Nine Nights Owl Song

The tenth day of the third month in the nineteenth year of Yong'an.

Luoyang, the Imperial Clan Court.

The Imperial Clan Court was located in the northwest corner of the Imperial City and was an independent courtyard.

The house is made of blue bricks and gray tiles. There are no stone lions or guards at the entrance, only a tightly closed black lacquered wooden door and a faded plaque on the door.

This place is where members of the royal family who have committed crimes are imprisoned.

Once you enter this door, you'll never get out.

Su Jiuge stood at the door, holding a food box in her hand.

The osmanthus cake made by the Shen family was fresh out of the pot and still steaming hot.

She came to the Imperial Clan Court to see someone.

Xiao Yan stood beside her, the two of them looking side by side at the black lacquered wooden door.

"Are you sure you want to go in?" Su Jiuge asked.

Xiao Yan nodded.

"He almost killed you, almost killed your father. Don't you hate him?"

Xiao Yan remained silent for a moment.

Does he hate him? He colluded with regional military governors, raised an army to force the emperor to abdicate, and almost destroyed the entire Liang Dynasty.

He should hate him, but he can't bring himself to.

You can't really hate someone who has fought their whole life and ended up with nothing.

Xiao Yan pushed open the door.

The courtyard of the Imperial Clan Court was much smaller than Su Jiuge had imagined. There were no flowers or trees, no artificial hills, only bare stone slabs and a few low houses.

The sun doesn't reach this place; it's cold, damp, and like a tomb.

The deposed crown prince, Xiao Jingrui, sat on the wooden bed in the room, wearing a gray prison uniform. His hair was disheveled, and his face was haggard. He looked much older than he had been half a month ago, and white hair had appeared at his temples overnight.

He saw Su Jiuge and Xiao Yan walk in, and there was no resentment or anger in his eyes.

There was only calm, a still, stagnant calm.

He lost, lost completely, and there's nothing more to say.

"You've come here to laugh at me?" The deposed crown prince's voice was hoarse.

Su Jiuge walked over, placed the food box on the table, and opened the lid.

The aroma of osmanthus cake filled the dimly lit room.

The deposed crown prince stared down at the plate of osmanthus cake for a long time.

After a long time, I reached out, took a piece, and took a bite.

He chewed slowly, swallowed, and then took another bite.

"Did your mother make this?" the deposed crown prince asked.

Su Jiuge nodded.

The deposed crown prince took another bite.

"It's delicious." He finished one piece, picked up another, stuffed it into his mouth and chewed, and as he chewed, tears fell down his face.

He didn't wipe it away, letting the tears stream down his face.

Xiao Yan stood at the door, looking at his elder brother.

He remembered that when he was a child, his older brother taught him to write. His older brother's handwriting was very beautiful, with each stroke neat and tidy.

The eldest brother said to him, "Sixth brother, study hard and become a good prince in the future."

Back then, his older brother was genuinely good to him and treated him like a younger brother.

When did things start to change?

It started when my eldest brother became the crown prince.

The position of crown prince was like poison, slowly corroding his heart, making him suspicious, distrustful, and ruthless, and stripping him of the bonds of family.

In the end, it turned out like this today.

Xiao Yan spoke.

"Brother, stay here in the Imperial Clan Court. If you need anything, just let me know."

The deposed crown prince did not raise his head.

"Go away. I don't want you to see me like this."

Xiao Yan looked at his elder brother's gray hair, haggard face, and gray prison clothes. The once spirited crown prince was gone.

He turned around, pushed open the door, and walked out.

Su Jiuge stood inside the room and did not leave.

The deposed crown prince looked up at her.

"You go too."

Su Jiuge stopped at the door.

Do you hate him?

The deposed crown prince remained silent.

Does he hate the sixth prince? He hates him for marrying Su Jiuge, for going to the Northern Border, for winning battles, for gaining more and more favor from his father, and for winning everyone's hearts without doing anything.

He fought and struggled with the second prince his whole life, but he could never win against someone who didn't fight for anything.

It's not that he's too weak, it's that the sixth brother is too strong.

"I don't hate anymore." The deposed crown prince's voice was very soft.

"I'm tired after all these years. I've lost, I admit defeat."

Su Jiuge looked at him.

"You didn't lose to Xiao Yan. You lost to yourself."

The deposed crown prince lowered his head and looked at the half-eaten osmanthus cake in his hand.

He lost to himself, to greed, jealousy, and resentment, to the part of himself that, sitting on the throne, was increasingly afraid of losing it.

Su Jiuge walked out.

The door closed behind her.

Xiao Yan stood in the courtyard waiting for her, and Su Jiuge walked to his side.

Sunlight streamed down from above, and the door behind me slowly closed.

He'll be stuck behind that door forever and won't be able to get out.

Every day I face four walls, a window, and a door, watching the sunrise and sunset, spring and autumn.

No one spoke to him, no one came to see him, and no one remembered him.

He will grow old slowly, his hair will turn whiter and whiter, his back will become more and more hunched, his eyesight will become more and more blurred, and finally he will die alone in that room.

This is the price of fighting for the throne. Su Jiuge doesn't know if he regrets it or not, but she doesn't care anymore.