Three days passed. Xu Wan'er sighed. Xue Liulan had driven everyone out of Zhaoyang Palace, even Little Dingzi. He guarded the empty coffin alone.
Despite the divorce letter, he insisted on holding a funeral for Murong Jin.
He sat on the floor, leaning against the ebony coffin. Stubble darkened his jaw. He didn't care.
"Murong Jin, it's been three days," he rasped. "We've been apart for ten days, half a month, thirty days. But I have never missed you like this."
His voice echoed in the empty hall.
After a long silence, he used the coffin to pull himself up. He stumbled to her vanity and picked up the Yinghong rouge. It still smelled sweet.
"Yinghong keeps the spring, but meetings are rare. Murong Jin, where will I ever find someone as spirited as you again?" He gripped the white jade box. A tear fell into the rouge, staining it darker.
He walked back to the coffin and placed the rouge beside the jade pillow. Inside lay her silver armor. He reached out, his fingers hovering over where her face would be.
"Cough." He coughed violently, blood splattering onto the armor. He quickly covered his mouth, smiling gently. "Look at me, dirtying your clothes."
He wiped the blood away, but his tears fell instead, soaking into the silk beneath the armor.
"I said I would let you go. But look, I still can't untie this." He pulled a knot of hair from his robe. It was messy now, but the strands were still tightly entwined.
He had tied their hair together, promising her a lifetime. He never thought that promise would become her shackles.
"Murong Jin, will you blame me if I keep it?" He clutched the knot.
"You will, won't you? I said I'd let you ride free, yet I cling to your things."
He placed the knot on her armor, his other hand resting on the coffin lid.
He stopped. His knuckles turned white. If he pushed, the coffin would close forever. He would have nothing left but memories.
In a flash, he snatched the knot back, stumbling away from the coffin.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't sever the past.
At the gate of Zhaoyang Palace, Xu Wan'er faced Guo Lingyu's sedan chair. She ignored the consort, pretending not to hear Little Dingzi's announcement.
"Insolent! Who are you to not kneel?" Guo Lingyu sneered.
"Consort Guo, this is Concubine Xu Wan'er, sister of the Duke of Jin," Little Dingzi said quickly, protecting her.
Guo Lingyu sniffed. "So what if she has Jin backing her? She's just the blind woman divorced by Gongzi Suyi."
Xu Wan'er frowned. "The nation mourns the Empress. Your rouge is quite exquisite today, Consort Guo."
During mourning, makeup was forbidden. Guo Lingyu's painted face was a slap in the face to the dead Empress.
"Sharp-tongued for a blind woman."
As Guo Lingyu spoke, she looked up and saw Xue Liulan standing in the gateway, hands behind his back. His face was expressionless, but a chill radiated from him.
"Your Majesty." She hurried out of her sedan chair and bowed.
Xu Wan'er turned toward him.
"Murong Jin disliked noise. Leave," he said calmly, hiding his earlier breakdown.
"I came to pay respects to the Empress." Guo Lingyu knew Murong Jin's death was linked to her godfather. If the Emperor wasn't blaming her, that was the best outcome.
"Do you need me to escort you out personally?" His voice dropped, his gaze sharp as a blade.
Guo Lingyu shivered and fled.
"Your Majesty should take care of yourself. Sister Murong wouldn't want to see you like this," Xu Wan'er said after she left.
He turned to the empty palace. "Does she even care about my despair?"
Xu Wan'er was silent.
"Little Dingzi, take the Princess back." He closed his eyes.
He walked away, alone in the long corridor.
"Eunuch Ding, why did Guo Shangzhong try to kill me?" Xu Wan'er asked.
"The Empress killed the assassins. The case is closed. The Emperor didn't investigate further."
Didn't investigate? Or didn't want to care about Murong Jin anymore? Xu Wan'er sighed.
Back in the Imperial Study, Xue Liulan slammed the door. "Come out."
A woman in black dropped from the rafters, kneeling on one knee. "Master."
"Rise." He sank into a chair. "Xiazhi, what did you find?"
"The operation was flawless. I checked the guards who were supposed to protect her. Nothing suspicious."
"Who was in charge that day? Why were they absent?" His voice was devoid of warmth.
Xiazhi shivered. "I asked. They received your handwritten order to spy on Guo Shangzhong."
"My order?" He frowned. "Since when do I use written orders for the Fifteen?"
"It was your handwriting. And the messenger was from Thousand Days Drunk."
Thousand Days Drunk. Die Man's organization.
"Thousand Days Drunk." He repeated the name, killing intent rising in his eyes. "She forces my hand."
Xiazhi was silent. Die Man hated Murong Jin. She had a motive.
Before Xiazhi could blink, Xue Liulan swept past her, heading for Die Man's palace.
Leaking information to Guo Shangzhong. Borrowing a knife to kill. Die Man knew Murong Jin would die to protect Xu Wan'er.
Smack. The door flew open. Die Man, drinking alone, looked up to see Xue Liulan's stone-cold face.
She laughed bitterly, pouring herself another cup.
"I knew you would come. My little tricks never fool you."
He entered, closing the door. He sat opposite her, poured a cup, and drank it in one gulp.
"You went too far." He looked at her calmly. "I was the one who failed you. Why take revenge on Murong Jin?"
"What should I have done? Kill you?" She mocked him. "Am I so heartless in your eyes?"
"I told you. Come at me. But do not touch her."
"No. The fault is yours." She downed her wine. "If not for her, you wouldn't have known love. If not for her, even if you didn't love me, I could have stayed by your side as a confidante."
"Without Murong Jin, my life would be empty." He stared at the empty cup. Even now, speaking her name brought a dull ache to his heart.
"Cruel!" She stood unsteadily, pointing at him. "I don't ask for you to be mine alone. But is there no room for me at all?"
He stood, drew his soft sword, and offered the hilt to her.
"We met by the sword. Let it end by the sword."
Her eyes blurred with tears. She looked at the cold steel.
"You think you can get rid of me so easily?" She stepped back, glaring at him. "I will make you feel guilty forever. You will never forget me."
"If my heart still held guilt for you, I wouldn't want it."
He plunged the sword into his own chest. Blood dripped to the floor.
"Liulan!" She gasped.
"Your Majesty!" Little Dingzi burst in. He saw the blood and screamed. "Guards! Consort Die is attempting regicide! Protect the Emperor!"
Guards swarmed in, separating them.
"Consort Die attempted to kill the Emperor. To the dungeons. Execute her tomorrow at noon." Xue Liulan pulled the sword out, grimacing. He looked at her.
She stared at him in disbelief. But in that moment, he wished the sword had truly killed him.
As she was dragged away, Little Dingzi ran for a doctor. A shadow landed in front of Xue Liulan.
"Master."
"Tomorrow, send Die Man back to the Southern Borders. She is never to enter the Central Plains again."
He closed his eyes.
"Murong Jin. If I had been decisive earlier, perhaps we wouldn't be here." He sighed long and deep. "Murong Jin, I miss you."