"My lord, please don't say that."
Zhong Yi stared intently at Gu Qingyan, the boy he had liked from the first moment he saw him. Gu Qingyan possessed an aura that commanded respect, and at the time, Zhong Yi had thought he was an enemy rather than a friend.
"I have not done anything to benefit the Great Yu." When the Great Yu was established, he was already very old and unable to take up a sword and go to the battlefield. "Your Majesty has generals such as the Marquis of Dingyuan available in the court, so I am at ease."
"Welcome, Lord Zhi."
Hearing Zhong Yi's voice, Yingzhi, who was guarding outside the door, hurriedly went inside. "Did the Marquis call for this servant?"
"Eunuch Yingzhi, please escort the Emperor back to the palace."
He had a premonition that he was about to give up.
"I..." Upon hearing Zhong Yi's words, Gu Qingyan's eyes immediately filled with tears. "I am the true Son of Heaven, and I will protect the old Marquis right here."
"If Your Majesty were here, I would die with my eyes wide open in disbelief."
In Daning, there is a folk custom that when an elderly person is about to pass away, the youngest children in the family should be kept away temporarily, or their eyes should be covered, for fear that ghosts might haunt the young children.
"Ayan, you should go back now."
Gu Lin's voice rang out, and Gu Qingyan turned his head to look at Gu Lin, pouting, clearly heartbroken.
"We mustn't let Marquis Yongyi be criticized by the world." Gu Lin nodded. "I'll take care of things here."
After giving Zhong Yi one last deep look, Gu Qingyan left the Yongyi Marquis's residence.
The deaths of Gu Heng and the others barely stirred any emotion in Gu Qingyan's heart; before this, there had only been...
Recalling some past events, Gu Qingyan closed his eyes listlessly.
Half an hour after Gu Qingyan left the Yongyi Marquis's residence, white banners were hung up, and all the civil and military officials in the capital hurriedly dressed and headed towards the Yongyi Marquis's residence.
A great general has finally come to an end.
Evening, at the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence.
"Axi, let's go see your father-in-law tomorrow."
Looking at Bai Qian, who remained silent in the candlelight, Jiang He pursed his lips. His father-in-law no longer led troops into battle; he spent his days tending to flowers and birds in the mansion and occasionally visiting the military camp.
"I'm also very worried about Dad."
Bai Qian hugged Jiang Yao, "Yao Yao, shall we go see Grandpa together tomorrow?"
"Okay, Yao Yao misses Grandpa too." After saying that, Jiang Yao snuggled into Bai Qian's arms. Perhaps sensing Bai Qian's bad mood, Jiang Yao was unusually well-behaved tonight.
"Don't worry, Father-in-law, you still have us, and Yaoyao too. You're in good health, so everything will be alright." Jiang He patted Bai Qian's hand. Even he was heartbroken by the passing of Marquis Yongyi, let alone his father-in-law.
"I'm fine, go to sleep."
......
Since Zhong Yi's passing, a sense of sadness has enveloped the capital city recently. Coupled with the cold weather, the lingering festive atmosphere of the New Year has also dissipated.
Zhaoning Palace.
"How has His Majesty been these past few days?"
"Your Majesty, there have been many court affairs these past few days. His Majesty seems to be doing much better than before, and he's going to bed earlier at night." Yingzhi was still somewhat pressured facing Jiang Yu, so he kept his head down as he spoke.
"That's good. All of you who serve the Emperor need to be on your guard lately. Although there are many matters of state to attend to, you must not overwork yourselves."
"This servant understands."
Jiang Yu watched Ying Zhi's departing figure, sighed inwardly, and looked at Gu Lin beside her, "Ayan has been hiding in the Taihe Hall for several days now, aren't you going to go and check on him?"
“Ayu, it’s normal for him to be sad about Zhong Yi’s death, but isn’t it strange that he’s been like this for several days in a row?”
Gu Lin put down the book in his hand, a dark glint flashing in his eyes.
"He must have thought of that person."
Jiang Yu sighed softly. Qin Wei... even in death, he left an indelible mark on A Yan's heart. He betrayed A Yan, yet he also protected A Yan.
“In this situation, it’s no use for any of us to persuade her.” Gu Lin walked up to Jiang Yu and patted her hand reassuringly. “Don’t worry, Ayu, I’ll have dinner at the Taihe Hall tonight.”
Jiang Yu looked down at her bulging belly, then at Gu Lin beside her, and said, "In the end, it was us who wronged Ayan all those years ago."
So even though Qin Wei was a traitor, he was indeed the only one who protected A Yan and stayed by A Yan's side in the years before, and even his death was to take a knife for A Yan.
The assassination was meticulously planned by Ayan, so in a sense, Ayan killed Qin Wei with his own hands.
Evening, at the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
"Father, what brings you here?"
"I'm afraid you might do something rash." Gu Lin said irritably. Even though he was worried about Gu Qingyan, seeing Gu Qingyan's pale face made Gu Lin feel a little angry.
"What could I possibly be upset about?" Gu Qingyan said stubbornly. "Father, you don't need to worry about me. I've just been busy with official duties these past few days. I'll come to see you and Mother once I've finished dealing with these matters."
"What time is it? Haven't we eaten yet?" Gu Lin clearly didn't believe Gu Qingyan's nonsense. "Yingzhi, tell someone to serve the meal."
At the dinner table, Gu Qingyan clearly had little appetite, but Gu Lin had a hearty appetite.
"Does the food in the Hall of Supreme Harmony suit Father Emperor's taste so well?" Gu Qingyan raised an eyebrow. "Or is Father Emperor tired of the food in the Palace of Zhaoning? I need to tell Mother Emperor."
"You brat, you have no manners!"
Gu Lin tapped Gu Qingyan on the head, and Gu Qingyan immediately covered his head and frowned in dissatisfaction. "Father, you came here to comfort me, not to bully me."
"Who said I came here to comfort you, kid?"
Gu Lin slowly picked up another piece of food with his chopsticks. "If you are grieving for the passing of Marquis Yongyi, there is no need for me to comfort you. Time will heal all wounds."
"But if you're a traitor, pshaw, why should I comfort you?"
“He’s more than just a traitor.” Gu Qingyan’s reaction was particularly intense, but after meeting Gu Lin’s gaze, Gu Qingyan lowered his head somewhat dejectedly. “Am I really that useless, being sad because of a traitor?”
"He was not just a traitor."
Gu Lin looked at Gu Qingyan with a gaze he couldn't understand. "Even I can't say that Qin Wei was just a traitor, because he castrated himself to come to your side and protected you for nine years."
“I killed him with my own hands, I hate him.” Gu Qingyan’s eyes were a little red. “I deliberately set up the assassination plot, but he still took the knife for me. He died.”
After Qin Wei died, he would think of Qin Wei very occasionally. Sometimes when he looked at Ying Zhi, he would also think of Qin Wei.
"On my deathbed, I told him that he was not worthy to call me Ayan."
But in the years before he met his mother, he truly only had Qin Wei by his side.
The death of Marquis Yongyi reminded him of what happened back then.
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