Chapter 39: Confession

“Pull over in a few seconds.”

The man’s deep voice carried an undeniable authority.

No one could change Mr. Pei’s decision.

The earlier crash had completely sobered Jiang Yaoyao up.

This scene had been mentioned in the original novel.

The villainous overlord was ambushed by armed attackers.

He had jumped out of the car alone and barely escaped with his life after a fierce pursuit.

He shouldn’t bring her along.

With her here, his chances of escape would be much slimmer.

“Pei Heng, if you bring me along, there’s a high chance they’ll catch up to us—”

Before she could finish, something soft brushed against her cheek.

His voice was low, with a barely restrained fury simmering beneath the surface.

“I’m not afraid of them catching up to me.”

“I’m afraid of you falling into their hands.”

Almost immediately after he spoke, something was pulled over her head, blocking her vision.

His arm tightened around her, holding her firmly in place.

The sound of a car door opening filled the air, and before she could react, the world spun around her as Pei Heng leaped out of the vehicle with her in his arms.

The night air was damp with the scent of the mountain, and hard rocks slammed against them as they tumbled down.

She could feel their bodies rolling over jagged stones and rough patches of grass, the sharp edges scraping against them.

More than once, she could sense the tension in Pei Heng’s muscles, as if he was straining to absorb the impact.

When they finally came to a stop, she immediately called out his name in a panic, fumbling to pull off whatever had been covering her head.

It was his jacket—he had wrapped her in it at some point.

Under the moonlight, she could see that his once-white dress shirt was now stained with dirt and streaked with green grass stains. Some areas had even been torn open, leaving long gashes.

Jiang Yaoyao threw herself toward him, carefully trying to check his injuries.

But before she could, she was suddenly pulled into a tight embrace.

For the first time, she heard the usually composed and steady Pei Heng speak with urgency, his voice trembling slightly.

“Are you hurt? Where does it hurt?”

She shook her head.

Pei Heng had protected her well.

Even in the chaos of their escape, he had thought to shield her with his own jacket.

Jiang Yaoyao’s nose stung with emotion.

She gently reached for the torn parts of his shirt, but he caught her hand, stopping her.

“I’m fine. The fabric was just cheap.”

“Can you still walk?”

He asked in a low voice.

She nodded, then grabbed his jacket, intending to help him put it back on.

But once again, he stopped her.

“The temperature drops in the mountains at night. You wear it.”

“Don’t make me worry, Yaoyao.”

The raw tenderness in his voice made her eyes redden.

She sniffled, then obediently slipped her arms into the sleeves.

Taking advantage of her momentary distraction, Pei Heng stood up.

For just a second, his stance wavered, but he quickly regained his balance, his sharp profile tense.

He took her hand in his and said, “Let’s go.”

The undeveloped mountain terrain was completely wild, untouched by any human-made paths.

The landscape was jagged, the trees towering.

Moonlight barely penetrated the dense foliage, casting eerie shadows all around them.

They walked forward, step by step, navigating through the uneven ground.

The forest was deathly silent, apart from the occasional crack of twigs beneath their feet.

Once in a while, a sleeping bird, startled by their movements, would take off in a flutter of wings.

The mountain air was freezing, sending a shiver down Jiang Yaoyao’s spine.

Pei Heng pulled her closer, half-embracing her, guiding her over the more even terrain.

His voice was steady as ever, reassuring her.

“My phone and watch both have built-in trackers. I also made a call before we left.”

“They’ll find us soon.”

“Don’t be afraid, Yaoyao. We’ll be safe soon.”

Nestled in his arms, the little beauty let out a soft, obedient “Mm.”

But she knew better than anyone—safety wouldn’t come so soon.

The mountain was vast, and the poor signal made searching for people incredibly difficult.

On the other hand, the bigger the tree, the more wind it attracts.

Pei Heng was arrogant and unrestrained in his ways, ruthless in his methods. Many feared him but dared not voice their anger.

In fact, this ambush was one of the rare occasions in the novel where the villainous overlord was actually injured—though later, the mastermind behind it paid with their life.

But at this moment, danger was closing in on them.

The two vehicles from earlier had split up—one had caught up with Pei Heng’s driver, locking him up and beating him half to death.

The other four men had split into two groups and were now searching the mountains below.

All four of them were armed.

One gunshot was all it would take for them to pinpoint Pei Heng’s location.

With Pei Heng’s intelligence, he could have escaped just like he did in the novel—without a problem.

But this time, he had chosen to bring her along.

Jiang Yaoyao’s heart clenched.

“Mr. Pei…”

Her voice was soft—so light it was like a fleeting dream in the dead of night.

“It’s… inconvenient for you to bring me along.”

She gathered her courage and lifted her delicate, fragile face.

“You can escape first. Once you’re safe, you can come back for me.”

The man’s gaze fell on her, his voice dangerously low, carrying an unreadable emotion.

“Alone, in the wilderness at night—you’re not afraid?”

The little beauty pressed her lips together, her long lashes trembling.

She didn’t answer.

Because she was afraid.

The arm around her waist and back tightened. His deep voice filled the air, every word emphasized with deliberate weight.

“I would be afraid.”

She lifted her eyes sharply, her beautiful face glowing even in the dim forest.

His gaze had never left her. His narrow, phoenix-like eyes were as dark as ink, his voice rough, as if the words were being forced out from the depths of his throat.

“If I leave you behind, I will be afraid.”

“I can get hurt. I can even lose my life…”

“But, Jiang Yaoyao.”

“I can no longer bear for you to leave my side.”

Every encounter they had felt like a fleeting dream. And in that dream, her delicate silhouette would always turn away without looking back.

How long would it take to see her again?

The little boy once counted on his fingers—first the days, then the months. Sometimes, years would slip by in a blink.

Only then would he finally see her again.

Their brief meetings brought warmth, only for that warmth to vanish with her departure, leaving only coldness behind.

Time and again, he had asked himself in the quiet of the night—were those fleeting moments of companionship a blessing or a punishment?

Even she couldn’t guarantee when she would appear again.

And in this world, she had left behind only that small version of himself—clutching a cotton swab in his tiny hand, curled up on a cold hospital bed.

Every night, under the moonlight, making the same wish.

Praying.

To see her again.