"Time is running out."
Behind the curtains of the bedroom, Zhuge Juan sat shirtless, facing a bronze mirror. Behind him, someone held a cinnabar brush, vigorously drawing strange patterns on his back.
"After the Heavenly[1] Seal is repaired, it can still maintain its effect for some time. I will find a solution before its effect completely disappears."
"Ah-Yu, what matters is not me, but her." Zhuge Jun looked at his distorted reflection in the bronze mirror. "Only by entrusting her to you can I feel at ease. Take her away, the farther from me, the better. That thing in my body is getting stronger and stronger, and I no longer have the confidence to suppress it." He chuckled. "I can only take it to hell with me."
"Brother, I won't let anything happen to you." Long Renyu's face emerged from the shadows, solemn and resolute.
He put down the brush in his hand, his expression turning angry, "You already did something stupid for Ni Xuechang back then. Do you want to do it again now for her daughter? Do you think that letting her leave and then perishing with that damned thing is a happy ending?"
Zhuge Jun let out a long sigh, put on his clothes, and smiled bitterly: "I just want to make up for her a little. Maybe the way I chose is ridiculous. But it's the only way I can think of to keep her away from danger. Her parents died because of me. If she dies at my hands too, my life would really be a bad joke, haha."
Zhuge Jun, the master of Zhuge Manor, and Long Renyu, the dynasty's Feilong General, were two completely unrelated characters who were actually half-brothers[2]. No one knew this secret except themselves, including the emperor who had the "closest relationship" with them.
However, because an expert fortune-teller stating "water and fire cannot coexist without harm," Zhuge Renyu took his mother's surname and changed his name to Long Renyu. He was sent away from the Zhuge family at a young age and grew up in Qingfeng Temple far from the Zhuge family, under the tutelage of Daoist Priest Chiheng, who was renowned for both literary and martial arts skills. Although the two brothers rarely met, their bond remained strong. After their parents' death, they became each other's only close relatives, making their brotherly love even more precious.
"Master will surely find a solution. I'll return to Qingfeng Temple tomorrow." Long Renyu grasped his brother's shoulders hard, a cold murderous intent in his eyes, "I don't care if it's a six desires fiend or a seven desires fiend. Anyone who dares to hurt my family, whether human or fiend, I, Long Renyu, will make sure they are annihilated!"
"It's karma, don't you think." Zhuge Jun patted his younger brother's hand and laughed self-deprecatingly. "You cherish your family so much, and so do others. But for my own selfish desires back then, I actually made a deal with that monster which caused the utter destruction of Zimiao's body and soul, and indirectly killed Xuechang. Now, even Jingjun is implicated because of me. Heh, Zhuge Jun has a good appearance, but underneath, he's nothing but a shameful and ugly soul."
"Brother..." Long Renyu was momentarily speechless, sighing, "To love in vain, to seek in vain, it truly drives people insane. You were indeed wrong back then..."
Before he could finish his sentence, his right hand suddenly instinctively gripped the hilt of his sword, swiftly moving to the bedroom door and yanking it open forcefully.
With a cry of surprise, Zhuge Jingjun stumbled into the room from outside.
Zhuge Jun walked over, and without any blame or resentment, calmly asked, "How much did you hear?"
Zhuge Jingjun bit her lower lip hard and said after a long while, "Everything..."
An invisible tension filled the room, slowly coalescing into an oppressive atmosphere.
[1] 天授: given by heaven; God's gift.
[2] 同父异母: having the same father but different mothers.
No comments:
Post a Comment