The night breeze carried a chill, seeping into every nook and cranny.
The courtyard named "Bamboo Dew" deep within Chengyuan Garden is now immersed in silence.
The wind swept past the eaves, rustling the leaves softly.
Qin Zhaoyue lay on the green tiles of the main house roof, her little head resting on her hands, gazing up at the starry sky.
The night sky was high and vast, a deep, clear blue.
A round, icy disc hangs in the mid-sky, casting a cold, merciless silver glow that is almost harshly bright.
The stars were pitifully few, timidly clinging to the distant edge of the sky, their light dimmed by the domineering moonlight.
Qin Zhaoyue held up a white porcelain wine pot. The strong and mellow aroma of the aged Nu'er Hong wine, which had been stored for more than 20 years, overpowered the faint sweet fragrance of osmanthus in the courtyard.
I tilted my head back, and the spiciness went straight down my throat, burning all the way down, like swallowing a writhing fire snake.
This was the second pot of wine, and the effects were fierce and heavy. My head started to spin, and the cold moon rippled with a blurry halo.
Before he knew it, the wine had slipped down his chin and smeared onto his robe.
Even though there was no sound, it seemed as if I could hear a "tick-tock, tick-tock" sound.
Suddenly, I caught a strong whiff of blood, mixed with an indistinguishable smell of old, filthy blood or a musty, decaying odor.
A pair of eyes, veiled in crimson, forcefully pierced the thin veil woven by the intoxication, their clarity breathtaking.
The small, damp, perpetually dark cell, with its stone walls covered in dark brown grime...
The air was thick and sticky, like solidified grease, mixed with the sweet, pungent smell of rust, pus, blood, and rotting flesh...
The rough wooden table was covered with crisscrossing scars, and on it sat heavy clamps, thin steel needles, and a leather whip with barbs...
And that wooden bucket that held the last few drops of blood as it struggled to drip from the rack...
Tick-tock...
Tick-tock...
Details that were deliberately ignored suddenly came to mind under the hazy effects of alcohol.
Qin Zhaoyue's jaws seemed to clamp onto something, and with a sudden burst of strength, everything in front of her vanished.
My fingertips went numb, and a chilling shiver shot up my spine to the top of my head.
My stomach was churning, and the nausea I was trying to suppress, mixed with the strong smell of alcohol, rushed straight to my throat.
She suddenly turned to the side, her elbow slamming heavily against the cold tile with a dull thud.
A violent cough tore at my throat and chest, choking me until tears streamed down my face.
My throat was burning, but I couldn't suppress the nausea that surged up from the depths of my internal organs, a feeling that was rusty, sweet, and fishy.
Damn you, God!
She finally managed to stop coughing, but her eyes welled up with tears.
If you haven't seen or thought about certain things, you can live your life peacefully and without guilt.
But she happened to see it, and she couldn't help but think about it.
If the vast capital city of Fengjing, right under the emperor's nose, is like this, what about other places?
"Turning the pages of history, every page is inscribed with benevolence, righteousness, and morality;"
I looked at it carefully for half the night before I could see the other words between the lines.
The entire book was filled with two words: cannibalism!
The hard tiles hurt her palms, so she released the wine pot from her hand.
It rolled down the roof and came to a stop with a thud when it hit the ridge.
The wine, aged for over twenty years, gushed from the spout, meandering across the dark blue-green tiles and silently sliding toward the edge of the eaves.
Drop by drop, it fell into the deep darkness of the courtyard below.
The early autumn night breeze, though cool, couldn't dispel the heavy, sticky, and sultry heat that clung to me, carrying the smell of blood.
Huff... huff...
Qin Zhaoyue lay back down heavily, as if all her bones had been drained, limp and unwilling to move.
She wasn't exactly a good person, nor was she a bad person; she was just an ordinary person.
Seeing stray cats and dogs makes me feel sad, so I go to the supermarket to buy some sausages, break them up, and feed them.
When they encounter difficulties, I will occasionally lend a helping hand if I can.
When I see elderly people selling vegetables and fruits by the roadside, I often buy some.
But after finding half-rotten fruits and vegetables at the bottom of the bag when I got home, I never bought them again.
After a long day of hard work, the oxen and horses squeezed onto the bus and subway, and by sheer luck, managed to snag a seat.
I'll give it to the elderly person once or twice, and sometimes I'll even pretend to be asleep with my eyes closed.
Or they might be staring intently at their phone screen with their head down, pretending not to see the toes of cloth shoes appearing in front of them.
She's just an ordinary person.
When poor, one should cultivate one's own virtue; when successful, one should benefit all under heaven.
She used to think she was poor. Although she had a prestigious status, she had no money, no connections, and, oh, a bad reputation.
And now? Still poor? It seems not so poor anymore, so…
Qin Zhaoyue looked up at the sky, her eyes still heavy with sleep.
Unbeknownst to her, her breathing gradually evened out, but as her consciousness sank into the abyss, her lips parted slightly:
"A few people, it won't cost much money..."
The soft murmurs were carried away by the night wind, and the shards of ink silently flew onto the roof.
She bent down and gently lifted her prince into her arms. The sleeping Qin Zhaoyue instinctively snuggled into the warm embrace.
Sui Mo lowered his head, looking at the childlike sleeping face, a sour feeling welling up in his throat.
She heard that murmur, and her eyes sparkled with tiny points of light. For some reason, she felt a pang of heartache.
He leaped down and carried the child to the bed in the bedroom.
Dou Zhan stood in the shadows under the eaves, watching the door close silently, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
"Tap...tap...tap..."
The monotonous sound of a wooden clapper drifted from afar, penetrating through layers of rooftops and courtyard walls, faintly wafting towards us...
Autumn is in full swing in the North.
The night breeze after the start of autumn had already stripped away the last trace of summer heat, blowing sharply across Qin Zhaoqiong's cheeks and brushing against the armor of the more than a thousand iron cavalry behind him.
The column moved forward in silence, like a surging torrent of iron in the dark night, their armor gleaming with a cold, hard luster in the moonlight.
With only a day's journey to the northern frontier and the moon and stars shining brightly, Qin Zhaoqiong decided to march at night and find a place to camp after crossing Yanlingjin.
However, before they reached the riverbank, the sky suddenly darkened, and then a torrential downpour began.
Dense raindrops poured down, pounding heavily on the armor, and the world instantly became a chaotic mess.
The torrential rain didn't resemble autumn rain; it looked more like a summer shower.
With visibility poor, Qin Zhaoqiong ordered the car to slow down, when suddenly a loud bang was heard ahead.
Before long, the scouts returned with their reports.
He was already soaked to the bone, water droplets dripping from his hair and beard, his voice piercing the rain, tinged with rapid breathing:
"Your Highness! The stone bridge ahead is broken!"
Qin Zhaoqiong's brows furrowed suddenly, and without saying a word, she abruptly pulled on the reins and spurred the car forward.
Her bodyguards followed her closely, surrounding her as she charged forward in the torrential rain.
Upon reaching the riverbank, they reined in their warhorses and indeed sensed the broken bridge.
The broken section of the bridge is jagged like a saw, lying across the turbulent, muddy torrent.
It is certain that this road is blocked and we must take a detour.
"Retreat!" Qin Zhaoqiong wrapped his voice in his true energy, and the howling sound, which drowned out the wind and rain, reached the army formation behind him.
Although he had advanced two levels in a row, thanks to his rock-solid foundation, his realm had already been stabilized.
"Set up camp 500 paces from the riverbank."
"yes!"
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