When Qi Ying awoke, the sky had completely darkened, and candles were lit in the room.

He had a slight headache and his consciousness was somewhat hazy. When he opened his eyes, he saw a woman prostrate by his bedside—the most familiar to him, his little girl.

He was dreaming of her again.

Ever since their parting years ago, he had often dreamed of her. Sometimes he would dream of real events that had actually happened, and sometimes they were merely illusory fantasies—it was hard to tell.

And at this moment, the her in his dream was crying.

She was prostrate by his bed crying, seemingly sitting on the floor. Who knew how long she had been there like this? Those beautiful eyes of hers were nearly swollen from crying. Now seeing him open his eyes, her sobs became even more sorrowful.

What? Even in dreams, do I still make you this sad?

Qi Ying sighed somewhat, extending his hand with considerable effort to gently wipe away her tears, saying: “Don’t cry anymore.”

Dreams were things that both harmed and ferried people across. Though after waking one would inevitably feel even more empty and desolate, before awakening one could rarely speak a few words of truth.

He missed her very much, and loved her very much too.

As always, he still cherished her most, even his gesture of wiping her tears was careful and gentle, and his tone when speaking to her was also tender and cautious.

But she was still crying, even extending those slender little hands of hers to grasp the hand he was using to wipe her tears, clutching it tightly, looking at him and saying: “…How could you do this?”

This had some questioning intent in it, and Qi Ying momentarily didn’t know which matter she was referring to. After all, in his heart, there were too many things he had wronged her in—like ten years ago when he had cruelly allowed her to kneel in the snow outside the gates of Fenghe Courtyard, and when he had made her cry during her coming-of-age ceremony, and even later when he failed to fulfill his promise to take her away, personally sending her off to marry far away.

He had indeed hurt her too much.

Under the candlelight, he gazed at her with eyes filled with indelible tenderness and guilt, answering her: “Yes, it’s all my fault.”

She cried even harder, as if she couldn’t bear to hear him apologize and admit fault, her tears falling even more fiercely, drop by drop falling on the back of his hand—first hot, then ice cold.

That sensation was somewhat too real, making him vaguely feel something was amiss. Then he discovered that the person before his eyes was somewhat different from his usual dreams: she wore a hairstyle that felt somewhat unfamiliar to him, the kind that only married women would wear, whereas in his previous dreams, she was still a very young little girl.

He came to his senses, finally realizing that this was not a dream. The person before him was indeed her—she had come to find him.

Hadn’t she already left? Why was she now prostrate by his bed crying?

Qi Ying momentarily couldn’t be bothered to investigate these matters, only suddenly aware that his way of interacting with her just now had been highly improper. Once his rationality recovered, his gaze toward her immediately became coldly distant, and additionally, he pulled free from her tight grip on his hand.

He sat up, looking down at Shen Xiling from his elevated position, his brow tightly furrowed, asking: “Why are you still here?”

There it was again—he had become cold and distant again.

The tenderness and indulgence from moments before seemed like her illusion, disappearing in an instant. But Shen Xiling at this moment couldn’t be bothered to quibble over these things. She struggled to stand up using the bed edge for support, but having sat for so long, both legs had gone numb. Just as she got up, she fell back down again. He instinctively reached out to support her, as if afraid she might get hurt, then quickly withdrew his hand, his expression as cold as if the person who had just supported her wasn’t him.

But Shen Xiling had no time to concern herself with these things. She sat by his bedside, demanding: “Why exactly did you touch that thing?”

Qi Ying’s brow furrowed, his gaze seeming to waver slightly, yet he remained silent.

But Shen Xiling could no longer tolerate his continued silence. Her emotions had already reached near collapse. At this moment, she grabbed his arm, clutching it tightly, crying loudly and demanding: “Tell me! Why exactly did you touch it?!”

The circumstances of how Qi Ying came to be contaminated with Five Stone Powder had many deep-rooted origins to trace.

Five years ago, after Shen Xiling married far away, the court situation in Great Liang became even more unfavorable to Qi Ying.

At that time, the warfare between north and south had briefly ceased. Though the Wei forces had retreated, all the previous fruits of Great Liang’s northern expedition had been completely destroyed, and everything had to start from scratch.

The new sovereign Xiao Ziheng faced a choice at that time: whether to restore Qi Ying to office again, or to throw him in prison and determine his punishment.

This was not an easy decision. The new sovereign’s heart was actually somewhat conflicted. The current situation indeed needed Qi Ying to resist foreign aggression, but he harbored deep hatred for the aristocratic families after all, and had finally managed to drag the Qi family down from the clouds—how could he be willing to give Qi Ying another chance for a comeback? “Wildfire cannot burn it all; spring winds blow and it grows again”—he also feared leaving himself with future troubles.

Qi Ying naturally knew what the Son of Heaven was thinking and considering, so before the emperor made his decision, he had entered the palace for an audience.

After arriving at the Imperial Study, he had to wait outside, because at that time the Empress Dowager and the Great General were still inside speaking with His Majesty. They had blood relations—the Great General and the Son of Heaven were uncle and nephew after all, naturally much closer than others.

Han Shouye was a military official, originally rather rough in temperament. Moreover, now that the Qi family had newly fallen, the status of the Han clan became even more important, almost becoming the new foremost aristocratic family of Jiangzuo. Though Han Shouye was not the head of the Han family, he was the person with the highest official position and greatest power in their clan, controlling the deployment of three hundred thousand troops—truly possessing overwhelming authority.

He was in high spirits, naturally proud and satisfied. Continuous loud laughter kept coming from the Imperial Study, even louder than the voices of the Son of Heaven and Empress Dowager. Qi Ying listened silently outside the door, his lowered eyelids concealing the deep thought in his eyes.

Later the door of the Imperial Study opened. The new sovereign personally escorted the Empress Dowager back to her palace, while Han Shouye stayed back a step, looking Qi Ying up and down as he waited long outside the door, sneering: “How is young Master Qi here? Since you’ve come, you could have had someone go in to announce you. How is it you’re standing outside waiting for so long?”

Qi Ying performed the proper courtesies to him, answering: “The General was conversing with the Empress Dowager and His Majesty. It would be improper for an outsider to disturb them.”

This phrase “outsider” made Han Shouye feel very satisfied. He laughed heartily, seeming quite delighted and carefree, saying again: “If you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have forgotten—so the Qi family actually has no kinship with the imperial family, then you truly are an outsider indeed.”

He was quite pleased with himself, circling around Qi Ying twice, then mockingly patted his shoulder, lowering his voice to laugh wickedly and say: “This can’t be blamed on you though—it’s because your father didn’t give birth to daughters. But wasn’t Ziyu determined to marry you? Who told you to be so arrogant and greedy for power and profit that you wouldn’t want her? If you had been willing to marry her then, why would you have fallen to being an outsider now?”

These words actually made quite a bit of sense.

Currently, both the Han and Fu families had marriage connections with the imperial family, only the Qi family was excluded. If their clan could also produce an imperial consort, perhaps the current situation would be somewhat different. And if Qi Ying had originally married Xiao Ziyu, perhaps the Qi family wouldn’t have reached such desperate straits.

But he had not made that choice.

Partly for the sake of family and country, and secondly… he already had a beloved woman in his heart, and he was unwilling to betray her.

Even though she had already married someone else.

Even though there was destined to be no outcome between them.

Speaking of which, that Sixth Princess was indeed an infatuated fool. With the noble status of an imperial princess, a golden branch and jade leaf, she had continuously harbored passionate love for Qi Ying for so many years. Even when the Qi family was cast into the dust, she remained unchanged in her devotion, constantly pestering her imperial brother about wanting to marry Qi Ying as his wife. This forced Xiao Ziheng into quite a headache, though he never agreed—of course he wouldn’t agree. He wanted Qi Ying dead; how could he let his own full sister marry a dead man?

At this moment Qi Ying remained silent, while Han Shouye became even more delighted, completely venting the pent-up frustration from years of being controlled by the Privy Council, by the Qi family, by Qi Ying.

Qi Jingchen, aren’t you quite remarkable?

Deep down, you’ve never truly looked up to others, have you?

But look at yourself now—like an ant, unable even to decide your own life and death.

Han Shouye left laughing heartily all the way. Even after walking far away, his laughter could still be heard, causing the palace servants coming and going to turn their heads slightly.

Later, after the Son of Heaven finished escorting the Empress Dowager back and returned, he finally summoned Qi Ying into the Imperial Study.

Actually, at that juncture, no matter what Qi Ying said or did, it couldn’t move the sovereign. What could make Xiao Ziheng change his mind was only the realistic situation, and all Qi Ying could do was perceive the thoughts in his heart and guide the situation accordingly.

He prostrated himself at the Son of Heaven’s feet, not speaking of court matters, but saying he wanted to request leave for a period of time.

At that time, Xiao Ziheng sat on the imperial throne, raising his eyebrows: “Request leave? For what purpose?”

Qi Ying knelt with lowered head, answering: “Recently my father has been frequently ill, and my elder brother has also caused troubles. There is no one at home to take charge. I fear my mother is overworked, so I have no choice but to request leave from Your Majesty.”

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ziheng’s expression changed somewhat.

He indeed knew that recently the Qi family had become a complete mess. After the great case, both Qi Zhang and Qi Yun had been dismissed from office. Besides these two, several other children from collateral branches of the Qi clan had also suffered punishment by association. The Qi family already showed signs that their fortune was nearly spent.

Qi Zhang had lived a smooth life, never expecting to encounter such great misfortune in his old age. The family was nearly destroyed under his leadership, so naturally he couldn’t avoid grief and anger affecting his health. It was said he had even suffered a stroke and could now barely get out of bed. While Qi Yun hadn’t fallen seriously ill, because of this ordeal he had developed thoughts of renouncing worldly concerns and converting to Buddhism, constantly making a fuss about wanting to take monastic vows. It was said he had visited all three temples—Jiming, Dingshan, and Qixia—and even didn’t disdain some unknown small temples, trying them all. It was only because the abbots of various temples had received instructions from the Qi family not to accept him that they barely managed to restrain him.

With all these chaotic matters before him, Qi Ying indeed had no choice but to withdraw and return home to handle things.

And Xiao Ziheng knew that people like Qi Ying always spoke with deep implications, revealing only two or three parts on the surface, with the real meaning they wanted to express buried deep underneath.

—He was actually trying to tell Xiao Ziheng that the Qi family had already fallen to this state and could no longer bear the title of “aristocratic family.”

So they were no longer enemies.

Xiao Ziheng understood his implication, while also hearing him say: “Your subject is incompetent. Fortunately, there are the Great General and Right Chancellor to bear the burden. I imagine that even if the court lacks me alone, it will not cause any great hindrance. I hope Your Majesty will graciously approve.”

These words had even more profound implications—his deliberate mention of Right Chancellor Fu Bi and Great General Han Shouye at this time was hinting at what?

He was telling the new sovereign: The Qi family has already been defeated, but the Han and Fu families still hold great power. Now they are the enemies of the imperial family.

Xiao Ziheng secretly let out a long sigh, then couldn’t help but reflect: Qi Jingchen truly is the person in this world who best understands how to manipulate people’s hearts.

Indeed, ever since the Qi family’s downfall, Xiao Ziheng had developed new hidden concerns—the Han family.

That was his maternal clan, his greatest reliance and support before his ascension to the throne. But now that he had become the ruler of Great Liang, his maternal clan had become external relatives, his support had become a hidden concern. Everything was undergoing subtle changes in silence.

When circumstances change, affairs naturally change as well—this was perfectly normal.

Author’s Note:

Here’s a brief introduction about Five Stone Powder~ The following is not original content, but researched material:

During the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties period, consuming elixirs was popular. People of that time liked to take Five Stone Powder seeking immortality and eternal youth. The earliest advocate of taking Five Stone Powder was He Yan, a famous neo-Daoist philosopher of the Wei-Jin period. After him, it spread among the upper classes and eventually became popular throughout society.

Five Stone Powder was composed of stalactite, sulfur, white quartz, amethyst, and red halloysite. These were all warm and dry mineral medicines. After taking them, people would experience fever throughout their bodies and become mentally agitated.

Those who took Five Stone Powder had to eat cold foods to dissipate the heat, so Five Stone Powder was also called “Cold Food Powder.” Because Five Stone Powder’s medicinal properties were extremely violent, relying solely on “cold food” to dissipate the medicinal effects was far from sufficient. It also required supplementary cold baths, walks, wearing loose clothing, and other methods to help dissipate the medicinal properties. Such behaviors were called “powder dispersion” or “practicing dispersion.” However, there was one exception—the wine they drank had to be “warm.”

However, taking Five Stone Powder not only failed to achieve the goal of longevity, but actually caused many people to go mad and become feverish, with many dying as a result. Poets like Han Yu, Du Mu, and Cui Hao all died from taking stone powder, and even several Tang dynasty emperors died from taking stones. The serious harm that taking stones inflicted on the body was undoubtedly shocking.

Taking stones mainly induced two types of diseases: first, it triggered surgical conditions like carbuncles and back abscesses; second, it damaged people’s nervous centers, leading to mental confusion, fits, and madness. And those emperors, generals, and ministers who took stones for the purpose of aphrodisiac and sexual indulgence often died from excessive dissipation and exhaustion due to taking stones. Of course, this was not uncommon among famous scholars either.

This situation aroused people’s vigilance, and the practice of taking stones gradually declined after flourishing for over 300 years.

[Simply put, it was a very early form of drugs.]