Chapter 81:
His throat rasped, his killing intent so palpable it chilled one to the bone.
This was an aura built from countless slaughters, one that only a great general guarding a region in the army could possess.
Even in such embarrassment, no one dared to underestimate him.
The night grew deeper with heavy dew, the autumn wind icy cold; two men, both dragons among men, stood facing each other in the darkness.
Pei Yuqing’s eyes darkened slightly, his expression serious as he said, “She was never yours, Lu Ziyan. She gave up on you long ago.”
She gave up on you long ago……
“Shut up!” Lu Ziyan stiffened abruptly, a bone-chilling cold emanating from him. “Give her back to me!”
“That won’t do,” Pei Yuqing smiled slowly and softly said, “She’s the young lady I finally coaxed into my arms. How could I hand her over?”
The young lady you didn’t cherish and treated coldly is a treasure others yearn for but cannot obtain.
She had already given up all hope, yet he was given a glimmer of dawn.
Thinking this, Pei Yuqing curled his lips in a smile tinged with mockery. “Since you chose to treat her coldly back then, you should have been prepared for today. One mistake lasts a lifetime. Accept fate.”
Accept fate?
Lu Ziyan looked at the red silk and double happiness characters hanging throughout the garden, put away his spear, closed his eyes to steady his emotions, and said, “Everyone in the capital city knows she’s in love with me. She only married you hastily in a fit of anger with me.”
“She’s young and acts rashly. You’re eleven years older than her. Isn’t indulging her mistake taking advantage of her vulnerability?”
His fingers clenched tightly in his sleeve; Pei Yuqing’s face was as dark as still water.
If he were more confident, he would counter-question right now.
Why assume the young lady’s heart belongs to you?
Why can’t it be me?
Perhaps it was a lack of confidence, because the one speaking was the youth she had pursued openly for years without hiding it.
A man who, for her sake, was flamboyant and reckless, hot-blooded and impulsive, breaking into Duke Pei’s Mansion at night.
The man opposite fell silent for a long time without refuting, injecting threads of warmth into Lu Ziyan’s icy heart.
He moved his lips, his voice trembling slightly. “Give her back to me. As long as you give her back, I won’t hold today’s events against you, and from now on, Lu Ziyan owes you a life debt.”
This iron-willed man who stood tall and proud spoke with such caution at this moment that it moved listeners.
Complex emotions flashed in Pei Yuqing’s eyes as he slowly shook his head in refusal. “She is already my wife and will only be my wife in the future.”
“She will regret it!” Lu Ziyan’s voice suddenly turned cold. He gripped his spear and thrust straight at Pei Yuqing’s face. “I made a mistake, and she married you to punish me, but one day she will regret it!”
Nearby, Pei Er wanted to raise his sword to block Lu Ziyan’s spear, but Pei Yuqing reached out first to grasp it.
The man who rarely showed anger now spoke with coldness in his voice, his eyes gleaming coldly as he looked at the person at the other end of the spear. “She said she won’t regret it.”
Lu Ziyan’s gaze darkened. “I don’t believe it. I want to ask her myself.”
But how could Pei Yuqing let him easily enter their new room.
If Lu Ziyan wanted to enter, he would have to force his way in.
He leaped forward, getting a few steps closer to the new room, but was quickly surrounded by a group of guards.
After several consecutive days and nights of hurried travel, with several wounds on his body bleeding nonstop, even the toughest man was at the end of his strength.
Lu Ziyan looked at the door not far away and shouted hoarsely, “Xie Wanning, come out!”
“Come out!”
After Pei Yuqing left, the sounds of clashing blades and swords came constantly from outside the door, growing closer and closer. Inside the room, Xie Wanning gripped Er Qing’s hand tightly. Already nervous, she froze upon hearing Lu Ziyan’s shout.
She had heard Lu Ziyan say many things: naive words from childhood, cold remarks after growing up, angry and entangled pleas during the breaking off of the engagement, and those heartless, soul-crushing words in her dreams.
But she had never imagined Lu Ziyan could have such intense emotional fluctuations.
That voice was like the howl of a wolf king losing its mate.
Her heart suddenly tightened, and she instinctively looked out the window.
Through the thin gauze window, she could vaguely see crowds of people outside, many gathered.
Lu Ziyan’s offensive seemed to have reached the door, or perhaps he was finally subdued, but his mouth kept calling her name.
“Young lady……” Er Qing said nervously, “Young Master Lu won’t really break in, will he?”
Xie Wanning had no time to reply. She heard the clashing of blades and swords outside suddenly stop. As she wondered if Lu Ziyan had truly been subdued, a massive crash sounded.
The door was smashed open from outside, and blood-soaked Lu Ziyan appeared before her. His scarlet eyes fixed on her, and he tugged his lips into a smile. “Wanwan, why didn’t you come out?”
Er Qing screamed in fright and blocked Xie Wanning.
Lu Ziyan was berserk with killing intent. In a few steps, he raised his spear to fling aside the person blocking him.
“Don’t hurt her!” Xie Wanning hurriedly pulled Er Qing behind her, her voice trembling with shock. “Lu Ziyan, have you gone mad?”
Lu Ziyan stared fixedly at her, enunciating each word: “Did you hear me calling you? Why didn’t you come out!”
A creaking sound.
The door was closed. Pei Yuqing walked in, but the guards remained outside without entering.
He looked at the young lady dressed neatly in her clothes, apology in his eyes, and said, “Did I scare you?”
Xie Wanning pursed her lips and glanced at him without speaking.
Pei Yuqing paused slightly. His gaze fell on the man who could barely stand, and he said flatly, “Young Master Lu, you’ve seen the person you fought so hard for. Ask whatever you want to ask, right in front of me.”
Ignoring the rival’s mockery, Lu Ziyan’s greedy gaze never left the young lady for a moment.
That obsessive gaze annoyed Xie Wanning to no end. One after another, neither was worry-free.
Lu Ziyan was, and Pei Yuqing was too.
One wielded blades, the other played mind games.
If not for this man who seemed as gentle as water giving the order, she believed even Lu Ziyan’s great skills couldn’t break through layers of household guards into this new room.
What was the point of staging this scene?
Xie Wanning took a deep breath, filled with both hatred and annoyance.
Forcing her emotions under control, she looked at the persistent Lu Ziyan awaiting an answer and said, “Why should I come out?”
“Today is my wedding day. If you want a cup of wedding wine, go to the front hall. The new room doesn’t entertain male guests.”
Lu Ziyan’s eyes blinked extremely slowly. Seeing that the young lady had also changed out of her wedding attire, his gaze dimmed. As if finally unable to hold on, his knees buckled sharply. He gripped his spear and dropped to one knee on the ground.
“Wanwan, come home with me,” he reached out to her stubbornly. “I know I was wrong. Punish me however you want. Come home with me, okay?”
His outstretched hand was just a little short of touching her long skirt.
Nearby, Pei Yuqing, whose expression was unreadable, tensed his back instantly and stared down at that hand.
