The housekeeper watched him worriedly, and after a long silence, carefully asked: “City Lord, towards the madam…”
“No,” as if knowing what he was about to ask, Yue Linze looked at the ground with despair, his voice carrying endless coldness, “I never had any feelings for her.”
The housekeeper sighed in relief, feeling even more compassionate towards the young man before him. The city lord’s parents had passed early, and he had raised the city lord alone. He knew the city lord best in this world, understanding whether the city lord had feelings for the madam, only uncertain of the depth of those feelings.
Even without knowing, he was sure they weren’t light. Otherwise, upon first seeing the madam again, he would have killed her to eliminate future troubles, not married her. If he hadn’t been deeply moved, why would he risk setting a trap just to keep her?
The city lord had told him about the madam’s origins and events from other worlds. Knowing how dangerous she was made him understand that the city lord had placed all his hopes on her from the beginning.
The city lord had been gambling from the start, betting on himself and Wuhuang City. Because this gamble couldn’t be lost, he could have chosen not to bet. Yet he did, placing himself and Wuhuang City on the edge of a knife, all to seek a bit of compassion from the madam towards Wuhuang City and towards him.
However, in the end, the city lord still disappointed the steward. The steward dared not imagine what was going through his mind when the city lord pulled the trigger on his wife.
“It’s good if there’s nothing, it’s good if there’s nothing. Without it, our Wuhuan City will be safe.” The steward comforted in a hoarse voice, but sighed inwardly. If only the city lord could have shown a bit of restraint towards his wife, he would not have killed her.
It was precisely because the city lord could no longer hold on, and the next moment might lead to the destruction of the entire Wuhuan City because of his feelings, that he raised his gun and was forced to end this high-stakes gamble.
Yue Linze’s mouth twitched, and after a long time, he spoke: “Steward…”
“Hmm?” The steward responded quickly.
Yue Linze took a difficult breath, with a burning pain from his throat to his abdomen. After a while, he said softly: “We were husband and wife after all. She has always been confused and afraid of the dark. I’m afraid she’ll be scared underground. Since I killed her, I should be responsible to the end. I… I want to go find her.”
After finishing his sentence, tears rolled down from the corners of his eyes, but his gaze was calm, and his expression was calm, as if his soul and body had been separated. From the moment the gun went off, a part of him had died.
“What nonsense are you saying! You, you must calm down, city lord. You can’t…” The steward became anxious when he saw he was not giving up, and after a while, he thought of persuading him, “If you die, won’t Wuhuan City be gone? Do you want the people of Wuhuan City to die with you?!”
“When I was not yet born, Wuhuan City was fine. So I think, as long as it’s not because of A Yu, even if I die, Wuhuan City will still be Wuhuan City.” Yue Linze stared blankly at the steward, with a plea in his eyes that even he himself did not know, as if as long as the steward showed agreement, he would immediately end his own suffering.
The steward refused: “What if it will be destroyed with you? Are you going to let all the people of Wuhuan City take this risk?”
Yue Linze fell silent and did not speak for a long time.
The steward’s heart ached. He sighed and said, “Child, Wuhuan City needs you. Arrange a funeral for your wife, and everything will pass.”
“…” Yue Linze lowered his eyes and after a long time, said in a hoarse voice, “I want to mourn for her.”
“Okay,” as long as he was willing to live, the steward was willing to agree to anything, “Besides death, you can do whatever you want. I won’t restrict you anymore.”
Yue Linze had no other requests. The steward waited for a long time but did not hear another word. Finally, he tried to negotiate: “Shall we first settle your wife properly and then choose an auspicious day for the burial?”
Yue Linze kept his eyes downcast, with no joy or sorrow on his face. The steward sighed and stood up, searching the room and then returning to Yue Linze, who was leaning against the bed, frowning and asking, “Did you kill your wife in this room?”
Yue Linze’s fingertips trembled, and he did not answer the question.
The steward was more puzzled: “Where is your wife? Did you hide her?”
Yue Linze was stunned and instinctively looked back at the bed, and then his eyes slowly widened. Where Tao Yu had been lying was now empty, and the blood stains that had been splattered were also gone. If not for the traces of someone having lain on the soft bed, no one would believe that a person had been here.
Tao Yu…
Yue Linze froze in place, and the heart that had been like dead ashes rekindled a small flame.
“City lord, city lord?” The steward saw him staring blankly at the bed and became more worried, “What are you looking at? Where is your wife?”
After a long time, Yue Linze hoarsely replied: “She’s gone.”
“Huh?” The steward looked at him in surprise.
Yue Linze turned his head towards the steward like a rusty machine, and the eyes that were once naive or sharp now only held confusion: “She’s gone…”
The steward was also stunned. After a while, seeing a glimmer of hope in his eyes, he hesitantly said: “You, you mean your wife was lying on the bed, but now she has disappeared out of thin air?”
Yue Linze continued to stare at the steward, as if wanting to hear something from him.
The steward knew this was not good, but at this moment, giving the city lord hope was not wise. He could only steel his heart and say: “It seems immortals are different from mortals. After death, the physical body completely vanishes. City lord, although your wife’s body is gone, we still need to hold a funeral, to give the people of Wuhuan City an explanation.”
Yue Linze’s gaze wavered, recalling how he had pointed the gun at her head, how he had pulled the trigger, how she had fallen. Every detail replayed in his mind, clearly and cruelly scattering the last bit of hope in his heart.
“Without a body, how can we hold a funeral? Just say the wife has gone back to her parents’ home, and say no more.” Yue Linze walked towards the door with unsteady steps, his voice neither joyful nor sad, reaching the steward’s ears.
The steward frowned as he watched him leave, and finally sighed, doing as he said.
On this day, Yue Linze went out for a long time and only returned at dawn. When he came home, he had returned to normal, once again the naive city lord who did not hold grudges.
Soon, the people of Wuhuan City knew that their city lord’s wife had gone back to her parents’ home and had not returned for a long time. At first, they found it strange, but seeing the city lord was as carefree as always and seemed to have no discord with his wife, they gradually put their minds at ease.
However, this ease only lasted for a while. As months passed and the city lord’s wife still had not returned, discussions began in the city. Especially after the city lord suddenly brought out a baby girl, saying she was born to the city lord’s wife, the people began to have their own conclusions, and the looks they gave Yue Linze carried a hint of pity.
The wife had been gone for so long, leaving only a baby girl with the city lord, perhaps indicating she no longer wanted to live with him.
Yue Linze knew what people in the city were saying about him and Tao Yu, but he did not care. He concentrated on being a father, as if Tao Yu had never existed.
