Qiang Jin Jiu
Chapter 234

Chapter 234 - Ants

Raindrops tapped against the eaves, echoing Shen Zechuan's thoughts. He could openly display a hundred facets of his desire before Xiao Chiye, but he found it difficult to share this openness with him. He was the most articulate person in the world and also the least skilled at speaking his heart.

"I once offered my life to Mister because I had no place in this world. Aye, when I first stood before the halls of Wendi, I saw the door to my life. After stepping through, Duanzhou was no longer my home. I knew that my elder brother would vanish in my dreams, and no one in this world would forgive me."

Shen Zechuan had never fought on the battlefield nor sat high in an exalted chamber. He was just an ordinary man facing a curved blade. Precisely because he was ordinary, the cries of the six provinces echoed in his ears every night, and the sea of blood in the Sky Pit stained the rods red at all times. Kneeling in the blizzard of the Sky Pit, he experienced the agony of parting and death, becoming an enemy to the world overnight.

He had done nothing.

Yet he was guilty – guilty of being Shen Zechuan.

Shen Zechuan witnessed the cavalry butcher the people of Duanzhou, with the weight of forty thousand lives pressing down upon his back. He was forever imprisoned here for simply being alive. His struggles were insignificant, powerless against the wails of sorrow before the corpses of forty thousand.

Shen Zechuan could not bear to live.

He was an ant in that game of power, his pain no more than dust stirred by the cough of those who manipulated the board. When he realized this, the meaning of "living" was lost to him. Ji Mu allowed him to live, but while heroes and villains continued their relentless struggle, he would eventually become a mere pawn again. His few remaining years were merely a wait for the cycle to repeat.

In the desolate Zhaozui Temple, Qi Huilian raved and waved his arms wildly, calling out to the prince. But there was no longer a prince in this world. Was it only those of noble lineage who could sway the fate of the land? Were only those born into greatness worthy of wielding power that could stir the winds and clouds? Then what were the countless ordinary people beneath them? They were mere dried bones at the foot of the stairs, trampled upon without feeling any pain or ever daring to resist!

"What have we done wrong?"

Qi Huilian shouted this question in bitter despair.

What had they done wrong?

Shen Zechuan once grabbed Xiao Chiye's collar in a filthy alley, tearing away his disguised restraint and yelling this question in anguish.

What had you and I done wrong?

If existence itself was a crime, then it was Heaven itself forcing him to kneel in the dirt and remain an insignificant ant. But Shen Zechuan had met Qi Huilian. He witnessed the tutor's madness, heard the lone crow's mournful cry. Backed into a corner, if he didn't possess the resolve to risk everything, he would be killing himself again along the path set by Heaven.

"I am Qi Huilian of Yuzhou. I taught the prince. I will impart all my knowledge to you—would you like that?"

Shen Zechuan saw a chance at survival, not just one where he could kneel and gasp for air but also one where he could stand up. Were the nobles destined to triumph? The moment Qi Huilian knelt, he made a resolute change. He shattered that wall even before Shen Zechuan or anyone else.

Qi Huilian was the imperial tutor, one who taught only those bound for that position. He reached out to Shen Zechuan, not just because he had run out of options, but also because this was the tutor's most insane scheme.

"Sir, you taught me poetry and books, and I shall avenge your old foes for you."

Shen Zechuan's hatred dispersed throughout the silent capital, a diffuse and countless number of faint lights that Xiao Chiye gathered together with the mere mention of "old foe." Lan Sheng, like a jade plant on the steps, remained indifferent, while the boat of Zhen Lanzhou sailed through the bitter sea, endless and driven by Xiao Chiye's influence. He forged Shen Lanzhou, sheathing the sharpness of Shen Zechuan and erasing the resentment that sustained his life. He aimed to guide Shen Zechuan on the right path, making him truly see himself.

Xue Xiuzhuo was not mistaken but merely too late; Xiao Chiye already had his chosen successor.

Rain washed over the eaves as Shen Zechuan fell into silence after speaking. He buried his face into Xiao Chiye's back, just as Xiao Chiye did into his pillow.

Shen Zechuan cared not for his life; death held no terror. The galloping hooves of those vying for power would spare no one, and the world's havens of peace stood upon the sharpest blades. If he were to die, it would only prove his defeat in this contest, a fact he dismissed with indifference.

Would a slashed hand hurt?

For Shen Zechuan, it would take the cut to know. Xiao Chiye failed to bind him. His blade without a handle bled when held, usable by none but himself. He distanced himself from all, striving for the goal of "freedom."

He was free when he killed Ji Lei.

That was when Xiao Chiye first realized that he had honed Shen Zechuan's edge but failed to fully restrain him. Shen Zechuan had merely learned to deliver deadly blows without revealing his intentions. At that time, Shen Zechuan first tasted love, and the scarred host experienced the pleasure of this body, the joy of being "alive." He was oblivious to the fact that it marked the beginning of sheathing his blade.

This tempest from the North swept away Shen Zechuan's nightmares, as Xiao Chiye commandeered his chest with a domineering presence. With his strong arms, he shielded the noise, diving uninvited into the mire to savor the fragrance of pearls and jade.

A ravenous wolf.

"Sir gave me back my life, Aye," Shen Zechuan immersed himself in the familiar scent, rubbing his cheek against Xiao Chiye's back like a young beast following its sense of smell. "Aye..."

Xiao Chiye placed his hand on Shen Zechuan and turned halfway to look into his eyes.

Shen Zechuan's eyes were wide open, but there was no trace of jest in them. With his fingertips, he brushed against Xiao Chiye's cheek and said, "I am yours, including my death, and you are mine." Finally, he revealed his sharp and ruthless side, continuing, "Anyone who tries to take you away from me will be killed."

Not even the King of Hell could do that.

At first, Shen Zechuan thought it wasn't his life he cherished, but Xiao Chiye. He gradually realized that a cut finger would hurt, not because of the finger itself, but because of Xiao Chiye. Living was difficult, but along the way, he found more reasons. He was Ji Mu's existence, Qi Huilian's existence, Zhong Bo's existence, and the existence of all the ants amidst the sudden upheavals.

"I want to live a long life with you," Shen Zechuan kissed Xiao Chiye's temple lightly. "In a place where no one can reach us."

Xiao Chiye took Shen Zechuan's hand back and turned to hold him in his arms, cupping his face and gazing closely at him.

"Are you tired from running?" Shen Zechuan asked softly.

"Not at all," Xiao Chiye stroked his cheek. "I survive by thinking of you."

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