Chapter One, to die beneath the peony flower
Without the butcher Zhang, are we to eat a pig with fur?
What a case of black eating black, wasn't the one from Building 9 wrongfully killed? Li Yanniang's brow relaxed as he spoke in a calm and unperturbed manner, "Return to Building 10, only those who leave the building tomorrow can be considered to have passed!"
The two children lost the sparkle in their eyes and cried out: "Have mercy on me, steward!"
Li Yanniang was momentarily taken aback, chewing over this sentence several times, and suddenly burst into laughter: "Haha! I didn't expect a surprise this year! How interesting! How interesting!"
"Oh, who is leading?" Li Yanniang's eyebrows slightly moved, and her gaze shifted to the five children at the far end. They all had a generally delicate appearance, and she felt a sense of admiration in her heart, yet the words that escaped her lips carried a hint of coldness
"Fear of death, yes, everyone fears death." Li Yan exclaimed in a youthful voice. "Aren't you afraid of death at this moment?"
Faced with three children charging at him and 99 while wielding knives, he inadvertently reminded 99 to lead the five children in the building to engage in a black-on-black conflict at Building 9
Li Lin touched his face and couldn't help but smile wryly. With this face, it's no wonder that even when he was a fool, he could still enter the Peony Garden to make his mark.
Li Lin scratched his head and smiled innocently: "Clearly, it was I who told you."
"To survive among a thousand people is truly remarkable." Li Yanniang stood for a moment before exhaling a phrase that seemed both a sigh and a statement of satisfaction
99 then turned around and glared at Li Lin, saying: "Look at your face, you'll have a good time in the Peony Courtyard!"
As soon as this sentence was uttered, everyone in the yard let out a sigh of relief. The seventeen children were no exception, with two of them unexpectedly sitting down right in the snow.
Oh? Why didn't you recognize it just now
The remaining fifteen children did not dare to breathe, their small bodies trembling yet standing even straighter. They were terrified that a moment of carelessness could cost them their lives, and being sent to the Peony Courtyard would be a dreadful fate
99 and Li Lin simultaneously responded: "It's me!"
Li Lin immediately felt a weight lifted off his shoulders, no longer indebted to anyone.
The steward will not kill me; at most, I will be sent to the Peony Pavilion like those two just now
The three children lowered their heads and refused to speak, yet their gazes darted towards 99. This left Li Lin in a dilemma. According to his judgment, Li Yannian would not kill the leader. However, it was unclear how he would handle the situation.
99 snorted and ignored him, while Li Lin smiled again: "In the future, I will rely on all of you uncles for more support"
A glimmer of cunning flashed in his eyes: "At most, I will send you to the Peony Courtyard."
Seeing him angry, Li Lin smiled foolishly and said: "I am hungry"
Logically, an eight-year-old child should not be made to take the blame; it is time for him to step forward. However, Li Lin thought it would be better to proceed slowly. After all, being the first to stick his neck out was always contrary to his desire to conceal his abilities. He did not want to be assigned to the most dangerous places to carry out the most perilous tasks in the future. From his previous life’s understanding of assassins, top experts always die the fastest. It is not due to their lack of skill, but rather because they take on too many dangerous missions. He calculated the timing of his confession, needing to express fear just right while also bravely stepping forward. From his previous life’s understanding of assassins, top experts always die the fastest. It is not due to their lack of skill, but rather because they take on too many dangerous missions. He calculated the timing of his confession, needing to express fear just right while also bravely stepping forward
"It's me, the one who sent the receipt," Li Lin sighed inwardly, taking two steps forward and responding softly, "The idea I proposed was not easy to come by, and I do not wish to return."
After the episode, 99 held Li Lin's hand and walked out of the courtyard with his head held high. The black-clad guards at the gate clasped their fists in salute and smiled, saying, "Congratulations, young master, for passing the test."
Li Yanniang looked at Li Lin kneeling below and was somewhat surprised by the calm tone in which he spoke. "Is it really you?"
The burly men in black surrounding them finally let out a long sigh, and one of them angrily said, "Do you want us both to die?"
Sighing, Li Yannian waved his hand. "Send [them to] the Peony Courtyard!"
After speaking, he unexpectedly waved his sleeve and left. The people in the courtyard looked at each other in confusion. Li Er, holding the warm stove, followed Li Yanniang into the room with a spirited demeanor
Li Yanniang looked at him with great interest and directly called out his number: "100, do you know what the Peony Courtyard is?" He did not expect a six-year-old child to fully understand, yet he questioned it due to Li Lin's consistently calm voice.
He couldn't help but ask behind 99: "Weren't you afraid of dying at that time?"
Li Yanniang glanced at the two people sitting on the ground, and in an instant, several strong men rushed out from around and lifted them up. The child's face instantly turned as white as snow, and his gaze was filled with terror
Li Er quickly took it, carefully cradling it in his hands. The sudden warmth radiating from his palms made him feel so comfortable that he wanted to sigh. His expression remained humble and submissive. With a slight bend in his waist, it was hard to tell whether it was a habit formed over the years or something else; he seemed to have never straightened his back. His pair of slender eyes also revealed a hint of cunning as he secretly glanced at the people standing in the courtyard. Seventeen people had come out; it seemed that this year's task was assured, and he could leave here tomorrow. Li Er thought of the charming maid in the mansion serving hot wine; this time of year was perfect for enjoying the snow, appreciating the plum blossoms, and composing poetry, and his heart had already flown beyond the valley.
What a deep brotherhood! Do you know what a brother is? Brothers are often the ones most likely to betray you, remember my words. Who exactly is it?
However, no matter how 99 reminisced about the past afterwards, he could no longer evoke any extra sense of familiarity from Li Lin. 99 did not feel disheartened, as among the one hundred children in the building, only Li Lin knew Zhang the butcher. 99 felt it was his duty to protect this foolish younger brother
Li Yannian smiled and said, "Do you know why I require one hundred of you to fight each other and take a life each day to complete the task?" Without waiting for a response, he continued, "Any sympathy for the enemy is cruelty to oneself. Very well, I will give you an opportunity: betray the leader, and the others will not be killed by me."
99 angrily said: "You are just a fool! It was clearly just a casual remark, how could you possibly have such thoughts?!"
Li Yanni furrowed his brows, and Li Er leaned forward slightly, whispering: "Sir, this year..."
It is said that if one can survive among a thousand people, they are truly remarkable. Li Yanniang sighed again, a hint of a smile appearing on his face, and said, "Tell me, how could five people emerge from Building 10"
Li Lin raised his face, his blood-stained visage adorned with a pair of eyes that sparkled like gemstones. There was not a trace of fear in his eyes; instead, they carried a hint of mockery as he replied: "To die beneath the peony, even as a ghost, is to be dashing!"
Having stayed in the valley for a year, the black-clad guards spoke of the Peony Courtyard with a gentleness in their whips, absolutely refusing to let them fall upon a person's face. There were those who, not even having endured long enough to enter the building, were sent to the Peony Courtyard. At that time, the guards would stop their whips and even invited the most skilled soul-reviving master in the valley to examine the injuries, leeringly saying they would celebrate the young master's twelfth birthday. 99 said to Li Lin: "I would rather be killed by butcher Zhang than fall into the hands of the guards wandering the Peony Courtyard." There were those who, not even having endured long enough to enter the building, were sent to the Peony Courtyard. At that time, the guards would stop their whips and even invited the most skilled soul-reviving master in the valley to examine the injuries, leeringly saying they would celebrate the young master's twelfth birthday. 99 said to Li Lin: "I would rather be killed by butcher Zhang than fall into the hands of the guards wandering the Peony Courtyard."
The butler, they..." The black-clad guard, who had hesitated in his response, caught sight of Li Yanniann's gentle gaze and, shivering, spoke without further hesitation, "They took advantage of the mutual exhaustion from the fighting at Building 9 and picked up an easy bargain.
It was me! 99's voice trembled, yet he stepped forward before Li Lin was ready to confess. He vaguely remembered that when he was in the building, protecting Li Lin while confronting the other three children like a pack of wolves, a gentle voice softly echoed in his ears. It was both tender and cold, saying, "Go kill the people on the ninth floor." Now, 99 would rather believe that it was his own subconscious guiding him, rather than that idiot brother he had always protected
Li Lin murmured to himself, evoking a sense of familiarity: "Do you also know Butcher Zhang?"
After the snow, the sky clears. A gentle sunlight blankets the valley. In this silvery world, only the treetops faintly reveal a hint of indigo, evoking a certain poetic charm reminiscent of ink wash painting
Li Er took a deep breath, finding it difficult to comprehend the intentions of his master. Each hundred children resided in a building, and after days of mutual slaughter, only a few emerged from each building, all considered elite talents. Just now, two had been wasted, and this time, sending more in might result in further losses, which was truly hard to bear
A trace of surprise quickly flashed in Li Yanniannian's eyes. His gaze lightly swept over the seventeen people standing in the courtyard. He slowly straightened up and casually handed over the warm stove in his hand
Li Lin looked at 99 in astonishment, reminding himself once again not to dwell on this feeling, even though the image of this eight-year-old child was enough to make him look up in admiration
The snow on the ground has yet to be cleared, and the seventeen individuals standing there are dressed in rags, clearly no older than seven or eight years. They bear wounds on their bodies, with drops of blood falling, staining the snow beneath their feet a faint pink. Their eyes reveal a mix of exhaustion and excitement, yet in the indifferent gaze of Deacon Li, there is an added layer of inexplicable timidity.
"In response to the steward, a total of seventeen individuals have emerged from the ten buildings. One person from Building 1, two from Building 2, two from Building 3, ... and five from Building 10," reported a man in black respectfully.
Afraid of death! Li Lin responded unusually straightforwardly
The landscape is picturesque. Li Yanniang, draped in a dark blue cloak, sat under the eaves, with a circle of silver fox fur around his neck enhancing his already striking appearance.
His voice is very faint, faint yet gentle. It resembles the ray of sunlight on the snowy ground
99, eager to speak, was stopped by Li Lin: "Actually, it was me. I came up with the idea, and he took the lead."