You're Strong But Now You're Mine-Chapter 550 - 548: As Long as It’s You

The eighth floor of the Blood Prison was pitch black, with only a lamp glowing in the room at the end, dispelling the silent darkness and warming lonely hearts.

The silent prisoners in other cells quietly watched this scene, many uttering painful, hoarse sounds, as if it were the anguished wails of souls wrung dry. From their dry eyes, tears of recollection flowed for the first time in years.

This group of prisoners, who once thought they had resigned themselves to fate, become numbed and content to be worms in the dark, had been steeped in despair for too long. So even the smallest warmth and happiness could deeply sting them.

Why would anyone be willing to enter the eighth layer of the Blood Prison to rescue someone... Was that guy living at the end of the cell someone who saved the world in his past life!?

Yet at this moment, the luckiest person in the Blood Prison wasn't feeling particularly joyful. On the contrary, he felt a long-absent tinge of unease. Even though his Immortal Blood physique made him impervious to embarrassment, Le Yin still found the air suddenly suffocating. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Qing Lan left the cell door slightly ajar, walked in confidently, sat down on the edge of the bed, picked up the "Blood-Clad Marquis" that Le Yin had just put down, flipped through a few pages, and asked, "Is it good? Qing Mei likes to read this book before sleeping. I read a few pages and felt the text was filled with too much violence and resentment, so I stopped."

"Extremely bloody and violent. Saints would feel pity reading it, good people would feel fear, bad people would find joy, and scumbags would want to emulate it," Le Yin said. "So it's quite good."

"Qing Mei recommended it to me so many times, but your words were more convincing." Qing Lan closed the book. "I'll add it to my bedtime reading."

Le Yin gazed at Qing Lan's charming face, so capable of expressing both anger and joy, instinctively wanting to reach out and pinch it. Qing Lan's body trembled slightly but stubbornly kept looking at Le Yin, fearlessly holding his gaze, unwavering and unafraid.

However, just before his fingertips reached her skin, as if afraid of damaging fragile goods, Le Yin suddenly pulled his hand back.

Seeing this, Qing Lan unconsciously relaxed her tense body. She smiled, caught Le Yin's hand, slipped her fingers between his, intertwined them tightly.

"It's been so long since we've met. Even though this isn't the right place, I thought you'd surely be unable to resist melting into me, maybe even blending into one," she provocatively raised an eyebrow, "but you didn't even dare to get intimate. You're making me think I might be wrong."

"What did you guess? Actually, what else do you want to know?" Le Yin, like a favored consort, was led along by Qing Lan, sighing. "You can voice any doubts you have, whatever I know, I'll tell you."

"My doubts? About why you joined the Sword Seeking Contest? About why you won't return to Dongyang? About why you were confined in the Blood Prison? About your relationship with the future Empress?"

"Or perhaps... about who you really are?"

Le Yin softly said, "Do you want to know?"

"I already know." Qing Lan swayed their joined hands back and forth, blinking, "You're actually the assassin who died in the Red Moon Fortress, right?"

Le Yin was slightly surprised and smiled, "I didn't expect you to remember Yin Yin-Yin."

"So that assassin was called Yin Yin-Yin..." Qing Lan realized, "No wonder the folks in White Night were puzzled when they found out I didn't know Yin Yin-Yin. They always thought I was helping you connect with Yin Yin-Yin."

"I actually sensed long ago that you... or rather, Zhengwei, had undergone a drastic change. Even though I hadn't known Zhengwei for long, it seemed like a completely different person took his place, just like if Qing Mei, who specializes in emotional stories, were suddenly reassigned to the news department to write news articles. Even someone like me could tell the difference."

"But at that time, I didn't think much. It wasn't until I fell for you that I began to ponder the reasons for your changed personality." Qing Lan chuckled. "I always thought it was because you drank too much iced honey Five-Flower Tea, turning your entire being sweet."

Le Yin was speechless for a moment, "You like drinking coconut milk, but you don't seem milky."

"Nonsense, want to try for yourself?" Qing Lan licked her lips, winking her left eye, exuding natural charm in her gaze.

But soon she sobered, saying, "After all, I'm just an ordinary person. No matter how I think, I never imagined you'd be in such an extraordinary state—even fantasy novels wouldn't dare use such a bold setup."

"So, you really... transformed from Yin Yin-Yin into Zhengwei, and then from Zhengwei into Qin Le Yin? Who exactly are you?"

Looking at the woman in front of him who first caused him to contemplate the rest of his life, without much thought, and not undergoing Immortal Blood's antivirus check, Le Yin calmly revealed his biggest secret, "My name is Le Yin."

He briefly described the ability of "Death and Substitute," which was astounding to Qing Lan, even without mentioning the system panel.

"Although I had many speculations, you still exceeded my expectations," Qing Lan said. "The most terrifying scenario I imagined was you being a monster, usually wearing human skin among humans, replacing it when it wears out..."

Midway through, Qing Lan stopped, but Le Yin clearly didn't mind, "That's right. To ordinary people, I'm exactly the monster you described. I'm just wearing someone else's skin, with no identity, no body, not even feelings of my own..."

"But your hands are still warm."

Qing Lan held his hand against her face, gently rubbing her cheek against his palm, shaking her head, "As long as I still care for you, you're definitely not a monster."

"Then you better hold tight and don't let go, or else the monster might awaken from its cradle." Le Yin smiled, "Don't worry, I'm not self-destructing, I'm just explaining why I didn't tell you before—apart from you, everyone would probably see me as a monster. This is the second secret I must keep."

"What's your first secret—never mind, don't tell me." Qing Lan complained, "I do have a sense of curiosity, my lord, you're playing with fire."

"I'll tell you the first secret when we're both old," Le Yin laughed. "When did you start guessing my secret of switching bodies?"

"Actually, as early as when you refused to return to Dongyang and insisted on staying in Yanjing, I knew something was definitely wrong with your body." Qing Lan said, "Then the news from White Night that Qin Le Yin was suspected of killing Zhengwei, with a Shi Family servant witnessing Zhengwei's corpse—I thought it was rumors, especially since you were in correspondence with me at that time."

"Ever since the Unrivaled List was published in Dongyang, and Qin Le Yin introduced the concept of 'Silver Blood Eight Wonders', even appearing in our Youth Daily discussion page, I strongly sensed that you definitely have an indescribable secret relationship with Qin Le Yin."

"Why?"

"Because the Unrivaled List and Silver Blood Eight Wonders are both incredibly sensational and filled with your unique morbid sense of humor." Qing Lan said, "A man with a morbid sense of humor like yours is like a firefly in the night; no matter how he hides, he stands out."

Le Yu twitched the corner of his mouth, "When I told you this piece of information, it was not meant for you to use to insult people..."

"When the news of 'Silver Blood Five Wonders Qing Lan' reached Dongyang, I completely concluded that Qin Le Yin is you. After all, even if Qin Le Yin worked with you, he couldn't have shamelessly put so much gold on my face."

"Who said you don't deserve the title of Silver Blood Five Wonders? I'll help you smash his head!"

Qing Lan smiled slightly, gazing into Le Yu's eyes, "So, the reason you refuse to return to Dongyang to reunite with me is... you don't know how to explain it to me?"

"No, I know how to explain it to you." Le Yu shook his head, "But I don't know if you can accept it."

"Ah, 'Your Name'!" Qing Lan suddenly realized, "These novels you've been writing over the past six months are all about soul exchange. Could it be that you want me to read more of these novels, understand soul exchange, be mentally prepared, and then reveal everything to me?"

Hearing Qing Lan's playful tone, Le Yu was a bit embarrassed, "What's wrong, isn't it feasible? My thought process isn't right? There must be credit to the novels I wrote for you uncovering my secret!"

"Sure, of course!" Qing Lan chuckled, "I just didn't expect that after experiencing so many things, you'd still be amusingly naive."

"But what I'm worried about isn't fake, is it?" Le Yu said softly, "Even now, you still can't accept me, right? Even if you know the truth, even if you know who I am, the lover you long for is my third substitute 'Jing Zhengwei', and I am now the fourth substitute 'Qin Le Yin'..."

"What do you mean by third substitute and fourth substitute?"

"It means Jing Zhengwei is my third death substitute, Qin Le Yin is the fourth."

Qing Lan nodded, pondering for a moment before nodding again, "Though I know Qin Le Yin's soul is the one I like, being intimate with Qin Le Yin does feel weird."

"That's why I've been delaying you coming to Yanjing," Le Yu said, "If you can't accept it, or fear my ability, I don't know how to convince you. I can't lock you in a room and force you to submit, can I?"

"Honestly, I think your method is quite feasible," Qing Lan seemed enthusiastic.

"But I can't repeat the process of convincing you every time I change substitutes, can I?" Le Yu said softly, "Without mental preparation, I think you would have a hard time in the future."

"Why do you sound like you're going to change bodies again?"

"Who knows?" Le Yu looked at the lamp on the table, suddenly finding the warm yellow light somewhat dazzling.

Qing Lan rested her chin in her hands, pondering silently for a long time. Le Yu wanted to pull away from her ten-finger clasped hold, but she held so tightly that he could only give up.

After a long while, she suddenly asked, "So what reason were you originally planning to use to convince me?"

Le Yu hesitated, thought for a moment, and said, "I can assure you that I only substitute tall, handsome men."

Qing Lan was stunned, "What do you mean?"

"Just to ensure that visually you have a pleasant experience," Le Yu said, "If you have any special requirements, I will try to fulfill your wishes and custom tailor for you."

Qing Lan's expression grew increasingly strange, "Are you suggesting... you want to seduce me?"

Le Yu nodded, "More or less."

Qing Lan stared at him for a moment, her mouth twitching uncontrollably, then burst into laughter, covering her mouth while chuckling uncontrollably, eventually abandoning any attempt to cover, pounding the bed board with her fist, laughing so hard that her waist bent over, "Ah, I can't take it anymore, it hurts my stomach to laugh."

Le Yu was somewhat bewildered, "What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing." Qing Lan wiped the tears from her eyes, leaning forward to embrace him.

Just like before.

Not a single difference.

Le Yu suddenly felt that all the defenses he had mentioned before, all the worries he had pondered, seemed to lose their significance. No matter how solid the fortress, it collapses easily under the weight of tenderness, utterly vulnerable.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, falling onto the bed. The lamp couldn't illuminate their faces; in the darkness, they couldn't see each other's appearance, only the joy and love in each other's eyes.

"As long as it's you, it's okay if you're not that handsome," Qing Lan laughed.