Upon hearing this, my head buzzed, and I couldn't come to my senses for a long time.
Father, however, said, "In that case, do you know, Xihu, that your mother was the former Empress Feiyu? For him, your mother is truly the one who killed his father."
Father's words hit me like a thunderbolt, making me feel unsteady on my feet.
The fact that my father might be his father's killer and the fact that my mother is his father's killer are two completely different things.
I couldn't help but ask, my voice trembling, "So, Father, Mother, what else are you hiding from me?"
Father heaved a deep sigh and said, "Back then, it was the eldest prince of Beihan who tried to molest your mother. Your mother had no choice but to kill him. The eldest prince of Beihan was a very dangerous person. He was the main war - hawk in Beihan. If he hadn't died back then, there would surely have been a war between Beihan and Dayong, which would have brought great suffering to the people. So your father and mother have never regretted killing him. But Acheng is different from his father. We've all seen that over the years. Acheng would have been a good match for you, but unfortunately, you two have a blood feud. If you hide it from him, how long can you keep it a secret? If you tell him, will he really be able to accept it? It's better to break off this doomed relationship earlier. The world is so big. Can't you find someone you like?"
I couldn't help but shake my head. I thought there was something wrong with what my father said. I wanted to refute him, but I didn't know how. For a moment, my head felt like it was about to explode. I wanted to tell Father that Acheng should be able to accept it, but I couldn't even convince myself. If it were me, what would I do? If I were told that my closest relative was a heinous person who died a tragic death because of his evil deeds, how would I react? I didn't even dare to think about Acheng's shock when he heard this news from me.
"Stop talking!" I covered my ears and didn't want to hear anything more. Tears welled up in my eyes. I really didn't believe that my mother was the Empress Feiyu. Father must have made up this story just to break us up.
I was in a complete mess and extremely painful. Finally, I panicked and saw the pity in Father and Mother's eyes. Then I rushed out of the door.
People only choose to escape the truth when they are in extreme pain, and that's exactly what I was doing at that moment.
I returned to the Twin - Life Palace in a daze. My elder brother was shocked when he saw me. He kept calling my name, but I didn't hear him. It wasn't until I entered my right - hand chamber and locked the door that I said to my brother, "Brother, let me be alone for a while."
I sat down against the door and couldn't help crying. My pain stemmed from the fact that I simply couldn't tell Acheng about this. Just thinking about his pained expression because of this made me even sadder.
Why did this happen?
Later, my brother was so worried that he called Father and Mother over just to get me to open the door.
After hearing about the situation, Father sighed outside the door and said, "Ziming, let Xihu be alone for a while."
Mother whispered a reminder, "You keep an eye on Xihu for us. Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid."
When I heard Father and Mother's voices, my tears flowed even more. I started to escape again, constantly telling myself in my heart that Father and Mother must be lying to me. They must be.
That night, I had a nightmare.
I dreamed that in a thin mist, Acheng and I were holding hands, chatting and enjoying ourselves. Suddenly, someone jumped out and said, "Acheng, why are you walking with the daughter of your father's killer?"
Acheng's eyes were full of shock.
Then we were drowned out by people's words. I grabbed Acheng and ran madly, trying to escape, but we ended up at the end of a road. At the end of the road was a strange mirror. Acheng walked up to the mirror and saw that in the mirror, my mother picked up a knife and stabbed a man. I had never seen this man before, but in the dream, I just knew that this was Acheng's father. I was so scared that I quickly covered Acheng's eyes. But Acheng asked unbelievingly, "Xihu, you're not even a bit surprised. Did you know this all along? Is this what you said you had to tell me?"
I felt cold all over from his question. Before I could answer, I saw him turn around and leave.
"Brother Acheng..." I quickly stepped forward and grabbed his hand. His hand was still as warm as before, but it no longer had the strength it used to when holding mine.
"Xihu, I know everything you wanted to say." He disappointedly shook off my hand and walked away without looking back.
"Brother Acheng!" I shouted his name with all my strength, but the only thing that responded to me was his lonely back as he left. How I hoped he would turn back and look at me just once, just once, but he never did.
Watching his back disappear, I suddenly felt empty inside and knelt down.
Just then, I suddenly woke up from the dream and saw Shuifu beside me wiping my tears with a handkerchief. She said, "Princess, what did you dream about? Why are you crying?"
Only then did I realize that I had just had a dream. I couldn't help asking, "If I want to look up the biography of the former empress of Dayong, where should I look?"
Shuifu didn't expect me to ask such a strange question as soon as I woke up. After thinking for a moment, she said, "If I remember correctly, it should be in the Classic and History Pavilion."
Upon hearing this, I immediately ran to the Classic and History Pavilion. I spent the whole morning rummaging through countless books in the pavilion and finally found the record about the former empress. It described in detail the story of the former empress in Beihan, but it only depicted how righteous the former empress was and how affectionate she was with my father. For me, there was almost no description of the most crucial thing - the former empress's appearance.
So I went to the Treasure Pavilion to look for the portraits in Father's private collection. After searching for a long time, I finally found the portrait of the former empress in a corner. I slowly opened it, and who else could it be but my mother when she was young?
All my hopes were shattered in that instant. The pain in my heart spread again, as if it were going to choke me.
I could no longer deceive myself. What Father and Mother told me was true. So how could I face Acheng?
I locked myself in the Twin - Life Palace for two days. Then Acheng's letter arrived. I was stunned. I slowly unfolded it and saw that he wrote, "Xihu, although we've only been separated for a few days, I've already started to miss you. So I thought that if I wrote to you before I went too far away, you should receive it soon. I hope you'll be happy when you see my letter. In the days when we can't see each other, how about we communicate through letters? You're the best girl I've ever met. I hope you'll be happy every day! Your Brother Acheng."
When I saw the letter, I felt a mixture of emotions. I wanted to write back and tell him everything I knew, but I didn't have the courage. So, Brother Acheng, if you knew that my mother killed your father, would you still be willing to write to me?