“Red maple?” Su Jingmo was distracted for a moment. “…..Is it that season already?”
Almost right after, Su Jingmo shook his head slightly and said with a smile: “Right, when we first met, you weren’t wearing clothes with sleeves. But now, the clothes you’re wearing are much thicker.”
Qin Cheng looked at Su Jingmo, who looked slightly transparent, but was smiling brightly as if he hadn’t noticed his current condition. However, that smile was the most beautiful thing Qin Cheng had ever seen in his life. It was just…. At this moment, that beautiful smile seemed to have turned into a sharp claw, tearing at Qin Cheng’s heart viciously.
‘ Why are you still smiling? Why didn’t you tell me anything? ’
Qin Cheng would really like to ask…. ask Su Jingmo, ‘ Even a little, have you ever had feelings for me? ’
However, after seeing such a scene, Qin Cheng was unwilling to ask.
Qin Cheng could only squeeze Su Jingmo’s hands into his palms, fearing that in the next instant, he would suddenly disappear.
“Why….why did you become like this, Jingmo….?”
“Hmm?” Su Jingmo, seeing Qin Cheng’s trembling appearance, lowered his gaze and his eyebrows loosened: “Why? People live and die, so naturally, ghosts can also appear and disappear. It’s only a matter of time, and my time has come.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?! Or did you think it wasn’t necessary?!”
The eyes that looked at Su Jingmo were red, fluttering with pain and anger. But Qin Cheng had restrained his emotions, so as not to lose his temper with him. As the corners of his lips lifted slightly, Su Jingmo thought: ‘ He really loves me to the extreme. ‘
“What did you want to ask me?”
“Me?” Qin Cheng looked at Su Jingmo with complicated eyes and slowly said: “Why don’t you ask me where I’ve been recently?”
“I can probably guess,” Su Jingmo smiled. “After all….after you left that day, that man came to talk about the past.”
“You’ve met Su Jingyan?”
“Su Jingyan?” Su Jingmo smiled somewhat meaningfully when hearing this name. “Then, what did he say?”
“He told me a lot…such as….”
As Qin Cheng held Su Jingmo’s hand, he gazed at him and sighed: “He said that it was you who built this tomb, and it was you who asked him to bury you here….”
Su Jingmo nodded slightly: “Hmm, what else?”
“He said that you used the Taowu bones, although you weren’t allowed to, which led the Xu Dynasty to its destruction.”
“Do you believe it?”
Qin Cheng nodded and shook his head: “It would be a lie to say that I can’t believe it, but,” Qin Cheng squeezed Su Jingmo’s hand gently. “I believe in you more.”
As he raised an eyebrow, Su Jingmo smiled and said: “Even if you know that I lied to you? Would you still believe in me?”
Qin Cheng paused: “I will.”
Su Jingmo didn’t say anything, he simply stared at Qin Cheng with a smile.
“He also said….that you want me to guard the tomb in your place. Is that right?”
Su Jingmo nodded: “Yes.”
“He also said that you incorporated the Taowu bones into my body. Is that also the truth?”
“I did.”
Qin Cheng’s heart filled with sadness, as he smiled bitterly: “So, from the beginning, you never had the intention of saving my life?”
Su Jingmo was silent, and Qin Cheng looked up at the roof of the tomb, blinking.
‘ I already know what his answer is, don’t I? ’
‘ But I’m still unwilling. ’
“The Taowu bone I brought back from the tomb in Pingyao wasn’t really melted into the jade pendant, was it?”
“If that’s what you think, then it must be true.”
Qin Cheng still wanted to ask….he wanted to ask Su Jingmo if he had feelings for him or not….
But he was afraid, and when he opened his mouth, only a sigh came out.
“What do you want me to do? Jingmo, I don’t want to think about anything right now. My head can only think of one thing…. What can I do to stop you from leaving me? But nothing occurs to me. I’m not Qu Zhiwen, I’m just a simple archaeologist. I don’t know what to do….”
“….A lot of the things you want to fix have been doomed since long ago.”
“But I don’t like it!” Qin Cheng took a step closer and held Su Jingmo tightly, caressing his cheek. “Su Weiran said a lot of things to me, and I know that not everything he said must be true, but there were some that I was able to figure out for myself.”
“You don’t want to tell me the truth, and maybe you’ve even been taking advantage of my feelings for you from the beginning…..That’s something I’ve been thinking all this time, asking myself that if I knew this, would I still be willing to accompany you? Would I still be willing to follow your plans?”
Su Jingmo stared at Qin Cheng silently as he spoke. His usual smile hadn’t faded no matter what, making it impossible for Qin Cheng to see the hidden emotions within his eyes.
“So, are you willing or not?”
“I’m willing,” Qin Cheng said these words firmly. “I’ve finally made up my mind….If that’s what you want, then I’m willing to do so.”
“Won’t you regret it?”
“I won’t,” Qin Cheng shook his head. “However, I also have a condition.”
These words reminded Su Jingmo of when Qin Cheng hugged him and asked for a reward. Because of that, he couldn’t help but laugh out loud: “What, you want me?”
For some reason, Su Jingmo’s words made Qin Cheng feel a little embarrassed. Qin Cheng knew that Su Jingmo was simply playfully teasing him, and although Qin Cheng really wanted to get that man from the bottom of his heart…. that wasn’t the only thing he wanted.
“I do want you,” Qin Cheng said solemnly. “I remember when you told me you wanted to make a deal with me. You told me that in exchange for me helping you get what you wanted, you would give me anything I wanted.”
Su Jingmo was amused to hear that. Although his original words were nothing like that, he really wanted to hear what Qin Cheng wanted him to do now.
“Go on, tell me what you want.”
“I want to try to use the Taowu bones, I want to find a way to prevent you from disappearing. Therefore, for now, you have to listen to me.”
Su Jingmo frowned slightly: “I told you, that’s not—….”
“I haven’t tried it myself! And I’m not going to let that happen to you!” Qin Cheng interrupted Su Jingmo, blinking his reddened and teary eyes. “Listen to me, alright? Jingmo, I have a feeling, and I know I don’t have much time left. This time, I want to try it, even if there’s a one-in-a-million chance. Otherwise, I won’t be at ease when I die. Even if I end up locked in this tomb, I’m sure I’ll end up resentful of this. If that were to happen, wouldn’t I end up turning into a fierce ghost?”
“….If you succeed, what will you do?” Su Jingmo lowered his eyes and said faintly: “Will you try to exchange your body with me? Will you lose your identity?”
“I don’t have much time anyway,” Qin Cheng smiled. “If I can get you to live, I’ll be happy enough. This place has stood for thousands of years, and while the world outside this tomb isn’t any better, it has changed a lot. I want you to see it with your own eyes.”
“At the very least, if I can save your soul, even if you don’t like it, you will have to accept it. Jingmo, from now on, as well as in future generations, please take care of your soul….”
Su Jingmo chuckled. His eyebrows curved and his eyes shone with emotions that even Qin Cheng couldn’t comprehend: “How can this world have such a big fool like you?”
“Qin Cheng, if you fail, do you even understand what the result will be? You will end up locked in this tomb, alone, protecting it for generations. You will not be able to reincarnate, much less have a future. In the end, I will not be here with you.”
“Even so, if you were to cease to exist in this world…I think it would be worse than dying. A few days ago I had a dream. In my dream, I saw thousands and thousands of silent images floating around me, and all of them showed a man. That man was dressed in clothes from different Dynasties. At first, I thought that these images had nothing to do with me, but then I began to feel that these must be my past lives. I saw generations and generations of past lives, and in all of them, It seemed like I was searching for an answer….or a person.”
"
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“….Who?”
Sensing that Su Jingmo’s voice sounded a little cold, Qin Cheng’s heart was a little pleased. ‘ This means that Su Jingmo still cares about me, right? ‘
“I was trapped in that dream, not being able to wake up. Suddenly, I heard a voice resounding around me, saying, ‘I wonder, what this honorable man’s name is? I’ll definitely go to your house to thank you properly’….”
Qin Cheng had been watching Su Jingmo all this time, to make sure he would be able to catch the moment Su Jingmo’s expression showed any sign. However, as soon as those words were said, Qin Cheng couldn’t notice anything changing in Su Jingmo’s expression. At that moment, doubt began to grow within Qin Cheng’s heart.
‘ It can’t be….was it really just a dream? ’
“You thought that was me? But I don’t remember ever saying something like that to anyone.” Su Jingmo laughed. “I accept the terms of the deal you just proposed.”
Right after saying this, Su Jingmo looked in the direction of the entrance of the tomb: “Perhaps, you should leave. Someone is waiting for you outside the tomb.”
Qin Cheng understood what Su Jingmo meant. The man who was waiting for him outside should be Mr. Chen whom Su Weiran had appointed to follow after him. When he thought of what that man had planned, Qin Cheng could only step forward and tighten his arms around Su Jingmo.
“Su Weiran wants me to lure you out of the tomb. I’m pretending to agree with him, so you should stay away from him. I think he wants the Taowu bones in your tomb.”
“It’s alright. I know what he wants.”
“What do you mean?”
Su Jingmo raised his arms and hugged Qin Cheng’s neck, gently leaning against Qin Cheng’s shoulder: “I’ll tell you next time you come to visit me. After all, I’m not so sure what this Su Weiran’s true identity is….but it’s not good for you to know more.”
“….Alright.”
“Qin Cheng.”
“Hmm?”
“Aren’t you going to kiss me?”
“Huh?!” Qin Cheng was stunned. When he heard Su Jingmo’s joyful laughter coming from his shoulder, Qin Cheng pursed his lips and said: “Yes, I want to….”
The way Qin Cheng is willing to give up his life (and his physical body) so Su Jingmo can live (and then reincarnate) is so heartwarming ! Ah the angst!💔💔
But then they manage to be so cute and flirty….🥺🥺 (but also the way SJM knows how to distract QC from everything just by asking for kisses, knowing full well that QC will never refuse to kiss SJM 😂😂)