This dream repeated itself countless times, to the point that Song Ting was afraid to sleep afterward. He was afraid that his dream would come true.

He stayed up night after night, only managing to get a short rest when he could no longer hold on.

Severe sleep deprivation made him eccentric and tyrannical, and he killed countless people in his first year.

Fu Shun, the eunuch who had injured Chu Huaixu, was killed by him.

The old prince's best friend, who had stood by indifferently when the Duan Prince's mansion fell into ruin, was killed by him.

The maid who accidentally broke a vase in Chu Huaixu's room was also killed.

The ministers in the imperial court who opposed him and tried to remove him from his high position were also killed by him...

But Chu Huaixu still couldn't be found.

Song Ting missed him terribly, and later even thought that even if it was such a nightmare, he would still want to see that person again.

However, Chu Huaixu refused to enter his dreams again, and wouldn't even leave him with a resolute back view.

He felt utterly rejected, both in his dreams and in real life.

From a certain day onward, Song Ting rarely killed anyone anymore.

The commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, his hands covered in blood, suddenly began to eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist prayers, for reasons unknown.

He even risked being beheaded by secretly setting up an ever-burning lamp at the White Horse Temple.

He thought that someone as sinful as himself should accumulate some merit before he could make a wish before Buddha, asking all the gods and Buddhas to bless Chu Huaixu so that he would still be alive, and that he would be free from illness and disaster, and live a peaceful and prosperous life.

Song Ting lit two incense sticks, borrowed fire from the incense burner, then closed his eyes, clasped his hands together, and devoutly knelt before the tall Buddha statue in front of him.

The Buddha statues in the Buddhist hall are made of bronze, but this one is a genuine golden Buddha statue.

Starting in early autumn of a certain year, Song Ting would come to Baima Temple many times each year, just like today, offering incense and bowing before the Buddha, praying to Him:

May Chu Huaixu be free from illness and disaster, and enjoy peace and prosperity.

“I am full of sins and my sins are hard to atone for, but he is clean. I am willing to bear all his suffering in this life in exchange for his peace and happiness.”

Song Ting raised her head, stood up, and inserted the incense stick in her hand into the incense burner.

In the wisps of smoke, he saw the person he had been longing for day and night, the one who had driven him to madness, slowly walking towards him, her eyebrows and eyes radiant, her eyes filled with laughter.

"I never imagined that you, sir, were such a devoted lover."

Chu Huaixu wrapped his arms around Song Ting's neck, lowered his head slightly, and pressed his soft, thin lips to Song Ting's furrowed brow.

He said, "I thought adults didn't have hearts."

“It wasn’t there before.” Song Ting placed her hands on that slender, supple waist, slowly tightening them, and said each word clearly.

"I was originally an orphan with no parents and no ties, living like a stray dog ​​in this world, with my only thought being to survive."

"I'll do anything and pay any price to survive."

“It was you,” he looked at Chu Huaixu, “who made me truly alive. Master, whether you believe it or not, my life will always belong to you.”

Chu Huaixu chuckled softly, raising his hand to gently stroke Song Ting's eyebrows and eyes, as if with utmost tenderness:

"Whatever you say goes, adults are always good at sweet talk. But you shouldn't frown so much, it makes you look old."

He smoothed out the deep furrow in his brows little by little, but the next second his hand was grabbed.

Song Ting kissed his palm, her eyes red at the corners and deep, seemingly endless.

"I've had too many fantasies like this." His kisses were gentle and delicate, moving from Chu Huaixu's palm to his fingertips.

The way they looked at him was even more devout and respectful than when they looked at a Buddha statue, as if he were Song Ting's god.

"Oh? What fantasy?" Chu Huaixu smiled, seemingly very interested in it.

“Just like now,” Song heard, “every time I finish offering incense and look up at the incense burner in front of me, I feel like I can see you standing next to the incense burner, smiling at me like this.”

"As soon as I gently call your name, you will come to me, hug me, and kiss me."

He looked up and began to kiss Huaiyue's lips, then caught sight of those two thin, soft lips... slowly caressing and kissing them.

Chu Huaixu wanted to escape, but Chu Huaixu easily saw through his intention and pulled him into his arms, holding the back of his head.

That hint of retreat was like a spark thrown into dry tinder, instantly igniting the deep-seated pain in Song Ting's heart.

He thought of the figure in his dream who hated him, resented him, and was determined to leave him, as if this person wanted to abandon him and discard him once again.

I want to never see him again in any future life.

This thought burned in Song Ting's heart and soul, and his eyes instantly turned dark, with a faint fire burning within them.

But Huaixu is right in front of me right now.

—Real, vibrant, and smiling at him.

—I absolutely cannot let him leave again.

He thought about it so many times, recited it so many times, and every time he reached out, the phantom would vanish.

So much so that he never dared to touch it again, only wanting to see that person a little longer in that illusion.

This was the first time he had ever met a real person, and he was reluctant to let go, yet dared not let go.

His illusion came true.

"This is in the Buddhist hall. Are you not afraid of the Buddha's wrath for doing such a thing with me in front of the Buddha?"

Song Ting wrapped her arms around his waist, pulled him close to the base of the golden Buddha statue, and kissed him urgently and fiercely:

"I'm not afraid."

He is not afraid of gods or Buddhas.

Fearless of fierce ghosts.

His only faith was in the person in front of him; as long as he got Chu Huaixu, he didn't care about anything else.

Chu Huaixu seemed quite satisfied with his answer, a confident smile appearing in his eyes.

He gently pushed Song Ting away, then licked the corner of his lips, which had been bruised by the man, with the tip of his tongue, and said, "I'm not afraid either."

As soon as he finished speaking, he leaned over and hugged Song Ting's neck, returning the kiss.

Behind them stood the benevolent Buddha, yet the two were entangled together, locked in a passionate embrace.

“My lord.” Chu Huaixu’s eyes crinkled with amusement as he gently nudged Song Ting, shifting their positions.

Song Ting collapsed onto the prayer mat in front of the Buddha statue. Just as she was about to get up, Huai Yue touched her heart with a finger.

With just a light touch, Song Ting seemed to have been paralyzed, unable to move at all.

Chu Huaixu then took the opportunity to sit on his thigh, his fingertips brushing against his thin lips, leaning closer to him and seducing him:

"Does Your Excellency want it?"

Song Ting was captivated by Chu Huaixu's gaze, his breath catching in his throat. He instinctively placed his hand on Chu Huaixu's supple waist, his fingertips gently caressing his smooth skin.

Chu Huaixu's fingertips slowly moved upwards, pressing against the man's bobbing Adam's apple from his chest, almost biting the man's ear, and whispered:

"The master seems very nervous?"

The candlelight flickered inside the hall, and the reflections on the ground swayed accordingly, just like Song Ting's heartbeat at that moment, chaotic and intense.

He swallowed hard.