Chapter 268: I Want to Die By Your Hands (1)
His sharp, gloomy, and ambitious eyes swept across Gong Yimo.
“I have personally seen how much the emperor doted on you. I knew that it was impossible for you to be defeated since you were such an outstanding and talented person. At that time, I thought that you were my only chance to surpa.s.s my brother!”
“I intentionally got closer to you and then followed you. What does a seven rank official even amount to? I knew that you weren’t going to push your blood-related brother in the pit of fire. I followed you when you went to repair the ca.n.a.l, just to wait for the day when you fall into danger, so I can strike you while you are down…”
An odd glimmer of radiance flashed by his eyes. His voice sounded dreamlike, “…I didn’t expect that I didn’t even have to wait a few years to find my chance. With one move, I was going to soar to the sky…”
Gong Yimo closed her eyes; she doesn’t know why, but she didn’t hate him at all.
…
“I succeeded!” In a dreamlike tone, he said, “Imperial Consort Long really gave me a high official post and a generous salary. I could ruthlessly step on my brother who was now beneath me and show my father that I was the one who was worthy enough for him to train!”
“But…” He smiled bitterly and once again looked at Gong Yimo. His gaze was no longer contained the feverishness he had before, instead, it full of bitterness and pain.
“But… the result was different from what I originally thought…”
The cold wind swept away the snowflakes around them. The two people were only separated by a distance of two to three meters, but it seemed as if there was a gulf between them. It was impossible for him to close the difference between them. Gong Yimo just stood by the side like she was a bystander as she listened to his story.
“…father ignored me, he said… he was completely disappointed by me! He also said that what he dreaded the most was fighting between his sons, but it still happened in the end…”
He smiled bitterly, the smile made his complexion look even paler.
“His Majesty doesn’t want to see me anymore. He was so warm and fervent towards me when I told him the news about the gunpowder, but after your fake death, he began looking coldly at me. I am also a talented person! I truly want to make contributions to our country!”
“The emperor’s att.i.tude towards me determined how my colleagues treated me. They intentionally pushed me out, so I gradually became isolated from them. The friends that I made from before all broke off their friends.h.i.+ps with me, I was completely isolated from everyone else. The crown prince looked at me like I was a thorn in his eyes, intentionally making things difficult for me…”
He shook his head, “That wasn’t the most terrible thing that happened to me. The most terrible thing was… because of the Ninth Prince. He had only returned to JinCheng for a few days when he cleared off all the obstacles in his way. Imperial Consort Long told me today that Gong Jue intended to kill me, but she couldn’t figure out how. She told me that the only way I could live was to find you and use you to threaten him.”
Gong Yimo felt everything had fallen silent after he finished telling his story. The only noise was when the snowflakes fell on her hair and clothes, making her look very fragile.
She looked so fragile that it made Li Ke doubt what he even wanted to receive from her…
He just wanted his family’s approval, but instead, he was abandoned by his family and friends. He just wanted to prove his worth, but he was pushed away by everyone. In order to save his life now, he had to coerce the girl before him. This wasn’t the life he had imagined!
“You won’t be able to kill me or catch me.”
If those people from before didn’t leave, then they might’ve stood a chance before her. But now, her only problem was whether she wanted to kill the person in front of her or not.
Li Ke smiled; he was pretty handsome. His smile was like blossoming snowflakes, but there was an unexplainable mournfulness behind it.
“I didn’t plan to kill you either way.”
After he finished talking, he knelt in front of Gong Yimo! His action startled Gong Yimo.
She narrowed her eyes slightly and asked, “What are you doing?”
Li Ke looked up, there was no fear in his eyes, instead, he looked relieved.
“It’s nothing. I just thought that it would be better to die in your hands than by Gong Jue’s hands. I don’t want to live like this anymore.”