This is a small village with only fifty or sixty people...
Yan Siqiao lay flat on the haystack, with her arms behind her head, looking up at the crescent moon hanging beside her amidst the starry sky. The chirping of insects made her feel the loneliness of the night even more.
She closed her eyes, a faint sorrow rising in her heart. Born into the Yan tribe, she didn't know if it was a blessing or a curse. The Yan were a typical matriarchal society, where women were superior to men. However, girls were tamed from childhood; any emotions that could make a person weak or unable to be independent were eliminated. This was because generations of experience had proven that weakness reduced one's chances of survival. To ensure the continuation of the tribe, a daughter of the Yan tribe had no right to be weak from the moment of birth.
Once a woman turns fourteen, she is considered an adult, and the daughters of the Yan tribe are expelled from the tribe, drifting like dandelions scattered by the wind, never to return. Among their children, one must bear the surname of their tribe, and the household register must indicate that they are descendants of the Yan tribe. This is their way of ensuring the continuation of their tribe and spreading to various places.
The Yan men who were left behind had to do extremely tiring and arduous work every day, while the daughters, because they bore the heavy responsibility of procreation, were born with genes for beauty and allure. Over time, the world came to know that Yan women were inherently promiscuous and lowly, and no one respected them.
Fortunately, she had learned martial arts from her second brother since childhood, so even though she had been expelled from the family, she was still capable of handling any situation. The summer breeze was warm and felt comfortable on her cheeks. Sleepiness gradually crept in, and Si Qiao curled up completely in the grass, closed her eyes, and prepared to go to bed.
Suddenly… a strange noise made her open her eyes instantly. She didn't move, but cautiously turned her head to look at the woods. She saw a dark shadow quickly dart across the treetops and then disappear into the dense, dark forest.
Based on her experience, she knew she might be being chased or being chased, so she quickly and quietly turned over and lowered her breathing to avoid attracting the attention of her followers.
She waited for a long time but didn't see anything. Just as she was about to give up, she was startled to see a tall, thin man on the tree where the man had disappeared. He drew his long sword and casually flicked it. A scream came from not far away, followed by a loud bang. It must have been the man who had been stabbed by the sword and fallen from the tree.
She couldn't help but marvel at how this person's eyesight and hearing were so good in the dark of night, in the dense forest, that he could kill his opponent with a single sword strike. It was clear that his martial arts skills were extremely high.
A moment later, the moon, hidden behind thick clouds, gradually emerged, revealing the previously dark world in its light. Si Qiao was so frightened that she didn't dare to breathe, not only because she had witnessed the murder, but also because she could see the assassin's entire face through the moonlight.
His long hair was half tied up with a crown and half draped over his shoulders. He had a sharply defined face, narrow, almond-shaped eyes, a high nose, and a slightly protruding chin. He was tall and thin, and his long robe fluttered in the wind as if hanging from a bamboo pole. This man exuded a sinister and chilling aura, as if he came from hell, which sent chills down one's spine.
What's most chilling is that when he leaped down from the tree, pulled the blade from the victim's chest, and then cleanly severed his head, his face showed absolutely no expression, as if he were doing something utterly ordinary and easy.
He wrapped the severed head in a black cloth, slung it diagonally over his shoulder, and then turned his head blankly to look in her direction. She was so frightened that she quickly held her breath, lowered her head, and huddled tightly in the hay, afraid that he would discover her at the slightest sound.
After a long while, only the chirping of birds and insects and the sound of the wind blowing through the grass filled the empty fields, indicating that the man had not noticed her. When she peeked out again, he had vanished, leaving only a headless corpse lying quietly on the dirt road, proving that what had just happened was not a hallucination.
Si Qiao climbed up from the haystack, brushed off the grass clippings, and ran off in the opposite direction of the dense forest. She didn't have the courage to lie quietly with the corpse for a night; she'd better find another place to rest.
Qi hadn't gone far. He had a habit after every murder: he had to wash his hands and face with water afterwards. When did he develop this habit? It seemed to be the first time he killed someone and slit their throat, when the victim sprayed blood all over his head and face. The sticky, fishy smell was truly nauseating.
He had already familiarized himself with the terrain while lying in ambush here during the day, and knew that there was an extremely clear stream in front of the dense forest, which was perfect for washing.
I splashed water on my face; the cool stream water kept my mind clear. But when my gaze fell on a rock, an image of a woman with bare feet playing in the stream came to mind.
He sighed softly, wiping his damp hands on his outer robe. Then, he pulled a clean white handkerchief from his pocket, carefully unfolding it in his palm. On it lay a white jade earring. It was left on the bed in the room when he kidnapped Shu Yao. Later, she was rescued by Huo Jingsha, and he retrieved it, keeping it close to his body with great care until now. Whenever he missed her, he would take it out and look at it, as if seeing her in person.
Unfortunately... he seemed to have acted a little too late, and Huo Jingsha had already won her heart.
"If you don't want to die, get out of here right now!" His peaceful demeanor suddenly transformed into one of murderous fury. He pulled the object in his hand back into his robes and shouted sternly in one direction.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
