Chapter 247 – Grandmother, You Are Finally Here
Chapter 247 Grandmother, You Are Finally Here
“Yongming, there’s nothing I can do. You used to be filial and listen to me. Now, I need you to bless your younger brother… He… He had no choice… It was all your own doing. If you hadn’t done…you wouldn’t have ended up like this…”
Tears fell from Old Lady Ji’s eyes as she spoke, and she placed the incense sticks in her hand into the incense burner as she muttered to herself.
Concubine Xiang looked up at the eternal flame, and tears immediately fell down. She couldn’t help but sob. Ji Yongming was a hero back then, but now there was only his eternal flame, which made her feel sad.
Concubine Xiang knelt down on the praying mat. She picked up the paper money next to her and burned it, tears streaming down her face. She felt extremely sad.
Yue’s eternal flame was next to Earl Ling’an’s. Concubine Xiang knelt on the praying mat in between, sobbing.
The old maid was burning paper money for Earl Ling’an, and Old Lady Ji was speaking in front of Earl Ling’an’s incense burner. Her voice was low, but Qu Moying could hear her.
Qu Moying came in from the side door.
Just now, Yu Dong sneaked into the hall. He went to the side door, opened the side door for Qu Moying, and led her in. Then, he waited behind the door. When he saw Old Lady Ji coming over, he lit up the sachet, and Qu Moying retreated to the back of the curtain.
The side door faced Qu Moying, and it stood ajar, so the wind could blow over. The wind blew back the smoke caused by the burning as the curtain slightly fluttered.
It fluttered gently, so it wasn’t noticeable.
“Yongming, your niece is now the Crown Prince’s Side Concubine, Eastern Palace’s Princess Ji. Please bless her to rise to a higher position, and also bless our family to be more prosperous…” Old Lady Ji muttered to herself. Then, she wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief and said, “Your younger brother even has his son adopted by you, for fear that no one will offer sacrifices to you in the future. Your younger brother always thinks about you, so you can rest assured.”
She was a little tired from speaking, so she took a praying mat and sat down on it in front of her son’s eternal flame. Then, she began to mutter again. She talked about what had happened recently, which made her nervous, especially what had happened last night. It reminded her of what happened when Ji Hanyue entered Eastern Palace, and she was scared.
After saying these words to her son, she felt a little comforted and didn’t feel so panicked.
A trace of ruthlessness and anger flashed in Qu Moying’s eyes. Even now, Old Lady Ji still felt that her second son was a good person and wholeheartedly prayed for the safety of Ji Youran.
Ji Yongming had died a long time ago. Old Lady Ji knew about the truth, but she and Ji Yong’an still pretended that everything was alright. She even asked Ji Yongming to bless the second branch and protect Ji Youran. Qu Moying could not bear Old Lady Ji.
Knowing that it was about the time, Qu Moying lowered her voice and called out, “Grandmother…”
Old Lady Ji touched her forehead, feeling weaker and weaker. She seemed to have heard Ji Hanyue’s voice just now. Ji Hanyue was the ex-Crown Princess. Her eternal flame was also lit here but in an innermost small room. Not everyone could enter the room to worship her, not even Old Lady Ji. At most, she could only worship her outside the room.
“Grandmother…” Old Lady Ji vaguely heard the voice again, and it came closer and closer. “Is it Hanyue?” Old Lady Ji thought to herself. Compared with her other granddaughters, Ji Hanyue’s voice was much more dignified and gentler. It had a unique charm, completely different from others’ voices. Old Lady Ji could tell Ji Hanyue’s differences from others, even just in terms of voice.
“Did you hear anything?” Old Lady Ji said in a panic. She moved her hands, only to find that she was getting weaker.
Concubine Xiang knelt on the ground, motionless. She seemed to have fainted from crying.
The old maid looked up at Old Lady Ji and said, “Your Ladyship… I… I think I heard the Crown Princess’ voice.”
“Grandmother… you are finally here…” The ethereal voice came again. Old Lady Ji’s face was pale, and she was trembling.
The old maid was so scared that her teeth chattered. The paper money fell down from her hands. She retreated and shrank into a ball. As Old Lady Ji’s confidant, she knew some things. She felt that the hall was cold and gloomy at this time, but she was too weak to move.
She felt as if she was haunted by a ghost.
“Han… Hanyue, is it you…?” Old Lady Ji was equally panicked and powerless. She collapsed on the praying mat. She tried her best to be awake, but she didn’t even have the strength to move. Her strength was almost used up after asking this question.
“Grandmother… I died so unfairly… Daddy also died unfairly… Grandmother, please seek justice for us…” Old Lady Ji heard the voice again, but she didn’t know where the voice came from. At this time, she was dizzy. Everything she saw was chaotic. She felt as if she had vaguely seen Ji Hanyue who had blood on her face.
She saw not only Ji Hanyue, but also Ji Yongming. He was also covered in blood, but he smiled gently at her, just like when he was still alive.
“No… No… Don’t come to me. It was not my fault… It was not my fault… I had no choice…” Old Lady Ji trembled. She felt that she had used up all her strength, but her voice was actually not loud. “It was the Crown Prince… It was the Crown Prince’s idea. Because you…”
At this point, Old Lady Ji shuddered. She hurriedly shut her mouth and shook her head forcefully, and Ji Hanyue and Ji Yongming’s figures seemed to fade a little.
“I am in the Buddha hall. Here is the place where eternal flames were placed. Hanyue is not here, and Yongming is not here, either.”
“I am here to worship them. I will be fine! I will be fine!” Old Lady Ji comforted herself.
“Grandmother…” The faint voice sounded in Old Lady Ji’s ear this time. She felt a faint breath from her neck. She saw that a strand of her hair was blown to her front, and she could still feel the cold breath on her neck.
“Ah!” Old Lady Ji screamed.
However, this voice sounded very low to those outside the hall. Qu Moying stood behind Old Lady Ji. Looking at Old Lady Ji, who was so scared that she almost fainted, Qu Moying smiled silently.
On the other side, the old maid was so scared that she closed her eyes. She was trembling on the ground, not daring to look around.
“Grandmother… I died so miserably. I’m here for revenge. I am looking for Ji Youran… Daddy has already gone to find Second Uncle…” Qu Moying whispered into Old Lady Ji’s ear.
“Don’t… don’t… please don’t…” Old Lady Ji felt like she was about to collapse. She stared straight ahead, and she could only plead subconsciously.
“Grandmother, Ji Youran set me up… She wanted to steal my position as the Crown Princess. Second Uncle set up my father, and he wanted to steal my father’s title… Grandmother… Don’t you think we should kill them together? Not only them but also Xiao and Ji Yuanxing…” Qu Moying smiled sinisterly with coldness in her eyes.
If she could, she would like to do it herself.
“No, Hanyue. Please don’t! Everything belongs to you, and they can’t take them away. They had no choice. It was the Crown Prince’s idea… Hanyue… Hanyue, the truth is really not like what you think… Hanyue, I… I don’t know either. Really, your Second Uncle said that he would… investigate thoroughly.”
Old Lady Ji cried incoherently. At this time, she told whatever she knew, not daring to hide anything.
“Ji Youran couldn’t get my position… But what about Second Uncle… I heard that Second Uncle still wants to deal with the first branch… He wants to cut off the supply to the first branch and deal with Concubine Xiang and Ji Yuanhai…”
The voice was accompanied by a gust of cold wind, which made Old Lady Ji shudder.
“No, they didn’t want to deal with Concubine Xiang and Yuanhai. The first branch still has Concubine Xiang and Yuanhai. No one will deal with them.”
“Concubine Xiang is only a concubine, Yuanhai is only a Young Master…” The voice was getting closer and closer. Old Lady Ji felt like seeing a figure in front of her, and it seemed to be Ji Hanyue. The figure stretched out her hands with long and sharp fingernails and was about to grab her. She hurriedly shouted, “Concubine Xiang can be promoted to be a legitimate wife. In a few years, I will make a report to ask for a title for Yuanhai.”
Old Lady Ji almost fainted. At this time, she agreed to everything. She didn’t dare to say no. As a first-rank titled lady, she could directly submit a report to the court.
“Ask for a title? Grandmother… can you keep your word…”
“Yes… Yes. I will definitely do what I say. Please spare Youran and the others. I beg you and your father. They didn’t mean it, but they had no choice. It was the Crown Prince’s idea… Please don’t blame them. They don’t have the intention to take your place…”
Old Lady Ji burst into tears.
“Really?”
“Really, really! I promise… I promise you.” Old Lady Ji nodded repeatedly.
“Then I’ll wait and see… see if you promote Concubine Xiang… and protect Ji Yuanhai… Last night, we first branch… Ji Youran… After she died… I’ve also brought offerings to pay respects to father and mother…”
The voice became more and more erratic, and there was a faint sound of wind.
Old Lady Ji couldn’t hear everything clearly, but she kept nodding, afraid that Ji Hanyue would kill her if she nodded too slow and that the whole Ji Family would die as a result of Ji Hanyue and her father’s revenge.
Ji Yongming and Ji Hanyue both died on that day. Ji Yong’an said that Ji Yongming intended to rebel, and the Crown Prince ordered them to kill Ji Yongming. He told Old Lady Ji that if she did not cooperate, the entire Ji Family would be destroyed. Although Ji Yongming was her eldest son and the son she was most proud of, she had no choice.
But for the sake of the entire Ji Family, she couldn’t say anything. She thought she should not be blamed. It was not her fault.
Her consciousness faded, and she only muttered a few words, “Promote Concubine Xiang… Protect Yuanhai…”
She was old, anxious, and scared. At this time, she was almost unconscious. Her head drooped down and she lay on the praying mat.
Qu Moying looked coldly at Old Lady Ji who collapsed on the ground. Then, she looked at the burnt-out sachet. She asked Yu Dong and Yu Chun to put down some of the sacrificial offerings and turned to leave. After leaving through the side door, she entered the hall again from the main door with Yu Dong and Yu Chun.
Not far away, Qu Qiuyan, who had been staring at the hall, was overjoyed. She waved her hand, and Qing Ju hurried out to find Granny Qing…
