Chapter 50 The Collar "You said you would take care of me."
“Ah Shu…” Jiu Su said softly, seemingly unaware of what was happening, with a gentle laugh, “Happy birthday.”
Shu Qing felt as if her blood had frozen solid, her ability to think completely frozen. Upon hearing those words, she mechanically looked up. The locked computer screen still displayed the time: 00:07. It was indeed her birthday.
She opened her mouth and actually managed to say "thank you." After a while, she heard herself ask, "When did you arrive?"
“I’ve always been here,” Jiu Su said. “I was here before you came.”
"...You saw everything?"
"Hmm." Jiu Su clearly didn't want to talk about this anymore, so she simply responded and then forcefully steered the conversation back to her birthday, "I prepared a gift for you."
Shu Qing's hands were icy cold. A small box was shoved into her hands, and she could only stiffen her knuckles like a puppet on strings to open it. Inside the small box was a necklace, woven with red cord, and it seemed that there were fine silver shimmering lights woven into it. A familiar white crystal pendant hung from the bottom.
The crystal pendant was clear and beautiful, and engraved on it was her surname... or rather, her given name, "Shu".
Shu Qing recognized her. She had happily brought Xiao Hong home the day she passed the Supermarket Management Bureau exam. To celebrate the official establishment of their adoption, she had a beautiful little collar made for Xiao Hong, with this white crystal pendant hanging from it.
Xiao Hong absolutely refused to wear that necklace, so it ended up gathering dust in a corner.
I don't know how Jiu Su found it, but she made an almost identical red rope collar to match it. It looks like an enlarged and remade version of that red collar.
"Didn't you say that from now on, I would be your little monster?" Jiu Su gently nuzzled her temple. "You also said that you would take care of me."
They whispered sweet nothings to each other. His soft, silver hair fell over her shoulders, like a blanket of moonlight.
Shu Qing's mind was in a jumbled mess, and she was speechless for a moment. She could only watch as Jiu Su came up to her and took her hand.
Because he was still in the throes of passion, the temperature of his palm was much higher than hers. The heat was transmitted to her through his palm, making her feel as if she had an incurable disease—alternating between hot and cold, tormented by both ice and fire.
Those crimson eyes were still fixed on her. Shu Qing saw her own face reflected in those snake-like eyes, her expression terrified, her face deathly pale, enough for him to see her fear clearly, with no way to hide it.
What to do, what to do...?
Helpless, she watched as Jiu Su guided her hands and fastened the red rope collar around his neck. He wasn't wearing a uniform, but rather a low-cut shirt, which completely exposed the red collar to her eyes. The pendant hung between his collarbones; a cheap pendant worth a little over a hundred yuan, it looked priceless on him.
The snow-white snake tail was still wrapped around her, while her hands encircled his fragile neck; they were like two monstrous snakes strangling each other.
The rope tied behind his neck was locked, sealing his throat.
He took her hand, grasped the crystal pendant, and gently shook it.
Shu Qing was dazzled. What did he mean by that...?
Today's events have far exceeded her expectations, and her frozen brain is overwhelmed, emitting a sharp buzzing sound.
Jiu Su smiled, his eyes crinkling, and cupped her face in his hands, his thumb lightly tracing her lips. Despite his inhumanly alluring appearance, he acted like a gentleman, seeking her opinion: "Is it alright?"
Shu Qing wanted to refuse, but dared not, staring at him stiffly.
Jiu Su waited for five seconds, and seeing that she did not refuse, she tentatively leaned down towards her, her face slowly enlarging in her field of vision, until their breaths began to mingle.
He clearly wanted to kiss her, but he didn't close his eyes. His unusually beautiful red eyes were fixed on her, with a dark light flowing in them, making her even more frightened and uneasy.
"Oh God," Shu Qing thought with a sense of despair, closing her eyes, "I wish someone could punch him in the back and knock him out!"
In an instant, a thought suddenly struck her. The feeling was incredibly magical, as if her inner voice had struck a chord deep within her, producing a clear echo.
Jiu Su's movements suddenly froze. She hurriedly turned her face away, coughed, and then chuckled softly on her shoulder.
She felt a warm liquid drip into her collar, and faintly smelled a fishy odor.
Shu Qing was filled with surprise and doubt, "...Xiao Hong?"
"It's nothing," Jiu Su said, coughing and laughing softly. He asked, "Were you thinking of punching me just now?"
Shu Qing answered honestly, "To be precise, I was wondering if there was anyone who could knock you out with one punch."
“This instruction is too complicated,” Jiu Su laughed. “Next time you should just think of something directly and make me faint.”
He was already unsteady on his feet, his body slowly sliding down, so Shu Qing quickly helped him sit down on the spot. This spot was in the middle of nowhere, with nowhere to lean against, so Shu Qing had no choice but to let him lean on her. For a moment, she felt a mix of emotions.
Jiu Su's breathing was chaotic, and the cough she had just coughed brought out bloodstains from the corner of her lips, showing that there was absolutely no weakness in that "punch".
Shu Qing carefully wiped the blood from his lips, and after a long while, she said, "I'm sorry."
“No need to apologize,” Jiu Su said with a gentle smile. “What I was thinking was, would you kill me again in a fit of anger?”
If Shu Qing was so scared that her mind couldn't process anything just now, she was now so scared that she dared not even think. She stared at Jiu Su with an incredulous look, as if to say: Did you just intend to die for me when I was thinking of killing you?
As this thought crossed her mind, she vaguely sensed something stirring in the darkness, which terrified her so much that she frantically tried to clarify in her mind: No, stop! I didn't mean to kill Xiao Hong, not at all!
Jiu Su understood the series of events unfolding in her mind from the changes in her expression, and couldn't help but laugh again. He coughed as he laughed, and a few drops of fresh blood fell onto his clothes, indicating that he was seriously injured.
Shu Qing supported him, silently praying: Could you restore Xiao Hong's health?
This time there was no response. Shu Qing shouted in her heart: Hello, are you there? Can I heal your wound?
“Yes. As long as I wear this collar, you can do anything to me with it.” Jiu Su said softly, his voice slightly weak, sounding especially gentle in the moonlight, and the meaning was made more cruel by the gentle tone. “At best, you can make me revert to my original form, or subdue me; at worst, you can injure me, make me unconscious... or even kill me.”
At this point, Shu Qing had already tried all the commands in her mind, such as "restore health," "heal," and "treat wounds," but they were all ineffective.
She was filled with anger, regret, and pain, a mix of emotions that made her anything but positive or optimistic. Upon hearing this sentence again, she blurted out, "What do you mean by 'anything'? Can something that's just about hitting without treating be called 'anything'? What's the point of you creating something like this?"
Jiu Su was still smiling, but there was a hint of self-mockery in his smile. He seemed a little tired, closed his eyes, and asked, "If I didn't do this, would you believe me?"
"..."
“Maybe you will.” Jiu Su opened her eyes and looked at her, then smiled. “But you will inevitably live in fear, and your family will live in fear as well. If this goes on for too long, you will still abandon me… I think you can rest assured.”
Shu Qing felt incredibly sad, especially when she realized... that now, she was truly no longer afraid.
The price she paid for her peace of mind was the power of life and death over her lover. Did they have to have one of them hold the other's life in their hands?
She hesitated for a moment, then asked, "And you, aren't you afraid?"
“I’m afraid. Whether you really want me dead or you’ve decided to abandon me, I’m afraid… But if I don’t do this, you’ll abandon me soon… I’d rather take the gamble.”
Shu Qing had no answer, and finally hugged him. All the suspicion and resentment she had felt over the past few days vanished at this moment, leaving only a feeling of heartache.
Under what circumstances would a person willingly put a deadly restraint around their neck?
Or perhaps they are handing over the power to harm themselves at will to their former enemies.
She muttered under her breath, "Idiot."
“I didn’t want to bother you again…” Jiu Su gently nuzzled her. “I know that if we start over, there are some things I can’t hide from you… If you find out, you might not want me anymore. But if I stop you from investigating, you’ll suspect me, and the result will be the same… I have no other choice…”
He had basically controlled his arousal, but now, with his injuries, he couldn't help but feel restless again. His eyes were glazed, his tail kept roaming around her waist, and his breathing became increasingly disordered.
Shu Qing gently stroked his back, trying to make him feel better.
“You were the one who told me to give it a try,” Jiu Su grabbed her and asked, “It’s only been a short time, and you already want to abandon me?”
Shu Qing explained in vain, "I didn't mean to abandon you... I just want to figure out what really happened before, and who I really am. Who knows..."
Who knew that I would witness such a tragic old story?
Jiu Su asked, "Do you believe me now?"
Shu Qing nodded vigorously.
“You killed me once, but you don’t owe me anything,” Jiu Su said. “Don’t you find it strange that there’s no record of your past?”
"Yes, but I haven't had time to think about why yet."
“Because later, the records of your life were erased,” Jiu Su told her. “Later, you openly turned against Kunlun Immortal Capital, fought your way to the Northern Border alone, and found the place where I was buried… At that time, you had already suffered a fatal wound, and we were practically bound by life and death. You have already repaid me with your life, and you have not let me down.”
Shu Qing asked in astonishment, "Why?"
She had always thought this was a Romeo and Juliet story. Choosing family—or rather, faction—over love was just her nature. But since she had already made her choice, even if she regretted it, there was no reason for her to openly turn against her own side, was there?
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