Seeing Liu Qi's hesitation, Da Qiao chuckled and said, "General, are you afraid of some other trap?"
"No!" Liu Qi shook his head and said, "It's late at night, and a man and a woman alone in a room may affect the reputation of the lady."
Da Qiao sighed: "This place is isolated from the world, no one comes and goes, who knows? Moreover, a gentleman does not deceive in secret. If you hadn't saved me back then, I might have already fallen into the quagmire and turned into dust."
This is true. If Da Qiao really became Liu Xie's woman, her fate would probably be miserable. Even if she escaped the palace coup, she would have difficulty escaping Dong Zhuo's clutches!
Da Qiao said again, "Young Master, you have guards with you. How about we go together?"
"Okay!" Liu Qi hesitated for a moment, but nodded in agreement and called Zhao Yun to walk down the mountain together.
According to common sense, Da Qiao should have refused him to enter her residence, but she insisted on inviting him in her words and deeds, which made Liu Qi more curious. What was in the cliff below
Following a winding corridor and down the stone steps, a cool night breeze blows and you can hear the sound of a waterfall.
Liu Qi had seen this waterfall at Ganlu Temple. He didn't expect there was another world inside. It reminded him of the Water Curtain Cave.
Walking down the steps, I saw that the room was very neatly renovated, with carved beams and painted buildings, and even a floor paved with white jade. It didn't look like a cave at all.
There were rooms on each side. Da Qiao walked straight to the front and saw a Buddhist temple about thirty or forty meters square. Under the four-foot square bronze Buddha statue, there was a tablet, which belonged to Sun Ce.
Zhao Yun first looked around and came back to Liu Qi and said, "I will wait outside the door. The sound of the waterfall can block out all human voices."
"Zilong, you..." Liu Qi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. What was this hinting at
I never thought that Zhao Zilong from Changshan, a guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes, would have such dirty thoughts.
Da Qiao silently lit the incense and handed it over. Although she was wearing a veil, there was an indescribable expression in her black and white eyes that made Liu Qi's heart tremble.
Liu Qi took a deep breath to calm his mind, bowed three times in a proper manner, put the incense in the incense burner, and sighed:
"Live as a hero, die as a ghost hero.
I still miss Xiang Yu, who refused to cross the Yangtze River!"
"What a good poem!" Da Qiao's eyes lit up, but she sighed, "It's a pity that General Sun is just a little tyrant after all. It's hard for him to ride across the Central Plains like Xiang Yu, fight for the world, and die at the hands of a traitor."
"It's easy to dodge an open attack, but it's hard to guard against an arrow from the dark!" Liu Qi also said helplessly: "When I was in Jingzhou, I was also plotted against. Madam Cai put drugs in the soup, and I almost died early like General Sun."
Da Qiao looked at Liu Qi and suddenly said, "In fact, Bofu... also died of poisoning."
"Ah?" Liu Qi was stunned, turned around and asked, "Wasn't General Sun assassinated by an assassin and died?"
Da Qiao sneered, "Sun Bofu is a brave man. How could a few assassins kill him? Even if he was seriously injured, there are good doctors in Jiangdong. How could the treatment be ineffective? In fact, he was poisoned before this, but he didn't know it."
"Is it really poisoned?" Liu Qi was shocked: "How did you know?"
Da Qiao looked grim, and said slowly, "I didn't know about it beforehand. When I was changing General Sun's clothes and preparing for his coffin, the wound burst open and bled, so I used a silk scarf to wipe it, but it accidentally fell to the ground. When everything was done, I found many ants crawling on the scarf, but they were all twitching and dead, and that's when I became alert..."
"Is this really true?" Liu Qi couldn't imagine that there was such a secret. If Sun Ce really died in a conspiracy, then this would be a big deal for Jiangdong.
In the cave above the Buddha statue, Zhou Yu and Xiao Qiao's faces changed drastically. They wanted to catch the adulterer on the spot, but they didn't expect there to be such a shocking secret.
Liu Qi was shocked: "You didn't tell Wu Hou or Zhou Lang?"
Da Qiao shook her head helplessly and smiled bitterly, "I am used to the intrigues in the palace. How dare I rashly question this matter? I will definitely get killed."
Liu Qi frowned. The time when Da Qiao was in the palace was indeed the most chaotic time. The Ten Eunuchs and the officials, Empress Dowager Dong and Empress He were all fighting for power, which was even more sinister than the palace intrigues.
"When I came here, I went to visit Mr. Qiao, and he didn't seem to know anything about it. Could it be that you are the only one who suspects this and has never told anyone?"
"That's right!" Da Qiao looked at Liu Qi, helpless and pitiful, and said slowly: "This matter concerns the safety of the entire Jiangdong. Who can be trusted and who is worthy of trust? I don't know the mastermind behind this. If I release the news rashly, not only will I be in danger, but my relatives will also be implicated."
What she saw and heard in the palace taught her many ways to protect herself, and at least she knew not to speak carelessly.
Liu Qi was unable to make a decision for a moment and said, "Sun Ce and Zhou Yu have known each other since they were young, and they have been close to each other for a long time. He is also your brother-in-law. How can this be believed?"
"Zhou Yu?" Da Qiao looked out at the moonlight and smiled coldly, "When Bo Fu was killed, he just said the assassin was killed and never asked about it again. He only had his great cause in his heart and only wanted to make achievements and leave a name for himself in the future. How could he have any feelings for others?"
These words made Zhou Yu in the cliff cave tremble all over and grit his teeth. He never expected that he would hear the secret that had puzzled him for many years here, and Da Qiao's evaluation of him was so heartbreaking.
Liu Qi came back to his senses and sighed, "It turns out that Madam endured the humiliation and stayed here to investigate the matter and clear the name of the little tyrant."
"Rehabilitation?" Da Qiao suddenly laughed strangely, tears streaming down her cheeks, as if she was a little crazy. She cried loudly, "My two sisters were just spoils of war shared by them after the war. Xiao Qiao was fine. She spent a long time with Zhou Lang and became his wife! I only spent a few days with Sun Ce. I have no status or position, not even a concubine. Why should I endure humiliation for him and seek his vindication?"
Liu Qi was so shocked that he took two steps back and asked in astonishment, "Why is the lady guarding the spirit tablet alone?"
"Do you think I volunteered?" Da Qiao's eyes turned red, and she had lost her dignity and coldness. She said sternly, "Guarding the coffin is the responsibility of Sun Shao and the Shen family. How can it be the turn of a woman without a name like me?"
"Ah, this?" Liu Qi was shocked and asked in surprise, "Madam is imprisoned here?"
Sun Ce's wife, Shen, gave birth to one son and three daughters. The eldest son, Sun Shao, Gu Yong's eldest son, Gu Shao, and Lu Xun were all Sun Ce's sons-in-law. They seemed to treat Sun Ce's children well, but in fact they were also tools for Sun Quan to form marriage alliances.
Da Qiao cried and fell to the ground, saying sadly: "I was kidnapped and have no status. Just because I am Sun Ce's woman, I cannot be free and cannot remarry. I have been imprisoned on this cliff for my best years. What is the difference between this and being in the cold palace? But what crime have I committed to suffer this kind of imprisonment?"
Liu Qi stretched out his hand, but it was difficult to support him. He sighed helplessly: "So, you only told me about this matter? But I am just a passerby. This matter is of great importance. I am afraid I can't help you!"
"No, I believe you!" Da Qiao suddenly got up, knelt in front of Liu Qi, grabbed her robe tightly, and said through gritted teeth: "Eight years... Eight whole years, do you know how I spent these eight years?"