Chapter 82 Sacrificing one's own family for the greater good is not... The Empress Dowager's actions are truly righteous...
The rise and fall of powerful figures in the capital is a common occurrence; however, the speed at which the Chu family rose so high and then collapsed is truly rare.
Before the Dali Temple could investigate the case of Chu Hongtu's embezzlement of silver that caused the pagoda to collapse, rumors began to circulate that Chu Shuheng was cursed to lose wives, and that his official career would rise to a higher level with each wife he lost.
There were no shortage of gloating people in the capital. Some busybodies immediately dug up Chu Shuheng's past affairs and were shocked to discover that this usually upright and self-disciplined Lord Chu had already caused the deaths of two wives before he even reached forty. In particular, the cause of Du's death was suspicious, and the old story of the Chu family's hasty burial was brought up again for people to ponder.
Some even scoffed at Chu Shuheng, calling him nothing more than a poor scholar who climbed the social ladder by clinging to powerful connections. He first passed the imperial examinations thanks to the dowry of his first wife, a merchant, and later secured a position in the Ministry of Works through his father-in-law, the Du family. After the Du family declined, Chu Shuheng plotted to murder the Du family, hoping to find another marriage to help him advance his career.
The Du family believed this story without a doubt. On the day Chu Shuheng returned to the capital, they blocked him at the city gate and splashed him with dog blood.
The Dali Temple has not yet convicted Chu Shuheng, but the Du family's actions have undoubtedly confirmed the rumors that Chu Shuheng murdered his wife. For a time, everyone said that he was a despicable person who climbed up by stepping on his wife's corpse.
Even those high-ranking officials and nobles who were exposed by their wives for having extramarital affairs now straightened their backs and became eloquent, claiming that although they were promiscuous and philandering, they could not do the heinous things that Chu did, such as squandering his wife's dowry and harming people's lives.
When these rumors reached the inner palace, the young and beautiful Empress Dowager in Fengqi Palace fainted on the spot and did not attend court for a full half month. Discussions arose throughout the court and among the people, saying that the Empress Dowager's poor health was due to the stress and anxiety caused by the Chu family affair.
As autumn deepens, the century-old locust tree outside the Hall of Diligent Governance rustles down a carpet of golden leaves.
A eunuch dressed in brown palace attire carefully swept fallen leaves from the bluestone bricks with a bamboo broom. Loud arguments could be heard from the imperial study from time to time, but the young eunuch remained calm, as if he was used to such noise.
Lin Sizhou tried every means to collect evidence, hoping to take advantage of the collapse of the pagoda to bring down the Chu family. However, Chu Shuheng was a cunning old fox. Although he secretly formed a clique with Prince Anxian, he kept the accounts very clean, and no one could find any fault with him.
Seeing that Chu Hongtu could only be punished for embezzlement, which was of little use, Lin Sizhou was so anxious that he tossed and turned at night. Unexpectedly, a turning point came when a witness came to him with crucial evidence.
Lin Sizhou raised his ivory tablet above his brow and solemnly said, "Your Highness, we now have conclusive witness testimony and physical evidence to prove that Minister of Works Chu Shuheng poisoned his wife, Lady Du. Lady Du's clan has already signed and sealed a petition requesting that her coffin be opened for examination. I humbly request Your Highness to issue an edict to dismiss Chu Shuheng from his post as Minister of Works and order the Court of Judicial Review to conduct a thorough investigation."
No sooner had he finished speaking than other ministers voiced their objections:
"I believe that Lord Lin's actions are biased. The Minister of Works is a pillar of the court and should not be dismissed easily. Moreover, rewards and punishments should be clearly distinguished. Minister Chu has successfully completed the supervision of the canal construction and should be commended. He should not be punished for his son's failure to complete the task of building the pagoda."
"Indeed, the Ministry of Works is in dire need of capable personnel. Minister Chu is hands-on in all matters and has a good command of his staff. Such a person, with both virtue and talent, is truly a pillar of the Ministry of Works. We cannot find anyone more competent for this position than him."
Lin Sizhou narrowed his phoenix eyes slightly. He had barely begun his report when two cabinet ministers jumped out to defend Chu Shuheng. It seemed that this man's influence in the court was far greater than he had anticipated.
His knuckles, which were clenched tightly around the tablet, turned slightly white as he spoke loudly: "My lords, I am not implicating Minister Chu because of the matter concerning Young Master Chu. Minister Chu is diligent in his duties and beyond reproach. However, shouldn't he be punished for murdering his wife?"
Another cabinet minister pointed out: "According to the laws of the Great Qi Dynasty, a woman becomes a member of her husband's family after marriage and is included in his family genealogy. Therefore, the Du family has no right to open the coffin and examine the body. Even if the Minister of Justice of the Court of Judicial Review nods, without the signatures of Minister Chu and Prince Chu, the Du family's remains cannot be moved without permission."
Lin Sizhou's fair face flushed red with agitation. He said angrily, "How could a murderer voluntarily hand over evidence? You are protecting a criminal!"
He knelt down, lifting the hem of his robe, and pressed his forehead heavily to the ground, his tone earnest: "Your Majesty, I humbly request that you grant the Court of Judicial Review the right to exhume and examine the body. If... I have wronged Minister Chu, I am willing to take off this official robe to atone for my sins!"
Behind the rosewood desk with cloud and dragon patterns, the Regent sat upright in a grand chair, his fingertips slowly stroking a string of translucent Buddhist beads. The gilded incense burner with animal heads on the desk emitted wisps of smoke, which formed a hazy barrier in front of his handsome brows, making it impossible to see the thoughts in his eyes.
The cabinet ministers in the study exchanged glances, and suddenly understood. In recent days, they had argued many times, but they still couldn't determine the charges against Chu Hongtu, which showed that the regent was intentionally protecting the Chu family.
Alas, even heroes have found it hard to resist the charms of a beautiful woman!
Sure enough, the man calmly put on his Buddhist prayer beads and said in a cool voice, "This matter will be put on hold for now, and we'll discuss it another day!"
Lin Sizhou suddenly raised his head, a look of disappointment in his eyes, yet he still refused to give up. The pale blue veins on the side of his neck were clearly visible due to his agitation: "When I followed Your Highness to reorganize the Northern Court, I swore an oath to be willing to die for the country. Now, Your Highness has forgotten your promise, but I have not forgotten..."
He rose, removed his official hat, and declared resolutely, "Then today, I will use this burning passion to awaken Your Highness's ambition, which has been extinguished by the mortal world!"
After saying that, he stood up and rammed into the dragon pillar next to him.
Lin Mu had already received the Regent's signal, and his figure flashed out like lightning. Just as Lin Sizhou was about to hit the pillar, his hand had already grabbed his shoulder, and the crimson dragon horn on the dragon pillar barely grazed his forehead.
Lin Sizhou, who had been rescued, felt dizzy and felt a warm stream of blood flowing down his forehead. In a daze, he saw a fair and beautiful face.
The woman wore no makeup, her loosely tied black hair was unadorned, her eyes were clear, and her lips were a touch of vermilion, as pure as a plum blossom blooming on a branch after the first snow.
She held a silk handkerchief and gently wiped the blood flowing from Lin Sizhou's forehead. The handkerchief fell onto his face, carrying a faint fragrance.
Lin Sizhou thought his heroic act had moved the heavens, and that a celestial maiden from the nine heavens had sent him to ascend to paradise. It wasn't until he heard the words "Long live Your Highness" that he realized the woman in plain clothes before him was actually the little empress dowager he had always looked down upon.
A blush quickly rose to his pale cheeks: "This humble official greets Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."
Chu Yueyuan placed the silk handkerchief in Lin Sizhou's hand and said calmly, "Lord Lin is pressing the handkerchief against the wound. The Regent has already sent someone to the Imperial Hospital."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
She rose gracefully and walked past the cabinet ministers. Instead of sitting on the phoenix chair as usual, she stood elegantly to one side of the rosewood desk with dragon and phoenix patterns, her head slightly lowered, and bowed to the ministers in front of her.
The crowd's expressions changed, and they all knelt down in unison, crying out, "We are terrified!"
"My lords need not be alarmed; it is I who should be alarmed."
The young empress dowager's voice was clear and melodious. If the regent's voice was like ice that never melts, hers was like a gentle breeze in early spring, seeping into the ice without leaving a trace and turning the ice into spring water dripping from the eaves.
"I have not attended court for many days, truly unable to face you all. His ambition and greed have clouded his judgment, leading to the collapse of the Buddhist altar and the destruction of countless scriptures. Such heinous crimes deserve even a thousand cuts. However, he is, after all, my brother..."
Before the woman finished speaking, all the ministers present understood perfectly.
The young empress dowager's words about "putting righteousness before family" were still a bit naive. They were all too familiar with this tactic of punishing first and then forgiving later. They guessed that Chu Hongtu would be dealt with leniently next, with a salary reduction for reflection, and perhaps even his official position would not be demoted.
Lin Sizhou's face drained of color. He couldn't help but laugh at himself for having been momentarily flustered by the woman's feigned concern. Just as he was about to angrily throw away the handkerchief, the woman's tone shifted:
"Precisely because he is my blood relative, he should be punished severely without leniency!"
Chu Yueyuan's eyes darted around, taking in everyone's expressions. The gentle spring breeze in her dark eyes transformed into a chilling autumn, and she raised her voice:
“If I were to set such a precedent for favoritism today, then in the future all the high officials and ministers could use their official titles and ranks to atone for their crimes. At that time, the law would be rendered meaningless, the prestige of the nation would be lost, and what would sustain the Great Qi dynasty? Therefore, I have already discussed with the Regent that, effective immediately, Chu Hongtu will be stripped of his title as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice, and exiled to Beiting in the autumn to reflect on his mistakes for the rest of his life.”
Upon hearing this, the cabinet ministers present exchanged glances, all showing shock on each other's faces.
No... the Empress Dowager's act of sacrificing her own family for the greater good is actually for real!
The most surprised person in the Imperial Study was none other than Lin Sizhou. He had not yet recovered from his shock when he saw the Empress Dowager's clear, dark eyes fall on him.
"As for the matter of Lord Lin accusing my father of murdering his wife."
Chu Yueyuan frowned slightly and sighed softly, "Of course I don't believe that my father would murder the person he shares his bed with. How would that be any different from being a beast? It's just that the whole capital is in an uproar, and even I, living deep in the palace, have heard a lot of rumors."
An official immediately stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Those rumors outside are not worth Your Majesty's attention. I have ordered the Prefect of the Capital to thoroughly investigate the source of the rumors, and anyone who makes unfounded remarks in the streets will be imprisoned!"
The woman's eyes were slightly red, and she gently shook her head: "Rather than silencing public opinion, I would rather clear my father's name. Besides, Lady Du had done a good job in protecting the Emperor and should not be criticized after her death, so that she cannot rest in peace even in the afterlife."
She looked up at the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review and said, "May I ask, Lord Hu, as a woman of the Chu family, if I agree to open the coffin and examine the body to investigate the cause of Du's death, would that be considered a violation of the greater good?"
Lord Hu shook his head repeatedly: "Uh... of course not."
Chu Yueyuan nodded slightly, her tone calm: "In that case, the Dali Temple shall handle this case, and Chief Minister Lin shall be given the power of supervision. I hope that you two ministers will uphold justice and restore my father's innocence."
Lord Hu bowed and accepted the order: "This humble official will do his utmost to investigate the case impartially and with all his might."
Lin Sizhou was still in a daze, the dried bloodstain between his eyebrows standing out vividly on his fair face. It wasn't until a colleague secretly tugged at his sleeve that he suddenly snapped out of it, hurriedly straightened his clothes, and then bowed deeply to the young empress dowager, his movements and demeanor unusually respectful.
"I...obey your order."
————
One peach can suppress a hundred demons, and one owl can quell a thousand evil spirits.
For this reason, a large number of peach trees were planted in Dali Temple. The further one went towards the prison, the more lush the trees became. When the autumn wind passed, the withered leaves fell, leaving only a few dried peaches hanging on the branches, swaying gently in the breeze.
People believe that this kind of withered peach absorbs the essence of the four seasons and has the power to suppress evil spirits. It is also called owl peach. People often tie it with red rope and hang it under the porch to avoid the house being disturbed by evil spirits.
Deep inside the imperial prison, a ray of sunlight slanted through a narrow skylight, and two prison guards sat around a stove to keep warm.
"It's fucking cold! This godforsaken place, you feel ice crystals seeping into your bones after sitting here for a while!" The older, square-faced jailer gulped down a mouthful of strong liquor and grumbled as he complained.
Another young, round-faced jailer brought his hands close to the charcoal brazier and rubbed his stiff fingers: "Head jailer, I went to deliver food just now, and guess what? That Lord Chu who was brought in five days ago hasn't had a drop of water yet!"
"What kind of 'sir'? Once you enter this imperial prison, even the most unapproachable imperial relatives become prisoners, worse than dogs..."
"But jailer, that man is the Empress Dowager's father! Everyone outside is saying that when the Empress Dowager learned of Lord Chu's imprisonment, she not only cried for days but also fell ill from grief..."
The square-faced jailer downed two more mouthfuls of strong liquor, wiped his mouth, and scoffed, "Do you know who ordered our Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review to exhume the body and investigate the case?"
The round-faced jailer shook his head blankly.
The square-faced prison warden gave a mysterious smile: "It is indeed Her Highness the Empress Dowager!"
The round-faced jailer was so surprised he couldn't close his mouth.
The square-faced jailer looked around to make sure no one else was in the cell before lowering his voice and adopting a somewhat authoritative tone, as if he were a judge from the Dali Temple:
"Look, when that young master of the Tao family with a broken leg was imprisoned, the Tao family sent so many good things to the Dali Temple. And look at this Lord Chu after he came. Not to mention sending things, that woman in the harem didn't even send a word to Lord Hu. Tsk, this is no father and daughter... they are clearly mortal enemies!"
"You mean... the Empress Dowager deliberately imprisoned her father in the imperial prison?"
The round-faced jailer couldn't help but shudder, marveling at how such a ruthless woman could exist in the world.
The square-faced prison warden shook the wine jug in his hand, sighing deeply: "More than that! A normal person would starve to death long ago if they didn't drink a drop of water for five days. He survived on owl peaches that fell in through the window..."
"Owl Peach..." The round-faced jailer stuck out his tongue, an incredulous expression on his face. "That stuff is harder to swallow than swill. How did Lord Chu manage to eat it..."
"Hmph, I've seen plenty of people like him in the imperial prison. If he weren't hiding something, why would he be so suspicious, afraid to even touch his food..."
Suddenly, a noise came from outside the door, followed by steady footsteps on the stone steps.
The two jailers fell silent at the same time, looked up at the spiral stone steps, and were momentarily stunned.
Sunlight streamed obliquely through the skylight, and the woman stood in the dim light. The phoenix embroidery on her gold and red brocade cloak shimmered with light, as if purifying the dust floating around her.
She had a high ponytail, fair skin, red lips and white teeth, and especially her clear peach blossom eyes, which were beautiful and charming, yet deep within them was a dignified air, like peach blossoms blooming brightly on branches in March, beautiful yet with a proud spirit.
"Ahem, you two fools! Seeing Her Majesty the Empress Dowager arrive, why don't you quickly pay your respects!"
Eunuch Wang covered his nose with a handkerchief, his entire being revealing his disgust for the place, and scolded in a high-pitched voice.
The two jailers hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, saying in unison, "Your humble servants pay their respects to Your Majesty the Empress Dowager. May Your Majesty live a thousand years!"
"You may rise and disregard the formalities. I have come here today to see my father."
The young empress dowager's voice was clear, gentle, and captivating, stirring the heart and soul.
The square-faced prison warden, being more experienced, quickly said, "Lord Chu is in the innermost cell. I will take His Highness there immediately."
The round-faced jailer lay obediently on the ground, his lowered gaze catching sight of a gorgeous skirt fluttering past him, along with a delicate fragrance—the sweetest scent he had ever smelled in his life. He couldn't help but quietly raise his head.
Although he only caught a fleeting glimpse of the woman's profile, he was still so stunned by her beauty, like that of a goddess, that he forgot to breathe. How could such a graceful and dignified woman murder her own father! It must be that the jailer was drunk and confused, making wild guesses.
He didn't come to his senses until he was hit hard on the head.
"You bastard, look again and I'll rip your eyes out!"
Wang Gonggong glared coldly at the audacious jailer, took out a handkerchief to wipe his hands, covered his mouth and nose, and quickly caught up with the departing Empress Dowager, carrying the rosewood food box.
The imperial prison was built underground, and the cold, damp air was filled with the stench of blood, mold, and filth.
The iron gate creaked open, and Chu Yueyuan bent down and walked into the cell.
The cramped cell was no more than ten feet long and wide, with damp and cold walls that constantly seeped out a chill. A few dim rays of sunlight shone through the narrow sill window, and a moldy straw mat was laid on the floor, its edges gnawed and torn by rats.
Chu Shuheng, dressed in thin, tattered prison clothes and with shackles on his hands, sat on a straw mat with his eyes closed.
The jailer brought over a peeling mahogany table and two chairs, carefully wiping them clean before placing the food box brought by Eunuch Wang.
"You may leave now, Your Majesty. I wish to have a meal with my father."
Eunuch Wang removed the handkerchief he had been covering his nose, his face beaming with smiles: "This old servant will stay and serve Your Highness and Master Chu...Master Chu's meal."
Although the Chu family had fallen, the Regent's feelings for the young Empress Dowager had only grown stronger. As the chief eunuch who served the Empress Dowager closely, Eunuch Wang naturally saw this more clearly than anyone else.
At this time, anyone who dares to step on the young empress dowager is practically stepping on their own future fortune.
Chu Yueyuan said calmly, "I would like to have a private talk with my father. You should wait outside, Eunuch."
Eunuch Wang quickly nodded and bowed: "Then this old servant will wait outside for Your Highness. If Your Highness needs this old servant, just call out and this servant will rush in!"
The cell door closed, and the temperature inside seemed to drop even further due to the relationship between the father and daughter.
Chu Yueyuan's gaze swept over the pile of fruit pits and small skeletons in the corner. She calmly opened the food box and said in a light tone, "It seems that Father has not been doing well these days."
The enticing aroma of food wafted through the air, and several mice poked their heads out of their holes, squeaking as they sniffed the fragrance.
Chu Shuheng opened his eyes. His fall from Minister of Works to prisoner had aged him considerably. His temples were almost completely white, his eyes were sunken, and his face was haggard. His handsome face was filled with exhaustion and dejection.
He said in a hoarse voice, "I thought you were smarter than Shihua, but you are both so obsessed with love that you are equally useless."
Chu Yueyuan took out several dishes from the food box, a faint smile playing on her lips: "Father still believes that I abandoned the Chu family in order to become the empress of the new dynasty?"
She sighed softly, "I originally thought that the stupidity of that brother and sister stemmed from the Du family, but now it seems that Father is no less so."
Chu Shuheng fell silent.
He looked at Bu Cai's daughter; her features resembled his own by seven or eight points, but her tone and demeanor were more like that of the stubborn woman.
The shackles scraped against the ground with a harsh sound. Chu Shuheng sat down opposite him, looking at the table full of dishes. His throat bobbed, but he didn't touch his chopsticks.
Chu Yueyuan took the initiative to pick up the silver chopsticks and slowly ate all the dishes.
Chu Shuheng then picked up his chopsticks. Although he didn't exactly wolf down his food, his eagerness was evident, clearly showing that he had been starving during his time as a prisoner.
Chu Yueyuan picked up an exquisite bronze-gilded wine pot and poured herself a cup of wine.
She said calmly, "Yesterday was the Cold Dew solar term. The prisoners sentenced to exile by the Ministry of Justice have all been escorted out of the capital. Tu Hong is among them. He is young and strong, and I estimate that it will take him seven or eight years to reach Beiting. However..."
Chu Shuheng suddenly stopped swallowing his food, his eyes darkening.
"I recently offended the Tao family, and young master Tao happened to die suddenly on his way to exile. If the Tao family wants to hold me accountable for this, I'm afraid I'll suffer some hardship on my journey to Tu Hong..."
Chu Shuheng's eyes darted around, and he said with certainty, "You want to use Tu Hong to blackmail me into finding out who that bastard's biological father is?"
Chu Yueyuan picked up the wine pot, poured a cup of wine, pushed it in front of her father, and smiled gently: "Would Father care about Tu Hong's life?"
Chu Shuheng stared at the amber-colored wine in his glass for a long time before letting out a cold laugh: "If I were to speak, I'm afraid Your Highness would take my life immediately."
Chu Yueyuan seemed to have anticipated his decision, directly piercing his hypocritical mask:
"Father really only cares about himself. Are you living so cautiously, waiting for Prince Anxian to realize his mistake, take you out, and make a comeback?"
She chuckled softly, "Over the years, Father has served Prince Anxian tirelessly, offering advice and solving many thorny problems for him. I believe that in time, Prince Anxian will remember your kindness and spare no effort to rescue you."
There are currently three pieces of evidence conclusive to prove that Chu Shuheng poisoned the Du family: first, the witness testimony of Steward Sun; second, the physical evidence found by Chu Yueyuan; and third, the relentless pursuit of Chu Shuheng by the Du family in the court.
If Prince Anxian were to personally intervene, he would most likely be able to persuade the Du family to drop their accusations against Chu Shuheng, and the case of his wife's murder would then be dropped.
Chu Shuheng gazed at his daughter, his eyes revealing undisguised admiration, and said gently:
"Yuan'er, I can give you another chance. As long as we, father and daughter, are of one mind, we can not only take the Phoenix Seal in the harem, but also the Imperial Seal on the Dragon's Desk!"
When the man spoke of his meticulously planned grand ambitions, his dim eyes suddenly shone with an unusual light, and even his tattered prison clothes seemed to transform into a brand-new crimson official robe.
But in Chu Yueyuan's eyes, he was more like a madman obsessed with the wine of power.
"Father, you have schemed and plotted to get to where you are today, hurting so many of your loved ones. Have you ever felt any remorse?"
Chu Shuheng narrowed his eyes and sneered: "Has Pei Muwei never harmed anyone in his current position? Those who achieve great things have hearts of stone. So-called affection is nothing more than a means for them to win people's hearts. If Yuan'er thinks she can grow old with such a person, that is the greatest naivety!"
"He cherishes you now because you are the emperor's mother and he needs you to balance the political situation in the court. If one day he finds out that the emperor's biological father is someone else, what do you think he will do?"
Chu Shuheng stared at his daughter, whose face was growing paler, and slowly raised the corners of his lips, saying meaningfully, "You have been hiding the emperor's true identity from him all along. In the end, you have never truly trusted him, have you?"
Chu Yueyuan's eyes flickered slightly, and her slender fingers gripping the gilded jade wine cup tightened involuntarily.
Her father, having spent so many years scheming in the court, was indeed quite capable; in just a few words, he discerned her sensitive and suspicious nature.
She grew up in barren and impoverished soil, and sensitivity and suspicion are the fruits she reaped in the process.
However, it was never her fault.
She looked up at the man who bore a striking resemblance to her, her eyes icy, and her red lips parted slightly: "Back then, Father raped Mother, using the blood and flesh in her womb to secure his own future. Is this the method you call the way of those who achieve great things?"
Chu Shuheng's smile suddenly froze on his face, the shadow cast by his brow bone swallowing his eye sockets, making his deep-set eyes appear even more sinister.
His voice was hoarse: "Did your mother tell you?"
"On the contrary, when my mother was alive, she never said a bad word about you to me..."
Chu Yueyuan thought for a long time, until the moment the pagoda collapsed and she held Xiao Yun in her arms, she finally understood why her mother had kept it from her.
Her mother was protecting her.
Her mother didn't want her to bear this sin from birth, so she used lies to support her broken childhood, making her believe that her father was just indifferent by nature, not a beast.
If her mother were still alive, she would definitely continue to keep it from her until she came of age safely, got married happily, and found a good man to entrust her life to.
Her mother used her own fragmented life to build her a life that, though imperfect, was full of her love.
Chu Yueyuan's eyes were bloodshot. She stared at the culprit in front of her and said, word by word, "Father, you are not only a murderer, but also a shameless rapist."
When Chu Shuheng saw the undisguised contempt and disgust in the woman's eyes, it was as if he were seeing the person he least wanted to see through those eyes.
The mother and daughter's expressions and tones were so similar; they both looked down on him!
Suddenly having his long-hidden secret exposed, his throat went dry, as if he had swallowed a handful of sand. The dry, stinging pain spread from his throat to his chest. He grabbed the wine glass in front of him, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.
"Your mother and I are husband and wife! She should obey me!"
The veins on his neck bulged, and his voice was hoarse: "She knew perfectly well how hard it was for me to get to that position, yet for the sake of a vow of 'unwavering devotion,' she was willing to betray me and destroy all the hard work I had put in my life!"
“A true man should not be bound by love. After I achieved success, I gave her a hundred times more gold and silver than her dowry, but she was not satisfied. She would rather return to Yangzhou and remarry a country bumpkin than be my legal wife.”
When Hu was determined to leave, Chu Shuheng considered it a great humiliation. He didn't think he was wrong; he blamed Hu for being ungrateful.
If it weren't for the affection they shared as a poor couple, she would have ended up like Madam Du.
Chu Yueyuan stared at the agitated and arguing man. Her gaze was unusually calm, without a trace of emotion, as if she were looking at a stranger.
The cell was cold and damp, but Chu Shuheng's forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat. The more he talked, the thirstier he became, so he grabbed the gilded bronze wine pot and drank it all in one gulp. The wine washed away the guilt and shame that had been growing in his heart.
The fierce anger surging in his eyes gradually subsided, the hideous wrinkles on his face faded, restoring his refined scholarly appearance, with only a cold smile remaining at the corner of his mouth.
"It seems that my daughter and I are destined to be irreconcilable enemies. I hope you will not regret your choice today in the future."
Chu Yueyuan chuckled softly. This was the first time she had shown a genuine smile since entering the Imperial Prison. Her red lips curved slightly, and her voice was clear and gentle:
"My father was so naive to think he could still get out."
Chu Shuheng's expression suddenly changed. At this moment, he finally felt a sharp pain in his heart. The air in the cell seemed to thin out, making it hard to breathe. A look of fear flashed in his eyes.
He glanced at the dishes on the table and muttered, "Impossible, you've eaten all of this, including the wine..."
Chu Yueyuan picked up the bronze-bodied gilded wine pot that he had drunk from, and gently pressed her thumb on the red agate stone on the lid. Pale yellow wine flowed out of the spout again.
"The Nine-Bend Mandarin Duck Pot contains a hidden universe, capable of dispensing two different types of wine. I drink peach blossom wine, while Father drinks..."
She looked up at him, her gaze suddenly sharpening: "This is the poisoned wine that I specially prepared for Father."
Chu Shuheng's face was filled with horror. He clutched his chest, slowly bent down, and curled up on the dirty ground, staring intently at the exquisitely embroidered phoenixes on the woman's dress. He managed to squeeze out words from his throat:
"If you kill me, you'll never know who the father of that bastard is."
Chu Yueyuan sat expressionless, her thick eyelashes casting a shadow beneath her eyes. Her tone was calm: "Father is dead. I will feel more at ease keeping the secret by myself."
Chu Shuheng writhed on the ground with difficulty, using his last bit of strength to reach out and grasp the hem of her skirt, a hoarse plea escaping his throat: "Yuan'er, give me the antidote... I'll tell you who that person is right away..."
Chu Yueyuan lowered her eyes and stared at the crumpled fabric. With a gentle tug, the crimson skirt slowly slipped from his fingers, as if drawing away the last vestige of life from him.
Her indifferent face gradually turned into a blurry white light in his unfocused pupils.
Chu Shuheng strained to look up at her face, momentarily forgetting the excruciating pain in his body and who she was. His vision gradually blurred, and he could only see the woman's face bathed in a brilliant light, so pure and beautiful.
The wind in Jiangnan is warm and gentle.
The woman, dressed in coarse linen clothes, had a bright smile. She carried a bamboo basket and walked lightly across the stepping stones on the stream towards him. The basket did not contain bright red apricots, but rather a book on mathematics that she had traded apricots for from a bookstore.
The light in his eyes gradually faded, and a strange, serene smile appeared on his face as he murmured:
"Hu Niang, you've come..."
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