Spoiled Eldest Miss x Two-faced Madman

CHAPTER 102: Who Does She Really Love?

　　No matter how much An Jiu struggled, the man still dragged her all the way to a tower deep within the forest.

　　This had to be the hidden headquarters of the Qiansha Pavilion. The main tower was built against the edge of a cliff, rising seven stories high, its soaring eaves and pointed roof looking almost too beautiful to be real.

　　An Jiu had caught a few glances on the way in. Aside from the central tower, there were smaller ones surrounding it, making eight in total. The tall pointed buildings were scattered across the dense forest, half-hidden among the trees like bamboo shoots pushing up through the earth.

　　Pei Ji flew straight into the largest tower with her in tow. On the way, they didn’t run into a single person. The entire forest was eerily quiet—not even the shadow of a bird.

　　It was like no living creature existed in this part of the mountains.

　　An Jiu didn’t have time to take in the details before Pei Ji set her down. He clearly had no intention of letting her go again. As soon as her feet touched the ground, he tapped her pressure points, locking her in place.

　　She couldn’t move at all. She stared at him with wide, furious eyes.

　　Pei Ji gave her a small smile and said kindly, “I’m only keeping you still so you won’t run off. There are traps and hidden weapons all over the Qiansha Pavilion. What if you accidentally triggered one?”

　　“I’m not worried about you running away. I’m worried you might die without meaning to. That would be troublesome.”

　　“Hey! Who are you cursing to die?” An Jiu snapped, spitting at him angrily.

　　At this point, she had completely stopped pretending to be nice. Since there was no escaping and he was about to plant a love gu in her, there was no point in holding back anymore.

　　Pei Ji, in a great mood since he was finally about to get what he wanted, didn’t take her outburst to heart.

　　He left her standing there and walked deeper into the tower to retrieve something.

　　The Love Gu.

　　This kind of insect was actually quite common. Because the demand for them was so high, almost anyone who practiced gu arts knew how to cultivate one.

　　Pei Ji wasn’t an expert in gu, but growing a simple love gu was no big deal for him.

　　He returned holding a white jade box about the size of his palm and slowly approached her.

　　An Jiu was still standing frozen in place. The moment she saw him, a flicker of fear finally broke through her angry expression.

　　“Don’t be scared. It’s just a little insect. It won’t hurt.”

　　As he spoke, he opened the box and revealed a tiny white insect inside.

　　It was small, no bigger than her pinky nail, snow-white all over with no markings, almost like it was carved from jade.

　　An Jiu could only watch as the man sliced open his fingertip and squeezed out a drop of blood onto the little bug. The insect slowly absorbed the blood, its body turning red.

　　Once the insect had his blood, all it had to do was enter her body. Then it would control her heart and mind, making her fall deeply and hopelessly in love with him.

　　An Jiu’s eyes flashed with a hint of fear.

　　Inside though, she was furiously poking at the system. “System, it’s your time to shine!”

　　System:【?】

　　An Jiu remembered what the original novel said. love gus weren’t foolproof. If they were, the world wouldn’t be full of people suffering from unrequited love.

　　When planted in an ordinary person, the insect would make the victim fall hopelessly in love with whoever put it there. But if that person already had someone they loved deeply, the more they loved that person, the harder it would be for the insect to take hold.

　　Not only would the one planting it suffer terribly, but even if they managed to make it work, the victim could still break free at any moment.

　　Just like Lin Qingyan in the book. When the villain Pei Ji tried to use a love gu on her, she ended up in agony because of her deep feelings for He Ziqing. In the end, she broke free from its control.

　　System:【What do you need me to do?】

　　“Give me a mental suggestion. Make me believe I’m in love with Pei Ji,” An Jiu said quickly in her heart.　

　　【…】

　　When the system didn’t respond, An Jiu went on, “Aren’t you living in my head? Brainwashing me should be easy! And you’re some high-tech system, right? Isn’t hypnosis part of your basic functions? Don’t tell me you can’t do that?”

　　From what she’d seen, the system was basically some next-level black tech. If it could live in her brain, it should be able to mess with her brain too.

　　Sure enough, the system replied:【I can.】

　　An Jiu: “Perfect. Then hurry up and hypnotize me. The deeper the better. This is all for the mission anyway. You’re my system, aren’t you supposed to help me complete it?”

　　She didn’t know what she said that worked, but the system agreed to her request.

　　【Host, prepare yourself. Electrical stimulation hypnosis initiating.】

　　An Jiu quickly added, “Don’t get it wrong! The one I like is Pei Ji. Divine doctor Pei Ji. Burn his face into my brain, you hear me?”

　　【Understood.】

　　Right after the flat electronic voice fell silent, a sharp pain shot through the center of An Jiu’s forehead, like she’d been zapped. Her head turned foggy, and her vision blurred.

　　Luckily, the sensation came and went quickly. It faded after just a moment.

　　At the same time, Pei Ji’s figure appeared vividly in her mind.

　　Memories of the time they’d spent together surfaced with crystal clarity, clearer than she’d ever recalled them before.

　　In that moment, her entire mind felt completely taken over by that gentle young man in white robes and black hair. She couldn’t even think straight anymore.

　　An Jiu dazedly thought, so this is what people mean by having love brain?

　　Seriously, when you’re in love, you really can’t think of anything else but the guy.

　　Even the grand plan she’d worked out suddenly felt like it didn’t matter anymore.

　　She dug her nails into her palm, forcing herself to stay at least somewhat clear-headed and not let the man in front of her notice anything unusual.

　　Though it seemed Pei Ji didn’t catch her momentary daze anyway.

　　While An Jiu was dealing with the system, Pei Ji, too, found himself slipping into memories of his past life.

　　This wasn’t the first time he had planted a love gu. The last time, it had been in Lin Qingyan.

　　Pei Ji still remembered the scene clearly—how she had suffered terribly when the insect was placed in her because she’d resisted with everything she had.

　　Back then, he hadn’t cared much. Only later did he learn that the more painful it was, the deeper her love for He Ziqing had been.

　　That was why, in the end, she managed to break free and even teamed up with He Ziqing to kill him.

　　Pei Ji furrowed his brows ever so slightly.

　　He had to admit, Lin Qingyan had left a lasting impression on him. So much so that even now, he found himself hesitating just a little.

　　Thinking of this, he raised his eyes and looked at the girl standing before him.

　　She looked a little absentminded, her eyes slightly unfocused, like her mind was somewhere else.

　　Even now, she was still spacing out?

　　Pei Ji narrowed his eyes, then let out a cold laugh.

　　What a foolish and clueless girl, completely unaware of how close she was to doom.

　　Still, the fact that he was the one second-guessing himself because of what happened with Lin Qingyan felt even more ridiculous.

　　Pei Ji told himself he understood An Jiu. A woman like her would never truly fall in love with any man.

　　And even if she did, her feelings would be shallow. No way they could overpower the effect of the love gu.

　　So really, his doubts were pointless.

　　With that thought, Pei Ji bent down and picked up the girl’s limp hand. Ignoring her startled cries of protest, he calmly took the tiny insect—now blood red after soaking up his blood—and gently placed it in her palm.

　　“Ahhh I hate you, Fei Yi!” An Jiu shouted, her voice full of genuine fury and loathing. Not a shred of that was faked.

　　The system’s hypnosis really wasn’t playing around. Right now, her heart was bursting with hatred and anger—but not because she was being victimized.

　　No, this hate was entirely because this man wanted her to stop loving Pei Ji. That was the one thing she could never accept!

　　At this moment, Pei Ji had become the only man in her heart. She loved him deeply. There was no room for anyone else!

　　Even though she knew logically that ‘Fei Yi’ and Pei Ji were the same person, because they had different faces, her emotions and reason had split into two tiny versions of herself, fighting inside her brain.

　　Emotional-An Jiu screamed, “Waaaah! I only love Pei Ji! I could never fall for anyone else! If he makes me fall for someone else, I’d rather die! Let me die! I want to protect my pure love for Pei Ji! I mustn’t be tainted! I belong only to Pei Ji!!!”

　　Rational-An Jiu was clutching onto her like her life depended on it. “Calm down, get a grip! He is Pei Ji! You didn’t fall for someone else, you’re not tainted, you’re still pure! You’re still totally his, okay?!”

　　Emotional-An Jiu wailed, “QAQ You’re lying! He’s not Pei Ji at all. He doesn’t look like him, not even a little! He’s a bad guy, I hate him!!!”

　　The system’s brainwashing had been way too effective, and in the end, love-brain still won.

　　Facing the hatred burning in the girl's eyes, Pei Ji didn’t flinch in the slightest. He held her wrist steady and watched as the blood-red insect slowly wriggled into her pale palm.

　　It would crawl through her flesh straight to her heart, and from then on, that heart would only beat for him.

　　Pei Ji’s lips curled up in silence as he lowered his gaze, calmly watching the girl in front of him.

　　The insect began to take effect. A haze of confusion slowly crept across her delicate face, like she’d suddenly forgotten something. The deep hatred in her eyes melted away like snow under the sun.

　　In just a short span of time, her expression turned completely blank, lost in a daze.

　　She no longer hated him, no longer resisted, and stared at him like she was seeing him for the first time—with a totally unfamiliar gaze.

　　“Who are you?” she murmured.

　　Pei Ji replied, “I’m Fei Yi. I’m also Xian Wuming.”　　

　　The girl paused, then slowly blinked. “I remember... I know Fei Yi. I know you.”

　　Pei Ji lowered his voice, coaxing gently, “Yes. You know me. You love me.”

　　She paused longer this time. Her brows furrowed like she was struggling with something, trying to resist. Then, almost mechanically, she echoed, “I... I love... no... I don’t... I love... I love...”

　　The words came out haltingly, far less smooth than before.

　　A wave of dread washed over Pei Ji. He instinctively stepped forward and said, voice deep and firm, “You love me. You love Fei Yi.”

　　The girl squeezed her eyes shut and bit down hard on her lip. Her rosy lips turned pale from the pressure, deep bite marks appearing as if they might draw blood at any moment.

　　Her face twisted in pain and resistance, drained of all color.

　　Then, all of a sudden, she opened her mouth—and a thin trickle of blood spilled from the corner of her lips.

　　Bright red blood dripped down her snow-white chin and hit the floor one drop at a time. She slowly lifted her gaze, brows furrowed, long lashes trembling slightly. Her voice was filled with agony as she forced out each word:

　　“No... I don’t love you...”

　　“I love... I love...”

　　Before she could finish her sentence, her eyes suddenly shut, and her body went limp as she collapsed.

　　Pei Ji quickly reached out and caught her, pulling her tightly into his arms.

　　He lowered his gaze and stared hard at her pale, lifeless face. Rage and shock slowly spread across his features.

　　Her pain could only mean one thing—she truly loved someone. So much so that even the insect couldn’t break through her heart.

　　Impossible.

　　She actually had someone she loved that deeply?

　　Even a love gu couldn’t erase her feelings?

　　Who was it?

　　Who did she love?

　　A woman like her, so flirty and fickle, how could she have someone she truly loved?

　　No.

　　No way.

　　He didn’t believe it!

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Author’s Note:

We’re entering the heartbreak arc, hehe. Gotta love the angst~

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