Chapter 353: 11.26
"What did you say!? What do you mean!? What do you take me for!?"
Hearing the man in the next bed speak so shamelessly, without the slightest hesitation, Li Zhe felt a surge of humiliation.
He wanted nothing more than to spit in the man’s face.
But faced with the man’s imposing size, he didn’t dare act. Not long ago, he had been beaten half to death. Now, confronted with someone this strong, fear instinctively held him back.
He had originally thought that as long as he didn’t provoke him, just nodded and kept quiet, the other party wouldn’t go too far.
Who would have thought that this would instead make the man think he was easy to bully, daring to say such things in public?
This was simply unbearable humiliation!
Li Zhe’s shout instantly enraged the muscular man, who had already been eyeing him.
The man wasn’t seriously injured, just two bandages wrapped around his shoulder. He rolled off the bed and strode toward Li Zhe.
"Don’t be so stubborn. You can’t escape anyway. If you take the initiative and behave, I might even cover your hospital bills."
His tone turned cold. "But if you don’t..."
He raised his arm slightly, the muscles in his upper arm tightening and trembling faintly.
"Aren’t you afraid you’ll have to stay in the hospital another week? Or maybe... the doctor won’t even bother with you anymore."
"You!"
Shock and anger surged through Li Zhe as he watched the man approach. He hastily pulled the blanket over himself, retreating instinctively.
The man sneered, clearly amused. Then he casually turned back, walked to his own bed, and sat down. "It’s fine. I’ll give you time to think it over."
Only then did Li Zhe dare to breathe again, letting out a faint, almost imperceptible sigh of relief.
But the moment the immediate danger passed, something darker surged up inside him.
Resentment.
It churned together with anger and bitterness, swelling uncontrollably. Everything he had endured, before and after his rebirth, rose like violent waves, battering his already fragile reason.
Things weren’t supposed to be like this!
After being reborn, he should have relied on his advantages and knowledge to rise step by step, to stand at the peak, to dominate everything!
But instead...
He had stumbled right from the beginning.
And that stumble might destroy everything.
Lone Sword at the World’s Edge...
It was all his fault!
Not only had he blocked his path to success after his rebirth, he had also caused him to fall into such misery.
Everything traced back to him!
Because of him, even in this second life, Li Zhe was suffering even more than before.
If he couldn’t have an easy life, then the other wouldn’t either!
He would expose the entire plot of Lone Sword at the World’s Edge’s current book. He would make it impossible for him to continue writing!
Driven by anger and hatred, Li Zhe couldn’t resist turning on his computer. He quickly found the book A Drunken Song of Swords, intending to check its current progress before anonymously posting spoilers.
He skimmed the latest Chapter and froze.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
He rubbed them, then looked again.
His heart sank.
What... was going on?
The later parts of the story were completely different from what he remembered.
Had he remembered it wrong?
Unwilling to believe it, Li Zhe immediately clicked into the previous Chapter, then the one before that.
He read several Chapters in quick succession.
The more he read, the deeper his confusion grew.
Because everything, everything was different from his memories of his previous life.
It wasn’t just slightly altered.
It was an entirely different development.
And worse, it was even better, far more engaging.
The popularity of the book over the past two weeks had already far surpassed what it had achieved in his previous life.
Why?
Why was it different?!
Could his so-called rebirth... have been nothing more than a dream?
Or had he been reborn into a completely different world?
A parallel world?
If that was the case... Would he still be the protagonist of this world?
"Ah!"
The more he thought about it, the more unbearable it became. His mind twisted into chaos, as if it were about to split apart. He raised a hand and clutched his throbbing head.
"What are you yelling for?"
The man in the next bed frowned impatiently.
"If you scream again, I’ll shut your mouth myself."
But Li Zhe no longer reacted. He stopped making noise, yet he didn’t look up. His head hung low, his body completely still.
As if the sky had collapsed over him and buried him where he sat.
"Here we go again?"
Jiang Jiamian gripped Shen Muzhou’s arm tightly. He watched as Shen Muzhou’s eyes gradually lost focus and his face slowly turned pale. This time, he had experience and wasn’t as panicked as before.
"It’s... Yin You... I’m Yin You..."
Shen Muzhou’s expression twisted with struggle, his voice filled with confusion.
"Calm down. I’ll help you to bed."
Compared to Shen Muzhou’s instability, Jiang Jiamian remained remarkably calm. He steadily guided him onto the bed and sat quietly by his side, waiting.
He watched as Shen Muzhou lost consciousness and briefly fell into a coma.
About ten minutes later, just like last time, Shen Muzhou woke up, his eyes clear once more.
The moment he saw Jiang Jiamian, he immediately pulled him tightly into his arms. "Jiamian... Jiamian..."
Jiang Jiamian let him hold him without resistance, though his lips twitched slightly.
Goodness... is this scene going to repeat itself every time?
Shen Muzhou was overwhelmed with excitement.
He now possessed the memories of three lifetimes.
In every single one, the person in his arms had always been there.
Different appearances. Different identities. Different personalities.
Yet always the same name.
Jiang Jiamian.
He had always been there.
In every lifetime, he stirred his soul, igniting longing, desire, and an uncontrollable urge to chase after him.
This was his lover.
The one who had accompanied him through life after life.
From the very first moment Shen Muzhou saw Jiang Jiamian in this life, he had already fallen for him.
At the time, he couldn’t understand it.
There was no reason, no logic, only an inexplicable pull. He had even wondered if Jiang Jiamian had cast some kind of spell on him, making him want to see him again and again, filling his mind with thoughts he couldn’t explain.
Before he knew it, he had even become his household butler.
And for free.
Now that he knew the truth of their connection, his heart burned with an emotion he had never felt before.
He wanted nothing more than to intertwine their souls, to merge their very bones and blood, to walk together like this forever, life after life.
Even if there was no end.
Even if the future was uncertain.
As long as Jiang Jiamian was there, nothing else mattered.
Shen Muzhou’s emotions inevitably affected Jiang Jiamian, leaving him feeling slightly complicated.
He silently wiped his face, then lifted his head from Shen Muzhou’s embrace and raised an eyebrow. "For the sake of all these lifetimes we’ve shared, can you tell me your true identity in this world? You’re being very unfair this time."
He wouldn’t even reveal who he really was...
Yet he had the leisure to come here and act as a free, all-purpose butler, working like a servant.
Outrageous.
"Ahem..."
The question instantly broke Shen Muzhou out of his emotional state, leaving him visibly awkward. "I... I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed if I tell you."
Jiang Jiamian became even more curious. "Oh? What kind of identity would disappoint me? And judging from how generous you are with money, your background must be impressive, right?"
Shen Muzhou laughed awkwardly. "I’m not short on money... but my profession is actually very ordinary. Nothing special."
Seeing him hesitate and avoid answering directly, Jiang Jiamian smirked. He reached out, grabbed Shen Muzhou’s chin, and threatened, "Tell me. Or I’ll twist your head off."
Shen Muzhou: "..."
After experiencing memories from those previous worlds, he knew very well, Jiang Jiamian absolutely had the ability to do exactly that.
"A cook! I’m a cook!"
He didn’t dare hide it any longer and immediately confessed.
Jiang Jiamian blinked in surprise. "A cook? What’s so disappointing about that? No wonder your cooking is so good. Even simple home dishes taste unforgettable. So you’re a chef?"
Shen Muzhou chuckled. "Yes, I’m a chef. So taking care of your daily needs isn’t that far from my profession."
He just wasn’t an ordinary chef.
He had already built his own brand, with chain stores across the country, even expanding overseas.
But no matter how big his business became, it didn’t change the fact he was still a chef.
And he still loved cooking.
Even without him explaining further, Jiang Jiamian could guess that Shen Muzhou was far from ordinary.
Otherwise, how could he have such influence or connections strong enough to block Li Zhe?
But that didn’t matter.
"I’m hungry. Go cook." Jiang Jiamian said lazily. "Hurry up."
Ever since he got himself this butler, it felt like he was either eating or on his way to eat.
Shen Muzhou smiled indulgently. "Alright, my employer. Please wait a moment. Your personal chef will prepare the most delicious meal for you."
The night was quiet.
Shen Muzhou and Jiang Jiamian slept in each other’s arms, as if time had stopped, like everything had settled into a moment of perfect stillness.
But in a certain hospital ward, the scenery was far less peaceful.
Li Zhe lay on the bed, his head buried beneath the covers, his neck gripped tightly by a tall, muscular man.
He couldn’t struggle.
Even his muffled cries were trapped beneath the blanket, barely audible.
For Li Zhe, this was destined to be a long, humiliating night.
