Da Li Temple - Chapter 24.2

Chapter 24.2
Confrontation

“Lord ……” Lin Wanqing called him, evidently trying to be calm. He secured her body and pinched her waist, making her dare not to move. She hurriedly changed back to the man’s voice that she had deliberately imitated and reminded softly, “Lord, we’re in Da Li Temple Prison.”
??
Without changing his posture, Su Moyi’s hand loosened its force. As her heart relaxed slightly, Lin Wanqing continued, “Ye Qing and the guards are all outside.”
??
A moment later, the mania and the scarlet at the end of his eyes receded a little. Su Moyi finally released her, but the color of his eyes deepened a few points.
??
Lin Wanqing broke free from his confinement and turned her back to straighten her messy clothes and hair.
??
“I remember.” Su Moyi’s voice came from behind her, clear and cold with hoarseness that hadn’t yet receded.
??
“What happened that night,” he said calmly, “has nothing to do with you.”
??
Lin Wanqing’s hands that tie the knot on her waist paused. She did not dare to turn around. Behind her, Su Moyi’s shaky voice sounded again, “The first time, it was the effects of the Peach Blossom Drunk …… but the subsequent times, it was all because I wanted it myself.”
??
Lin Wanqing’s heartbeat missed a beat, and even her breathing slowed its rhythm. The atmosphere was silent for a moment until the sound of the train of a robe rubbing came from behind.
??
Su Moyi finished those words and opened the prison door with a sullen face.
??
“Lord Su?” Lin Wanqing didn’t understand what he meant and turned around after him.
??
That moon-white robe figure stood still in the doorway with his back facing her. He didn’t look at her, “You saved me once. Now, I’ll repay you once.” He paused. His large palm gripped tightly under the wide sleeves, “What you do not want to talk about, I will check myself. Until I find out, you can stay in Da Li Temple.”
??
A slight glimmer flashed in Lin Wanqing’s eyes as she pursued, “What does Lord mean?”
??
Su Moyi turned to look at her. But she couldn’t see his expression under the dim firelight. “Forget about today’s and the previous matters. In the future, be careful yourself. If you cause trouble, none of it has anything to do with Da Li Temple.”
??
“En,” Lin Wanqing nodded, “Thank you, Lord.”
??
Su Moyi silently looked at her before marching out of the prison.
??
The confined space darkened again. The only thing left in the prison was the black smoke from the torches, the oil-covered firewood crackling and sputtering sparks outward.
??
Lin Wanqing rubbed her aching back and looked down to see the marks left on her neck. A sour feeling hit her nose and eyes, and she hurriedly looked up at the small window above her head. She didn’t cry much, even when she was whipped to a bloody pulp in the Capital Government Office back then.
??
Outside the window was another world. It was already dark, but the moon was clear, and the stars were sparse. She suddenly felt as if she had been trapped in such a dark room for so many years, struggling and walking alone. Whenever she was exhausted and aggrieved, she would look at the sky. Because all her relatives are there watching her, so whenever she looks at them, she can find the courage to continue.
??
Lin Wanqing wiped her face, looked at the starry sky, and smiled, “I’m fine.”

??*

In summer, the air after a few rainstorms was humid and sticky.
??
The rain outside Chang’an Hall has stopped, and the palace servants begin to wipe the stone corridor and sweep the ground, slowly erasing the surrounding silence.
??
Su Moyi mindlessly followed the Empress Dowager along the corridor of the inner palace to the Royal Garden.
??
The Empress Dowager was recovering from her illness, supported by Wei Shu, walking carefully and slowly.
??
Su Moyi came to visit the Empress Dowager today. Since he was accompanying a patient, he should have been careful and considerate. However, Lord Su followed the two silently with a dark face, like a prison officer escorting prisoners. The already stifling atmosphere became even more unbearable.

The Empress Dowager really couldn’t help herself and asked in Wei Shu’s ear, “What’s wrong with Jingche today?”
??
Wei Shu, who was at the side, secretly glanced behind her and shook her head, “It looks like he is in a bad mood.”
??
The Empress Dowager nodded her head and was about to turn back to call Su Moyi over when she heard Wei Shu whisper, “Probably, it’s because he was only concerned with saving Lin Recorder that day and didn’t take care of the Empress Dowager, so he feels guilty.”
??
“What did you say?” The Empress Dowager was stunned and abruptly stopped in her tracks.
??
Wei Shu was confused, blinking her watery and clear eyes. “Shu’er said that cousin perhaps felt guilty.”
??
“No! The previous sentence.” The Empress Dowager said, “You said he went to save Recorder Lin?”
??
Wei Shu paused and pondered, “Yes. When Recorder Lin fell into the water, and the situation was urgent, Shu’er saw Cousin immediately jump into the lake.”
??
“Bad, bad, bad, bad ……” When the Empress Dowager heard these words, her feet went soft. She held her forehead and nearly fainted.
??
Wei Shu hurriedly helped the Empress Dowager sit at the corridor railings. She did not understand: “What was bad?”
??
The Empress Dowager painfully looked at Su Moyi, who sleepwalked into the distance. She wanted to cry but had no tears. “I have been choosing women for Jingche before, and he didn’t have a single eye on them. So — it turns out –“
??
Seeing the Empress Dowager’s reaction, Wei Shu was stunned before said, “Imperial Grandmother is saying that …… cousin he ……”
??
“Hey ……” The Empress Dowager patted Wei Shu’s hand, “I understand this grandson of mine the most. He usually doesn’t care about anyone’s death or life. So, when he jumped into the lake to save someone, besides being possessed by a ghost, there is only one reason.”
??
Wei Shu’s eyes widened. She looked aggrieved, and sadness gradually tinged her brows.
??
The Empress Dowager patted her hand and said, “Why don’t I ask him? Yes or no, there has to be an explanation for you.”
??
Wei Shu pulled her back. “If Imperial Grandmother asks like this, how would cousin be willing to admit it? It might even cause him to hate us, which makes it even more difficult to deal with it in the future.”
??
“Then what can be done?” The Empress Dowager asked.
??
Wei Shu bit her lip and said, “Why don’t Imperial Grandmother send someone to follow cousin first? If he and Recorder Lin have something, it’s only after finding evidence that we can talk, isn’t it?”
??
“Or ……,” Wei Shu paused, “Find someone to check on Lin Recorder. Those who are fond of males are always different from the others.”
??——

Author Notes:??
I don’t want to change it, I don’t want to change it, I don’t want to change it. I’d rather wait for three more chapters before I could eat meat instead of collapsing my persona!