Young Prime Minister, a Hermit

Chapter 148

So I said that Yihan's embrace was the most comfortable in the world. After being held hostage by Ying for nearly an hour, feeling dizzy and coughing violently, I finally arrived at a dilapidated stone house and once again became extremely certain of this idea.

"Yo, Lie Que, you've arrived so quickly." A clear voice rang in my ears. I continued coughing softly, and when I looked up, my eyes, blurry with tears, could only see a man in white robes, looking me up and down with a nonchalant, even disdainful, smile. "So this is the famous Qin Luo? Nothing special. What did you say, Lu Ling? Oh?"

My lips twitched. Boss, do you have to add "oh" to the end of every sentence?

"Terrible." The voice was cold and clear, somewhat like Yi Han's, but without any hint of indifference; it was extremely crisp and decisive.

My gaze shifted slightly, and I saw a tall man in a light gray brocade robe with dark purple embroidery. His eyebrows were defined, his eyes were defined, and his mouth was defined; he actually looked quite normal. But, how should I put it? It seemed that every feature was too perfectly proportioned, making him look less like a person and more like a collection of parts. I quickly suppressed a laugh, coughed twice, and lowered my eyes to hide it.

"Qin Luo?" A third, languid, and leisurely voice, completely different from the two, entered my ears. I was slightly startled, finally regaining my composure and looking at the third person.

He was a handsome man, slender yet agile, leaning lazily against the doorframe of the stone house, looking at me with a half-smile. Without a word, I knew this man was no ordinary person.

It's not that his martial arts skills surpassed the other two, nor that he possessed a steadfast and wise nature. Rather, he had a gentle exterior but a captivating, sinister aura that immediately reminded me of Liu Cenfeng from back then.

I nodded and smiled, "Flying God of Wind." This was a statement of fact.

He raised an eyebrow slightly and stepped forward, but just as his figure passed Teng Liu, the hostage-taker, Bu Ying, coldly shouted, "Where is Yun Yan?"

Fei Lian slowed his pace, as if he had stopped naturally rather than been stopped by someone. His gaze towards Buying was cold, filled with hatred and reluctance: "Lie Que, is that woman all you care about? Have you forgotten us, forgotten your own identity?"

After a moment of silence, Bu Ying calmly replied, "You wanted me to kill those five hundred Li Luo soldiers, and I did; you wanted me to distract Feng Yihan and capture Lin Yu, and I did that too. Now, can you release Yun Yan?"

A murderous glint flashed in Fei Lian's eyes as he waved his hand: "Teng Liu."

Teng Liu, dressed in white, shrugged, his not-so-handsome face showing a puzzled expression: "The four great assassins are clearly Feng Xie, Xue Can, Lei Ku, and Dian Leng. How could the most cold-blooded Lie Que risk everything for a woman? I just don't understand!"

My hands, hanging limply at my sides, clenched tightly, my palms damp with cold sweat. I could feel myself and Bu Ying trembling slightly. Yun Yan! Yun Yan! I'm finally going to see her again. It's been two years. I'm finally going to see her again.

Less than a minute after Teng Liu entered, a scream suddenly came from the doorless stone house: "Ah—, you woman, you're like a dog! You actually bit me!"

"What's with the 'yo'!" A familiar voice, tinged with a lazy nasal tone and the anger of being woken up, said, "Aren't you tired of all that 'yo yo' every day? If you disturb my sleep again, I'll poison you until you're mute!"

Actually, I've thought about this for a long time: if Yunyan were to disappear or be kidnapped one day, my biggest worry wouldn't be her, but the thug who dared to kidnap her, who would either die of anger or be poisoned by her. Looking back now, I realize that I, who was only ten years old but had the mind of someone over twenty, truly possessed unparalleled precognitive abilities.

"You're a prisoner! A prisoner! Please recognize that..."

"Teng Liu, you forgot to add 'yo'."

"Ah! That's right... Hey!"

"Hahaha... Oh my, you're so funny."

The people inside were having a blast, while those outside were utterly exasperated. I sighed helplessly and called out in a raised voice, "Yunyan!"

The room fell silent, then erupted with the sounds of things being knocked over and groans of people being hit. A woman in pink burst out of the stone door with lightning speed, her beautiful eyes gleaming, and lunged at me: "Lin Yu!!"

Fei Lian, whose expression remained unchanged from beginning to end, reached out and grabbed her arm. With a light tap of his fingers, Yun Yan was left standing rooted to the spot, unable to move.

I looked her up and down for a while before slowly letting out a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness you're still alive."

This was the border of Ziyun Mountain. A winter chill seeped into the air, but the sunlight was much brighter and clearer. Yunyan's eyes were moist, and the sunlight reflected from them, shining like diamonds: "Linyu, how could you let yourself become so haggard?"

Was she haggard? Of course she was. Battlefield planning, military operations, court intrigues—which of these didn't require mental and physical exertion? Which of these didn't require her to exhaust herself? Add to that the rollercoaster of joy and sorrow during her separation and reunion with Yi Han, and the heart-wrenching grief upon hearing of Yun Yan's death. Her already frail body was constantly subjected to the torment of the seven emotions and six desires, and without Yun Yan by her side to care for her, how could she not be haggard?

Sometimes I even doubt whether this body can hold me past thirty. Of course, I can't show any of this right now. I smiled and said softly, "With you taking care of me, I'll get better."

Her gaze shifted to Fei Lian, her gentle expression turning icy: "Linglong has already been killed by you, and you've killed enough of my men. Now you even have my life in your hands. Are you still unwilling to release Yunyan?"

Yunyan's face turned deathly pale instantly, and she trembled all over: "Linyu, what...what did you say? Linglong...is dead? Really dead?"

I was overwhelmed with sorrow and closed my eyes, remaining silent.

"Catch Shadow!!" Yun Yan roared, her voice filled with sorrow, "You said she wouldn't die! You said you could save her!!"

The hand that was gripping my arm tightened unconsciously, and a sharp pain shot through me. I could only close my eyes and grit my teeth to endure it. Until he slowly loosened his grip and said in a hoarse voice, "Your injury can't be left untreated... By the time I get there, it will be too late."

Yunyan's suppressed sobs made my heart ache. I took a deep breath, opened my eyes, and met Feilian's dark green eyes: "Release Yunyan, and I'll let you do whatever you want with me."

Feilian and I stared at each other for a long while, then Feilian suddenly laughed—a cruel and twisted laugh, a look in his eyes mixed with revenge, hatred, and bloodlust. He crossed his arms and glanced at me sideways, coldly saying, "Who said I wanted your life?"

“If you want something, just take it. Be free and domineering. Neither hatred nor love can bind us.” He raised an eyebrow at me, with the melancholy of a fallen angel and the cold-bloodedness of Satan. “But only those who take what belongs to us will be sent to hell.”

Fei Lian walked step by step to Yun Yan's side, his long, tanned hand holding an iron hook linked with chains. He slowly raised it, then paused in mid-air. I stared in horror. That…that instrument of torture…I recognized it. I had seen it before. A torture device that pierced the collarbone, causing unbearable suffering, waiting for the blood to slowly drain away. Fei Lian…

"Feilian! You can't!!" Buying roared, releasing my hand and rushing forward like a madman. "You promised to release Yunyan!"

A cold glint flashed in Fei Lian's eyes as he dragged Yun Yan away from Buying's sudden attack. Teng Liu and Lu Ling immediately stopped the crazed Buying. Fei Lian's smile grew even brighter, as wicked as a demon, yet as cold and desolate as the moon: "Qin Luo, your mistake was provoking Yue Po, and even more so, taking away the most important person from Yue Po."

The silver hook, gleaming with a cold light, was raised into the air with its tip pointing downwards, and then slashed down fiercely.

"Heaven is not dead—!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, my voice sharp as needles. My desperate, desperate voice became hoarse and broken after I used up my last bit of strength, just like my exhausted body and my straight but cold sweat-covered back.

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Chapter 26 Heaven and Earth (Part 2)

Chapter 26 Heaven and Earth (Part 2)

However, my weak shout still had an effect. It seemed to pierce the air and sever time, freezing everything that was in motion in that moment.

I saw Teng Liu in white stare wide-eyed in shock, Lu Ling in gray tremble slightly as he held his hand in mid-air, and even the previously frantic Bu Ying looked at me with a face full of astonishment.

Then, I saw Fei Lian, who was holding a silver hook and standing in front of the immobile Yun Yan, slowly turn around: "What did you say?" He asked me in a very slow, muffled voice, as if it came from his chest, "Say it again."

Just as I was about to speak, I suddenly heard an extremely faint sound. My heart skipped a beat, and I knew immediately that Yi Han had arrived.

I took a deep breath and walked step by step to him, each step making me feel the sticky mud clinging to my feet. Only after laboriously pulling the immobile Yunyan a few steps away from him did I raise my head and smile faintly, "Did I say anything?"