Meng Ruji looked at Mo Li, then at the paper in his hand, then at herself.
The ropes binding her had been cut at some point, and the heavy stone dragging her had sunk to the bottom of the river. She was held up only by Mo Li, her body growing colder, her muscles too exhausted to move.
If Mo Li let go, she would sink into the Nai River and be swept straight into the afterlife.
Her lips moved faintly. “How did you even get that paper into the water?”
Despite the strange timing, Mo Li answered with ease. “The deed paper from Wuliudi is waterproof and fireproof.” A smile tugged at his lips. “It just can’t withstand being torn.”
“Fine.” Meng Ruji finally nodded. “I’ll take care of you in your old age.”
Mo Li’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“But!” Meng Ruji stressed, “No indenture contract. Three clauses, written clearly once we’re on land.”
Mo Li chuckled. “Tell me the clauses first. If I can’t agree, I won’t bother saving you.”
Thanks only to the stillness of the Nai River, Meng Ruji wasn’t already choking on water. Furious, she took a steadying breath and quickly listed her terms:
“First—support in your old age only to the best of my ability. Nothing beyond that.”
“Agreed.”
“Second—we respect each other as equals. You can’t use your age to boss me around or humiliate me.”
Mo Li nodded. “I’m always reasonable. Agreed. What’s the third?”
“Take Mu Sui with us.”
Mo Li laughed aloud. “Does your husband really need me to save him?”
Meng Ruji froze. Just as she was about to ask if Mu Sui had already made it, Mo Li’s body began to change. The strength of the hand holding her faltered.
“What are you doing!?” Meng Ruji cried.
“Don’t panic.” Mo Li’s voice was calm. “I’ll turn into stone. Use my stone body as a carrier for your Wind Control spell to reach the shore.”
Realization struck Meng Ruji—Mu Sui had said Mo Li’s body was more precious than golden beads. Of course, magic could flow through stone.
“But can it work in the Naihe River?!” she asked, glancing toward the far bank. Magic normally vanished here.
Mo Li’s gaze sharpened. “Don’t get any dangerous ideas. Without a boat, crossing means death. If you try, I won’t save you.”
Meng Ruji grabbed his arm, eyes fierce. “I’ll listen.”
“Good.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Mo Li transformed into a gray-black stone. Meng Ruji held him tightly, chanted the incantation in her heart—and crimson light burst from the stone like a blade cutting through mountains.
The Nai River split apart.
Shocked by her own strength, Meng Ruji summoned a gust of wind, lifted herself, and soared back to the riverbank.
The light faded, the river flowed as before, and Mo Li reverted to his human form.
He tilted his head at her. “Unfilial daughter, why are you crying?”
Meng Ruji covered her face, tears spilling. “I felt like I’d returned to my prime…”
Mo Li found it amusing. He calmly pulled out the contract and scratched away the words indenture, rewriting it as contract.
Resigned, Meng Ruji sat silently beside him, watching.
“First, Meng Ruji will support Mo Li in old age to the best of her ability.”
She hummed in assent.
“Second, they are equals—helping each other, no bullying or oppression.”
She nodded.
“Third—”
“Wait.” Meng Ruji cut him off. “You didn’t rescue Mu Sui…”
Mo Li considered, then adjusted: “Meng Ruji’s relatives must not harm Mo Li.”
Her eyes widened. “I never agreed to that!”
“You can’t restrict me on everything.” Mo Li reasoned. “If you marry him, half of his money is yours. Rounding it up, he’d be supporting me too.”
“But I can’t promise on his behalf.”
Surprisingly, Mo Li relented. He crossed it out and said, “Fine. At least promise he won’t kill me.”
Meng Ruji sighed. “If I promised to care for you, then yes—I’ll stop Mu Sui, or anyone, from killing you.”
Satisfied, Mo Li wrote: “Meng Ruji promises to protect Mo Li until his natural death.”
He handed her the pen. She hesitated at the final line, but signed.
As her name was written, Mo Li’s eyes shone strangely, softening almost to tears.
“Why me?” Meng Ruji finally asked. “Why must I be the one to care for you?”
Mo Li was silent, then wrote his own name. “Because I value your ordinariness.”
“Ordinary?!” Meng Ruji bristled.
Mo Li smiled. “Others chase power without conscience. You—bound by morality—are different.”
The contract dissolved into golden light, drifting skyward.
“If you break your word, lightning will strike you.”
Meng Ruji scowled. “I said I’d keep it, and I will.”
Mo Li exhaled in relief. But then, blood slipped from his lips.
Startled, Meng Ruji cried, “What’s wrong?”
“A wound…” His dark clothes hid the stain until she saw the faint tear at his chest.
“When were you stabbed? Was it… Mu Sui?”
Mo Li nodded, calm despite the blood. “He struck me in the river. Cruel, precise.”
The weight of guilt settled on Meng Ruji. She pressed her brow, voice low. “How could he…”
Mo Li explained how Mu Sui had freed himself and attacked, how he’d distracted him by kicking Meng Ruji toward the undercurrent.
Her lips trembled. “So the first blow I took was from you…”
“And the second as well.”
Her face collapsed. Mo Li, still spitting traces of blood, added, “But I saved you in the end.”
Anger boiled. “Then I should—!” Meng Ruji raised her hand toward his throat.
A crack of thunder split the sky, striking the ground beside her.
She froze, eyes wide.
Mo Li coughed softly. “Heaven is watching. Don’t try that again.”
Her fist clenched tight, but he was already too pale. With a sigh, Mo Li let himself fall back. “I’m tired. Let me rest… Remember your promise.”
His breathing steadied, and he turned once again into stone.
Meng Ruji looked at him with a storm of pity, regret, and rage. She nearly smashed the stone, but forced herself calm.
Don’t be angry. He is money. He is a tool. Endure, and you’ll live stably.
Slipping him into her sleeve, she walked upstream.
At the bandit hut, she found medicine—good fortune. But her money, her pills, everything else was gone—bad fortune.
As she sat in the doorway, calm despair settled over her. The little green pill she’d taken was wearing off. Pain would come soon.
She tilted her head back at the gray sky, her voice low.
“I’m tired.”
Previous/Next
.jpg)
.jpeg)
.jpeg)
