Lan Murou stood quietly aside, watching the departing figure, her eyes narrowing slightly.
Suddenly, her hand was grasped, and her gaze met the proud black eyes like an eagle's.
"Rou'er, what are you thinking?"
"General, it hurts."
Tantai Ye narrowed his eyes slightly, and the strength in his hand loosened.
"Rou'er, don't you learn from Ye Luan. I won't be as soft-hearted as Chi Zhan."
He was warning her, afraid she would run away like A'Luan?
Lan Murou's heart trembled. She bit her lip slightly and tugged at his sleeve. "General, I won't."
She truly wouldn't. She couldn't be as ruthless as A'Luan, and she couldn't abandon her only younger brother.
If she dared to run, Tantai Ye would really kill her brother without mercy.
"En, it's good that you won't."
Tantai Ye hooked his lips, grabbed her hand with satisfaction, and gently rubbed it a few times.
"Come, let's go watch the show too."
------
Behind the temple, there was a vast ice sea, stretching as far as the eye could see. It had snowed, and a thin layer of frost covered the sea.
Ye Luan, dressed in a long red gown, stood at the edge of the cliff, gazing silently into the bottomless ice pit with a cold and indifferent expression.
Many hidden guards stood guard around her.
Long Yi swallowed nervously as he watched the person standing on the cliff.
He thought Miss Ye was just out for a walk, but he never expected her to come directly to this cliff and stare into the ice pit below.
That was a bottomless sea pit. Falling in would surely mean death.
"Miss Ye, we should go back."
Ye Luan ignored the voice behind her. She picked up a stone from the ground and threw it heavily into the ice sea below.
With a crack, the thin ice surface instantly cracked, and the stone fell into the sea.
She licked her lips and looked up at the gray sky.
Snow was falling faintly, and the sky was overcast.
She thought back to everything that had happened, memories flashing through her mind like a revolving lantern.
The last scene of her memory playback was the first time she met him in the dark room.
"What must I do for the Prince of Dingbei to let me go?"
"Let you go? Impossible, not in this lifetime!"
His possessive and cruel words echoed in her ears.
Ye Luan slowly withdrew her dazed gaze, a slight smile curving her lips.
Xiao Chi Zhan, I don't need you to let me go anymore.
I don't want to let myself go.
She hated her current self. She truly couldn't bear that she had shamefully fallen for him.
She didn't know how to face the suffering she had endured in the past.
He was so possessive, he wouldn't let her leave.
This time, she truly wanted to die.
This was her punishment!
"Ye Luan!"
A familiar voice called from behind. Ye Luan withdrew her gaze and turned to look in the direction of the sound.
He was dressed in a snow-white robe, his features deep. Under the moonlight, his refined figure was tall and elegant, with the snow-white surrounding him.
Those excessively seductive red eyes were extremely captivating.
She suddenly remembered his pupils in the dim bed curtains, how beautiful they were.
Xiao Chi Zhan saw her standing at the edge of the cliff, his hands trembling slightly.
She was standing on the cliff, in a red dress, the wind whipping around her. When she turned to look at him, there was a smile of relief on her face.
A smile that made his heart turn cold with fear.
He felt something slipping out of his control, a feeling that filled him with immense dread.
"Luan Luan."
He cautiously walked towards her.
Ye Luan watched his movements quietly, without speaking.
Xiao Chi Zhan reached out his hand, and she offered hers. He immediately grasped her hand tightly, pulled her into his embrace, and held her.
Ye Luan used to think he hugged her too tightly, hurting her bones.
But now, she felt he wasn't hugging her tightly enough.
Neither of them spoke. The wind howled around them, and the roars of wild beasts accompanied the cold wind. The cliff was shrouded in mist.
The wind lifted her red skirt, scattering frost onto it, which clung to his white robe, casting long shadows on the snow.
"Luan Luan, come back with me, okay?"
Ye Luan remained silent and reached out to wrap her arms around his waist.
She buried her head in his chest, holding him quietly.
Xiao Chi Zhan was surprised by her change, a hint of joy appearing in his eyes, but a strange sense of unease arose in his heart.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Xiao Chi Zhan, do you remember the snowball you gave me?"
She raised her watery eyes to look at him, as calm as a deep pool.
Xiao Chi Zhan felt a pang of panic in his heart. He tightened his grip on her waist fiercely, as if afraid she would blow away with the wind.
"I remember."
Ye Luan said, "You must take good care of it."
His waist was suddenly gripped tightly, and he pulled her fiercely into his embrace.
"Luan Luan, whatever you want to do, we'll go back and take care of it together, okay?"
Ye Luan didn't speak. She knew her own nature well.
As long as she lived, she wouldn't forget the past. If she died, everything would end.
This devilish man would no longer pester her.
They were finished!
"You didn't kill me that day, Luan Luan, have you fallen for me?"
Ye Luan froze, then raised her eyes to look at him.
After a moment.
She extended her fair jade-like hand to touch the mole beneath his eye and said softly.
"Perhaps. Perhaps I have fallen for you, but the most tragic thing in this world is to have loved once and to not love now."
The cold wind brushed across their faces. Xiao Chi Zhan's expression was slightly dazed. He lowered his gaze to look at her, watching her quietly, without saying a word.
A strange silence enveloped the surroundings.
When Li Qiongyu and the others climbed up the overgrown mountain path, they saw the two people on the cliff.
He couldn't help but sigh to the heavens, what a sin.
Ye Luan also saw the group and raised her eyebrows slightly.
He was holding her too tightly for her to break free.
She tiptoed, kissed his slightly cool lips, clumsily opened his mouth, and entangled with him.
Xiao Chi Zhan's back stiffened, and he unconsciously softened his grip, responding to her gently.
Soon, Ye Luan realized he was aroused.
The restraint around her waist loosened.
"Brother Chi Zhan, this time, don't jump with me. Live well."
The girl's cold words struck Xiao Chi Zhan's heart like knives.
His sinking heart immediately tightened. He opened his eyes and reached out to pull her.
Ye Luan fiercely pushed him away, smiling as she leaped down.
"A'Luan!" Lan Murou exclaimed in shock and rushed over.
Xiao Chi Zhan stared blankly, his hand grasping the slipping hem of her skirt. His blood-red eyes flashed with a pathological madness, and he was about to pounce down.
Tantai Ye leaped over and grabbed him, roaring, "This is an ice pit below. Jumping in will shatter your bones."
"Get lost!"
Tantai Ye held onto him tightly, and Li Qiongyu also went to restrain him.
Everyone tried to stop him.
But he was like a madman, impossible to hold down. He struck Tantai Ye in the chest with a palm, and blood immediately flowed from the latter's lips.
"Xiao Chi Zhan!"
A sharp pain suddenly struck his chest. Blood gushed from his mouth, and he suddenly fell backward. A large pool of bright red blood stained the white ground, dazzling and terrifying.
"Knock him out and take him back!"