Chapter 96
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Jiang Yanchi’s brows furrowed slightly, but he didn’t show any other reaction. He took the ruler to flatten the paper for him, then raised his hand to grind ink.
Chu Xie picked up the pen and continued writing: “Seeing words is like meeting in person. Listen to your brother’s advice. The current situation is precarious, with the world on the verge of collapse and chaos everywhere. The emperor is surrounded by wolves, unable to tell him the truth. I hope you can listen carefully.”
Chu Xie held the pen, but the tip was unsteady, and the writing was a bit crooked. His wrist lacked the strength to control the force, and a drop of ink stained the paper.
Seeing the trembling hand, Chu Xie sighed inwardly.
“Cold?” Jiang Yanchi covered Chu Xie’s fingers with his hands. “We can write more tomorrow.”
“No.”
The entire hand was cold and stiff.
This was a writing of a dying person. It was still too difficult to write with a pen.
“Jiang Yanchi, send away the attendants. No one is allowed… cough, within ten zhang of this bedroom.” Chu Xie instructed, and at the same time, he asked him to close the doors and windows nearby, leaving only two. This ensured that no one else could overhear their conversation.
With everything arranged, Chu Xie completed the letter just in time.
As he pulled out the small knife, the little emperor quickly pressed his hand, “What are you doing?”
“Chu Xie gestured towards the bed. ‘I don’t have the strength. Go, get a piece of that red silk.'”
“Jiang Yanchi did as told. Chu Xie tied the piece of red silk outside the window, and after about half a quarter of an hour, a spirited night hawk, entirely black, arrived in the moonlight, leaving delicate footprints on the window sill.”
“Chu Xie toyed with the bird’s beak with his fingertips before rolling the letter into a bamboo tube.”
“So, you keep such a beautiful night hawk. It’s quite a rare and interesting thing, flying a thousand miles in a day,” Jiang Yanchi softly complimented, watching the bird disappear into the distance in silence.
Presumably, during the period of house arrest, Chu Xie relied on it to communicate with the outside world.
The night hawk soared without a sound, leaping three hundred feet high in one go. Ordinary arrows could hardly harm it. It was just extremely difficult to tame.
Well, Chu Xie, as a former high-ranking official, could get his hands on anything rare and precious.
The moonlight was clear, and the sparse shadows stretched horizontally.
Chu Xie watched the dark figure gradually disappear under the moonlight. He then turned and sat at the desk, picked up a cup of hot tea, took a small sip, sat up straight, rested his forearms on the table, and clasped his hands together. After a moment of contemplation, he asked, ‘If I die, will you kill Zhao Lingqu?”
“You won’t die,” Jiang Yanchi hastily replied, at the same time supporting him, “What’s wrong? Are you in a lot of pain? Let me help you to… ”
“Forget it.”
Chu Xie took a difficult breath and grabbed the cuff of Jiang Yanchi’s robe. His gaze gradually shifted, summoning him over. “I have something very important to tell you.”
“Mmm.”
“First, help me to the bed.” Chu Xie struggled to get up. “It’s too cold here.”
Jiang Yanchi swept his eyes over several charcoal braziers in the corners of the room, softly acknowledging. Sensing an increase in strength, he didn’t say much, simply circling behind him, lifting him up and placing him on the bed.
He pulled up the quilt, almost covering Chu Xie’s mouth and nose, and then asked, “What is it?”
“You didn’t ask me, whom the letter was written to and where it was sent.”
Chu Xie’s eyes changed, and he asked.
“I saw it.”
The little emperor’s nose felt a bit sore. He raised his hand to tidy up a strand of Chu Xie’s hair behind his ear, and there was a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth. “You wrote it to Xu Chunmu, right.”
Chu Xie found him increasingly strange and asked, “Then you…”
Jiang Yanchi reached out to embrace him. The familiar scent of sandalwood permeated the air, hitting them directly.
The faint sound of burning braziers in the spacious hall echoed. The snow fell heavier. Under the night sky, the room seemed to have gained a somewhat dull atmosphere.
Jiang Yanchi held him like that and said, “You really like him, don’t you? What about him? Does he also really like you?” Under that silent and serene tone, it seemed that Jiang Yanchi’s emotions were unfathomable to Chu Xie. “How much does he like you, hmm?”
Jiang Yanchi chuckled dryly, carrying a hint of nasal sound, and whispered in Chu Xie’s ear, “Is it like how I like you? Do you like him that much?”
Chu Xie’s throat seemed to be stuck, and his heart pounded fiercely.
“Ah Xie.” Jiang Yanchi’s voice, close to his ear, gradually softened, carrying a slight tremor but extreme tenderness. The exhale brushed against his earlobe, leaving a faint blush. “I admit it.”
“I can’t compete, this time, I truly admit it.”
Chu Xie felt the heartbeat of the person, beating one after another. The warm body temperature passed through the thin fabric, as his hand slipped in from the back, seemingly trying to warm his internal organs.
Except for that one place, everywhere else on his body felt cold.
But Jiang Yanchi let go.
The hand slowly slid down from the back, finally supporting Chu Xie’s shoulder.
Supporting him to lean on the pillow, Jiang Yanchi lowered his head, lightly kissing his forehead. “In this life, I can no longer grow old with the one I love.”
“But you can.”
As if all his strength had been drawn away at once, Chu Xie’s eyelashes trembled slightly, covering his eyes full of astonishment.
Drip.
The cold tears fell on his forehead, blending into his hair, extinguishing all the firelight like a heavy rain in the deep winter.
“… I’ll let you go. From today onwards, you are no longer the empress of Great Wei. Treat it as if he died of illness during the tower. When you recover, I will arrange for someone to escort you out of the city. If you dislike it, you don’t have to see me again in this lifetime, I…”
What am I doing?
Chu Xie felt a bit confused, his pupils reflecting the melancholic eyes of the young man.
A sharp pain erupted in his heart, and Chu Xie instinctively covered his chest. Jiang Yanchi immediately supported him. “What’s wrong, is your chest hurting?”
Chu Xie coughed lightly. The cough gradually grew louder, vibrating like it was shaking his lungs. His slender wrist extended from the bed, tightly gripping the fabric on Jiang Yanchi’s right arm.
That hand covered his back again, gently stroking, helping him breathe.
Then, as if to call someone, Chu Xie immediately grabbed his hand that was about to leave, “Don’t call anyone, don’t let anyone come close.”
“Jiang Yanchi, I have a secret to tell you.”
The young emperor’s expression slightly froze, sitting on the bed, noticing that Chu Xie’s face finally had some color. Perhaps it was because of the violent coughing earlier, but now he looked somewhat like a living person.
Although he appeared languid, his lips were still rosy, and his teeth were white.
“You speak.” Jiang Yanchi averted his gaze, as if looking at him for a moment longer would prolong the lingering.
“Look at me.” Chu Xie raised his hand, turning the man’s face toward him. “First, swear that, no matter what I say later, you will keep this secret for me for a lifetime. Regardless of the changes in the world, the passage of time, you will never use this to harm him, plot against him.”
Jiang Yanchi lowered his eyes, the light in them gradually dimming, his facial expression changed several times. After listening to a complete sentence, he remained silent for a while, contemplating deeply before nodding seriously. “I swear.”
Chu Xie reached out his hand, interlocking his fingers with the right hand held high.
‘Emperor Jiang Yanchi is the only true living opportunity for Xu Chunmu.’
Slowly tightened.
Jiang Yanchi’s eyes burst with brilliance for a moment, but it was forcibly suppressed.
He averted his gaze, wanting to pull his hand away.
But Chu Xie couldn’t let go.
‘Use your last plea and entrustment before death to completely trap Jiang Yanchi for the rest of his life.’
With that strength, Chu Xie leaned forward, and the young emperor’s figure froze for a moment.
His left hand tightly clasped Jiang Yanchi’s right hand, and his right hand rested on the man’s shoulder, leaning close to his right ear.
‘Only by doing so can he completely use the imperial power in his hands to save my only younger brother, Xu Chunmu, in this world.’
Yes.
Original Chu Xie was right.
Once Jiang Yanchi was abolished by Su Mingan, there would be no way out for Xu Chunmu.
If Xu Chunmu couldn’t be saved, Shen Yin couldn’t be saved either.
His thin lips slightly parted, whispering the secret softly.
“Xu Chunmu is my younger brother.”
A howling cold wind rose, swaying the half-open window lattice, making a clattering sound as it hit the wall, startling the snow accumulated on the wutong tree outside the window, falling one after another.
“What… did you say.” Jiang Yanchi’s breath trembled, as if a string in his mind had snapped.
“In the big fire at the Shen family back then, two people survived. One was the eldest son taken away by Su Mingan, and the other was the youngest son hidden by Xu Yi. Young Marquis Xu, Xu Chunmu… He is not from the Xu family; his surname is Shen.” Chu Xie felt Jiang Yanchi’s entire body trembling. Seeing him trying to get up, he exerted force with his right hand. The force was not great, but it kept the person in front of him.
His voice was weak, as if running out of strength, yet unwilling to let anyone nearby hear. “Jiang Yanchi, I know that Zhao Lingqu is your uncle. But I beg you, keep the secret of Xu Chunmu’s identity, let him live his entire life as a member of the Xu family. Protect him, ensure his safety and peace throughout his life…”
Jiang Yanchi trembled uncontrollably, and at this moment, their hands were still tightly clasped.
The emperor looked at those hands, took a step back, and gazed into Chu Xie’s eyes. “What you said is true.”
The sourness at the tip of Chu Xie’s nose became harder to restrain, and tears rolled down again.
Jiang Yanchi held up Chu Xie’s hand and continued to kiss the back of it. Then he pressed the hand against his cheek, carefully recalling something, sorting through the many thoughts that had never been clarified.
Chu Xie nodded solemnly, “This time, I didn’t lie to you. Xu Chunmu was born in the 13th year of Yongan, midsummer, on the thirteenth day of the seventh month. My younger brother was born on the third day of the seventh month, only ten days apart. He is a natural military genius, born with the talent for warfare… He is indeed of the Shen family bloodline.”
Jiang Yanchi remained silent, only studying Chu Xie’s features.
Now he realized that Xu Chunmu, who had been on the battlefield for ten years, had a clear and refined appearance, somewhat resembling Ah Xie.
One was elegantly thin and dazzling, while the other was stern and delicate.
Looking at them a bit longer, he noticed that their eyes were too similar.
If it weren’t for Xu Chunmu’s eyes always carrying a sense of righteousness, quite different from Chu Xie’s demeanor and style, they would be almost identical.
Therefore, Xu Changling and Xu Chunmu didn’t resemble each other at all.
That’s why, for so many years, Xu Chunmu was hidden in the northern borders, never allowed to enter the capital.
Even the three hundred thousand Changming army, originally abandoned by Shen Qianan, was handed over to this younger son.
It turned out there was such a hidden truth in it.
Jiang Yanchi only now remembered that, after the Jinhuan Gambling incident, Xu Changling had told him that Xu Chunmu was an illegitimate child brought back by the old marquis and not a legitimate heir.
He was still immersed in these thoughts when he heard Chu Xie cough softly and slowly said, “Living as a member of the Shen family is too difficult.”
“I don’t want him to live a life like mine.”
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