Every sentence he uttered was about death. "You're the one who deserves to die! Since Qin Juanrou is already dead, why don't you just die with her?"
Nangong Ling moved faster than his father, and his long sword was pressed against my throat, its chilling aura penetrating to the bone.
"Hey, are you serious? Are you really going to live your whole life for your dad? Is it worth it for someone who doesn't care about you at all?"
He paused for a moment, then loosened his grip slightly.
"Your mother died of illness, and she wanted to leave this place on her own. What direct relationship does it have with you? Besides, you haven't even asked your mother if she agreed to your death. She also had a say in your life and death, you know?"
"Boy! You're still listening to his nonsense?!" Nangong Yi's eyes widened as if he were about to rush up and kill me at any moment.
The sword tip pierced through the skin and stabbed into the skin. At first, it felt like being bitten by a mosquito, but gradually the pain became more and more intense.
With a "clang," the longsword was knocked away by a plum blossom dart.
"Rong Lian's life is mine."
A cold, snake-like voice slowly coiled around me, and I felt a chill run down my spine, my throat aching so much that I could hardly breathe.
Before I lost consciousness, I seemed to see a familiar, specially made soft chair, with white clothes fluttering as if spotless, and a smiling face hiding deadly poison.
Chapter 126
I woke up in the middle of the night with a start, touched my aching neck, and the only thought that flashed through my mind was to leave Luoyang as soon as possible.
"Feng Moru was hit by Bai Chenyun's poisoned dart. I gave him the antidote. He's at the city gate with Yan Guhong now. Go and meet them."
I held my neck and stared at him suspiciously. What had gotten into the person who was about to kill me just a moment ago that suddenly wanted to help me?
"It's not unheard of for someone to risk their life for my father's approval... Let's go, before I change my mind."
It would be great if he let me go, but wouldn't that leave me indebted to him?
"You traitor!"
A sharp shout came from the doorway, and Nangong Ling's face turned pale instantly.
They arrived really quickly; they've only exchanged a few words.
"You think you've grown wings and won't listen to me anymore?!"
Offending the Rong family will do us no good.
"Are you trying to rebel? Who's in charge, me or you?"
Nangong Ling is actually quite straightforward; once he's certain of something, he'll stick to it. He doesn't listen to anyone else, but he's completely obedient to his father, following his every word. If you tell him to go east, he won't dare to go west.
Nangong Ling bit his lip. At that time, he really looked quite small. He was not only pale and thin, but the despair between his eyes and brows was also lingering. Just looking at him made people feel uneasy.
Even if he had let me go smoothly, I wouldn't have escaped Jun Guan's clutches. Seriously, he even exiled the only two people I could command to the city gate. Anyway, I've experienced firsthand how much you hate me; I'd rather die of boredom than bother you again! And those two guys, don't they have any sense? They actually believed Nangong Ling's words?
"Fine, since they're all disobedient, what's the point of keeping them around..."
As Nangong Yi spoke, his eyes changed, and he raised his sleeve knife, two flashes of cold light passing before my eyes.
After my mind went blank, when I came to my senses again, I felt a layer of skin peel off my left arm, followed by a burning pain that went up to my heart.
"you!"
...Don't tell me you're shocked. I don't even understand why I rushed up to push you and block those two knives for you. It wasn't my will; my body moved on its own.
Just as we were both completely baffled, the man in green over there swung his palm back and attacked with a whooshing sound.
So once again, I went along with it and pushed Nangong Ling out the door. The wind from his palm parted his clothes, and as I dodged, that hand relentlessly followed. I dodged twice, almost twisting my ankle, but ultimately couldn't escape. My lower back slammed heavily against the nanmu wooden table behind me, hitting it hard.
Before I could even feel the pain in my body, I felt a tightness in my chest and couldn't breathe!
Hey, Nangong Ling, get back here right now! I'm still young and don't want to die!
I cried out in my heart, thinking that the man who was destined to die still had some conscience; that was the first and last time he laid a hand on his father.
This time I didn't faint, but I felt very weak and had great difficulty breathing. The stabbing pain in my lumbar spine from that time still lingers; it flares up whenever I touch it, but the pain comes and goes quickly. I always remember to check on it, but I always forget.
Nangong Ling's moves were all soft, while his father's every move was ruthless, as if he wouldn't stop until he chopped his son into seventeen or eighteen pieces.
I asked, "Who's going to give me a break?" You guys are making me dizzy from all that swaying around. I looked down and suddenly a blinding white light flashed before my eyes, and my blood rushed to my head uncontrollably.
"Rong Lian!"
I felt very dizzy and my vision was blurry. A figure walked up to me and lifted me up, the pale, thin fingers holding me unsteadily.
He leaped and took me away from the Nangong family. Although he couldn't beat his father at that time, he was at least skilled in a martial art. We managed to shake off his father after circling around most of Luoyang.
"You...it's not worth it..."
"So, was it worth it for your father?"
He wiped the blood from his mouth, and his voice sounded even weaker than mine.
"I just can't stand your dad, but let's just consider it an accident... Anyway, I've always been someone who likes to meddle in other people's business."
"...You don't need to get involved in this mess."
"It's all thanks to your senior brother Jing Tianxiang. If he hadn't told me that Feng Moru's only hope of salvation was to go to your Nangong family, would I have come along?"
At this moment, the pain gradually spread throughout his body, and his speech became unsteady, losing all his momentum.
He seemed to sigh slightly, pursed his lips, took out a handkerchief and wrapped the wound on my arm. Then he turned my body around, and a warm current flowed into my back with his hand, and the pain gradually subsided.
"Perhaps I misjudged you due to preconceived notions."
Hmm? I was feeling so comfortable that my whole body was about to go limp when a very soft sound suddenly appeared out of nowhere, like a gentle breeze. When I tried to reach for it, it disappeared.
After waiting for a long time, the wind never came again. Moonlight shone through the leaky roof tiles into the dilapidated temple. Looking up, the moonlight was very bright. Although the clouds were thin, they were piled up there and remained motionless. There was not a breath of wind tonight. What was that just now? Could it have been a cold wind?
Are you cold?
"no."
"Then why are you shaking?"
"..."
"..."
"Aren't you afraid of choking on your words?"
"You'll be fine as long as you don't provoke me to speak."
"..."
So nothing was said that night, and by dawn the rooster had called him to give him his energy, which was almost used up.
He was much better now, at least he wasn't completely blind anymore, and that's when I could see his condition clearly.
His face was extremely pale, barely clinging to life like a corpse. His pale clothes were stained with blood, and his body was so thin it seemed as if it could break at any moment.
"Let's go, I'll take you to the city gate."
The city gate was not far away, and after walking out for a short while, you could already see the bluish-gray brick walls.
The person in front suddenly stopped and looked in the direction he was looking. They saw Feng Moru leaning against the wall with her eyes closed and Yan Guhong constantly practicing his breathing exercises.
He gestured for me to come over, and I looked at him.
What will you do?
His eyes dimmed, and he turned his head away. "Luoyang, don't come again."
After saying that, he turned and left. The rising sun cast a golden glow, and his silhouette was bathed in the golden light, slowly fading until it disappeared completely.
Chapter 127
I didn't see him for two years after that, but I always managed to find out about him, whether intentionally or unintentionally, from when he was brought to Anting by the Martial Venerable and when he appeared at Wuyue Palace.
I saw him again when I was fifteen and it was time to get married. He appeared for a while, and after my father said a few words, he changed his expression and left.
Hey, didn't you hate me? Why did you react like you'd been bitten by a snake the moment you heard Feng Moru's name? I hesitated then, but the ensuing upheavals left me no time to think. One thing after another led to the Rong family's downfall, and I was left unsure how to face him. With no one to rely on and his ambiguous attitude, I had no choice but to raise my quills. But I didn't expect to not only make myself look pathetic but also wound him deeply. In the end, he became enraged and transferred all the insecurity he had previously placed on his father onto me. Looking back now, we really were two ridiculous hedgehogs.
I've always kept these things to myself. Those who need to know already know, so why should I explain them to other irrelevant people?
If it weren't for the appearance of the courtesan, I wouldn't have thought about these old stories. I admit that the throat-slitting incident was very traumatic for me, or rather, I was simply afraid that such a thing would happen again, especially now that I've removed all the thorns from my body, I don't know if I can still handle it.
That man's face was extremely ugly. Were all his memories good? His strange germaphobia was something he developed later. He didn't want to touch a sword or see blood, but because I was tricked by Xiao Lianjue, an accident occurred that made him hold a sword and bathe in a sea of blood. Although his attitude at the time made me want to slap him, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him when I thought about it afterwards.
I pouted. I had originally wanted to bring up these old stories to confront him, but looking at his face, I couldn't utter a single word.
I remember him telling me that it was the most impulsive and regrettable thing he had ever done. Of course, I wouldn't be foolish enough to be soft-hearted about something like that. Since he was capable of doing it, I would definitely use this incident to put pressure on him for the rest of his life.
Seeing that the courtesan was frightened by Nangong Ling's expression, I coughed lightly. The former came back to her senses and looked at me with surprisingly clear eyes, without the resentment and unwillingness she had shown before.
She slowly stood up, smiled slightly, and said, "I...I've never seen him with that expression before."
Huh? This guy always likes to play the victim, and he actually told me he'd never seen it before. Isn't that his signature move?
"I was too naive. There was absolutely no way a third party could have interfered between you. I understand now that judging things by appearances can really be deadly." Her smile was truly beautiful; it seems she didn't deserve the title of courtesan for nothing. "However, I don't regret knowing him, nor do I regret what I did for him. It's proof that I tried my best."
Yunzhi, you are so lucky to have such a soulmate! Stop staring blankly like you're back from the dead, hurry up and see her off.
"No need, let's part ways here."
She waved goodbye, looking relieved and carefree, leaving with a hint of regret but no longer lingering.
"They've all disappeared, stop acting."