Jiong Ye!
The name sounded familiar to Mu An Xiao, but... she couldn't recall who had spoken it.
"What's wrong?" Yuan Yan asked softly, looking down at Mu An Xiao, who was deep in thought.
Hearing this, Mu An Xiao snapped back to attention. She turned to face Yuan Yan and was about to speak when her gaze inadvertently fell upon Feng Qi Shi, who was being pestered by Zhao Mei'er. Then, she looked up at Yuan Ye, who was clearly struggling to hold on. She whispered, "Now, can you let him down?" Her eyes remained fixed on Yuan Ye.
Yuan Yan heard Mu An Xiao's words, turned his head, and replied, "Okay." He immediately raised his hand.
Suddenly, Mu An Xiao sensed something was amiss. She withdrew her gaze and inadvertently looked at Yuan Yan's outstretched hand, about to 'cast a spell'. She exclaimed in surprise, "What are you doing?"
Yuan Yan was startled. He lowered his head to look at Mu An Xiao, blinking his eyes. "No... you told me to let him down. I'm just doing as you said."
"Yes, I told you to let him down, but," Mu An Xiao glanced at Yuan Yan's hand, "do you think it's appropriate to act here?"
"I..." Yuan Yan uttered, then glanced at Yuan Ye and chuckled awkwardly. "Oh dear, I forgot."
"What a mind," Mu An Xiao said, casting a sideways glance at Yuan Yan. She whispered, "It was that Jiong Ye who told you to grab him, wasn't it?"
Yuan Yan nodded. "Yes. All those lonely souls were taken away last night, and only I was left. To be honest, I was quite scared. So, I decided to go find Feng Qi Shi. Unexpectedly, just a few steps later, that Jiong Ye suddenly appeared and blocked my path. In the end... he told me to grab Yuan Ye and said..." He trailed off, lowering his head.
Seeing Yuan Yan's distress, Mu An Xiao frowned. "Why are you stopping mid-sentence? Aren't you going to finish?"
"I admit, I did want to possess his body," Yuan Yan said softly.
Before meeting Yuan Yan, Mu An Xiao already knew that Yuan Yan had his sights set on Yuan Ye's body.
However, after meeting Yuan Yan again and hearing him speak the truth, and especially after encountering Jiong Ye, Mu An Xiao realized... Yuan Yan was still relatively kind. As for Jiong Ye's motive, she suspected it was simply to let her know of his existence.
Of course, what would happen next? Mu An Xiao hadn't considered it.
"I know," she replied perfunctorily.
Yuan Yan was taken aback. "You know? How did you know my thoughts?"
"You're foolish, so I can see through you at a glance," Mu An Xiao said, glancing at Yuan Yan again. She then pointed at Yuan Ye on the city wall. "Go get him down. If he dies, it won't benefit you either."
"If he dies, I can live. For me, that should..."
"Do you know where Mu Xi is now?" Mu An Xiao interrupted.
Yuan Yan thought for a moment and said, "Reincarnated, perhaps." He looked uncertain.
Seeing Yuan Yan's hesitant expression, Mu An Xiao sighed softly and asked again, "You know what my relationship with him is, right?"
"He..." Yuan Yan thought for a moment and said, "He is your brother, your biological brother."
"You know that too," Mu An Xiao chuckled lightly. "But he has another identity, do you know that?"
"Can you stop beating around the bush? I'm not very bright, just tell me directly," Yuan Yan said impatiently.
Mu An Xiao had initially thought Yuan Yan was a clever fellow, but who knew... after this brief encounter, she realized she was wrong. This person before her... was truly quite stupid.
"Alright, I'll tell you directly," she said, nodding. She glanced at Yuan Ye again and, after confirming Yuan Ye could still hold on for a while, continued, "He is my brother, but his other identity is a condemned lonely soul. Therefore, I have personally sent him to hell. If you want the same fate, kill him. If you don't, obediently listen to me, and I guarantee you will be reincarnated."
Yuan Yan had thought that Mu Xi's crimes had been reduced due to Mu An Xiao's intervention, and that he was already on his way to reincarnation. To his surprise, he had overestimated.
Therefore, he immediately abandoned the idea of killing Yuan Ye and asked, "What will be my final outcome?"
"You haven't harmed anyone, have you?"
Yuan Yan's eyes darkened. "I intended to harm someone to save myself. Didn't you... discover me?"
"Then you haven't harmed anyone."
"Mm."
Seeing that Yuan Yan didn't seem to be lying, Mu An Xiao asked again, "By the way, how did you die?" She remembered Yuan Yan had mentioned his cause of death, but due to recent events, she had forgotten.
Yuan Yan's eyes darkened. "I was killed."
"Killed?" Mu An Xiao sounded genuinely surprised, and a vague recollection surfaced in her mind.
"Yes," Yuan Yan lowered his gaze. "I was killed by my own wife." He hung his head.
"Why... why did she kill you?" Mu An Xiao leaned forward, observing Yuan Yan's subtly sad expression, and asked cautiously.
"She said I couldn't give her the life she wanted, that I was useless, and then," Yuan Yan didn't resist the topic, continuing, "then... she got together with another man. I remember... that day I went out to chop wood and returned early, and I saw through the window..." He couldn't continue.
Mu An Xiao was quite an 'old soul', and she understood half of what he said. However... she was curious about what he had seen.
So, she thought for a moment and directly asked, "What did you see?" She stared intently at Yuan Yan.
Yuan Yan became embarrassed by Mu An Xiao's question. "This, you don't need to know." He then turned his face away.
"What's the harm in you telling me?" Mu An Xiao grew even more curious.
Seeing Mu An Xiao's intense curiosity and reflecting on his own situation, Yuan Yan asked, "If I tell you, can I be reincarnated sooner?"
Mu An Xiao: "That's for sure."
"Really?"
"Of course, it's true. Only by knowing your past can I help you. If I know nothing," Mu An Xiao shrugged, "even if I want to help you, I can't do anything. So, speak up, I'm listening." She raised an eyebrow.
Yuan Yan found Mu An Xiao's words logical. He hesitated for a moment and then continued, "Then, through the window, I saw my wife with another man... together." After saying this, he completely lowered his head.
"And then you rushed in?" Mu An Xiao guessed.
She knew she shouldn't say this because... it was akin to rubbing salt into Yuan Yan's wounds. But, considering he had been killed, she had to set aside her sympathy. Only then could she help him.
"Mm," Yuan Yan responded, his mind involuntarily replaying the scene of him rushing into the room with an axe, only to be attacked by the disheveled couple, and ultimately killed by his wife. His eyes darkened. "I thought I could grow old with her. Who knew I would be killed like that."
Mu An Xiao: "Is she still alive?" She thought that Yuan Yan's desire to live must have a reason, and that reason was likely related to the wife who killed him.