Chapter 74 Don't worry so much about the city gate.
“Alright, since A-Tang wants to see him, I should accompany her.”
Fortunately, he didn't dwell on the topic. He was very considerate, and the emotion in his eyes when he looked up at her vanished in an instant, hidden very well.
He touched her lower abdomen, a slight smile playing on his lips. "If he knew that A-Tang was pregnant, he would be happy too."
"You're utterly despicable!" Upon hearing this, Lin Shutang abruptly slapped his hand away, her anger uncontrollable, her face flushed red.
She stood up and was about to walk into the inner room, looking as if she was determined not to be with him.
Shen Yun's words were not only an insult to Song Ying, but also a clear humiliation of her!
After the incident at Xiwu Mountain, Song Ying was imprisoned and had his eyes gouged out. Meanwhile, his junior sister became pregnant with another man's child during this time.
What will my senior think?
Shen Yun pulled her close, his expression darkening. "You care about him that much?"
"Then why not keep him here and let him stay at the Duke's mansion?"
"Shen Yun!" Understanding the unspoken meaning in his words, Lin Shutang opened her eyes wide in fear.
She hadn't forgotten Shen Yun's words that day: to peel off Song Ying's skin and make her into a puppet.
"Shutang, I've been more than kind to him, please don't push me anymore."
He leaned against her neck, as if suppressing something.
Lin Shutang burst into tears. How did it become that she was forcing him? What he wanted to do, no one could ever stop him, right?
-
On the day Song Ying left, thick, dark clouds unusually rolled over the sky above Yujing, and the oncoming gale, carrying dust, made it impossible for people to open their eyes.
Shen Yun used some unknown method to get Song Ying and the others out of the prison.
Outside the city gate, carriages were prepared for them. As long as they left Yujing, he would not pursue them any further, no matter where they went.
Lin Shutang stood by the carriage and said goodbye to Song Ying, while Shen Yun watched from a short distance behind her.
Song Ying's eyes were covered with a layer of white gauze, and she looked completely distorted from the torment.
Summer clothes are light and thin, inevitably revealing the thick, long, gnarled branch at the neck, a shocking sight.
The oversized clothes draped over his body, making him look like a lost soul.
Lin Shutang couldn't stop her tears from flowing. The person in front of her was nowhere near as handsome and refined as her senior brother had been back then.
The other fellow disciples standing to the side were also covered with whip marks of varying sizes. Compared to Song Ying, they didn't give Lin Shutang a single kind look.
If it weren't for her, they wouldn't have gone to such lengths.
In the end, she still chose to stay by that person's side and become the Crown Prince's wife in a grand and glorious way.
It was as if everything they did was asking for trouble.
"You guys go pack your luggage first, I'll talk to Shutang a bit more."
Although Song Ying couldn't see them, he could still sense the subtle resentment emanating from the people around him.
So he made an excuse to ask them to leave. He also had a feeling that Lin Shutang was not just there to see him off.
Otherwise, given Shutang's personality, for their safety, she would never risk offending Shen Yun by personally escorting them.
"Shutang, just say what you have to say." After the group had walked away, Song Ying spoke up.
He can't see anything right now, but his hearing is better than before. Shutang is trying hard to suppress her sobs, probably because she pities his eyes.
"Senior brother, have you ever regretted it?"
Thinking she was referring to Xiwu Mountain, he smiled as if relieved, "I have no regrets, Shutang. For you, your senior brother is willing to do anything."
He lowered his head. "It's just that your senior brother is useless. In the end, he can't help you and only makes you suffer."
"Senior brother, I want to ask you, do you regret forging crossbows for Xiyue?"
Perhaps because he had been crying so hard, Lin Shutang's voice became heavy and hoarse, causing a momentary buzzing in Song Ying's ears.
He tilted his head slightly. "Shutang, what are you saying?"
"Senior brother, you took the blueprints, didn't you?" Lin Shutang asked, looking at him.
"I...I didn't!" After a moment of stunned silence, Song Ying realized what Lin Shutang was talking about and quickly explained, "I...I did take the blueprints, but I have never cooperated with Xiyue!"
"Shutang, did Shenyun say something to you?" He frantically reached out to pull Lin Shutang. "Don't listen to him, he's talking nonsense! He just resents the bond we have from growing up together."
"Even though I'm about to leave, he still won't let me go and keeps trying to sow discord between us!"
Seeing him stumble, Lin Shutang couldn't bear it and helped him to his feet. "Senior brother, it wasn't Shen Yun. He didn't tell me anything. It was Shen Xiuyan who told me that Xiyue used crossbows with Jingmutang patterns in the battle of Black Pine Ridge, and Zhou Ziyang died at the hands of that crossbow."
"Shen Xiuyan?" Song Ying frowned, recalling that two-faced traitor who switched sides at the last minute! He was full of evil intentions; the Shen family members were truly all scoundrels.
If the Third Prince hadn't been so trusting of him, they wouldn't be in this situation!
"Senior brother, when I went back that night, all the blueprints were gone. You took them, didn't you?"
"Do you know that the crossbows you developed were used on the battlefield? Not only General Zhou, but many others have died at the hands of that thing."
The border war was already intense, and Lin Shutang's crossbow, which he had not yet fully developed, already possessed formidable firepower. With Song Ying's skillful modifications, it was undoubtedly a weapon capable of turning the tide of the war.
Song Ying stood frozen in place, his face still showing shock. He had actually had his doubts at the time, but seeing that Jing Mutang was about to come back to life, and his junior sister was focused on finding out about Shen Yun.
He had to achieve something, give Jingmutang another hand, and get his junior sister's attention to him.
Only by proving that he is capable of handling these matters will not only his master but also his fellow disciples in the hall be convinced that he will marry his junior sister and take over the Jingmu Hall.
At first, he was indeed uneasy, but gradually, his junior sister stopped mentioning that person and devoted herself to Jingmutang. His master had high hopes for him, and he was absolutely certain that he was on the right path.
Until that night, a group of uninvited guests barged into Jingmutang.
They rummaged through his belongings, and he guessed that they were probably looking for the blueprints for forging crossbows. They had witnessed the power of the crossbows and were now afraid that he would resell them to Shengchao, wanting to use them and then discard them once and for all.
Song Ying hid behind Jingmu Hall, and after the group of people left, he quietly escaped through the back door and ran all the way back to the courtyard.
But they were too late. The group set a huge fire, and the master was seriously injured by a sword. He fled with his master and junior sister, but in the end, the master passed away.
He was terrified and could only take his junior sister and hide back in Xi County, Qingzhou.
Qingzhou is far from the border, and no matter how powerful the people of Xiyue are, they cannot easily extend their reach into the heartland.
"You actually guessed who those people were, but you deliberately didn't say it, making me misunderstand that those people were all after Shen Yun, and that my kindness caused trouble, Shen Yun ran away, and my father paid for it with his life, is that right?"
A bittersweet feeling welled up in Lin Shutang's throat. At that time, she lost everything overnight. Jingmutang was destroyed, her father was seriously injured and died, and she could only rely on her senior brother for survival as they fled all the way.
The pain of losing her loved ones, the bewilderment and resentment at Shen Jun's departure, and endless self-blame overwhelmed her like a tidal wave. Only her senior brother stayed by her side; at that time, he was the only piece of driftwood she could grasp.
"Shutang..." Song Ying felt a pang of sadness in his chest when he heard Lin Shutang's voice. Even though he couldn't see her, he could imagine Lin Shutang's expression at that moment, which must be full of disappointment.
"I had no choice. I never expected things to turn out this way. I thought about being honest with you, but I was afraid. Master entrusted you to me on his deathbed, and you finally agreed to marry me."
"I'm afraid that if I tell you everything, you'll hate me and leave me, Shutang. All my efforts are for you, so that we can be together."
He grabbed Lin Shutang's hand and held it in his own, speaking quickly and strangely, "Now that we've come this far, why can't we look forward? If Shen Yun hadn't come to Xi County, none of this would have happened."
"If it weren't for him, we would be together. We should have been together a long time ago!" His voice became a little shrill due to his emotional state.
“We will be together, together for a lifetime. We will hide in Xi County, and no one will know about these things. You will not be as sad as you are now after knowing the truth. Your senior brother is not telling you for your own good.”
Even now, he still shows no remorse. Lin Shutang stares at him in shock, never before feeling that the person in front of her is so unfamiliar.
"Senior brother...you..." She stammered, not knowing what to say.
"Shutang, you hate your senior brother, don't you?" He suddenly changed his expression, a vicious look appearing on the lower half of his face. He abruptly pulled a dagger from his sleeve. "Then kill your senior brother!"
As he spoke, he was about to slam the knife into his own neck.
Lin Shutang was shocked and hurriedly tried to grab him. Her soft palms gripped the cold blade without thinking. Bloodstains appeared, and large amounts of blood splattered down her arm, splashing onto the ground.
She didn't dare let go, so she could only endure the pain and try to stop him. Lin Shutang wasn't as strong as him, so she had to use her other hand to pull him back.
Suddenly, a cold light stung her eyes. Lin Shutang closed her eyes slightly as something pierced her flesh, carrying a sharp sword aura that forced Song Ying to retreat repeatedly, embedding herself in the carriage wall behind her.
The dagger in his hand fell to the ground.
Lin Shutang saw an extremely fast, even indistinct, shadow flash past his eyes, and when it landed, he suddenly pushed the long sword that was piercing Song Ying's shoulder and neck an inch further in.
Shen Yun gripped his shoulders, her eyes filled with ruthlessness, like a demon, "Want to die? I'll grant your wish."
"Shen Yun!"
Lin Shutang rushed forward, grabbing his arm with her blood-stained palm, tears welling in her eyes, "You promised to let him go!"
Shen Yun turned his head to look at her, his gaze falling on her palm, which was dripping blood, but she seemed completely unaware.
A mocking glint flashed in his eyes. He chuckled softly, abruptly stood up, and pulled the long sword that had been embedded in Song Ying's shoulder and neck.
Blood splattered, and Song Ying let out a muffled groan as he slid to the ground like a lump of mud. Lin Shutang hurriedly tried to squat down to help him up, but Shen Yun grabbed his arm.
He turned his head to look at her, a line of blood splattered on his cheek, his dark eyes smiling as he looked at her, and said gently, "A-Tang, it's time to go back to the manor."
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Author's Note: This should... be the end, right? There are still a few plot points left; once they're completed, it'll be over. [Dog head with rose in mouth]
The next chapter will focus on hatred.
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