Chapter 143 - 142: Any Requests?
Jian Yu’s breathing grew shallow, and she unconsciously clenched her fingers.
Her intuition told her that she would get her wish today.
As long as she could be a little more dramatic.
’Damn, I don’t know how to be dramatic, though.’
’It’s a little hard to pull off.’
Jian Yu simply decided to remain silent.
’When a problem arises, don’t solve it, don’t explain it, just put on the appearance of a walking corpse. That’s got to piss someone off, right?’
Ling Yanzhi was about to explode with anger.
His faintly unsteady gasps were accompanied by waves of a dull ache in his heart.
Jian Yu’s gaze fell on his broad, rising and falling chest.
’It feels like something is still missing.’
’Maybe a more punchable expression?’
Jian Yu pursed her lips and stubbornly lifted her head, her large eyes flashing with fierce resistance.
Ling Yanzhi laughed. "I just said you had some backbone, but then you turn around and spinelessly buy poison to drink."
His laugh was low and hoarse, the end of it rising in pitch, tinged with the sound of his composure breaking.
He stared into Jian Yu’s eyes. "This kind of medicine only works on ordinary people. Awakeners are completely immune."
He felt wronged by her distrust, but what he felt more was a lingering fear.
Jian Yu was usually sickly and listless. Nothing seemed to faze her, and she lacked any real vitality, as if she could depart from this world at any moment.
But Ling Yanzhi never thought she would actually be willing to give up her life.
Jian Yu paused, her eyes darting slightly.
’Oh, right. It only works on a fake ordinary person like me.’
’I thought he’d misunderstand and think I was going to use it on them.’
’There are too many dumb female leads in novels who listen to the villainess and poison the male lead.’
Jian Yu thought she wouldn’t be able to escape this trope either, that the plot would automatically correct itself into a misunderstanding where she was trying to poison them.
Ling Yanzhi turned to the side, his voice tight. "All of you, get out."
’?’ Jian Yu glanced around from the corner of her eye. ’There aren’t any doors here.’
’An open field, out in the open, lampposts, a forest...’
"Yes, sir." Everyone responded respectfully, and with a few uses of Instant Teleportation, they boarded a small Starship and flew away.
In an instant, the surroundings became even quieter, as if they had been isolated in an intensive care unit.
Jian Yu glanced at the dean, who was waving goodbye.
He had a worried expression, but his eyes held the faint excitement of someone watching a drama unfold and shipping a couple.
Seeing the dean still had the presence of mind to smile, Jian Yu’s tense nerves relaxed a little.
She remembered Ling Chengfeng’s pale face as he passed out after being dragged just a few steps.
"I might have been a bit too rough. Do you want to have someone check on him?"
Jian Yu was worried that if Ling Chengfeng actually died, she would be blamed for it later.
After all, she couldn’t beat Ling Yanzhi right now.
"Don’t change the subject." Ling Yanzhi’s eyes were downcast, his lashes hiding the emotion in them.
"I’ll have my men make a couple more lethal attempts on his life. Whether he can survive on Dark Star will depend on his luck."
An eye for an eye.
He had also been abandoned on Dark Star by Ling Chengfeng.
If Xi Yu hadn’t brought the Ling Family’s Clan Leader to find him, he might have died that year when he was seven.
The Clan Leader was gone now. No one could stop him anymore.
All the hatred, resentment, and expectations of the past would be buried here.
Jian Yu froze.
’Was that what I just meant?’
Ling Yanzhi’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he continued to stare intently at Jian Yu.
He had his suspicions, but he still hoped for an answer that was different from what he guessed.
"Explain."
Jian Yu pursed her lips, not quite sure what she should explain.
The atmosphere froze. The pressure was silent. The two of them were as stiff as stone statues.
The corners of Ling Yanzhi’s eyes tilted up slightly, his gaze fixed on Jian Yu’s cool, fair face.
He broke the silence. "You prepared the poison for yourself?"
The moment he spoke, Jian Yu broke out in goosebumps.
’So you really can hear the sound of a voice filled with so much anger it’s heartbreaking.’
’The novel didn’t lie to me!’
Having spent a long time with him, Jian Yu felt she understood Ling Yanzhi reasonably well.
She suppressed the trembling in her fingers, holding on to a sliver of secret anticipation.
After a long moment, she finally nodded. "Mhm, yes."
’It wasn’t exactly a lie.’
’At the time, I was just an "ordinary person" with high research value.’
’Pei Yin’s covetous staring, Xi Yu’s inexplicable physical obsession, and Ling Yanzhi’s declaration of love at first sight.’
’No one knew if they were candy, or poison wrapped in a candy shell.’
Jian Yu had bought the poison after her non-human genes were discovered.
She was prepared to off herself and return to the real world the moment she sensed something was wrong.
When the system found her, the hospital already had a matching donor.
Three hundred million was enough to pay for her heart transplant.
In truth, she could feel that Ling Yanzhi had some genuine feelings for her.
But genuine feelings were fickle; there was no telling how long they would last.
Besides, even genuine feelings could be mixed with self-interest and coercion.
Jian Yu’s thoughts were a mess.
’So he’s not angry because he thought I wanted to poison them, but because I wanted to kill myself?’
’Why does it feel like this is turning into a pure love story?’
Painful fragments from her time receiving medical treatment flashed through her mind.
Jian Yu lowered her head, her words both a spiteful jab and a test. "It’s not like there’s anything worth staying for."
Her thick, curled lashes fanned down, and she exuded a stillness and deadness that was at odds with her age.
From Ling Yanzhi’s perspective, all he could see was a cold, lonely shadow.
This sudden calm and detachment was terrifying.
Ling Yanzhi closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, his gaze swept down, carrying an invisible, oppressive weight.
Confusion, fear, grievance, and disbelief were all replaced by furious hostility.
Ling Yanzhi took a step forward, his tone laced with impulsiveness and a loss of control. "I gave you a chance to explain."
Every word was spoken through gritted teeth, as if forced from between them.
The Red Snake coiled around Jian Yu’s ankle, then swiftly wound around her waist, binding her hands and feet.
A bitter rage spread to his eyes, stinging Ling Yanzhi’s pupils until they turned a brilliant scarlet.
He glanced at the princess-style dress and blanket scattered on the ground, then wrapped an arm around Jian Yu’s waist and swept her up into his arms.
"Since there’s nothing here worth staying for, then you might as well hate me."
Jian Yu stopped her pretense of struggling.
She lifted her eyes, her heart accelerating as if it were being hammered.
Her tightly pressed lips formed a flat line of indifference, but a strange excitement flickered in the depths of her eyes.
A Soul Beast Cover enveloped them, its pale blue wall of light clearing out an open space.
Jian Yu was placed down on a messy pile of clothes.
Her head rested on her favorite dress.
’It was pretty expensive.’
Ling Yanzhi tore her clothes.
Seeing Jian Yu’s reddened eyes as she hugged her arms, his heart clenched.
A knot of frustration and anger surged within him, suffocating and stifling.
Ling Yanzhi suppressed his violent impulses, bracing his hands on either side of her and completely covering her with his body. "Don’t you have anything else to say?"
He kissed her, his hand gripping her waist with a bit too much force.
"I’ve already been holding back so much. I was even willing to share you with them."
He didn’t even feel like himself anymore.
It was a kiss that had lost all reason—rough, urgent, impatient, and highly aggressive.
"Mmph... mmm..."
Jian Yu couldn’t help but let out a muffled groan.
She bit her lip, but her cheeks were gently pinched, parting them slightly.
A feeling of suffocation washed over her, and she still couldn’t stop a few suggestive gasps from escaping.
"Share?" Jian Yu pushed him away, breathing heavily, her long neck arched slightly.
"Isn’t love about possession? If you’re willing to share, how much can you possibly love me?"
Ling Yanzhi froze. "Xi Yu is different."
Jian Yu pressed, "Then what about Pei Yin?"
"You don’t reject Pei Yin. I was just respecting your choices. That includes Sheng Yue."
After saying that, Ling Yanzhi added, "Xi Yu and I are inseparable."
The corners of Jian Yu’s eyes were red. Her lashes fluttered down, hiding her reddened eyelids. "I don’t believe in love at first sight."
"I never lie."
Jian Yu blurted out instinctively, "What’s your star card password?"
"I changed it to your birthday," Ling Yanzhi answered quickly.
His breathing was heavy, broken words forced from his throat. "It doesn’t matter. Just hate me."
Ling Yanzhi leaned down frantically.
After a moment, he suddenly pulled the clothes back over Jian Yu.
Jian Yu was exasperated by his failure to follow through.
Her eyes misted over, and her expression took on a hint of something difficult to say. "Netizens say that guys who only kiss but don’t go all the way are just trying to avoid taking responsibility."
Ling Yanzhi’s pupils trembled.
He wasn’t stupid.
"Do you have any requests? Should I be gentle?"
’What am I supposed to do? I have no experience.’
Jian Yu narrowed her eyes, a faint blush spreading from the corners. "When I tell you to stop, you get rougher."
Ling Yanzhi’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
A low, joyous response escaped him. "Okay..."
Faint, ambiguous whimpers drifted from the forest.