The Male Leads Who Are Becoming Stranger and Stranger [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 19

Chapter 19

My real name is Xia Lan.

But the Second Young Master liked to call me Xiao Xia, so I am also Xiao Xia—that simple and shy little maid.

Oh? You’re asking me who the Second Young Master is?

Xia Lan smiled slightly; the smile was fleeting, like a night-blooming cereus, yet beautiful, carrying a deep sense of attachment and nostalgia.

The second Young Master was the one she deeply loved or rather, the one she was deeply in love with from afar. Yes, the Second Young Master did not know she liked him, because he already had someone he liked, and that person was the Eldest Young Master Jian Yan.

If you were to ask her what her greatest regret was, it would absolutely be: blessing them.

She was so foolish; seeing how he cherished Second Young Master on ordinary days, she thought he truly loved him. Yet, because of a mere misunderstanding, he disregarded everything and imprisoned Second Young Master in the basement, not even sparing a moment to listen to an explanation.

Is this an expression of love?

Heh.

A mocking curve flashed across the corner of her mouth and vanished.

When they arrived at the banquet venue and saw the Second Young Master looking as if he had fallen into an eternal slumber, the color blooming on his chest piercing her eyes Xia Lan froze in her tracks. She stared blankly, her eyes reddening instantly, before she rushed forward like a madwoman and threw a punch at the person kneeling there!

As the people around pulled her away, she roared at him hysterically.

“I truly misjudged you!”

“You don’t deserve Second Young Master’s love!”

Jian Yan’s face was knocked aside; he was dazed, looking as if he had lost his very soul.

Meanwhile, She Yi lay quietly in his arms, his face pale, eyes closed as if he were dreaming a sweet dream.

An eternal dream of death.

The doctor shook his head and walked away with a sigh.

He said to Jian Yan: “The special corrosive bullet shot directly through the heart, severing the life force. You… should prepare for the funeral…”

“Impossible!”

“It can’t be…”

Jian Yan finally moved. He picked She Yi up with extreme caution and care, his eyes frighteningly hollow. He ignored the hesitant people around him, and he ignored Xia Lan, who was screaming hysterically beside him.

Holding She Yi as if he were embracing the entire world, he walked out step by step.

The earth began to tremble and sway. Everyone looked around in confusion, their eyes turning to terror as every plant within sight began to grow frantically.

They surged toward the door, appearing as though they wanted to block Jian Yan’s path.

However, scorching flames soared into the sky, ruthlessly burning the vines to ashes—

Holding She Yi, Jian Yan disappeared from everyone’s sight, one step at a time.

In the hall, Xia Lan, who was being held back, suddenly collapsed to the ground as if her strength had been depleted. The gaze she cast toward the door before losing consciousness was still filled with intense fury and resentment.

…

Jian Yan crafted an ice coffin and placed the handsome, peacefully sleeping man inside. He then crouched down, gently brushing a strand of hair from the man’s cheek, his fingers lingering, loath to pull away.

One day, two days, three days… he guarded the ice coffin, his gaze focused and soft.

Look, aren’t you right here?

You’re just asleep; you’ll wake up soon, won’t you?

…

Bai Mu burst in. The transparent crystals everywhere reflected his wide, shocked eyes. He reflexively clutched his heart; the stinging pain was vivid and clear.

Had he, without realizing it, lost his own heart as well?

Jian Yan stood up and turned to look at Bai Mu, his eyes heavy and devoid of any luster.

He spoke, his voice dark and hoarse:

“What are you doing here?”

As if unable to hear him, Bai Mu stumbled closer. His current appearance was far from good, even somewhat disheveled a far cry from his usual dignified elegance.

A circle of people gathered outside the door: half were members of the Redeemer Base, and half were men brought by Bai Mu. They stood in opposition, the atmosphere tense and volatile.

A figure blocked Bai Mu’s path. Jian Yan’s eyes were cold, like blades scraping against Bai Mu’s body.

“What right do you have to be here?”

Bai Mu froze.

Yes, he indeed had no right.

Because the culprit who caused Xiao Yi’s death was him, wasn’t it?

Bai Mu’s lips moved stiffly, but he found he could say nothing. His eyes were fixed firmly on the sleeping beauty in the ice coffin, as if the man might wake up the next second and give him a bright smile.

Just like always.

Regrettably, no matter how he looked or how much his heart craved it, that person would never wake up again.

“…Sorry, I didn’t mean… I didn’t mean to hurt you…”

Bai Mu spoke dryly, but a hand suddenly pushed him, and he fell to the ground, caught off guard.

Jian Yan stood before him, looking down with a cold gaze.

Driven by a sudden impulse, Bai Mu sprang up and threw a punch at the man’s face. Jian Yan stumbled back two steps, his face slowly lifting to reveal a ferocious expression as he lunged forward.

Neither used their abilities. It was pure physical combat, flesh against flesh.

The people around watched this scene, but whether they were Jian Yan’s people or Bai Mu’s, they all seemed to feel the oppressive, heavy atmosphere and remained silent, not intervening.

Among them, Xia Lan was expressionless. Her gaze, showing no sign of joy or anger, was as calm as still water; it only regained a spark of color when it fell upon that ice coffin.

She took one deep look, then turned and left.

She didn’t have enough power yet. Just wait a little longer…

…

Three Years Later

When Xia Lan stepped onto the soil of S City once again, the place had already been divided into two parts.

Xia Lan looked up at the calm, orderly streets and walked toward the largest building in the east where the person she missed so deeply lay in slumber.

“Stop! What do you want?”

“This isn’t a place just anyone can enter.”

“It’s—it’s the Poison Vine Saintess, ah—”

Winding, climbing vines retracted from the bodies of the several people lying on the ground. Xia Lan’s fingers tightened around her seeds, then she swept her sleeve and walked into the building’s interior.

The surrounding plants began to grow frantically, binding every obstacle in her path, pinning them firmly in place so they could not break free.

Outside the ice chamber, Xia Lan stopped, looking at the grim-faced man ahead.

“I’ve come to take him away.”

“Impossible.”

The corners of Xia Lan’s mouth twitched into a smile.

“You’ve always wanted to know why the Second Young Master went to see Bai Mu back then, haven’t you?”

“In fact, you’ve had the answer in your heart all along, haven’t you?”

“But I’m going to say it anyway. The Second Young Master did it for you to help you seize power in S City he went to beg Bai Mu! Why do you think Bai Mu suddenly sought you out for a collaboration?”

Xia Lan’s tone grew colder and colder, her eyes like shards of ice.

“Poor Second Young Master actually asked me to help keep it a secret, how ridiculous. If I had known the consequences, I wouldn’t have agreed to let him be with you even if it meant my death!”

Xia Lan seemed to say more afterward, but Jian Yan could no longer hear anything. He unconsciously clenched his fists, unaware that his nails were digging into his palms. His face was as pale as a corpse.

Xia Lan’s words were like a sharp sword, piercing directly into his heart.

Although he had vaguely guessed the answer, when he actually heard it, Jian Yan still couldn’t control himself; his legs nearly gave way. For a moment, the world spun, and he felt like a dying fish, unable to breathe.

Disordered images flashed before his eyes: smiles, sadness, joy, shyness, awkwardness, heartache… they were all that person’s face.

The memory stopped on that gorgeous face tinged with slight anger. What had he said back then?

“Can I trust you?”

The other seemed to startle for a moment, then revealed a beautiful smile.

“I have always been Xiao Yan’s good friend.”

“Then you won’t betray me either, right?”

“Xiao Yan, what kind of talk is that? Even if the whole world betrays you, I would never do such a thing!”

“I believe you…”

…

“Take the Second Young Master back!”

His own voice sounded so cold, it didn’t even seem like himself.

“Xiao Xiao Yan, listen to my explanation…”

He struggled and pleaded, yet he himself remained completely unmoved.

So that’s how it was. The person who lacked trust was actually himself!

Hehe…

A slight vibration stirred the air as a low, barely audible laugh rang out. The laughter grew louder and louder, eventually turning into a roar of laughter. But as he laughed, tears flowed uncontrollably.

He thought he had lost the ability to cry.

…

Xia Lan gave him a complicated look, then walked into the ice chamber, gazing at the man who appeared to be sleeping peacefully in the ice coffin.

Let me take you away from here, okay? she asked softly.

In the end, Xia Lan was unable to take him away. The two major bases in S City broke out into conflict once more. In fact, this kind of thing had happened countless times over the past three years, yet strangely, it never caused any actual damage to S City itself. The residents had grown accustomed to it.

Xia Lan, unable to take the person with her, settled down in S City. Others might not see it clearly, but she understood perfectly the reason why Jian Yan and Bai Mu never truly dealt a killing blow.

If you want to punish a person and make them wish they were dead, killing them is too simple.

Only by letting them live, forever scorched by the agony of guilt that is the true, ultimate torture.

Xia Lan revealed a mocking smile.

When her gaze turned in a certain direction, that smile transformed back into genuine emotion.

Second Young Master, you must still be living somewhere in this world, right?

That smile took on a hint of bitterness.

Because in her heart, she knew very well that this was nothing more than self-deception…