Go To Your Death Chapter 18
byMu Huacheng led Lin Jinyao off the stage with one arm around him, his movements calm and composed.
Everywhere they went, the crowd instinctively parted to make a way for them.
Lin Jinyao was led along almost by force, his steps feeling light and unsteady.
He could feel countless gazes from the surroundings, like a multitude of fine needles trying to prick out every trace of his emotional response.
“Mr… Mu…” He squeezed the words out from between his teeth, acting on pure instinct. “You knew all along…”
“Shh.” Mu Huacheng tightened his grip, cutting him off. “Now is not the time to talk. Follow my lead and smile.”
This man actually expected him to smile?
Lin Jinyao was forced to curl his lips into a smile that was stiff and cold. To the onlookers, however, it appeared as though he was simply dazed by the shock of an overwhelming surprise.
After all, being Mu Huacheng’s partner was a supreme honor, a stroke of fortune that many in the world could only dream of.
But that did not include Lin Jinyao.
Zhou Hongbing’s face was livid, his lips trembling as if he wanted to step forward, but he was held back firmly by Liu Yun, whose face was just as pale.
Liu Yun whispered urgently into his ear, her eyes filled with terror and warning. She glanced at Mu Huacheng frequently, her heart filled with profound dread.
Zhou Hongbing finally seemed to lose all his strength, slumping back into his seat with cold sweat beading on his forehead.
Mu Huacheng didn’t spare them so much as a second glance.
He led Lin Jinyao around like a monarch surveying his domain, engaging in brief pleasantries with several high-profile guests. His tone was relaxed and natural, as if nothing out of the ordinary had just occurred.
“…Young people inevitably need some experience. I hope you all will look after him in the future.” Mu Huacheng raised his glass toward a high-ranking official. His gaze swept over Lin Jinyao, and though his tone was flat, he emphasized the words “look after” heavily. The intent to protect and warn was unmistakable.
The official immediately smiled and agreed. “Of course, of course. Anyone Mr. Mu holds in such high regard must be a dragon among men. One can tell at a glance that Young Master Lin is extraordinary.”
The title “Young Master Lin” was uttered cautiously, laced with a hint of testing.
Mu Huacheng was satisfied with the response, while Lin Jinyao found the whole situation absurd.
In just a few minutes, his identity had shifted from a tragic orphan and Mu Huacheng’s plaything to the long-lost heir of the Lin family, and even Mu Huacheng’s publicly acknowledged fiancé.
And this man had never once asked for his opinion! He had simply taken charge in such a domineering and overbearing manner.
“Tired?” Mu Huacheng’s deep voice murmured in his ear.
When Lin Jinyao snapped back to his senses, he realized that Mu Huacheng had already led him to a relatively quiet balcony.
The sea breeze dispersed the noise from the hall and cleared his muddled head.
The balcony was deserted, save for the muffled sound of waves crashing against the rocks in the distance.
Again and again, in a rhythmic cycle.
Mu Huacheng led Lin Jinyao to the railing and released his grip.
Lin Jinyao felt like a fish out of water, gasping for air. He grabbed the cold railing and doubled over, breathing heavily.
The night wind ruffled the hair on his forehead. He looked cold and aloof, yet incredibly fragile.
“Why…” Lin Jinyao’s voice trembled, his body seemingly weighed down by immense confusion and pain. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Why did it have to be like this?”
If he had known earlier that Mu Huacheng was investigating Zhou Xubai because of the jade pendant, or that the Zhou family was involved, why would he have… why would he have ever come to this point?
Mu Huacheng stood beside him, watching him in silence.
The moonlight traced his sharp profile, and in the interplay of light and shadow, his expression seemed inscrutable.
“Tell you sooner?” After a long silence, he finally spoke. “Tell you, and then what? Let you run off like a reckless fool to investigate the Zhou family on your own? You would have only alerted them and gotten yourself killed in the process.”
Mu Huacheng turned around, his gaze heavy as he looked at Lin Jinyao.
“A-Yao, you have no evidence and no power. How did you plan to investigate? How did you plan to fight them? With nothing but your reckless courage and that communicator you hid in your shoe, thinking no one would notice?”
Lin Jinyao was left speechless.
“As for the method…” Mu Huacheng let out a cold, mocking laugh. “If I hadn’t torn away their masks in front of everyone, should I have given them time to destroy the evidence and flee with the money?”
“And what about me?” Lin Jinyao looked up sharply, his eyes rimmed with red. The grievances he had suppressed for a year finally boiled over. “You watched me act like a clown by your side, watched me exhaust myself trying to investigate you, even… even…”
Even while I was beneath you…
He couldn’t bring himself to say the rest, feeling only an overwhelming sense of humiliation.
Mu Huacheng’s gaze suddenly became incredibly complex.
He took a step forward and reached out to touch Lin Jinyao’s cheek, but Lin Jinyao jerked his head away.
Mu Huacheng’s hand froze in mid-air.
A faint trace of hurt flickered in the depths of Mu Huacheng’s eyes.
“A-Yao…” His voice grew hoarse. “I admit my methods were extreme. But I had to ensure you were right where I could see you, to ensure you were safe. I also needed time to gather conclusive evidence to finish them off in one stroke and prevent any chance of a comeback.”
He stepped closer, his overwhelming presence forcing Lin Jinyao to retreat until his back hit the cold railing.
“Furthermore,” Mu Huacheng’s gaze locked onto his, refusing to let him look away. “How do you know that my interest in you is solely about investigating the past and protecting you?”
His fingertips finally brushed against Lin Jinyao’s cold cheek. “That jade pendant was always a token of our betrothal, but what I want has never been just a cold piece of jade.”
His thumb caressed Lin Jinyao’s trembling lips. “I want you. From the moment I learned of your birth all those years ago, I never intended to let you go. In this life, you can only belong to me.”
Lin Jinyao’s eyes widened in shock, a chill running through his entire body.
Mu Huacheng’s kiss fell heavily upon him, carrying an unquestionable dominance and a near-manic possessiveness.
In the distance, the music from the banquet hall continued to drift through the air…
On the balcony, Lin Jinyao endured the deep kiss stiffly, his mind a total blank.
Fragments of the truth, Mu Huacheng’s confession, Xiao Bai’s death, the Zhou family… everything intertwined into a massive web that wrapped around him, tightening with every passing second.
He seemed to have found his answers, yet he felt as though he had fallen into an even deeper maze.
Beneath the surface of the sea, the undercurrents were surging. This was only the beginning.
Lin Jinyao suddenly shoved him away, but Mu Huacheng grabbed him back, refusing to let go.
He panted heavily, his chest heaving as he stared at the face so close to his own, unsure of what to feel.
“Mu Huacheng, you’re a lunatic…” Lin Jinyao’s voice was hoarse, laced with incredulous mockery. “You’ve been watching me like I’m some kind of fool… haven’t you?”
“A lunatic?” Mu Huacheng chuckled, though there was no mirth in his eyes. “Perhaps. But A-Yao, if not for this lunatic, the Zhou family would have picked your bones clean by now. Or you would have ended up like Zhou Xubai—a silent sacrifice in some conspiracy.”
The name Zhou Xubai was like a needle, piercing Lin Jinyao’s most sensitive nerve with precision.
He violently threw off Mu Huacheng’s hand, the force of the movement causing him to stagger.
“Don’t you dare mention her!” His eyes were instantly bloodshot, and his fragile composure finally shattered. “If you hadn’t been investigating her, how would she have ever caught the Zhou family’s attention? If it weren’t for this jade pendant…”
Lin Jinyao thrust the jade pendant he had been clutching toward Mu Huacheng’s face. “…She never would have died!”
The jade pendant shimmered with a warm luster under the moonlight, yet it felt bone-chillingly cold.
Mu Huacheng’s expression shifted instantly. He seized Lin Jinyao’s raised wrist with such force that Lin Jinyao let out a pained groan, feeling as if his bones were about to be crushed.
“So, you think I’m the one who killed her?” Mu Huacheng’s voice was low, each word sounding as if it had been dragged from the depths of an icy sea. “The one I was looking for was you, Lin Jinyao! Why did Zhou Xubai have this jade pendant? And why did she keep it hidden? Have you ever asked yourself those questions?”
Lin Jinyao froze, his pupils shrinking.
It was true… he was the one who had given the jade to Xiao Bai.
On her eighteenth birthday, Xiao Bai had taken a liking to the piece and practically demanded it from him. At the time, he simply thought his sister liked it and hadn’t given it a second thought.
Mu Huacheng leaned in until their noses almost touched, their breaths mingling. “Why did the Zhou family keep such a close watch on her? Was it really just because I was looking for the jade? Or was it because she accidentally discovered Zhou Hongbing’s darker secrets? That jade pendant might have just been the final straw—or perhaps she was trying to protect herself, or even you. Have you ever considered that?”
“Protect me?” Lin Jinyao murmured. Cha Yajie’s offhand comment echoed in his ears once more: “Maybe Miss Xubai committed suicide because she knew your temperament too well…”
A terrifying, blurry suspicion rose in his mind, sending a chill down his spine.
Before he could process it, Mu Huacheng’s next words hit him like a thunderbolt. “After all, you were her boyfriend in name, weren’t you?”
“…” Lin Jinyao’s eyes flew open, his entire body trembling. This man actually knew everything.
“I assume Zhou Xuan doesn’t know yet?”
“Don’t tell him!” Lin Jinyao’s instinctive reaction was that Zhou Xuan must never find out that he had been Xiao Bai’s boyfriend.
Seeing Lin Jinyao’s face turn deathly pale and his body sway, the darkness in Mu Huacheng’s eyes softened slightly, replaced by a look of near-anguish.
He released Lin Jinyao’s wrist and instead placed his hand on the back of the younger man’s neck, pulling him gently toward him.
“A-Yao, the truth is never black and white. Neither is hatred. I’ve placed the knife in your hand, and your enemies are right inside, within your reach. But until then, don’t let your suspicions and assumptions lead you to stab the wrong person.”
Just then, there was a soft knock on the glass door of the balcony.
Chen Jin stood outside, his expression calm. “Mr. Mu, Mr. Zhou and his wife are feeling unwell, so I’ve arranged for them to be taken to their quarters to rest. The other gentlemen would like to invite you for a drink to discuss… the next steps.”
The flicker of emotion in Mu Huacheng’s eyes finally settled into a calm stillness. He reached out to straighten Lin Jinyao’s collar, which had been ruffled by the sea breeze. His movements were meticulous as he spoke in a level voice. “Go back and rest. Seven is waiting for you in your room. Let him examine you; you look terrible.”
With that, he gave Lin Jinyao one last deep look before turning and heading back toward the banquet hall.
Chen Jin held the door open for him. For a brief moment, the warm light and the faint strains of music spilled out before being cut off once more.
Lin Jinyao was left alone on the balcony.
The sea breeze grew colder, pressing his thin formal wear against his body with a biting chill.
He slowly sank to the ground, curling up in the shadow of the railing. He clutched the jade pendant tightly, his nails digging into his palm, yet he felt no pain.
Mu Huacheng’s words were like a blunt knife, sawing away at his heart over and over again.
He had thought he was the hunter controlling the board, but it seemed he might have been a pawn trapped in the game from the very beginning—or perhaps even the catalyst.
An overwhelming sense of helplessness and sorrow swept over him, nearly crushing him under its weight.
After an unknown amount of time, a suit jacket still warm with body heat was gently draped over his shoulders.
Lin Jinyao looked up sharply to see Seven standing quietly beside him, medical kit in hand, his face wearing its usual detached, professional expression.
“Mr. Lin, Mr. Mu instructed me to check on you.” Seven’s voice was as calm as ever. “The wind is strong here. You need to return to your room and rest.”
Lin Jinyao looked at him and suddenly forced a smile that looked more painful than weeping. “Seven… tell me, how desperate must a person be to choose death just to protect someone else?”
Seven’s hand paused as he moved to open the medical kit.
He remained silent for a moment, adjusted his glasses, and then resumed his task.
“I don’t know, Mr. Lin.” He avoided Lin Jinyao’s gaze, his voice remaining steady. “I only know that those who are still alive must keep moving forward, no matter how much it hurts, until they can go no further.”
Seven took out a thermometer and a sedative. “What you need right now is rest.”
Lin Jinyao said nothing, allowing Seven to perform a brief examination, take his temperature, and administer a small dose of the sedative.
The warmth and drowsiness brought on by the medication gradually numbed his mind.
With Seven’s support, Lin Jinyao stood up. Draped in the suit jacket that still carried Mu Huacheng’s scent, he walked across the polished floor like a puppet that had lost its soul.
He knew that from this night onward, nothing would ever be the same.