He looked up, and a face with a complexion like jade, ice, and amber light reflected in his pupils. The morning light from outside the window shone through the silhouette of her figure into the room, which was somewhat dazzling for him, who had been trapped in an abyss of darkness without release.
She still stirred his heart as always, but she chilled him even more.
He lowered his eyelids, his red lips instantly tightening into a blood-like crimson, and deep within his light brown irises, hidden beneath delicate lashes, swirled a vortex of marsh spiderwebs.
His fingernails dug into his flesh, his heart pounding like a drum.
In the next second, she would make her move, wouldn't she?
What could he do to avoid this death?
He realized that her methods of killing were extremely skilled and swift. Such prowess was far beyond that of an ordinary person, and he was no match for her in his current state… What exactly should he do to be able to kill her in return?
The anxiety and tension within him churned his mind like a tangled mess. He wanted to rip out his hair but feared she would notice something amiss.
Calm down, he must calm down.
Seeing his unusual silence, Gu Junshi felt that the past entanglements between them had long since become unfamiliar and blurred with the passage of time. She did not understand him, nor could she clearly recall what his original personality should have been like, or what kind of interaction they should have had.
She could only observe his reactions while fumbling with her understanding of marital conduct.
"You came back in the rain last night, and as soon as you reached the doorstep, you suddenly fainted. Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"
Liu Jiang Fusheng heard this and suddenly looked up.
"You, you said, a whole night has passed?"
He looked at her in disbelief.
He thought everything had just advanced, but he never expected that the terrifying murderous intent that had been repeating itself had already passed so easily.
Why?
Why didn't she kill him this time, as she had in the past?
At this moment, elation, surprise, and a profound sense of dread swept over Liu Jiang Fusheng.
Perhaps he had narrowly escaped death by fainting, or perhaps his early "awakening" this time had changed things…
Hahahaha… It changed, everything had changed.
He laughed inwardly, twisted and frenzied.
"Are you sick?"
Gu Junshi also vaguely sensed that his state was somewhat abnormal. She sat by the bed and reached out to touch his forehead, but saw Liu Jiang Fusheng turn deathly pale as if stimulated, curling himself up and evasively moving away with a panicked expression.
He… was afraid of her?
Gu Junshi's hand stopped halfway. Her clear eyes narrowed, and she asked with an unfathomable expression, "What's wrong?"
Liu Jiang Fusheng also realized his reaction was too extreme. He bit his lower lip, hugging himself into a ball at the head of the bed. His voice, hoarse and subdued due to suppressed emotions for too long, was a cover: "I, I'm afraid of passing my illness to you."
At this moment, a hand reached out and took his. Unlike his burning skin, her hand was as cold as snow. "Husband."
The clear and gentle voice was the same calling that had been imprinted on his heart during his most blissful moments.
In that instant, he felt extreme hatred, yet his eyes turned red with emotion. He trembled as he looked at her, tears blurring his vision, but she gently pulled him into her embrace. The scent of her filled his nostrils, her fingertips brushed his cheek, and she gently pressed his head onto her warm shoulder.
This intimate and comforting gesture sent shivers down Liu Jiang Fusheng's spine, and he was shocked.
Why was everything different in this rebirth?
"Did you have a nightmare? Don't be afraid, your wife is here."
She patted his back, her movements somewhat clumsy, as if doing this for the first time.
Indeed, in Liu Jiang Fusheng's memory, she had been polite and attentive but also distant and reserved. She had never been so considerate towards him as she was now.
He bit his cheek, suppressing the involuntary spasms of his muscles. He buried his head in her embrace, his fingernails turning white as he clutched her clothes. In the shadows, his lips curved strangely, and he asked with a choked sob, "Is everything truly a nightmare?"
She remained silent for a moment. In her life, she had truly never feared anything, so she could not understand why he would be so sentimental over a dream.
"Husband."
She called him.
"What?"
She hooked his delicate jaw. She did not miss the tension that made his entire body stiffen like stone at that moment. She lowered her gaze and said, "Believe your wife. With me here, nothing in this world can harm you."
Then, a kiss, lightly imprinted on his forehead.
He did not understand the meaning of a kiss on the forehead.
When a cold and ruthless person becomes gentle, it is the most deadly. Even though Liu Jiang Fusheng hated her to death at this moment, his body instinctively felt a warmth and softness.
His soul seemed to be torn in half. One half was an irrepressible love and desire for her, and the other was a bone-chilling hatred and pain.
Liu Jiang Fusheng trembled uncontrollably.
Liar—
Liar, liar, liar, liar, liar—
"My wife, what if the nightmare becomes reality, then what should we do?" he asked her affectionately and hoarsely, sniffing her scent.
Gu Junshi sighed lightly, feeling that her rare patience and tenderness, earned over two lifetimes, were all being given to him.
"If it becomes reality…" She raised her eyes and smiled faintly, "Then your wife will tear it to shreds for you. If it troubles you, I will make it vanish."
Simple words, yet they contained absolute, confident protection.
Liu Jiang Fusheng tilted his head and looked at her, stunned, as if he didn't recognize her at all.
Who was this person before him?
Was she truly Gu Yi?
Then who was the person who had shown him no mercy before?
Seeing Liu Jiang Fusheng finally reveal a relieved and dependent smile, his emotions seemingly much calmer, Gu Junshi then asked him, "You were half an hour late last night, and you fainted for no reason when you returned. Did something happen?"
Since Gu Junshi had decided to start over yesterday, she had noticed some differences from before. For example, his lateness yesterday, and his strangeness this morning after waking up.
Liu Jiang Fusheng never dared to underestimate Gu Junshi's perceptiveness. He had been reborn countless times, but he was unsure if Gu Junshi had also been reborn. However, he knew that whether she had or not, as long as he didn't have the ability to kill her in return, he absolutely could not let her suspect him.
Therefore, he had to provide a justifiable reason for all the abnormalities to convince her.
He used to be as innocent as a blank sheet of paper and never acted. But now, it seemed he could learn things instinctively. He buried his true self and asked her innocently and genuinely, "I, I encountered a strange person on the road. He stopped me and said many peculiar things…"
"What kind of person?"
"An old man with a limp. He claimed to be Daoist Zhiyang."
This was certainly not a lie. Yesterday, Liu Jiang Fusheng, whose memory had not yet returned, had indeed encountered a bizarre old man halfway home. He had said that he shouldn't be lingering in the mortal world when fate called him, and that if he wanted to create another world, to be reborn, and to achieve longevity, he should seek him out.
At the time, he was eager to return home and had no inclination to listen to the old Daoist's nonsensical ramblings. Thinking back now, this "Daoist Zhiyang" had never appeared in his past rebirths. This current rebirth seemed to have changed since he began.
Daoist Zhiyang?
Gu Junshi's eyes deepened, her expression calm and unfathomable. A faint, enigmatic smile even flickered at the corners of her lips.
Daoist Zhiyang…
This person had indeed appeared.
So, everything was still proceeding along the predetermined path of fate.