His Rui

General Li sat down on the cold ground in front of Li Zhan's grave.

Glancing once at the grave, he looked at his daughter in his lap and his eyes unconsciously went red seeing her pale face. 

She was still murmuring Li Zhan's name but now the gaps between successive murmurings were too much. It made General Li very afraid

"Rui"

He stroked his daughter's hair gently in a fatherly manner.

"Wake up, Rui…see Father has brought you to see Li Zhan."

However, his daughter continued to lie in his eyes with closed eyes.

A moment later, he took out her small hand out of the blanket that covered her body except for her face and roamed those small fingers on Li Zhan's name that was engraved on the grave.

"Rui, Li Zhan is always there with you…always looking at how you are doing. Don't you think that she will be sad when she will see you like this?"

Seeing no reaction from the unmoving body in his arms, General Li swallowed down the emotions that were choking his throat.

The physician had said that Li Rui will not wake up forever if she continued to have this barrier in her mind. It was her mind that was stopping her from waking up.

In other words, she doesn't want to wake up at all because she was left with no will to live anymore. 

General Li had regretted telling Li Rui everything when he had noticed the change in her daughter. He had regretted very much that he didn't stop her from going to the Imperial Palace. If she was insisting then he should have locked her inside the room.

In the end, she was his daughter. She would have been sad for a few days but at least he would have not lost her completely like this.

Rui…his daughter, the only child that he loved so much, he let her jump in that fire and burn herself in front of his eyes.

He failed.

He failed as a father.

General Li's hand that was stroking Li Rui's head was now trembling. It took him a great effort to let out his next words.

Yi Jie who was standing with Li Mei and Li Hua saw her husband's condition from a few steps away and couldn't help but silently cry. Behind her, Li Mei and Li Hua covered their mouths as muffled sobs escaped from their lips every few seconds. 

"Rui…if you will give up like this then you will waste Li Zhan's efforts. She …she died because she wanted you to live. Do you …want Li Zhan's death go vain."

So many years, he had saved her from every attack. He didn't dare to put his guard down even once fearing that one moment he will look away and he will lose his daughter …his manor's life forever.

Loyal maids and servants, never letting her go out of Li Manor ….he did everything he could do to keep her safe. 

However, when had General Li imagined that his Li Manor will lose its life even if Li Rui was alive?

She was alive but she was lost.

Lost somewhere from where he didn't know if he would ever be able to bring her back or not. 

"Rui…you have to live. Live for Father and Mother… Rui don't you love your mother more? See, she is crying. Wake up now and hug her tightly."

Yi Jie's sobs were heard instantly making General Li look at his wife distressedly. 

"Wake up for Li Hua and Li Mei ….for Li Zhan also."

"I will never punish you again, my child. Wake up, now."

"Don't you think that it is Father who is at fault? Then Father accepts it. Never talk to Father again. It's my punishment."   

General Li made countless promises to his daughter during this time. He tried to give her a bait….hoping that she would suddenly wake up and ask him 'Father didn't lie, right? Father can never punish Rui again.'.

However, she continued to lie in his arms unmoving.

Now General Li really didn't know what he should do. He silently stared at the front with blank eyes suddenly feeling very helpless.

A few moments later, his eyes  suddenly became cold and he said indifferently

"Dig out the grave. If Rui doesn't wake up then there is no one who will visit this place. Who will visit a maid's grave in Li Manor? Go and ask the servants to dig it out."

Li Mei and Li Hua were shocked.

They knew that the order was for them. However, none of them seemed to have gotten any courage to go and ask the servants to do such a thing.

Then Zhan Jiejie …how could they dig out this grave. They had just buried her here in this place a few days ago.

However, General Li's eyes went colder when he saw the maids defying his order.

"Do you want to be thrown out of Li Manor? Rui is also not here to save you so don't think that I can't really do anything."

The two maids shook their heads vigorously as they cried.

Yi Jie was baffled to see her husband's behavior. She looked at the two maids her daughter cherished and felt confused as to how could her husband think of doing this when their daughter was already in such a state after losing one of her maids.

She couldn't help but try to persuade him.

"Heng …" 

  However, she had spoken a word and General Li raised his hand.

"No, Yi Jie, let me handle this matter alone."

As soon as he finished his words, General Li said without giving any chance to his wife to say anything else.

"I will call the servants myself if you can't do this." 

Saying this, General Li was about to stand up from the ground with Li Rui in his arms when a soft whisper fell in his ears making him freeze all over.

"No…don't Father."