In a small courtyard on Wutong Street, Xing Xiaoya was fast asleep, while Jiang Chengli sat in the yard, sharpening a knife on a stone.
"Swoosh—" The iron object scraped against the stone, producing a series of hoarse and unpleasant sounds, as if it were about to shatter eardrums.
He didn't react at all, just staring at the broken knife in his hand.
The blade gradually became sharp and smooth from the rolled edge, gleaming with a sinister cold light.
Tonight is a full moon, and the bright moonlight shines down on him, making him look even more aloof.
The broken knife had been sharpened. He picked it up, ran his finger along the blade, and immediately a bloody cut appeared, from which a bead of bright red blood oozed out.
He held the knife to his crotch, clearly trying to find the right angle, and repeatedly slashed downwards with the knife, getting a feel for how to cut it off in one stroke and eliminate any future problems.
He is Jiang Chengli, yet he is not Jiang Chengli.
His soul has gone through hundreds of reincarnations, and his fate has been largely the same.
Before meeting Xing Xiaoya, he was Jiang Chengli, a man of exceptional talent, backed by the powerful Marquis of Zhongyi. He was young and promising, deeply trusted by the emperor, and would soon become the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, a close advisor to the emperor, with a bright future ahead.
But after meeting Xing Xiaoya, everything changed for him; he became completely devoted to her.
In his first life, he was a devoted follower of Xing Xiaoya without hesitation. He did indeed suffer from amnesia at the time, and afterwards, he always considered Xing Xiaoya's needs. She was his light, and he was her protector, fighting for her in every way.
After regaining his memories, he brought Xing Xiaoya back to the Marquis's mansion. Then, just as the system on Xu Wanying had predicted, Xing Xiaoya became a heartthrob, winning over every man in the Jiang family, young and old.
The Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion collapsed overnight, fathers and sons turned against each other, brothers fought amongst themselves, and wives and children were separated.
In the end, some died, some were crippled, leaving only an empty shell of a marquis's mansion, which was then inherited by a bastard who had usurped the throne.
Even at the very end, Jiang Chengli, despite his weakened state, helped Xing Xiaoya realize her dream of rising to a higher social status.
He thought that death would finally bring peace, but he never expected that when he opened his eyes again, he would be back at the moment when Xing Xiaoya saved him.
After much painful reflection, Jiang Chengli decided to end his entanglement with her to avoid harming both of them.
The road stretches to the sky; each person takes their own half.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as he wished. He found that he couldn't control his body at all. Even if he didn't want to have anything to do with her, his body would still react automatically, making him feel excited and blushing. He was like a puppet in her hands, unable to even control himself.
The closer he got to her, the harder it was for him to control himself.
He had considered countless ways to escape, and even thought about staying in the village with Xing Xiaoya for the rest of his life, whether as brother and sister or as an ordinary couple, the man farming and the woman weaving, enjoying the idyllic rural life.
But things didn't go as planned. He delayed for a certain period of time, and his mind became clouded. By the time he came to his senses again, he had already led Xing Xiaoya to Wangjing.
Since then, whenever he tries to resist, his consciousness becomes clouded, as if his body has been taken over by someone else. He only regains his senses after he has done what he must do, but by then it is too late.
He could only watch helplessly as the second life repeated the events of the previous one, and no matter how he tried to stop it, he could not reverse it.
The Jiang family was once again destroyed and killed; none of them had a good ending. Having endured such torment for two lifetimes, Jiang Chengli was filled with boundless hatred.
When his third life came, the first thing he did upon waking was to pick up a knife and stab Xing Xiaoya in the chest.
His eyes were red as he looked at Xing Xiaoya's incredulous expression.
He had already made two mistakes in his life; he couldn't make another one, nor could he implicate his family again.
Xing Xiaoya's death did not bring him relief; instead, he fainted. When he regained consciousness, he was still lying in bed, and Xing Xiaoya came to his bedside again to comfort him.
He thrust the knife forward again, this time beheading Xing Xiaoya.
But when I opened my eyes again, it was still her.
Jiang Chengli was filled with hatred. He roared and yelled at her to get lost and stop bothering him.
But when Xing Xiaoya cried, he couldn't control himself and began to soothe her in soft voices.
His soul felt as if it had been forcibly cleaved in two.
Half of him resembled a vengeful ghost, as if he wanted to devour Xing Xiaoya alive.
The other half is a young man with sincere feelings who falls in love with Xing Xiaoya step by step and cannot extricate himself from it. He offers up his life and his family, watching helplessly as she dismembers him, devours him completely, leaving not a single bone fragment, and then leaves gracefully.
When he regained consciousness, he stabbed himself without hesitation.
Since he couldn't kill Xing Xiaoya, he should commit suicide, at least to prevent his family from repeating the same mistakes.
But even in death he couldn't find relief; when he opened his eyes, he still saw Xing Xiaoya's smiling face.
Jiang Chengli did not give up. He continued to feign compliance with Xing Xiaoya, and then used the convenience of his rebirth to reveal all the dangers of the Marquis's mansion, such as the replacement of his younger brother.
It doesn't matter if he lives in hell, as long as his family lives well.
He even thought he was about to succeed, that Jiang Chengyi's identity had been exposed. But what he didn't expect was that Jiang Chengyi went to Xing Xiaoya to plead, and Xing Xiaoya simply said that no one else in the Jiang family was alive, and the Marquis of Zhongyi's mansion had to continue.
With just this one sentence, Jiang Chengyi became a marquis again, possessing everything of the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness.
All of Jiang Chengli's previous efforts were like a joke. He went through countless hardships and even endured humiliation to please Xing Xiaoya according to the world's demands, but in the end, it was all for nothing.
From then on, he went completely insane, attempted suicide countless times, and killed Xing Xiaoya several times. Even when he tried to have such thoughts again, various unexpected events would occur, preventing him from doing so.
For example, right now, he has unbuckled his belt, gripped the knife, and headed straight for his target.
But at the very moment he made the cut, the knife suddenly broke, and even the original bright moon disappeared, replaced by thunder and lightning, as if a bolt of lightning was about to strike him at any moment.
"Come on, you damn heavens, if you have the guts, strike me down!" Jiang Chengli pointed at the sky and cursed without any regard for his image.
At this moment, he was disheveled, with bloodshot eyes, looking like a vengeful ghost.
Countless cycles of reincarnation, repeated suicides, watching helplessly as his family was destroyed and his loved ones died tragically, while the person to whom he had given everything always had the last laugh, sitting at the pinnacle of power, living a happy and fulfilling life, and passing away in a long life.
He was already a being more terrifying than a demon.
Having experienced so many rebirths, he had long since understood.
Xing Xiaoya is God's favorite daughter; the whole world revolves around her and makes her happy.
Everyone else was like a stepping stone, except that Jiang Chengli and the Jiang family were a very large stepping stone that could take her a long way.
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