Eternal Night - Chapter 174
He lay on the ground, and the information in his eyes startled me. Xinghun was an assassin, and he was also a pitiful assassin manipulated by Youli Valley. Should I kill him?
In that moment of carelessness, Xinghun leaped up from the ground and unleashed a vicious hidden weapon. I angrily slapped it away, feeling utterly disgusted by my own weakness. This kind of assassin deserved to be killed a thousand times over.
But I was still ambushed. Xinghun's arrogant voice assaulted my eardrums: "An assassin always has a last resort, and that last resort is called despicable. However, it's not too despicable; this poison won't kill you!" At that moment, I saw his eyes, shining like black pearls. The sadness in his eyes had vanished completely; he was truly adept at disguise.
This is outrageous! I suppressed the poison coursing through my body as I watched Xinghun vanish, gritting my teeth, determined to catch him. Arrogant! How dare he be so arrogant in front of me?!
“He dropped this!” Li Tianyou handed me a list. “It looks like the assassination list for Youli Valley. He dropped it by accident.”
I frowned. Three things about Xinghun's assassination attempt surprised me. First, his unerring throwing knife failed to kill Guo Qiran. Second, how could someone who never leaves a trace drop something so important? Third, he didn't kill me. If it had been a deadly poison, I should have died at his hands.
"I feel that there must be something fishy about why Xinghun, who is our enemy, is helping me, while Yuepo, who is also an assassin from Youli Valley."
"What does Your Highness intend to do?"
"Use the moon's essence as bait!"
Li Tianyou's study was blown up by Xinghun. He seems to have figured out where Xinghun is. He didn't tell me, which suggests he has his own plans.
But how could I let such an important clue slip by? I knew that guards from the Prince's mansion had released their dogs that night. It didn't take much effort to learn from the guards that Xinghun had actually returned to the Prince's mansion.
I racked my brains, feeling like I'd overlooked something.
Thinking of Xinghun entering the Duanwang Mansion, I couldn't help but recall the scene of Yongye spitting saliva to feed the fish.
Li Tianyou captured Yuepo and mysteriously told me that Xinghun would definitely go to save Yuepo.
After all these years, Xinghun suddenly reappeared, and Youli Valley also had a clue. I was very happy. Sitting by the river, I quietly pondered Youli Valley's conspiracy, and unintentionally, I saw Yongye again.
She looked lost, like a child who couldn't find her way. She stumbled into the river, looking utterly forlorn. I couldn't help but call out to her.
I must have scared her; her eyes were full of wariness when she looked at me. I really disliked this wariness, and I tried hard to dispel her suspicion.
“Yongye is in poor health and cannot share his father’s worries, which makes him very sad.”
I felt sorry for her when she said that. I wondered if it was because Prince Duan desperately wanted a son that he made her dress as a man. Was Yongye so troubled because she wasn't a man and had poor health? I gently comforted her. Seeing her eyes slowly brighten, a familiar feeling rose in my heart. I didn't have time to think about the origin of this feeling, but I was genuinely happy because of her cheerfulness.
She was an exceptionally intelligent person. When she smiled, she radiated a charm that overshadowed her physical beauty, possessing a captivating allure that drew people in.
She actually gave me a silver ingot and told me to buy clothes. I was somewhat amused and exasperated. I had grown a full beard and wore the most ordinary black robe, hoping to project the image of the chivalrous hero Feng Yangxi in the eyes of others. Certain things can create an unbreakable image for a person. As long as I shaved my beard and changed my clothes, no one would suspect that Feng Yangxi and the prince of Qi were the same person. After all, a prince of a kingdom had been infiltrating An Kingdom for many years, and what he had seen and heard was enough to make the emperor of An Kingdom tremble with fear.
Does Yongye think I'm sloppy and unsightly? I thought of that refined, handsome young man again, and a pang of unease rose in my heart. Yongye doesn't like sloppy and unsightly people; she'd definitely prefer a boy like Yuepo.
Yongye seemed to sense my displeasure, and she kept explaining, afraid that I would misunderstand her as judging people by their appearance, which made me feel that she was kind-hearted.
I gave her my wooden plaque. Regardless of whether I will marry her in the future, I hope to fulfill one of her wishes and keep her safe.
As she was leaving, she said, "I grieve for you as you face the river alone, the moon shining lonely through the long night. Until we meet again."
I recited this poem several times, and the eternal night gave me a new impression. A faint feeling, like melancholy and loneliness, made me somewhat reluctant to part with her.
I sat by the river for a long time, replaying my conversation with Yongye, her expressions and gestures in my mind. She seemed to have instantly piqued my interest. Much later, I remembered Li Tianyou saying that Xinghun might go to rescue Yuepo tonight. Just as I was about to leave, I saw two people emerge from the river.
Li Ya was a royal bodyguard of my Qi Kingdom. He had disappeared for many years, and now I actually saw him dragging the seemingly unconscious Yue Po out of the water.
Judging from his figure, I knew he was definitely not Xinghun. Could it be that Liya had joined Youli Valley after disappearing for so many years? I followed him, and after he settled Yuepo, I appeared in front of him in an empty alley.
Li Ya's words left me speechless. That elegant Yongye, that kind-hearted Yongye, that desolate Yongye, the Yongye who was just chatting with me—she was Xinghun, the assassin I had been searching for all these years. No wonder Xinghun appeared at the Duan Prince's residence. Did the Duan Prince know her identity? Otherwise, why would the Duan Prince insist that she continue to disguise herself as a man? I instantly realized that Youli Valley's scheme was inseparable from the prince's search for medical treatment.
To repay a debt of gratitude and to track down Youli Valley's whereabouts, Li Ya became Li Yannian's servant. He used a fake to send Yongye back to the Duan Prince's mansion. Knowing that I wanted to kill Xinghun, he eagerly told me about Yongye's helplessness and grievances.
When I found out, I only felt a deep sense of heartache for Yongye.
It was my father's fault that caused this young lady, who should have been raised in seclusion, to suffer so much.
Her cunning and lies were all for the sake of survival. She had presented herself as a man to the world for so many years to destroy the Wandering Valley; how much pain must she have felt inside? Thinking of Yongye standing alone by the river, desolate and forlorn, wary that I knew she was Xinghun, I almost instantly felt her loneliness and isolation.
My hatred for the Valley of Wandering has deepened.
My father promised me that if I destroyed the Valley of Wandering and eliminated the threat of the An family, I wouldn't have to become the crown prince. But the person betrothed to Yongye is the crown prince, and my father also hopes that I will become the crown prince. As for Yongye, I always thought I wouldn't have to marry her or become the crown prince. But now, I'm hesitant. I want to take her under my protection.
When Yongye held up the wooden plaque, begging me to protect her on her journey to Chen, I watched her lie without batting an eye, her expression shifting between innocence and feigned pitifulness. My heart was filled with nothing but pity and curiosity. I tied the plaque back around her neck. As long as she wore this, I would protect her.
Originally, when my brother Yan was going on a diplomatic mission, I was supposed to go and protect him. However, when I agreed to Yongye's request, it wasn't because I happened to be going to Chen to protect my brother Yan.
I hope that Chen Guo and his group can see the most authentic side of Yongye, and I want to find out her truest thoughts.
If it weren't for saving her own life, would she still lie to me?
Some say that a man's curiosity about a woman is a sign that he is developing feelings for her. If that's true, then my feelings for Yongye began from this moment.
The stench of blood permeated the mountains and forests of Chen State.
I examined the buried bodies, sighed, and shook my head. I simply couldn't reconcile the deaths of these people with Yongye's innocent smile.
I know she's in danger, but she... is indeed ruthless.
Only after Yi Zhongtian attempted to assassinate her did I realize that her invitation to Chen State was to make me fight against Yi Zhongtian.
Her eyes darted around as she looked at me. I felt she was somewhat afraid of me; was she afraid I would find out that Xinghun had killed her? I kept the truth from her, because I found it amusing to banter and argue with her, watching her lie.
My trip to Chen Guo made me see her in a new light; I want her.
Her ruthlessness, her cunning, her intelligence… Looking at her, I felt that giving up on such a woman would be something I would regret. She was a woman who would never make me feel lonely.
The inn caught fire, and I didn't know why Yi Zhongtian dared to burn it down. Although I knew Yongye was skilled in martial arts, and with her agility, escaping wouldn't be a problem, I still rushed in. At that moment, anxiety and worry made me realize how much I cared for Yongye.
The throwing knife missed my vitals when it came at me. I turned and smiled; her knife told me she was still safe. I couldn't see her, but I knew she could see me. A sense of relief welled up inside me; the throwing knives of Eternal Night were always merciless and never missed. She didn't throw another knife at me, nor did she hit my vitals. Because of my protection, had she finally shown me a sliver of genuine affection?