Chapter 242: Undercurrents in the Capital Region (Part 11)

Chapter 242: Undercurrents in the Capital Region (Part 11)

"Rao, don't be angry, alright? Yun Ji promised Rao that Yun Ji would live... cough, cough, cough..."

Su Rao remained silent as Yun Ji suddenly started coughing and wheezing again.

"I'm not angry."

Su Rao hurriedly patted Yun Ji's back to help him breathe.

Then she spoke:

"I just suddenly feel that my medical skills are inadequate. I check you every day, yet I didn't realize how much more complex your condition is than what I thought."

She helped Yun Ji catch his breath. Though she claimed she wasn't angry, her face was extremely solemn, and she felt heavy-hearted.

When Yun Ji stopped coughing, she gently helped him lie down again.

"Sleep! Tonight I'll stay with you, right here. I won't go anywhere. From tonight until we return to Langjing, every night, I'll stay with you.

If you don't want me to know about your illness, then I won't ask. Just like you don't interfere with my affairs, I won't interfere with the things you don't want me to know."

"Alright."

Yun Ji's pale lips curved into a faint smile, though his lips were colorless, it did not diminish his charm. The entire room seemed to sense Yun Ji's good mood, becoming warm and cozy.

Moving slightly, Yun Ji made space for Su Rao on the bed.

"Would Rao mind sharing the bed with Yun Ji tonight?"

Yun Ji asked this question very softly, knowing that his request was abrupt, but he still asked.

"Alright."

Su Rao did not refuse; she lifted the blanket and climbed onto the bed.

Both of them lay flat on their backs, neither facing each other.

After a moment, Yun Ji's breathing became light again, and he fell asleep once more.

Only then did Su Rao turn to look at him.

Though the room was dim due to the weather, even before nightfall, Su Rao could clearly see Yun Ji, even the fine pores on his face that were almost invisible.

From the side, Yun Ji's face was pale, but his skin was incredibly smooth and delicate, with a smooth contour and distinct features, and a high nose bridge.

His lips, though pale, were not thin and unfeeling; they were of moderate thickness and beautifully shaped.

His sleeping posture was very proper, with his hands resting on his abdomen, not moving around.

Watching him for a long time, Su Rao reached out her hand but paused when it touched Yun Ji's face. Her hand froze for a moment, ultimately not caressing him, and she withdrew it.

"I can't forget that fire, the mother who was consumed by flames, the father who was killed by the executioner, the hundreds of heads hanging on the city walls, the snow stained crimson red."

Speaking softly, when Yun Ji was asleep and couldn't hear, Su Rao finally voiced the words she had kept inside, the pain she could never forget.

"My father and mother only wished for me to live well and safely. If they were here, they would like you just as my grandfather, father, and mother do. They would wish nothing more than to marry me to you."

Her voice was calm, but her eyes glistened with moisture.

"But they are gone. They won't know, won't know that the daughter they sacrificed their lives to protect would one day have someone like you to guard her."

A tear dropped onto her cheek, disappearing into the scattered black hair on the pillow.

The emotion in her eyes turned cold and indifferent.

"Yun Ji, no matter what, I won't allow myself to be with you. This is the only thing I can do for my father and mother now.

Your blood carries the blood of Qin Rao's enemy, an enmity so deep that we cannot coexist. This is a fact that cannot be changed. Qin Rao cannot show mercy."

She raised her hand to wipe away the faint trace left by the falling tear.

Then, Su Rao closed her eyes and gradually fell asleep, her breathing becoming lighter.

Inside the room, all was quiet, but outside, thunder and rain continued to rage without any sign of stopping.

Yun Ji showed no reaction, seemingly deeply asleep and unaware of Su Rao's murmured words.

Inside the room, there was silence, but outside, Yun Feng and Yun Ling...

Yun Feng smiled, gently fanning himself with his folded fan.

"Yun Ling, look, everything is fine."

"Everything is fine?"

Seeing the quiet house, Yun Ling's tense expression did not ease, nor did his grip on his sword loosen. He still seemed doubtful.

"Will everything really be fine?"

The storm continued to rage without pause, blowing fiercely.

Such a dark night seemed to be a warning from heaven, a warning that peace would be hard to come by on such a night.

The night finally arrives, dark clouds pressing down on the city.

The sound of torrential rain striking the palace pavilions becomes even louder.

Inside the Zhu Xian Imperial Palace, a scene of heavy pressure and urgency unfolds.

In Emperor Wei’s bedchamber, Empress Rong personally brings a jade bowl.

"Your Majesty, it's time for your meal."

This is an event that occurs every seven days.

Behind the imperial desk, the middle-aged man, with a slender figure bearing a resemblance to Yi Prince Chi Shao, has slightly sunken cheeks, suggesting a prolonged illness.

He holds a writing brush, painting on the xuan paper.

Hearing Empress Rong’s words, he does not look up or speak, continuing his actions.

Dressed in a blue-ink robe, with a black-gold dragon leaping across its front, the dragon’s mouth wide open as if ready to devour everything, his eyes sharp and fierce, his body has grown thinner due to the elixirs he consumes, yet his imperial aura remains undiminished, almost as if surrounded by dragon qi.

Emperor Wei remains silent, and Empress Rong seems accustomed to this.

"Your Majesty, don’t let your anger affect your health."

Placing the jade bowl on the table, Empress Rong thoughtfully drapes an outer robe over Emperor Wei, showing her care.

If one ignores the words she speaks while doing this, the couple appears loving.

"After all, Prince Yi would worry..."

Snap...

He throws the brush onto the imperial desk, ink spreading and ruining the painting of white plum blossoms.

Though they share the same pair of auspicious phoenix eyes, there is no trace of the coldness found in Chi Shao’s gaze; instead, they remain calm, even as he makes the angry gesture of throwing the brush, his face shows no sign of fury.

He discards the outer robe Empress Rong draped over him onto the ground.

"Beloved, you can only control Ah Shao like this. One day, when I no longer wish to live as a puppet, you will lose your leverage over him."

These words leave Emperor Wei’s heart unperturbed.

And the usually serene Empress Rong suddenly growls:

"Chi Wei, you dare..."

The noble and coldly beautiful Empress Rong, at this moment, her face contorts into something grotesque, almost mad.

Thunder rolls in the sky, lightning flashing.

Despite the bright lights inside the hall, the lightning illuminates Empress Rong’s twisted face even more clearly.

"If you dare seek death, I will kill your daughter..."

"Hah, ha ha..."

Emperor Wei suddenly laughs, finding Empress Rong’s threat amusing, mocking her for using their daughter against him.

He finds it pointless to argue further with this mad woman.

Emperor Wei lifts the jade bowl, filled with translucent white jade porridge, adorned with snow lotus petals, a feast for the eyes.

Who could imagine that such a bowl of white jade porridge harbors the sinister elixir that controls him, making him unable to act freely.

His hand holding the jade bowl trembles slightly, the tips of his fingers turning a faint pink from the strain, as if he might drop the bowl at any moment.