novelSusiti Chapter 109 "But that's my sister!!!"
Chapter 109 "But that's my sister!!!"
"BOOM—!!!"
The long table rolled and crashed to the ground, scattering the writing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, military reports, and maps that had been placed on it all over the floor.
The inkstone shattered, and ink splattered, staining a large, menacing black patch on the smooth, black jade brick.
Xu Longxiang stood amidst the chaos, his chest heaving as he gasped for breath.
His black armor was covered in sawdust, dust, and ink stains, making him look disheveled.
Those scarlet eyes were fixed on the crumpled letter on the ground, their gaze filled with madness and pain:
"Sister...why...why did you have to sacrifice yourself..."
His voice lowered, choked with sobs:
"I've already lost Qingxue... I can't... lose you too..."
At this moment, he was no longer the powerful Prince Zhenbei who commanded respect in the northern border, nor the ambitious warlord who plotted to conquer the world.
He was just a younger brother.
A younger brother who could only watch helplessly as his older sister jumped into a fire pit.
Sikong Xuan stood aside, looking at Xu Longxiang's appearance, and sighed inwardly.
He slowly bent down, picked up the crumpled letter from the ground, and carefully smoothed out the creases.
The handwriting on the letter is still clear, and every word exudes Xu Fenghua's unique decisiveness.
"Your Highness,"
Sikong Xuan spoke slowly, his voice aged yet steady, "Miss... perhaps made this decision precisely for your sake."
Xu Longxiang suddenly looked up: "For me?"
"Yes." Sikong Xuan nodded.
"In her letter, Miss said that Qingxue entered the palace alone and could not stand alone. She was worried that Miss Jiang would be isolated and helpless in the palace, worried that she would not be able to deal with Qin Mu, worried that she... would not be able to complete the mission of delivering the message."
He paused, looking into Xu Longxiang's eyes:
"Therefore, Miss has decided to enter the palace herself. One in the open, one in the shadows, they will support each other. With her in the palace to look after you, Miss Jiang will be under much less pressure, and the transmission of messages will be much more reliable. Moreover..."
A glint of light flashed in Sikong Xuan's eyes:
"If Miss can gain a foothold in the palace and earn Qin Mu's trust, then the secrets she can access and the role she can play will far exceed those of Miss Jiang. This will be a tremendous help to our great cause."
As Xu Longxiang listened, the madness in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a deep pain.
He certainly understands this principle.
From a rational perspective, the older sister's choice is the optimal solution.
Having another confidant in the palace, especially one as shrewd, capable, and strategic as my sister, would be of immeasurable value for future plans.
but……
"But that's my sister!"
Xu Longxiang's voice was still hoarse, but it carried a hint of weakness:
"Mr. Sikong, that's my own sister! How could I... how could I let her do such a thing?!"
He thought back to his childhood.
Winters in the North are very cold, and the snow falls heavily.
He accidentally cut his hand while practicing swordsmanship, and the blood wouldn't stop flowing.
It was his older sister who braved the heavy snow to run to the military medical camp to find wound medicine and personally bandaged him. Her fingers were cold, but her movements were very gentle.
"Dragon Elephant, does it hurt?" she asked at the time.
He shook his head, smiled, and said, "It doesn't hurt. I'm a man, this little injury is nothing."
But her older sister's eyes welled up with tears: "Silly child, even a man feels pain."
Back then, my sister was gentle, resilient, and as pure as the snow in the North.
But later...
Her father married her off to the Zhao family in Jiangnan.
On her wedding day, snow fell heavily in the northern border.
My elder sister, dressed in a bright red wedding gown, stood in front of Zhenyue Hall, looking back to the north.
She didn't cry, and her expression was barely visible.
She simply said calmly, "Today I marry not for the Xu family, but for the Northern Frontier. Father, brother, do not forget this."
At that moment, Xu Longxiang suddenly realized that his sister had changed.
The gentleness in her eyes was gradually covered by ice, her smiles became fewer and fewer, and her back became straighter and straighter.
He knew that his sister was not happy in Jiangnan.
Zhao Wenxuan is a good-for-nothing, and the Zhao family is a cage.
But my sister never complained.
She quietly ran the Zhao family business, quietly supplied the northern border with goods, and quietly... paved the way for him.
And now...
She's even willing to give herself up.
For him, for the Xu family, for the so-called great cause.
"Your Highness,"
Sikong Xuan's voice pulled Xu Longxiang back to reality from his memories.
"Now that Miss has made her decision, she will never change it, given her personality. What we need to do now is not to be angry or in pain, but... to figure out how to make good use of the opportunity Miss has created for us."
Xu Longxiang slowly closed his eyes.
After a long while, he opened his eyes again.
His eyes were still bloodshot, but the madness and pain had been forcibly suppressed.
Instead, there was a cold, almost cruel resolve.
He slowly straightened his back.
The dust and ink stains on the black armor now resembled some kind of medal.
He bent down, picked up the smoothed-out letter from the ground, and unfolded it again.
Even by candlelight, my sister's handwriting was still clear.
Every word was like a knife, etched into his heart.
"Mr. Sikong,"
Xu Longxiang spoke, his voice regaining its usual composure, but now even colder.
"Is the person taking over your manpower and trade routes in Jiangnan reliable?"
Sikong Xuan immediately replied, "Miss mentioned in her letter that there are people to take over the work. Given Miss's meticulousness, she must have made proper arrangements. This old minister will immediately send someone to Jiangnan to secretly provide support and ensure that everything goes smoothly."
Xu Longxiang nodded, his gaze falling on the last sentence of the letter: "Do not think of me, do not look for me, do not reply."
Don't worry?
How could I not think of it?
Do not seek?
He wished he could fly to Jiangnan right now and pull his sister out of that hellhole.
Do not reply?
He has a thousand questions to ask and ten thousand words to say.
but……
He knew his sister was right.
At this point, any contact could be exposed and could bring her danger.
"Pass down the order."
Xu Longxiang spoke slowly, each word uttered with extreme difficulty.
"All covert operations in Jiangnan are to go into a state of silence. Without my orders, they are not to have any contact with the Zhao family or with my sister."
"Yes." Sikong Xuan bowed.
Xu Longxiang remained silent for a moment before continuing:
"Furthermore, accelerate our deployment in the capital. After my sister enters the palace... I need to know her every move there. If there is any danger, I must protect her at all costs."
A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes as he said this.
That was the killing intent of the "Little King of the North".
Sikong Xuan's heart skipped a beat: "This old minister understands."
Xu Longxiang took one last look at the letter in his hand, then carefully folded it, put it in his bosom, and pressed it against the spot closest to his heart.
There was another letter there.
The letter that Jiang Qingxue handed to him from the cave.
Two letters.
The two most important women in his life.
Now, they're all in that damned deep palace.
They were all by that damned, incompetent ruler's side.
Xu Longxiang slowly raised his head and looked south.
His gaze seemed to pierce through the layers of palace walls and across thousands of miles of mountains and rivers, landing on that prosperous yet dangerous imperial city.
The candlelight flickered on his face, casting a dim glow on his deep brown eyes.
"Qin Mu..."
He murmured the name, his voice filled with deep-seated hatred:
"You took Qingxue away... and now you want to take my sister away too..."
"very good."
A cold and cruel smile curled at the corners of Xu Longxiang's lips:
"Let's see... in the end, who will take everything from whom."
He turned around and strode towards the outside of the hall.
The plates of his dark armor clanged with each step he took, echoing through the silent hall like the resounding beat of war drums.
His back was as straight as a spear, and his killing intent as sharp as a knife.
Sikong Xuan watched his retreating figure, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.
There was worry, relief, and a touch of... deep sorrow.
This game is getting bigger and bigger.
The cost is getting heavier and heavier.
The player who made the move could not turn back.