Chapter 71 Miss Thief 8 I will let you go in one month
In the front hall of the palace, the lights flickered.
The maidservant poured more hot tea and quietly left.
This was the first time Hong Li truly faced Qin Ji.
She had come to Kyoto before when she was tormented by nightmares, but it was not easy to see Qin Ji. She had squatted there several times, but had only seen him briefly, and from a distance.
At that time, she had thought about assassinating him, but she knew that it would not succeed. She was captured by the secret guards before she could get close.
However, now she was really confronting Qin Ji face to face, and Qin Ji was only five steps away from her. The strong sense of oppression came over her, making her nervous.
Hongli clenched her fingers and moved her lips, but she couldn't say anything and it was difficult for her to utter a single word.
She never thought that this imperial uncle could be so creepy.
"Prince Ke's daughter..." Qin Ji sat in the head seat, his fingers tapping lightly on the table. His gaze shifted to Hong Li, observing her. Hong Li's hair stood on end. He spoke casually, but it was unclear whether he believed her or not. "Judging from her age, she does fit the description of being Prince Ke's youngest daughter."
Qin Ji had some impression of Prince Ke. He was a prince who loved to cultivate flowers and play with birds, was also good at handicrafts and woodworking, and had a gentle temperament.
He wasn't very familiar with this royal brother, but they had a small connection. It was because of this small connection that he made a promise to King Ke. If that day ever came, he would help him protect his young daughter.
"You still remember!" Hong Li raised her head, clenched her fists, took a small step forward anxiously, and then paused, her body tense. "Did you kill my father?"
Qin Ji said indifferently, "So what if it is, so what if it isn't."
"You!" His indifference made Hong Li furious. "You killed my father, so you are my vengeance. Give me your life!"
Hong Li took out a weapon and tried to attack Qin Ji, but was stopped by the guards around Qin Ji. The two men fought so loudly that tables and chairs were overturned.
Hong Li was defeated and was kicked in the abdomen by the secret guard in the air. She rolled over and landed on the ground. The moment she came to her senses, the secret guard put a sword on her neck.
Hong Li wasn't afraid of him. She stiffened her neck and looked at Qin Ji with hatred, "Kill me if you dare!"
She really wanted to listen to her senior sister and calm down, but seeing Qin Ji's attitude, she was inexplicably annoyed.
"It only takes a moment to kill you. Your life is worthless and not worthy of my worry." Qin Ji didn't take her seriously.
Instead, he asked Wu Yue. His attitude changed, and a smile appeared on his lips. "What do you think?"
Qin Ji knew Wu Yue's intention without even thinking.
He didn't care about Hong Li's identity, but Hong Li was Wu Yue's junior sister. Now Wu Yue dared to bring her back without fear of him taking action, which meant that she trusted him.
This is what Qin Ji cares about.
It turned out that he had a place in Wu Yue's heart, and this discovery made him feel very good.
Even Hong Li, who disturbed his relationship with Wu Yue, began to look at him more favorably. After all, with the existence of this "junior sister", Qin Ji was able to get a glimpse of Wu Yue's inner world.
"This is your Qin family's business, I won't get involved." Wu Yue didn't intend to express her opinion. "You two can talk slowly and stop fighting. It won't look good to make a noise so late at night. I'm going to find an old friend to reminisce."
She just brought the person back, and since Hongli decided to come to the palace to find out the truth, it was not her place to interrupt.
As soon as Wu Yue left, the atmosphere in the hall became extremely quiet, but Hong Li was still very angry.
She also saw through Qin Ji's thoughts and sneered, "You old man, you still have delusions about my senior sister? You're dreaming!"
The secret guard was about to take action, "How dare you! Stop being so rude!"
Seeing Qin Ji raise his hand to signal, the secret guard put away his sword and retreated.
Qin Ji stood up and walked towards Hong Li step by step, looking down at her coldly, "You want the truth."
"Yes!" Hong Li stood up and looked at him with her head held high. "I want to know if you killed my father and mother!"
"Okay. But before that, you have to provide me with the benefits I need."
There is no such thing as a free lunch. Qin Ji did not bother to explain to insignificant people, but using such a boring thing as an exchange was also a waste of resources.
Hong Li frowned, wary, "What benefits?"
But Qin Ji just glanced at her, turned around and left, his back walking into a dark corner where the candlelight did not reach.
Hongli thought about it and decided to follow him.
···
On the way to the yard where Hao Yingjun lived, Wu Yue felt something was wrong.
She called out to a maid who was walking towards her in a hurry, holding something that looked like a letter in her hand.
Seeing that it was Wu Yue, the maid hurriedly bowed and said, "Miss, how are you?"
Wu Yue asked her, "Where is Hao Yingjun? What is he doing now?"
The maid held out her hands and handed over the letter. "Young lady, Master Hao has left. This is the letter he left behind. I was just about to go find Sister Yuqing and ask her to give it to Miss Wu."
"He left? When did that happen?" Wu Yue was surprised and took the letter.
The letter was very thin, and the envelope had four big words written on it: "To Wu Yueyan".
Seeing such a guilty behavior, Wu Yue became more certain of his guess.
"I don't know either. This afternoon, Master Hao just woke up and ordered dinner to be served in the courtyard. In the afternoon, Master Hao said he was tired and wanted to rest, and asked us not to disturb him. He then closed the door, and we didn't go near."
"It was only in the evening, seeing that Master Hao showed no signs of waking up, that we broke the rules and pushed open the door to check. All we saw was this letter on the table, and Master Hao was no longer in the room. We didn't know when he left, so we waited in the courtyard the entire time."
The maidservant recounted the entire incident in detail and at a moderate pace.
"Well, it's no problem. Let him be." Wu Yue knew that the man was as smart as a thief and nothing would happen to him.
She took out a piece of letter paper and wrote a few words:
Oh, this rich life is too comfortable. I am used to living in the mountains and I don’t feel comfortable in the palace.
And there is an old yellow dog in the mountains waiting for me to come home.
We met, and we’ll see each other again!
*
He ran so fast because he was worried that he would be caught by Wu Yue.
If this isn't a problem, what else could it be?
Wu Yue was so angry that the edge of the letter paper was wrinkled by her fingertips.
As for how Hao Yingjun got out without lightness skills, he naturally had his own way. He knew the Qimen Dunjia, and she and Qin Ji were not at home during the day, so it was convenient enough for him to move around.
Qin Ji did not order him to be under surveillance, so Hao Yingjun could walk out of the palace at will and in a swagger.
Wu Yue wanted to catch up right now, but her tattoo pass was taken by Qin Ji. If she didn't get it back, she wouldn't be able to leave the city gate.
He and Hongli are busy discussing something and have no time now, so he can only wait until tomorrow.
Only if he agreed to return it to her, it would not work if he took it by force. She didn't even know where Qin Ji had put it.
The next day.
Wu Yue told Qin Ji about this. She thought it would be difficult, but unexpectedly, Qin Ji did not stop her.
He simply said, "Not yet. You stay in the mansion for a month. After a month, I will exchange your tattooed pass for yours."
A month is not long and is within her acceptable range.
Moreover, since Qin Ji said so, that was the only concession he made. There would be no room for negotiation. If she didn't agree, then she would stay.
"Okay, one month is one month. You can't go back on your word." Wu Yue agreed. "Also, you can't let your secret guards keep an eye on me."
She knew that there were secret guards following her in secret, but their hiding skills were so powerful that even she could not find their location even though she noticed them.
"Okay." Qin Ji was very easy to talk to this time.
He was still not busy today, and he could even pour tea for her personally. "We just got some Mao Xue Jian tea. Try it and see how it tastes."
"You, a regent, are so relaxed." Wu Yue said without hesitation. She picked up the tea, blew away the hot air, and took a sip. The tea had a delicate fragrance that lingered on her lips and teeth, and a cool feeling that made her feel refreshed.
Wu Yue praised it, “Great tea!”
Qin Ji curled his lips, "Of course it's good. This small cup of yours can be sold for a hundred taels of silver outside."
So this small pot of wine he brewed is worth a thousand taels?
Wu Yue “···”
Suddenly she felt a little hard to swallow. She felt that what she was drinking was not tea, but real money.
Qin Ji is also busy sometimes, but whenever he is at home, he will stick with Wu Yue, either shooting arrows at the shooting range, riding horses together, practicing swordplay, or playing chess, etc.
As for Hong Li, Wu Yue heard the news a few days later that she had been reinstated as a princess and had moved into the former Prince Ke's residence, where she was being taught royal etiquette by a royal nanny. She also had to meet with many women from official families and members of the royal family, keeping her very busy.
Wu Yue had seen her once, and perhaps she was a real princess at heart, with royal majesty in her every move.
Even though she still called her senior sister as before, she felt that something seemed to have changed quietly.
However, this is Hongli's own choice. Whether to go out and roam the world as a thief or return to the palace to be a princess, that is the path she chooses to take.
The day for her to leave the palace was approaching, the next day, but Qin Ji still hadn't shown her the way to the tattoo.
Wu Yue was a little anxious, but told herself that tomorrow was the deadline and there was no point in being anxious now.
She was worried about something and tossed and turned for a long time before falling asleep.
She finally fell asleep, and when she was half asleep, she felt a cold chest against her back, and a large palm passed through her red bellyband, covering a mixture of cold and heat.
His lips were also cold. He bit the bellyband strap tied at the back and pulled it open, leaving sparse kisses on the fair back, leaving new marks.
In the past two days he left a lot of traces, which just disappeared and then appeared again.
Wu Yue was woken up by him and also woke up cold.
She was sleeping on her side, and she turned around in his chest. In the faint moonlight, she could see Qin Ji's appearance clearly. His eyes were icy blue, and his hair had turned silver. From the bottom to the top, half of his hair was silver, leaving only the upper half black, which quickly spread away. Wu Yue was surprised. How could his cold poison be getting worse?
Two days ago, the ends of his hair only showed silver color, but in just two days, it had already turned half white.
Moreover, before, the disease occurred every five or six days, but now it only occurs every two days.
She had seen Qin Ji's condition when he was sick. He was extremely weak, extremely crazy, and the pain was excruciating. Every moment was a painful torture.
Most people can't bear it after one attack, but he was able to persevere for twenty years.
The gorgeous brocade clothes wrapped up his scarred body. The world could only see his high position and power, his glamour and splendor, but no one could see the scars beneath the clothes.
Wu Yue's eyes showed worry, "You..."
But just as she opened her mouth, she was blocked by Qin Ji. The rough touch entangled with her, forcefully disrupting all her words. She swallowed them back, crushed them into pieces and turned them into ambiguity.
Qin Ji's sanity was tortured again and again when the disease broke out, but he still remained lucid.
At this moment, he held Wu Yue's face and pressed his forehead against hers. The heat from their lips and teeth rising after a long time melted the white mist he exhaled, allowing them to see each other's faces clearly.
"Give it to me, please."
"Yue'er"
Qin Ji's voice was hoarse. It was the internal torture that he was trying to suppress, or perhaps it was the desire for her that was reaching its peak at this moment.
His eyes were gentle, as if the warm sun was shining into the glacier.
"···good"
Meeting his gaze, Wu Yue saw the deep affection in his eyes. She was startled and stretched out her arms to hold Qin Ji's neck.
She took the initiative to offer her red lips, and the signal she released made Qin Ji's already limited self-control vanish into nothingness. A layer of fire ignited on the glacier, warming both of them.
The last night of crazy and desperate struggle ended at five o'clock in the morning when Qin Ji was about to go to court.
After a sleepless night, he was still energetic. His eyes and hair had returned to normal, but one could vaguely see a lot of silver hair hidden among the black hair.
Wu Yue didn't wake up until noon.
It was cold beside her, and Qin Ji was no longer there. However, she saw her tattooed guide on the place where he slept.
Wu Yue woke up with a start, no longer sleepy. She sat up, took the tattoo pass and checked it. It was hers.
Similarly, she was in a daze for a long time.
···
Today's morning court was very noisy. They argued about local political affairs and border wars, and they were so noisy that they could overturn the throne room.
Usually Qin Ji was in charge, and the little emperor would sit on the dragon throne as a mascot, with no chance to speak.
However, during this period of time, Qin Ji rarely spoke. If the ministers asked, "Your Majesty, how should this matter be arranged?", he would look at the emperor and ask, "I am stupid and don't know. Your Majesty, how should this be arranged?", throwing the question to the little emperor, causing an uproar.
At first, all the officials thought that Qin Ji was testing them, but later they found that Qin Ji really intended to let go. Now they directly asked the young emperor for the decision in the court.
But how could the little emperor understand? Sitting on the dragon throne was very painful for him. Facing the questions from his ministers, he stammered and didn't know how to answer. He could only shamelessly call him uncle.
However, people need to experience hardships to grow up. The little emperor had gone from being flustered at the beginning to slowly getting the hang of it. Now he could answer questions in a proper manner and began to show the aura of an emperor.
Qin Ji was not stingy in teaching him how to be an emperor, nor did he think of monopolizing power all the time. As for when the little emperor would grow up, it depended on his own ability.
After the court session, Qin Ji was about to leave, but was stopped by the little emperor.
"Uncle, wait a minute."
"Walk with me for a while."
The little emperor is already eight years old.
His mother was only the daughter of a minor official of the seventh rank. The late emperor was extremely fond of women and even at an age that made him his grandfather, he still selected her to enter the palace. His mother was extremely beautiful and was presented to the palace. After a few nights of favor, she gave birth to him and was soon forgotten.
Within a few years, Qin Ji came to power and helped him ascend the throne.
The young emperor had complicated feelings towards Qin Ji, including dependence on family affection, gratitude for the favor, and fear of being killed.
However, Qin Ji did not depose himself to take the throne as he had told the officials, and he had no other intentions when teaching him.
This made the little emperor wonder what his uncle was thinking.
However, if he could know what the emperor's uncle was thinking, he would be able to become a powerful person like the emperor's uncle.
They walked in silence, one tall and one short, until they reached the top of the city wall.
The walls of the imperial palace are high enough to overlook the entire prosperous Kyoto.
The little emperor was not tall enough and could only see a corner of it.
He said, "It is thanks to the emperor's uncle that the people can live and work in peace and contentment."
Naturally, what the people can remember is Qin Ji, not the emperor.
Qin Ji didn't care whether the little emperor meant this or not.
He put his hands into his sleeves and looked quietly at the boundless sky in the distance.
It's autumn now and the weather is getting colder. It will snow in a month or so, and birds will start looking for habitats to spend the winter.
The little emperor waited for a long time for his uncle to respond, and he was wondering if he had said something wrong.
Then, Qin Ji said something.
"Chengye, are you cold?"
"Uncle, I'm not cold." The little emperor shook his head. Thinking that his uncle was concerned about him, the little emperor smiled faintly.
He also said with concern, "The wind is strong at high altitude. If the emperor feels cold, we will go back."
"Let's go back."
Qin Ji withdrew his gaze from the distance, and the breath he exhaled condensed into white mist, which was blown away by the wind silently the next moment.
It's autumn now, and the sky seems to be a little darker than before.
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