“He Caitou,” Xiao Xiao replied in a low voice. Among all the people here, she was the shyest.
“Is he the one you love the most?”
“Yes,” Xiao Xiao replied softly.
“If only one of you could leave this place alive, would it be you, or him?” the calm voice asked coldly.
Xiao Xiao was stunned. “Can we both not die? I’m still young, I haven’t married anyone yet, I, I… Wa!…,” She burst out into tears.
He Caitou could hear her now. When he heard her crying, an odd expression crossed his face.
“One of you must die. It’s either you or him. Answer me. If you don’t answer me, both of you will die. You have the right to choose. If you let him die, you may live,” the voice said calmly.
Xiao Xiao choked, and her petite face turned white. To her, the terror of death was not something she could deal with easily.
The voice seemed pleased that it had finally found someone who was afraid of death. It did not prompt her.
“Then, I’ll die. But after I die, can you let Caitou tell my father and mother, and then get him to take care of them for me? While he may be ugly, he’s a nice person. I think my parents will like him.” It was difficult, but Xiao Xiao still made her decision.
“We can only live once. Will you really choose death?” The calm voice asked once more.
Xiao Xiao said, “I don’t want to die! However, I don’t want Caitou to die. If I see him die, I might be more afraid. I’d rather die myself. Isn’t it said that once you die, there’s nothing to worry about anymore? Can you let me have a quick death? I’m scared of pain.”
“…”
“You pass the first round.”
The voice did not want to speak with Xiao Xiao any more. The light faded, and Xiao Xiao dropped down back down and was enveloped by her light bubble.
—
The sliver flashed, and He Caitou immediately rose into the air.
“Do you have a lover?’”
“Yes.”
“Who is she?”
“Xiao Xiao,” He Caitou replied resolutely.
“Is she the one who you love the most?”
“Yes.”
“Between the two of you, if only one of you could live, who would you want it to be?” The questions were highly similar. However, for everyone, it was a question of life and death. At this point, one had to know that He Caitou did not know that Xiao Xiao had passed her round. He only heard her say that she was willing to die for him, and that she wanted him to take care of her family.
At this moment, Xiao Xiao listened intently. She had absolute faith in He Caitou’s love for her. Since they had gotten together, he had protected her and taken care of her as if she were a tiny flower in a greenhouse. His deep love for her had made her forget her initial dissatisfaction with his appearance.
“I’d choose to live,” He Caitou answered after a long silence. The moment he said that, Xiao Xiao’s eyes opened wide in shock. Instantly, her beautiful eyes started to water.
I’m so scared of death, but I still chose death for you…
Caitou, who is normally so honest, and who loves me so much, actually…
Caitou, you…
“Why?” the calm voice asked.
He Caitou took a deep breath and said, “I have yet to avenge the deaths of my family, and hence, I cannot die. So, I’d choose to live. But if Xiao Xiao dies, I’m already a dead man. My heart would be dead. I’d castrate myself to keep my purity for her. After I avenge the deaths of my family, I’d join her in death.
“If there’s a next life, I want to be her pet so that I can protect her quietly. If there really is a next life, I won’t demand her love, but I’ll make up for my mistakes in this lifetime with the love of many lifetimes.
“However, I must have my vengeance. I’ll never forget how my father’s hand went limp right before he died, or the red, grief-stricken look in my mother’s eyes. Death, to me, is a form of release. However, I can’t have this release now. I live for revenge. Loving Xiao Xiao is like a luxury to me.
“I don’t know who you are or why you brought us here, but if possible, can you please let both Xiao Xiao and I live? Even if you force me to give up my love for her, even if you make her forget me, I’d be willing. Furthermore, I’m willing to be a slave for her in my next life. I don’t even mind reincarnating as an animal so that she can live a wondrous life. Please, I beg you.”
He Caitou’s lips were pursed tightly together. Even his voice was different from normal. He spoke with a magnetic and enthralling voice.
Xiao Xiao’s eyes watered. Finally, big, fat tears trickled down her face. At this moment, there was no coldness or despair in her eyes, only intense, red-hot emotions.
He Caitou’s body was stiff. He did not know if Xiao Xiao could hear his voice. He also did not know if Xiao Xiao would forgive him. However, he spoke the truth as it was, without keeping anything to himself.
“Sincerity and truth. Love at its highest and most passionate level. You pass the first round, Sincerity, and you are exempted from the second round. Xiao Xiao is also exempted from the second round.”
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He Caitou was lowered gently and returned to his original spot. At this moment, hot tears streamed down his face. He had never cared about the exemption. He was just scared that Xiao Xiao, his beloved Xiao Xiao, would leave him.
At this moment, among everyone who stood around this mysterious wheel, eleven of them had already been chosen. Thanks to Huo Yuhao’s reminder, none of them was severely punished. Only Wu Feng and Zhu Lu were whipped because they were discourteous, but it was not severe.
Only two people were left, Xu Sanshi and Jiang Nannan.
—
The golden sliver spun, and it stopped on Jiang Nannan. The light cleared, and she rose into the air.
As she was one of the last to be selected, she did not look well. She had been trapped for a long time, and did not know what was happening outside. This loneliness was terrifying. At least there was light. The faint golden light made everything less scary.
“Do you have a lover?” the calm voice asked.
Jiang Nanan jumped, but she reacted quickly. “Yes, I do.”
“Who?”
“Xu Sanshi.”
“Is he the one you love the most?”
“Yes.”
“Between the two of you, if only one of you could live, who would you want it to be?”
Jiang Nannan received the same question. Her stunningly-pretty face paled. However, thanks to Huo Yuhao’s reminder, she knew that she could not lie. However, she did not know if Xu Sanshi could hear her voice.
“I hope I could live,” Jiang Nannan said with much difficulty.
“Reason?”
“I want to take care of my mother. If I die, there’ll be no one to take care of my mother. If no one takes care of her, she’ll die. My mother and I have relied on each other since I was young. I’m willing to do anything for my mother. I love Sanshi, but I love my mother more. If I had to choose one, I’d choose to live for my mother. I’d take no new lover, and after my mother passes away, I’ll look for him in death.”
When Jiang Nannan said this, she did not hesitate too much. She did not say it with much emotion. Instead, she recounted it as if it were a fact. Clearly, her mother was the most important thing to her.
“Romantic love and familial love. So, you think familial love is more important? How can you face Xu Sanshi?”
Jiang Nannan smiled bitterly and said, “Without my mother, I wouldn’t exist. I can’t face Sanshi, but I’ll atone for it in my next life. Instead, I want to ask you why you are so intent on tearing us apart? Why is it that only one of us can live? I don’t know who you are, but it serves no other purpose than to cause us pain. Why don’t you kill us both? If we both die, my mother will die too, and we can be reunited in the next world.”
“You pass the first round, Sincerity,” said the calm voice. It had no other questions for her, and it appeared slightly flustered as it made that announcement.
—
Jiang Nannan returned to where she was. The golden light landed on Xu Sanshi. As it spun, Xu Sanshi rose into the air.
“You sick pervert!” Xu Sanshi cursed the moment he could speak.
Crack! A ray of golden light turned into a whip and struck Xu Sanshi.
Xu Sanshi cried out in pain. He felt an intense shock from where he had been whipped. Even his soul was in agony.
“For disrespecting me, you’re sentenced to three strokes of the whip.”
Crack! Crack! Perhaps this voice was triggered by Jiang Nannan’s attitude, but it whipped Xu Sanshi thrice. Xu Sanshi wailed in pain. This pain was unbearable, and it was impossible not to cry out.
Jiang Nannan could hear him, and panicked, but there was nothing she could do. She could only curse silently. “You idiot, why are you resisting something you can’t fight?”
“Do you have a lover?” the calm voice asked coldly once it was done.
“Yes,” Xu Sanshi replied. Perhaps it was because of the punishment, but Xu Sanshi was now much more well-behaved, albeit drained.
“Who?”
“Jiang Nannan.”
“Is she the one you love the most?”
“Yes.”
“If only one of you could live, and you had the option to choose who lived, who would it be?”
“Her. I’ll die.” Xu Sanshi said tiredly. The three strokes of the whip had come down hard. His entire body was twitching in agony.
“Just now, Jiang Nannan chose you to die. Don’t you want to be like her and stay alive to take care of your parents?”