Chapter 290: Volume 1 Chapter 290   Empress x Courtesan (Complete)

Five years ago.

Wen Ci, at the fastest speed, caught up to her who had escaped from the prison.

In the carriage stopped in the snow‑filled deep forest, a man in dark brocade robes lifted the thick plush curtain; faintly, one could see the woman inside, her lips bearing a light smile, her phoenix eyes bright, a stark contrast to the arrogant and vicious empress.

Yet he resembled exactly the guard who had taken care of him for over a month.

In his memory, the guard had an ordinary appearance, unremarkable temperament, and a somewhat bad temper, but her gaze toward him never showed a trace of sympathy; she rose early and returned late, never forgetting to bring him food, and when she sensed that his first personality wanted to practice martial arts, she would earnestly teach him each night upon returning, no matter how tired.

She laughed all day long, telling some corny jokes that kids would hear.

Whenever she saw his spirits low, she would try every way to make him laugh, and even though his personality changed daily, she never asked him why.

So foolish and stupid.

Therefore, when he noticed that the residence was full of abnormalities, although she was clearly a guard, she had a separate dwelling, allowing him to stay there for over a month without anyone noticing.

She could even evade the empress's search.

He never suspected that she was the empress Jiang Zhi.

How could that be?

Someone like her, how could she be a tyrant empress?

But when he learned this news, the first thought that rose in his heart was……

—‑to capture her back and ask why she disguised herself as a guard to deceive him, could it be merely because she found it amusing?

But.

She grasped the blade he extended and stabbed it into her own chest.

"Wen Ci, are you… in love with me?"

This was the last question she left behind.

Her words were tinged with provocation and full of pride.

Seeing her go to death, Wen Ci felt no pleasure; instead, his long‑suppressed emotions surged forth.

Upon realizing the deep feelings within his heart, his first reaction was to evade and deny, which turned into anger.

Since his rebirth, he had originally intended to make her wish she were dead, never again to let her be as comfortable as in his previous life.

Therefore he wanted to save her, then torment her cruelly.

To save her, he planted a parasite in his own body, using himself as host, spending five years and consuming nearly all of his life.

During the first year, he still held firm to his idea.

As long as she awoke, he would certainly make her wish she were dead.

In the second year, he began to doubt himself.

…

In the third year, he lay beside her, tightly embracing her, as if wanting to embed her into his body.

Devoutly pleading to heaven.

As long as she awakens, he is willing to pay any price.

As the years passed, the one who had planted the parasite immediately sensed the host's awakening.

At that time he was still at court, his dragon robes not yet changed, he hurried to the front of the sleeping palace, stumbling, his nerves so tense he held his breath, standing outside the Palace Gate, hesitant to enter.

He feared it might be another illusion, feared seeing her lying eyes closed in the coffin in the secret chamber, never having awakened.

—

Return to reality.

Wen Ci lowered his forehead, the fingers resting on the stone bed pale and thin, slowly tightening, knuckles prominent.

The entire stone chamber was silent, darkness growing in the corners, giving a feeling of oppression and discomfort.

Jiang Zhi saw he remained silent, pushed herself up from the ground, and changed the subject: "How can I save you?"

The youth's physique was poor; even if she fed him her own blood, it would not last long.

He was like a tree with its trunk completely rotted; now only the bark holds him up, and sooner or later he will break and fall.

Wen Ci staggered down from the stone bed, covering his chest where cold and heat intertwined, firmly suppressing the pain within, and said coldly: "It has nothing to do with you."

Jiang Zhi feared he would fall, stepped forward to support his arm, but before she could touch him, he pushed her away.

The youth's face was gloomy, his pupils like a swamp veiled with deep sickness, his breath disordered; he uttered not a word before collapsing.

Jiang Zhi embraced his falling body, helped him onto the stone bed, bit her finger, and let blood drip from her fingertip onto the edge of his thin lips, seeping into his mouth.

"Don't force yourself; rest assured, I will stay with you."

The youth's body, tense and rigid, his consciousness hazy, upon hearing those words, unexpectedly obeyed and relaxed.

Jiang Zhi grasped his icy hand, saw him shivering from the cold, and simply lay beside him, burying herself in his embrace.

After an unknown time, the youth lifted his heavy eyelids, his vision blurry, unable to make out the person in his arms; after a few seconds, he murmured: "Mas… master."

Jiang Zhi, hearing this, startled, lifted her forehead from his embrace and met those clear, bottomless eyes.

He showed a shy smile, revealing a longing not seen in a while, but his mind was unclear; he leaned in, pressing his forehead against hers, rubbing slightly, and whispered: "I miss you so much, master."

Jiang Zhi came to her senses, reached out to cup his face, curved her lips, and said: "Master also misses you."

This was the first time she, upon waking, saw the first personality.

Because she had taught him martial arts five years ago, he has always called her master.

At that time, when the second personality emerged, she pestered him to call her that as well, but the second personality's Wen Ci, with a cold face, refused without mercy.

Thus, upon hearing that title, one knows the first personality has emerged.

Wen Ci had not emerged for a long time; due to his frailty, his memory was disordered, and he could not recall why he was here.

He only remembered that the other person inside his body had spoken to him.

——Your master abandoned you and left.

Wen Ci thought of this, and his expression grew a little panicked.

"Master, will you abandon me?"

His gentle voice trembled slightly.

Jiang Zhi didn't expect him to ask such a question; she froze, pressing her lips shut without answering.

Wen Ci anxiously clutched a corner of her robe, shaking it left and right, 'Master…'

Because of his emotional turmoil, he turned his head and began coughing violently, his breath growing weaker, his mind increasingly foggy, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

Even after coughing, he didn't forget to keep asking her.

Jiang Zhi gazed at his pallid face, wiped the blood-stained corner of his mouth with her fingertip, then softly said, 'No.'

After saying that, she repeated her reply to him.

I won't abandon you.

The first personality feels insecure, thinks simply, speaks his mind, and unlike the second personality, doesn't keep things bottled up.

But no matter which personality, they are the same person, influencing and sensing each other.

So this question is also what the second personality wanted to ask her.

Wen Ci felt relieved, lay down again, closed his tired eyes, hooked his finger around her pinky, and weakly said, 'It hurts, Master, my body hurts so much.'

Jiang Zhi lowered her forehead and lightly kissed his furrowed brow, soothing, 'It won't hurt for long.'

Listening to her voice, the youth drifted into a drowsy sleep.

【Villain Love Points reached 100 points, congratulations Host, mission completed.】

The God Pillar System's voice sounded.

The panel data no longer had any question marks.

777 sighed, 'Host, the villain is dead.'

The villain, using his own body as fodder, continuously supplied her with life over these five years, sustaining her until she woke up and could endure until now; this is already the limit of his body.

Jiang Zhi sensed abnormal fluctuations of the Gu master within her body, took a deep breath, the corners of her eyes slightly reddened, looking at the pink finger hooked by him, her throat dry.

After a moment, her hoarse voice said, 'End this world.'

Okay.

——

This world ends.