Chu Chu grabbed his tightly clenched right hand and brought it to her lips, kissing it gently and earnestly. Under her soft kisses, Xiao Jin Yu gradually loosened his fingers with great effort. Before they could fully extend, something fell from his palm.
A crumpled amulet.
It was so wrinkled it was barely recognizable, yet Chu Chu instantly knew it was the one she had obtained for him at Guanyin Temple on his birthday.
Seeing Chu Chu’s stunned expression, Xiao Jin Yu smiled faintly. "It’s here... it’s alright..."
Before Qin Ye stripped off his clothes, he had secretly retrieved this talisman and clutched it tightly in his hand. Qin Ye thought he was clenching his fist to endure the pain and never paid it any mind. So he held onto it like that—so tightly that his nails left four crescent-shaped blood marks in his palm, and his fingers grew so stiff they almost lost all sensation.
This was the only thing she had ever given him. Holding this amulet in his hand felt as if she were always by his side. Later, when all the candles in the cellar burned out, plunging everything into pitch darkness, he surprisingly didn’t feel as afraid anymore.
"Help me... put it under the pillow..."
Chu Chu tucked the amulet beneath his pillow and carefully massaged his stiff, unyielding fingers. "Wang Ye, today is the fourth... In five days, you’re supposed to marry me. You have to keep your word..."
Tears streaked Chu Chu’s small face, her eyes red and swollen. She gazed at him pitifully, her eyes brimming with tears, making Xiao Jin Yu wish he could rise from the bed immediately and take her to the wedding ceremony. But all he could do now was look at her with aching heart. "I will..."
"You also promised to kiss me... When you recover, you have to make up for it."
"Okay..."
Xiao Jin Yu gently closed his eyes, and Chu Chu panicked at once, urgently cupping his face. "Wang Ye, don’t close your eyes, don’t close them!"
"Don’t be afraid... I just want to sleep for a while..."
Chu Chu looked at him almost pleadingly. "Wait a little longer, just a little while... Brother Jing will be here soon. You have to wait for him!"
Xiao Jin Yu’s eyelids were too heavy to lift. Chu Chu had to lean close to his lips to hear his final, strained words. "Wake me when he arrives... don’t be afraid..."
As soon as Xiao Jin Yu fell asleep, he developed a fever. In less than half an hour, his icy body became frighteningly hot. No matter how Chu Chu called to him, he wouldn’t wake. She could only cool his forehead with a wet towel, but before the fever subsided, several of his major joints swelled up, causing him to tremble in pain at the slightest touch. When Chu Chu tried to feed him medicine again, he couldn’t swallow a drop.
After great difficulty, Chu Chu managed to bring Grandpa Chu over. With one glance, Grandpa Chu shook his head. "I told you he wouldn’t make it through the night, yet you insist on exhausting him..." He looked at Chu Chu, who had cried herself dry of tears, then at Xiao Jin Yu, pale, still, and lifeless, and let out a heavy sigh. "It’s only a matter of an hour or two. Holding on until now is already remarkable enough... If you have anything left to say, say it to him quickly."
Her eyes red and swollen, Chu Chu bit her lip. "Grandpa, will he... really not make it?"
"Why would I lie to you about this?"
Chu Chu caressed Xiao Jin Yu’s still burning face with lingering tenderness. He remained as quiet and handsome as always. "Then I’ll marry him now. I’ll become his wife right this moment."Grandpa Chu froze for a moment, then thumped his cane heavily on the ground. "Nonsense!"
Chu Chu paid no attention to anyone else as she leaned against Xiao Jin Yu's chest, nestling affectionately against the hollow of his neck. Her voice was soft, as if afraid of disturbing him, yet carried a firm resolve, as if she had made up her mind many years ago. "He's solved so many cases and sent so many villains to the King of Hell. Now that he's about to go there himself... His health has always been poor. If no one sets up a memorial tablet for him, no one makes offerings, no one burns incense or scatters paper money, he'll go hungry and penniless. If those villains bully him there, what will he do?... I'm the daughter of the Coroners Family, with ample accumulated virtue in the underworld. If I marry him and become his wife, the King of Hell will treat him better..."
Grandma Chu listened with tears streaming down her face, while Grandpa Chu stood speechless, unable to form words for a long time. Grandma Chu went over and tugged at Grandpa Chu's sleeve. After frowning deeply for a while, Grandpa Chu finally sighed in helpless distress. "Marry him then... go ahead and marry him."
Before Grandpa Chu's words had fully faded, a white figure swept into the room like a gust of wind, his voice heard before his form became clear. "Wait... wait before you marry!"
Hearing this familiar voice, Chu Chu immediately jumped up. "Brother Jing!"
Grandma Chu was startled by the sudden appearance of the white figure, while Grandpa Chu stared wide-eyed, his cane raised ready to strike the figure as soon as it settled. At Chu Chu's exclamation, both of them froze in surprise.
Seeing Jing Yi, Chu Chu's heart suddenly eased, and she burst into loud sobs. "Brother Jing! You've finally come!"
Jing Yi glanced at the bed and patted Chu Chu's shoulder. "Don't worry, the doctor will be here soon."
Seeing that the white figure was human rather than ghost, and a young man at that who looked like a wealthy young master, Grandpa Chu immediately scowled. "Who are you?"
Jing Yi pointed to Xiao Jin Yu on the bed. "I run errands and do odd jobs for him."
Just as Grandpa Chu was about to ask more, a white-bearded old man entered breathlessly, pushing aside the door curtain. "Out, out... everyone out!"
Chu Chu wiped her tears and broke into a smile. "Mr. Gu!"
Gu He Nian didn't even glance at her as he hurried to the bedside with his medical kit, opening it while speaking impatiently. "Out, out... everyone wait outside. If he doesn't survive, don't blame me!"
Grandpa Chu glared angrily - this white-bearded old man had suddenly barged into his home late at night and was now shooing him out. Just as Grandpa Chu was about to demand where this wild doctor had come from, Chu Chu pushed and pulled him out of the room.
Jing Yi emerged from the room without a word and quickly disappeared again. No matter what questions Grandpa and Grandma Chu asked, Chu Chu acted as if she didn't hear them, remaining steadfastly by the door, staring fixedly at the door curtain. After nearly two hours of motionless watching, the thick door curtain finally opened.
OpenNovel