Joy of Life

In the back palace, the serving girls who rose to wash in the morning began to boil water. Odd-job eunuchs began to sweep the ground of dust with bamboo brooms taller than themselves. No one knew that had happened in the front palace. Just like the common people, each day they repeated their orders and lives. The n.o.bles were not an exception. Although strange happenings in Jingdou these days had faintly entered their ears, those matters were only known to a limited number of people in the Qing Kingdom.

By the gate to the garden, the important figures watching the royal study from a distance were among those that knew what was happening. Their eyes were deeply sunken and expressions were severe and as wooden as a clay idol with not the slightest reaction.

Old Director Chen had already been in the royal study for a long time, yet there hadn"t been any movements. As everyone was very far away, they did not hear the Emperor"s rare and angry roar. Among these people, perhaps Ye Zhong and Eunuch Yao had such power, but they were not so stupid as to focus their abilities to eavesdrop on the voices in the royal study. When it came to such matters, the less they heard, the better.

Chen Pingping wanted to listen to a reason or explanation, so he had returned to Jingdou. He sat coldly in the black wheelchair and looked calmly at the master he had served for decades. He wanted to hear from him what had happened.

When one was about to die, what one clung to was nothing more than the angriest and most confusing puzzles in one"s life.

The Qing Emperor did not reply. He only looked calmly at Chen Pingping. After he heard Chen Pingping"s words, he remained in a standing posture, looking at him with coldness and slight mockery. He looked for a long time.

The sharp light in his eyes gradually melted into a faint mockery and a great deal of confusion. The corners of his eyes narrowed slightly, like a male lion watching as a traveling demon pa.s.sed through his territory.

The Qing Emperor smiled strangely and tilted his head slightly. His lips were pressed tightly together. He looked at Chen Pingping as he lightly said, "So… It was because of this!"

There was a lot of confusion in the Emperor"s heart. He could not understand. He looked at Chen Pingping like he was looking at a strange creature. After a long silence, he shook his head and sighed wordlessly. It was not until now that he finally understood why this old dog, who had followed him since their youth, had betrayed him and why he had to come back to the capital to question him even at the cost of his life.

The Qing Emperor was aware of the affection his friends had had for that woman. He would never have thought, and could not have thought, that Chen Pingping would develop such a powerful desire for revenge for a woman who died so many years ago that he would stand against him. He sat back down on the soft couch and was silent for a long time with his hands on his knees.

Chen Pingping"s hands rested on the arms of his black wheelchair. He looked at him silently and coldly without saying a word, only waiting for the reply.

The Emperor"s face was slightly white. After a long time, he quietly said, "For her… You betrayed me?"

These words contained a sense of great disappointment, frustration, and sorrow. There was also a rage and irritation that came from the depths of his heart.

"I just want to know why," Chen Pingping sighed and said. "Throughout my life, I have never again met a woman like her. No, it should be that I have never again met a person like her. She was like a fairy who had descended into his mortal realm. Using all her power, she changed what she should change and saved those she thought should be saved. She helped you, saved me, saved the entire Qing Kingdom, beautified the world… Yet, you destroyed her."

There was no exclamation mark in his tone, no anger. There was only grief and sorrow.

The Qing Emperor was silent for a long time. His hand slowly rubbed against his knee. In this world, no one had ever asked him this question to his face. More accurately, no one dared to ask him this question. Not many people knew about this question. Those who did were now just wandering spirits in the yellow earth.

Of his closest friends from back then, no one knew about this.

"I didn"t kill her." The Emperor narrowed his eyes. He did not have to explain anything to the old dog in front of him. For some reason, a sliver of pain in the depths of his heart, a pain he had forcibly suppressed for more than 20 years was seeping out slowly and taking over his body and heart. It made the most powerful man in this world explain something. Perhaps he was explaining to Chen Pingping. Perhaps he was explaining it to the woman in the yellow robe in the small building in the rear palace. Perhaps the Emperor only wanted to explain it to himself.

"I didn"t kill her." The Emperor"s voice rose. His tone became firmer and colder. He repeated it again as he looked at Chen Pingping with narrowed eyes.

"You didn"t kill her?" The lines at the corners of Chen Pingping"s eyes were so deep they almost hid his eyes. He raised his head tiredly and looked at the Emperor. With a chilling laugh, he asked, "Then, how did she die?"

"Don"t say anything about not being back from the Western expedition. Don"t say anything about the n.o.ble"s rebellion or fate. Right at that moment, I, Fan Jian, Wu Zhu, Ye Zhong… Everyone just happened to not be in Jingdou. She also just happened to have given birth and was at her weakest!" Chen Pingping"s gaze was like two knives piercing into the Emperor"s face. Icily, he said, "Your Majesty governs the world through the virtue of filial piety, so it is best not to push this sin onto the empress dowager. The empress, that idiot, and her family already have been your scapegoat for 20 years. Are you going to have your own mother take over?"

"The Western expedition into the plains was your order! At that time, Fan Jian was only a treasurer of the Taichang Temple and the vice director of the Ministry of Revenue. He was responsible for all of the needs of the military. Why was he sent to the camp to follow the army?" Chen Pingping"s eyes were narrowed tightly. Coldness seeped through his spa.r.s.e and cold eyelashes. "Armies need logistics. Following our methods back then, we had always given Fan Jian full authority to handle affairs. When the Iron Riders of the Qing Kingdom went forth, he often stayed in the capital to handle everything. Why did you make Fan Jian follow you into the Western Expedition Army that time?"

"What were you afraid of? Were you afraid that if Fan Jian remained in the capital, the Tiger Guards he secretly trained would destroy Qin Ye"s plans?" A cold smile rose to Chen Pingping"s lips. "Yes, back to the old master of the Qin family. Who would have thought that the old official of three Emperors would be the killing strike you left in Jingdou? Ye Zhong, who was in the Jingdou Garrison, had also been secretly summoned to Dingzhou. The entire Jingdou was under the control of the Qin family. Even if the empress wanted to rebel, wanted to attack Taiping Courtyard, who could do it without consent from Qin Ye?"

"Three years ago, during the Jingdou rebellion, were you happy when Qin Ye jumped out? You finally had the chance, the excuse, to kill and silence the only person who knew of the role you played in the ma.s.sacre in Taiping Courtyard back then." To the Qing Emperor, Chen Pingping coldly said, "Of course, you disdained to silence him. Even if the Qin family said something, you would not care. However, Fan Xian eventually grew up. You had no choice but to accept that your son with her was the most accomplished of all your children. The longer you knew him, the more you valued Fan Xian and the more you did not want him to know that his mother had died by your hands. So, Qin Ye, how could he not die?"

Chen Pingping"s slightly sharp and raspy voice rang out tirelessly in the royal study. The Qing Emperor did not speak. He only listened coldly and calmly, listening to every word. His expression was slightly strange. He seemed faintly sorrowful but also faintly absolved.

"Going back to the Taiping courtyard 22 years ago," Chen Pingping spoke in too much of a rush. These were probably words and deductions that the old cripple had secretly endured for decades. Now, he finally had a chance to spew it all out in front of the Emperor. He coughed loudly. Two unhealthy red spots appeared on his face.

It took a long time for him to recover his breath. With a sigh, he said, "Now, to speak of me. Since you had decided to move against the Taiping courtyard, you could not allow me to stay in Jingdou. So, the situation on the Northern defense line became urgent. Before long, there were rumors that the nation to the North would soon attack South with all their might. As the Director of the Overwatch Council and head planner for military affairs, with you busy with the Western Expedition, I could only go North in your stead and personally investigate the situation."

"Thinking of it now, who, other than you, could have made the entire military system cooperate for this show and mobilize the strength of foreign nations?" Chen Pingping narrowed his eyes. "I have always wondered about one thing. In order to have the newly established Northern Qi court cooperate with your wishes, did you, perhaps, secretly collude with Ku He, that d.a.m.n baldy?"

"Of course, Ku He is already dead, so I have no one to ask." Chen Pingping shook his head.

"I didn"t seek out Ku He." The Qing Emperor finally spoke coldly for the first time. "I don"t need to seek out anyone and did not seek out anyone."

Chen Pingping looked at him with pity and disdain. "Lastly, we come to Wu Zhu. He was the least likely to leave her side. At that time, he just happened to leave Jingdou. Without a doubt, this is the matter that most eluded me these years. As long as Wu Zhu was by her side, it would be difficult for anyone in this world to kill her."

The Qing Emperor"s brows jumped, but he maintained his silence.

"Your Majesty, I"ve always suspected you. I even suspected Fan Jian. I still don"t know who, among our group back then, did this." The corners of Chen Pingping"s lips drooped. "It was not until many years later that Wu Zhu told me he had met someone in an alley behind the Fan manor. He killed that person and was also heavily injured. Only then, did I understand this matter."

"There are so few people in this world who could hurt Wu Zhu, other than the four Great Grandmasters," Chen Pingping said calmly. "Thus, I determined that emissaries of the Temple had come again to our world."

"Since people of the Temple could come at that time, then 22 years ago, they could also have come. You and I both know that only the arrival of people from the Temple would make Wu Zhu so cautious, even enough to leave her side to ensure they did not come close to her."

"The a.s.sa.s.sination attempt by the people of the Temple outside the Fan manor was targeted toward Fan Xian, yet they injured Wu Zhu. That was because you wanted to know where Wu Zu was," Chen Pingping said. "The first time the people of the Temple appeared, they were targeting her. The person mobilized away was still Wu Zhu."

"Wu Zhu was like a wall that only the Temple could touch and move." Chen Pingping suddenly smiled and said, "Although it was only twice, both times were too coincidental. They both happened when you had a motive."

"Your Majesty, I know you"ve always been afraid of Lao Wu." Chen Pingping"s eyes appeared indifferent as he gazed calmly at the Qing Emperor. "Ever since Fan Xian entered the capital, you"ve always wanted to know Wu Zhu"s true whereabouts. Fortunately, Fan Xian even hid it from me, so you also do not know."

"Why are you so afraid of Lao Wu?" Chen Pingping"s lips quirked as he smiled mocking. "Are you afraid that Lao Wu will know what happened back then and come into the Royal Palace with a metal rod to kill you? You are the Emperor. Are there still people you are afraid of?"

The Emperor suddenly smiled and shook his head. "No. It is just that people like Lao Wu should not exist in this world. He should return from where he came from. Perhaps you do not know but when An Zhi was in Danzhou, I asked Uncle Liuyun to visit Lao Wu once. As long as Lao Wu has not woken completely, he is not a threat to me."

"This has always been your opinion. Strange creatures like the Great Grandmasters should not even exist in this world," Chen Pingping said coldly. "I am very curious as to why you are still alive Why not just kill yourself and end it?"

These words were very poisonous, but the Emperor"s expression did not tremble at all. Perhaps such emotions were fermenting in his heart, but they still did not explode out.

Chen Pingping did not appear timid at all and continued coldly. "Back then, you moved all of us away and provoked the stupid empress into a craze. Then, you had Qin Ye watch and control everything from the side. Thus, the murder in Taiping Courtyard happened. Although it appears simple, in reality, it was very difficult. If even one part of it went wrong, she might not have died."

"Probably only you, Your Majesty, could make such a simple and powerful plan that was so perfect." Chen Pingping gently stroked the smooth arm of his wheelchair. With a sigh, he said, "Particularly concerning the people coming from the Temple, even to now, I still cannot understand why the Temple acted according to your plan."

"Perhaps your goals were the same. Both of you wanted to remove her proud presence silently from this world." Chen Pingping looked at the Qing Emperor mockingly.

The Qing Emperor was silent for a long time and did not refute the deduction. He only smiled gently and said, "You old dog, for your entire life, you"ve been thinking about how to hurt others. It"s not difficult to understand this matter. I just had not thought that you would remember it for so long."

"However," he said in a heavier voice, "I did not kill her."

"Yes, you did not kill her." Chen Pingping smiled very strangely, "Of course, our great Emperor would not personally take action to kill a woman who had given the Qing Kingdom a new life. Of course, you would not kill the savior that put the Li family on the throne. Of course, you would not kill the woman you loved the most. Of course, you would not kill your son"s own mother."

"Blood is very difficult to wash off. Of course, you would not let the blood flow onto your hands." Chen Pingping"s brows were furrowed very tightly. His voice forced itself out from his chest, imposingly icy. "Your hands are still clean. You are forever brilliant and correct. The only people with blood on their hands were those stupid or violent people under the throne…"

"We helped to avenge her. We swept the Qing Kingdom clean of all the stubborn n.o.bility and aristocratic families. How much blood flowed in Jingdou that night? All of the empress and empress dowager"s clan members were killed. Did you smile happily?" Chen Pingping asked faintly. "All of the light poured into your body while all of the darkness and shame belonged to your officials and family. In this world, there is nothing more perfect than this."

"Of course, you did not kill her." Chen Pingping pressed his lips together. As he coughed gently, he slowly said, "Because you never lifted a single finger, particularly after the old Qin family died, there was no one else left in the world who knew everything that happened in the darkness that night. No one had evidence to say that you personally organized the murder in Taiping Courtyard."

"However…" the old cripple sitting on the black wheelchair shook his head mockingly. "You will never convince yourself or me, and you cannot change the reality. You killed her with your own hands. You killed a great… No, a lonely woman who had just gave you a son and was at the weakest moment of her life."

"There is nothing more despicable or shameful than that." After Chen Pingping said this, he seemed exhausted. Leaning against the black wheelchair, he slowly closed his eyes.

The Emperor also closed his eyes slowly. His calm expression appeared pale. He was silent for a long time before he quietly said, "You"re right. It was I who killed her."

Immediately afterward, he opened his eyes, which were calm and solemn, and said, "So what?"