The Tang Dynasty’s Female Forensic Doctor-Chapter 692: Extra Story Two: Sang Chen’s Story (6)

Chapter 692: Extra Story Two: Sang Chen’s Story (6)
Du Jiangli lay at the edge of the cliff, gazing at the pine forest below that resembled a sea, hidden in the dim morning light, and furrowed her brows.
Although she had managed to conceal her affair with Sang Chen from last night, she couldn’t explain where she had disappeared to during the vanished night; she had used another’s body, ruining the person’s reputation completely. Even if it wouldn’t reach the point of being subjected to drowning in a pig cage or anything of that sort, she felt destined to face divine punishment.
Returning to the Du residence, she was bound to marry someone else. The Du family would not keep her in the residence for life. This was not only subject to gossip, but also a violation of Tang Code, keeping her until today was indeed a grace.
Escape? The household registration system of Great Tang was very strict; she couldn’t just go wherever she wished.
If she didn’t want to go back and marry someone else, she now only had three options: either jump off this cliff and end it all, cross the mountain to enter Qingyin Temple and become a nun, or find a secluded deep forest to hide in for the rest of her life.
Jumping off would indeed be straightforward, but what if Sang Chen found out the truth? Would he be heartbroken? Would he live his life in guilt?
If one’s affection was etched so deeply into their bones, and all turned to dust upon death, leaving only white bones... she would never let him feel even a fraction of sorrow. Her departure was meant to spare Sang Chen from the anguish of struggle. If she were to choose death by this path, it would be better to let Sang Chen propose.
What should she do?
Du Jiangli backed away from the edge of the cliff and leaned against the trunk of a tree that required two people to embrace, closing her eyes to rest.
She couldn’t help but recall the years that felt as dry as a well.
Before she got married in her previous life, she could often whimsically go out with her father. Once married, she had to adhere to the womanly virtues, not stepping beyond the threshold, passing time with embroidery, dealing with the tedious vexations of household relations, suffering grievances with no one to confide in; her days were dreary and boring, worse than becoming a nun.
She had waited for her husband for three years. It might not sound long, since life has several spans of twenty or thirty years, yet for someone who awaited bitterly, uncertain of tomorrow, every moment was torment. Those three years felt like thirty. She woke up from nightmares daily, terrified that the break of dawn would bring news of her husband’s death from the Court.
Yet, she ultimately couldn’t escape it...
By comparison, these four years with Sang Chen seemed much happier; at least they occasionally played games of chase. The choice of futures felt like it was still in her hands. What a divine blessing!
The morning light spread across the forest, and Du Jiangli was engulfed by a wave of sleepiness.
In a haze, she seemed to hear the sound of a heavy downpour.
"Lady! Lady!" The anxious call of a woman mingled with the rain.
Du Jiangli slowly opened her eyes and saw a familiar face full of urgency, she murmured, "Lu Fu?"
"It frightened me to death, my lady fainted with a high fever. Thankfully, yesterday we encountered a young master from the County Magistrate’s family, who gave us some medicinal patches," Lu Fu’s eyes brimmed with tears as she wiped them with a handkerchief, and helped Du Jiangli up, "Originally, I planned to take you back to the county with me, but after you took the medicine your fever subsided. Since that young master is of a fragile age, I feared it might harm your reputation, so I asked him to bring us partway here, to this dilapidated temple to shelter from the rain."
"What year and month is it now?" Du Jiangli, supported by her, sat by a stone platform.
Lu Fu paused for a moment, then said, "It’s the eleventh year of Shaoxing in Great Song, August the fourteenth." Startled, Lu Fu added, "Oh, tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival."
Du Jiangli appeared dazed, "Let me be alone for a while."
Lu Fu looked at her worriedly but still nodded her head.
Du Jiangli was stunned for a long while before she came back to her senses, and saw a shallow puddle nearby, gently shifting her body.
The water reflected a beautiful face, with elegantly arched eyebrows blending into her temples, long and bright eyes, delicately curved brows lifting slightly at the tips. Just a slight turn of her expressive eyes conveyed an incomparable charm.
This was... her own face.
On the other side of the hall, a dozen servants were huddled around another fire.
Suddenly, the sound of horse hooves came from outside in the rain, prompting the dozen servants to immediately grab the swords beside them, all on high alert.
The sound of hooves stopped in front of the hall, and immediately the light at the doorway dimmed as six or seven armored men charged in, followed by a burly man in bronze armor walking in. He wore a helmet and his face was wrapped in white silk, obscuring his features.
Seeing that the arrivals were from the Great Song military, the household servants relaxed a bit, all getting up and moving towards Du Jiangli, shielding him.
A few did not take seats by the unoccupied fire, but simply sat quietly to the side, adding to the somber atmosphere.
Du Jiangli peered through the gaps at the man across who looked like a statue, and when his gaze landed on the copper-armored officer, his eyes widened in shock.
Mr. Sang...
Du Jiangli’s voice lodged in his throat.
"General, what shall we do?" one of them suddenly asked, "The Emperor has issued twelve edicts calling General Yue back to Court, it looks like bad news more than good."
This was no secret.
The general’s eyes were cold and his eyebrows furrowed. After a long time, he said, "We’ll discuss after the rain stops."
"Sang Suiyuan." Du Jiangli’s voice choked.
The general paused, then turned to look over. His gaze passed over a dozen servants to see a stunning woman, disheveled and tearful, looking at him.
Seeing Du Jiangli wearing a woman’s hair bun, he said, "Lady, do you recognize me?"
Seeing that he acknowledged his identity, the servants showed joy, and the head steward quickly said, "It truly is the general, we are from the Sang residence, this is the wife you married three years ago."
When had he married a wife without discussing it with him? Sang Chen wanted to ask, but as his gaze met Du Jiangli’s, he said nothing.
He pulled the white silk down from his face, revealing his handsome features.
Du Jiangli pushed past the servants, stumbling slightly as she ran over, and without a word, threw her arms around him and burst into tears, "Wuu, your servant heard that my lord was killed in battle, and came to collect his bones, never expecting to find him alive."
The sudden surge of happiness left her overwhelmed and slightly delirious.
Being suddenly embraced by a woman he had never met before made Sang Chen a little awkward, but realizing she was his wife, his heart warmed, and he gently patted her back, showing an unfamiliar tenderness.
The crowd watched silently for a moment before remembering to avert their eyes, turning away quickly.
The rain outside intensified, the sky grew dark, and the sound of the rain and the cold armor she was embracing made Du Jiangli feel like she was in a beautiful dream, and she wished that time would stop at this moment forever.
In that instant, it felt eternal.
Du Jiangli cried until she felt dizzy, gradually losing consciousness.
She did not know how long she had been asleep.
She heard a somewhat indifferent female voice nearby, "Sang Suiyuan, summon the courage you show when you shield others from arrows. Is accepting someone really that difficult for you?"
The voice softened, saying, "You were able to ease your feelings towards me and develop emotions for Lady Du, I’m genuinely happy for you. You stubbornly believe that your feelings for me were lifelong, hurting only yourself and others. What good does that do? I’m telling you, if that’s the case, not only will I not feel guilty, I will despise you!"
"I..." Sang Chen’s voice was timid.
Ran Yan, feeling frustrated and her head aching, saw his frightened bunny-like demeanor, "Speak from your heart, do you like her, do you want to marry her!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)