"Who, who did you say is gone?"
Nie Qing's slender shoulders trembled and his hands started to tremble. It was as if he was isolated from the world and could not hear anything clearly.
"Who did you say is gone!"
The gentle and polite Nie Qing seemed to have died at this moment, leaving behind an empty shell who had lost control of his emotions.
He grabbed the messenger's clothes uncontrollably and lifted him up while breathing rapidly. He said shakily, "Tell me, who died?"
The messenger was also frightened by Nie Qing. He clamped his thighs together and resisted the urge to urinate.
He said, "Military advisor Wei Yong, he was unlucky …"
Before the messenger could finish, Nie Qing threw him out like a madman. He really did not know how such a thin and weak body could have such great strength. The messenger did not fall seriously. He climbed up from the ground in a panic and resumed his apologetic posture, his body very low.
"The deceased is gone … My lord, please restrain your grief …"
The official who was supporting Nie Qing saw his reaction and hurriedly comforted him.
"Restrain your grief … how do you expect me to restrain my grief …" Nie Qing's eyes were already red. Crystal tears rolled down his cheeks several times but still fell. His expression was extremely fragile, as if a small blow could break him down. Nie Qing said in a choked sob, "Father is gone, that bastard Nie Yang is gone, and now even father-in-law has abandoned me. What did I do wrong to lose my closest relatives one after another in just a few months?"
Nie Qing almost roared out these words. The veins on his forehead bulged and sweat and tears rolled down.
"My lord did not do anything wrong. You did nothing wrong." The official saw Nie Qing paralyzed on the ground and went forward on his knees to comfort him. "If there is anything wrong, it can only be said that you were born at the wrong time. The Nie family's building has collapsed and the enemy is watching. If my lord continues to wallow in pain, how will you meet the previous master and the rest after a hundred years? At this moment, you should pull yourself together. After recuperating and accumulating strength, you can protect yourself. "
Nie Qing said hoarsely, "I know … give me some time to calm down."
The official knew that Nie Qing was too young and could not withstand repeated blows. He should be given enough time to accept reality.
After crying, Nie Qing then hoarsely asked where Wei Yong's corpse was.
When Nie Qing heard that Wei Ci had sent Wei Yong's corpse to the clan grounds of Langya County for burial, he was silent for a long time.
"Langya County … It's good that the fallen leaves have returned to their roots."
On the second day, Nie Qing calmed down slightly and personally went to tell her mother-in-law the bad news. Madame Wei Yue was the standard of a landowning family's noblewoman. There was nothing wrong with her. Even when she heard the news of her husband's death, she could still hold back her tears.
Nie Qing's expression was haggard as he said weakly, "Father-in-law's body was sent to the clan grounds of Langya County, but this son-in-law feels that perhaps Bian Province is the place he wants to rest the most. Mother-in-law, can you help me sort out some of Father-in-law's belongings and set up a cenotaph to show my grief? "
Naturally, Madame Wei would not refuse.
She prepared the clothes, but Wei Yong's favorite objects, books, and paintings were all in the study. Nie Qing was more familiar with them.
Nie Qing pushed open the familiar study and saw the bright sunlight pouring in from the outside.
The master had been gone for a long time, but the study room was cleaned by the servants. Every inch of the room was spotless, not even a speck of dust could be seen.
Nie Qing's tears, which he had managed to stop with great difficulty, threatened to burst again.
He was not a weak person. In just a few short months, three of his most important family members had passed away. Even a person made of iron would not be able to take it.
Nie Liang was his respected father, and Wei Yong was his teacher and father-in-law, playing a fatherly role.
No matter how bad that bastard Nie Yang was, before the incident, Nie Qing had truly loved him as a younger brother. His feelings for him were real.
Now, the three of them had died in the underworld before him. One could imagine the blow Nie Qing had suffered.
He picked out a few of Wei Yong's favorite items. His gaze suddenly fell on the bookshelf in the study, and a passage appeared in his mind.
"Father-in-law! I'm your son-in-law, I guarantee it! I also know that there's a painting on the third row of your bookshelf — "
"Shut up!"
Strangely, he walked to the bookshelf and saw a few scrolls of paintings.
Nie Qing opened one of the paintings. It depicted a green-robed youth reading from bamboo slips amidst rockery and flowers. He found the youth somewhat familiar.
Upon closer inspection, there were faint traces of Wei Ci between his brows. Looking at the inscription, the youth in the painting was indeed Wei Ci.
He opened another painting. This time, it was not a single person painting, but a lively scene.
A middle-aged man with elegant features was playing chess with his eldest son. A gentle and beautiful woman was holding a baby boy in her arms, watching tenderly. There were also three children of different ages, either sitting or standing, reading or playing. Nie Qing recognized at a glance that this was his father-in-law's family, and the beautiful woman was his mother-in-law.
When the mountain ghost had been babbling nonsense, Nie Qing had thought that the paintings hidden on the bookshelf were pictures of avoiding fire or something incongruous. He looked through all the paintings and did not find anything similar. Among all the paintings, the one that left the deepest impression was the scene of Nie Liang and Wei Yong meeting for the first time. Nie Qing stood where he was for a long time, then sighed. "I don't know if I should say it's a pity, regret, or something else —"
Whether it was the person who painted or the person in the painting, they were no longer in this world.
Nie Qing chose four paintings to be buried in the cenotaph, leaving the rest for Madam Wei and the children as souvenirs.
One was Madam Wei and the children, one was Wei Yong's parents and siblings, one was Nie Liang, and one was Nie Qing.
Madam Wei saw that he was so considerate and her expression was somewhat gratified.
When the news of the defeat of the Nie army reached the borders of Zhongzhao, the pressure Nie Qing suffered could be imagined. But he did not collapse, and instead gritted his teeth to support the situation. Reorganizing the troops and pacifying the people, he was so busy that he only slept for two to four hours a day at most.
Even though Nie Liang had helped Nie Qing clean up those ambitious people when he was alive, he had not thought that the Nie army would be so thoroughly defeated.
The Nie clan was weak, and the powers that had originally attached themselves to the Nie clan naturally had other ambitions.
In order to pacify these people, Nie Qing had expended a great deal of energy.
But he did not have enough troops in his hands, and he did not have enough deterrence. There were more and more people who did not listen to him. In a few short days, Nie Qing had seen countless fickle faces. The people who had been fawning over him a few days ago, in the blink of an eye, had climbed all over him, and used threats to force Nie Qing to hand over his authority.
It was fine if it was outsiders, but the members of the Nie clan had also interfered. Their words expressed one meaning — Nie Liang and Wei Yong had wasted all of the Nie clan's wealth, and Nie Qing was young and could not support the situation. It was better to give authority to them, and let them turn the tide and save the Nie clan.
When Nie Qing heard this, his heart turned cold, and he could only sneer.
What time was it, the Nie clan was at the juncture of life and death, and these people only wanted to fight for power and profit, and not unite to tide over the crisis together.
Did they really think that he, Nie Qing, was weak and easy to bully?
In troubled times, the fist was the hard truth. If one's fist was not as strong as others, then one could only obediently take a beating.
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