flstandardbreds Chapter 78 I don't mind letting him know these things
Chapter 78 I don't mind letting him know these things
Upon hearing the word "again," Jiang Mian's pupils constricted and her heart suddenly raced.
"You...you are..."
"it's me."
Xiao Hengzhi smiled, but to Jiang Wan, that smile was extremely malicious.
Her mind exploded, and something collapsed instantly.
It was as if someone from purgatory had seized her once more. Her previous suspicions had come true, and even though she was somewhat prepared, her immediate instinct was still to escape.
Xiao Hengzhi gently turned to the side, blocking her path and forcing her to look directly at him.
He reached out, but before he could touch her, he heard her shout.
"Do not touch me!"
Xiao Hengzhi was seething with anger, but noticing her fear, he suppressed his emotions slightly and asked, "What do I have to do for you to forgive me?"
"Forgive me?" Jiang Wan seemed to find it utterly ridiculous. "Xiao Hengzhi, don't you think you're being hypocritical? You caused my death, and now you want my forgiveness? I will never forgive you for what happened before."
Her eyes were slightly red, and she was trembling with fear, but her words were filled with deep-seated hatred.
Xiao Hengzhi quickly explained, "I didn't harm you, and Yu'er is safe and sound..."
"What about Cong Shuang? If you hadn't sent men to steal her horse, how could Cong Shuang be in this state now?"
Xiao Hengzhi was stunned for a moment, feeling as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat.
As Jiang Wan tried to walk away from him, he rushed forward and grabbed her sleeve, saying, "I apologize, please don't go."
"Let me go!"
"I told you I don't like you! I didn't like you before, and I won't like you now!" she shouted hoarsely.
"You're lying!" Xiao Hengzhi looked into her eyes. "Didn't you worry about me before? Didn't you give me a chance, hoping I would turn to good? Now that I can be a good person, then shouldn't we...?"
"Impossible!" Jiang Wan's voice was filled with disgust and humiliation. "I was blind to pity you and believe you back then. There is absolutely no possibility between us!"
She spoke through gritted teeth, even feeling ashamed of the feelings she had initially expressed.
"That fire at Zuiyin Tower should have burned you to death inside..."
Xiao Hengzhi's gaze froze for a moment, then reddened, whether from anger or heartache, it was hard to tell.
After a long pause, she finally spoke, her voice hoarse: "You want to go to Ning Zhi's side, and you wish I were dead, is that right?"
"Yes!" Jiang Mian replied decisively.
His gaze trembled slightly as he looked at Jiang Mian's face, and a past event suddenly came to mind.
That was when he first arrived at the Jiang residence. He often had nightmares, always dreaming of a woman standing at the foot of his bed, approaching him with a knife. Eventually, he broke down completely, picked up the knife, and slowly stabbed himself.
That very day, Jiang Wan was playing hide-and-seek with the servants when she suddenly hid in his room. She was startled by the knife in his hand, but cautiously approached him, saying that if she had nightmares again, she should come to him.
Later he actually went, and Jiang Wan would always coax him to sleep before leaving.
He knew she was pitying him, but he craved that pity and only begged that she wouldn't turn around and pity others.
On the day of Madam Jiang's burial, she cried and said to him, "Xiao Hengzhi, you must live well."
She brought a ray of light to his barren life. Every sleepless night, he would imagine her face and let his fear dissipate.
But now Jiang Wan is telling him to die...
She had forgotten everything from the past.
Xiao Hengzhi's eyelashes trembled slightly as he slowly took her hand and placed it against his chest.
Do you want me to rip my heart out and show it to you?
Jiang Wan's hand paused, she struggled free, and whispered, "Madman..."
"I'm crazy!"
Xiao Hengzhi growled, his eyes filled with pain: "That was all because you forced me to. You have family and friends, you can live a good life, but I can't, I only have you. You abandoned me in our past life, are you going to go find him again this time? Jiang Wan, don't do this to me..."
The pain in Xiao Hengzhi's eyes was mixed with despair. He gripped Jiang Wan's hand tightly, his knuckles turning slightly white from the force, afraid that he might let her escape if he wasn't careful.
At that moment, clear footsteps came from outside the door; it was Ning Zhi coming upstairs.
The footsteps are getting closer.
She reached out to open the door, but Xiao Hengzhi suddenly grabbed her hands, pinned them above her head, and held them firmly.
Jiang Mian struggled, but he gripped her wrist even tighter, pinning her against the door and rendering her unable to move.
"Let me go!" she gritted her teeth.
Xiao Hengzhi lowered his head, and at such close range, he could clearly feel Jiang Mian's slight panting due to anger.
Outside the door, Ning Zhi called softly, "Miss Jiang? Where is she...?"
Just as Jiang Mian was about to respond, Xiao Hengzhi suddenly lowered his head and fiercely silenced her with a kiss.
"Well--"
Her eyes widened, and she struggled to let out a muffled groan.
A helpless sob escaped her throat, her lips were forced open, and he, with aggressive ruthlessness, robbed her of the last breath she had.
Jiang Mian's eyes turned red with anger, and she gritted her teeth, the smell of blood instantly filling the air.
But Xiao Hengzhi seemed to feel no pain at all, still holding her tightly without giving her any room to struggle, his grip so strong it almost crushed her finger bones.
A suffocating feeling washed over me, my heart was pounding rapidly in my ears, and the door behind me trembled almost imperceptibly.
Jiang Mian's whole body tensed up, her breathing became erratic, afraid that the person outside would notice.
After a long while, Xiao Hengzhi slowly released her, and beads of blood slid down his bitten lip, dissolving into his low and heavy breathing.
"Xiao Hengzhi..." she growled through gritted teeth, her voice filled with anger and trembling.
Xiao Hengzhi calmly raised his hand to wipe the blood from her lips, his voice low and hoarse: "Ning Zhi is outside, call out louder."
"What exactly do you want to do?" Her voice was almost squeezed out from between her teeth.
Xiao Hengzhi paused. "What do I want to do? I want him to know that I understand you far better than he does. What you're afraid of, what you like, when you're happy, when you're sad. I know every aspect of you, even the little mole on your back—I've kissed that too. I don't mind letting him know what happened between us..."
As he spoke, he reached out as if to open the door.
"No..." Jiang Wan felt a pang of panic.
If Ning Zhi saw her like this, she wouldn't be able to explain herself.
Xiao Hengzhi is a madman; once he takes off his mask, he's capable of anything.
“No…” Jiang Mian shook her head.
However, Xiao Hengzhi ignored him completely, a mocking smile on his lips, and gently pushed open the door.
But the moment the door opened, he let go of her hand, which he had been holding tightly.
Jiang Mian quickly straightened her clothes, steadied her hairpin, and hurriedly tucked her slightly disheveled hair behind her ears.
When Ning Zhi turned around, she had just stood up straight and steady.
"Your Highness." She forced herself to remain calm, her chest heaving nervously, afraid of arousing suspicion.
Ning Zhi's gaze shifted slightly, lingering on Jiang Mian's face for a moment before slowly moving to Xiao Hengzhi beside her.
“Young Master Xiao… no, that’s not right.” Ning Zhi chuckled lightly, “Now you should call me cousin. What’s your cousin doing here?”
Xiao Hengzhi looked at Jiang Mian as she adjusted her breathing and raised an eyebrow, saying, "I was looking for a quiet place to sit for a while, but I didn't expect to run into the Second Miss here, so I invited her to... sit for a while."
"Sitting idly?"
Ning Zhi smiled faintly, her gaze falling on the traces at the corner of his lips.
That faint trace of crimson blood, though pale, was clear and carried a hint of provocation.
Ning Zhi knew what had happened without even thinking about it. His fingertips unconsciously tightened, and he clenched his fist slightly under the wide sleeves of his robe.
Jiang Wan felt she couldn't stay there any longer; she couldn't calm down and was on the verge of collapse.
"My father has been waiting for me for a long time, so I must take my leave now."
She ran downstairs as if fleeing.
Xiao Hengzhi watched her retreating figure, smiled meaningfully, and casually flicked his sleeve.
He then turned to Ning Zhi and said, "Since you're here, why don't you join us for a cup of tea?"
He spoke of it with complete disregard, casually and nonchalantly, showing absolutely no respect.
Ning Zhi found his nonchalant attitude increasingly irritating.
This person had never been in the palace before, yet he acted as if he were in a superior position, completely disregarding him, the crown prince.