Chapter 44

Bu Nian sat in the center of the main hall. Though his eyes were covered, the deep furrow between his brows was still visible. He had already sent people out to search for Lian Ai, but it was too soon for any news to come back.

A young maid noticed that the tea beside him had gone cold and stepped forward to replace it. She had only taken a few steps when Bu Nian’s face turned sharply in her direction. The pressure he exuded was so heavy and cold that it made her freeze.

“G-General… This servant just here to change the tea,” she stammered nervously.

Bu Nian clicked his tongue in frustration and waved her off. He turned back toward the door. His lips were pressed into a straight line, and his entire face looked like it had been carved from ice.

It had already been more than an hour since Lian Ai had gone missing, and for the first time, Bu Nian realized just how long time could feel.

In this endless wait, his patience was wearing thin. His emotions were edging toward a dangerous restlessness.

The child who had handed the letter to Lian Ai during the lantern festival was quickly found by Bu Nian’s men. As soon as he heard that someone had come to take Lian Ai away, he immediately suspected the Zuo siblings. And when the child described the messenger, it confirmed what Bu Nian had feared. Zuo Lingxue.

She had undoubtedly used the antidote as bait to lure Lian Ai out of the city. What he didn’t know was whether that fool had gone willingly and placed himself in danger.

At the thought of it, Bu Nian suddenly stood up. He could no longer just sit and wait.

Just as he was about to move, Fen Zi burst through the door in a panic, shouting as she ran, “He’s back! Young Master is back!”

Bu Nian’s tightly clenched fists suddenly relaxed. But before he could fully lower the weight hanging in his chest, Fen Zi’s next words made his nerves tense up all over again.

“Zuo Lingxue came back with Young Master!”

Lian Ai felt like there was a fire burning inside him, scorching his throat and gut. The taste of blood kept rising in waves from his esophagus.

He walked ahead step by step, every movement labored. Zuo Lingxue followed behind, her pace was neither too fast nor too slow, keeping just enough distance between them.

By the time they reached the city gates, Lian Ai was already gasping for breath. He had to brace himself against the wall just to move forward. Suddenly, a sharp twist tore through his stomach. He covered his mouth, ready to vomit, but ended up only retching dryly.

“Hurry up. If you’re any slower, it’ll be too late,” Zuo Lingxue said coolly behind him.

Lian Ai didn’t look back. He didn’t speak to her. He walked as if she didn’t exist, heading straight for the general’s residence.

By the time they finally reached the gates, black spots were already beginning to float in his vision.

“Young Master is back!” The steward and Fen Zi had both been anxiously waiting near the entrance. As soon as they caught sight of him, the steward rushed forward while Fen Zi turned and sprinted inside.

“Young Master, thank goodness you’re back. Where did you—” The steward stopped mid-sentence the moment he saw the woman behind Lian Ai. His voice caught in his throat.

“This… this…”

He looked at Lian Ai, then at Zuo Lingxue, unsure whether he should call for someone to arrest her on the spot.

Zuo Lingxue calmly raised her hands, showing she carried no weapons. “Relax. I’m here to turn myself in, not to fight.”

Lian Ai grabbed the steward’s hand. “Send someone to summon Physician Liang. Tell him the General is about to test the antidote and to prepare four doses.”

“F-Four doses?” The steward’s eyes remained locked on Zuo Lingxue, but when he heard what Lian Ai said, he couldn’t help glancing at her again.

Lian Ai didn’t explain. “Just do it.”

Then he moved past the steward and walked into the general’s residence. As soon as he stepped through the threshold, Bu Nian came out with his men.

The guards held their weapons at the ready, surrounding Zuo Lingxue completely.

Lian Ai saw Bu Nian walking toward him, one step at a time. The pressure radiating off him was suffocating. Lian Ai couldn’t stop himself from flinching and took half a step back.

Bu Nian came to a stop in front of him, saying nothing. His face was as unreadable as stone.

Lian Ai swallowed hard. He knew Bu Nian was angry. Very angry. Just as he opened his mouth to explain, “General, I..” his words were cut off by a sharp slap across the face.

Bu Nian said coldly, “That slap is for taking matters into your own hands.”

Lian Ai held the side of his face. It didn’t actually hurt that much. He was just stunned.

He lowered his gaze and didn’t try to explain again. It was true that he had acted on his own. Bu Nian wasn’t wrong to punish him.

Bu Nian step aside and turn toward Zuo Lingxue.

The guards surrounding her silently shifted, opening a path.

Bu Nian stopped three steps away from her.

“What tricks are you trying to pull this time?”

Zuo Lingxue gently rested a hand over her stomach and gave a bitter smile. “What tricks do you think I still have left, Bu Nian? I’m willing to trade myself and Gan Yan’s child in exchange. All I ask is that you spare the rest of the Zuo family.”

Bu Nian raised his brows slightly and murmured, as if something had just clicked, “You’re pregnant.”

He recalled the battle at Tianfu Temple. Back then, when Zuo Lingxue had suddenly collapsed, it hadn’t been because of some internal injury. It was because she had strained her pregnancy.

“Yes, I’m pregnant,” Zuo Lingxue said, closing her eyes for a moment. “My father is already dead. Gan Yan is under your watch. And now I’ve turned myself in. Whatever remnants of the rebellion are left, they won’t amount to anything. Please spare the rest of the Zuo family. My younger brother was never involved in any treason. He’s a good boy. He never intended to hurt anyone.”

Bu Nian stood with his hands behind his back. His face didn’t move at all. After a long pause, he finally spoke. “If you really came to turn yourself in, then why did you send a message to Lian Ai and ask him to meet you?”

At the sound of his name, Lian Ai looked up at the two of them. Zuo Lingxue also turned to meet his gaze. For a moment, their eyes locked. He didn’t know what she saw in his, but in hers, he saw a tangle of emotions that couldn’t be put into words.

Zuo Lingxue said, “I wanted to see if he was really foolish enough to take the poison for you.”

Bu Nian tilted his head slightly, as if he doubted his ears.

His brows pulled tight, and his voice was laced with barely contained tension. “What do you mean, take the poison?”

“He swallowed the Fentian I gave him,” Zuo Lingxue said. “Right now he’s just like you. No, worse than you. If he doesn’t take the antidote soon, he might not make it through the night.”

Lian Ai quickly turned his eyes to Bu Nian. After freezing for a moment, Bu Nian seemed to finally grasp the meaning behind Zuo Lingxue’s words. His brows slowly began to ease, then suddenly drew tight. Like an arrow released, he lunged forward and grabbed her by the throat, forcing her back as he closed in.

“Where’s the antidote?” His voice was as low as it could go, each word squeezed out from between his teeth.

Zuo Lingxue was being choked so tightly she could barely breathe, let alone speak. Yet she didn’t struggle. It was as if she had completely given up resisting. From the moment she stepped into the general’s residence, or perhaps from the moment she crossed into the capital, she had stopped caring about whether she lived or died.

Lian Ai saw her face turn from pale to a deep, purplish red. If it went on any longer, she might be choked to death. He couldn’t hold back and tried to stop it. “General..”

“Shut up.” Bu Nian didn’t give him a chance to speak. One sharp shout completely drowned him out.

Lian Ai saw the veins bulging on Bu Nian’s forehead. His rage was out of control. It made Lian Ai feel even worse, and his stomach twisted with pain.

Though Bu Nian had shouted at him, he eventually loosened his grip. Zuo Lingxue took a few sharp breaths. Her ears rang so loudly she could barely hear.

But her eyes still worked. She could see Bu Nian’s lips moving, could tell he was still demanding to know where the antidote was.

“There is no antidote. I don’t even know which one it is.” She gave a weak laugh, a little spiteful. When she sensed his grip tightening again, she lowered her voice and said, “If you want to see your grand cause through to the end, you’d better learn how to make sacrifices.”

Over a year ago, she hadn’t been able to tell if Lian Ai was gold or scrap. Now, she had her answer.

Would Bu Nian really lose control over a piece of scrap? Even when she told him she was marrying Gan Yan, he had never been this angry.

Bu Nian had at least shared some history with Zuo Lingxue. He knew that at this point, there was no reason for her to lie. She really didn’t have the antidote.

That only made him angrier. He hated losing control over a situation. He hated being forced into a corner.

With a shove, he released his grip on her, then raised his voice. “Send for Physician Liang.”

The steward, who had been hiding in the corner waiting for the right moment, quickly stepped forward. “General, the young master already gave that order. This servant had sent someone to fetch him. He should be on the way now.”

Bu Nian let out a short laugh, one that came from deep, burning fury.

He turned and strode toward the inner residence. His voice rang out clearly. “Escort the criminal Zuo Lingxue to the Court of Judicial Review.”

Lian Ai was about to follow him when he heard the next order.

“Confine Helian Ai to the south wing. Until I give the command, no one is allowed to let him out.”

Lian Ai’s eyes widened. He stared in disbelief at Bu Nian’s tall, cold figure ahead. Before he could react, the guards grabbed him and took his weapon.

“Wait! General!” Panic rushed in as he completely lost his footing. “Why are you locking me up?”

Bu Nian paused mid-step but didn’t stop, and he didn’t reply. A moment later, he continued walking. That silence unsettled Lian Ai even more than taking the Fentian.

He tried to break free from the guards holding him, but it was pointless.

“General, what are you going to do?” He saw Bu Nian walking away without looking back, and a terrifying thought began to form in his mind. He struggled harder.

“General. General.”

He called out again and again. In his desperation, he finally shouted Bu Nian’s full name.

Fen Zi was walking beside Bu Nian. She glanced toward Lian Ai, her face full of worry. After holding back for a moment, she couldn’t help but speak.

“General, are you really going to let him test the antidote for you?”

Although Bu Nian’s eyes were covered, he moved like someone who could still see. His steps were steady and unhesitant. Inside the general’s residence, he walked without pause. His strides were so long that even Fen Zi had to jog every few steps to keep up.

“Have him test the antidote for me?” Bu Nian sounded like he had just heard something both absurd and boring. A dismissive smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

“Why would I owe him a favor that big? If he dies testing it for me, I’ll have to remember that debt for the rest of my life.” His voice turned harsh. “He wants me to live burdened by that for the rest of my days? He’s dreaming.”

Lian Ai had been locked inside the quiet southern wing. No matter how hard he pounded on the door, the guards outside the courtyard showed no response.

His palms were red from slamming against the wood, and his voice had long gone hoarse, yet he still shouted with everything he had.

“Bu Nian, let me out. What are you going to do? Let me out.” He pounded on the door again and again until a sharp pain surged through his stomach. A rush of blood filled his throat. He covered his mouth, bent forward, and vomited a mouthful onto the floor.

As the blood left his body, so did his strength. He slid down the door and collapsed onto the ground.

“Don’t do this to me… please don’t do this to me…” Blood stained the corner of his lips, and those words spilled over again and again as tears streamed down his face. “I was wrong… don’t treat me like this…”

His tears fell into his mouth, mixing with blood, creating a taste both bitter and metallic. Lian Ai had never in his life tasted something so full of despair.

He buried his face in his hands and sobbed.

“Don’t leave me like this… I know I was wrong… please don’t do this to me…”