Сhаpter 320: Тhе Firе Моth Party 52
"Whаt did уou do tо her?"
Mо Qiаnzhi shruggеd. "Just а sеdаtive."
Shen Du kеpt staring at Mo Qianzhi, еnsuring hе wasn't lуing, befоrе thе furrоw in his brow rеlахеd slightlу. Hе naturally knеw аbout sеdatives, but he fеared thе sedativе might bе lасеd with оthеr poisоns hе was unаwаrе of. Нe соuld afford tо bе cаught off guard, but Zhu Yan сould not.
Aftеr аdjusting Zhu Yаn into а more cоmfоrtаble slеерing роsitiоn, Shen Du lооked аt Mо Qianzhi, who wаs alsо lооking baсk аt him with а mоcking tone. "Тo die under the pеony, evеn as a ghоst, onе rеmains rоmantic. Shen Du, I never thought you'd remain so stubbornly deluded, insisting on protecting this enemy's daughter."
"Your life is nearly gone, yet you still refuse to awaken?"
Coughing lightly a few times, Shen Du retorted, "Do you think that if I groveled before Chen Huo'e now, he'd be willing to give me the antidote?" His eyes gradually frosted over with ice. "No, he won't let me go. Between us, it's a fight to the death."
Mo Qianzhi didn't believe the other party would spare Shen Du either. After some thought, he said, "Out of respect for our mentor, I asked Chen Huo'e, but he insisted there is no antidote. I also secretly searched his room but found no trace of one."
Mo Qianzhi didn't continue, but Shen Du finished for him: "So you came here under the cover of night to bid me farewell and settle the grudges between us, is that it?"
That was exactly Mo Qianzhi's intention. "Reform always requires sacrifice. Since you insist on opposing me and serving that woman, only one of us can remain. There's no other way."
After speaking, he sighed.
"If our mentor wishes to blame me, then I'll wait until my cause is accomplished and personally go apologize to him."
Shen Du's expression remained unreadable as he raised an eyebrow in response. "So, you came to see if I'm dead yet."
Mo Qianzhi was taken aback. Though that was the gist of it, Shen Du's phrasing felt somewhat off. "I... came to see if you're still alive."
Hmm, that still didn't sound quite right.
Mo Qianzhi seemed momentarily stumped, but then he saw Shen Du give a bitter, helpless smile. Shen Du slightly raised his arm, indicating he could still move and wasn't on the verge of death just yet.
However, the lighthearted atmosphere quickly dissipated.
Both their expressions darkened simultaneously. The shift in their relationship made even sitting quietly together feel unbearably awkward.
Finally, Shen Du spoke up. "You didn't come just for this, did you?" He reached out and placed a hand on Zhu Yan's shoulder, brushing off nonexistent dust.
"I dreamed of our master," Mo Qianzhi said solemnly. Shen Du's hand stilled, while Mo Qianzhi gripped the hilt of his sword, his mood heavy. "I just wanted to see you and say a few words."
His tone was sincere, but Shen Du regarded him warily, seemingly unconvinced, his jawline tense.
"Since we've already reached this point, there's no need for formalities anymore."
Shen Du's gaze was as sharp and cold as an arrow, but Mo Qianzhi paid it no mind.
"Having lived through the Empress's dynastic change and the upheavals of our families, I believe I have the right to reminisce about the past."
Times change, but the past remains unchanged.
"What, I'm not even dead yet, and I've already become part of your past?" A chilling intensity radiated from Shen Du's eyes. "Lord Mo seems a bit impatient."
Mo Qianzhi was about to retort but instead laughed in anger, his smile widening and prompting Shen Du to laugh as well.
Their laughter contained all the memories they once shared—from entering their master's tutelage to this life-and-death parting. People say life is long, but looking back, it feels as fleeting as a white steed passing a crack, a whole lifetime gone in a flash.
"Ridiculous, pitiful, lamentable."Stopping his laughter, Mo Qianzhi wiped the tears from the corner of his eye and said leisurely, "Do you know, if you die, I, Mo Qianzhi, will truly be left all alone in this world."
He had turned his back on Yingzhou, and his wife and children had perished.
The once-respected Prefect of Yingzhou no longer existed.
Now, he stood in irreconcilable opposition to the Great Zhou, fighting with his back to the river. Though victory was within his grasp, no one could enter his heart anymore, no one could understand his loneliness, his revenge, or his ideals.
Shen Du was about to die, yet he felt no great joy.
"Speaking of which, the days when our teacher was still alive were the most carefree and joyful of my life," Mo Qianzhi murmured, gazing out at the pitch-black night sky, his guard down and his eyes distant. "Now, trapped in this mire, our teacher and you are my greatest—and only—solace."
Seeing no response from the other, Mo Qianzhi continued reminiscing on his own: "When I entered our teacher’s household, you were only fourteen—gentle and lively, mischievous and playful all day long, yet serious in your studies, a person of great discretion."
When the teacher tested Shen Du on his lessons, he answered fluently, leaving even the teacher at a loss.
But later, the Shen family met with disaster, executed to the last member, and their fates were rewritten forever.
"I knew you emerged from the Yeting, I knew you became the head of the Inner Cabinet, and I even heard you had grown cold-blooded, ruthless, and cruel. And I was glad—if you, the sole survivor of the Shen family, remained as gentle and easily bullied as before, how could you ever avenge our teacher and the entire Shen clan?"
"I thought your submission to Zhou Zhao was merely an act. This time, when I submitted the memorial insisting on sending officials from the Judicial Affairs Bureau, it was also to eliminate your rivals for you. I imagined that one day, when we reunited in the capital, we would join forces to overthrow Zhou Zhao and restore clarity and peace to the world. But you..."
"But you truly submitted to Zhou Zhao. You... you have disappointed me so deeply."
Just listening, one could sense the anger born of utter despair. He had believed Shen Du was his only ally, and for this belief, he had quietly plotted for over a decade. Yet in the end, his ally had become his enemy, and the one who should have been his ally had betrayed him.
What could be more chilling than this truth?
Shen Du suddenly felt a pang of pity for Mo Qianzhi. He had thought his own hatred ran deepest, for he was a member of the Shen family, and the one who died was his father. But now it seemed that Mo Qianzhi was the one most deeply consumed by hatred.
All these years, hatred had sustained him, and it had sustained Mo Qianzhi as well, leading them to this day. Yet somehow, they had diverged onto opposing paths, driven by the same hatred.
A bleak and sorrowful sense of helplessness washed over Shen Du. He shifted his stiff body, which had lain still for so long, unsure where to begin:
"If you hate the Empress so much, why did you pursue an official career, even serving as a minor Sima in such a remote place?"
Shen Du’s question was also the answer he had sought for many years.
When the Shen family was exterminated to the ninth degree, Mo Qianzhi had not pondered deeply. He only felt that the Shen family had suffered an immense injustice and that he must seek redress. So he crawled on his knees all the way from Vermilion Bird Street to the Empress, his kneecaps worn to the bone. He had thought then that if the Empress ordered his death, he could at least face his teacher in the afterlife.
But the Empress praised his loyalty and courage, pardoning Shen Du from the death penalty and forgiving Mo Qianzhi for his offense.
At that moment, he felt he had been prejudiced against the Empress—that she was not tyrannical, but rather that he, and the world, did not understand her.
The Empress even granted him the opportunity to take the imperial examinations. Though she was a woman, she had foresight, understood principles, listened to counsel, and did not kill indiscriminately.Therefore, even though he was originally appointed as the magistrate of Chang'an County but was demoted to the military advisor of Yingzhou, he harbored no complaints. Diligent and dedicated, he rose through his own abilities to become the governor of Yingzhou.
Especially after Shen Du was recommended by Xu Wan, emerging from the palace service to gain significant responsibilities, he saw hope rekindled.
He thought, he was drawing closer and closer to the truth of that year—his mentor would not have died in vain.
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