Chapter 112 Wu Tingyin He wanted to go back, he wanted to go back.

The rain in late spring and early summer is always unpredictable, sometimes raining and sometimes stopping, and it's hard to clear up.

It rained briefly in the afternoon, then stopped for a while, but now it's starting to drizzle again. This incessant rain is making people feel gloomy and depressed.

He folded the umbrella and placed it on the eaves, then stood frozen for a moment in front of the stone steps. Looking back at the courtyard, he saw it filled with a thick mist, reflecting the deep greenery.

Spring has arrived.

The overcast sky made the room dim, yet not a single lamp was lit.

He found a fire and lit the few lamps in the house. As soon as the fire ignited, the house was instantly filled with warm light.

Jiang Ce saw Xue Chan sleeping in bed. He smiled, walked over quietly with his hands behind his back, and then sat on the edge of the bed.

He felt as if he hadn't seen her in a long time, and he missed her dearly, yet he was also careful, so he only gently kissed her cheek.

As light and delicate as the fluttering of butterfly wings.

Jiang Ce smiled contentedly, then got up from the edge of the bed and sat on the footstool, resting his chin on his hands and tilting his head to trace her outline with his eyes.

She seemed to be sleeping restlessly, her long eyebrows furrowing slightly.

He reached out to smooth it, but heard soft whispers outside the window. It seemed to be the young maids talking quietly, keeping their voices low so as not to wake the person sleeping inside.

However, he had excellent hearing and heard the whispers.

"Do you think the son-in-law wants to take a concubine?"

"But my wife has only been married for half a year..."

"Sigh... It seems that although the son-in-law is good to his wife, he always seems to talk to Sisters Yunsheng and Chutao, intentionally or unintentionally."

"Don't talk nonsense. My wife has been ill recently, and it's understandable that her husband would give her some advice out of concern."

Their voices were soft, and their words, muffled by the sound of rain, sounded so intermittent that it was irritating to listen to.

Jiang Ce was somewhat angry upon hearing this.

When will he take a concubine?

Moreover, they've been married for two years, and they can't even remember the exact date.

These girls were so busy chatting that there was no one else in the room, and they didn't even bother to turn on the lights.

Jiang Ce had never liked to interfere with Xue Chan's maids. In the past, she had always disciplined them without making any mistakes, and there was never any gossip or idle chatter.

He got up and hurried to the window, quickly opening it to confront them. But as soon as he angrily opened it, he found no one on the veranda, only two round sparrows seeking shelter from the rain.

The gas in my stomach all dissipated at once.

Xue Chan suddenly clutched her chest, gasping for breath, and a layer of sweat gradually appeared on her forehead.

"What's wrong?" He immediately became nervous and hurriedly tried to rush to the bedside to hug her.

A series of hurried footsteps were heard, and someone quickly helped Xue Chan sit up and pulled her into their arms.

The man asked her softly, "Did you have a nightmare? Don't be afraid, it's just a dream."

Xue Chan woke up and nestled into the man's arms as usual, whispering, "I just had a dream last night about him."

He held her tighter, gently smoothed Xue Chan's disheveled hair, and said softly, "If your deceased husband were alive, he would surely not be able to bear seeing you so heartbroken and in pain. So, take your medicine and get well soon."

My deceased husband...

Are you talking about him?

Jiang Ce stared at his hand that had passed through their bodies, his wide eyes filled with shock.

Then he suddenly remembered that he was already dead.

At that time, his soul drifted amidst mountains of corpses and seas of blood, longing to return home to find his mother. Then, the Black and White Impermanence seized him, intending to reincarnate him.

But just as he was about to drink the Meng Po soup and cross the Naihe Bridge, he smashed the bowl and escaped from the underworld, fleeing to the mortal world to find her. He was a wandering soul with lingering wishes, but time flies, and several years had already passed.

She has remarried and has someone else by her side. As for him, he is the past, a memory.

Jiang Ce stood by the bed, witnessing the tender and intimate scene between the two. When they were together, their love was gentle and peaceful.

In the past, when he was by Xue Chan's side, he was lively and noisy.

Having remembered everything, Jiang Ce refused to leave and stayed by her side for a few more days. He found that she was gentle and kind, always putting her first, and could be described as perfect in every way.

He saw that he was meticulous and patient in caring for Xue Chan's illness, sometimes staying up all night to look after her. He would taste the medicine first to check if it was hot or cold before giving it to her, and he would personally prepare the soup, never delegating the task to anyone else.

Jiang Ce asked himself, could he really do that?

He can't do it.

So it's good to have someone like that by her side. As long as she's doing well, it doesn't matter if she forgets him completely.

The two got along peacefully and gently, but Xue Chan always seemed a little melancholy. She spoke softly, and her smile was faint.

Jiang Ce thought that perhaps it was because she was sick. Once she recovered, she would be as cheerful and playful as before.

However, despite countless treatments by renowned doctors, Xue Chan's illness seemed to worsen, and she visibly lost weight, even losing the strength to laugh.

The man was so anxious that he paced back and forth. Even with his gentle nature, he couldn't help but grab the doctor's hand and throw a tantrum.

"How exactly do you treat patients? You've had countless acupuncture treatments and prescriptions, and we've drunk countless doses of herbal medicine, yet you're still not getting better!"

He was furious, grabbed the doctor by the collar and yelled, "Quack! Quack!"

The maidservant quickly pulled him away and sent the doctor out.

He sat on the edge of the bed, holding Xue Chan's hand, his heart aching with worry.

Jiang Ce stood behind him, only seeing Xue Chan's pale face and her tired, barely open eyes. A sharp pain shot through his chest, and he felt breathless.

A maidservant knelt quietly beside the bed and spoke to the man in a low voice.

"If medicine can't cure it, maybe it's not an illness at all?"

"What do you mean?" He frowned and looked down, while Jiang Ce also looked at her.

The young maid said, "I've heard that if there are wandering spirits around, it's easy to fall into this state. Didn't Madam start feeling unwell after she went to the Buddhist temple to offer incense? She's also weak, so it's possible that she brought these things back with her, and they're clinging to her and refusing to leave, which is why she's like this. Madam's illness has also come on very strangely, otherwise why can't the doctors find the cause of the illness?"

The man seemed to be deep in thought.

If it were before, Jiang Ce would never have believed it.

But now... it was he who dragged her down with him.

Jiang Ce looked at Xue Chan with lingering affection. He wanted to reach out and touch her again, but he raised his hand and then put it down.

He had to leave; he had to get away from her.

Jiang Ce floated away from the bedside, but after passing the screen, he turned back. He saw that the man had lowered the curtain hanging on the copper hook in front of Xue Chan's bed and was entangled in an ambiguous manner with the maid who was serving medicine.

Whispers drifted over.

"My wife is still asleep..."

"What are you afraid of? Would I eat you? As for her, you don't need to worry about her at all."

"You beast in human clothing, you degenerate scoundrel!" Jiang Ce was furious and rushed forward to beat him.

However, just as he was about to touch the person, he felt his body sway and the scene before him changed again.

The night was deep and the dew was heavy; the candlelight burned dimly, and the aroma of medicine was strong.

The room was still the same room, only more simple and plain, and the shelf that used to hold books and paintings was now mostly empty.

On the desk was a small painting of peonies, half-finished.

Where is Xue Chan? Where is Xue Chan?

Jiang Ce frantically searched for her, but when he tried to move, he realized he wasn't floating; he had flown away.

Unable to find Xue Chan and suddenly faced with this situation, he felt even more lost and helpless. He turned around abruptly and met the mirror.

As a ghost, the mirror should not reflect its form, but at this moment, what appears in the mirror is a bird with blue and green feathers.

He transformed into Lan Yu, or more accurately, attached himself to Lan Yu's body.

Unable to find Xue Chan inside, Jiang Ce simply flew out of the window. The courtyard was empty, devoid of anything, with only some remaining traces suggesting that flowers and lamp stands had once stood there.

Not only that, there weren't even two people.

He flew around several times before finally spotting two little girls brewing medicine at the end of the covered walkway.

The maidservant holding the fan and tending the stove cried as she looked at the medicine.

"It's only been two years, how come the son-in-law has changed so much? His wife is so ill, he rarely comes to visit. He has to carry concubines and maids one by one, and he's still not satisfied with that, he still wants to go out and sleep with prostitutes."

As she spoke, she cried even more bitterly, her tears never stopping no matter how much she wiped them away: "How pitiful my lady is! Not long after her aunt, who was a Noble Consort, and her father passed away, she has suffered this... Because she is seriously ill and has no children, the old lady is becoming increasingly unfriendly to her."

"If it weren't for the dowry, I don't know how we would have survived. But he still steals my wife's paintings and calligraphy to sell and give away."

The woman listening to her sobs kept her head down, breaking the fan in her hand in half: "What a family of wolves and tigers! They want the young lady's reputation to make connections, they want the young lady's master's calligraphy and paintings to smooth things over, and they've kept the young lady locked up in this courtyard. A bunch of heartless bastards!"

"In the past two years, they drove Chu Tao away, killed Ying Yue, and sent away everyone in this courtyard. In this courtyard, some are dead, some are scattered..."

The little girl held her hand, sobbing, "Sister Yunsheng, now it's just the two of us left. If the young master comes again, I don't know what we'll do..."

Yun Sheng raised his face, his eyes cold: "If he comes again, I will kill him."

Jiang Ce landed behind the two of them, and after listening to their conversation, his anger completely dissipated.

All that remains is endless regret.

Yun Sheng turned her head, spotted him, wiped away her tears, and chuckled softly, "Why did you come out...?"

She wanted to touch Lan Yu, and when she saw someone push open the door and walk straight into the house, she immediately rushed over.

Jiang Ce flapped his wings and chased after him.

Upon entering the room, they found the two locked in a stalemate over several scrolls of calligraphy and paintings.

"Give me!"

"You're taking a girl's things, aren't you afraid you'll die as soon as you step outside?"

The man, so directly humiliated, turned from his refined and handsome face into something repulsive, and actually stepped forward to fight with her.

Yun Sheng, clutching the painting, escaped from his grasp. Enraged, the man grabbed her by the neck and slammed her onto the desk.

He gave a cold laugh: "How long do you think she, a dying woman, can protect you? After she dies in a couple of days, all these paintings and calligraphy, along with you, will be mine. I advise you to be sensible and figure out who's in charge of this family."

Yun Sheng's face turned red from being pinched, and he gradually lost his strength, but he still clung tightly to the books and paintings.

Jiang Ce rushed up and pecked out his eyes.

"Who do you think you are? What gives you the right to marry her and then treat her badly?"

The man cried out in pain, covered his eyes, and released his grip on Yun Sheng. Blood flowed down between his fingers.

"You damned beast!"

He pretended to grab it, and Jiang Ce immediately fluttered away, pecking at it from time to time, as if he wanted to peck out its other eye as well.

Seeing that Lan Yu was about to be caught, Yun Sheng crawled over and hugged his legs.

The man kicked Yun Sheng away with such force that she crashed into the screen.

Jiang Ce was about to go see her when he was suddenly knocked unconscious by a wooden box.

He grabbed it, pressed it onto the desk, picked up the candlestick, and plunged the spikes deep into its body.

Jiang Ce felt as if his body had been pierced through, just like when he was pierced by an arrow. His body and soul were both impaled by the sharp spikes, firmly binding him to the desk.

Blood splattered everywhere, ultimately ruining the unfinished drawing.

The bird was nailed to the table, unable to spread its wings any longer. Blood gushed out, staining the pink and white peonies red, and dimming the jewel-like blue feathers.

He became a dead bird.

The man curled his lips into a vicious smile, walked towards Yun Sheng, and raised his hand high.

"Bang!"

The man froze, and blood seeped from the back of his head down his collar.

"Bang!"

He collapsed to the ground, revealing Xue Chan holding a candlestick in front of the screen.

Jiang Ce saw her clearly.

She was so pale and exhausted, her body emaciated, her thin frame hanging empty beneath her clothes. Yet her eyes held a deathly stillness, calm and indifferent.

She shouldn't be like this.

She should have been able to live life to the fullest, to be mischievous, to be flamboyant. Even as she approached the end of her life, it should never have ended so hastily.

If the soul had tears, it would weep bitterly.

Xue Chan swayed, gripped the candlestick tightly, and walked forward.

Yun Sheng wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, dragged the person who was trying to crawl out back, and pressed him firmly to the ground.

The man pleaded desperately, "I was wrong... I was wrong..."

Xue Chan collapsed to the ground, grabbed a candlestick, and smashed it against his body, chest, and neck repeatedly.

"Since we're going to die anyway, let's die together!"

Her pale face was splattered with blood, making her face almost transparent. She couldn't bear the pain any longer and began to vomit blood.

However, his hands did not stop, smashing the person on the ground until they stopped struggling and lay flat on the floor tiles.

The blood flowing from his body mingled with the blood vomited by Xue Chan, flowing and flowing along the way.

"ah--!!!"

Hearing the commotion, the elegantly dressed woman rushed in and screamed upon seeing the scene.

Gradually, footsteps approached from outside.

Xue Chan gripped the candlestick tightly as she stood up from the pool of blood, and smiled as she looked at the people rushing in.

Jiang Ce knew that she was welcoming her own death.

But she is so young, with such a long life ahead of her, how could she be so cruelly cut short?

Those men rushed in, forced her arms behind her back, and kicked her legs, forcing her to kneel on the ground.

However, Xue Chan, who was already on her deathbed, had no scruples whatsoever.

She struggled to overturn the table and smash the porcelain bottle. Vomiting blood, she stabbed one person after another with a candlestick.

When she had no more strength left, when she was covered in blood, she finally fell.

"Let her go! Let her go! Let her go!"

Jiang Ce roared and began to struggle, trying to separate his soul from the bird's body.

When his soul was torn apart by the spikes, he finally broke free from the bird's body and rushed over to catch her, relying on the soul that was almost torn in two.

Xue Chan fell down and landed in his arms.

This time, Jiang Ce finally managed to hug her.

He had no blood, but now it turned into tears, falling one by one.

"I'm late... I'm late..."

Xue Chan raised her blood-stained hand and gently wiped away his tears, then smiled faintly.

"You should...be happy for me..."

The rain outside the window grew heavier and heavier, so heavy that he could no longer hear her increasingly faint voice, so heavy that everything around him began to fall apart.

Xue Chan, who was in his arms, had already closed her eyes and passed away, but her thin, bony body also dispersed into specks of light and drifted away.

Heaven is so heartless, even taking away this brief reunion.

"return!"

"return!"

"Please come back!"

Jiang Ce crawled and cried as he tried to grab the last bit of light, cradling it in his hands, but it vanished as soon as he touched it.

Can the soul also feel such heartache?

The pain was so intense that he couldn't breathe and was slowly suffocating.

"return!"

He suddenly reached out, but touched only the damp, cold stone wall.

Jiang Ce's soul had scattered and had not yet returned to this body, so all that remained was a face full of tears.

"You're finally awake!"

Someone shook his shoulder, waking him up a bit. Through his blurry vision, he saw You Yu's anxious face.

Jiang Ce was in a daze for a long time until he heard the sound of rain outside, saw the slightly shiny stone wall, and felt the warm temperature beside him. Only then did he feel like he had returned to the world.

"Where...where are we?" He opened his mouth, his voice so hoarse that it was unrecognizable as his own.

Yu said, "This is a stone cave at the foot of Baizhang Cliff. You were burning up after you pulled out the arrow and have been unconscious for five days now."

"Fortunately, I still have a life-saving pill with me, otherwise you really would have died here." Youyu breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that although he was still seriously ill, he was out of danger.

The hardest days are over.

Jiang Ce moved slightly, only to find that he not only had severe chest pain, but also couldn't move his right leg. At this point, a simple splint was put on him.

Yu sighed, "I only found out that your leg was broken after you fell unconscious. If you rest and recuperate for a while, it should be fine."

"Fortunately, it's spring now, so we can hunt animals and birds, pick fruit and dig vegetables."

He smiled slightly, almost as if making a bitter joke: "However, we'll probably be living like savages for quite some time now."

Jiang Ce chuckled softly at his words, which aggravated his wound. He pressed on the wound and took a breath.

"What's there to be afraid of? A savage is better than a dead man."

Live on. As long as you live, there is hope.

Yu first fed Jiang Ce the collected rainwater, and then gave him the meat that was roasting over the fire.

"Have something to eat first."

Jiang Ce took it and heard You Yu tease him, "This is snake meat, you know."

"It doesn't matter what kind of meat it is, it's all the same once it's in your stomach." With that, he took two bites and swallowed.

After he had some food in his stomach, he felt much better.

Jiang Ce lay on the haystack, listening to the pattering rain outside, and closed his eyes to fall asleep.

He absolutely, positively must go back.