Chapter 25

Chapter 25

The night was as dark as ink, the cold moon like a hook. Li Ying gazed at the vermilion gate of Cui Xun's residence from afar. She truly did not want to enter, but she had promised Sheng Yunting; she could not avoid going in.

Li Ying pursed her lips, and her translucent figure passed through the tightly closed gate, walking inside.

She walked past the courtyard's crabapple tree. The nestlings in the swallow's nest seemed to sense her presence and suddenly chirped. Li Ying glanced up at the nest, a hint of gentleness flashing in her eyes, but she quickly lowered her gaze. Her right hand, hidden in her sleeve, gripped the broken nail on her left hand, the sharp pain clearing her mind. She looked towards Cui Xun's study, her eyes cold as ice, and took one step after another.

In the study, Cui Xun, draped in a black crane cloak, was writing a memorial on white hemp paper. His illness had come on fiercely, and after only a few words, he paused to cover his mouth and cough. After coughing, he calmly picked up the quill pen again and continued writing. In the dim yellow light of the white porcelain oil lamp, the blue veins on his wrist were clearly visible, and his hunched figure appeared gaunt and thin.

Li Ying watched quietly from outside the study. This man, so frail and weak, was once a member of the Tianwei Army, who had once fought bravely on the battlefield. If it were before, she might have pitied him, wondering what had happened to him six years ago. But her sincerity had been met with his ruthless deception, and she would never pity him again.

Cui Xun suddenly stopped writing. He lifted his head slightly, and upon seeing Li Ying standing outside the door, he was taken aback before coldly asking, "Why are you here again?"

Since she had been discovered, Li Ying no longer hid. She took a deep breath and entered the study. "Cui Xun, do you know someone named Sheng Yunting?"

Cui Xun's grip on the quill pen loosened, and it fell onto the hemp paper, splattering ink. Though his expression remained unchanged, the action betrayed his inner turmoil. He stared at Li Ying, saying word by word, "How do you know about Sheng Yunting?"

"I met him," Li Ying paused. "His soul."

"Isn't his soul in the City of Unjust Deaths?"

"There was an accident, and he was only captured today." Li Ying sneered. "Cui Xun, aren't you curious about what happened? Or have you become so heartless that you've forgotten your old friend?"

Cui Xun's fingers tightened on the hemp paper, crumpling it. His fingertips turned pale, yet he hesitated to ask. Finally, he asked Li Ying, "What exactly happened?"

Li Ying did not answer immediately but instead asked a question that had been lingering in her mind: "Cui Xun, when you arrested Wang Ranxi, it wasn't to help me investigate the case, was it? You did it for Sheng Yunting, didn't you?"

Cui Xun remained silent, which was as good as an admission. Li Ying felt a mix of emotions. She had thought Cui Xun was genuinely helping her, but now she realized he had never intended to help her.

Her heart grew colder, and her anger intensified. She laughed bitterly. "But judging by your condition, I guess you didn't get the chance to interrogate Wang Ranxi before she was burned to death. That's why you're sick, isn't it?"

Cui Xun remained silent, his face growing even paler. Li Ying couldn't help but laugh bitterly. "It seems I was right. What should I say? All your scheming for nothing?"

Faced with Li Ying's sarcasm, Cui Xun finally spoke, his voice tinged with a hint of pleading. "Between us, I am the one who wronged you. Whatever punishment you wish to inflict, I will accept. But please tell me, what happened to Yunting?"

At this moment, his expression was almost pitiful. Li Ying had never seen him look so humble. Even when he was humiliated during the Lantern Festival, he remained indifferent. She could hardly believe he could be so lowly.

No, despite his beauty and feigned misery, his heart was as venomous as a snake!

Li Ying clenched her broken nail again, the pain clearing her mind. She looked at Cui Xun, her tone calm. "Since I promised Sheng Yunting, I won't break my word. Six years ago, the Tianwei Army was trapped. Sheng Yunting, following Guo Shuai's orders, went to Chang'an for reinforcements. On the way, he was lured into Changle Inn by Zhonglangjiang Shen Que and Wang Ranxi and killed. Wang Ranxi feared the vengeful spirit, so she used a talisman to trap Sheng Yunting's soul within his body for six years."

Cui Xun's hemp paper was crumpled in his hand, his face ashen, his breathing labored. He seemed to be suppressing his inner anguish. Li Ying continued slowly, "Now that Wang Ranxi is dead, Sheng Yunting's soul has escaped. The first thing he did was mount a horse and rush to Chang'an to report to the emperor and request troops to save the five thousand soldiers of the Tianwei Army."

After finishing, Li Ying waited, but Cui Xun remained silent. The study was deathly quiet. His expression had not changed much, except for his increasingly rapid breathing. Li Ying felt a twinge of disappointment. It seemed Sheng Yunting had misjudged him. Cui Xun's heart had hardened over the years, and even the brutal death of an old friend did not move him.

Disappointed, she wondered if she should continue with Sheng Yunting's message. Perhaps Cui Xun wouldn't care. Nevertheless, she had promised Sheng Yunting, so she would tell him.

Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Cui Xun suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood onto the hemp paper.

Li Ying was stunned, unable to utter a word.

After a moment, she trembled, "Hey, are you... okay?"

Cui Xun's robe and hands were covered in blood. He stared blankly at the blood-stained hemp paper, where the word "loyalty" was written. The blood flowed over the character, turning it red.

Li Ying called out tentatively, "Cui Xun... Cui Xun?"

Cui Xun raised his head, a trace of blood still on his lips. The stark contrast between the crimson blood and his pale face made him look like a withered rose against a snowy mountain. A few strands of hair fell messily around his face, making the scene seem more tragic than the blooming Manjusha flowers in the realm of life and death.

Li Ying called out several times before Cui Xun finally came to. He shakily grabbed a silk handkerchief, but his trembling hands made it difficult to hold it. After several attempts, he finally managed to wipe the blood-stained "loyalty" character. However, the blood had already seeped through the paper, and no matter how hard he tried, it wouldn't come off. Eventually, the paper tore, and Cui Xun stared at the torn hemp paper, dazed.

He stared at the torn paper for a long time. Li Ying dared not call out to him again, but he finally spoke, his voice trembling uncontrollably. She had never seen such a distraught Cui Xun.

Cui Xun asked hoarsely, "Did Yunting say anything else?"

Li Ying composed herself. "He said... since Shen Que and Wang Ranxi killed him, it proves there must be injustice surrounding the Tianwei Army's destruction. He said that of the five thousand soldiers, only you remain. He wants you to clear their names."

Clear...

Names...

"The Tianwei Army lost territory, and the emperor ordered their property confiscated. No one was allowed to retrieve or bury their bodies."

"Cao Wu's mother died."

"She couldn't bear the humiliation and hanged herself."

Before Cui Xun's eyes, he saw the names of the Tianwei Army's families, marked with vermilion lines, growing in number. He felt as if an invisible blade had pierced his heart, each beat causing unbearable pain. His face turned even paler, and his hands clenched into fists, nails digging into his palms, drawing blood. He asked Li Ying, his voice hoarse, "Anything else?"

"He said... the road ahead is arduous, but the entire Tianwei Army... kneels in gratitude!"

"Kneels in gratitude?" Cui Xun repeated, dazed. "Kneels in gratitude... kneels in gratitude..."

His palms were bloody, but he felt no pain. When physical pain could not alleviate his inner anguish, his shoulders began to shake uncontrollably. He bit down hard on his teeth, but tears still streamed down his ghostly pale face.

Li Ying stared in disbelief. Cui Xun was crying?

This cruel and heartless man, this cold and unfeeling traitor, was crying?

But Cui Xun was indeed crying. He cried silently, without sound, tears streaming down his pale cheeks, mingling with the blood on the hemp paper, indistinguishable from each other.

Li Ying felt a mix of emotions. She had never imagined Cui Xun could cry. Her hatred for him was momentarily overshadowed by shock and a strange sense of pity. She almost forgot her planned revenge.

As she stood there in shock, Cui Xun slowly spoke, "Did Yunting tell you where his body is?"

Li Ying remembered her carefully planned revenge. She put aside her pity and slowly nodded.

"Where is it?"

Li Ying said, "I won't tell you."

Cui Xun looked at her in disbelief. "What did you say?"

"I said, I won't tell you."

Cui Xun was furious. Despite his frailty from illness and emotional turmoil, he staggered to his feet and approached Li Ying step by step. Li Ying retreated step by step until she hit the wall, with nowhere else to go.

Cui Xun glared at her. "Where is Yunting's body?"

"I promised Sheng Yunting that I would tell you, but not now," Li Ying quickly recited the lines she had prepared. "You deceived me so cruelly; I must make you pay a price. You promised to investigate the case for me, and now I demand you keep your word. Once the real culprit is found, I will tell you where Yunting's body is."

Cui Xun was enraged to the extreme. He suddenly grabbed Li Ying by the neck. "I'll ask you one last time: Where is Yunting's body?"

Li Ying, choking, suddenly laughed. "I'm already a ghost. Can you kill me again? How ridiculous!"

Cui Xun froze, then released Li Ying in a daze. Li Ying clutched her throat and coughed violently. She watched Cui Xun warily, but he suddenly let out a bitter laugh and slowly knelt down. "Please, tell me where Yunting's body is."

Li Ying was completely stunned. She stared blankly at Cui Xun kneeling before her. Since they met, she had never seen him kneel. This notorious official, despite his tarnished reputation, always stood tall like a bamboo shoot that would rather break than bend. Yet here he was, kneeling to beg her for the location of a corpse.

Li Ying was speechless.

Cui Xun pleaded softly, "Please, tell me."

Li Ying finally came to her senses. She recalled almost being captured by the ghost officials in the Underworld, the gruesome sight of souls being devoured in the Nai River, and the ferryman's words, "He's not a good person." She hardened her heart once more. "Cui Xun, you're not a good person. I won't tell you. When you help me catch the real culprit, I will tell you."

Cui Xun despondently lowered his head. Kneeling before Li Ying, his face streaked with blood and tears, his palms bloody and torn, he looked utterly wretched. For a long time, he did not respond to Li Ying. His life and fortune were tied to the Empress Dowager. To others, he was merely her lapdog. If a lapdog turned on its master, the consequences would be unimaginably grim.

Li Ying understood this. Just as she thought Cui Xun would not risk his life and fortune for the location of a buried body, he suddenly looked blank and softly said, "Fine, I agree."