Chapter 89: Your Majesty Should Hate Me...
Luckily, they had all the necessary tools, and the guards were waiting just behind them.
A few of the braver ones went to work, and in no time, they had pried open the sealed coffin nails.
"One, two, three!"
The coffin lid was shoved aside, and the moment its contents were revealed, the sight soothed all their fears.
There was no corpse. Instead, the coffin was filled to the brim with glittering gold, banishing all their fear and leaving only the joy of discovering a treasure.
Xiao Lv picked up a gold ingot, turned it over, and saw the official seal of the Ministry of Revenue stamped upon it.
The reason they had come to pry it open was because they knew the person who hid this treasure was a corrupt official who had embezzled from the National Treasury. Still, they never expected an entire coffin full of gold—this was far more than ten thousand taels.
With gold in the first coffin, everyone was energized. They immediately moved to the second one, and after prying it open, they found more gold.
The third coffin was pried open. It also contained gold, but this time it wasn’t ingots, but gold leaves and gold melon seeds.
The fourth coffin also held gold, filled with neatly arranged boat-shaped ingots.
All seventeen coffins, once pried open, were filled with gold.
At least two hundred thousand taels of gold. This enormous sum was enough for a family to start over from scratch, and this was just one of many hidden caches.
With the day’s treasure hunt concluded, everyone exited, and the guards went in to transport the gold.
There was so much that the carriages they brought were almost not enough.
The group stood on the opposing mountainside, watching the guards carry out the treasure.
This was likely the first time Xie Liuzheng and Xiao Jinsu had ever taken part in something so outrageous and thrilling, and they were still buzzing with excitement.
Their first treasure hunt was a success.
The two of them each took a gold leaf as a souvenir. They didn’t care if Your Majesty shared the rest or not; that wasn’t why they had come, anyway.
Xie Liuzheng: "Ah, now *this* is living! Adventure, excitement!"
With the Emperor and several older, protective men around, she felt completely secure. That’s what made it so much fun.
Xiao Jinsu felt much the same as Xie Liuzheng. It was a completely different life experience, and it made all the things she had previously agonized over seem so insignificant.
Xiao Yang was leaning against an overhanging tree branch, her posture casual, her expression aloof. Xiao Lv stood beside her. "What is on Your Majesty’s mind?"
Xiao Yang: "I’m thinking about beating you up."
Xiao Lv: "..."
’How did I offend Your Majesty?’ he wondered, but he didn’t dare ask.
"Does Your Majesty want to beat me up here, or back at the palace?"
Xiao Yang glanced away from him. ’So annoying.’
Finding the treasure had been exhilarating. But the moment she thought about how it was all ill-gotten gains bled from the common folk by corrupt officials, her mood soured. She thought of the disaster victims who never received their relief silver, and of the swarm of useless officials just waiting to fleece the Emperor and the people for another layer of fat. Uncontrollable fury surged through her.
’Being the Emperor is so damn frustrating. And that idiot, Prince Jing, couldn’t even manage a proper rebellion. Just thinking about it is infuriating.’
Xu Xingchen’s gaze was locked on Xiao Yang. He wanted to approach, but there were too many people around, and she clearly wasn’t in a good mood. For a moment, he was unsure if he should go to her.
Xiao Yang leaped lightly to the ground and turned to head back, but as she did, she saw Rong Yin riding toward them on the small path.
Seeing Xiao Yang unharmed, Rong Yin finally let out a breath of relief.
"Your Majesty."
Xiao Yang frowned. "What are you doing here?"
Rong Yin’s heart clenched. The more he couldn’t control his affection for Her Majesty, the more it hurt when she looked at him with that expression of utter disdain.
’He had taught her literature, taught her how to rule a nation—it was all for her own good.’
’She despised him and had sent him to the Heavenly Prison. He had accepted it, even copied the texts as ordered.’
’Why couldn’t she change her mind, even just a little?’
A wave of inexpressible bitterness swelled in his chest, tormenting his nerves.
He rode up to her, then suddenly leaned down and swept her onto the horse. "Hyah!"
The horse galloped up the mountain path until it reached a small stream.
There were some large rocks beside the stream. He reined in the horse but didn’t dismount. He looked down at Xiao Yang, who was seated sideways across his lap, her expression displeased.
The moment the horse stopped, she immediately tried to get down. Rong Yin instinctively tried to hold her back, but Xiao Yang struck out at once. Just like that, the two of them began to fight on horseback.
Rong Yin lost control of his strength for a moment, and Xiao Yang used the momentum to slide off the horse.
Seeing that she was about to run, Rong Yin flew off the horse and lunged for her.
With a fierce glint in her eyes, Xiao Yang counterattacked.
’She was in a foul mood. If he was determined to be her punching bag, then she would gladly oblige.’
Xiao Yang’s attacks were merciless, forcing Rong Yin to take the fight seriously. They grappled with each other, not like they were sparring, but like mortal enemies.
The rocks here were uneven, making it difficult to find solid footing. One of them misstepped and nearly fell.
Just before he fell, Rong Yin yanked Xiao Yang toward him, making it look as if he intended to use her to break his fall.
But he struck the ground with one palm, using his other arm to sweep her up by the waist. He flew to a nearby tree and pinned her against the trunk.
SMACK.
He caught her knife-hand with one of his own and gripped her shoulder tightly with the other. Leaning down, he stared straight into her furious eyes.
"The last time I told Your Majesty that I love you, you never gave me an answer."
Xiao Yang attacked again without hesitation. "What answer do you want? Isn’t it obvious that I don’t like you?"
Her physical blows hurt less than the daggers her words plunged into his heart.
’Don’t like...’
Even though he already knew the answer, hearing those words from her lips was more painful than he could have imagined.
’He had already stepped over the line, and there was no turning back. How could she not like him?’
’Yes, whether she liked him or not was her prerogative, but he couldn’t accept it.’
"Is it only dislike?"
He gripped Xiao Yang’s hand, his strength so great she couldn’t break free.
He stared intently into her eyes, his own reflecting a pained reluctance and struggling desire. The rims of his eyes were red, tinged with a savage fierceness.
"Dislike isn’t enough. Your Majesty should hate me..."
His last word was lost between their lips. He finally lost control and lowered his head, kissing the lips that had bewitched him like poison.
The words from her mouth were like poison-tipped daggers, yet her lips were unbelievably soft and sweet.
He had no experience, but that didn’t stop him from wanting to take from her greedily.
After a few clumsy movements, he taught himself how to part her lips, seeking the sweet fragrance he had never before tasted.
The moment he tasted that sweetness, a sharp pain struck him. The scent of blood masked the intoxicating flavor, but he was unwilling to pull away.
He swallowed the blood mixed with sweetness, drinking poison to quench his thirst, a thirst that would only end with death.