Chapter 65: Once Mistaken, Forever Regretted 17K
with graceful manners.”Only then did Mu Qingfeng react from the sound of the guzheng, and he looked at the purple-clothed woman in front of him. She was indeed as beautiful as a celestial being, pure...Chapter 65: A Single Misstep Brings Eternal Regret 17K
When she heard the Empress Dowager's arrival, Qi Lin thought it was either an auditory hallucination or that she had not yet woken up from a dream. But when Zhen Xi hurriedly came to tell her that the Empress Dowager was already outside the hall, she nearly spat out the tea in her mouth.
"This minister... Qi Lin greets the Empress Dowager, may Your Majesty be safe and sound." Qi Lin originally wanted to call herself this concubine but suddenly remembered that she held no title at all now. She could only state her name instead, yet she wondered what the Empress Dowager had come for Could it be that she was here to demand an explanation
The Empress Dowager ignored Qi Lin and walked straight to the main seat, saying "Qi Lin, even if you hate him, you can't treat him this way."
Qi Lin turned to look at the Empress Dowager, still kneeling on the ground. She hadn’t knelt for a long time, so her knees already felt sore from such a short period of time. The cold seeped through her skirt and made her shiver.
"I don't understand what the Empress Dowager means. I hope that Your Majesty will enlighten me," Qi Lin hesitated for a moment, thinking she hadn’t mistreated anyone. If it was to demand justice on behalf of Bai Qianye, then she had done nothing yet.
The Empress Dowager saw the hesitation on Qi Lin's face and suddenly threw her teacup in anger, hitting Qi Lin right on. At the same time, a thought struck her mind: Bai Qianye doted on her to no end—would he be upset if he found out She quickly dismissed this concern.
"Hmph, do you know how great a sacrifice he made for you" The Empress Dowager held back her anger and whispered "You are so ungrateful. Are you trying to drive him to death with your behavior"
He It was indeed Bai Qianye. Qi Lin felt infuriated upon hearing this, thinking how could she be the one driving Bai Qianye to his end when he had been the one to exhaust her.
"Empress Dowager, I respect you as the Empress Dowager and speak thusly, but food can be eaten indiscriminately, not so words. Everyone knows it was him, Bai Qianye, who unilaterally decided to confine me here. If there's justice to be had, then who would give me my due" Qi Lin stared fearlessly at the Empress Dowager and continued, "If I am upholding my last shred of dignity by being angry with him, then should I not be justified in spitting blood as he gradually chips away at it"
"You!!!" The Empress Dowager trembled all over from anger, looking for something to throw. In the end, she focused on a teapot beside her and picked it up to throw.
"Wait, Your Majesty." Zhen Xi panicked and quickly knelt down, embracing the Empress's feet as he pleaded "Empress Dowager, you have seen how Master treats Miss with utmost care. If you harm Miss, I fear that Master might... lose his sense of family ties, which would be disastrous for everyone involved."
The Empress finally hesitated before tossing the teapot to the side, where it shattered into pieces with a bang.
"Hmph, you are quite good at protecting your master," The Empress glanced sideways at Zhen Xi and continued "But don't forget who your real lord is. You mustn't protect the wrong person."
Zhen Xi was stunned and kept silent.
Zi Lin pursed her lips, apparently coming to fight for justice on behalf of her son.
"You are not the one who is being whimsical Alright, this Empress will give you a chance to free yourself from him. Do you want it" A glint flashed in the Empress Dowager's eyes as she continued, "This Empress will make sure that no one can control you."
Zi Lin was taken aback, but seeing the light in the Empress Dowager’s eyes made her think of a formidable figure like Nurse Rong. She couldn't agree to such an offer; this was Zi Lin's only thought.
The Empress Dowager grew angry when she saw Zi Lin hesitate and slammed her fist on the table, saying, "Hmph! What do you mean"
"If Your Majesty wants to kill Zi Lin, go ahead. But let Zi Lin tell your Majesty one thing: even if your Majesty kills Zi Lin today, Zi Lin believes she won't escape Bai Qianye's control." Zi Lin was certain that the Empress Dowager would order her execution but she didn’t want to die now. She wanted to live and return to her world.
The Empress narrowed her eyes slightly; she had known from the start that Zi Lin was a shrewd woman, but she hadn't expected her to be so direct. When her intentions were seen through, it naturally put her in an awkward position. The Empress raised her chin and said with a smile, "How do you know this Empress would kill you It's not worth it for this Empress to kill someone."
"Then Zi Lin has overthought things. But Zi Lin can no longer imagine what method of freedom the Empress is talking about." Seeing that the Empress was trying to find a way out, Zi Lin gave up on arguing but couldn't suppress her anger and blurted this sentence.
The Empress was even more enraged by Zi Lin's lack of gratitude. To be so impolite! But when she thought about Bai Qianye, she felt an intense fury.
"Your Majesty, since you care so much about him, why don't you persuade him What’s the point in having a body that is just like a zombie" Zi Lin knew that the Empress was trying to do what she thought was best for Bai Qianye. If this were true, it might be worth approaching from this angle.
The Empress closed her eyes; if she could persuade Bai Qianye herself, would she need to come here and warn Zi Lin But the intense hatred towards Bai Qianye that she saw in Zi Lin's eyes made her think: If he had such a body, wouldn't it be just like what happened with Empress Ji back then
Getting a soulless body would be better than sending her home. Unfortunately, the emperor of those times was obsessed and now Bai Qianye was even more so. Although she could understand his obsession, she still wanted to try.
"Sigh, it’s not this Empress' business to concern herself with your affairs, but as a mother, this Empress can’t bear seeing her son suffer." The Empress shook her head and frowned, looking fatigued. She continued, "This Empress hopes that you won't blame him; if everything he did before was just using you, then everything he does now is because of his love for you."
"Zi Lin doesn’t believe that love can be used as a pretense to hurt others." Zi Lin retorted. "Your Majesty, Zi Lin’s heart has already died; if everything he did before was just for himself, then the things Zi Lin did were willingly because she loved him back then. But now, if Zi Lin still loves him, that would mean Zi Lin is truly cheapening herself. Do you know When he killed my child, I too was a mother who felt the same pain as you. The Empress of those times also felt heartache, and could she not understand Zi Lin’s heart"
The Empress stared at Zi Lin in shock and raised her trembling hand, saying, "What You’re pregnant"
Zi Lin coldly looked at the Empress, then closed her eyes slowly and nodded.
"Pregnant... You're pregnant" The Empress Dowager frowned, wanting to help Qi Lin up but hesitating due to Bai Qianye's previous words. She slowly lowered her head and shook it, saying sadly, "Alas, all is fate. That child doesn't belong to you; it shouldn’t have belonged to you."
"Doesn’t belong So are children able to choose their parents" Qi Lin sneered. "Hmph, who has the right to say that"
The Empress Dowager was taken aback and then said, "Do you know that your body is completely unsuitable for pregnancy That child wouldn’t have lived longer than five months in your womb, and at that point, you would be in grave danger. To save you, he had no choice but to sacrifice the child. Do you know this"
Qi Lin was slightly surprised; her heart suddenly ached. She didn't know about this, but so what
"Qi Lin, for your sake, he made a deal with Mu Qingfeng, using his own life as the price to keep you around for three years." The Empress Dowager continued, "Do you really think these things don’t matter Do you still want to hurt him like this"
"Your Majesty, please stop talking," Cixi quickly tried to stop the Empress Dowager from continuing, but when she was glared at by the Empress Dowager, she could only bury her head in her arms and sob softly.
Three years... Ha ha.
"In the end, I am nothing more than a bargaining chip to him!" Qi Lin lowered her head sadly as she placed her hand over her heart and said, "Three years of imprisonment for me. What about after three years Will my body be sent away"
Qi Lin practically shouted this out without seeing the sorrow in the Empress Dowager's eyes or carefully considering her words.
"You’re wrong... He..."
"Stop!"
The Empress Dowager was startled, lifting her gaze to see Bai Qianye’s frail body standing there pale-faced. She wanted to ask him something out of concern for his well-being, but Bai Qianye quickly walked over and helped Qi Lin up.
Qi Lin had been kneeling too long on the cold floor; she was already numb from sitting there so long that without Bai Qianye supporting her, she would have fallen to the ground. Now all of her weight rested upon him.
"Elder Brother Yan," The Empress Dowager wanted to tell Qi Lin the truth and hoped it might change some of her perceptions and prevent further harm. However, Bai Qianye's warning look stopped her; if she spoke up, their relationship would be irrevocably damaged. In the end, she could only shake her head.
Qi Lin leaned against Bai Qianye’s body, feeling the coldness seeping through his clothes and into her back. She hadn’t expected him to feel so cold; she could even sense his bones beneath his clothing. Had he become this thin
"Don't say anything." Bai Qianye wanted to pick up Qi Lin, but his arms were too weak to do so. The current situation of letting Qi Lin lean on him was already at the limit. Glancing at Zhen Xi, he gestured for her to help Qi Lin.
Zhen Xi understood and went over to support Qi Lin, guiding her to a tatami mat nearby. She quickly gave her a hot water bottle to warm up and gently massaged her feet in an attempt to alleviate her pain.
"Isn't the Empress Dowager still busy with important matters" Bai Qianye turned around and said coolly, though his voice wasn’t loud, it was icy enough to send chills down one’s spine.
The Empress Dowager suddenly remembered what she had to do and exclaimed worriedly, "Where is the Emperor"
Bai Qianye hesitated for a moment before realizing what the Empress Dowager might be concerned about. He replied, "He’s resting in the Imperial Study."
Zi Yin had just finished transferring his inner strength to him and was now resting inside the Imperial Study.
"But he isn’t at..." The thought made her disoriented for a moment before she quickly walked out. She nearly stumbled and almost fell.
Qi Lin found this odd; there shouldn’t be such urgency. Looking at Bai Qianye, his brows were furrowed as if in deep thought.
"You rest first, I’ll go outside for a moment." As Bai Qianye hurriedly turned to leave, Qi Lin tugged on the sleeve of his robe. Upon turning back, he saw her proud face, indicating she would follow no matter what. He stroked her long hair and softly said, "It’s very cold outside; you’ll catch a chill if you go out. It’d be better for you to stay here."
"First, I will continue kneeling here until you return and tell me what happened, second, take me with you." For some reason, Qi Lin felt this incident was related to Bu Yao. Only something concerning someone very close could make the Empress Dowager so alarmed. Bai Qianye standing safely there meant Zi Yin would be fine as he’s the Emperor, but the only ones left who might have had a problem were Feng Changqing and Long Ye.
However, Feng Changqing was missing, and Zi Yin had declared him dead, which implied it must be Long Ye.
Bai Qianye hesitated for a moment before saying, "Zhen Xi, quickly prepare something for the young miss."
Qi Lin’s expression brightened but she restrained herself from grabbing Bai Qianye. After Zhen Xi brought her a cloak, Bai Qianye helped her put it on before they left.
This was her first time leaving the palace since waking up, and she couldn’t help feeling curious. Bai Qianye walked very slowly, waiting for her to catch up. She tried to quicken her pace but slipped a few times due to the slippery road. Bai Qianye then simply held onto Qi Lin’s waist, which she initially resisted but soon gave in.
The place they arrived at was somewhere she had never been before—the Empress Dowager's private quarters, specifically a secret chamber within the rear courtyard. The moment they stood by the door, they felt an icy chill and a strong smell of medicinal herbs wafting from inside.amiliar courtyard, she found no one there. Thinking that Qiao Er and the others might have gone to see the commotion, Qi Lin forgot that Su Feng and Qiao Er loved watching commotions the most. However...