Chapter 22 - 2#

My eyes were fixed on the door, so I could only fumble blindly behind me. “…Hiss!” Even being as careful as possible, my hands were still inevitably cut, yet I had to keep searching for a sharp shard. Finding a somewhat suitable piece, I began painfully sawing at the coarse rope binding my hands.

Still, this was bound to take some time.

I pressed my lips tightly together, working for a while, then resting. My hands ached terribly, but I didn’t dare stop for too long.

“How could it be so…” I kept muttering to myself, trying to stay clear-headed.

After sawing for a good while, the rope finally seemed to loosen a bit.

I tugged at it, then sawed some more.

My palm gripped that piece of glass, numb from the pain. There was a hot, sticky feeling—seemed like quite a bit of blood had flowed.

I sniffled, and with one final effort, I cut through the rope.

Huff…

It felt like it had taken a long time. I was so exhausted I almost wanted to collapse on the floor, but after a moment, I gritted my teeth and used both hands to laboriously push myself up. However, my hands had been bound for too long, my blood circulation was poor, and I couldn’t muster much strength for a while.

I panted heavily, sitting up, and looked at my bound feet, suddenly feeling despondent.

Having been reborn once, why couldn’t I avoid this?

Untying the rope with my bare hands was draining in both effort and spirit. Wang Zheng had tied it with some skill, so I had to resort to tools and brute force again. But at least I was much faster now, and it only took a little while to undo most of it.

My heart surged with joy. As long as my hands and feet could move freely, I could find a way to unlock the door before Wang Zheng returned…

“Qi Ri.”

…I could.

I looked up, stunned.

The door in front of me was slightly ajar.

I could only see half of his face, and then he slowly pushed the door open.

His movements were very light.

So light that I could only hear my own pulse, my heartbeat like thunder.

Every step Wang Zheng took was light and slow.

By the time I snapped back to reality, he was already standing in front of me, slightly leaning down.

“Ren Qi Ri.”

He gently stroked my face, his smile blooming like a flower, yet there was a terrifying, sinister feel to it.

“Do you want me to help you, hmm?”

—————————

Sweat dripped from my forehead. I swallowed hard, forcing a smile as I looked up and said weakly, “You, you… you’re back early today…”

He tilted his head slightly, taking a step closer. I scooted back a bit until I hit the wall behind me.

Wang Zheng crouched down on one knee to meet my eyes, looking me up and down, then glanced around the room.

His expression was strange. After a moment, he turned back to me and murmured softly, “Why is that?”

“Ah…?” I couldn’t hear clearly.

Wang Zheng looked at me, slowly curving his lips into a smile—naturally, it was extremely beautiful. But right now, I had no interest in admiring it. His gaze made my heart thump nervously.

“Qi Ri.”

Hearing him call my name, I instinctively responded with a “mm,” feeling as if he had cornered me completely.

“Do you still remember…” He lowered his eyelids, smiling faintly. “When we were kids, you loved following me. Wherever I went, you’d follow.”

I pressed my lips together and nodded.

He gave a slight nod as well. “Yeah. Those childhood days were so good. Whenever I turned around, I’d see this silly person, following closely behind, impossible to shake off. It was like you were the only person left in his world.”

“I wish it could have stayed that way forever.” Wang Zheng murmured, his brows furrowing slightly. “Why… why would someone still want to snatch away this silly person from me?”

“Wang Zheng…” I parted my lips. “What… are you saying?”

“Yeah, yeah. Why? Weren’t things fine when we were kids? Then you started ignoring me, deliberately hanging out with those lower-class people to make me angry, and even picking fights with me over them…”

Wang Zheng smiled again. “Ren Qi Ri, what right do you have to lead me around by the nose? Why should I foolishly wait for you to look at me? You never cared about me. You just wanted to get farther and farther away, preferably never seeing me again in your life!”

My heart was pounding with fear. The louder Wang Zheng spoke, the more twisted his expression became. I raised my hand to push him away, but he grabbed it, squeezing hard. His other hand suddenly yanked at my hair, and he roared hoarsely, “You lied to me! You’ve been lying to me all along! You never took me seriously! Ren Qi Ri!”

“Wang Zheng! Calm down and listen to me!” I struggled fiercely and said through gritted teeth, “What are you thinking? How could I not take you seriously? You… listen to me, Wang Zheng—”

“You’re lying!” Wang Zheng’s eyes were bloodshot, his voice hoarse from yelling too hard. Suddenly, he took a deep breath and curled his lips into a smile.

That smile was uglier than crying.

“Are you thinking,” he said, “that I’ve gone crazy?”

I didn’t dare nod or shake my head. I could only stare at him in terror, giving no response.

Wang Zheng let out a hollow laugh. “I’m not crazy. I’m perfectly sane, really.”

“I think I was the crazy one before—I was crazy to let you hang around with those people. I was crazy to let you out of my sight. I was crazy to foolishly believe that you—”

He paused.

My body trembled, but I couldn’t help asking, “…Believe… believe what?”

Suddenly, Wang Zheng let go of me and stepped back.

I collapsed to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut, gasping for air.

Wang Zheng stared blankly at me, slowly raising his hand to cover his mouth. I watched him, still shaken, but then I was stunned.

Tears slowly welled up in his eyes. When he could no longer hold them back, hot tears poured down from his eyes.

“You…” Wang Zheng…

Wang Zheng clutched at his hair with both hands, looking around in confusion, then at me. Abruptly, he burst into sobs and fell to his knees.

“Wang, Wang Zheng—Wang Zheng—!!” What’s going on?!

I scrambled over to him, grabbing his shoulders. What happened to him? What on earth was going on?!

“What’s wrong with you?! Wang Zheng! What happened to you? Wang Zheng—!”

Yes, Wang Zheng couldn’t have suddenly become this neurotic. He had always been rational and composed, not even frowning if the sky fell. Something must have happened. It must be…

Wang Zheng abruptly stopped crying. His eyes were dull as he stared at me. His hands trembled as they reached out and tightly gripped my dirty sleeve.

“Qi, Qi Ri…” Wang Zheng’s voice was extremely soft, interrupted by sobs. “You said it yourself—you said it yourself!”

What did I say?

I had always known Wang Zheng’s mind worked differently from others, but I never expected he would suddenly slam me to the ground. The back of my head hit the floor hard. Wang Zheng was on top of me, looking down at me wordlessly… then slowly bent down and pressed his lips to mine.

It sent chills down my spine.

“Wang, Wang Zheng… you…” When he finally stopped, I stammered, “Talk to me properly. I’ll listen. I’ll listen to everything.”

Wang Zheng slowly shook his head. He sat on my waist, pinning my legs, and directly started unbuttoning my shirt.

Oh god!

I quickly grabbed his hands. “Don’t! Don’t take it off!”

Wang Zheng stared at me blankly, not pulling his hands away. Finally, he slowly rested his head on my chest.

“Why…” he said hoarsely. “You said you loved me.”

…Upon my conscience!

Wang Zheng couldn’t hear my inner scream. He continued slowly, “You said you only loved me… you wouldn’t love anyone else…”

I shuddered. It felt like a woman suddenly rushing up to me, belly out, claiming she was pregnant with my child—utterly terrifying.

“I… I said… I love you…?”

Many years later, I would suddenly realize that I deeply regretted asking Wang Zheng that question.

Knowing nothing would have been the happiest.

Wang Zheng paused, then choked out, “You said it—you said it with your own mouth—I heard it with my own ears. You said to me, ‘I love you.’”

Suddenly, he flew into a rage. Grabbing my collar, he roared hoarsely, “Ren Qi Ri! You absolute bastard! Why did you say those things to me?!”

I—

I was about to argue, but Wang Zheng said something I never expected.

“If you loved me, why did you marry that woman?!”

Wang Zheng… what… what is he saying?

I stared at him blankly.

Wang Zheng’s face was streaked with tears. “Yeah—hypocrite! That’s what you are! You clearly loved me, but you said you’d be a good husband! Ren Qi Ri—”

Like a wild beast, he tore at my clothes. My face turned pale. His hand suddenly slid between my legs, and I jolted violently. I raised my hand and slapped him hard across the face.

That slap, I put all my strength into it.

Shut up—shut up!

Trembling, I watched as his face turned to the side. As he regained his senses, I screamed, “Have you… lost your mind?! Isn’t that enough?!”

Wang Zheng slowly turned back to look at me.

Looking at his expression, for some reason, my heart grew ice cold.

What did he just say?

What did he just say?

What did he say?

What did he say…

At that moment, Wang Zheng said something completely off-topic, his voice hoarse: “This… isn’t a dream?”

He touched his face in confusion, then suddenly smiled. “It’s not a dream. Good, it’s not a dream… not a dream…” He turned back to me, a hint of desolation in his murmurs. “Yeah, it’s not a dream. In dreams, you loved me… you loved me…”

While he was dazed, my gaze swept over the slightly ajar door. The rope binding my feet had been shaken off during the earlier chaos…

I took a deep breath—

Just as Wang Zheng turned away, I lunged for the door.

But just as my hand touched the door handle, a figure suddenly grabbed my arm. I felt my arm twisted, and I lurched forward, my back hit with heavy force.

A not-unfamiliar voice sounded in my ears.

“What’s going on, young master.”

Footsteps approached, and someone lifted me up.

“You… went too far.” Amid the haze, I heard Wang Zheng say, his voice still unsteady. “Is everything… done…?”

“Mm, it’s all taken care of. Here are the passport and the things you asked for. Also, if the young master wants the little master to behave, one dose of the medicine will do. No need to go through all this trouble…”

“…That medicine is harmful to the body after all.”

The person laughed and seemed to take out something else. “The young master doesn’t look well. You should keep this calming medicine on you. I saw something on the way here—if any… evidence were left behind, it would be a big problem.”

“No need for you to concern yourself.”

The person laughed again, and footsteps faded away.

“Wen Jing! Why… are you helping me?”

A long pause.

Just before my consciousness slipped away, I heard that person say—

“Young master, you misunderstand.”

“I’m not helping you.”

“This is all for Third Master’s good.”