"Urgent news from Yuzhou. Third Brother was captured days ago. Today, they beheaded him on the city walls, and those rebels even hung his body on the city gate."
He spoke calmly, as if silently brewing a storm.
Feng Yinwan’s breath hitched again upon hearing this. Before she could speak, Ye Tingyun had already leaped to his feet, his eyes fierce and reddened.
"These rebels, I will kill them to avenge Third Brother!"
Such scoundrels deserved to be hunted down with the might of an entire nation. Now that his father, the Emperor, had bestowed his authority upon him, he would issue an order to march and exterminate these traitors and rebels.
Thinking it still wasn't enough to vent his hatred, Ye Tingyun gritted his teeth and added, "I want to go to Yuzhou myself!"
He wanted to bring Third Brother back and personally witness the rebels who killed him being brought to justice!
Wiping his tears with his sleeve, he took a step to leave. Feng Yinwan, jolted from her shock, immediately stopped him.
"Ye Tingyun, don't be impulsive!"
The rebels had defected, and the Yue nation’s people had already entered the territory. What was the situation in Yuzhou now? It was not a place he could visit so carelessly.
However, Ye Tingyun couldn't hear a word. His eyes reddened, and he forcefully shoved her away.
"How can I not be impulsive!"
That was Third Brother! The one who had loved and protected him since childhood, treating him as a brother born of the same mother!
The wound on his left shoulder had not yet healed. After rushing through the night, Feng Yinwan had already expended a lot of energy. This shove inadvertently pulled on her wound, and a fine layer of cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
Song Qing'an rushed forward to support her upon seeing this. Feng Yinwan pursed her lips and, just as she steadied herself, Ye Tingyun’s breathing suddenly became ragged, and a dark purple hue spread across his face.
Seeing this, Feng Yinwan's brow furrowed. She immediately stepped forward and forcefully held him down.
"Is your heart ailment acting up again?"
She had treated Ye Tingyun for a long time in the past and was most familiar with the causes of this condition. This relapse of his heart ailment was clearly due to extreme anger overwhelming his heart, making him disregard his own life.
Feng Yinwan felt a surge of anxiety and her fingertips moved toward her waist to retrieve silver needles.
Ye Tingyun, however, suddenly looked at her, a peculiar clarity in his eyes.
"You're finally willing to admit it, aren't you?"
He knew that this woman had always been reluctant to bring up past events, and Third Brother had also said that such things could not be forced. Therefore, they had both understood tacitly, and neither had pierced that veil. Now that she was willing to speak of his heart ailment, didn't this mean she had acknowledged her past identity?
Feng Yinwan's movements faltered upon hearing this. Ye Tingyun, as if afraid she would go back on her word, grabbed her wrist and said hurriedly, "My heart ailment was cured three years ago. If you are truly not Third Sister-in-law, how would you know about this?"
He laid the matter bare, determined not to let her conceal it any longer. Feng Yinwan remained silent, picking up a silver needle to insert it into him. Ye Tingyun, however, resisted and dodged.
"Only Third Sister-in-law can treat my heart ailment. If you are not Third Sister-in-law, I cannot trust you!"
His eyes were fixed on Feng Yinwan's face, stubbornly demanding an answer. The two engaged in a silent struggle. Several needles missed their intended points. Feng Yinwan's eyes darkened, and she immediately stopped and stepped back.
"Ye Tingyun, your life is your own. If you are unwilling to cherish it, then no one can save you."
At such a critical juncture, he was still preoccupied with this!
Ye Tingyun tilted his head stubbornly. "If you are not Third Sister-in-law, then my life has nothing to do with you. You don't need to bother treating me; you can just let me die on my own."
"You!"
Feng Yinwan was somewhat exasperated. This blockhead had always been stubborn. She really wanted to abandon him, but how could she? She let out a heavy sigh and finally replied in a low voice.
"What if I am? Times have changed, things are different, today is not yesterday, and the person today is not the person of yesterday."
Who she was no longer mattered.
Ye Tingyun, however, refused to let go of any detail in her words.
"There is no change!"
He looked at her, his gaze firm. "Third Brother's feelings for you have never changed. Neither have mine or Mother's! Nor Grandmother's!"
When she suddenly left the capital back then, they hadn't even had time to give her an explanation. Three years was too long, and too much had changed. Seeing each other again, the situation was indeed vastly different, but no matter how the world changed, their feelings for her had never wavered.
Although her face was extremely pale, the determination in his eyes burned like a brilliant flame. Feng Yinwan's heart trembled slightly, and she hurriedly looked away.
"It's all in the past. You don't need to mention it again."
"Fine, I won't mention past matters for now. What about the present? You know there was nothing between Third Brother and Yunshu, yet you still refuse to forgive him? Even he..."
Feng Yinwan frowned. "I haven't refused to forgive him."
Even the most intense hatred would eventually be smoothed over by time. Moreover, she now suspected that her father and brother might not be dead, so she couldn't really say she hated Ye Tinglan. As for Yunshu, she was even less worth mentioning. Perhaps this was a reason for her leaving back then, but in the final analysis, too much had separated them, and both were proud individuals unwilling to speak their minds. Sometimes she had to admit that in certain aspects, she and Ye Tinglan were actually similar. If two similar people were bound together, confronting them would be like looking at another version of herself. What kind of feeling would that be? Thinking back to it now, only "exhaustion" could describe her state of mind. Her life had been filled with other things over the past three years; she had no energy to think about these things. If not for certain considerations, Ye Tinglan would be no different from a stranger to her.
Her emotions sank slightly. Ye Tingyun, sensing the weariness hidden in her expression, bowed slightly and said in a muffled voice.
"I shouldn't say too much about you and Third Brother. But now that Third Brother is already... I still hope you can let it go."
He lowered his head dejectedly, having lost his earlier arrogance. Feng Yinwan looked at him, her heart filled with mixed emotions. Her gaze drifted further away, and she said, "If you have this much leisure, you might as well take care of yourself first, so you'll be alive to see him again."
Ye Tingyun’s eyes suddenly lit up. "You also think Third Brother isn't dead, right?"
In an instant, his eyes regained their dazzling brilliance. Feng Yinwan's gaze flickered, and the heaviness in her chest lightened a little. However, she still said sternly, "I didn't say that."
Ye Tingyun had already made up his mind and automatically ignored her words. He rolled up his sleeves and extended his arm toward her.
"Quick, quick, treat me!"
His change of attitude was faster than flipping a book. Feng Yinwan raised her brow slightly and looked at him, unmoving. "Weren't you just desperately dodging and refusing my treatment?"
Ye Tingyun showed no hint of guilt. "I was just holding on!"
"Quick, I can't hold on any longer. If you don't treat me now, I'll faint immediately!"