Chapter 95: Punishment: He didn’t have time to cover his mouth with the handkerchief, and he uttered “Hmm”…
The autumn wind was bleak and the air was cool. He Jiuyue and Wen Zheliu were sitting on the tall horse Xingyun, while the other was curled up in a narrow sedan chair.
The sedan chair creaked and stopped five steps away from He Jiuyue.
Xiaobai stopped moving forward and subconsciously wanted to bow and retreat, but he was worried that if he left, Wen Zheliu would not be able to push the sedan chair by himself, and it would be bad if he stood there stiffly. So he had no choice but to face He Jiuyue's cold gaze, gritted his teeth, took a step back, and stood behind Wen Zheliu like a tree stump.
The fire at the city gate affected everyone involved. He was extremely upset, but he didn't know that He Jiuyue didn't even see him.
Her mind and eyes were filled with the sound of willow branches being cut in the sedan chair.
A thin blanket covered his knees, the tassels on the edge of the blanket hidden at his waist, revealing his two thin long legs, hanging alone in front of the sedan chair.
It was hanging in the air, as if it had no support at all.
He Jiuyue's brows furrowed.
It was strange. Before Wen Zheliu fled from the Central Plains, she met him in a carriage. At that time, he was just feverish and unconscious, and there was no obvious problem with his legs and feet. How come now his condition is so serious that he has to sit in a sedan chair?
Wen Zheliu hugged the child tightly with both hands, raised his eyes cautiously, and met He Jiuyue's gaze which was as cold as the white moon on a winter night, and his heart trembled.
She was indeed angry with him.
But this is not surprising. He did something wrong and should be punished.
But punishing him is fine.
Can you not take your anger out on your children?
She is still in her infancy and doesn't understand anything. She is innocent.
"He..." Wen Zheliu opened his mouth to apologize, but as soon as He Jiuyue's surname came out of his mouth, his tongue seemed to be tied and he couldn't utter the next word.
What should he call her?
"What a bright moon"? "What joy"?
Or should he call her "He Dasima" like them?
He Jiuyue ignored his stuttering, but dismounted cleanly and quickly and came towards him.
Her peach blossom eyes were lowered, and her lips were tightened into a straight line. She didn't look furious, but she didn't look in a bad mood either. Her boots stepped on the grassland, deep and shallow, burying the sound that should have been sonorous.
"When did you know that you were the Emperor of Xiyue?"
He Jiuyue leaned down and opened his arms.
She spread her hands to the left and right, resting them on the armrests on both sides of Wen Zheliu's sedan chair.
“…” After pondering for a moment, Wen Zheliu swallowed his saliva.
To be honest, he knew his invisible identity when he was just learning to read.
Before he fell in love with her, every time he saw He Jiuyue, his every frown, smile, and gesture were carefully planned, without any real feelings.
But if the account was calculated from this time on, he would owe her too much.
But he couldn't lie without changing his expression.
All we can do is wait in silence.
"You're not talking?" He Jiuyue pinched his pale, thin jaw, forcing him to look up and look directly into her sharp eyes. "What's the matter? The last time I saw you, you were blind, and this time, you're mute?"
"Blind" and "mute", how hurtful, every word is like a knife, stabbing Wen Zheliu's heart, leaving a hole and blood flowing.
He Jiuyue lowered his eyes, staring at Wen Zheliu without blinking.
She just thought that her words were so heartless. Wen Zheliu was a person who was very sensitive to the choice of words and sentences, so he would definitely lose control of his emotions. Whether it was anger or scolding, she just wanted to see a crack on his calm face.
Unexpectedly, he still looked calm and composed.
After not seeing him for so long, he has really become more capable.
It would be fine if she didn't react to what others said, but she even turned a blind eye to the sarcasm directed at her.
No wonder he could become emperor as a man.
Those who are cold-hearted and cold-blooded have the potential to become emperor.
Since he didn't want to meet her so much, why did he deliberately let her hear this news and dress up so formally to keep the appointment?
"say."
He Jiuyue pinched Wen Zheliu's jaw with increased force.
Wen Zheliu involuntarily turned his head to avoid her questioning gaze. He bit his thin lips with his white teeth, like a flower on the mountain top who was forced to obey, and his reluctance was visibly visible to the naked eye.
Does he hate her so much?
"Pa!" He Jiuyue suddenly raised her hand and slapped Wen Zheliu in the face.
Her eyes were heavy and it was impossible to see the bottom of them.
This is not torture, it is a more shameful form of punishment.
A burning pain came over him instantly, but what Wen Zheliu felt first was not the heart-wrenching pain, but the relief that made him cry with gratitude.
He was like a river clam. No matter how she spoke nicely or harshly to him, he remained silent. He Jiuyue actually paid any attention to him.
Then, in her heart, he had not yet turned into ashes that would scatter like stars in the sky, and no matter how strong the wind and rain were, he could still leave something that she could never forget?
"Cough, cough, cough!"
It was early autumn, and the grass on the grassland that had grown with the water in the summer was retreating without a trace. The strong wind carried the exposed sand and soil, waving it towards the crowd.
Wen Zheliu is weak, how can he bear this?
He covered his mouth and nose with his wide sleeves, but still kept coughing because of the choking.
"I'm sorry." The smell of blood rose up, and Wen Zheliu held the tears in his eyes. He carefully wiped away the blood foam that overflowed from the corner of his mouth. His voice was hoarse and full of self-mockery, "I lied to you."
She was not surprised that He Jiuyue hit him.
He just didn't expect that He Jiuyue would hit him with her own hands.
After all, although He Jiuyue went to the battlefield in person, she was usually in the center of the team and did not need close combat. She preferred to use whips and swords from a distance.
He was the only one who was slapped by her personally.
He Jiuyue snorted coldly and slapped him again.
The first time, she only used 30% of her strength, giving a slight punishment and a severe warning, while also testing Wen Zheliu's body.
Seeing that he looked dazed, not only did he not say a word, but there was also a hint of obsession between his brows, he frowned and used 50% of his strength.
Her punches hit Wen Zheliu's flesh, which could not withstand the slightest violence, and immediately turned red. Blood oozed out and flowed down his thin white cheeks. The bun on his head was mostly scattered by the wind caused by the slap.
A few strands of black hair hung down from his temples, making the corners of his lips look even more frighteningly white.
He heard a buzzing sound in Zheliu's ears and almost couldn't breathe. He twisted himself into the corner of the sedan chair and barely managed to stabilize his sliding body.
"……Feel sorry."
The boy who was good at talking and laughing and who interpreted the word "acting like a spoiled child" vividly, now had a dim look in his eyes.
Come and go, it’s always the two words “apology”.
Well, I haven’t seen you for half a year, and you’ve become stupider.
He Jiuyue folded her hands in front of her chest, looking down at the thin figure that was more fragile than jade that would shatter at the slightest drop and was completely vulnerable.
"Wen Zheliu, oh, should I call you Situ Zheliu now? - But changing it back isn't difficult. When your entire Western Yue is under the control of the Central Plains, I will decide your last name. - Do you still remember what happened to those who betrayed me?"
Wen Zheliu suddenly shuddered.
How could he not remember?
He remembered it too clearly, so when he realized that he and He Jiuyue had to meet, he had that tiring nightmare over and over again.
"Tell me, where should I start?"
He Jiuyue drew out his sword with a "whoosh".
The sharp blade was dazzling when hit by the sunlight.
She was completely unaware and just gestured towards Wen Zheliu's arm, and then drew a line in the air above his thigh.
"Here, or here?"
Wen Zheliu remained silent.
There was a gleam in his eyes, as if they contained a pool of water filled with the world's sorrow, reflecting the cold and heartless blade wielder and the hint of red at the corner of his eyes.
"What a great Sima!" Emperor Murong Jin was not anxious, but the general was. Wen Zheliu was holding the little princess in silence. She could no longer hold back and shouted from behind, "You promised not to hurt His Majesty Xiyue!"
He Jiuyue swung a knife.
With a "swoosh", the knife brushed past the end of Murong Jin's hair and landed firmly on the grass behind her.
"I'm talking to him, and you have no right to speak."
Murong Jin shut up awkwardly.
"Tell me." He Jiuyue no longer had her own long sword, so she simply drew the sword from Chen Jin's waist and put the tip of the sword against Wen Zheliu's beautiful and flawless face.
She had a half-smile on her face, but each word she spoke was colder than the last. "Back then, my mother was poisoned and died during the battle with Western Vietnam. What role did you play in that war?"
"Poisoning"?
Wen Zheliu murmured, a look of disbelief in her beautiful eyes: "What do you mean by poisoning?"
"You don't know?" He Jiyue pressed on. "Even you, the king of Xiyue, don't know. Who else in the world would know? Was it you who passed the news of my mother's secret camp at Yuweipo to Xiyue?"
"……I have no idea."
The letters he exchanged with Xiyue when he lived in the prime minister's residence appeared before his eyes. Wen Zheliu's blood vessels began to throb and he held his head with his hands.
"I didn't participate in what happened back then. I just..."
A breath was stuck in his chest, unable to go up or down. Wen Zheliu's pupils shrank, and he tremblingly took out a handkerchief from his sleeve, but before he could cover his mouth with it, he spit out blood with a "hmm".
The phoenix crown and bridal robe he wore were originally a festive bright red.
Stained with blood, it was even more dazzling under the sun.
"Cough, cough, cough..." A breathless coughing sound was heard. Wen Zheliu's eyes were half closed, and his whole body was shaking, as if he was about to faint at any time.
He Jiuyue stared at him without moving her eyes away.
She clenched her five fingers together, forcibly restraining herself from subconsciously stroking Wen Zheliu's back.
She had only slapped him twice, not using her full strength, let alone using any force on him, so why did he vomit blood? After not seeing him for half a year, was his health so bad?
"Wow--" The little girl had been disturbed by Wen Zheliu in the Yangxin Palace for nearly a month. She was familiar with the occasional noise and could fall asleep while listening to it. But after all, she was young, and after a few times, she was finally woken up by her mother.
He Jiuyue raised his hand with his palm facing inward and the back of his hand facing outward.
Full of irresistible command.
"Chen Jin, carry her down."
After all, the baby crying in the cradle is her child. Otherwise, if he dares to yell when she is upset, even if the little guy dies a thousand times, it will not be enough to atone for his sin.
“No!”
Wen Zheliu, who was as calm as water, finally got the passionate reaction that He Jiuyue had expected.
His thin arms were tightly wrapped around the swaddling clothes, with a few crystal tears at the corners of his beautiful eyes, and his voice was shrill, full of resentment, longing, sobbing and complaining, like a cuckoo crying blood.
"He Wuhuan, if you have any grievances in your heart, just come to me. Please, don't hurt the child."
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