The Taste of Revenge

He Lingchuan nodded. "Driven to the end of his rope, deserted by all, he finally slit his own throat." With his army shattered and himself cornered, the King of Bo knew Mou Kingdom would not let him live. Dying by his own hand right before Jin Bai spared him prolonged torment and preserved a shred of dignity. "Just suicide? Not butchered?" Consort Mei knitted her delicate brows. "He got off too easy, dying so cleanly!" "Where would one find a perfect revenge?" He Lingchuan had no sooner spoken those words than he thought of He Chunhua. Over the past twenty years, how had He Chunhua calculated the hatred of his family's slaughter in the depths of his heart? To break the spirit as well as take the life was the ultimate vengeance. And that was precisely what Consort Mei had done. "True, where is there ever perfection?" Consort Mei pondered for a moment and let out a long sigh. "Never mind. Watching him collapse alongside the kingdom he stole was what I wanted most of all." Had she not endured humiliation and borne her burden all these years just for this moment? From the look on her face, it was as if the air around them were thick with an intoxicating, sweet fragrance. Dong Rui could not help asking, "What does revenge feel like?" "Good. Wonderful. Ten times sweeter than honey!" Consort Mei was still steeped in that joy. "The boundless ecstasy of seeing it brought to fulfillment—neither of you could ever fathom it!" Only after quite a while did she slowly open her eyes and look at He Lingchuan. "You aren't from Mou Kingdom either, are you? Do you plan to kill me, or escort me back to Mou Kingdom?" She was the mastermind behind this entire chain of events, having caused Mou Kingdom to lose its tribute. Mou's emperor was hardly likely to spare her. "Your actions constitute heinous crimes, and you dragged innocents into it," He Lingchuan said, raising an eyebrow. "When you dared to hatch this scheme, surely you foresaw these consequences?" "Of course." The corners of Consort Mei's lips curved slightly, a glimmer of madness showing in her eyes. "If Heaven and Earth are unjust, I fight for myself! The outcome before me is already ten thousand times better than what I ever envisioned! Even if my body were ground to powder and my bones crushed this very moment, I would welcome it gladly!" She had sown the evil seed, and she was prepared to reap the bitter fruit. Everything had been earned. Her expression showed she faced death without fear, yet her neck was held high, appearing remarkably graceful, fair, and tender in the morning light. He Lingchuan asked in return, "What were your original plans once your revenge was complete?" "After succeeding? Hmm... I never really thought about it before." Consort Mei furrowed her brow, lost in thought for a long while. "I suppose I'd go pay respects to my family, wouldn't I? To share this good news with them." "Where is your family buried?" "The West City Great Mound." Consort Mei rested her chin in her hands. "Except for my older sister. The day our family fell was also her fifteenth birthday. Two guards dragged her away. They said she was going to die anyway." She recounted this in an unhurried, gentle, quiet voice, speaking of horrors that defied humanity. The two men beside her were silent for a long time. Dong Rui cleared his throat. "Where were you back then? How did you survive?" "It was my good fortune. A fierce storm had battered the place a few days earlier, collapsing a section of our rockery. When the Feather Guards stormed our home, Mother hid me inside the rockery. The space was cramped, only about this big—" Consort Mei gestured with her hands "—just enough for a small child to squeeze in. Huddled inside, I didn't dare breathe, watching through a tiny gap as the Feather Guards ransacked my home and dragged away my family. Fortunately, they didn't set fire to the place, or I would have followed my parents back then." "What happened afterward? How did you become Consort Mei?" "I hid in that rockery for four days before coming out. Father had three sons and two daughters in total. Nangong Yan hadn't killed enough to match the count, so he certainly wouldn't have abandoned the search. I hid in a merchant caravan's wagon and fled across the border." Consort Mei's smile dimmed slightly. "Over the next few years, I suffered immensely. By the time You Enguang found me, I didn't have a single patch of unblemished skin on my body. I had poor talent for cultivation; only lightness techniques came easily to me. So You Enguang arranged for me to be trained at Cixin Tower, after which I was sent to the western horse ranch so I could have a 'chance encounter' with the man who killed my father. Well, the rest you know in broad strokes." She skipped over many details, but how a nine-year-old orphan girl had survived, sworn vengeance, and put it into motion... This was the Shanjin Plain, the God-Forsaken Land known for its chaos and bleak sorrow. Even grown adults struggled through endless hardship just to survive here, let alone a defenseless orphan girl left to the mercy of anyone who wished to torment her. What agonies she had endured, what trials she had met—even Dong Rui shrank from imagining it. "Whether you kill me or drag me back to Mou Kingdom, it makes no difference to me," Consort Mei said softly, looking up at He Lingchuan. "I have lived in purgatory all along. If I can find release at your hands... that wouldn't be bad either." He Lingchuan looked at her intently for a moment, then brushed off his robes and stood up. "Let's go." Dong Rui asked, "Where to?" "South." To the south lay Bodu, Xun City. Further south lay Julu Port. Half a day later, the evening sky was ablaze with sunset clouds. The three of them rode on horseback, followed by the black wolf, arriving at the West City Great Mound, also known as the Gray Mounds. The soil here was grayish-white, so most of the burial mounds built upon it were grayish-white as well. The lingering glow of the setting sun brushed the tall grass and tombstones with a warm crimson, temporarily driving back the desolation of the place. Far in the distance, tactless crows used their coarse, raucous caws as background noise. Dong Rui glanced at He Lingchuan, chuckling inwardly: *Even heroes have a soft spot for beauties; this kid's heart isn't made of iron after all.* He looked at Consort Mei, making conversation just to break the silence. "The one who reported seeing you at White Hill was a beggar in his forties—scrawny, dark-skinned, with a mole on his neck. Do you recognize him?" Consort Mei thought for a moment. "Did he walk with a slight limp?" "Right." In truth, Dong Rui couldn't remember whether the man had always limped or if the squad leader had beaten him into one later. "He was a refugee." Consort Mei looked completely unfazed, without a shred of resentment. "Every time I set up sheds to distribute relief, he would show up, which is how he knew my face. I even saw him snatch steamed buns from other refugees." "Kind deeds go unrewarded." The ghost ape cracked melon seeds, offering a few to its master. Dong Rui shook his head in refusal. "Why did you set up relief sheds in the first place?" He had heard from both A-Hao and the people of Xun City that Consort Mei frequently aided refugees, presumably using her own funds. Consort Mei glanced at him. "Do I look completely depraved to you?" A "yes" danced on the tip of Dong Rui's tongue, almost slipping out. Yet his expression said it all. Consort Mei murmured wistfully, "Everyone has a heart of compassion. They were only doing what they had to in order to survive." He Lingchuan spoke up suddenly. "Relief work required leaving the palace, which made it convenient for you to move around, didn't it?" Over the past two months, Consort Mei had been busy with no shortage of tasks, including maintaining contact with what were then rebels and was now the new monarch. She needed a legitimate reason to leave the palace regularly. Aiding the needy was an excellent cover. How could the King of Bo object to her accumulating karmic merit on his behalf? Though the old man lived without virtue, even he knew merit was a good thing. Consort Mei pouted slightly. "Does aiding refugees conflict with seeking bloody vengeance?" Of course it didn't. Why draw such rigid lines, after all? He Lingchuan gave a slight smile. "Where is the Mai clan's grave?"