lovenovelstory Chapter 130 Xu Fenghua's Fury
Chapter 130 Xu Fenghua's Fury
Qin Mu's gaze fell on Jiang Qingxue, who was kneeling on the ground, trembling.
The air inside the hall grew even heavier, and the glow of the candlelight slowly flowed across his black dragon-patterned robe.
After a while, he bent down slightly and stretched out one hand, his fingers long and his knuckles distinct.
Get up.
His voice suddenly became very soft, carrying a gentleness completely different from his previous cold and imposing manner, as if his thunderous actions had exhausted much of his energy.
"The ground is cold."
Qin Mu paused, his gaze sweeping over the hideous purplish-red bruise on Jiang Qingxue's arm.
And her face, streaked with tears as she suppressed her pain, her tone calm yet undeniable:
"Let's go home."
Jiang Qingxue trembled all over.
She slowly raised her tearful eyes.
Their gazes involuntarily, filled with worry and unspoken words, first fell upon Xu Fenghua, who still stood upright to the side.
Sister Xu's face was as pale as paper, and her amber eyes, which were very similar to her brother's, were gazing intently at her.
It contained a mixture of anxiety, reassurance, and an almost resolute pain.
The moment their eyes met, Jiang Qingxue almost blurted out.
She wanted to stay!
She had so many questions to ask, so many grievances to express, and so many fears to confirm!
She wanted to ask Sister Xu why she was here, whether she knew about Xu Longxiang's plan, whether she had any way to spread the news of Mo Shen's death, and even more so... what should they do in the future?
However, Qin Mu's words "go home" acted like an invisible shackle, forcefully suppressing all her turbulent emotions back into her heart.
She cannot stay.
Qin Mu had already become suspicious.
The question, "Are you really just meeting for the first time?" still echoes in my ears, lingering and piercing my heart.
At this moment, any concern or reluctance towards Xu Fenghua that goes beyond the scope of "first acquaintance" is just adding fuel to the fire.
This will only push them both into an even more dangerous abyss.
Jiang Qingxue bit her lower lip hard, tasting a slightly metallic sweetness, and forced herself to tear her gaze away from Xu Fenghua with great difficulty.
She lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes still glistening with undried tears, which shimmered in the candlelight.
She braced herself with her hands, trying to get up, but the sharp pain in her arm made her groan and sway slightly.
A warm hand gently supported her elbow.
It's Qin Mu.
Jiang Qingxue slowly stood up with the help of the fabric, revealing the tear on her moon-white sleeve and the shocking bruises underneath.
She turned slightly to the side, hiding her injured arm behind her back, and facing Xu Fenghua, she performed a very slow and precise curtsy according to palace rules.
His movements were stiff, his voice so low it was almost inaudible, tinged with suppressed sobs and a profound sense of alienation.
"Your Majesty, I take my leave. Consort Hua, please take care."
Every word seemed to be squeezed out of his chest, laced with blood and foam.
Xu Fenghua looked at Jiang Qingxue's forced composure, her aloof politeness, yet her fright and vulnerability were undeniable.
Looking at the wound on her arm, a wound she had sustained for him, my heart ached.
She knew Qingxue's fear and understood her predicament.
But when he thought of the absurd "double happiness" three days later, and the pain and humiliation that his younger brother Xu Longxiang might suffer, which was even worse than being slowly sliced to death, he couldn't help but think of it.
An anxiety and resentment, even greater than her own safety, burned away her reason like wildfire once more.
Just as Jiang Qingxue was about to turn around and follow Qin Mu away—
"His Majesty!"
Xu Fenghua's voice rang out again, clearer and more resolute than before.
She stepped forward, blocking Qin Mu from the palace gate, a move that was almost provocative.
She stopped looking at Jiang Qingxue and stared intently at Qin Mu. Her usually calm and composed amber eyes were now burning with a tragic flame.
"His Majesty!"
She called out again, her voice trembling slightly with emotion, but she struggled to maintain her composure.
"Your Majesty, I implore you to reconsider! Since Consort Xue has already entered the palace and her status is settled, there is truly no need for a wedding ceremony! As for me... I come from humble origins and have been married before. To be accepted into the palace by Your Majesty is already an immense favor. How dare I presume to ask for a grand wedding ceremony, lest I invite criticism from the world and tarnish Your Majesty's holy name!"
She paused, took a deep breath as if using all her strength, and her voice suddenly rose, carrying a desperate and resolute tone:
"If Your Majesty insists on doing this...this is against propriety, I...I would rather be stripped of my rank as a concubine and live a life of seclusion in the cold palace, spending the rest of my days in solitude and devotion! I will never allow Your Majesty to bear the infamy of the ages because of me! Nor will I allow...I will never allow innocent people to suffer such heart-wrenching pain that they should not have to endure!"
She practically screamed the last sentence, tears welling up in her eyes, but she still stubbornly held her head high, staring straight at Qin Mu.
She was making a last-ditch effort.
For the sake of the Xu family's reputation, and for the sake of his younger brother Xu Longxiang's proud and sensitive heart.
Even if there's only a one in ten thousand chance, she will try to stop this ritual that is destined to become Xu Longxiang's nightmare.
She couldn't imagine what would happen when Xu Longxiang learned about the two most important women in his life.
His beloved Qingxue and his respected older sister.
What a horrifying scene it would be if, on the same day and at the same ceremony, she were to become another man's concubine, adorned in a phoenix coronet and embroidered robes.
That was not just humiliation; it was like repeatedly roasting his soul in a raging fire, crushing all his dignity and pride into dust.
Upon hearing Xu Fenghua's words, Jiang Qingxue's body stiffened abruptly, and the foot she had just taken froze in place.
She had her back to Xu Fenghua, not daring to turn around, but her shoulders were trembling violently uncontrollably.
Tears welled up again, silently dripping down her chin and soaking into her clothes.
Sister Xu... even at this moment, you're still thinking of Brother Longxiang...
Qin Mu stopped in his tracks.
He didn't turn around, but simply turned his face to the side. Moonlight slanted in from outside the palace gate, illuminating half of his handsome yet sculpted profile.
He seemed to be listening, yet he also seemed to be lost in thought.
Only after Xu Fenghua's tearful roars gradually subsided in the hall did he slowly twitch the corner of his mouth.
"Are you done talking?"
He spoke, his voice calm and undisturbed, without even turning to look at Xu Fenghua.
Xu Fenghua's chest heaved violently as she bit her lip tightly, waiting, or rather, hoping for even the slightest wavering from him.
Qin Mu merely raised his hand slightly, as if brushing away a non-existent speck of dust.
"My decrees are never changed."
His voice remained calm, yet it carried a chilling quality that seemed to freeze everything.
"Xu Fenghua, you only need to remember—three days from now, put on the wedding dress I have prepared for you, wear the phoenix crown, and be your Consort Hua."
He finally turned around slowly, his gaze like two icicles, piercing precisely at Xu Fenghua.
There was no anger in his eyes, only a condescending indifference as if looking down on something he didn't understand.
"As for your pointless worries, your cheap pride, and..."
His gaze swept almost imperceptibly over Jiang Qingxue's trembling back, his tone suddenly turning cold, each word distinct and clear.
"Clean up those inappropriate thoughts and concerns for me as soon as possible."
He paused, then glanced at Xu Fenghua one last time, his eyes as deep as an ancient well, seemingly capable of swallowing all hope and light.
"Prepare well. Don't disappoint me, otherwise..."
His words paused subtly here, leaving a blank space filled with countless possibilities and threats.
Then he turned around and didn't linger for a moment.
"Walk."
This word was spoken to Jiang Qingxue; it was brief, commanding, and left no room for argument.
Jiang Qingxue finally mustered all her strength and glanced back at Xu Fenghua with extreme speed and almost panic.
That one glance contained too many unspeakable emotions.
Fear, pleading, apology, helplessness, and also the deep-seated tacit understanding and concern between them.
Then, like a startled rabbit, she turned around abruptly, lowered her head, and followed closely behind Qin Mu's tall and straight figure in black, her steps unsteady but not daring to slow down as she walked out of the main hall of Huaqing Palace.
Xu Fenghua stood there all alone.
The palace doors slowly closed behind Qin Mu and Jiang Qingxue, cutting off the last rays of sunlight from outside, and also cutting off the brief but painful eye contact between her and Qingxue.
The palace maids were already so frightened that they knelt on the ground, their heads bowed low, not daring to make a sound.
The hall fell silent again, broken only by the occasional crackling of the burning candles and her own heavy, suppressed breathing.
Qin Mu's last words, especially that threatening pause, were like a cold chisel.
It utterly shattered the last vestige of hope and struggle in her heart.
She got it.
Resistance is pointless. Pleading is even more ridiculous.
Qin Mu not only intended to humiliate the Xu family through this wedding, but also to control the northern border.
He was using this method to coldly test, manipulate, and grind down the will and emotions of each of them.
Qingxue, Longxiang, and herself were all just pawns in this cruel game of chess, at his mercy.
A chill that penetrated to the bone spread instantly from the soles of her feet to her limbs and bones, finally freezing her heart.
Xu Fenghua slowly, very slowly, closed her eyes.
Long eyelashes cast two deep shadows on her snow-white cheeks.
When he opened his eyes again, they were those amber eyes that always shone with wisdom and decisiveness.
At this moment, only a hollow silence remained, and beneath this silence lay a hatred powerful enough to burn everything.
She slowly walked to the window and pushed open the carved wooden window.
The autumn night wind, carrying a chill, swept in, stirring the hem of her lotus-colored palace dress, but it could not dispel the heavy layer of despair and coldness surrounding her.
She gazed northwards, towards the northern border, the direction where Xu Longxiang was.
Dragon and Elephant...
Sister... I'm sorry.
She murmured silently, her fingertips gripping the cold window frame so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
But soon, that despair in his eyes was replaced by something harder and more resolute.
Qin Mu...
Do you think this will completely destroy us?
just wait.
This scene is still quite long.
She slowly straightened her back, as if she had transformed that heavy despair and hatred into the steel bones that supported her body so that it would no longer bend.
The night at Huaqing Palace was as dark as ink, completely engulfing her lonely and resolute figure.