The Deposed Crown Prince had Three Lifelong Regrets - Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Five days later, at noon.

The carpet was embroidered with a giant lotus flower. Musicians, dressed in long robes of gold and silver thread, switched instruments occasionally, singing ancient tunes. They seemed to be dancing gracefully on an altar, or like puppets manipulated in a traditional opera.

“Fasting, blood sacrifice, spell sealing, transforming the soul-locking talisman.” Dancers gathered at the front, bending at the waist with their arms becoming scattered, swaying petals, and then merging back together.

“Lock the unsettled heart, the soul is upside down and cannot move, the name is unknown and the surname is unclear. Soul-locking ghost, lock the soul quickly. Lock up the sick and unable to survive, confused all the time.”

“I command by the decree of the Buddha in the Western Heaven, Urgent as the law of the Old Ancestor of Yin Mountain!”

The Fourth Prince, Li Ruixuan, leaned toward Wenchang and said, “This is quite a show. Zhu Yingtai and Liang Shanbo turning into butterflies, Lady Meng Jiang weeping and collapsing the Great Wall. Love and desire are a rich and heavy stroke in opera.”

“Why has my Imperial Brother started studying leisurely texts?”

Li Qinghuai casually asked, resting her hand on her chin.

“Even if the Imperial Father agrees to your tax reform, what iron-fisted means do you have to implement it? Or is it purely talk on paper…”

As she listened, her head nodded down like a chicken pecking rice, clearly distracted, completely unaware of the increasingly ferocious look on the other person’s face.

“Brother, although everyone knows my house arrest was lifted early, it’s inconvenient for me to appear too much. I will entrust the Governor-General to suppress it by force,” she said, stretching, then broke into a sly and crafty smile. “You don’t need to worry about it.”

“I heard the Imperial Father privately asked the ministers about their views on the selection of the Crown Prince.” Li Ruixuan’s teeth gnashed, making his sister look sideways at him, yet he still forced a smile.

“The position of Crown Prince cannot be vacant for a day, but this is not for me to comment on rashly. It is widely known that my reputation is poor. I will not engage in factionalism, nor will I collude with officials to deceive the Emperor.”

“Li Qinghuai, you!” The Fourth Prince slapped the table and stood up.

“How insolent,” Her Highness Wenchang smiled broadly, “You tasteless thing.”

Li Qinghuai’s words were spoken softly and delicately. Her meaning could only be discerned by reading her lips and sensing her breath.

This was absolutely a vulgar and shameless act. Apart from petty low-life individuals, almost no one would resort to this.

As soon as her dear brother began to accuse her, the show would start. She could completely pretend to be oblivious and drive the Fourth Prince mad.

Li Ruixuan probably never expected someone to be so shameless. But he ultimately considered the royal dignity. He managed to suppress his rage until his lips were pale and trembling, yet he didn’t press the issue.

This display of forbearance ruined his Imperial Sister’s show. Wenchang was crestfallen, but he still thought he had backed down significantly, and the other party was likely repenting. So he became smug again.

“The Imperial Father has been sick in bed for more than two days, yet you are still drinking and listening to music, showing no filial piety.” Li Ruixuan regrouped.

“Is there a possibility that I am here to promote the new policy? These decadent sounds disturb the mind and cause people to become listless. This is a huge drawback for our Great Qin and must be abolished sooner or later.”

After saying that, she observed the lack of belief on the man’s face, his eyes and brows full of scorn, mocking her unrealistic ideas.

Li Qinghuai didn’t care. She was watching a serious play, an opera related to her political ambitions.

The dancer’s performance was virtually identical to the ancient texts describing the Seven Fiends Soul-Locking Dance. This play had been planned and rehearsed since the day she met Zhang Ling, and now she was finally watching it.

The opera told the story of a couple where the wife was nearing death. The husband used living sacrifices to pray for shared fate with his wife. The caster of the spell needed to maintain peace of mind, could not lose their temper or be cruel, and had to perform good deeds like setting creatures free.

How could one not be cruel when borrowing the lives of others to extend the life of one’s beloved?

Truly bizarre.

Later in the plot, three butchers went hunting in the mountains, unfortunately straying into this area steeped in resentment, where the mad man cornered them in a broken temple.

Fortunately, heaven had eyes. At the critical moment, the man suffered a backlash from the vengeful spirits, and the butchers successfully fought back and killed him.

“A terrible play—and you invited others to see it?” Before Li Qinghuai could finish her complaint, a page from the opera house rushed over to ask her to leave, saying someone was looking for her.

She had been speaking to her Imperial Brother.

But it was the page who answered, “It’s someone from the palace, an eunuch.”

Li Qinghuai’s finger, which had been tapping the table, paused. She immediately rose to adjust her attire, while countless possibilities ran through her mind.

“Imperial Decree arrives! Summoning Princess Wenchang to the Palace to meet the Emperor!” The confidant of Emperor Huijing came in person. Having navigated the unpredictable Imperial Palace for years, his words and actions were flawless. No matter what Li Qinghuai asked, he only said, “Your Highness will know when you arrive.”

The Fourth Prince, who deserved a thousand cuts, felt that the Emperor summoning only Wenchang while he was ill would shake his own position, prompting a new round of verbal abuse.

Unfortunately, Wenchang was already in a state of confusion and automatically ignored his mouth, which spat black mud.

There were many plants in the palace, and the tree shadows flickered. With every step she took, a different shadow fell upon her cheek.

That night of the full moon, who knows what kind of turmoil occurred, how many palace maids and eunuchs were busy, how many people couldn’t sleep, and how many heads rolled.

Zhang Ling was discovered a distance away from the Southern Study. They likely wouldn’t find the missing memorials that quickly, yet the Imperial Father insisted on summoning her to the palace today.

“Mingyun.” Emperor Huijing rarely called her by her intimate name. It wasn’t that he called it rarely, but after a long period of confinement, hearing the name openly again felt truly unsettling.

Sandalwood was lit, and tendrils of smoke drifted into her nostrils.

“The memorials on the table are all impeaching you,” the Emperor pointed to the memorials and then to the lamp next to them. “Burn them after reading.”

Li Qinghuai held her breath, only showing a look of terror, yet not daring to defy the Imperial Edict. She shuffled her feet to the front of the hall.

She put on a perfect show of pure white innocence, as if her soles were glued to the ground, making every step arduous.

She didn’t reach for the memorials. Instead, she picked up the inkstone, dampened it, and started grinding the ink.

“Imperial Father, the mirror demon in the palace… I have a way. Although I can’t guarantee success, I can try my best to remedy the situation,” she lowered her voice.

She talked incessantly, but every word was a soft whisper. She made sure the Supreme Emperor felt that at least one of his daughters was considerate and could amuse him at his knee.

“Hmm, I’ll leave it to you.”

Li Qinghuai smiled, a blooming smile.

“Wait until the palace stabilizes before discussing court matters again. Don’t blame your Imperial Father for suppressing you. The pile of impeachment memorials is mountainous; no one can bear it.”

The incense burner was burning with a floral scent, meticulously formulated by the Imperial Household Department. After the Empress hanged herself, only a few willing informants remained here.

“Go to sleep. You’ve been up for a long time. What belongs to you will be yours eventually. What kind of demeanor is it to worry and fear all day long?”

The dream.

A blurry-faced woman sat in front of a mirror. Every movement was magnificent. She seemed utterly confident in her looks, full of arrogance.

Behind her stood a younger girl, with flowers in her hair, giggling.

“Empress, Zhu Lingwei is just a brat. Losing her mother is like having her bones broken. She won’t go far with a stooped back,” most things in the dream were distorted, and the voice was no exception, sticky and sharp. “Instead of worrying about that person regaining power, worry about me.”

“She should be dead, she should be dead, she should be dead, she should be dead, she should be dead, she should be dead, she will die—”

Clink.

A wooden basin, water splashing.

The view transitioned from the dressing table to the bath chamber.

“Ha, there.” Heavy panting assaulted her. Two slender figures were in the bathtub amidst the mist, making love, reaching the peak of ecstasy.

A tender hand covered the chest opposite, conveying an addictive warmth.

Water birds playing in the water. Fingers tapped the water surface, one by one, inch by inch.

“Stab here.” Flames soared, but Zhu Lingwei’s hair was still wet. She preferred to tie her hair up for years, so it inevitably curled when loosened.

The person was twenty-one, perhaps older. She still looked in full bloom, showing no signs of the decline left by confinement.

At least this person’s mind was more naive than her current self. Only the appearance had grown up.

A dagger pierced through the luxurious clothing, cutting the skin. Blood overflowed the blade.

“Don’t blame me. Blame your Imperial Mother. Farewell, Lingwei—”

The dagger was pulled out, and blood spurted.

Her vision tilted and fell to the ground with a loud crash. She struggled with all her might to open her eyes wide. Finally, at the last moment, she clearly saw the shadowy figure.

A peony face, intoxicating beauty.

The rebellious Lu Fengmian.

The sun was bright and brilliant behind the door. A handsome man was waiting for his beloved.

His beloved had a peony face, intoxicating beauty.

The surrounding sounds echoed and converged in her ears, forming one word more brutally haunting than the last: “She shouldn’t have been alive in this world long ago.”

“A nest of vipers. What good thing could come out of the belly of an Asura?”

“Look, does her Imperial Father care about her? Just a baby girl born in the Cold Palace. Imperial Daughter, ha, a title in vain. Even if I took the child and raised her at my knee, what trouble could Zhu Lingyi cause? — Come, Lingwei, come to Mother.”

Reality.

Her head ached terribly. A groan escaped through her clenched teeth, and she immediately suppressed it. Li Qinghuai’s Adam’s apple bobbed continuously. Acid constantly built up in her mouth, but she had to maintain her composure in front of the Emperor.

The inkstone was ground open. She smiled faintly and handed over the brush.

Imperial Father, please drink another cup of tea. That way, the three scents can take effect. When one gets old and their body declines, they naturally think of their children’s kindness and naturally worry about them more.

Emperor Huijing lightly patted his thigh, feeling deeply satisfied with the scene. He placed his hand on Li Qinghuai’s and patted it repeatedly, seemingly comforting and praising her.

“The ministers are discussing your factionalism. I understand your true nature. Today, we father and daughter will set aside the messy politics. But marriage is a major life event, and I must inquire about it.”

“The wedding is approaching. What are your thoughts?”

Li Qinghuai pretended to sigh regretfully, “It must wait until September. It was only brought up as a childish jest to suppress some minor turmoil. It shouldn’t be taken seriously. We certainly cannot marry before the turmoil begins.”

“Not bad, not bad. You have great potential. Love is too shallow. An Emperor must be cold and heartless, and the same principle applies to the Crown Prince.” He glanced at her, meaningfully.

She quickly feigned fear and humility, forcing a timid smile.

Come quickly, Mirror Demon. I can’t wait to see what you look like. Whether male or female, an adult or a child, what kind of chaos you will bring to the Great Qin empire.

And Cheng Mei, when will you come and stab me with a knife? It’s quite anticipated. For whom are you keeping yourself pure, and for whom are you going through fire and water?

Concubine Duan cooperated with her. At the front of the hall, she let Lu Fengmian kill her. Watching the demons and ghosts run rampant in the capital, she walked toward a man in the morning light and retired from the world.

Li Qinghuai smiled very lightly. “Whatever.”