Was such talk permissible in the palace?
The Emperor’s face darkened.
Li Tong was startled as well.
By rights, Cai Zhong himself should have presented this, but judging by his appearance, the man couldn’t even stand up.
“Bring it here,” the Emperor commanded.
Li Tong immediately complied, stepping forward swiftly to take the letter from the prostrate Cai Zhong and respectfully presenting it to the Emperor.
What happened, happened. Seeing it now or later would be pointless; the Emperor hesitated not at all and unfolded the paper.
It was the kind of urgent report stationery used by Cai Zhong’s subordinates, which the Emperor recognized, though he hadn't seen this particular version in some time. Because it was an urgent dispatch, the content was usually terse, generally summarizing the event in a single sentence. This dispatch was no exception; it contained just one simple line.
Qi Niangzi encountered a sudden flood in Bingzhou, the boat sank, deceased.
Li Tong wasn't sure whether to retreat or remain standing, but his peripheral vision was fixed on the Emperor, who, after calmly opening the letter, suddenly became utterly still. In that instant, Li Tong involuntarily held his breath too.
Was the matter truly grave?
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty, this old servant will investigate again. Perhaps there’s a mistake, perhaps it hasn't been confirmed, so it might not be…” Cai Zhong managed to push himself up, his voice trembling.
The Emperor closed his eyes and crumpled the letter in his hand.
“Investigate!” he commanded.
What was happening?
How could this be?
What kind of joke was this!
“She’s dead? How could she be dead?” Chang Yuncheng watched the woman kneeling before him, trembling from head to toe. “Why aren’t you dead? Why aren’t any of you dead? Why aren’t any of you dead?”
His gaze swept over the scene before him: so many people, a chaotic mess of the known and unknown, lying, kneeling, standing, shouting, speaking, running. But why wasn't that woman there…
Why wasn't the woman who promised to come find him there…
The woman who said she would arrive by the end of the month…
Aru lifted her head, her face utterly unrecognizable, tears still tracking down her swollen eyes.
“My Lord, this servant was meant to die, but I cannot die yet. The Lady had words for you that this servant must deliver…” she wept.
Chang Yuncheng felt his whole body shaking beyond his control, yet he felt utterly rigid.
“If she has words, you don’t need to say them. She will tell me herself; she will tell me on her own. You don’t need to speak…” He tried to kick Aru away and lunge outward, but he could only manage to shuffle forward step by agonizing step.
Aru cried out and rushed forward, grasping Chang Yuncheng’s leg.
“My Lord, My Lord, listen to me…” she wailed.
Tears blurred her vision; the sound of wind and rain filled her ears.
“Pull…”
Qi Yue called out.
Aru frantically yanked Ah Hao, who had been pushed toward her, her face indistinguishable between rain and tears, unsure if she was cold or terrified, her teeth chattering incessantly.
“There’s still a chance, rescue breathing,” Qi Yue shouted.
Aru quickly obeyed. The person hauled out of the water was dead weight. With tremendous effort, she managed to flip Ah Hao over, lift his head, and began compressions, artificial respiration. After several attempts, Ah Hao finally coughed twice and sputtered back to life. Aru, as if utterly drained, turned around only to find no trace of Qi Yue by the riverbank. The surroundings were pitch black, a swirl of rain and river water.
“Mistress, Mistress…” Aru crawled toward the river’s edge and shouted loudly, “Qi Yue, Qi Yue…”
With a splash, another person was hauled out of the darkness.
“There’s one more, pull…” Qi Yue gasped.
Aru frantically grabbed hold.
“Help, help…” a weak cry drifted from the darkness.
Seeing Qi Yue prepare to turn back toward the water again—
“Mistress, no more, stop it…” Aru cried out.
“It’s fine,” Qi Yue said.
Her voice seemed to drill out from between clenched teeth, because she had a knife held firmly in her mouth.
“Save them quickly,” Qi Yue managed. “I know what I’m doing…”
Aru’s hand went slack, and the woman before her vanished back into the water. Sobbing, she dragged this disciple with all her strength, turned her over, and administered mouth-to-mouth.
When the third person was pushed ashore, Qi Yue was already exhausted. She exerted immense effort just to push the body over.
“Quick, quick…” Aru shouted, reaching out.
Qi Yue reached out too. At that precise moment, her body lurched downward, catching even the water-savvy woman by surprise and making her swallow a mouthful of water.
Aru shrieked.
“My foot is tangled…” Qi Yue cried out, struggling to surface, taking the surgical knife from her mouth—the one she’d been using to cut clothes, water weeds, and ship ropes—and dove under again after taking a deep breath. But she resurfaced almost immediately, gasping for air.
Aru stretched her hand out, gesturing urgently.
“Pull me up, it’s too thick and wet to cut quickly. I’ll cut it when I’m up,” Qi Yue said, extending her hand as well.
Aru grabbed her hand. Though cold and frightened, the repeated compressions and resuscitation attempts had left her completely spent, yet she pulled upward with all her might.
But with a slight thunk, Qi Yue sank again, abruptly dragging Aru down with her, causing her to stumble and fall, half her body already submerged in the churning water.
“It’s bad, the current is pulling me downstream…” Qi Yue shouted as she slid into the water.
Aru screamed and stretched out her hand again, gripping on desperately.
But against the power of the river, her strength was too little.
“Let go!” Qi Yue yelled. “Let go!”
Aru shook her head in desperate refusal, crying.
Qi Yue kicked slightly to gauge the pull, biting down hard on her lower lip.
“Aru, listen to me.” She lifted her head and shouted at Aru, “Aru, you know I am not Qi Yue Niang; I am Qi Yue. I am Qi Yue from a thousand years in the future. I am a doctor. I have parents, brothers, and sisters. I have a boyfriend, a husband I was about to marry. Aru, I ended up here because of an accident. You know why I tried to hang myself then? Because if I died, I could go back. Aru, listen and remember this well: if I die, it’s not me who dies; it’s Qi Yue Niang who dies. I am Qi Yue. Qi Yue hasn’t died; Qi Yue has gone back—back to my home, my world, to marry, have children, and live happily. Everything here is just like a dream. Aru, remember this. None of you should grieve. You must tell Chang Yuncheng that I have returned to my home. I have a man I love and who loves me. I will marry and have children and be happy. You must remember this, tell him: I didn't die, I went home. I am marrying another man. I am marrying someone else and going to live happily. He must not be sad, he must not grieve. I am not dead…”
Aru shook her head, weeping, screaming, struggling to pull her up. But half her own body was already in the water, and the swirling current immediately began to drag her in too.
“Let go, let go!” Qi Yue hissed.
“No, no,” Aru cried, shaking her head and extending both hands to grip Qi Yue’s arms.
“Remember what I said. If I can’t get out, tell him—tell him you all must live well, that we all live well…” Qi Yue shouted, and the surgical knife she held tightly in her right hand sliced viciously into Aru’s hand.
The intense pain made Aru let go instinctively. She screamed, watching the woman vanish instantly before her eyes.
No…
No…
NO!!!
Get away! Get away!
Chang Yuncheng stomped his foot down heavily, kicking away the woman who clung to his leg, weeping hysterically.
What words! What nonsense!
Did that woman think those ridiculous words could trick him? Could surprise him?
He wouldn’t fall for it! This foolish, clumsy woman—she thought she could play a trick on him? Dream on!
“My Lord, My Lord, this servant isn’t lying to you! Qi Yue has gone back, Qi Yue has gone back! You must be well, she wants you to be well… Don’t be sad…” Aru lunged forward again, grabbing the hem of Chang Yuncheng’s robe.
This time, Chang Yuncheng ignored her, striding directly toward the exit. His movements were sharp and forceful. Aru lost her grip and watched the man bolt out, finally collapsing into a faint from her weeping.
The shouts and cries of the people around him were invisible and inaudible to Chang Yuncheng; he ran straight toward the riverbank. The floodwaters had receded, returning to normal, only the mud along the banks served as a reminder of how fiercely the torrent had raged.
Nonsense. How could this river possibly trap that woman!
Chang Yuncheng ran along the bank. She can swim, she can swim! Anyone else might drown, but she absolutely would not! She wouldn’t! She must be hiding! She definitely is!
On both sides of the river, countless people moved, dragging nets and shouting calls. Time and again, they hauled the nets up, only to find them empty, time and again.
“Get out of the way, get out of the way!” Chang Yuncheng shouted, shoving aside the onlookers. “She wouldn’t be here! She wouldn’t be waiting for you to fish her out! She’s not here!”
She wasn’t here. She must be hiding. Just wait, I’m coming for you!
On the spread-out map, an eunuch pointed with his finger.
“…It was because the river here breached that the Hutou River surged so high, from here to here…” he explained.
The Emperor stood to the side, hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the simple diagram, his expression impassive.
“…It happened at night, so no one noticed, and Lady Qi’s boat was swept out of the channel, striking a large tree and capsizing…” the eunuch continued.
“I don’t wish to hear this,” the Emperor said slowly. This was the first sentence he had spoken in half a day.
The eunuch quickly nodded his assent.
“…Lady Qi had chartered the whole boat, including the boatmen, making twenty-three people in total. Ten survived in the end…” he said, head bowed low.
The Emperor remained silent, hands clasped behind his back.
Although autumn had arrived, the weather was still hot, but the eunuch felt a chill creeping over him.
“…Among the ten survivors… s-survivors… Lady Qi was not among them…” he stammered out.
The Emperor’s gaze shifted toward him. The eunuch instantly lost the ability to speak.
“…N-no… it’s not… they are still looking… not certain…” Cai Zhong quickly interjected.
Only then did the Emperor’s gaze move away from them, returning to the map, focusing on the section marked with a stark line of crimson…
The great hall felt as if it had frozen solid.
Urgent footsteps sounded from outside.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty…” an eunuch rushed in, “We found…”
The Emperor suddenly spun around, his eyes instantly alight.
“Found…” the kneeling eunuch gasped for breath, “Lady Qi’s body…”
The Emperor closed his eyes.
Indeed, in this world, there was ultimately no such thing as luck…
“Your Majesty is a good person…”
“Your Majesty’s seriousness shows respect…”
The woman smiled radiantly, and her figure vanished at the doorway.
Gone…
There was no longer this person…
No longer the one who dared to address him with ‘I’…
No longer the one who dared to look him straight in the eye…
No longer the one who understood him and answered so readily…
No longer the one who offered him the simplest, most direct, most brilliant smile…
It wasn’t distance…
It wasn’t the inability to see her…
It wasn’t the inability to think of her…
It was that she was simply… gone…
In this world, this person no longer existed.
Gone is gone.
The chapter title has been changed. Thank you to ￠￠, Gagu Baobei, Lanyangyanghao, Romantic Lavender01, A’hu Hu, Xia Xi, Yijin Duiyi, Jin Qin, Mai Mailili for rewarding us with Peace Charms. Thank you to anna1978, Just Woke Up Cat for rewarding us with Sachet Charms.