Chapter 29 Chapter 29 “She…can’t hurt you anymore…
Ji Yang had never made such a difficult decision in his life.
He sat on the couch, looking at the woman in front of him. Her eyes were seductive, cold sweat was dripping on her forehead, and her body was trembling like a fallen leaf, but she still reached out to grab his clothes, panting softly and begging him to "help me".
The candlelight flickered under the couch, and his shadow fell on her, like a trapped beast.
His heart was churning and his breathing gradually became heavier.
At the same time, he was telling himself: She was his legally married wife, they had been married for more than a month, and now she was seriously ill, so it was only natural for them to have sex.
But the other side tugged at the darkest corner of his heart: she was Jiang Huaice's daughter.
He gritted his teeth, his body almost frozen in place, unable to move an inch.
She deserves to die.
If she died like this, would he be able to completely cut off all the troubles and entanglements?
But unfortunately——
The thought of her death left him with no joy. No sated hatred, but instead an inexplicable irritation, a dull ache like a knife repeatedly stabbing into his heart.
Another thought told him: she had been wronged by him and had suffered for several days.
He had personally thrown the letter in front of her, considered the burned ashes a verdict, and now—those events were so vivid in his mind that they seemed to torture him bit by bit. "She's innocent."
A voice sounded softly in his heart.
While he was in a daze, Jiang Ci suddenly reached out and slowly hooked his neck with his hand, with a scorching heat like fire.
Her eyes were hazy, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and her cheeks were red as if burning, but she still used all her strength to pull him close to her, and whispered in a tearful voice: "Commander..."
Then, she suddenly raised her head and kissed him, helping Ji Yang make the decision.
Her soft lips pressed against his, without any teasing, only the instinct of survival - like a drowning man grabbing a piece of driftwood.
Ji Yang's head exploded with a bang, and his whole body froze. The blood seemed to flow backwards in an instant, his throat tightened, and his heartbeat violently hit his chest.
He should have pushed her away.
But her breath was so close, mixed with a light sweat and the scent of flowers. Tears slid from the corners of her eyes and fell on his lips, tasting salty and bitter.
But he didn't move.
The fists clenched at his sides slowly tightened, as if they were carrying a heavy burden, and he closed his eyes.
The struggling balance finally tilted slowly.
Jiang Ci kissed him awkwardly, his movements were gentle, but filled with an inexplicable obsession.
Her breathing was disordered and her lips were trembling. The heat had burned her consciousness into a blur. She couldn't even tell whether she took the initiative or just did it for some reason.
Ji Yang's mind was blank, and he was stunned for a long time like a fool.
The next moment, his hand covered hers, gently pressing the back of her head, and pulled her into his arms, his palm full of suppressed restraint. His other hand also wrapped around her waist, trapping her in his arms.
This movement was very light, but it was like a dam collapsing in an instant.
As their lips met, he finally began to respond.
It was slow at first, as if he was testing something, or as if he was restraining some emotion. Until the moment Jiang Ci's trembling fingertips clasped his collar, he finally lost his composure and lowered his head to deepen the kiss.
She was so thin that a pair of hands could almost wrap around her whole body, and the palms touched only bones and a slightly trembling warmth.
His kiss was no longer restrained, sliding from the corner of his lips to the side of his neck, carrying the weight of his emotions and his breathing that grew deeper and deeper.
The candlelight flickered, and the light and shadow were mottled.
The sleeves of her clothes were disheveled on the couch, the jade hairpin had fallen, and the tiny pearl flowers were gently colliding on the wooden floor, making a few extremely subtle crisp sounds, as if waking up the night.
Jiang Ci was in his arms, his clothes slowly peeling off, revealing her snow-white shoulders. She instinctively curled up, but he soothed her, inch by inch. She opened her eyes slightly, a glint gleaming at the corners, but no resistance was evident between her brows.
Ji Yang lowered his head and saw beads of sweat on her eyelashes, and his eyes were distracted for a moment.
He told himself that he was saving her and it wasn't taking advantage of her.
She was his wife, and he was merely performing a ritual that should have been completed long ago.
But a part of his heart knew that he did not resist what was happening at the moment.
He heard her approach, her touch, her pleading kiss, and even her low cries of suppressed pain and shyness.
The candlelight was dim and the temperature in the tent was gradually rising.
It was late at night, but the rain was still falling, tapping against the window frames, as dense as a weave, as if all the noise in the world had been hidden behind the curtain.
The curtains were drawn lightly, and the shadows of the two people overlapped to form a blurred outline, making it impossible to distinguish between them.
Yin Shuang ran back to the yard quickly, her clothes were mostly wet by the rain, and her face was still full of anxiety and panic.
In the corridor, Wanniang stood in front of the door, looking at the tightly closed door inside the house, but her expression was surprisingly calm, and there was even a hint of a smile on the corner of her mouth.
Yin Shuang saw her and rushed forward eagerly: "The girl -"
Before he could finish his words, Wanniang covered his mouth with her hand.
"Hush!" She lowered her voice, with a relieved smile like an aunt, "The governor is in there taking care of the girl, please be quiet and don't spoil things."
Yin Shuang blinked with confusion, "What's going on...?"
Wanniang coughed, her eyes shifted to the swaying lights in the rain, and she sighed softly, "This rain is coming at the perfect time, and this medicine...is also coming down hard."
There seemed to be a deeper meaning in her words, and the unconcealed pride on her face intensified, her tone carrying a sigh of relief: "It's good to be more aggressive... It's really good. Our girl has finally made it through this ordeal."
Yin Shuang was stunned: "What level...?"
Wanniang leaned close to her ear and spoke in a voice as soft as the wind: "Silly girl, think about it, only after a husband and wife have overcome this hurdle can they truly be considered a family. From now on, no matter what misunderstandings or cold wars there are, lying in bed together will slowly untie any knots in their hearts."
She paused, then smiled softly, "Only when we become a true couple will we be willing to open our hearts to each other, willing to trust, love, and protect each other."
Yin Shuang said "Oh" thoughtfully, and couldn't help but glance towards the door, and finally nodded slightly.
Late at night, the rain stopped, the wind died down, and the moonlight was like water.
Ji Xu was still sitting in the tub, his entire body frozen in the water. Cold moonlight streamed through the window lattice, falling on his pale face and illuminating the dead gray in his eyes.
Suddenly, he felt a sweet taste in his throat and a mouthful of blood spurted out. The blood was bright red and instantly stained the bath water.
He clenched his fists so tightly that his veins were visible and his knuckles turned white from the force.
He didn't expect that he would fail twice in the same thing.
Ji Xu trembled as he propped himself up and stood up from the water. The wound on his exposed arm was bleeding faintly. He didn't bother to bandage it, just gathered up his robe and put it on. Without even tying up his hair, he pushed the door open and walked out.
The night wind blew, bringing with it the coolness of the lingering rain.
Outside the courtyard, Bai Yang just returned. Seeing Ji Xu in such a disgraceful state, completely disregarding his image, which was the first time in his life, he immediately ran up to him and said, "Master, what happened? I went to the temple tonight to get a token of trust and came back late. Please forgive me for being late."
Ji Xu didn't reply, but simply lowered his head and walked forward, his steps heavy but persistent. Bai Yang followed worriedly: "Where are you going?"
Ji Xu paused and looked back at him. His eyes were as cold as the wind in the coldest days of winter. His tone was calm, but it revealed his suppressed anger: "It doesn't matter. Don't follow me."
"But Master——"
Before he could finish his words, Ji Xu had already placed the sword in front of him, the tip of the sword flashing with cold light: "If you follow me again, I will kill you first."
Bai Yang stopped, his face horrified, and watched him walk away step by step, but he didn't dare to move forward. He could only follow him from a distance, neither too far nor too close, step by step.
Ji Xu walked straight all the way. The road was slippery after the rain, but his figure was as straight as a knife. Finally, he stopped in front of Shen Ru'an's courtyard gate.
The gate was not closed, as if it had been anticipated.
Shen Ru'an slowly turned around and stood in the corridor, watching him walk into the moonlight - his hair was scattered, his clothes were untidy, his face was pale, and the sword in his hand was cold and sharp. But she smiled, and a strange satisfaction was revealed in her eyes.
She seemed to have been waiting for this moment for a long time, and even thought of many possible endings.
"You're here," she whispered, the corners of her lips curled up.
She was neither anxious nor impatient, and walked towards Ji Xu with light steps.
"Brother Zixu, I never thought you would go this far for Jiang Ci..." Her eyes were dark, but her tone was so soft that it seemed like she was speaking love words. "I thought you had truly sealed your heart from love, but it turns out you're just an ordinary person who just hasn't met someone you like."
Ji Xu's eyes darkened, and his tone was so cold that it seemed to cut through bones: "Shut up. What I hate most is being schemed against."
"But you still came." She approached step by step, and her smile became more and more charming and almost weird in the moonlight.
Ji Xu stood in place, slowly raised the sword in his hand, with the tip of the sword faintly pointing at her chest.
Shen Ru'an stood under the tip of the sword, still smiling gently. She slowly reached out and grasped the cold sword blade.
"You're able to hold on because you're strong-willed, but you also know... you won't live much longer."
She suddenly took a step forward, and while Ji Xu was distracted, she bumped herself into the tip of the sword.
Blood suddenly burst out and the sword pierced her chest.
But she did not retreat. Instead, she gripped the sword blade tightly with both hands and pulled it hard, causing the sword to penetrate deeper.
The blood gushed out like a spring. She lowered her head to look at the wound on her chest that was bleeding continuously. Then she raised her head again and gave Ji Xu a charming smile. There was blood on her lips, but they looked like they were stained with rouge.
"Brother Zixu, you gave me this sword. But it doesn't hurt at all, really."
Ji Xu's expression was grim, but the fingers holding the sword did not loosen at all. Instead, he followed her strength and pushed the sword another half an inch until it pierced her body. Shen Ru'an's body finally fell down weakly.
Ji Xu finally let go of the hilt of the sword and looked at her as if she were a piece of trash.
She fell to her knees, her clothes stained with blood.
But before she fell, she still looked up at him, her eyes were obsessed and crazy, and there was still a chilling smile on the corner of her lips.
She murmured, whispering his name like a dream:
"Zixu...I'm on the other side, waiting for you."
After she finished speaking, she finally fell down, and blood spread on the ground.
When Bai Yang saw the scene in front of him, his face turned pale and he almost forgot to breathe.
He suddenly turned around and ran towards Ji Yang's yard, stumbling all the way, his face as pale as paper. He covered his mouth, not daring to vomit.
At this moment, the atmosphere in the room was thick with smoke. Jiang Ci was leaning on Ji Yang's chest, breathing heavily. Ji Yang's forehead was still sweaty. He looked down at her and carefully helped her up.
She was as soft as a willow branch, with almost no strength left. She leaned in his arms and let him do whatever he wanted.
Ji Yang picked her up and walked to a wooden barrel nearby. He carefully placed her in the water, creating ripples on the surface. He looked at her flushed cheeks and spoke in a rare gentle tone, "I'll call Wan Niang to help you wash."
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Ci shyly dived into the water, leaving only a strand of wet hair on his head exposed.
Ji Yang's lips twitched as he turned back to the bed and stooped to pick up his bedding and his clothes, his movements neither hurried nor slow. The bed was in disarray, and the glaring scarlet still etched on the snow-white sheets caught his eye.
He was stunned for a moment, his eyes dim and unclear, as if he was savoring something or thinking about something.
Suddenly, a hurried shout came from outside the yard, breaking the ambiguity and silence in the room.
"Commander! Oh no, something terrible has happened! The eldest son—"
It was Bai Yang's voice, with a hint of panic and crying.
Ji Yang frowned, put on his outer robe, strode open the door, and shouted, "Speak clearly! How can you be so flustered? What's wrong with big brother?"
Bai Yang stood on the porch after the rain, his face filled with horror. He gasped for breath and said in a trembling voice, "The eldest son... killed my cousin!"
These words were like a thunderclap, instantly exploding in the hearts of everyone in the courtyard.
Jiang Ci in the room was shocked and stunned.
Before she could even wash herself, she suddenly stood up from the tub and shouted in a trembling voice, "Wan Niang, hurry up, help me wipe my body and change my clothes!"
Ji Yang had already run away, hurriedly tying the belt of his clothes. The accumulated water on the ground splashed and wet the corner of his robe.
The night was dark, and the air still smelled of blood and moisture.
When he arrived, Ji Xu was sitting on the stone steps, his hair disheveled, his face as pale as paper, and he was as motionless as a stone statue.
Shen Ru'an fell face up on the ground, with a long sword stuck in his chest. It was the sword given to him by his father himself, one for each of his brothers.
Blood stained her dress and spread along the traces of rain.
"Brother! What's going on? Speak!" Ji Yang walked up quickly and stood in front of him, his tone heavy with a bit of suppressed panic and disbelief.
Ji Xu seemed not to hear anything. He just lowered his head and stared blankly at the blood-mixed water on the ground with a dazed look in his eyes.
Jiang Ci also came. She didn't even have time to put her hair into a bun or straighten her clothes. When she arrived at the courtyard, she suddenly stopped and was shocked by the scene in front of her.
She raised her hands to cover her mouth. Shen Ru'an on the ground was so conspicuous. Jiang Ci's throat rolled and he called softly, "Brother..."
That sound was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, but it was like a ray of light piercing through the night.
Ji Xu suddenly looked up, with a slight ripple in his eyes.
He looked at Jiang Ci, and the corners of his lips slowly raised into a bitter arc, as if he was using all his strength to force out a smile.
"She...can't hurt you anymore," he said softly.
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