At this moment, half of his shoulder and arm had been cut off by Chen Chang Sheng's blade, and one of his eyes was also blind. If he were to be described as a dog, then he was undoubtedly a stray dog.
Xue Xing Chuan frowned and said, "Just focus on recovering."
Zhou Tong still did not listen to him. He struggled to turn his neck and looked towards the palace gate. He saw that chair and knew that Xue Xing Chuan had previously been guarding there. He was silent for a very long time.
Then he asked, "Did the Empress come?"
The night sky was filled with stars, and the ground outside the palace was sprinkled with starlight, like water, very peaceful.
Xue Xing Chuan was silent for a while, then said, "You know, the capital is in a tense situation tonight, the Empress has to pay attention to the Li Palace."
"Really?" Zhou Tong squinted his eyes like an old dog. The pain from his left eye made him frown, and his voice also began to tremble. "Then … did the Empress say anything?"
This time, Xue Xing Chuan was silent for an even longer time.
Zhou Tong raised the corner of his lips, revealing an ugly and even somewhat terrifying smile. He looked at him and said, "You see, I really am just like a dog. Even if I'm about to die, my master won't care."
Xue Xing Chuan looked at him in silence for a while, then said, "When you were little, I told you that you didn't have to live like this."
He was clearly heavily injured, but Zhou Tong somehow found the strength to say in a voice full of resentment, "If I didn't live like this, would I be like you?"
Xue Xing Chuan was silent again.
"From the moment I was in the womb, I couldn't compete with you. When you were born, you weighed no less than eight catties, and me? Not even five catties. That's fine, since my family was poor, no matter how I was raised, I was still like this, but Auntie Xue couldn't give birth to a son and wanted to secretly raise one, so she found our family … if it was me, I would also choose a white fatty like you, not a skinny monkey like me. "
Zhou Tong said, "Later, Auntie Xue gave birth to another child and decided to pass the family business to her own son. Afraid that you would resent her, she secretly told you this matter before she died. I admit that after that, you treated your parents well, and you treated me even better, taking me to school with you and studying together, but did you ever think, why should I pretend to be your study boy and be with you?"
Xue Xingchuan replied, "In front of others, there's nothing I can do, but in our own courtyard, I treat you like a brother."
Zhou Tong said mockingly, "But that's only when there's no one around. In front of others, I can only see you and Xue He being brothers. Tell me, how do you think I feel?"
Xue Xingchuan fell silent, no longer speaking.
"I was congenitally deficient in my mother's womb, and even my cultivation talent couldn't compare to yours. If I hadn't later entered the Department for Purging Officials, encountered that old ghost in prison, learned the secret technique of the Great Crimson Gown, and then plagiarized all over the place, how could I have possibly cultivated to my current level? How can I compare to you? "
Zhou Tong expressionlessly stared at the ceiling of the palace, continuing, "But there's a problem with the Great Crimson Gown secret art. Later on, I cultivated too many things, so there's no hope for me to reach that step in this lifetime. Meanwhile, you're walking step by step in that direction. I just don't understand. We're both twins, so why is there such a huge difference in our fortunes?"
"After so many years, when I saw you once more in the capital, I did not expect that you had already entered the Department for Purging Officials … but even if you began to change at that time, it was not too late."
"Too late to do what? If I don't sell my life for the Empress, if I don't kill for the Empress, I will lose the Empress's favor and I will be killed by those people. "
"Be at ease, the Empress will give you an explanation," Xue Xingchuan consoled.
Yet in the depths of his heart, not even he believed these words.
Just then, footsteps came from outside the palace. The one who came was not the Divine Empress, but the medical officer delivering the medicine.
After a careful examination, the medical officer carefully carried the wooden table containing the medicine to the bed.
From the moment the footsteps came, Zhou Tong had been staring at the medical officer. His face was very pale, but his eyes exuded a strange and fierce light. Xue Xingchuan knew what he was thinking, how disappointed and even despairing he was, but he could do nothing to console him. Taking the medicine bowl from the medical officer's hands, he single-handedly propped him up and prepared to feed him the medicine.
Zhou Tong gazed at the black medicinal liquid in the bowl, sensing the divine Qi and medicinal fragrance contained within. The expression on his face suddenly became rather strange.
"What's wrong?" Xue Xingchuan asked.
Zhou Tong's voice trembled slightly, inexplicably causing one's heart to palpitate. "I … am not at ease."
"It's not that bad." Xue Xingchuan knew what he was worried about. Looking at him, he seriously said, "The Empress is not that sort of person."
"I've done more things for the Empress than all of you combined. I know better than all of you what sort of person the Empress is. In any case, I'm not at ease."
Zhou Tong's voice was getting sharper and sharper, and because of his injuries, his breathing was somewhat lacking. It sounded like a broken bellow, whooshing.
At this moment, he looked like a stubborn child. Because he did not like the bitterness of medicine, he turned his face away and tightly shut his mouth. Even if he was beaten to death, he would not drink this bowl of medicine.
Xue Xingchuan looked at him in his arms and thought about how, many years ago in the old estate, he had also refused to drink medicine just like this. He couldn't help but reveal a smile of reminiscence.
Once these matters in the capital were finished, he would have someone send him back to the old estate to retire. He believed that besides the Empress, himself, and Xue He, no one else would know where he was.
As Xue Xingchuan thought about these things, he raised the bowl of medicine and drank a mouthful. "Look, this medicine is fine, and it's not bitter."
Many years ago, when he coaxed Zhou Tong into drinking medicine, he had done this. He would first drink a mouthful for him.
Zhou Tong looked at this scene and suddenly began to cry, sobs coming from his throat.
Xue Xingchuan was also somewhat moved.
After Zhou Tong finished crying, his mind was even more exhausted, but he was much more relaxed.
He looked at Xue Xingchuan and forced a smile. "I've thought it through. It's fine as long as I'm alive."
Xue Xingchuan was very comforted. "It's fine as long as you've thought it through."
… …
… …
When the carriage returned to the Orthodox Academy, it was already surrounded.
The armies of the Imperial Court and the cavalry of the Orthodoxy stretched from the main street to Hundred Flowers Lane, and then to the perimeter of the academy walls.
Chen Changsheng got off the carriage and bid farewell to Prince Chen Liu. Under countless gazes, he walked into the Orthodox Academy.
The gate of the Orthodox Academy was pushed open, revealing the brightly lit interior. Although it was already late at night, not a single one of the several hundred teachers and students slept, because tonight, no one could sleep.
The sword array formed by the female disciples of South Stream Temple had already been moved from the base of the small building to the back of the academy gate. Sensing the awe-inspiring sword intent, one could be sure that if the soldiers of the Imperial Court wanted to force their way in, they would have to pay an extremely heavy price. But for some reason, the faces of these female disciples did not have their usual calm and confidence. Instead, there was some worry.
"Where did you go?" Tang Thirty-Six asked him.
The teachers and students of the Orthodox Academy were also looking at him.
Chen Changsheng had left the Orthodox Academy four hours ago. He had gone to the bottom of New North Bridge, to the Plum Garden Inn, and finally to the alley of the Northern Military Department, doing many things.
Because of his departure, the situation in the capital had suddenly become tense. The Orthodoxy cavalry and the Imperial Guard had arrived one after the other. The people of the Orthodox Academy naturally knew that something had happened, but they did not know what it was. The battle in the alley of the Northern Military Department had just concluded. Tang Thirty-Six had people in the capital, but the news did not travel any faster than Chen Changsheng's return.
"It's fine. Everyone, go to sleep."
Chen Changsheng indicated that Su Mo Yu should lead the teachers and students to rest, and then he brought Tang Thirty-Six and Zhexiu to the small building.
The sword array of South Stream Temple naturally moved with him. In a short while, they had arrived by the lake. Su Mo Yu had also hurried back.
"Are you really fine?" Tang Thirty-Six looked into his eyes and very seriously asked.
They knew of Chen Changsheng's current condition and could not tease him as they usually did. They had originally believed that after Chen Changsheng left the Orthodox Academy, he would not return. Who could have expected that he would return so late at night? This made them feel much more at ease, but it was impossible for them to completely relax.
"I'm really fine," Chen Changsheng said. "I just went out to take care of a few things."
"What things?"
"I … went to kill Zhou Tong."
Hearing this, the area in front of the small building instantly became incomparably quiet.
The night wind lightly brushed against the great banyan tree, but could not ruffle its leaves. It lightly brushed against the surface of the lake, but no ripples could be seen.
Everyone was shocked, especially the girls of South Stream Temple.
The mood in the capital tonight was abnormal, as if a storm was brewing. Zhexiu and the others had guessed that it had something to do with him, but they had not expected that he had gone to take care of such an important matter.
There were countless people in this world that wanted Zhou Tong dead, but how many of them dared to put these thoughts into practice?
Su Mo Yu looked at him, his face brimming with admiration.
The girls of South Stream Temple looked at him, their eyes suddenly brightening, thinking, no wonder he is the man the temple master likes, truly extraordinary.
"I said before, Zhou Tong is someone I want to kill."
Zhexiu looked at him and said, "Seeing how special your current situation is, I don't blame you."
Chen Changsheng looked back at him and said, "Back then, you were imprisoned in Zhou Prison because of my relationship with the Orthodox Academy, so I always wanted to finish this matter before leaving."
Leave? Go where? Upon hearing this, the girls of South Stream Temple were rather confused and doubtful.
Tang Thirty-Six and Su Mo Yu understood the meaning of the word 'leave', and the slightly excited mood they had just felt instantly chilled.
"I said before, just add more money," Zhexiu said.
Chen Changsheng did not argue with him over this matter, saying, "My apologies, I was not able to kill him."
A voice rose from among the girls of South Stream Temple, "Daring to kill him is very impressive."
The speaker was Ye Xiaolian, once a worshipper of Qiushan Jun, later a worshipper of Chen Changsheng, and now a worshipper of Xu Yourong.
Tonight, she suddenly felt that liking Chen Changsheng was a very reasonable matter.
Chen Changsheng noticed that the mood of the girls of South Stream Temple was somewhat strange and asked, "What happened?"
Ye Xiaolian uneasily said, "The temple master still hasn't returned."
Chen Changsheng thought this over, then asked, "Perhaps she's staying the night in the Imperial Palace?"
Ye Xiaolian shook her head and said, "The temple master said that she would definitely return at nightfall. If she doesn't return …"
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng, Tang Thirty-Six, and the others finally realized that there was a problem and their expressions turned grave.
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