L'hibiscus comme peinture

Chapitre 107

Ao Jun's words brought tears to Yue Ying's eyes as well. Ao Jun's despair pierced her deeply. Memories of his kindness and tenderness towards her flooded back. "Brother, no, please don't! Ying'er doesn't want to hurt you, she really doesn't want to. Brother, did Ying'er do something wrong? Brother..."

Ying'er had just remembered to help Ao Jun, thinking it might still be in time, when Ao Jun suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood; the poison had taken effect...

Ao Jun looked at the black blood dripping down the table and smiled, a seductive smile, like a plum blossom blooming in the snow, so pure, so inviolable. The world seemed to lose its color, except for her, with her exquisite face, alluring smile, and unfathomable yet calm eyes...

"Brother..." Yueying exclaimed, completely stunned. Why was this happening? Why was her brother vomiting black blood? Her father was a renowned doctor, and she herself understood medicine. This was clearly a sign of severe poisoning. But that person had clearly told her that the medicine was only meant to induce unconsciousness. How could it have become so deadly? That person lied to her, lied to her...

Ao Jun propped herself up on the table, struggling to her feet. She wanted to see Xue, to see Xue one last time, to see Jin Xuan one last time, just one look would be enough. But the black blood gushing from her mouth showed that the poison was too potent; even her profound inner strength couldn't suppress it. A few strands of hair slipped down, dangling before her eyes. Incredulously, she grabbed the strands—white hair. She plucked a few more—white hair, all white hair. Could it be… this was the long-lost 'Sorrowful White Hair' recorded in the Journey to the West, an incurable disease? Heh… it seems she really was determined to kill him…

Seeing the few strands of white hair hanging down Ao Jun's head, Yue Ying took a few steps back in fear and rushed out like a madwoman. She had to find that person, she had to find the antidote to save her brother. Brother, wait for me, you can't be hurt!

Ao Jun slumped back into the chair, utterly exhausted. "Mo Yueying, you're truly ruthless!" she thought. "Poor Baifa, she'll never see Xue one last time, never see Jinxuan again!" Her current predicament was entirely due to her excessive trust in Ying'er, her excessive trust in Yelü Ying, her excessive trust in relationships… Friends are for betraying, and family is often the one who delivers the most fatal blow. It's true, who can she trust now? Even Yelü Ying, who claimed to be devoted to her, was ruthless enough to take her life. Who can she trust now?

After she dies, where will she go? Back to the 21st century? To heaven or hell? She doesn't want to go anywhere; she only wants to become a wisp of a spirit, forever by Jinxuan's side…

The festive atmosphere continued at Prince Jin's residence. No one knew what had happened at the Crown Prince's tutor's residence. Jin Xuan, supporting his bride, walked happily into the wedding hall, but suddenly his heart skipped a beat. It felt as if something was leaving him, leaving him empty...

"Trust and a bow to heaven and earth..." The joyful voice of the master of ceremonies rang out in the wedding hall, pulling Jin Xuan back from his wandering thoughts. He turned his head to look at the bride covered by her bridal veil, and smiled self-deprecatingly. His beloved was right beside him; what else could he possibly lose?

Zhengxuan, as the officiant, sat in the main seat with a gloomy expression; anyone who didn't know better would think it was a funeral! Meanwhile, Prince Zhongwu, the master of ceremonies, sat beside Zhengxuan, smiling broadly—a stark contrast. Why didn't Jinxuan find Prince Zhongwu's presence strange? The reason was that Prince Zhongwu had told him that Aojun had no maternal family and had already recognized him as her adoptive father. Jinxuan had always respected Prince Zhongwu, so of course he had no doubts.

Just as the newlyweds were about to perform the wedding ceremony, a loud noise came from the front door: "You can't perform the ceremony."

The smiles on everyone's faces froze as they looked toward the source of the voice. Who dared to cause trouble at Prince Jin's wedding? A small, pink figure rushed in from outside, grabbed the bride's hand, her face streaked with tears, and roared with a somewhat ferocious expression, "Bring me the antidote!"

The bride trembled but did not speak. Jin Xuan's face darkened, and he pulled Yue Ying over, saying unhappily, "Yueying, what are you doing? Is this the time for you to act recklessly?" Yue Ying is Jun's sister, why is she acting recklessly?

"Let me go! I need to save my brother! My brother is dying! I need to save my brother!" Yueying desperately tried to break free from Jinxuan's grip, but she couldn't budge him an inch. In her desperation, she burst into tears.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Isn't Jun perfectly fine here? Jun..." Jin Xuan shouted angrily, but suddenly stopped. He seemed to have grabbed something, took a step forward, and ripped off the bride's bridal veil in one swift motion, so fast that no one could react before the veil was in Jin Xuan's hand.

Upon seeing that delicate face, Jin Xuan took a step back in disbelief, muttering, "Wu... Wu Ying, how... how could it be you?" No, no, isn't today his wedding day with Jun? How could it be Wu Ying?

All the ministers present were stunned, looking at the scene before them in bewilderment. The groom lifted the bride's veil in front of everyone and asked the bride, "How could it be you? Isn't this Princess Wu Ying? Isn't the prince marrying Princess Wu Ying?"

"What did you just say happened to Jun?" Yelü Ying suddenly rushed up from the side, grabbed Yueying's shoulders, and asked anxiously, his red eyes flashing with unease.

"Brother is dying. She lied to me. She said it was just a sleeping potion, but brother vomited blood. Black blood. Poison. It's extremely poisonous. Waaah... I killed brother. I killed brother..." Yueying's eyes were lifeless. She pointed at Wuying and cried intermittently, her heart breaking.

"Damn it, Cheng Wuying, hand over the antidote!" Yelü Ying shoved Yueying aside, rushed in front of Cheng Wuying, and shouted with bloodthirsty eyes.

"I...I don't know what you're saying? Third Brother...I'm scared..." Wu Ying retreated step by step in fear, hiding behind Jin Xuan's thick clothes, and said weakly, her eyes brimming with tears. She was truly pitiful to see!

"Is what she said true? Why is the bride you, and not Jun? Did you really poison Jun? I want to hear the truth." Jin Xuan turned around, grabbed Wu Ying's delicate hand fiercely, showing no mercy, and said with a sharp look in his eyes.

"Third brother...it hurts so much! Let go...let go..." Cheng Wuying cried as she slapped away Jin Xuan's hand that was holding her. Seeing her usually gentle and considerate third brother suddenly turn into a furious lion, exuding a terrifying aura, she was really scared. This third brother was so unfamiliar to her!

Ke Jinxuan seemed not to hear her words and increased the pressure on his hands. He recalled the scene of Jun and Yelü Ying embracing, and when he connected all the things, he found that everything was suspicious, and the person in front of him was the mastermind behind all the conspiracies.

"Prince Jin, let go! Today is your and Ying'er's special day. What kind of scene is this? The auspicious hour is almost over. Let's finish the wedding ceremony first." Prince Zhongwu stepped forward, pulled Jinxuan's hand away, and shielded his beloved daughter behind him, speaking with authority. He knew things wouldn't go so smoothly, but he still couldn't believe Ying'er would poison the Grand Tutor. Could all of this be the work of this woman named Mo Yueying? Now that Jinxuan knew the bride was Ying'er, he hoped he would consider Ying'er's feelings and finish the wedding ceremony first.

"A wedding ceremony? Hmph, with whom? Prince Zhongwu, all my respect for you, my esteemed status as your teacher, and my unwavering belief in your words have been wasted. I never imagined you would treat me like a fool." Jinxuan looked coldly at Prince Zhongwu and sneered with a gloomy face.

“Your Highness, I admit we lied to you, but Ying’er truly loves you. Now that things have come to this, for my sake, you and Ying’er should get married first. As for killing or punishing us, I will bear the consequences alone!” King Zhongwu said to Jin Xuan in a humble voice, he could tell that Jin Xuan was truly angry.

"Impossible. My Princess Consort can only be you, Jun." Jin Xuan said firmly, his deep eyes fixed on Cheng Wuying, who looked like a frightened bird. He said coldly, "Cheng Wuying, hand over the antidote, and I will forgive and forget what happened before." He would no longer be deceived by her gentle appearance. It turned out that Jun had seen that she was not a simple person all along. Only he had been deceived by her, and so badly.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Yueying suddenly rushed over like a madwoman, grabbing Wuying's hair and saying hatefully.

"How dare you!" King Zhongwu roared, grabbing Yueying's hand and throwing her aside. Yueying, a frail woman, fell to the side, but was fortunately caught by Zhao Zhiyang.

Just as King Zhongwu was about to speak, two figures moved before him. Yelü Ying blocked his way, while Jin Xuan stepped past him, grabbing Cheng Wuying by the neck. His deep eyes flashed with a terrifying bloodlust as he said in a sinister tone, "Don't make me say it a third time. Bring out the antidote, or I'll break your neck." As he spoke, he increased the pressure on his hand. "My lord, you must wait for me. I will definitely get the antidote to save you."

King Zhongwu wanted to go and save his daughter, but he was entangled by Yelü Ying. Yelü Ying's bloodthirsty red eyes seemed to come from hell, which even startled this veteran general who had been through countless battles. The generals present could roughly guess what had happened, and they all surrounded King Zhongwu, each with a murderous look on their faces. Zheng Xuan, who had been silent for a long time, also stared at the father and daughter with the same murderous look. He also understood what had happened!

Seeing this, Cheng Wuying was filled with despair. She knew there was no way to salvage the situation. Her frail appearance suddenly turned ferocious, and she burst into laughter: "Haha... Ouyang Jinxuan, you are so heartless, cough... I... loved you so much, and you actually wanted to... kill me, haha... cough cough... I'll drag Mo Jun down with me even in death... cough cough... that poison, there's no antidote... cough cough... there's no cure in the world... haha... I guess she's already gone to see the King of Hell... cough cough..."

Her breathing became increasingly labored. Her words completely drove Jinxuan to madness. His eyes were bloodshot, and he tightened his grip, yelling, "Shut up..." The words 'incurable' kept echoing in his mind...

"Your Highness, I beg you, please release Ying'er! It's all my fault, kill me instead! Jin Xuan..." King Zhongwu knelt down, tears streaming down his face, pleading. He couldn't believe that the person before him was his kind daughter. Had she really poisoned the Grand Tutor? But no matter how bad she had done, he couldn't let anything happen to her. Let the retribution fall on him! It was his fault for failing to raise his daughter properly.

But Jinxuan wouldn't listen to a word. Just as Cheng Wuying was about to die in his hands, a black shadow suddenly flashed, and smoke rose up. Jinxuan exchanged a palm strike with the man in black. When the smoke cleared, Cheng Wuying was nowhere to be seen.

"Cheng Wuying..." Jin Xuan roared to the sky, filled with intense hatred. He refused to believe there was no antidote; the antidote must be on Cheng Wuying.

"Oh no! There's a fire over there!" someone in the crowd suddenly shouted, and everyone looked over.

"Oh no, it's the Crown Prince's tutor's residence." Zheng Xuan glanced at it and was shocked. He immediately rushed out, but two even faster figures flew away.

In the residence of the Crown Prince's tutor, a raging fire broke out in the room where Yueying was staying, and all the servants were desperately trying to put it out.

"Brother, brother is inside..." When Yueying saw that her room was on fire, she desperately tried to rush inside. Zhao Zhiyang couldn't stop her. She seemed to have gone mad. Helpless, Zhao Zhiyang had no choice but to knock her unconscious.

Everyone helped put out the fire, and the fire was quickly extinguished. However, the fire was too big, and everything in the room was burned to ashes. Suddenly, two figures jumped out from inside.

Jin Xuan held a corpse that had been burned beyond recognition in his arms, his face expressionless. Yelü Ying clenched his fists, his red eyes were more intense and bloodthirsty than ever before, and a terrifying aura of 'keep away' was formed between the two men and the corpse.

"Ah! My lord..." Jin Xuan clutched the corpse in his arms tightly, roaring to the sky. His voice was so desperate, so heart-wrenching. Everyone present shed tears. Even the heavens were moved by Jin Xuan's sorrow and despair, and the drizzle slowly turned into a torrential downpour, each drop landing on the despairing man, yet unable to wash away the eternal wound, the eternal pain in his heart...

Chapter Seventy-Five of the Jianghu Chapter: Longing

In the elegant and tidy room, a man dressed in white leaned lazily against the couch, his eyes slightly closed, his face covered by a white veil, and a few strands of white hair hanging down his forehead, fluttering in the wind, as if he were about to ascend to heaven at any moment, which made the people next to him feel a chill.

"Sect Master, the Seven Killings Tower has wiped out Minister Jiang's entire family again." A young man in orange robes, sitting in the lower seat, smiled charmingly and said with an indifferent tone, as if he were talking about the weather.

The white-robed man, addressed as the sect leader, didn't even lift his eyelids, and said calmly, "What is it this time?"

The man in orange's smile deepened, his peach-blossom eyes flashed, and he stretched out his slender hand, blowing on his nails. His tone remained nonchalant as he said, "Same reason. Young Master Jiang was drinking with friends at a restaurant and mentioned Young Master Mo, praising him a few times." He then glanced meaningfully at the person feigning sleep, wondering if he would remain unmoved. After so many times, it was time for him to show some reaction!