The illusion you perceive.
"Aiya, would you like to come play, my lord? This little woman has been waiting for a long time here~"
The seductive and enchanting woman unties her sash, incessantly tempting with her voluptuous body, or perhaps it’s the floor littered with gold and silver treasures, the metallic smell being somewhat nauseating... This is the temptation people imagine.
The vast majority believe that none of these things can sway their humanity, nor their will. The truth is the same, but the real illusion is...
Mr. Xue subconsciously turned his head, looking towards the wife he had longed for day and night, missing her for decades without remarrying or touching any other woman all the way into middle age.
He even felt that he could spend a lifetime just quietly watching his wife and child.
"It seems like you’ve gotten a bit of a belly."
The beautiful woman, walking slowly side by side with the man, glanced at his no longer flat belly and covered her mouth with a light laugh, though at such an age, it was indeed time to put on some weight.
His expression was sheepish, as if embarrassed. In front of his wife, he was always this childish, no matter how many years passed since their marriage. Qiao Qiao always treated him as the silly young man from their youth, like a mother, like a sister, like family, and moreover as husband and wife.
Their son, who was running ahead, also gradually stopped, panting, but still excitedly gripping the kite string in his hand.
"Dad! Mom! Look, I’ve raced ahead of you so far; I told you, I learned the ’Light Body Technique’ last time from the Immortal."
He smiled helplessly and scolded, although his words were harsh, he always doted on his only child. Looking towards his beautiful wife beside him, the longing in her eyes deeply imprinted in his mind.
Thus, he couldn’t help but make up his mind in his heart.
To spend his life, to do his utmost, he also wanted to let Wu Wei walk the legendary Immortal Road, even if it cost all the family’s fortune, even if it risked his own life.
"My husband, I remember you used to run very fast."
The beautiful woman didn’t make any requests, such was her tranquil nature, never troubling her husband, instead, she brought up a nostalgic funny story from their childhood.
"When I was a child, I was afraid of dogs. Once, I was chased by Aunt Wang’s big wolfhound, and it was you who swooped in to carry me on your shoulders. We ran through all the alleys of East Street without even taking a heavy breath."
"But... my husband, because of me, you still have some bite marks on your calf."
Her tone carried a bit of self-reproach, but Xue Ming just laughed nonchalantly, not noticing when he had returned to his youth, not yet thirty, when he brought greatness to the Xue family, at the peak of his career.
"Haha, those are bygone days. Without those two bite marks on my leg, how could I have married such a virtuous wife like you? Thinking about it, I should thank that wolfhound."
His face was brimming with a happy smile, and the sight of the family enjoying blissful harmony was enviable.
This dream was far too real, so real that even though he knew deep down it was but an illusion, he didn’t want to shatter it. If possible, he would wish to sink into this dream forever.
"You, that expression is still the same as before, so silly. I remember back at school, you always liked to look out the window with that face."
"I would always sneak peeks at your profile, always thinking my husband looked adorable when he was so distracted. Now you’re a father and you’re still the same as you were over a decade ago, nothing has changed."
"Not true, not true, you’ve grown taller than before, more robust... I remember back when you attended school, you loved the steamed buns from the shop in front of the school. Just a few days ago, I saw Aunt Wang."
"Next time, let’s go together with Wu Wei, okay?"
Without hesitation, he nodded.
The frenzied beating of his heart, reminiscent of the palpitations felt when they first met, left Xue Ming utterly submerged in his emotions. He just followed behind his wife and child with a love-struck smile, ready to nod his head without hesitation at whatever she said. This text is hosted at NoveI★Fire.net
Even if it meant giving up his own heart.
The familiar bell rang again.
Xue Ming only felt a blur before his eyes, and then he saw...
"Qiao Qiao, Qiao Qiao! You can’t leave, I can’t be without you, I can’t be without you! Please hold on a little longer, just a little longer! The Elixir from State City will be here soon, hang in there, you can’t close your eyes, you can’t close your eyes..."
He looked down, at his wife in his arms, tormented by illness to the point of being unrecognizable. Xue Ming’s mind roared, as memories once dead came flooding back with a vengeance.
Shivering all over, Qiao Qiao’s withered body probably didn’t even weigh forty kilograms, yet she still reached out her dry palm.
And caressed his cheek, as she had always done.
"Husband... I will, I will wait for your Immortal Elixir..."
Even in her dying breaths, those sunken eyes still conveyed tenderness, and in such a state, she was even comforting her husband.
Mustering her last bit of strength, she looked at their son sitting on the ground, wailing, and the woman just trembled her dry lips.
"Wu Wei, remember to be good, listen to your father, don’t worry your dad, don’t follow your friends into mischief..."
"Mother won’t leave you, you always say, you want to become an Immortal."
"Wait, when you become an Immortal, then come and take your mother back."
Her voice grew weaker and weaker, and even her vision blurred, but the woman continued, "Take good care of yourself, my husband, Wu Wei is our only child... Promise me, protect him, don’t let anyone, anyone hurt him."
"Husband, there are new quilts, clothes, and shoes under the bed, all prepared for Wu Wei by me, including two pieces of scarlet robes, those... those were the wedding dresses you personally picked out."
"When the time comes, and Wu Wei finds a girl he fancies, let him put on these red robes... and come to see me, let me see my future daughter-in-law..."
"Wu Wei, the weather has gotten cooler recently, remember to add an extra blanket at night."
"Husband, last time you took me to the front of the school, we went to Aunt Wang’s shop... Sadly, on the day we went, Aunt Wang had moved, and we missed out on having one last hot bun."
"Cough cough cough! Husband, husband, the girl on East Street, she... she has admired you for a long time..."
"She comes from a decent family, virtuous and kind, and her age is also... also suitable..." Her hand, mustering the last of its strength, clung tightly as if she wanted to merge the most important man of her life into her own body, but she still desperately uttered her last words.
"If... if you ever take another wife in the future, first... first bring her to my grave, let... let Qiao Qiao have a look. She must be... someone worthy of my husband, otherwise, I... I will..."
The withered hand gripping Xue Ming suddenly lost all strength.
And under Jiang Feng’s gaze, that man finally collapsed to the ground like a madman, his fingers clutching his head, letting out a howl like a wild beast.