Il arrive souvent des choses désagréables

Chapitre 67

"You poisoned me!"

The elder brother had already retreated to the doorway, still wearing a smile on his face, as gentle as a spring breeze. "Yes, sir, your martial arts are so superb. How else could I possibly defeat you?"

The blackness had spread to Ding Tian's face. He spoke, "Black blood is spilling from the corner of your mouth, I am your father..."

The elder brother spread his hands. "So what if there is? Have you ever heard of anyone sharing the throne with Father?"

Ding Tian stopped speaking, and after a while he suddenly laughed. Because his face had turned ashen and blood was spilling from his mouth, his laughter became extremely eerie. "Good, good, my good son!"

As he spoke, he suddenly leaped forward, his ten fingers like hooks, aiming for my imperial brother's face.

My elder brother didn't seem to care at all, and even looked at him with a smile. Ding Tian's body flew up, but froze in mid-air, and finally fell straight down, landing coldly at my elder brother's feet.

He died with his eyes wide open in disbelief.

I was completely unresponsive, clutching Mo Li's closed eyes tightly in my arms, staring blankly as this tragedy unfolded before my eyes. My elder brother glanced at me, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "Ping An, the black worm inside his body is useless now, isn't it? Shall I take it away?"

I looked at him as if he were a monster, and I was speechless. All I could do was hug Mo Li and back away.

He sighed, a hint of annoyance in his voice, and said, "He's not dead yet?"

As he spoke, he took a step forward, slowly bent down, and reached his fingers toward Ding Tian's chest, as if he wanted something from me.

Suddenly, a dark hand rose up. I heard a soft thud, and then blood gushed out. The hand had pierced through my brother's body like a knife, and its fingers emerged from his back.

My elder brother let out a low "uh," as if he didn't understand what had happened. He looked down at his chest and then looked back at me.

Then he collapsed softly onto his father, still clutching the golden box in his hand.

Dingtian's eyes were still open, his gaze fixed on my elder brother's face. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but after only a few seconds, he closed his eyes and fell silent.

Their blood mingled together, and I was left alone in the room, utterly terrified. I couldn't hold back any longer and let out a pitiful scream.

end

When the Emperor died suddenly, the ministers who accompanied him held an emergency meeting and decided to keep the death a secret. I would escort the coffin home, and the news would be announced to the world after the Crown Prince was established as Emperor.

When Abule returned to Dadu to ascend the throne, he was still able to marry a princess of the Celestial Empire, but it wasn't me.

I have already said that the royal family has many children. I will send one who wants to marry him to Mexico. If there is no one, I will choose someone from Mexico to be recognized as a princess of my dynasty. Abule has half of his life in the little golden box in my hands. He can't refuse to marry her even if he wants to.

Ding Tian is dead, and the Holy Fire Sect is temporarily under the control of Wen Su. Wen Su came once, met Mo Li, and then left. His eyes were red when he left, and suddenly I no longer felt any resentment towards him.

Although he ruthlessly abducted me, this man truly did it all for Mo Li.

My master and the others hadn't gone far. I sent people to catch up with them, and they rushed back, accompanying me all the way to help carry the coffin, afraid that something might go wrong on the way.

What could possibly go wrong? My elder brother is already dead. In court… all those ministers survived under my brother's rule; who would dare rebel?

Everything is fine, except that Mo Li still hasn't woken up. Now that I'm a princess, no one dares to gossip, so I let him sleep in my carriage and watch over him the whole way. He Nan is with us too. This guy is very emotionally unstable. When we ask him to treat Mo Li, he often runs out of the carriage and cries, which is annoying.

I was forced to drag him far away from the main group and listen to him cry.

He cried as he spoke, “Does he know how hard it was for me to get a heart transplant for him? All those countless heart vessels, I had to connect them one by one, one by one… and he just broke them again, broke them again… He even promised me I could treat him however I wanted, how can I treat him now?”

I seemed to remember something and asked him, "What did he promise you?"

“Promise to let me treat him however I want. His illness is truly one in a million. I have so many methods I want to try on him one by one. Otherwise, why would I follow him? Who knew he would be so careless? Waaah, this body doesn’t belong to just him.”

I said calmly, "Don't say it. Wait until he wakes up and you can tell him yourself. I don't want to hear this."

He glanced at me, then suddenly broke down, turned away, covered his face, and ran off in tears.

I found it rather distasteful that a grown man like him cried so much. I went back to the carriage and talked to Mo Li for a long time.

He lay there quietly, his face as white as snow, his features serene, his black hair flowing like clouds across the pillow. I reached out and gently smoothed a strand of hair, as if he might wake up at any moment and look at me with those dark, jade-like eyes.

Upon returning to the capital, Tianheng was already waiting for him outside the ten-mile pavilion. More than three years had passed, and he had grown much taller and taller, no longer resembling the six-year-old child he once was; his features now exuded a greater sense of maturity.

All I remember is that chubby little boy who was huddled on my lap, trembling. When I saw him appear in front of me, even though I told myself for a long time to stay calm and act like nothing was wrong, I still couldn't help but bend down and hug him.

He whispered in my ear, "Father is dead, isn't he?"

I can't help but feel a pang of pain when I recall his whispered words, "Grandpa Emperor is dead," right in my ear back then.

Tianheng was indeed a good child, and he quickly accepted the facts I had stated. The news of the emperor's sudden death from illness after his personal campaign spread throughout the land the very next day. The entire country was in mourning, and Tianheng observed the mourning period for three months according to ancient rites before preparing to ascend the throne.

Tianheng is still the best. I thought of how my elder brother was already wearing the dragon robe when our father's body was still warm, and I felt a pang of sorrow in my heart.

On the day the emperor ascended the throne, I stood by the white jade steps in my phoenix robe, watching Tianheng, dressed in bright yellow, walk step by step toward the dragon throne. Tianheng was almost ten years old. The chubby baby fat of his childhood had all disappeared, and his face was delicate and handsome. He didn't look much like his elder brother, but rather somewhat like me.

I think it's great.

Afterwards, civil and military officials prostrated themselves on the ground, and ten thousand people shouted "Long live the Emperor!" in unison, their voices like thunder. I wanted to cover my ears, and couldn't help but sigh in my heart. I had only lived for a short ten years, yet I had already experienced three emperors and witnessed two coronations. The last time my elder brother ascended the throne, I went from being a princess to a younger sister. This time, with Tianheng's ascension, I went from being a younger sister to an aunt. How could this continue? This place was truly unbearable.

After returning to the courtyard that evening, I started planning where to go with Mo Li. I thought about it for half the night without finding an answer, and finally, frustrated, I climbed into bed and hugged him to complain.

"You'll be relieved. You don't have to worry about anything. I don't know where He Nan has gone. Every time he says he's looking for medicine, he's gone for ten days or half a month. Last time I asked him to put the white worm back into my body, he cried for half a day. Do you think it's a bit of a mistake to be born a man? What's wrong with that? No matter where the worm is, it's not as reassuring as having it in my heart. Don't you think so? They are black and white as one. Maybe if I take good care of this white one, the black worm will be more cooperative and wake you up sooner."

I rambled on and on, but Mo Li remained lying there quietly, with dark eyebrows and eyelashes, a white face, and his lips still tinged with red. Seeing this made my heart flutter, and I couldn't help but lower my head and kiss him again.

He had been in a coma for months, but He Nan had been taking good care of his body. The palace was never short of high-quality tonics, so his long slumber had not made him too thin. His face was still so handsome that I would often feel lustful when I looked at him and would want to hug and kiss him.

If this continues, I'm afraid I'll turn into a wolf.

I sighed and simply rolled over and lay on top of him. "I won't blame you for sleeping so long. Anyway, I've gotten quite used to taking care of you lately. But don't you feel tired after sleeping for so long? You promised to travel all over the world with me, all over the world!"

I kept talking, just like I do every night, even though he didn't respond. I always felt like I had so much to say. Finally, I got tired of talking and fell asleep on him.

I had dreams last night.

A tall, thin boy appeared in my dream, stood at the head of my bed, smiled at me, and called my name.

"Safety."

I still wanted to hug him, but he took a step back and said, "I'm very happy to see you like this."

Even in my dreams, I shed tears.

He then said, "Life is so short, don't be unhappy." After saying that, he reached out and gently cupped my face.

Then it disappeared.

When I woke up, the sunlight had already streamed onto the bedside. Before I even opened my eyes, I reached out to hug the person next to me.

Life is so short, I will never let go of him, nor the heart inside him. It will stay with him—through life and death, never to be separated.

Unexpectedly, this trip ended in nothing.

I woke up with a start and saw that the room was empty; there was no one else there except me.

My heart sank, I couldn't believe it, and I ran out barefoot.

He was there, standing under the big tree where I had practiced the Five Animal Frolics countless times. In the summer, the tree cast dappled shadows, and countless flowers bloomed on its branches. When the wind blew, it looked like a snowfall.

I suddenly stopped in my tracks, standing rooted to the spot, afraid that this was just a dream and that if I moved, everything would be gone.

But he moved. He must have heard my footsteps. He slowly turned around to look at me. When our eyes met, he suddenly smiled, and the sunlight seemed to dim. He then reached out his hand to me and called out to me.

"Safety."

Side Story: My Mother

The day I left the palace, Tianheng was very sad.

She was still a child under ten years old. Her father had just passed away, and her aunt was an irresponsible woman who only thought about her lover and their love affair.

Seeing him like that, I felt a little sad. When I handed him the little gold box, I couldn't help but bend down and hug him. I whispered in his ear, "No matter where I am, I will always think of Tianheng. You must be a good emperor. Your aunt will come back to see you often."

Tianheng held the golden box in his hand, as if he had grasped peace and tranquility, but his face still showed reluctance. His other hand was still clutching my sleeve, and he just couldn't let go.

The emperor has matured remarkably fast these days, and I never expected that a single farewell scene would undo all his previous efforts. This truly fills me with both joy and sorrow.

Tianheng is nothing like his father and grandfather, but fortunately, he is nothing like them either.

I was cornered by him and had no choice but to use my trump card. I lowered my head and said, "Your aunt has already been married twice without success. If she can't catch this man this time either, does Tianheng want the whole world to know that the royal family has an old maid who can't get married? Does he want the whole world to laugh at our family?"

Tianheng's eyes widened at my words, as if he suddenly realized the seriousness of the problem, and his fingers involuntarily loosened. I was feeling a little smug when suddenly I heard a sound behind me.

"Is that so... So how do you plan to catch me?"

I turned around abruptly and saw the person in the sunlight. My face turned bright red, and I covered my face and ran away. I was still using the Cloud Soaring Technique, and in the blink of an eye, I was out of the Imperial Garden.

Once we had actually left the palace, I remembered to ask Mo Li, "Where are we going now?"

He had only recently recovered, and He Nan repeatedly instructed me not to let him overexert himself, get too excited, or be too overly... In short, I had to treat him like a fragile object. So, at my insistence, we traveled by carriage, leisurely enjoying the scenery along the way. The carriage was specially made for the royal family and was so comfortable that sometimes I didn't even want to stay at an inn. At night, I would lie down with him, draw back the curtain, and look at the stars.

I was lying on top of him when I asked him that question. I'd gotten so used to doing that over the past few months that he couldn't break the habit even when he was awake.

He smiled slightly, patted my hair, and said, "Didn't I say I was going to take you to see someone?"

We never expected that this person lived so far away. It took us more than a month to travel through mountains and rivers to reach our destination.

It turned out to be a mountain, towering into the clouds, with only half of it shrouded in white mist as far as the eye could see.

The scenery along the way was beautiful, and being with him made me content. However, we were exhausted from the journey, and he, being a stubborn person, didn't complain about being tired. He slept for a long time the night before we went up the mountain, so I didn't dare close my eyes. I held my breath waiting for him to wake up, afraid that he would sleep forever like last time. When he woke up and saw my still-shaken eyes, his lips pursed again.

What are you afraid of?

Of course, I was afraid something would happen to you. I cried out in my heart, but dared not say it aloud, so I showed it with my actions, reaching out to hug him. I often clung to him like an octopus, and he had gotten used to it these days, but this time I hugged him harder. He glanced at me, his eyes darkening, and suddenly lowered his head to kiss me.

I was dizzy from the kiss, my vision blurred, and I gradually felt his heavy, hot breath. His grip on my hand became loose, and when his fingers touched my skin, I began to lose consciousness and let out a muffled moan.

When He Nan broke up with us, he gave me a lecture on common sense about men and women, and then added that I should wait until he was fully recovered and not rush into things too soon.

The way she spoke made it sound as if I were a wolf girl who drooled over him every day.

Although we were together day and night along the way, he was very restrained. I kept in mind He Nan's repeated instructions—not to let him get too tired, too excited, or too overly excited...

It's impossible not to be excited about something like this.

My last shred of self-control finally managed to break through, and I reached out to hug him, my voice trembling as I said, "Mo Li, we..."

Before I could finish speaking, he withdrew his hand, closed his eyes, and spoke with heavy breathing.

"Don't rush, I still want you to see someone."

...I wanted to call a halt too!

I'm annoyed. At least give me a chance to show I'm not a werewolf...