Chapter 193
Chapter 193
Yang Nanqing’s brows drew tightly together. With what seemed a helpless sigh, he said softly,
“I can, but they cannot.”
The world would not permit it. Their families would never agree.
Their story was destined to end in tragedy.
Yang Nanqing’s fingers slowly traveled upward until they reached Huo Lanxu’s cheek. He lifted his head and gave a bitter smile.
“You are blessed with every advantage. You deserve a better future.”
*I am not a woman. I cannot spend my life at your side, bear your children, or win the world’s recognition.*
*If only I were a woman.*
Huo Lanxu tightened his grip on Yang Nanqing’s hand. “Is a future without you still a future? I want only you. I don’t fear the world’s judgment. I’ll prove to everyone that you are better than anyone else.”
Huo Lanxu looked out the window. “Once I’ve made something of myself, they will accept me.”
War raged everywhere that year. His father held a powerful position, while Huo Lanxu was merely a pampered young master raised beneath his protection.
He had returned to prove himself–to show that even without his father, he could stand on his own.
He was able. He could do it. He was worthy.
In their era, if a young hero returned triumphant from war covered in honors, why should he not then pursue his dream?
Yang Nanqing shook his head. “No. I’m not a woman. Stop indulging in impossible fantasies.”
He wrenched his hand free, flicked his sleeve, and jumped out the window without the slightest trace of reluctance.
He did not look back.
Because he feared Huo Lanxu would discover his weakness.
His hesitation.
The fact that his love had already taken deep root.
Fate was cruel. Somehow, Huo Lanxu and Yang Nanqing’s secret spread.
People discussed it in every street and alley.
In teahouses, gossiping patrons mocked the scandal as entertainment.
They embellished it endlessly, degrading both men into something sordid and cheap.
Yang Nanqing left the Jinlemen Club. Because of him, the Yang Residence shut its doors and refused every visitor.
Huo Lanxu did not fear slander against his own name. He did not care about himself, but he cared about Yang Nanqing.
He fled the Huo family to find him, but the people of the Yang Residence refused to let him inside.
He pleaded with them again and again to open the gates, but they never did.
Instead, members of the Huo family dragged him away by force.
How could the Huo family tolerate its only son becoming embroiled in such a scandal? They punished Huo Lanxu brutally and spread even more rumors about Yang Nanqing.
They disparaged him until he seemed utterly worthless.
A mere opera performer who had seduced the Huo family’s young master.
Huo Lanxu was locked in a cold basement, helpless and despairing. Even battering his head bloody could not win him what he wanted.
Suddenly, he heard someone laugh.
The basement was locked, yet the laughter came from behind him.
He turned. There stood an evil god.
The God of Mischief.
Loki.
He wore a white robe soaked scarlet with blood. Crimson spattered his face as well, as though he had just finished a massacre.
“Who are you…?” Huo Lanxu asked quietly and warily.
Loki held a clown mask. Tilting his head, he rubbed his chin. “Me? I’m a benevolent god.”
He bent down and looked at Huo Lanxu. “I heard your plea and decided to help you.”
His lips rose in an exaggerated smile.
“A god?” Huo Lanxu frowned in confusion.
Dazzling light began gathering in Loki’s hand until it seemed to contain an entire world.
How could an evil god like Loki ever help a person so readily? It ran contrary to his nature.
He had come to this world because he wanted to play a prank, one that would be terribly amusing once complete.
As it happened, he had earned a reward that shielded him from divine punishment. He could abuse his power here as recklessly as he pleased and turn this world into the gods’ plaything.
He would suffer no punishment.
Huo Lanxu froze. Loki leisurely withdrew the light.
“Child, go and do whatever you wish. You want to earn military honors, don’t you? When you return, I’ll grant your every desire.”
Huo Lanxu’s eyes widened. “Any desire? I only want Nanqing to live safely and happily.”
Loki smiled. “Of course. That’s an easy wish.”
With a wave of his hand, a road leading to the army camp appeared on the basement wall.
Huo Lanxu rose and prepared to enter, but then he stopped.
He looked at Loki. “Can I visit the Yang Residence first?”
Loki arched a brow. “Of course. Why not?”
The other side of the wall transformed into the courtyard of the Yang Residence.
He could not even be bothered to make Huo Lanxu walk there.
A floating lounge chair appeared behind Loki. He reclined lazily and waved for Huo Lanxu to go.
Huo Lanxu stepped into the courtyard.
He knew which room belonged to Yang Nanqing, and he could have slipped inside unnoticed.
But he did not.
He stood at the door, extended one hand, and gently touched the wood.
It was merely a door, yet his cautious touch made it seem as though he were touching Yang Nanqing himself.
“Nanqing, I’m leaving. I’m going somewhere very far away.”
He paused. “Will you wait for me to return? Wait for a future that belongs to both of us.”
Huo Lanxu stood outside for a while. When no sound came from the room, he lowered his head and turned away.
As he prepared to go back, he heard the door open.
But he did not turn around.
He did not dare.
Once longing took hold, perhaps his resolve to charge forward would waver.
He stepped through the portal. The instant he returned to the basement, it vanished.
There was no road back.
In the cold basement, a heart-red apple appeared in Loki’s hand.
Loki bit into it with a crisp crunch. Juice sprayed over the floor. He licked it from the blood streaking his cheek and swallowed both together.
Loki dismissed the lounge chair and held out the clown mask.
“Keep this with you. It will guide you home. Don’t forget, someone here is waiting for you.”
Huo Lanxu would not forget. He would return. He would return safely. He would prove himself.
He would…
He absolutely would.
He accepted the mask and walked toward the road.
The moment he stepped inside, the portal slowly contracted until it disappeared.
Once he had gone, Loki’s laughter grew even more deranged. “Hurry back. This will be such an entertaining prank.”
Lovers reunited at last? How dull.
No, they had to be separated forever, and their separation had to be suitably dramatic.
He finished the apple in a few quick bites, and the courtyard of the Yang Residence appeared before him once more.
This time, someone stood there.
Yang Nanqing.
Yang Nanqing had heard Huo Lanxu’s voice and come looking, only to see him vanish before his eyes.
He stood frozen, remembering what Huo Lanxu had said.
He was going somewhere far away.
The portal appeared again. This time, the person who stepped through was not Huo Lanxu.
It was Loki.
Loki smiled radiantly at Yang Nanqing.
“The Young Lady of the Yang Residence! What do you think of that title?”