Chapter 131: Chapter 131: The Bright Moon’s Company

It was as if Liang Wan had eyes in the back of her head. She forced herself to sit up, looked down, and sneered softly, "Auntie, do you plan on being buried in this sea of fire?"

Mrs. Zhang, her hair disheveled, shot her a venomous glare. "Don’t try to fool me! Don’t think I don’t know what you’re planning!"

With that, she turned and headed straight for the door.

Liang Wan smiled but said nothing. She dragged her weak body over to an overturned wine jug and struggled to lift it, splashing its contents everywhere. When most of the wine was spread, she picked up her discarded clothes, touched them to the flames, and used the burning fabric to set fire to everything else.

The flames met the strong liquor and with a WHOOSH, fire erupted, roaring up to the roof and consuming everything with unstoppable force.

Mrs. Zhang was pressed against the door, staring intently outside, but there was no sign of movement. She glanced back at the inferno behind her, steeled her heart, and without another moment’s hesitation, bolted outside.

The people groaning on the floor soon let out horrific screams.

The entire shack became a hellish inferno, incinerating the world’s sins. The air filled with the stench of scorched flesh.

Liang Wan was shaking uncontrollably. She pulled her legs together and collapsed to her knees.

She looked up at the corner of the room and began to crawl toward it with great difficulty. ’It would be nice to have something to lean against before I die.’

’Resentment, grievance, shame, humiliation...’

A suffocating weight pressed on her chest, and she desperately needed an outlet. But all that escaped her lips were choked sounds of shame and indignation.

The corner was so close, yet she couldn’t reach it.

Liang Wan collapsed onto the floor, biting her lip so hard it nearly bled. The tears wouldn’t stop.

An unbearable thirst burned within her, a torment so awful she just wanted to die.

This feeling wasn’t unfamiliar. Gao Qian had once forced a similar pill down her throat while plying her with wine, then stood aside to watch, enjoying the sight of her losing her sanity...

Liang Wan wiped away her tears. She didn’t know what madness the bandits’ drug would induce, but she would rather die than endure that kind of experience ever again!

’To die in a world of ice and snow in my past life, and to be buried in a sea of flames in this one... perhaps it was destiny.’

Liang Wan couldn’t help but laugh through her tears.

With her last shred of clarity, she pulled out the white jade hairpin. It was smooth and lustrous, flawless as a piece of pure white jade.

Its cool touch was a sorrowful comfort.

’Better to die and be free than to suffer like this.’

The main door was suddenly thrown open, letting in a gust of damp night air, and with it, the sounds of fighting and the flash of blades from outside.

Hurried footsteps approached, followed by the sound of many more.

"Wanwan—"

The deep voice was hoarse.

Her vision blurred by tears, Liang Wan didn’t dare to look. A new, greater fear seized her, and she raised her hand to plunge the hairpin into her own neck.

Her scorching body was suddenly pulled into an incredibly familiar embrace.

He gritted his teeth. "Liang Wan, I gave you that jade hairpin, not so you could kill yourself with it!"

Flesh tore, and blood spattered.

"Let go! Don’t touch me—"

Liang Wan had lost all reason, struggling like a trapped animal.

The newcomer sensed something was wrong and tightened his arms around her. His low, raspy voice held a choked sob. "If you must stab something, then stab me."

He held her as if he were embracing a burning coal, heedless of the risk of being scorched.

"Sir—" a guard urged anxiously from behind him.

The surroundings were choked with smoke and flames, and burning debris kept falling from the roof.

Lu Xiu looked down, pulled his cloak around her, shielding her in his arms, and didn’t linger a moment longer.

For someone suffering from an unbearable heat, the cool, damp embrace was irresistible. Liang Wan clung desperately to that solid coolness, impatiently craving more of its relief.

Lu Xiu narrowed his eyes and held her even tighter.

They made their way out of the mountain stronghold. Behind them, the fire lit up the sky. The cool night breeze on her face awakened what little clarity she had left.

In a daze, Liang Wan tilted her head back. With bloodshot eyes, she carefully tried to make out his face. It was the man who seemed carved from ice and snow.

"Lu Xiu..." she murmured, her voice soft enough to melt bones.

He kept his eyes on the path ahead and answered with a quiet, hoarse grunt.

Unbearable desire compelled her to wrap herself around him tightly, yet her returning sanity made her wish she could push him far away.

Reason and desire warred within her, driving her mad with torment.

Liang Wan couldn’t stop the soft sobs from escaping.

Lu Xiu didn’t put her on a horse. Instead, he headed straight for the edge of the forest, ordering everyone else to wait where they were.

He bent his head and kissed away her tears. "I’ll help you."

’Help?’

Her mind resisted, but her body was honest. Amidst the humiliation, a deeper yearning bloomed. She clung to him, wishing she could just die on the spot and not have to go through this...

Lu Xiu tore off his cloak and threw it aside. Exposed to the sudden cold, Liang Wan curled into a ball, her body trembling violently.

He removed his own clothes and soothed her, "Don’t be afraid."

She squeezed her eyes shut, not daring to look, and simply waited, her heart filled with despair.

The icy water of a pool enveloped her. Liang Wan’s eyes fluttered open in surprise.

She was completely limp and weak, and started to slide underwater. Lu Xiu had no choice but to pull her into his arms, holding her by the waist and settling her on his lap.

The night wind in the forest was cool, but the water of the clear pool was even cooler.

Once the initial relief from the cold water faded, the desire surged back through her body. Her eyes were crimson as she clenched her jaw, tears splashing silently into the water.

Lu Xiu glanced at her bleeding lip, knowing she was trying not to make any sound or show her distress in front of him.

He raised a hand, cupped the back of her head, and pressed it to his shoulder. "Bite me."

His palm stroked her back again and again. The touch was comforting, yet it also stirred a deeper craving.

The cold water was a temporary solution, not a cure. All she could do was endure it, waiting for the drug’s effects to slowly fade.

Liang Wan’s lips trembled. She shut her eyes and bit down hard.

Lu Xiu didn’t make a sound, only pressing a gentle kiss to the crown of her head.

The mountains were silent and dark. Thankfully, a bright moon kept it from being completely pitch-black.

She didn’t know how long they stayed in the water.

It wasn’t until the restless heat inside her subsided, each wave weaker than the last, that Liang Wan finally released her jaw. Her breathing was faint as she rested limply against his shoulder, staring dazedly at the bleeding teeth marks she’d left.

She lowered her eyes, a bitter feeling rising within her.

Lu Xiu stroked her back. "Feeling any better?"

Liang Wan didn’t move, only lifting her eyes to stare at his profile. "Helping me like this... you’ll catch a chill."

She hadn’t forgotten how he’d caught a fever after sleeping for one night on a large rock in the cave.

Her shallow breaths fell upon his ear.

He turned his head and met a pair of shimmering, watery eyes. Their bodies were pressed close beneath the surface, and an indescribable desire suddenly flared within him. Even submerged in the cold water, his breathing grew ragged.

"You will too. We’ll be in it together."

In the deep water, he caught her listless hand and forced himself to look away.

Seeing that her unbearable urges had passed, Lu Xiu lifted her out of the water.

Liang Wan felt as if she had just survived a severe illness. Her eyelids were heavy, her limbs were weak, and she lay completely limp in his arms.

In the autumn night, the two of them were soaked and shivering, each colder than the other.

Lu Xiu first wrapped her up tightly in the cloak, then put on his own discarded clothes.

They slept in each other’s arms every night, but for some reason, she felt more ashamed to face him now than ever before.

Liang Wan was already weak, so she simply closed her eyes.

Lu Xiu started walking back with her in his arms. "The symptoms are only temporarily relieved. We still need to have a doctor look at you."

Liang Wan nodded.

Suddenly, Lu Xiu stopped walking. He looked down at her. "With what shall we pledge our love?"

The corners of Liang Wan’s lips twitched slightly.

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