Un corazón puro en una vasija de jade

Capítulo 183

I really didn't leave the valley again.

Some of the young people in the valley went out, some never came back, and some who came back never went out again.

I married Little Pumpkin and had Little Little Pumpkin.

My eldest and second uncles are getting older every day, and their hair has turned completely white.

Second Uncle finally collapsed from illness. First Uncle stayed by his side all night. When I brought him medicine, I heard Second Uncle say, "Brother, I saw her. She's come back to the valley."

The eldest uncle just held the second uncle and wept.

Not long after Second Uncle passed away, a man who had left the valley brought back a bundle for First Uncle, and First Uncle suddenly fell ill.

Inside the bundle was a moon-white dress embroidered with stars and moons, and a small silver throwing knife.

The dress hung in the room, bathed in starlight and intoxicating moonlight. I imagined that incredibly beautiful woman; how breathtakingly stunning she would have been in that dress!

That little silver throwing knife was always held in Uncle's hand. From the moment he picked it up, Uncle never put it down again.

Little Pumpkin secretly told me that he overheard the person delivering the package saying it was given to him by a princess before she died.

My medical skills are already quite refined. I took my uncle's pulse and remembered what my grandfather had said about a heart ailment. I still prescribed a lot of medicine for him and urged him to take it.

The old man stared at the dress on the clothes rack, lost in thought and silent.

I finally couldn't hold back and said, "She's dead, Grandpa!" I hoped this sharp rebuke would be like a blow to the head, waking Grandpa up. The dead cannot be brought back to life, and as long as Grandpa wants to live, he can live to be a hundred years old without any problem.

But the old man laughed: "Ping An, do you really think there will be blood-red flowers on the road to the underworld?"

I was taken aback: "I don't know."

“Yes, Xinghun said that as long as you pick one flower, you can remember your past life. She wore a dress like this when she got married, and she still remembers that she wanted to wear her first women's clothes to show me. I’m dead, and I must pick one flower, no, I must pick all those blood-red flowers, so that I can recognize her in the next life…” There was a kind of madness in the eyes of the old man, and I seemed to see the flowers burning like flames in his pupils.

This was the first time I heard the name Xinghun from my great-uncle. That night, my great-uncle was somewhat delirious, sometimes lucid and sometimes confused. I gradually learned their story from him, the story of Yuepo and Xinghun.

My great-uncle kept asking me if that magical flower really existed in the Underworld. I answered him again and again that it did.

As dawn broke, I dozed off. In my drowsy state, I vaguely heard my great-uncle say, "Even in the underworld, I can still have a go at him!"

I was jolted awake by the shock. When I opened my eyes, I saw my great-uncle stab himself in the heart with that little throwing knife, but there was a slight smile on his lips.

I put the dress into my great-grandfather's coffin, and then left the valley with Little Pumpkin and Little Pumpkin for the Holy Capital.

I lived in the alley that my great-uncle had taken me to.

My great-grandfather is buried in the yard. I remember him muttering about this place.

I opened a clinic called Ping An Clinic for my great-uncle. He said he would wait for her here.

Extra Chapter: Li Tianyou

That year, Yongye was only nine years old. She walked over with a smile on her face and was extremely polite. At that moment, I thought she was unbelievably beautiful.

Because of Rose, my second brother dislikes her and targets her at every turn. That night at the palace banquet, he changed his clothes twice and suffered a great injustice. I always suspected that Yongye was behind it, but I couldn't find any clues. If it really was her, she's too shrewd.

The year turned to new year. She was punished by Prince Duan, and I was banished from the palace by my father. From that day on, my struggle with Tianrui began. Strangely enough, for seven years, Tianrui and I were always evenly matched, whether openly or secretly. To the point that I suspected there was a traitor in the household, and perhaps Tianrui thought so too, because the way he looked at me was also very strange.

Yongye grew more beautiful each day. At that time, I didn't know she was a girl; I only noticed that she had a slender frame and, despite her poor complexion, was breathtakingly beautiful.

Every time I see Yongye, I feel both puzzled and irresistibly drawn to her. Coupled with my relationship with my uncle, I practically dote on her. This troubles me greatly; I'm terrified that I might develop feelings for her elsewhere.

She is the heir of the Prince Duan's mansion. Even if I fall in love with her, I dare not reveal my feelings in the slightest.

Until that time, when she and Yihong came to the manor, as they were leaving, I suddenly realized that she and Yihong were too similar. If Yongye were a woman, I would have no doubt.

Because it was my uncle who said that Yongye was my son, I never dared to make wild guesses.

When I entered the palace, my father summoned me to discuss matters, and I overheard his conversation.

My father revealed everything, and I was filled with both heartache and joy at the thought of Yongye sacrificing so much for my cause. Little did I know that Yongye would be leaving for the Chen Kingdom the very next day, and I waited anxiously for her at the city gate for a long time.

I startled her. I knew Yongye wouldn't be able to handle my change in attitude. The more I looked at her, the more I liked her. I'd always wanted to hug her but never dared, but now I could. I ignored her anger and pulled her into my arms. Her body was so soft, just as I'd imagined. Even though she was gone, I told myself I loved her and I would definitely marry her.

My father arranged for me to marry Princess Luoyu of Qi Kingdom long ago. Even if I were just a prince, let alone an emperor, I could still make Luoyu my principal wife and four concubines. Yongye doesn't have a principal wife, so I can still dote on her as much as I want.

My uncle was unaware of my engagement to Luo Yu, and he was extremely reluctant for Yong Ye to marry me. Initially, I thought that since my uncle held a high position and wielded great power, if I ascended the throne and he became the emperor's father-in-law, he was wary of his own power and feared that I would diminish his authority and become suspicious of him. I believed that as long as I was sincere and my uncle had no intention of rebelling, he would certainly not object.

Everything about Yongye was adorable in my eyes, including her tantrums and spoiled moments. She used the late emperor's edict to defy me, but the edict was dead, while people were alive. The late emperor had only given her three chances, but a casual remark from me was an edict. I didn't take Yongye's supposed reliance seriously at all.

I killed Li Yannian and Lan Cui right in front of her. These two were always a threat to the imperial power. Naturally, I also wanted to let Yongye know that I could release people, and I could kill them.

Yongye feigned illness and refused to accept the imperial decree. I knew she was faking it, so I let her be. She was an assassin from Youli Valley, my subject. Could she possibly overturn the heavens?

I'll go see her, whether she's genuinely jealous or just using this as an excuse to vent her frustrations. Once the coronation ceremony is over, I'll summon her to the palace. She might disobey the decree once, but I'll issue twelve decrees in a single day—let's see what she does then.

This process of battling against the eternal night is quite enjoyable; I'm not in a hurry at all.

However, I never expected that my uncle's reluctance was because he had already arranged a marriage between Yongye and the Crown Prince of Qi.

I deeply appreciate the sacrifices my uncle made for the sake of the nation's imperial power, yet I also feel that this is the real question. Should I go to war with Qi because of the Eternal Night? This is a difficult question, yet also a very simple one.

I just married the princess of Qi as my queen. Do you expect me to steal the crown princess of Qi as my concubine? Luo Yu has waited for me for many years, and Qi has given me tremendous support. This question is simple: give up the eternal night in exchange for peace and prosperity for the country.

The difficulty lies in the fact that I can't bear to part with it.

The resentment and anger of having something you were so sure of getting suddenly become someone else's is hard to describe in words.

Yongye's anger at refusing to submit to Luoyu wasn't because she was immature, but because she loved me so much that she wanted to possess me entirely. This saddened me. I knew perfectly well that I couldn't truly understand Yongye's thoughts, despite our constant battles. Sometimes I even wondered if making her empress and Luoyu a concubine would please her. But that was just wishful thinking.