Chapter 66 The coffin returns to the world, a solitary figure remains; why not die as if in the same boat?
Su Jinxiu sat in the carriage, trying to calm her rapid breathing.
Ying Bumei's carriage was extremely spacious, with the main seat, covered with brocade cushions, resembling a small couch, and an elegant low table in the middle.
Ying Bumei took the pastries from the low table and handed them to her. Su Jinxiu, still angry about how he had Chang Geng deliberately frighten her earlier, turned her head away and refused to take them.
Ying Bumei smiled helplessly, reached out to tidy up the stray strands of hair at her temples, and explained in a low voice, "I originally went to the Zhang residence to look for you but couldn't find you. After inquiring from various sources, I learned that he had another villa in the mountains, so I rushed here today."
This place is hidden deep in the mountains, with a winding path. He found it in just two days, which was indeed incredibly fast. So Su Jinxiu took the pastries and ate them, but accidentally choked.
Upon seeing this, Ying Bumei quickly poured a cup of tea and handed it to him.
She was tilting her head back to drink her tea when she suddenly heard Ying Bumei say in a half-joking, half-serious tone, "That day in the quiet hall of Huayun Pavilion, I told the gods that I would never lie to you again. Why are you still so nervous? Don't you believe me?"
After finishing her tea, Su Jinxiu didn't look at him. She poured herself another cup and said calmly, "I trusted you."
Yes, she had believed him, and more than once.
Ying Bumei suppressed her surging emotions, took a brocade cloak, gently draped it over her shoulders, and carefully tied the straps.
Having just escaped danger, Su Jinxiu was too exhausted to argue or resist him, so she let him do as he pleased.
Taking the opportunity, Ying Bumei carefully observed her under the halo of light. Perhaps due to excessive worry and lack of rest these past few days, her face was slightly pale, and Ying Bumei couldn't help but feel a pang of pity.
He rubbed his hands together, as if considering how to begin, before finally recounting the past: "My mother... was the late Emperor's most beloved Consort Chen, while the Empress Dowager was the late Emperor's first wife. The two of them were like Empress Lü and Consort Qi. My mother enjoyed immense favor while she was alive, but in the Empress Dowager's eyes, it was a heart-wrenching humiliation. When I was young, I never concealed my sharp edges, and I never knew that the day my father passed away would be the day my mother and I died."
Su Jinxiu looked up upon hearing this and scrutinized him closely. She saw that his face was filled with a calm sorrow, completely devoid of his usual carefree and frivolous nature.
Was Lü Zhi related to Consort Qi?
It turns out that his past carefree and extravagant lifestyle was just a pretense of having no ambition in order to save his life.
Thinking of this, Su Jinxiu couldn't help but feel a pang of pity.
Ying Bumei continued, "My father had the foresight to leave a secret decree for my mother and me to save our lives. My mother was heartbroken and, in order to find a way out, asked to have me removed from the imperial register and become a nun."
"I thought this move would put aside the Empress Dowager and the Emperor's suspicions, but as long as I am alive, those past humiliations will haunt them. That's why I can only frequent brothels every day and pretend to be addicted to sensual pleasures in order to put their minds at ease and survive until now."
As Ying Bumei spoke, he suddenly reached out and grasped Su Jinxiu's hand. Su Jinxiu was startled and tried to pull away, but he simply took a hand warmer from the low table, placed it in her palm, and then released her hand.
"It's the Autumn Equinox, the weather is getting cooler, so keep warm."
Su Jinxiu did not refuse again. After a moment of silence, she couldn't help but ask, "How did the secret edict end up in Zhang Mingxu's hands?"
Ying Bumei smiled bitterly: "It was a twist of fate. I hid it in the Taoist temple. That day, he came to the temple on official business and accidentally knocked over the box containing the secret edict. He obtained the edict and thus learned my true identity. From then on, he used it to blackmail me, forcing me to do all sorts of despicable things for him, including finding someone who resembled the woman in the portrait. After all, Zuichunfang is my business."
So when they first met, his attentiveness was simply because she resembled the woman in the painting more than anyone else, and he could profit from her.
But now, after all the entanglements, the debt of gratitude he owed outweighed the harm he had caused. Su Jinxiu then said calmly, "Now that I've retrieved the secret decree for you, I suppose you won't need to use me anymore. Can you give me some peace and quiet now?"
Ying Bumei was eager to explain, but the carriage suddenly stopped abruptly. Chang Geng's deep, urgent voice came from ahead: "Young Master, a troop of men is approaching!"
Ying Bumei got out of the car first. Su Jinxiu looked at his back and felt that the scene was familiar. The first time she saw Zhang Mingxu at the gate of the Zhang residence, the situation was just as tense.
The difference was that Ying Bumei now possessed the secret edict, giving him considerable confidence. He argued with Zhang Mingxu outside, no longer feigning politeness, and even directly ordered him to get out. Hearing the argument outside, Su Jinxiu lifted the carriage curtain to peek out. She saw that Zhang Mingxu had brought several servants and guards, while they only had the three of them. So she also lifted the curtain and slowly stepped out of the carriage.
Ying Bumei hurriedly stepped forward to support her, frowning as she said, "Why did you come down? It's cold and the dew is heavy at night, be careful not to catch a cold." As she spoke, she pulled her cloak up for her, "Don't worry, Chang Geng and I are more than capable of dealing with these people."
Su Jinxiu nodded and turned her gaze to Zhang Mingxu on horseback.
When Zhang Mingxu saw her get out of the car, he couldn't help but call out, "Yan'er, come here."
Su Jinxiu frowned upon hearing this and said coldly, "Yan'er is already dead."
They were now on high ground, and looking down from the cliff edge, they could see a rushing river. Su Jinxiu pointed at the river and stared directly at Zhang Mingxu: "You forced him to fall into this icy water and drown!"
"Shut up!" Zhang Mingxu's breathing suddenly became heavy, his clenched fists bulged with veins, and he roared, "Yan'er and I, we were the first to know each other! We love each other, what right does he have to interfere... what right does he have!"
The sword at Zhang Mingxu's waist was not sheathed, and with his violent breathing, Su Jinxiu could clearly see that there was still blood on the blade.
Zhang Mingxu followed her gaze to the sword, his rage instantly turning into a cruel smile. Although he didn't say it aloud, Su Jinxiu immediately realized that the blood on the sword was most likely from Granny Yan.
A chill ran through her, mixed with anger, and Su Jinxiu spoke, completely shattering his hypocritical affection: "If you truly love Yan'er, then jump down now and die with her! Why be so heartless and repeatedly harm innocent people!"
Zhang Mingxu, enraged, laughed and gestured for the guards behind him to step forward. Ying Bumei immediately shielded Su Jinxiu behind him, while Chang Geng stepped forward. Su Jinxiu glanced at the guards, already having made her decision. Zhang Mingxu could only mobilize the Imperial Guards or the Feathered Forest Guards assigned by the royal family.
Unless absolutely necessary, Su Jinxiu would never want to rely on the Feng family's influence. But seeing those Imperial Guards, each wielding a knife, their sharpness fully exposed, she knew that no matter how skilled Ying Bumei and Chang Geng were, facing an attack of dozens of knives, even if they won, they would inevitably suffer serious injuries. She couldn't bear to see them bleed for this, so she had no choice but to invoke General Feng's name as a deterrent.
She took a deep breath, looked sharply at Zhang Mingxu, and said, word by word, "I am now the adopted daughter of the Feng family. How dare you touch me?"
The guards had clearly heard of the renowned General who protected the nation. A veteran of countless battles, undefeated, he was a pillar of the country, practically a faith in the army. Hearing this, they all stopped in their tracks.
“The adopted daughter of the Feng family?” Zhang Mingxu scoffed. “Do you really think the Feng family is some kind of powerful protector? Let me tell you, General Feng declined the title of marquis to show his loyalty, only wanting to be a general in name only. Now he has no real power, he can neither lead troops nor bestow titles upon his wife and children.”
"Oh, by the way, Feng Erlang and Feng Chen are quite promising. Didn't they die for their country? I wonder if they can earn the meritorious marquis title that their father didn't leave behind."
Su Jinxiu was stung by his words and her anger flared. She was about to step forward when Ying Bumei grabbed her arm. He turned her around and pulled her into his embrace, preventing her from looking at Zhang Mingxu and further provoking her.
At this moment, Zhusheng, the newly appointed servant beside Zhang Mingxu, who was eager to take Chang Geng's place, immediately flattered his master, saying, "Master, the General's Mansion is probably too busy to concern itself with this adopted daughter's affairs, isn't it? The battle report from the Northern Desert arrived a couple of days ago. Although we learned about the enemy's military situation, Feng Erlang's entire force has been wiped out. The Feng family is probably busy preparing for the funeral right now!"
These words sounded like a prophecy. Zhu Sheng glanced at a mountain path below, and upon closer inspection, immediately sneered, "Oh my! Look what's that? That group of people carrying torches down the mountain must be Feng Erlang's body, now brought back!"
Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look down at the mountain path and saw a group of people carrying torches, with a large coffin in the middle.
The orderly formation and the gleaming armor clearly indicated that they were officers and soldiers.
Moreover, the coffin was made of Phoebe zhennan wood, with dragons and phoenixes carved on its body, clearly indicating that only noble families could afford it.
However, there was no news of any noble family holding a funeral in the capital recently. Su Jinxiu suddenly remembered that a few days ago, Ye Lingbo solemnly arranged in the courtyard to have Feng Xun return from out of town as soon as possible, saying that there was "an important matter that only he could preside over".
Could it be... a funeral?
Did they already know the news, but just keep it from her?
Su Jinxiu felt unsteady on her feet, and all the details she had deliberately concealed suddenly surfaced.
Those glimpses of the burial shrouds the maids brought into the Feng residence that she immediately turned away from; the sorrowful expressions of Ye Lingbo and General Feng as they dined, heads bowed in silence; the sudden, overwhelming gifts bestowed by the Emperor—all those ordinary things she had told herself Wen Shiqin would surely return, and thus deliberately suppressed and forgotten—were now being confirmed one by one, leaving her almost suffocated.
Before Zhang Mingxu could say anything more, Ying Bumei suddenly turned around, his eyes filled with hostility, and shouted sharply, "Shut up!"
Su Jinxiu couldn't hear anything anymore; only one thought occupied her mind.
Go back, go back quickly.
Whether she was going back to retrieve his body or to verify that he was still alive, she had to go back immediately.
Seeing that she was lost in thought, Ying Bumei grabbed her arm and said, "Get in the car and wait for me. I'll be there soon."
Su Jinxiu nodded: "Okay, be careful."
Before he finished speaking, Ying Bumei and Chang Geng had already leaped forward.
Su Jinxiu staggered as she tried to board the carriage, but unexpectedly, Zhu Sheng bypassed the fighting crowd and quietly attacked from behind the carriage, reaching out to grab her.
Zhu Sheng pressed closer and closer, forcing Su Jinxiu to retreat repeatedly. Suddenly, her footing gave way to the ground, and she heard the soft sounds of pebbles rolling down and the earth shifting. Turning around sharply, she nearly fainted from fright.
She had retreated to the edge of the cliff, and below the cliff was a deep, dark pool, its waters shimmering and awe-inspiring.
Knowing that survival was of the essence at this moment, Su Jinxiu turned to Zhusheng and said, "I'll go with you."
Zhu Sheng knew that if he pushed the girl off the cliff, both sides would blame him, so he nodded and stepped back.
Just as Su Jinxiu was about to take a step forward, the boulder hanging precariously on the edge of the cliff beneath her feet suddenly shattered. She cried out in alarm and immediately grabbed Zhusheng's hand tightly, trying to use his strength to steady herself.
However, Zhusheng, fearing he would be dragged down the cliff by her, steeled his resolve and, instead of pulling her, forcefully pushed her towards the edge. With this push, Su Jinxiu completely lost her balance, feeling a sudden emptiness behind her as she plummeted towards the cliff.
On the brink of life and death, she did not follow her instinct for survival to grab the grass and trees on the cliff edge, but subconsciously clenched the Mohler male doll in her sleeve.
The next moment, on the secluded cliff, a figure plummeted straight into the icy pool like a kite with a broken string.
The wind whistled past her ears, and a feeling of weightlessness instantly enveloped her.
She had just said that Yan'er had drowned in this icy river, and now, it was her turn.
A deafening crash as she plunged into the water pierced her eardrums, and the icy water instantly engulfed her. Her vision blurred, her mouth and nose were blocked by the murky water, making it impossible to breathe, and her heart and lungs ached as if being stabbed.
At first, she could instinctively struggle upwards, but her heavy cloak and clothes were soaked with water and became as heavy as a thousand pounds. No matter how much she struggled, she could not rise even an inch.
She could clearly feel herself sinking deeper and deeper into the pool, her body growing stiff and cold, and her consciousness becoming increasingly hazy.
Whose farewell before departure is like the sound of wind in the pines, lingering and never fading away.
"After I die, will you remain chaste for me for six months?"
My body had already reached its limit, but as I gently closed my eyes, scenes from the past years rushed through my mind like a revolving lantern.
Tiankuang Festival, sour gourd, Xiangguo Temple.
He waited for him under the old locust tree after school, and they traveled together to Bailudong in Jiangzhou. The letter promised a betrothal gift of geese.
The Vermilion Bird Avenue stretched out like a flowing river, with a girl in red walking slowly behind and a boy in white walking backwards on the Magpie Bridge.
Frame by frame...
"After I die, will you remain chaste for me for six months?"
Now the answer is clear.
Alas, I am but a solitary figure in this world; why not die together if we are born together?
With her last ounce of strength, she held the Mohele statue tightly to her chest.
Then, she slowly closed her eyes and stopped struggling.
Author's Note: Big Brother Feng Xun is about to make his appearance! [Please][Empty Bowl]
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