Третий учёный династии Сун

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Lin Suyang, unable to contain her curiosity, reached out and touched the strange eyeball. Her fingers circled the stone bead, finding it loose. Just as she was about to examine it more closely, her vision blurred, and her hand accidentally pressed down on the bead. A loud "boom" resounded, and the ground beneath her feet seemed to crack open. She fell to the ground. She heard Si Junxing's anxious shouts in her ears, then felt herself being pulled into someone's arms. Then she lost consciousness.

The instant Lin Suyang pressed the stone bead, Si Junxing saw a hole suddenly appear where she was standing. He was closest and immediately grabbed her. However, he lost his balance, and the two of them fell into the hole. Yan Muqing and Shen Xiao tried to stop them, but it was too late. The hole instantly returned to its original state, revealing the original bluestone floor.

Yan Muqing remembered that Lin Suyang had been groping for something on the wall earlier. He went over and saw the snake's eyeball. He reached out to press it, but couldn't budge it. Chen Xiao anxiously squatted down, trying to pry open the closed gap in the hole with her sword. After several unsuccessful attempts, she gripped her sword tightly, stood up, and said, "What do we do?"

Yan Muqing remained relatively calm. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Let's go check if there are any other entrances nearby. Since there's a secret passage here, there might be others in other houses as well." Shen Xiao nodded in agreement and followed Yan Muqing to search the first house in the village.

After Si Junxing and Lin Suyang fell into the secret passage, the opening above their heads immediately sealed shut, plunging them into complete darkness. He held Lin Suyang tightly in his arms, not daring to loosen his grip even slightly. Not knowing what lay below, he used his inner energy to flip himself over and move beneath Lin Suyang. The passage seemed very deep, and they plummeted rapidly for quite some time before finally crashing to the bottom.

Fortunately, apart from some pain from his back hitting the ground, Si Junxing didn't feel any injury. After his eyes adjusted to the darkness, even with his skill, he could only barely see his immediate surroundings.

They seemed to have landed in a small cave. The ground was relatively dry, and Si Junxing could feel the mud and sand on it. After confirming that there was no immediate danger, he prepared to wake Lin Suyang. Seeing that she was unresponsive, he reached out and checked her pulse. Finding nothing amiss, he was relieved.

He moved to a different position, leaning against the cave wall and carrying Lin Suyang in his arms. Then he bent his knees and closed his eyes to rest. After a long while, when he felt the person in his arms move, he opened his eyes and saw Lin Suyang looking at him dazedly.

"woke up?"

Lin Suyang nodded, sat up straight, and asked, "Where are we?"

"I don't know, it looks like a cave."

"A cave?" Lin Suyang rubbed his forehead. "I remember seeing a strange bead on the wall, and I accidentally pressed it down. Who knew it would fall here?"

Si Junxing reached into his robe, took out a tinderbox, blew on it, and a tiny glimmer of light, the size of a mung bean, appeared.

In the dim light of the fire, he saw that Lin Suyang's face was paler than usual, and he couldn't help but touch her face and say, "What's wrong? You look so pale."

Lin Suyang laughed and replied, "I was probably just scared." She then noticed a white object at her feet. Picking it up, she saw it was a human leg bone. Si Junxing's expression changed. He grabbed the leg bone from her hand and threw it far away. Turning back, he saw her staring at him without a trace of fear.

"Aren't you afraid?" Si Junxing asked.

Lin Suyang was taken aback, then said, "Because you're here."

Si Junxing smiled, put away the tinderbox, and pulled her up, saying, "Hold my hand tightly and come with me." The light from the ground had already shown him the way out, so he led Lin Suyang to the other side of the cave.

It was a long, narrow tunnel, pitch black, but whether it was Lin Suyang's words that suddenly boosted his skills or something else, he could see very clearly.

Lin Suyang followed behind without a word, his hands tightly gripping Si Junxing's, his steps surprisingly synchronized with his. They walked for a long time without uttering a sound, their rustling footsteps echoing in the air, thick with the distinctive scent of the underground.

The tunnel was winding and the terrain was sometimes uphill and sometimes downhill. It was unclear whether they were going up or down. Fortunately, there were no forks in the road. Si Junxing believed that as long as they kept following the path, they would definitely get out, because he could feel the dampness coming from ahead.

As expected, after walking for a long time in the darkness, they saw a faint light shining in front of them. They quickened their pace and rushed over, only to find themselves in a huge natural cave. The light was sunlight shining in from a hole the size of a bronze mirror at the very top of the cave, illuminating the entrance to the tunnel.

At the center of the cave was a large underground lake, its water calm and still, clearly stagnant. Si Junxing reluctantly searched along the lake's banks, but found no passageway.

He walked back, looked at Lin Suyang, and smiled bitterly: "It seems we really can't get out."

Lin Suyang casually found a clean spot to sit down and said, "It's okay if we can't get out. I think it's fine this way."

Si Junxing glanced at her, then sat down beside her, gazing up at the small patch of sky in a daze.

“You and she are really alike,” Si Junxing said calmly.

"What did you say?" Lin Suyang stared at her.

"Neither of you ever cares about life or death, no matter how bad the situation is."

"I don't understand what you mean," Lin Suyang said, turning her head to lean against the uneven cave wall.

Si Junxing was silent for a moment, then lowered his head, turned around and looked at her seriously, saying, "Could you... give her back?"

Lin Suyang stared into his eyes and smiled gently: "How do you know I'm not?"

Si Junxing also smiled, "Because she doesn't know martial arts and can't keep pace with me in the dark, because she likes to apologize and will definitely apologize to me when she wakes up and sees this situation, because she's too soft-hearted and must be worried about whether Shen Xiao and the others have been safe here for so long, and also, because I love her." Because I love her, even though you and she share the same body, I can still tell that you are not her.

“I don’t know who you are. What I do know is that Lin Suyang has never harmed anyone, and she is very important to me, so please return her to me.”

"Never harmed anyone? Are you sure that no one has died because of her? Does killing the entire Fire Cloud Sect for her count? Does destroying an entire vassal state for her count?" Lin Suyang sneered. "Yes, she has never harmed anyone, but she is more terrifying than someone who has."

“Si Junxing, I just don’t understand why you’re so foolish. She’s abandoned you time and time again, hurting and causing you pain, yet you still love her so devotedly?” Lin Suyang leaned closer to him and said, “Believe me, I will love you more than she did. I will never be like her, fickle and unfaithful, having a child with someone else and still entangled with you…”

Si Junxing pushed her away and said coldly, "The person I love is her, the real Lin Suyang. As for whether she's stupid or not, that's my business, you don't need to worry about it."

Lin Suyang's face turned cold, and he said fiercely, "Then don't even think about her coming back. I will keep her in darkness forever, until her consciousness dissipates and she is reduced to ashes. I will make sure you never see each other again for all eternity!"

Volume Four, Palace Intrigue, Chapter 130: My Heart is Drunk with Love (Part 1)

Si Junxing stopped looking at her and turned to gaze at the darkening sky above.

"What, scared?" Lin Suyang sneered.

“…You are indeed a person worthy of sympathy,” Si Junxing said. “Fear? What could I be afraid of? That you would really imprison her, really make her vanish into thin air? Ha, only someone like you who doesn’t understand love would think I’m afraid.”

“You…” Lin Suyang stared at him with wide eyes.

"I will never leave her, I will follow her through life and death. No matter where she is, whether she is alive or dead, I love her and will always be with her."

Lin Suyang didn't understand Si Junxing's unique love at all. She only thought that if she took over this body, Si Junxing would become hers, wanting only her and only looking at her. However, she underestimated Si Junxing's persistence and composure. Using her body as leverage, she still failed.

Unwilling to admit defeat so easily, "Lin Suyang" revealed a bewitching smile and asked, "So, you're willing to die with her?"

Seeing Si Junxing nod, she said coldly, "Fine, go die, die in front of me, maybe I'll let her go because of it." She picked up a sharp stone awl from the ground and handed it to him, then looked at him and smiled, "Use this, pierce your heart, and you'll stop breathing soon."

Si Junxing gripped the stone awl tightly in his hand, his knuckles turning slightly white from the force, and the bluish veins on his hand looked like thin worms winding their way up.

Seeing that he did not move, a look of resentment flashed across Lin Suyang's face. Taking advantage of Si Junxing's momentary daze, she suddenly grabbed his hand holding the stone awl and stabbed it hard into his chest.

"Since you're unwilling to stay with me, then go die. I'll let her live, and the two of you will never see each other again. What I can't have, no one else can have!" With a forceful push, the stone cone went in another point.

When the scalding blood splattered all over her face, a moment of confusion flashed in her eyes, then replaced by disbelief. She saw the blood-soaked stone spike she held in her hand, plunged straight into Si Junxing's chest. She abruptly released her grip, her hands trembling as she reached out to touch Si Junxing's face.

"How...how are you?" she stammered. Her eyes were filled only with the bright red blood and Si Junxing's frail figure.

Si Junxing's gloomy eyes lit up. He reached out and slowly wiped away the tears on Lin Suyang's face. "You're back."

Lin Suyang nodded quickly. "I'm here. I've always been here." She just couldn't see it. She couldn't control her body.

"Look. You're crying for me again... Don't cry. I'm fine..." Si Junxing forced a smile and said.

"He's lost so much blood and he's still alright?" Lin Suyang looked at his pale face, tears streaming down her face. She dared not move her hands. She could only sit there.

"Cough cough cough, check if you still have the medicine in your arms."

Medicine? Lin Suyang reached into his pocket and took out a small bottle. "This is..."

"It was prepared by Master Guigan... as medicine for your injuries. I was worried about you, so I put it on you."

Lin Suyang didn't have time to say much to him and hurriedly opened the bottle. Seeing that it contained fine powder, she knew it was for external application. She shifted her gaze and saw that the stone cone wound was right in the center of her chest. She put down the bottle, grabbed the top of the stone cone with both hands, gritted her teeth, and pulled it out with all her might. With a "plop," a spurt of hot blood gushed out again. Lin Suyang quickly pressed her hands together on top of it.

Si Junxing's muffled groan reached her ears, and her heart ached, but she dared not let go. Gradually, she waited until the bleeding slowed down before slowly releasing her grip and immediately sprinkling the medicinal powder from the bottle onto the wound. The white powder was instantly stained red by the seeping blood, but Master Gui Gan's medicine was indeed extraordinary; the wound stopped bleeding in no time and began to heal gradually.

Lin Suyang picked up the stone awl and examined it. She found the bloodstained area was only half a finger's length long, indicating that Si Junxing's chest wound wasn't too deep. She breathed a sigh of relief. She sprinkled some more medicinal powder on it, this time without it soaking through. She tore off a piece of cloth from the hem of her skirt, then went to the underground lake, soaked it, and brought it back to wipe the blood from Si Junxing's face and hands.

The cave suddenly went dark, and Lin Suyang couldn't see anything. He could only stay beside Si Junxing, not daring to move an inch. Si Junxing was probably in a lot of pain, his fists clenched tightly. Lin Suyang groped for his hand, opened his clenched fist, and gently asked, "Does it still hurt a lot?"

Si Junxing remained silent, lightening the pressure on his hands, and only squeezed Lin Suyang's smooth hand to reassure her.

Lin Suyang sighed and lay down on the spot. He released one hand and tried to wrap it around the other man's neck to bring his head close to his own face, making every movement careful, afraid of touching his wound. "Why are you so silly? Don't you know how to dodge?" Touching the light stubble on his chin, Lin Suyang felt another pang of heartache.

"When I see you, I don't want to hide." He never had any reservations about Lin Suyang, and this had become an instinct, an instinct that he would not avoid her even if it meant being hurt by her.

"Don't do this again... or I'll be sad." It wasn't just sadness, but also excruciating pain.

Si Junxing tilted his head so that he was facing her directly. He could see the tear tracks on her face, but she could not see his joyful smile.

I promise you.

Shen Xiao and Yan Muqing searched the entire Jiang tribe village, turning it upside down, and even scoured the surrounding area for miles, but found no secret passage. Shen Xiao grew increasingly anxious, eventually destroying a large swath of forest in frustration with his sword. Yan Muqing was in no better shape; living people had slipped right under his noses into the secret passage, and they were powerless to stop them. Now, the fate of those two was unknown, and they couldn't find the entrance to the passage. What should they do?

Shen Xiao returned to the council hall to try and break the mechanism, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move the stone slab an inch. Yan Muqing guessed that such a stone slab must be unusual; perhaps a secret potion had been added to it, otherwise it wouldn't be as hard as iron. Just when the two were at their wits' end, they received a message from Master Guigan via carrier pigeon. The letter told them to hurry to Ji'ao, as he had made a significant discovery. He also said that they could seek help from Emperor Shenghan regarding Si Junxing and Lin Suyang's matter, since Si Junxing also held the identity of the Eighth Prince.

After discussing it, the two realized that continuing the search like this was not a solution, and it would be better to go back and get reinforcements as soon as possible. So they hurriedly left the Jiangzu village, bought horses in Jiyue Town, and rushed to Aocheng, the capital of the Yan-Liao Kingdom.

The other two people being searched for had been in the cave for five days. During these five days, Lin Suyang stayed by Si Junxing's side every day, changing his bandages and applying medicine, and talking to him about the past.

Si Junxing's injuries gradually healed, and his complexion began to regain its rosy hue. Fortunately, there were many blind fish in the underground lake. Lin Suyang took off her outer garment, tied it into a pouch, and put it in the water. If she was lucky, she could catch a few of the clumsy fish that accidentally bumped into her. Without a fire to roast them, she could only use her hairpin to carefully pick off pieces of fish meat and feed them to Si Junxing. Although they had no taste and the strong fishy smell was nauseating, Si Junxing ate them with relish every time. After he finished eating, he would force Lin Suyang to eat a few bites. It was better to be alive than to starve.

When Si Junxing's injuries had almost healed, he ignored Lin Suyang's objections and went into the lake to catch more blind fish. Whenever he felt that his wounds were about to burst open due to the cold lake water, he would use his internal energy to suppress them. Only after Lin Suyang fell asleep at night did he apply the medicine from Master Guigan.

Seeing that the small bottle of medicine was almost empty, he simply stopped paying attention to his injuries, letting the pain linger. Strangely, it healed itself in no time, even more effectively than the previous medicine. Now, Si Junxing became even more unrestrained, spending his days catching fish and, when not in use, running back to the dark hole where he had fallen to search for mechanisms. He regained his initial playful demeanor, often making Lin Suyang chuckle. At night, he and she slept side by side, and these days were quite pleasant.

On another dark night, thunder rumbled outside the cave, and large raindrops fell through the small hole in the ceiling, making a pitter-pattering sound as they hit the water.

"Do you think anyone might pass by outside?" Lin Suyang asked, listening to the rain with his eyes open.

“No,” Si Junxing mumbled, holding her. “You’ve forgotten, this is the territory of the Jiang tribe. No one but members of the Jiang tribe can come in. Besides, now that all the Jiang tribe members have been killed, who else would come here?”

"What about Xiao'er and the others? I wonder if they've been anxiously waiting for a while now." Lin Suyang tilted her head, letting Si Junxing's lips move across her neck.

“They will come looking for us, so we have to be patient…” He moved his lips up and bit Lin Suyang’s lips, gently caressing them, while one hand reached down to her waist and slowly untied her belt.

"What are you doing?" Lin Suyang asked vaguely.

Si Junxing picked her up and rolled her to the ground. He looked up and thought for a moment, then said, "I think I'm a little hungry."

As her clothes were peeled away piece by piece, Lin Suyang felt her skin tremble. Especially when she realized she was completely naked, Si Junxing's large hand caressed her, inch by inch burning away her reason. Her face flushed red to the roots of her neck. Suppressing her trembling, she bit her lip tightly to keep herself from making a sound. It wasn't until another clap of thunder sounded that she managed to catch her breath, but Si Junxing pressed down on her. Before she could even hold her breath, she crumbled instantly.

The night was really dark...

When she woke up the next day, she found herself lying on the ground wrapped in Si Junxing's clothes. She tried to move, but her whole body was sore and weak. She could only move her head to look for someone.

Si Junxing was seen lying on the shore, carefully observing the lake water.

"What are you doing?" Lin Suyang asked.

Upon hearing her voice, Si Junxing stood up excitedly, ran over, hugged her, and said, "I know where the exit is!"

"What?"

Si Junxing pointed to the still calm lake surface and said, "It's right down there, it must be down there. How could I be so stupid? I should have guessed that there would be an exit at the bottom of the lake."

Volume Four, Palace Intrigue, Chapter 131: My Heart is Drunk with Love (Part Two)

Seeing Si Junxing's face flush slightly with joy, like a child, Lin Suyang couldn't help but laugh: "How did you know?"

Si Junxing sat down on the ground, put his arm around her waist, and said, "Didn't it rain heavily last night? When I woke up this morning, I found that the water level in the lake had risen, so I guessed that there might be a channel underneath connecting to the river outside."

"But how can you be sure that passage is accessible?"

"So, I decided to go down and investigate."

After resting for a while, Si Junxing jumped into the water under Lin Suyang's worried gaze. Lin Suyang knelt on the bank, her eyes fixed on the water, not daring to look away for a long time. She counted the seconds until he entered the water, and when she had almost counted to more than six hundred, ripples suddenly appeared on the surface of the lake, and then she saw a shadow swimming towards the shore.

With a splash, Si Junxing's head emerged from the water, and he smiled at her. "We can go out now."

It turned out that there was indeed a hidden passage at the bottom of the lake, but it had been blocked by a huge rock. It took Si Junxing quite a while to move the rock. Originally, because it was not blocked very tightly, moving the rock only slightly affected the water flow, so Lin Suyang above did not see the change in the water.

Si Junxing tore his clothes into long strips, wrapped them around Lin Suyang's waist, and tied them around his own waist. He then instructed, "In a moment, just hold your breath, close your eyes, and hug me, okay?"