The Sixth Year of Shenchu
The Painted Person
The sudden, excruciating pain from the severed finger caused Xiaoshi to shudder abruptly. Her eyes widened, and her entire body trembled uncontrollably as cold sweat immediately soaked through her back. The scream had already reached her throat, and her other hand clung desperately to the side of the boat, almost clawing into it.
She couldn’t scream. She pressed her face hard against the boat’s deck, hiding all expressions of pain, not letting Alai see.
“To kill, or not to kill,” Lord Yunmeng continued to ask.
Alai, tears streaming down in anger, couldn’t help but curse loudly, “Xie Taihang! Fang Yuwen! You despicable old men! Filthy scoundrels! Do you have any shame treating an unarmed woman like this?! What kind of gentlemen do you call yourselves?! You are all shameless scoundrels! If all the officials in Da Yu were like you, wouldn’t it be better if it were destroyed sooner?!”
She used all her strength to break free from the iron chains, causing them to clang loudly. However, the chains were too thick and sturdy, and her ankles were being rubbed raw and bleeding, but she couldn’t move them at all.
Alai couldn’t ignore her mother’s life or death, but reason told her that even if she agreed to the assassination right now, there was absolutely no chance of success.
As Lord Yunmeng said, these people had already sent out many spies, and these spies must have undergone rigorous training, being a hundred times more intelligent and alert than she was, yet still met the fate of being discovered and slaughtered by the meticulous Wei Zizhuo. She was just a bit clever; how could she succeed?
Even before attempting the assassination, Alai already knew the outcome. She would become the next prey of Wei Zizhuo, and after her failure, her mother would also be at the mercy of the Xie family.
Death was inevitable either way.
Now she only regretted not listening to her mother in the first place, not being more cautious and low-key in her daily behavior, not reining in her small thoughts of showing off, and not harboring the illusion that she could hide without leaving a trace. Why did Xie Taihang and his group specifically target her instead of someone else? Naturally, it was because the small details she thought she had hidden so well had long been noticed by others, who were pondering how to exploit them. Just now, she had arrogantly tried to expose the other party’s lies to prove her own ability. How ridiculous and ignorant… If she had remembered her mother’s teachings and been a bit more foolish, how could there be so many subsequent troubles?
Now, with no way forward or back, how could she save her mother?
“Wait.” Alai stopped struggling and cursing, carefully arranging her injured ankle and the iron chains, and quietly sat back on the boat. “Do not harm my mother, otherwise I will bite my tongue and commit su*cide to accompany my mother to the afterlife. As for the assassination of Wei Zizhuo, you can find someone else.”
Lord Yunmeng said, “So you agree.”
“Why choose me?” Alai asked. “You sent in so many elite spies who couldn’t achieve the goal. I’m just a servant of the Xie household; why choose me?”
Lord Yunmeng unfolded a painting. From a distance, Alai couldn’t see it clearly, but she vaguely felt that the person in the painting looked somewhat familiar.
“This person… is me?”
The young lady in the painting had a classic oval face, and the pair of bright, star-like eyes beneath her heroic long eyebrows made Alai feel as though she were being stared at.
“This person is not you, but will soon be you.”
“What do you mean?” Alai’s thoughts turned quickly. “Do you want me to impersonate this person?”
“Exactly. This person is the savior whom Wei Zizhuo has been searching for. What an unexpected turn of events! Who would have thought that you would look exactly like her?” Lord Yunmeng pointed to Alai’s face. “With this face, you can definitely infiltrate the Wei household successfully, and even reach Wei Zizhuo’s side. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Wei Zizhuo probably never imagined that such a coincidence could exist in this world; truly, the heavens are set on destroying him.”
“This is simply a fool’s dream.” Alai interrupted his self-indulgence bluntly and quickly pointed out the flaws. “Since this person is the savior whom Wei Zizhuo has been searching for, he must have deep feelings for her. How could he mistake someone else for her? Even if the appearance is similar, we are completely different people, and he would know at a glance. Would you mistake someone close to you for another person?”
Lord Yunmeng ignored her sarcasm and explained, “When Wei Zizhuo was eight years old, he encountered danger in the Suidong Mountains of the Pingcang region. At that time, the young lady in the painting and her father rescued him, took him into their home, and cared for him for two months until he recovered. Afterward, people from the Wei household came to take him back. The Wei family sent people to visit later, but unexpectedly, the father and daughter had disappeared without a trace. Eight more years have passed, and Wei Zizhuo has never given up searching for his saviors. He has hired numerous painters to create a portrait of the young lady based on his memories, showing how deeply he cares. Although the two months of interaction left a deep impression on him, many years have passed, and he was very young at the time, so it is not impossible for him to mistake someone else.”
“These details must have come from those of your people still around Wei Zizhuo, right?” Alai asked again. “It seems someone has already tried to impersonate this identity and failed. Since it’s impossible for him to mistake someone, why would he believe that I am the savior from back then? If he accepts my identity just because of a slight resemblance, then Wei Zizhuo is nothing but a fool.”
“Of course, it’s not just that.”
“Oh? What else is there? Tell me.”
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While Alai entangled in reasoning with Lord Yunmeng, seemingly agreeing to assassinate and gather detailed information about Wei Zizhuo, her fingers hidden behind her ankle were moving swiftly. The iron chain occasionally sparked, and the Golden Cicada Knife hidden between her fingers was slashing at the iron chain repeatedly, which had already developed a large notch.
Alai kept her hand hidden behind her leg, using her leg to block all her movements, and used words to distract the people on the boat, preventing them from noticing her secret actions.
Faster, just a bit faster.
As long as she could cut through the iron chain, she would step onto the boat immediately, slashing the throats of Lord Yunmeng and Xie Taihang directly, and the others would be even easier to deal with!
Mother! Wait for me! I won’t let a single one of these beasts escape!
With a soft “snap,” the iron chain broke.
Alai’s expression froze for a moment. Sweat had soaked her clothes, and the cold wind almost froze her body solid, but her heart burned like a raging fire. She quietly held the two ends of the broken iron chain in her hands, making it look as if nothing had changed.
“Zhen Wenjun has a birthmark,” Lord Yunmeng said.
“Zhen Wenjun? Is that the name of Wei Zizhuo’s savior?”
“Exactly.”
“You all know about the birthmark on her body?”
“Getting close to Wei Zizhuo is difficult, but it’s not impossible to get close to others. As long as you can get hold of the painter, you can learn a lot of information. Zhen Wenjun’s birthmark is above the collarbone, a red birthmark in the shape of a crescent moon.”
“Did you know,” Alai suddenly changed the subject, “it is said that birthmarks are the wounds left from the time of death in a previous life. What kind of birthmark would you want in your next life?”
Xie Taihang, who had been standing to the side, obviously did not expect her to ask such a strange question. He was even more unprepared for Alai suddenly breaking free from the iron chains, her face twisted with ferocity as she leaped into the air, heading in the direction of the big ship! Xie Taihang was greatly startled and hurriedly stepped back.
For the first time, Alai had the thought of killing someone.
At this moment, her heart was filled with nothing but anger and a desire to kill.
She wanted to use the blood of these beasts to consecrate the Golden Cicada Knife and avenge her mother’s pain from losing a finger!
A leap filled with all her strength surged with sky-high fury. Before this fury could carry her to the big ship, a cold object pierced through her body like lightning.
In an instant, all her strength and anger were completely dissolved.
Alai had no idea what had happened. Her entire body was wracked with pain, rendering her muscles powerless. She was gripped by a downward force and heavily slammed back onto the small boat.
Alai was slammed down so hard that she almost lost consciousness. When she saw a blood-stained iron fork piercing through her shoulder bone and embedding into the wooden surface of the boat, her face turned ashen.
With a dull thud, someone stepped onto the small boat.
The frail little boat almost capsized under the heavy step. Alai trembled all over and looked back in fear. She saw a robust man, eight feet tall, standing behind her. In such a cold place, he was bare-chested and covered in sweat. His body was covered in black hair, resembling a wild bear. The sweat evaporated into white mist rising from his arched back. A corner of his upper lip was split, and when he grinned, dark red gums were visible.
He was like a monster that had suddenly burst out of the wild forest to eat people. His strong arms were thicker than Alai’s waist. His loud laughter echoed across the river, making Alai’s eardrums ache.
How could I be so careless?
Alai’s blood dripped drop by drop before her eyes.
While she was trying to attract the other’s attention, she was fully concentrated and didn’t notice when a bamboo raft silently approached from behind. Now, being nailed here, her efforts were truly in vain.
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With the iron fork piercing through her shoulder, she couldn’t stand. Not to mention standing, even a slight movement would cause her excruciating pain, making her wish she were dead.
The cleft-lipped man yanked her hair, forcing the helpless Alai to lift her head and look at the large ship. The wound on her shoulder tore deeper with this movement, causing an unimaginable pain that nearly made her grind her teeth to pieces.
“Look over there!” the cleft-lipped man said loudly.
The whole world wobbled before her eyes until she saw her mother’s blood-soaked hand being lifted.
“A small punishment,” Lord Yunmeng squatted beside Xiaoshi, the smile at the corner of his mouth was something Alai would never forget in her lifetime, “to let you know what happens when you disobey.”
“No, don’t!” Alai’s blood-choked scream did not stop anything.
Her middle and index fingers were cut off at the base, falling into the icy river.
A streak of blood slid down from the corner of Xiaoshi’s mouth; until the very last moment, she did not lose her voice from the pain.
Alai buried her head and cried painfully.
This is a nightmare, this must be a nightmare. If it really is a dream, could I please wake up soon.
Xie Taihang felt somewhat uncomfortable with the excessively bloody scene. He cleared his throat softly and silently shifted his gaze away from Xiaoshi.
“Have you cried enough?”
A trembling, dry voice came from above her head; it was her mother’s voice.
Alai lifted her head, her face full of tears.
The weak Xiaoshi’s face was as pale as a sheet of paper, but there was an unprecedented ruthlessness in her eyes.
With her last bit of strength, Xiaoshi pieced together her broken voice into a complete sentence:
“Mother has always taught you not to cause trouble, to lay down your knife in order to live peaceful days… but now, faced with the brutality and inhumanity of Xie Taihang and the others, you must not yield or be weak!”
“Mother…” Alai’s heart trembled, trying to hold back the streaming tears, but she could only cry even more.
“Pick up your knife, protect yourself, do not give up!”
Mother’s words drilled into her heart.
She wiped away her tears and saw clearly that the desperate situation before her was not a dream.
Lord Yunmeng extremely disliked Xiaoshi’s eyes, which never seemed to be tainted by dust, and said to the strong man holding a dagger:
“Take her eyes out for me.”
“Yes!”
“Wait!” Swallowing all her pain back into her stomach, Alai said word by word:
“Fine, I agree to kill Wei Zizhuo for you!”
Lord Yunmeng laughed heartily, then suddenly reverted to his elegant demeanor from when he was at the Xie residence: “The young lady has finally come to the right decision, as she should have long ago. As long as you obey, Master Ming will ensure your mother’s safety. Now, take Xiaoshi inside.”
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Xiaoshi was dragged into the cabin, and Lord Yunmeng stepped back, once again becoming a thin shadowy presence.
Alai looked at everyone on the big ship, even turning back to look at the cleft-lip man.
She wanted to remember the faces of everyone present today. It was these so-called noble people who cut off her mother’s finger and forced her to kill.
“Xie Taihang.” Alai directly called out Master Xie’s name, “After the deed is done, I don’t care for the glory and wealth of the Xie family. I only ask for a document releasing my mother and me. Will you agree to that?”
Xie Taihang said, “Fine, I promise you, if you can accomplish this task, I will give you a document to release you from slavery. But think it through, if you leave the Xie household, you will merely be two commoners.”
Alai slightly curled the corner of her mouth, ignoring him.
Pick up your knife.
Her mother’s words echoed in her heart.
The Golden Cicada Knife had never been stained with anyone’s blood. Now it would be sharpened with her own blood, and one day she would repay these people a hundredfold.
LP: I just wanna squeeze these shameless bastards’ necks ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)
