Chapter 1115: Grand Finale: Return of the Old Friend (23)
Although he had caused her indelible harm over the long years, Empress Xian De still couldn't leave his heart.
Is life destined to have such a fate? This fate is not perfect, it can even be called a disaster. When this disaster is about to end, she is stubbornly unwilling to let go. Like a moth to a flame, she will never let go until the last moment.
"Qingzhen, I can't accompany you anymore." Emperor Yongle said apologetically, "When you married me, you thought you would be protected. In fact, you have gained nothing over the years." He spoke very slowly, and he had to rest for a while after each word, as if he was struggling.
Empress Xian De said, "Stop talking."
Since they became emperor and empress, one called himself "I" and the other "your concubine". It was only when their lives were about to come to an end and they were about to part ways without ever seeing each other again that they started to address each other as "you and me", acting like an ordinary couple.
He said, "Just live your own life. You are such a good person, you will definitely live a happy life in the future. If you marry someone else, don't choose a selfish husband like me. Find someone who loves and cares for you..."
Empress Xian De burst into tears.
She suddenly felt her hand being grabbed, and saw Emperor Yongle staring at her with piercing eyes. He gritted his teeth and said, "But I won't give in. I don't want... I'm very selfish. You are my woman, and I don't want you to be with someone else."
Empress Xian De was stunned.
"I've tried hard to live this past year, hoping to live a few more days. It's not because I want to see Xie Yuan reign supreme. The great cause of the world has been settled, and there's nothing I can't let go of. I just... can't bear to..." He took a breath with difficulty, "I can't bear to leave you... Even if I could be your wife for just half a day, or even just a moment longer, that would be great."
"When I first met you and later summoned you to the palace, it wasn't actually Mother's idea. It was me from the beginning. I was the one who told Mother that I thought you were great. For so many years, you thought I was satisfied with 'Empress Xian De', but that wasn't the case. I said anyone could be the Empress, as long as they did a good job. But that wasn't the case. It was you from the beginning. Those words... were all lies..."
Empress Xian De covered her mouth and said, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"
Emperor Yongle's face grew paler and paler, his voice so low it was almost inaudible as he said, "It's a pity that I have a bad fate and have implicated you for your entire life..." He stretched out his hand, as if wanting to wipe away the tears from Empress Xian De's face, but he dropped his hand weakly before he had even started.
His eyes closed.
Empress Xian De covered her mouth and buried herself in her blankets, weeping bitterly. Her cries were heartbreaking, but no one outside could hear them. She buried her voice in the thick blankets, wishing she could bury herself in them too, so that from now on, she would not hear, see, blame, or think.
Incense from the copper stove curled up and spread in the air. There was only suppressed crying in the room. The moon outside the window was bright and gentle, so round that it didn't seem real.
After a while, Empress Xian De stood up. She gently tucked the quilt around Emperor Yongle and gently kissed his lips. She fixed her hair in front of the mirror, wiped away her tears, and slowly opened the door.
A room full of kneeling eunuchs and palace maids stood outside. Eunuch Deng stepped forward and Empress Xian De spoke calmly, "Your Majesty is dead."
Eunuch Deng was startled, then knelt solemnly, put his whisk forward, and kowtowed several times.
Upon seeing this, the eunuchs and palace maids outside also knelt down and kowtowed, their mournful voices echoing throughout the nine-story palace.
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