Gan Qiongying's entire body was stiff; it was as if she suddenly didn't know how to hug someone.
Gan Lin held her tightly in his arms, his arms supporting them, causing them both great pain.
But Gan Lin didn't let go, she kept calling out to Gan Qiongying, and kept saying that she wasn't in pain and that it was okay.
They said they would soon be free from this kind of life.
Gan Qiongying slowly raised her head from Gan Lin's embrace, looked at Gan Lin with her scarlet eyes, opened her mouth for a long time, and finally uttered a hoarse sentence.
“I…killed him.”
"I'm going to kill him!"
"I'm going to kill him—"
Gan Qiongying became more and more agitated as she spoke, her voice growing louder and louder, and her gasps growing louder. Gan Lin dared not disobey Gan Qiongying at all, and followed her words, saying, "Okay, okay, let's kill him, let's kill him!"
"I'm going to kill him..." Gan Qiongying's voice trailed off until she could barely utter a sound, leaving only gasps for breath.
He kept muttering, "I want to kill him..."
In the end, Gan Qiongying only remembered that everything in front of her began to distort, and Gan Lin's face was like a curtain being closed, slowly turning into darkness in front of her.
Gan Qiongying didn't know when she fainted; she was caught in one terrifying nightmare after another.
She dreamt that Ganlin was writhing and struggling among those insects, and she dreamt that no matter what she did, she was unable to save Ganlin.
I dreamt of the ugly faces of the Regent and the Empress Dowager, and I dreamt of the original plot where Gan Lin was ultimately killed in a fire, while I was dragged to my death by a horse.
She dreamt that her legs felt like they weren't her own, and that she was desperately pleading with Zhongli Zhengzhen, saying that she could be torn apart by five horses or hung on the city wall.
Her head could be made into a ball for nobles to play with, if only Zhongli could truly spare Ganlin.
All I ask is that Zhongli can truly rescue Ganlin from the fire.
All she asked for was for Gan Lin to live.
Zhongli Zhengzhen promised her that if she could run back to the capital alive, he would save Ganlin.
However, the horse was too fast, and the road from the outskirts of the city to the imperial city was too long. Gan Qiongying ran until she vomited blood, but she still couldn't see the gates of the imperial city.
She was dragged behind the horse, her whole body burning. She even hallucinated that she was in the fire, as if she were sharing the same feeling as Gan Lin.
She didn't make it to the capital in the end; her body was covered in blood, and she died without a complete corpse.
And Gan Lin... her beloved child, ultimately perished in the fire.
In my dream, many images were unclear, and the images jumped around very quickly, often failing to connect properly.
But when Gan Qiongying was in the midst of it all, every scene felt so real. The smell of the green hills, the soil, and the stench of blood that she could smell was so real that it made her chest ache.
When Gan Qiongying woke up again, she was lying in bed, and it was already dawn outside.
Gan Lin was dressed in court attire and wore an imperial crown with tassels that jingled as the bells of galloping horses in a dream.
The moment Gan Qiongying opened her eyes and saw Gan Lin clearly, tears involuntarily streamed down her cheeks.
Gan Lin hadn't slept all night, and although it was time for court, he hadn't gone yet, waiting for Gan Qiong to wake up.
"Imperial Physician Xiao! She's awake!" Gan Lin saw Gan Qiongying open her eyes and immediately stepped aside, allowing Imperial Physician Xiao to come forward and remove the needles.
Gan Qiongying was so pricked that she looked like a hedgehog and couldn't move at all. Only when the needles were almost all removed was she finally able to move and reach out her hand towards Gan Lin.
Gan Lin immediately stepped forward. He was clearly wearing an imperial dragon robe, but he knelt down in front of the bed with a thud, grabbed Gan Qiongying's hands and pressed them against his face.
"Sister, please don't scare me anymore! Sister...you really scared me to death."
After Gan Qiongying fainted last night, Gan Lin immediately summoned the imperial physician. Gan Qiongying had been having a nightmare, repeatedly calling out throughout the night in a muffled voice. Physician Xiao said that Gan Qiongying had been overstimulated.
Extreme emotional fluctuations can damage the heart and blood vessels. If this state of being in a daze continues, there is a risk that it may develop into hysteria.
Physician Xiao did not dare to make the matter sound too serious, but it was not uncommon for concubines in the imperial harem to suddenly fall ill overnight.
Those people's symptoms were exactly the same as Princess Duanrong's symptoms last night.
Gan Lin stayed by Gan Qiongying's side all night and had already imprisoned Eunuch Li, who had revealed the matter.
Physician Xiao performed acupuncture all night long, and as dawn approached, he finally managed to wake Gan Qiongying up.
Moreover, Gan Qiongying did not show any signs of madness after waking up, which greatly relieved Physician Xiao.
"Go to court." Gan Qiongying's first words were not to bring up yesterday's events, nor did she reassure Gan Lin that she was alright.
Instead, he acted as if he had just taken a nap, even smiling at Gan Lin, wiping away Gan Lin's tears, and saying with a smile, "Didn't you say it didn't hurt? You're not young anymore, a man doesn't easily shed tears..."
"Go to court. I promised the prince consort last night that I would return today, and I will be back in a little while..."
After Gan Qiongying finished speaking, she closed her eyes. Gan Lin wanted to ask something else, but soon a little eunuch quietly came in from the side door, glanced at Gan Lin, and urged him on.
Gan Lin could only stand up first, intending to have a proper talk with Gan Qiongying when he returned.
Gan Lin went to court, and Gan Qiongying quickly got up.
She did not shy away from medical treatment and drank all the medicine prescribed by Physician Xiao in one go. She also ate all the breakfast that Gan Lin had prepared for her.
After Gan Qiongying finished dressing, Gan Lin had not yet left the court. Gan Qiongying asked her maids to escort her out of the palace, but these maids, having heard the emperor's instructions, all tried to dissuade her from staying.
However, since they served the emperor closely, they all knew how Gan Qiongying behaved in front of him and dared not insist on stopping her.
Therefore, Gan Qiongying had already left the palace before Gan Lin finished his court session.
The princess's carriage was already waiting at the gate. Manyue hadn't left the palace gate since last night. Originally, Lihua was also waiting here, but this morning someone suddenly sent Lihua a message saying that the Regent's Palace had made some moves.
It's about those people Gan Qiongying had previously placed in the city, the ones used to intimidate and deceive the Regent and the Empress Dowager, who have been investigated.
Li Hua rushed over without stopping early in the morning. If he were to show up, things would be difficult to handle, so Li Hua disguised himself as Zhongli Zhengzhen and planned to shift the blame to the other side.
Let the Regent investigate Zhongli Zhengzhen. Although the Regent and Zhongli Zhengzhen have never clashed directly, it doesn't matter even if the Regent finds out something.
Jinchuan has been recuperating and strengthening its military over the years. The regent still wants to ascend the throne and dares not easily touch the hostages of Jinchuan.
Therefore, when Gan Qiongying came out of the palace, only Manyue and her men were waiting for her at the door.
Gan Qiongying did not return to the princess's residence immediately. Instead, she had the coachman drive the carriage to wait at the road that the court officials would inevitably take after court.
Gan Qiongying was blocking the Regent.
She needed to figure out some things; she needed to figure out exactly when this abuse had started.
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