Amnesiac General and Infatuated Brothel Keeper 13

Hearing him ask this, Xile immediately put away the water basin and towel, trotted over to the window lattice, opened the window and glanced outside. He then reached his hand out to feel it. After feeling a few drops of coolness fall into his palm, he widened his eyes and exclaimed in amazement, "It really is, Young Master! It's a drizzle, not very heavy. How did you know?"

Actually, he had asked No. 0.

"I heard the birds stop singing, so I just guessed," Su Jinzhi smiled. Propping himself up on the soft couch, he sat up straight and stretched. For a moment, his soul-stealing peach blossom eyes narrowed slightly, like a cat. "I was just saying the weather was nice today and planned to go out for a stroll."

Hearing this, Xile was greatly alarmed. "Young Master, please don't go out anymore. Every time you go out, you always end up being carried back by Divine Doctor Yun. It's raining outside today, so just stay in the building properly. Can't I make you something delicious instead?"

Su Jinzhi sighed, "It's all medicinal meals. What's so delicious about them?"

"Isn't it because you don't take your medicine properly, Young Master? If you had been obediently taking your medicine, your illness would have been cured long ago, and Xile could make whatever you want to eat." Xile knelt at his feet and put on his shoes for him. "Didn't you say last time that the Eight-Treasure Silver Thread Fish I made was delicious? I asked Divine Doctor Yun, and he said the dish is light and you can eat it. How about Xile makes that dish for you today?"

Hearing this, Su Jinzhi immediately smiled so broadly that his eyes curved into crescents, and he replied, "Alright."

After lunch, taking advantage of Su Jinzhi's nap time, Xile went downstairs and told Yun Mengchen all about the young man's abnormality this morning. He was just a servant and couldn't persuade the young master of anything; the young master would only listen to a few words from his close friend.

Yun Mengchen had also noticed Su Jinzhi's unusual behavior early on during lunch—he was too obedient, almost like a puppet controlled by a puppeteer. If told to drink medicine, he would drink it; if told to eat more, he would force himself to stuff down another half bowl of rice despite his already full stomach. In the end, it was Yun Mengchen who feared the young man would get indigestion and snatched his bowl away, telling him to walk around the building to digest his food before taking a nap.

But... why was he acting like this?

Hadn't he already told him that Feng Jiuli was the Jiang Lishan he had been waiting for all along? He had finally waited for him, so why didn't he go find him?

An extremely terrifying thought suddenly appeared in Yun Mengchen's mind. His whole body trembled, and he immediately stumbled toward Su Jinzhi's room.

Su Jinzhi was sleeping directly on the soft couch, covered only by a thin blanket.

Yun Mengchen sat beside him continuously until he woke up.

As soon as Su Jinzhi opened his eyes, while his consciousness was still in a haze, he caught sight of Yun Mengchen's white figure. His sleepiness instantly dissipated. Sitting up, he asked, "Brother Yun, why are you—"

"Jinzhi." Yun Mengchen interrupted him, his voice raspy as if spoken with gravel in his throat. Foregoing any preamble, he asked straightforwardly, "Why don't you go find him?"

Yun Mengchen didn't mention the person's name, but both of them present knew who he was referring to.

Su Jinzhi blanked for a moment, then suddenly smiled and asked in return, "Why should I go find him? Haven't I already looked for him?"

The young man laughed joyously. The deep-seated charm that seemed to have permeated his very bones, which had previously been restrained when facing him, broke through the veil and completely spilled out from the corners of his brows and eyes. But Yun Mengchen would rather he be crying miserably and desolately right now than laughing like this, piercing his heart and lungs.

"Haven't you always wanted to see him..." Yun Mengchen paused, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down several times. When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse and raspy. Afraid the young man wouldn't believe him, he sped up his speech a bit. "My junior brother has also been looking for you... Now that you've met—"

"I'm not the one he's looking for." Su Jinzhi stopped smiling, his gaze toward Yun Mengchen somewhat unfocused, as if looking through him at someone else. "He's looking for those memories that he lost."

The young man's voice was low, mixed with a disappointment and sorrow that perhaps even he himself was unaware of.

"Actually, it's fine like this."

"It's not that I haven't hated him... hated him for making me wait so long, hated him for taking so long to come pick me up, but he has forgotten me."

"My hatred, my resentment, my love, have all become my own solitary affair." The young man lay back down, curling up his body and pulling the thin blanket up to his neck to wrap himself tightly, trying to ward off the cold that was creeping up from his bones. "We can no longer be together."

"He is now successful and famous, with countless beauties by his side. Why force him to remember a lowly, dirty prostitute like me..."

Yun Mengchen's hands and feet went icy cold, rooting to the spot as if struck by lightning. Pale-faced, he tried to conceal something. "No... you're not..."

Su Jinzhi scoffed, huddled in the blanket, staring at him with wide open eyes. He then extended a pale, snow-like arm from under the covers, pinched his chin, and drew close to him. The breath he exhaled was warm, and his voice was once again laced with an alluring charm: "Who doesn't know that I, Hua Wuyan, am a male courtesan renowned throughout the world? Among the five kingdoms, where aren't there patrons who have slept with me? If I hadn't washed my hands of this business, I might have already slept with all the civil and military officials of the Chongluo Kingdom, and naturally I wouldn't have left out your seventh junior brother—"

"Enough, don't say anymore!" Yun Mengchen's chest heaved continuously. Unable to bear listening to the young man refer to himself as Wuyan any longer, speaking such self-mutilating words that it was unknown whose flesh and blood they were truly cutting into, he swatted away his arm and abruptly stood up. The look in his eyes as he gazed at the person on the couch was filled with endless grief.

"How can rumors be trusted? Back then, I simply got tired of him, and I was the culprit who caused him to fall off the cliff. Now that he has forgotten me, I couldn't be happier, so why would I want to go see him again?" Su Jinzhi rubbed his wrist, which stung from being swatted, and sat up. His clothes were half-open, revealing the Splendid Peony Tattoo that people would squander all their wealth just to catch a glimpse of, blooming gorgeously and vibrantly upon his snow-white skin.

Yun Mengchen, however, as if pricked by a sharp needle, forcefully closed his eyes and turned his head away. "Rumors can't be trusted, but I don't believe a single word you say either!"

"What does it matter to me whether you believe it or not? I—cough, cough, cough!" The young man's words came to a sudden halt halfway through, replaced once again by that heart-trembling coughing and wheezing, which lingered in his dreams day and night, unable to be dispelled.

Yun Mengchen abruptly opened his eyes, only to see the young man cover his lips and collapse, his body convulsing. Brilliant red blood continuously seeped through the gaps of his fingers, intertwining with the slowly blooming peony buds between his collarbones on his shoulder. Like a sharp blade piercing into Yun Mengchen's heart, it constantly reminded him—it's all your fault!

It was you who kept the truth from him for three whole years!

It was you, because of your own selfish, pathetic, and dirty thoughts, who, along with those who hurt him in this cage, tortured him until he was at his last breath!

Unknowingly, Yun Mengchen's face was covered in tears. Su Jinzhi's coughing ceased, and upon glancing at him, he couldn't help but chuckle softly. "What are you crying for?"

Yun Mengchen wiped away his tears and said hoarsely, "Don't move, I'll perform acupuncture on you."

Hearing this, Su Jinzhi suddenly restrained his smile. With a raise of his hand, he knocked the needle pouch the man had brought over onto the ground. His voice was cold: "Leave. The chess game agreement is voided. I don't want to see you anymore."

Yun Mengchen half-knelt on the ground to pick up the needles. Upon hearing this, he abruptly looked up, staring at him with wide eyes. The young man's silhouette was against the light, and for a moment, he felt he couldn't clearly see the expression on his face, nor did he know whether his words were true or false. Yet, in the next second, he heard the young man sneer again, speaking with the same disdainful and dismissive tone that countless people used when referring to prostitutes and actors—

"Your medical skills are lacking. You've treated me for so long and I'm still in this state. Does the great Divine Doctor Yun still have the face to shamelessly linger here, refusing to leave?"

"Or could it be..." He lowered his voice, his enchanting and gorgeous face right before Yun Mengchen's eyes, well within reach, "Brother Yun also wishes to become Wuyan's honored guest?"

"If this is taken as the compensation for my treatment, it's not like Wuyan cannot accept it—" As he spoke, he actually began to pull at his own sash.

Yun Mengchen hurriedly lowered his head, tightly gripping his needle pouch. He stood up in a panic and kept saying, "Enough... enough! Jinzhi, don't be like this... I'll leave, that's all..."

Su Jinzhi lay on the soft couch with his clothes disheveled, his peach blossom eyes squinting wickedly upward as he scoffed, "Who is your Jinzhi?"

With a pale face, Yun Mengchen stumbled away.

The moment he stepped over the threshold, Su Jinzhi heard No. 1's consistently cold, electronic mechanical voice: "Branch salvation target Yun Mengchen, Progress Value 100/100. Salvation successful."

No. 0 immediately followed up by playing an electronic sound clip of clapping, its voice incredibly cheerful: "Host adult is amazing!"

Watching Yun Mengchen's departing back, Su Jinzhi sighed softly.

He had come to aid the world, but became trapped in this small building in a single country because of Jun Changle. Now, forced to leave by Hua Wuyan, the person he least wanted to see, he feared that in this life, it would be difficult for him to ever turn back and step foot in here again.

"You have to be a good doctor in the future..." Su Jinzhi said at last.

Yun Mengchen hurriedly packed his things, wrote down the prescription for the medicine Su Jinzhi usually drank, and left quietly in the night without alerting anyone.

He had stayed in Huaqi Pavilion for three years. Now, facing the vast sea of people and the expansive world, he suddenly didn't know where to go, as if in this vast world, there wasn't a single place for him to belong.

As he walked, he eventually arrived at the General's Manor where Feng Jiuli was temporarily residing.

Feng Jiuli, who had just returned from eating a late-night snack outside, saw Yun Mengchen in front of his door. Thinking he had seen wrong, he frowned and said, "...Third Senior Brother?"

"Junior Brother..." Yun Mengchen turned his head blankly and stared at him.

Seeing him looking as if he had lost his soul, Feng Jiuli, adhering to his love for a fellow disciple, devoured the grilled meat skewers in his hand in a few bites, then stepped forward and asked, "Third Senior Brother, why have you come to my place? Shouldn't you be at..."

Yun Mengchen chuckled blankly, "Where should I be? Nowhere is the place I should be."

"It's cold outside. Let's go in first before talking." Feng Jiuli patted his shoulder and led him into his manor.

Inside the room, Yun Mengchen stared blankly while holding a cup of warming hot wine handed over by Feng Jiuli, his spirit still having not returned.

Feng Jiuli took off his heavy fur coat, sat down in front of him, and poured himself a cup of wine as well. He downed it in one gulp, a bit of the wine dripping down the corner of his lips and sliding into his collar, vanishing from sight. Before he could even set down the wine cup, he heard Yun Mengchen say, "Junior Brother... do you know of your own background?"

Hearing this, Feng Jiuli was taken aback and looked at him. "My background? Are you referring to... my background from before my amnesia?"

"Yes." Yun Mengchen slowly nodded.

"Of course I don't know. If Senior Brother knows, why not clear up your Junior Brother's confusion?" Feng Jiuli looked at Yun Mengchen and said nonchalantly, "As long as it's not that Jiang Lishan that Jun Changwu keeps muttering about all day—"

Yun Mengchen suddenly widened his eyes and asked him suspiciously, "You already know?"

The room instantly fell quiet.

Feng Jiuli remained silent for a long time, then let out a stiff laugh, "Senior Brother, you're not joking with me, are you?"

Yun Mengchen looked at him without saying a word, but it was a silent affirmation.

Feng Jiuli's hand resting on the table slowly clenched into a fist. The words Jun Changwu said every time she came looking for him resurfaced in his mind—

"You are him!"

"You are Jiang Lishan! You're my brother's Jiang Lishan!"

"Give Brother Jinzhi back to me!"

Jinzhi.

An absurd thought suddenly emerged, and Feng Jiuli said hoarsely, "Then Hua Wuyan..."

"He is not called Hua Wuyan." Yun Mengchen smiled bitterly and shook his head. "His name is Jun Changle, the Brother Jinzhi that the Jun Family's Fourth Miss spoke of, the Jun Changle who is deeply infatuated with you."

"Why didn't you say so earlier!" Feng Jiuli's whole body shook. He suddenly stood up, his fingers reaching forward to tightly grab Yun Mengchen's collar as he sternly questioned him. The wine cups and goblets on the table fell to the ground one after another due to his intense movements, shattering into scattered pieces.

"What was I supposed to say? Say that the Great General of the Chongluo Kingdom is the Jiang Lishan he has been waiting for?" Yun Mengchen laughed as he raised his head, his voice gradually rising. "You've already forgotten him! Even though you've seen him, you can't remember who he is!"

Feng Jiuli blankly loosened his grip.

Yes, he completely didn't remember him. In his eyes now, Jun Changle was no different from a stranger. He had even humiliated him like that in the Peony Pavilion after receiving the Fate Invitation.

Feng Jiuli took two steps back, his spine rigid and his face cold. His tall and sturdy body actually revealed a hint of helplessness under the bleak and chilly night sky. He then quickly walked outside, not even having the time to grab his heavy fur coat to keep out the cold.

Yun Mengchen laughed loudly as he watched him leave. Then, he slowly knelt on the ground, covering his eyes and letting out a low cry.

Feng Jiuli had heard Jun Changwu tell him about the past events between Jiang Lishan and Jun Changle. He had heard about how deeply affectionate the Jun Family's Jinzhi, who surpassed all others in the capital, was. He heard her say how callous the Jiang Lishan who had forgotten him was. When he listened back then, he merely brushed it off with a laugh as if it were a story about two strangers, never imagining that everything she said was the truth, the past that had been forgotten by him.

—But he no longer remembered him.

In the eyes of the world, Jiang Lishan and Jun Changle were both already dead. Now, the only ones who survived were the Great General of the Chongluo Kingdom, Feng Jiuli, and the Zhuhua Kingdom's number one beauty, Hua Wuyan—two people completely unrelated to each other.

No one knew they once had such a profound bond; even he himself didn't remember.

Feng Jiuli couldn't help but recall that day at the Peony Pavilion, how the young man held his hand and traced his facial features inch by inch, his eyes filled with the faint glimmer of hope expecting him to remember him.

And what happened after that...

Feng Jiuli's whole body tensed up, and his ten fingers tightly clenched into fists. With a leap, he stepped on a peach tree branch, using its momentum to propel himself up onto the Huaqi Pavilion.

No lamps were lit in the room. The gust of wind stirred up by his movement of breaking through the window lattice lifted the pink gauze curtains by the window, but the young man remained lying quietly on the bed, completely unaware of the intruder. Feng Jiuli turned and closed the window, and the howling wind stopped with it.

He walked over to the edge of the bed and carefully found an empty spot to sit down. His fingers reached toward the young man's eyes and brows several times, only to abruptly withdraw them as if touching burning red-hot charcoal, lowering them in trepidation. In the end, he simply kept watch over the young man like this until dawn before finally leaving.

So, when Su Jinzhi woke up the next day, he discovered that Feng Jiuli's Progress Value had suddenly jumped to 75/100.

"Host, Host! General Feng sat by your bed all night yesterday!" No. 0 said excitedly to Su Jinzhi. "Did he recover his memory?"

"Probably not. Maybe Yun Mengchen told him something." Su Jinzhi wasn't too surprised. Feng Jiuli wouldn't increase his Progress Value for no reason, but this time, the increase was definitely not because he recovered his memory; otherwise, he wouldn't have left as soon as dawn broke.

Su Jinzhi propped himself up on the bed to stand up. Treading on the soft, warm carpet covering the floor, he walked to the wardrobe and took out an extremely magnificent apricot-colored long gown to drape over himself. The embroidery on the collar and lapels of the garment was intricate, while the hem and cuffs were finely embroidered with exquisite and stunning Peonies. The outer gown fluttered lightly with the wind, like gossamer and mist. In the morning halo casting in from the south window, it dazzled beautifully, making the young man look even more unparalleled in beauty, a kingdom-toppling temptress.

No. 0 asked him, "Host... what are you planning to do?"

"To be a strong, glamorous bitch." Su Jinzhi chuckled, stroking the vermilion tear mole just below the corner of his eye. He walked up to the bronze mirror, reached out his fingers, and gently stroked the face of the person in the mirror—pale lips, snow-white face. That apricot robe didn't complement his complexion well; instead, it made his face look even paler and frailer.

His physical condition in this world had not been very good to begin with. Every time he saved a person, the severity of his illness would decrease a bit. Logically speaking, completely curing himself after finishing all the tasks shouldn't be a problem. But No. 1 had given him a Level 7 punishment earlier, which almost drove this already incredibly frail body to a dead end. If he hadn't subsequently pulled it off in one go and directly maxed out Yun Mengchen's Progress Value, he would probably be reduced to a useless invalid lying in bed by now.

Other than the Third Prince, Yan Hui, whom he had yet to meet face to face, Su Jinzhi more or less had some idea of how to save the other salvation targets. However, it was easy to think about but extremely difficult to implement.

Especially when he saw Feng Jiuli.

Su Jinzhi rested his forehead on his hand, his gaze lightly sweeping over the man in black clothes who had forcibly barged into the Peony Pavilion, trying hard to suppress the pain brought about by the Level 2 punishment.

Xile hurried in behind him. With red eyes and a lowered head, he quietly apologized, "Y-Young Master... Xile couldn't stop General Feng..."

"It's fine." Su Jinzhi sat up straight from the couch and kneeled before the low table used for receiving guests. He smiled and waved his hand, signaling for Ping'an to come over and pour tea. "It was already agreed upon earlier that I would make amends to General Feng, so why bother stopping him?"

Feng Jiuli stood quietly at the flower gate for a moment, looking back into the young man's eyes, which were as pale as the color of the tea he held in his hand. Then, stepping with legs so stiff they didn't seem like his own, he walked up to him and sat down.

The young man placed a cup of hot tea in front of him and greeted him with a smile, "General Feng, please have some tea."

The man didn't kneel properly like he did. Instead, he sat half-cross-legged with one hand resting on his knee and the other taking the cup of tea. His sword-like eyebrows were furrowed tightly, just like when he had seen him before, but they could no longer maintain the coldness in his eyes.

Feng Jiuli opened his mouth, only to suddenly realize that he had no idea what to call the young man—was it Jinzhi, or Wuyan? He was completely at a loss.

The young man seemed to see through his awkwardness. He smiled and said softly, "General can just call me Wuyan."

"Your complexion doesn't look very good." The man paused for a moment, but didn't call him by either name, stiffly bringing up another topic.

Su Jinzhi answered him, "I'm sick, so naturally my complexion doesn't look very good."

In Feng Jiuli's mere ten years of memories, half consisted of the relaxed times learning martial arts with his fellow disciples in Ghost Cloud Valley, and the other half was the straightforwardness of fighting alongside his soldiers on the battlefield. He had never had any experience dealing with someone like the young man. He only knew how to bluntly speak his mind, and no longer exchanged superfluous words with the young man—

"Come with me."

The young man looked up at him with slightly widened eyes, as if hearing something surprising. "Go? Go where?"

"Back to Chongluo. I'll take you back." Feng Jiuli straightened his back and leaned his body forward slightly. The hand resting on the table had already clenched into a fist, showing its owner's seriousness.

I'll take you back, take you home.

Jun Changle had waited far too long for this one sentence from him. Unfortunately, by the time he finally heard it, he was already unable to go home.

"But in what capacity would Wuyan return?" Su Jinzhi smiled. Resting his hands on the low table, he also leaned forward, tilting his chin up to get close to the man, speaking to him with their lips nearly brushing against each other.

Hearing this, the man's brows furrowed even tighter. Without waiting for him to answer, Su Jinzhi continued, "In the eyes of the world today, there is only Feng Jiuli and Hua Wuyan, and it is the same for you, General. Wuyan left willingly back then. If General is acting out of guilt, there's really no need to be like this—"

"Alright." The man's deep voice suddenly entered his ears. Su Jinzhi was stunned for a moment and raised his eyes to look at him.

He saw the man's profound eyes staring at him unblinking, saying firmly, "Just as Hua Wuyan. I will take you back."

Su Jinzhi's fingers trembled, knocking over the teacup. The pain that surged up along with the affection in his heart made his whole body tremble uncontrollably, but No. 1 was still blowing cool air from the side: "Control yourself, control it well."

Control my ass.

Su Jinzhi was both in pain and angry, just wanting to curse. With wide eyes and red rims, he glared fiercely at Feng Jiuli.

Feng Jiuli, however, thought he was happy. So, he softened his voice even more, the cold hardness between his brows melting away. Reaching out to stroke the young man's raven-black hair at the side of his head, he pressed against his forehead and murmured, "I'm sorry, I'm late..."

He had heard this person's name a long time ago. Whether it was Hua Wuyan or Jun Changle, he was neither familiar with nor knew either of them.

But after he met him, no matter how hard he tried to resist the palpitations in his heart, he would invariably fall deeper with every meeting, as if this was something already preordained in their destiny—even if I have forgotten you, when I see you again, I will definitely fall in love with you all over again.

Who knew that upon hearing these words, the young man would coldly swat his hand away. Prostrating himself on the mat to the side, he panted unceasingly, "Who needs you to come pick me up!" After saying these short few words, his face turned even paler. He couldn't even control his limbs from curling up, as if he was suppressing some immense agony.

Su Jinzhi thought he was going to pass out from the pain in the next moment. However, amidst the dizzying spin, he felt himself being picked up by a pair of strong, powerful arms. The person gently held his hand, and the warmth in his embrace alleviated the pain in his body almost instantly.

The long gown embroidered with Peonies was scattered on the ground, and the young man's raven-black hair hung down his back, quietly spread out over the bamboo mat. Feng Jiuli held him tightly against his chest, lowering his head to gently kiss his forehead. "Your claws are this sharp? You're not like him at all..."

Sensing the young man's body in his arms stiffen abruptly, Feng Jiuli chuckled lowly and continued to finish his sentence, "And I'm not like that person either. He forgot you, so you shouldn't remember him anymore."

"Forgot?" The young man chuckled softly, but tears ceaselessly flowed from the corners of his eyes. "You make it sound so easy and simple, but it's easier said than done... so much easier said than done!"

Su Jinzhi's voice suddenly became sharp, yet it couldn't hide the crying tone he was desperately trying to conceal, "You were able to easily forget everything in the past, but do you think everyone in the world can be as lucky as you—"

The man reached out a finger and pressed it against his lips, sealing the rest of his words in his throat. For a moment, the Peony Pavilion was so quiet that only the sound of the two of them panting could be heard. Su Jinzhi blinked his eyes, and the glistening moisture gathered in his eye sockets formed into drops and trickled down, wetting Feng Jiuli's palm.

As if he had been burned, he abruptly pulled his hand back and sighed heavily. "I know, you can't forget."

Su Jinzhi tilted his head back, staring at him blankly.

"But we can get to know each other all over again. Your name is Hua Wuyan, and my name is Feng Jiuli."