Ich denke an dich, wenn der Wind weht

Kapitel 31

After a while, Jia Ye suddenly laughed.

“The Moon Envoy is a wise person; there’s no need to spell things out.” She shifted her posture, relaxing slightly. “Now you believe my sincerity?”

Jiuwei looked at her with a complex expression, as if she were probing.

"I don't understand what you're so scheming about."

"Perhaps we think the same way."

“You don’t seem like someone who’s ambitious for power.”

“And you are, that’s enough,” she admitted frankly. “We have different desires, but there’s no conflict.”

What do you want me to do?

"We must persuade Zi Su to cooperate fully."

"Have you convinced Qianming?"

“He’s more straightforward than you.” She picked up the cold tea and poured it out, then poured in hot new tea.

"What if it's all over?" He ignored her sarcasm and pondered deeply.

"That's between you and Qianming." She smiled gently, taking his hand respectfully. "Who wins or loses is none of my business."

"What benefits will you get?" He picked up the glass, but didn't drink it.

"All I ask for is for things to succeed." She sipped her fragrant tea and swallowed slowly. "I will not get involved in the conflict then, so you need not worry."

"The more you talk, the more confusing it becomes. Forgive my ignorance." Looking into those cold and uninteresting eyes, a sudden flash of inspiration struck him, and he tentatively probed in disbelief.

"You...do you...remember?"

Her smile suddenly disappeared when she went makeup-free.

After a long eye contact, she finally nodded.

He gazed at it quietly for a long time, then smiled knowingly and drank the tea in one gulp.

Midnight

Night, quiet as death.

The entire Tianshan Mountains fell into slumber.

The man on the bed was still fast asleep, and the luminous pearl on the wall emitted a faint glow, illuminating the dimly lit table.

A breeze suddenly stirred in the enclosed room, and a figure quietly appeared, moved closer to the bedside, and looked down at the handsome sleeping face.

Perhaps sensing something amiss, the sleeping person suddenly opened their eyes, and before they could react, their slender hand had already pressed on the vital acupoint.

"It's me." The familiar voice put him at ease for a moment, but doubts arose again. Suddenly, his acupoints were sealed, and he couldn't move a single finger.

"You..." The question was interrupted by a sharp pain.

Jia Ye opened the needle scroll, and dozens of gold needles of varying thicknesses came into view. She casually pulled them out and, without hesitation, inserted them into major acupoints. With nimble hands, she had already inserted more than ten needles in the blink of an eye, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

He wasn't much better off. The pain of the needles piercing his body was bearable, but the internal energy that surged within him was turbulent. A surge of heat kept flowing back and forth between his limbs and neck, sometimes scattering, sometimes rushing and surging through his meridians. A sharp pain shot through his internal organs. As soon as he opened his mouth, a hand covered it, completely silencing all his sounds.

Cold sweat poured down her face. As the needles dropped faster and faster, it felt as if sharp knives were stabbing into her chest, the pain unbearable. Her teeth clenched so tightly that she bit her delicate white hand until it bled.

As the last needle fell, she flicked her hand, and all the golden needles suddenly left her body and fell to the ground. Her inner strength, which had been suppressed for several years, surged out. She pressed her hands to her chest, helping him guide the wandering true energy back onto the right track.

This was an extremely exhausting task. Although Jia Ye's martial arts skills were high, her internal strength was not strong. She forced herself to do it, and within half a moment she was already trembling slightly. When she finally managed to regain her last bit of true energy, she collapsed, completely exhausted. Both of them were drenched in cold sweat and utterly drained.

In the quiet room, only heavy breathing could be heard.

After a long while, he was finally able to raise his hand and wrap it around her back, channeling his inner energy into her. With continued use, her deathly pale face gradually regained its color.

He sat up slightly, still holding her in his arms. Her soft, delicate body struggled slightly, indicating that he could stop. After observing her complexion and confirming that she was alright, he stopped breathing and took her drooping hand in his.

A ring of bluish-purple teeth marks appeared on the edge of his delicate white palm, still dripping blood, indicating that he had bitten very deeply in extreme pain.

Too weak to get out of bed to get the medicine, he lightly licked the wound with the tip of his tongue to stop the bleeding.

The salty, fishy taste lingered between her teeth. She tried to pull away, but he stubbornly held on until he was sure the bleeding had stopped before letting go.

His clothes were soaked with sweat. He struggled to pull the silk quilt over them, covering them both. Jia Ye's body temperature was lower than normal, making her very susceptible to cold. He wrapped his arms around her waist, trying to retain as much warmth as possible.

Her head rested against his chest, her petite body nestled in his embrace, their waists pressed tightly together, almost revealing every curve of her form. In the darkness, only the fragrance of her hair lingered, soothing every nerve.

Looking down, I saw her long, slightly upturned eyelashes, her delicate nose, and her fair, smooth cheeks glistening with sweat, rising and falling slightly with her breath.

"Why...remove the restriction for me?" Initially, the Right Envoy used a special method to restrain his meridians. After the rebellion, the Right Envoy died, and he once thought that there was no hope for the rest of his life.

"...This mission is very risky, and your current skills are not enough to handle it." Her voice was low and weak, still powerless.

"How do you know how to administer acupuncture...?" Although Jia Ye had read many unorthodox medical books, he was a jack-of-all-trades and master of none. His knowledge was limited and mostly consisted of peripheral techniques. It was impossible for him to understand the Right Envoy's unique method.

She did not answer, and the room fell silent.

"What would happen if the King knew?"

“He won’t know.” With a low, hoarse laugh, Jia Ye wearily leaned back and looked at his face.

"Shuying, listen carefully."

"I will announce to the outside world that you went to Shache to handle important matters. Apart from the Red Eagle and the Black Kite, you take the other four with you and be careful on the way."

"You must arrive in Dunhuang before the 15th of July. I will arrange for someone to meet you, and he will tell you about your new mission then. Remember, you must not be later than this date."

"What kind of task?"

You'll find out then.

Jia Ye rarely gave such important instructions, yet he was so vague about them. His clear black and white eyes seemed to hold some unfathomable thoughts.

"Who are you going to kill?"

She gave a vague reply, seemingly regaining some strength, and rolled over to get out of bed.

"Jia Ye." He grabbed her slender waist with one hand, stopping her from leaving, a sudden unease creeping into his heart. "What are you planning?"

“You’ll understand when you get to Dunhuang,” she said, avoiding the question.

He couldn't understand what kind of mission would require risking the Pope's discovery to break the seal.

"You don't believe me?"

Jia Ye was silent for a moment. "Have you ever trusted me?"

"I trust you now." Perhaps not in the past, but after Shanshan, we have entrusted each other with our lives.

"Then don't ask anymore."

His heart turned cold as he abruptly cut off any further questioning.

"I want to know...who have you ever trusted?" He couldn't help but reveal his bitterness.

Her body stiffened, and she unconsciously straightened up. "Nobody else, I only trust myself."

He remained silent for a long time, but finally couldn't hold back any longer.

"Where is Huaiyi? Who is he?"

"How do you know this name?" His gaze sharpened instantly, piercingly cold, revealing his undisguised wariness.

His heart sank, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

"You mentioned it when you were unconscious."

She paused for a moment, her eyes softening as if she were slightly apologetic, and then gave her answer after some hesitation.

"Huaiyi... is... my former shadow guard."

"The one you killed?" He was momentarily stunned.

"Hmm." Perhaps lost in some memory, her expression was inexplicably sad, her deep eyes soft and sorrowful.

"How could you...?"

Knowing he had a thousand questions, she didn't say much, but gently touched his face with her delicate fingers, as if she wanted to memorize every line.

"He is from the Central Plains, just like you, and his real name is Huaiyi."

"I hope you're luckier than him."

With a sigh, her cold fingers left my face. Before I could grasp them, she had vanished into the deep night.

The fragrance lingers, but the beauty is gone.

Only those filled with doubt remained, watching the dawn gradually break through.

His long-suppressed internal energy suddenly flowed freely, which he could hardly believe. The lightness that filled his body was even greater than before, and he could easily complete any sword move that had been slow in the past. His skill was on a completely different level. He secretly estimated that he could roughly compete with Qianming, the strongest of the four envoys.

Jia Ye………

She never mentioned it again after that night, and would interrupt me whenever I brought it up.

His indifferent expression almost made him think it was an illusion.

Jiuwei secretly sent a message to gather together.

They met but only drank alcohol, and never discussed any serious business.

Upon hearing about the trip to Dunhuang, Jiuwei was not surprised. She turned and instructed Yanrong to fetch several more jars of wine, indicating that she was determined to drink until she was completely drunk.

Ignoring his excuses, she filled the white jade bowl and poured it down his throat without a word. The wine, which he couldn't swallow in time, spilled out and soaked his clothes.

Jiuwei is carefree, but rarely so unrestrained.

After several rounds, his spirits were stirred, and he drank bowl after bowl, the strong liquor burning in his stomach. He couldn't hear Jiuwei's words clearly; everything was blurry and chaotic.

"...I've never understood what's so good about Jia Ye..."

"...So...she really was good to you..."

"Shuying... what is your real name...?"

As the wine flowed freely, Jiuwei suddenly asked a question, instantly clearing her drowsy mind.

He paused for a moment, then finally uttered a name.

“Yun Shu, my original surname is Xie.”