Chapter 36: Wei Sheng Holding the Pillar (XII) “I’ve never experienced anything like this…
After all, this was the An family's business. Lian Qiang stopped crying and looked at An Ziliang, but the boy was still crying inconsolably.
A hand grasped Lian Qiang's arm and gently pulled her up from the ground. Lian Qiang looked at Chi Xingji with tears in her eyes, then remembered something she had overlooked. She quickly took a step back and bowed to him. Chi Xingji tried to stop her, but failed.
"After An Sijia's death, her remaining spirit lingered in the courtyard, unwilling to leave. I alone cannot extract and protect her. I hope... the Immortal Lord can lend a hand."
She pronounced the word "Immortal Lord" very softly. Lian Qiang didn't want others to hear it and cause unnecessary trouble, but she also didn't want Chi Xingji to be burdened by this and have to help.
Chi Xingji heard this and looked at her deeply: "What will you do if I don't help?"
"Then I'll find a way myself." After all, this was something she had taken on herself. Chi Xingji had already helped her so much, so it was only natural for him to be reluctant. She might give it a try if she tried her best, but she had to be careful not to contaminate An Sijia's remaining soul...
Lian Qiang was about to turn around and try her luck, but Chi Xingji pulled her back. He looked down at her, as if to explain, "Even if you didn't say it, I would still do it. Besides, since you asked, there's no reason for me to refuse."
His words were full of meaning. Lian Qiang avoided his gaze and looked at An Ziliang, who was still shedding tears. She said softly, "...Thank you very much."
Chi Xingji closed his eyes, clasped his hands together in concentration, and his sleeves fluttered in the wind. As he opened his eyes, he formed a seal with one hand and pointed the other forward. A ball of condensed, pure spiritual energy flew into the courtyard. Lian Qiang could sense it circling within, as if searching for something. After a long moment, it stopped moving, presumably having found its target.
A moment later, Chi Xingji's spiritual power wrapped around a fragmented soul and flew out. The soul was trapped in the spiritual power listlessly, as if it was extremely uncomfortable.
"This is..." Lian Qiang couldn't communicate directly with An Sijia, so she looked at Chi Xingji for help. He answered concisely, "He must have noticed something was happening outside."
Lian Qiang nodded in understanding and wanted to turn around to explain the matter to An Ziliang, but saw that he had fainted again.
The An family temporarily lost its backbone, and An Ziliang, the only one who had a say, was obviously not able to take on the heavy responsibility. Fortunately, the An family was still in order. Lian Qiang felt that Chi Xingji had not been involved in worldly affairs for a long time, so she helped the housekeeper share a lot of things.
It was not until the next morning that An Ziliang woke up slowly, but he looked dazed and had suffered a great shock.
Hearing that Lian Qiang had helped him with a lot of things, he hurriedly dressed solemnly and came to express his gratitude. Seeing that Lian Qiang was completely different from his impulsive self a few days ago, he was also filled with emotion. Chi Xingji happened to be there and brought up the matter of An Sijia's remaining spirit.
Last night, Chi Xingji handed An Sijia's remaining soul to her. At this moment, the remaining soul was quietly floating in Lian Qiang's sleeves, listening to their conversation.
"Do you want to see your sister again?" Lian Qiang asked hesitantly. Judging from An Sijia's previous attitude, she was unwilling to stay any longer. But after such a big thing happened, maybe An Sijia would change her mind.
After all, responsibilities that run deep in one's bones can't be changed overnight. No matter what outsiders say, the final decision should be made by the siblings, whose blood is thicker than water.
However, An Ziliang just smiled bitterly and shook his head: "No need, I think my sister... doesn't want to see me either."
The ball of light in Lian Qiang's sleeve suddenly jumped up. Lian Qiang sensed her movements but did not say anything. Instead, she continued to ask him, "Why? What if she wants to see you?"
"My sister wants to see me, but I really... can't face her anymore." An Ziliang's eyes wandered. "Ever since my father told me about my elder sister's death, I've been wondering if I was the one who snitched on her and killed her. If I hadn't gone to the trouble of telling my father, would she have survived? Would I still be able to see her alive now?"
He was almost talking to himself. Lian Qiang and Chi Xingji were both silent. No one had the right to judge anyone else with "if".
An Sijia is dead, this is an established fact.
"But he told me that my sister was killed by that fox demon. I believed it. I had to believe it. I could only believe it. Thinking about it myself, I felt that I was despicable. I didn't want to accept that I killed my sister, so I could only blame her death on others.
"I've wondered if it was my father who did it, but I never thought about it too deeply. In my opinion, my father has always loved my sister far more than me. I've always believed that.
"But I can't help but think of my sister's expression when she talked about that fox demon. She was... so happy at that time. I've never seen her smile like that before, a smile that wasn't exactly dignified but came from the heart."
At this point, his expression darkened again. "Ever since I was little, I've always been jealous of my sister. She learns everything faster than me, is smarter than me, and has a higher talent for cultivation. I wonder how she can have it all, but I also envy how my father and mother only value my sister.
"So, when my sister told me about this, I thought of telling my father and catching her wrong. Now that I think about it, I feel so ridiculous. How could I be so bad?
"After all, I'm such a selfish person. I simply don't have the face to see my sister again."
The ball of light that had been dancing with joy just now had now become silent. Lian Qiang understood An Sijia's meaning and sighed, "In the illusion, your sister... wanted to see you."
An Ziliang's eyes lit up for a moment when he heard this, but then dimmed very quickly. He smiled weakly at Lian Qiang, "Thank you for comforting me. But it's better for both of us if you don't see my sister again. She probably wants to see Xuze more than me."
"What are you going to do next?" Chi Xingji asked a realistic question. An Ziliang forced another smile: "I don't know what to do. My parents are dead. Even if I don't want to, it's my turn to grow up. The An family has become a scattered sand, but at least it's not broken up - just hold on."
After saying this, he stood up and bowed solemnly to the two men in quick succession. He then asked the butler to bring a number of elixirs and magical instruments. "Thank you both for your help these days. It would be unfair to keep you any longer. A drop of kindness should be repaid with a spring. If you need me in the future, please feel free to come to Lin'an and find me."
Although meeting each other was predestined, there were also differences in the depth of predestined relationships. The two did not refuse and stood up to say goodbye.
An Ziliang escorted the two of them out the door. Finally, Lian Qiang couldn't help herself and turned to him and whispered, "What I said just now wasn't meant to comfort you. Your sister... does think so."
Although her words made no sense, An Ziliang gritted his teeth when he heard them. In an instant, his eyes turned red and tears were about to roll down again.
Chi Xingji stood in the distance, unable to hear their conversation, and just stood there quietly.
Lian Qiang said nothing more, and the two hurried to the outskirts. Lian Qiang thought that according to Xu Ze's personality, he would find a way to escape, but after a few days, he still stayed there, sitting cross-legged.
Seeing the two men turning back, he stood up immediately. Not seeing the third person, his expression instantly became depressed.
Lian Qiang was about to explain when the ball of light in her sleeve flew out first, dancing around Xu Ze up and down again and again.
The fox didn't understand why. The more the ball of light circled around, the more his frown relaxed. Finally, he called out in surprise, "Sijia?"
The ball of light flew up and down for a while, which was considered a nod.
Xu Ze quickly opened his palm in surprise, so that she could rest on it safely. As he looked at her, his eyes turned red: "Why... did you become like this?"
An Sijia was no longer able to answer him and could only radiate light softly.
"An Sijia's body is dead, and it is not easy to keep her soul. Fortunately, she has strong mental strength. Considering that you had an appointment before, we brought her out of the An family to meet you." Chi Xingji said slowly. Lian Qiang felt strange when she heard the ins and outs of his words, but she quickly understood.
Chi Xingji continued, "She has this soul, and there's a chance of resurrection. But it would take a lot of time and effort. Even if you spend hundreds of years resurrecting her, her remaining life span would still be the same as that of an ordinary person, just a few decades. The An family originally wanted to keep her, but she always wanted to see you first."
Xu Ze heard this and quickly clasped his hands together. "What do you mean? She's not happy at home at all, and she's in such a terrible state. Are they trying to snatch her back?"
"After all, that's her home and her family. She'll definitely spare no effort to revive him." Hearing this, Xu Ze's expression shifted slightly. Lian Qiang, noticing this, quickly added fuel to the fire. "If she goes with you, I'm afraid she won't be free for even a few days before you get tired of her and abandon her. Then, she won't have anyone to complain to."
Lian Qiang was right, but even if An Sijia could not be resurrected, she could still be reincarnated. The reason why she chose not to give up was because there were still people and things she cared about.
The mother she missed was gone, her younger brother had grown up, and there was also Xuze, but after all, they had only been friends for a few years. Xuze loved freedom by nature, and it was not impossible that one day he would dislike the trouble of resurrection and want to let An Sijia down.
An Sijia was clear-headed and willing to take the risk of going with her. But it would also be a good thing if the most heartbreaking outcome could be avoided from the outset.
Xu Ze said nothing, spreading his palms and looking at her intently: "Si Jia, I just want to ask you one thing, are you willing to come with me? Even if it takes ten years, a hundred years, or a thousand years, are you willing to wait for me to resurrect you?"
An Sijia swayed up and down.
"That's it. Foxes can live a long time. As long as you're not afraid to wait, I'm not afraid either." He lowered his head and kissed the ball of light, then looked at Lian Qiang and the others. "I've made up my mind. I'm still going to take her away, no matter what she becomes. We made a promise. Now that she's here, I can't let her down."
"...This matter cannot be equated with responsibility," Lian Qiang wanted to say something more, "It's not just an agreement..."
"But I like her." Xu Ze interrupted her as a matter of course, "I like her, I want to spend my whole life with her, it's that simple."
Lian Qiang was choked by his shocking words and couldn't utter a word to refute him. Xu Ze then continued to ramble on, "These days, I'm always being hunted. I've never experienced such a life before, but I thought that if Si Jia could come, I could endure this.
"But when I thought about these people, maybe they were sent by her, I felt like my heart was being cut by a knife—it felt like my heart was being cut by a knife, which is also the word she taught me. I captured many girls who looked like her, trying to force her out. But every one of them looked like her, but not her.
"This one is fatter than her; that one doesn't have the cinnabar on her forehead; this one looks similar, but she doesn't use a wheelchair. Later I realized that I couldn't live without her. I love her, and I want to love her forever, a love that will last as long as my life.
"I'm very happy to hear you say that she didn't deliberately avoid me or hide. I'm very happy. I can never let her leave me again."
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The author has something to say: Prediction failed, ending tomorrow~
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