TPATTHU Chapter 44

Chapter 44: How Could I Possibly Forgive You So Easily?

His whole heart was in his throat.

Xiao Zhinian reacted quickly, dodging and leaping onto the roof beam, holding the Silver Frost Dagger in his hand, ready to catch the intruder off guard.

The one who pushed the door open was a child, barely taller than the desk, carrying a pillow, swaying with each step, looking somewhat stiff, as if he hadn’t fully woken up.

Xiao Zhinian took a closer look and realized it was Zhao’s kid, what was his name again? Zhao Xiaosi, maybe?

In any case, he watched this child walk all the way from the doorway to the desk, put the pillow he was holding on the Huanghuali wooden chair, and then climbed onto it himself, dozing off.

“…Mom.”

Zhao Xiaosi kept murmuring in his sleep, his soft snores spreading to every corner of the room.

It’s said that when people are deeply asleep, their spirits leave their bodies, causing them to do strange things involuntarily. Zhao Xiaosi seemed to be doing just that.

Xiao Zhinian watched from above for a while, confirming that he wasn’t awake, and was about to jump down when he heard Zhao Xiaosi suddenly throw the pillow aside, knocking into a precious painted vase displayed on the curio shelf.

The vase, without support, was knocked off and fell towards the ground. At the critical moment, a hand caught the vase and quietly placed it back in its original spot.

Xiao Zhinian breathed a sigh of relief. The sudden appearance of Zhao Xiaosi had disrupted his plan, and he wasn’t in a good mood, his face looking very gloomy.

“Mom!”

His hand trembled, almost touching the vase again.

Zhao Xiaosi, as if stimulated by something, suddenly cried out in his sleep, sitting upright with half-open, vacant eyes.

“…”

It startled him.

Xiao Zhinian really wanted to beat the kid up, but he restrained himself, knowing that waking him up would cause trouble.

Better not.

Zhao Xiaosi started sobbing and crying, probably experiencing a sad event, shouting, “Mom, don’t go, I’ll be a good boy and listen… I can recite it, Mom, listen to me recite, ‘Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng’…”

The vein on Xiao Zhinian’s forehead twitched. Amazing, amazing, still reciting in his dreams, truly impressive.

He didn’t have time to listen to this kid’s sleep talking, raising his hand to knock him unconscious, he was so annoying, his eardrums hurt.

This wasn’t the place to stay for long. Having failed to find the account book, he would have to come back another time.

Xiao Zhinian nodded in approval, placing one hand on the window frame, pushing open a crack to observe the situation outside. Seeing that it was deserted and no one was around, he was about to jump out the window to leave.

“Stop! Who’s over there?!”

A furious roar came from not far away, followed by the sound of hurried footsteps echoing through Zhao’s residence. The guards, like a herd of beasts startled in the forest, rushed towards the source of the noise.

Xiao Zhinian cursed inwardly, just as he looked up, he saw a black figure darting out from the eaves of the opposite building, running away quickly.

Coincidentally, at the same time Xiao Zhinian spotted the figure, he also looked towards Xiao Zhinian’s direction.

Their eyes met.

Those eyes flickered with a bloodthirsty ferocity in the dark night, like a hawk, cold and sharp.

Jade knife…

A flash of insight appeared in Xiao Zhinian’s mind.

Could this person be the black-clothed man Yang Sharen had mentioned!

In an instant, the black-clothed man lightly tapped his toes and leaped to the other side of the roof.

Without thinking too much, Xiao Zhinian, relying on his intuition, directly jumped down and pursued the black-clothed man.

“There’s an accomplice! Catch them! Quick!!”

Zhao’s guards pointed at them from afar, chasing after them with torches in their hands.

Xiao Zhinian ignored these noisy people. He only had one thought in his mind now, and that was to catch this person and interrogate him clearly.

Thinking this, he quickened his pace, his robes fluttering, almost catching up with the black-clothed man.

“Don’t run!”

Xiao Zhinian couldn’t help but shout at the figure. As he got closer, he raised his hand and struck at the black-clothed man’s shoulder and neck.

Clearly, this black-clothed man was very different from the ones Xiao Zhinian had encountered before. He must have undergone rigorous training. As soon as he sensed Xiao Zhinian’s palm wind, he immediately dodged sideways, disappearing without a trace.

Xiao Zhinian was stunned, “Where did he go?”

As if in response to his words, the black-clothed man suddenly appeared behind him, with a long sword that had appeared in his hand at some point. He turned his hand around, tapping the hilt of the sword against Xiao Zhinian’s waist and back a few times.

“Ugh!”

Xiao Zhinian was caught off guard by the sneak attack and staggered forward a few steps. Then, he steadily turned around and saw the black-clothed man standing on the corner of the eaves, holding a long sword, staring at him coldly, as if saying he overestimated himself.

The moonlight was desolate.

The atmosphere was tense.

Xiao Zhinian questioned him, “Who are you?”

The black-clothed man sneered, as if deliberately lowering his voice, “It’s none of your business. If you keep chasing, don’t blame me for being rude.”

He turned to leave.

Xiao Zhinian naturally wouldn’t let him go, and immediately stepped forward to fight him. Without a weapon, Xiao Zhinian was already at a disadvantage in a one-on-one fight, but fortunately he had been training hard, and the two fought evenly for a while.

After thirty moves, the black-clothed man struck down at his head with a sharp sword. Xiao Zhinian backed away, and at that moment, the black-clothed man turned his hand and pierced Xiao Zhinian’s unhealed shoulder with a sword.

The tearing pain forced Xiao Zhinian to retreat continuously. The black-clothed man pulled out his sword, blood splattering, and then kicked him away, using the force to return to his original position.

Xiao Zhinian’s expression was cold, he covered his injured shoulder, suppressed the pain, and asked through gritted teeth, “Who exactly are you, and why do you want to kill Shen Zhejiang again and again?”

The black-clothed man was also cold, answering irrelevantly, “Seeing your current state, you’re still thinking about Shen Zhejiang. It seems you’re truly deeply in love with him.”

Xiao Zhinian shouted angrily, “Stop talking nonsense! Answer my question!”

The black-clothed man didn’t take him seriously, his words full of sarcasm, “How ridiculous, you’re so devoted to him, but he probably sees you as trash, and will step on you sooner or later.”

“Sowing discord, huh? Don’t think I don’t know, stop trying to trick me!”

“Whether you believe it or not, you’ve also investigated the Shen family’s execution. Do you think he can easily let go of the fresh lives of over a hundred people back then?”

“…”

What Xiao Zhinian worried about the most was this matter. He had never participated in the Shen family’s case from beginning to end. He couldn’t deeply understand the pain Shen Zhejiang had suffered over the years.

But he was trying his best to compensate. He could do a lot for Shen Zhejiang, but what he worried about the most was if Shen Zhejiang really didn’t have the slightest bit of affection for him.

What should he do?

He didn’t know.

Seeing that he wasn’t speaking, the black-clothed man’s eyes became more venomous, continuing to attack his defenses, “Your father killed his parents, you were originally enemies. Stop dreaming, even a fool would know, how could Shen Zhejiang forgive you?”

How could he possibly forgive you…

Like a giant rock falling from the sky, it pressed down on Xiao Zhinian’s chest, making it hard for him to breathe.

After a long time, Xiao Zhinian finally took a deep breath, emphasizing each word, “You’re not him, how do you know he won’t give me his heart?”

“Heh, deluded,” the black-clothed man glanced at the increasingly bright firelight, it was almost time. Since he had succeeded, he didn’t want to waste time arguing with Xiao Zhinian, “A final reminder, save your strength, what you’re looking for has already been burned to ashes.”

Hearing this, Xiao Zhinian suddenly turned his head and saw that some part of Zhao’s residence was indeed on fire, illuminating the dark sky.

“You…”

And the place where the black-clothed man had been standing was empty.

He’d been tricked.

Xiao Zhinian frowned deeply, tore off the mask, and couldn’t help but curse, “Damn it!”