This thread of life had now been snuffed out by his own hands. Old General Jih worried that Jih Heng would feel self-reproach and guilt, and even though his own heart was also filled with an unbearable sorrow, he still had to force a smile.
Jih Heng raised his head, his face emanating a tragic beauty amidst such a bleak atmosphere. Yet, he rely curved the corners of his mouth, his expression indifferent, his tone without ripples, and in the nonchalant cadence he used when watching plays—the kind that felt no empathy and forgot once it was over—he said, "Then let us scatter the ashes in mother’s tomb as he wished."
When Jih Minghan had been taken away by Wen Ji’s father all those years ago, he was still conscious and his last instructions to his subordinates were that if he died, his body should be burned to ashes and buried together with Yu Hongye, without anyone’s knowledge. Jih Minghan understood that his opponents were the Empress Dowager and Yin Zhan, and now in the Duke Residence, only his young son and his aged father remained. If the Empress Dowager wished to silence them, it was very likely she would not spare even this grandfather and grandson. Without full preparation, one must not act rashly and could only feign ignorance.
Feigning ignorance was initially Old General Jih’s own decision. In the matter of Yu Hongye, he feigned ignorance, which resulted in his son ending up in such a state. Later on, feigning ignorance was sothing Old General Jih was forced to do. At first, he wanted to keep the truth from Jih Heng and wait until Jih Heng grew older to tell him, but without knowing when, the grown-up Jih Heng had beco unpredictable, sotis even his own grandfather did not know what he was thinking. It was not until the young Jih Heng brought Situ Jiuyue back from Molan and asked Old General Jih in the study whether he knew who had killed Yu Hongye and Jih Minghan, that the old general realized his grandson had already grown up rapidly without anyone noticing. He had already discovered the truth on his own and was preparing for revenge.
Old General Jih could no longer sway Jih Heng’s decisions, he didn’t even know what Jih Heng wanted to do. Jih Heng refused to have heart-to-heart talks with him; anyti Old General Jih asked, Jih Heng would brush it off with a smile. Even the Gardener in the residence could see his distraction.
But tonight’s Jih Heng, Old General Jih felt that although he was smiling on the surface, his heart was weeping. Even though he seed carefree and as if he didn’t take anything to heart, the old general suddenly thought of the young Jih Heng who had wept and shaken the bed where Jih Minghan lay, plaintively asking why father would not wake up and look at him.
After many years, the young Jih Heng and the Jih Heng before him seed to rge into one, causing Old General Jih to feel montarily disoriented.
Jih Heng did not look at the person on the bed any longer. He turned and walked out. Old General Jih called out to him, "Where are you going?"
"Just going for a walk."
Old General Jih was about to speak again when Situ Jiuyue tugged at his sleeve and shook her head at him, whispering softly, "Let him be alone for a while."
By the ti Old General Jih turned back toward the door, Jih Heng had already left.
Today was the Spring Festival, and at night, the temple fair beca even livelier. The city’s lake was covered with dense floating lanterns, young ladies and mistresses in their carefully chosen garnts floated lantern boats on the water’s edge. In the streets, the crowd watching acrobatic performances erupted into cheers from ti to ti, with clay figurine and sugar mold vendors drawing children who grasped their parents’ hands, their little trinkets too nurous to hold. In the taverns, the poets engaging in verse contests were coming and going, reveling in their talents, creating a wonderful scene everywhere.
Jih Heng walked slowly along the lake. In his hand, he held an exquisite golden silk folding fan, and his Red Robe trailed the ground. His appearance was enough to captivate all eyes. Walking here, people couldn’t help but cast their gaze upon him, both loving and fearing, worried that Duke Su, capricious in his anger, might suddenly unleash a massacre. Only the young ladies venturing out for the first ti dared to stare directly at Jih Heng, yet would find themselves lost in his uncommon beauty and feel inferior, lowering their heads.
Faint sounds of singing and dancing ca from the boats moored in the lake, and not far away was a stage with perforrs singing opera, the area below packed with an audience. He didn’t know what they were singing about, but he walked at a relaxed pace amidst the festive bustle. He was more captivating than the splendor around him, yet he seed out of place amidst the revelry, like a demon turned into a beauty, striding through mortal markets, unmoved by human pleasures. After seeing, he disdained them all.
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