Chapter 15
Edward Quan ·
I pointed at the seventeenth coffin.
"Can be undone."
Chapter 10: The Father Finally Wakes Up
The room shook violently.
Lu Changsheng roared.
"No!"
He lunged.
Seventeen streams of red light tightened around him at once.
I placed a hand on my belly.
"Nian'an."
"Can you help me one last time?"
Silence.
Quickly, I added, "Not a prophecy."
"I don't need you to see the future anymore."
"Just listen."
A gentle kick.
I smiled.
"Help me hold the array."
"I'll find the person who signed the pact."
Her reply was soft.
"All right."
I closed my eyes.
Red light enveloped me.
When I opened them, I stood in another room.
A wooden table faced me.
An old book lay on it.
A black cover.
Faded gold lettering.
BOOK OF LIFE-AND-DEATH PACTS.
I went closer and opened the first page.
Words appeared.
【Pact maker: Chen Youde.】
【Pact recipient: Lu Changsheng.】
【What is granted: Three generations of wealth.】
【Price: One daughter born with an exceptional fate.】
I looked farther down.
A line of smaller writing.
【The pact takes effect only when the heir willingly surrenders the sacrifice.】
I went still.
Willingly.
I remembered the last seventeen times.
Every time, Mingyuan had demanded my signature.
Every time, he'd wanted me to hand over my child.
Because without my consent, the pact couldn't be completed.
I laughed.
So it was that simple.
I'd never lost.
Lu Changsheng had only ever used the people I loved to force my choice.
I turned the page.
Red words appeared.
【Current heir: Chen Mingyuan.】
I looked at my husband's name.
After a long while, I closed the book.
I knew what I had to do.
When I returned to the basement, Mingyuan stood in the doorway.
He hurried toward me.
"Qinghe!"
I stepped back.
He stopped.
"Are you all right?"
I looked at him.
For the first time in three years of marriage, I no longer saw the gentle husband I remembered.
Only a man ruled by fear.
"Mingyuan."
"Yes?"
"You know about the pact, don't you?"
Silence.
"You know the ritual can't be completed unless I give up my child willingly."
He lowered his head.
I laughed.
"Then why force me?"
After a long while, he said, "Because if it isn't completed…"
"I'll die."
I stood motionless.
He looked up, his eyes red.
"Qinghe."
"I've died seventeen times."
I watched him.
He began to cry.
"Do you think I wasn't afraid?"
"The first time, I knew nothing."
"I really thought we'd all be safe if I handed her over."
"But when I saw them take her…"
His voice caught.
"I regretted it."
I said nothing.
"The second time, I meant to take you away."
"But my mother died right in front of me."
"The third, I tried to break the pact."
"Lu Changsheng brought disaster on my whole family."
"The fourth…"
He couldn't go on.
I watched him for a long time.
At last, I asked, "And the seventeenth?"
He looked up.
I spoke each word clearly.
"What did you do then?"
He was silent.
"You took her away."
"You forced me to sign."
"You left me on that rooftop, holding her, without a shred of hope."
Tears ran down his face.
"I'm sorry."
I shook my head.
"No."
"I'm not the one you need to apologize to."
I placed a hand on my belly.
"Your daughter is."
Mingyuan looked at my belly.
After a long while, he slowly knelt.
"Nian'an."
I froze.
He knew her name.
He bowed his head.
"Daddy's sorry."
No response.
He wept.
"I know I don't deserve to be your father."
"But I really…"
His voice broke.
"I really do want you to be born."
I looked at him.
"Then will you give up the pact?"
His head jerked up.
"Without trading her life for yours."
"Without trading mine."
"Give up your claim as the heir yourself."
His face went white.
I looked straight into his eyes.
"Will you?"
He was silent for a long time.
Then he slowly asked, "If I give it up…"
"I'll die, won't I?"
I didn't answer.
Because I didn't know.
The book only said the heir could revoke the pact.
It didn't name the price.
Mingyuan lowered his head.
His hands clenched.
One minute.
Two.
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