Chapter 750: The Death of Zheng Qiao [Happy May Day]
Zheng Qiao looked at Shen Tang with a complicated and inquisitive gaze.
Not a single detail was missed.
For some unknown reason, a look of realization flashed across his pupils.
After a long pause, his chest heaved and trembled, and a joyful laugh escaped his throat. His laughter was initially pleasant, but it quickly turned into unrestrained madness, his eyes sharp as a pair of blades: "Shen Youli, Shen Youli, how did you know that I had bestowed upon you such immense wealth? I, Zheng Qiao, pride myself on my intelligence, but I never expected that my cleverness would backfire... Interesting, very interesting!"
Shen Tang has always possessed the Imperial Seal!
She had already guessed the truth but denied it herself. Now, thinking back, Shen Tang must have used some method to bypass the mutual sensing between the national seals, thus misleading her. At this moment, Zheng Qiao really wanted to strangle her past self with her own hands.
Shen Tang said, "You flatter me, I'm just a step ahead."
Zheng Qiao and Qi Cang showed no intention of attacking or running away. Instead, they seemed to have too much free time and started chatting with Shen Tang. He asked Shen Tang with great interest, "Is this why Yan Xingning chose to help you?"
Shen Tang replied, "It shouldn't be."
"no?"
Zheng Qiao clearly didn't believe it.
He had initially tried to convince himself that Yan Xingning chose the ordinary Shen Tang simply because the latter was passionate, kind, and compassionate. Even after being transferred to Longwu County, she was able to love what she did, working for the benefit of the people without considering her own interests.
Zheng Qiao felt it was fantastical at the time.
Is this still the corrupt human heart he knows?
Is this still the world where everyone is busy pursuing profit?
Shen Tang truthfully replied, "I asked him if I was acting as the ruler in his eyes when I went to guard Longwu County. Guarding the borders is a matter of dying for the country. His avatar 'Zixu' replied, 'A wise ruler should love all under heaven.' Since he has placed me in this position and believes that I am better than you, why shouldn't I go? Compared to the whole world, which is more important, a mere Heyin County?"
Zheng Qiao said, "What if you didn't have the Imperial Seal..."
Shen Tang said firmly, "Even without the Imperial Seal, if it is indispensable for me to guard Longwu County, I will still go."
Even if it means death?
Shen Tang countered, "Does death frighten you so much?"
They were just short of asking Zheng Qiao if he was a coward who feared death.
"Ha, putting life and death aside..." Zheng Qiao's facial nerves were distorted and twitched by Shen Tang's stimulation, and his eyes were red at some point. Who told the chat expert to hit his sore spot with just a few words? "What a noble and virtuous Shen Youli."
Shen Tang's face instantly lit up with a smile.
He shamelessly said, "Being praised by one's opponent is better than a thousand accolades. I like hearing what Your Majesty says, and I'll say a few more words before I die."
Qi Cang: "..."
He dared not turn his head to look at the king's expression.
Unexpectedly, Zheng Qiao did not go mad or fly into a rage. Instead, he looked at Shen Tang and sighed, "In my life, I have met many female rulers, some of whom are stunningly beautiful and others are plain-looking. Some are ladies from noble families and others are heroines. But I have never seen anyone like Lady Shen."
Qi Cang glanced at Shen Tang's literary monogram.
Is the king so provoked that he can no longer distinguish between men and women?
And Shen Tang?
"The king can tell whether I am a man or a woman at a glance. Just for that unique insight, I will give you a quick death!" Shen Tang has become numb to the misunderstanding of her gender over the years, and has even found a secret pleasure in watching the show.
It's rare that Zheng Qiao doesn't have any stereotypes.
"You flatter me, Lady Shen. It would be difficult to mistake you for someone else based solely on your face." He turned his gaze to Ning Yan, nodded, lowered his eyes, and sighed, "...So, this is the truth behind Senior Sister Ning's gathering of literary spirit?"
Shen Tang replied, "Yes."
"Senior Sister Ning, are you here today to avenge Senior Brother Yan?"
Ning Yan replied indifferently, "Yes."
Zheng Qiao showed no fear of being threatened with his life, nor any apprehension of becoming a prisoner. Instead, he smiled lightly and said, "Since Lady Shen is willing to sacrifice herself, I cannot allow future generations to laugh at me. Since I have no way to escape today, I might as well not struggle. However, before I face death, I have one more request, and I hope Lady Shen will grant it..."
He was quite cooperative.
Shen Tang exchanged glances with Wei Shou and Jiang Sheng, confirming that Zheng Qiao was not using delaying tactics, and then asked him, "What do you say?"
Zheng Qiao pointed at Qi Cang and said, "Let Yan Qing leave."
Qi Cang's pupils constricted in shock: "The King?"
Zheng Qiao continued, "All the things he has done over the years have been driven by me; I am the mastermind. Yan Qing is also a sixteenth-grade Grand Master; if he is determined to leave, you cannot stop him. If Lady Shen does not agree, then we will have to settle things with our hands."
Shen Tang was wary, but said aloud, "Okay."
Qi Cang said urgently, "Your Majesty!"
Zheng Qiao replied indifferently, "Let's go."
Although he had given Qi Cang a place to stay by chance years ago, thus doing the latter a favor, Qi Cang had willingly served as his sharpest blade over the years because of his generosity. Those who come together for mutual benefit can also part ways for the same reason.
Zheng Qiao handed the stone carvings of a bird and a fish to Qi Cang and said, "Take them out and see the vast world."
Qi Cang's lips moved slightly as he struggled to close his hands.
"Last general... send you to the king!"
After saying that, he turned and left the bamboo house, but he did not go far away. Instead, he stood guard at the gate of the academy, with his back to everyone.
"Why does Lady Shen look at me like that?"
Zheng Qiao watched Qi Cang leave before turning her gaze away, meeting Shen Tang's probing eyes: "I just find it strange that when the king is facing someone who wants to take your life, you don't even struggle?"
Maybe there's still a chance to save him and let him live a few more days?
Zheng Qiao calmly replied, "I had already chosen this place as my final resting place. To prevent myself from changing my mind, I even took a deadly poison beforehand, just waiting for the effects to take hold. Since that's the case, why bother struggling to survive?"
Shen Tang: "!!!"
Ning Yan gripped the sword hilt tightly: "Zheng Qiao!"
Zheng Qiao spread his arms wide, his reddened eyes filled with madness: "In my life—I've been a hostage and a sycophant, and I've been the crown prince of a kingdom. I've been scorned and despised by millions, and I've also enjoyed the power of being at the pinnacle of power! I've killed my father, harmed my brothers, executed loyal ministers, and annihilated good generals. Whoever displeases me, I'll make their entire family wail and howl! Life and death are entirely in my hands!"
"What about propriety, righteousness, integrity, shame, filial piety, brotherly love, loyalty, and trustworthiness! What about self-discipline, self-cultivation, being close to the virtuous and valuing talent! What about benevolence! It's all bullshit! I am the ruler of the country, only those who obey me prosper and those who oppose me perish! I've tried everything, so naturally nothing is meaningful anymore."
Shen Tang quietly watched Zheng Qiao go crazy.
Unable to resist interrupting and pouring cold water on the idea, she said, "No, you don't."
Zheng Qiao looked at her coldly: "What do you mean, 'nothing'?"
Shen Tang counted on her fingers, giving him examples one by one: "There are so many things you haven't tried. You've never loved your people, you don't know what 'political harmony and social stability' means, you've never shared their joys and sorrows, so you've never been praised, loved, or firmly chosen by them. As a monarch, you've been tyrannical and autocratic, indiscriminately killing innocent people, so you've never been fully trusted by your subjects! You killed the only senior brother who had ever firmly chosen you, you don't understand brotherly affection. Ask yourself, Zheng Qiao, do you really have no regrets?"
It was unclear whether the poison was causing him a vague pain or whether Shen Tang's words had struck a nerve.
He proudly declared, "I have never stooped to such a path!"
A ruthless glint filled his eyes: "The world has betrayed me!"
Shen Tang said, "So you're taking revenge on society?"
Zheng Qiao lost control and roared in fury, "Why not!"
He looked at Shen Tang and regretted letting Qi Cang leave so early. Shen Tang's naive and innocent face and her self-righteous and naive remarks made him feel disgusted! No wonder Yan Xingning was on the same page as Shen Tang; they were birds of a feather!
How could someone who has never personally experienced his pain so casually advise him to reconcile with it be so unrealistic!
How could he not hate that!
"It was the old king of Xin who destroyed you; he was the mastermind. Yet you used your suffering as a legitimate excuse for your depravity. Because of everything you've experienced in the past, you have a reasonable and legal reason to do evil. In your eyes, all your words and actions are revenge against your enemies and compensation for your past actions—how arrogant and conceited you are! Zheng Qiao, what causal relationship does your suffering have with the world? You are merely using your suffering as an excuse to recklessly squander your power and satisfy your selfish desires."
Zheng Qiao chuckled and sneered.
His eyebrows furrowed as the intense pain inside his body intensified.
"You're trying to reason with a madman?"
Shen Tang crossed her arms and looked Zheng Qiao up and down, then shook her head and said calmly, "Crazy? But you seem quite clear-headed."
Zheng Qiao was clearly going crazy while fully conscious.
"Hehe—Pfft—"
Just as Zheng Qiao was about to sneer, a sudden, sharp pain shot through his abdomen, instantly spreading throughout his body. His throat spasmed, and he vomited a mouthful of thick, black blood. His face visibly turned pale, and his fingernails dug tightly into his palms as his fists clenched.
He trembled and took a few deep breaths.
With a hoarse voice, he looked up at Chen Tang, veins bulging on his forehead, struggling to suppress the painful groan that was about to escape his lips.
He seemed to want to see through Shen Tang's eyes the people who died at his hands, even in death they were proud and resolute: "Even if I am a born scoundrel, a tyrant like Jie and Zhou—so what? I am not the Minister of Justice, what do you mean by 'the vengeful have their grievances, the debtors have their debts'? Hahahaha, the victor is king, the loser is villain, don't you understand that? In this world, pfft—if you work hard, you can have a good beginning and a good end?"
The last question was directed at Shen Tang.
Shen Tang knew he was asking her.
She said, "I can! Even if I can't, I will have a clear conscience."
Zheng Qiao was in so much pain that he could barely straighten his body. He braced himself on his knees, trying to keep his back ramrod straight. His eyes were filled with a maniacal yet resolute light: "I have a clear conscience. Hahaha—death? What's there to be afraid of! What do I have to regret!"
"I have no regrets whatsoever!"
"No regrets, and it's impossible to have regrets!"
Large pools of black, filthy blood were on the ground.
Many of them even got on the hem of their clothes.
He took a step, his steps faltering as he moved forward, the scenery before him shifting between near and far, real and blurry. One moment it was Shen Tang and his companions, the next it was indistinct figures, their faces obscured. Zheng Qiao no longer cared about them; he half-knelt on the ground, his blood-stained hands gripping the earth, struggling to crawl towards the bamboo seat that had once been his. Enduring the excruciating pain, he managed to sit up with difficulty.
This small movement exhausted most of his strength.
He was in so much pain that it felt as if his internal organs were being torn to shreds.
Zheng Qiao looked up at the countless phantoms approaching him step by step, yet his heart was calmer than ever before. He forcefully circulated his dantian, which was throbbing with pain, and channeled his spiritual energy to fight against the poison spreading throughout his body, so that he could speak clearly: "Senior Sister Ning, if you want to avenge your husband's death, do it now. Draw your sword! Remember to stab your right chest, don't do what Senior Brother did and stab your left chest."
He didn't see Ning Yan loosen her white knuckles.
He took off the sword from his waist and tossed it to Jiang Sheng.
She said, "I don't want to leave you with a complete corpse."
Zheng Qiao was so weak that her voice was barely audible.
He tried to laugh, but ended up vomiting even more blood.
"Cough cough—it's only right... I didn't even leave Yan Xingning a complete corpse. If you show mercy, it wouldn't be like you!"
"I will not have a good end, Shen Youli, do you think you can have a good beginning and a good end in this world? Haha, I'm watching you!"
Ning Yan's eyelids drooped slightly as she watched her former junior brother being surrounded by deathly aura, his once vibrant life force gradually withering away.
"Junior brother, I don't even want to kill you with my own hands."
Ning Yan's words made Zheng Qiao tremble violently.
His dark eyes, now unfocused, held a hint of innocence and confusion, making Ning Yan momentarily think she was seeing her younger junior brother from her childhood. She knew Zheng Qiao was trying to find her with his gaze, but she still closed her eyes and spoke.
"First, kill!"
Jiang Sheng swiftly drew Ning Yan's sword.
A sword beam pierced the air and sliced through Zheng Qiao's throat.
Glug—
The beautiful head rolled to the ground.
Blood gushed into the sky, splattering everywhere.
Zheng Qiao's headless corpse fell forward onto the bamboo table.
The bamboo house fell silent for a moment.
Ning Yan looked at the head that had rolled to her feet, bent down, and reached out to wipe it in front of the still-open eyes: "Farewell."
Jiang Sheng held up his sword, which was still dripping blood, his expression somewhat dazed: "He just died like that?"
Wei Shou said, "Otherwise what?"
Suddenly, the corpse rose up and fought them for a hundred or eighty rounds?
Wei Shou had known Zheng Qiao for some years. While he wouldn't claim to know him intimately, he was aware of Zheng Qiao's character and his utter contempt for faking death to escape, especially since all four of them were present. If Zheng Qiao truly intended to escape, he could easily have Qi Cang fight to the death.
Zheng Qiao also has a strange sense of pride.
Just then, Qi Cang, who had been waiting outside, walked to the bamboo house and politely knocked on the bamboo wall.
Shen Tang and the other three watched him warily.
Qi Cang said, "The king is already dead. As a former official, it's not unreasonable to consider our past relationship and give him a proper burial, is it?"
Unless Shen Tang and his group want to play with the corpses to vent their anger.
Qi Cang didn't think they would be kind enough to collect Zheng Qiao's body, but it wouldn't be right to let the body rot and become food for wild animals.
Shen Tang said, "Please do as you wish."
Qi Cang took out a needle and thread from his bosom.
Wei Shou leaned closer: "Why do you bring everything with you?"
The preparations were quite thorough.
Qi Cang continued threading the needle, picking up Zheng Qiao's head and arranging it neatly next to his body: "If you hadn't come, the king was prepared to rest here forever. You brought me here so I could collect the body. When you're preparing a body for burial, you should at least bring these things... I thought it would just be a cut from my own throat, humph, who knew it would be beheading..."
He brought quite a complete set of things.
He used his martial energy to stop the bleeding from the wound, then stitched it up with needle and thread. He even tidied up Zheng Qiao's remains, completely oblivious to the four enemies still inside the bamboo house. After finishing, he blasted a deep pit with a burst of energy and carefully placed the body into it.
Wei Shou asked him, "Where is his imperial seal?"
Qi Cang filled the pit with soil, then turned to look at Wei Shou and the others and sneered: "Aren't you all a little too late to ask this now? The real excitement is just beginning with the death of the king!"
ヽ(ー_ー)ノ
Zheng Qiao has started eating her boxed lunch.
Well, if we're only talking about the novel itself, this kind of crazy, vengeful character who kills everyone is quite appealing. But the deeper logic is that the character gains the freedom to fall into depravity because of past suffering. What mistakes did this character make? What evil did he do? By attributing it to suffering, it seems that all his descent into darkness can be understood.
But, this isn't right.
PS: After Zheng Qiao found out that Tang Mei was Tang Mei, he secretly pulled another trick, hehe.
P.S.: There will be a lot of heart-wrenching moments coming up. Zheng Qiao's principle is—even if it means dying, he will strive to create something that brings people back to life.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
