distance
Jiang Yi quickly pulled her arm back, avoiding him like the plague, adopting an attitude of keeping him at arm's length.
He Lin was slightly stunned for a moment, but quickly came back to his senses and pursed his lips. Shan Yanzhi and Gu Ziyu behind him exchanged a glance.
The latter stepped forward and immediately took out the silver feather token in his hand, aiming it at the two guards.
"His Majesty has decreed that Ma Zhang, the Prince of Hannan, is cunning and treacherous. In order to prevent anyone from trying to storm the execution ground, he has specially ordered our Pavilion Master to assist Lord Li in supervising the execution."
The two guards quickly sheathed their spears and halberds, clasped their fists at He Lin, and then retreated.
The executioner sitting in front stood up from his chair, jogged over to He Lin, and bowed, saying, "Lord Xi Chen, please take a seat."
He Lin said coldly, "No need. Lord Li can just follow the procedure and doesn't need to worry about me. However, this person came with me. I wonder if Lord Li would be able to make an exception for him?"
"Haha, since you're Lord Xi Chen's person, it's naturally convenient for you." The executioner then stepped aside to make way for her, "Please make your way, young lady."
Just moments ago, the executioner was calmly sipping tea on the high platform, not even glancing at the commotion below. But now that He Lin has arrived, he's all smiles and grovels, acting like a sycophant. Jiang Yi finds him utterly annoying.
She pulled her cloak tighter around herself, turned to look at He Lin, and said softly, "Power is a wonderful thing, isn't it, Lord Xi Chen?"
Jiang Yi practically spat out the last sentence, "Lord Xi Chen," through gritted teeth; she truly disliked He Lin's behavior.
Although he was simply wearing a mask, with no changes to his hairstyle or clothes, he gave Jiang Yi a feeling of being separated by thousands of miles, like the morning mist, impossible to touch no matter what.
In other words, she couldn't see through the man in front of her. He Lin had too many secrets and too many things on his mind.
He Lin naturally understood the sarcasm in her words. He said nothing, only staring at the person in front of him with his bright black eyes, as if he had a thousand words to say but couldn't bring himself to say them.
"Your Highness, this is the famous Xiaoyao Brew from the capital, please."
Jiang Yi squatted down next to Ma Zhang, reached out and uncorked the bottle, pretending to feed him the wine herself.
Ma Zhang looked at her deeply with gratitude, then tilted his head back and gulped down several mouthfuls of wine. Because he drank so fast, the wine flowed down his chin and neck, quickly soaking his thin prison uniform. When the cold wind blew, it seemed to freeze into ice.
He shook his head and laughed a few times: "Not bad, I never thought I'd get to drink this before I die. Thank you, young lady."
Jiang Yi shook her head: "It's nothing."
At this moment, He Lin had already confirmed one thing: Jiang Yi must have told him something during the days when she was kidnapped by Ma Zhang. Otherwise, given Jiang Yi's personality, she would have been lucky if she hadn't cursed him to death. Why would she have specially sent Ma Zhang off on his deathbed and even brought him wine?
When Jiang Yi was shot by an arrow in front of Zhengwu Gate, Ma Zhang's astonishment and worry seemed genuine. How could two complete strangers have come to this? He had his suspicions then: what had this man said to Jiang Yi that made her trust a disgraced official so much?
The executioner consulted He Lin: "Lord Xi Chen, the execution time has arrived, what do you think..."
"Um."
The executioner understood, cupped his hands in greeting to He Lin, then strode up to the execution platform, took a command token from the table, raised it high, and announced loudly, "Execute!"
As soon as those two words were uttered, the command arrow in his hand fell to the ground.
The executioner tilted his head back and drank a large gulp of wine, then sprayed it all over the hilt of his sword.
Jiang Yi couldn't bear to watch any longer, so she placed the wine pot on the ground beside her, turned around, and strode away.
After a few steps, a heavy thud was heard behind them. The crowd below the platform gasped in astonishment, some covering their eyes and backing away, others pointing and whispering...
Jiang Yi realized what was happening, clutched her dress tightly, broke out in a cold sweat, and kept telling herself to hurry up and not look back.
But she couldn't control herself. Just as she stopped and slowly turned her head, He Lin appeared in front of her, blocking the bloody scene.
Their eyes met, and Jiang Yi's eyes instantly reddened. She felt a chill run through her body, and the arrow wound in her chest throbbed with pain.
After an unknown period of silence, He Lin spoke softly, "It's getting cold, let's go back."
The howling north wind and the falling snow made it impossible for her to hear or see the person in front of her. Although he was so close, he seemed so far away.
In a building opposite the execution ground, a man dressed in a black robe with gold thread narrowed his eyes, retreated to a seat, and sipped his hot tea. The guards immediately closed the window to keep out the wind and snow outside.
"Go and find out who that woman is."
"yes."
...
When Jiang Yi returned, it was still snowing heavily. She walked along the long street in a daze, feeling a tightness in her chest and churning in her stomach, wishing she could vomit something to relieve the discomfort.
There weren't many people on the street, only the street vendors who remained at their posts, enthusiastically hawking their wares.
For a moment, their faces contorted into grotesque expressions as they grinned at her eerily, mocking her for being an outsider who dared to overestimate herself and try to change the rules of the world.
This is not the modern society where she grew up with advanced ideas; it is a feudal dynasty that truly devours people and treats human life as worthless.
If people knew that she didn't belong here, but came from the future thousands of years later, she would probably be arrested as an alien monster, and her fate would be a hundred or a thousand times more miserable than Ma Zhang's.
Realizing this, Jiang Yi felt dizzy and weak, her vision blurred and went dark. Xia Zhi's panicked screams still echoed in her ears, sometimes near, sometimes far...
Jiang Yi was already injured, and as expected, she developed a fever after collapsing. She slept for a whole day and night, sometimes conscious and sometimes confused, and talked a lot in her sleep, but none of it was comprehensible.
Xia Zhi bent down and removed the cotton cloth from Jiang Yi's forehead, washed it in the basin of water next to her, wrung it out, and then covered it back up to help cool her down. She did this countless times, but Jiang Yi still showed no signs of waking up.
Late at night, He Lin returned, bringing with him a chill.
After entering the house, he did not go directly inside to visit Jiang Yi. Instead, he took off his cloak and placed it on a chair, then walked to the stove to warm himself up before going around the screen to approach her.
When Xia Zhi saw him come in, she quickly stood properly to the side.
"Young master."
"Hmm, how is she?"
Xia Zhi looked worried and said listlessly, "Miss's body isn't so hot anymore, but she just can't wake up. Today, Lord Wu Yuan came and gave her some acupuncture, and she mumbled a few words in her sleep before falling back asleep."
"Okay, you can go now."
Xia Zhi glanced at Jiang Yi on the couch, performed a polite bow, and then withdrew.
He Lin removed the cooling cotton cloth and touched her forehead with the back of his hand. It was a normal temperature. Jiang Yi was unconscious at this time, her lips and face were pale and bloodless.
He couldn't help but raise his hand and touch her cheek. She had lost a lot of weight in the past few days, and he heard that she wasn't eating much. It seemed that the arrow had really taken away all her energy and spirit.
This person, who is usually so lively, cheerful, carefree, and easygoing, is now lying in bed suffering from illness.
He Lin was also feeling uneasy. During the days Jiang Yi had been giving him the cold shoulder, he had suffered greatly. He truly knew he was wrong; this was the first time in his life he had so deeply regretted doing something. If he had known this would happen, even if it meant disobeying the imperial decree, he would have let the Prince of Hannan and his men leave…
He could bring back criminals and disgraced officials, but he didn't know how to mend Jiang Yi's broken heart.
"sorry."
The room was quiet. He lowered his head and murmured those three words softly. Suddenly, he felt a warm hand covering the back of his hand. He looked up and saw Jiang Yi staring at him.
Before she could react, Jiang Yi gently brushed He Lin's hand away and turned her back to him.
"You're awake. How are you feeling?"
He was met with silence.
He Lin had anticipated this outcome, but he still couldn't give up.
"You haven't spoken to me in a long time, shall we talk?"
Jiang Yi closed her eyes, refusing to listen to the bastard's chanting.
If the system weren't jumping around in her head and yelling incessantly, she wouldn't want to wake up and face He Lin. On one hand, she didn't want to forgive him so quickly, and on the other hand, and most importantly, she had made a vow in a fit of pique that if she ever spoke to He Lin again, she would be a dog!
[Host, the other party has sent an invitation; it seems like a good opportunity.]
Shut up! I know my limits, you don't need to remind me!
[...]
"Jiang Yi".
Jiang Yi sat up abruptly, pointing towards the door, indicating that he should get out.
He Lin naturally understood, and after a while, he suddenly started acting like a rogue: "I'm not going out. This is my room, and half of the bed is mine."
Jiang Yi's eyes widened instantly. Where was that aloof, noble young master? Who was this rogue in front of her?! He'd come to steal her bed, and she was still a patient! Did He Lin even have a heart?!
Fine, you're not leaving, huh? Then let her go. If you can't afford to mess with her, then avoid her.
Jiang Yi threw off the covers and was about to get out of bed when He Lin pulled her back and covered her up, holding her tightly. Jiang Yi laughed in anger, opened her mouth as if to curse, but swallowed the words back down.
He Lin saw through it and, seeing a glimmer of hope, pressed on, continuing to provoke me: "Why aren't you cursing me anymore? Go ahead and curse, I'm listening."
Jiang Yi was shocked. This was the first time she had ever seen someone actively seek out a scolding. Could this person have a hidden masochistic tendency?
Are you hungry?
Jiang Yi looked at him, and He Lin chuckled softly, "Wait for me, it'll be ready soon."
After saying that, he stood up from the bedside, turned around, and strode away.
In truth, Jiang Yi knew that if He Lin really wanted to kill her, she would definitely not survive that arrow. After all, when they encountered the bandits, the arrows he casually threw could kill people. Not to mention this time, the arrow was drawn and aimed at her, and it might pierce her heart and chest.
So at that time, the arrow He Lin shot was deliberately meant to be seen by others. As for who that person was, she didn't know. Perhaps it was the emperor in the palace testing He Lin, or perhaps it was someone else.
She wasn't stupid. With the hints in Wu Yuan's words and the system's prompts, it was hard not to understand the truth. She was just angry. She was angry that He Lin wouldn't listen to her and choose a different weapon, angry that he drew his bow and pointed it at her without hesitation, and angry that he abandoned her for status and fame...
All of this meant that Jiang Yi could not easily forgive him. It was true that she liked He Lin, but no matter how much she liked him, she had not forgotten who she really was.
If Jiang Yi wants to go back, she must understand everything about He Lin, including his secrets.
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