71. Death
◎If I could die in his arms, I would have no regrets in this life◎
Chapter 71
"Ye'er—" Ji Ci paused for a moment, then immediately stepped forward and kicked the assassin in the chest. The assassin fell backward, and the sword was pulled out. At this moment, dozens of palace guards, having received the signal, arrived late. The assassin looked around, gave up the assassination, and fled directly over the wall.
"Chase them!" Ji Ci held the fallen Jiang Qiuye in his arms and gave orders to the guards around him. After hearing this, the guards left only two of them and headed in the direction of the current situation.
Jiang Qiuye felt her body gradually getting colder, her breathing becoming more and more difficult, and her blood continuously leaking out. She lay in Ji Ci's arms, but she was still extremely cold.
So, is this what death feels like?
Without any hesitation, Ji Ci picked her up horizontally and took her to the horse. He asked the other two to have one take care of Tianqu while the other went into the palace to call the imperial physician. Then, he rode away quickly towards the clinic.
The spring rain was unusually heavy. Jiang Qiuye huddled in his arms, completely powerless. The powder on her face had long been washed away by the rain, revealing her true appearance, which was even paler, with her lips completely devoid of color. The horse jolted her, and she felt his body trembling uncontrollably. She looked up at her and saw that his eyes were a little red.
She called out softly and forcefully, "Brother Jian Xi, are you okay?"
While Ji Ci was concentrating on riding his horse, he looked down at her and his voice trembled: "Ye'er, don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you."
She shed two tears of her own, mixing with the rain, making it impossible to tell how many tears she had shed. The sword had just struck her heart. After so many years of living with death, this was the first time she had felt death approaching her.
Of those she had killed with her own hands, some looked terrified before dying, some begged for mercy cunningly, some were so angry that they tried to fight back, and some fell to the ground before they could even express any emotion.
She couldn't empathize with others, believing only that everyone would eventually die. She didn't understand the concept of love in this world, not even the love between parents and children, or the affection between husband and wife.
She only knew what kind of appearance and personality others liked, so she disguised herself as that. No one disliked her when they saw her mask, not even the aloof Ji Ci. It was too easy to gain someone's love, though she didn't know why. Over time, she sometimes really believed that she looked like that.
So what kind of person is she? She seems to have no idea.
He only knew that his true self seemed emotionless, murderous, psychopathic, extremely dirty, and disgusting. No one except a psychopath would like this face.
Now, facing death, she did not have the same complicated emotions as those people. She only felt that the world was unusually quiet, her heart was very calm, and the noisy ears finally quieted down. It seemed that the only thing left was the person holding her tightly in his arms, his heavy breathing, and the faint smell of bergamot.
The strong wind and heavy rain slapped her cheeks, but her eyes did not move, staring at his handsome jaw.
At the very least, she had experienced the feeling of being pampered by such a wonderful person, which was not a loss. If she could die in his arms, perhaps she would have no regrets in her life.
It's just a bit...reluctant and nostalgic.
"Jian, Jian Xi, brother."
"I'm here." Ji Ci glanced down at her, who was becoming increasingly pale. Both of them were covered in flowing blood. "What's wrong? Ye'er, don't be afraid."
She was not afraid. In fact, she had never been afraid of death. She just wanted to call him again.
"Ji, Ci."
"I am here."
"Husband, Jun."
"Don't be afraid, Ye'er. Your husband is always here."
That's great...
Jiang Qiuye's consciousness gradually faded, and he soon fell into complete darkness.
Blood continuously flowed from her heart, staining the hibiscus jade pendant on her waist red, and even the rain could not wash it away.
Only the cold raindrops were hitting her face. The sky was dark, without a trace of light. Only the occasional loud thunder flashed the world and startled the fragile wild flowers on the roadside.
…
The court struggle intensified, and the pro-war faction, led by Tang Taifu, gradually won the support of most court officials. Finally, the emperor appointed Huo Yong as the General of Huaihua, commanding 50,000 troops to repel the Li army that was harassing the border.
It's clear that the emperor had changed his initial stance, favoring peace, but the majority favored war. A temporary concession might have emboldened the Li army. The emperor ultimately agreed to send troops, but he entrusted the battle to the Huo family, demonstrating his trust in his relatives.
After the court affairs were discussed, everyone had their own ulterior motives.
The Emperor looked at Taifu Tang and asked, "Prince Qi hasn't attended court for three days. I heard he was assassinated on his way home, and his wife took the sword for him. How is his wife doing now?"
Imperial Tutor Tang stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, Princess Qi remains unconscious. The Imperial Physician has examined her. The sword missed her heart by half an inch, a truly fatal mistake. While it missed the heart, it damaged her lungs. The Imperial Physician says that as long as she wakes within a week, she'll be out of danger."
The emperor sighed and said, "Thinking of the deep love between them, Prince Qi is a pillar of the Jin Dynasty, and the princess is willing to risk her life for him. She deserves to be rewarded. Send someone to send the palace's finest medicinal herbs to see if they can use some of them."
"Yes, I, an old minister, would like to thank Your Majesty for his grace on behalf of Prince Qi." After paying a great salute to the emperor, Taifu Tang announced the adjournment of the court.
After getting off the platform, Ji Kang called out to Tang Taifu, "Taifu."
"This old minister pays his respects to His Majesty Prince Liang." After hearing this, Taifu Tang turned around and bowed to him.
Ji Kang immediately lifted him up. He narrowed his eyes and asked, "No need to be so polite, Grand Master. I just want to know about Princess Qi's news. She hasn't woken up in three days now, and there are only four days left. Has her injury improved in the past three days?"
In the court, the emperor asked simple questions. As his aunt, Princess Qi naturally could not ask more questions in public, so she could only come to ask Tutor Tang.
Imperial Tutor Tang sighed and said, "To be honest, the princess is seriously injured. I heard from the imperial physician that her condition has not improved in recent days, but has worsened. The princess is kind, and I hope that the Buddha will protect her and that she can survive this ordeal."
"Thank you, Taifu, for telling me. Princess Qi is my aunt and she takes good care of me. If there is anything I need, please let my uncle know and I will definitely help."
"Thank you, Your Highness Prince Liang. I will take my leave."
Ji Kang nodded, with a sinister look lingering between his brows.
Princess Qi was kind? How could that be? Would the Buddha bless someone as vicious as her? He didn't know.
But why did she suddenly use her body to block the sword and save Prince Qi? Could it be that she really has feelings for the emperor's uncle?
He lowered his eyes and took out the small jade hibiscus hairpin from his arms, gently stroking and playing with it, feeling extremely puzzled.
Could someone like her be truly sincere? If so, that would be bad.
…
After leaving the palace, Taifu Tang got on a carriage and headed for Prince Qi's mansion.
Meeting with Ji Ci in the study, she informed him of the morning court proceedings and sighed, "Although His Majesty has backed down and is willing to send troops to punish the Li army that has been harassing the border, he couldn't have sent Huo Yong. The Empress's relatives are becoming increasingly powerful, and some anti-Huo family forces are gradually turning to Concubine Shu. I'm thinking that perhaps we could lend a hand and form a counterweight to the Empress."
Ji Ci shook his head, put down the memorial he had just read, and said, "Although Concubine Shu has no maternal family, she does have a distant uncle who holds the fifth rank in the court. If he helps Concubine Shu, wouldn't that be establishing another faction of relatives in the court? Then it wouldn't just be a factional struggle, but a struggle for the throne between the King of Liang and the King of Wei. The King of Wei is naive and simple-minded, and he loves to play around. He is really not a good choice as the crown prince."
"Are we just going to watch the Huo family grow bigger and bigger in the court?" Taifu Tang's eyes were filled with anxiety.
Ji Ci was calm. "The biggest hidden danger right now is the Li Kingdom. The root of their harassment of the border is testing, hoping to start another war. Right now, whether it's the imperial relatives or the eunuch party, the top priority is to resist the Li Kingdom. If the Li Kingdom succeeds in conquering Shengjing again, where will the political parties be? Where will the throne be? So this matter cannot be rushed. We must not allow our own forces to be depleted by factional strife, allowing the Li Kingdom to reap the benefits."
"I understand. It's better to let Jian Xi know." Tutor Tang nodded with a smile.
He looked across at Ji Ci, who looked extremely haggard, as if he hadn't rested for days. Thinking of the emperor's attention in the court during the day, he said, "Today, the emperor asked about the princess's recent situation and awarded her with many of the palace's finest medicinal herbs. The princess is blessed by heaven, so Jian Xi doesn't need to worry too much."
"Thank you, Master, and I thank His Majesty on your behalf. I will give the herbs to the Imperial Physician to see if they can be of any use to me."
"By the way, was the assassin caught that day?"
Ji Ci shook his head. "The assassin ran very fast and planned his retreat route in advance. I just don't know who he is. I have many enemies, so it's really hard to find out who the assassin is."
"Yeah." Tang Taifu saw that he was not in the mood and didn't know how to comfort him. He felt a little embarrassed and scratched his chin. "Jian Xi, have you eaten well these days? You look..."
Ji Ci was stunned, remembering that he had only eaten two meals in the past three days. He really had no appetite and sometimes ate some dragon beard candy she had made.
"Teacher, don't worry. I haven't had much rest recently, but I've been eating well."
After seeing off Tang Taifu, Ji Ci realized how tired he was. Instead of going to his bedroom, he returned to his study and sat down to finish processing the several files Tang Taifu had sent him.
He had always known in his heart that his wife did not have much love for him in her heart. Even when she confessed her love to him in the carriage that day, although he was shocked, he was mostly unconvinced.
In his opinion, she has always been smart and eloquent. Perhaps she told him that she loved herself in order to retain his protection and the honor of being the Princess of Qi.
But when she pushed him away and blocked the sword with her body, his heart trembled with regret.
Maybe she really loves herself.
He regretted it in that instant. He regretted arguing with her in those final moments, regretted not going home to be with her for days. Unease and fear filled his heart. He didn't want her to die, didn't want her to leave him. Even though she had committed an unforgivable act, he had to admit that he didn't have the ability to punish her, and he wanted her to live well.
When he learned she'd killed Susu out of jealousy, he was shocked, devastated, and conflicted. He'd killed enemies on the battlefield, interrogated prisoners, and his hands were stained with blood. But as someone who held sages as his guiding principles, he couldn't accept killing innocent people for such ridiculous reasons.
However, she almost died, with the sword only half an inch away from her heart, and she is still in danger.
If she really died, what would he do? How would he cope? With no more light in his life, would he continue to struggle like before, dragging his sick body through life?
At this moment, he only hoped that she could wake up. As long as he could wake up, he was willing to abandon his past sainthood, lower his bottom line once again, and even sacrifice his own life.
She just grew up crooked. He could change her character back to normal as long as she was alive.
When he finished processing the last file, put it down, frowned, and was about to go back to the dormitory for a nap, there was a hurried knock on the study door and it was pushed open. It was Mingyue.
Her eyes were red and she gasped, "Your Highness! The princess is in trouble! She started to have a fever after Your Highness left the bedroom. We called the imperial physician next door, but her breathing is getting weaker and weaker, and even the imperial physician can't help."
Ji Ci suddenly couldn't breathe. He immediately stood up and sprinted towards the door, angrily saying, "Such an important matter, why didn't you tell me earlier!"
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