The thin figure in azure clothing appeared at the window, clearly revealing his entire upper body. Gu Xun’s gaze froze as he unconsciously stepped forward.

Lian Pengxing moved his head sideways, glancing at Gu Xun’s involuntary leaning posture and overly focused eyes. He reached out to the corridor railing in front of him, and once again looked in Qi Cong’s direction.

The man in blue was standing in the carved window. Behind him was the warm yellow candlelight, in front of him cold moonlight, light and shadow intertwining his body. The already dark mask set against cold white skin was illuminated by the moonlight, showing a hint of coldness for no reason. He slightly tilted his head, as if to survey the night, and then raised his finger to his mouth, calling a bird with a subtle whistling sound.

Even Lian Pengxing froze.

He had read the complete script and knew the plot. It was true that there was a description of You Changqing calling a carrier pigeon with a whistle, but this kind of plot was usually just for show. The birds were controlled by the staff, so the sound used to call the carrier pigeon would be matched later.

But the sound just now really came from Qi Cong mouth.

Qi Cong even practiced this?

The sound of a bird flapping his wings broke the stillness of the night. A small white figure flew out of the darkness, stopping on the windowsill. The bird flapped its wings and stood obediently,  “cooing” twice at Qi Cong.

Qi Cong’s expression was covered by the mask and wasn’t clear , but he reached out and gently rubbed the pigeon’s head. Then he tied the letter tube to the pigeon’s leg before letting it go. Without any sign of unfamiliarity, he held the pigeon in his hand and after gently touching the  feathers of the pigeon’s wings, he sent it forward.

The carrier pigeon uncannily cooperated to spread its wings and flew into the night and disappeared.

This whole process took less than ten seconds, but it was so smooth and natural that even the pigeon was very cooperative. If it weren’t for the surrounding light board and various instruments interfering with the picture, it would really look like something that was happening in another time and space, without any traces of a performance.

A very low and light short laugh brought Lian Pengxing back from his shock. He looked sideways and saw Gu Xun’s relaxed body posture and slightly curved mouth.

“It won’t take long.” Gu Xun suddenly spoke, his body stretched and even relaxed against the pillar, his eyes still on Qi Cong. His face had a hint of certainty, proud satisfaction and even doting. “He won’t let me wait too long.”

Even Lian Pengxing, who had been in the entertainment industry for so long, has never seen such a direct look of love from Gu Xun. He’d also never seen Gu Xun have such a gesture of unconcealed feelings for someone.

It was too much hypocrisy, but it made those real feelings and his posture feel a little out of place.

Even Lian Pengxing couldn’t understand it.

He looked at Qi Cong again.

There happened to be a night breeze blowing Qi Cong’s hair and hairband just as he turned back to the desk. The cyan headband and the long black hair became intertwined as soft robes rubbed against light and shadow cast by the candlelight. This picture was very beautiful. Without any filter it was already very charming, but beautiful was beautiful. Wasn’t the entertainment industry not short on beautiful people? Why was he the only one? What was so special about him?

“What’s so special?”

When Lian Pengxing suddenly woke up, he realized that he had asked the questions in his heart aloud so he hurriedly adjusted his expression before facing Gu Xun. He tried to think of a way to change the course of this conversation.

Yet as he thought about different ways, he found that Gu Xun didn’t look at him at all.

Gu Xun’s eyes were still on Qi Cong. There was such a proud and appreciative expression on his face as he seemingly muttered to himself, saying, “His presence is just special.”

Lian Pengxing looked at Gu Xun who was reluctant to move his gaze even for a second and his nervousness was replaced by a complex emotion. He looked in the direction of the study again,  and couldn’t help but lean forward as well.

Was his existence just as special?

What exactly was different about Qi Cong from others? Why? 

A gust of wind passed on his side making Lian Pengxing look sideways, but he didn’t see Gu Xun. When he turned and looked around, he saw that Gu Xun had walked out of the corridor and wasn’t near the courtyard flowers close to the study. He seemed to be looking for a more suitable angle to watch.

He hurried to catch up as his eyes couldn’t help but look in the direction of the study again.

His field of vision shifted a bit because he’d moved. The trees and flowers blocked the carved wooden window from time to time. In the gap where his view wasn’t blocked he saw Qi Cong returning to the desk and sitting down as he picked up his military book again. Then he saw a servant boy rushing into the study and saying something to Qi Cong. Qi Cong’s head jerked up and after leaning over and asking a question, he squeezed the book in his hand tightly and quickly threw it away.

He saw that Qi Cong wanted to get up, but because of his eagerness he forgot about his bad leg and held onto the desk to avoid falling down. He then saw that Qi Cong had found a crutch to support himself immediately after he could barely stand. He waved away the servant boy who wanted to support him and limped to the side as he stretched out his hand to the wheelchair by the desk. The servant boy wanted to help Qi Cong again, but instead it only caused Qi Cong to push the wheelchair he just touched askew.

The only thing in Lian Pengxing’s eyes now was a figure whose movements seem to be born from the subconscious. His posture was awkward and he obviously couldn’t see Qi Cong’s expression but he could still clearly see the shock and reluctance. Lian Pengxing couldn’t believe that Qi Cong was able to capture human emotions in so much detail.

The wall obscured the masked figure, which was suddenly out of sight. Lian Pengxing stopped instinctively, trying to adjust his angle so he could see the other person, but his arm was suddenly grabbed and then he was pulled behind a tree.

“Don’t get in the shot!”

At that moment a cold, deep male voice with a hint of disgust spoke. The sound of fluttering birds flapping their wings suddenly pierced the distant night.  Three gray birds flew through the night and set down outside the windowsill where Qi Cong had just sent out the letter.

“Young master?”

A vague juvenile voice came from the direction of the study, making Lian Pengxing return to his senses and realize what he had just done. He was about to turn his head to look at Gu Xun at his side, when he suddenly caught a trace of a low and slightly sandy voice, with a bit of emotionally violent fluctuations, as it was weak but still forced. “I’m fine… just a little worried about Father. Where did you hear the news from? Are you sure you heard it right?”

He tried to sound calm.

“I heard it from the backyard steward, so I’m sure I heard it right. The King is ordering troops to transfer the horses. It is chaotic outside.”

“The horses are being mobilized….”

“Young master?”

“I’m fine. You…you go and make me a pot of tea to calm my mind.”

Lian Pengxing was stunned. He had heard Qi Cong’s voice before and knew that Qi Cong’s timbre was good. However, this wasn’t the same. The voice was the same but the tone of speech was completely different from the usual tone of voice he heard from Qi Cong before.

This was You Changqing. Born in the royal family, although not favored, but also considered to be raised in a privileged way, with a sensitive and complex mind. You Changqing had an aloof personality.

He suddenly realized the gap and couldn’t help but recite the plot silently in his heart, and imagined how he would act here.

In the script, after noticing the carrier pigeons, You Chengqing would go to the window to get the letter after finding an excuse to send his subordinate away.

After a few more moments, there was the sound of walking footsteps, and Qi Cong’s figure reappeared at the desk behind the window with the help of his servant.

At this point Qi Cong moved his head slightly towards the window and turned sideways, blocking the boy’s line of sight. After sitting down with the boy’s help, he immediately directed the young servant boy to readjust the wheelchair that was tilted to one side, and then motioned for him to remake the tea.

Because the servant boy turned his back to the window to fix the wheelchair, he didn’t notice the carrier pigeons and asked Qi Cong stumblingly, “Young master, are you really all right?”

“Go ahead.” Qi Cong raised his hand to his forehead, looking sleepy. “Remember not to make the tea too strong.”

The natural refusal and command posture while holding his forehead, unconsciously turning his head slightly to the window sill, revealed a trace of anxiety suppressed by his calm appearance.

Impeccable.

Suddenly, Lian Pengxing  couldn’t imagine himself acting out this scene any longer. He watched the servant boy turn away step by step, and watched Qi Cong immediately put down the hand on his forehead after the little servant left and closed the door. With the help of his crutches he walked towards the windowsill.

Because of his leg deformity and his urgency, Qi Cong’s walking posture could only be described as comical, but this posture wasn’t ugly. Nor was it funny. On the contrary, people couldn’t help but feel a trace of pity because of the restlessness and anxiety revealed by QI Cong’s tense lips and jaw, the hard grip on his crutches and slightly messy robe and other details and emotions.

When he reached the window, Qi Cong seemed to be in a hurry so he suddenly took a big step, and it was this step that made him lose his balance and almost fall forward at the window.

The near fall was painful to watch, but Qi Cong didn’t seem to feel the same as he continued to approach the window, let go of his crutch and lifted himself with the help of the windowsill. He reached out to catch a pigeon that was almost scared off by him.

The pigeon struggled restlessly, so it took him two attempts to remove the letter tube. He released the pigeon and opened the letter in a hurry.

The pigeon flew away in panic and the wind caused by his wings lifted a few strands of Qi Cong’s hair, revealing the frozen expression on Qi Cong’s face.

“Empty?”

Qi Cong seemed to be in disbelief. He examined the letter carefully, then looked in the direction which the pigeon flew away and then at the other two carrier pigeons. They were so frightened that they jumped away when he tried to catch them.

The carrier pigeons were scared by Qi Cong’s large movements and flew up. Qi Cong quickly withdrew his hand and instead put his fingers to his mouth and tried twice before making the whistling sound that called for the carrier pigeons.

The pigeons used by the crew were all trained, so they flew back after being briefly scared away. It looked as if they really had been called back by Qi Cong.

Qi Cong hurriedly opened the letters on the legs of the other two carrier pigeons, then fixed his gaze on them again.

“Nothing again?”

The messenger pigeons fluttered their wings and flew away, leaving Qi Cong standing in the window alone.

“How can it be empty?”

Qi Cong repeatedly confirmed the contents of the letterboxes as his voice changed from pure confusion to fury with a trace of realization. Suddenly, he dropped the letterboxes in his hands and picked up the last one.

“It can’t be empty. You can’t fool me. It’s not–“

His voice however quickly stopped as Qi Cong suddenly threw the letter boxes, letting out a low cry. At the same time he staggered and fell on the interior of the window.

A small grunt of pain and gasping sound came.

After the plan was revealed, You Changqing’s subordinate chose to abandon him and protect himself. He used three carrier pigeons to send two empty letters and a parasite that would trigger the poison in You Changqing’s body.

The anxious You Changqing was defenseless. He was bitten by the parasite while opening the letter, which triggered the toxin in his body and was killing him.

Lian Pengxing relived the plot in his head and watched the empty window after Qi Cong’s fall and listened to the sounds that Qi Cong made. He seemed to be able to see the painful posture of Qi Cong.

Lian Pengxing’s back was a little sweaty, and his hands clenched unconsciously into fists as his eyes were fixed on the place where the sound came from in the study.

No, there was nothing unusual about this performance. He could also put –

A hand suddenly raised to the edge of the desk. It was thin and white, but because of the force used the veins slightly bulged, making the fingertips look slightly blue. Below this hand was a forearm that became visible due to a slipped sleeve. It was also taunt due to excessive force. With the exertion of both, a thin figure trembled slightly, leaning against the foot of the desk, gasping for breath.

Lian Pengxing opened his eyes slightly.

After two seconds of gasping for air, the painful figure suddenly raised its other hand and also put it on the edge of the desk, struggling to climb up. Then he staggered and threw himself onto the seat, He reached out to sweep away a few miscellaneous items that were in the way on the desk and quickly laid out a paper and took a brush, casually dipping it in the ink before stiffly writing.

After You Changqing found out that the sleeping poison in his body had been released, he was unwilling, and wanted to write down the name of those who betrayed him, as well as fabricate a “suicide note” against Prince Rui and You Changfeng, to expose them and let them burn as well.

Lian Pengxing thought of this plot and looked at the figure behind the desk that seemed to burn all the remaining strength of his life as he kept writing, his teeth clenched.

Qi Cong was writing faster and faster, and just as he was about to finish the letter, he suddenly jumped forward and coughed violently, spitting out some blood.

Blood covered the paper in front of him, ruining the suicide note he had just written.

He panicked, coughing and throwing away the brush to save the “suicide note” he had just written. But it was already too late, the blood had already seeped into the paper and as he wiped it he only let blood contaminate more of his handwriting.

He slowly stopped and stared at the letter for a few seconds, then suddenly, as if he had been drained of all his strength, his body collapsed and fell back into the seat, shrinking into a ball and trembling slightly.

A shriek of pain came out, and then gradually turned into a low roar of resignation and despair mixed with hate.

The night was so quiet that it seemed that the anger had also become embodied as it was spreading out layer by layer along with the pain.

Lian Pengxing couldn’t help but avert his eyes and take a deep breath.

The low roar continued for a while, then gradually lowered and weakened. Lian Pengxing hesitantly endured a moment, then finally turned his line of sight back after the low cry completely disappeared.

The back of the desk was empty, Qi Cong was gone. Lian Pengxing was stunned, but then he heard the sound of crutches scraping across the floor, followed by Qi Cong’s figure wobbling and standing straight up.  He seemed to be in a trance, clutching his crutch to his chest in one hand while he supported his body on the table with another. He threw himself into the back of his chair.

This action seemed to have exhausted all his strength. He leaned against the back of the chair and held his crutches for a long time, gasping for breath, his Adam’s apple rolled as if he was humming something. Then he suddenly struggled to sit up against the desk, stretched out his hand and threw away the blood-contaminated “suicide note”.  He then carefully laid out a piece of white paper, took the brush and ink and slowly started to write.

At the end of his life, You Changqing, whose mind was eroded by toxins, forgot all his plans and hatred. He only remembered the picture of his mother holding him and humming nursery rhymes to lull him to sleep when he was a child. It was also the happiest moment of his short life.

There was blood slowly spilling from the corner of Qi Cong’s lips, so he raised his hand to wipe it away. His fingers touched the mask when he was wiping the blood. He paused for a moment and then suddenly pulled the mask off with force.

The eyebrows that had been obscured for a long time were finally revealed. Unlike the cold, hard, black mask, the exposed eyebrows were gentle and affectionate, while his emerald green eyes that could be regarded by the world as the most painful water marks, were as beautiful as a quiet lake after the rain.

Long hair was brought up by the mask’s hair band, revealing the contours of his cheeks before gently falling back to his chest. Then emerald green pupils closed and opened again, regaining some clarity.

“Mother…your child wants to rest….”

Qi Cong put his mask aside and picked up his brush again as he continued to write.

One sentence, two sentences… five sentences… six sentences….

Nursery rhymes were not long so as the last stroke fell, the man who was holding strong collapsed instantly. Before losing consciousness completely, he instinctively let go of the brush and touched the crutch that was always at hand, grasping the red gem on it.

Bang.

The released brush rolled to the edge of the table and fell to the floor with a crisp sound.

Life dissipated silently.

Afterwards, the candle flame wavered. It wasn’t known how long later, a young servant boy came back to study with the newly brewed tea, knocked on the door for a long time without an answer before tentatively pushing open the door of the study. After seeing the scene inside the room he dropped the tea in his hand in shock, and ran towards the desk while shouting loudly, “Young master!”

“Cut!”

Director Wang’s voice suddenly rang out, startling everyone back to their senses.

Lian Pengxing suddenly came to his senses. He instinctively followed the voice, but all he could see was the wall of the study. Director Wang’s voice came again through the wall. “Pass! Qi Cong you did very well. Someone go and add more blood to Qi Cong’s face. Let’s add a scene of Qi Cong bleeding from seven orifices.”

When the set became noisy, Lian Pengxing could hear Shen Jia calling “Brother Cong” and saying something happily. Gu Xun had been standing beside him before but had left at some point, so now he was left standing alone under the tree outside the study.

He suddenly stopped caring where Gu Xun went and just looked into the window not far away.

Many staff members gathered around the desk, covering the azure figure. All of them wore mixed expressions of excitement, awe, and amazement, making everyone unconsciously speak very softly.

Chattering, the worldly noise dispelled the quietness from just a moment ago.

Lian Pengxing withdrew his sight, looked up at some place in the void before turning around and walking away.

Acting or something, was too meaningless.

 

Edited by: Antiope1

 

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