Love Beyond the Grave

He Simu murmured under her breath, "Alive."

Duan Xu's fingers idly combed through her hair as he lifted his gaze, openly probing, "Have you never been alive before?"

The warmth in He Simu's eyes cooled instantly. She narrowed her eyes dangerously at this ever-daring fellow, who seemed addicted to challenging her.

Duan Xu met her gaze unflinchingly, his innocent and candid smile reflecting the flickering candlelight in his eyes.

Yet He Simu's sharp glare gradually turned to confusion—the spell she intended to punish Duan Xu with hadn't taken effect. She raised her hand before her eyes, turning it over twice, and whispered, "My power..."

Duan Xu, ever perceptive, immediately understood. "After swapping sensations with me, your magical power disappeared?"

He Simu and Duan Xu simultaneously looked down at the Ghost King Lamp hanging at her waist. The jade pendant, usually glowing faintly blue, now appeared utterly ordinary, its radiance completely gone.

Duan Xu lifted his eyes to meet He Simu's as she raised her head. His eyes curved, his smile widening as he enunciated slowly, "Your magical power is gone."

Before He Simu could react, the world spun around them—their positions reversed in an instant. She lay on the bed with Duan Xu above her, leaning down with an amused grin.

The bedding felt softer than skin. He Simu was momentarily dazed, but when she met Duan Xu's inscrutable gaze, she knew something was wrong.

Why hadn't her aunt warned her that after swapping sensations, her power would vanish, leaving her as vulnerable as a mortal?

Duan Xu, the young general who always adhered to the principle of never resisting when outmatched and never showing mercy when victorious, simply smiled down at He Simu, his intentions unreadable.

He Simu glared coldly in warning. "The sensation swap lasts only ten days. After that, my power will return. If you dare do anything to me now, you'll be dead in ten days."

Duan Xu tilted his head, showing no trace of fear. "Ten days, huh..."

He bent down, whispering by her ear, "Then I'll just live fully for those ten days. How about that?"

He Simu's gaze sharpened. "What are you—"

Before she could finish, Duan Xu lightly tickled her side. He Simu jolted, curling into a ball, bewildered by the unfamiliar sensation.

"That feeling is called 'ticklish,'" Duan Xu declared cheerfully. "Here's a secret—I'm extremely sensitive, so I'm very ticklish. Every time you pinned me down and touched me, I struggled to endure it."

Indeed, by taking his sense of touch, she had also inherited his ticklishness.

Duan Xu grinned with innocent mischief, radiating the triumphant air of someone finally getting their revenge. Rolling up his sleeves, he mercilessly targeted He Simu's waist, armpits, and feet. For the first time in four hundred years, the Evil Ghost experienced the torment of being tickled—completely defenseless, she writhed and laughed uncontrollably. Without her ghostly powers, she was no match for Duan Xu's strength, reduced to alternating between threats and laughter.

"Ahahaha—you—just wait ten days—ahahaha—I'll definitely kill you!"

"Since I'm doomed either way, I might as well make the most of these ten days."Duan Xu braced one hand beside He Simu’s hair while pausing his other movements, gazing deeply into the dark depths behind her eyes—those usually proud depths now trembling with rare vulnerability.

He blinked, chuckling softly as he murmured, “He Simu, so you can be afraid too.”

He Simu gritted her teeth, enunciating each word sharply, “Duan! Shun! Xi!”

“Hm? What’s wrong?”

Duan Xu drew out his reply with a smile, then leisurely straightened up and released her, sitting cross-legged beside her.

He Simu immediately scrambled up from the bed, putting distance between them as she glared at this Curse-Bound Person she’d had the misfortune of binding for four hundred years.

The wounds on Duan Xu’s body had begun bleeding again through the bandages from her earlier struggle. He glanced at them indifferently. “It really doesn’t hurt anymore. Even when I touch you—no sensation at all. As if my body has died.”

Pausing, he met He Simu’s wary gaze and grinned. “So this is the world you’ve always felt.”

Pain, warmth, cold, softness, hardness—all these sensations had vanished without a trace, leaving behind only a distant, almost imperceptible world.

They were curse-bound now. He could slowly come to understand her.

As if reading his thoughts, He Simu frowned. “What do you want, knowing me?”

Duan Xu blinked silently before replying lightly, “Who knows? Maybe the same reason you wanted to understand me in the beginning. You’re… special. It makes one curious.”

He Simu studied him for a long moment before flexing her wrist dismissively.

“The living should learn to keep their distance from death.”

Duan Xu only smiled at her in response.

Though He Simu had unexpectedly lost her magical power, her true form had also unexpectedly taken on the state of a living person—breathing, with a pulse, warm and soft, no longer resembling the obvious corpse she once was.

And most importantly—she could no longer return to “He Xiaoxiao’s” body or turn invisible.

Thus, “He Xiaoxiao” lay unconscious in bed, while another unfamiliar beauty of unknown origin appeared in Duan Xu’s camp. Duan Xu claimed she was a friend from Dài Province and had Meng Wan take her into the city for a stroll.

No sooner had Meng Wan, still baffled, led He Simu away than Commander Qin’s deputy came looking for Duan Xu, bowing with a troubled expression. “General Duan, Imperial Inspector Zheng An has arrived with an Imperial Decree, requesting all generals to assemble at the front camp.”

Zheng An was a third-rank official from the Ministry of Personnel, specially appointed as the border inspector, a former classmate of Duan Xu’s father, and a key figure in Duke Du’s faction.

His arrival certainly wouldn’t bring good news for Commander Qin.

Duan Xu smiled faintly, changed his attire, and headed out. Upon reaching the front camp, he saw Commander Qin and the other generals standing in formation while a middle-aged man in purple robes adorned with crane patterns stood with his hands behind his back.

Zheng An glanced at the famed young general and nodded with a smile before accepting the Imperial Decree from an attendant beside him.

“By the Emperor’s decree,” he intoned, his voice slow and authoritative, laced with the arrogance of long-held power. The generals in the camp knelt in unison, awaiting the proclamation.Duan Xu knelt among the crowd, head bowed as he listened to Zheng An recite the lengthy Imperial Decree. The Emperor first lavished praise on Commander Qin's merits in repelling the enemy, then bestowed generous rewards upon the various generals, making no special mention of Duan Xu—as if this were merely an ordinary commendation.

But near the decree's conclusion, the Emperor abruptly shifted tone. Though granting Commander Qin discretionary authority, he emphasized that the longstanding corruption in the Horse Administration must be addressed, with the priority being the capture of Yunzhou to secure its pastures.

The moment the words fell, Duan Xu felt multiple gazes fix upon him. He remained motionless, hearing Commander Qin's slightly surprised but compliant response: "Your subject, Qin Huanda, receives the decree." Then, with perfect formality, he followed Commander Qin in kowtowing to accept the decree.

Only in the crook of his arm, pressed against the ground, did the corner of his lips curve faintly upward.

After Lord Zheng An finished proclaiming the decree and departed, he passed by Duan Xu and gave his shoulder a light pat, saying nothing. As the camp rose from the ground, all eyes now rested on Duan Xu. Just yesterday, they had debated the direction of their offensive, and today the Imperial Decree arrived—fully aligned with Duan Xu's proposal. Few would believe he hadn't employed some maneuver.

So his concession yesterday had been effortless—less a concession than pity, the victor's mercy toward those who mistakenly believed themselves the winners.

Duan Xu rose leisurely from the ground, his smile radiant. "Since His Majesty has made his decision, we must rediscuss and rearrange our forces."

Qin Huanda studied Duan Xu. Setting the decree on the table, he said coolly, "All of you, withdraw. General Duan, you stay."

Duan Xu stood in the tent, his posture straight and his smile unhurried. The others filed past him, sunlight streaming through the lifted tent flap and reflecting sharply off his silver armor.

"You've finally gotten your wish," Commander Qin said, his gaze piercing.

Duan Xu smiled, deftly sidestepping the implication. "It was His Majesty's wisdom. What does it have to do with me?"

"Do you not know that victory belongs to the general whose sovereign does not interfere? Battlefield decisions should rest with the commander. By scheming to have the Emperor intervene with a decree, you've violated a cardinal rule of the military!" Qin Huanda slammed the table in anger, dust trembling in the sunlight.

"Setting aside factional disputes, I admire your talent. But you're still too young, obsessed only with achieving glory! Your true aim in taking Yun and Luo Provinces is to wage full-scale war against Danzhi, isn't it? Yet you must understand that war consumes silver, draining the treasury and exhausting the people. Danzhi's invasion has already cost Great Liang untold reserves. How much longer can we sustain this? If attacking Youzhou forces Danzhi to negotiate, securing decades of peace by seizing their throat—that is the proper path! Let Great Liang recover and rebuild before pursuing greater ambitions!"

Duan Xu's eyes lingered on the decree atop Qin Huanda's table before shifting slowly to the commander's face. The mirth in his gaze faded as he spoke deliberately, "Then what of the people in the Northern Territory?"

Qin Huanda stiffened.

Duan Xu pointed outside the tent. "When you led the army into Shuozhou, didn't the commoners along the way welcome our forces with food and drink? When I was trapped defending the prefectural city, Lin Huaide and his family of twenty-three died horribly at the city gates for the sake of its provisions. Before his death, he said their ancestors had sworn an oath: if Great Liang ever marched to reclaim their homeland, they would give their all, even if it meant ten thousand deaths.""We have been content with our corner of peace, recuperating on the southern bank for decades, while the people of the Northern Territory suffer in dire straits, enduring oppression and domestication until even our own kin become enemies at swordpoint. Commander Qin, is this what you call maturity?"

Duan Xu's eyes gleamed with a sharp light, like an unstoppable blade, yet he still wore a smile as he said, "I am but a young man, unburdened and unattached, with nothing but this single life to my name. I cannot allow the people of the Northern Territory who still hold fast to become a laughingstock."

Commander Qin was stunned into silence. He recalled his first glimpse of this youth in the Southern Capital, thinking him merely an extraordinary noble scion, as striking as a pine or cypress. But now he realized—Duan Xu was no pine or cypress.

He was a thorn.