Fortunately, we made it in time.
A white cloth was hung at the entrance of the Marquis of Jianbei's residence, and some unexpected people even came to the gate.
Wang Shili paced on the steps outside the mansion gate, accompanied by several people. He looked at the mansion plaque and then at the ground, muttering to himself, "How did he die? How did this guy die?"
Seeing Wang Shili pacing back and forth with a furrowed brow, the people around him fawned over him, rolled up their sleeves, and said, "Young Master, don't worry. Although Tang Qi is dead, as long as you say the word, we guarantee that the Jianbei Marquis's mansion will be in complete chaos. Even in death, he won't be happy."
He had barely finished speaking when Wang Shili kicked him to the ground, yelling, "Are you crazy? He's dead, why are you bothering him? Do I need you to tell me what I'm doing?"
The man who had fallen was stunned. What was going on? His young master had rushed them to the Marquis of Jianbei's residence in such a hurry, wasn't he going to cause trouble?
Shang Xin scratched his butt and got up, then looked at Wang Shili for a look.
"Really dead? That can't be right, how could Tang Qi be dead?"
Seeing that Wang Shili was still peering inside and muttering to himself, he wondered if...?
Shang Xin leaned closer and tentatively suggested, "Young Master, how about we go in and pay our respects?"
Another slap landed on his face, leaving him feeling somewhat aggrieved. He listened as Wang Shili continued his tirade: "Why should I offer him condolences? Who is Tang Qi anyway? Why should I go and offer him condolences?"
Shang Xin touched his swollen face, completely baffled by Wang Shili's purpose in coming here. The other people next to him, carrying things in their hands, lowered their heads, wanting to laugh but not daring to.
His eyes caught sight of what they were holding, and a chill ran down his spine. He leaned closer again, bracing himself for Wang Shili's gaze, and asked in an even less confident tone, "Young Master, how about... we just throw all these things we took this morning here?"
After saying that, Shang Xin skillfully closed his eyes. The expected slap did not fall. He heard Wang Shili's muffled voice: "Hmm, throw them all away."
Shang Xin opened his eyes, while Wang Shili continued to cross his arms, saying, "Anyway, keeping him around is bad luck, so it's a good deal for him."
Shang Xin and the others piled their things at a corner of the steps. He looked over at Wang Shili and saw that he was still looking into the mansion.
"Young Master?" He called Wang Shili several times before turning around, pausing for a second before speaking as if just coming to his senses: "You take this long to lose something, what am I keeping you around for?"
After Wang Shili finished speaking, he turned around and walked away with his arms crossed. Shang Xin followed behind him and glanced back at the pile of things.
There were lots of yellow paper, clothes, carriages, houses, and even several paper figures.
Shang Xin recalled that morning when his young master inexplicably took them out and spent money to buy things all over the street. At the time, Shang Xin didn't understand why his young master wouldn't even let go of things like yellow paper.
Thinking about it now, that street really does seem a bit far from the Wang family's house.
The sounds outside the door did not reach the mansion.
Tang Yan was kneeling on the cushion to keep vigil for her brother. Not long ago, Tang Qi was kneeling in this spot, but now only she and her mother were left in the Jianbei Marquis's mansion.
Qin Jianzhi, dressed in plain clothes, forced himself to be spirited. Unlike last time, there were quite a few people who came to pay their respects this time, and there were none of those "eyes" (contemptuous people).
Qin Jianzhi knew that they were no longer afraid.
Many people knelt on the cushion next to Tang Yan, some kowtowing, some burning incense, some burning paper money, and some sighing. Tang Yan came and went, but he never once looked up.
By evening, there were hardly any people left. Tang Yan's knees were numb from kneeling. Just as she reached for the yellow paper, someone suddenly knelt down on the mat next to her, which had been empty for a long time.
With a "thud," Tang Yan didn't feel like he was kneeling; it was more like he had collapsed from exhaustion.
The person didn't kowtow, offer incense, burn paper money, or sigh; she simply knelt there, looking at her brother's coffin.
She knew who this person was; he was the Junior Superintendent of the Criminal Law Department, and also the "enemy" her brother had mentioned they didn't get along with.
Tang Yan withdrew her hand and lowered her head again. Cheng Junshi's breathing was so light that she almost thought no one was beside her. He was too quiet, doing nothing. Tang Yan even suspected that he was secretly plotting to overturn her brother's coffin lid.
Finally, before Tang Yan could conjure up any more frightening scenarios, Cheng Junshi spoke up in a hoarse voice.
"I'm here to... return the things."
Tang Yan turned her head to look at the cloak that Cheng Junshi handed her, and upon closer inspection, she realized it was actually her brother's.
Tang Yan took the cloak and glanced at Cheng Junshi. His hair was messy and his eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't rested at all.
Tang Yan knew they were "enemies" and also knew that Cheng Junshi had been demoted to Xuanlang.
But she didn't know how Cheng Junshi could have arrived in Luoyang in just three days, when the distance between Xuanlang and Luoyang was five or six days.
He rode tirelessly for three days to Jianbei Marquis's residence to return a cloak to her brother.
Tang Yan couldn't understand what kind of "enemy" this was.
She lowered her head again, and Cheng Junshi was still kneeling beside her. Tang Yan didn't speak, but she could feel the breathing of the person beside her getting heavier and heavier. She couldn't help but glance over, and in just a moment, she was stunned.
Cheng Wang was crying.
Tang Yan quickly looked away. He was actually crying? Tang Yan was stunned. It wasn't feigned affection, nor was it insincere flattery; it was a kind of pain that Tang Yan couldn't describe. Yes, it was pain.
Cheng Wang was in pain.
Tang Yan was stunned for a long time after realizing this, her heart still pounding as if she had discovered some secret.
"When will the coffin be closed?"
"Tomorrow," Tang Yan said.
She heard a very faint laugh from the person next to her. He said, "Luckily, we made it in time."
Cheng Junshi reached for the yellow paper. Tang Yan looked over and saw that his hand was injured and was shaking involuntarily due to weakness.
He burned the paper one by one; the fire was very hot, but he didn't care at all. Cheng Junshi only stopped when the entire basin of paper was burned away. Staring at the last embers, he asked, "How did he die?"
Tang Yan lowered her eyes and said, "The Southern Continent launched a counterattack, and Jinbei couldn't hold on. When the Wolf Army went to reinforce them, they were surrounded and annihilated by the Southern Continent army. The reinforcements arrived too late, and my brother and the others..." She didn't finish her sentence.
The fire had burned out, but Cheng Junshi didn't move. He stared at Tang Qi's coffin and said, "He's not that stupid."
Tang Yan looked over, but Cheng Junshi didn't say anything more. He stood up, bowed to Tang Yan in farewell, and then walked out alone.
Cheng Junshi arrived quietly and left quietly. He rode a fast horse for three days, and all he did was come over to burn half a basin of yellow paper for Tang Qi.
"Is he the young master of the Cheng family?" she heard her mother ask.
Tang Yan hummed in agreement, then turned to look at Qin Jianzhi, who was slowly walking over, and said, "He is my brother's... friend."
Ye Qian was still in shock when Tang Qi continued, "I did ask Ye Jin for help, but the people I sent didn't reach Xuanhe's territory. Did she return to the Ye residence?"
Ye Qian nodded, and Tang Qi thought for a moment and then murmured, "Hu Zi didn't see Ye Jin. How did she receive the news to go to Kayu, and how did she come back with Sheng Hui Army?"
Of course, no one could answer his question.
"I'm going back to Jingzhou," Ye Qian said.
"I'll go with you."
"no."
As soon as Tang Qi finished speaking, he received unanimous objections from the two people opposite him. Ye Qian glanced at Shen Zhiqing, but the latter ignored his gaze and said to Tang Qi, "Your injury is very serious. These days, we have only managed to stop the bleeding. You still need to see a doctor."
Tang Qi leaned against the bed, her gaze sweeping over the two of them, then chuckled and said, "Okay, I'll do as you say."
“However, what do you think of the doctor? The fewer people who know about your affairs, the better,” Ye Qian asked.
Tang Qi looked at the human skin mask soaking in the water, and Shen Zhiqing said without any mercy, "Don't even think about it, it's already broken."
Ye Qian glanced at Shen Zhiqing and said, "I was originally planning to throw it away, but Qingqing said to keep a mold so that maybe we can make a copy in the future."
"It's hard to imitate. How could you learn this skill without someone teaching you?"
Hearing Tang Qi's words, Ye Qian frowned: "So what do you plan to do?"
Unexpectedly, Tang Qi suddenly looked up and gave them a sly smile: "But who said I only have one mask?"
He pulled a cloth bag from his innermost garment, looked at its contents with a complicated expression, and after a long while, he chuckled and said, "See? They've even thought of a way out for me."
"So I'm not qualified to die now." Tang Qi was still smiling, but Ye Qian found it hard to reconcile him with the image of the boy in his memory, who had been lying on his roof just a few months ago, his eyes crinkling as he asked him for a drink.
Shen Zhiqing brought Tang Qi a bronze mirror, and he gazed calmly at his reflection.
A long knife wound ran across his face. It was grotesque and terrifying.
“I need you to remember one thing,” he said, pressing the mask tightly against his face in front of the bronze mirror: “Tang Qi is dead. The one who is alive now is Lin Zhengye.”
His face was completely unharmed again.
Ye Qian stared at him without saying a word, knowing that the scar had grown along his face and into Tang Qi's heart.
People need time to adapt. In the first few days after Tang Qi put on the mask, he would always be startled when he looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar face in the bronze mirror, as if the person inside would rush out and call "Brother Qi" in his ear at any moment. It took him a long time to calmly and silently accept the face in the bronze mirror.
The pharmacist came every day. Tang Qi had broken his arms and legs and had them re-set. Although he was more resilient than the average person due to years of fighting, he was still too badly injured and had to stay in bed for more than a month before he could barely get out of bed.
Although Shen Zhiqing did not think he could get out of bed.
After all, Tang Qi only put his feet on the ground and tried to stand up every day. At first, he could only stand for a few moments, then a few seconds, and at most, he could only stand for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
Shen Zhiqing didn't think it made any sense, but Tang Qi said:
"Only when my feet are on the ground do I feel truly alive."
So Shen Zhiqing never said anything else, he just let him stand and let him live.
Ye Qian went to Jingzhou and didn't return for a long time. During the months that Tang Qi was recuperating, Ye Qian traveled back and forth between Jingzhou and Cangzhou, and the news he brought back was more and more unsettling.
"Ye Jin only rushed to Kaqiu with Xuan He to provide assistance after receiving news from Sheng Hui's army. When she received the news, Lang Ce was fighting against Nan Zhou. I think it must have been Lin Jiacuo and the others. Ye Jin said that Sheng Hui joined the battle and forced back the Nan Zhou army. Later, the Nan Zhou army surrounded and annihilated them. By the time she arrived, only Sheng Hui was left."
...
"Shenghui Army's Deng Ning wrote to His Majesty, saying that there were spies within the Wolf Strategy, which led to the army's complete defeat and the deaths of its soldiers in Kachu."
"The spy from the Wolf Strategy has been found. He is a subordinate of your Southern Camp named Li Wuyuan. He was also involved in the Hecheng Rebellion and has been publicly beheaded in the street."
Actually, there was one more thing that Ye Qian didn't mention.
Tang Yan has entered the palace.
Because of Tang Qi and her father's military achievements, she was specially granted the title of Princess and given the name Yunluo to be raised in the palace.
In order to appease the Marquis of Jianbei's family, the emperor specially brought his youngest daughter into the palace to enjoy the treatment of a princess. Others saw this as the emperor's benevolence, but Ye Qian felt that this was the most callous thing to do.
Once you enter the palace gates, freedom becomes nothing more than the wind passing by your ears.
When Ye Qian returned to Cangzhou for the last time, Tang Qi was able to get out of bed and walk around. His injuries had almost healed, as if he had truly escaped death. Tang Qi felt that it had been a long time since he had seen the sunlight when he went out.
But he didn't actually stand there for long.
He discovered it, and Ye Qian also discovered it.
Tang Qi has a problem with her leg.
When Tang Qi walks slowly, he is indistinguishable from other people. But as soon as he walks faster or makes bigger movements, his walking posture becomes clearly different from that of a normal person.
Ye Qian tried his best to ignore the difference, but the more he tried not to think about it, the more he noticed it.
Finally, as he walked towards him, Ye Qian clearly realized this fact.
Tang Qi is now lame.
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