Jiang Chun and Lu Qiuyue wanted to elope in order to escape their marriage, but they were stopped by Ling Yun outside the backyard wall of the Shangshu Mansion of the Ministry of Justice. Looking at the two people's desperate and grief-stricken looks, Ling Yun felt sad in his heart.
His slightly frowning eyebrows were cold and indifferent, as gentle as jade and breezy, "In this world, it is not easy for two people to truly love each other; it is even more difficult for two people who truly love each other to stay together for a lifetime."
He raised his head and stared at the dim and cold moon in the sky. He couldn't help but think of the emperor's marriage to Huan Yu a year ago. From this, he also thought of Lian Nanchun, the man who had made a promise to him. The person he loves deeply, who has been in love for a lifetime but has no chance to be together.
"You go," he finally made up his mind, "leave this noisy and chaotic place, go to a place without disputes, worries, and intrigues, and never come back again..."
After the two of them heard this, their hearts that had been hanging in their throats finally dropped; at that moment, their eyes filled with tears of excitement, their bodies softened, and they collapsed on the ground, and the two of them hugged each other tightly. together, whimpering silently.
Looking at their faces crying with joy, Ling Yun's heart twitched violently, and he couldn't tell what it was like.
After a long time, the two of them came to their senses and knelt down towards him, crying with gratitude and thanking him for his help.
Ling Yun said in a deep voice: "We are all good friends, why do you need to be so distant? Don't delay any more, let's go! The road ahead is full of difficulties and dangers, so you should take care of yourself!"
Jiang Chun and Lu Qiuyue couldn't help but shed tears again. They turned around, kowtowed in the direction of the Shangshu's Mansion of the Ministry of Punishment, then supported each other, one step at a time, and meandered away.
Ling Yun silently watched their retreating figures, gradually getting further and further away, and finally disappeared into the vast night.
In the sky, the Milky Way is moving, the jade dew is clear, and the moonlight is desolate; on the ground, the wind moves the shadows, the osmanthus shadows are mottled, and the insects weep.
The next day, someone had reported to Mr. Lu that the lady of the Ministry of Punishment had left the house, and the letter left by Lu Qiuyue was also presented to him.
When Lu Wenzheng heard this, he couldn't help but became furious, and then he became heartbroken. His face turned pale, and he slumped down on the chair, his lips trembled, and he was speechless for a long time.
Xu Zhi was also in a heavy mood. The first thing he thought of was: Once Miss Lu left, how should he explain the marriage granted by the Emperor to his superiors? He frowned and thought for a long time, then cautiously said: "Sir, do you want to send someone to look for it?..."
Lu Wenzheng waved his hand feebly, "No need. It's the father's fault if the son doesn't educate him; it's all my fault if he raises a daughter unkindly. But I just can't figure it out. No matter how bad I am, I still worked so hard to raise her to such a great age. ; Before leaving, she didn’t even say a word to me, the father!”
Xu Zhi felt pity in his heart and said softly: "Maybe the young lady has her own reasons!"
"You don't need to say it," Lu Wenzheng sighed, "raising a son is unworthy like raising a donkey, raising a daughter is like raising pigs, the relationship between father and daughter for more than 20 years has been destroyed in one day! Alas! If this matter spreads, Lu will still What appearance do you have to meet the world?”
Xu Zhi heard that Lu Wenzheng spoke in an overly serious tone and said uneasily: "Sir, please don't say that. The young lady's running away may just be a temporary impulse. One day she will change her mind and she will come back."
Lu Wenzheng laughed miserably. When he stood up, he accidentally knocked over the teacup on the table. It rolled down and broke into several pieces, with water splashing everywhere.
He couldn't help but sigh and said: "Even if she comes back, I will never recognize her as my daughter again - just like the tea spilled on the ground, it is difficult to collect it when it is covered with water!"
Xu Zhi wanted to say something more, but Lu Wenzheng rolled his sleeves and said, "Mr. Xu, don't say anything else. Who was on duty last night?"
Xu Zhi whispered: "Probably... Commander Ling."
Lu Wenzheng said sharply: "What do you mean it is probably? Is it yes or no?"
Xu Zhi said tremblingly: "Yes!..."
Lu Wenzheng's eyes were dark, covered with a layer of terrifying frost, and he said angrily: "Find Ling Yun for me immediately!"...
Ling Yun understood eighty-nine as soon as he heard the summons. He already realized that something was wrong, but he had to bite the bullet and go to the study to see Lu Wenzheng.
Standing silently in front of Lu Wenzheng's writing desk, he lowered his eyes and swept his long eyelashes down slightly, covering the obscure emotions on his face, and whispered: "Ling Yun, see you, sir."
Lu Wenzheng looked at him with majestic eyes and said, "Commander Ling, were you on duty last night?"
Ling Yun lowered his head and said, "Yes."
Lu Wenzheng said: "Then what do you say about someone running away from the house last night?"
"This..." Ling Yun frowned. He wanted to explain something, but didn't know how to explain it. He pondered for a moment and could only say: "This subordinate... neglected his duty."
Lu Wenzheng sneered: "Such a thing happened in the mansion, do you think it can be settled with just two words of 'dereliction of duty'? In such a severe situation, two living people in the mansion slipped out from under your nose, you There was no investigation at all, what would be the consequences if there were bandits from the Tianxiao organization?"
Ling Yun felt very uncomfortable, but could not explain himself, so he could only say: "Please punish me, sir."
"Of course I have to punish you, otherwise why would you convince the public?" Lu Wenzheng said, turning back to ask Xu Zhi, "Mr. Xu, according to the regulations of the Ministry of Punishment, what is the punishment for dereliction of duty during night duty?"
Xu Zhi whispered: "Those who neglect their duties will be punished with fifty rods, but my lord..."
Lu Wenzheng didn't wait for Xu Zhi to say anything else, he coldly ordered: "Come here, take Ling Yun out of the hall and give him fifty punishments!"
Ling Yun felt cold and didn't say anything, but just lowered his head in frustration.
The execution guards on both sides wanted to step forward but hesitated, and just stood there at a loss.
Lu Wenzheng saw the embarrassed look of the guards, his sharp eyes flashed, and he sneered: "Why, you don't dare to take action because you think Ling Yun is your immediate superior? Do you still need to show any favors in front of me? Is it etiquette?"
The guards still looked at each other, hesitant and did not dare to take action; Lu Wen was about to get angry, but Ling Yun saw it. How could he let this embarrassing situation continue, so he walked out of the door without waiting for the execution soldiers to come forward.
On the execution ground outside the hall, Ling Yun raised his head and closed his eyes slightly in the breeze; then he breathed a sigh of relief, took off his shirt, and exposed his back.
The two guards who carried out the execution were both his subordinates and had always been in awe of him. At this time, the two men were holding up their spine sticks, but before they even started, their hands were already trembling. One person looked troubled and said calmly: "Commander Ling, we..."
Ling Yun said expressionlessly: "The prince committed the same crime as the common people, not to mention me? Besides, I also brought the blame on myself. This is what I deserve. You don't have to be embarrassed, just do it!" As he said that, he straightened his proud and strong body and closed his eyes. Eye.
The two guards glanced at each other, finally gained the courage, gritted their teeth, and raised the staff with trembling hands.
Snapped! Snapped! The spine stick fell with a sharp sound, and frightening blood marks suddenly protruded from Ling Yun's originally smooth back, which was so red that it was eye-catching.
Ling Yun's face was pale, and beads of sweat were dripping down his forehead. He gritted his teeth, controlled his will forcefully, and tried his best not to make a sound.
At this time, I suddenly heard a woman screaming: "Stop! Stop it!..."
The two guards were so frightened that they trembled and stopped in a hurry. They turned around tremblingly and saw Princess Huanyu coming in angrily with a pale face.
Seeing this, Huan Yu couldn't help but raised his eyebrows and opened his almond-shaped eyes. Without any explanation, he raised his hand and slapped the execution guard twice, and angrily said: "You ignorant bitch dares to hit a county horse. You don't want to live." Yet?"
The two guards covered their burning faces with grievances, and explained with a grimace: "Princess, please calm down, you really don't blame me! I also obeyed Lord Lu's order. In fact, I don't dare... …”
Princess Huanyu's bright eyes turned, "Master Lu? I'll go find him right now!" After saying that, she turned around and hurried out.
Ling Yun shouted anxiously: "Princess!..." It was too late to stop Ye.
But he said that in Lu Wenzheng's study, Xu Zhi, Yang Zhen and others were interceding for Ling Yun, "Commander Ling has been following you for many years and has made many great contributions to your lord. Occasional mistakes are inevitable, so let's spare him this time." Bar!"
Lu Wenzheng's face darkened and he said seriously: "That's why I can't let him go. In front of Wang Fa, he must be treated equally, otherwise how can he convince everyone?"
While the stalemate was in progress, Princess Huanyu barged in like a storm. Lu Wenzheng and others hurriedly stood up to greet the princess and asked her to take a seat.
Xu Zhi and Yang Zhen glanced at each other secretly; Yang Zhen stuck out his tongue, knowing that the princess was here to ask questions, so they just waited to watch the excitement.
Princess Huanyu sat unceremoniously at the top and asked in a calm tone: "Master Lu, I don't know why you want to scold the princess?"
Lu Wenzheng frowned and said: "Princess Princess, are you talking about Commander Ling? He neglected his duties and violated the regulations of the Ministry of Justice, causing someone in the mansion to go out without permission——"
Huan Yu curled up her lips and said, "Master Lu, are you talking about what happened last night? Even if you want to investigate the crime, you should blame me instead of him!"
"Oh? How do you say this?"
Huanyu's starry eyes were filled with tiny waves, and she said faintly: "Last night, I was just about to fall asleep, and suddenly I felt unwell. I hurriedly called someone to call back the county horse who was on duty at night, and I was delayed for a moment. .
"My intention was not to let him go back again, but he was too loyal to his duties. After inviting the imperial doctor to see him, he saw that there was nothing serious, so he only stayed for a while and then left again. I didn't expect that he would be so bad. , something happened in just a moment... Oh! It's all my fault. If you want to punish me, please punish me first!"
Lu Wenzheng said: "As the princess said, although what happened last night happened for a reason, due to the laws of the Song Dynasty, the parties should be held accountable regardless of their reasons and excuses, so the responsibility still lies with Lingyun——"
Princess Huanyu raised her pretty face and said angrily: "So Master Lu is not willing to let the princess go? Okay, I'll go down to the hall right now. If anyone wants to hit him, he must hit me first!"
