Il arrive souvent des choses désagréables

Chapitre 37

He barely managed to grab my hand and said, "What are you afraid of? Just kill me."

I held his hand tightly and nodded vigorously, but tears fell with the movement, pattering onto our hands.

He frowned, his face turning an unnatural red, his lips as red as blood, and his palms burning hot like branding irons. After a long pause, he finally spoke, "That kind of person is just a menace to be kept alive."

I know he's right. Those thugs and looters are a menace if left alive. It's just that it's my first time killing someone, and I'm having trouble accepting it right now.

I wiped away my tears. Seeing him trying so hard to comfort me, I felt even worse. I helped him up and said, "Let's forget about them and go to the inn to rest."

Seeing that I had stopped crying, he closed his eyes again and whispered, "Change into their clothes before you leave."

I suddenly realized why he had said to be careful not to get his clothes dirty; he had already planned to keep the other two people's clothes.

I glanced back at the two people; my tears had dried, but a chill ran through me.

Wearing dead people's clothes? Mo Li, I'll have nightmares tonight.

...

Hai: Happy Children's Day! There are at least four urgent things to do on my schedule today, and I estimate I'll be busy until Children's Day is over. I'm thinking of being a kid and doing nothing for once. What do you all think?

Narrator: Do you want to listen to what I have to say?

Chapter 88

The two men were lying in pools of blood, and their clothes were definitely unusable. Fortunately, there were spare clean clothes in the bundles they were carrying. I struggled for a long time, but in the end, I changed the two men into their clothes. Then I dug a hole and buried the two corpses along with my and Mo Li's original clothes.

I never imagined in my life that I would one day fall to the point of killing and burying the dead, but when I actually started doing it, I didn't do it too badly. It seems that the environment really does shape people. Thinking back to the time when I didn't even know what boiled beef was, it feels like a lifetime ago.

They mentioned earlier that someone was offering a reward for a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl. I really wanted to assume that it wasn't me, but given the current situation, the fifty taels of gold most likely represent me, Ping An, who wanted to hide my identity but failed miserably.

I knew I had to be very careful from now on. After carefully burying the two men, I untied the carriage and left it in place. I helped Mo Li onto the horse and rode with him to the inn.

It was completely dark when I saw him on horseback, his cheeks flushed red from the fever and his dark eyelashes slightly covered. Although I was worried, my heart was pounding. I quickly pulled my large cloak over his head and face to cover him, afraid that his face might cause him any unnecessary trouble.

A lantern hung at the entrance of the inn, swaying in the wind. The innkeeper came out to greet me, but when he saw that I was dressed as an official and had a large sword at my waist, he immediately shrank back.

"So it's an official! Please come in, please come in. Our shop is humble and our hospitality may be lacking. Please forgive us, sir. And this gentleman in your arms is..."

I said gruffly, "My brother has fallen seriously ill. Is there a doctor here?"

He rubbed his hands apologetically, "That's troublesome. Our shop only does business on the road, and there aren't many houses nearby. If you want to find a doctor, you'll have to go to Chongguan City, which is dozens of miles away."

"Then let's rest here for the night." I helped Mo Li off the horse, and a waiter came over to take the reins. The owner personally led me inside. It was dinner time, and the small shop was half full of weary travelers. I hadn't eaten all day and had exhausted so much energy on the journey. The smell of food made me feel ravenously hungry, and my stomach was growling.

"Is the sir hungry?" the innkeeper asked.

The people eating looked up at me, but when they saw my attire, they quickly lowered their heads, seemingly wary of the officials. I didn't want to linger in the crowd, so I said, "Take me to my room first, and bring up two meals later."

The innkeeper responded with a "yes" and immediately led me upstairs, saying as we walked, "We're very busy today, there's only one room left, sir..."

I paused for a moment, thinking that I wouldn't feel at ease separating from him, so I nodded, "One room is fine, I still have to take care of my brother."

The shopkeeper bowed and scraped, "Thank you for your consideration, sir. Thank you, sir."

Seeing how terrified he was, I couldn't help but recall the wicked deeds of those two officials. It seems that officials all over the world are no good. Every commoner is afraid of people in official robes. Does the current emperor—my brother—know about this?

My thoughts drifted away, and thinking of my imperial brother sent another chill down my spine.

Well, it's best not to speculate about my brother's thoughts.

The inn was simple, with only a bed and a chair in the room, but it was clean enough. After the owner left, I carefully placed Mo Li on the bed, covering his face. He didn't make a sound, and I was afraid he would faint again. I lifted the cloak and looked down, only to find his eyes wide open.

His gaze was strange, and I was startled by his stare. I instinctively felt that there was something wrong with my appearance, so I quickly touched my face.

"Something's not right? Has it been exposed?"

He didn't speak, and turned his face away from me. There was a half-full basin of water on the washstand in the room. I ran over and looked at my reflection, making sure there was nothing wrong with my face before I felt relieved. There was a soft knock on the door; it turned out the owner had brought up the food.

I sent the boss away, went back to the bedside, helped him sit up, and propped up the pillows so he could lean against them before picking up the bowl and spoon.

He frowned. "What are you doing?"

Hearing his faint breath, I became even more determined in my actions, holding the spoon to his lips. "You've been hungry all day, eat something first. I'll go to the city to find you a doctor in a bit. The shopkeeper said Chongguan City is only a few dozen miles from here, I'll ride there and bring the doctor over."

"No." He said coldly.

I didn't argue with him. I waited for the right opportunity to offer him the spoon, speaking in my mind.

Things are different now, Mo Li. I've already killed people, and now you're like this. It's my turn to do whatever I want. Do you think I'll listen to you?

Just as he was about to speak, a spoonful of soup went into his mouth, causing him to cough and choke. His face turned even redder. I put down the spoon and reached out to help him catch his breath, but he grabbed my hand in return. My palm was incredibly hot, and his eyes flashed with anger.

"You are not allowed to go."

Seeing that he was truly angry, and fearing that his body couldn't handle it, I immediately softened my stance, "Okay, okay, I won't go. You eat first, and I won't go after you finish eating."

His chest heaved, and he remained silent for a long time with his eyes closed. I was anxious about how to get him to eat something more when I suddenly heard him speak softly.

“Peace, the road ahead is fraught with danger. You must not enter the city. Turn back and head south to find Wende.”

I was stunned.

Is he telling me to leave?

I met Mo Li at Jin Chao Hall. From that day on, he was determined to bring me back to the sect. Even when I was kidnapped by Wen Su and sent to Lan Family Village where the elders lived, he still chased after me tirelessly. After going through so many dangers and finally getting here, he actually wants me to go back and find Wen De.

I got scared, and my fingers started to tremble. The spoon tapped against the edge of the bowl, making a soft sound.

"Why are you saying that? Is this poison very potent? Is it incurable? Are you going to die?" As soon as I uttered the word "die," I wanted to slap myself, but panic gripped my heart, and I lost my bearings, only able to tremble.

He opened his eyes and saw me like this, his gaze complex. "Are you that afraid of me dying?"

I was too exhausted to express my feelings to him, so I simply stood up, walked to the table, grabbed my sword, and headed out. I had decided that no matter what, I had to go to that fortified city and find a doctor. If the doctor said that he couldn't be cured, I would take him to a scenic spot and jump off a cliff together.

"Peace!" he shouted angrily at me.

Without turning around, I took two steps to the door. Just as my hand touched the wooden door, I suddenly heard a commotion outside, followed by a loud crash on the stairs and the sound of the door banging open and closing. The owner exclaimed, "Sirs, don't force your way in! The upstairs are all our guests. There are no sixteen or seventeen-year-old girls here!"

I was horrified. Peeking through the crack in the door, I saw a group of burly men dressed in black kicking open the doors of the guest rooms. Leading the way was a burly man with a bushy beard. Although he was no longer masked, his figure was unmistakable. It was Timur, the one who had dismantled the iron chain bridge and plunged us into the abyss!

I knew Timur was definitely coming for me. Although this room was at the end of the second floor, they would arrive in no time, given their speed. I was so scared that my legs went weak. I didn't dare to go out. I turned around and ran to the bed, pulled the blanket over Mo Li, and hid inside myself. I held him tightly with both hands, not daring to look back.

The bed was cramped, and our bodies were pressed tightly together. He was burning hot, and his breath was right next to my neck. When I was young, Ji Feng often carried me around, and we had our shoulders and necks pressed together before, but I had never felt this strange before. My heart was pounding erratically, and my skin was burning up along with his, which gradually spread throughout my body. I even forgot about being afraid.

The wooden door was kicked open suddenly, and the boss's voice, trembling with sobs, rang out, "This, this room is in a pair of government officials, both men, you, you mustn't alert the officials!"

I knew I couldn't lose my composure at this moment, so I gritted my teeth, sat up, and spoke in a low, gruff voice, "What are you doing! Barging around like this, is there no law? Can't you see I'm resting here!" As I spoke, I took out my badge from my waist and slapped it on the edge of the bed.

Just as the burly man with the bushy beard was about to erupt in anger, someone pulled him aside and whispered something, probably telling him not to be reckless. He glanced at me again, turned his head away, and grumbled, "Let's go."

A group of people hurriedly left, while the shopkeeper was still bowing and scraping at the door, saying, "Please forgive me, sir, please forgive me, sir."

"You get out too, we need to rest," I said again. He immediately closed the door and scrambled away.

I heard those people shout, "They're not here, keep chasing them." Then the noise subsided, and it seemed they had left.

I felt a wave of relief wash over me, and all my strength left me. I fell back onto the bed, and as I turned my head, I saw his eyes right in front of me. I couldn't help but blush again and quickly jumped up.

"Yes, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

He kept looking at me without saying a word for a long time. Finally, he closed his eyes, looking quite helpless, and said, "I'm not going to die yet."

I was delighted, yet also somewhat skeptical, and cautiously sought confirmation, "Really?"

His eyes darkened, and I immediately realized I had said the wrong thing. I bowed my head again and apologized, "I'm sorry."

He frowned. "Let's go eat."

I said "Oh," but didn't move, just stared at him longingly.

His brows furrowed even more deeply. "I'll eat after you finish. Also, do you know how to channel your inner energy? I need your true energy."

Hearing him say that, I knew he must have made a plan. What difficulty would it be for him to take my true energy? He should have just said so earlier. I nodded and reached out to press my hand on his back.

"Eat!" he glared at me.

I reluctantly withdrew my hand, turned around reluctantly, picked up my bowl and started eating rice, looking at him with a mournful expression.

Eat your food, that's all. You're such a jerk.

...

Hai: As I write this, I feel so sorry for my Ping An. Also, "How Many Times Can We Start Over" has been released. Why do I feel so empty and lost in this world? Nobody knows about it. People keep asking me when it will be released and when they can buy it. I'm asking with tears in my eyes, "It's already released. Does everyone know that yet? No, no, no..." (Echoes a hundred times in an empty valley)

Chapter 89

I ate hastily, too quickly, and choked on the first bite. Luckily, there was soup nearby, so I grabbed it and poured it down my throat like I was feeding a cricket, which saved me from choking to death on the spot. When I looked up at him again, I saw him leaning against the bed with his eyes slightly closed, as if he had fallen asleep.

I was so engrossed in watching that I slowly put down my chopsticks, thinking I was about to stop eating, when he suddenly spoke, just two short words.

"Finish eating."

I sighed, lowered my head in sorrow, and continued, unsure whether to be happy or sad.

I grew up in luxury, and I was extremely picky about food in the palace. I would only pick a couple of bites from dozens of delicacies, and sometimes I would even push the table away and refuse to eat. This would often frighten the imperial chefs, who would rush out to kowtow and apologize, repeating the same two phrases over and over: "This servant deserves to die, this servant deserves to die." Once, I was really unwell and hadn't eaten anything for two or three days. My nanny was so worried that she wanted to hang herself. I was lying alone in bed, and I vaguely felt someone standing by the bed watching me. When I opened my eyes, I saw Ji Feng. It turned out that the person holding the sword was holding a bowl in his hand, a very incongruous pose.

I actually couldn't eat, but he silently held out his spoon, looking at me, and I lost my composure. I just forced myself to open my mouth and eat the thin porridge, mouthful by mouthful.

It's true what they say, you can't buy hindsight. If I had known he would turn out like this, I should have divided the bite into three bites and savored that precious moment of tenderness.

I finished my meal reluctantly, and then fed him a little more, but he only ate a few bites before stopping and refusing to open his mouth again. I saw that he was gradually becoming listless, his body was slumping down, and his cheeks were so red that they looked like they were about to bleed. I was scared, so I put down the bowl and went to help him. My hands were heavy, and before I could even speak, his face was already pressed against my shoulder, our skin touching, but it was burning hot.

"Mo Li, Mo Li!" I called out to him urgently, afraid that he would faint again. I didn't care about our positions and reached out to press on his major acupoints on his back, trying to forcefully transfer my own true energy to him.

"Ping An." He called my name and pressed my hand down. "Wait a minute."

I dared not stop and said urgently, "Didn't you want my true energy? I'll give it to you."

"Wait a minute." He frowned.

"You're burning up." I really didn't understand what he meant, but I was in a hurry to transfer my inner energy to him, almost to the point of forcing myself on him.

"You won't die, listen carefully." He glanced at me, his brows still furrowed, as if it wasn't him struggling on the edge of life and death, but me.

After I heard him finish speaking, cold sweat broke out on my forehead. I asked him again, "Is this really the way it is? Is there no other way?"

He closed his eyes and did not answer, completely ignoring my question.

I stamped my foot, turned around and went out to find the boss. It was late at night, and all the other customers were asleep. The boss was yawning in the lobby. When he saw me come downstairs, he immediately ran over, bowing and scraping.