Chapter Forty-Eight: Admission

Mo Nianian had no intention of beating around the bush with Jiang Hu. She fixed her gaze on him. “All the shopkeepers we mentioned yesterday are dead.”

Jiang Hu’s expression remained unchanged. “I have heard as much.”

Mo Nianian pressed, “Was it you?”

Jiang Hu was silent for two seconds before lowering his head slowly. “Yes.”

He could not lie to his master.

Mo Nianian felt a chill spread through her heart. “Why?”

Jiang Hu fell silent again. “No reason.”

He had done it of his own will, not wanting his master to carry any burden.

“This is a crime!”

Mo Nianian wished she could slap all the moral lessons the system had drilled into her right onto Jiang Hu’s face.

How had the fine male lead gone astray again?

Jiang Hu knelt before her. “Please punish me.”

Mo Nianian felt a headache coming on. “First, tell me what you were thinking.”

She needed to understand Jiang Hu’s mind before she could find the right remedy.

Jiang Hu spoke in a flat tone. “They deserved to die.”

Mo Nianian sighed. “Though their crimes were indeed unforgivable and death would not be too much for them, Jiang Hu, it should not have been by your hand. You do not have the right to judge them.”

She pleaded with him, nearly reciting the core values of socialism from beginning to end.

Jiang Hu knelt before her, silent and unreadable, and she could not tell if he was listening.

No matter how much she said, Jiang Hu had only one reply.

“Please punish me.”

He had been prepared for this when he acted. He knew she disliked this side of him.

He himself despised the darkness, filth, and malice within.

But he did not want his master to be troubled by such matters. He would solve everything for her.

So… even if she punished him, would she at least keep him by her side?

Faced with someone like this, Mo Nianian truly had a splitting headache.

“Get up.”

Couldn’t they just talk? How could she possibly make Jiang Hu let go of this deeply ingrained sense of inferiority?

And there was something off about his feelings for her—he placed himself far too low.

“Jiang Hu, look at me.” Mo Nianian crouched in front of him.

Jiang Hu lifted his head slightly and met her eyes.

Her gaze was clear as a mountain spring, reflecting a sky full of stars.

“I have never seen you as a slave.”

“I admire you deeply. Whatever you do, I will support you.”

“Don’t be afraid. Trust me, will you?”

Her words rippled through Jiang Hu’s heart, stirring waves on the dead sea within him.

He stared at Mo Nianian, unable to come back to himself for a long time.

Could he truly…?

Could someone as filthy and base as himself really stand in the sunlight again?

Mo Nianian sensed his heart was moved, but she had no idea what he had experienced in the past to leave him so sensitive and insecure.

He was like a snail, withdrawn into his shell, unwilling to take a step forward.

Mo Nianian decided to act boldly.

She took Jiang Hu to the imperial palace, where they once again encountered Zhong Li.

This time, she deliberately made an excuse to leave, leaving Jiang Hu alone with Zhong Li.

Destruction must precede rebirth—he had to find his own courage.

Mo Nianian truly worried herself sick over him.

What she did not know was that all of Jiang Hu’s insecurity and sensitivity showed only in front of her.

For she was his salvation, his goddess.

He revered her, yearned to draw near, but feared his own filth would stain her purity.

She was too pure, untouched by dust.

He had dwelled in hell for too long—the darkness clinging to him would seep out, no matter how well he tried to hide it.

Jiang Hu did not understand Mo Nianian’s intentions, but he guessed at least a part.

He even knew she was watching him from the shadows.

He did not want to disappoint his master.

Yet deep within, a strange thought flickered—he wanted her to care for him more, to care only for him.

He hid all his wildness, masquerading as a harmless little lamb.

Zhong Li, finally seeing Jiang Hu, would not let the chance slip by.

Because of Jiang Hu, he had been punished by Mo Nianian, forced to kneel at the palace gate for six hours, his humiliation witnessed by countless officials.

He was furious.

But he could not blame Mo Nianian for any of it; at that moment, Jiang Hu became the perfect scapegoat.

Zhong Li’s expression twisted. “I’ve finally caught you. Run, go on, run if you dare!”

He grabbed Jiang Hu by the collar, hauling him close.

Zhong Li’s eyes were full of malice and murderous intent. “A mere slave, and so bold.”

He slapped Jiang Hu twice across the face, each blow dripping with humiliation. “Let’s see who comes to save you now!”

With a kick, he sent Jiang Hu to his knees.

Watching from the shadows, Mo Nianian’s heart twisted painfully; she nearly rushed out to kill Zhong Li herself.

She forced herself to hold back. She could not let the male lead remain so weak and self-effacing.

He was, after all, the protagonist of this little world!

If he did not change, the malice level would be impossible to reduce later.

She waited anxiously for the moment Jiang Hu would fight back.

But, for reasons unknown, his formidable martial skills seemed to desert him.

He knelt on the ground, letting Zhong Li torment and insult him.

Mo Nianian could not take it any longer. She burst out from hiding.

She grabbed Jiang Hu by the arm, her voice shaking with anger and disappointment. “Is this what I taught you?”

Light flashed in Jiang Hu’s dark eyes. “Master.”

Like a beast finding its home, he finally had a safe harbor.

His eyes were full of longing, locked onto Mo Nianian.

Mo Nianian’s heart, moments from explosion, was suddenly calmed.

Looking at this fragile youth, her heart ached for him.

She pointed at Zhong Li, who knelt on the ground, trembling at her arrival. “Go. Return to him tenfold what he did to you.”

Zhong Li’s eyes widened in terror. “Your Highness, you can’t do this!”

“Oh? Do I need you to teach me how to act?” Mo Nianian’s face was icy. “You have crossed me time and again; did you think I would forgive so easily?”

Her gaze was chilling. “Zhong Li, have I not warned you never to touch what is mine?”

Zhong Li was petrified. “Your Highness, I didn’t mean to! Please, give me another chance!”

Mo Nianian pointed at him. “Show no mercy. Whatever he did to you, return it all.”

Jiang Hu hung his head, waves surging in his eyes, his heart pounding as though it would burst. He trembled with excitement.

He stood, approached Zhong Li, and spoke in a low voice, tinged with an indescribable meaning. “Lord Zhong, forgive me.”

Zhong Li shook all over, as if he had seen a demon. “Don’t come any closer! How dare you!”

Jiang Hu hesitated, glancing at Mo Nianian.

She told him, “Remember—I stand behind you. Whatever happens, I’ll take responsibility.”