gh floated out. The hand around my waist slipped down, and I suddenly felt cold. Tears burst from my eyes in an instant.
夜锁 looked at me, his face expressionless. Suddenly, he turned, bent down, and picked up Langyue from the bed, then rushed out of the room. I exchanged a puzzled glance with Shuo Ruhan and then followed.
At the tombs of Suo Mu Lang and Xiao Cheng, two attendants were holding Langyue’s coffin. Ye Suo had been digging the earth with his hands, his face devoid of expression for nearly an hour. I stared blankly at his almost crazy actions. Was he only now seeing Langyue’s love? Was he feeling guilty? Under the light of the lanterns, his hands digging the earth were seeping with blood stains. The attendant couldn’t bear to help and was kicked away by him.
As a trace of light appeared on the horizon, the pit was dug by hand. He remained expressionless as he carried the coffin and slowly lowered it…
I never thought Langyue’s death would hit Ye Suo so hard. He had been kneeling locked in front of the former king’s tomb for five days and nights, and no one knew what he was thinking…
Langyue said he only loved the people of Ye Mountain and didn’t want the peaceful Ye Mountain to be destroyed by the imperial court. If I could help him protect Ye Mountain, would his furrowed brows be smoothed out?
Taking the food basket from the serving attendant, I slowly walked to the tomb and placed the basket in front of him. He remained kneeling, his eyes showing no awareness of my presence. I smiled, “Langyue left with a smile at the end…”
He still didn’t speak. I stood up and left, silently saying goodbye to Ye Suo.
When I entered Shuo Ruhan’s room, he was asleep, face down on the table. I took a thin cotton blanket and draped it over his shoulders, then packed his few belongings. Under his pillow, I discovered a painting scroll and couldn’t help but open it. A stunning beauty with bright eyes and beautiful teeth was depicted on the paper. A sense of familiarity washed over me. As I was mesmerized, Ruhan had already awakened and was staring at me.
I felt somewhat embarrassed holding the painting, as it was someone else’s private possession. I quickly rolled up the paper and jokingly asked, “Your beloved?”
“Hmm? Hmm.” His tone rose on the second syllable, then dropped to a flat tone.
“Okay, seems like nothing’s missing,” I said after observing the room. He leaned against the table, supporting his head with one hand, watching me with interest. “What exactly are you up to?”
“I’ve decided, I’m going to elope with you!” I laughed teasingly.
He slightly raised his eyebrows, then shook his head to indicate he didn’t understand. I continued playfully, “I want to return to Yue City with you and three thousand troops.”
“Miss Long, in front of Shuo Ruhan, you don’t need to be armed. We are friends,” Shuo Ruhan’s pale eyes carried absolute seriousness.
Hearing these words, my smile vanished. I collapsed, sitting powerlessly on the floor, hugging my knees. “Ruhan, I want to protect Ye Mountain. Will you help me?”
“You want to seek help from the Prince of Chen for Ye Suo?” A small shock passed through his eyes, then he resolutely refused, “Impossible!”
stances of Ye Mountain and the imperial court, he would have come personally long ago!”
“I’m willing to give myself to him, willingly,” I firmly met Shuo Ruhan’s increasingly astonished gaze.
“What are you saying?” He almost roared, his thin body trembling.
“I’m saying I’ll offer myself to him, begging him to spare Ye Mountain. Do you think Liu Yu would agree to such terms?” For some reason, I couldn’t help but smile lightly, though my feet kept shaking.
Shuo Ruhan stepped back in shock, asking word by word, “Do you truly love the King of Ye Mountain so much?”
“I just don’t want him to suffer anymore. He bears too much,” I answered without thinking. Prophecy, nemesis, Ye Mountain, the responsibilities of the king, conspiracy… Ye Suo truly bore too much.
“People bearing too much are not just him!” Shuo Ruhan, who had never shown anger, violently swept his sleeve, causing the teapot to fall and shatter. Suddenly, he let out a bitter laugh, “But you love only him, right?”
“Ruhan?” I looked at him in confusion.
A bitter smile lingered at the corner of his mouth for a long time. “Fine, I’ll take you away!”
“Mm. Thank…” I immediately stood up, looking at him gratefully.
He continued to smile bitterly, concealing all his emotions, “Have you ever considered the Prince of Chen’s feelings? By appearing before him with such an exchange condition, aren’t you declaring that what he’s been waiting for eight years is just an illusion, and a razor-sharp one at that…”
“I don’t know,” my eyes dimmed when mentioning Liu Yu.
“Let’s go.” Shui Ruohan sighed imperceptibly, picked up his bundle, and left with me.
In a jumbled mood. Just as we reached the courtyard, a servant quickly caught up: “Doctor Shui, Miss Dragon, where are you going…”
Shui Ruohan draped an arm over my shoulder, deliberately showing a joyful expression: “Can’t you tell? We’re eloping! Tell your king that if he wants to keep Night Mountain, he’d better not follow!”
Ignoring the servant’s stunned expression, Ruohan pulled me away, and we took some remote mountain paths.
Late at night, we leaned on a mountain ridge, gazing at the starry sky. I offered him some snacks, and seeing him staring unblinkingly at the stars, I too became deeply absorbed. This was the first time I’d looked at the night sky so freely, and I couldn’t help but sigh: “The starry sky is so clear and pure now, having lost so much pollution.”
“Hmm?”
“Nothing.” I smiled.
“Sleep. We’ll continue our journey tomorrow.” He smiled like a gentle breeze, draping his outer garment over me. I deliberately exclaimed in surprise: “You look even more fragile than me. Are you sure you want to freeze to death here?”
“Don’t worry, I won’t die before taking you out of Night Mountain!” He glared at me fiercely. I laughed with a “got you” expression, and his pale eyes fixed on me, gradually breaking into a relieved laugh before turning to rest.
As he turned away, my smile instantly froze, my heart suffocating…
“Who could survive being stabbed in the heart… He was able to chase after me purely through willpower. I used medicine to quickly harden his wound. This medicine… can be used for a few days, so treasure it well.” He turned and walked towards the mountain, while I remained rooted to the spot like a wooden stake. He suddenly turned back, with a smile light as the breeze, “As long as the辰 King doesn’t come, I promise I won’t harm Ye Mountain by even a hair’s breadth! Go quickly…”
Ruo Han walked far away. I looked at the person still unconscious on the horse’s back, a heartache piercing me so painfully that I wanted to cry but
After a long time, I barely managed to calm myself, gently caressing that pale and clean face with a shallow smile: “No Ye Mountain, no prisoner, no king, no hatred… just the two of us…”
My life turned in an instant. I even hoped that Ye Suo was just that cold king, rather than a passionate person who could stab his heart for love.
But it’s good that from now on, there will only be the two of us, everything has ended…
Walking in the direction Ruo Han pointed for three days, Ye Suo and I arrived at a small town called Wan’an Town, with antique buildings and continuous hawking sounds along the streets…
Ruo Han’s medicine was indeed effective. Ye Suo’s wound healed quickly these days, but his chest would still ache occasionally. We knew Ruo Han’s medicine could only treat the symptoms, not the root cause, so we planned to rest in this small town to let Ye Suo recover.
“Suo, I want to get down and walk,” I said, the person holding me smiled happily and carefully put me down from the horse.
