Su Zhenzhen felt a hand behind her, grabbing her collar and yanking her back.
She was pulled away from the man's body.
"Acting spoiled is useless," the man said, looking down at her with an indifferent expression.
Su Zhenzhen pursed her lips. "...I wasn't."
She just suddenly wanted to hug him.
Lu Hexu narrowed his eyes at the woman in front of him.
It was still that incredibly pure and innocent face, and she was still just as good at lying.
"Heh heh heh..." The old eunuch lying on the ground suddenly started making weird noises.
He was actually still alive.
Su Zhenzhen subconsciously turned her head to look, seeing the expensive silk fabric on the old eunuch soaked in blood. The dark red blood flowed along the material, spreading out from beneath him.
"He's dying."
"Are you going to save him?" The man lowered his eyes to look at her.
Su Zhenzhen shook her head slowly but firmly. Then, she walked over and used her fingertips to pinch the old eunuch's robe, pulling it up to cover his face.
If she couldn't see him, she didn't have to save him.
The man had arrived in a horse-drawn carriage.
The summer sky brightened early. Su Zhenzhen followed Lu Hexu, who was wearing a black robe and a black hood, out of Qushui Garden.
Bloodstains that hadn't been completely wiped away could be seen everywhere in the garden, but there were no corpses.
They had probably already been disposed of.
Following behind the man, all she had to do was look up to see his tall, straight back.
He was really tall.
When did he get this tall?
She remembered the past, when she first met him. He had been about the same height as her, looking exactly like a young boy.
Later on, he grew just a bit taller than her, but it was nowhere near this exaggerated.
Was he 1.9 meters tall?
Walking out of the estate, a familiar carriage draped in dark green silk appeared before her eyes.
The carriage was narrow. It would have been fine if only Lu Hexu was sitting inside, but with her added in, it felt crowded.
Su Zhenzhen sat in the corner with her head down, her body swaying slightly with the carriage. She didn't say a word the entire way.
Inside the carriage was a copper basin containing a block of ice. Su Zhenzhen stared blankly at the gradually melting ice.
Even with the ice, the inside of the carriage was still sweltering.
However, the carriage curtains had been sealed shut.
The man took off his robe and leaned his head back against the carriage wall.
"I have heat-relief pills at my shop."
"No need."
Fine.
If he didn't want them, he didn't want them.
Neither of them spoke again until the carriage stopped at the entrance of the apothecary.
"Get down."
Su Zhenzhen quickly lowered her head and stepped out of the carriage.
The carriage drove past behind her without any hesitation.
Su Zhenzhen stood there, staring blankly for a moment before entering the courtyard.
She pushed open Little Persimmon's door and saw him tied up in the room with thick hemp rope.
Su Zhenzhen fetched a pair of scissors from her own room to untie him and asked, "Are you alright?"
Little Persimmon angrily gestured at her for a while.
Su Zhenzhen said, "I don't understand."
Little Persimmon: ...
"If you're fine, then go open the shop."
Little Persimmon: ...
Little Persimmon sat on the ground, staring at Su Zhenzhen.
Su Zhenzhen gave him a puzzled look.
Little Persimmon pointed at her face.
Su Zhenzhen reached up and touched her own face.
She had forgotten that she wasn't wearing her disguise.
Su Zhenzhen stood up and pulled Little Persimmon up along the way. "Go open the shop."
Little Persimmon walked away, looking back at her every three steps.
Su Zhenzhen didn't pay him any mind. After tossing and turning for so long, she was already exhausted.
Entering her room, Su Zhenzhen hit the bed and immediately fell asleep.
She slept straight through until noon, waking up because she was hungry.
Su Zhenzhen lay in bed to gather her senses. Through the green screen window, she could see the summer sun outside, fierce and blazing.
Her body felt sticky, covered in the hot sweat she had worked up while sleeping.
Sushan squatted by the bed, watching her. Seeing that she was awake, it walked over to ask for pets.
Su Zhenzhen reached out, patted Sushan's head, and then slowly got up.
After the ordeal of the previous night, her body felt as if it were falling apart.
Su Zhenzhen stood in front of the vanity and leaned in to take a look. Although the disguise on her face was gone, the stuff smeared in her hair hadn't been washed out yet.
She took a wooden basin and went into the washroom.
For her own convenience, Su Zhenzhen had previously diverted a stream of spring water into the washroom, bringing it down from the mountain not far behind the shop.
The mountain wasn't high, and there were no fierce beasts, but it was abundant in medicinal herbs. That was why Su Zhenzhen had chosen to rent this shop.
The spring water was clean and sweet, pooling into a small basin that stayed clear every day.
Although Su Zhenzhen generally didn't drink it, she used it for her daily washing, and sometimes when she was feeling lazy, she would even use it to bathe.
Closing the only bamboo window in the washroom, she took a comfortable bath. When Su Zhenzhen came out, she passed by the medicine cabinet and saw the bag of gardenia fruits inside. Her gaze paused for a moment, but she didn't take them.
Since she had already been discovered, there was no need to wear a disguise anymore.
Su Zhenzhen pushed open the door and went out.
She had only eaten a plate of pastries the entire day yesterday and was starving.
The weather was too hot, so Su Zhenzhen had no desire to cook for herself. She casually picked a cucumber from the corner of the wall, washed it with well water, snapped off the ends, and munched on it as she walked outside.
"Dr. Su, you're finally here..." The auntie waiting for Su Zhenzhen in the apothecary stopped mid-sentence and stared blankly, her gaze drifting behind Su Zhenzhen. "Little Persimmon, where is Dr. Su? Why hasn't she arrived yet?"
Holding a book in his hands, Little Persimmon raised a finger and pointed at Su Zhenzhen.
Su Zhenzhen said, "Auntie, please wait a moment. I'm going to go eat a bowl of wontons."
Recognizing her voice, the auntie opened her mouth wide, watching Su Zhenzhen pass by in front of her.
When Su Zhenzhen returned from eating wontons next door, the auntie immediately stood up, circled her, looking her up and down, and then affectionately grabbed Su Zhenzhen's hand. "Dr. Su, what... what kind of secret beauty recipe did you use?"
"Applying almond powder mixed with honey to your face can whiten your skin."
The auntie immediately nodded and made a mental note. She didn't even bother seeing the doctor anymore; she couldn't wait and left briskly, walking as if there was wind under her feet. It didn't seem like she had a serious illness that absolutely needed treatment anyway.
Su Zhenzhen told Little Persimmon to go eat lunch, while she sat down behind the counter.
The summer breeze brushed past her cheeks, and Su Zhenzhen looked up at the sky.
So hot.
She flipped through the book Little Persimmon had casually left inside the counter.
She couldn't understand it.
Reading such profound things at such a young age?
Su Zhenzhen yawned, resting her chin on one hand, and started to doze off again.
The wide hem of her light, purple embroidered summer dress drooped down, revealing a section of her arm.
It was too easy to feel sleepy in the summer. She was already sleep-deprived, and after just eating a bowl of wontons, her drowsiness grew even stronger.
She was in a bit of a food coma from the wontons.
The muggy and humid air blew against her face as the bustling crowds on the street passed by the apothecary.
A reed curtain hung at the entrance of the apothecary, partially blocking the shop from view. Therefore, passing pedestrians could only see a pale, slender arm propped up there.
Su Zhenzhen dozed for a while, but suddenly felt something was amiss. She immediately opened her eyes and saw Zhao Ahai standing in front of the counter.
Zhao Ahai was staring blankly at Su Zhenzhen, as if seeing her for the very first time.
"Lady... Lady Su?"
Su Zhenzhen asked, "The usual?"
Zhao Ahai nodded in a daze.
His gaze followed Su Zhenzhen and never left her.
Su Zhenzhen wrapped up the herbs and placed them on the counter. "Ten copper coins."
Zhao Ahai handed over the copper coins, his dark face flushing red. "How... how did you become so beautiful?"
Su Zhenzhen sat back down and said, "By applying a mask of almond powder mixed with honey."
Zhao Ahai opened his mouth, letting out a single sound, "Ah?"
The weather was very hot. Zhao Ahai stood in front of the counter, covered in sweat, reluctant to leave.
It wasn't until Little Persimmon returned from eating lunch and saw Zhao Ahai standing there like a post that she frowned.
Zhao Ahai squeezed the medicine in his hand until it was almost flattened. "I heard a new restaurant opened in the south of the city. I... I want to..."
Before Zhao Ahai could finish, Su Zhenzhen interrupted, "What kind of restaurant? My husband has returned, and my cooking isn't very good, so I was thinking we should also go out for a meal. If Brother Zhao could recommend it, that would be wonderful."
Husband... Zhao Ahai's face instantly turned a mix of red and pale. "Your husband... has returned... he's back?"
Zhao Ahai was a constable; he had seen more of the world than ordinary commoners.
He instantly understood the reason behind Su Zhenzhen's transformation.
In times of chaos, moral order collapsed, and a woman born with beauty could easily attract disaster.
It wasn't that beauty was a sin, but rather that human nature was base.
Now that the uprisings had been mostly suppressed and purged, order was being rebuilt. Under heavy penalties, no one dared to casually bully women anymore. Her husband had also returned, so naturally, she could restore her appearance.
Holding his breath, Zhao Ahai left.
Su Zhenzhen glanced at the sky and said to Little Persimmon, "I'm going out for a bit."
It was just past noon, the hottest time of a summer day.
Su Zhenzhen put on a veiled hat and went out.
She went to the Yangzhou Prefecture prison.
Xiaoyuan was already driving a carriage and waiting for her at the prison entrance.
Seeing Su Zhenzhen approach, Xiaoyuan jumped off the carriage. "Other people do this kind of thing on dark, windy nights. Why are you doing it in broad daylight?"
"I have my unavoidable reasons."
In broad daylight, it wasn't easy to run into that person.
After speaking, Su Zhenzhen led Xiaoyuan into the prison.
According to the rules, Su Zhenzhen first gave the jailer an entry fee, and then met with the official matchmaker.
"I've come to see Master Liaochen. I'd appreciate it if you could accommodate me." Su Zhenzhen slipped some silver to the official matchmaker.
The official matchmaker took the money but looked troubled. "The person is dead. The coroner is currently examining the body."
Su Zhenzhen was greatly shocked. Her veiled body swayed backward, fortunately caught by Xiaoyuan behind her.
She let out a mournful cry.
"I had a dream last night. I dreamed that Master Liaochen told me she was going to pass away. When I woke up, I thought it was just a dream, but I've been feeling restless all day today, so I thought I'd come see her. I never expected... I never expected the nightmare to come true... How could this, how could this happen..."
The official matchmaker had seen many dead people and felt no emotion, only finding it troublesome.
After all, since the person died in her custody, she held some responsibility.
"Master was already in poor health to begin with. I didn't expect that our parting yesterday would be our final farewell..."
"It was her own poor health?" The official matchmaker seized upon the loophole.
If a female prisoner died while under the official matchmaker's watch, she would have to take responsibility. But if it was a normal death from illness, it would have nothing to do with her.
"Yes, Master had a hard life and suffered from a stubborn illness... Could you let us go in and see her? To see her one last time?"
"There's a coroner inside examining the corpse," the official matchmaker paused, then thought of something and nodded. "Your master was in poor health herself. Her death has nothing to do with me. You must tell the coroner the truth."
"Yes." Su Zhenzhen nodded and followed the official matchmaker inside.
Wearing her plain white veiled hat, she went into the deepest part, the place where Liaochen had been locked up last time.
The cell door was open, and the shackles on Liaochen had been removed. She lay on a pile of damp hay in her prison uniform, with a coroner nearing fifty squatting beside her, examining and taking notes.
Through the veil, Su Zhenzhen's gaze swept over Liaochen and then landed on the coroner.
The coroner was looking down, examining. He pried open Liaochen's pupils and took a look.
Both pupils were slightly dilated; she was already beyond saving.
The coroner dipped his brush in ink and wrote a line in the record book in his hand.
Generally speaking, this was enough.
But this coroner then extended two fingers to press on Liaochen's pulse.
Su Zhenzhen instantly dropped to her knees. "Master, Master, what am I going to do now that you're gone..."
Su Zhenzhen threw herself over Liaochen, secretly pressing down on the blood vessel at Liaochen's wrist pulse.
Feigned death was not real death.
Su Zhenzhen didn't dare to bet on whether this coroner could detect the faint beating of Liaochen's pulse.
The coroner glanced at Su Zhenzhen, who was wearing a veiled hat and crying exceptionally heartbrokenly.
"Who is she to you?"
"Master once saved my life."
The coroner nodded and stood up. "Rare to see such loyalty and affection." After speaking, the coroner turned to the official matchmaker and said, "She is already dead."
After that, the coroner would go write the report, and the higher-ups wouldn't specially come down to check whether it was a real death or a feigned one.
Su Zhenzhen cried for a while, then got up from Liaochen. She pulled out another pouch of silver and handed it to the official matchmaker. "My master has no children. I want to take her away and find a scenic place with mountains and clear waters to lay her to rest. Please accommodate me."
"Take her away."
It was better to avoid unnecessary trouble.
The official matchmaker didn't pester her too much, only instructing Su Zhenzhen, "If anyone from the government comes asking, just say she died of illness."
"Yes."
Su Zhenzhen called Xiaoyuan over to carry Liaochen's body away.
"Master really should lose some weight."
Xiaoyuan and Su Zhenzhen used all their strength and finally managed to put Liaochen into the carriage.
"Yeah, she eats vegetarian all day, how is she still so heavy?"
Having finally moved Liaochen into the carriage, Su Zhenzhen was exhausted. She immediately took off the veiled hat on her head to get some air, letting the lingering summer heat dissipate from her body, and then began to take Liaochen's pulse to check her condition.
With things like feigned-death pills, if the dosage was wrong, it was very easy for a fake death to turn into a real one.
It was also Su Zhenzhen's first time using it.
Although she had been strict with the dosage, she was still somewhat worried.
Fortunately, everything was normal with Liaochen.
In about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, she would wake up on her own.
"Let's leave the city."
Xiaoyuan drove the carriage, taking Su Zhenzhen and Liaochen out of the city.
Su Zhenzhen raised her hand to lift the carriage curtain, looking around nervously.
"Xiaoyuan, is anyone following us?"
Xiaoyuan said, "I haven't noticed anyone."
That was good.
The weather was muggy. Su Zhenzhen found a fan in the carriage and fanned Liaochen for a bit, then unbuttoned her collar to prevent her from feeling suffocated when she started breathing properly again later.
The carriage safely exited Yangzhou City.
Su Zhenzhen noticed that Liaochen's breathing had recovered its steady rhythm. Her eyelids trembled, as if she was about to wake up.
"Don't rush, Master. Take it easy," Su Zhenzhen whispered right next to Liaochen's ear.
Liaochen quieted down and stopped struggling.
Su Zhenzhen stuffed a few silver notes into a bundle inside the carriage, then called for Xiaoyuan to stop the carriage.
"You take Master Liaochen and leave," Su Zhenzhen said as she stepped down from the carriage and put her veiled hat back on.
"You're not leaving? Didn't we agree before that we would leave together?"
"I still have matters to handle. Don't worry about me."
Xiaoyuan frowned but didn't overthink it. She just nodded. "Then hurry up and follow us. You know where we are going, keep in touch."
Su Zhenzhen nodded.
Xiaoyuan left with Master Liaochen.
Watching the carriage disappear deep into the mountain road, Su Zhenzhen breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to Yangzhou City.
As the sun set, Su Zhenzhen found a funeral shop on the street.
Because it was considered unlucky, funeral shops usually avoided "auspicious shops" like restaurants, wedding shops, and silk shops, and were opened in remote areas.
Therefore, as soon as Su Zhenzhen entered this street, she felt extremely desolate.
She randomly picked one and went in. There were one or two semi-finished thin coffins placed at the entrance of the shop.
The boss was pruning the pine and cypress trees at the door. Seeing Su Zhenzhen lift her veil hat and stare at the coffins, he immediately introduced, "Is the young lady buying a coffin? We have paulownia, fir, and nanmu here, and the prices are naturally different."
"The paulownia ones are ready-made and cheap. Fir and nanmu can be customized. You can choose the carvings on the top and the lining inside."
"Just this one, I need it urgently." Su Zhenzhen casually pointed to the one at the door.
"Okay, don't worry, my lady. Although this paulownia coffin is cheap, it has been brushed with tung oil, so it won't get damp or eaten by moths, and it is stable for burial. Do you need anything else? We also have complete sets of burial clothes and mourning clothes that you can buy directly, so you don't have to make them yourself when you go back."
"Give me a set of burial clothes and a mourning outfit."
"Alright, two taels of silver for the coffin, and five mace for the burial clothes and mourning outfit, so it's two taels and four mace in total. Where does the lady want it delivered? Do you need a mortician?"
"Su Family Pharmacy."
The boss was stunned. His eyes circled Su Zhenzhen's face. "I didn't recognize you. So it's Doctor Su. You really have changed a lot..."
Su Zhenzhen glanced at the boss, having no memory of him.
The boss smiled and said, "Back when Yangzhou Prefecture was in chaos, I fled here and collapsed at the door of your shop holding my daughter. Don't you remember?"
Su Zhenzhen had saved too many people, so she really didn't remember.
"You don't remember, but I remember you. Why did Doctor Su come to buy a coffin?"
A look of sorrow appeared on Su Zhenzhen's face. "A master who had a good relationship with me passed away. She had no children, so I'm helping to bury her."
"I see. Doctor Su should have said so earlier. I'll take care of this for you."
Afraid that Su Zhenzhen would refuse, the boss immediately said, "Doctor Su, please don't be polite. I usually keep some coffins in my shop. If I encounter people who freeze or starve to death on the street, I will give them a coffin and bury them for free." He paused and said, "It was originally influenced by you, learning to do some good deeds to accumulate merit. It's nothing. Don't worry, I'll handle it all for you."
Su Zhenzhen couldn't decline, so she simply accepted it. "Thank you."
Late at night, the coffin shop boss brought his assistants to help Su Zhenzhen bury the coffin, set up the tombstone, and burn paper money before leaving.
Su Zhenzhen sat alone in front of the tombstone. In front of her was a small dirt pit, and the paper money inside was glowing with sparks.
Su Zhenzhen poked it with a branch, thinking about filling it with some dirt later.
She was wearing a mourning outfit that looked quite convincing. Although it was already dark, the summer heat had not dissipated at all.
Wearing the unbreathable mourning outfit, Su Zhenzhen poured some dirt into the small pit, sat in front of the tombstone for a while longer, and felt it was about time. As she stood up to leave, she suddenly heard the sound of rolling carriage wheels.
Because the weather was too hot, and this was a remote place specially chosen by Su Zhenzhen with no one around, the sound of the carriage was exceptionally clear.
The horses neighed and stopped in front of Su Zhenzhen.
Looking at the familiar carriage in front of her, her heart skipped a beat.
Su Zhenzhen stood there and watched a hand reach out from behind the carriage curtain and lift it.
A hand-held glazed lantern appeared in front of her first.
Su Zhenzhen subconsciously swallowed.
A man in a black robe, holding a glazed lantern, stepped down from the carriage.
He stood there, looking down at Su Zhenzhen condescendingly.
Su Zhenzhen looked up at him, her fair face still stained with tears.
In the middle of the night, she met Lu Hexu.
"What are you doing here?" The man's voice was low and hoarse. His huge figure loomed over her like a canopy, completely enveloping Su Zhenzhen inside.
A look of sorrow appeared on the woman's face.
She had a beautiful face, especially a pair of eyes that were like water. Large teardrops didn't cling to her eye sockets at all, but rolled down her cheeks like golden beans.
"Master Liaochen had some fate with me, and I wanted to send her on her final journey."
Lu Hexu looked at her quietly, and then slowly spoke, "Dig up the grave."
Su Zhenzhen was shocked.
"Master Liaochen has already been buried, please don't disturb her..."
The driver who was driving the carriage for Lu Hexu jumped down, casually broke off a thick branch near the grave, and began to dig.
Su Zhenzhen threw herself over and hugged the grave mound. "No! If you want to dig up the grave, you have to step over my body first!"
A hand reached out from behind, grabbed her back collar, and pulled her away.
"Ah, let go, don't dig..."
Su Zhenzhen couldn't break free and was held by the waist and fixed against a body.
"Don't move." The man's breath brushed past from behind.
The man's hands, which were slender and beautiful when he was a teenager, were still good-looking, but the joints had grown a lot. They pressed against her waist, fixing her in front of him.
His hands are so big.
The hand pressing against Su Zhenzhen's waist and abdomen paused, and then held her down even harder.
Su Zhenzhen watched helplessly as the grave was dug open, revealing the coffin inside.
It was a new grave, the soil was loose, and it was easy to dig. The coffin also looked extremely new.
The carriage driver pried open the coffin with the branch in his hand, revealing the inside.
Shadow One stepped forward. "Master, there is only a set of burial clothes inside."
I'm doomed.
Su Zhenzhen slumped her body dejectedly, not daring to look at Lu Hexu behind her.
Although she had guessed that this matter might not be kept from him, she didn't expect to be exposed so quickly.
But Xiaoyuan should have already taken Liaochen away safely, right?
A man's sneer suddenly came from behind.
Su Zhenzhen inexplicably had a bad premonition.
Another carriage appeared in front of the empty tombstone.
Su Zhenzhen looked at this somewhat familiar carriage and looked dazed.
Ah?
A woman in black stepped down from the carriage. She lifted the carriage curtain with one hand, revealing the two people inside.
These two people were Xiaoyuan and Master Liaochen.
Both of them were bound with silver threads. As long as they struggled, their skin and flesh would be torn open.
Fortunately, the two seemed to know the situation well and didn't have any major injuries on their bodies, except for the marks of being beaten on Xiaoyuan's face.
Seeing Su Zhenzhen, Xiaoyuan looked aggrieved. "I couldn't beat her."
Su Zhenzhen was speechless. Useless!
Liaochen was sent back to prison, and another layer of shackles was added to her body.
Xiaoyuan was also locked up.
As for Su Zhenzhen, she was brought back to the place where Lu Hexu was temporarily staying.
Following down from the carriage, Su Zhenzhen first saw a huge doorway.
What a big mansion.
This was a mansion located in Yangzhou City, with three courtyards, gray tiles, and white walls. The layout was neat, without complicated carvings. It was a typical Jiangnan garden, much better than Su Zhenzhen's shabby courtyard.
Su Zhenzhen followed behind the man and walked through the corridor.
The winding corridor stretched forward, flanked by well-tended gardens on both sides. Vibrant summer flowers bloomed fiercely and abundantly everywhere, their faint, elegant fragrance drifting over and permeating the humid, sultry summer air.
The path was very long.
The man walked ahead, his shadow elongated by the lamplight.
Su Zhenzhen subconsciously looked up and stared at it for a moment, then lowered her head as they turned a corner ahead, avoiding any chance of their eyes meeting.
The two of them made their way into the main house.
The interior did not seem to hold many personal belongings. There was only essential furniture, making it look as though it was not lived in regularly.
Su Zhenzhen noticed a black robe hanging on the wooden clothes rack in front of the bed. It was slightly different in pattern and color from the one Lu Hexu was currently wearing.
He seemed to have been wearing this exact one the first time they met.
The cat hair on it was still there.
Su Zhenzhen stood there, watching the man disappear behind a folding screen.
A moment later, the sound of water came from behind it; he seemed to be taking a bath.
Su Zhenzhen glanced at the door, then back at the screen.
She quietly took a step back.
"Move again, and I will break your legs."
The man's voice came from behind the screen, accompanied by the splashing of water.
Su Zhenzhen did not dare to move.
How did he see that?
Why couldn't she see anything?
Su Zhenzhen sat down.
There was a teapot and teacups on the table. Su Zhenzhen reached out and lifted the pot.
It was empty.
There were no pastries or anything either.
Su Zhenzhen sat there with her head bowed. After a while, she quietly raised her head and took a look around the room.
The room was very large. Where she sat was the front hall, and behind it was a bedroom. Inside the bedroom, separated by a screen, was the bathing and washing area.
Two floor-standing glazed lamps were placed in the room.
One was not far behind her, and the other was in the corner of the bedroom.
The glazed lamps were much brighter than ordinary oil lamps, and far superior to gauze lanterns.
However, they were heavy and precious; only wealthy families could afford to use them.
Because it was summer, many copper basins were placed around the room, filled to the brim with half-human-tall blocks of ice. They had not melted much yet, looking as if they had just been replaced not long ago.
A reed blind hung at the door of the room, and the gaps in the doors and windows had been sealed. It was already night, and without the scorching summer sun, the windows were pushed open for ventilation.
Through the half-open window, Su Zhenzhen saw the clear spring pool in the courtyard.
It was much larger than the bathtub in her bathroom; there would be no problem for a whole person to soak in it.
Dense clusters of bamboo were planted around the clear spring. The slender bamboo looked especially green in the summer, reflecting in the spring water and casting scattered shadows.
Su Zhenzhen was staring blankly at the bamboo.
Over there, the sound of water stopped.
Lu Hexu emerged from behind the screen. He had changed his clothes and was wearing only a plain white inner robe. His hair was wet and plastered to his body, with a few strands clinging to the side of his neck and shoulders, soaking the fabric and leaving dark and light wet patches.
He was enveloped in the faint mist of the clear spring water, but a heavy, unyielding gloom condensed between his brows, making his entire person appear even more shadowy and cold.
Su Zhenzhen sat there with her head bowed.
The man walked over, his gaze sweeping across her face.
The woman was still wearing white mourning clothes, her eyes slightly swollen, and she looked excessively clean.
Outside, the summer wind blew past, and the bamboo shadows around the spring rustled in the breeze.
The bamboo leaves were dense, their green shadows swaying.
Amidst this suffocating atmosphere, Su Zhenzhen heard the man's footsteps again.
He went into the inner bedroom.
There was only a bed, a wardrobe, and a wooden clothes rack.
Lu Hexu bent down, picked up a box from beside the pillow, brought it over, and placed it on the table in front of Su Zhenzhen.
Su Zhenzhen stared down at Lu Hexu's hand for a moment before shifting her gaze to the box.
"What is this?"
He couldn't possibly be giving her a gift at a time like this, could he?
Lu Hexu pressed his fingertips against the box, tapping it lightly. He lifted his eyelids to look at Su Zhenzhen in front of him and slowly spat out two words.
"Silver needles."
Silver needles?
Confusion appeared on Su Zhenzhen's face. She spoke carefully, terrified of offending the man in front of her. "Aren't you afraid of them?"
The man's emotions seemed very calm, but the words he spoke made Su Zhenzhen's vision go dark.
"Thinking about killing you makes me unafraid."
"Every time I want to kill you, I put one in. If I want to kill you twice, I put in two."
Su Zhenzhen was speechless.
The man's water-stained fingertips brushed over the box. He stroked it slowly and methodically, as smoothly as if he had touched it countless times before.
"You once told me that those who betray a true heart must go to hell and swallow ten thousand needles."
Su Zhenzhen remained speechless.
Su Zhenzhen wanted to slap her past self to death for ever saying those words.
Lu Hexu released his hand pressing on the sandalwood box. His pitch-black pupils fell coldly on Su Zhenzhen's face. "Aren't you going to take a look?"
Su Zhenzhen looked at the exquisite sandalwood box, hesitated for a moment, and reached out her hand, but she couldn't lift it.
Wait, just how many are in here?
This must weigh at least three pounds, right?
