Chapter 42: Ye Hengyang’s Death
[Report! Jin Yanliu responded to the relationship rumors on Weibo!]
[Quick, post a screenshot!]
[Can’t upload a picture, but it’s just four words: Not true.]
[……!!]
[God Jin’s words are truly concise and to the point.]
[I said it couldn’t be true! These rumors were so unreliable.]
[Whether it’s true or not, Jin Yanliu’s response is not surprising. With Into The Abyss being such a hit, Jin Yanliu is at the peak of his popularity. It’d be unbelievable if he admitted to being gay and in a relationship at this time, right?]
[That’s true. For a top idol like him, unless they’re caught kissing or doing that, even if it’s true, he’ll definitely deny it.]
[I heard that reporters called Zhao Sili, and Zhao Sili responded by saying that everything is subject to Jin Yanliu’s response. He answered so ambiguously, I thought there was really something to it.]
[Did Zhao Sili really respond like that? Then he’s been slapped in the face, hasn’t he?]
[Probably unrequited love. Jin Yanliu is not that easy to chase.]
[I wonder which man OR woman will be lucky enough to win Jin Yanliu’s heart in the future. Speaking of which, he’s twenty-four, right? He should be dating.]
[Only Liuye fans naively believe their gege is still a virgin at twenty-four. He must have been in relationships already.]
[In the eyes of fans, their gege relies on their own diligent hands and remains a virgin even at thirty, no casual relationships, no love.]
[These days, isn’t it only the male leads on Green JJW (Jinjiang Literature City – a popular online platform for romance novels) who are still virgins in their thirties? Hahahaha.]
The internet was abuzz with discussions. Zhao Sili, one of the parties involved, browsed the internet for half an hour, staring at the four words “Not true.”
Not true.
He really didn’t expect Jin Yanliu to respond like this.
But what he didn’t expect even more was that Jin Yanliu actually had a partner, and at the most unexpected moment, he suddenly heard the other party’s voice, declaring possessively, “I’m his man.”
Zhao Sili frowned.
What he wanted, even if the other party was married, he would snatch it, let alone just a boyfriend. Jin Yanliu’s boyfriend was too provocative. If he gave up now, it wouldn’t be him, Zhao Sili.
The autumn rain fell all night, causing the temperature to drop sharply. Zhou Beiyang got up early and went back home to get some thicker clothes for himself and Jin Yanliu, and bought breakfast along the way.
He left early and when he returned to the hotel, Jin Yanliu was still sleeping. The phone alarm by the bed kept ringing, but he lay in bed unwilling to move.
Zhou Beiyang went over and turned off the alarm, then leaned over and kissed Jin Yanliu’s cheek: “Little piggy, wake up.”
Jin Yanliu opened his sleepy eyes and said, “Why did you get up so early?”
“I went back home to get some clothes, and I also bought buns from your favorite bun shop. Get up, they’re best eaten while they’re hot.” He reached out and pulled Jin Yanliu up.
Jin Yanliu’s whole body was soft and limp. He said, “We both went to bed late, how are you so energetic?”
Just like in novels, after a night of activity, the female lead is always “unable to get out of bed,” “as tired as a rag doll,” but the male lead is always full of energy and ready for ten more rounds. He and Zhou Beiyang were both men, it was just that he wasn’t as enduring as Zhou Beiyang, just one more time… Oh, right, his physique wasn’t as good as Zhou Beiyang’s, he wasn’t as strong, they were just grinding, not real guns and bullets… Oh, no, not grinding, Zhou Beiyang was grinding, he was grinding something else.
Thinking about it this way, it made a bit of sense…
“I’m quite energetic. A happy occasion calls for high spirits,” Zhou Beiyang said.
Hearing this, Jin Yanliu couldn’t help but laugh.
It was still raining outside, but much lighter. After eating, they hurried to the set.
Today they were filming Ye Hengyang’s death scene, one of the climaxes. Liu Qichang had a particularity, whenever it came to important scenes, he became even more demanding, endlessly polishing a single shot. Everyone came prepared to work overtime today.
As soon as they arrived on set, Liu Qichang asked with a smile, “Is it true?”
Jin Yanliu understood what he was referring to: “Didn’t I already respond?”
Because of the autumn rain, everyone was wearing jackets. Yan Huihua had already arrived and was sitting there getting his makeup done, holding the script in his hand. Hearing the voices, he looked back and saw Jin Yanliu, then stood up and greeted him.
Jin Yanliu waved his hand: “I told you not to be so polite with me.”
Yan Huihua sat down and said, “You went to bed so late yesterday.”
“How do you know?”
“I saw your clarifying Weibo post this morning. It was posted in the middle of the night.”
Jin Yanliu smiled: “I regret sleeping so late yesterday. I’m very sleepy now.”
Yan Huihua stopped talking.
He had been trying to avoid too much interaction with Jin Yanliu recently. He felt that the longer he worked with Jin Yanliu, the deeper he fell.
Because Jin Yanliu was simply too outstanding, his professional abilities were strong, he was serious and dedicated to his acting, he could get along with the staff, and he didn’t have the airs of a big star. His confession being rejected was originally a very awkward thing, but Jin Yanliu acted as if it hadn’t happened and continued to interact with him normally. This charisma was far more captivating than his beauty.
He was fortunate to have met Jin Yanliu, but also unfortunate, because after liking someone like Jin Yanliu, he didn’t know how he could ever like anyone else in the future.
He glanced at Jin Yanliu through the mirror. Jin Yanliu was closing his eyes, lazily leaning back in the chair, letting the makeup artist draw his eyebrows.
Yan Huihua pursed his lips tightly and lowered his head to look at the script in his hand.
Today was his most important scene, Ye Hengyang’s death.
The secret revealed by Mu Wushuang before her death completely changed the two brothers. Ye Hengyang let Mu Huaying go, thinking that everyone could forget all of this and start over.
Mu Huaying was dead, and whether the words she said before her death were true or false could not be verified. The secret was buried with her. Those who were alive, if they wanted to continue living, could only choose to believe what they were willing to believe.
But he didn’t expect that Ye Qingdu, a cultivator, believed in fate the most. He worried about the prophecy surrounding him. Mu Huaying, with her untamable demonic nature and full of hatred for him, he felt that sooner or later, he would die at her hands.
So he sent people to assassinate Mu Huaying.
For him, Mu Huaying held no emotional weight. Even if there was a blood relationship, it had long since vanished amidst Mu Huaying’s several assassination attempts on him, not to mention the prophecy looming over them like a shadow.
Having Ye Hengyang as his son was enough. This was his beloved son whom he treated as a treasure and carefully raised and taught.
But he didn’t expect the cycle of karma, retribution was swift and merciless. The one who died was his most beloved.
[Mu Huaying, whose magical power had reached its peak, came to kill, stepping on corpses, and walking directly towards Ye Qingdu.
His adoptive mother personally killed his biological mother. His biological father, after knowing his identity, still wanted to kill him. If he didn’t turn into a demon, who would?
“Huaying!” Ye Hengyang called.
Mu Huaying’s eyes were bloodshot, his hair disheveled, and his body was enveloped in demonic energy. Blood stained his red robe even redder. He put his hands behind his back, lightly exerted force on his toes, and instantly rose into the air.
“Loose!” Ye Qingdu shouted.
Everyone was stunned and dared not move. Ye Qingdu kicked away the person beside him, snatched the bow and arrow from his hand, and shot it directly.
An arrow shot towards Mu Huaying, followed by a volley of arrows. The first arrow almost touched his throat. He tilted his head back, retreating in mid-air, his body arched back like a bow, then suddenly straightened up. The volley of arrows stopped in mid-air, and then, with bloodshot eyes and a twisted smile, he waved his hands, and the arrows scattered with a whoosh.
The whistling of arrows accompanied the sound of piercing flesh. Ye Qingdu drew his sword and leaped down from the city wall.
“Father!” Ye Hengyang called him.
At this time, Mu Huaying was no longer the Mu Huaying of a few years ago. He only feinted a few moves, and the demonic energy permeating his body pierced through Ye Qingdu. Ye Qingdu spat out a mouthful of blood and fell directly to the ground. Mu Huaying descended from the air and stepped on his neck.
“Your desperate struggle is truly ugly,” Mu Huaying said.
“Evil creature,” Ye Qingdu said. “I really shouldn’t have been soft-hearted back then. I should have killed you with one sword.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Mu Huaying thrust his sword into his chest.
“What you shouldn’t have done was give birth to me,” Mu Huaying said fiercely.
“Huaying!”
Mu Huaying raised his head and saw Ye Hengyang, dressed in white, rushing towards him: “Don’t kill him, he is our father!”
“He is your father, not mine,” Mu Huaying said. “Ye Hengyang, for your sake, I will not kill you, but don’t stop me.”
“If you kill him, you will never have peace. Those who kill their fathers will be cursed by heaven. Your life is over.”
“He has already turned into a demon, addicted to killing. Heng’er, don’t waste your breath on him, go quickly.”
“You two have such a deep father-son bond.” Mu Huaying sneered and pulled his sword out, about to stab again, but Ye Hengyang grabbed his sword.
Blood flowed down Ye Hengyang’s hand. Tears filled his eyes: “Father killing son, son killing father, whether it’s him killing you or you killing him, as long as I’m watching, I won’t stand idly by. If you want to kill him, kill me first.”
“You think I dare not kill you.” Mu Huaying said, “Alright, alright, even you want to oppose me.”
Although he said this, he still waved his sleeve and flung Ye Hengyang to the side. Ye Hengyang picked up a poisoned arrow from the ground and held it in his hand.
They had all gone mad. Blood had already stained them red.
The pain of his mother’s murder had long eroded his mind, and now he had to watch his father and brother kill each other, but he was powerless to stop it. Ye Hengyang was in despair.
Ye Qingdu deeply loved this son and raised him to be kind and gentle, but it was this that harmed him.
“What, are you going to kill me?” Mu Huaying laughed, his eyes covered with a layer of mist, which made him appear even more insane. “See, I told you long ago, you and I, brothers, are destined to be enemies for life.”
“Son is not son, mother is not mother, father is not father, but you and I, brothers, are true. Huaying, my mother’s fault, my father’s fault, I will repay you for them. If you…”
He said this and then directly slashed the arrow across his own neck.
Mu Huaying struck the poisoned arrow from his hand with a palm. Ye Qingdu cried out: “Heng’er!”
Blood gushed out, and Ye Hengyang knelt on the ground.
“You want to kill me, you want to kill me!” Mu Huaying suddenly roared, his eyes bloodshot, demonic energy bursting forth.
Ye Hengyang’s lips trembled, and he said, “Their fault, don’t follow in their mistakes…”
Ye Qingdu, his face contorted, crawled towards him: “My son…”
Before he could reach Ye Hengyang’s robe, Mu Huaying sent him flying with a wave of his sleeve. Mu Huaying knelt down in front of Ye Hengyang, reached out to support his falling body, and said, “You’re trying to break my heart.”
“I knew…” A smile appeared on the corner of Ye Hengyang’s lips. “I knew…”
Mu Huaying wanted to force the poison out of his body, but it was too late. Ye Hengyang’s blood stained his hands, unstoppable. He trembled and said, “Don’t die.”]
Yan Huihua looked at Jin Yanliu, his eyes filled with tears.
Jin Yanliu looked at him, shook his head, the veins on his forehead slightly bulging, but he didn’t cry, only saying: “Don’t die.”
Yan Huihua’s head drooped at this moment. He closed his eyes, tears sliding down his cheeks. A tear in the camera lens, reflecting the sunlight, dripped onto his blood-stained white clothes.
Liu Qichang remained immersed for a long time before standing up and saying, “Cut!”
Yan Huihua and Jin Yanliu didn’t move. Yan Huihua lay in Jin Yanliu’s arms. The tears that Jin Yanliu had held back for so long fell onto his pale neck, scalding hot.
Before Ye Hengyang died, he actually had more to say. They discussed it before filming and deleted it.
This was an irreversible, destined tragedy, where words held no power. The only good person died.
