Agent secret Wind Boy

Chapitre 73

[Volume 4 Finale: Chapter 17 Your Heart Is Like Mine]

The dim candlelight flickered, casting a soft glow that illuminated the room. Huaiyuan sat upright in a rosewood chair, his long, slender fingers tapping lightly on the table. His brows were slightly furrowed, and a hint of worry lingered on his thin lips. His dark gaze was fixed on an unknown world, distant and ethereal, his thoughts deeply immersed in a place beyond my reach.

At this moment, he appeared so aloof and self-possessed, yet unapproachable. The loneliness and desolation that enveloped him were so incongruous with his inherent arrogance. Seeing Huaiyuan like this made my heart ache slightly—that Huaiyuan who seemed forever invincible, indestructible; that Huaiyuan who seemed to have no problem in the world he couldn't solve; that Huaiyuan who could always face any adversity with equanimity… when had he ever shown such vulnerability?!

I don't know what's troubling him right now. I just want to wipe away the slight sorrow on his brow; I want to smooth out the wrinkles in his heart; I want to drive away the loneliness that surrounds him! So, I walked barefoot behind him and quietly pulled his head into my arms.

"Awake?" Huaiyuan woke up abruptly, his eyes now warm as he looked at me. He turned slightly, grasped my wrist, supported my waist, and with a gentle pull, drew me into his arms.

I remained silent, my arms tightly encircling his neck, staring intently into his eyes—his dark pupils reflected a true version of myself, and his most genuine smile. My heart began to warm—I had never known that black could evoke such a warm and comforting feeling.

"What's wrong?" Huaiyuan asked with a faint smile, gently enveloping my cold feet in his large, warm hands. "Are you still sad and upset about Xiaofeng?" — This was Huaiyuan, always considering my feelings, yet keeping his own worries tightly hidden. He didn't want me to share any of his burdens.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" I sighed softly, finding the most comfortable position in his arms, bracing myself for a long talk. Gazing into his eyes, I calmly asked, "So, what's wrong?!"

“I…” A hint of embarrassment flashed across Huaiyuan’s face.

“Don’t rush to deny it, you do have something on your mind. And it’s something that’s really bothering you!” I interrupted his argument, looking at him with an understanding gaze: “Go ahead and tell me, maybe I can’t solve your problem. But at least I can listen. And don’t rush to reject me, you should try to open your heart to someone at least once, and I will be your best therapist.”

"Psychologist?" Huaiyuan found this new term quite novel, and he raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yes, keeping too many worries bottled up is a kind of emotional garbage. If you don't release them in time, they'll accumulate and cause a lot of pressure. In the worst cases, it can lead to madness. And psychologists are the cleaners responsible for clearing away this negative emotion." I rambled on for a while, and seeing that he still seemed to understand, I changed the subject and started to act coquettishly, "Just trust me, and tell me what's on your mind! Don't worry about anything else for now!"—Hehe, I've found that all men in love seem to fall for this! Even the aloof Huaiyuan is no exception.

"Okay, I heard that you went to Li Hu's house to look for his family when you came to the capital, is that right?" Unexpectedly, Huaiyuan suddenly brought up this matter.

"Yeah, what's wrong?" I looked at him, puzzled.

"What were you doing there?" Huaiyuan asked calmly—his voice devoid of emotion. I don't believe this is a problem troubling him. But it's alright, things should be dealt with one at a time. Eventually, he'll be forced to reveal his true feelings.

“After Brother Li Hu died, I found a letter in his room that was for his wife, so I delivered it to her on my way here. Is there anything wrong with that?” I felt a little guilty, so I brushed aside my stray hairs and turned my head away from his eyes—I didn’t dare tell him that Brother Li Hu and I actually lived in the same house.

"Li Hu's wife? Does Li Hu have a mother-in-law?" Huaiyuan raised an eyebrow and looked at me in surprise.

I burst out laughing and rolled my eyes at him. "How did you even come up with that? Come out here! 'Wife' is what you call your wife!"

"So, did you give it to her?" Huaiyuan remained indifferent, his expression unreadable—who knew what he was thinking?!

"No, she remarried. I only know she married a businessman, but I don't know where she went." I told the truth—there was nothing to hide.

"After you left, Li Hu's house was visited by thieves countless times, some even brazenly entering in broad daylight," Huaiyuan sneered coldly.

"Strange, their house is already empty, just bare walls. What's there to steal?"

"Where's that letter?" Huaiyuan asked me directly—did he think there was a secret in the letter? Or was there really a treasure map inside?

Thinking of this, I quickly jumped off Huaiyuan, pulled out the letter, and handed it to him with anticipation—the treasure map! I was so excited!

Huaiyuan took the envelope but didn't open it immediately. He lifted me onto his lap and then leisurely tore open the seal—I was utterly disappointed. Inside was indeed a letter from home, nothing special. Except for the truly awful handwriting!

Seeing my utterly disappointed expression, Huaiyuan couldn't help but chuckle and glance at me. He moved the letter up to the candlelight and examined it—pshaw! Still nothing there!

Undeterred, he poured more water from his teacup, wetting a corner of the paper. I curled my lip—another wasted effort! "No need to look anymore, it really is just a family letter! It's obvious, how could Master Ye entrust something so important to such a reckless Li Hu..."

Before he could finish his insightful comment, I stopped myself and stared in astonishment—the ordinary letter paper, after being soaked in an unknown potion that Huaiyuan had taken out, slowly began to reveal a landscape pattern—it really was a map!

"It really is a map!" I exclaimed excitedly—unfortunately, there was only half of it. The other half must be with Lu Jianfeng. What does Huaiyuan plan to do with it?!

"Huaiyuan, what do you plan to do?" — Thinking of how Lu Jianfeng had gone to such lengths to get this treasure map, if he knew that half of the map was really in Huaiyuan's hands, who knows what despicable tricks he would use?! My mood couldn't help but sink. Well, it seems that finding the treasure map isn't anything to be happy about.

Huaiyuan remained silent, only gently pulling me closer and burying his face in my hair. Just when I thought he wouldn't speak again tonight, his deep voice softly broke the silence, tinged with pain, as he slowly drifted into memories.

"When I was very young, around seven years old, I woke up one night and overheard my mother crying. I was puzzled because my mother had always been a cheerful and straightforward woman, and my father treated her very well; I had never seen her sad or shed tears before. So I secretly went to my parents' room to peek, only to find them arguing. I was too young to understand what they were saying, but now, thinking back, I recall that it was probably because my father had gone to my mother's parents' house after a fight with him, and in a moment of frustration, he went to a tavern to drink. He rescued a young lady from an official family who was being harassed by a rogue, and the young lady fell in love with my father at first sight. In a moment of confusion, my father made a terrible mistake."

"And then that young lady wanted your father to take responsibility and came to your house, right?" I immediately replied—Sigh! What a cliché hero-saves-the-damsel-in-distress story!

“No, Father never saw her again after that.” Although Huaiyuan was sad, he couldn’t help but laugh at my imagination. He glanced at me and lightly tapped my head: “Until a few years later, on the day Father and Mother quarreled, Father seemed to suddenly see her again at a friend’s house. Only then did he learn that the woman had married and had children.”

"Isn't that a good thing? Why is your mother crying? Why are the two of them arguing?" I found it all very strange.

"Later, when my mother died, she gave me a jade pendant, saying it was a token of her and my father's betrothal. She told me to keep it safe and to take it out to acknowledge someone important in my life later." Huaiyuan shook his head and glanced at me. "I was young then and thought she was out of her mind when she died. There was only one piece of jade in my hands, so how could there be any talk of acknowledging someone?! I originally thought she wanted me to give it to my beloved. But later I found out that wasn't the case—because I only learned after I found you that the jade was originally supposed to be a pair, and I only took one piece."

"What about the other one?" I couldn't help but wonder. Suddenly, a thought flashed through my mind, and I widened my eyes to look at Huaiyuan: "No way?"

“If I’m not mistaken, the other piece of jade should be with Lu Rumei right now.” Huaiyuan nodded slightly: “In other words, that piece of jade has actually always been with Jianfeng.”

"Before my father died, he kept saying he felt guilty towards my mother and me. I always thought it only referred to my mother and me." Huaiyuan gave a faint, cold laugh. "Now that I think about it, it probably also included another mother and son. No wonder he couldn't rest in peace even in death, staring at that jade. It turns out that in his heart, he was still thinking about that mother and son until his last breath!"

“I remember when I was little, I went to Lu Family Village to play, and I was actually on very good terms with Jianfeng. Suddenly one day, he started to distance himself from me, and then gradually became hostile. I never understood why he hated me so much.” Huaiyuan laughed self-deprecatingly, “He must have seen the jade on me! So he always knew that I actually, actually… He went against me in every way afterward. I thought that if I married Rumei, it would be very awkward to face Jianfeng. In addition, I didn’t have any feelings for Rumei to begin with, and I was also poisoned. I thought that since I was going to search for the Seven-Colored Azalea anyway, and I didn’t even know if I could cure the poison, why should I waste Rumei’s youth?! So I simply chose to avoid seeing her.”

"I never imagined that six years later, when I reappeared, his hostility towards me would have turned into hatred. It had even reached the point of resorting to any means necessary." Huaiyuan sighed with a bitter smile, "In the past six years, although the Wuji Sect has gained a reputation in the martial arts world for its unpredictable actions, it has not committed any major heinous crimes. Yet, because of Jiang Mohui, it has become so cruel and bloodthirsty! I really don't know whether this is a blessing or a curse?!"

"Huaiyuan! This isn't your fault! That Jianfeng is a pervert, just ignore him!" I hugged his head tightly, my heart aching, and cried out urgently, "Jianfeng's behavior was too extreme! He's just like a spoiled brat who's crying and demanding candy because he hasn't received any love! He only thinks about his own injury, has he ever considered that you're innocent too?! People like that never deserve anyone's sympathy, and he even dares to think you owe him something, putting on a victim's face! How shameless!"

Huaiyuan remained silent—I knew he must be in immense pain right now! Jianfeng could disregard brotherhood, but Huaiyuan couldn't abandon family for money and power! I knew that beneath his cold exterior lay the warmest heart in the world! Otherwise, he wouldn't be so tormented—his mother's dying wish; his father's unfulfilled desire; and the unspoken debt he owed Rumei—all of this had become a boulder weighing on his heart, preventing him from retaliating against Jianfeng's ruthlessness.

"Huaiyuan, whatever your final choice, I will always stand by your side!" I gazed firmly into his star-like black eyes, reached into his robes and pulled out the silk handkerchief he had always treasured, determined to untangle a knot in his heart. My cheeks flushed, and I gave him a gentle, radiant smile: "You see, it never represents death! Although my feelings for you were mixed with a little resentment and a touch of confusion back then, I truly declared my feelings to you. Huaiyuan, I love you!"

"Qing'er!" Huaiyuan looked at me with surprise at first, but as I spoke, his starry eyes gradually filled with a purple mist. He whispered, gently cupped my face, and slowly lowered his head to give me an extremely tender kiss—deep and passionate, lingering and affectionate, planting a love potion in my heart that I could never forget for the rest of my life…

Ah! I wish your heart were like mine.

I will never betray your love!

...

[Volume 4, Finale: Chapter 18 The Past is Gone]