If You See Snow

At night, Su Ru Hui stubbornly refused to leave Sang Chi Yu’s room. Sang Chi Yu couldn’t force him out, so he reluctantly allowed him to sleep on the floor with the old dog. The dog, being unable to speak, didn’t mind Su Ru Hui’s presence, but Sang Chi Yu didn’t want him on his bed.

Suddenly, the system spoke up:

“Temporary task assigned: Climb onto Sang Chi Yu’s bed.”

“Task description: The bed belongs to Sang Chi Yu, and neither the dog nor Su Ru Hui is allowed to sleep on it. The dog is content to stay off, but Su Ru Hui shouldn’t be satisfied with this situation.”

“Time limit: 15 minutes.”

“Reward: System privileges will be increased by 5%, and the host will be able to see the secrets of people within his field of view that they don’t want others to know.”

The room was dark, and the canopy bed where Sang Chi Yu slept was shrouded in white gauze that made it difficult to see inside. Su Ru Hui stroked the dog’s fur slowly, and the dog, sensing that something was amiss, perked up its ears warily.

It knew that Su Ru Hui was up to no good.

Su Ru Hui sighed softly and said, “Poor Wang Cai. You have to share a bed with me. If only my husband weren’t so cruel; he wouldn’t even let me sleep on his bed after cooking for him.”

The dog said nothing.

Sang Chi Yu, who was lying in the bed, slowly opened his eyes.

Su Ru Hui continued to complain, “The ground is so cold. I’m going to catch a cold tomorrow. Even if I’m sick, I still have to get up and cook for my frail and helpless husband. Someone wants to kill me, but my husband doesn’t care. Oh, Wang Cai, my life is so miserable.”

The dog yawned lazily. It wanted to tell Su Ru Hui that whining wouldn’t help his situation, and that Sang Chi Yu would never let him sleep on the bed. When it first arrived, the dog found the ground too hard to sleep on, so it sneaked to Sang Chi Yu’s feet and slept there. When he woke up and found out, he sat on the bed all night, refusing to sleep with anyone. The next day, he changed the bed sheet.

If Sang Chi Yu found a clean and cute dog like him repulsive, there was no chance he would let this unknown and shameless little bastard sleep with him.

Su Ru Hui clenched his fist under his lip, exaggeratedly coughing a few times to create the illusion of being cold and windblown.

The old dog had no expression on his face
His acting was so fake, he was worse than a dog.

However, at this moment, they heard the person on the bed let out a low sigh and say, “Come up.”

The old dog stared in disbelief.

Su Ru Hui happily hugged a pillow, crawled into the white gauze canopy, and climbed onto Sang Chi Yu’s bed. He stopped playing any tricks and climbed into bed beside Sang Chi Yu’s feet, sleeping against the wall. There was a spacious gap between the two of them, enough for another person to sleep in.

“Goodnight, my husband,” he said.

After speaking, he closed his eyes and his breathing became steady, already asleep.

In the darkness, Sang Chi Yu did not close his eyes again. The night was extremely quiet – so quiet that it seemed as if one could hear the sound of time flowing. He looked at Su Ru Hui’s sleeping face shrouded in shadows and stayed awake until dawn.

Su Ru Hui only woke up when the sun was already high in the sky. He turned his head and saw Sang Chi Yu sitting next to the bedpost, the sunlight softening the contours of his face, making him appear serene and indifferent. Su Ru Hui got up and said, “Are you hungry? I’ll make you breakfast. What do you want to eat?”

Sang Chi Yu said indifferently, “You should leave now.”

He reached under the thin quilt and handed Su Ru Hui a divorce letter. The handwriting was elegant and neat, just like him.

Su Ru Hui did not take it, clicking his tongue and sighing. “My husband, you are so heartless.”

Sang Chi Yu maintained the posture of handing him the letter, making it clear that he would not move if Su Ru Hui did not take it.

“If I leave, what will you do?” Su Ru Hui glanced at the old dog sleeping belly-up and drooling. “Are you going to rely on this thing to take care of you?”

“It’s none of your business,” Sang Chi Yu said coldly.

This look was somewhat familiar, reminding Su Ru Hui of what Sang Chi Yu used to be like.

Su Ru Hui knew that Sang Chi Yu couldn’t count on anyone to take care of him, and he was waiting to die.

So what if his legs were broken and he was stripped of his spiritual powers? Su Ru Hui had long lost his spiritual powers and was no different from an ordinary person. He was expelled from the Kun Lun Secret Sect and wandered the Black Streets at eighteen. At twenty-five, he suffered from a poison that left him increasingly weak. He hadn’t given up, but this kid had given up on himself so easily. He had obviously never experienced the hardships of life.

Su Ru Hui felt a headache coming on and changed his approach. “Someone wants to kill me. What if I leave and get killed just a few steps away? We’ve been husband and wife for four days. Aren’t you even a little worried about me?”

This time, Sang Chi Yu didn’t say anything, but after a long silence, he said, “You’ll find a way.”

Su Ru Hui raised his eyebrows. “How do you know? You just trust me like that?”

“You always have a way. There’s nothing that can stop you.” Sang Chi Yu placed the divorce letter in front of him. “And I’m useless, only a burden to you. Leave, don’t waste your time with me.”

Su Ru Hui looked down at the divorce letter Sang Chi Yu had written. There wasn’t much content, just some customary phrases. But at the end, Sang Chi Yu had added a few extra lines that said, “May my husband be strong and healthy, live a thousand years.”

Su Ru Hui couldn’t help but smile. Did Sang Chi Yu want him to become an immortal turtle?

“Fine, I’ll keep this for now. But I don’t plan on leaving. Besides, you can’t beat me right now.” Su Ru Hui folded the divorce letter and climbed down from the bed. “I’ll go make breakfast for you.”

They had known each other for so many years. He couldn’t just let this kid fend for himself.

After saying that, Su Ru Hui left without waiting for Sang Chi Yu’s response. The rice and grain in the kitchen were almost gone, so Su Ru Hui made a bowl of lean pork porridge and put it on Sang Chi Yu’s table. Then he kicked the old dog and said, “Come with me to buy groceries. Otherwise, you won’t get any meat today.”

Before he left, Su Ru Hui looked around Jiang Que Xie’s dwelling. Sadly, he didn’t leave much money. The silver in his hands would only last another ten days at most. As for Sang Chi Yu, it was needless to ask. His room was a mess of junk and it was obvious that he was broke. This damn system, it was useless besides spewing trash talk. Why couldn’t it assign some quests to help him earn money?

Su Ru Hui looked at the iron valves, bearings, and balancers scattered on the ground. He rubbed his chin. Maybe he could make use of this scrap metal. But for now, buying groceries was more important. The murderer was targeting Jiang Que Xie, and it was fine for Sang Chi Yu to stay here alone; otherwise he would’ve died the previous night. Su Ru Hui took some silver with him and headed to the city with the old dog. It was pouring rain and there were no horses. The stable only had a broken puppet horse. They had to walk with an umbrella for almost half an hour before they entered the city, and by then it was already noon.

Yun Zhou was the largest province in Great Jing. Not counting the thirty-nine townships and counties under its jurisdiction, the main city alone had over fifty blocks and markets. The vertical and horizontal Tian Street divided each block, like tofu pieces stacked together. A towering statue was located in the city, with a huge iron-gray face full of compassion and silence, like a god. That statue was modeled after Sang Chi Yu’s master and Kun Lun Secret Sect’s Grandmaster, Dan Tai Jing. Jiang Huai Cang, the head of the Jiang family, had used tens of thousands of laborers to complete this stone sculpture on his 60th birthday. All the buildings surrounded the statue, and because the population was too dense, the buildings were piled up like towers, blocking out the sun, with countless skywalks connecting them. Pedestrians under the statue’s feet were like ants.

Su Ru Hui walked under the volley plank road, where a group of prostitutes with white powder on their faces and wearing bright red skirts were gathered overhead, laughing and playing in the rain. Various lanterns hanging under the eaves of the wine shops swayed in the wind, and the candlelight shining through colored paper cast colorful hues on the women’s pale faces, making them look like demons.

Some of the “women” had glass-like eyeballs that sparkled with a blue light emitted from their built-in spirit stones as they rolled around. Raindrops falling on their flawless skin created a non-human porcelain-like sheen. They were not real people but mechanical puppets. Despite not being real humans, their prices were much higher than those of real people, as wealthy young men were willing to pay a high price for the novelty.

A vendor in a raincoat approached him, offering him a book titled Phantom Puppets and rapidly trying to sell it to him. “Authentic merchandise passed down from the Kun Lun Secret Sect. If it’s fake, I’ll give you ten times the price. There’s also an appendix that details the love, hate, and grudges between Su Ru Hui and Miss Jiang Xue Ya of the Jiang family. Would you like to buy a copy, sir?”

“Su Ru Hui and Jiang Xue Ya?” Su Ru Hui was stunned.

The vendor spoke fluently, “Sir, you don’t know? Su Ru Hui and Miss Jiang were a match made in heaven. Miss Jiang’s undershirt was stolen by two guards from the Long Xiang Guards of the Kun Lun Secret Sect, and Su Ru Hui, in a fit of anger, killed the two lechers on the spot. Killing is a great sin, and Su Ru Hui had no choice but to bid farewell to his beloved and disappear into the Black Street. Sang Chi Yu stepped in and persuaded the Kun Lun Secret Sect to arrange a marriage between him and the Jiang family. Su Ru Hui was melancholic all day long and died of illness. Fortunately, karma caught up with Sang Chi Yu, and he became a cripple… Hey hey, sir, where are you going?”

What is this all about? Su Ru Hui avoided the vendor and turned into another street where many small newspapers were posted on the walls, soaked through by the rain, such as “Grade A Dual Cultivation Puppets, Second-Rank Humanoid Puppets,” and “Iron Ban: Those who sell spirit fire guns and blade metalware privately will be killed without mercy”…

“Dual cultivation puppets are so popular now?” Su Ru Hui stroked his chin.

[Information unlocked: Dual cultivation puppets are the best-selling type of puppet on the market. With high prices, even used ones cost a hundred gold. This system recommends that the host find Sang Chi Yu for dual cultivation directly, which is free and a better experience than using dual cultivation puppets.]

There were many small stalls covered with waterproof oilcloth leaning against the wall, where vendors were dozing off inside. They sold puppets that had been discarded by noble families and the Kun Lun Secret Sect, incomplete sword manuals and martial arts collections, as well as stacks of talismans. Su Ru Hui knew that if even one of these talismans was effective, it would be a godsend.

He walked on without stopping and bought groceries in another alley before finally selling the old dog to a meat shop.

“Sorry, Wang Cai.” He grinned and walked away from the old dog’s angry gaze.

He wandered around in the crowd for a while, trying to find out about the incident that caused Sang Chi Yu to be expelled, but he didn’t learn anything. The Kun Lun Secret Sect always controlled speech very tightly, so it seemed that he wouldn’t be able to find out anything without going into the Black Street. However, to enter the Black Street, he needed a letter of introduction. In his past life, he killed two Secret Sect disciples in public, so the Black Street opened up to him on its own initiative. This life, he didn’t want to kill anyone. He just wanted to be a diligent citizen who supported his disabled husband. That made it difficult.

He didn’t find out anything, and he was being followed. Su Ru Hui didn’t know where he had exposed himself and attracted attention, or was it… the murderer who killed Jiang Que Xie? He entered an alley and turned back. He saw a man standing in the rain.

“Why didn’t you come find me? According to our agreement, we should have met yesterday.” The man’s voice sounded like that of an older man.

It was someone the original owner knew. Su Ru Hui subconsciously looked at the man’s feet, but he couldn’t see how big his feet were through the rain curtain, so he couldn’t compare them to the shoe prints in his memory.

Was this guy from the Jiang family, or was he someone else?

[Li Bao Cai, the original owner’s direct supervisor. Hoped to climb to the top of his career by using the original owner’s appearance.]

This was the damn “little secret unknown to others” that the system mentioned? It was equivalent to saying nothing. Su Ru Hui wanted to beat the system up.

Jiang Que Xie’s identity was unknown, so Su Ru Hui couldn’t say too much, or he would be easily exposed. He didn’t answer the man’s question directly, only saying, “Someone tried to assassinate me the night before.”

“Someone tried to assassinate you!? Did you see their face?”

“No.”

The man calmed down. “Maybe it’s the people from the Great Compassion Temple. They are also monitoring Sang Chi Yu. You don’t need to worry about this matter. I will investigate. You don’t need to contact me in these few days. Just play the role of Jiang Que Xie well and try to dig out everything about the Kun Lun Secret Sect from Sang Chi Yu’s mouth.”

That was an important information; so Jiang Que Xie was fake. Su Ru Hui exclaimed “Wow” in his heart.

The Great Compassion Temple was the largest sect in the Black Street, always mysterious. He had contact with people from there a few times in his past life. The old dog had mentioned “Hei Guan Yin,” so he should be a member of the Great Compassion Temple.

[Host guessed correctly. Information unlocked: The old dog’s monastic name is Ji Wu. Hei Guan Yin sent him to dig up information from Sang Chi Yu. His special power is shapeshifting. To disguise himself, he chose to become an old dog, but he didn’t expect that dogs were the animals Sang Chi Yu hated the most.]

The man said again, “Get ready tonight. Han Ye will come to see you.”

Upon hearing the name, Su Ru Hui roughly understood that this fake Jiang Que Xie was a member of the the Paradise Pavilion gang in the Black Street. Paradise Pavilion was the largest gang in Black Street, and Su Ru Hui had the been their leader once. Of course, compared to being a leader, he preferred if others called him “boss.” The title of leader was too old-fashioned and sounded like a brothel owner, which couldn’t even qualify for a male protagonist in a novel. Fortunately, he didn’t hold the title for long because in his second year as leader, there was a traitor who sold the secret passage to the Kun Lun Secret Sect. The power difference was too great, and Black Street had no chance of winning, so the only condition for a peace agreement was to hand him over. Sacrificing one person to save everyone else was the inevitable outcome.

Han Ye was the one who handed him over.

He didn’t expect to meet his old enemy again. Should they have a warm-up fight? Han Ye was a spiritual power user, possessing the secret technique “Black Flame Fire.” On the other hand, Su Ru Hui had no tricks up his sleeve. Forget it, let’s just be a little brother honestly, and we’ll have a chance to deal with him later.

The man noticed that Su Ru Hui hadn’t said anything, and seemed to misunderstand something, saying, “What, are you going to back out? We’ve already agreed, and I’ve already reported your name to the higher-ups. It’s impossible to change it now. Don’t worry, your face after the facial reconstruction looks a lot like Su Ru Hui, and Han Ye will definitely like you. You’re sensible. Please Han Ye, and you’ll have a bright future in Paradise Pavilion, and I’ll benefit from it too. Don’t think about rebelling. Jiang Que Xue is your warning; that kid is already dead.”

[Information Unlock: The real Jiang Que Xue was taken into Paradise Pavilion half a year ago and has since died due to excessive use of aphrodisiacs.]

Su Ru Hui: “…”

What the hell is going on?

The two looked at each other again and fell into silence.

Su Ru Hui thought of the locked door, and the fact that this kid was lying alone in a cold and dilapidated room. He understood that Jiang Que Xie hated this marriage and his disabled husband. It was normal for aristocratic families to have homosexual relationships with male servants, but for the sake of continuing the family line, they had to marry a woman as a formal wife. Unexpectedly, the Jiang family didn’t play by the rules, and married their son to the Sang family. They didn’t care what happened to Jiang Que Xie, their own son.

Jiang Que Xie had shifted his anger to Sang Chi Yu, leading to the current situation.

This was awkward now. Jiang Que Xie has become Su Ru Hui, but Su Ru Hui was not so vicious.

Su Ru Hui held back for a long time and said, “Yes, my point is that I am really inhumane!”

Sang Chi Yu didn’t respond to him and silently put on the torn and tattered undergarment that Su Ru Hui had cut. Even though the undergarment couldn’t conceal his body anymore, Sang Chi Yu still meticulously tied the knot. He had no expression on his face – no surprise, anger, sadness or happiness. Su Ru Hui felt very uncomfortable about it. Sang Chi Yu was always fastidious about cleanliness, and his clothes were always spotless, but now he was wearing such tattered clothes without any change in expression. Su Ru Hui felt that even if he whipped him again, Sang Chi Yu would silently endure it without any resistance.

Su Ru Hui turned back and rummaged through his cabinet; he found a clean undergarment and threw it to him.

“I won’t hit you again. Rest assured. You also know that my parents made me marry you to replace my sister. I am a seven-foot-tall man, and it is inevitable that I feel ashamed about this. But…” Su Ru Hui’s tone changed sharply, “Last night I had a strange dream. I dreamed that we were destined to be a perfect couple in our past life, but unfortunately, our parents separated us, and we promised to reunite in the next life. So you jumped into the Qing Chi River and I hung myself on the branch of a tree. Although this dream is bizarre and irrational, we cannot rule out the possibility that it is a sign from the highest heavens. Therefore…” Su Ru Hui patted his shoulder. “Let’s treat each other well in the future. I won’t despise you, and you won’t resent me. If I have a chicken head to eat, then you will have a chicken tail. What do you think?”

Sang Chi Yu remained silent. Obviously he did not believe a word of what Su Ru Hui said. Sang Chi Yu lowered his eyes, took off the dirty undergarment, and put on the clean one. He also had injuries on his hands, and his pale wrist seemed like it could be broken with a twist. When he tied the belt, his hands trembled. After changing his clothes, he lay down and closed his eyes, facing away from Su Ru Hui.

Su Ru Hui shrugged. “If you don’t speak, I’ll take it as you agreeing.”

Sang Chi Yu still didn’t respond. Su Ru Hui helped him tuck in the covers, picked up the dirty clothes he changed out of, and left the room.

—

As soon as Su Ru Hui left, the old dog lying on the footstool slowly opened his eyes and said, “Interesting. I clearly saw this person die, but now he’s alive and kicking.”

A dog speaking like a human was an extremely strange sight, but Sang Chi Yu didn’t react at all.

“When will you stop delaying this matter?” the old dog grumbled, “The Kun Lun Secret Sect has brought you to this point. Are you still thinking about Dan Tai Jing, your master? You may be thinking of him, but he’s not thinking of you. Listen to my advice and take the secret medicine prepared for you by Hei Guan Yin (1), and you’ll be as good as new, even better than before. Then you can seek revenge and make the Kun Lun Secret Sect regret their actions.”

Sang Chi Yu opened his eyes but ignored the dog. He reached out and took out a round box on the bed and opened it. There was a heart core inside. It was black in color and stained with blood spots. Sang Chi Yu’s eyes dimmed, and his lips were as pale as paper.

The old dog was lying under the bed and couldn’t see what Sang Chi Yu was doing. It babbled for a while without getting a response, then finally deflated.

Suddenly, Sang Chi Yu asked, “Did you kill him?”

He spoke without any context, but the old dog immediately understood. It quickly said, “I have nothing to do with it. When I got there, Jiang Que Xie was already dead. Do you want me to kill him again? Just give the order…”

“Silence.” Sang Chi Yu closed his eyes. “You’re too noisy.”

The old dog shut up and turned its head towards the door. It muttered, “Your wife came back from the dead. Is there really such a secret technique in this world? Moreover, he was hostile towards you before, but now he is so gentle. He’s like a completely different person. Is it possible that someone else is controlling him? Interesting, interesting. I need to investigate and report to Hei Guan Yin. It’s sure to be a great achievement.”

Su Ru Hui was leaning against the doorpost outside and heard the entire conversation. A talking dog? Could it be a secret technique that allowed one to change forms? Su Ru Hui rubbed his chin and pondered. Hei Guan Yin; he had heard of that name before. The person was the head of Great Compassion Temple at Black Street, highly knowledgeable in herbs, and had many strange drugs, such as He Huan Powder and Wu Shi Powder, which were prohibited by Kun Lun Secret Sect. He had heard that Hei Guan Yin had a secret medicine called Wu Ji Powder, which could awaken a person’s potential and allow ordinary people to awaken spiritual powers. However, the side effects were enormous, and many people went insane as a result.

Su Ru Hui shook his head. My nemesis, don’t stray from your path.

Su Ru Hui washed his and Sang Chi Yu’s clothes and hung them in the courtyard to dry. It was still early for dinner, so he wandered around the Sang family’s old mansion like a boss, with his hands behind his back. The old mansion was located on the outskirts of Yun Zhou and was quite large, with pavilions and towers aplenty, but it was overgrown with weeds and in a state of disrepair like a desolate grave. As the evening approached, the mansion became even more eerie.

Su Ru Hui went to the kitchen, and as soon as he entered, he saw the old dog. The old dog was rummaging through the stove, and as soon as it saw Su Ru Hui, its ears perked up in a vigilant manner. Su Ru Hui raised an eyebrow. Jiang Que Xie certainly wouldn’t cook for Sang Chi Yu. Had this old dog been cooking for the past few days?

“Get out of here.”

Su Ru Hui kicked the old dog out and started cooking. Sang Chi Yu was seriously injured, and he needed to eat meat to recover quickly. Su Ru Hui killed a chicken, gutted it, rubbed it with salt, stuffed it with scallions, ginger slices, and mushrooms, and then steamed it in boiling water. After about half an hour, the fragrance drifted out. Su Ru Hui turned his head and saw the old dog sitting at the door with its tongue out. It seemed to be waiting.

Su Ru Hui picked up a bone and threw it out. The old dog snarled at Su Ru Hui, but didn’t dare to act suspicious. It reluctantly went to fetch the bone back. Su Ru Hui threw it again, and the old dog angrily scratched the ground with its paws, unwilling to continue fetching.

“Good dog.” Su Ru Hui grinned, “Hasn’t my husband given you a name yet? From now on, I’ll call you Wang Cai (2).”

The old dog was so angry that it almost vomited blood.

After considering that the time was about right, Su Ru Hui opened the lid of the pot. The chicken had turned golden. He poked it with chopsticks, and the meat was soft and immediately dented, indicating that it was cooked. Finally, he sprinkled some sauce on top, took out the chicken, and brought two bowls of rice to the room where Sang Chi Yu was staying.

“Husband, it’s time to eat.” Su Ru Hui put the dishes on the table and rolled up the curtain.

Sang Chi Yu looked up at him. Jiang Que Xie was a 17-year-old young man, rolling up his sleeves to reveal his pale arms, looking vibrant. Sang Chi Yu remained silent. His gaze swept toward the steaming chicken on the table.

“Let’s sit on the bed and eat.” Su Ru Hui brought over a small table and placed it in front of Sang Chi Yu.

Sang Chi Yu slowly sat up, propped up the bed, and moved his body back. Su Ru Hui didn’t rush him and waited until he had settled before bringing the dishes to the small table.

Su Ru Hui tore off a chicken leg and gave it to Sang Chi Yu. Sang Chi Yu looked at the delicious food and pursed his lips. He hadn’t eaten such a delicious meal in a long time. When he was imprisoned in Kun Lun, they gave him leftovers and cold dishes to eat. Occasionally, the old dog in the Sang family cooked some food for him, but most of it was hard to swallow. No matter how much suffering he endured, he didn’t care because he deserved it.

This person in front of him was not Jiang Que Xie. He shouldn’t be here, and he shouldn’t receive this person’s kindness.

His fingers touched the hot edge of the bowl, and he whispered, “Tomorrow, I will write a letter of separation.”

Su Ru Hui was stunned for a moment. “Why divorce for no reason? Do you hate me for hitting you? Or are you unsatisfied because I can’t give birth to a child and can’t continue the Sang family lineage?”

Sang Chi Yu was silent for a moment and said, “You treat me well, and I can’t repay you.”

Su Ru Hui smiled. “Who wants you to repay me? Between husband and wife, what else can I ask for besides your body?”

Sang Chi Yu: “…”

Su Ru Hui laughed. “Just kidding. I have no interest in your body. Hurry up and heal your wounds; that’s enough to repay me. Eat, taste my cooking.”

But Sang Chi Yu didn’t move his chopsticks, only saying, “Tomorrow, leave this place.”

“What do you mean?” Su Ru Hui raised his eyebrows. “Are you trying to drive me away?”

Sang Chi Yu didn’t speak.

“If I don’t promise to leave, you won’t eat?” Su Ru Hui asked.

Sang Chi Yu lowered his eyes and didn’t say a word, which was considered acquiescence.

Su Ru Hui crossed his arms and looked at him sideways. Was this guy crazy? When Jiang Que Xie had beaten him up, he didn’t drive him away. Now that he was treating him well, he wanted to drive him away. Was he asking for punishment?

“Okay, I’ll leave tomorrow,” Su Ru Hui said, “Can you use your chopsticks now?”

“Sorry,” Sang Chi Yu whispered, finally picking up his chopsticks.

The old dog wagged its tail desperately, looking at them pitifully. Su Ru Hui threw a piece of meat to it, and it whined and carried the meat away. Sang Chi Yu ate quietly, chewing without making a sound. Even though he was covered in injuries and in a dilapidated room, he still maintained the etiquette of a Kun Lun Secret Sect disciple.

Su Ru Hui ate quickly, and after finishing, he propped his head up and scrutinized Sang Chi Yu across from him. Sang Chi Yu had eaten hot food, and his face had a slightly better complexion. Su Ru Hui suddenly laughed. “How come you trust me so easily? You’re just going to eat whatever I give you?”

Sang Chi Yu’s movements paused.

“I put aphrodisiacs in the chicken,” Su Ru Hui said.

Sang Chi Yu lowered his head and coughed violently. The old dog below, who was gnawing on the meat, heard Su Ru Hui’s words and stared with wide eyes, barking loudly.

Su Ru Hui saw him coughing so hard that his chest was shaking and worried that his wound might reopen. He quickly said, “I’m just teasing you. I ate it too, didn’t I?”

Sang Chi Yu stopped coughing and put down his chopsticks. He didn’t pick them up again for a while.

Su Ru Hui laughed. “I didn’t really put any aphrodisiac in it. Don’t just eat things that people give you in the future. They might be bad for you. Except for what I give you, of course.”

His words carried some hidden meaning beyond just the food. Sang Chi Yu looked up at him silently. Su Ru Hui maintained his smile, showing his big white teeth as if he were a harmless young boy. Sang Chi Yu lowered his eyes and picked up his chopsticks again.

The old dog watched Sang Chi Yu continue to eat, hesitating for a while before succumbing to the temptation of the meat and taking another bite.

Su Ru Hui said again, “Sleep with me tonight.”

Sang Chi Yu furrowed his brow slightly and called out, “Jiang Gongzi (3).”

Don’t tease him anymore.

“I’m not teasing you. I mean it this time,” Su Ru Hui said. “Although I’m leaving tomorrow, we are still husband and wife now. What’s the point of sleeping in separate rooms?”

Sang Chi Yu’s brow furrowed even more tightly. He had been lifeless before, but now he had some expression on his face, which was a sign of life. Su Ru Hui pulled his sleeve. “Alright, I’ll be honest with you. Someone snuck into my room last night and tried to kill me. As a weak man with no fighting skills, I’m really scared. Can you keep me company, husband?”

With the bad dog here, Su Ru Hui had to watch this guy closely. It wouldn’t be good if he really drank the secret medicine and had to suffer its terrible side effects.

He also wanted to see if he could find out the reason for Sang Chi Yu’s exile. Sharing a bed was the best time for intimate conversations.

The old dog barked loudly, spinning around in place with anxiety.

Sang Chi Yu, don’t trust him. He just wants to take advantage of you!

Footnotes

1. Hei Guan Yin – the literal translation is “Black Bodhisattva.”

2. Wang Cai – a very generic name for dogs in China, similar to Fido.

3. Gongzi – the literal translation is “young master.” It is a honorific for young men

【Consciousness disruption…consciousness reconnection…consciousness successfully online. Status check: no abnormalities.】

【Worldview loaded successfully, ground environment loaded successfully, host information imported successfully, body matching…body matching successful.】

【System permission opening level: 30%】

【Host 000, Su Ru Hui, welcome back.】

Su Ru Hui opened his eyes, his vision blurry as if a thin layer of mist enveloped him. His whole body ached, and his meridians seemed to have been shattered and then stuck back together inch by inch. He moved his fingers and his arm immediately went numb. He took a few sharp breaths and lay there silently, waiting for his vision to clear.

What happened? Memories slowly came back to him. He remembered that he had died. In his days imprisoned in Kun Lun, poisoned and with no cure, the Kun Lun Sect had taken a risky move and cut open his lungs to search for the heart core. It was deeply implanted in his body yet did not belong to him.

Unfortunately, the wound bled profusely, the meridians failed to be sutured, and in his final moment, he felt life quietly slipping away, flowing out of his body like a small stream.

It seemed like he had experienced a long period of darkness before he was awakened by this strange voice in his head.

System. He remembered this voice, which had been intermittently nagging him since he was ten years old. What exactly was it? Where did it come from? He had no idea, and had even entertained the thought of cutting open his own skull to find the source of this voice…

【Friendly reminder: The host cannot use this method to find me. You will have another major hemorrhage. In addition, you will lose your skull and scalp. While others become bald, you will be worse than them.】

Su Ru Hui: “……”

【Congratulations on the host’s reconnection. It is now the winter of the 12th month of the 1239th year of the Kun Lun calendar, at noon. During the five years, three months, twenty days, and seven hours since the host’s disappearance, the three pillars of the “Phantom Puppet” – the puppet, the spirit fire gun, and the meteorite iron skeleton – have made a leap in development, and the world has transitioned from the spiritual power era to the era of mechanized spiritual power. Currently, the “Phantom Puppet” and the spirit stone reserves that drive it are monopolized by the Kun Lun Sect. Due to the fact that this world does not protect intellectual property rights, the host has no recourse but to be an honest pauper.】

The system’s wording was always strange, but miraculously Su Ru Hui could understand it.

That’s right, the “Phantom Puppet” was something he invented.

“The heavens are the ancestors of all things, and all things will not be born without the heavens.” People believe that the stars contain the origin and rules of all things, and by deducing star charts and counting star groups, one can understand the relationship between heaven and man. People are born with qi, which can awaken spiritual power. Spiritual power is innate, and combined with cultivation that corresponds to heaven and earth, one can accumulate qi and activate spiritual power. If people are compared to cannons, then qi is the gunpowder, and spiritual power is the barrel. Only with spiritual power can qi be released, and different spiritual powers have different ways of releasing it. People who have spiritual power can become lovers to increase the probability of their offspring awakening spiritual power. Therefore, prominent families around the world tend to intermarry with each other to maximize the chances of spiritual power inheritance.

Unfortunately, Su Ru Hui lost his spiritual power due to an accident when he was ten years old.

In short, for the sake of survival, Su Ru Hui created the “Phantom Puppet.” They were powered by spirit stones. The puppet was impervious to fire and water, the meteorite iron skeleton invulnerable to swords and spears. The spirit fire gun could open fire and blast everything. Even ordinary people without spiritual power could have the immense killing power comparable to those with spiritual power. Without innate spiritual power as the barrel, the “Phantom Puppet” was an external barrel for ordinary people.

Therefore, many people respectfully called him “Boss Su.” The Great Jing hierarchy was strict, with a clear separation between the nobles and the common people. Su Ru Hui went against the norm and gave the masses the ability to challenge nobles, making him the most hated person by the Kun Lun Sect and other prominent families. He has been the top-ranked wanted criminal by the Kun Lun Sect for years, and was chased everywhere by Sang Chi Yu.

He originally thought that the Phantom Puppet could give the common people a place to stand, but he never expected that the Kun Lun Sect could monopolize the spirit stones and also his Phantom Puppet. Su Ru Hui sighed heavily and moved his limbs again. Finally, the pain in his meridians disappeared, and he turned his body to look around.

Before him was a rather exquisite room, built of stone bricks and decorated with carved windows, a raised bed, and a table. Everything looked typical of an aristocratic style. Su Ru Hui hadn’t lived in such a room for a long time, having spent years living in the streets and the caves in the outskirts. He felt somewhat unaccustomed. Many scarlet curtains hung around the room, indicating that the previous owner had just gotten married. Many books and notes were spread out on the table, densely packed with tiny writing. The redwood window frames were open, the wind rustling the papers. There were many meteorite iron parts, puppet devices embedded with spirit stones, and worn-out artificial meridians scattered on the ground.

A mirror was facing him, and Su Ru Hui saw his appearance, which was somewhat similar to his original self, only much younger. His bone structure was clear and sharp, with slightly pointed eyebrows, and the most outstanding feature was his eyes, dark and imposing, with a compelling sharpness when looking at people, giving him the look of a noble young gentleman.

Su Ru Hui touched his pale cheek and finally asked the first question after his rebirth:

“Who am I now?”

A semi-transparent panel jumped out in response–

Name: Jiang Que Xie

Race: Human

Gender: Appears to be male, but is currently wearing women’s clothes

Age: Seventeen, still young and not yet experiencing any sexual dysfunction

Identity: Appears to be the youngest son of the Jiang family in Yun Zhou, who didn’t inherit the family’s spiritual power. Got married three days ago. The system wishes the host and his husband a passionate love and a happy marriage. Other identities to be explored.

Su Ru Hui: “?”

Cross-dressing was one thing, but he was also married!?

Jiang Que Xie. Su Ru Hui had never heard of this name before. The Jiang family in Yun Zhou was a prominent aristocratic family, and every generation had many members who awakened the spiritual power and joined the Kun Lun Sect. For a family member to not have any spiritual power was equivalent to being disabled, and the most common way out was to marry into another aristocratic family. Obviously, this was Jiang Que Xie’s current situation.

“How did he die?” Su Ru Hui asked again.

【Insufficient system permission. Only basic information can be provided at the moment. Please explore the rest on your own.】

Ugh… how troublesome. Su Ru Hui rubbed his forehead. The “other identities to be explored” on the panel was worth thinking about. It seemed that the original owner of this body was not simple. He touched himself up and down. His skin was intact. There were no wounds, and there were no traces of a fight around him.

Was it natural death or murder?

Su Ru Hui got up from the ground and looked around. He opened the closet and saw rows of neatly arranged clothes. He took out a skirt and looked at himself in the mirror. This child had good taste; it looked good on him. He turned his head and looked at the books on the long table. He randomly flipped through a few of them. They were “Quick Illustration of the Phantom Puppet”, “Meteorite Bone Material”, and “Puppet Joint Analysis”. It seemed that this child was studying his Phantom Puppet. Su Ru Hui’s gaze moved upward, and saw a shoe print on the windowsill.

The toe pointed inward. Someone had stepped on the windowsill and entered this room.

Su Ru Hui took off his shoes and compared them with the shoe print. The shoe print was one size larger than the original owner’s, so it was not the original owner’s.

It was probably the murderer.

How did this person kill Jiang Que Xie? There were no injuries; maybe they used some strange and mysterious secret technique. There were no traces of a fight, and the murderer was likely someone familiar to Jiang Que Xie. Now that Su Ru Hui had taken over this body, Jiang Que Xie had not died in the eyes of outsiders, so would the murderer come back to kill again?

More importantly, there were no footprints in the room. The murderer was very cautious and took off their shoes after entering the room, but only left this one on the windowsill. This person probably planned to wipe it off before leaving, since they were going to wipe away the footprints they left outside anyway. Since they didn’t wipe it off, and there was only one footprint entering the room but no footprints leaving, it meant that –

The murderer was still in the room.

Being in the same room as the murderer was really terrifying. The situation seemed dangerous, but…

Whatever. Su Ru Hui was bored with life and didn’t care.

Come on, kill me. Su Ru Hui waited for a while, but the person didn’t come out.

If you’re not coming out, forget it. He turned his back, sang a joyful tune, and swaggered out of the room. When he looked outside, he was amazed by how big the courtyard was. The wooden corridor twisted and turned, the bamboo mat hung down from the blue tile eaves, and the scarlet lanterns spun around like bees. The sunlight felt warm on his shoulders. The courtyard was really big, and it was good to have money, but where were the servants? He had been out for a while, but he hadn’t seen a single person. Looking closely, the house was very old, with peeling pillars, missing railings, and brick walls covered with green vines. Only the lanterns and curtains were new, probably replaced for the owner’s wedding.

How strange. Where exactly was this?

Su Ru Hui rubbed his chin thoughtfully and caught sight of a locked room across from him.

“You’ve locked it, but I’m going to open it anyway.”

Without bothering to find a key, Su Ru Hui kicked the red sandalwood door open.

Inside, it was pitch black and filled with a chilling yet refreshing coolness. The furnishings were old and simple. The first thing Su Ru Hui saw was a lonely bed with white gauze curtains covering a blurry figure, like an abandoned grave that no one paid attention to. A skinny old dog lay by the edge of the bed and lifted its eyelids to glance at him when he opened the door.

Su Ru Hui went in silently, lifting the curtains with one hand to see the person inside. It was a man with a face that was originally white as jade, but now excessively pale. He was sweating profusely. He wore a plain white shirt that was soaked in blood. Despite his pale face, he couldn’t conceal his cold and stern temperament.

Su Ru Hui fell silent.

He knew this person even if he turned to ashes. Sang Chi Yu, the sharpest sword of the Kun Lun Sect, his nemesis who had been fated to live and die together.

When he wanted to create the Phantom Puppet, Sang Chi Yu destroyed it. When he wanted to kill his enemies and burn down their family, Sang Chi Yu saved them and put out the fire, driving them to flee in all directions. He still remembered a time when they met in a snowstorm with freezing air that made his ears hurt. But even colder was Sang Chi Yu’s voice:

“The Phantom Puppet has been unleashed, and the world is in chaos. I will stop you.”

How did he respond? He couldn’t recall, but he knew it wasn’t pleasant.

“Little rascal, we meet again.” Su Ru Hui lifted the covers and saw that Sang Chi Yu’s right knee was shattered. “What happened?”

[Information unlocked: Sang Chi Yu made a mistake and was expelled from the Kun Lun Sect five days ago. His name was removed from the disciple’s list. His master stripped him of his spiritual power and disabled his right leg. Now he is powerless and at the mercy of the host. Friendly reminder: The candle is on the third floor of the Duo Bao Pavilion, the whip is on the second shelf of the bedroom, and the iron collar is in the wardrobe.]

If you touch a key person or item, the system will automatically unlock some related information, but whether the information is useful or not is another matter. Su Ru Hui automatically filtered out all the strange things and wondered in his heart: So why is he here?

【Jiang Que Xie’s new husband, your cheap husband, is Sang Chi Yu. As the saying goes, enemies can become lovers.】

Su Ru Hui remembered that Sang Chi Yu had a marriage contract with the Jiang family. As a popular and talented young man, a martial official of the Kun Lun Sect, if everyone who wanted to marry him lined up, they could go from Yun Zhou to the South China Sea. The Jiang family had already discussed the marriage contract with his master. If he remembered correctly, Sang Chi Yu’s fiancée was Jiang Xue Ya, the twelfth young lady of the Jiang family. Now it seemed that Sang Chi Yu had become a waste of a person, and this marriage was handed over to her useless younger brother.

No wonder there was no one in this courtyard, and the furnishings were old. It turned out to be the old house of the Sang family. Sang Chi Yu was from the Yun Zhou Sang family. When he was three years old, the Black Street Gang attacked the Kun Lun Sect. The Sang family fought to the death, leaving only this child. With his master and everyone else dead, his servants naturally dispersed. Sang Chi Yu also lived in the border city for many years, and naturally no one took care of the Sang family’s old house.

This poor child was so miserable that Su Ru Hui would be embarrassed with himself if he bullied him. He stood in place for a while, staring at the old dog sleeping next to the bed with big eyes. Su Ru Hui returned to his bedroom and rummaged through his boxes and cabinets to find gauze and medicine. As he was leaving, he looked at the windowsill and saw that the footprints were gone. The culprit must have run away. Returning to the room, he cut open Sang Chi Yu’s clothes and saw his horrifying wounds. They looked like whip marks. Many places were swollen and blackened, and there were signs of pus.

The injuries were too severe, and the rotten flesh needed to be cut out and blood needed to flow before applying medicine so that the wounds could heal. Some places also needed stitches. Su Ru Hui found alcohol and a knife. He sprayed a large amount of alcohol onto the blade, and then heated it over the candle flame until it turned red. He first applied anesthesia to Sang Chi Yu, and then gradually cut away the rotten flesh.

At that moment, the person on the bed frowned and his eyelashes trembled slightly. He slowly opened his eyes.

Su Ru Hui lifted his eyes and met Sang Chi Yu’s gaze. After so many years, this kid’s eyes were still so black and deep that looking into them was like looking into an ancient, endless sea. Upon closer inspection, he felt that something had changed, but he couldn’t say what had changed.

Su Ru Hui smiled slyly. “Oh, husband, you’re awake? You’ve been unconscious for a long time, and I was worried sick about you.”

Sang Chi Yu just looked at him and didn’t say anything.

Sang Chi Yu had always been a taciturn person, and Su Ru Hui knew him well, so he didn’t say much and just helped him apply medicine. Sang Chi Yu was like a puppet, with no reaction at all.

What mistake did he make to end up in such a situation? Based on Su Ru Hui’s understanding of Sang Chi Yu, this guy was a stubborn person with a narrow mind, who took the rules set by Dan Tai Jing and the deceptive teachings of the Kun Lun Sect as the rules of life. How could he make a mistake?

Thinking of this, a “beep” suddenly sounded in his ear.

Beep —

Mission release: How do I save you, my disabled husband?

Mission description: Investigate the truth behind Sang Chi Yu’s expulsion from the sect.

Mission reward: Unlock 10% of the system’s benefits. The host can request everyday items from the system.

Su Ru Hui continued to concentrate on bandaging Sang Chi Yu’s wounds. The chest bandage was done, and he noticed that there was also blood on the bedding. Sure enough, this kid had been laying here quietly for so long. Didn’t he have any sense of pain?

Su Ru Hui couldn’t bear to watch anymore. “The whip has injured you so badly. Who was so cruel to you? It’s inhumane.”

Sang Chi Yu quietly raised his eyes and said something for the first time: “You.”