That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

"Whether she was a demoness or not, in short, the emperor was indeed very fond of her, showering her with all sorts of love and showering her with rare treasures. Unfortunately, the princess always harbored hatred for the emperor and resisted him fiercely."

Wen Fuxiao squinted slightly, shook his head, and drank.

"Nonsense! He's the enemy who destroyed our nation. We'll never forgive him, not even in our next life!"

Xie Yunqi snorted coldly, which sobered her up considerably.

"Hey Jingming, do you think the princess has a chance to assassinate the emperor?"

"what?"

Jiang Jingming looked up, thought for a moment, then turned and poked Aqing's arm.

"What do you think, Aqing? You know this kind of thing best."

"..."

Aqing remained silent for a long time, thought carefully, and finally shook her head:

“There are many opportunities to kill him. But the emperor is skilled in martial arts and has secret guards protecting him. It will be difficult for the princess to kill him in one blow.”

"While he's sleeping, we'll stab him to death with a hairpin or something!"

Xie Yunqi made a furtive gesture as if he were slitting his own throat.

“If someone has never killed anyone before, their actions will be hesitant and inaccurate. Moreover, someone like the emperor has probably been assassinated more than a hundred times. Since he dares to keep the princess by his side, he must have the confidence that she cannot harm him.”

Aqing got up to pour wine for Jiang Jingming, speaking with her head down, her eyelashes drooping quietly.

Jiang Jingming rested his chin on his hand, admiring her beautiful features, and casually began to speak:

"Miss, have you forgotten the reason why the emperor brought the princess back? He must still have hostages in his hands."

"what!"

Xie Yunqi realized what was happening and pursed his lips in annoyance.

“Young friend Jingming is right.”

Wen Fuxiao nodded approvingly:

"The emperor not only brought the princess back to the capital, but also many newborn infants, who were then raised by the palace servants. Since they were still living under the princess's nose, she was trapped and unable to harm him."

"This is outrageous! How can this be considered a heroic act?!"

Xie Yunqi frowned deeply; her fond impression of the late emperor was now completely shattered.

"I think the emperor naturally knew that this matter was not honorable, which is why he strictly suppressed the news. In the eyes of us ordinary people, the palace simply had another peerless musician."

Fang Zhiyi, who had been drinking with her head down, suddenly spoke.

A faint smile remained on her lips, but Jiang Jingming felt that she wasn't actually smiling; she seemed to be listening very attentively.

Wen Fuxiao sighed:

"Yes. The ministers who offered advice all felt that the emperor, who had been wise all his life, had made a foolish mistake and should not leave behind such a bad reputation for a woman. But the emperor did not compromise, even though the princess disliked him and had never even smiled at him."

"Forced relationships are never sweet!"

Xie Yunqi pursed his lips.

Jiang Jingming noticed her ears were flushed, whether from drunkenness or anger, and suddenly asked:

"If you were the emperor, young lady, and you were in the same position, what would you do?"

"..."

Xie Yunqi pondered for a moment, then remained silent.

Jiang Jingming gave a helpless smile; it seemed this was indeed a dead end.

Because when you fell in love with her, you had already committed a mistake that she would never forgive. There was an insurmountable chasm between you, and you would never have the chance to be together in this lifetime.

Wen Fuxiao looked at Xie Yunqi, who had suddenly fallen silent, smiled, patted her head, and continued:

"The stalemate between the two lasted for a long time, and the emperor's tenderness finally ran out. He no longer gave the princess any preferential treatment, put her in the heavy shackles of a criminal, and punished her by making her play the zither for everyone at the palace banquets every night."

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent for a moment.

I could have guessed this ending long ago, but the thought of the princess's situation still makes my heart tremble.

“I was sitting in the palace banquet and could see the princess behind the screen. Her zither music was exquisite and poignant. I heard that she played until her fingertips bled but she still wouldn’t stop. Even so, she refused to bow to the emperor, just like her people who went to their deaths.”

Wen Fuxiao took a deep breath, her voice low and somber:

"Though the officials in the court were reluctant, none of them dared to raise any objections."

Jiang Jingming listened silently, thinking that this was actually quite normal.

The matter involving this princess was a taboo subject for the emperor, and no one knew whether he would become violent and draw his sword to kill her.

But thinking about it, those palace banquets must have had a really oppressive atmosphere.

A gloomy emperor, a mournful zither melody, a guilty princess, each note a lament of blood.

"Except for—my arch-nemesis."

Unexpectedly, Wen Fuxiao suddenly changed the subject:

"On the night he was invited to the palace banquet, he lay in a corner drinking as usual. After listening to the zither for a while, he loudly praised the zither player's superb skills and then boldly asked the emperor if he could invite her out to see her."

"..."

The most fearless person in this dynasty has emerged.

Jiang Jingming sighed inwardly, but since Master Han was still alive and well, without missing any limbs, it seemed there shouldn't be any major problems.

"Perhaps out of respect for her, or perhaps for some other reason, the emperor did remove the screen. And so everyone saw the princess again. She looked much more haggard than before, pale and broken, but still had an unparalleled beauty, like a drifting willow catkin in a chaotic world."

Wen Fuxiao paused for a moment before adding:

"Her fingertips were indeed bleeding, staining the xylophone a different color."

"The emperor is truly heartless."

Lu Zhao couldn't help but sigh, feeling that even if he hated such a beauty, he shouldn't have been willing to let her fall into such a state.

"When Han Baisong saw her, he raised his cup high and praised her for having the beauty of autumn water and the grace of jade. The emperor listened indifferently, his expression revealing neither joy nor anger."

Even now, when Wen Fuxiao talks about what happened back then, she still feels lingering fear, and her face turns pale.

Autumn waters are the spirit, jade is the bone—now I understand.

Jiang Jingming suddenly realized that this was the first love that Master Han had been longing for.

Her temperament is as clear as autumn water, and her character as gentle as fine jade.

“Since that time, Han Baisong has attended every palace banquet. Most of the time, the princess does not show herself, but sits behind the screen playing the zither, while Han Baisong drinks in a corner far away from her. Occasionally, he will ask the emperor to allow him to play a duet with her on the konghou.”

As Wen Fuxiao finished speaking, everyone except Jiang Jingming vaguely realized what was about to happen.

"So it wasn't you who flirted with the emperor's woman, it was Han Baisong!"

Xie Yunqi realized what was happening, and his eyes lit up:

"But this kind of feeling is so beautiful! This is what it means to find a kindred spirit in a beautiful relationship!"

"As expected of Mr. Shouhanke! Even his love is so poignant and poetic, it's truly moving."

As Lu Zhao spoke, he raised his sleeve to wipe away his tears, his voice choked with emotion.

"I haven't even told you what happened next, and you've already guessed it?"

Wen Fuxiao looked at them, feeling a mixture of helplessness and amusement.

Xie Yunqi looked confident:

"Later, the emperor must have discovered the affection between the two and then flew into a rage."

"A man like the emperor would naturally have noticed the undercurrents between the two long ago, but that was not enough to enrage him."

Wen Fuxiao shook her head in denial.

"It is not uncommon for people to covet the emperor's women, but no one dares to challenge his authority, so such coveting is not a threat to him."

"So it's true that you covet Consort De?"

Xie Yunqi is straightforward and outspoken.

"..."

Wen Fuxiao clutched her chest, feeling a sharp, throbbing pain, as if blood was about to gush out.

"What truly enraged the emperor was that Han Baisong dared to kneel before the palace and beg the emperor to set her free."

"!!!"

Everyone was shocked by these words.

Jiang Jingming lowered his head and silently took a sip of wine. Based on his understanding of Master Han, he had already guessed what would happen next.

"When Han Baisong was helping the emperor seize power, he once asked the emperor for a promise in a joking manner. Now he is using this promise to ask the emperor to release the princess."

"Oh my god..."

Xie Yunqi muttered to himself.

Fang Zhiyi gently put down her wine glass. A night breeze blew, and her bangs fell, obscuring her expression.

"The emperor agreed?"

“He agreed. He is the emperor, so naturally he will not break his promise. It’s just that there is an additional deadline of one year.”

Wen Fuxiao nodded, her expression still heavy:

"Han Baisong was immediately banished from the capital, never to see the princess again. A year later, the emperor did indeed grant the princess her freedom, allowing her to leave the palace and sending someone to inform her that Han Baisong had died for her."

"..."

"A month later, someone found the princess's decomposed body in a dilapidated temple in the suburbs. She had committed suicide by striking her zither."

Chapter 125 Drunkenly, Lanterns Float Across the Sky

The ending of the story, like its beginning, was as desolate as the autumn wind.

For a long time, only the faint sound of the night wind could be heard on the pavilion, and no one spoke.

Jiang Jingming, emboldened by the alcohol, gazed at the moon outside the building.

In fact, he found it difficult to connect the madman in the story told by Master Wen with the pedantic and rigid Master Han in his memory.

It is said that Master Han has not drunk alcohol for many years. He spends his days holding his pipe, standing in the slanting sunlight, gazing into the distance, as if reminiscing about something.

From beginning to end, everyone in this story met at the wrong time.

If the emperor hadn't been a tyrannical ruler who slaughtered entire cities when he met the princess, perhaps a marriage alliance could have ended the war.

If the war had not yet begun when the princess met Master Han, they might have become acquainted and bound by the beautiful sounds of the guqin and konghou.

Or, going back even further, Han Fuzi was not introduced by Wen Fuzi to meet the king.

Without that banquet where the future of the world was predicted, perhaps the king would not have made up his mind to unify the world, and the princess would not have had her country destroyed.

In short, everything was wrong.

Thinking of this, Jiang Jingming couldn't help but sigh softly:

"So, Master Wen, you angered the emperor by pleading for them back then, and you were punished along with them?"

"Yes."

When Wen Fuxiao brought this up, she smiled indifferently:

"The emperor's wrath at that time was so great that everyone who saw it trembled. I pleaded for them, but I was so intimidated that I didn't dare to raise my head. I don't know where Han Baisong got such courage. He stood tall and straight at the palace gate, and every word he uttered was a death sentence."

"I didn't expect you to be so loyal!"

Xie Yunqi breathed a sigh of relief and patted Wen Fuzi's shoulder hard, realizing that he had misunderstood the old man before.

"I thought you'd be secretly pleased that your arch-rival was demoted out of the capital! That way, no one will be competing with you for first place."

“Little girl, if you spar with someone and lose to that person many, many times, of course you will be unwilling to accept it. You will practice your sword even more desperately, just so that one day you can defeat him.”

Wen Fuxiao's gentle smile concealed a multitude of emotions.

"Then someone gleefully tells you that the person is dead, and you are now the best in the world. Would you be happy?"