74. The Chasm
◎Bending the law for her
Chapter 74
Blame her? How can this be called blame?
He was simply bewildered and terrified. He had written the criminal code himself, had apprehended and tried countless criminals, and yet he had never expected to end up breaking that code himself.
But what could he do? Others always thought he was smart, but he was always flustered and at a loss when it came to love.
The woman in front of him was none other than his wife, whom he had personally prayed for after going through three letters and six ceremonies. She was the only woman he loved, and the one who risked her life to shield him.
He is a mortal, with emotions and desires. As Zhao said, he also has a selfish side and cannot sacrifice his relatives for the sake of justice.
But deep down, he felt ashamed in front of the people of the world and ashamed in front of the laws he had written for such actions.
Ji Ci's eyes darkened slightly, and he said, "I said that as long as you wake up, I will not pursue the case of Susu and her maid."
Jiang Qiuye was delighted when she heard this. She rushed forward, hugged his waist tightly, buried her face in his chest, and raised the corners of her lips quietly.
He was momentarily distracted, feeling the fullness in his arms. Then he raised his hand and gently patted her back, his voice level, "But only this once."
Jiang Qiuye's heart was beating so fast that she didn't dare to look at him. She just nodded with a sullen face.
Then I heard him continue coldly: "Ye'er, blocking the sword is also a life-saving grace. I have never been able to repay you for saving my life. I promised that I will only have you in this life, and I will definitely do it. I don't ask you to be a saint in everything, but you must not lie to me again in the future. You must be a good person. Do you understand?"
She slowly loosened her hands, raised her head and saw Ji Ci's serious gaze. She was stunned for a moment, and finally avoided his sight, twisting the quilt with her hands and nodded, "I promise you, husband. I will never lie to you again and be a good person."
When she looked up again, her eyes were slightly red, and she said in a sobbing voice: "As long as my husband does not hate me and forgives me, I will do whatever my husband wants me to do."
Ji Ci's heart trembled violently. He smoothed her hair, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, leaned over and hugged her again, but he didn't dare to use too much force, for fear of accidentally breaking her wound or hurting her.
"Ye'er, luckily you're okay this time. Don't do this again in the future."
Several times.
She had disregarded her own safety, having stood in the fire at Wangyou Tower and the Lotus Palace, and now, shielded him from the sword. Perhaps he shouldn't have doubted her confession in the carriage. If she truly had no feelings for him, why would she have risked her life time and time again?
Her black hair fell across his chest, and he could smell the faint scent of medicine mixed with the fragrance of flowers, which made him hold his breath. How could anyone resist her like this?
God knows how terrified he had been during her coma. This was the same fear he had felt before his mother's death, as if his blood had frozen to its freezing point.
Jiang Qiuye subconsciously raised her eyes, gradually becoming lost in thought. She raised her chin, gently pressed her lips against his dry lips, and whispered softly, "Husband... whatever you say, Ye'er will agree."
Ji Ci lowered his eyes to look at her slightly wet eyelashes, closed them briefly, then opened them again. He suddenly raised one hand to control her head and kissed her back forcefully, curling her tongue and sucking it violently. There was a hint of bitter medicine, but more of a sweet and delicious flavor that washed over him once again. He hadn't kissed her like this in so many days, and he missed it terribly.
He held her with his other hand but controlled himself and didn't dare use force. She trembled slightly in his arms and couldn't help but call out "Brother Jian Xi" again.
The depression and anxiety of the past few days gradually disappeared with this moment of kiss. At one moment, it seemed that as long as he could hear her calling him softly in his ear, everything else didn't matter.
It's just a lie, so what if I bent the law for her?
He was truly afraid, afraid that she would leave him completely, and that he would be left alone in the world. Apart from that great cause, what else could keep him alive?
As he looked at her sleeping on the hospital bed, he knew that he could never let go. He couldn't let go of this woman who made him so conflicted.
Today the warm sun shines gently, and the flowers in the garden are in full bloom.
…
Ji Ci moved all his piles of official business into his bedroom, and stayed with her every day as she recuperated, personally changing her dressings and cleaning her wounds. He didn't resume attending court until she had completely recovered and regained her original energy.
He brought Jiang Qiuye back to the palace and met with the Empress Dowager Zhao. In addition to the couple, Zhao Wan'er also served Zhao in Shoukang Palace.
Today, the Queen and all the concubines in the harem came to Shoukang Palace for a short gathering, and were then sent away by Zhao.
Zhao smiled and praised Jiang Qiuye for his bravery and fearlessness in the crisis, and rewarded him with a large amount of gold and silver.
Afterwards, he chatted with Ji Ci again and asked about the progress of the investigation into the assassin's identity. However, Ji Ci was also very troubled because the assassin was too sharp and had erased all traces, leaving no clues.
Because of the implementation of new policies in recent years, he has many enemies, and any noble family may want to kill him.
The group had lunch together in the palace. Jiang Qiuye glanced up and saw Zhao Wan'er across from him, still dressed simply, with a jade hairpin adorned with orchids. She was well-spoken and handled her affairs with ease. She was close to Zhao, yet not overly so as to appear too intimate to outsiders. She also didn't engage in much conversation with Ji Ci in her presence, only occasionally glancing at them with a smile.
After lunch, Ji Ci stayed in the palace and went to Taiji Hall to meet the emperor, while Jiang Qiuye went back home by carriage.
She didn't know why, but every time she saw Zhao Wan'er, she always felt uncomfortable. Zhao Wan'er was too perfect in every aspect, and her actions were so measured that she felt she couldn't match her.
Ji Ci returned very late tonight. Jiang Qiuye took a quick shower and then lay down on the bed. But an hour passed, and she still couldn't fall asleep. She got up once, asked Uncle Fu, and learned that Ji Ci was still in the palace, then returned to the bed.
It was not until late at night that the door was gently pushed open. Jiang Qiuye's ears moved, and she immediately opened her eyes and sat up. Seeing that it was Ji Ci who had returned home, she was happy, "Husband——"
Ji Ci paused, turned around and came to the bedside, rubbed her head, and looked down at her, "Why haven't you slept yet? Didn't I ask someone to leave a letter for you? Don't wait for me?"
Jiang Qiuye took his hand and shook it gently, saying coquettishly, "After coming back, Ye'er missed her husband so much that she couldn't sleep at all."
He couldn't help but chuckle and said, "It's only been half a day since we last met. I'm going to take a shower first, so you don't need to wait on me. If you're tired, just rest first."
After saying that, he went straight to the bathroom. Since he came back, Jiang Qiuye became more energetic. She sat on the bed, quietly listening to the sound of water in the bathroom. When she noticed that he had finished washing and walked out, she immediately closed her eyes and pretended to fall asleep.
Ji Ci turned off the lights and climbed into bed, leaving the room dim. After a moment, he leaned toward her, gently kissing her from her forehead downwards. He grasped her wrists firmly, pressing them to her sides, and then, in a adoring kiss, covered her entire body.
He didn't say a single word during the whole process. He just looked into her affectionate peach blossom eyes in the dark, sweat dripping from her forehead, and silently and violently ended this long-lasting love with her.
After the two separated, he lay back down on the outside of the bed and fell asleep, motionless.
Jiang Qiuye looked at his outline for a long time in the dim moonlight before realizing that he was sweating. He got up and went to the bathroom to clean up.
When she returned to the bed, he was still asleep, his position unchanged. She fumbled her way up to the inside of the bed, but she became increasingly restless and couldn't fall asleep.
Ever since she woke up from her coma, Ji Ci had been just as kind to her, even better than before. He was extremely patient in everything he did, personally changing her dressings, coaxing her to take her medicine, and staying by her side throughout her recovery.
He still liked doing such intimate things with her, and would kiss her seriously, without being impatient or anxious, so as not to make her feel uncomfortable.
However, only she knew in her heart that a huge gap seemed to have suddenly appeared between them, and something was different from before.
But she couldn't tell what it was?
She finally drifted off to sleep, but woke suddenly in the middle of the night. She turned her head and saw the bed beside her was empty. She glanced at the clepsydra; it was still early, too late for court.
She casually put on a cloak and went outside, only to find the study dimly lit by candles.
When he reached the door and peeked through the crack, he saw Ji Ci flipping through a book with a blank expression on his face. Upon closer inspection, he discovered it was the "New Laws of the Great Jin Dynasty" that he had personally drafted, and that he was flipping through the original manuscript.
Jiang Qiuye's hand on the door frame froze. At that moment, she seemed unable to take another step. Before her stood a huge barrier separating him from her, difficult to break through.
At this moment, she no longer had the courage to go up to him and call him "husband" or ask him to go to bed early. She could only quietly return to the bedroom, lie down on the bed and continue to pretend to sleep.
She didn't fall asleep in the second half of the night. After a long time, she heard him quietly return to the room. His movements were very light and small, as if he was afraid of waking her up. He lay back on the bed and fell asleep again.
…
If she is faced with something clear and with a tangible outcome, she can plan each step rationally and control things to the outcome she wants.
But what she faced now was an existence that was so inexplicable that no matter how hard she tried to get to the bottom of it, she couldn't use her previous rationality to make plans.
This indescribable emotion continued until Jinhong brought a new antidote to Jiang Qiuye.
Jinhong watched her take the antidote and swallow it, unable to help but say, "The man replacing Zhang Yi is called Wang Fu, and he's also hiding in Jingshan Academy. He said the Pavilion Master gave him the antidote this time because the princess had completely gained his trust by blocking the sword for Prince Qi. If you don't hand over the information next time, there will be no antidote."
Seeing she didn't respond, Jinhong bit her lip and continued, "I heard from Wang Fu that he was once a classmate of Zhang Yi. Zhang Yi has no wife or children, only an elderly mother in the remote borderlands of Li State, over fifty years old, who is still waiting for him to return home. I'm afraid she still... doesn't know that her son died in Jin State, and even his body can't be brought back to his ancestral home."
Jiang Qiuye paused after hearing this, glaring at Jinhong with a sarcastic smile, "So you're blaming me for killing Zhang Yi?"
"I dare not." Jinhong shook her head.
"You should know better than me why Zhang Yi died. If it weren't for your sudden hypocrisy and letting those three bronze ghosts go, Zhang Yi's mother, who is over fifty years old, might have been able to wait for her son to return."
Jinhong's back stiffened, she choked and stopped talking.
Jiang Qiuye stared at the person in front of her and laughed secretly. Everyone was mocking her viciousness and killing innocent people. Ji Ci was fine, but now even the same kind of person in front of her was mocking her.
She stood up to change her clothes, then turned and said, "Come out with me."
After Jinhong answered "yes", she immediately stepped forward to help her change her clothes. Then the two of them left the palace and followed her to an uninhabited temple on the outskirts of the city.
Jinhong was deeply impressed by this dilapidated temple. When she first suffered from the poison after arriving in Shengjing, she thought she could not get the antidote, so she ran here and hid.
After the two of them stepped into the dilapidated temple together, Jinhong was puzzled and asked, "What are we doing here?"
"What?" Jiang Qiuye sneered suddenly, his back to her. Then he turned around and looked her up and down. "Jinhong, I really didn't expect that you really wanted me to die?"
The author has something to say:
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2024-07-17 06:00:00 and 2024-07-20 06:00:00~
Thanks to the little angel who cast the mine: 1 floating white;
Thanks to the little angel who provided nutrient solution: Xu Yiyu (1 bottle);
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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