The Daily Life of a Depressed Salted Fish Chapter 62

Back in Yao Ji’s courtyard, the door to Jiang Wu’s room remained tightly shut. 

She sat outside, tense, feeling uneasy. She periodically glanced toward the door, guilt written on her face.

This would be the last time. She swore it. Her only intent was to show Jiang Wu how wonderful women could be, so he would give up his infatuation with Yin Wuzhi. Nothing more. She didn’t want to create a rift between them by having Yin Wuzhi killed.

Inside, the maids remained kneeling in a half-circle. Without instructions, they didn’t dare touch even the hem of his robe. Jiang Wu slumped, eyes lowered. Despite understanding Yao Ji’s intent, he couldn’t pinpoint the source of the growing heat within him.

Whenever things were uncertain, Jiang Wu would stop breathing, as if preparing for a protest. He quickly held his breath, continuing his silent protest as a defeated soul.

Outside, Yao Ji sipped some tea, trying to calm her nerves. She stood up and paced, wringing her fingers.

Perhaps, because of her anxiety, she kept glancing at the door. Would Jiang Wu like those women? She began to regret her choices, wondering if she should have picked even more beautiful and clean women to please him.

She closed her eyes, a fleeting image of Jiang Wu’s face, which resembled her own, crossed her mind.

These maids, she realized, didn’t deserve him.

But they had been trained. They would surely help him understand that women were better than the stubborn and crude Yin Wuzhi.

Suddenly, a cry came from inside, “Your Majesty! Your Majesty?!”

Yao Ji rushed inside, pushing aside the maids and cradling Jiang Wu’s face, which had turned blue from lack of air. She cried out, “Wuer!!”

Jiang Wu had passed out from holding his breath.

He quickly realized that one couldn’t actually die by holding their breath, but as a despondent soul, this was the only form of resistance he could muster. If he couldn’t fight, he would collapse, faint, or even die. The life of a disillusioned person was that simple and pure.

Yao Ji checked Jiang Wu’s breathing. Realizing he had only fainted, she collapsed in relief. “What did you do to him?” she demanded.

The maids, just as frightened, stammered, “His Majesty told us to kneel, and then… he stopped breathing.”

Tears streamed from Yao Ji’s eyes. 

How had Jiang Wu become like this, willing to knock himself out rather than accept her arrangements? All she had done was for his own good. Why couldn’t he understand?

Despair liked to sleep and lose consciousness. Sinking into darkness allowed Jiang Wu to feel completely at ease. But today was different. He had barely fainted when the heat in his body woke him up again.

…How strange.

Suddenly, the sound of a door being kicked open reached his ears. Jiang Wu barely opened his eyes to a slit and saw the blurry figure ahead. He whispered weakly, “Yin Wuzhi.”

As soon as Empress Dowager Wen entered the room, she caught a whiff of the fragrance of concubine’s fragrance. She quickly approached Jiang Wu and, seeing his dazed expression, her face darkened. She glared at Yao Ji and gritted her teeth, saying, “You’ve really lost your mind.”

“I just wanted him to know how wonderful women can be.”

“This is a sacred place of Buddhism, and you dare behave so recklessly? Aren’t you afraid that the Great Empress Dowager will take your life?!”

The Great Empress Dowager frequently visited temples and held deep respect for the Buddhist faith. This was why she had become so furious when she found out that Yin Wuzhi had stolen steamed egg custard. Yao Ji replied, “It’s late at night, and no one will disturb us. She won’t find out.”

“You think I’ll cover for you?!” Empress Dowager Wen yanked her away from Jiang Wu. For the first time, her face twisted into a terrifying expression in front of everyone. “Someone, take His Majesty back.”

“Don’t think that just because the late emperor entrusted him to you that he’s your son. He will always be my child, and you will never take him away from me!”

Empress Dowager Wen shot Yao Ji a cold glance. “I could just strangle you.”

She then turned back and gently addressed Jiang Wu. “Hmm? What did you say? Don’t be afraid… Mother will take you to find Yin Wuzhi.”

Upon hearing this, Yao Ji, who had been feeling some regret over Jiang Wu’s fainting, immediately raised her head and struggled to stand. “Chang Jinwen! Let go of my son! He can’t go see Yin Wuzhi. What kind of person is he? How could he possibly be worthy of my Wuer?”

Empress Dowager Wen stretched out her hand and shoved her hard. Coming from the Chang family of Qianzhou, she was highly skilled in martial arts, while Yao Ji, frail and weak, was sent flying and hit her forehead against the corner of a table.

Jiang Wu, slumped in his wheelchair, grew more and more dazed. His blurred eyes reflected a deep sense of pain.

Empress Dowager Wen glanced at the wound on Yao Ji’s forehead and, feeling a twinge of guilt, added, “Enough, Yao Ji. It’s not me who wants to send him to Yin Wuzhi; it’s Wuer who’s calling for him. If you keep interfering, no one will be able to help you after tonight.”

Yao Ji pressed a handkerchief to her wound, ignoring Empress Dowager Wen’s words, and instinctively looked at Jiang Wu. “Quick, treat my wound. Hurry!”

Empress Dowager Wen’s expression grew complicated as she stared at Yao Ji’s delicate, beautiful face. “If only you could care for Wuer the way you care for your own face, I would gladly give him back to you.”

Something flickered in Yao Ji’s eyes, but she said no more.

Empress Dowager Wen gently smoothed the creases on Jiang Wu’s forehead and quickly left the room with him. Before they could return to her quarters, they encountered the Great Empress Dowager, her face cold as ice. Empress Dowager Wen hurried forward. “Royal Mother…”

“What did she do to the emperor this time?”

“She used concubine’s fragrance.” Empress Dowager Yao quickly explained, “Earlier, I pushed Yao Ji, and she hit her head.”

The Great Empress Dowager paused, her face stern. “Send the emperor back to his quarters and get a clean maid to tend to him.”

“But… Wuer keeps calling for Yin Wuzhi.”

The Great Empress Dowager looked at Jiang Wu for a long moment before speaking. “How far have things gone between them?”

“I’ve heard they sleep together every night.”

The Great Empress Dowager pondered for a while. “King Dingnan is guarding the emperor’s quarters. If he finds out about this, things could get ugly.”

Empress Dowager Wen lowered her head slightly. “…That’s why I decided to bring Wuer to my own quarters. I’ve already sent someone to fetch Yin Wuzhi. Consider it a way for him to atone for his sins.”

She dared not look at the Great Empress Dowager’s face and softly lowered her head.

The Great Empress Dowager said nothing more.

Meanwhile, Qi Hanmiao had just finished chatting with Yin Wuzhi when they were intercepted by Empress Dowager Wen’s envoy. After hearing the details, Qi Hanmiao dragged Yin Wuzhi away.

Yin Wuzhi protested, “What’s the meaning of this? I’m still being punished by the Great Empress Dowager.”

Qi Hanmiao whispered quickly, “His Majesty has been poisoned with concubine’s fragrance.”

“Poison?!” Yin Wuzhi instantly sprinted ahead, leaving Qi Hanmiao behind shouting, “Your Highness! Please wait for me! His Majesty is at Empress Dowager Wen’s quarters!!”

Yin Wuzhi ran straight to Jiang Wu’s quarters, only to be blocked by King Dingnan, who raised his sword. “What are you doing here?”

“I need to see His Majesty.”

Marquis Zuowu also raised his sword and approached. “Why do you need to see him?”

Yin Wuzhi’s face turned pale, and he trembled as he replied, “His Majesty has been poisoned with concubine’s fragrance.”

Both men were stunned, their expressions growing awkward.

Yin Wuzhi insisted, “I must see him!”

“First of all, His Majesty isn’t here,” Marquis Zuowu said. “Secondly, why would His Majesty, poisoned with concubine’s fragrance, call for you? Go back to your quarters, or the Great Empress Dowager will be furious.”

As Yin Wuzhi began to doubt if these two were real, Qi Hanmiao finally caught up, out of breath. “Your Highness, His Majesty is in Empress Dowager Wen’s quarters.”

Yin Wuzhi turned and tried to run again, but a sword was once again blocking his way. “Where do you think you’re going?”

Qi Hanmiao glanced between King Dingnan and Yin Wuzhi, unsure of what to do.

Yin Wuzhi was anxious. “I must check on His Majesty’s condition. I need to see him.”

“There’s no need for you to do that.”

“How could there be no need? If anything were to happen to His Majesty, what good would guarding an empty courtyard do?” Yin Wuzhi pushed aside the other’s sword and rushed toward the Empress Dowager’s courtyard like a gust of wind.

King Dingnan took a few steps after him, cursing, “You brat.”

Marquis Zuowu covered his mouth in the back, laughing a few times, “The young shizi of the Yin family is truly… so innocent.”

King Dingnan’s expression remained wooden.

Half an hour later, Yin Wuzhi was blocked at the door again. The Great Empress Dowager asked, “Yin Wuzhi, before you enter, tell me—have you been the one accompanying His Majesty in the Taiji Hall recently?”

“More than just accompanying him,” he replied, his eyes red. “His Majesty and I have long been in love, devoted to each other, and pledged for life.”

The Great Empress Dowager: “.”

Yin Wuzhi asked urgently, “When can I go in to see His Majesty?”

Empress Dowager Yao said, “Now, go inside.”

Yin Wuzhi pushed the door open and entered, while Empress Dowager Wen helped the Great Empress Dowager to a seat at the table. The Great Empress Dowager looked up at the full moon in the sky and said, “What did he say just now? Mutual affection? Wasn’t he forced into the palace?”

“With Wuer being such a divine figure, how could Ah Zhi not be moved?”

The Great Empress Dowager was silent for a while before saying, “But Yin Wuzhi cannot carry on the Jiang family line. The emperor still needs to have an empress.”

“You needn’t worry, Dingnan Wangfei is probably unwilling to let Ah Zhi stay in the palace anyway.”

“Indeed,” the Great Empress Dowager said. “Which emperor in his youth didn’t have someone they cherished deeply?”

The temple room was quite simple. When Yin Wuzhi entered, he crossed the screen and saw the wooden bed draped with a light green bed curtain, which had been brought by Empress Dowager Wen herself, decorated with simple patterns.

Yin Wuzhi quickly crossed over and pulled the curtain aside.

A thick sweet scent filled the air, different from the fresh scent of osmanthus that Jiang Wu used to like. This one was so sweet it clouded the mind.

It was only at this moment that Yin Wuzhi realized why the military officials said the Empress Dowager’s poison didn’t need him, and why no one was keeping vigil by the emperor’s bedside. Instead, they all stood outside.

He stared at the figure on the bed for a few moments, then abruptly turned to leave, his steps stiff.

After a few steps, his feet felt like they were weighed down with lead, and he stopped, his throat tightening.

His hearing had always been sharp.

Jiang Wu’s breathing was entirely different from usual—heavy and erratic, with occasional sharp gasps.

But even his sharp breathing was slower than that of most people, making anyone standing in front of him feel as if time were being stretched indefinitely.

Yin Wuzhi’s body stiffened as he continued walking toward the door, his hand nearing the doorframe but pulling back after a long pause.

“Yin Wuzhi…”

The whisper was so soft, it was like a murmur by his ear.

Had Yin Wuzhi’s senses not been so keen, he surely would have missed it.

His fingers curled back, his throat moved again, the sound of swallowing reverberating loudly in his ears.

His black boots turned back around the screen and once again stopped at the bedside.

Yin Wuzhi pulled back the curtain again, looking at the emperor on the bed.

Jiang Wu’s eyes were open, his thick eyelashes wet. His face, as delicate as a porcelain doll, remained expressionless, the flush on his cheeks looking as if it had been artificially applied, and the mist in his eyes seeming deliberately placed.

These descriptions did not suggest that he looked fake.

On the contrary, it blended seamlessly with his aura.

Because the emperor’s aura was so pure and clean, yet he seemed weak and pliable, it appeared as though everything about him—whether his temperament or his features—could be forcibly imposed upon him. As if anyone could do anything to him, or shape him into any form.

It easily stirred up the urge to dominate and control him.

Yin Wuzhi slowly sat by the bed. “Your Majesty…”

The emperor’s lashes trembled. Even that trembling seemed devoid of life, as though he were a lifeless object, yet somehow deeply captivating.

“Yin Wuzhi,” Jiang Wu said. “I… can’t sleep.”

Yin Wuzhi stroked his cheek. “Does Your Majesty want me to lull you to sleep?”

“Mm.”

Shoes dropped to the floor as Yin Wuzhi moved to lie beside him, lifting the emperor into his arms.

As he expected, the frail emperor was as compliant as always.

Yin Wuzhi held him, supporting his drooping head. “Then let me lull Your Majesty to sleep.”