People in Qin Dynasty: Opening the treasure chest, I took off!

Chapter 15 Xia Yan

A few days later.

Jingni's body has recovered most of its strength.

She sat in the courtyard holding her child, her gaze calm.

Xia Yufang served her soup while chattering on about taking care of the child.

Jingni listened, nodding occasionally, but said little.

She is not a talkative person.

During her twenty years in the Net, she learned to be silent, to observe, and to strike with deadly precision.

It's not about warmth.

But Xia Yufang's gentleness reminded her of someone.

Wei Wuji.

The man she loved, and whom she killed with her own hands.

"Jing Ni, my girl?"

Xia Yufang's voice pulled her back to reality.

"The soup's getting cold, drink it quickly."

"Hmm." Jingni took the bowl and lowered her head to drink the soup.

taste good.

She hadn't had such warm soup in a long time.

……

In the afternoon, Xia Bing returned from outside.

"Jingni, have you decided on a name for the baby?"

Jingni raised her head and glanced at him.

"Xia Yan."

"Xia Yan?"

"She'll take your surname," Jing Ni said calmly. "Her father... is already dead."

Xia Bing nodded without asking any further questions.

He knew Jing Ni's past—she fell in love with a man, became pregnant with his child, and was then forced by the Luo Wang organization to kill him with her own hands.

This kind of pain is something outsiders cannot understand.

"A good name," he said.

Jingni looked down at the baby in her arms, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

This child is the only bloodline Wei Wuji left her.

She had considered whether she should die with her child.

But the nameless master who wielded the Han Guang Sword gave his own life to save her.

"You don't have to live for a snare."

Those were the words Wuming said to her before she died.

"You can choose your life for yourself and for your children."

Jingni closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

She chose to live.

For the sake of the children, and for your own sake.

……

"Where is your sword?" Xia Bing suddenly asked.

Jingni opened her eyes and looked at him.

"It's hidden."

"Can I get it back?"

Jingni remained silent for a moment, then stood up.

"Come with me."

……

The two left the city and came to a deep forest.

Jingni walked to a large tree, reached out and felt around at the base of the tree for a moment, and took out a long box.

She opened the long box, inside which lay a long sword.

The sword was long and slender, its blade gleaming with a cold light and faintly glowing with a pale pink hue.

One of the Eight Swords of King Yue – the Jingni Sword.

Jingni reached out and grasped the sword hilt, and the sword trembled slightly.

She hadn't held this sword in a long time.

Since defecting from the Luo Wang organization, she has never drawn her sword again.

"This is the Jingni Sword," she said. "Legend has it that when used to sail the seas, even whales and salamanders would venture deep into the ocean."

Xia Bing looked at the sword and nodded.

"A fine sword."

Jingni glanced at him and suddenly said, "You want to try?"

Xia Bing was somewhat surprised.

"Are you willing?"

"You saved me, you saved Xia Yan," Jing Ni said calmly. "I owe you my life."

She raised her sword, the tip pointing at Xia Bing.

"Come."

Xia Bing drew her long sword from her waist and attacked Jing Ni.

Jing Ni dodged easily with a flash, then turned her sword and aimed straight for Xia Bing's throat.

Xia Bing quickly parried, but Jing Ni had already sheathed her sword.

"Too slow."

Jingni's voice was cold, "Your swordsmanship is too sweeping and powerful, suitable for the battlefield, not for killing."

"Then teach me."

Jingni glanced at him but didn't say anything.

After a moment, she whispered, "My swordsmanship is for killing. If you learn my swordsmanship, you will become a killing machine."

"I don't mind."

Jingni was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"good."

……

The two exchanged blows, their swords flashing.

Jing Ni's swordsmanship is swift and ruthless, with each move aimed directly at a vital point.

Although Xia Bing's strength surpassed Jing Ni's, he deliberately suppressed it, wanting to learn the essence of her swordsmanship.

"Draw your sword quickly, and sheathe it even faster."

"Killing is not the goal; living is."

"Observe the enemy's breathing, find his weakness, and strike a fatal blow."

Jing Ni explained as she fought.

Her voice was indifferent, but she taught very seriously.

As Xia Bing learned, she absorbed the essence of the Jingni Sword Technique into the Sacred Heart Manual.

The two practiced until evening before stopping.

"Your comprehension is very high," Jing Ni said calmly, sheathing her sword. "Faster than I expected."

"It's because you taught me well."

Jingni glanced at him but didn't say anything.

She turned to look at the distant sunset, her gaze somewhat complicated.

"You...aren't you going to ask me?"

"What do you want to ask?"

"Ask me why I defected from Luo Wang," Jing Ni whispered. "Ask me how many people I've killed. Ask me... how I killed the one I loved."

Xia Bing looked at her.

"Say what you want to say, or don't say what you don't want to say."

Jingni remained silent for a moment.

"I loved someone," she whispered. "His name was Wei Wuji, Lord Xinling."

"I infiltrated his inner circle for three years, all to kill him."

"But I fell in love with him... and I got pregnant with his child."

Her voice trembled slightly, but she quickly regained her composure.

"The Net has discovered me; they're forcing me to choose—either kill him or die."

"I chose to kill him."

Jingni closed her eyes. "I killed him with my own hands...with this sword."

Xia Bing didn't speak, she just looked at her quietly.

"I thought I was going to die," Jing Ni continued, "but the Net didn't kill me. They gave me a new mission—to assassinate a master wielding the Han Guang Sword."

"That person... is very strong; I'm no match for them at all."

"But he didn't kill me."

"He discovered I was pregnant and gave his own life to save me."

Jingni opened her eyes and looked at Xia Bing.

He said, "You don't have to live for a snare. You can choose your life for yourself and for your children."

"So... I defected."

Xia Bing looked at her and remained silent for a moment.

Do you regret it?

"Regret what?"

"Kill him."

Jing Ni remained silent for a long time.

"I regret it," she whispered, "but I can't change the past."

She looked at Xia Bing, her gaze calm.

"I have only one goal now—to keep Xia Yan alive."

"I'm willing to do anything for this goal."

Xia Bing nodded.

"Then stay," he said. "I will protect you and your daughter."

Jingni looked at him without saying a word.

After a long silence, she whispered, "Why are you helping me?"

"I already said it, because you need help."

"That's all?"

Xia Bing remained silent for a moment.

"Maybe...it's because I think you deserve it."

Jing Ni was stunned for a moment.

She looked into Xia Bing's eyes, which were warm, calm, and without any impurities.

"I..." she took a deep breath, "I will repay you."

No reward is needed.

"I insist," Jing Ni said calmly. "I owe you a life, and I will repay it."

Xia Bing looked at her and nodded.

"good."

Jingni turned and walked into the city.

"Let's go back and see Xia Yan."

Xia Bing followed behind her, watching her back.

This woman, burdened by a heavy past, still lives on with strength.

She is not weak, she is a warrior.

And he was willing to provide for her.