âWife, what are you doing?â
The only person behind him at this moment was Gebi. Song Qingshu remained calm and composed, confident that he could dodge her blade the moment she struck. However, he wanted to understand her motives, so he hesitated and did not act.
âWife?â Gebi let out a light laugh, her voice laced with mockery. âAfter acting for so long, do you really think youâre my husband now?â
Song Qingshuâs heart sank. His voice turned bitter. âSo youâve known all along.â
Seeing that he didnât deny it, Gebiâs expression grew complicated. âWho are you, really?â
Song Qingshu sighed. There was no point in hiding it anymore. He reached up to remove the mask from his face, but Gebi snapped, âDonât move!â The dagger at his throat pressed in tighter.
âDidnât you ask who I am? I was just going to take off the mask,â Song Qingshu said with a wry smile.
âYou stay still. Iâll do it.â Having witnessed his skills before, Gebi knew how formidable his martial arts were and didnât dare let her guard down.
Song Qingshu shrugged, signaling his compliance. âBy the way, how did you see through me?â
âEarlier in the carriage, you caught the assassinâs dagger with two fingers. My husband wasnât that skilled in martial arts,â Gebi replied as she felt along his face for the edges of the mask.
âI see. No wonder youâve been acting strange ever since.â Song Qingshu inwardly cursed himself for being so sharp-witted in daily life yet suddenly making such a foolish mistake here.
By now, Gebi had already peeled off his mask. When she saw his true face, she froze momentarily. âIt really is you!â
Song Qingshu raised an eyebrow. âYou guessed it was me?â
Gebiâs cheeks flushed slightly. âI didnât know at first. But after realizing my husband was an imposter, I recalled how you suddenly barged into his room before. I figured you might have forgotten to wear your mask that time in your carelessness.â
âMadam is truly sharp-witted. To deduce the truth from such a small clueâIâm impressed!â Song Qingshu praised sincerely.
âNo amount of sweet talk will help you now. Tell me, what happened to our Wogula?â Gebi demanded, her face tense as she awaited his answer.
Song Qingshu sighed softly. âSince Madam has already guessed, why ask again?â
The color drained from Gebiâs beautiful face, and her body trembled. âI want to hear it from you.â
âHeâs dead.â Song Qingshuâs words struck Gebiâs heart like a heavy hammer.
For a moment, it felt as if all the strength had left her body. It took her a long time to recover before she finally spoke in a cold voice, âWho killed him?â
âIf I said it wasnât me, would you believe me?â Song Qingshu gave a bitter laugh.
âNo!â Gebi bit her lip hard.
âI knew you wouldnât. Fortunately, I came prepared. Inside my clothes is a blood-written letterâyour husbandâs final words. Read it, and youâll understand.â Song Qingshu was secretly relieved. Thankfully, Tang Kuo Bian had the foresight to leave this letter behind; otherwise, heâd never be able to clear his name.
âDonât try any tricks!â Gebi pressed the dagger harder against his neck, suspecting he was trying to distract her so he could escape.
âIâm not playing games. Youâll see for yourself.â Song Qingshu raised his hands to show he had no ulterior motives.
Unable to resist her longing for her husbandâs last words, Gebi kept the dagger at his throat with one hand while the other reached into his clothes to search. After a moment, she indeed pulled out a blood-stained letter.
Her hands trembling, Gebi unfolded the letter. As she read line after line, her expression shifted repeatedly, and soon her vision blurred with tears. She recognized her husbandâs handwriting immediately, and the letter contained coded phrases only the two of them knewâimpossible for an outsider to fake. In it, Tang Kuo Bian poured out his reluctance to part, his guilt toward her, and his entrusting of his sworn brother Song Qingshu to protect and care for her in his steadâŚ
When she reached the final wordsââWogulaâs last testamentââGebi broke down into uncontrollable sobs.
âMadam, please accept my condolences,â Song Qingshu said gently.
âWho killed him?!â As if snapping back to reality, Gebi suddenly raised her head, the dagger still pressed against him.
âI can tell you the murdererâs name, but I hope Madam will agree to one thing first,â Song Qingshu replied.
âSpeak!â Gebi sneered inwardly, assuming he would beg for her forgiveness and plead for his life.
But Song Qingshuâs answer took her by surprise: âIâve been planning to avenge Brother Tang Kuo all this time, but the culpritâs power is immense, and I donât yet have a foolproof strategy. From our time together, Iâve learned that despite your delicate appearance, Madam is actually a strong and intelligent woman. So I ask that after learning his identity, you refrain from acting rashly and alerting the enemy, lest our plans for vengeance be ruined.â
Gebiâs expression shifted slightly. After a long silence, she finally said, âFine. I agree.â
Only then did Song Qingshu utter three words: âPrince Hailing.â
âIt really was him!â Gebi gritted her teeth, her eyes burning with fury.
Song Qingshu quickly reminded her, âMadam, donât forget your promise. Iâve nearly gained his trust now. I swear to youâI will make Wanyan Liang suffer eternal damnation to avenge Brother Tang Kuo.â
âSo thatâs why youâve been getting close to him latelyâto avenge Wogula?â Gebiâs expression softened slightly.
Song Qingshu had other motives for approaching Wanyan Liang, but he wasnât foolish enough to mention them now. He simply nodded. âYes.â
Hearing his answer, Gebi fell silent, and the pressure of the dagger against his neck lessened.
Song Qingshu smiled wryly. âDoes Madam plan to keep holding a knife to my throat forever?â
Instead of withdrawing the dagger, Gebi pressed it even tighter. âHmph! I can overlook your role in Wogulaâs death. You promised to protect me and avenge him, so I can even understand you temporarily impersonating him. But youââ
Her cheeks suddenly flushed crimson, and she bit her lip, glaring at him fiercely. âWhy did you take advantage of my vulnerability and⌠and defile me?!â
The memory of that nightâs tenderness and passion sent a ripple of warmth through Song Qingshuâs heart, but he quickly snapped back to reality. He knew that a single wrong answer here could spell disaster.
Though Tang Kuo Bian had âgiftedâ Gebi to him on his deathbed, such words were merely symbolic. Gebi was her own person, a noblewoman of the Jin Dynasty. If she refused, how could Tang Kuo Bianâs words alone bind her?
âNo answer?â Gebiâs face burned with humiliation and anger as she recalled how passionately she had responded to him that night, deceived into believing he was her husband.
This is 1/10 FSM sponsored chapter release from Davros.
The novel hasnât been updated in novelupdates for a few days now, is something wrong with the site?
I turned on the Ddos protection, that seems to be messing with NU update.
Thanks for the chapter~!
(^.^)
Thanks for reading!