Chapter 41: You're Not Dead?

What was going on?!

She had actually discovered them.

“You’re here to kill me?”

Shen Zhaoxi lifted her gaze; in an instant, her eyes were shrouded in icy mist, even her voice carried a dangerous undertone.

“You are Shen Zhaoxi.”

The leader of the group, clad in black, spoke with a cold, menacing tone. His expression was vicious, giving off an air of ruthlessness.

“Yes,”

Shen Zhaoxi’s eyes chilled, and the corners of her lips curled into a faint, thin smile.

“It’s me.”

A smile that was neither truly friendly nor mocking.

Her pale fingers rested lightly on the armrest of her wheelchair.

She tapped it softly, as though waiting for them.

“We’re here to kill you—”

Upon hearing her affirmation, the black-clad man sneered, leading his subordinates as they charged at her.

The night was dark; only the faint glow of fire from the temple flickered, reflecting in the girl’s eyes. For a moment, innocence gleamed there, swiftly replaced by a trace of amusement.

Yet none of them noticed the change in her gaze.

As the dagger swung toward her, impatience flashed between her brows, and she leaned backward, face tilted upward.

She dodged the attack with ease.

A cold gleam flashed before her eyes.

The dagger, meant to slit her throat, was deftly avoided.

The next second, the black-clad man’s expression changed; his brows furrowed, hostility flaring in his eyes.

He gripped the dagger and lunged at her again.

The surrounding men in black closed in from all sides.

At that moment, Shen Zhaoxi sat there like a beam of indifferent moonlight.

She arched her brows slightly, as if unimpressed by their prowess.

A cold smile hid in her eyes.

She seemed nonchalant, yet a subtle murderous intent seeped from her.

The dagger rang out, slicing invisibly toward her face.

They were all after her life!

Every move was deadly.

But as one of them approached, Shen Zhaoxi raised her hand, catching his arm.

Her hand moved forward, swiftly gripping his wrist.

“Ah!—”

A scream echoed, bones cracking.

His wrist bones shattered.

The man’s face turned pale with pain, rendering him incapable of attacking.

She held his wrist, then tossed him mercilessly onto the filthy ground beside her.

She didn’t even spare him a glance, a mocking smile tugging at her lips.

This was a side of her utterly different from the frail girl at the summer villa.

Beneath that pale, sickly face lay an aspect of her that no one knew.

As five or six men in black advanced together, their figures were reflected clearly in her eyes.

Her pale fingers rested on the wheelchair armrest, spinning it in a smooth circle.

When the dagger thrust toward her, she suddenly shifted sideways, dodging the blow.

At some point, a dagger appeared in her hand.

It pressed against her cold, white skin.

Her speed was astonishing.

In the temple, the firelight from burning kindling cast shadows on the walls, flickering over a dozen figures.

Suddenly, the shifting shadows blurred.

Shen Zhaoxi’s gaze darkened.

Her movements stilled.

Her cold brows furrowed slightly, as if a blood mist had settled before her eyes.

Blood splattered in her eyes.

Warm, fresh blood sprayed across her face.

The men in black all had their throats slit, eyes wide with shock as they looked at her.

They had never imagined that the eldest daughter of the Shen family—rumored to be frail and sickly—would possess such formidable skills.

They exchanged blows, but it was as if they weren’t even on the same level.

They couldn’t even see how she struck.

A conspicuous blood line appeared on their necks.

The scene froze.

Shen Zhaoxi’s long lashes trembled.

She lowered her gaze.

All the men in black fell around her.

They were clearly hired killers.

Encountering them midway meant only two things: either someone simply didn’t want her to return alive, or someone deliberately chose the moment when Lu Yunzhou was with her to prevent the marriage alliance between the Lu and Shen families.

If something happened to Shen Zhaoxi, Lu Yunzhou—and even the entire Lu family—would owe the Shen family an explanation.

The two families would surely become enemies.

Such a sinister scheme.

Her gaze grew cold.

And Shen Xin, who had chosen this exact moment—neither earlier nor later—to cause a disturbance and draw away those around her, was clearly acting deliberately.

Could it be?

There was some kind of connection between them.

Shen Zhaoxi’s pale fingers tapped the wheelchair armrest. She looked down, glancing at the bodies on the ground.

#

Coincidentally, Shen Zhaoxi had just discovered Shen Xin on the back mountain.

“Heh,” she let out a cold laugh.

A sudden icy laugh sounded behind Shen Xin, startling her violently. Her shoulders shook, and she spun around.

She looked up and saw Shen Zhaoxi standing not far away.

The girl stood quietly, nearly blending into the night, her cold, clear eyes fixed on Shen Xin.

Shen Xin frowned. “Shen Zhaoxi, how could you—?!”

By the darkness, she could see the frail figure in the wheelchair.

“You want to know why I’m unharmed?”

Shen Zhaoxi arched her brow, her voice cool, echoing in the silent shadows behind the cliff.

The firelight from the temple flickered, casting a faint glow in Shen Xin’s eyes.

Her face suddenly twisted.

“You’re not dead?”

How could that be?

“I didn’t expect after ten years, your heart would still be as ruthless as it was when you were a child!”

Shen Zhaoxi lifted her eyes gently, looking at her opponent. Her face was expressionless, but she dared to confront Shen Xin directly.

“Shen Zhaoxi!”

“How dare you judge me?”

Shen Xin suddenly laughed. “It’s all because of you. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have been sent abroad by Grandpa. I wouldn’t have spent ten lonely years in a foreign land by myself!”

“Do you even know what that’s like?”

“My passport was confiscated; I couldn’t return to Y Country. I had to struggle alone, hoping that someday I could come back, return to the Shen family.”

“And now, after all my efforts, I have finally returned. Do you think I’ll let you leave Sanqing Peak alive?”

Shen Xin had claimed she was going to the restroom, but in truth, she was looking for an opportunity to distract those in the temple.

Especially Lu Yunzhou.

Shen Zhaoxi’s fiancé, the crown prince of the Lu family in the capital!

Clearly, there was no real connection between them, and yet Lu Yunzhou stayed by Shen Zhaoxi’s side, caring for her, while that day at the Imperial Club, he barely spared Shen Xin a glance.

Why?

Was it because she wasn’t pretty enough?

She’d lost to Shen Zhaoxi, a sickly girl.

Was it simply because Shen Zhaoxi was the eldest daughter of the Shen family?

That meant she could marry into a family of equal status, could have everything without effort, could naturally possess the most distinguished, highest status, most talented and handsome man in the capital.

Why couldn’t she have that?

As long as Shen Zhaoxi was around, Shen Xin would always be just the adopted daughter of the Shen family.

The title of eldest daughter would always belong to Shen Zhaoxi.

They would only respectfully call her “Miss Shen Xin.”

Heh, to be called by her full name—how could that ever mean they truly regarded her as family?

Every time Shen Xin thought of it, she remembered Shen Zhaoxi’s gentle, outstanding brothers—why, why did they give all their tenderness and care to Shen Zhaoxi?

And she, living under the same roof, could only exist like a pitiful creature, always in the shadow of Shen Zhaoxi’s brilliance, given a little affection only when the family was in the mood.

She had had enough!

“So you colluded with outsiders, made a move against me, and wanted me to die here?”

Shen Zhaoxi’s tone was calm, but every word was powerful and clear.

Her expression remained composed.

Even alone behind the cliff at the temple, she faced Shen Xin without fear.

Her lips lifted slightly, eyes cold and proud.

As if she were gazing at a trivial insect, she didn’t regard Shen Xin at all.