PFC Chapter 745 It’s No Longer My Home
Chapter 745 It’s No Longer My Home
In the late autumn of Chang'an City, the twilight was like spilled ink, quickly staining half of the sky.
The cold wind swirled with dead leaves, turning the bluestone road into a mottled golden color.
After school, Li Jingyi clutched the Chang'an Daily, which was rustling in the wind. The hem of her plain skirt swept across the moss in the corner of the wall, and the straps of her schoolbag embroidered with lotus flowers swayed gently with her steps.
She stopped beside a teahouse on Zhuque Street and looked at the large vermilion characters on the front page - "Princess Wencheng was promoted to the Princess of the Tang Dynasty."
A bitter taste rose in her throat, and her nails dug deep into the newspaper.
At her birthday banquet five years ago, her father personally cut a piece of osmanthus cake for her and said softly, "Whatever Yi'er wants, your father will give it to her."
At that moment, the glaring words on the newspaper stabbed into his heart like a spear. The vendor beside him was hawking freshly baked Hu pancakes, the aroma mingling with the smell of charcoal fire, but Li Jingyi felt only a churning in his stomach.
She stuffed the newspaper back into her schoolbag and turned around, the silver hairpin in her hair hit the brick wall, making a clear and crisp sound.
After turning three streets and alleys, the vermilion lacquered gate of the Su Mansion was faintly visible in the twilight.
The octagonal lantern hanging under the porch was already lit. In the dim light, Su Tan, wrapped in a thick sable fur coat, sat in a sandalwood wheelchair. His skinny fingers tightly gripped the wheelchair armrests, and his cloudy eyes stared at the alley entrance without blinking.
The cold wind blew across his gray temples, and a few strands of silver hair fluttered in the wind.
"grandfather!"
Li Jingyi trotted forward, his voice filled with anger and distress, "Why are you waiting in the wind again? You old cold legs..."
She squatted down and reached out to warm the old man's cold hand, but felt something wet - she didn't know if it was lingering rain water or unwiped tears.
Su Tan trembled as he touched the top of his granddaughter's head. His hands, covered with age spots, gently stroked her soft hair: "Yier has grown taller..."
He forced a smile, his half-missing front teeth leaking air, "Let's go to the palace with Grandpa tomorrow to see His Majesty."
This sentence was like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing the concern in Li Jingyi's eyes.
She stood up suddenly and took a half step back, her Xiangfei bamboo umbrella making a crisp sound on the bluestone slabs: "I'm not going!"
Memories came flooding back.
The white silk in front of the Taiji Hall fluttered in the wind. The weak face of the Queen Mother, the departure of the brother, the neglect of the Emperor Father...
"Why do we have to fight to the death?"
Li Jingyi suddenly choked up and said, "Just for that throne? We are obviously a family!"
Tears flowed uncontrollably, winding like a river on her pale face.
Ever since her brother committed suicide, she has never been willing to set foot in the palace again.
Even though her father called her several times and Su Tan persuaded her many times, she still stubbornly locked herself in the courtyard of the Su Mansion.
Su Tan sighed heavily, and the wheelchair made a harsh squeak on the bluestone slabs.
He took out a yellowed silk handkerchief from his sleeve, on which was embroidered half a broken lotus - it was the dowry embroidered by Su Zhi herself when she got married.
"Your mother told me..."
The old woman's voice trembled. "She said, 'Then I will take good care of His Majesty. He suffers more than anyone else.'"
"bitter?"
Li Jingyi suddenly laughed out loud, his laughter tinged with sadness. "Would an emperor who controls the entire world suffer? Would a person who forces his own son to death suffer?"
She recalled the day her brother was buried, when her father stood in front of the mausoleum, his back so thin that it seemed as if a gust of wind could blow him down. But at that time, she was filled with only hatred.
Su Tan started coughing violently, and his old body kept shaking in the wheelchair.
The old servant hurried forward and patted his back, and it took him a long time to catch his breath.
He tremblingly took out a brocade box from his arms, and after opening it, a white jade hairpin lay quietly on the velvet. The hairpin head was carved with twin lotus flowers. It was the token of love that Li Chengqian had given to Su Zhi.
"This was sent by your father, Li Zhentao."
Su Tan's voice was weak but clear, "He said, 'Leave it to Yi'er for me, as if it were your father's last gift of flowers to her'... and this will."
The old man took out a bright yellow imperial edict from his sleeve. "His Majesty has granted you the richest fief in Jiangnan and specially built the Changle Palace. He said..."
Su Tan's voice suddenly choked. "He said he hopes Yi'er can be safe and happy forever."
"Your father, in his entire life, has never been an emperor like an emperor. The food on his table is worse than that of an old man like me. He has never built a palace in his entire life, but he built one for your daughter."
"You know what? Yi'er?"
Li Jingyi slumped down on the stone steps, the chill seeping through the stone slabs into her bones. She remembered how her father always held her on his knees when she was a child, teaching her to read poetry and write.
She remembered that during the Lantern Festival, her brother carried her on his back as he walked through the brightly lit streets of Chang'an to buy her a sugar figurine.
She remembered her mother teaching her embroidery in the garden and saying, "Our Yi'er will surely meet a good man in the future and live a happy life."
These heartwarming moments intertwined with the bloody scenes that followed gave her a splitting headache.
"On the day You'er committed suicide, Your Majesty did not sleep for three whole days."
Su Tan said slowly, turbid tears sliding down his wrinkles, "He won't kill You'er. He promised your mother."
"But You'er... You'er would rather die than bow his head."
"He's a stubborn bastard! He wants to use his own death to make your father infamous for eternity!"
"Your Majesty is not only the Son of Heaven, but also a father!"
Night completely enveloped the city of Chang'an, and the lanterns of the Su Mansion swayed gently in the wind.
Li Jingyi knelt in front of his grandfather, buried his face in the old man's robe, and cried loudly.
The resentment, grievances, and longings that had been suppressed for so long now turned into surging tears, soaking Su Tan's clothes.
Behind the cold palace walls, living is not only the almighty emperor, but also a lonely and painful father who has lost his wife and son.
"Grandpa, I'll go with you."
Li Jingyi raised his head, tears still in his eyes.
She carefully took the white jade hairpin, which felt cold to the touch.
The next morning, Li Jingyi changed into a plain white skirt.
The Su Mansion's carriage slowly drove towards the imperial palace. The sound of the wheels rolling over the bluestone slabs seemed like the echo of time.
When the towering palace gate opened before my eyes, the morning mist had not yet dissipated.
She looked at the strange yet familiar scene in front of her. It was the place where her mother had taken her, wandering around.
Sister Xiao Taohong would always give her delicious food.
Whenever my father was free, he would take his family for a stroll on the streets of Chang'an.
This is her home, the place where all her beautiful memories come from.
But now, everything has changed.
She remained silent and pushed Su Tan towards the Liangyi Hall.
He didn't say a word along the way. Su Tan knew her mood and didn't disturb her.
Until she pushed Su Tan into the Liangyi Hall, Li Zhi was reviewing memorials.
Seeing this scene, Li Jingyi felt as if his heart was being squeezed hard.
The person sitting inside is not his father.
This palace is no longer my home.