I put my arm around the strong man's slender waist

Chapter 26

"You bitch!" I grabbed Jin Bihui's wrist with one hand, my mind racing as I recalled how Xiao Jiu had knocked out the maid. I gritted my teeth and gently tapped the back of Jin Bihui's neck.

She let out a soft moan, and the sword in her hand clattered to the ground. She promptly fainted.

Su Xie's internal strength was indeed considerable; he took care of it with a light tap. I looked at the back of my hand in astonishment.

Yan Shu chuckled, "I thought you were going to snap her neck. Why are you suddenly so kind?"

"You've crossed the river and then burned the bridge!" I said, covering my hands behind my back. "You two were just being all lovey-dovey, how could I possibly kill you?"

He laughed ostentatiously, "I just couldn't find an inn and didn't want to bother her by staying here for a few days. Sweet nothings? She doesn't deserve that!"

Jin Bihui should really see his heartless and ungrateful face!

I let out a soft breath, and seeing that the small incense sticks in the incense burner had almost burned out, I returned to the main topic with satisfaction: "The High Priest's keen mind must have guessed why I came to see you. Let's get straight to the point."

Yan Shu, however, acted shamelessly and said, "I don't know. Are you here to seek revenge because I left first? You betrayed me first. Would I be a fool not to run away?"

How dare he even bring that up!

My anger flared, but I was too clumsy to refute him, so I ignored him and continued, "I think the Left Protector has not received any news from the Young Master for several days. The fact that the Young Master has been captured cannot be kept secret for long. Before the Left Protector sends people to chop you and me into pieces, I would like to ask the High Priest to intervene."

"Oh?" Yan Shu looked at me with a smile. "You want me to walk right into your trap?"

"That's not quite right." I thought for a moment and explained to him, "The Queen just wants to see you, so go see her and wait for her to release the young master before you leave. I think with the priest's abilities, leaving will be a piece of cake."

He looked at me and smiled, then uttered two words, "Dream on."

I persisted, saying, "It's just a meeting, it won't kill you to see me..."

"I'd rather die." Yan Shu poured himself a cup of tea, took a small sip, and answered resolutely.

I couldn't help but ask, "I really can't understand what deep-seated hatred you and the Queen have that makes it so difficult to even see each other, even to the point of death."

He twirled the teacup with his pale fingers, looked at me with a gentle gaze, and said, "You want to know?"

I nodded repeatedly, full of curiosity, very curiosity. "Please enlighten me, High Priest."

He curled his lips into a smile and said softly, "Dream on."

My enthusiasm was ruthlessly extinguished by him, and I could only helplessly say, "Since the High Priest is unwilling, then I have no choice but to use force."

He laughed smugly, a laugh utterly mocking, and raised an eyebrow at me, "You think you can take me on?"

I ignored his mockery, and instead, glancing at the nearly burnt-out incense stick in the burner, I counted with a mixture of belief and doubt: "One, two, three..."

Sure enough, my body went limp and I plopped down on the ground.

Yan Shu also staggered, his body going limp, and steadied himself on the table, looking at me with a mixture of surprise and astonishment. "You..." He then looked at the incense burner, "Impossible, ordinary sleeping incense shouldn't have any effect on me..."

I sat on the ground, feeling dizzy and nauseous, and smiled at him. "How could I possibly use ordinary sleeping potion to deal with a priest who has seen all kinds of poisons?"

His expression changed. "Could it be... this is..."

I nodded at him, and heard him grit his teeth and curse, "That bastard Shen Qing!"

That's right, this is the sleeping potion made by Shen Dushen, the special pharmacist of the Demonic Cult. I specifically searched his medicine chest when I was saving Leng Baichun. The bottle of poison, this sleeping potion, and some other miscellaneous items are rare to find. Shen Qing once boasted that although his sleeping potion only works after it has burned out, no one can tell that it is effective, and no one can resist it. He will definitely fall down after counting to three.

I was just taking a gamble, hoping to use the sleeping potion to deal with Yan Shu first, so that at least Brother Xiao Jiu would have a better chance of taking him down. I didn't expect it to actually work.

I was dizzy and had no strength at all. I shouted for help at the door, but instead of Xiao Jiu rushing in, I heard the sound of fireworks.

I was taken aback, but Yan Shu frowned first and said, "So you brought an ambush..."

How could this be? I was still puzzled and hadn't even reacted when I saw Yan Shu's eyes turn cold and his brows furrow as he said, "Do you think I would just sit and wait to die over a mere piece of sleeping potion?"

A sudden flash of cold light appeared at his fingertips. Before I could even see him, he was already upon me, the gleam of light flashing as he slashed towards my throat...

He said, "You have committed my cardinal sin; you must die!"

thirty

That cold light flashed in my eyes, and before I could react, I felt a chill on my neck. For a moment, I thought I was going to die, but then my waist suddenly tightened, and someone supported me and pulled me back several steps, causing the beaded curtain to shatter.

I looked up and met a sharp chin. "Alliance Leader..."

He supported my entire body, stared at Yan Shu, and asked softly, "Are you alright?"

I felt a slight warmth on my neck, where the knife tip had grazed the skin. My mind was a little sluggish as I shook my head.

"Ruan Bicheng?" Yan Shu flicked his fingers, and blood splattered on the gleaming dagger. He frowned at me. "You actually joined forces with Ruan Bicheng?"

The incense took effect, and my mind went completely blank. I stared intently at Ruan Bicheng, a terrifying thought surging within me, forcing me to stop thinking.

Ruan Bicheng covered the wound on my neck and whispered, "Don't speak, I'll take you away immediately."

"Leave him behind!" Yan Shu tightened the small knife between his fingers, cutting his palm. He frowned slightly, his hand falling, a few drops of blood trickling from his fingertip. The smile vanished from his eyes as he stared intently at me. "I hate betrayal and abandonment more than anything in my life. Su Xie, you colluded with righteous people to betray me. You must die." He raised a pale finger, blood trickling down his wrist, and pointed at Ruan Bicheng, saying, "Put Su Xie down!"

Ruan Bicheng looked at him and said coldly, "I'm afraid I can't comply." She then picked me up and tried to rush out of the room.

Yan Shu leaped into the air, his fingertips flashing coldly as he pressed them against my brow. "Then you will all die together!"

The beaded curtain swayed before my eyes, and Ruan Bicheng carried me straight out of the house, raising her hand to brush away Yan Shu's fingers that were pressing in, and quickly retreating several steps.

I bumped into his chest. Yan Shu stopped in his tracks, his clothes and hair flying, and stood a few steps away, raising his hand and brandishing the blood-stained knife at his fingertips. "Ruan Bicheng, do you think you're still a match for me with Su Xie by your side?"

I glanced down at Ruan Bicheng's bleeding wrist, and the voice in my head kept repeating the same question: How could he be here? How could he be here...?

My ears were ringing, and I heard Ruan Bicheng say, "Yan Shu, you can't escape now."

In the stillness of the night, the clanging of swords suddenly broke the silence. I saw a small light ignite on the red wall, and in an instant, like a wildfire, it flickered and blazed, quickly encircling us.

A row of soldiers in full armor stood atop the red wall, each holding a fire arrow and nocking a bow.

At the same time, Xiao Jiu led a large force into the courtyard, surrounding Yan Shu from the front, back, left, and right.

"Are you alright?" Xiao Jiu stepped back to Ruan Bicheng's side, holding his knife as he asked me.

How could he be here? How could he be here...?

Tokens, signal fireworks, heavy troops...

Yan Shu suddenly laughed, his eyes like knives piercing my face, and said in a chilling tone, "I actually forgot that you are Su Xie... Su Xie who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals! Very well! If you can't kill me today, I will definitely send you to hell with my own hands in the future!"

His gaze lingered before my eyes, my mind reeling. How could he be here? How could he be here...?

The secret conversation with the Queen that Ye Baizhi mentioned, the token that saved me from prison, Chang Huan and Leng Baichun who were suddenly arrested, Xiao Jiu who came with me, the signal fireworks... all these people's eyes flashed through my mind. I couldn't tell if it was real or fake.

I grabbed Ruan Bicheng's collar and asked him, "You used me?"

The wound on my neck was bleeding little by little. He pressed down on the wound but didn't answer me, only saying, "Don't talk, the wound will..."

"You used me?" I asked him again. "You and Little Ninth Brother used me together?"

He looked down at me, his brow furrowed. "I'm just doing what I think is right."

Something I was unsure about in my mind fell to the ground with a thud, leaving a deathly silence, like dust settling.

As the sounds of battle arose, Yan Shu's white robes flitted about amidst the densely packed soldiers. People fell one after another, and another rushed forward. I could no longer see Yan Shu's figure clearly.

"Let go." I loosened my grip on his shirt, my breathing becoming increasingly heavy.

"What do you want to do?" he asked, grabbing my arm. "Save him? Or stand with him amidst these hundreds of weapons?"

"Let go." His words vibrated violently in my ears.

He added, "You also want to save him, don't you? You came here to get him into the palace, didn't you? The means you use don't matter."

"Let go!" I bit his arm.

Caught off guard, his arm jerked, and I took the opportunity to break free and land, but he grabbed my wrist again. "Don't you want to save the others?"

I turned to look at him. In the dimly lit night, I couldn't see him clearly. "Ruan Bicheng, why is everything you've gained built on sacrifice?"

He didn't answer me, but just looked at me with deep eyes, saying, "I only want the result."

I shook off his hand, and as I took a step forward, he said behind me, "If you dare to take another step forward, I will immediately order the arrows to be fired at Yan Shu."

I looked up at the rocket-propelled wall atop the red wall and staggered toward the heavily armed troops, but Ruan Bicheng suddenly stepped forward and struck me on the back of the neck.

My vision went black, and as I was losing consciousness, I heard Ruan Bicheng give the order to fire the arrows.

My mind went blank for a moment, then there was no sound.

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In the darkest of nights, I saw many flickering lights, something burning with a crackling sound.

Someone is calling my name, Su Xie, Su Xie...

This is not my name. I wanted to tell that voice. When I turned around, I saw Yan Shu kneeling in the raging fire with his eyes down. His white clothes and black hair were stained dark red with blood. Flames flickered and roared between his temples and eyebrows.

I reached out to pull him up, but he suddenly looked up, his bloodshot eyes glaring at me, and laughed, "Fine, very well! If you can't kill me today, I will personally send you to hell one day!"

...

I woke up with a start, staring blankly at the bed curtains, panting heavily, my palms sweating profusely.

"What's wrong?" someone asked me softly from beside the tatami mat.

I turned my head and met Ruan Bicheng's unfathomable eyes, and was so shocked that I sat up abruptly.

He poured me a cup of hot tea and handed it to me. "Did you have a nightmare?"

I avoided him and jumped off the bed. He suddenly pressed down on my shoulder and said, "You have a wound on your neck, don't move around."

I looked up at him, and his deep, unfathomable eyes were terrifying. You never know what he would sacrifice for you, you can never guess.

“Don’t look at me like that…” He reached out and covered my eyes. “I don’t want you to hate me. Everything I did was what I thought was worthwhile. There’s no right or wrong.” He softened his tone and said, “I just wanted to save you.”

I pushed his hand away and looked at him, suddenly finding it amusing. "Save me? You went to great lengths, used every means at your disposal, even capturing Chang Huan and Leng Baichun, just to save me?"

He looked me straight in the eye without flinching. "It's true that Brother Xiao and I found Yan Shu through you, but I wasn't the one who kidnapped Chang Huan and Miss Leng. They had already been taken when I returned." He looked into my eyes and continued, "Besides, wasn't it your decision to sacrifice Yan Shu to save them?"

I was speechless. If I hadn't decided to sacrifice Yan Shu to save people, how could they have found him? It was my decision from the beginning that there would be a sacrifice.

"What virtue or ability do Su Xie possess?"

“Su Xie,” he explained to me very seriously, “I saved you simply because I wanted to, nothing else.”

I looked at him for a long time, then pushed his hand away, opened the door and went out. He said behind me, "Young Master Ruan and Miss Changhuan have returned. You can go and see them."

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It seems to be raining; a cool, damp breeze is blowing in.

I ran into Xiao Jiu in front of the side room as he came out of the room, carrying an empty medicine bowl. He was slightly taken aback when he saw me, and lowered his eyes evasively, saying, "You...you're awake."

"Okay." I nodded to him and stepped aside to let him pass.