Feng Ran’s lips curved into a mocking smile.
She was the most pathetic, the most pitiable.
Xuanyuan Heng stood before the woman, his gaze icy as he watched the woman kneeling in the snow, her face pale, seemingly about to faint at any moment, yet still holding on.
Seeing the solitary figure in the snow, the man’s eyes blazed with a bloodthirsty light.
Xuanyuan Heng glanced at the guard, An Ying, standing by. “Throw this eyesore out.”
“Yes.” An Ying was a guard specially trained by Xuanyuan Heng to remain by his side. In his world, there was no right or wrong; his master’s words were absolute.
He did whatever his master commanded.
“Let everyone know clearly that anyone who helps Feng Ran is an enemy to this prince.”
“Yes.”
“Finally.” Xuanyuan Heng squatted down, lightly lifting Feng Ran’s chin, and spoke with thinly veiled contempt. “Hand her over to Hong Yi. Let her be properly trained.”
An Ying heard this and his gaze snapped up, a hint of wavering in his icy eyes. “Your Highness? You are truly sending her away?”
“What? Did you forget what I just said?”
“Are you trying to plead for her?”
“An Ying, you have overstepped your bounds.”
“Yes, Master.”
An Ying didn't know what had come over him. When he met Feng Ran’s desolate gaze, he felt an unusual sensation.
Xuanyuan Heng disgustedly flung Feng Ran’s chin away. He took the handkerchief An Ying offered and wiped his slender fingers before discarding it.
“An Ying, I do not need to explain any of my actions to anyone.”
“You overstepped just now. Handle this matter properly and then go receive your punishment,” Xuanyuan Heng said coldly.
“Yes, Master.”
As An Ying led her away, Feng Ran looked back at Xuanyuan Heng, who stood at a distance, watching indifferently.
Feng Ran said firmly, “Xuanyuan Heng, Yu Wanyan’s death has nothing to do with me.”
“I did not kill her.”
“Also, Yu Wanyan is definitely still alive. Xuanyuan Heng, aren't you powerful? Go and investigate.”
Xuanyuan Heng walked towards Feng Ran, his face grim.
His bloodthirsty gaze made Feng Ran tremble all over with fear. She dared not look up at the man before her.
With just a glance from him, she could be erased from existence.
Feng Ran stubbornly raised her eyes, forcing herself to meet the man’s gaze. The moment their eyes met, the dark and empty depths of his eyes made her flinch, and a wave of terror washed over her.
Her hands clenched tightly, forcing herself not to retreat.
Feng Ran bit her lip hard, her eyes brimming with tears, yet she dared not let them fall. She dared not make a sound.
Xuanyuan Heng frowned, looking at her with disdain. The matter was clear, yet she was still quibbling. Her heart was truly venomous.
Indeed, if Feng Ran were not so vicious, how could she have caused the Feng family to fall apart?
Heh, she shamelessly forced herself to his side.
What outrageous things had Feng Ran done?
She had forcibly stayed in the prince’s manor, forcibly claiming him as her possession.
But was she worthy?
Although she was the legitimate daughter of the Feng family, she was ultimately brainless.
She had no leverage left, yet she was still struggling desperately. Was she trying to put on a show? Or did she think he would believe the ridiculous words she uttered?
Xuanyuan Heng grabbed her neck and dragged her away. He reached the flower pond and said indifferently, “Heh, you can talk so well? Then, you shall enjoy yourself.”
He directly threw her into the flower pond.
Snowflakes fell from the sky, and a bone-chilling cold swept over her.
Feng Ran was terrified of water. She had fallen into water as a child, leaving her with a phobia.
Xuanyuan Heng knew this.
He must have been incredibly cruel to have done this to her.
Feng Ran struggled in the icy water, her hands flailing. A sense of death and suffocation washed over her, and she was overcome with terror.
Her face turned deathly pale, and her body began to sink slowly.
Feng Ran gave up struggling. The images of her parents and the people of the Feng family flashed before her eyes, all so vivid. Yet, she could not see her younger brother. Did her brother still blame her?
Yes, how could he not blame her?
When the Feng family was raided, her brother was young and full of spirit.
Her brother’s future had been bright, but because of her, she had secretly given confidential documents from her father’s study to Xuanyuan Heng. The next day, the Feng family was raided.
She, Feng Ran, was the sinner, the most wicked of them all. She was the one who deserved to die the most.
Feng Ran stopped struggling. Parents, your daughter has come to atone.
Her body felt as if it were floating. Had she died?
Dying, how wonderful. She could finally atone for her sins. She no longer had to live burdened by so much guilt.
Feng Ran lost consciousness.
Feng Ran was awakened by a splash of cold water. In the harsh winter of the twelfth lunar month, she was soaking wet and trembling uncontrollably.
Someone grabbed her chin, the pain causing her to gasp and fully regain consciousness.
As she took in her surroundings, her eyes were filled with despair and helplessness.
She was still here.
She was still alive.
Xuanyuan Heng, gripping her throat, said with a sinister tone, “Heh, Feng Ran, do you think that by dying, you will be freed? But how can someone like you be worthy of death?”
“You shall live, for all eternity in hell.”
“You shall suffer torment your entire life, live in purgatory forever.”
“Isn’t death letting you off too easily? Are you worthy?”
Xuanyuan Heng said coldly and icily, “The feeling of suffocation, how does it feel? Is it pleasant?”
“Feng Ran, when you killed Wan Yan, did you ever think about it? Wan Yan also struggled like this. But at that time, did you feel any pity?”
“You didn’t. Not at all,” Xuanyuan Heng said violently. “If you had an ounce of conscience, Wan Yan would not be dead.”
“Xuanyuan Heng, believe it or not, I never harmed Yu Wanyan.”
“I deserve to die, but not because of that slut,” Feng Ran said with all her might, her voice cracking. “It was me, lacking self-awareness, who brought about the ruin of the Feng family.”
“I regret it, I regret it,” Feng Ran murmured softly, her voice filled with endless sorrow and misery.
“Is that so?” Xuanyuan Heng was unfazed. His eyes were filled with bloodlust, and he said coldly, “This prince believes that Hong Yi will train you to be very obedient.”
“This prince is rather looking forward to it.”
After speaking, Xuanyuan Heng turned and left without a trace of hesitation, without another word to Feng Ran.
Feng Ran’s face was ashen. She shivered all over and curled into a ball.
She knew that Xuanyuan Heng was retaliating against her. He was a man of his word.
And she would forever remember what he had whispered in her ear just now: “Feng Ran, absolutely do not die. Your brother is still alive.”
Feng Ran knew that she would never escape his control in this lifetime.
Brother, Feng Jin was still alive, still here.
For Feng Jin, no matter how much hardship she endured, how much torment she suffered, it was all worth it.
As Xuanyuan Heng had said, she had to live well. Only by living could she find Feng Jin.