A sharp pain shot through Song Qingxian’s lower eyelid as Lu Nanzhan actually drove the needle in. A bead of blood seeped from the corner of her eye, making her already strikingly beautiful face appear even more dangerously alluring.
Fear, pain, and helplessness overwhelmed her. Tears kept falling without end, warm drops splashing onto Lu Nanzhan’s hand. His movements paused, and he reached out to wipe them away, his voice full of distress.
“Xianxian, does it hurt a lot?”
Song Qingxian’s clear eyes trembled as if a stone had been dropped into still water, ripples spreading endlessly, her expression fragile and broken. She clung tightly to Lu Nanzhan and refused to let go.
“Azhan… it hurts, it really hurts.”
Her tears soaked his clothes, yet there was not a trace of disgust in his gaze. Instead, he gently patted her back to soothe her.
“Xianxian, bear with it for a little longer, alright?”
Bear with it? She was going to be in agony.
She tightened her grip around him. “No! If you keep doing this to me, I’ll hate you.”
Lu Nanzhan’s body visibly stiffened. His tone darkened.
“Xianxian, if you hate me, it’s only because I haven’t tamed you yet. Once I do, you’ll only ever depend on me.”
The word “tame” filled Song Qingxian with intense disgust.
Biting her lip, she thought bitterly that it was either this or death. If she had to, she would reset everything after dying. Even if it meant provoking him.
Suddenly, she knocked the bedside lamp to the floor. Glass shattered everywhere. Without hesitation, she grabbed a large shard and pressed it against the main artery of her neck.
“If you insist on stitching my eyes shut, I’ll kill myself right here.”
Lu Nanzhan’s dark, lifeless eyes trembled. His voice was low and cold, like ice soaked in frost, though the slight tremor at the end betrayed his panic.
“Xianxian, put it down.”
Song Qingxian looked like she was ready to go down with everything. She pressed harder, and blood began to seep from her pale neck.
Lu Nanzhan’s eyes gradually turned red. He reached out, trying to take the shard from her.
Sensing his intention, she pressed it in deeper and shouted, “Step back!”
Seeing her like this, panic finally flooded Lu Nanzhan’s expression. He took two steps back.
“Alright! Xianxian, I won’t do it. Put it down. Don’t hurt yourself.”
“Don’t hurt myself? You’re the one who’s been hurting me all along!”
Pain flashed through Lu Nanzhan’s eyes, as though his heart was being carved open. How could he hurt her? He loved her so much.
“Xianxian… you really don’t want to be tamed by me that badly?”
Under overwhelming pressure, Song Qingxian completely lost control.
“Lu Nanzhan, why do you need to tame me? Why can’t we just be like normal people and date normally?!”
Normal people.
His gaze darkened further, becoming something unreachable and unfathomable.
People had told him before that he was not normal. He had made them regret it. Was Xianxian like them too? Did she despise him that much as well?
“Xianxian, only by taming you can you truly belong to me alone,” he said slowly. “And I am also willing… willing to be tamed by you.”
The negotiation had failed.
“If you want a stillbirth and a dead mother, then keep going.”
Song Qingxian knew the child was the only soft spot in Lu Nanzhan’s heart. She never wanted to use it against him unless absolutely necessary.
As expected, his expression changed.
“Alright, I agree. I won’t stitch your eyes. Put the shard down.”
Song Qingxian said coldly, “Never.”
“Never.”
“Swear it!”
“I swear.”
“Swear on me and the child,” she pressed. “If you break your promise, both of us will die horribly.”
At those words, Lu Nanzhan’s gaze turned sharp. His lips moved, but no sound came out.
Song Qingxian stared at him unwaveringly, the shard still pressed against her neck, blood still flowing.
Finally, Lu Nanzhan clenched his fists.
“Xianxian, I can’t swear on you and the child.”
He paused, then continued, “I swear that if I break my promise, I will die a miserable death. My body will rot in the earth, devoured by insects, never seeing the light of day…”
“Enough!” Song Qingxian cut him off sharply. Why would he curse himself like that?
“Enough?” Lu Nanzhan asked in a low voice.
“Yes… enough.”
Her voice dropped slightly. For a moment, she wondered if she was already being worn down by him. She even felt a trace of pity for this obsessive madman.
She dropped the shard.
The moment it hit the floor, Lu Nanzhan rushed forward and pulled her into his arms.
“Xianxian, don’t ever use death to threaten me again.”
If she could live properly, why would she ever use death as a threat?
His hold tightened, as if afraid she would vanish the next second.
“Do you hear me?”
One of Song Qingxian’s hands was still cuffed to the bed. With the other, she lightly patted him.
“Then spit three times.”
Lu Nanzhan slightly loosened his grip, clearly confused.
“What?”
“Spit three times,” she repeated. “Who told you to make such a reckless vow earlier?”
Just thinking about his curse made her chest feel tight.
“You actually believe in this?” Lu Nanzhan asked, gently brushing the wound on her neck. “Or are you worried about me?”
She had never really believed in such things, but she simply didn’t want him to curse himself like that.
“Yes, I’m worried about you. I don’t want to hear you curse yourself.”
A faint smile appeared on Lu Nanzhan’s lips. He obediently spat three times under his breath.
Then he leaned down and kissed the blood on her neck little by little, staining his lips a deep, mesmerizing red.
“Xianxian, your blood is as captivating as you are.”
His low, seductive voice made Song Qingxian tremble. She instinctively covered her wound.
He kissed her lips again, smearing a trace of blood onto them.
“Xianxian, isn’t it beautiful? Isn’t it delicious?”
A chill ran down her spine. For a moment, she even felt that if one day he truly tore her apart and drank her blood, it would not be strange at all.
Lu Nanzhan picked up a black strap and tried to tie it over her eyes.
“You said you wouldn’t—”
“Xianxian,” he interrupted calmly, yet in a tone that allowed no refusal, “I only promised not to stitch your eyes shut.”
“….”
“Don’t hurt yourself again.”
He tied the strap carefully, then pressed a kiss over her eyes.
“Be good.”
After that, he unlocked her handcuffs.
“Xianxian, try getting out of bed. We’re going downstairs to eat.”
Song Qingxian gritted her teeth. Her vision was completely dark as she slowly felt her way forward.
“Xianxian, be careful of the glass shards,” Lu Nanzhan reminded her from a distance.
Her foot hesitantly reached toward the floor, but before she could step down, he swiftly caught her ankle.
“Idiot, you were about to step on the shrds.”