He extinguished his pipe and gently placed it on the table. His figure moved like the wind, arriving soundlessly at the window in the blink of an eye.
His slender, well-defined fingers parted the sheer curtains as he stood by the window, quietly gazing at her face.
After a long while, he slowly sat down, his fingers lightly tracing the contours of Lou Mingyue's face, his heart filled with a tumult of emotions—yet not a single trace of desire.
"Mo Sigui," Lou Mingyue suddenly whispered.
His fingers stiffened for a moment before he slowly withdrew them, his voice hoarse. "Mm, you're awake."
It was expected, yet he couldn't help but feel joy.
"I'm cold," Lou Mingyue said, opening her eyes to look at him.
Their gazes met, but Lou Mingyue quickly closed her eyes again. Mo Sigui had once been so dashing and handsome, yet now he looked so haggard. No matter how much she tried to avoid it, she had to face the truth—that Mo Sigui had become like this, most likely because of her.
The room was silent.
Lou Mingyue suddenly felt her body tighten as a warm embrace encircled her.
In that instant, tears uncontrollably welled up in her eyes, as if she wanted to pour out all her pain.
Mo Sigui felt the hot tears sliding down his neck but said nothing.
Yet the hatred ran too deep—it couldn't be washed away by a few tears. Once the tears dried, only bitterness and stinging pain remained.
"A-Ran." Lou Mingyue wanted to call him by that name as she once had. But even in such a fragile state, she could still restrain herself. If all she could bring Mo Sigui was hurt, then she would try to inflict as little as possible.
"Say whatever you want to say," Mo Sigui murmured, sensing her sudden breathlessness, as if she were holding back words in her throat. "No matter what you say or do, things can't possibly get worse than this. I can't break free from this emotional prison. If you're willing, let's leave some tenderness between us—it would at least make our meeting in this lifetime worthwhile."
With those words, he laid bare the thoughts in her heart.
Lou Mingyue froze for a moment before her stiff body gradually relaxed. She sighed softly, murmuring, "A-Ran."
Mo Sigui closed his eyes, forcing back his tears. After a pause, he whispered, "Ning Yu."
"Qiu Ning Yu..." Lou Mingyue felt as though her former self was nothing but a beautiful dream, now utterly unreachable, like fragments of a distant past.
They held each other for a long time before parting, the atmosphere slightly awkward—after all, it had been so long since they'd been this close.
Mo Sigui helped her sit up, pouring the long-prepared Medicine into a bowl and offering it to her. "If you want revenge, I'll go with you."
Lou Mingyue's fingertips barely touched the rim of the bowl before she abruptly pulled back, her voice resolute. "No!"
"You're not as cheerful as you used to be, but you're still just as stubborn," Mo Sigui said, sitting on the edge of the bed. He scooped a spoonful of the Medicine and brought it to her lips, urging, "This is the first time I've ever waited on someone like this. Open your mouth."
"Mo Sigui!" Panic rose in Lou Mingyue's heart. "What about The way of medicine? Heaven gifted you with such talent—how can you bear to waste it? If you do this, I'll be condemned to the eighteenth level of hell after I die!"
If you truly cared for someone, rather than selfishly wanting to possess them, you wouldn’t want to see them painfully sever something that had once been their entire life—just to accompany you to hell.
"Who said I'm giving it up?" Mo Sigui coaxed her gently. "I can pursue revenge while studying The way of medicine. It's fine. Scholars often have their romantic distractions—why can't I?"
"That's not the same!" Lou Mingyue snapped. "Do you think revenge is a game?"Back when Yelü Huangwu was guarding the tomb alone, even the most elite assassins couldn’t take her life—let alone now that she’s returned to the center of power in the Liao Kingdom! To kill Yelü Huangwu isn’t to oppose just one person, but to face thousands of formidable experts. With just the two of them, even if they spent five or ten years plotting, success would still be uncertain. How many decades does a person have? How could she bear to waste Mo Sigui’s prime years like this?
“I appreciate your sentiment, but even the slightest added pressure might break me. Mo Sigui, focus on studying the way of medicine and saving lives.” For the first time, Lou Mingyue showed vulnerability and pleading in front of him. “I’m just one among the masses. You once said you could save me anytime—why go back on your word now?”
Because every time he saw her covered in wounds, he couldn’t stay calm.
“Promise me,” Lou Mingyue stared at him intently. “Promise me.”
Lou Mingyue understood Mo Sigui better than anyone. To him, life existed for the sake of the way of medicine. The fact that he could even say he’d abandon his path to accompany her in revenge was already enough for her.
Mo Sigui remained silent.
“Either I die, or you go back,” Lou Mingyue said.
This path of no return only needed her. If the price of revenge was to sacrifice Mo Sigui, she’d rather die with regrets.
After a long standoff between their gazes, Mo Sigui finally relented.
Hearing her words, his heart was torn with conflict. Perhaps only death could bring Lou Mingyue liberation and freedom—but could he kill her himself? No. Not only could he not, he would instead exhaust every means to save her every time.
Lou Mingyue exhaled in relief and downed a bowl of medicine. “If possible, take care of Xiao Wu for me. I owe her a debt I can never repay.”
“You don’t owe anyone,” Mo Sigui rejected her inexplicable sense of responsibility. “Right now, there isn’t a single person in this world you need to be accountable for. Everyone must ultimately rely on themselves to survive. Revenge is painful enough—can’t you think of something happier?”
“Happiness… lies in the past.” Lou Mingyue’s delicate brows furrowed. “The more joyful those memories were, the more painful they are to recall now.”
“Then let me give you some new ones.” Worried she might refuse again, Mo Sigui added, “A Jiu said that since we’re walking two paths that never cross, why torment each other? But I can’t see past it or let go. If that’s the case, even if there’s an abyss between us, I can at least stand on this cliff and tell you a joke.”
If it could ease her suffering even a little, it was worth it.
“Zhu Pianxian said people are all wrapped in a layer of foolish pride—always longing for what they can’t have, yet taking what’s within reach for granted.” Mo Sigui didn’t care if the source was reliable; he just wanted to persuade her. “Maybe if we spend time together, it won’t hurt as much as it does now.”
Mo Sigui watched her expectantly.
Outside, thunder rumbled as the rain grew heavier.
In Bianjing, the drizzle remained gentle.
Inside a fake mountain cave, Da Jiu trembled, curling into a ball like a frightened cat.
“Idiot!”
Da Jiu’s nose twitched, and it scrambled out, stumbling toward the figure standing in the misty rain.
An Jiu frowned at its behavior. “You’re the king of beasts, a fierce tiger! How can you be so terrified your legs give out? Even rabbits would laugh at you if they heard!”Da Jiu paid no heed to her scolding, rubbing against her leg like a cat, its fur dotted with tiny droplets from the drizzle.
An Jiu shifted her umbrella slightly to cover it.
The pair—one human, one tiger—returned to the medicine hall.
Sheng Changying had already been dug out from the dirt. When the Crane Control Army rained arrows from above, one had grazed his waist. Though he’d lost quite a bit of blood, it was only a flesh wound, leaving no vital organs harmed.
"Someone’s coming," An Jiu announced.
Tension rippled through the group. Sui Yunzhu peered through the door crack and spotted a figure in plain robes darting forward with lightning speed. Only when the person was within thirty feet could he make out who it was. "It’s Miss Zhu."
Before the words fully left his mouth, Zhu Pianxian kicked the door open and barged in.
Sui Yunzhu, caught off guard, took the door right to his forehead with a loud thunk.
Li Qingzhi winced at the sound, instinctively rubbing his own temple.
Zhu Pianxian scanned the room. "Where’s Changying?"
"He’s resting—suffered a minor injury," Ling Ziyue replied.
Her willow-leaf brows shot up, and she stormed inside without hesitation.
"Pianxian." Sheng Changying had bled through the night; even a small wound took its toll, leaving his complexion far from healthy.
"What happened? Let me see how bad it is! That useless lot outside—every last one of them bouncing around like they’ve got springs in their legs, and yet you’re the one who got hurt! Can’t even protect a single person—Crane Control Army my foot, ‘generals’ my foot, what a joke!" Zhu Pianxian fumed.
Outside, everyone except An Jiu wore expressions of shock. Zhu Pianxian was usually a master of disguise, playing the delicate, frail maiden to perfection, peppering her speech with demure "this humble one" and making her slightly plump frame seem as delicate as a willow in the breeze. Who’d have thought that in a crisis, her words could hit like bricks, leaving listeners dazed?
Sheng Changying, having glimpsed this side of her before, remained relatively composed. "It’s nothing serious, just a wound at the waist."
"Your waist?!" Zhu Pianxian clapped a hand over her mouth, eyes widening.
Outside, Sui Yunzhu, Li Qingzhi, An Jiu, and Ling Ziyue instantly grasped her implication. (To be continued…)
PS: Oh for crying out loud—I uploaded the first update to the chapter manager but forgot to hit publish!!! Don’t miss it, folks, this is the second update now.
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