Chapter 190 – Previous Life 2

 

The dagger that the grand princess had casually placed on the table was still dripping with blood, his blood.

If it weren’t for the excruciating pain on his body, Qi Jin really couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

That was Hua Yang, a princess who had been pampered and raised the palace, a princess whose delicate hands had never done any housework. How could she suddenly dare to use a knife, and hurt him no less?

But she did it, and even prepared an excuse to kill him!

Qi Jin lowered his head, looking at the three wounds on his body that were bleeding profusely, and then looked at Hua Yang bitterly: “Panpan, I am your cousin, the cousin you’ve known since childhood. Just for those two people who lied, you really want to kill me?”

Hua Yang’s eyes were as cold as ice: “Yes, and I will sit here and watch you bleed to death bit by bit. Only in this way can I eliminate the hatred in my heart.”

Qi Jin: “Aren’t you worried that I am being wronged, and that you killed your own cousin with your own hands?”

Hua Yang smiled lightly: “So what if you’re being wronged. I am the Grand Princess, the emperor’s biological sister. What if I killed someone by mistake?”

Qi Jin suddenly became furious: “I am your cousin!”

How could she be so ruthless, how could she be like this!

Even if she didn’t like him, they were cousins. She could have a cold war with Emperor Yuanyou for the Chen family, but why was she so heartless with him!

Anger made his eyes full of bloodshot, hideous and terrifying, where was there still a little bookish air?

Hua Yang just laughed, full of sarcasm: “Why, you, as my cousin, can kill my prince consort, but I, as your cousin, can’t kill you?”

Seeing that she could still laugh, as if he was just an ant that could be trampled to death at any time, Qi Jin became even more crazy, struggling with the ropes on his body, even if it caused more bleeding from the wound: “No to mention that I didn’t kill your Prince Consort, even if I really did, so what? You don’t have him in your heart at all, otherwise you wouldn’t be separated so often. You don’t like him, so why do you have to avenge him!”

Hua Yang grabbed the tea cup on the table and threw it at him fiercely: “Whether I like him or not has nothing to do with you, but since Chen Jingzong is my prince consort, he is my person. Whoever dares to hurt him, I will return it tenfold even a hundredfold!”

When the tea cup hit Qi Jin, it was like a spent force. Qi Jin didn’t feel any pain, but his heart, which had been stabbed by her three times, felt pain again.

Becoming her prince consort means becoming her person.

“What about me? I knew you first. I liked you when Chen Jingzong was still a nobody in his hometown of Lingzhou. If it weren’t for Aunt’s objection, your prince consort should have been me.”

Qi Jin became more and more agitate as he spoke. His ferocious expression turned into loneliness, but he still held a glimmer of hope that he could move her with his infatuation.

Hua Yang just smiled coldly: “You are wrong. Even if there was no objection from Mother Empress, even without Chen Jingzong, I would not marry you.”

Qi Jin didn’t believe it: “Why? You can like Chen Jingzong, how am I not as good as him?”

Hua Yang: “Because Uncle got his title with the help of Mother Empress. Without Mother Empress, you don’t even have the qualifications to see me. How could I possibly like someone like you?”

Qi Jin never thought that he would hear these words that Chen Jingzong once said to him from Hua Yang’s lips!

He just thought it was ridiculous: “You said I rely on my aunt, but what about Chen Jingzong? Doesn’t he also rely on his father?”

Hua Yang: “At least he has more integrity than you, and he won’t be fawning in front of me all the time.”

Her light words completely ignited the fire of anger in Qi Jin’s chest. Qi Jin was so angry that he lost the last bit of rationality. He just wanted to stab her hard and let her taste what he was feeling now: “Yes, he has integrity. He could have surrendered and saved his life, but he had to fight to exhaustion before committing suicide and died alone in Baihe Ridge! What’s more pitiful is that before Chen Jingzong died, he thought you and I were in love!”

Hua Yang was startled, then grabbed the dagger, walked to Qi Jin, put the dagger against his chest and asked: “What do you mean?”

This time, it was Qi Jin’s turn to laugh: “Do you remember the first peony handkerchief you embroidered when you were a child? I hid it. On Grandmother’s birthday celebration, I showed it to Chen Jingzong and said it was a gift from you.”

Hua Yang remembered that Chen Jingzong was drunk that night. He was so drunk that she was worried that he would force her, but Chen Jingzong just looked at her with a heavy look and slept alone in the front yard.

She didn’t like him in the first place and didn’t want to do that with him. After being deceived by Qi Jin, how could Chen Jingzong not believe it?

It turned out that he was suffering more than she thought.

Feeling sorry for that man, Hua Yang stabbed the dagger into Qi Jin’s chest again.

Qi Jin groaned, and seeing the tears rolling down Hua Yang’s eyes, he felt happy: “Kill me, will you really get rid of your hatred? You blame me for killing Chen Jingzong, killing more than five thousand people from Daxing Left Guard, and killing Chen Bozong. Now you know, you know that those people died because I like you, I am the murderer, then you are the culprit who implicated them!”

“Look, our lives have long been connected. What if you don’t like me? I have done so much for you. You will never forget me until you die!”

After saying this, Qi Jin thought he would see more tears from Hua Yang, and thought he would give her the same heavy blow, but he didn’t expect Hua Yang to smile.

It was not a sneer, not a sarcasm, but just a peaceful smile after a storm.

So peaceful, so quiet and so beautiful.

Qi Jin was stunned.

There was a sound of footsteps behind him. It was Empress Dowager Qi and Emperor Yuanyou who had been standing outside for a long time.

Empress Dowager Qi did not look at Qi Jin, but just hugged her daughter in her arms.

Hua Yang let go of the dagger in time, fearing that she would accidentally hurt her mother.

Emperor Yuanyou looked at the dagger, and then at Qi Jin.

Qi Jin’s expression changed several times. He thought Hua Yang was really going to kill him by bleeding him to death, but he didn’t expect that she had a back-up plan.

So, those words she just said were to provoke him to admit it?

“Your Majesty, please listen to my explanation…”

“Save it, how many times do you want to fool me?”

Emperor Yuanyou’s expression was extremely gloomy.

How much he trusted Qi Jin in the past, how much he hated him now.

He picked up his sister’s dagger and looked at Qi Jin’s heart, which was the real vital spot of a person.

The moment Emperor Yuanyou raised his hand, Qi Jin smiled bitterly and closed his eyes.

But the dagger only pierced Qi Jin’s left shoulder.

Qi Jin frowned.

Emperor Yuanyou gave him an extremely sinister smile: “It would be too easy to kill you with one blow. You deserve the death of a thousand cut for your crime.”

“Liu Shou, send Qi Jin to the Jinyiwei prison. Don’t forget to stop the bleeding and heal his wounds. If he dies before being punished, I will kill you.”

“Yes!”

Qi Jin was then taken away quickly.

Emperor Yuanyou stood facing the door. At this moment, he was a little afraid to face his mother and sister, fearing that they would blame him.

Hua Yang looked at his brother and said to his mother: “Mother Empress, please go and sit in the front first. I want to talk to my brother.”

Empress Dowager Qi knew that it was difficult for her son to listen to her words. The more she said, the more mistakes she might made. On the contrary, the relationship between the siblings had always been very good.

She touched her daughter’s head and retreated.

No one would come in and disturb at this time. Hua Yang took her brother’s cold hand took him to the side room.

Emperor Yuanyou lowered his eyes.

Suddenly, there was a pair of bloody hands in front of him. They were his sister’s hands, white as jade, slender and beautiful.

“I feel disgusting, Brother, can you help me wash them?” Hua Yang asked jokingly.

Emperor Yuanyou’s eyes were hot.

Hua Yang reminded again: “There’s water at the washstand in the inner room.”

Before she finished speaking, Emperor Yuanyou had already rushed out.

Hua Yang waited for almost half an hour before Emperor Yuanyou came out with a copper basin.

The brother and sister sat on the couch together, with a copper basin between them. Emperor Yuanyou took a wet handkerchief and carefully wiped his sister’s hands.

Hua Yang looked at his brother’s red eyes and asked softly: “Can you tell me now why you hate Cabinet Elder Chen so much?”

Emperor Yuanyou’s tears fell again.

How could he not hate him? Chen Tingjian had always treated him so badly, even though he was the Crown Prince, the Emperor. Whenever he mispronounced a word while reading, Chen Tingjian would glare and scold him. He had only cut off two palace maids’ hair while being drunk, and hadn’t taken their lives, yet Chen Tingjian and Empress Dowager forced him to issue a self-blame decree and read it aloud in court, even informing all the officials in the world.

Then, Qi Jin also told him a lot of things that Chen Tingjian didn’t want him to know.

For example, there were many drawbacks of the new policy. Officials and people from all over the country were scolding Chen Tingjian and him, but Chen Tingjian suppressed these memorials, making him think that everything was going well with the new policy.

For example, General Qin had been exchanging letters with Chen Tingjian, and he was more in awe and flattering to Chen Tingjian than he, the emperor.

For example, Qi Jin found out that Chen Tingjian’s brother and sister-in-law took bribes from the people in Lingzhou.

Why did Chen Tingjian discipline him so strictly, but he condoned his own family members who violated the law?

Emperor Yuanyou was dissatisfied. He wanted to know what unsightly things Chen Tingjian had done behind his back!

So when Zhang Pan led the ministers to impeach Chen Tingjian, Emperor Yuanyou was just agree.

When the seven major crimes were confirmed one by one, the only thing left was to convict the Chen family according to the law.

But something unexpected happened. Chen Bozong died.

The two Jinyiwei who tortured Chen Bozong said that they couldn’t help but impose a heavy punishment because Chen Bozong scolded him as a tyrant and said that he had been taught by Chen Tingjian for more than ten years in vain.

Qi Jin also said that when he went to visit him in prison, Chen Bozong did speak rudely.

Then Emperor Yuanyou’s guilt was gone.

But now, he found out that Qi Jin had been coveting his sister for a long time. So Qi Jin often mentioned that his sister and prince consort were not in harmony, so Qi Jin would constantly speak ill of Chen Tingjian in front of him, all of it was to instigate him to overthrow the Chen family, therefore that Qi Jin would have the opportunity to marry his sister.

Emperor Yuanyou didn’t know if he would have thoroughly investigated the Chen family if Qi Jin hadn’t exaggerated.

But Qi Jin’s selfishness made Emperor Yuanyou understand that maybe Chen Tingjian was not as bad as Qi Jin framed him, but he was completely deceived by Qi Jin and refused to confront Chen Tingjian or listen to whether Chen Tingjian had any reasons.

People were really strange. When the old man just left, Emperor Yuanyou was particularly happy, thinking that finally no one was oppressing him anymore, and he could finally find out his faults and let him leave a stigma in history.

But as time passed, especially with the cold war between his sister and him, Emperor Yuanyou actually began to recall some of the good things about the old man.

Qi Jin’s betrayal and the unjust deaths of Chen Jingzong and Chen Bozong completely made his guilt towards the old man prevail!

“Sister, I was wrong.”

He shouldn’t have been deceived by Qi Jin, and he shouldn’t have treated the Chen family like that.

It was the first time that Hua Yang saw his brother cry like this.

Humans were not plants or trees. Her father-in-law had been her brother’s teacher for thirteen years, and the teacher-student relationship was extraordinary. However, her father-in-law’s strictness fostered her brother’s hatred, and when her brother was controlled by this hatred, it led him to go astray.

Hua Yang took the handkerchief from her brother’s hand and covered his eyes with it: “Although you have a noble status since childhood, you were just a child before. No matter whether it was Mother Empress or Cabinet Elder Chen, they treated you like that, as a child, it’s understandable that you resent them. But you shouldn’t have use your status as an emperor to retaliate. Mixing public and private matters is indeed your fault, and as your sister, I cannot excuse you.”

The handkerchief was warm, and her sister’s voice was very soft. Emperor Yuanyou gradually stopped crying, took off the handkerchief, looked at her sister and asked, “What should I do now?”

Hua Yang smiled and compared their heights: “You’ve already seventeen this year, and so much taller than me. You can come and talk to me, but you have to make those decision yourself. I had a cold war with you not because I wanted to force you to listen to me, but because I was angry that you were wrong and didn’t know it.”

Emperor Yuanyou’s eyes were slightly moist: “If only Mother Empress were as gentle as you.”

Hua Yang shook her head: “Because Mother Empress is so powerful, then I can grow up without worries and keep a kind heart. This is all cause and effect.”

Emperor Yuanyou lowered his eyes.

Hua Yang smiled and said, “No need to be ashamed. After all, I have lived eight years longer than you.”

Emperor Yuanyou thought of the whole process of her sister’s interrogation of Qi Jin.

Qi Jin used such vicious words to attack his sister, but his sister always calmly induced Qi Jin to confess, instead of being swayed by Qi Jin.

It could be seen that his sister was his sister, and he still has a lot to learn.

.

After the brother and sister finished talking, Emperor Yuanyou and Empress Dowager Qi took a carriage back to the palace.

There was no conversation along the way. When they were about to arrive at the palace, Emperor Yuanyou whispered, “Wuqing Marquis Mansion, how does Mother Empress plan to punish them?”

Empress Dowager Qi looked out the window and was silent for a moment before saying, “Your grandmother is old, send her back to her hometown, and exile the others.”

Qi Jin killed two good sons of the Chen family, and it made no sense that her brother and sister-in-law would not be implicated.

Emperor Yuanyou paused and said, “It’s been hard on you.”

Empress Dowager Qi just shook her head.

On the sixteenth First Month, civil and military officials began the first court meeting of the fourth year of Yuanyou.

At this time, the Jinyiwei had already interrogated Qi Jin’s confession.

The whole court was in an uproar.

Emperor Yuanyou sentenced Qi Jin to death by thousand cuts, stripped Wuqing Marquis of his title, confiscated his property, and exiled all except the old lady.

In addition, Emperor Yuanyou had to thoroughly investigate Chen Tingjian’s seven crimes. Before the investigation was completed, Chen Xiaozong and the others were temporarily taken back to the capital for imprisonment.

This decree was opposed by Zhang Pan, the chief minister of the cabinet.

The thin young emperor sat on the dragon throne, looking at Zhang Pan who looked up at him with a righteous face, and smiled: “Zhen almost forgot about Cabinet Elder Zhang. Qi Jin has praised you many times in front of Zhen. Now then Zhen think about it, you and him have been in cahoots for a long time, right?”

The power of the cabinet was very great, but the power of the cabinet was also granted by the emperor. It only took one word from the emperor to decide who to be the cabinet elder.

He dared to investigate even his own teacher, so which cabinet elder he dared not touch?

At this court meeting, Zhang Pan was dismissed from the position of cabinet elder and was confined to his home, waiting for the review of the Jinyiwei. Cabinet Elder Shen, one of the remaining three cabinet ministers, was temporarily appointed as the chief minister.

In Third Month, the Jinyiwei’s investigation yielded results.

Chen Tingjian’s seven crimes were vindicated one by one. The first two crimes were committed by the second branch of the Chen family behind his back. The crime was on the second branch, and Chen Tingjian was only at fault for negligence. The remaining five crimes were all fabricated by the deposed Princess Consort Xiang and people who opposed the new policies.

After being vindicated, Chen Tingjian, the imperial tutor, was restored to all his honors during his lifetime, and all the new policies implemented by Chen Tingjian during his lifetime were restored.

Chen Jingzong, the prince consort, sacrificed his life for the country and posthumously conferred as Earl Zhongyong.

Chen Bozong was originally the Deputy Minister of Dali Temple, and was unjustly killed because of the investigation of Qi Jin’s collaboration with the enemy, and was posthumously conferred as Earl Zhongyi, with his eldest son inhered the title.

Old Madam Sun was posthumously conferred as Grand First-rank Madam.

Chen Xiaozong was promoted to the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and concurrently the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion.

General Qin was reappointed as the General of Jizhen.

.

Chen Xiaozong was only 32 years old this year, but he became a cabinet elder, earlier than his father Chen Tingjian.

Putting on the scarlet robe of the cabinet elder, Chen Xiaozong entered the palace to thank the emperor.

He knelt in front of the 17-year-old Emperor Yuanyou and burst into tears of gratitude.

Emperor Yuanyou was in a complicated mood and said, “Don’t thank Zhen. Thank Grand Princess. Without her insistence on redressing your injustice, Zhen would still be kept in the dark by Qi Jin.”

He had his pride. He could admit his mistakes in front of his sister, but he would never admit his mistakes to others.

Chen Xiaozong said sincerely: “Grand Princess should be thanked, and Your Majesty should also be thanked. Grand Princess was just a mediator. It was Your Majesty who truly vindicated this minister’s father, elder brother and younger brother.”

Emperor Yuanyou looked at his head that kept bowing and said, “It’s good that you don’t blame Zhen.”

Chen Xiaozong: “This minister doesn’t blame Your Majesty, and this minister doesn’t blame himself. This minister’s father also had a will before he left, ordering us not to resent you.”

Emperor Yuanyou was shocked: “What will? Why Zhen doesn’t know about it?”

When the news of Chen Tingjian’s death reached the palace, his mother sent someone to ask whether he had any will. At that time, what Chen Bozong asked the palace people to bring back was Chen Tingjian’s instructions for him to be a wise and diligent monarch.

Chen Xiaozong then raised his head and looked at Emperor Yuanyou, and said while crying, “Father has two last wills. Your Majesty has already known one of them, and the other is for us brothers. Father said that the new policy has an unstable foundation, especially the One Whip Law, which is only in its first year. After he was gone, once the cabinet can no longer withstand the resistance from various places and compromises, Your Majesty is young and cannot hold on alone. At that time, the world will definitely hold Father accountable. Father said that throughout history, those who advocated reform have rarely had a good end, and he knows it very well. He only asked us brothers to understand your difficulties and not to hold grudges.”

Emperor Yuanyou turned around abruptly.

Chen Xiaozong: “This minister know that Your Majesty may have some resentment towards Father. It’s not your fault. Father is indeed a very strict man. Fourth Brother once went back to our hometown alone for eight years because he was dissatisfied with his discipline. After returning to the capital, he never gave Father a good face. But Father is just strict. To speak frankly, his severity towards us four brothers and towards Your Majesty stems from deep love and responsibility.”

Emperor Yuanyou: “Zhen understand, please leave.”

The last tail tone was trembling with an unconcealable tremor.

Chen Xiaozong kowtowed again to thank him, took a few steps back, and then left.

Outside the Qianqing Palace, the spring light was bright.

Chen Xiaozong looked at the towering palace complex in the distance and the long palace road that his father had walked for decades.

Father, if you are in heaven, seeing all this, will you really not complain?

He raised his head and let the warm and bright sunlight shone into his eyes, trying to let this light dispel the boundless hatred that grew in his heart every night.

The Chen family had no unfilial descendants, nor would it produce a traitor.

.

In late Third Month, Chen Bozong was finally buried in the tomb of the Chen family in the capital.

Hua Yang deliberately went very late. When she arrived, everyone in the Chen family was about to leave.

Yu Xiu had already fainted from crying, and the children’s eyes were swollen like walnuts.

“You get in the carriage first, I will accompany Grand Princess to pay tribute to Eldest Brother.”

Chen Xiaozong, dressed in white, instructed Luo Yuyan.

Luo Yuyan wiped her tears with a handkerchief, nodded to Hua Yang, and led the children away.

Chen Xiaozong made a gesture of invitation to Hua Yang.

The two walked at the front, while Wu Run and the others followed at a distance.

The ancestral tomb of the Chen family was in Lingzhou. There were only five people buried in the tomb here. According to the order of burial, they were Chen Yanzong, Chen Jingzong, Chen Tingjian, Sun shi, and Chen Bozong.

Hua Yang came to Chen Bozong’s tomb first.

Looking at the ordinary tombstone, who would have thought of its owner’s outstanding grace when he was alive?

Hua Yang bowed three times and personally inserted the incense into the incense burner.

The breeze blew and the smoke curled up.

Hua Yang looked at Chen Xiaozong, the newly appointed Cabinet Elder Chen junior.

“Will Third Brother resent His Majesty?” she asked in a low voice.

Chen Xiaozong smiled, looked around and said: “Grand Princess is worrying too much. If this minister has such a rebellious thought, how can this minister have the face to come here to burn incense in the future? Father and Eldest Brother will scold this minister to death, Second Brother will say that this minister is confused, and Fourth Brother is not a talkative person, so he will probably beat up this minister in the dream.”

Hua Yang: “I agree with your previous words. But with Prince Consort’s temper, he should support you.”

Chen Xiaozong looked over: “Fourth Brother may not care about His Majesty, but His Majesty is your biological brother. If I dare to break your heart, Fourth Brother will dare to beat me.”

Hua Yang turned her head away.

Chen Xiaozong apologized, “This minister talk too much.”

Hua Yang looked at the tombstone of Chen Jingzong not far away, paused for a moment and said, “You can hate His Majesty, but I hope you will bury this hatred in your heart. The world belongs to the imperial family, but the new policy belongs to Father. I want to see the new policy continue to be implemented in your hands. I think you and I can watch on behalf of Father that our dynasty will once again achieve national prosperity and people’s strength. On that day, no one can deny Father’s eternal contribution.”

Chen Xiaozong: “This minister also have this ambition and will do his best.”

Hua Yang nodded: “I believe in Third Brother. Third Brother, go back first, I will go to see Prince Consort.”

Chen Xiaozong said goodbye tactfully.

Hua Yang came to Chen Jingzong’s tombstone.

Prince Consort should be buried with the princess, but Hua Yang’s tomb had not been repaired yet, so Chen Jingzong would be buried on the Chen family’s side for the time being.

Wu Run spread the futon on the ground, set up the charcoal basin, put in the yellow paper, and then retreated.

Hua Yang lit the yellow paper with a fire starter. At first it was just a small cluster of flames, and gradually burned vigorously.

Hua Yang had cried too much before, and now she had no tears left.

She looked at the words on the tombstone, and the two words “Prince Consort” on it.

Since the deceased could receive the paper money burned by their relatives, then Chen Jingzong should also be able to receive the letter she burned for him, right?

Hua Yang took out the letter hidden in her sleeve and gently put it in the middle of the burning red paper.

There were not many words on the letter, just one sentence – Chen Jingzong, if there is an afterlife, I still want to marry you.

The author has something to say:

Ah, I finally finished writing about the previous life, I almost stabbed myself to death!

I will start the double rebirth tomorrow. I want some sweetness back! The point of rebirth for Hua Yang was the same as the main story, while Chen Jingzong only has his memories before he died in battle, and then they were reborn together before they got married!

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