"I don't understand what you're saying," I furrowed my brows, indicating that I didn't grasp his meaning.

He released my hand, and the insects in the pottery jar buzzed urgently. I groaned as I collapsed to the ground.

I convulsed uncontrollably, a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of my mouth.

"In the Xun Wind, one must obey for a day," the man said, waiting until I had been tormented enough before putting away the pottery jar.

"If two months pass without any useful information being provided, the torture you endure will not be any less than today," he added.

I lay on the ground, completely drained of strength. The man reached out, patting my face before stepping on my fingers and leaving the narrow alleyway.

The pain of crushed fingers and the onset of poison were nothing compared to the contempt and insult, along with the sense of unwillingness.

I struggled to catch my breath for a while before slowly managing to sit up.

The visitor was Wen Chengjun. I didn't know his background, only that he was the next Wind Master under the Xun Wind.

This man was ruthless; on the night the Jiang family fell, he stormed into the Jiang family's stronghold with a Moon-Cutting Blade.

After eradicating the Jiang family, he quickly gathered a group of followers, turning Xun Wind into another domineering faction in the martial world.

In the previous life, Wen Chengjun only appeared after the old Wind Master passed away, but this time, his appearance was too early.

Too early for me to make all the necessary preparations.

Jiang Chengbi's purse was carelessly thrown on the ground by a beggar.

I picked it up, dusted it off, tidied myself up, then returned to Jiang Chengbi's side.

Seeing me return, Jiang Chengbi was overjoyed, taking the purse and thanking me repeatedly.

Her big eyes sparkled as she looked at me for a long time, making me feel uneasy before she grabbed Ah Ruo's hand and ran towards a nearby clay figurine stall.

At midnight, I endured the discomfort in my chest, keeping watch outside Jiang Chengbi's house.

After some rustling, Jiang Chengbi stealthily approached me.

Just as I was about to ask, she quickly gestured for silence, "Shh, don't wake Ah Ruo, she's quite talkative."

She pulled me to sit on the veranda, taking out various bottles and jars from her bosom, "Did someone bully you when you went to retrieve the purse?"

She carefully poked my chin with her finger, gently saying, "It looks a bit purple here."

We were very close, her breath brushing against my neck.

Her long eyelashes veiled her starry eyes, as if hiding a piece of starlight:

"I took these from my eldest brother's room, let me help you apply them!"

She held the bottles and jars, looking up at me eagerly, afraid of my refusal.

"Alright," I swallowed and lifted my chin.

She was delighted, carefully opening each porcelain bottle, dabbing them with a handkerchief and applying them to my skin.

She, who was so innocent and devoted to me, woke up at the last moment of the Jiang family's downfall, clad in red, tears in her eyes, questioning me with a trembling voice who I truly was.

Who I was, I didn't know.

But in this life, all I wanted was to be her husband, Jiang Chengbi's husband.

A husband without deep-seated enmity.