Chapter 14: Melodramatic Immortal Romance

Chapter 14: Melodramatic Immortal Romance

The two in the courtyard were still immersed in the awkward atmosphere of their reunion, seemingly unaware of what was happening outside.

Nanyan walked towards the back mountain garden to pick some wild vegetables and fruits, unaware that Chu Liyue, who had followed her, suddenly grabbed her wrist from behind.

"Hiss..."

His grip was strong, and coincidentally on the wound that Ye Qingsang had bandaged. Nanyan instinctively pursed her lips, unable to suppress a pained moan, "...let go."

Chu Liyue instinctively loosened his grip, but his eyebrows unconsciously furrowed, "Are you injured?"

His tone was tinged with a nervousness that even he hadn't realized.

Nanyan paused, then forcefully pulled away from his grasp, taking a step back, "Thank you for your concern, Lord Demon, but it's just a minor injury."

Chu Liyue's actions stiffened, seemingly unaccustomed to her calm and indifferent tone. His fingers clenched tightly under his sleeves, annoyed by her attitude, her indifference, but ultimately, he was the one who should be most vexed...

If it weren't for him, she wouldn't have become so cold and avoidant.

So, why was he still bothering her?

Chu Liyue took a deep breath, his gaze still fixed on her figure.

Just as she turned to leave, he suddenly said in a low voice, "Do you... hate me very much?"

As he spoke, his voice seemed to tremble, perhaps even he hadn't realized how pale and distraught he looked at that moment.

Nanyan's eyelids slightly drooped, her eyelashes uncontrollably trembling.

She seemed to ponder the meaning behind his words, but after a moment of thought, it felt meaningless.

After all, what's done is done, and more words are of no use.

So she just chuckled softly, as if resigning to her fate, "There's no need for you, Lord Demon, to test me. The affair of the substitute marriage was indeed a fault of my He family. I have received my punishment, and you have got what you desired. The ties between us were severed that day, leaving no debts or grudges."

Turning her face aside, she spoke in a calm and gentle tone, "Now, we are merely strangers who happen to cross paths on the street. I have no reason to harbor hatred towards a stranger."

...Strangers?

Chu Liyue suddenly felt a chill in his limbs.

Logic told him this was normal, the right thing... They were supposed to be strangers, uninvolved with each other - the most appropriate outcome. But, was it really so?

Why did it feel so painful?

He was constantly troubled, distressed, and even he didn't understand why...

Could it be that he didn't want to become... complete strangers?

Chu Liyue felt he had found the reason.

Especially seeing He Nanyan in front of him, the woman who once tried every means to please him, secretly calling him her husband, now addressing him as Lord Demon with a calm and indifferent attitude, telling him they were strangers from now on, not even willing to hate him...

What does this all mean?

Chu Liyue closed his eyes.

Was she trying to completely exile him from her life, to the point where she wouldn't care about him anymore?

The mere thought made Chu Liyue feel a sudden, unbearable tightness in his chest, as if stung by something.

It was like a thorn piercing his heart, initially a slow, minor pain that gradually spread throughout his body. The small wound grew larger, and the intense, prickling pain deepened, becoming increasingly unbearable.

How could this...

How could they become strangers?

They had once been married, the closest relationship under the heavens. How could it just end like this?

Chu Liyue knew he wasn't a good man, impulsive and hot-tempered, but he couldn't, or perhaps wouldn't, believe that she had completely erased every trace of him from her heart.

The woman who once adored him now wouldn't even deign to look at him. He suddenly grabbed her hand, forcing her to face him directly, "Look at me and say again that you don't hate me."

Nanyan pressed her lips tightly and turned her face away, "Let go of me!"

"Say it, looking into my eyes."

This action almost broke Nanyan's composed facade. She couldn't understand why he was persisting. Was it because she seemed too at ease, so he wanted to continue tormenting her?

At this thought, Nanyan's face quickly turned pale.

She abruptly lifted her head, tears streaming uncontrollably, as if to release all the grievances she had suffered from him, "What do you want me to say? What's the point of dwelling on these things now?"

"You've already got the person you wanted, and I, the impostor, have received my due punishment. Why can't you let me go? Our relationship ended the moment you sent me away. Do you really hate me that much..."

"I've said it before, I don't hate you, nor will I care about you anymore. It's not worth it. I won't waste my emotions on a stranger."

After saying this, she broke free from his grasp, stepping back. Yet, tears uncontrollably fell, just like when she desperately clung to his sleeve, pleading.

Each word she said was like a knife, piercing deeply into his heart. Chu Liyue felt an unbearable pain growing within him.

Indeed, what's the point of dwelling on these things now? He already got the person he always wanted, and the one who deceived him has been punished...

But why?

Why does his heart race when he sees her smile, ache when he sees her cry, especially when he sees her with another man...

Another man?

Suddenly, it seemed he understood something. Chu Liyue's voice was hoarse, "Have you... fallen for that useless man?"

Useless man?

Was he talking about Ye Qingsang?

This thought struck Nanyan as ludicrous, but what did it matter to him?

Nanyan wiped her tears, then laughed mockingly, looking straight at him, "Don't you think you're overstepping, Lord Demon? Who I like is none of your business, is it?"

She taunted casually, "Could it be that after sending me away, you realized you had feelings for me and now regret it? That's just laughable, my lord. Even a three-year-old wouldn't believe such a story."

She looked directly into his eyes, her gaze filled with cold mockery.

Chu Liyue, hearing those words, suddenly stiffened. His complexion drained of color, the veins on his hand stood out as he clenched his fingers tightly.

...Like?

He seemed to have found the root of his longstanding pain and discomfort.

...It was like.

It must be like. He had fallen for He Nanyan, that’s why he was so entangled with her, feeling pained seeing her cry, jealous seeing her with other men…

He liked her, truly liked her.

Even Chu Liyue himself found it laughable, ridiculously so! Yet, this was the truth, only now did he fully realize his feelings. It wasn't someone else, not He Nanwan, but the person he thought was just a substitute, He Nanyan, whom he liked.

The Demon Lord's chest heaved, his low, suppressed breaths seemed to contain unspeakable agony.

But what had he done? The things he did to her... throwing her to other men, he even almost killed her. After all the harm he caused her, how could he say he liked her...

What kind of like is so repulsive?

Chu Liyue's heart suddenly began to tremble, like a last struggle before death. He pursed his lips, striving to maintain his composure, and asked in the gentlest tone possible.

"If... I mean if..."

But before he could finish his words, he was interrupted.

"Impossible." Nanyan shook her head, crying and then laughing, a laugh that seemed like a release from past burdens, with tears sliding down from the corners of her eyes, "There are no 'ifs' between us..."

"All that happened in the past is now settled. I will live a good life in the mortal world. I will forget the past, marry an ordinary man, bear and raise children, and live out the rest of my days in peace, never to trouble your eyes again."

Marry an ordinary man...

Bear and raise children!

Just the thought of such a scenario made Chu Liyue clench his chest fiercely, as if tasting a bittersweet surge in his throat.

He closed his eyes, his handsome and pale face seemingly frosted over.

When he opened his eyes again, they were an unfathomable, suffocating black.

"...What if, I don't agree..."

Nanyan glared at him fiercely, tears instantly welling up.

Her face pale against her blood-red lips, she was hauntingly beautiful, "You don't agree? Chu Liyue, what right do you have? Who do you think you are, and why?"

"It was you who forced the marriage on the He family. My sister didn't want to marry you. What could I do? I was nothing but a disposable piece thrown away by my family. Do you think I wanted to marry in her place? Why do you hate me? I never harmed you from the beginning. Why do you persecute me, why won't you let me go..."

The rest of her words were suddenly swallowed up in the other's lips and teeth.

Nanyan's pupils contracted slightly.

He actually leaned in for a kiss.

Why? This must be the reason.

It was less a sudden kiss and more a comforting gesture filled with confusion and fondness. His actions were cautious, very light and gentle, as gentle as a breeze brushing past.

Don't cry...

Even Chu Liyue himself didn't know why he did it, but seeing her cry so sorrowfully, a dull ache arose in his heart. He wanted to hold her, to soothe her, to stop her tears...

Nanyan saw his eyelashes tremble slightly.

Then, with teary eyes, she fiercely slapped him.

"...Get away from me!"

The slap was delivered with full force, its genuine intensity causing a numbness in her palm.

Chu Liyue's face turned swiftly to the side from the impact, a red mark quickly appearing on his pale, jade-like cheek, even a trickle of blood from his lip, bitten during the kiss.

Yet, he looked at her stubbornly, as if unaffected by the pain.

Nanyan forcefully pushed against his chest, her body staggering slightly. She looked up, incredulous, "What do you think I am?"

"How could you... how could you do something like this..."

After saying this, she turned to leave, abandoning even the bamboo basket behind, seemingly eager to sever any ties with him.

Chu Liyue, left behind, coughed lightly, and suddenly coughed up blood, the red staining his lips with a burning allure.

He wiped his mouth, his fingertips stained with her lip color, the lingering warmth long gone.

Watching her retreating figure, Chu Liyue chuckled softly, but as he laughed, his eyes reddened, moisture accumulating, betraying an intense agony...

Who could he blame for ending up like this?

No one but himself, for being deluded... for realizing too late, for his insincerity, and most of all, for handing her over to another man...

The pain, regret, and unbearable torment, endlessly entwined and deep-seated in his bones – he deserved it... A sweet, metallic taste rose in Chu Liyue's throat.

But what could he do?

Even so, he still couldn't let go.

Meanwhile, in another courtyard.

He Nanwan handed over a bottle of bone-healing pills, guilt evident in her eyes as she looked at Ye Qingsong. "Senior Brother, I procured these pills for you. They should heal your external injuries and restore your legs, but as for the dantian..."

Ye Qingsong eyed the bottle but clenched his fingers, unwilling to accept sympathy or charity from anyone, especially not from an enemy. "Did you get these from him?"

He Nanwan paused, then realized what he meant. But at this point, what difference did it make who was an enemy or not? Surely preserving one's life was more important.

"Senior Brother, no matter where this medicine came from, it can heal your wounds and help you stand again. Please don't be so stubborn, alright?"

Ye Qingsong's eyes suddenly hardened with coldness, forcefully knocking away her extended hand, "I don't need his charity."

He Nanwan seemed surprised by his icy demeanor, her eyes reddening slightly, "Senior Brother, please don't be like this. This isn't charity, it's from me. I genuinely want to help you. Are you... blaming me? Blaming me for not being clear before, for dragging you down…"

Ye Qingsong stiffly withdrew his hand, realizing his reaction had been too impulsive.

Especially seeing her distressed look, he couldn't bear it at heart. A flicker of conflict passed through his eyes, and finally, he spoke to comfort her, "I don't blame you. This has nothing to do with you. After all, I did harbor some undisclosed intentions back then."

His words surprised He Nanwan, deepening the remorse in her heart. She truly regarded her Senior Brother as nothing more than family.

Moreover, now was not the time to discuss such matters.

She placed the porcelain bottle on the table, her expression awkward, "Senior Brother, I've... already agreed to marry A-Yue. Only by doing this, he'll lower his guard and allow me to see you."

Hearing this news, Ye Qingsong's body stiffened momentarily, but then he realized he didn't feel as surprised as he expected, as if he had anticipated this.

Back in the sect, Nanwan always followed that outer disciple around. Their relationship was always good, until Chu Liyue fell into demonic ways, and He Nanwan started to distance herself from him... He should have known, they had feelings for each other.

Now that they've reunited, he's become the extraneous one.

Ye Qingsong suddenly found it somewhat amusing.

Seeing him silent, He Nanwan continued in a lowered voice, "Senior Brother, this is not my true wish. Now, all I can do is try to appease him. Can you... help me?"

"I'm thinking... of running away from the wedding again."

She knew how excessive her request was, but she couldn't find anyone else to help. With A-Yue's current temperament, she wouldn't stay with him unless he changed.

Her intention in fleeing the wedding again was to show A-Yue that she wasn't a woman who would simply submit and be controlled; she was different from the others in this world.

But... to run away from a wedding again?

Ye Qingsong hesitated suddenly. What did she mean by asking for help? In the past, he had harmed another woman to assist her. Did she expect him to...

For some reason, looking at He Nanwan in front of him, Ye Qingsong suddenly felt a sense of strangeness, and a tangled, difficult-to-accept emotion suddenly arose in the depths of his heart.

Should he really... help her?

Ye Qingsong didn't know what was happening to him, as memories of He Nanyan suddenly flooded his mind. She was a woman with a tough exterior but a soft heart, seemingly harsh but actually gentler than anyone, selling all her jewelry to buy medicine for him, outwardly fierce but internally very soft...

Thinking of these things, Ye Qingsong suddenly hesitated. He felt as if his heart was split in two, one half for He Nanwan, with her pitiful, pleading voice asking for his help, and the other half for He Nanyan, with both voices mixing and clashing, buzzing in his head.

He shouldn't have agreed, shouldn't have gotten entangled with those people, and certainly shouldn't have dragged her down with him. After all, in his current state, how could he possibly be of any help?

Ye Qingsong was thinking more of He Nanyan, but in a daze, another voice echoed in his ears, wasn't He Nanwan the one he loved?

After a long hesitation, Ye Qingsong finally agreed.