Chapter 2824 The Substitute Was Forcibly Taken by the Bandit's Wife 29
Gu Fanghe didn't know where he was.
In the distance, there are waterfalls and springs, and nearby, ancient trees reach for the sky. The sky is orange-red, like dusk or dawn, and the glow of the sunset flows down from the mountains.
This is not Black Cliff. He could traverse the entire Black Cliff terrain with his eyes closed, and there is absolutely no scenery like this.
Alarm bells rang in Gu Fanghe's mind. He sharply scanned his surroundings, only to find that his body was also light and airy, as if it had no substance.
He walked along the forest path, and the further he went, the stronger the sense of familiarity became.
Gu Fanghe stopped in his tracks when he turned the corner of the rock face and saw the lake shimmering in the sunlight.
He remembered.
He had visited this landscape in his dreams.
Many years ago, when he was seriously injured and on the verge of death, he walked into this landscape and met the person from his dream. After waking up, he drew that portrait based on his memory.
Later, he met Ruan Shutong, and he thought he had found the person in the painting, but the longer he spent with her, the more he felt something was wrong.
Until... Jin Chen appeared.
Thinking of this, Gu Fanghe's heart skipped a beat, and he looked towards the lake.
The glow of the sunset shifted, and the water rippled.
A figure in pure white stood there quietly, with her back to him and facing the lake and the solitary peak.
Gu Fanghe's heart was pounding. In his dream for the first time, he was seriously injured and unconscious, his mind unclear. He felt that his soul was haunted by his dreams, and when he woke up, he felt lost and dejected.
Now, he can finally shout it out.
"Jinchen."
Gu Fanghe took a few steps forward, wanting to get closer, but saw the figure by the lake slowly turn around.
The glow of the sunset fell on his face, illuminating his eyebrows and eyes.
Gu Fanghe's joy froze, then faded little by little, and he subconsciously frowned.
Why does she look so much like Ruan Shutong? No, she doesn't just look like her, she *is* Ruan Shutong.
Ruan Shutong looked at him quietly, her eyes filled with unfathomable sorrow. She gently shook her head at Gu Fanghe and said, "You've come."
Ruan Shutong's voice was ethereal, as if it came from a very distant place.
"I've been waiting for you for so long, so very long... How could you mistake me for someone else?"
Ruan Shutong raised her hand and reached towards Gu Fanghe's cheek, cautiously wanting to touch him but not daring to be presumptuous.
Gu Fanghe abruptly turned his head away, exclaiming, "How come it's you!"
“Last time…” Gu Fanghe tried to sort out his chaotic thoughts, but his mind was still a mess.
“Last time,” Ruan Shutong continued, her voice tinged with loneliness, “it was I who woke you from the brink of death, wasn’t it?”
In an instant, Gu Fanghe felt a splitting headache.
The surging fragments of many scenes represent the interweaving of time and space, and the shifting of identities.
Absurd and bizarre.
Without exception, in every fleeting scene, there was always someone beside him.
That feeling was so familiar, so unforgettable; it was a deep-seated longing, a determination to find the other person even across the barriers of time and space.
Who is that?
"Gu Fanghe".
Ruan Shutong's voice pulled him back from the shattered imagery.
Gu Fanghe's pupils dilated, and his gaze refocused on Ruan Shutong's face.
"You..." Gu Fanghe began, his voice trembling, "Who exactly are you?"
Ruan Shutong took a step closer, her voice very soft, "I am the one... waiting for you in every world."
"How could you mistake someone else for me?"
-
Gu Fanghe suddenly sat up in bed, his chest heaving violently, panting heavily. His nightgown was soaked with cold sweat and clung to his body, feeling icy cold.
He raised his hand to cover his forehead, his fingertips trembling.
Jin Chen was awakened by his movement. She groggily opened her eyes and, seeing his appearance, became more awake. She raised her hand to wipe the cold sweat from Gu Fanghe's forehead, her voice still sleepy, "What's wrong?"
Gu Fanghe was still unsettled. Hearing the sound, he slowly turned his head to look at the person beside him. He opened his mouth, his dry lips moving as if he wanted to say something.
He wanted to tell Jin Chen about the strange dream, and what Ruan Shutong said in the dream, but the words stuck in his throat.
Gu Fanghe tried several times, opening and closing his lips, but no matter what he did, he couldn't say a word.
Seeing that he was in a daze and didn't speak, Jin Chen propped herself up and sat up slightly. She reached out and touched Gu Fanghe's forehead, then lifted the brocade quilt covering the two of them and gently pressed it down.
“No redness or swelling, no fever…” Jin Chen withdrew his hand, looked at Gu Fanghe’s pale face, and his eyes were filled with even more doubt. “What’s wrong? Could it be… that you dreamed about things that happened on the frontier battlefield?”
Gu Fanghe was speechless and could only nod.
Jin Chen breathed a sigh of relief, lay down again, pulled the stiff-sitting Gu Fanghe into her arms, and rubbed against his neck. "Don't be afraid, it's not fully light yet, sleep a little longer."
As he spoke, he kissed Gu Fanghe's eye again.
Held in Jin Chen's arms, Gu Fanghe slowly raised his arms to hug the warm body back, burying his face in Jin Chen's chest and taking a deep breath.
It was just a dream.
He closed his eyes and said to himself.
An absurd and bizarre nightmare.
But deep down, I still felt empty and aching.
Gu Fanghe nuzzled Jin Chen's lips, his voice low and hoarse, pleading, "Just a little longer..."
Jin Chen felt a little itchy from being rubbed, but didn't open his eyes. He was patted on the back and allowed to take what he wanted, which was getting a little out of control.
The kiss lasted a long time. Jin Chen fell asleep, and Gu Fanghe would occasionally lean in and kiss her.
Until it was broad daylight outside the window.
