The executioner turned a blind eye and pretended to be deaf as if he couldn't hear the discussions. On the execution platform, the Wei father and son wore white prison uniforms, their hair was disheveled, and their faces were dejected.
“It was your father who ruined you…” Wei Hanqing regretted his actions.
"Father, I have no regrets. If I die, I die. In the next life, we will still be father and son."
The sun was high in the sky. Wei San looked longingly at the bustling world, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw the executioner standing to the side. A deep fear flashed in his eyes.
Wei Hanqing sighed upon seeing this: San'er speaks with great righteousness, but it's clear he's still afraid.
In the face of life and death, who is not afraid?
Even at the cost of his life, he couldn't win back his wife's heart. His life was truly a complete failure.
"It was my stubbornness that ruined the Wei family!"
Even in death, he would have no face to meet his ancestors. He ruined his family business for a woman, and for a woman, he mistakenly killed his own father.
Facing imminent death, Wei Hanqing regained some clarity, but unfortunately, it was too late for him to realize his mistake.
A mediocre life ends in nothing.
The once spirited Marquis of Yiyang was not yet old and decrepit, but his current state of destitution was heartbreaking.
But no one will sympathize with him.
Treason is a heinous crime punishable by confiscation of property and extermination of the entire clan.
His Majesty showed mercy and only killed the father and son, sparing the young son of the second branch who was far away in Lingnan. In the end, it was because of Old Master Wei's past merit in saving the emperor that the Wei family bloodline was spared.
It arrived at 2:45 PM.
Princess Changyang appeared discreetly in the crowd.
Yu Zhi held her hand and looked at Lord Wei and the Third Young Master Wei, who were completely unrefined on the execution platform.
Wei San didn't recognize the "Fourth Sister" disguised as a man, but he saw Yu Zhi's face clearly. If he saw Yu Zhi, then it was easy to imagine who the outstanding and charming person next to her was.
"Wei Pingxi!"
He shouted angrily.
'Wei Pingxi' has long become a thing of the past, like a discarded rag thrown to the other side of the river of time. Hearing his fierce shouts, someone raised an eyebrow.
"You dare come here? It's you! You're the one who ruined us! You jinx! You scourge!!"
Before his death, Wei San unleashed astonishing potential. Even though he was bound by ropes, he still stepped forward, his eyes glaring red with a ferocious look that suggested he wanted to devour someone.
"Behave yourself!"
The officer kicked him.
"You ruined Mother, you ruined Father, you ruined the whole family, how dare you come here? I'll haunt you even as a ghost! Never!"
His insults were scathing; three out of ten sentences contained the word "jinx," causing Yu Zhi to frown.
These words make it sound as if Xi Xi wanted to be tormented by the Wei family. She was born into royalty but was not given the treatment she deserved, and she had a ruthless person like Madam Wei by her side. In her previous life, she was kept in the dark until her death.
Hearing Wei San Gongzi spouting nonsense and making baseless accusations, Yu Zhi stepped forward.
"what are you up to?"
The princess held down her wrist.
Yu Zhi asked, puzzled, "Aren't you angry? He wronged you like that..."
In her opinion, Madam Wei was the cause of the Wei family's downfall, while Lord Wei was the one who truly brought the trouble to the forefront.
No one with a brain would rebel.
But he did it anyway. Not only did he do it, but he also dragged his son into it, and even went so far as to kill Old Master Wei, who tried to stop him.
This way, all the blame will be thrown on Xi Xi.
"There's no point in arguing." She shook her head with a smile, her gaze lingering on the faces of Wei Hanqing and his son, scanning them back and forth. "Forget it, since you intend to bury yesterday, why bother coming at all?"
There's no need to argue with them, and even less need to see them off.
"Let's go."
She carried the wine jug back the way she came.
Yu Zhi followed closely behind her.
"Wei Pingxi, you'll get what's coming to you—"
"It's noon—"
Even if it wasn't noon, the executioner wouldn't let him finish his rant.
"cut!"
The executioner raised his blade and brought it down, blood splattering everywhere, and two heads rolled on the ground, their eyes wide open in death.
“I’m no longer called ‘Wei Pingxi,’ I’m called ‘Ji Pingxi’ now,” the man carrying the wine jug suddenly said as he walked down the long street.
Yu Zhi tilted her head to look at her.
"Although 'Ji Pingxi' sounds a little strange, this is my true self. I should be Ji Pingxi. After saying it a few more times, it will sound natural and won't seem strange anymore."
"I don't find it strange at all."
Everyone has a past that cannot be revisited; since it cannot be revisited, then let us bravely move forward.
Yu Zhi smiled and said, "His Majesty and the Empress have given you a new name. You are Ji Pingxi, and you are also Princess Changyang of the Great Yan Dynasty—Ji Qingci."
Celadon, also known as celadon.
Ji Pingxi's eyebrows curved slightly: "Father is very good at porcelain making. It seems that he attracted Mother's attention with this skill back then."
Not only that, the dignified fourth prince actually had to rely on pottery as a craft to earn a living, and she was grateful for the hardships her father had endured along the way.
“I’ve died once, and only after dying once did I realize how precious life is.” She uncorked the wine jug and held it to Yu Zhi: “Want some?”
"drink?"
She laughed: "So, are you going to drink or not?"
Yu Zhi looked left and right, and said hesitantly, "Drink..."
She had never done anything like walking and drinking on the street before.
Whether you've done it before or not, it's your first time.
She had a low alcohol tolerance; after only a few sips of the wine, she was already slightly tipsy when she arrived at Yangchun Palace.
He lifted her to lie down on the bed, then leaned down and kissed her.
She enjoys having company, but many people come and go, some only able to stay with her for a short time, others unable to hold her heart.
The woman she wants doesn't need to be particularly outstanding or capable; someone who understands her, accompanies her, and warms her heart is rare enough.
What we all want in life is a peaceful and stable life, right?
Getting married is also for that sense of security.
A household with a daughter brings peace.
She stared blankly at Yu Zhi, a warm feeling flowing through her heart, making her feel less lonely.
Although both women have lived two lives, this woman is different from others. They share similar experiences of dying unjustly, the good fortune of being reborn, and a relationship of protection and being protected.
In Yu Zhi's presence, both Wei Pingxi and Ji Pingxi were needed. In fact, she was the only piece of driftwood that Yu Zhi could use to save herself before she drowned.
She liked her timidity, her allure, her understanding nature, and how easily she cried. Putting everything else aside, her tearful appearance was truly beautiful.
With his fingertips brushing against the beauty's lips, Ji Pingxi got up and left, reeking of alcohol, and went to the water dungeon where Madam Wei and Gu Chenzi were imprisoned.
Chapter 77 Fairy Carrying the Bed
The jailer walked at the front, carrying a lantern to illuminate the prince's path.
"You may all leave."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The jailers guarding the water dungeon filed out, and Princess Changyang casually pulled up a chair and sat down: "Wei Hanqing and Wei San are dead."
The woman locked in the cage remained unmoved.
The so-called water dungeon is the most gloomy and terrifying. Every half hour or an hour, the cage will sink into the water, and the frequent feeling of suffocation will make people suffer endless torment with no way to escape. It is truly a situation where one cannot live and cannot die.
The torment she had endured for days had left Yan Qing looking emaciated and barely recognizable.
Come to think of it, before marriage she was the eldest daughter of the Grand Tutor, and after marriage she was the wife of the Marquis of Yiyang. The former was pampered by her parents and elder sister, and the latter was revered by Wei Hanqing as a god. How could she have truly suffered?
"It seems the Marquis has regretted it. His obsession has dragged his entire family down with him. The Wei family of Lingnan has truly fallen."
Although they didn't suffer the tragic fate of being wiped out, their property was inevitably confiscated. The wealth accumulated over generations filled the national treasury, leaving behind nothing but an empty shell.
When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. Unless you're stupid, who would dare to associate with his family? It's good enough if they don't kick him while he's down.
"My third brother cursed me as a jinx before he died, so I'll just call him my third brother for now. Of all my brothers, he was the only one with any humanity left. Wei Da and Wei Er coveted my concubine, so one of them died and the other was crippled."
“Wei San… he used to treat me like a younger sister, even though she wasn’t a very likable one. But I never expected him to pin all the blame on me before he died. But it doesn’t matter, he’s dead now.”
She said in a deep voice, "He said I ruined you all, isn't that ridiculous?"
Yan Qing looked disheveled; her hair and clothes were soaked with water. She trembled in Gu Chenzi's arms, not uttering a word.
"The past is gone, and it's rather pointless to talk about it. By some twist of fate, I owed you a life, which I repaid in my past life. I don't intend to entangle myself with you again in this life..."
When she said "no more entanglement," Yan Qing looked up and asked, "What past life? How did you repay it?"
This was a secret unknown to everyone; even Yuzhi, who slept next to her, didn't know the specific details.
"It's from a past life."
She leaned forward, enunciating clearly: "In my past life, I tried every means to integrate into the Wei family and win their favor, but unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. With my personality, I was probably destined to be unable to get along with them."
"The old man once considered using me for a marriage alliance, but you stopped him. You protected me like a mother hen protects her chicks; at that time, you were the only one I could rely on."
“You are my mother, the only warmth and safe haven I had in the Wei family. In the end, it was you who used my elder brother’s hand to poison me with ‘Forget-Me-Not’.”
Recalling her past life, her eyes were filled with complex emotions: "My intestines were ripped open, and the pain was so intense that I could only cry out for my mother. In the end, I ended my life with a dagger."