Chapter 474 – Extra: Never Forgive

Chapter 474 - Extra: Never Forgive

In the gloomy prison, there was no distinction between black and white; everything that met the eye was a dull blend of yellowish-gray.

The Sixth Prince, whose legs had been broken, no longer had the strength to curse anyone.

He lived each day in a daze, oblivious to how many years had passed since he had been imprisoned.

Now, he spent more time asleep than awake.

At least in his dreams, he could be anyone he wanted to be, unlike when he woke up to his current reality.

He often dreamed of his childhood—of a time when both his father, the emperor, and his mother, the concubine, were still by his side. Back then, he was a favored prince with a chance to become the crown prince. He was always respected.

As time dragged on, his thoughts multiplied, each one bringing more sorrow than the last.

He didn't even dare to delve into the depths of his thoughts, wondering how he could not regret the rash actions he took in his youthful fervor.

He was consumed with regret.

But now that things had come to this, trapped here as a cripple, what else could he do?

His own mother had orchestrated so much, yet he was oblivious to it all.

He was blindly led along until he reached that final, fateful step. How could he have killed his father? That was his emperor father.

Indeed, he deserved death, and now, as a cripple, he got what he asked for. This was his punishment.

Yet, these days were excruciatingly unbearable. He couldn't even die if he wanted to, doomed to linger here forever.

It wasn't until the tolling of funeral bells rang out that he was jolted awake.

Struggling to the door, he clung tightly to the railing, "Who has died? Who is it?"

His eyes widened, "Tell me, who is it!"

The jailors knelt in silence.

Prince Li understood — there was no one else...

Tears rolled down his cheeks as he released his grip, collapsing on the ground. He wept uncontrollably, "Father!"

He howled, unable to utter a coherent word. The guilt gnawed at his heart like insects.

Was it because of him that Father had passed away so soon?

Overwhelmed with self-reproach, yet utterly powerless, he cried bitterly in the Zhao Prison as if in a trance. No one would concern themselves with him, even if he were to cry himself to death.

The jailors in Zhao Prison only ensured he remained alive, nothing more.

Later, he heard the celebratory cannon fire marking the new emperor's ascension.

And then, for a very long time, all was still.

It was only after an indeterminable passage of time that he caught sight of another person.

It was the Duke of Zhen, no longer young.

He stared for a long while, squinting his eyes for a long while, before he mustered the courage to call out, "Third Brother?"

His voice was raspy, as if his throat had rusted from lack of use.

"Sixth Brother," the Duke of Zhen summoned a chair and sat outside his old quarters.

They hadn't seen each other in far too many years. The once vibrant Sixth Prince was now barely recognizable as human.

"Third Brother, you... are you here to see me?" The Sixth Prince had crawled his way over.

His legs had been useless for a long time; crawling was his only means of movement.

"Haha, why would I come to see you? You, a traitor who killed our father – do you think I still miss you?" The Duke of Zhen shook his head. "I merely had a dream, a dream about Father Emperor."

"A dream about Father Emperor? I always... always dream about him too. I'm always filled with regret in my dreams. You... did you come to torment me because of your dreams?" The Sixth Prince smiled.

"I'm not in the mood for that. I've come to see you off. All these years, you must have been longing for it, right? You should be glad that I'm here to send you off," Prince Duan said.

Prince Li was stunned. "For real? Third Brother is really going to see me off?"

"Indeed. Not for you, but for Father Emperor. If he were still alive, he wouldn't want to see you living like this. His Majesty hates that you harmed Father Emperor and caused his premature death. But even in the afterlife, Father Emperor wouldn't bear to witness your suffering," Prince Duan sighed.

"Third Brother... You truly are different," Prince Li smiled. "Thank you, Third Brother. Please proceed."

Prince Duan looked at him a few more times before calling for a flask of wine.

The prison guard was too scared to comply, but Prince Duan was a formidable figure.

"Give it to him. I'll personally apologize to His Majesty. This is an imperial matter. How can you get involved? I promise I won't let your Black Prison suffer any consequences," Prince Duan assured.

Reluctantly, the guard handed over the wine with a grimace.

Prince Li took it, his entire body trembling. It wasn't from fear.

After living like this, how could he be afraid of death? He was simply overwhelmed with emotion.

With immense excitement.

Finally, he could die. Finally, he was allowed to depart this world.

Pouring a flask of deadly poison down his throat, he chuckled contentedly, "I never would have imagined that it would be you, Third Brother, sending me off on this final journey."

"The ties between us are not of friendship or affection; they stem solely from the blood that runs through both our veins and our shared loyalty to our father," Duke Zhuan rose to his feet. "A person like you deserves death a thousand times over, and even in death, you'll descend into hell."

The Sixth Prince merely smiled, whispering, "It doesn't matter, haven't I been living in hell all along?"

Leaning against the railing, he wiped his face with his filthy, colorless sleeve, "I've always been in hell, so what is there to fear?"

"I have no face to show our father, no face to show anyone. What's so terrible about descending into hell?"

Despite the rising pain in his abdomen, he continued to smile.

He recalled countless memories, remembering how even after losing his right to be crown prince, their father had still granted him the title of Qi.

Back then, why did their father still forgive him?

Yet, his own insatiable desire led him to act against his father.

He had brought this upon himself, and now he was paying the price.

His sanity gradually slipped away.

In his final moments, he seemed to see Concubine Shu standing there, weeping as she looked at him.

The Sixth Prince yearned to rush to her, to ask why she had deceived him, why she had been so discontented, and if she ever regretted it.

But in the next instant, he witnessed his father's cold expression, saw the sword drawn, and his mother being slain.

It was a sight he could never reconcile with.

His voice echoed desperately, yet no one could hear him.

He wept and screamed, as if venting a lifetime of resentment in that very moment.

But what he ultimately couldn't confront were his father's cold, disappointed eyes.

His father, as in years past, asked him, "Do you intend to kill your father?"

This time, he could only cry and plead for mercy, "Father, I'm wrong, I know I'm wrong, I shouldn't have done this. I beg for your forgiveness, it was my mistake, it was all my fault..."

Unfortunately, his father merely looked at him with icy detachment, never to forgive him.

His father told him, "You are not my son, and I am ashamed to have you."

His mother was weeping again.

A thick fog arose around the Sixth Prince, and through it, he saw another figure standing before his father.

It was the young Ninth Prince from his youth, supporting his father and smiling at him.

Struggling for words, the Sixth Prince could only cry out for his father, addressing him as 'Father Emperor.'

The Father Emperor smiled at him in return.

No matter how loudly the Sixth Prince shouted, those ahead of him were oblivious to his cries.

He declared, "I am also your son! You are my father!" But they couldn't hear him, nor did they seem to care.

Only Concubine Shu approached him, taking his hand and saying, "Come with me. We cannot follow them. We'll walk together. Down to hell, have you missed your mother these past years?"

No! I don't miss you! I never want to think of you again. I was wrong, but I will never forgive you either.

But it was futile; they were still intertwined, the mist turning from white to gray. They would forever be entangled, decaying side by side.

Becoming something that no one would ever care to glance upon once more.

In the end, within the Zhao Prison, the Sixth Prince murmured, "Father Emperor, I'm sorry."

Regrettably, his father had long gone, unable to respond, and certainly not capable of forgiveness.

"Finally, here I am. Apologies for the delay; I was occupied with something."