RPDPHW Chapter 21

In the heart of winter, there is no greater joy than lighting a brazier of charcoal, warming a fine pot of wine, and gathering a few close friends to chat about life.

At this time of year, Liu Sanniang always found a free day to bring over a few jars of good wine for Gu Qingyin. They would drink together, watching the snow blanket the earth in silver.

This year was no different.

Except this time, the usual laughter was absent.

The once hearty laughter had been replaced by sighs, one after another.

“Sigh… Little Gu, tell me—it’s already been three days, and she still hasn’t woken up. What if… what if she never wakes up?”

Liu Sanniang wasn’t really looking for an answer. She just wanted Gu Qingyin to reassure her, to give her a definite promise that the person inside would wake up.

But Gu Qingyin, utterly unmoved, simply replied, “Mm. That’s possible.”

Liu Sanniang: “….”

She downed the cup of strong liquor in her hand, letting the burning sensation slice down her throat without even blinking.

Once the cup was empty, she slammed it onto the table and shouted, “Tch! Don’t talk nonsense! Xiao Jinzi, you tell me—can your Qingqing save her or not?!”

Zhong Shujin, having indulged in two cups of aged wine, was now draped limply over Gu Qingyin’s shoulder, her cheeks flushed a deep red. She clearly had a poor tolerance for alcohol.

Fortunately, despite the weakness in her limbs, her mind was still clear. Even in her drunken state, she stubbornly declared, “Mm! Our Qingqing is the best! She will save her!”

“That’s the spirit! I believe you! Your Qingqing will definitely save her!” Liu Sanniang finally broke into a smile and filled Zhong Shujin’s cup with more wine. She lifted her own cup boldly. “Come on! Let’s drink!”

Seeing Liu Sanniang in good spirits, Zhong Shujin grinned happily as well. She reached out unsteadily for her cup, only for Gu Qingyin to snatch it away first.

“Be good. No more drinking, okay?”

Zhong Shujin leaned against Gu Qingyin, squinting as she tried to negotiate. “Just one more… I want to drink with you…”

“Nope.” Gu Qingyin smiled and drank the cup of wine herself before pinching Zhong Shujin’s cheek. “Look how red your face is already. You’re terrible at holding your liquor, so no more for you.”

“Mm…” Zhong Shujin pouted in protest, but since Gu Qingyin had already decided, she didn’t insist. Instead, she snuggled into Gu Qingyin’s shoulder and sighed in surrender. “Fine… I’ll just watch you two drink, then.”

Gu Qingyin chuckled and ruffled her hair. “That’s a good girl.”

Zhong Shujin, enjoying the affection, closed her eyes in contentment, her smile lingering as she leaned comfortably against Gu Qingyin.

The closeness between them seemed even more natural than in previous days.

Noticing the amused look in Liu Sanniang’s eyes from across the table, Gu Qingyin finally averted her gaze from Zhong Shujin. She poured a cup of wine for both herself and Liu Sanniang before speaking in a calm tone.

“Her internal strength is strong. Normally, after detoxification, she should have regained consciousness quickly. But for some reason, she’s still not waking up. Based on her pulse, the poison she consumed is no longer a threat to her life. However, she remains unconscious… The only explanation I can think of is that she has fallen into a nightmare—one so deep that it’s holding her captive, preventing her from waking up.

I was able to cure the poison, but as for the nightmare… there’s nothing I can do. Now, all we can do is wait for her to break free on her own.”

“A nightmare, huh?”

Liu Sanniang turned to glance at the woman lying unconscious on the bed. With a heavy sigh, she downed another cup of wine, then forced a smile and said, “Well, that’s fine. As long as she’s not dead, I can wait.”

The silly girl resting on her shoulder seemed to have fallen asleep. Gu Qingyin adjusted Zhong Shujin’s posture, freeing one hand to hold her steady, before looking up and asking, “I’m curious—who exactly is she to you, that you’re this anxious? Weren’t you pressuring me non-stop to refine that poison before? But now that she’s the one who drank it, why aren’t you hurrying me to make another batch?”

Liu Sanniang let out an awkward laugh and tried to change the subject. “That’s a separate matter! And you, you’re so shameless! I asked for an incurable poison, but what did you do? You just handed me some random potion to fool me, didn’t you?”

Gu Qingyin cast her a sidelong glance and spoke calmly. “This antidote exists only in my hands. In the eyes of the world, that makes it technically incurable, wouldn’t you say?” She paused, then added, “Besides, if I hadn’t managed to pull her back from the brink of death, do you think you’d be sitting here drinking with me so peacefully right now?”

Liu Sanniang, caught red-handed, had no choice but to take another sip of wine to cover her embarrassment.

“Alright, alright, let’s just drink and drop the subject!”

Gu Qingyin accepted the cup Liu Sanniang handed her, drinking as she spoke. “My master once told me that in this world, no poison is truly incurable. If one is determined enough, there will always be a way to counteract it.”

She paused, her gaze lingering on Zhong Shujin’s face for a moment before continuing, “But he also said… the only poison with no cure in this world—is love.”

Though she still didn’t fully grasp the depth of her master’s words, Gu Qingyin had begun to form her own understanding.

But Liu Sanniang, upon hearing those words, froze completely.

The smile on her face faded, leaving only an unshakable sorrow between her brows.

After three rounds of wine, she finally began speaking, haltingly, about the past.

She said, “Did you know? She wasn’t originally part of the Bloodflame Sect. She was just the cherished daughter of a righteous sect, nothing more.”

She said, “We grew up together, neighbors since childhood, just like any other childhood friends. We studied, practiced martial arts, and grew up side by side.”

She said, “As children, we shared meals, slept under the same roof, side by side. We were like sisters. We both thought we’d always be this close—until we grew old, until we died. We thought we would roam the world together, uphold justice, protect our sect, fight side by side, and see all the wonders this land had to offer.”

She said, “But then… she broke that promise. She didn’t travel the world with me. Her family arranged a proper marriage for her—a union between two righteous sects. The groom was a young hero of some renown in the martial world.”

She said, “A perfect match—talented man, beautiful woman, an ideal marriage. It should have been something to envy, but… I couldn’t bear to see her wed him.”

She said, “That was the first time we truly fought. She said she had never seen me that way—that to her, I was only a sister. But I… she accused me of coveting her betrothed. That day, we parted on terrible terms.”

She said, “I thought I could watch her get married with a calm heart. But in the end, I couldn’t do it. That day, I spent a fortune hiring assassins to slaughter his entire family. From the elderly to the newborn, not one was left alive.

The only one I spared… was her, standing there in her bridal robes.”

She said, “I told her—if I couldn’t have her, then no one else could either. From that moment on, we became sworn enemies. With my own hands, I destroyed her happiness. With my own hands, I forced her, a righteous heroine, to become an outcast—a so-called demoness despised by the world. The massacre of her husband’s entire family branded her a villain, a target of the martial world’s wrath. The righteous sects scorned her, hunted her. In the end, it was only the Bloodflame Sect that took her in, giving her what could barely be called a home.”

She said, “I understand—I wronged her. She hates me, wishes she could tear me apart. I know that. But what I don’t understand… is why she still holds on to the past. Why, after all this, has she never truly tried to kill me? Sometimes, I almost wish she would. It would be a relief from this torment.”

By the time she reached the end of her tale, Liu Sanniang was already drunk. She lay slumped over the table, her bitter smile carrying a deep sorrow.

“Tell me… if, from the very beginning, I had just told her that the person I wanted—had always wanted—was her, only her… would things have turned out differently?”

Hearing all this, Gu Qingyin finally understood what Leng Shaoying meant to Liu Sanniang.

Yet, she didn’t know how to answer her.

“Too late… it’s all too late!” Liu Sanniang suddenly burst into wild laughter, stumbling toward the bed. “But I no longer hope for anything. As long as she’s alive, that’s enough. Even if it’s hatred that keeps me in her memory for a lifetime, then it’s worth it.”

Hearing this, Gu Qingyin let out a quiet sigh. “Why put yourself through this?”

Liu Sanniang lay there, her gaze unfocused, lost in the past.