Chapter 44: Heartbreak

Only insects could be heard in the middle of the night. Ji Yunhe laid quietly on a simple bunk and stared into the darkness with wide open eyes. She seemed to be in a trance, but at the same time, she also seemed to be looking through the tent and into the stars up above.

Suddenly, the insects next to her quieted down. Ji Yunhe knew that Lin Haoqing had arrived. If he came, then he would not fail to do what she had asked. So what happened in the tent next to her, she knew without needing to see or hear.

Her heart ached. She even felt like she was being too cruel to Changyi for doing this. But, there was no going back now. The night was still quiet. The more calm before the storm, the more past memories floated up into her mind.

Her vague childhood, the hasty paths of escape with her parents, and unforgettable days in the Demon Valley... For example, the day Lin Canglan first fed her poison. It had not been a sunny day when Lin Canglan called her to his room. As soon as she entered, his fox demon slave, Qing Shu, forced open her mouth and made her swallow a pill.

At that time she was confused and did not know what was fed to her, so she only looked at them like a clueless fool. The two of them studied her, and the room was quiet for a long time. Ji Yunhe opened her mouth to ask what she had eaten, but suddenly she felt a sharp wave of pain radiating out from her heart.

That was the first time she felt the power of the poison. She did not know what she had done wrong and rolled on the floor suffering, but Lin Canglan and Qing Shu did not care. They shook their heads and said it was a pity. She spent that entire night in severe pain while they watched, as if waiting for her to die. The turmoil she felt then was quite similar to now.

Only difference was now it was not a physical pain from the body, but an unbearable heartache. Qing Shu had fed her a pill the next morning and she felt better. Then Qing Shu said she was the first. The first what? Ji Yunhe never understood.

But as someone who could give her such a heartache, Changyi was probably also the first. A thud came from outside, next to her tent. The sound was loud enough to alert the soldiers. Someone said, "There seems to be movement over by the jiaoren, go and check."

Ji Yunhe lifted her blanket and sat up. Suddenly, a translucent blue light flashed outside, followed by a crisp sound of ice breaking.

It sounded like a frozen lake cracking up on a winter day. An icicle pierced through Ji Yunhe's tent and into the wooden beam, its crystalline body reflecting the flames outside. The campfire was then overturned, the pit tumbled and the fire rolled out, igniting a forest floor full of dead wood and dried leaves. Shouts came before Ji Yunhe even had a chance to stand up.

"The jiaoren has escaped! The jiaoren has escaped!"

The chaotic disorder of the soldiers and horses outside, mixed with Zhu Ling's scolding and Ji Chengyu's calm instructions, completely broke the silence of the night. And in the middle of all that panic, Ji Yunhe gave a bright smile rarely seen on her face. She thought about it. Ever since she swallowed the poison, the number of happy smiles in her entire life had been less than that of the two months she met Changyi. Changyi was gone, no longer burdened by her.

Hooray! Ji Yunhe sat back down. Only now did she truly achieve the two words she had said to him earlier -- without fear.

At least while Changyi was still around, she was still afraid of him not leaving. Now this last wish had finally been fulfilled.

Suddenly, someone pulled up the tent curtain and Ji Yunhe tensed up, thinking it was Changyi coming back for her. But when she looked up, she saw Ji Chengyu.

He stood by the curtain with his shadow cast in by the firelight outside, stretching to her feet. He looked at Ji Yunhe, the gentle smile on his face fading a little.

"The jiaoren has run away. As a demon master, why are you sitting here in peace?" This guy did not lose his temper and yell at her even now. Very polite upbringing indeed.

Ji Yunhe calmly replied, "The jiaoren's demonic power is profound and unpredictable. If he runs away, no one can catch him."

"You claimed he's tamed, and now he's run away. The princess will pursue this matter. Do you understand the consequences?"Ji Yunhe thought a bit then pretended to shake her head in sorrow.