Chapter 51
Ye Qian's eyes flickered slightly.
"Back then, I thought you were a bastard who would ruin other people's wishes at will." Shen Zhiqing said indignantly, as if she felt indignant on her part for what she had done back then.
"I..." Ye Qian opened his mouth, his expression downcast, but he didn't offer any consolation: "He really is a bastard."
This time it was Shen Zhiqing's turn to shake her head: "No, it's Ye Qian."
“I should hate you,” she said, raising her hand to her chest, closing her eyes to feel carefully as she continued, “but I know there is no hatred here.”
“Sometimes I also feel that this is a betrayal of myself,” Shen Zhiqing laughed frankly, “but the human heart is inherently uncontrollable.”
Since that incident, there has been an invisible barrier between Shen Zhiqing and Ye Qian. Finally, today, Shen Zhiqing is determined to open up about everything.
"You are a very, very good person. So good that even so, I can't convince myself to hate you."
She turned to look at Ye Qian: "Do you understand? I don't hate you, so you don't need to feel sorry for me."
Ye Qian stared blankly, somewhat bewildered and at a loss.
"You see, you're always like this."
Shen Zhiqing laughed again: "So careful, afraid of saying or doing something wrong."
“You never act like yourself in front of me,” Shen Zhiqing continued, staring into his eyes, “So how am I supposed to truly get to know you?”
"I..." Ye Qian wanted to say something, but when he was about to speak, he realized that what Shen Zhiqing said seemed to be completely correct, so he lowered his head and gradually laughed.
"Wouldn't it be better if we were both more open and honest? I'll continue to be Shen Zhiqing, and you'll continue to be Ye Quchi."
"Okay." Ye Qian responded and looked up again, then stared intently into her eyes and asked, "Do I still have a chance?"
"What? What opportunity?"
"A chance to like you."
Shen Zhiqing choked, it wasn't exactly a calm and collected approach...
Just as she was brainstorming and didn't know what to say, Cheng Junshi suddenly pushed open the door, timely interrupting the awkward atmosphere between them.
Shen Zhiqing suddenly stood up and strode quickly to Cheng Junshi: "How is it?"
Cheng Junshi shook his head: "He's still not awake."
His gaze was indifferent, and then he continued, "I have to go."
Ye Qian came over at this moment, and Shen Zhiqing did not dare to turn her head to look at him. Fortunately, he did not say anything else, as if it was just an illusion and nothing had happened between them.
"Don't worry, he'll be fine," Ye Qian said slowly.
He didn't know why he said that to Cheng Junshi, but he vaguely felt it was necessary to comfort him.
Cheng Junshi nodded, said nothing, and walked away.
It was a long time after he left that Tang Qi finally regained consciousness from his unconscious state.
When he opened his eyes, he still saw Ye Qian and Shen Zhiqing.
“Congratulations, you’ve died again,” Shen Zhiqing said.
He gave a bitter laugh: "Thank you for your blessing."
Tang Qi was completely exhausted and even had difficulty looking up at people. Seeing Tang Qi's eyes darting around, Ye Qian said, "He's gone."
Tang Qi lowered her eyes and gave a soft "hmm". Seeing this, Ye Qian added, "He's been waiting here for a long time, but you haven't woken up yet."
“Oh, I’ve delivered your message,” he continued.
Unexpectedly, these words made Tang Qi look up again: "Hmm? What message did I ask you to convey?"
Now it was Ye Qian's turn to be stunned. So this guy didn't even know what he had said?
So, was that a subconscious remark by Tang Qi?
"It's nothing." Ye Qian didn't intend to dwell on it.
"Did you enjoy it?" Shen Zhiqing sat to the side, sipping tea and looking up at Tang Qi.
Tang Qi's lips were bloodless, but she still laughed and said, "That felt good."
"You really have a death wish." Shen Zhiqing slammed his teacup on the table, his brows furrowed as he said to him, "I remember telling you not to do anything stupid, not to go looking for death. Tang Qi, do you really think you won't die?"
Shen Zhiqing's voice was clearly angry, and Tang Qi remained silent, only bowing his head. In this situation, Ye Qian had no choice but to step in and smooth things over: "You were indeed too impulsive this time, Zhong Le. Have you considered the consequences?"
"What about the consequences? If he had thought of anything at all, he wouldn't have done something like this today. I think he's played the hero too many times. He'll only stop when he's about to bring about his own demise."
Shen Zhiqing's voice was still indignant, but Tang Qi spoke up in silence: "I've thought about it."
The air was heavy for a second before Shen Zhiqing smiled, her eyes still cold: "Should I praise you for not being afraid of death?"
"Qingqing," Ye Qian called to him.
Shen Zhiqing glanced at Ye Qian, curled her lip, stood up, and said, "Fine, I won't say anything more."
She didn't even glance at Tang Qi before opening the door and walking out: "Out of sight, out of mind, I'll leave."
Only after Shen Zhiqing left did Ye Qian slowly speak: "Qingqing just—"
"I know," Tang Qi said in a muffled voice.
"So, did you leave yourself a way out?"
"No," Tang Qi replied frankly.
“Between us, you were right.” Tang Qi suddenly gave a bitter laugh. “His Majesty knows.”
“He always knew.”
Ye Qian remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "If His Majesty hadn't relented today, you would have truly died, Zhong Le. Don't you regret it at all?"
“I regret it,” he said to Ye Qian indifferently, “I regret that I shot the crossbow bolts too slowly and didn’t kill them.”
"you!"
Ye Qian almost wanted to grab him by the collar and beat him up, but he held back and said angrily, "You should thank yourself for shooting too slowly. Once this arrow was released, there would be no turning back no matter what."
After a long silence, Ye Qian continued, "You can't stay in Jingzhou any longer. Once you can get out of bed, Qingqing and I will send you away. You can decide where to go yourself."
Tang Qi lowered his eyes and thought for a while before finally speaking: "Go to the Northern Frontier, I want to go to the Northern Frontier."
"Are you crazy?" Ye Qian exclaimed in shock. "You're still not planning to give up?"
There are former subordinates of Tang Mian in the northern border region.
“I have given up. Under this emperor, Lang Cejun will never be exonerated, and Deng Ning and Wu Shunyi will never be executed.”
Therefore, he is going to northern Xinjiang.
"Zhong Le!" Ye Qian strode up to Tang Qi and said, "Can you please stop being crazy?"
"You've done enough to overturn Wolf Strategy's verdict. No one will blame you, and no one can blame you." Ye Qian's voice was somewhat anxious: "If you hadn't been lucky this time, you would have been dead by forty strokes of the cane! Zhong Le, just pretend you're really dead this time, okay? You've paid your dues, and you don't owe anyone anything!"
Tang Qi still stared calmly into his eyes: "But I'm not dead after all."
"If I go too late, I can't go down to see them empty-handed."
Ye Qian stood there, stunned.
"And do you really think that if things continue like this, the Shuo Dynasty will have a good ending?" Tang Qi still stared intently at him: "His Majesty can tolerate their collusion with Nanzhou to harm Lang Ce, do you think there won't be any consequences?"
“The Wolf Strategy is just the beginning,” Tang Qi’s eyes flashed. “He will not keep anyone who poses a threat to him. The more afraid he is, the more he will fear them. If he can kill the first one, he can kill the second. Deng Ning and Wu Shunyi are not good people either. If the court is full of people like them, the Shuo Dynasty is in danger.”
“In recent years, the Southern Continent has risen, and the Northern Dynasty has also developed rapidly. The Shuo Dynasty is no longer the same as it was more than 20 years ago. The surrounding countries are eyeing us covetously, while His Majesty is still lying on his bed dreaming of the Spring and Autumn Period.” Tang Qi continued, “I have fought against the Southern Continent, and their equipment is far superior to ours.”
“I have spoken to His Majesty about this matter, but His Majesty believes that the Southern Continent is too weak to be a threat.” Ye Qian’s eyes also flickered.
"It's been years since the Southern Continent's military strength was minimal. Does he know nothing about how many battles the Southern Continent has won, or how much money and manpower it has accumulated?" Tang Qi said emphatically, "He knows! He just doesn't want to believe it."
"Since His Majesty ascended the throne, how many laws have been implemented? Decrees are changed every day, and more and more rules and regulations are added, but what is the result? There has been no effect, and only the people below suffer."
"I will continue to offer my advice to His Majesty," Ye Qian said.
"He wouldn't listen!" Tang Qi's voice rose as well: "Why do you think he killed my father? It was because my father submitted a memorial criticizing His Majesty for changing his orders frequently, leading to clashes in military regulations, a lack of laws and reason to rectify the situation, and frequent chaos within the military camps. He wrote to His Majesty to stop chasing after the status quo and to delve into the reform of military strategy. It was for this that my father finally angered His Majesty. On the third day after the memorial was submitted, my father was sent on a southern expedition and never returned."
Tang Qi's voice was almost tearful: "He won't listen, he won't listen!"
With a creak, the door was pushed open.
"So what do you want? To rebel?"
Shen Zhiqing stepped in.
"How many lives do you have left to die?"
Tang Qi looked up at her and chuckled softly, "Don't slander me. Just how rebellious am I in your eyes?"
“Rebellion is only a last resort. Things shouldn’t be that bad yet. If I were to actually rebel, it would only be after I’ve lost all hope for the Shuo Dynasty.” Tang Qi paused, then continued, “I plan to go to the Northern Frontier to find Sheng Xiaoxin.”
"The First Prince?" Shen Zhiqing was stunned. "You plan to persuade the First Prince to return to the palace?"
Tang Qi hummed in agreement.
"The eldest prince has been stationed in the northern border for nearly several decades. Will he return so easily?"
“He guarded the border to protect the country and ensure its peace. Given the current state of the nation, he will surely return. Of the princes, Sheng Ye is out of the question, and the Fifth Prince has no influence with His Majesty. The only one who can change His Majesty’s mind is this prince.”
"Your Highness..." Ye Qian lowered his head and pondered for a while before saying, "Perhaps it really is a good path."
"But in what capacity will you go?" he asked.
“You don’t need to worry about that. My father was ennobled after he pacified the northern frontier. That place can be said to be the birthplace of the Wolf Strategy Army. Many of the Wolf Strategy’s troops are there. Although my father is dead, his subordinates are still here. Besides, my second sister is also there. I will join them in the name of the remnants of the Wolf Strategy Army, and they will accept me.”
Ye Qian nodded: "It seems you've already thought about your future path."
"If you're not dead, you have to keep planning. Only when you die will you be truly free."
“That’s for you,” Ye Qian said.
He stared at Tang Qi, whose eyes were like a stagnant pool.
"It's a relief for you, but not for others. You don't value your own life, but some people cherish it for you."
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