Chapter 89 Taking out this heart
September 9th
Climbing to a high place, wearing dogwood, admiring autumn chrysanthemums, and offering sacrifices and prayers—it's a peaceful and tranquil day.
However, on this day, Qu Maoze would involuntarily drift into the past.
In the pitch-black prison, where hands are nowhere to be seen, there is chewing, the stench of blood, and weeping...
Helpless screams echoed one after another.
Again and again, like an echo in a valley, growing farther and farther away, yet closer and closer.
The pale moonlight shone through the window paper onto his face, flickering and shimmering, casting shadows on the darkness beneath his narrow, phoenix-shaped eyes. He lowered his gaze, looking at the person lying flat before him.
The smile that usually graced his face was gone; he simply stared quietly at the person sleeping on the bed.
The Ruan Jinling I remember wasn't like this. Back then, she was bold and meticulous. Even in a panic, her almond-shaped eyes held a glint of intelligence, like a wildcat disguised as a house cat, putting on an act while looking for an opportunity to scratch someone.
Unlike now
Pale, weak, and lifeless, like a precious, delicate flower that would be crushed with the slightest force.
Qu Maoze watched quietly, the mournful wailing of ghosts echoing in his mind again. He reached out and gently stroked her cheek.
His fingers were long and slender with distinct knuckles, like exquisite works of art, white as jade, delicate and cool, without a single flaw. When they fell on Niu Tielan's delicate face, his hands and face seemed to belong to the same person.
He felt the face beneath his hand; it was cool and soft, with little flesh, just a thin layer clinging to the cheekbones. He could easily press it down with one hand and hold it in his palm.
Qu Maoze watched quietly, his fingers slowly moving down to her slender neck, feeling the gentle pulse beneath. Then, a slight smile appeared on his lips.
He increased the pressure in his hand, his thumb gently grinding and caressing, then moving up his neck, lightly lifting his chin, and pressing it to his lips.
Niu Tielan's lips were a pale color, like faded peach petals, soft and cool, with a faint fragrance; one could only imagine their taste.
Qu Maoze watched her slightly trembling eyelids, a gentle smile playing on his lips. His fingertips moved, tracing the softness of her pale lips.
With a playful pause, the fingers gently pinched the wet, slippery little tongue inside, while the other fingers pressed against the white teeth, gently restraining the gradually closing mouth.
Thin strands of clear saliva dripped down the corners of his mouth.
Qu Maoze leaned down slightly, pressing his other hand against the person beneath him, gently stroking her smooth, black hair, a smile playing on his lips as he sighed.
"So many years have passed, and you're still just as disobedient!"
Niu Tielan glared at him angrily, instinctively wanting to curse, but the foreign object in her mouth gave it a chance, turning her angry curses into soft moans, and her breathing became heavier.
She raised her hand again to try to push the man away, but his arm, though not particularly strong, was as firmly welded together as if made of iron. During the struggle, she felt an unusual friction against her chest.
Qu Maoze smiled, holding her tightly as she struggled, watching her pale cheeks flush red, her eyes blazing with fire, feeling the pressure from her fingers and teeth gradually increase.
He sighed, stopped examining her, and let his damp hand slide down her cheek, leaving streaks of water on her fair skin. At the same time, his other hand, which had been holding her tightly, loosened its grip.
Niu Tielan raised her hand and fiercely wiped the water off her face. Her chest heaved, and she gritted her teeth, slapping him without thinking.
The sound of a snap was particularly loud in the quiet night.
A red mark instantly appeared on Qu Maoze's jade-like face, only to heal at a visible speed. He tilted his head slightly, a smile still playing on his lips, looking at the person with a peaceful and tolerant expression, as if he were looking at a disobedient child.
Niu Tielan slapped him again, then clenched his fists and glared at him fiercely, his face full of anger.
It was the middle of the night, and the house was very quiet, with only the occasional hissing of the kerosene lamp. Outside, it was chilly, and the noisy insects and birds that had been chirping a while ago had lost their appetite.
The two sat half-on the headboard and half-on the edge of the bed, one calm, the other angry, staring at each other in the quiet night. Their gazes, like sparks trapped in an iron cage, slowly swelled, threatening to explode at any moment.
Neither of them spoke.
The slap just now said enough.
After a long while, long enough that most of the moonlight had dissipated, he suddenly let out a hissing sound.
Niu Tielan was shocked and confused, but before she could express it, a force came towards her, and the next moment she was pressed against the bedpost. With a creaking sound from the rocking bed, she let out a soft "uh," as a feeling of suffocation more intense than ever before washed over her.
The heavy tongue swept through the mouth with a murderous intent, devouring the prey without a trace of gentleness, like a swift tiger striking its prey squarely during a hunt, rendering it defenseless in one bite before finally savoring the experience.
First, it was played with and teased as if it wanted to swallow it whole. Only when there was no strength left to resist did it slowly lick and tease, licking every inch of the mouth. At first, it was a monotonous solo performance, but later it became entangled with the little tongue inside.
Gently lick and stroke
...
It seemed like only a moment, but by the time they rested, the moon, hidden among the clouds, had traveled far and wide. The bright, soft moonlight fell into the room like a white curtain, overlapping with the gently swaying bed curtains.
"Smack!"
Until the slapping sounded again
Niu Tielan clutched his chest, panting heavily. His palm, which had been hitting him, stung painfully, but it seemed to have little effect.
Qu Maoze gently licked his moist lips, his slender fingers touching his slightly swollen face. He casually moved to the corner of his mouth, gently wiping away the moisture. His phoenix eyes shone with a satisfied languor.
He leaned closer.
Niu Tielan subconsciously took two steps back, and then heard his soft voice: "Still want to fight?"
As he spoke, he tilted his head, revealing the other half of his face to her.
Niu Tielan clenched her fists tightly, her teeth grinding in anger. Without thinking, she lunged at him, grabbed his hair, straddled him, and began scratching him.
Like a cat
Qu Maoze offered no resistance, lying on the thick, soft bed, letting her do as she pleased. His wound stung slightly, but he was unusually cheerful, watching her vent her frustration with a smile.
His appearance only made him more annoying.
Niu Tielan finally grabbed his neck, her hands trembling with anger. She looked down at him, her almond-shaped eyes blazing with fury. She gritted her teeth and said, word by word, "What exactly do you want, Song Shang?"
Upon hearing this name, Qu Maoze's eyes darkened slightly, his relaxed smile paused for a moment, then returned. He sighed softly, "Song Shang is dead; such a person no longer exists in the world. Madam, please do not mistake him."
Niu Tielan gritted her teeth: "I don't care if you live or die, I only want to know what you're going to do? Did you do what happened to Hou Qiaohe?"
Qu Maoze raised his hand and gently brushed away her loose hair: "You can't bear it, Madam?"
really
Niu Tielan's heart had been pounding in her throat for the past few days. She tightened her grip on the person, her voice hoarse: "Why?"
Qu Maoze placed his palm against her cheek and chuckled, "Isn't it obvious?"
Niu Tielan said fiercely, "I'm asking you why you harmed Jinjin. You threw that dagger there, didn't you? They say even tigers don't eat their cubs, no, using a tiger to describe you is an underestimation of you, Chief Minister Song. You change your face and fake your death, you're so powerful, why did you still use Jinjin? Do you think prison is comfortable? She's only fifteen years old."
Qu Maoze sighed, "At fifteen, I was already leading refugees north to fight bandits."
Niu Tielan: "How can that be the same?"
Qu Maoze: "What's the difference? What I can do, my daughter can't?"
Niu Tielan stared wide-eyed at his sincere expression, gritting her teeth, wanting to refute, but unable to utter a word.
What can't her Jinjin do?
but
"Don't change the subject, this is different," Niu Tielan said angrily. "What does this have to do with you framing her?"
Qu Maoze felt the pressure on his neck ease, sighed, and with a flip, easily pinned the man down.
The two switched positions instantly.
Qu Maoze lay on top of her, his elbows resting on his body as he leisurely played with her hair. His other hand moved down her chin to her chest and gently touched her breast.
A response could be heard from within, even through the skin and flesh.
Instantly, Niu Tielan's breathing quickened, his brows furrowed, and he looked quite uncomfortable: "You..."
Qu Maoze didn't say much, a smile playing on his lips. He gently placed his hand on the worm, and after a while, the wriggling worm inside stopped moving. He chuckled softly, "Can you feel it?"
Niu Tielan took a deep breath: "Can we not change the subject? Surely the Grand Secretary can understand what I mean?"
Qu Maoze unexpectedly leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, giving them a brief, fleeting kiss before sighing, "I already told you the Grand Secretary is dead, don't mention it again."
Niu Tielan's lips were slightly swollen, their original pale color now a deep crimson, like blooming peach petals. She gently bit her lip, feeling neither anger nor disappointment towards this person; she had even lost the will to curse or strike.
Qu Maoze watched as the flame in her almond-shaped eyes faded and dimmed little by little. He reached out and gently touched the corner of his eye, somewhat helplessly saying, "Didn't I already reply to you?"
Niu Tielan: "That's enough, you..."
Qu Maoze leaned down again, this time with a more lingering touch than the previous fleeting kiss, like a gentle spring rain, soft and sticky, inch by inch, carrying the intimate caresses of lovers, yet not limited to that. As he kissed, his other hand slid down, caressing her slender waist, slipping under her belt.
Delicate and soft
The tip of my tongue was suddenly bitten
He paused, moved his mouth away, the salty, fishy taste lingering in his mouth, accompanied by unpleasant memories. He gently pressed his teeth together, withdrew his hand, and placed it back on Niu Tielan's collarbone, whispering...
"Practicing Gu, also known as training people, involves even the most skilled Gu women being immersed in a pool of insects from a young age, undergoing daily transformation. Their bone marrow and flesh are all filled with Gu worms. Do you think you, who have been devoured by the Red Thread Gu for sixteen years, could withstand such transformation?"
Niu Tielan bit her lip tightly, leaving deep marks and traces of blood on her lips.
He sighed softly, reached out and pinched her chin, gently loosening the pressure on her lips: "Don't bite."
Niu Tielan's eyes welled up with tears. She looked up at him, a hint of stubbornness in her eyes, and asked, "What do you mean? Are you cursing me to die?"
Qu Maoze gently shook his head, took her hand and placed it on his heart, whispering, "My mother was the previous Gu Maiden of the Gu Clan. I inherited half of her flesh and blood Gu worms. If you take out this heart and eat it, your Gu cultivation will definitely go smoothly."
Niu Tielan's hand trembled, and he instantly moved it away, gritting his teeth: "Are you sick?"
Qu Maoze looked at her reddened eyes and smiled gently: "I knew you couldn't bear to part with me."
Niu Tielan didn't speak, but his breathing became heavier.
Qu Maoze pressed her hand down onto his wrist, which was pitted and uneven; even with the miraculous healing power of the Gu worms, repair would take time.
He smiled and said, "But it doesn't matter. Besides the heart, flesh and blood also have an effect, of course, the most effective one."
Niu Tielan gritted her teeth. Although she had suspected something was amiss, her heart sank even further now that the news had hit the ground.
Even if he recovers quickly and takes good care of himself, once every three days for a month, the damage will never be fully recovered.
Qu Maoze chuckled lightly, his long fingers gently rubbing hers, then following his own chest, down along the firm flesh of his chest, pressing down on that hard spot, teasing and ambiguous: "Guess?"
The blush on Niu Tielan's cheeks gradually spread, like a spring flower bud about to bloom, blossoming in an instant, delicate and beautiful.
She bit her lip and remained silent.
Qu Maoze didn't move again. He simply said softly, "Of course, if you're unwilling, I won't force you. Everything has a price. Being a Gu woman isn't as wonderful as you imagine."
After he finished speaking, the room fell silent again.
The oil lamp hanging outside the bed hissed, casting shadows of insects that had somehow flown in.
Niu Tielan lay on the bed, gazing at the man who seemed both familiar and strange. Fragments of the past flashed through her mind, then of her daughter, and finally back to the scenery she had seen along the carriage route that year. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she gently raised her hand to embrace the neck of her old friend, her red lips meeting his directly.
She wanted to live.
Even if it's just a slight possibility
...
The faint morning light shone through the iron bars, illuminating the person lying sprawled on the ground.
Soft footsteps approached.
Song Jin opened her eyes, sat up with the straw on her head, yawned widely, threw the blanket back onto the bed, and sat on the floor looking in the direction from which the footsteps were coming.
A group of people led by Qi Zheng walked over.
Song Jin yawned: "Has my breakfast arrived?"
Li Xian and Fan Wenbai: ...
No wonder she's the daughter of Chief Minister Song!
Qi Zheng, however, was unsurprised. He stepped forward, opened the iron cell door, and nodded: "Eat back when you get back. You're out now."
Song Jin raised an eyebrow: "Resolved?"
Qi Zheng nodded: "Let's talk outside."
Song Jin nodded, yawned, and walked out the door. Suddenly, she stopped, went back, and brought out the blankets from the bed. Under the surprised gazes of the others, she walked to the opposite cell, quickly unlocked the lock, and threw the blankets inside.
Here you go.
The woman in prison froze, tears streaming down her face, and kowtowed to the ground: "This humble woman thanks Your Highness."
Song Jin said softly, "Your husband and mother-in-law plotted against you, so it's understandable that you killed them in retaliation. However, setting fire to your house, endangering the surrounding families, and harming your young children means you should bear responsibility."
The woman kowtowed: "I know I deserve to die, but I am worried about the children who were burned. There are fifty taels of silver hidden under the tree in the charred courtyard. I humbly beg the princess to convey my message to them."
Song Jin: Okay
She gave a brief reply, yawned, locked the door again, and, under the complicated expressions of Li Xian and Fan Wenbai, raised an eyebrow, turned around nonchalantly, and walked out of the cell where she had spent six days.
Three days until the Gu practice begins.
The timing was just right.
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