Chapter 8, Chapter 8: "I will drown Leng Zhen."...
Leng Cuizhu simply couldn't believe what You En said.
How could Zhenzhen possibly kill someone? Zhenzhen is the kindest person ever. When she was little, she would feel sorry even if she stepped on a bug. Over the years, she has been an apprentice at Jishetang and has helped save many people. All the neighbors praise her for her kind heart.
But Cuscuta chimed in, saying that Leng Zhen was definitely not a good person, whether it was out of personal vendetta or a conclusion reached after much deliberation.
He said he was willing to risk his life to guarantee it. Leng Cuizhu felt it was a pity at the time, but now that she thinks about it... wasn't he immortal?
After much deliberation, she decided to ask Leng Zhen.
It was completely dark, and it was inconvenient to continue their journey. In addition, the restaurant owner had already left, so they rested at the restaurant.
The restaurant had a very gloomy atmosphere, so Leng Zhen prepared a room for her to rest.
"Mother, don't put out the candles in the room," he said. "I'll be downstairs. Call me anytime if you need anything."
He had only taken one step when Leng Cuizhu called out to him.
She sat on the couch, the bloodstains on her skirt almost washed away, leaving only faint red marks and a faint smell of blood.
"Zhenzhen, Mother wants to talk to you." She held her breath. "Have I been neglecting you too much?"
Leng Zhen turned her back to her and glanced at her slightly.
“What does it mean to take care of someone? Does it mean you have to give me your whole heart and soul…” He looked up at the ceiling, his eyes welling up with tears, “We still have to live a good life together.”
Leng Zhen originally planned to die in the spring.
He should have died long ago.
His mother pulled him up, preventing him from falling in.
He often hated his mother, who was frail and weak.
He was often blinded by suffering.
His mother clearly loved him, yet he hated her.
His father clearly didn't love him, yet he always ignored the pain his father caused him.
It was his father who had always ignored him.
His mother loved him so much.
He harbored deep hatred for his mother but let his father off the hook.
He grew to loathe himself; he became the very person he least wanted to be. It turned out he and his father were the same kind of people.
"We want to live a good life together, but you also have your own life to live."
"I've grown up. So what if I ignore you? In a few years, I'll ignore you too, and eventually forget you. The ending will be the same. Does it matter who comes first or last?"
Leng Cuizhu asked in surprise, "Are you disgusted with me?"
"What about your father... Do you like him?"
In the dim candlelight, he smiled slyly, tears welling in his eyes and dripping onto the back of his hand that was covering his lips.
"My mother and father treated each other with respect, so naturally I liked my father."
In an instant, Leng Cuizhu's heart sank.
She bit her lip, rubbing it raw until her skin was chafed, and her face turned red.
She had to admit that she was looking for an answer with an answer in mind, and she was hoping for that "no".
Leng Zhen's answer caught her off guard, jolting her awake. A spasm shot through her throat, and she almost vomited.
Just like more than a decade ago, she was terrified that the baby in her womb would crawl out of her throat, and she lived in constant anxiety.
This time, the wriggling, fleshy lump inside my belly vanished, as if it had never existed.
She could no longer recognize the person in front of her; she could no longer call him a child.
He never existed.
She was utterly disappointed.
At night, she sat by the window doing her hair, taking off the hairpins and wiping away the remaining bloodstains.
Before she was seen, she heard her voice; the rooster clucked as it entered, tilting its head to look at her carefully.
"Host, are you unhappy?"
"I've hidden some grain in my coffers, would you like some?"
Leng Cuizhu's fingertips traced the marks left by the silver hairpin, then suddenly thrust at it, stopping just before it pierced her.
"Giggle giggle giggle giggle!"
The rooster raised its claw and jumped onto the table, shaking off many of its feathers.
"You scared me to death!" it said anxiously. "Host, you won't kill me just to scare me, right?"
"I went through so much trouble to find you. I don't expect you to take responsibility for me, but at least you can't kill me!"
"Responsible?"
"No responsibility, no need to take responsibility!"
The rooster, as if facing a formidable enemy, said: "Host, you're going to sleep, right? Haha, then I'll be going now..."
She glanced at it, and it immediately retracted its paws and stood still.
The next morning, a crow perched on the window and peered into the inner room, making eye contact with the chicken tied to the bed.
"She was worried I'd get lost and get hurt, so she tied me up on purpose." The rooster involuntarily puffed out his chest.
"After all, I'm worth a lot of money!"
The crow ignored them and flew into the bed curtains.
Leng Cuizhu lay on the bed, her face lifeless, her tear stains still wet.
In fact, she hadn't been able to sleep for the past few days, thinking about things all night long.
But last night, she stopped thinking about her husband's ruthlessness and her child's innocence.
What she was thinking about was what she should do.
what to do?
Leaving is easier said than done. Even if you leave one, another will come along. They are like moss, covering her entire body, sucking at her veins, and scooping out her marrow.
She became a spineless vine again, unable to survive without relying on others.
Green candle, green candle, she truly became a flickering candle in the wind.
"...How did you get in?" Her voice was hoarse, and she coughed a few times, covering her mouth.
A crow landed on her pillow and stared at her silently.
"You cried." There was no emotion in his words.
When the news reached her ears, it caused her heartache and brought tears to her eyes again.
The crow lowered its head and simply stayed with her, without saying a word.
After it was fully light, Leng Zhen finished tidying up the carriage and horses, and the two set off again.
Throughout the journey, Leng Cuizhu did not speak to Leng Zhen and remained in the carriage the entire time.
She lifted a corner of the curtain, looked at the trees flashing by outside the window, tore the naan bread in her hand into three pieces, and gave two pieces to Eun and Dodder.
"Sigh, millet tastes better."
"We're lucky to have anything to eat," the rooster said, raising his head. "You're all going to say that to me again, aren't you?"
Leng Cuizhu exchanged a glance with the crow standing on the window frame, then swallowed her words.
Suddenly, a noise came from outside the carriage. Before she could even lift the curtain, Leng Zhen had already squeezed in from the front and pulled her out.
She was filled with doubt, and as soon as she stood up, she caught sight of a familiar figure in front of her, and a wave of sadness washed over her.
Directly opposite, surrounded by guards, was Yin Yuan.
He sat calmly and composedly in his chair, resting his chin on his hand.
Snowflakes fell on his black fox fur coat. He was dressed elegantly, with a handsome face, but his eyes were lifeless, like a pool of stillness.
Looking at the man, all her hopes and despair of the past few days crumbled completely.
Like being trapped in a maze, all her efforts were in vain. In the end, the rope was too long, so long that she thought she could escape easily, so long that she mistakenly believed she had already escaped.
In reality, he always held the end of the rope.
A dagger was held against her neck.
"Let her go, or I'll kill her."
Leng Zhen leaned against her shoulder, the dagger in her hand closing inward, pressed against her skin.
The rooster jumped off the carriage and said, "Host, don't be afraid! He's probably just putting on an act for your husband. He actually wants to protect you! He'll find a chance to let you run away quickly so he can cover your retreat. That's the kind of plot you see in novels."
Leng Cuizhu lowered her eyes and softly hummed in agreement.
Leng Zhen repeated, "Let me go, or I'll kill her!"
"Your love-hate relationship has nothing to do with me. If you won't let her go, you should let me go!"
Yin Yuan turned his head, closed his eyes, and stroked the jade ring on his finger.
Without warning, an arrow pierced Leng Cuizhu's back from behind, piercing her through. She looked down in disbelief at the blood-stained arrowhead on her chest.
She had no hope to begin with, and the unexpected slander left her feeling an unprecedented sense of relief. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply, a hoarse sound bursting from between her teeth, her face already streaked with tears.
She fell to the ground, but Leng Zhen didn't cry out. Instead, she knelt down, holding Leng Zhen's shoulders, her hair disheveled.
Leng Cuizhu was filled with hatred. She wanted to throw a punch, she wanted to get up from this filthy place, but all she could see was a white expanse in front of her. She couldn't hear any crying, not even her own. Her tears had dried up.
In the end, all she heard was a faint, "Take it back."
In the past ten years, she has only visited the Yin residence once, and that was to ask for a formal status.
When she returned to the Yin residence, she no longer wanted any title or status, but she could not escape.
The arrow grazed her heart; had it been just a fraction off, she would not have survived.
I don't know if it's lucky or unlucky.
Leng Cuizhu lay in bed in a daze. She was locked in a side room in the Yin family mansion, and maids brought her food and medicine every day.
"My lady, this is a gift from my mistress." The maid handed her a purse stuffed with silver.
"……lady?"
Leng Cuizhu frowned deeply, filled with unease: "Does Madam... know about me?"
"The madam knew about your arrival the day you entered the manor, which is why she sent me here to take care of you."
Leng Cuizhu hadn't expected that the person who had been taking care of her these past few days was actually Madam Yin's maid: "This servant is filthy and lowly, how could I dare to trouble Madam..."
"The lady said that if prostitutes are dirty, then the clients they serve are even dirtier. It is the clients who defile those women. Without clients, there would be no prostitutes."
"My lady, please rest and recover here. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now." With that, the maid turned and left.
Leng Cuizhu quickly grabbed the maid's sleeve: "Miss Linglan, my child..."
"Don't worry, my lady. If Master wants to torture him, he won't let him die or suffer too serious injuries."
"The lady also told me to tell you, 'You should take care of yourself first. Stop thinking about love and not love. Don't wait until you're dead to realize your mistakes.'"
This made her even more worried.
Torture Leng Zhen?
Zhenzhen is frail and cannot withstand it. Besides, the day that Dodder mentioned is fast approaching. If Yin Yuan is with him, what if something happens... no, it's destined to happen.
“Miss,” she said, grabbing a handful of silver from her purse and stuffing it into the maid’s hand, “Miss, could you… please help me invite your master over?”
"I'm just a servant, how could I possibly see the master? The master never comes to see the madam. It would be more reliable for you to ask the stableman in the manor than for me." The little maid pursed her lips and put the silver into her pocket. "Madam, please rest. I wish you all your wishes come true."
Leng Cuizhu withdrew her hand and slumped weakly onto the bed.
Leng Zhen couldn't be seen, Yin Yuan couldn't be seen, and even You En and Tu Si Zi couldn't be seen.
The room's doors and windows were tightly shut, and incense burned all day, making it so stuffy that she could hardly breathe.
My heart feels even more depressed.
Helpless, she drifted off to sleep again in a daze.
There was no underfloor heating in the room, and the night was bitterly cold. Her unhealed wounds started to ache, as if a million ants were desperately trying to burrow into her skin.
Leng Cuizhu forced open her eyelids, which were glued shut with tears, and saw a hand wearing a jade ring reaching out towards her pale face.
Her body stiffened and she couldn't dodge, so she had no choice but to speak: "My lord..."
The man sitting outside the gauze curtain paused and slowly withdrew his hand.
He remained silent, sitting on the edge of the bed, separated from her by a thin gauze curtain, his profile obscured.
Leng Cuizhu stared at the figure, feeling an inexplicable urge to pounce on him and bite him to death.
His blood and flesh must be extremely cold, just like his.
"It's so cold."
She suddenly chuckled softly.
The curtains twitched slightly as the man pulled back the bed curtains, his face still expressionless.
A stagnant pool.
"Lingniang, why did you do that?"
Leng Cuizhu's lips parted slightly.
She used to be a courtesan, and everyone called her Lingniang. It's been more than ten years since anyone called her that.
Yin Yuan seemed never to have called her anything; he would always just sit to the side and reply with a simple "hmm."
"For no reason." She looked away and turned her body away from him.
Why did you leave me?
"I said, for no reason."
"Why does my lord keep pestering me?" She sat up, tears streaming down her face.
Yin Yuan lowered his eyelashes: "I never allowed you to leave."
"Your body, everything you have, including your children, belongs to me."
Leng Cuizhu gritted her teeth and glared at him, while he slowly unbuttoned the button around his neck, leaving his collar open.
"It's late, go to sleep."
She remained seated, her eyes practically bulging out of their sockets.
After unbuttoning two buttons, the man sat motionless on the edge of the bed, gazing at her sideways.
After a long time, the last candle burned out, plunging the entire room into darkness, leaving only two pairs of blinking eyes gazing at each other.
Yin Yuan leaned closer to her.
She raised her hand and slapped him.
The slap wasn't forceful; it was just a light, fleeting touch, yet it was enough to make her palm burn.
She took in the man's dazed and confused gaze, churned it up, swallowed it whole, and searched for sorrow and resentment in that pile of decadent and superficial emotions, feeling quite exhilarated.
She smiled wryly, "My lord, if only you turned and left..."
He lowered his head and replied, "No."
A smile inexplicably curved his lips, and stray hairs that had been ruffled by the fan lingered near his mouth.
"I told you, you can't leave me, and neither can I."
"The person who seduced you deserves to be punished." His face was devoid of emotion again, his eyes empty and lifeless. "It doesn't matter who it is."
“I will drown Leng Zhen,” he said. “Tomorrow, you can go see him one more time.”
"Lingniang, I'll be watching. Don't try anything else."
A note from the author:
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