2 – Previous Life
Shen Qiu watched as Ye Chen applied medicine to her wounds, saying nothing but wondering to herself: What is wrong with this man?
Just an hour ago, he had been filled with such disgust toward her. How could he change so completely after a nap? Was he pretending? Or was he ill?
Lost in these thoughts, Shen Qiu unconsciously reached out to touch Ye Chen’s forehead. Sensing her touch, he didn’t pull away but looked up with a gentle smile and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Shen Qiu withdrew her hand and said, “Are you ill? Why do you seem different after just one nap?”
Ye Chen caught her retreating hand and pressed it against his cheek. Closing his eyes, he murmured, “I was ill. I had forgotten some things, but now I remember everything. I’m cured now. Qiu’er, Qiu’er, I beg you—please forget everything that happened before, alright?”
Shen Qiu stared at him, but the hatred and revulsion she had seen in his eyes earlier couldn’t have been feigned. She didn’t know what to do.
Though Shen Qiu didn’t know what exactly had happened to the Shen family, the fact that her grandmother had sent her into the Ye family as a Protective Charm meant something serious must have occurred.
Now that she was his wife, and given his previous threats, she had no choice but to compromise between her own well-being and the Shen family’s. Since she couldn’t leave anyway, wouldn’t it be better to accept his kindness rather than endure his torment?
After weighing her options, Shen Qiu decided not to defy him too much. After all, he had promised that if she obeyed, he would protect the Shen family. She didn’t care much about the other members of the Shen family, but she couldn’t ignore her grandparents, parents, and brother.
If Ye Chen could protect the Shen family and treat her a little better, it might not be such a bad thing.
Yet, looking at her bruised body, Shen Qiu found it impossible to forgive Ye Chen all at once.
As if reading her thoughts, Ye Chen put away the medicine box, lifted Shen Qiu into his arms, and said, “I know my sudden change is hard for you to accept. But I want to say—we have a long future ahead of us. I beg you to judge me by my future actions. Don’t shut me out of your heart right now. Give me a chance to enter your heart, alright?”
Shen Qiu bit her lower lip and remained silent. Ye Chen laid her on the bed, walked to the door, and called out, “Granny Li!”
Someone immediately responded from outside, “Yes, Lord? What are your orders?”
Ye Chen said, “Bring me the bridal handkerchief you collected earlier when you tidied the bed. I will personally present it to my grandmother tomorrow.”
“And have someone come in to remove one set of bedding. From now on, my wife and I will share one quilt. Is that clear?”
In his previous life, he had hated Shen Qiu, believing that her grandmother had forced her upon him through her friendship with his own grandmother, causing him to miss the chance to marry the woman he truly loved.
So, he had instructed his maid to wash away the stains from the bridal handkerchief after collecting it. As a result, in her previous life, Shen Qiu had been humiliated in front of the entire Ye family during the tea ceremony—her bridal handkerchief was blank, and she later became the laughingstock of the capital.
In this life, he would start making amends now. From this moment on, he would protect his Qiu’er.
Hearing Ye Chen’s words, Granny Li was taken aback and said, “But didn’t you say…”
Ye Chen cut her off, “Don’t ask any more questions. Do as I say. Bring it to me now.”After Granny Li bowed and paid her respects, she sent the young maid beside her away. Within moments, the maid returned carrying a box, which Ye Chen promptly took with his own hands.
He opened it for a brief look before dismissing the servants. Ye Chen gently stroked the box containing the nuptial handkerchief, then carefully placed it beside the bed.
While Ye Chen was speaking with Granny Li, maids had already entered to remove one of the quilts, leaving only the one covering Shen Qiu on the bed.
Sitting at the bedside, Ye Chen looked at Shen Qiu and said, “Would you mind moving inward a bit, Qiu’er, to make room for me?”
Shen Qiu had been watching Ye Chen intently. Hearing his request, she shifted slightly and moved inward. Ye Chen chuckled and swiftly slipped under the covers.
Noticing Shen Qiu remained still, Ye Chen said with a smile, “Let’s sleep. Don’t you need to wake up early for morning practice? It won’t do if you don’t get proper rest.”
“Besides, tomorrow we have to serve tea to the elders. Although it’s just grandfather and grandmother in our immediate family, there are many relatives. You’ll need to serve tea to everyone present tomorrow.”
Shen Qiu glanced at Ye Chen and replied, “Thank you for the reminder, Lord Duke. I’ll sleep now.”
With that, Shen Qiu turned her back to Ye Chen and closed her eyes to sleep. She didn’t ask how Ye Chen knew about her morning practice habit. What began as feigned sleep soon turned into genuine slumber.
Meanwhile, Ye Chen gazed at Shen Qiu with infinite tenderness in his eyes. He had truly returned – this was neither a dream nor an illusion.
He desperately wanted to hold the person before him tightly, but she was injured, and his A’Qiu currently harbored strong distrust toward him. He couldn’t rush things or frighten her.
He knew his A’Qiu was a free-spirited person. He believed that as long as he treated A’Qiu well, he could eventually erase the memory of today’s disgraceful actions from her heart.
Shen Qiu was likely truly exhausted, but her sleep was far from peaceful. Her dreams were filled with Ye Chen’s gaze that seemed intent on tearing her apart piece by piece, and the pain of him biting her repeatedly.
Even in her dreams, Shen Qiu didn’t cry, but Ye Chen could see her brows tightly furrowed.
Ye Chen stayed awake all night, watching Shen Qiu as her brows furrowed and relaxed, then furrowed again. His heart ached indescribably, but he didn’t dare wake her. She had been through too much today and needed proper rest. So he softly chanted a calming mantra by her ear.
In his previous life, after Shen Qiu’s death, he had completely lost his mind, becoming a merciless killer. Though he had promised his grandmother he wouldn’t commit suicide, there were times when missing Shen Qiu became unbearable that he would resort to self-harm.
His grandmother had invited a eminent monk to follow him daily, chanting mantras – reciting rebirth mantras for those he killed during his murderous rampages,
and chanting calming mantras when his longing for Shen Qiu drove him to self-harm. Thus he lived ten years tormenting himself – a murderous devil who killed without blinking, though he possessed no physical strength.
Those ten years he was but a walking corpse, afflicted with impotence, never again experiencing intimacy between men and women, though he frequented brothels daily.
He had many friends, but none could replace his A’Qiu. Even when his former white moonlight appeared before him, not a glimmer of light remained in his eyes.