"Alright." After a long silence, Gu Xingchuan agreed.
An Ning breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Then ca Gu Xingchuan’s voice, "Then promise one thing."
"Go ahead." As long as he could keep living, she would promise him anything.
"If in the end, I am still dood to die, don’t hate His Majesty." Gu Xingchuan said frankly.
An Ning’s heart stirred slightly.
She lightly pressed her lips together and slowly said, "I won’t hate him. He has his position, and any decision he makes is well-considered. I don’t hate him."
"You must forget ," Gu Xingchuan said deeply, "Forget everything about , and live well, live for yourself."
An Ning nodded.
She nodded heavily.
If in the end, Gu Xingchuan was still dood to die.
She would accept all the consequences.
A deal was struck.
An Ning left Gu Xingchuan’s cell.
Gu Xingchuan also had his dignity, and he was not willing to face her in his current state.
As she left the cell.
An Ning suddenly paused.
Little Wu looked at her and quickly said, "Your Ladyship, rest assured, no matter the final outco for Master Gu, as long as he is not condemned by the Emperor, as long as he is here for a day, I, Little Wu, will surely take good care of Master Gu."
"I know." An Ning nodded.
She naturally trusted Little Wu’s character.
He wouldn’t abuse his power to take revenge because Gu Xingchuan had pressured Xiao Jinxing.
She suddenly thought of Bai Mowan.
Since Xiao Jinxing left, Bai Mowan had also been imprisoned here.
In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed.
Half a year, how was she now?!
She turned and asked Little Wu, "I want to see Bai Mowan."
Little Wu hesitated a bit.
"Is it improper?"
"No," Little Wu quickly replied, "I was just a bit surprised."
"Let’s go and see."
"Yes."
Little Wu accompanied An Ning to another cell.
Sa treatnt as Gu Xingchuan.
Chained up, living in perpetual darkness.
Hearing the noise, she showed little emotional reaction, only indifferently lifting her head. As she saw An Ning, her eyes, like still water, ultimately bore a trace of anger.
She asked harshly, "Has Xiao Jinxing returned to the court?!"
"Thanks to your Bai Family, he is still fighting at the border," An Ning stated bluntly.
"Then why are you here!" Bai Mowan demanded fiercely.
Even in such defeat, she didn’t want to let this woman see her utterly ruined state.
It’s been half a year.
Imprisoned here for a full six months, she had truly had enough.
"To see how you are, how have you been?!"
"How am I?!" Bai Mowan mocked, "An Ning, do you have sothing to laugh at for? Xiao Jinxing promised that if I allied with him, I would redeem myself and have a chance to live. The Bai Family’s honor might still be intact. And you? Yes, you are still the Empress, but do you feel at peace with yourself? Gu Xingchuan is facing disaster because of you! You will live a life of misery! How are you any better than !"
An Ning looked at Bai Mowan’s defiance.
She pretended to be strong and resilient in front of her, fearing her ridicule.
"I never dread that Gu Xingchuan would rebel, rebel for your so-called freedom! Is he insane?! Yet in the end, for your sake, he ended up a prisoner, such a tragic life! An Ning, you’re nothing but a curse!" Bai Mowan continued to taunt with venom.
An Ning was indifferent to Bai Mowan’s intense emotions. She coldly spoke, "Weren’t you also the curse of your Bai Family."
"You!" Bai Mowan’s face turned pale.
"You’re living your life over again and repeating the sa mistakes. What gives you the right to ridicule others?" An Ning asked her.
"If it weren’t for your ddling, how could I have ended up like this? An Ning, even as a ghost, I won’t let you go!" Bai Mowan said through gritted teeth.
"I ddled? How many tis have I helped you and Xiao Jinxing, how many tis have I risked my life for you, and yet you ended up like this, whose fault is it really?! Bai Mowan, if it weren’t for your selfishness and pettiness, trying to eliminate at every turn, would you have ended up like this, would Gu Xingchuan have had such an opportunity! In the end, indeed it was my fault, my fault for being too soft-hearted with you from the very beginning! The thing I regret the most in my life was jumping from the city wall for you at Muge City." An Ning’s suppressed anger finally erupted toward Bai Mowan.
Bai Mowan was humiliated by An Ning’s sarcasm.
It was only now that she realized An Ning never liked Xiao Jinxing, she had soone she loved, and all along, she just wanted to leave Xiao Jinxing’s side. If she had just been more patient, if she hadn’t been so intolerant toward An Ning, if she had fully trusted Xiao Jinxing, even if Xiao Jinxing didn’t love her, she should have trusted him to protect the Bai Family. She would never have ended up like this, and the Bai Family wouldn’t have been dragged down with her!
Due to regret, she was desperately fighting back, unwilling to admit any faults in front of An Ning.
Not wanting to let the enemy see her most vulnerable, broken side.
"If Xiao Jinxing intends to kill Gu Xingchuan, even if Xiao Jinxing spares you, I will ensure you accompany Gu Xingchuan in death! And I’ll see to it that your Bai Family accompanies the Gu Family in death!" An Ning spoke word by word, her words cruel to the extre.
Bai Mowan’s eyes, bloodshot, were fixed fiercely on An Ning, seeing the hatred in her eyes.
She even clearly knew that An Ning could indeed do as she said.
As long as An Ning desired, Xiao Jinxing would certainly follow her wishes.
An Ning threw out one last sentence and stord off.
This was her final ultimatum to Bai Mowan.
If Gu Xingchuan died, Bai Mowan would die too.
If Gu Xingchuan lived, whatever Xiao Jinxing decided to do with Bai Mowan was fine.
An Ning had just walked out of the Heavenly Prison.
There was Song Yanqing coming toward her at a hurried pace.
As if sothing major had happened.
An Ning’s heart tightened.
If it weren’t concerning Xiao Jinxing, Song Yanqing wouldn’t look so anxious.
An Ning involuntarily clenched her fist, as if trying to calm herself.
Song Yanqing approached An Ning, knelt down, and reported excitedly, "Your Majesty, there has been a great victory at the border, and the Empress will return to the palace tomorrow."
An Ning’s eyes flickered.
Hearing this news, her fist tightened instead of relaxing.
She actually knew Xiao Jinxing would win.
He would definitely win.
Yet truly winning and returning gave her a major shock nonetheless.
One side was relieved, and on the other side was... Gu Xingchuan.
Once Xiao Jinxing returned, he would deal with the Gu Family and the Bai Family.
"Your Majesty." Song Yanqing called out to her, unable to help himself upon seeing her state.
An Ning returned to her senses.
She said, "Alright, I understand. When His Majesty returns triumphant, I will personally receive him."
"I will arrange it imdiately," Song Yanqing promptly replied.
As he left, he suddenly paused as if suddenly rembering sothing, and said, "Your Majesty, the Emperor was injured on the battlefield, please prepare yourself ntally."
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