Zhao Qian gritted his teeth and slammed his fist into the rack, causing it to creak loudly. Unsatisfied, he raised his arm and punched it again, driving a wooden spike into the flesh, drawing blood.
"You two are truly siblings," he muttered, filled with resentment.
His words were met with a barely audible sigh from behind.
Zhang Duo patted his shoulder and softened his tone slightly, "There's no point in forcing the issue."
With that, he left the interrogation room.
Jiang Ling was waiting for Zhang Duo under the weeping willow.
"Master, the man has been taken away."
"Mm."
"The young lady doesn't trust Doctor Mei, she probably won't let him treat him..."
Zhang Duo waved his hand, "If she doesn't want him, so be it. See which doctor she invites, and make sure he's taken care of."
Jiang Ling bowed and replied, then added, "Is the master returning to the manor?"
"No."
He turned and glanced at the interrogation room. "Go call Zhao Qian out."
"But... what should I say..."
Zhang Duo walked forward with his hands behind his back, seeming unconcerned, "Tell him I asked him to drink."
This was an unspoken understanding between them. As brothers who had risked their lives on the battlefield, their words didn't always have to be sincere, as long as their hearts were true.
Zhang Duo, who usually couldn't drink more than three cups, and Zhao Qian, who could drink endlessly, were now both drunk. Zhao Qian was mumbling Zhang Pingxuan's childhood nickname in his drunken stupor. Zhang Duo took a handkerchief from a servant and stuffed it into Zhao Qian's mouth. The latter didn't resist and simply bit down on the handkerchief, gradually falling silent.
Zhang Duo propped his forehead and held his wine cup, sitting alone for a while.
Drinking alone while watching a drunk man, even though he himself was slightly tipsy, his thoughts were exceptionally clear.
The moonlight was sparse, and there was no wind. The camp was filled with cooking smoke rising into the sky. Everything seemed so clear, just like the obsession of the man before him.
Zhang Duo smiled derisively and set down his cup, looking at Zhao Qian, "This is the best you can do."
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Ling's voice came from outside, "Master."
"What is it?"
"Oh, nothing, I brought you a robe."
"Come in."
Jiang Ling pushed open the door and saw the mess. He said softly, "General Zhao is drunk again?"
"That's his best quality."
He stroked the intricate carvings on the jade cup and chuckled softly, "After a good drink, he forgets everything."
With that, he took the robe and draped it over Zhao Qian's shoulders, then said, "Find someone to take care of him."
After finishing his words, he raised his head and drained the rest of the wine in the cup. Then he strode out.
Zhang Duo returned home by carriage and entered Yonghe Residence.
He heard the sound of someone being beaten outside the courtyard gate. Several servants were pressed to the ground with their mouths gagged, and their bodies were covered in bruises. When they saw him, the person in charge of the punishment stopped and bowed. Zhang Duo glanced at the people on the ground without saying a word and walked straight through.
Jiang Ling quickly asked the person in charge, "What happened?"
The person replied, "The young lady came and entered the Quiet Study. These people were careless and didn't stop her."
"Ah... so the young lady saw..."
Before he could finish, he heard a voice say, "Beat them and throw them out."
The person in charge quickly shut his mouth and bowed, replying, "Yes."
The Quiet Study was lit by a solitary lamp as usual.
Zhang Duo pushed open the door and stepped inside.
Xi Yin was sitting by the pottery table, her body trembling. She looked up at Zhang Duo but didn't say anything.
Zhang Duo lifted a curtain and walked over to her, staring into her eyes.
She seemed afraid of his gaze and looked away.
Zhang Duo's gaze wandered over her, noticing her trembling throat, fingers, and shoulders.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
She shook her head without speaking.
"I think you're about to cry," he said.
"No!" she insisted.
She tried to deny it, but her voice weakened, "I'm not crying... I'm not..."
Zhang Duo didn't ask any more questions. He lifted her chin and forced her to look at him.
She tried to avoid his gaze but couldn't close her eyes. For a moment, neither of them spoke. The shadows of two people fell on the Guanyin statue behind them, one calm and composed, the other trembling like a frightened animal.
After a long time, he finally let out a cold laugh.
He let go of her chin, stood up, untied his robe, and threw it beside the pottery table. He sat down behind the pottery table and looked down at her.
"Go get the medicine. Today is the last day."
She sat still, her teeth chattering, her eyes red.
"Aren't you going?"
He reached for the whip beside him, and she finally got up and moved towards the secret cabinet where the medicine was kept.
Zhang Duo watched her back and tapped the pattern on the whip handle with his fingers. Suddenly, he said, "Xi Yin."
His voice was low, but it startled Xi Yin, who was opening the cabinet. All the bottles and jars fell over. She hurriedly tried to pick them up, but heard another meaningful sentence from behind, "Be careful, I've taught you this, don't take the wrong one."
Xi Yin's heart skipped a beat, and cold sweat broke out on her forehead. She held the medicine in her hand and dared not turn around.
He didn't say anything else. He lowered his head, untied the sash around his waist, took off his middle garment, and lay down as usual, closing his eyes, waiting for her to move.
Xi Yin took a deep breath, squeezed the jade bottle hard, turned around, and slowly walked behind Zhang Duo.
After ten days of healing, the wounds had all scabbed over, and some of the scabs had even begun to fall off, revealing new pink flesh. Only the two wounds on his shoulders, due to constant movement and pulling, had not fully healed.
Xi Yin looked at the two wounds, and for a moment, she didn't move.
Zhang Duo remained lying still, neither urging nor turning around.
After a long time, the sound of pulling out the cork broke the silence in the Quiet Study. The lamp flickered and suddenly went out. Before she could make a sound, she was grabbed by the neck with great force and pressed against the pottery table. The jade bottle fell out of her hand and the medicine powder scattered all over the floor.
She couldn't breathe at all, and felt her blood rushing to her head, as if her head was about to split open.
In the darkness, although she couldn't see his face, she could clearly feel his breath.
"I gave you a chance, but you chose not to take it."
She couldn't speak, nor could she breathe, and she could only kick her legs involuntarily.
But he pressed her down with one hand, and she was helpless in his grasp, on the verge of life and death.
"I... I want... revenge..."
She squeezed these words out of her throat with all her might.
The hand that had been around her neck suddenly retracted. Xi Yin collapsed as if her bones had been removed, gasping for breath, her throat filled with a coppery taste.
The man in front of her seemed to stand up, and soon, a solitary lamp was lit, illuminating the surroundings. Then the jade bottle was handed to her, followed by a voice that she couldn't discern whether it was happy or angry.
"You want to kill me, don't you?"
She hadn't recovered yet and was lying on the ground, coughing violently.
Zhang Duo sat cross-legged and tossed the jade bottle. "Not bad, you can now tell the difference between wound medicine and poison."
She propped herself up on the ground and reached out to grab it, but he pulled his hand back, smiling mockingly, "Gratitude turned to revenge? Is that it?"
"You... you killed my brother, I... I want to... avenge my brother..."
Zhang Duo put the jade bottle back on the table, casually put on his robe, grabbed her wrists, and pulled her in front of him. "All you remember is that I killed him, not that I saved you..."
"You... you never wanted to save me... you... you just... used me..."
The man in front of her laughed, "Not bad, Xi Yin, you're not stupid. You look much better like this than when you were begging me."
With that, he stood up and pulled her up from the ground.
The shadow behind the Guanyin statue was stretched and distorted by the low-hanging lamp.
"If you want to kill, you have to have the ability to kill."
He said, forcing her to look into his eyes.
"You have to dare to face your enemy. No matter how different your strength is, no matter how terrifying they look, you can't show any weakness, you can't reveal what's in your heart."
"You... let me go..."
Her original timid delusions were exposed, and she was in a state of confusion, only wanting to break free from him.
But he tightened his grip on her instead.
"If I let you go, what will you do?"
She froze, her whole body stiff.
The words above her head struck her like a thunderbolt:
"Do you want to commit suicide in front of me, or do you want to die obediently, or do you want to beg me to spare your life?"
"I..."
"Can't choose, can you?"
She really couldn't choose.
Hatred was clear.
But everything else was chaotic.
She was too superficial, and she couldn't understand the self-redemption of "asking for it and getting it."
She just felt very unwilling. She didn't kill him, but she was going to die instead.
What should she do? Should she beg him for mercy?
He was her enemy.
For a moment, extreme confusion made her ears burn and her heart ache.
However, Zhang Duo had no intention of sparing her.
He dragged her to the door. "It's easy to deal with someone who wants to die. As for the other two options, it just depends on how brave you are. It's difficult for someone who wants to live. If you kill your enemy and fail to survive, you will lose everything: face, chastity, reputation, and in the end, you won't even be able to save your life. Xi Yin, don't you think that's miserable?"
With that, he pushed open the door.
The cold wind from the courtyard, carrying the cries of the servants, rushed in.
"What... what are you going to do to me..."
Zhang Duo looked down at her. The wind blew her messy and wet hair, half-covering her face, but revealing her terrified eyes.
"I'll teach you how to overcome fear, and then kill."
"What... what are you trying to do..."
He didn't answer her and dragged her out of the room.
"Jiang Qin. Bring the snow dog here."
Hearing this, Xi Yin's face turned pale, and she desperately tried to break free from his grip.
"No... don't do this to me... don't let the dog near me... I'm really afraid of dogs..."
Zhang Duo threw her to the ground and said coldly, "Remember, I said you would only live for ten days. Today is the tenth day, so Xi Yin, I'll give you a chance."
He pointed to the snarling dog.
"Stay outside the Quiet Study for one night. If you're still alive tomorrow, I'll let you take revenge."
She was stunned and hesitated, "You... you mean it."
"I mean it."
"I..."
Before she could finish, the snow dog started barking wildly. She grabbed Zhang Duo's robe in fright, "No... I don't want to, I don't want to stay with it... I don't want to..."
"Listen, don't beg me, begging me won't save your life."
With that, he handed her the snake-skin whip.
"Xi Yin, try it, beg for yourself."