Chapter 19

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

You can buy coins here to unlock advanced chapters: https://gravitytales.com/coins-purchase-page/

Chapter 19: Even if they deceived and coaxed me, it still sounded… truly good.

Unlike Li Xiaojuan who had been prouder than a peacock when begging for cakes, or Sun Xinang who had shed tears while offering one, the hatred on Li Dayong’s face held no pretense.

\"There are only three in your family. Couldn’t you have come together? It’s tiresome repeating myself thrice.\" Compared to the previous two, Du Yinsui actually preferred handling someone like Li Dayong. \"Your sister ran off because she discovered I knew about her failed attempt to climb into the Crown Prince’s bed. Your mother was about to flee because she realized I knew she’d urged the Empress to punish the Crown Prince more severely. What brings you here now?\"

\"Who do you think you are, spreading such slanderous lies!\" Li Dayong furiously pointed at Jiang Wu. \"That imposter! How could my sister ever fancy him! And my mother…\"

As he spoke, Li Dayong glanced toward Sun Xinang. A single look revealed something amiss.

\"Mother,\" he called hesitantly.

\"Ah Wu, you can’t possibly believe her? She’s merely the lowest kitchen maid from the Empress’s palace, twisting rumors into lies.\" Sun Xinang had steadied since her son arrived, though tears welled anew. \"Ah Wu, you were too young to remember being nursed by me—fine. But all these years, I’ve guarded your identity personally, never trusting others. Spring robes, summer mat-wiping, autumn layers, winter quilt-warming. Even without merit, there’s toil. Do you trust her over your own wet nurse?\"

Tears fell as she finished.

\"Mother, why waste words? It’s all his fault. We’ve suffered our whole lives because of him! Without him, you’d be an official’s lady within years, not enduring this hardship!\" Li Dayong steadied the trembling Sun Xinang, glowering at Jiang Wu. \"You—\"

\"Just shut up.\" Seeing tensions peak and hearing only empty insults, Du Yinsui cut in sharply. \"His fault? What did he do wrong? Fail to announce he was a girl at birth and ruin your schemes? Or not grasp gender differences fast enough to confess to his father and hasten your exile? Did a newborn throttle you with its cord to force you into claiming he was a boy?\"

\"You…\" Sun Xinang’s eyes bulged, baffled that such bluntness survived the Palace.

\"The daughter must pay the mother’s debt!\" Li Dayong hissed, rage throttled to a lower pitch.

Du Yinsui flicked away Jiang Wu’s hand as it reached for her sleeve, pointing afar. \"See? Even if your mother was coerced, chase those who held power then. Don’t bully the vulnerable here.\"

Sun Xinang refused to acknowledge this, yet her gaze followed the gesture involuntarily.

There stood… the Liu family.

She pressed her lips and looked away, only to find her son also glaring at the Lius with fury.

\"Yong’er, don’t take the bait.\" Sun Xinang gripped his arm.

Li Dayong shut his eyes, regaining composure.

The Liu family wasn’t like Jiang Wu.

Li Dayong might dare harm Jiang Wu in shadows but shrank from open brutality. Though Yong’an Bo had acknowledged only the Lius at the exile send-off, the former Empress in the cold palace still carried a child. Sun Xinang insisted the Empress wouldn’t lift a finger for Jiang Wu—but why gamble?

He’d been reckless.

He never meant to confront Jiang Wu, yet here he stood, provoked into fury.

All because of that woman spouting lies about his sister and mother!

Jiang Wu couldn’t be openly touched, but this nameless woman? She’d pay for his pent-up rage.

From imperial guard to exiled convict—Li Dayong had stewed in bitterness too long.

No more words for that lying shrew. Once he shattered her remaining limbs, she’d learn to survive the northern lands mute.

He shrugged off Sun Xinang’s hand, eyes darkening as he strode forward, fists clenched.

\"What are you doing!\"

\"What do you think you’re doing!\"

Two shouts—one from Jiang Wu blocking Li Dayong’s path, the other from Qin Chongli, who’d been eavesdropping nearby with his daughter-in-law.

Du Yinsui’s stone-clenching hand stilled.

\"Move,\" Li Dayong ordered, shoving Jiang Wu aside.

The woman on the cart, who dared to look at Li Dayong with a half-smile as if he were mere entertainment, truly deserved a beating!

But when Li Dayong swung his arm, Jiang Wu didn\’t fall aside as expected.

“You know martial arts?” Li Dayong stared in shock at his right arm, held firmly by Jiang Wu despite his full strength.

For the first time since the Deposed Crown Prince incident, Li Dayong took Jiang Wu seriously.

“I don’t,” Jiang Wu said, pushing Li Dayong’s arm away. “Guards are coming; don’t cause trouble here.”

Li Dayong rubbed his tingling arm from the block and eyed Jiang Wu’s hands and feet suspiciously. Could the slope he jumped down really be as high as the guards claimed? That day, Li Dayong walked ahead, not noticing the path or seeing how Jiang Wu rescued the people, thinking it was all exaggerated.

After years of secretly resenting Jiang Wu—well, Jiang Ruilin back when he was still the Crown Prince—as his milk brother, Li Dayong once trained alongside him under Fan Zaizhi, the Loyal and Brave General, a martial champion. Li Dayong entered the palace with big dreams, but the useless prince got sick after one day, ending the lessons forever.

Outside the palace, training with ordinary tutors, Li Dayong often wished General Fan had been his teacher for a better start. So what was this Jiang Wu now?

While guards shouted to disperse the crowd, Li Dayong kept looking back at Jiang Wu, bitter. Was Jiang Wu still learning from a master while he got left behind?

Guards yelled, “Don’t gather!” “Stop causing trouble!” “Behave or else!” They shooed off Li Dayong, who looked dazed instead of fierce, and the pale Sun Xinang. The guards arrived only after things settled, as usual everywhere.

But this felt different.

Du Yinsui glanced again at the campfire set by the guards. Farther off stood Master Xu’s carriage, the lone official’s. Ma Datou and another guard who broke up the fight came from near that carriage.

Curiously, Du Yinsui rubbed her nose; earlier scents hinted Tan Wang and Master Xu stayed cramped together in the small carriage. Though the argument was hushed, they might have watched through a curtain gap.

Why wouldn’t they?

Inside the cramped carriage, Tan Wang, large and uncomfortable, watched Master Xu peer out through a slightly lifted curtain.

“Master Xu, this is what happens with loose control,” Tan Wang said, squeezed awkwardly. “These prisoners stir trouble if given room. Better limit their movement like before to stop chaos.”

Master Xu let the curtain fall as the guards returned and smiled. “Isn’t this livelier, Tan? A little clash makes them seem alive, not like corpses.”

Tan Wang disagreed. “It burdens us if a real fight breaks out.”

“Prisoners fight, don’t they? Even in jail,” Master Xu replied casually. “Have any exile groups you led ever been perfectly quiet?”

Tan Wang stayed silent.

Of course not; enemies fought, families brawled, and injuries or deaths happened. The tougher the journey, the angrier the prisoners got.

“This one’s different,” Tan Wang said earnestly. “The Kong family hates the Deposed Crown Prince over the Fengzhou affair. Liu family women cursed him daily in jail. Now the Li family targets him too. Without strict rules, clashes like this or worse will happen. If the Deposed Crown Prince gets hurt…”

“Tan, you see things clearly after just days. He’s safe under your watch; small fights aren’t deadly.” Master Xu added, “Why not mention the Wei family? Wei Yuting rants about petty things—he scolded his daughter for lending a bamboo tube to the Qin family for the Deposed Crown Prince.”

“I escorted Wei Yuting north years ago; he’s all talk, no action,” Tan Wang dismissed. “But the Deposed Crown Prince…”

Xu Lv raised his hand to interrupt. \"Tan. Just answer me—if we disregard her being the Deposed Crown Prince, how would you have led this mission before? Would you have maintained such strictness these past days?\"

Tan Wang: \"…\"

Not always. Excessive pressure breeds rebellion. Before they could kill each other, they’d likely break and take their own lives.

But this time was different…

As Tan Wang prepared to reason with Xu Lv, he watched Xu Lv’s lips move, uttering words that chilled his spine:

\"Tan Wang, why aren’t you acting like your old self this time?\"

Tan Wang barely recalled if he responded. Dazed, he found himself already standing beneath the carriage.

Why would Xu Lv say such a thing? Coincidence—or was Xu Lv the one who’d threatened him?

Yet it made no sense. With rank comes authority. Instead of wasting effort investigating and threatening him, Xu Lv could simply command the mission directly. Xu Lv could dictate their pace and methods freely—Tan Wang might offer suggestions, but final authority rested with Xu Lv!

What… was truly happening?

And why wasn’t he acting as before? He’d always adapted to urgent circumstances! But never with someone as troublesome and weighty as the Deposed Crown Prince. Even if he wanted his old methods, her survival had to be considered! Hadn’t Xu Lv himself agreed to send her ahead by carriage to Sanqiao Post Station for treatment? Was that something the old Tan Wang would have done?

Separated by a carriage curtain, the hulking figure now gone, Xu Lv finally stretched his limbs comfortably.

He recalled Tan Wang’s complaint upon boarding: they should’ve found a larger carriage.

Hah. Who wouldn’t want that?

Who wouldn’t want a spacious carriage to lounge in?

Who wouldn’t prefer personal servants over clumsy guards?

Who wouldn’t crave rich feasts and soft beds!

But if he traveled in luxury while the deposed heir suffered as a pawn… Should that heir regain power and remember the contrast, Xu Lv’s future would be bleak.

Still, he now held office. No feasts, no servants, just this cramped, worn carriage… Surely he wouldn’t earn hatred?

Wasn’t the prince known for kindness…?

Xu Lv lifted the window curtain a fraction—and met Tan Wang’s piercing stare outside.

Annoying.

Xu Lv offered a thin smile and dropped the curtain.

May this warrior understand:

What \"like before\" truly meant. What \"keeping prisoners alive\" required. What \"minor scuffles without fatalities\" entailed.

As for how far to push them… Well, Tan Wang commanded the guards. The prisoners’ actions were their own. What concern was it to Xu Lv, a mere minor official resting in his carriage?

The higher-ups’ orders felt twisted, diseased—yet success promised promotion.

As guards shouted for meal distribution outside, Xu Lv steeled himself.

Three months of hardship. He could endure.

After the guards drove Li Dayong and Sun Xinang away, silence enveloped the cart.

Apart from Du Yinsui and two oblivious children, the other three sat stunned—each harboring different doubts.

They all had questions but kept them to themselves. Du Yinsui didn\’t seem to care about the atmosphere, sniffing the milky flatbread carefully before holding it up to Jiang Wu. \"This is for you, can I…\"

\"Keep it,\" Jiang Wu cut in fast.

Though still shocked by what Du Yinsui had said to the Li family, Jiang Wu quickly focused, cutting her off before she could say words like \"marriage\" or \"family,\" which might have confused him more.

Du Yinsui smiled and pulled her hand back, but instead of eating the bread like the night before, she tucked it away.

The three of them, each lost in thought, didn\’t notice this.

Nearby, a bored little one playing with grass came up to the cart and stared.

\"What? Want some?\" Du Yinsui waved the bread in front of the child, smiling. \"Oh, who got mad at me last night?\"

The little one paused, her cute face puffing up, then she scurried back to her brother\’s side.

\"Really not eating?\" Du Yinsui waved the bread again.

The child turned away.

\"If she doesn\’t eat, you should, Du girl…\" Chu Xiulan said weakly.

Oh dear, the last people who wanted her bread came all fierce and left beaten…

Not worth eating.

Du Yinsui glanced at Chu Xiulan, put the bread back, and nodded. \"It\’s right not to eat. Don\’t take things from bad people.\"

She was just teasing the child and teaching her not to eat recklessly. After all, Sun Granny wasn\’t kind like that person from Sanqiao Post Station. Du Yinsui needed her strong sense of smell to return before she could tell if the bread was safe.

But why keep it?

Chu Xiulan watched Du Yinsui hide the bread…

Didn\’t dare ask.

\"Here, the noodles I promised you yesterday. Eat them. Hot water is coming soon, so soak them—no more licking.\" Du Yinsui handed over the food clothes she\’d been partly lying on.

The angry child let out her breath and turned into a little whirlwind, grabbing the food clothes away.

\"Auntie, Grandpa should eat,\" she said, holding the cloth taller than herself next to Chu Xiulan.

Chu Xiulan: \"…\"

\"Go ahead, she licked it yesterday.\" Du Yinsui was still hungry, but now that she was awake, there was plenty to eat.

\"Bad, doggy, bad,\" the little one pouted at Du Yinsui again.

\"Yao Yao, don\’t talk to sister like that, um… Auntie?\" Chu Xiulan glanced at Jiang Wu, thinking.

\"Ha, it\’s fine, I said the wrong thing yesterday.\" Du Yinsui bent down. \"Woof, woof, okay? I\’m sorry, little Yao Yao. I\’m the small dog, don\’t be mad.\"

Qin Chongli: \"…\" Amazed—one moment she was fierce like an army, the next a playful pup.

Now was a time for joking with kids? Couldn\’t she see… someone was standing there, wanting to talk but not knowing how? Where did her quick wit go? Just look up!

Qin Chongli signaled to his daughter-in-law, and they both moved farther from the cart, staying out of the way.

But it was no use; Du Yinsui kept playing with the child.

Qin Chongli peeked at Jiang Wu, who nervously twisted his sleeves, his eyes drifting again and again to the person on the cart.

So annoying. After Du Yinsui barked a few more times, the little one strutted over to the cart and placed her small hand in Du Yinsui\’s palm. Qin Chongli wasn\’t sure what their spat had been about earlier, but he thought his little granddaughter looked rather silly. Soon, Qin Chongli knew he was right.

“Alright, we’ve made up now, Xiaobao. You’re so kind—even though you got mad, you still came to sleep with me,” Du Yinsui said as she lifted the child onto the cart with one hand and nudged the slightly crooked ponytail. “Want to sleep with me again tonight? Last night was so warm. Just don’t fart on the cart; eating only coarse grains makes it a bit smelly.”

Qin Ruyao: “…”

On the wooden cart, the little one’s face flushed red with anger as she struggled wildly to escape the strange woman’s arms. The woman just laughed happily, holding the child tight against her.

“You didn’t do it on purpose yesterday, right? My goodness, you didn’t come to keep me company—you came to fart on purpose, didn’t you? Just because I said you ate too slowly, that it’d take ages, like waiting for chickens to finish pecking rice, dogs to finish licking flour, or fire to burn through locks… Did you come to get back at me?” Du Yinsui pinched the little one’s even redder cheek. “That’s just a storybook phrase for something endless, not calling you a little dog, silly.”

Without anyone else needing to speak, the person on the cart alone created a whole scene of noise and fuss.

Qin Chongli watched. Whether she meant to tease the child wasn’t clear, but… she seemed to be avoiding Jiang Wu’s gaze on purpose?

But why?

She’d just defended Jiang Wu fiercely, shaming the Li family into retreat. Unlike him, tangled in worries, she’d ripped off their masks and thrown the truth in their faces—even saying things like, “Did a newborn strangle you with her umbilical cord to force you as wet nurse, to call her a boy?” So why avoid talking to Jiang Wu now?

Qin Chongli had many whys, but like Jiang Wu, he couldn’t ask a thing while the woman on the cart ignored them completely.

Of course, Du Yinsui didn’t ignore them forever. When the guards banged pots in the distance for mealtime, she lifted her head at once and looked toward Jiang Wu…

Jiang Wu picked up the bowl the guards gave last night to fetch food. Chu Xiulan took the Qin family’s bowl too.

Watching them walk off, Qin Chongli glanced back at the cart and met that… bright, piercing stare.

“Teacher, could you scoop some river water for me?” Du Yinsui smiled warmly, holding out the bamboo tube Chu Xiulan used to get water from the Wei family.

Who was his teacher…

“River water isn’t boiled—you can’t drink it raw,” Qin Chongli didn’t reach for the tube or step closer. After a pause, he added, “Jiang Wu told you last night. Wait for him to return and say it again.”

There it was—that odd, sulky resentment.

“Oh well. I’m so thirsty; guess I’ll drink all the hot water again soon. Ah, Jiang Wu is too kind,” Du Yinsui tapped her bamboo tube. “Too bad. I’ll drink anything, but Jiang Wu would rather die of thirst than touch unboiled river water.”

“You can’t gulp it all! That bowl’s for both of you!” Qin Chongli’s mustache bristled with anger.

Before, when she lay hurt and passed out, Jiang Wu gave most of his food and water to save her—Qin Chongli said nothing then. But now she seemed livelier than Jiang Wu! Shouldn’t they share fairly?

“Oh no, I’m thirsty,” Du Yinsui spun the tube in her hand, sighing. “If I drank a few tubes of river water, I wouldn’t need so much hot stuff. It’s warm today—pushing the cart will make them sweat buckets.”

Qin Chongli stormed to the cart, snatched the tube, and freed his fuming little granddaughter. He shot a glare at the woman. “You said one tube earlier!”

“If you spot any fish or shrimp, no matter how tiny, catch them for me, teacher!” Du Yinsui waved cheerfully at Qin Chongli’s back.

Ah, if her legs worked, she’d skip the talking and leap straight into the river to feast.

Du Yinsui watched the scattered ochre prison uniforms by the distant riverbank enviously. What happened today? No one rushed them to leave like before—they could even wander freely… no one stopped them going to the river.

It was strange. But if every day could be like that, it would be much more convenient. Du Yinsui rolled up her torn pant leg to look at the injury on her leg. In the past, it took a hundred days to recover from a serious injury. But during the apocalypse, a simple fall like this, free from pollution, could be healed within a week by eating the right mutated plants or animals mentioned in the \"Food Scripture.\" But now…

Du Yinsui pulled out a silver-veined white ring with intricate carvings from her pocket. How unfortunate! The miraculous storage ring from the apocalypse had followed her here, yet there wasn’t a single crystal core to go with it! It was like having a treasure mountain in hand but being unable to access it. The wealth she had accumulated over seven years seemed both there and not…

Frustrating! Damn it, inside this ring were flame mushrooms and chicken drumsticks, exactly what she needed, yet so far away. Oh well, she had to rely on her body\’s natural healing. Without being able to eat those mutated plants or animals from the apocalypse, she couldn\’t even get the normal ones here. She survived on only two black bread loaves a day while enduring the nightly agony.

Life like this… really…

Du Yinsui thought she needed to find a way. But before that…

“There really were fish.” Du Yinsui twitched her lips at the tiny, thread-like fish in the bamboo tube.

“But you said—hey, why did you drink it!” Qin Chongli exclaimed. “There are fish in there.”

Du Yinsui, having gulped down the tube\’s contents, was puzzled. “So what? Do such tiny fish need to be grilled?”

Qin Chongli waved dismissively, speechless. “Forget it, I didn’t say anything.” Oh well, someone who had eaten moldy mung bean cake and rotten eggs surely wouldn’t stop at just wanting to see small fish.

Qin Chongli glanced toward the distance. Quite a few people were still lined up by the guards’ two large pots.

“Little Du girl, if I may speak boldly with the presumption of age.” Qin Chongli had washed his face while fetching water, believing it had washed away some of his seriousness and made him a bit kinder. “I see that you seem quite different now than when we departed. Have you given up your previous wish to die?”

“Indeed, to live well, one must drink water.” Du Yinsui turned the bamboo tube to show Qin Chongli the bottom, then smiled. “Teacher…”

Qin Chongli pretended not to see the empty tube. Instead, he looked into the distance. Seeing that Jiang Wu and the others hadn’t returned yet, he took the chance to ask, “May I ask why little Du girl has changed her mind?”

Based on his daughter-in-law\’s description, this young lady had spent five days in prison. She had spoken no more than ten sentences to Jiang Wu in the neighboring cell. She had sat silently in a corner like a mushroom, hardly eating or drinking. The Liu family women across the prison often cursed Jiang Wu. His daughter-in-law couldn’t stand it and had stood up for him several times, but Du Yinsui had remained deaf to it all, unmoving in her corner. For such a girl, losing the will to live seemed normal.

But…

Now, it seemed a bit odd.

A person who had wanted to die suddenly didn\’t.

She had ignored everything, yet now stood up for things.

And… last night…

Could it really be a pig spirit taking over?

Qin Chongli felt bad about his last guess, but he couldn’t come up with a better explanation.

Du Yinsui had thought about copying her original self’s personality and changing slowly. But the original self had been silent and hopeless in front of these people, and Du Yinsui urgently needed to eat. She didn’t have time to waste.

\"Teacher, are you asking why I no longer want to die?\" Du Yinsui tipped the empty bamboo tube toward her mouth, trying to stir Qin Chongli\’s conscience. But, well, it seemed that conscience was only for Jiang Wu.

Du Yinsui sighed, \"Maybe when I was unconscious, Meng Po told me dying wouldn\’t end things. Instead, I\’d go to a scarier place. There, people turn into walking corpses, and those bitten become walking corpses too, with man-eating beasts and plants everywhere. Worst of all, the food was awful. She let me try common foods there: a broth more bitter than bitter herbs a hundred times over, so bitter it numbed my scalp. Fish that took all day to chew, so tough it made your jaw ache, but you stayed hungry. Oh, and pork so smelly its stench could reach through dozens of rooms… ugh…\"

At first, Qin Chongli thought the girl was making up a story, but as he listened, it sounded real. Especially when she talked about the food—frowning as if tasting bitterness, sucking in her cheeks over the chewiness, and retching at the end. It was like she\’d really eaten it.

No wonder she could stomach moldy mung bean cake and rotten eggs… but wait, why did he start believing it?

Du Yinsui waved a hand, not wanting to remember. \"Anyway, I\’ll stay alive here. Dying sounds too miserable.\"

Qin Chongli found it a bit sensible but illogical, and he had no time for more stories. \"Um… little Du girl, when you drove away the Li family, you said the former Empress punished her by copying ancestral teachings and took her brushes and ink. Was that true?\"

\"Yes,\" Du Yinsui nodded.

\"Not too often, I hope?\" Qin Chongli asked carefully.

\"It was okay. From what I overheard, it happened every two or three months. Whether it was more, I don\’t know; Sun Granny guarded the Crown Prince\’s courtyards tightly.\" Du Yinsui couldn\’t say there might be more, as the original owner was a spy, and clues suggested at least monthly troubles.

Back then, she thought the Empress was just a strict mother away from the Emperor.

Qin Chongli had two sons who were never punished, so he didn\’t know if that frequency was normal.

\"Then, other times, the former Empress was fairly… kind to Jiang Wu, right?\" Qin Chongli had just seen Sun Granny for the first time.

As the saying goes, a servant\’s actions show the master\’s attitude. The Li family\’s rudeness, especially the young woman\’s arrogance and Sun Granny\’s subtle pressure, didn\’t seem new. How did those who knew Jiang Wu\’s identity act in the palace?

After jail, Qin Chongli had many thoughts, mostly about the Emperor. Only today did he see the former Empress in the Cold Palace might not have protected Jiang Wu fully. Maybe they weren\’t clinging to each other to survive. Still, he held some hope when he asked.

But some people exist to crush hope.

\"It was average. Kunning Palace had a small kitchen, and the Empress often learned to cook the Emperor\’s favorite foods to make for him when he visited.\" Du Yinsui glanced at Qin Chongli\’s darkening face. \"But she never learned or cooked specially for Jiang Wu.\"

Qin Chongli stayed silent.

For eighteen years, he knew only of the Emperor\’s deep love for the Empress, his favor for the Crown Prince with endless gifts. The Crown Prince even offered sacrifices to heaven at age ten. Though strict, the Empress knelt to beg the Emperor to excuse him from military studies. Over the years, she managed the frail Crown Prince\’s daily life in Kunning Palace, while the Eastern Palace stood empty, unused for a day.

Now it seemed the Empress was just keeping secrets.

And the Emperor… did he really learn of this only at the banquet ten days ago?

These days, Qin Chongli dwelled on this, telling himself it didn\’t matter, but it did.

\"We\’re going to the Northern lands, likely never returning to the Capital. Little Du girl, if the Li family leaves you alone, let the past go.\" Qin Chongli felt a chill in his heart and avoided deeper thoughts. He looked at Du Yinsui. \"I saw Jiang Wu seemed like he wanted to speak to you earlier, but you avoided him. You must realize mentioning old things could hurt him…\"

\"Teacher, can\’t you see? Would my words about the past hurt Jiang Wu?\" Du Yinsui frowned.

\"I get it. The Li family hurt him, and you protected him by scaring them off.\" Qin Chongli said quickly, afraid she\’d misunderstand. \"Just don\’t go too deep into the former Empress\’s actions. It might make him feel…\"

\"Afraid I\’ll say how the Empress punished him, making him see his mother didn\’t love him much?\" Du Yinsui tried to follow Qin Chongli\’s logic.

Seeing the old man nod awkwardly, Du Yinsui scoffed.

Like drinking water, warmth or cold, only the drinker knows. Love or not, it didn\’t need her to say…

Originally, she hadn\’t planned to say much, at least not now.

But…

\"Teacher, who do you think would neither want to eat nor drink?\" Du Yinsui touched the stones on the cart, her thoughts drifting elsewhere. If Jiang Wu hadn\’t stopped Li Dayong, who knew whether he\’d have broken his left leg or right?

What sort of person? Qin Chongli\’s first thought was the person before him—no, more accurately, who she was before tumbling down the slope. He remained silent.

Du Yinsui didn\’t wait for his answer, spotting Jiang Wu returning in the distance.

\"Do you think Jiang Wu eats and drinks now because he wants to? Earlier, I avoided speaking with him not because mentioning past events would hurt him, but because I hadn\’t decided… whether I should save him, or if I could.\" Du Yinsui spoke rapidly before Jiang Wu reached them, then fixed Qin Chongli with a serious look. \"Teacher, what about you? Do you want to save him?\"

What are you saying? What are you always spouting? Qin Chongli\’s eyes widened, his heart hammered as if punched, but before he could question further, Jiang Wu returned.

\"Drink some water first.\" Remembering Du Yinsui choking down dry flour last night, Jiang Wu offered a bowl by the cart.

\"Not thirsty.\" Du Yinsui took the lone black bread loaf from Jiang Wu\’s hand, broke off a small piece, and returned the rest. \"Not hungry. You eat it.\"

\"This is yours. I\’ll keep it for when you\’re hungry. Where\’s the bamboo tube from last night? Pour the water in there for later. The bowl needs returning.\" Jiang Wu moved to the cart\’s other side to find the bamboo tube.

\"You didn\’t eat or drink last night, nor this morning. Become an immortal?\" Du Yinsui addressed Jiang Wu but kept her gaze on Qin Chongli.

\"It\’s fine. I\’m not hungry,\" Jiang Wu replied offhandedly.

Nearby, Qin Chongli lowered his eyes, unwilling to let Du Yinsui, and especially Jiang Wu, see his thunderstruck expression.

Yes, throughout this journey, Jiang Wu only accepted food or drink when utterly unable to endure. Even now Du Yinsui was awake, he still avoided necessities unless desperate… And his forbearance toward the Li family, this careful tending to Du Yinsui now…

Qin Chongli felt he finally understood.

The next moment, Du Yinsui made him understand even more.

\"Jiang Wu, I tried to end my life twice. Not because I was betrothed to you, nor because we were exiled together.\" Du Yinsui cursed her own softness; having survived an apocalypse, she still couldn\’t wait until her legs healed. She shot a glare at Qin Chongli, hoping he\’d muster some conscience, giving her another stake in this gamble.

Unusually, Jiang Wu didn\’t respond. He picked up the bamboo tube from the cart and shook it. \"Why\’s there mud inside?\"

Qin Chongli: \"…\"

\"I\’m talking to you. Did you hear?\" Du Yinsui tugged Jiang Wu\’s sleeve.

He flinched back as if burned.

\"No matter the reason, live well. I\’ll do my best to make sure you…\" Jiang Wu clutched the bamboo tube, avoiding Du Yinsui’s eyes.

Today had overwhelmed Jiang Wu. Du Yinsui\’s words to the Li family were things he\’d never considered, never dared imagine. He didn\’t know what this talkative mouth might say next, words that squeezed and twisted his heart, nor… if they were true. He wanted to hear more, yet felt he shouldn\’t, didn\’t dare.

But listening was never Jiang Wu\’s choice to make.

\"I told you back in prison, that bowl spilled on you because someone struck my knee. It was a trap. We were both victims. Neither of us was at fault.\" Du Yinsui paused. \"Fine, since we\’ve come this far, I\’ll tell you why I tried to die those times. When my mother died, my father sent me to the palace to earn silver for her revenge. The day we left the Capital, I saw he\’d married the woman who killed my mother. They even had a child, looking blissfully happy. I wanted to become a ghost and tear them apart!\" The original owner had genuinely wished for that upon hearing of the Jin Kingdom\’s amnesty.

As she spoke, the stone in Du Yinsui\’s hand slammed onto the weathered plank beneath her.

Qin Chongli, who\’d assumed Du Yinsui was spinning tales again, heard the grinding teeth in her final words and saw the dent left on the plank. He could only… believe once more.

\"This plank is old. Be gentle.\" Jiang Wu poured water from the wooden bowl into the bamboo tube and placed it beside Du Yinsui. \"Want a drink?\"

Du Yinsui: \"…\"

What was happening? She\’d spoken seventy percent truth! How could no one believe her?

She\’d wanted to set an example for the old man!

Qin Chongli, stepping away momentarily, understood.

So much guilt? Guilt toward the Li family, Du Yinsui, himself, even more people… perhaps even the Emperor and Empress?

Ha! She didn\’t strangle everyone with her umbilical cord demanding they call her a boy! Why carry such crushing guilt?

A child is but a blank page. Who scribbled this awful mess of guilt onto hers?

Damn it all – Rome wasn\’t built in a day, nor guilt this deep.

Was there any justice left in this world?

Only by stripping away that unwarranted guilt could Jiang Wu truly live again.

Qin Chongli grasped Du Yinsui\’s meaning.

But how to lessen guilt ingrained over so many years? Could mere words suffice?

Or… Qin Chongli thought of his recent agonizing. Did he need to confront Jiang Wu with a potentially more painful \"truth\"? If it *was* the truth, had Jiang Wu lived a dream all these years?

To save or not to save? Would it be salvation or deeper suffering? Qin Chongli finally understood the earth-shattering weight of the little Du girl\’s final question.

The problem was, his storytelling paled next to Du Yinsui\’s. If Jiang Wu didn\’t believe *her*, would he believe *him*?

To Du Yinsui, Qin Chongli\’s temporary retreat looked like the heartless old man running away, refusing to help.

Frustrated, Du Yinsui glared at Jiang Wu, who stubbornly avoided the topic. \"I didn\’t lie to you!\"

\"Mm, you didn\’t lie to me,\" Jiang Wu nodded agreeably. \"Do you need to… relieve yourself? There\’s time. I can help you.\"

Du Yinsui: \"…\" Too furious to speak.

Jiang Wu didn\’t press further. Watching Du Yinsui\’s cheeks puff with anger, he felt a faint, unexpected urge to smile on this heavy morning.

*Thank you. You\’re the first to say I wasn\’t wrong. Even if it\’s trickery or comfort… it sounded truly… wonderful.*