Her gaze seemed to have sliced the cold moonlight into thousands of pieces. Each piece was like an icicle, and each knife stirred the rippling water in the spring night, pressing towards Zong Yue.
Word by word, she asked,
"Did you kill Xu Wan?"
Zong Yue remained silent, standing in the mottled darkness. The three of them breathed softly and harshly, like steel wires piercing one's heart.
After a while, he spoke in an extremely soft voice, as if he was afraid to disturb the breaths in the spring night.
"Yes."
Meng Fuyao let out a long breath.
That breath did not seem like relief, but more like an attempt to vent the pent-up frustrations in her chest. After venting, she did not want to take it back.
She asked again, "Did you save me?"
Zong Yue remained silent for a while before replying, "Yes."
"That's good." Meng Fuyao quietly hugged Xu Wan's remains and looked up at the sky. The yellow jade moonlight shone on her bright brows, and there was an intense feeling in the silence. After a long while, she said, "All gratitude and grudges have been settled. Let's write it off."
Then, she hugged the cloth bag, turned around, and strode away without looking back.
"Empress Xuanji is my distant aunt. A very distant one, the kind that we hardly have any contact with," Zong Yue suddenly said quietly behind her.
Meng Fuyao stood still, her back facing him without saying a word.
"Something happened to my family, and I fled to the five continents. Even though my family has relatives scattered across the seven countries, and many of them hold high positions, no one was willing to take in a troublesome person like me. It was her, the aunt that I had forgotten, who took the initiative to send someone to fetch me. She told me that with my aunt protecting you, who would dare to touch you?"
Zong Yue let out a long sigh. In the darkness of the night, his breath was actually white, like frost condensed from the cold air of winter. However, this was a spring night, the end of late spring. The green apricots on the branches were small, and the wind on the embankment grew old. The spring scenery was beautiful and long, but what was written in his eyes was a desolate desolation.
"Perhaps she didn't really care about what happened to me, but more to show her dignity and glory as the Empress of Xuanji. But in any case, during the most difficult period, I was taken care of by her. My Guangde Hall was also the first to develop in Xuanji, and then it was able to expand its influence in the Five Continents. Without her help, I would have died in the endless pursuit, not to mention enduring humiliation for ten years and finally avenging my great hatred."
"You know, for the sake of revenge, I've done anything, let alone relying on her." Zong Yue's smile was faint and bitter. "She is the evil tiger, and I am the henchman. With Yu Heng's status, there are some things he might not be willing to do. Then I am the henchman of the evil."
"Including killing Xu Wan? Subjecting her to grooming punishment? "Meng Fuyao's question was not a question, but more like a hard rock with sharp edges.
"You can … put it that way." Zong Yue closed his eyes. "After she was discovered, she tried to escape, not out of the palace, but back to that room. At that time, she probably wanted to let you go so that you could escape, but I … stopped her. The Empress wanted me to stop her, so I couldn't not stop her. I didn't know at that time that she wanted to go back … to let you go."
Meng Fuyao did not speak. Her back was ramrod straight, like a jade pillar embedded in the moon.
"When she fell into my hands, she said, 'Please let my daughter go.'" I looked into her eyes and thought of my own mother. The night my family was massacred, my mother looked at me with the same gaze when she asked the family guards to escort me out.
"I asked her if she was willing to die right now. She stared at me in shock and nodded. She was really a smart girl, and made her decision without me explaining. When I brought her back, I used the acupoint sealing technique taught by my master and used a golden needle to cut her meridians. The golden needle could control her pain, but that cut would have killed her without a doubt. "
Meng Fuyao was shocked.
"You know what happened next. Grooming was a torture that even I did not expect. Given the severity of the punishment, the acupoint sealing technique could no longer completely block the pain. Moreover, I was young at that time, and I wasn't familiar with the acupoint sealing technique. Xu Wan … was still in pain."
"Fortunately, she died quickly." Zong Yue let out another long sigh. "She wouldn't have lived more than an hour with a golden needle. Her suffering … was not as severe as you think."
"That's why I don't think I owe Xu Wan anything. Even though I was the one who captured her, even if I didn't do anything, she wouldn't have been able to escape from the palace. Moreover, she had no intention of escaping. As for my failure to save her … I don't think I had any reason to do so." Zong Yue said faintly, "Fuyao … I just feel that I owe you. If I didn't capture her back then, but let her go back and let you go, then at least … at least you wouldn't have been forced to witness that scene in the cabinet … That was my fault."
"So you sealed my memory?" Meng Fuyao asked after a moment of silence.
"I felt uneasy letting you see that scene, so I sealed your acupoint and brought you out of the palace. I hesitated for a long time before sealing your memory. Perhaps it was a selfish decision and unfair to you, but you were too … I was afraid that you would go crazy …"
Zong Yue stopped talking. He recalled the night when he had carried that skinny and deformed girl. She hadn't made a sound, but she had struggled like a madman. Even though she had no strength, and even though he was skilled in martial arts, it took a lot of effort to drag her along. She had clung to the cupboard, the bed, and the curtains. Her eyes were filled with hatred and distrust toward him. Afraid that someone would find out, he had hurriedly carried her in his arms and was about to leave when she bit the edge of the bed. If he hadn't noticed that something was wrong, all her teeth would have been pulled out.
That hatred … that madness … that perseverance … from beginning to end, she hadn't shed a single tear or said a single word.
In the end, he had no choice but to seal her acupoint and rush out of the city. Even after sealing her acupoint, her face was still red and restless. He was afraid that such memories would harm the child sooner or later, so he chose to seal her memory after much hesitation.
He didn't use the most straightforward method of erasing her memory. He only sealed it. She could have recalled it at any time if she wanted to, but she didn't. She was even more ruthless than the needles and sealed herself.
More than 10 years ago, on the cliff of Solitary Beauty Peak, under the cypress trees, a small child was placed in a bamboo basket and floated along the river. He stood on the dark cliff and watched as the basket floated along with the waves into a round moon. It was mid-autumn then, and the moonlight was full of light. The water below the cliff sparkled, so much so that he couldn't see the direction in which the basket floated.
At that time, he was filled with sorrow and sighing about the unknown future. He watched as the child floated along the river, thinking that it was fate that had set her free.
Who would have thought that in the end, she would build a wall of longing for him?
Zong Yue was silent. At this moment, he had an enchanting appearance. His glassy eyes, jet-black long hair, and fiery red lips. He was a bright and dazzling beauty. However, his usual oppressive beauty was now pale and cold like the moonlight.
For revenge, he had sacrificed too much. For example, his dual identity of day and night, his unique appearance as An Mei, his permanent internal injury, and his accomplice in his youth. But now, he knew that the deepest and most painful part was that he had unintentionally stood against her, banished her, and hurt her. Meng Fuyao was also silent. Her heart was in a mess.
She had always known that Zong Yue had a part in this matter, but she had never been willing to look into it. Zong Yue was different from Zhangsun Wuji. Zhangsun Wuji must have had his reasons for breaking his promise, but Zong Yue might not be the same. He had never been a good person, and he had always been unscrupulous in his revenge. He had struggled and wandered, and in the process of that struggle, he had killed many innocent souls. Who could guarantee that Xu Wan wasn't among them? After all, to Zong Yue back then, she and her mother could only be considered strangers.
Back then, he had no reason to protect her, but he could have hurt her for some necessary reason.
That was why she was afraid of revealing the truth, afraid that she would have to face the dilemma of gratitude and resentment. That was why she had pulled out her hand from Old Lu's chest and cut off his last breath, not allowing him to finish speaking.
But what could not be avoided could not be avoided, and in the end, they had to start all over again.
But now, seeing this result, she actually let out a faint sigh of relief … Fortunately, it was not as bad as it seemed. Zong Yue was still a young man at the time, and while the change in his family clan had changed his personality, it had also left him with a softness that was easily touched. In the end, he did not kill Xu Wan with the blade of a thousand cuts.
As for the mistakes he had made … rather than blaming Zong Yue for stopping Xu Wan and forcing her to witness the scene in the cupboard, it was better to blame the eight-year-old girl who had locked the cupboard.
The questions that had been buried in the depths of the years had finally been solved, but the accumulated depression in her heart could not be dispelled immediately. No matter what, when she thought of Zong Yue watching Xu Wan being tortured without doing anything, her heart could not help but turn cold. She gently caressed Xu Wan's skeleton in her palm. After a long time, she said, "I still stand by what I said. Heaven's will makes fools of people. It has nothing to do with human strength. Gratitude and resentment are written off."
Then, she hugged Xu Wan's skeleton and strode out without looking back.
Zhangsun Wuji followed silently. When he passed by Zong Yue, he glanced at him, wanting to say something but not saying a word. He left quietly.
No one was wrong, but they were all wrong. It was just the result of heaven's will being cold. It was the Glaze Fire that replaced the Endless Night.
Zong Yue did not move. He slowly sat down in front of the Misty Palace that had been silent for 14 years. He sat amidst the rubble and dust.
The moonlight was cold and blood-red, just like that night 14 years ago, when it hung on the cypress tree on the lonely cliff.
Fuyao.
Now I finally understand.
I have survived thousands of miles of gales, thousands of lives, and wine and poems, but I can't survive the gaze that you ignore and leave.
= = =
The night had yet to end, and the stars were twinkling. It was the fifth night of the fourth month of the 30th year of Xuanji's birth. After daybreak, it would be the Queen's enthronement ceremony. The history of Xuanji Kingdom was about to turn over a new page. However, the imperial city was gloomy, devoid of the joy of a new dynasty.
Yong Chang Palace, however, was brightly lit.
The 30,000 imperial guards did not stand guard in front of the palace gates to prevent her from entering. Instead, they formed a formation in front of Yong Chang Palace. Their swords were unsheathed and arrows were nocked. Cold light shone on their armor. Tens of thousands of people stood in formation, but not a single cough could be heard.
The torches blazed, illuminating the cold light on the tips of their swords. When reflected by the moonlight, the entire white marble square seemed to be floating in a layer of water.
Meng Fuyao walked over calmly with her 3,000 men. Tang Yizhong's 50,000 troops stood guard at the palace gate behind her.
The 3,000 cavalrymen stopped their horses in unison in front of the Xuanji main hall. "Cha!"
The Han warriors' horsemanship was the best in the world. The 30,000 Xuanji imperial guards revealed looks of admiration, but remained silent. They confronted each other with steely gazes.
The weapons in the sheaths of the Han royal army buzzed slightly, eager to fight. They were all waiting for their king to give the order so that they could immediately slaughter this ugly and filthy dynasty into a river of blood.
However, a drawn-out order came from the top of the main hall.
"Invite the Wuji Crown Prince and the Han Meng King into the palace …"
Meng Fuyao raised her head and smiled mockingly. What was the point of putting on airs at this hour? If you let me in, I'll enter. If you don't, I'll enter. The only difference is whether I have to walk over corpses.
She strode over without hesitation. The 30,000 imperial guards silently parted like waves, creating a narrow, oppressive path filled with blades, spears, swords, and halberds.
The long forest of spears extended from the bottom of the stairs to the top of the thousand steps. The light of the torches burned silently at the top of the forest of spears. Meng Fuyao suddenly recalled that she had once walked through such a forest of spears in Taiyuan. Back then, she had no martial arts. She had been injured, disguised, and nervous.
Back then, she had been simple, free, happy, and bright.
Suddenly, tears welled up in her eyes.
Because of the vicissitudes of life.
Gains and losses were closely related. When one's status changed drastically, suffering and setbacks would come hand in hand.
She took a deep breath, raised her head, and walked up the stairs, releasing the jade white Upstanding Qi around her. Wherever she passed, the tips of the spears were broken. As her dark figure went up, the bright steel tips of the spears jumped out on both sides, drawing white arcs with clanking sounds, causing sparks to fly from the torches above. The Imperial Guards who were stabbed and burned by the spears kept exclaiming and retreating. They were in a mess on the stairs, no longer as orderly and oppressive as before.
Meng Fuyao sneered and went straight to the top of the main hall.
She would never let anyone control her. From now on, she would not allow anyone to stop her!
= = =
The curtains of the three-layered main hall were lowered. The inner hall was still lit by a single star, flickering like a hazy will-o '-the-wisp. Their footsteps echoed on the mirror-like golden brick floor.
Meng Fuyao walked straight in, pushing aside the layers of curtains without stopping. She stopped in front of the last layer of veil.
That was where the light was coming from.
The transparent veil vaguely reflected two silhouettes, one standing and the other lying down. Their heads were touching as if they were whispering to each other intimately.
Upon hearing the footsteps, the person standing looked up and smiled faintly. "You're here?"
Her tone was casual and natural, as if she had been waiting for Meng Fuyao for a long time. It was as if Meng Fuyao was a guest from afar, and she was a passionate host who had been waiting for her for a long time.
Of course, the voice was also very familiar.
Meng Fuyao smiled, her tone surprisingly amiable. "How could I bear not to come when you're here?"
The person smiled gently and said, "Please open the curtain yourself. It's not very convenient for me."
Meng Fuyao flicked her sleeves, and the curtain fluttered silently. Dim yellow light rushed into her eyes, and under the light, the person looked up with a warm and compassionate smile.
Her eyebrows were curved like the moon, and she was elegant and refined. Her moon-white dress flowed gracefully on the ground, and the dress was embroidered with Buddhist lotuses. As the breeze blew, her temperament was otherworldly. Her eyes were peaceful and serene, without a trace of the mundane world.
Feng Jingfan.
Meng Fuyao stared at her, and after a while, she let out a long sigh and muttered, "This world is really annoying. Some people are just like cockroaches, refusing to die no matter what."
"You're right." Feng Jingfan smiled sweetly. "It's really annoying."
The moment she spoke, Meng Fuyao immediately made a vomiting expression and spat. She quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, I always feel like vomiting when I see you. Did I dirty your floor with my vomit? Actually, I don't think so. Your floor can't be any cleaner than cow dung. "
"It's alright." Feng Jingfan was always amiable, and she gently massaged the person's shoulders. "You've always dirtied it wherever you go."
"That's true." Meng Fuyao smiled. "But it's better than being born with filth in your bones." Her gaze drifted downwards, and she looked at the old man who seemed to be enjoying it with his eyes closed. She asked in a very friendly manner, "You're not dead yet?"
Feng Xuan opened her eyes and looked at her in a daze for a long time. After a while, she sighed and said nothing.
"You'll have plenty of opportunities to reminisce with him," Feng Jingfan said. "In hell."
"That's where you belong. I won't squeeze with you."
"I say, why are we bickering here? That's what shrews do in the marketplace. " Feng Jingfan suddenly smiled leisurely and said, "Respected King Meng Han, let's talk about proper business."
"Oh?" Meng Fuyao sat down with a smile. "What do you think we can talk about?"
"Give me that little seal in your arms." Feng Jingfan smiled. "I'll just stamp it on a certain decree, and it'll be done."
"I say, Your Majesty." Meng Fuyao crossed her legs. "Shouldn't you be holding the scepter in your left hand and the jade seal in your right? Why are you asking for such an important thing from an outsider? "
"It's all because of my useless sixth sister. She stole the jade seal." Feng Jingfan laughed. "How meddlesome. The jade seal belongs to whoever it belongs to. There's no point in stealing it or keeping it."
"Who said so? There's a point in keeping it. At the very least, I can destroy it whenever I want. "Meng Fuyao immediately took out a bright yellow satin bag and gently squeezed it.
A pile of jade powder immediately scattered on the ground.
Looking at the pile of jade powder, Feng Jingfan's expression finally changed. After a while, she sneered. "Good, good. You really are the number one lunatic in the Five Continents Continent. Destroying the jade seal … You really can do it."
"That's right. This is the tone and expression a person should have." Meng Fuyao clapped. "Fortunately, the jade seal was destroyed. Otherwise, I'd have to look at your disgusting fake smile and continue talking to you. That would be worse than death."
"Talking to you is also a waste of time," Feng Jingfan said lightly. "You can get out now."
"That's great. That's what I wanted to say to you. I'll give you one more word. "Meng Fuyao squinted her eyes and smiled." You can get out and die. "
"Oh?" Feng Jingfan laughed. "Why?"
"Don't you have eyes? Or do you think that your so-called hostage can be exchanged for your life? I'm sorry, I'm not interested. "Meng Fuyao gestured with her hand." Please kill him. Please kill him quickly. "
"Your three thousand guards and all the forces of the Han Dynasty and Wuji Dynasty in Tong City can't be exchanged?"
Meng Fuyao narrowed her eyes. "Hmm?"
"Do you think that Tang Yizhong's one hundred thousand troops are obedient? Are they really obedient and willing to be used by you? " Feng Jingfan massaged Feng Xuan unhurriedly. "It's a pity that there will be a riot among the one hundred thousand troops tonight. There's no way they can provide you with any support. Your three thousand guards have already entered the palace and are sandwiched between the thirty thousand imperial guards and the fifty thousand Changye soldiers who are rushing over. I just don't know if your three thousand Changye elite cavalry, which is known as the world's most courageous, can withstand the eighty thousand Xuanji soldiers who are similarly well-equipped and equipped with advanced weapons?"
She smiled and blew her nails. "Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot to tell you that Third Brother's fifty thousand troops are actually mine. Third Brother has been loyal to me for a long time."
Meng Fuyao was silent for a while. Then, she heard a commotion outside the palace gate. The sound waves faintly drifted over. Feng Jingfan's eyes flashed and she smiled. "Listen, it's starting."
She then tilted her head to look at Zhangsun Wuji and smiled. "Your Highness, have you considered becoming my husband?"
Zhangsun Wuji smiled and looked at her leisurely from his chair. "If you become Fuyao's dowry and make our beds every night, I can consider letting you be a concubine. I'm just afraid that Fuyao won't be willing … and I'm also afraid that I'll vomit."
Lord Ingot suddenly popped out from his arms and made an expression as if he was going to vomit.
"…"
Meng Fuyao's face darkened. She had a problem with a certain someone's thick skin, but when she saw Feng Jingfan's expression, she couldn't help but laugh. Zhangsun Wuji was really ruthless when he became shameless.
"There's nothing more to say." Feng Jingfan's face was cold and her breathing was undulating. "Retreat! Leave the Xuanji Dynasty! Swear never to invade the Xuanji Dynasty again! Otherwise, even if I can't touch you, I can easily wipe out your three thousand troops! "
"It's easy for you to brag." Meng Fuyao sat unmoving. "Sell your glib tongue, and the world will be settled. The throne will be passed down, and the queen will ascend to the throne. We'll just give way."
"You won't give way?" Feng Jingfan laughed coldly. "Aren't you kind and responsible? Don't you love your troops like your own children and won't let your subordinates sacrifice themselves so easily? Don't you distinguish kindness and grudges clearly and won't let your personal grudges implicate the innocent? Do you have the heart to kill your three thousand loyal guards just to kill me? You can stay here, but you'll have to bear the debt of three thousand lives. Do you want to leave and save them? I still have eighteen experts here. Even if I can't kill you, I can delay you for a while and leave eighty thousand to deal with the three thousand. That should be enough. "
"You know me quite well." Meng Fuyao laughed coldly. "Then, do you want to try?"
Feng Jingfan did not speak. Spots of green gradually appeared on her pure white neck, and her gaze also became cold and dark. Under the light of the light purple palace lantern, she looked like a wax figure that had not been painted.
After a while, she said to someone in a deep voice, "Go, bring some proof to the Crown Prince and King Meng. Let them see the consequences of disobedience!"
The sound of clothes rustling on the eaves faded away.
The three of them did not speak.
The air was very quiet. Only the occasional crackling of the candle wick and the heavy and hurried breathing of the old man could be heard. The lantern was uncut, and Feng Jingfan was lost in thought as she stared at it. Her face was pale, and her eyes were sinister. Her fingers nervously clenched and loosened on the brocade bedding.
Today's situation was actually the worst for her. Her mother and Uncle Yu Heng were dead, and she no longer had the greatest support by her side. If she could not force Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao out today, she would no longer have the ability to suppress them. Her only hope was for Meng Fuyao to soften and leave the palace. She would quickly ascend the throne and gather the entire nation's military forces to kill the two within Xuanji.
As for the consequences of killing them, she could not care less now. So what if the nation was destroyed? In any case, she had once been the Emperor of Xuanji and had taken her revenge in this life!
Back then, she had been worried about the two's identities. She was afraid that if she killed them, Wuji and the Han Empire's allied forces would destroy Xuanji. That was why she sent Uncle Yu Heng to try to divide them and make them kill each other. She even had a faint hope in her heart — if they were to break up, she would marry the Xuanji Empire and expand her territory. Which man in the world could resist her? When that time came, perhaps Zhangsun Wuji would change his mind?
It was because of this hope that she did not kill them.
She should have killed them long ago!
Feng Jingfan's gaze turned, and then she looked at the elder on the bed with a dark expression. Feng Xuan was still in that half-dead state, and it was difficult for her to even open her eyes. She panted heavily on the bed, her fingers still moving nervously … Damn it, what kind of medicine did Imperial Mother give Imperial Father? Why did she have to make him like this? It was fine if he was mentally weak and easy to control. But now, he had lost the jade seal in his confusion. He had not even finished writing an imperial edict, and the empress' name was still empty!
Chaotic footsteps came from afar, breaking the silence of the spacious hall. Feng Jingfan's eyes brightened, and a cold smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.
With a loud bang, someone pushed open the door and strode into the hall. He raised his hand from afar, and a few bloody heads rolled to the feet of Meng Fuyao and Zhangsun Wuji.
The two looked down, and their expressions changed.
"Reporting to the Fourteenth Princess, the heads of the traitor of the Changyong Army are here!"
"Good!" Feng Jingfan raised her eyebrows and smiled. She shouted, "Do it!"
"Yes!"
The sounds of battle could be faintly heard from afar, and when they mixed with the smell of blood that rose in the hall, it sounded like a terrifying massacre. Feng Jingfan glanced at the two of them, and said slowly, "Zhang Yongjun is already under my control. Your three thousand protectors will definitely become minced meat. Are the two of you still not going to give up?"
She waved her hand, and 18 figures jumped down from the four corners of the hall, surrounding Meng Fuyao and Zhangsun Wuji.
"Regardless of life or death, keep them here!" Feng Jingfan shouted coldly. "Let them listen to the cries of their subordinates on the verge of death!"
The 18 people drew their swords in unison, and with a "clang," they moved in unison. In an instant, 18 bright arcs of light shone in the dark hall, interweaving into an impenetrable light net.
"I taught these 18 people the ultimate formation that my master, Yu Heng, left behind. They only practice this formation their entire lives, immersing themselves in it and memorizing it by heart. All their energy and effort are integrated into this formation. Even if the two of you have the strength of the Ten Strongest, it will still trap you!" The corners of Feng Jingfan's mouth curled into a sinister smile. She turned to take the imperial edict from the table and looked at Feng Xuan. "Father, let's focus on finishing the imperial edict."
She actually stopped looking at the two and turned around.
"Cha!"
The 18 people's swords shot out in unison, and the light was fierce. The swords vibrated, and the hall was filled with the roars of dragons.
Meng Fuyao stood there, straining her ears to listen to the battle cries outside. Suddenly, she said to Zhangsun Wuji, "I think … we should really retreat."
Zhangsun Wuji smiled and said, "Wherever you go, I'll be there."
When Feng Jingfan heard this, her face darkened, but there was a hint of joy in it.
It was good to retreat. One step back would mean more steps back, and there would be a chance to deal with them in the end.
"Reporting to the Fourteenth Princess!"
A sudden shout startled the 18 people who were about to surround them. When they turned around, they saw a black shadow outside the hall. The man who threw the head of the rebel general had not left.
Feng Jingfan turned her head in surprise and asked, "Why haven't you left?"
"I've brought the heads of a few Han guards!" the man shouted. "Let the Meng King of the Han open her eyes and see clearly how her subordinates died! Then get out of here as soon as possible! "
"You've thought it through!" Feng Jingfan was overjoyed. With a wave of her hand, she said, "Bring them up!"
The man raised his hand and threw them with great strength. With a whoosh, a few round objects were thrown up, dripping in mid-air.
After the heads were thrown out, Meng Fuyao and Zhangsun Wuji looked at each other and suddenly flew away. One on the left and the other on the right, they flew up to the pillars high up in the hall.
"Cha!"
A few "heads" suddenly exploded in mid-air. Some directly exploded above the heads of the 18 people, while others shot out countless arrows and flying needles. Some bounced in mid-air and suddenly stretched out a few knives with sawteeth, slicing through the scalps of the people.
There was also one that went straight for Feng Jingfan. With a "cha" sound, three golden knives flew out from his jet-black hair!
Feng Jingfan shouted angrily. With a flip, she floated over the bed. The golden knives actually did not stop chasing after her, following the trajectory of her flight. Feng Jingfan flipped again and again, skimming and skimming, from the back of the bed to the front of the bed, from the back of the lamp to the front of the lamp, and from the bottom of the hall to the top of the hall. Wherever she passed, the curtains of the bed were destroyed, the palace lanterns were tilted, and the hall pillars were broken. She was covered in pieces of silk, candle oil, wood, and even her own clothes were torn.
The 18 people who were focused on the formation did not expect their heads to explode. They howled in pain, and in an instant, half of them were injured.
"Clap, clap, clap."
Meng Fuyao was calm and unruffled in the midst of the chaos on the pillar at the top of the hall. She smiled and said, "Your Majesty, is this the show you wanted us to watch? It's really too exciting! "
"You guys …" Feng Jingfan turned her head abruptly while dodging. "How … How!"
"What's there not to know?" It was another person who answered. He walked in from outside the hall with a smile. "Your Highness, if you want to make trouble in my Everlasting Army, why don't you consider that my Tang family is a pushover?"
The beautiful baby-faced young duke pointed at Zhangsun Wuji. "You want to cause trouble in front of him? Why don't you think about what kind of reputation Crown Prince Wuji has? "
"Are you praising me or insulting me?" Zhangsun Wuji sat high on the top of the hall and smiled. "Actually, the crux of the problem is that Her Majesty is too unsettling. Everyone has to be more careful."
"How is that possible …" Feng Jingfan looked back in panic in mid-air. Her Qinggong was obviously good, but her true energy was insufficient. After running for a while, her black hair was disheveled, and she was sweating profusely.
Zhangsun Wuji did not even look at her, nor did he reply. It was still Tang Yizhong who loved to talk. He nagged, "Your Highness, since the crown prince and the rest know that you are still alive, they will definitely be concerned about you. You are controlling His Majesty in Yong Chang Palace, but you can't not send a message. The person who sent you the message is your personal maid, Ming Ruo, right? You don't have to keep an eye on anyone, just keep an eye on her. "
Feng Jingfan tilted her body and almost flipped over an extremely narrow beam on the top of the hall. The golden knife flew past and brought down a strand of her hair. However, it could not fly back because of the obstruction of the beam. Feng Jingfan then got rid of the knife and landed on the ground pathetically. She stood in front of Feng Xuan's couch and sneered without saying a word.
"The whereabouts of your little maid has always been under the control of the crown prince's intelligence department." Tang Yizhong smiled. "Didn't you see the heads that were thrown in earlier? Other than the few that you instigated to rebel and prepare for tonight's riot, there are also Ming Ruo's. Oh, the secret talents that you specially trained are all here. To be honest, in terms of espionage and assassination power, you are still too far behind His Highness. "
"Thank you for helping me get rid of this malignant tumor." Tang Yizhong bowed one last time and concluded his speech.
Feng Jingfan stood silently. Her hair bun had already been disheveled by the flying knife. It was long and short and draped over her shoulders. Some of her short hair covered her eyes, and it was impossible to see what expression was in her eyes. The lights flickered, casting a dark shadow on her face. The deep and shallow contours of her face were no longer as gentle as they used to be. Instead, they were cold, hard, and sinisterly saw-toothed.
She suddenly took a step back.
She retreated to Feng Xuan's side and grabbed the unfinished imperial edict. She grabbed Feng Xuan's wrist with one hand and said sternly, "Father, write it! Write it quickly! No matter what, I am the Xuanji Empress! I will always be nobler than that slut of unknown origin! "
Her eyes were crimson red and her breathing rose and fell rapidly. No matter what, she had to fight for this one last time!
The main hall was very quiet. Feng Xuan suddenly sighed under her palm and stuffed the imperial edict into her hand. "I have already written it."
Feng Jingfan heard that he had suddenly stopped panting and that his tone was also calm and collected. He was no longer as weak as he had been these days. She was shocked and hurriedly looked down. The last name of the empress in the imperial edict came into her view.
Feng Fuyao!
Her vision darkened and swayed. It was as if countless phantoms had suddenly flashed past her vision. Colorful and blurred figures flew continuously, and sharp teeth shot out from all directions toward her. In an instant, she was hit so hard that she became dizzy and her blood splattered everywhere.
"Feng Fuyao … Who is Feng Fuyao!"
"Your sister." Feng Xuan sat up without batting an eyelid. He straightened his clothes, sat cross-legged, and used his fingers to comb his messy hair. At this moment, he was no longer that decrepit old man who was controlled by others. He was quiet and noble, smiling with grace. Although his complexion was still not good, that imperial demeanor had returned in an instant.
On the roof of the main hall, Meng Fuyao did not come down. She looked at him with a cold smile, as if she was not shocked by his earth-shattering transformation.
Feng Xuan raised his head and smiled at her. He waved his hand kindly and said, "Fuyao, my daughter, come, let me look at you."
Meng Fuyao laughed coldly and ignored him. She looked up at the roof and felt that even the strange beast in front of her was ten thousand times better looking than the old man in front of her.
Feng Jingfan, however, staggered a few steps back and hit the imperial couch with a bang. She did not seem to feel any pain. Her face was snow-white as she hissed, "Who … who? Sister? Why would I have a sister … "She suddenly turned her head and stared into Meng Fuyao's eyes. Her gaze was like a deep sea, but also like countless flags fluttering in the wind of truth. Those flags fluttered over and lifted the buried memories. With a swoosh, the scene from fourteen years ago was suddenly revealed.
The little girl who had silently stared at her from the cabinet 14 years ago suddenly jumped out. The stubborn and sharp gaze of an adult gradually overlapped with the cold smile of the woman on the roof.
"It's you … it's you!"
Feng Jingfan was finally ruthlessly defeated this time. Her last obsession was shattered in an instant. Her enemy was actually her old enemy from 14 years ago, and her father, the Emperor, had actually passed the throne to her!
"Why! Why! "She suddenly turned around and screamed at Feng Xuan.
"You've lost. It's that simple." Feng Xuan still smiled kindly at her. "I want to choose an empress, not a daughter."
"You hate me for joining forces with Empress Mother and Master to imprison and force you?" Feng Jingfan stared at him and murmured in disbelief, "But father, you originally promised to pass the throne to me. We didn't do anything to you. You hurt me like this … you hurt me like this …"
"How did I hurt you?" Feng Xuan looked at her calmly. "Jingfan, I don't mind your actions at all. I'm really satisfied that you can do this. In fact, until just now," he pointed to the imperial edict that had just been filled in and the ink had not yet dried, "if you could chase Fuyao away, the name on this would still be yours."
"You …"
"I've said it before. I want to choose an emperor. A truly powerful emperor who can sit firmly on the throne of Xuanji. " Feng Xuan lowered her eyes and caressed the imperial edict calmly and lovingly. "In my later years, my health is not good and I'm tired of politics. Xuanji's corruption is already deep and the princes and princesses are busy fighting for the throne and neglecting politics. The national power of Xuanji is declining day by day. Under such circumstances, if the newly ascended emperor is not strong enough and does not have enough power to sweep away political enemies and clean up politics, Xuanji will definitely fall into an endless battle for imperial power. Sooner or later, the country will fall under the iron hooves of the newly rising Han Dynasty or the covetous Wuji Dynasty. This is the territory of the Feng Royal Family. As a descendant of the Feng Family, how can I let my hands be cut off from the succession of the clan? So, this throne can only be occupied by the capable one. "
"So you delegated power to your children. So you spread the news to appoint an empress while allowing your children to fight for supremacy in the three regions of Xuanji? So you gave them almost evenly matched power and let them fight each other on a fair battlefield until the final victor is decided, disregarding life and death? " The more Feng Jingfan spoke, the colder her voice became. "Those are not a group of wild beasts fighting for food, they are … they are all your children!"
Feng Xuan was silent for a long time before she said quietly, "This is how I came to be."
Using the throne as bait to lure the children to kill each other, the final victor would be the king. It was like raising venomous insects in a clay pot, or training wolves in the wild. The one who emerged from the bloody battle and stood at the top of the cliff would definitely be the most ferocious, the most ruthless, and the one who could lead the pack of beasts!
As for human lives and kinship, compared to the survival of the country, in Feng Xuan's heart, they were like mustard ears!
This was the arena of imperial power, this was the imperial family!
At this moment, the main hall was so quiet that not a single sound could be heard. Everyone was frozen by the conversation between the father and daughter. Although it was a spring night, it was as if they were sitting in winter.
Even though Meng Fuyao had long guessed Feng Xuan's plan, she could not help but feel her hair stand on end at his calmness. She coldly stroked Xu Wan's skeleton on her back, as if trying to find something to warm her from her mother, the only person who had ever given her warmth.
"Good … Good … Good!!!" After a deathly silence, a woman's maniacal and fierce laughter suddenly erupted. Feng Jingfan laughed until her entire body trembled, her hair was disheveled, and her face was covered in tears. She laughed sarcastically. "Good! My good father! It's funny that I used to look down on you, thinking that I had always been controlling you, and even looked down on your cowardice and incompetence with my mother! I thought that you were not worthy to be my father … I was wrong! You are worthy! You are really worthy! Too worthy! "
"Jingfan," Feng Xuan said lightly, "being a daughter of the Xuanji royal family has never been an easy thing. Among all the dynasties, Xuanji is the only one that has never had a prince. Have you never thought about why?"
Feng Jingfan was in a daze for a long time, leaning tightly against the side of the bed to support herself. She said in a low voice, "I have … but when it comes to me, I still … didn't expect …"
"That's why I said you're not as good as Fuyao." Feng Xuan was as kind as she was when she taught her daughter many times in the past how to govern a country and how to balance it. It was as if these lessons were still useful to Feng Jingfan. She was very patient. "Fuyao has a very keen sense of politics. She has experienced the turmoil of the four countries and is good at political struggles. She is a very good ruler, or rather, she is a bystander. You can't guess my thoughts even though you are by my side every day, but she seems to have known for a long time."
"I just want to know, how did you know that she is that bastard?" Feng Jingfan did not look at anyone but Feng Xuan, a cold smile at the corner of her mouth.
"Don't talk about your sister like that," Feng Xuan said gently. "Don't look down on your father either. Your sister is better than you in this aspect, she has never looked down on me."
Meng Fuyao laughed coldly from the roof of the hall. "That's because I know how perverted the Xuanji royal family is. Also, let me warn you, if you say another word about your sister, I will immediately knock all your teeth out."
"I have long known that I have a daughter who is wandering outside." Feng Xuan did not seem to feel Meng Fuyao's murderous aura and still patiently explained to Feng Jingfan, "I know that she went missing at the age of five, and when the Han Meng King rose to power, I once studied her experience and realized that she had no background at all. No one knew about her life before the age of five. I don't know why, but I suddenly thought that my missing daughter and this Meng King, who is of a similar age and background, could be the same person. For this guess, I sent many people to appear by the Meng King's side with all kinds of mediocre identities. They didn't have to do anything, just get her face. Of course, it was very difficult. My precious daughter almost never used her real face, but no matter how long she wore her mask, there would eventually be a time when she would take it off. That time was enough. I brought the portrait back and asked the elders in the palace to identify it, and then I would be able to recall it. "
Meng Fuyao snorted coldly, trying hard to remember when she had taken off her mask and who had seen it. But in the past few years, how could she remember when and where she had taken it off? And when she had taken off her mask, it could have only been a flower seller, an old man delivering vegetables, or even a child who was the least guarded against her. Who knew who had remembered her face? She had only worn the mask for convenience, and had never really thought about the importance of appearance. How could she guard against the other party who had plotted against her when she was unaware?
"Fuyao, my daughter." Feng Xuan no longer paid attention to Feng Jingfan. Raising her head again, she gave her a loving smile and opened her arms. "Come, let me take a good look at you."
= = =
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
