“Unless…”
Nie Ran paused for a moment, then suddenly refused to continue.
“Never mind.”
He got up and started to walk away, but Ning Xin wasn’t about to give up that easily. Despite the pain, she rushed forward, grabbing hold of his clothes.
“You have to tell me!”
Nie Ran replied indifferently, “There’s nothing to say.”
“But you were just about to say something earlier. You’re not…?”
Ning Xin realized something and her expression turned mischievous. She withdrew her hand and slowly sat up.
“Do you want me to take you to my world?”
He was slightly startled, immediately denying it.
“No.”
“I knew it!”
She was confident. “Isn’t that a very normal thought? What’s there to be embarrassed about? You’re really…”
Nie Ran wasn’t one to accept defeat easily. He sneered, “Do you have the ability to do that?”
“I don’t, but we can try. As long as we achieve our goal, we can negotiate with that old lady, right? Doing nothing will definitely get us nowhere.”
Nie Ran hesitated for a moment, but Ning Xin used her eloquence to sway him. With a flurry of words, she finally managed to shake his resolve.
“Fine.”
Seizing the opportunity, she continued, “I’ve told you everything I know, so you must tell me what you know.”
He glanced at her and sat at the foot of the bed.
“Ask whatever you want to know.”
Instead of speaking, she gestured for him to come closer. When he reluctantly moved beside her, she grabbed his hand and asked, “What is this place? Why did you come here?”
In Nie Ran’s cold tone, Ning Xin finally found answers to the questions that had been troubling her for so long.
“This is the Hell of Avīci. When the most wicked and evil people in the world die, they fall into this Hell of Avīci. The hell transforms into a world based on their actions in their lifetime, and they are imprisoned inside, enduring endless torment.”
“The most wicked and evil people, murderers?”
“Murderers who have killed countless people.”
“Like… you?” Ning Xin couldn’t help but swallow nervously.
Nie Ran looked at the floor, nodding after a long while.
“Yes.”
“How many people have you killed? Why did you kill them?”
“For every zombie I encounter here, I’ve killed a person.”
At his words, Ning Xin couldn’t help but glance outside, trying to recall the countless numbers she had seen. However, there were too many, thousands upon thousands, impossible to count.
She remembered the fearful things her alter ego was afraid of and held her breath as she asked, “Were you really sent to be a hostage?”
Nie Ran didn’t answer, his tone flat, like a robot.
“At the age of sixteen, I returned to the capital of Xia Kingdom. The same year, my mother, the queen, passed away, and the king fell ill. Wars broke out frequently. Both inside and outside the kingdom, I was called a disaster and was to be sent to the temple to be punished. I refused to accept it and took the initiative to quell the unrest. Over the next six years, I recovered lost territories, expanded our borders, and kept Xia Kingdom safe.
As the king was on his deathbed, he changed his mind and wanted to pass the throne to me. But news of this intention leaked to other princes, who sent a large group of assassins to try to kill me on the border.
I barely escaped with my life and returned to the capital only to receive news of the king’s death. The princes fabricated evidence, accusing me of colluding with enemy states, intending to execute me for treason.
I was furious, led my troops into the capital, and slaughtered them all, self-proclaiming as king.”
Ning Xin listened with bated breath. “And then?”
Nie Ran lowered his head. “I contracted an old illness while guarding the border. Five years after ascending the throne, I abdicated in favour of my son and died.”
“Wait, you had a son?”
He was speechless for a moment but managed to explain, “He was an adopted son.”
“After you died, you came here?”
Nie Ran had never spoken to anyone about his past life before, and today he summoned the courage to recount those events one by one. However, the reaction he received was akin to someone listening to a story, which displeased him greatly.
“What? Are you not satisfied?” he asked, a hint of irritation in his tone.
“It’s not that, just… I feel…”
She had thought he was a ruthless villain, but now she saw him as a pitiful person. Honestly, she was afraid he might hit her, considering Nie Ran didn’t seem like someone who needed sympathy.
She quickly changed the subject, “So, you’re a ghost now? How long will you be confined?”
“In the Netherworld, there’s no fixed term. Only when the imprisoned person repents and reforms can they return to the cycle of reincarnation and be reborn.”
“Then why don’t you change?”
He fell silent.
“Well, I guess it’s not that easy,” she chuckled awkwardly.
Nie Ran spoke coldly, “I did nothing wrong.”
“Huh?”
“Even if I could start over, I would do the same thing again.”
Wipe them out!
Ning Xin looked at him, his eyes full of hostility and hatred, and only then did she realize how tricky the situation was.
Nie Ran’s aura was very heavy, as if shrouded in a layer of dark clouds.
She was worried that he would lose his temper again, so she deliberately joked, “I never thought you were once an emperor, Lao Nie. Do you have a wife? Your concubines must be the most beautiful women in the country, right?”
**Nomad: “Lao Nie” would translate to “Old Nie” or “Dear Nie,” indicating a friendly or respectful way to refer to someone with the surname Nie, such as Nie Ran in this context**
This remark was effective; Nie Ran immediately snapped out of his reverie and gave her a disdainful look.
“No.”
“Impossible. You’ve been an emperor, so why not enjoy it? How many concubines do you have? A hundred? A thousand?”
“If you had the chance to be an emperor, I’m afraid you’d capture all the men in the country to be your male pets.”
“The whole country? No, no, no. If I were to capture anyone, it would only be the good-looking ones.”
She whistled, “At least as handsome as you.”
Nie Ran’s face suddenly flushed red, and he stood up to scold her.
“No more nonsense!”
She shrugged, leaned back on the pillow, closed her eyes, and waved her hand.
“I’m going to rest now. Consort, you may kneel.”
Nie Ran had never seen such shamelessness before and angrily stormed out of the room.
Ning Xin slept for over ten hours and woke up feeling hungry. She shouted towards the door, “Lao Nie, Lao Nie? I’m starving, hurry up and make some food.”
The sound of a door opening came from the next room, and soon her door was also opened.
Nie Ran saw her and was startled, rushing to the bedside, saying, “Sister, how did you get hurt? Was there an assassin trying to kill you?”
…This person changes so quickly. She still wanted to eat more of his fried rice.
Ning Xin weakly smiled, “It’s nothing, I fell on my own. Can you do me a favour?”
“Of course, just tell me.”
“Get me something to eat.”
Nie Ran immediately went downstairs without a word of complaint.
However, Ning Xin listened to the sounds coming from downstairs and had a bad feeling.
After waiting for almost two hours, Nie Ran rushed in with a pot.
“It’s ready, it’s ready. Phew, it’s scalding hot!”
He placed the pot on the ground, pinched his earlobes for a few seconds, then ran downstairs to get bowls and chopsticks.
Ning Xin took the opportunity to look into the pot, and to her surprise, it was much better than she had expected. It was a pot of plain congee, without any impurities, pure white.
No matter how congee is cooked, it shouldn’t be so unpalatable that it’s impossible to swallow.
She felt relieved and when Nie Ran fed her with a small spoon, she immediately ate without hesitation, and then…
Pfft!
She spat it out like a fountain, spraying the entire bed.
Nie Ran quickly put down the bowl and found a towel to wipe her.
Ning Xin’s face wrinkled in disbelief, “Why is this congee so… sour?”
It was so sour that it made her dizzy, her head pounding, and her throat hurting, as if she had taken a sip of sulfuric acid.
“I added vinegar.”
Nie Ran blinked innocently, “Mother said that sick people should drink more vinegar to get better quickly.”
“…I’m not drinking it, thanks.”
Ning Xin was about to lie back down when he pulled her up again.
“You have to drink it, there’s no other medicine here. Sister, just treat it as medicine. Bitter medicine is good for the illness. Close your eyes and drink it all in one go.”
He was particularly insistent, and Ning Xin couldn’t refuse his kindness. Besides, being injured, she couldn’t run away. She reluctantly drank half the pot of congee, and after finishing, she could hardly open her mouth.
Nie Ran touched her forehead, very satisfied.
“See, your complexion looks much better. I’ll keep the rest of the congee for you to drink tonight.”
He picked up the pot and walked out. Ning Xin watched his back weakly, reaching out her hand.
Please come back soon, Lao Nie…
Switching between primary and secondary personalities, Ning Xin’s stomach alternated between being full one day and hungry the next.
She didn’t have Nie Ran’s strong physique, so it took her over half a month just to barely get out of bed.
On this sunny day, even the corpses looked somewhat pleasant.
Ning Xin descended the stairs, catching a whiff of the enticing aroma wafting from the kitchen, knowing it must be from the elder.
She stopped by the window and waved.
“Let’s cook together later, shall we?”
“What are we trying?” Nie Ran put down the spatula, and the appearance of the fried rice in the pot was much better compared to the first time.
“Let’s try to cure your illness. Have you tried any methods before?”
He shook his head.
Ning Xin rubbed her chin and motioned for him to come to the window with her.
“You said these zombies are people you’ve killed, right? Since that’s the case, you need to learn to reconcile with them first before you can let go of your inner resentment.”
She looked at the group of zombies outside, picked out one that looked relatively decent, and instructed Nie Ran.
“Let’s start with this one.”
Nie Ran glanced at it and said, “Can’t reconcile with that one.”
“Why?”
“It’s one of the princes who slandered me.”
“… ” Ning Xin was stunned for a few seconds, then immediately said, “That’s why I’m saying, don’t hold grudges too tightly. Let bygones be bygones, don’t torture yourself by keeping it in your heart. Forget about this one then. What about that one?”
The new target was a raggedy zombie, clearly not a prince.
Nie Ran: “It’s one of the assassins.”
“What about this one?”
“It was a trusted aide of a prince.”
“And this one?”
“It was a traitor in my army, caught and publicly executed by me.”
“You sure have a lot of enemies…”
Ning Xin was exasperated. “Isn’t there anyone with whom you can have a slightly better relationship and calmly chat?”
Nie Ran looked around and pointed to a zombie wearing tattered armour.
“It.”
Perhaps it was killed in battle accidentally, or maybe it was collateral damage during the clean-up of remnants.
He had no recollection whatsoever.
In fact, most of those who died by his hand were like this—only a small fraction had real conflicts with him.
Ning Xin stepped aside. “Stand here and talk to it.”
Nie Ran looked at her as if she were foolish. “It doesn’t understand.”
“Isn’t that perfect? You can talk about anything you want, just let it out.”
Mental illnesses are sometimes related to psychological stress, and venting is a good way to relieve stress.
Nie Ran looked like a closed book, keeping everything to himself. He should have found someone to talk to long ago.
He still seemed reluctant, so Ning Xin continued,
“You two chat, I won’t disturb you. I’ll go upstairs to sleep.”
She slowly made her way back upstairs, pretending to open and close doors. After taking off her shoes, she tiptoed to the top of the stairs and bent down to look below.
Nie Ran took her words as if they were nothing and went back to frying rice.
Just as Ning Xin was about to go down to criticize him, she saw him suddenly put down the spatula and return to the window.
“You…”
He opened his mouth, trying to say something.
The cloudy eyes of the zombie turned towards him, separated by the glass barrier. It couldn’t smell anything and continued to wander aimlessly after a brief glance, paying him no mind.
Nie Ran hugged his arms, his tall figure leaning against the window at an angle.
His eyes looked outside, his tightly knitted brows gradually relaxing, showing a kind of relaxation and calmness that he had never experienced before.
Leave a Reply