Chapter 126: Destined to Not Stay Long in This World
Chapter 126: Chapter 126: Destined to Not Stay Long in This World
"No matter what happens from now on, you must cherish your life. As long as you’re alive, there’s hope. Do you understand?"
Xie Jinbai nodded. "Okay."
’As long as she’s here, how could I dare to die?’
’If she turned around and chose someone else, I wouldn’t be able to rest in peace even in death. I’d have to crawl out of my own grave to kill them.’
Cui Lingyao wanted to say more.
For instance, that he was a man destined for greatness and shouldn’t lose his mind over the trivial matters of romance.
Or that he needed to understand that learning to face loss with grace was a part of growing up.
’He’s killed countless people and reaped so many lives; he should have understood this by now.’
After all, she had come to Great Yue for a mission. Once it was complete, she was destined to leave this world.
Of course, this time, Cui Lingyao didn’t plan on leaving as abruptly as she had before.
The consequences of such a brutal departure were already crystal clear.
It had done nothing but give rise to this man’s inner demons, driving him to obsession and madness.
She should counsel him beforehand and help him prepare mentally.
But it was still too early to talk about this. There was plenty of time to take things slow.
With this in mind, Cui Lingyao pushed down her unspoken words and changed the subject. "Haven’t those Qiang people been caught yet?"
Xie Jinbai had been staring at her. Seeing her fall silent for so long only to ask such an irrelevant question, his eyes flickered. "We’ve caught a few, but I’m not sure if there are any stragglers still hiding in the shadows."
She was curious, so he explained.
As he took off his outer robe, he explained patiently, "Pingzhou City is only so big. The Qiang people have deep-set features, and their skin is much darker and coarser than that of the Yue People. They’re easy to identify, so they won’t be able to hide for long."
"The city gates are sealed. It’s only a matter of time before we round them all up."
Cui Lingyao nodded, then remembered something and asked, "My mother’s funeral is the day after tomorrow. Does it need to be postponed?"
"No need," Xie Jinbai said, lifting the covers and pulling her down to lie beside him. "The city gates will open on the morning of the day after tomorrow."
Cui Lingyao hesitated. "...What about the Qiang people?"
"They’re just scattered dogs," Xie Jinbai said, unconcerned. "It would be best to clean them all up by tomorrow, but it doesn’t matter if a few get away."
In any case, the assassination attempt had been a crushing defeat for all parties involved.
’They hadn’t managed to harm a single hair on his head.’
’The Empress and his imperial brothers’ schemes had come to nothing.’
’Instead, he had obtained evidence of their collusion with the enemy.’
’Once he returned to the capital, he would deal with them one by one.’
’A few small fry couldn’t possibly interfere with his mother-in-law’s burial.’
’And they certainly couldn’t delay his return to the capital.’
Cui Lingyao had only a superficial understanding of court politics. As a layman, she naturally wouldn’t question the decision of a professional. Hearing him say this, she was able to set her mind at ease.
It was a good thing that Mrs. Shen’s funeral could proceed without a hitch.
Xie Jinbai’s hand slid to her waist, kneading it gently for a moment before he asked with a smile, "Did you miss me?"
Back when they were newlyweds, whenever they were intimate at night, he loved to hold her just like this and ask that question.
Cui Lingyao had marveled at the time that such an iceman could have a side like this.
Then, at some point, he had stopped asking and would just get straight to business without a word.
It took her a few days to adjust, but she quickly got used to it.
Now that he had reverted to his old ways, Cui Lingyao felt a little dazed.
She sniffled and complained in a small voice, "You can be really unreasonable sometimes."
Xie Jinbai paused. "For example?"
Cui Lingyao said, "For example, you never hesitate. When you want to do something, you just do it, without any regard for how others feel or whether they’re willing."
’He comes when he wants, stays the night when he wants, and holds her when he wants.’
’The only line he hadn’t crossed was going all the way.’
’But his hand was already inside her clothes...’
’He was a madman who didn’t know the first thing about compromise!’
Xie Jinbai was silent for a long moment, then he grabbed the small of her back and pressed her against him. "You’re a little hedgehog. If I took things slow, believe me, I wouldn’t even be able to get within ten feet of you right now."
’He was more than willing to give her all his patience, to play the part of a gentle, slow-moving suitor in her presence.’
’But with her personality, if he really listened to her on everything and never crossed a line without her permission, he could exhaust a whole lifetime’s worth of patience and still get nowhere with her.’
’Even then, he might not even be allowed a single kiss.’
’She would drive him completely mad.’
’With her, he couldn’t be too soft, but he couldn’t be too forceful either.’
’He had to control the pace perfectly, creating a gilded cage to keep her with him, bit by bit.’
’So far, he was doing a great job.’
’Everything was moving in the right direction.’
’And because of this, he’d let her believe he was winning her back with effortless ease, that everything was under his control.’
’Although she was now willing to nestle in his arms, she was still bothered by it.’
Xie Jinbai knew this perfectly well.
But in a situation like this, no amount of sweet nothings would suffice.
’Day after day, in the time to come, he would prove to her with his actions just how true his heart was.’
Xie Jinbai tightened his arms, holding her closer. He touched his lips to her forehead and coaxed in a low voice, "I’m changing. As long as you stay by my side, I’ll seriously try to change."
’In short, he needed her in his arms first. Only then could he be rational and patient enough to reason with her.’
’That was his bottom line.’
’But he truly was, from the bottom of his heart, willing to change for her.’
His voice was soft and incredibly seductive, almost bewitching.
Hearing this, Cui Lingyao’s breath hitched. She lifted her head from his chest and said, "Then first, you need to break this habit of always wanting to kill people. Don’t let yourself have murderous thoughts so easily."
’She wasn’t stupid. She knew he’d had murderous intentions toward Shen Tingyu at least ten times.’
"..." Xie Jinbai fell silent. The first person who came to his mind was also Shen Tingyu.
’He had long since realized that when it came to the man who was once betrothed to her and acted so intimately with her, no matter how hard he tried to reassure himself that she hadn’t transferred her affections, he could never suppress his killing intent.’
But she had asked, and Xie Jinbai was unwilling to ruin this rare, tender moment. He nodded lightly. "Alright. I’ll try my best to stop."
’How strange.’
Cui Lingyao reached out and poked his chin. When he lowered his eyes to look at her, she pressed her lips together and said, "Don’t lie to me."
"...Okay," Xie Jinbai hummed softly. "I won’t lie to you. For the sake of accumulating good karma for our next life together, I’ll commit fewer sins of killing."
’The absurd and bizarre event of her soul inhabiting another’s body had made him a firm believer in the supernatural, sparking a desire to cultivate a good afterlife for them both.’
’The man who had never feared gods or buddhas, who believed only in the silver spear in his hand, was now speaking of ’accumulating good karma’ with such reverence.’
’He was already thinking about their next life.’
’And yet she, in this very life, was already thinking about how to escape this world as quickly as possible.’
Unsure if it was guilt or some other emotion, Cui Lingyao felt a sudden pang in her heart, and tears almost welled up in her eyes.
She quickly blinked back the tears and said in all seriousness, "When it comes to foreign clans, you should still kill them if they need killing. You can’t be soft-hearted or let them off the hook."
’What a patriot.’
Xie Jinbai couldn’t help but laugh, hugging his treasure tightly. "That’s acceptable. But fighting on the battlefield is mentally taxing, and as the Commander of the Three Armies, I need to constantly replenish my strength. For that, I’ll have to trouble you, Yaoyao."