Chapter 107
The late night wind blew over the wall with the fragrance of osmanthus. Luo Sanrong looked at the round moon in the sky that looked like it was splashed with silver, and his fingertips unconsciously stroked the half-broken jade pendant in his sleeve.
The rustling sound of fabric rubbing against each other suddenly sounded behind him. Luo Sanying was about to unsheath the dagger at his waist, but when he turned around, he bumped into a pair of familiar starry eyes.
Ji Zeming's dark robe was stained with the coolness of the night dew, and his hair was slightly messed up by the wind. Seeing her alert look, the corners of his lips that were about to rise were retracted.
"Luo Rong, you have to go somewhere with me." His voice was a little deeper than usual, and his eyes swept across the jade pendant in her hand, then quickly moved away.
Luo Sanying took half a step forward and quietly sheathed her dagger: "Where are you going?" Before she finished her words, five or six men in black with black veils covering their faces suddenly jumped out from the shadows on both sides. The cold light of the swords on their waists reflected the moonlight, and they surrounded her in the center in an instant.
As the cold blade pressed against her neck, Luo Sanrong maintained a questioning posture. She stared at Ji Zeming's back, the hem of his dark robe motionless, as if the knife at her neck had nothing to do with her.
The man in black pushed her forward, the blade scratching her skin with a slight pain, and every step he took crushed the silver frost laid by the moonlight.
Ji Zeming's footsteps suddenly stopped, the sound of his boots crunching over gravel resounding through the silence. "Sir?" The black-clad man's bewildered call had barely escaped his lips when he spun around, his sword clanging from its sheath, its icy gleam piercing the leader's face.
"Is your Excellency mad?" The man in black blocked the attack with his blade, his voice cold beneath the black veil. "How dare you disobey the Prime Minister's orders? Can you bear the charge of releasing a wanted criminal?"
Ji Zeming sneered, and the sword tip suddenly accelerated: "What do you think?" The sword light cut through the night like lightning, and entangled with the man in black.
Luo Sanrong was taken outside the circle and watched him fight five people alone. His black robe fluttered like a butterfly in the swordplay, but it was gradually soaked with sweat and his movements slowed down a bit.
When one of them pierced his chest with a dagger, Luo Sanying felt the moonlight in front of him suddenly shatter.
Ji Zeming cut the man's wrist with his backhand, leaning on his sword to barely stand, blood gushing from the wound, spreading a large dark red patch on his chest. The men in black saw the situation and scattered, and he finally couldn't hold on any longer and fell heavily to the moonlit ground.
"Sir!" Luo Sanrong rushed over and hugged him. The moment her fingertips touched the wound, they were soaked with scalding blood. She frantically pulled down the hem of her tunic and pressed it against the wound. The fabric was instantly soaked with blood, which dripped down through her fingers, forming a small pool on the ground, reflecting the incomplete moonlight.
Ji Zeming leaned on her shoulder, his breathing hot and rapid. He raised his hand, wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes with his fingertips, and forced a smile on his lips: "Don't cry. My mother said that men who make women cry are the most useless."
"It's such a long time, and you're still saying this!" Luo Sanrong's cries were shattered by the wind. She pressed her fingers against the bleeding wound, her knuckles turning white from the force. "Ever since I met you, you've always tried to make me laugh. But, I'm sorry, I've hurt you time and time again..."
A mouthful of blood suddenly flowed out from the corner of Ji Zeming's lips, staining her clothes red.
He looked at her tear-soaked cheeks, his gaze gradually unfocused, yet he still tried to focus on her face, as if to carve that look into his bones: "You have always been the painting I most want to paint... That Mid-Autumn Festival Lantern Festival, you stood in the shadows of the lanterns in your moon-white skirt, and I thought... if only I could paint that moment."
He slowly raised his hand, his fingertips touching her hair before it fell, exhausted. Blood foam spilled from the corner of his lips, and every breath was a crackling sound. "If only... we had met sooner... You must be happy."
The last word dissipated in the wind, and his head rested lightly on the crook of her neck, without any further movement.
Luo Sanrong shook him desperately, and her tears fell on his blood-stained clothes, mixing with the blood and making it impossible to tell the boundary.
She called out "Sir" over and over again, her voice hoarse and almost broken. Only the gradually cooling body in her arms and the fragrance of the sword tassel lingering on her neck reminded her that this farewell under the moon was forever.
——
Inside Changle Palace, gilded bronze lamps illuminated the halls as bright as day, the subtle crackle of the burning wicks remarkably clear in the silence. On the rosewood table, a rain-soaked, celadon-glazed teacup emanated curls of steam. Prime Minister Ji Ke, dressed in a deep purple brocade robe, sat across from Ji Zelan with a serene expression.
Ji Zelan raised her hand and brushed across the delicate lotus pattern on her cuffs, her voice trembling with an imperceptible tremor: "I just want to have a son. Even if he is not my biological child, he can give me someone to rely on in this deep palace." She lowered her eyelids, and her long eyelashes cast a light shadow under her eyes, concealing the complex emotions in her eyes.
Ji Ke picked up the teacup and took a sip. The warm tea slid down his throat, but it failed to warm his icy heart. He nodded slowly, his tone unrecognizable as either emotion or anger. "It's good to have ambition. In this palace, how can you survive without ambition? But too much ambition can easily lead to disaster."
Ji Zelan's body stiffened slightly, and after a pause, she looked up at Ji Ke with a hint of desire in her eyes. "But the biggest reason is that I want to gain your approval. I want to be a useful force for the Ji family. I want others to know that I am not the dodder you say I am. That's why I worked so hard to get pregnant with your majesty's dragon seed."
"Bang!" Ji Ke slammed the teacup down on the table. The celadon and the wooden table made a harsh sound, and a few drops of tea splashed out and landed on the white tablecloth, leaving dark marks.
His brows furrowed, his voice lowered, yet it carried a powerful warning: "I've reminded you time and again to be careful with your words and actions in the palace! The matter of dragon seed is already sensitive, and you still dare to speak so recklessly now? Do you think your death isn't coming soon enough?"
Ji Zelan was intimidated by his aura, but still leaned forward unwillingly, her hands slightly clenched, and her tone was pleading: "No matter how you look at me, whether you think I am scheming or unscrupulous, have you ever felt for a moment that I am your daughter?"
Upon hearing this, Ji Ke curled his lips into an icy sneer, his eyes sharp as knives, piercing Ji Zelan directly: "Surely these words don't come from the mouth of a queen who would abandon even her own child for power? Don't forget, if you hadn't taken the initiative to give up that child, why would you be so worried now?"
Ji Zelan seemed to have lost all her strength. She slumped back into her chair, the light in her eyes gradually fading. She nodded dejectedly, her voice tinged with self-mockery, "Yes! Now that you mention it, it seems I really am your biological daughter. Deep down, I carry the Ji family's coldness. If anyone becomes a stumbling block, no matter who they are, they will abandon them without hesitation. In this respect, we are truly alike."
Ji Ke picked up the teacup and took another sip of tea, as if trying to calm the turmoil in his heart.
His eyes were indifferent, and his tone was icy without a trace of warmth: "Want to gain my approval? You are not qualified enough. Don't forget your own origins. You were born a prostitute, and you can only reach your current status thanks to the support of the Ji family. You just need to guard your position as queen well, and with a grateful heart, always work for me and the Ji family. It is enough. Give up other thoughts as soon as possible."
Before he could finish his words, the hall door creaked open with a creak. A chill wind, carrying fallen leaves, rushed in, causing the candlelight inside to sway violently. Ji Ke's expression remained unchanged, and he sat still, as if he had already anticipated the intruder. He slowly raised his eyes and looked towards the door, without a trace of panic in his eyes.
His Majesty was wearing a bright yellow dragon robe, his face was ashen, and he was holding a piece of bloody silk tightly in his hand. The blood on the silk had dried a little, but it was still shocking.
He strode up to Ji Ke, slammed the silk cloth onto the table, and angrily demanded, "Prime Minister, are these the facts? The late queen's death was indeed related to you! How dare you deceive me for so many years!"
Ji Ke's eyes fell on the piece of silk, his pupils suddenly shrank, and his face turned pale in an instant.
The scene of ten years ago flooded back into his mind like a tide: that day, upon hearing that the late queen was planning reforms that would affect the fundamental interests of the Ji family, he stormed into Ningfang Palace and engaged in a heated argument with the late queen. It was from that day that he resolved to eliminate the late queen, this thorn in his side.
He clearly remembered that in order to wipe out the roots, he sent people to kill the most capable personal nanny of the late queen. He thought that all evidence could be destroyed, but he did not expect that the nanny had already hidden the late queen's suicide note.
Over the years, he had sent people to search secretly for her, but there was no news. Now, looking at the silk in His Majesty's hand, his heart sank, knowing that the situation was hopeless and nothing could be salvaged.
Ji Ke opened his mouth and was about to say something in defense when he heard hurried footsteps outside the palace, accompanied by the guards' panicked shouts: "Prime Minister, something terrible has happened. Young Master Ji is in trouble."
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