sjar Chapter 132 Searching for People at the Imperial Ancestral Temple
Chapter 132 Searching for People at the Imperial Ancestral Temple
"Tick-tock".
"Tick-tock".
The sound of water, sometimes near, sometimes far, echoed in my ears.
Jiang Zhi slowly opened her eyes.
The first thing you see is a white figure.
Jiang Zhi tried to move, but her hands were tied up.
The white-clad man, sensing Jiang Zhi's movement behind him, turned around and met Jiang Zhi's slightly cold expression.
He removed his white veil, revealing his face.
"Sister, you're awake?"
"Lou Shuangxin?" Jiang Zhi looked up at him. "Why are you here?"
Lou Shuangxin and Jiang Zhi only met once, but he always remembered her.
Lou Shuangxin smiled and said, "Sister, it's been a long time since we last met."
Jiang Zhi ignored his words, her gaze fixed on his hands, and asked in a slightly hesitant voice, "Whose person are you?"
"Sister," Lou Shuangxin said, "for the sake of the one time I saved you, could you please not kill Prince Jing?"
"Why not kill them?"
Jiang Zhi's eyes narrowed slightly. She was grateful to him for saving her that day, but that was all.
She didn't know why he was there.
Besides, they hadn't seen each other since that day, and they didn't know how to repay the kindness, so they simply gave up on doing so.
Her brow furrowed slightly, her eyes filled with confusion. "Who is Prince Jing to you?"
Jiang Zhi rubbed her bound wrists.
“Sister,” Lou Shuangxin looked at her, her eyes filled with innocence, “do you believe in past lives?”
Jiang Zhi raised her eyebrows slightly, looking at the young man in front of her who had no relation to her. She seemed to have guessed his intentions.
“I believe you,” Jiang Zhi said firmly.
Lou Shuangxin stepped forward quickly, "Then does Sister really believe that sins from the past life can be redeemed in the next life?"
Jiang Zhi stared at him, "I think those who deserve to die deserve to die!"
The rope behind her loosened, and the small knife in her sleeve tumbled out, aimed directly at his Adam's apple.
Lou Shuangxin looked at her, his eyes filled with innocence, "Sister, are you going to kill me?"
Even though Jiang Zhi had put her in this position, she still maintained a gentle demeanor, "I have a secret, do you want to hear it, sister?"
The coldness in Jiang Zhi's eyes faded, and she softened slightly. "What do you want to say?"
"I am the eldest son of the Pei family."
Jiang Zhi's eyes widened in shock.
He's the eldest son of the Pei family? Then who is the current eldest son of the Pei family?
"Shocked?" Lou Shuangxin looked at her with an all-knowing gaze. "I was not instructed by anyone. I did not want to tie you up. I was just afraid you would get too excited."
Indeed, Jiang Zhi also felt that the rope was not tied tightly, which is why she was able to break free.
“I just don’t want to lie to my sister anymore,” Lou Shuangxin said slowly. “You have lost some of your memories because I drugged you. You were kidnapped in Liangzhou, and I was one of the murderers. I listened to the eldest son of the Pei family, who said he could keep me alive. I have been breathing weakly and struggling to survive since I can remember, until he found me.”
"He gave me the medicine to prolong my life, so I'll do his work and monitor you for him."
He was the true eldest son of the Pei family, yet he was homeless, and no one told him that his illness was just ordinary asthma.
He fell ill while out and about and was caught by Yu Jiuxia from Junkangtang. She saved him and told him about his condition.
But just as he learned the truth, his life was cut short by the so-called eldest son of the Pei family.
He is now in unbearable pain, feeling that life is worse than death.
"I don't expect anyone's forgiveness," Lou Shuangxin said with a sorrowful expression. "It's just that Prince Jing once saved me..."
Jiang Zhi released him, her face displeased. "But he and I have a blood feud. My business with him is none of anyone else's concern."
“But you, I can save you,” Jiang Zhi affirmed again, “really.”
Lou Shuangxin slowly smiled and said, "Okay."
He coughed up blood and convulsed uncontrollably, crying out, "Sister...Sister..."
Jiang Zhi was startled and quickly grabbed his body, only to find that his body was actually so thin and weak.
There wasn't even a piece of meat. "Lou Shuangxin—"
Blood stained his chest, and he felt intense pain throughout his body, a sharp pain that pierced his nerves.
He reached out and snatched the knife from Jiang Zhi's hand, stabbing it into her heart.
Before Jiang Zhi could stop it, the knife had already landed on him.
Caught between two waves of pain, he lost all vitality.
Jiang Zhi looked at him, her emotions complex.
She patted his head reassuringly, closed his eyes, then composed herself and stood up.
What does Lou Shuangxin's appearance signify?
He secretly followed us here, which means he came here because he didn't want to live?
What is the eldest son of the Pei family planning to do now? Is he even more scheming than Gu Yuan?
She looked around; the walls were all made of stacked stone blocks.
She took a deep breath.
The air here is fresh, carrying a hint of grass and earth.
She heard the sound of water when she woke up, but the ground around her was dry.
Jiang Zhi listened carefully to the location where the sound of water had just come from, and then headed towards the direction of the sound.
Outside the Imperial Ancestral Temple, the carriage of the Prince of Liang stood by the roadside.
Qinghuai entered the carriage first, but it was empty.
He frowned, sensing something was off about the smell. He held his breath and looked around, only to discover friction marks beneath the surface.
He bent down and looked at it carefully before jumping off the carriage.
“Your Highness, there was sleeping potion in the carriage. They must have drugged the Princess and taken her away,” Qinghuai said hesitantly. “But we found traces of someone hiding in the carriage.”
A gust of wind rose, and Gu Liang looked up at the mountaintop. Hearing this, she turned her head and asked, "Hidden?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Leave a few men here to search, the rest of you follow me," Gu Liang ordered without hesitation.
The abbot of the Imperial Ancestral Temple was an old friend of Gu Liang.
He had fallen asleep late at night, but upon learning that Gu Liang had arrived, he rushed over to see him.
He had already heard Qinghuai's account of what happened on the way.
Upon seeing Gu Liang, he clasped his hands together and bowed, saying, "No monks have gone out of the Imperial Ancestral Temple tonight. Your Highness may search them one by one."
Gu Liang nodded, "I'm really sorry to bother you."
“May Buddha have mercy,” the abbot said kindly. “Your Highness once saved us from a great fire at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, so there’s no need to be so polite.”
Gu Liang glanced at Qing Huai, "Send people to search every room. Report back immediately if anything is found."
Gu Liang turned to look at her mother's memorial tablet.
Beside the black wooden sign, a burning candle flickered, its light casting shadows on his strong face.
"Qinghuai, be quick," Gu Liang instructed.
"Yes." Qinghuai accepted the order and left.
The abbot accompanied Gu Liang outside the hall. "The Imperial Ancestral Temple is very large. If the guards were to search the entire area, it would take at least half an hour."
"Your Highness, why don't you come with me to the meditation room to await news?"
“No need.” Gu Liang stopped. “Is there any place in the Imperial Ancestral Temple where people can hide?”
The abbot thought for a moment and shook his head. "It was renovated a few years ago, but I still can't think of any other place where one could hide."
"Has every part been repaired?" Gu Liang asked.
The abbot recalled again, "The repair work is arduous, and I haven't been keeping a close eye on it. However, if Your Highness wishes to see the repair list, I will fetch it for you to review."
"Thank you for your trouble," Gu Liang said.