" Nothing", she coughed as she spoke, "Just a weird dream. This guy who I"m not sure who it was but he seemed familiar. He was crying for his lover... He was in so much pain that even I felt it", she smiled and Shengli couldn"t bear to look at her distant eyes anymore and hugged her again."It"s fine... It"s okay... I"m here!... Alright, I"m here... Don"t cry anymore", he patted her back.
Xing who was actually crying in the dream felt her emotions change when she woke up and she wasn"t actually sad anymore.
"I"m fine", she patted Shengli"s back as she could feel him trembling. "That dream was like a memory... I"m really fine".
"Maybe it was because the memory suppression seal was broken, she is getting her memory back", Bai Li who had entered with Shengli answered.
"Really...? Memory suppression spell... ", Shengli snorted with a tinge of mockery mixed with an accusing glare . Xing who was still in his arms could feel the coldness he was emitting, "Why? Why are you people doing this to her? Why can"t you just leave her alone?", his voice held that accusative tone and the coldness in his eyes made even Bai Li shut up. He then turned at Xing and cupped her cheeks in his hands,
"Xing! Forget everything that had happened in the past two months... You know what.. It doesn"t matter if you forget it not... Let"s leave! Let"s leave this wretched place... I"m sorry for suggesting you to become the Empress... Let"s go far away... You don"t have to stay here.. G.o.ds..? Let them figure out theri problems by themselves... Others...? Why must we care? You don"t have to Obey to their every commands, you still have me right? Let"s leave! Come on, get up! Let them find someone else ", he stood up and pulled her hand.
He was serious. He felt like nothing matters anymore when she is suffering. How could they treat her like some toy they are playing with? Altering memories, forcing her to do things she does not want to... Leaving her in wretched places with perverts.. Is she not a human?
Shengli looked at her who still had an indifferent look as if she had given up on everything good for herself and he sighed and pulled her towards the door.
"But we cannot... Not now.. I should do what I have to do and then if you still want this disgusting, useless piece of trash, then you can... "
"You"ll be hunted like animals. You won"t want such life", Bai Li interjected Xing who was speaking in a nonchalant tone and he was panicked a little.
Disgusting..? Useless? Where is it all coming from? Shengli"s heart broke.
"It doesn"t matter... One day..! One day is all I need with her... Just me and her... I don"t care about what happens after!", Shengli screamed at Bai Li and looked at Xing who was still sitting in the bed,
"Look at me Xing! I do want a long full life with you. But if it is not possible, I just want a single day with you. One day... One day where you are just my wife... Not some p.a.w.n in the game of those G.o.ds. Can you just give me one day with you, Xing?", his eyes were glistening with tears he was trying to hold back.
Xing who was trying to hold back her emotions back could not hold back anymore looking at her man with the same eyes he always looked at her... With love and gentleness as if she is his light!
The door of the little room she had hid the emotions of " His Xing" started to shake in the whirlwind created by his gaze.
" But.. "
" It doesn"t matter to me Xing ", he understood perfectly what she was meaning. He didn"t care about his life anymore. If he died, they won"t have anything to dangle in front of her again and at least she"ll be free of them forever doing what she wants.
" I know they only want you and I don"t care if they kill me for "distracting" you... You"ll be safe until you do what they want from me... That"s enough for me... I don"t care... I don"t care for myself anymore. Just let"s hide somewhere... Somewhere there is only me and you. We can make that one day longer.... Just you and me and n.o.body else... ",he gripped her hand and looked at her tenderly. His parched lips were trembling and his hands that were holding hers were numbingly cold and his eyes were red holding back the tears in his eyes. He looked at her like he was a parched land dried without rain and she"s the gentle rain who"d bring life to him.
Xing could not hold back any longer and hugged him closely. The barrier she had built for herself had found a small crack and all the emotions were about to explode through it. She is "his Xing" after all. And he is always her everything.
"You know I cannot lose you. Please... Don"t put away your life like that.. Like its nothing... You know I only want you.. I want a good life with you...a long life... I... I won"t live a single day without you", she buried herself in his warm embrace.
They won"t touch him when I"m with him right? And even if they did, I"ll just follow him to the depths of h.e.l.l.
Bai Li was flabbergasted seeing her changing her mind and a wry smile crept in his lips, "How wrong was I about you! You are like "him" after all"
Just then there was a knock in the door and a maid entered with a letter in her hand. Seeing her hesitating to speak seeing Shengli in there, Xing gestured her to speak and she bowed,
"Your highness, Lord Huang Zedong sent an urgent message to you", she pa.s.sed the letter and Xing got it and read it after sending the maid off.
"Ha ha ha! Fei Lian! So much for being on my side", she laughed dryly mad Shengli could see the Xing he saw momentarily before had disappeared once again and he got that letter and read it.
"I"m pretty sure this is not the work of G.o.ds", Bai Li tried to reason with Xing but she was not listening. Bai Li was sure of it. She had promised them she"ll do what they want and they don"t have any reason to believe otherwise. So why would they threaten her family?
It said that s.h.i.+hong had held captive two villages in the southern province who mainly included the workers of the Huang Jade Mines. He is demanding for handing over the two sons of Huang Zedong in exchange for the lives of the two villagers.
Shengli knew with the Huang family"s a.s.sets temporarily frozen, their private military cannot be mobilised and the government guards won"t be that effective against s.h.i.+hong"s people.
" Bai Li, you can take me there immediately, right? I"ve heard foxes can transport pretty quick", Xing asked Bai Li and the entire room went cold by the deadly aura she emitted.
Now she was angry at everyone and everything... Those G.o.ds wanted to tell her that they can threaten whoever they want? Don"t they want that G.o.d dead? Isn"t that why they are holding me captive with the lives of the people I hold dear as a restraint? I"ll kill that s.h.i.+hong and that G.o.d now... Once and for all!
Shengli didn"t believe it was the work of the G.o.ds too. s.h.i.+hong must have heard the news that Huang Shengli is dead and he must have come to the understanding that the Huang family is the reason for his death and so he is retaliating. It is an unwise move to do that now for him to expose himself publicly like that. So it must not be that Old Rong"s idea and s.h.i.+hong won"t have that halberd with him this time.
Shengli knew Xing is completely being irrational right now and if she is let out now she"ll do worse than what she did in the tournament. She might let those two village die in order to kill s.h.i.+hong and that G.o.d might find some other unknown person and disappear into thin air again.
She cannot lose herself to rage!
Also no one knows the scope of s.h.i.+hong"s organisation and even if he died someone else will take his place and no one will be able to track their movements afterwards. For now, s.h.i.+hong needs to stay alive to find that G.o.d and there is only one way to do that.
Sticking to the original plan!
"Xing, do you want to come with me..? Away from everything?", Shengli asked as a last attempt to change her heart and he didn"t have much hope. She is not his Xing now...! She had surrendered herself to be the p.a.w.n of the G.o.ds herself.
"I want to kill s.h.i.+hong and Old Rong!", she gritted her teeth and fisted her hands and her eyes were filled with rage.
"Xing", he wrapped his left arm around her neck and right arm around her waist, " Old Rong won"t be with s.h.i.+hong now. s.h.i.+hong thinks I"m killed by your family and this is him trying to retribute. This would be a good chance for me to join his gang and I"ll distract him away from hurting your family. You stay here until I figure out a way to get that old Rong, okay? You"ll listen to me this one time, won"t you? We can get him soon... A year... Give me an year.. Before that we"ll end both Old Rong and s.h.i.+hong! You trust me right? I"ll only want you, no matter what... Noatter who you are... No matter what you become... I"ll always love you! "
Shengli spoke softly into her ears in a soothing tone and didn"t let go of her even when she tried to struggle out from his grip. He had to hold her for a while before he could feel her loosening up and she agreed to him with only one thought in her mind.
One year! I"ll do what I have to do and then I can be with Chenglie forever!
Shengli was relieved seeing her eyes clear but little did he know that few months from now he"ll watch her in the battlefield killing thousands in one fell swoop like she was cutting down gra.s.s...
Bai Li was relieved that she had finally decided to follow the proper route but didn"t know she"ll become more brazen and wilful enough to challenge the G.o.ds even.
No one, not even the G.o.d of Fate knew that she would be the one changing the kingdom bringing peace to the commoners and unity among the neighbours.
That she really was like a tiger guarding her territory from other predators and keeping the balance within her territory bringing prosperity and goodwill among her people.
Even Xing didn"t know that one day in the recent future that Lu Chenglie, the reason she put herself through every struggle, will look at her coldly and show her his back even when she was kneeling and begging in front of him.