Chapter 148: Before the Reunion

Feng Yan walked away slowly, humming a little tune, slowly disappearing from the sight of the king and the ministers.

The ministers watched Feng Yan leave; Yang Xin stared fixedly at his back, wishing he could tear the person before him into pieces.

Although he felt a thousand kinds of unwillingness in his heart, he also understood that he had obtained the days spent with her through base means. Though they were brief, they were still a beautiful memory.

Yang Xin still gave up the idea and did not take out his hidden crossbow.

"Sigh." Yang Xin sighed, then said to Feng Yan's back: "Feng Yan, sometimes I envy you; at least you are not influenced by others and still have some steadfast spirit."

Having said that, Yang Xin also quietly slipped away from the crowd.

The ministers also left one after another, only the king remained outside the hall; he now clearly understood one thing: if the nation's treasure were not handled by Feng Yan, its secret might never be revealed.

"My lord, how exactly will you break this seal?" the king said, full of anticipation, also asking himself.

The soldiers mobilized, raising clouds of dust in the city, accompanied by hurried footsteps, which also woke the sleeping Chen Hao.

"What's going on?" Chen Hao thought it strange; the streets had been peaceful these days, but today they were so tense—could something big have happened?

Holding this question, Feng Yan opened the window, only to see a puff of dust blown in by the wind.

"I..." Chen Hao was about to say something, but he instinctively covered his mouth, then continued: "What the heck is this? Are they coming to levy grain? Or preparing to rob?"

Chen Hao hastily shut the window, then ran to the stairwell and shouted down: "Xiao Er, Xiao Er, come here!"

Upon hearing someone upstairs calling him, the waiter hurried up, bent over with a smile, and asked: "Sir, what would you like?"

"Hmm, bring me a plate of snacks," Chen Hao told the waiter, then asked: "What's going on out there? Do you know?"

Upon hearing Chen Hao's question, the waiter replied: "I thought you were asking about something else; you haven't gone out these days, so you surely wouldn't know—this is an order from His Majesty the King, saying that adventurers might be hiding their identities, hence the citywide search."

Chen Hao nodded upon hearing that, then asked: "Do you know who proposed it?"

"I don't know," said the waiter, "but rumor has it that it was an adventurer wielding a black sword." He answered Chen Hao's question again.

Black Sword? Adventurer? Could it be him?

Chen Hao felt a jolt in his heart, then gave the waiter a small tip; as the waiter left chuckling, Chen Hao finally understood something.

"Are you manipulating these soldiers of yours? Is the goal to get me out?" Chen Hao muttered to himself.

"Jin Meng!" Chen Hao shouted.

Hearing Chen Hao call his name, Jin Meng came out; seeing Chen Hao's stern expression, he seriously asked: "Jin Meng, our opportunity has come; we can prepare to set out."

"No, my lord, what do you mean?" Jin Meng said, utterly puzzled, his eyes full of doubt.

"There's no time to explain; I'll just ask you: if I said that Feng Yan now knows us, would you believe it?"

Upon hearing that, Jin Meng felt it strange, yet he nodded and replied to Chen Hao: "My lord, I believe your words."

Upon hearing that, Chen Hao immediately nodded and replied: "All right, we can get ready."

"Are we going to see Lord Feng Yan?" Jin Meng asked tentatively.

Chen Hao gave no answer, merely opened the window; when a choking cloud of dust poured into the room, he then shouted: "Xiao Er, check out!"

The waiter came at the call, then smiled and bowed to the two, saying: "Sir, are you settling all your expenses?"

"Hmm." Chen Hao nodded, then took out a gold ingot from his pocket and threw it directly to the waiter.

"No change needed!" he said, and the two went downstairs.

The waiter weighed the gold ingot in his hand, knowing it was not light; he watched the two go off, hoping they would stay at his inn again next time.

After Chen Hao and Jin Meng went out, they shouted directly at the street: "You don't need to bother! I am an adventurer! Now, take us to see the king!"

As soon as Chen Hao's voice fell, a large group of soldiers immediately surrounded them; without a word, they seized the few people in front and headed straight for the palace.

At that moment, inside the palace, Feng Yan looked at the sleeping girl, feeling distressed; the imperial physician had just told him that the girl's life could fade at any moment.

"Child, have I ultimately gone back on my word? The promise I made to you—can I really not fulfill it?" Feng Yan lamented, clutching his head, also recalling the dying boy's admonition to him.

At that time, Feng Yan had lost some memories, yet he could not bear such a thing happening; he promised the boy to find the girl and protect her well.

And in that graveyard, the girl Feng Yan found also reclaimed his heart.

"That is why I killed Wu Wang." Feng Yan said softly, his sharp glance catching the girl on the sickbed.

The girl's complexion was already poor; after all, Feng Yan had not seen her for several days, and this time he had seized an opportunity to catch a glimpse of her.

Moreover, even if the imperial physician did not speak the truth, Feng Yan guessed that this was the king and another person deceiving him.

But Feng Yan dismissed the thought, thinking that a game character could not possibly have such sophisticated means.

Yet the girl before him again indicated that she was the one who had been deceived; his heart began to waver, feeling vexed and distressed, unable to think of any good solution for a moment.

Feng Yan, helpless, could only pace back and forth before the girl's bed, but as he walked faster and faster, his heart grew more tumultuous.

In the end, Feng Yan simply stopped, closed his eyes, and forced himself not to think about these things.

"Report!"

A shout came from below; Feng Yan opened his eyes, and the reporting soldier ran up to him, saying: "My lord, we have discovered other adventurers and are hastily bringing them before you!"

Feng Yan nodded and said: "Good, go ahead and bring that person up."

"Yes!"

The soldier replied, withdrew, and soon brought up an adventurer.

Feng Yan closed his eyes again, preparing to clear his mind and calm himself.

Just then, a familiar voice sounded in his ear: "Feng Yan..."

Upon hearing it, Feng Yan's eyes snapped open; the soldiers stood in two rows, with a girl in the middle—also an acquaintance of Feng Yan.

Feng Yan could hardly believe his eyes; at that moment, the girl walked toward him.

"Long time no see." The girl looked at Feng Yan and smiled.

"Hmm." Feng Yan didn't know what to say, so he merely uttered that as a reply.

His heart gradually realized, and he began to understand clearly: the girl he liked was merely a virtual entity, a tool in someone else's hands, while he himself had poured many feelings into her.

Feng Yan smiled, then called out the girl's name and asked: "Lin Xiyan, where did you go after that?"

"Nothing much, just wandering aimlessly outside the city; entering this game was also an opportunity, until that time I felt my logout key had been pressed by someone else..." Lin Xiyan said, and Feng Yan kept nodding, understanding the matter.

He thought, it turned out everyone was being controlled by this broken thing.

"I don't know what it's like outside." Feng Yan said, arriving before Lin Xiyan.

Feng Yan clearly knew that the girl was already before him; he could say anything, even his own difficulties, and she would listen.

But she was right before him, yet he didn't know where to start with the many words in his mouth.

"Do you think that thing is funny?" Feng Yan asked Lin Xiyan, his expression also extremely awkward.

Lin Xiyan laughed upon hearing it, her heart full of joy, and told him: "There's nothing funny about it; I just casually created something, yet it gained others' liking, which surprised me."

Feng Yan lowered his head, his face red with a very embarrassed expression; Lin Xiyan knew that Feng Yan in this state was truly beginning to feel self-reproach.

She reached out her hand, pulling Feng Yan's arm, kneading it continuously; as Feng Yan's expression gradually eased, Lin Xiyan then said: "I feel you seem to have suffered a heavy blow in some period, but isn't that all in the past now?"

Feng Yan listened to Lin Xiyan's words, and seeing the hand she held of his, he began to feel confused; his heart started to wonder whether his feelings for another girl were truly from the heart or merely due to his own guilt.

Feng Yan's heart kept beating as he looked at Lin Xiyan before him; her gaze gently rested on her, and Feng Yan also knew that the girl before him had no shortage of pursuers at other schools.

"Can I tell you?" Feng Yan looked at Lin Xiyan and said seriously.

"Hmm."

There was only a simple answer, and Feng Yan relaxed, recounting all his past stories.

After hearing, Lin Xiyan felt that the boy before her was somewhat pitiable.

"Do you not think you're a bit foolish?" Lin Xiyan tried to describe it with some gentle words, but in the end could only say that.

"Foolish, maybe; I've always been like this, giving my all without reserve, just for something like an unattainable dream. In the end, I'm the one hurt the most; I know it's foolish. Really, but I feel this puts me at ease." Feng Yan answered Lin Xiyan, the shackles bound in his heart seeming to loosen, and Feng Yan himself also showed a smile.

"Let's not talk about that; we can try to break this thing."