Chapter 92

Chapter 92

After sunset, the air outside turned bitterly cold.

The moonlight shifted, illuminating the peony-patterned windows of the warm pavilion, as if a layer of frost had formed.

Inside the east warm pavilion, the charcoal brazier burned fiercely, barely warding off the deep chill in the room.

Truthfully, when Ying Shi first asked him to stay, she had no ulterior motives.

Her heart was weighed down by unresolved matters; who had time for trivial concerns?

Since Liang Ji returned, she’d been sleeping alone, often terrified, waking from nightmares in the dead of night. Memories from her past life, nearly forgotten, seemed to resurface.

By day, she seemed calm, but at night, as the cold wind scraped frozen branches, only she knew her fear—a fear no guard or servant could ease.

Though she’d lived in this courtyard for two lifetimes, she still longed to move out as soon as possible.

Only by leaving could she truly leave the past behind.

Rong Er was his child, and he’d promised that staying with him would let her escape this suffocating mansion. Naturally, that would be ideal.

His gentle nature and obvious affection for Rong Er were things Ying Shi, who wasn’t blind, could clearly see.

But what about the rest? What if they took it further?

The pain from her past life had long twisted her heart, leaving her hesitant and wary.

After all, in her past life, she and Liang Ji had shared a deep bond, yet it ended in ruin.

Why should she believe Liang Yun would be better? Maybe he was, but what if disaster struck again?

So Ying Shi always subconsciously held back her heart.

What about the next few decades? Who could say? She’d already suffered once, even lost her life...

If she couldn’t escape Liang Ji, how could she outmaneuver Liang Yun if he turned ruthless?

Looking at the couples she knew, not one had a relationship worth admiring. Even if some seemed glamorous, only they knew the truth.

In the next few decades, who could say if she was just jumping from one fire to another?

Enough. Why overthink? She should focus on solving the immediate problems first...

Ying Shi lay down, her mind a mess, but as she extinguished the lamp, Liang Yun embraced her from behind.

Though it was pitch dark, she could faintly sense him watching her, his eyes half-closed.

His calloused palm traced her nose and face, his fingertips conveying longing.

He gently cradled her head, and Ying Shi could only clutch his belt helplessly. At first, it was a tentative kiss, a pause to caress, then another kiss.

Each time, it was done with great care.

But gradually, it became more uncontrollable, the taste changing, the intensity growing.

The air grew thick with heat, the room hazy.

Her breathing began with delicate gasps, like a cat that adores being stroked.

Her back, her chest—everywhere, she loved to be touched.

Yet he always had his preferred places. He laid her down, slowly removing her undergarments, her skin like smooth jade, too delicate for even his large hand to fully grasp.

His hands were so big.

Gradually, a suppressed whimper escaped her.

It had been too long since they’d truly been together. Her body was too tender, too sensitive. She eventually gave in, the heat overwhelming, the waves crashing, making her body tremble uncontrollably.

She sobbed, insisting she couldn’t.

But he pressed on, asking her repeatedly, "Why could you before but not now? Is it because Shun Gong has returned?"

Too overwhelmed to answer, her voice a muddled mess, she could only shake her head, crying and choking out that it wasn’t.

When it ended, she was completely drained. Long after the climax, she remained unsettled, her cheeks flushed, breathing heavily as if drunk, too ashamed to face him.

Only after he soothed her for a long time did she finally relax.

His collar bore a faint scent of agarwood, soothing her spirit.

Weakened, Ying Shi buried her face in his chest, their cheeks so close they were nearly forehead to forehead. So close, she could feel that part of him rising again.

But fearing he might hurt her if he continued, he just held her, not going further.

Under the covers, the heat was intense. Soon, she even forgot her earlier shame and fell into a deep sleep.

After she fell asleep, Liang Yun couldn’t help but prop himself up slightly on one side, holding her hand, his gaze locked intently on her sleeping face.

Perhaps his slight movement away made her lose her sense of security, and soon her brows furrowed in her sleep.

Listening carefully, she occasionally let out low moans of pain.

This was a nightmare.

Her long lashes were damp, as if a tear was about to slip from the corner of her tightly closed eyes.

Liang Yun wiped the damp corner of her eye with his fingertip.

He lay back down, pulling her trembling body close.

In the pitch-dark, Ying Shi, wracked with pain, thought she heard a familiar voice.

It said, “Don’t be afraid. I’m right here with you.”

...

At dawn the next morning, Liang Yun emerged from the Zhou Jin Garden.

Since Liang Ji’s return these past few days, not a soul—not even a fly—could enter the garden.

Despite this, he seemed in a foul mood from the start of the day, his eyelids drooping slightly.

His tone was sharp as he stepped out and immediately asked Zhang Ping, “Has Third Master come to disturb her these days?”

No matter how busy, Liang Yun always found time for updates from the Zhou Jin Garden, and Zhang Ping had already answered, but the master still asked.

Zhang Ping replied respectfully, "Third Master visited once on the day he returned and then never entered again. The day before yesterday, he called out to the lady from outside the wall, but she ignored him. Last night, he drank in the front courtyard during the wedding of the two ladies, likely got drunk, and spent half the night in the front corridor..."

Liang Yun frowned, a sense of suspicion growing in his heart.

He always felt that since Shun Gong returned, her emotions were unusually off. Everything seemed too smooth; he hadn’t intervened much, yet she was so disgusted and angered by Shun Gong? This was unexpected.

Perhaps she couldn’t tolerate even a speck of sand in her eyes, or there was some other reason...

He continued to instruct, "Keep a close eye on him; he’s not a straightforward character."

"Yes."

Liang Yun stepped out of the courtyard and, walking along the corridor, immediately saw Liang Ji.

Liang Ji was sitting on what was essentially the only path from the Daybreak Garden to the front courtyard. Outside the corridor, the cold wind howled, and snow drifted everywhere, yet he seemed completely unaware, not moving at all.

Only when Liang Yun approached did he coldly look up.

Since returning to the capital a few days ago, Liang Ji had undergone a complete transformation. No longer working daily in the fields and mountains, his skin had visibly lightened. The disheveled beard he had on his return day had been shaved clean.

His black hair was adorned with a silver crown, beneath which was a face of striking intensity.

The Liang men were all tall, with deep-set eyebrows and high noses. From the contours to the straight line of his lips, the sharp eyebrows extending to the temples, although their temperaments were different, the similarity in the bone structure of these brothers was evident, both resembling tall, sturdy pines standing on unyielding rocks.

Even Liang Yun was momentarily stunned by his face, his lips pressed into a straight line.

In the dead of winter, Liang Ji was not wearing a heavy cloak, only wearing a narrow-sleeved, gold-embroidered pine-patterned robe and black boots with gold soles.

His sideburns were slightly disheveled, and he sat silently by the corridor, staring as Liang Yun walked over from the backyard.

Even though Liang Ji had prepared himself, seeing his elder brother emerge from that courtyard still shook him to the core, his eyes as if pierced.

Liang Yun was dressed in a black cloak, his clothes neatly arranged, his sideburns meticulously combed. All of this was a clear message to him that he had slept in the Daybreak Garden last night.

This realization shattered the facade of self-deception Liang Ji had maintained for so long, making it impossible for him to continue pretending, to hide his anger and disappointment.

From the very beginning, they had been pushed together to produce a child. But now that they had a child, she refused to see him upon his return, she had almost severed ties with him, yet she still allowed his elder brother to stay overnight?

In what should have been their bridal chamber, his most beloved woman was intimate with his elder brother.

In the days he hadn't returned, in places he couldn't see, were they like this every night? Were they intimately close every night?

For a moment, Liang Ji was consumed by near madness, his eyes bloodshot, barely able to suppress the fury within him, wanting to rush forward and smash that false face.

He knew that Liang Yun had been severely injured, one hand already crippled, and was no match for him.

But this elder brother was truly afraid of death, something he hadn't noticed before, but since returning to the mansion, he was always surrounded by bodyguards.

Just as Liang Ji stood up, the corner of his eye caught Zhang Ping behind Liang Yun slowly placing his hand on the hilt of his sword.

Huh—

"Why are you standing in the corridor?" Liang Yun asked casually as he passed by.

Liang Ji thought to himself, 'Didn’t you come over on purpose? And you have the nerve to ask me? Which of the principles you taught me when I was young have you followed yourself?' You’re a despicable, shameless hypocrite.

Liang Ji questioned him, "I’ve been looking into things these past few days. Guess what I found? I went to see Fu Dalang, I asked him personally, and he said he was brought to the capital early, a full seven or eight days before me! I thought, how could it be such a coincidence? Was it you? Were you the one pulling the strings behind the scenes? Did you send people to intercept me? You must’ve wished I’d died out there, huh?"

Liang Yun would not deny what he had done. He had let Fu Dalang go back, allowing them to continue living with Liang Ji, naturally anticipating this day.

You can’t hide the truth forever. Besides, he never planned to hide it.

Some things have to be settled; you can’t live in a fantasy forever.

But as an older brother, this was truly crossing the line. Liang Yun’s sense of honor made him admit, "You’re my own flesh and blood. I went to see you as soon as I heard, but after thinking it over, I stopped."

Liang Yun rubbed his sleeve, "Back then, Rong Er wasn’t even born yet; she couldn’t have handled the stress. And two years ago, when I ordered you to quell the rebellion, you ignored military orders and acted recklessly, causing a disaster. Xiao Jili was banished to Lingnan. Now the border’s in chaos again. Do you think I run the court single-handedly? The court’s been simmering with resentment over the last defeat. Your sudden return was poorly timed."

Liang Ji’s fingers trembled slightly. He couldn’t hold back his rage any longer, sneering at him, "If I hadn’t caught on and escaped, you’d have kept me trapped there forever!"

"You wanted me dead out there so you could keep her! My survival must’ve thrown you off!"

Liang Yun stayed silent for a moment, then finally said in a low voice, "Shun Gong, I told you—I’m glad you’re back."

He was his own brother. No matter how cold-hearted he was, he couldn’t bring himself to spill innocent blood. Nor would he use such despicable means.

Liang Yun was unhinged.

Outwardly calm and gentle, but beneath it all was a madness that could lie dormant for years.

He’d thought to himself, Liang Ji’s return—wasn’t that a gift from heaven?

After all, you can’t compete with the dead. Especially when they died at the time she loved him the most.

Liang Yun had originally thought he might never reach her heart, that there would always be a Liang Ji between them.

What status did her early-deceased brother hold in her heart? High mountain snow, moon in the sky, unattainable, untouchable. She would remember him for a lifetime, never forgetting.

He was willing to be a man in the shadows, but after a hundred years of entanglement, would she still insist on being buried with his brother?

Liang Yun’s emotional fluctuation was fleeting. He said indifferently, "You see, you're back, and many things don’t require my intervention. You are slowly rotting and peeling away in her heart. Every day you’re here makes her restless."

Yet he still doesn’t understand, always pushing himself in front of her.

Liang Ji’s face was as black as ink. He slowly raised his head, looking directly into Liang Yun’s eyes, deep hatred hidden within: "Without your interference, without your obstruction, there would be no one else between us! There would be no Fu Fan! Your selfishness has ruined me, and ruined her!"

"Ruined you? Did I force you to marry your wife? Did I force you to sleep with her? You should take responsibility for your own mistakes. I brought her here to reunite your family, and that’s ruining you?" Liang Yun rubbed the ring on his finger, patiently sneering.

Liang Ji seemed not to hear, turned and patted his shoulder, "You’re pitiful. You should figure out why she agreed to be with you? It was for me at the beginning. It's just that this girl is too naive, too easily deceived by you. Oh right... do you really think she hates me so much that she avoids seeing me? Heh, brother really doesn’t understand feelings. How long can her hatred for me last? We have over a decade of feelings! You, the newcomer... what do you count for?"

Liang Yun slightly narrowed his eyes. His expression instantly turned cold, almost unable to contain his anger, "The pitiful one has always been you. You always talk about how it was in your youth, but what’s the use? The past can only be the past. No matter how good the feelings were, it was just a ridiculous dream in your naive youth. She and I are husband and wife. We have nothing to be ashamed of. You are the newcomer."

"Since things have come to this, why cling so desperately to the past?"

Hearing this, Liang Ji shouted, "I just want to take back what belongs to me! She belongs to me!"

Liang Yun no longer tried to reason with this brother who twisted black and white.

He was always willful, the reasoning he couldn’t understand, always living in the memory of being owed by everyone.

But who owes him?

But who would keep indulging him day in and day out?

"There is no possibility between you and her anymore; let her go now. Don’t do something you can’t take back just because of your stubbornness and selfish desires," Liang Yun indifferently reminded.

But Liang Ji wasn’t about to give up.

His eyes were lowered, bloodshot with anger: "Do you really think just because Dad died early, you can do whatever you want? The uncles and elders won’t let you turn this into a joke!"

This younger brother, back from all his struggles, is still so naive and delusional. It seems he hasn't suffered enough.

Liang Yun couldn’t help smiling.

Silly brother, telling anyone won’t help.

What’s been worrying him has never been the outside world.

He’s just afraid that she will resent him in the future.

Resent him for destroying her most sincere feelings in her youth, resent him for making her a mother in her naive years, leaving her no way out.

Resent him for taking her, making everything irreparable—

Now it’s fine, let it happen. Let it blow up.

He wants her to see clearly that although the boy she has been longing for has returned, he can never go back to the past.

He wants her to realize he’s nothing compared to me.