Chapter 4

Ah Yuan had originally intended to toss away the jade ornament and leave, unwilling to waste time arguing with the Taoist. However, seeing how skillfully the old man deceived and swindled people, he found himself rather annoyed. He raised a hand to scratch the corner of his right eye. Then, following the Taoist's instructions, he extended his hand. His eyes drooped, lifeless and dull, yet the corners of his mouth twisted into a strange, half-smile. He stared at the Taoist with an eerie expression. Ah Yuan rolled up his left sleeve and held out his palm. The Taoist immediately began shaking his head and swaying as though he were performing some profound ritual. He leaned forward to examine the palm. "Oh, no! This is terrible!" The Taoist recoiled and rubbed his eyes. "Th-this... Young master, may I see your other hand?" "Of course. Here's my right hand." Ah Yuan cooperatively extended his right hand. The Taoist examined it again, and his expression grew even more horrified. "Daoist, is my fate good or bad?" "Y-you... Both your hands... neither of them shows any sign of longevity!" The old Taoist looked up from Ah Yuan's palm and happened to meet those eyes, as lifeless as a stagnant pool. Fear immediately flooded his heart, and he stumbled backward in terror. As he retreated, the edge of Ah Yuan's cloak lifted slightly, revealing a pair of intertwined snakes embroidered in red thread on the garment. Recently, six young girls in Kunming had been murdered one after another. Their hearts had been ripped out, and their blood had been drained, leaving them dead and lifeless. Rumors claimed that a demon was responsible, one that fed on human hearts to cultivate its supernatural powers. The case remained unsolved to this day. Now, looking at Ah Yuan, the Taoist found him more terrifying with every passing second. Could this person actually be a demon? "Ah! A demon!" The old Taoist screamed in fright. He scrambled to his feet and fled as though his life depended on it. Ah Yuan watched him run away, shouting that he was a demon and stumbling over himself in sheer panic. His gaze remained cold and indifferent, his expression completely unchanged, as though he were watching a monkey perform tricks. Although the Taoist soon disappeared from sight, the word *demon* seemed to linger in the air, echoing in Ah Yuan's ears long after he was gone. Ah Yuan lowered his eyes and chuckled softly. After a while, that quiet chuckle suddenly turned into loud laughter. He laughed until his chest began to ache. For some inexplicable reason, a few tears even gathered at the corners of his eyes. Just then, a boy of about eleven or twelve came rushing into the alley. He must have run a considerable distance, for he was panting heavily and drenched in sweat. The moment he spotted Ah Yuan, relief washed over his face, and he hurried toward him. "Second-in-command! I've been searching everywhere for you!" Ah Yuan rolled up his sleeve and wiped the corners of his eyes. His expression returned to its usual indifference. "Ah, it's not as if I could just disappear, could I?" "Let's go back. We still have work to do tonight!" "If you really disappeared, wouldn't the boss skin me alive when she returned?" The boy paused, then curiously asked, "By the way, Second-in-command, what was so funny just now? You were laughing so hard that you almost cried!" Ah Hei studied Ah Yuan's face, then scratched his head in confusion. He had seen Ah Yuan's perpetually lifeless eyes and cold expression countless times. Yet, for some reason, seeing him laugh like that still felt strange. What was going on? Ah Yuan lifted his head and lazily glanced at the crabapple blossoms drifting across the sky. "In this City of Eternal Spring, flowers are everywhere. No matter how beautiful the crabapple blossoms are, they're like morning dew beneath the rosy glow of dawn. A gust of wind comes, and they're gone." He paused, then continued with a faint smile. "How can they compare to a garden full of peonies, with their magnificent splendor and dazzling beauty?" He tilted his head slightly. "Tell me, isn't that funny?" "Second-in-command, have you been drinking too much again?" "When the wine doesn't intoxicate a person, the person intoxicates himself. The crabapple blossoms have fallen, the wine has worn off, and it's time for everything to end." As Ah Yuan spoke, a cold smile touched his lips. Ah Hei scratched his head again. "Boss, did the eldest one make you stupid or something, Second-in-command? Every time you drink, you start talking nonsense." Ah Yuan merely yawned lazily. He placed both hands behind his head and walked lightly toward the other end of the alley. Seeing this, Ah Hei could only swallow his confusion and hurry after him. --- Inside the Mu residence, red silk and flickering candles illuminated the room, making the two large red *double happiness* characters shine brightly. Dressed in his wedding robes, the Mu family's second young master, Mu Chaobi, stood outside the bridal chamber. For a long time, he remained there without pushing open the door. Although it was only February, the night winds in Kunming were still as sharp as knives. Yet Mu Chaobi seemed not to feel the cold at all. With his eyes closed, he stood beneath a crabapple tree, his head tilted slightly upward. He used what little time he had left to feel the flower petals brushing lightly against his face. In his palm lay the jade crabapple ornament. He had gripped it so tightly that its hard edges dug into his skin, the pain seeming to pierce straight into his heart and lungs. All he could see was that pair of indifferent eyes. When they had first met, Ah Yuan had been reclining lazily against a tree, looking down at him. That single glance had been so calm that it revealed neither joy nor sorrow. Yet from that moment onward, it had been etched deeply into his heart. Even now, no matter how hard Mu Chaobi tried, he could not drive those eyes from his mind. As countless conflicting emotions tangled within him, that familiar, disembodied voice suddenly echoed in his ears again. It seemed to come from far away, then draw close, yet every word was unmistakably clear. The eerie male voice guided him. "Go. Everything you desire comes at a price." "Go. No one has the right to stop you from obtaining what you want." "Go!" Mu Chaobi suddenly snapped out of his daze. He came back to his senses with a start. At some point, a light drizzle had begun to fall, dampening his shoulders. He slipped the jade crabapple, attached to a silk thread, into a small brocade box measuring only four finger-widths. Mu Chaobi took a deep breath. His face once again settled into the composed, courteous smile he habitually wore. Then he turned around, pushed open the door, and entered the bridal chamber. Inside, his bride, the young lady of the Zhang family from Lin'an Prefecture, sat upright on the wedding bed with a red veil covering her head. Mu Chaobi carefully placed the small box in a concealed corner of a rosewood cabinet. Only then did he turn toward his bride. Before he could approach her, she spoke softly. "My husband, you've been pacing outside for so long without coming in. Could it be..." Her voice trembled slightly. "Could it be that I am not the woman you truly love? Is there someone else in your heart?" The bride's voice was gentle, but her words carried a trace of sorrow. Hearing this, Mu Chaobi's gaze darkened for an instant. However, he quickly concealed his emotions and walked toward the bridal bed without allowing his expression to change. He gently lifted her red veil. The bride saw only Mu Chaobi's faint smile as he tenderly caressed her face with his fingertips. "Now that I have married you, you are the woman I love." Upon hearing his words, the bride's earlier doubts vanished. Her heart was already completely captivated by the tenderness in Mu Chaobi's eyes. Meanwhile, joy and celebration filled the Mu family's Liuying Villa in Kunming. Large red lanterns hung throughout the residence all night, and the guests, intoxicated by wine, had long since forgotten the chill of the late-winter night. But thirty *li* north of the city, the cold wind brought by the lingering winter cut straight to the bone. Beneath a forest of towering trees, the biting breeze was enough to make anyone shiver.