Could it be that the princess has mistaken someone for someone else?
As expected, when the princess opened her mouth in a trembling voice, she called out, "Your Highness..."
Mu Yunhe abruptly stopped, and everyone in the room stared at the princess in disbelief. But the next moment, everyone knew that the princess had mistaken him for someone else. Because of her overwhelming longing, her deep concern, and her intense anticipation, she had mistaken Mu Yunhe for Prince Mu. This also gave them an idea of just how much Mu Yunhe resembled Prince Mu in his youth. Among everyone in the room, the princess only mistook Mu Yunhe for Prince Mu. This affection, even until the very last moment of her life, remained so strong and profound. Just how deep were her feelings for Prince Mu?
"Your Highness, you've finally arrived..."
The princess's voice was broken and intermittent, but the joy and happiness in it were so evident. Her eyes were misty, as if there was fog in them, but she smiled so contentedly and happily, her gaze towards Mu Yunhe so tender, as if something was being conveyed through that brief distance. Her hand reached out to Mu Yunhe, pleading so weakly.
Mu Yunhe ultimately couldn't utter the word "Mother." His blood seemed to rush backward, rushing to his head, making him impulsively and angrily want to shout, "I'm not that scum!" But seeing the princess's fleeting smile before her death, he couldn't bring himself to speak.
Stiffly walking to the princess's bedside, he knelt down and took her hand in his. Mu Yunhe remained silent. He didn't clarify anything. If that scoundrel backed out in the end, or didn't come at all, then he didn't need to come. Let this mistake continue; at least his mother could leave peacefully and without worry.
The princess's smile faded, and her eyes dimmed as well. The dying woman's face and breathing were so weak and suffocating.
“Yunhe… I thought it was him.” The princess suddenly spoke, her clear voice weak, which made everyone in the room feel a lump in their throat.
A dying man is often the most insightful. Especially when it comes to his own son. As she drew closer, the princess could no longer deceive herself. He ultimately didn't come; he wouldn't come. Those words weren't false; he only loved Li Fangfei, and even if she died, Prince Mu wouldn't even glance at her.
What was she waiting for? She'd waited her whole life, hoped her whole life, didn't she already know the outcome? Why persist so bitterly? Why put others through such hardship? But deep down, her heart was unwilling to accept it. They were both women, so why couldn't she be right? Why didn't they love her?
The princess pondered this question her entire life, yet she never truly understood it. Her resentment fueled her struggles, leading to so many mistakes and terrible consequences. She knew she was wrong, and she bore the bitter fruit of her errors, living a lonely and silent life. Would she ultimately never gain his forgiveness?
Suddenly, all hope vanished, and the last breath I had been struggling to maintain came suffocating me. It was as if my heart had turned to ashes, leaving me utterly devoid of all desire.
Mu Yunhe felt a sharp pain in his heart. The veins on her forehead looked particularly grotesque and terrifying against her pale, translucent face, as if they could burst at the slightest touch. He sensed the princess's sudden, utter despair, a feeling of having nothing left to hold onto, as if all life had vanished from her in an instant. It happened so fast that Mu Yunhe didn't even have a chance to try and hold her back.
There was a sound from the gatehouse. Grasping the princess's hand tightly, Mu Yunhe spoke, his voice hoarse and strained: "Mother, he will come..."
He was unwilling to say such a thing, but Mu Yunhe only wanted his mother to live a little longer, even if it was just a little while. If the arrival of Prince Mu could make his mother happy and encourage her not to give up on him, he would say those words without hesitation, even if it felt like swallowing a knife. Just as he had told Luo Zhiheng, with his mother dead, he would be an orphan. He didn't want to be an orphan, and he didn't want his mother to die with such resentment.
The princess only chuckled softly, her relaxed face making even her laughter sound awkward. She stared at the ceiling, unable to utter a word, her throat gurgling incoherently, yet Mu Yunhe understood her words.
"You didn't kill my sister's child; it was Consort Li who killed her. She herself has admitted that she used you before she died, which led to a series of misunderstandings and harms later on."
"I don't resent my sister anymore. Rui'er is dead, and my sister has lost so much. I understand all her hatred."
“I will not let those who should truly bear responsibility and pay the price go unpunished! The culprit, she is dead, that's fine, but there is her family, and the people she cared about. My son will make sure none of them escape.”
"My sister's pain, your guilt, Rui'er's death, my illness—all of these must be soothed! Blood debts must be repaid with blood! No one should owe us anything."
Mu Yunhe buried his face in the princess's withered hands, speaking haltingly. He knew the princess had something on her mind that she couldn't express, that she was still preoccupied with the past, so much so that she felt ashamed to face Mu Qingya. Prince Mu was a wound in the princess's heart, and Mu Qingya was an obstacle in hers. Every step she took over was fraught with pain. Thinking about it this way, the princess was actually the one suffering the most.
She struggles to balance between her children and husband, feeling hurt by his ruthlessness, guilty towards her daughter, and desperately trying to protect her son. Yet, she never shows any of her suffering in the face of life's hardships, always wearing a gentle smile.
Looking back now, Mu Yunhe felt only heartache and pain. What kind of magnanimity did a woman possess to bear and forgive so much? Now, Mu Yunhe only wanted his mother to pass away peacefully. He didn't care about being an orphan; if he truly couldn't keep her, then let her go in peace. This was his last act of filial piety as a son.
The princess could no longer speak, but she could hear Mu Yunhe's words. For a moment, her gaze was clear. Regardless of whether it was true or false, she believed it. She smiled at Mu Yunhe, and the starlight in the sky could not compare to the deep love and reluctance in her eyes.
She looked at Mu Yunhe, her gaze falling on Luo Zhiheng beside her. Her smile was calm and content, as if she had let go of everything. But in the end, her gaze couldn't help but drift towards the doorway, wide open, a place where anyone entering would be immediately visible. The sun shone brightly outside, but the light in the princess's eyes gradually dimmed, fading until it disappeared…
"He never came..." It was as if she had used up all her life's energy to lament, with endless sorrow, resentment and grief bidding farewell to this woman's unfortunate life.
Her face was filled with regret and despair. Her throat was emitting a harsh, sawing sound as she gasped for breath. When she suddenly stopped, tears slid down her dry eyes and dripped onto Mu Yunhe's palm. Although they weren't hot, Mu Yunhe felt as if his heart had been burned.
The princess left, so quietly, yet her life was incomplete. She had immense regrets, love and hate, but ultimately never had the chance to ask them aloud. That person was so cruel to a dying woman. She was resentful; her eyes remained open until her death, staring intently at that door.
But outside the door, all was calm.
Second update! Tomorrow I'll begin my revenge on Prince Mu. Mu Yunhe has finally been completely enraged! Please vote, leave comments, and give monthly tickets! Group hug!
382 A complete break! A chaotic mind!
Updated: 2013-10-11 16:41:06 Word Count: 7645
Mu Yunhe knelt on the ground, his dark hair obscuring his eyes, making his expression impossible to discern. But the princess's wide, lifeless eyes were frozen in that instant, and all sorrow and vitality seemed to abruptly cease. People's hearts were gripped by something, a tinge of pain and bitterness spreading through them, an indescribable sadness lingering within them.
At that moment, unhurried footsteps gradually approached from outside the door, sounding exceptionally clear in the eerily quiet room. The hesitation and indecisiveness in those footsteps, intermittent and halting, sounded to everyone's ears like being tortured in a sea of fire and knives, the pain of being slowly sliced to pieces—a pain that only Mu Yunhe could truly understand. Others, however, only felt anger.
Even if they were all outsiders, even if they didn't know the reasons and details, even if the princess was guilty, at least at this moment, the princess had truly and completely disappeared from Prince Mu's life. So, could you, could you please be a little more merciful, Prince Mu? Even if his steps weren't so hesitant, so wandering and wavering, it would be fine.
Prince Mu would never know that his hesitant steps were as if he were cutting Mu Yunhe's heart piece by piece with a knife, and also cutting away the goodwill others had for Prince Mu.
Luo Zhiheng turned around and looked up at the man standing in front of the door, hesitant to move forward. The sunlight was so dazzling that the man's hesitation became the most ridiculous mockery, as if mocking all the kindness she and Mu Yunhe had shown each other before.
It turns out that kindness and compassion ultimately hurt themselves the most! When they pity and sympathize with others, they don't expect anything in return. But anyone with flesh and blood and a conscience, even if they only have a sliver of conscience, will not be completely heartless and cruel to those who have helped or pitied them.
Shouldn't everyone have at least a little bit of conscience?
But why didn't Prince Mu remember? He only remembered that they killed the woman he loved most, that they made him lose face as a prince, and that they were disobedient and unfilial children. He rejected them and cherished Li Fangfei.
He showed absolutely no gratitude, and even made things difficult for and hurt them in various ways. Even so, they continued to give him chances. But these chances turned into their regret and unspeakable guilt.
If Prince Mu hadn't hesitated at this final step, if he hadn't shown even a fraction of the urgency and concern he had for saving Li Fangfei's body, perhaps the princess wouldn't have died with such resentment, leaving with such unfinished business.
Luo Zhiheng finally realized that in this matter, no one was to blame but herself for being too soft-hearted and for the father-son/brotherly bond between Mu Yunhe and Tai Gu Nian. It turned out that when they suffered injustice, they considered it perfectly natural. When they cried out in pain, it was considered an outrage against heaven and earth! When they wanted a just and fair outcome, it was considered utterly rebellious!
It turns out that when you're not favored, everything you do is wrong!
So this is the relationship and principle of kings, nobles, generals and ministers.
Luo Zhiheng suppressed the urge to kick that Prince Mu out, standing stiffly to the side. She turned her head to look at Mu Yunhe, who was kneeling stiffly before the princess, his back so straight. He was such an outstanding man, yet he had been utterly crushed by his father. She didn't know if she could ever rebuild her shattered pride and dignity; some wounds, however deep, would never truly heal.
As if finally making up his mind, Prince Mu hesitated at the door for a long time before stepping in. However, he merely stood there, squinting at the princess who was half-hidden by Mu Yunhe. He only glanced at her before looking away, unwilling to look at her even once more. He coldly said, "I've arrived. Speak quickly if you have something to say."
Those cold and heartless words were spoken so bluntly.
If the princess hadn't died, if she had heard those cold words with her own ears, wouldn't she have been even more desperate? Would she have been even less able to leave in peace?
The man she had waited for so long, the man she had desperately watched at the door with her last ounce of strength, the man she had been hoping for, not only missed that final step, but whose words and actions were utterly despicable.
Prince Mu, a man renowned for his bravery and keen insight on the battlefield, failed to notice at this moment that his wife of many years was dead! How ironic.
Luo Zhiheng couldn't help but sneer, her gaze piercing straight at Prince Mu like a sharp sword, wishing she could tear this cold-blooded man to pieces.
Mu Yunhe seemed like someone who had been sealed away for a thousand years, just released from a spell; his movements were so stiff that you could almost hear his bones grinding together. He slowly turned his head, his gaze piercing through his sweat-dampened hair, sharp and piercing as he stared at Prince Mu. Prince Mu's indifferent demeanor, his stubborn refusal to even glance at the Princess, severely provoked Mu Yunhe.
"No need, my mother has nothing more to say to you, you... you can get out!" The hoarse voice was filled with murderous intent. Even though it was considered a rebellious statement by others, Mu Yunhe spoke it to Prince Mu so frankly at this moment.
He told Prince Mu to get lost, because he no longer needed Prince Mu; they were too late—no, to be precise, Prince Mu was too late. His mother ultimately failed to fulfill her wish. How could Mu Yunhe not hate him?! And Prince Mu's attitude only added fuel to the fire.
Prince Mu still couldn't reconcile the diviner's son with his sickly son, so he didn't know the dire consequences of truly angering the diviner. He continued to believe that his son wouldn't do anything to him, as long as Mu Yunhe wasn't afraid of divine retribution.
Upon suddenly hearing the word "get lost," Prince Mu turned around abruptly, his eyes blazing with disbelief and fury. He glared at Mu Yunhe and shouted, "Mu Yunhe, how dare you speak to me like that!"
Mu Yunhe ignored Prince Mu's words as if they were nothing, merely frowning slightly, his gaze icy, as if no amount of warmth could soothe his heart. A faint smile even lingered on his haggard face, so eerie and indifferent, as he softly asked the Princess: "This is the man you loved your whole life, the man you waited for until your death. If your soul is still here, then look for yourself, is he worth it? Is he worth all this suffering and foolish waiting?"
"Mother, do you know how scared I am right now? More than becoming an orphan, I'm terrified that one day I'll become as inhuman as that beast. I'm afraid I'll inherit his cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness, losing even the ability to distinguish right from wrong. How terrifying would that be? What will happen to my Aheng then? Will she have to suffer with me? To follow a monster who's worse than a pig or a dog, a monster with human features but no emotions—how horrible! I'm so afraid that one day, my Aheng will suffer as much as you, waiting for me in vain, only to be too late. Mother, tell me, what's the point of me living like this?"
His words, spoken haltingly, were filled with genuine emotion, and he truly seemed capable of portraying fear and terror; Mu Yunhe's voice almost trembled. A thick nasal tone filled the trembling final notes. Perhaps he was crying, but no tears fell; he cried so silently, his sorrow and pain stingyly kept to himself.
His words were filled with deep inferiority, self-loathing, and mania.
He hated being Prince Mu's son; he loathed the blood of Prince Mu flowing in his veins; he feared that one day he too would become so selfish and inhuman. Perhaps Prince Mu today was acting in his best interest, because they were father and son. Suddenly, Mu Yunhe lost all confidence in his own life.
The emergence of this debilitating emotion is enough to demonstrate the immense shock Mu Yunhe suffered. He was so stunned and panicked by his father's cold-blooded behavior that he unconsciously began to imagine it as his future with Luo Zhiheng.
The confident, passionate, unrestrained, and flamboyant Mu Yunhe was brutally destroyed by his own father.
Luo Zhiheng felt a deep pain in her heart. She knelt down beside him, hugged him tightly, and pressed his face against hers. Her voice was soft: "That day will never come. My Yunhe is no one's shadow or copy. Even if the blood of that kind flows in your veins, the blood of the Princess still flows in your veins. The Princess's unwavering loyalty, Yunhe surely possesses as well. So I will not suffer, and our future will definitely not be bleak. Don't be afraid. Just like before, how I struggled step by step with you to get to where we are now, no matter how difficult the future may be, we can still get through it. As long as we still deeply love each other, the Princess's fate today will not be a warning to us!"
Mu Yunhe's gaze was unfocused, his eyelashes trembled slightly, and his lowered eyelids opened his fragile pupils, which were filled with the images of nude figures. The coldness in his eyes vanished instantly. But once the hardened coldness was gone, Luo Zhiheng realized that those eyes were actually so fragile and easily broken.
Her Yunhe was like a toddler who had just learned to walk, daring to see this vast world for the first time; everything was new and innocent to him. But those eyes, which were originally clean and clear, were now stained with blood by cruel and filthy family affection.
The first time was the blood of his own sister, the second time the blood of his mother. Both were the most important people in his life. All the blows came so suddenly and painfully. One wound hadn't even healed before a new one was inflicted. Even with Mu Yunhe's strong spirit, how could he withstand this repeated pain?
Luo Zhiheng felt her heart clench, and instinctively covered Mu Yunhe's eyes with her hands. She carefully sought confirmation in those eyes, trying to ascertain if their future would have a good outcome. All her passion was concentrated in those eyes, and Luo Zhiheng suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to cry, a profound sorrow and unbearable pain washing over her.
How long will she have to endure this suffering and hardship?
"Aheng?" An anxious voice urged him, but he did not remove Luo Zhiheng's hand.
“We will always be together. As long as Mu Yunhe still loves me and wants me, I will never let you go. We are different from them. We love each other. I love you, and you love me. Neither of us wants the other to wait in vain, so our ending will not be a step too late, nor will we die with regrets. Believe me, I will protect my love firmly, and I will hold onto my Yunhe tightly. Nothing will change. Don't let one painful experience make you deny or question everything else, okay?”
Mu Yunhe suddenly embraced Luo Zhiheng, burying his face deeply in the crook of her neck. He didn't lift his head for a long time.
No one saw the moisture and warmth flowing and dripping between their skin, hidden in that dark and intimate corner.
His vulnerability and tears were only shown to Luo Zhiheng; he gave her his most tender side. His sister was dead, his mother was dead. In this world, Mu Yunhe was truly an orphan; apart from Aheng, he had no other family he could trust. Now, he only had Aheng left; everything else was nothing.
Luo Zhiheng felt as if her heart and lungs were being burned by a raging fire, the pain coming in waves. As the scalding tears fell, dripping onto her skin, she felt the pain too. It was as if she were experiencing it herself; whatever Mu Yunhe's pain was, she felt it twice as much. And so, her hatred for Prince Mu grew exponentially.
The two embraced each other in silence. After a short while, Mu Yunhe raised his head. His eyes were red and moist, but not a single tear could be seen. His gaze towards Luo Zhiheng was so clear and bright. Although there was intense hatred in it, it was no longer cold and hesitant. Because Mu Yunhe was loved, because of love, he had nothing to fear, and therefore could move forward bravely.
"It's like I was possessed. Just now, I almost ruined myself." His words, spoken lightly, were filled with heaviness. Mu Yunhe couldn't smile; his pale face was etched with exhaustion. Only he knew the danger he had just faced.
Just now, when he said those inexplicable things, he almost went berserk!
Under normal circumstances, even in sadness and pain, Mu Yunhe would never doubt his own character; he was such a confident and principled person. But he was a diviner, a role that was not simply about wielding power, but also fraught with danger.
In his intense grief and pain, his hatred was so strong that the evil spirit almost entered his body, and he was powerless to resist. If he had given up on himself and despised himself just now, and hadn't come out in time, he, the diviner priest, would probably have ended there, becoming a useless person forever. Yunfa was filled with sorrow.
How tragic! Life and death, love and hate, success and failure, can all be decided in the blink of an eye.
His father not only killed his mother, leaving her with unresolved grievances, but also nearly drove him to madness!
Mu Yunhe felt his heart hardening little by little. Father, from today onwards, is no longer Father.
Her concerned gaze fell on Mu Yunhe's face. Luo Zhiheng didn't know how to describe Mu Yunhe just now. She only felt that he had suddenly fallen into some endless darkness, almost unable to extricate himself. That unseen darkness was even more terrifying, because it seemed to emanate from Mu Yunhe's mind. It was as if it had dragged her Mu Yunhe closer to hell. 148.
She couldn't quite describe the feeling, only a deep sense of fear and trembling. At this moment, Mu Yunhe no longer felt that sensation; she simply assumed it was an illusion.
A journey to the gates of hell is a near-death experience. But Mu Yunhe had no time for lamentation; he had regained his senses and was once again the powerful priest. Now he was his mother's son, and he would fulfill his final filial duty to her.
Mu Yunhe knelt completely before the princess, and Luo Zhiheng knelt down with him. Then, everyone in the room stood up, and those who were sitting tensed up. Everyone looked at them with regretful and serious eyes.
Mu Yunhe gently laid the princess's body flat, smoothing out her reluctant and unwilling gaze as she looked towards the door. Then, to the astonishment of Prince Mu, he slowly closed the princess's eyes.
Only at this moment did Prince Mu involuntarily turn around and stare blankly at the scene. Only now did he suddenly realize that the princess was dead!
"Mother, may you rest in peace. Your son will take care of everything properly, and I will never forgive those who owe us." Mu Yunhe's voice was calm as he slowly kowtowed to the princess, bidding his mother her final farewell. Luo Zhiheng followed closely behind, kowtowing as well.
Then everyone in the room, led by the King, bowed, though those of noble status only bowed.
This made Prince Mu, standing stiffly in place, appear quite out of place. Prince Mu was also embarrassed, but Dennis was more shocked than embarrassed.