Chu Mo was shocked and rushed forward to hug her, saying in a panic, "Feifei, don't think about it anymore, Feifei..."
He would rather she didn't remember.
But the woman in his arms remained stiff and cold, her eyes tightly closed.
Cold Flower Poison!
Chu Mo's hands trembled as he picked her up and flew towards the princess's residence, his figure flustered.
After an incense stick has burned.
Chu Mo stood stiffly to the side, watching the imperial physician solemnly take Jiang Fei's pulse as he lay unconscious on the bed, completely ignoring the injury on his back.
After a long while, the imperial physician stood up: "Princess Changning must have been stimulated, causing the Cold Flower Poison to flare up again. Fortunately, it has not fully manifested. She needs to take more Relief Herbs, but..." At this point, the imperial physician hesitated for a moment, "In Princess Changning's pulse, I also detected weakness and coldness caused by various other poisons."
Chu Mo was taken aback and asked with difficulty, "Multiple poisons?"
"Yes," the imperial physician bowed, "Those poisons, in my opinion, do not seem to be ordinary poisons, but rather related to Gu poison."
insanity.
Chu Mo froze, and almost immediately thought of Pei Qing.
The Pei family has been cursed with the Qilin Gu for generations, and they are forbidden from leaving the city.
However, the secret guards had investigated and found that Jiang Fei and Pei Qing had left the city once, and nothing happened to him that time.
Was it for Pei Qing?
For Pei Qing, she was willing to test poison?
“My lord,” the imperial physician, who had already reached the door, stopped and sighed, “with Princess Changning’s current condition, I’m afraid she won’t last another two months.”
After saying that, he shook his head and walked out.
Chu Mo remained standing in the same spot, the phrase "two months" echoing in his mind.
A faint sound came from outside the window, followed by the guard's voice: "Your Highness?"
Chu Mo was stunned for a moment, then turned around and walked out blankly.
Upon seeing him, the guard bowed and knelt on the ground: "Your Highness, those people have all been dealt with."
Chu Mo's eyes were still filled with panic, like a walking corpse, and he only uttered a "hmm".
The guard did not leave, and said again with a forced smile, "Your Highness's injuries should be treated as soon as possible."
Chu Mo ignored him and simply said, "Prepare to set off back to Great Wei."
The guard exclaimed in shock, "The prince's injury..."
“Send someone back first to tell the hermit who planted the Gu in the backyard… that I have agreed to what he once said.” The hermit he chased after for a day and a night back then.
The guard bowed and replied, "Yes."
Chu Mo added, "On the way back, prepare more pastries and sugar figurines from this place..." This place holds memories for him and Jiang Fei, and he feared that if they left, Jiang Fei might never remember those past moments again.
"Your Highness," the guard said after a moment of silence, mustering his courage, "Does Your Highness truly wish to remind Princess Changning of her past?"
Chu Mo was stunned.
Does he really want her to remember?
Her love for him was intertwined with deep-seated hurt.
On the city wall, he confessed to using, poisoning, and abandoning.
She would rather forget all the painful memories she dared not recall. Would he really dare to let her remember them?
She will hate him.
Chu Mo finally waved his hand, and the guards quickly disappeared into the night.
He walked back to the bedroom and looked at the woman on the bed, whose face and hair were pale.
Princess Changning, who once rode through the capital in a red dress, has become what she is today.
Because of him.
It's all because of him.
Chu Mo staggered forward, leaned against the bedside, and reached out to gently stroke her hair.
Self-loathing, regret, jealousy, pity...
A myriad of emotions swirled in Chu Mo's heart, and he felt a lump in his throat, followed by a surge of the metallic taste of blood.
He gently picked her up, wrapped her thin body tightly in his arms, and warmed her limbs with his body heat: "Feifei..." His voice was hoarse and unpleasant.
Even though she couldn't hear, she kept calling out to her.
Finally, Chu Mo buried his face in her white hair, his voice like a beast's cry for help: "Feifei."
What should he do?
He was truly about to be completely abandoned by her, confined to the memories of the past.
Jiang Fei woke up two days later and learned that Chu Mo was going back to the Great Wei.
He had once entered the palace to meet the emperor, and Jiang Fei did not know what he said to the emperor, but the emperor agreed to let him take her away.
Chu Mo quickly prepared the most luxurious carriage and a group of experts.
Not many people knew they were leaving, and Chu Mo intentionally kept it a secret. Only Lu Zhi had approached him, saying he would stay by Jiang Fei's side no matter what.
Lu Zhi thought that Chu Mo would not agree, given his personality, and he was prepared to fight him. Unexpectedly, Chu Mo nodded and agreed.
Pei Qing learned that Chu Mo was going to leave the Great Wei at noon on the day they were leaving.
At that time, he was having lunch in the main hall.
Jiang Rongrong arrived and sat opposite him, her eyes full of concern as she looked at him: "I heard you haven't been to the morning court these past few days, I was very worried about you..."
But to Pei Qing's ears, it grew fainter and fainter...
In the end, all that could be seen was her mouth opening and closing.
Pei Qing looked down at the food on the table.
The kitchen had long since changed the dishes that had once made Jiang Fei frown.
Jiang Rongrong noticed his expression, looked down at him, and then her eyes widened slightly.
There wasn't a single dish she liked on the table.
Pei Qing put down her chopsticks, got up, and went out.
He didn't understand what was wrong with him.
As originally planned, when Jiang Rongrong returned, he took the opportunity to disguise Jiang Fei, who, under his guidance, bore an uncanny resemblance to Jiang Rongrong in every move, and used her to exchange for Jiang Rongrong.
Actually... there's no need for that much trouble at all.
Jiang Rongrong's Cold Flower Poison was cured, and after Jiang Fei regained her memories, she chose Chu Mo.
Everything is just right.
He unknowingly found himself in the backyard.
Pei Qing walked into the pavilion. The peach tree and swing in the backyard had disappeared, leaving only desolation and no sign of life.
Jiang Rongrong seemed to be taken aback and remained speechless for a long time.
At that moment, a guard ran in from outside, holding a letter in his hand. Upon seeing Pei Qing, he quickly bowed to him and said, "My lord."
After saying that, he headed towards Li Duan's room in the side courtyard.
Pei Qing looked at the guard and suddenly asked, seemingly out of nowhere, "What is that?"
The guard was startled. He glanced at the letter, then hesitated before looking at Jiang Rongrong beside him before saying, "It's a letter from someone from Princess Changning's residence. It says that the princess instructed that this letter be given to Taoist Li after she leaves Great Yan."
Pei Qing's fingers trembled slightly, and after a long pause, she said with difficulty, "...After leaving?"
"Yes," the guard replied hastily.
Pei Qing looked at the letter.
Yes, the emperor personally bestowed a marriage upon Jiang Fei and Chu Mo, so it was only right that she leave with him.
"Cough..." Pei Qing suddenly coughed, feeling a dull, aching pain in his chest.
He stared at the letter, silent.
The guard's hand trembled as he held the letter, and he hurriedly and carefully handed it forward: "Please take a look, sir?"
Pei Qing clenched his fist, then finally took the letter and opened it.
The handwriting is familiar, but it's not particularly attractive.
Pei Qing's lips curved into a smile, but she quickly pursed them. However, her face turned deathly pale when she read the contents of the letter.
The letter described the body's reactions and feelings after consuming a potent poison.
That was also... the last poison Jiang Fei had tested for him.
She always remembered everything that happened between them!
Even after leaving, he did not forget to send this letter.
So she chose Chu Mo...
"This princess will return to you the person you desired."
Congratulations on winning the heart of your beauty.
Those were the last two words she said to him that day.
She chose Chu Mo because of him.
Pei Qing's hand, clutching the letter, trembled violently. In the next instant, he abruptly stood up and headed for the door. His white robes, instead of concealing his refined appearance, only added to his disheveled state: "Prepare the horses!"
"Ah Qing!" Jiang Rongrong called out as she watched his retreating figure.
But the white figure didn't even stop.
Pei Qing had only one thought in his mind: to catch up with her.
I must catch up with her.
When Pei Qing saw the luxurious carriage slowly emerging from the city gate, his grip on the reins tightened slightly: "Jiang Fei—"
The hoarse voice attracted the attention of the surrounding crowd.
Inside the carriage, Jiang Fei, who was leaning against the side of the carriage, stiffened and his hand trembled slightly.
Chu Mo looked at her, and then gently took her hand in his palm.
Jiang Fei kept her head down and didn't look at him.
"Feifei!" Pei Qing's voice grew closer, accompanied by the chaotic sound of horses' hooves.
Jiang Fei's eyelashes trembled slightly.
Chu Mo gripped her hand even tighter, as if afraid she would disappear.
The next moment, Jiang Rongrong's heartbroken voice came from outside the carriage again: "Aqing, don't be like this..."
Jiang Fei's expression froze, then she gave a self-deprecating laugh and remained silent.
Seeing her so lifeless over another man, Chu Mo almost immediately thought of the time she tested poison for Pei Qing.
He had to exert all his strength to control the trembling of his fingers, the rising jealousy in his heart, and the murderous intent towards Pei Qing.
"Hurry up and ride at full speed!" Chu Mo commanded.
Upon receiving the order, the guard forcefully pulled on the reins, and the horse neighed and galloped out of the city.
"Feifei..." Pei Qing rode his horse to catch up, and even though they had reached the city gate, he did not slow down at all.
"Aqing, don't go any further!" Jiang Rongrong shouted from behind.
Pei Qingru seemed not to hear him and forcefully pulled on the reins.
The Qilin Gu inside his body was raging wildly, constantly colliding with his flesh and bones, causing him excruciating pain all over his body.
Jiang Rongrong stood frozen in place, watching Pei Qing's frantic retreating figure.
Back then, when she left with Chu Mo, he only chased her to the city gate, but now, he chased her out of the city without hesitation...
"My lord!" came a terrified shout from ahead.
Jiang Rongrong looked up and saw that Pei Qing's white clothes were almost completely stained with blood. He had fallen straight off his horse, coughed up blood, and collapsed to the ground.
Several guards from the Imperial Preceptor's residence brought Pei Qing back.
Only then did Jiang Rongrong see that Pei Qing's eyes were still open, but they were completely black and lifeless.
And on his body...
Jiang Rongrong couldn't help but take a half step back.
The worms continued to surge wildly across his body, sprouting fleshy and bloody lumps that nearly deformed his limbs...
Finally, Li Duan arrived and quickly fed Pei Qing an antidote.
The Qilin Gu gradually stabilized.
Pei Qing was helped onto the carriage. Just before getting on, only his eyes could move slightly.
He used to hate being watched by people, but now he doesn't seem to mind at all.
But... Jiang Fei, the only one who wasn't afraid of him, left.
On the other side.
Jiang Fei sat in the carriage, and the system's voice came through.
Pei Qing's favorability rating: 99.
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