Chapter 62 She killed someone; Xu Congjing knelt down before Lou Yan.
The tension in his heart finally eased, and he reached out to pinch her earlobe as a "minor punishment," asking, "Are you teasing me?"
"What, are you the only one allowed to tease me?" Lou Yanxu slapped his hand away as her ear tickled, then glared at him with her eyes darting around. Xu Congjing didn't get angry but laughed instead, in a great mood. "How could I dare? As long as you're happy."
He could sense that their relationship had eased somewhat, so how could he dare to, or bear to, refute her even a single word?
Lou Yanxu also sensed something was wrong and awkwardly looked away, avoiding the topic as usual. She changed the subject, "I heard Yunlu say that in Lingzhou, if it weren't for this arrow, you would have already been ambushed. So this arrow was not a killing arrow but a life-saving one. Whether it was intentional or unintentional, it saved your life."
Over the past two days, she had roughly grasped the whole story. Apparently, Xu Congjing had gone to Lingzhou alone to pursue Chen Qian, but was discovered. Chen Qian preemptively attacked, gathering his forces to ambush him, intending to kill him. However, Xu Congjing was pierced in the chest by a poisoned arrow and had to flee first. His plan failed, and Chen Qian, not daring to act rashly, escaped.
The origin of this arrow remains unknown.
"I can tell that this arrow was meant to save you." After learning of the assassination attempt, Master Rong rushed over and strode in, his face grave and his breath slightly ragged. "This poison can cause the blood and qi in the body to surge and cause extreme pain. Although it seems dangerous, it can at most make a person weak and drowsy. It will take at least ten days to half a month for them to recover half of their strength. It is clear that the person behind this did not want to kill you."
Xu Congjing offered a seat to Master Rong, then pulled Lou Yanxu to sit down as well. He stared intently at the teacup he was playing with, his peach blossom eyes concealing their emotions, while a subtle sharpness lurked between his brows.
He said, "He wanted to stall me so that I wouldn't be able to order the secret guards to attack, thus helping Chen Qian escape."
Lou Yanxu hesitated for a moment, seemingly lost in thought, "So, this person is afraid you'll investigate further, but is also reluctant to kill you."
"If you don't want to kill me, why have you come tonight?"
Those assassins were all exceptionally skilled; their swift and deadly strikes were terrifying, clearly indicating they had come prepared.
“Yun Ji didn’t come to kill me.” As Xu Congjing put his hand down, the teacup slammed gently on the table with a “thud.” The whole story became clearer in his mind. “Just now I noticed that the group of people were all rushing towards me, but he went towards my desk.”
The lingering poison in his body left him weak and powerless. Seeing this, Lou Yanxu helped him to the desk, where he took out a letter, which was the secret letter he had sent to Ji Fu.
"His target is this letter."
Master Rong nodded, "So, the direction of the investigation is correct."
The two agreed, but Xu Congjing still had residual poison in his body, so he was inevitably willing but unable to help. Lou Yan was about to ask them for a solution when she heard overlapping footsteps and rustling noises outside the door.
"She ran away! Go after her!"
The autumn leaves were chilly, something must have happened. She peeked out but saw nothing outside, so she stepped out to check. Before she could even get half her foot inside, a cold blade was already pressed against her neck. She couldn't help but swallow hard twice. She glanced to the side, her eyes suddenly narrowed, and her eyelashes trembled slightly.
She never expected to see the long-lost Second Madam Sheng at the Xu residence.
Sheng Jin's face was ashen, her shiny hair clung to her neck, and her tattered clothes emitted a foul stench. The once glamorous eldest daughter of the Marquis of Chenghua had been wasted away into an empty, dull, and sallow-faced woman.
Xu Congjing propped himself up and looked over. His eyes instantly filled with dark emotions. Ignoring his weak body, he took a big step forward and rushed over. He was filled with regret for not finishing off his enemy sooner, which had caused Lou Yanxu to be in such a dangerous situation.
Upon seeing him, Sheng Jin flinched for a moment, and thus tightened her grip, the knife pressing against Lou Yanxu's neck, drawing blood. "Don't come any closer, don't come any closer... if you come any closer I'll kill her!"
The knife hanging over Lou Yanxu's neck felt like it was hanging over their hearts. Xu Congjing dared not move, so he stopped and held his hand in the air, frozen in place. "Don't move, I'll let you go."
Sheng Jin caught a glimpse of panic on his face, and felt extremely pleased. Her eyes widened, and she tilted her head back and laughed loudly, "Xu Congjing, you've finally met your match! You've finally been scared!"
He was trembling with rage, wishing he could chop off her head and crush her arrogance. However, he had to take a half step back and threaten, "If you dare to touch her, I will tear you to pieces and make you suffer a terrible death!"
"So what if I'm torn to pieces? You've tortured me for so long, I've experienced things worse than death, what else do I have to fear?" Thinking back to her time in the Xu mansion, in that dark, sunless cage where even mice were scarce, she constantly doubted whether she was still alive—a doubt far more painful than death. She had nothing left to fear, so she risked her life to escape, even at the cost of her own life.
A cold wind swept across Lou Yanxu's neck, making her hair stand on end. She felt a chill. Sheng Jin was very alert; if she moved even slightly, the knife would press down even further.
Without hesitation, Xu Congjing moved and bent over.
Lou Yanxu swallowed nervously, terrified that this proud man would grovel in front of everyone because of her. Her fists clenched so tightly they trembled, and a tear slid down her cheek. She was filled with regret, regret for her carelessness in falling into enemy hands and ending up like this.
"Don't……"
"Don't do this..."
The manor lord's gaze swept back and forth between the three. Just as he reached out to stop them, he saw Xu Congjing straighten his back and kneel on one knee, followed closely by the other.
Kneeling down on both knees has worn away so much pride. Humbly begging the murderer who killed his sister—is there anything in this world more degrading to one's dignity?
Sheng Jin, with her venomous heart, has harmed countless women. How can someone who has committed such heinous acts still be so smug? How can she look down upon all living beings and control life and death?
No, that must not be done!
The maniacal laughter continued, and Lou Yanxu was already in tears. She stared at her husband, who was crawling in front of the enemy, and shook her head repeatedly. She almost bit her back teeth to pieces. With a determined heart, she opened her mouth and bit the hand in front of her body without mercy, biting until the flesh was torn apart.
Sheng Jin cried out in pain, and the sword clattered to the ground. Lou Yanxu's mind flashed with images of Rou Jie's tragic death, and she lost her mind. She picked up the sword and stabbed it through the chest and abdomen. Everyone present was stunned, watching in horror as the sword was pulled out and then stabbed in again, repeated three times, until Sheng Jin breathed her last.
With a sharp "clang," the sword slipped from her hand and fell to the ground. Lou Yanxu trembled, covering her mouth as she stared into those unclosed, lifeless eyes, yet a sense of immense satisfaction welled up within her. She had slain her first enemy, avenging her sister Rou!
Then he suddenly laughed, "I... I killed her, I got my revenge, I avenged Sister Rou..."
Xu Congjing could see the unease she was suppressing, so he sat up and rushed over to hug her tightly. The two of them embraced and cried together. At that moment, only they could understand each other's feelings.
"Wanwan..." Xu Congjing murmured, cherishing this moment of warmth.
As dawn broke, she wiped away her tears, calmed herself, and silently prepared to return to the manor. He was worried and ordered Yunlu to escort her.
In the following days, she deliberately avoided him for some reason. One was busy investigating the truth and the other was busy handling court affairs. When they met, they would only nod to each other, and small talk became a luxury.
On the first day of the lunar new year, as was customary, Lou Yanxu went to Huiju Temple to offer incense and pray for blessings. There, she ran into Lu Hengzhi, whom she hadn't seen for several days. He had come with his newlywed wife. She had intended to avoid him, but just as she was leaving, they bumped into each other. He stepped towards her, clearly coming for her, leaving her with no way to avoid him.
"Wanwan".
She bowed respectfully, "Your Highness, please call me Lady Lou."
They first met here. At that time, she was still a married woman and respectfully addressed him as the heir apparent to the Duke of Ying. Now, after all these twists and turns, it is likely that we will never hear her call him "Hengzhi" again.
Lu Hengzhi smiled wryly, too lazy to dwell on it any longer, and asked, "How are you now?"
"I'm fine, don't worry about me."
Seeing that she looked radiant and unaffected, he felt a mix of bitterness and relief. He reached out from behind him and handed her an exquisite gift box. She asked in surprise, "What is this?"
"I personally picked the 'Bright Moon over the Green Stream,' hoping you would like it." This item was originally intended as a surprise for the newlyweds, but now that the wedding has not yet taken place, I still want to give it to them.
Lou Yanxu hadn't expected him to take such small things to heart, and she was inevitably moved, but she put on a stern face and refused, "I can't accept this gift."
His eyes showed some hurt. "We couldn't get married, so we can't even be friends anymore?"
“What matters is not what we think, but what the young master’s wife thinks.” She glanced at Ning Er Niangzi, who was waiting in the distance and kept peeking over, and said calmly, “Now that we are married, we must not overstep the bounds of propriety or transgress the rules.”
For a woman to allow her husband to meet with his "former lover" requires immense courage; at least in her view, Ning Er Niangzi still harbors some genuine feelings for Lu Hengzhi. As for what kind of person that person truly is, Lu Hengzhi needs to see for himself, hence another round of persuasion.
"Hengzhi, stop wasting your time on me. You should look at other people more."
Since we can't resist it, we might as well go with the flow and perhaps a different world will open up for us?
The words "unable to resist" pierced his heart deeply, and Lu Hengzhi was filled with a sense of powerlessness. "It was my cowardice that prevented me from keeping you."
“It’s all in the past,” Lou Yanxu said.
Perhaps it's already over for her, but for Lu Hengzhi, it's unknown how long it will take to bury and heal. He loved so deeply, yet it couldn't withstand reality. Lost in thought, he lowered his head for a moment, then looked up and asked her, "Will you eventually marry Xu Congjing?"
"Why would you ask that?" She was taken aback, as if they all thought the same thing. Lu Hengzhi thought so, and even Xu Congjing firmly believed that she would eventually return to his side.
"Although you agreed to marry me, I know in my heart that he is ultimately different in your heart." He gave a slightly bitter smile. He had to admit that feelings are about who comes first.
As the autumn wind swirled the fallen leaves, those sorrowful words slipped out: "You hate him the most, yet you also love him the most."
You hate him the most, and you love him the most.
Lou Yanxu's head exploded with a bang, her heart pounding faster and faster. Was she no longer able to distinguish between love and hate?
"Is that so?" she murmured to herself, then asked again, "Is that so?"
After parting ways with Lu Hengzhi, she walked heavily and aimlessly forward. As the sunlight, which had been hidden behind the clouds for days, rose in front of her, her mind gradually became clear.
In the dazzling sunlight, a lady dressed in simple clothes suddenly appeared. Lou Yanxu shielded her eyes before looking again and realized that it was Madam Xu.
"Auntie," she called softly as she walked over.
Madam Zhang frowned, staring intently at her, her mouth opening and closing repeatedly, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.
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