#910 - If I don't go to hell, who will?
“Benefactor Xiao, the Abbot requests your presence.”
Roughly after the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the young monk, panting, found Wei Changtian in the Hall of Heavenly Kings.
At this moment, Wei Changtian was studying with great interest what kind of Dharma implement was held by the most ferocious-looking “Northern Heavenly King,” and casually asked the young monk:
“Is that an umbrella he’s holding?”
“It is an umbrella.”
The young monk glanced at Wei Changtian with slight surprise, seemingly wondering why he didn’t even know this.
After all, since this “Young Master Xiao” was going to donate money to the temple, he should be a Buddhist believer, so how could he not know the Dharma implement of the Heavenly King of the North?
However, although puzzled, the young monk still truthfully replied:
“Yes.”
Lowering his head and stepping aside, the young monk responded and quickly led Wei Changtian out of the Hall of Heavenly Kings, heading along a small path towards the depths of Yunan Temple.
At the same time, in the Guanyue Inn, about a dozen miles away, Su Qi, looking haggard, met Li Zimu once again.
“Miss Li.”
With a constrained and ingratiating smile on his face, compared to the previous few meetings, Su Qi had now lost that unyielding integrity.
He cupped his fist towards Li Zimu, and just as he was about to say something cautiously, he was interrupted by the latter:
“Lord Su, the Young Master is not here.”
“...”
Su Qi’s expression stiffened, and he said in a low voice:
“Miss Li, I have extremely important matters to discuss with Young Master Wei. I wonder if you could relay a message for me?”
“Important matters?”
Li Zimu smiled, her tone very dismissive: “The Young Master is currently doing something even more important. Lord Su, you should wait.”
“Then I wonder how long I have to wait?”
“I don’t know about that. Perhaps a day, perhaps two or three days, it’s hard to say.”
Li Zimu glanced at Su Qi: “Lord, why don’t you go back first? If the Young Master returns, I will truthfully tell him that you came.”
Perhaps a day, perhaps two or three days.
Su Qi didn’t know what the “more important matter” Li Zimu was talking about, but he knew that if he really waited until then, everything would be too late.
“Li... Miss Li, is it that the Young Master doesn’t want to see me...”
His gaze turned to the staircase leading to the second floor of the inn, Su Qi’s voice even more humble.
“It... It was my fault before. I hope the Young Master can give me another chance. I... I will definitely do my best to help the Young Master.”
“Oh?”
Hearing Su Qi finally say these words, Li Zimu’s eyelids twitched slightly, and her expression became playful.
She looked up at Su Qi, who had a bitter look on his face, and knowingly asked:
“Lord Su, what do you mean by this?”
“I...”
Su Qi paused, embarrassedly lowering his head, and didn’t say the following words for a long time.
Openly admitting betrayal, it could be seen that it was a very difficult thing for him.
However, since Su Qi had already come here, he must have understood that he would have to overcome this hurdle sooner or later.
Therefore, after a long silence, he finally trembled, word by word:
“I... I am willing to follow Young Master Wei’s lead from now on, and help the Young Master destroy Great Qian...”
“...”
I am willing to help the Young Master destroy Great Qian.
It’s hard to say what Su Qi’s mood was when he said these words.
Perhaps if it weren’t for the people of Linchuan City, he would rather die than betray his country.
But now, when the “responsibility” of being an official forced him onto this path of no return, his heart was perhaps already a desolate wasteland.
His originally straight back became hunched, and Su Qi seemed to have aged a lot in an instant.
He lowered his head and stopped talking, only his fingers trembling slightly, like an old dog.
And Li Zimu, who had obtained the “answer,” didn’t seem to sympathize with this pitiful person who was “forced to join the Liangshan rebels,” and even asked with some sarcasm:
“Lord Su, so, the Jing Kingdom’s army will arrive in Linchuan within three days?”
“... His Majesty will not come.”
Su Qi still lowered his head, his voice very weak: “Miss Li, please ask the Young Master if he can give me a few more days. I will definitely find a way to lure the Jing Kingdom’s army to Linchuan.”
“It’s just that I don’t know if the Young Master can show mercy to the beast tide from Changliu Mountain.”
“Heh heh, so it’s because of the beast tide.”
Li Zimu sneered: “I was wondering why you suddenly figured it out, Lord. So you won’t shed tears until you see the coffin.”
“Yes... Yes, I was confused before...”
Facing Li Zimu’s ridicule, Su Qi didn’t show the slightest anger, nor did he say a single confrontational word.
He just meekly admitted his “mistake,” and the timidity in his tone made people feel unbearable to hear.
From an important minister of the Jing Kingdom who was trusted by the Jing Emperor and deeply loved by the people, to now becoming a traitor who has fallen to the enemy’s side, Li Zimu knew very well what Su Qi was doing it for.
Therefore, even though she knew that she still needed to continue putting pressure on Su Qi at this time, Li Zimu still couldn’t say any more humiliating words after hesitating for a moment.
“Alright, Lord, go back.”
“I will tell the Young Master the truth about what happened today.”
“As for what happens in the future... that will depend on the Young Master’s decision.”
Leaving the last sentence, Li Zimu turned and left without looking back, leaving Su Qi alone standing in place.
The latter was like a stone sculpture, standing with his head lowered for a long time, before finally looking up at the empty staircase.
In any case, now that things have come to this, he can no longer regret it.
No matter what happens in the future, whether he will be “famous in history” or “infamous for ten thousand years,” Su Qi no longer cares.
He doesn’t even expect the people of Linchuan City to be grateful for his “sacrifice,” he only hopes to save the hundreds of thousands of innocent lives with his own “sin.”
Just like that widely circulated Buddhist saying.
If I don’t go to hell, who will?
“How is it?”
On the other side, when Li Zimu returned to the room, Zhang San immediately came up and asked rather gossiply: “Has Su Qi decided to rebel?”
“Yes.”
Li Zimu nodded: “Just as the Young Master predicted, the beast tide was the last straw that broke him. It seems he really had no other way to go.”
“Hahaha! The Young Master is indeed as good as a god!”
Zhang San was excited when he heard this: “The Young Master said at the beginning that when the beast tide reaches Linchuan City, Su Qi will definitely rebel.”
“I didn’t expect that the beast tide hasn’t even come yet, and Su Qi is already unable to resist.”
“I’ll send a message to the Young Master right away!”
“...”
As he spoke, Zhang San excitedly took out the Mother-Son Jade, preparing to tell Wei Changtian the good news.
However, after a moment, he raised his head in Li Zimu’s puzzled gaze, and muttered somewhat blankly:
“There’s no response from the other side... Could it be that the Young Master hasn’t gotten up yet?”
“That’s not right, it’s already quite late...”
