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Chapter 26 Reunite Part 1
Warning: Might contain disturbing/violent content
If it was summer, the bright moon would be reflecting on the river at the Zhou Kingdom’s border tonight.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t yet spring and the air was still silent and chilly. From time to time, snowflakes would flutter down and fall on Tantai Jin’s face.
He raised his hand to brush them off, then walked in to sit on the lonely throne.
He had thrown the crossbow into the river because of Su Su. By his side, several Scarlet Flame Wasps were ready to attack. They had grown to half a person’s size. Their eyes were scarlet red, and the sound of their vibrating wings was exceptionally painful to the ear.
Several attendants were kneeling at Tantai Jin’s feet, shaking.
However, Tantai Jin seemed to be in a good mood. “Where’s the guqin player? Ask him to play a song.”
Soon after, a guqin player in white came in and sat in front of the guqin. “What would Your Highness like to listen to?”
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Mydvyk Kkd pyke, “Fsxlvbkdt xsal qlpvkhl.”
Mbl ryzl-qynle twikd rzyula dseele yde pvyavle vs rlaqsax.
Lsv zsdt yqvla, Kkdt Nyd Gd yrrlyale kdpkel vbl ryzynl byzz. Fbl oyp olyakdt y obkvl qsm qwa nsyv obkzl bla bydep olal bszekdt y byde oyaxla.
“Zswa Tktbdlpp byp pwxxsdle xl. Rp vblal psxlvbkdt kxrsavydv?”
Mydvyk Kkd oyvnble bla yde pyke, “Kkdt Nyd Gd, usw’al tlvvkdt sze yde pvyavkdt vs ynv vynvzlppzu zkjl vbl svblap.”
G qlo snnypksdyz pvalyjp sq pkzhla xkmle kd okvb Kkdt Nyd Gd’p byka, yde vbl qkdl zkdlp yv vbl ldep sq bla lulp yzps pbsole vbyv pbl oyp ds zsdtla bso pbl oyp qswavlld ulyap yts. Fbl oypd’v uswdt yduxsal yde bye pvyavle vs taso sze.
Tlyakdt vblpl osaep, Kkdt Nyd Gd alxykdle nyzx, “Ebu eslp Zswa Tktbdlpp pweeldzu pyu ps?”
Mydvyk Kkd pyke, “Mbl kddla nsal sq vbl oszq elxsd vbyv Ck Fbwydt nyrvwale oyp lmvalxlzu rskpsdswp. Bdqsavwdyvlzu, kv nswzed’v jkzz xl. R nswze yppwxl qsa vbl xsxldv vbyv, ewl vs xldvyz yde rbupknyz lmbywpvksd, usw’e kdlhkvyczu xyjl y xkpvyjl yde dsv pll rlsrzl nzlyazu. Gqvla yzz, usw’al vbl sdl obs vsze xl vbyv y dsaxyz rlapsd pbswze zlyad vs cl ytallyczl yde qsatkhkdt.”
He felt funny and curled his lips upwards, “But tonight, that famous actress’s body was implanted with ‘One Night Sunrise’. Will you, Jing Lan An, make mistakes twice?”
Jing Lan An remained silent.
“You wanted to kill me, but why?” Amidst the sound of the guqin, the tone of his voice was laced with confusion. Like how he was as a child, Tantai Jin asked with an inquisitive and humble attitude, “Did you regret killing Yue Kongyi that year, or did you recall my mother being disemboweled again?”
Jing Lan An shook her head, “Your Highness, you don’t understand anything.”
“I don’t need to understand either.” Tantai Jin said, “You’re different from Liu shi, I’ll make it a quick death.”
The guqin player played the wrong note.
Tantai Jin smiled and lazily leaned back in his seat with a regretful look on his face, “Aunt Lan An, goodbye forever.”
The Scarlet Flame Wasps flew towards Jing Lan An.
Jing Lan An didn’t move, but the Scarlet Flame Wasps ran into a transparent barrier, unable to move forward.
A man in a dark reddish-purple brocade robe burst out laughing and walked into the palace hall.
“Vile little spawn, you actually want to kill Jing Lan An. She was soft-hearted and wanted you to comfortably die while you still had hope..”
The jade pendant on his waist tinkled, he had a martial bearing and his countenance was full of vicious inclinations.
The smile on Tantai Jin’s face disappeared and he spoke the newcomer’s name aloud, “Tantai Minglang.”
“I didn’t expect that you would still remember me.” Tantai Minglang said, “That’s right. You, who lived worse than a dog or pig, must have wished to eat my flesh alive. However, facts have proven that monsters can only be monsters. Look, in the end, even Jing Lan An has betrayed you.”
Jing Lan An lowered her head, keeping her expression hidden.
Tantai Jin laughed and his fingers tapped the seat as a bunch of pitch-black blood crows charged in.
Tantai Minglang didn’t seem to be flustered at all and said, “Vile spawn, I know that you’re different from ordinary people. I heard my Concubine Mother say that you killed Imperial Concubine Rou before you could be born. Do you think I came unprepared today? Jing Lan An has already revealed your weakness to me long ago, so you should just wait for death.”
Several people resembling Daoist priests followed him in and stepped forward.
The old Daoist leader said, “Set up the formation.”
The Daoist priests quickly split up and sat in an octagon shape. In their hands, each of them was holding a copper-colored bell. While the old Daoist priest recited an incantation to activate the talisman, the rest of them shook their bells. The old Daoist priest held a square jade box in his hand, and the talisman danced around it as his mouth muttered the incantation.
The Scarlet Flame Wasps and blood crows were immobilized by the bells and then flew into the jade box, turning into black smoke. The old Daoist priest knew that Tantai Jin was a mortal and their Daoist techniques were useless against him, so they didn’t deal with him directly but instead let the evil creatures that he controlled dissipate one by one.
The blood crows sorrowfully screamed. Tantai Jin’s expression turned cold as several black-clad attendants appeared around him.
“Your Highness.”
Tantai Jin didn’t hesitate, “Let’s go.”
More and more large flocks of blood crows flew in like a dark vortex. While they stalled for time, Tantai Jin tried to rush out.
Tantai Minglang cruelly laughed.
“Someone.”
Out of nowhere, countless swordsmen surrounded the hold of the ship. The men around Tantai Jin were both fighting and retreating, escorting him to the deck, but there were only two or three of them left.
Tantai Minglang personally took out his sword and beheaded the remaining loyal soldiers.
The soldiers’ blood splattered on Tantai Jin and his face paled. Tantai Minglang kicked him and he fell to the ground.
“What a useless vile spawn.” Tantai Minglang’s foot stepped on the shoulder of the black-clad young man, “What can a useless person who can’t practice martial arts like you do without relying on others?”
Blood trickled down the corner of Tantai Jin’s mouth and he lowered his head and coughed.
Tantai Minglang lifted his chin with his boot.
“When I killed Eldest Imperial Brother, he was more courageous than you. He wouldn’t kneel even when his kneecaps were shattered.”
“Both of the Second Imperial Brother’s hands were broken, his mouth was sewn shut and he died with his eyes open1.”
“I heard that your mother, Imperial Concubine Rou, was the most famous beauty in Huaizhou2. Looking at your useless and weak appearance, you might as well be a princess and serve people with your looks.”
The men he brought started to laugh out loud.
Jing Lan An rushed out and leaned against the doorway. Seeing this scene, she closed her eyes.
The night’s light snow fluttered down and the bright lights on the river were lit. Someone attentively brought in a seat, and as Tantai Minglang was in no hurry, he elegantly sat down.
“Someone, cut this trash’s leg tendons.”
Tantai Jin started to struggle violently, but he was held down. He raised his head and his slightly red eyes looked at Jing Lan An, “Aunt, I was raised by you. I swear I won’t kill you anymore. Save me, okay?”
He pursed his pale lips, and his snowy white skin and ebony hair made him look weak and pitiful.
Jing Lan An’s lips trembled.
Tantai Jin continued, “I didn’t have my Concubine Mother. It was you who raised me up with goat’s milk. In my heart, you’re my mother.”
Jing Lan An turned her head away.
Tantai Minglang heartily laughed, as if Tantai Jin’s disgraceful scene of wanting to survive had pleased him. “What are you standing there for, do it.”
As a swordsman’s hand rose and fell, Tantai Jin’s leg tendons were cut through.
Tantai Jin grunted in pain and he understood that today, no matter what, Jing Lan An wouldn’t help him to rebel. The fragile look on his face disappeared as his fingers firmly clutched at the floor.
He understood that he couldn’t deceive Jing Lan An, so he no longer pretended to be weak, and all that remained on his face was a morbidly cold and ruthless expression.
“Hand tendons,” Tantai Minglang ordered.
The swordsman lifted his sword and precisely cut Tantai Jin’s hand tendons. This time, the young man lying prone on the ground supported himself with his arms and crawled towards the ship’s railing without saying a word. The outer corners of his eyes were red, as if he couldn’t feel the pain and only wanted to survive.
Tantai Jin looked at the river’s white rolling waves and suddenly remembered Su Su who had jumped into it that day. The winter snow drifted onto his hair; he was in this kind of situation, yet he just lowered his head and softly laughed. I don’t know if she’s dead or alive.
Tantai Minglang seemed relaxed as he spoke to Jing Lan An, who looked unwell, “I heard that this vile spawn has never cried since he was born. A few days ago, I got a treasure named the Xuanbing Needle. If it’s pierced into one’s eyes, that person will not only become blind, but will constantly cry, and when the cold Qi enters his body, his body will be as brittle as ice.”