By the time Song Qingshu and the others returned to the sleeping quarters, Li Liangzuo was nowhere to be seen. There was only a person lying on the floor, covered by a sheet. The various bloodstains faintly seeping through showed that he had suffered no small amount of torture before his death.
There still seemed to be blood on Li Qinglu's hands. When she saw Song Qingshu, she hurriedly hid them behind her back, looking completely at a loss. Song Qingshu walked over and looked at the moist corners of her eyes. "Have you been crying?"
"Yes. I thought of how well Father used to treat me, and I couldn't hold it in." Li Qinglu bit her lip, trying hard not to let any more tears fall.
Song Qingshu took her hand and gently wiped the bloodstains from it with a handkerchief. "You avenged your father. What is there to hide?"
Li Qinglu's eyes reddened. "I was afraid that if you saw how ruthless I am, you... you wouldn't like me anymore."
Song Qingshu said solemnly, "If one repays resentment with kindness, then how does one repay kindness? Naturally, one repays resentment with justice. Publicly speaking, Li Liangzuo usurped the throne and caused the turmoil in Western Xia. Privately, he was your father's murderer. No matter how you looked at it, you should have killed him. Why would I blame you for that?"
"Meng Lang..." Li Qinglu was deeply moved, but she still felt something was amiss. "But elder sister Mu and Sister Yelü are both so kind and gentle, while I'm so vicious. You may not say it aloud, but surely you'll despise me in your heart."
Mu Wanqing had already been furious to discover that, after not seeing him for a while, Song Qingshu had another woman by