“Yunsheng?” He Yan almost thought her eyes were playing tricks on her. She looked again – it was indeed He Yunsheng.
He Yunsheng had already walked in front of her, positioning himself protectively before her, and with one palm strike sent Fan Cheng flying backward.
“How-how did you get up here?” After finally steadying himself, Fan Cheng pointed at him and shouted, his eyes full of disbelief.
“By swimming up, of course!” He Yunsheng replied.
Having just emerged from the water, he was dripping wet from head to toe. He crouched down to untie the ropes binding He Yan’s feet.
“How did you know I was here?”
“I was worried Fan would harass you, so I had Shuangqing stay back to watch early on. Who knew he’d see you being led away.” Shuangqing was the servant He Yan had bought for He Yunsheng, who usually accompanied him to the academy.
“Shuangqing followed to this spot, then came back to tell me. I ran here, swam here, thankfully I made it in time.” He finished untying the ropes around He Yan’s feet and was about to undo the ones on her hands, but surprisingly found them already loose. He found it strange but didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he stood up and glared at Fan Cheng angrily: “If I hadn’t made it in time, what was this beast planning to do to you?”
“What was I planning to do?” Fan Cheng finally came to his senses. He looked at He Yunsheng and smiled arrogantly: “You think your arrival changes anything?”
The boat held only the three of them, without another soul in sight. Presumably to avoid disturbing Fan Cheng’s “pleasure,” even the guards who had brought He Yan had vanished, likely hiding far away in small boats, waiting for Fan Cheng’s instructions once the deed was done.
“Your sister will be mine sooner or later.” Fan Cheng sneered: “I see you people prefer the hard way over the easy way. Don’t be ungrateful – who was it that tried everything to climb into my bed? Now you’re playing the virtuous lady!”
“You!” Upon hearing this, He Yunsheng’s face instantly changed color. He lunged forward with a punch, “You bastard!”
Fan Cheng nearly fell from the tackle, and the boat rocked violently from the movement, causing He Yunsheng to stumble.
He Yan frowned, about to help, when she caught a glimpse of something flashing from Fan Cheng’s sleeve – a silvery glint. Her scalp tightened as she shouted: “Yunsheng, dodge!”
He Yunsheng, not knowing what was happening, instinctively rolled away. With a “thud,” the knife Fan Cheng had pulled out only caught his clothes.
He Yunsheng broke out in a cold sweat and said: “You dare to commit murder!”
“Why wouldn’t I dare?” Fan Cheng’s face twisted grotesquely. “The son of a mere Captain – who cares if you die! Once you’re dead, I’ll enslave your sister for my daily entertainment. When I’m tired of her, I’ll sell her to a brothel.” He burst into laughter.
A sharp glint appeared in He Yan’s eyes.
She had refrained from dealing with Fan Cheng only to avoid bringing trouble to the He family. But now it seemed that whether she acted or not, Fan Cheng wouldn’t let things rest.
He Yunsheng was also burning with rage. He turned and rammed his head into Fan Cheng’s stomach. Caught off guard, Fan Cheng fell as the boat swayed again. As he opened his mouth to call for help, He Yan commanded: “Don’t let him make a sound!” She immediately leaped forward and stuffed a handkerchief from the table into Fan Cheng’s mouth.
With Fan Cheng gagged and momentarily stunned, He Yunsheng had already mounted his back, raining down punches. Though still young, He Yunsheng’s strength was considerable. Despite Fan Cheng’s fierce words, he was no match for the youth and gradually ceased struggling.
“Yunsheng, that’s enough.” He Yan called out to stop him. “Any more and he’ll die.”
“Better if he dies!” He Yunsheng said through gritted teeth. “Then he won’t be able to think about you anymore!”
“That would bring trouble to the He family.” He Yan pulled his hand away. “Let’s get him up first.”
He Yunsheng climbed off Fan Cheng’s back. Fan Cheng lay face-down, motionless. He kicked him lightly, “Get up, stop playing dead!”
Fan Cheng remained still.
“A few punches and you’re dead? You’re good at playing the victim.” He Yunsheng mocked while trying to kick Fan Cheng up, but as he moved, he suddenly noticed a red stain spreading around Fan Cheng where he lay.
He said: “He… he…”
He Yan had been carefully listening for movement outside, as their earlier rocking of the boat might have caught the attention of Fan Cheng’s guards. So far everything seemed normal – they probably thought it was just part of Fan Cheng’s “entertainment.” Now hearing He Yunsheng’s suddenly altered voice, she looked over curiously and froze at what she saw.
After a moment, she crouched down and calmly turned Fan Cheng over.
“Ah-” He Yunsheng let out a short cry, quickly covering his mouth to swallow the rest, staring in disbelief at the scene before him.
Fan Cheng lay face-up, his body limp as if boneless, his clothes around the waist and abdomen soaked red with blood. A knife handle protruded from his body, its blade completely buried in flesh and bone.
During the fight with He Yunsheng, Fan Cheng pulled a short knife from his sleeve. When the boat rocked, the knife fell to the floor, and when He Yunsheng tackled him, he fell – by cruel coincidence, right onto the knife, which pierced his abdomen.
It might not have gone so deep, but He Yunsheng had pressed him down while punching him, driving the entire blade into his stomach, and ending his life.
He Yunsheng’s legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground, asking in terror: “He… he isn’t…?”
He Yan reached out two fingers to check for breath, then spoke two words: “He’s dead.”
He Yunsheng stared at her blankly, as if not understanding her words. A moment later, he whimpered, completely at a loss: “How did he just die? What are we going to do?”
The boat still drifted on the river, rocking gently. Apart from the lantern light within the boat, there seemed to be no other illumination. In the dead silence, He Yunsheng’s sobs were especially clear as he repeated: “What are we going to do? What are we going to do?”
He was, after all, just a teenager who had never killed anyone or seen blood – he would even take detours to avoid seeing fish being killed. Though his words had been fierce, he never imagined he would take a life. He Yunsheng had lost his composure, meaninglessly repeating “What do we do.”
He Yan frowned as she looked at Fan Cheng’s corpse.
She had killed too many people to count, though all had been enemies on the battlefield. She had never killed anyone like this. While it was unexpected, she remained calm. Looking at He Yunsheng, she saw his expression was dazed, somewhere between crying and laughing as he shook Fan Cheng’s corpse as if trying to wake him, having lost his senses.
“Slap!”
The stinging pain on his face hit like a thunderbolt, snapping He Yunsheng out of his daze as he looked at He Yan.
He suddenly realized that compared to him, He Yan was eerily calm. Her gaze was sharp as a sword, piercing his heart with its coldness. Her hand was steady, unlike his trembling ones.
Her voice was cold too, carrying a hint of stern disappointment as she said: “He Yunsheng, get a grip on yourself. He’s already dead.”
Yan Yan: Ten years of ant racing!