Chapter 365 Her Heart Had Always Belonged Only to Xiao Lingchuan!

Chapter 365: Her Heart Has Always Had Only Xiao Lingchuan!

The toxicity of the Heart-Eating Gu was brutal and fierce, like thousands of ants gnawing at the internal organs, or like invisible claws repeatedly tearing at the flesh and blood.

Xiao Huaijin's consciousness drifted on waves of excruciating pain until his vision went black and he lost consciousness.

Only after he collapsed unconscious did Jiang Tianze emerge from behind the screen.

His gaze coldly fell upon that face pale as paper on the ground, with barely suppressed hatred in his eyes.

Xiao Lingchuan glanced at him, his voice as cold as ice.

"I leave him to you."

"Question him thoroughly about who instigated him to dare such a treacherous act against me. This is the culprit who injured Shuning—don't be soft on him!"

This commanding tone, this condescending attitude, made Jiang Tianze's anger flare.

What right did he have to speak to him in such a tone?

But thinking of A Ning still unconscious on her sickbed, Jiang Tianze could only suppress his rage, forcing out the words through gritted teeth: "I understand."

He lifted his head, meeting Xiao Lingchuan's unfathomable gaze, and stated his terms word by word: "You must also keep your promise and allow me to see A Ning whenever I wish."

Xiao Lingchuan stared at him, his eyes dark and unreadable, like a stagnant pool that could not be stirred.

After a long moment, he curled the corner of his lip and said slowly, "Jiang Tianze, if only you were Shuning's own cousin."

These words made Jiang Tianze's expression instantly darken.

Xiao Lingchuan was reminding him that, in his eyes, his admiration for Jiang Shuning was both absurd and disgusting, utterly beneath consideration.

...

When Xiao Huaijin awoke, he found himself in a pitch-black room that was airtight.

The air was thick with a moldy, earthy smell, with only a faint beam of light from above barely illuminating a small patch of ground in front of him.

He tried to move, but immediately a familiar, sharp cramp in his abdomen made him let out a muffled groan.

A figure blocked the only source of light, casting a large shadow that enveloped him.

Xiao Huaijin squinted, struggling to discern the outline of the approaching person.

That young, angular face bore a striking resemblance to Xiao Lingchuan, remarkably similar.

"You... are Miss Jiang's cousin, Third Young Master Jiang?" He recalled the scene before losing consciousness, his voice as dry as sandpaper. "Are you now... working for Prince Jing?"

Jiang Tianze looked down at him from above, his gaze colder than the dungeon itself.

"Prince Ning," he began, each word as if pulled from an ice cellar, "A Ning and I have no blood relation whatsoever."

Xiao Huaijin was startled.

Then Jiang Tianze continued in a venomous voice: "I heard that after I left Nanshuo, you were the one carrying that child and running to You'an Hall every day to see her. How is it that, seeing her every day and spending time together, you couldn't recognize her as the lover in disguise? It seems your feelings for her are no deeper than that!"

He let out a sneer, a laugh full of undisguised contempt and satisfaction.

As if he were taking out all his humiliation from Xiao Lingchuan on Xiao Huaijin.

Xiao Huaijin's head was buzzing, his face full of doubt.

Why would Jiang Tianze deliberately emphasize... that he and Jiang Shuning had no blood relation?

Could it be that...

A thought, both utterly absurd and perfectly reasonable, exploded in his head like a thunderbolt.

He suddenly looked up, staring hard at Jiang Tianze: "You... are in love with Miss Jiang?"

"Of course."

Jiang Tianze slowly crouched down to meet his eyes.

In those eyes so similar to Xiao Lingchuan's, flames of jealousy and madness burned.

He leaned close to Xiao Huaijin's ear, word by word, like a devil's whisper:

"Compared to you—who sent assassins that accidentally injured her and nearly killed her—my feelings for her are more deserving of the word 'love'!"

He emphasized the word 'love' heavily, like a sledgehammer slamming into Xiao Huaijin's heart.

A sharp, piercing pain radiated from his chest, even surpassing the abdominal cramps.

He opened his mouth, his voice so dry he could barely speak.

"I... never intended to harm her..." He tried to defend himself, each word weak with effort. "I wanted to assassinate Xiao Lingchuan... but I never expected... she would step in front of the sword for Xiao Lingchuan..."

"This matter is indeed my fault," he closed his eyes, a bitter taste in his mouth, "I am willing to accept punishment."

"You hypocrite!" Jiang Tianze suddenly stood up and roared. "On the surface you act all noble and refined like jade, but in private, aren't you just as capable of despicable assassination plots? And A Ning used to admire you as a rare, gentle, and refined gentleman! Xiao Huaijin, you are unworthy!"

Xiao Huaijin slowly opened his eyes, looking at his furious demeanor, and a faint, bleak smile appeared on his face.

"Yes, I am unworthy." His voice was soft, but like a sharp knife, it precisely stabbed into Jiang Tianze's already broken heart. "You are unworthy too."

Meeting Jiang Tianze's furious gaze, he laid bare the cruelest reality, word by word.

"From the moment I knew she stepped in front of a sword for Xiao Lingchuan, I knew that the person in her heart could not be me, nor could it be you, but..."

"Shut up!"

Jiang Tianze, as if he had heard the most terrible taboo, roared and interrupted him, his voice trembling with agitation.

"A Ning cannot possibly have feelings for that bastard Xiao Lingchuan! She hates him! She hates him so much that she can only escape him through death! She cannot, and absolutely will not, care about Xiao Lingchuan!"

He roared like a trapped beast.

Yet, after the roar, a great emptiness and pallor instantly came over him.

Even he realized how ridiculous these words were.

If she didn't care, how could she, at that critical moment, without a second thought, throw herself in front of that sharp sword?

If she didn't care, how could she exchange her own life for his?

This is not just caring; this is love etched into her very bones and marrow, love that even death cannot erase!

"You see," Xiao Huaijin looked at him, a smile even more bitter than tears, "Even you cannot convince yourself. Third Young Master Jiang, I was never your enemy. Our enemy is someone else."

Jiang Tianze staggered back a step and collided with the cold wall.

All along, he had regarded Xiao Huaijin as his greatest romantic rival.

Jiang Shuning had never hidden her admiration for Xiao Huaijin's gentle and refined nature.

That admiration was like a poisonous thorn, deeply embedded in his heart, filling him with jealousy and driving him crazy.

The more gentle and righteous Xiao Huaijin appeared, the more it underscored his own sinister and despicable nature.

So he hated him with a burning hostility.

But only today, at this moment, did he realize how terribly wrong he had been.

The one who truly took A Ning from him was never this so-called "gentleman" Xiao Huaijin.

The one who completely occupied her heart, making her love him so much she would risk her own life...

Had always, only ever been Xiao Lingchuan alone!

"Even if I know that Xiao Lingchuan is our mortal enemy, so what?" Jiang Tianze's eyes were dim and lifeless, his face filled with despair and desolation. "It still won't change the fact that A Ning will never choose me."

"You are mistaken," Xiao Huaijin said, looking at him, his voice cold as ice. "As long as Xiao Lingchuan completely vanishes from this world, we have a chance to win her favor."