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Ruyi Cosmetic Shop
As Yun Sheng placed a hand on her face, Hui Niang instinctively closed her eyes. However, all she heard was Yun Sheng's mocking cold laugh. When she opened her eyes, she still saw the same face that looked just like Yun Sheng.
Hui Niang let out a light breath. Perhaps she truly was not afraid of death, but not fearing death did not mean she would not feel fear.
Xing Ruyi also exhaled lightly, feeling a bit disappointed. She had expected to see a terrifying broken face like that body, but after the tension, nothing happened.
"Isn't that person Yun Sheng?"
Xing Ruyi nudged the fox with her shoulder and asked. The fox remained silent, only signaling for Xing Ruyi to continue observing.
After that cold laugh, Yun Sheng quickly approached Hui Niang. "What's wrong? Are you scared? Didn't you want to see my face? If you want to see it, why close your eyes? What are you afraid of? Are you afraid of seeing a terrifying ghost face, or are you afraid that when I peel off this skin, the face underneath will still look just like your Yun Sheng?"
Hui Niang held her breath tightly, unsure how to respond.
Yun Sheng stared into her eyes for a moment before angrily stepping back a few paces and looking at the Ghost Screen. "After the year of Apricot Blossom Rain, we first met. Your eyes were just as panicked as they are today, making one feel pity. It's a pity that while I recognize you, you only recognize this facade."
Hui Niang suddenly raised her head and looked at Yun Sheng's back. "What are you talking about? After Apricot Blossom Rain, the person I met was clearly my Husband, and you merely borrowed his identity and his face."
"You're right; I borrowed his identity, but he used this face to take you away from me." Yun Sheng turned back, rage evident on his face. "Are we monsters? But do you know who turned me into a monster? It was Yun Sheng, that so-called Husband of yours. Do you even know who I am? I am also called Yun Sheng, but my name has an extra bamboo radical, and I am his twin brother."
A shock ran through Hui Niang, and she shook her head as she stepped back two paces. "No! Husband doesn't have a brother. The In-laws never mentioned they had another Son."
"Of course they wouldn't mention me because in their hearts, I am also a monster!" Yun Sheng said with a face full of desolation. "Even my name can only be similar to his. In that family, I am both a taboo and a shadow."
Yun Sheng looked deeply at Hui Niang, resentment still in his eyes but mixed with mockery and desolation.
"I am the same Son as you, born from the same parents after Ten Months of pregnancy. Just because I was born a little later, I was deemed a monster. So, I could only be secretly hidden away, abandoned, and even thrown into a cave as bait to lure snakes during times of famine. Yet, I have never complained about anything. I know that it is not my parents who harmed me, but this world and the ignorant beliefs surrounding twins. I live cautiously, wanting to prove to the world that being a twin is not something terrifying; even if we look identical, we will not bring misfortune or disaster to this world. However, I never expected to meet you."
"Me?"
Hui Niang felt increasingly uneasy. She had thought she remembered everything, that all the truths were laid bare before her, and all she had to do was expose this person's true nature and take revenge. But now, it seemed everything had changed; she did not know what this person represented or if there was another truth behind him.
"Do you remember this?"
Yun Sheng reached into his sleeve and pulled out an exquisite object. It was a Jade-made Screen Divider, intricately carved.
"How could this Jade Wind Screen be in your hands? Husband said he lost it!"
"This is our token of love; how could I carelessly throw it away? As for Yun Sheng, he certainly did not lose it because the person who wanted to marry you from the very beginning was never him. He has never seen this Jade Wind Screen and does not know where it came from. So when you asked him about it, his expression must have been quite strange, right?"
Hui Niang looked at him in panic, her right hand tightly gripping the curtain by the bed while her left hand did not know where to place itself.
Yes, she remembered. On her wedding night, when the red veil was lifted, she felt shy and did not know where to look, so she glanced around the room aimlessly. Now she understood that at that moment she was searching for the Jade Wind Screen. Unfortunately, after searching everywhere, she could not find it. Later on, she had seemingly casually asked Husband about it; he had paused for a moment but quickly expressed regret that he had lost that Jade Wind Screen. She wanted to ask more questions but seeing Husband's demeanor, which suggested he did not want to discuss it further, she buried the matter in her heart. But now, this Jade Wind Screen appeared in "his" hands, and Hui Niang's heart became chaotic.
That year, she was only fourteen. After enduring her father's scolding and retorting back a couple of times, her mother also faced punishment because of her. She resented her father and felt guilty for dragging her mother into it; thus, with wounds all over her body and disregarding the drizzling rain outside, she ran away from home. Overwhelmed with sadness, she kept her head down while running in the rain until she bumped into Yun Sheng.
Yun Sheng, holding an umbrella and dressed in a blue outfit with his eyes downcast, suddenly lifted his gaze when she collided with him. Their eyes met, and her heart raced wildly—not out of love at first sight but out of fear that he would scold or curse her for her clumsiness. But Yun Sheng did not; he merely blushed slightly before standing still for a moment to think before reaching out to help her up. In that instant of rising, an old ailment flared up.
That brief moment was one of the few warm times in her life. Despite the drizzling rain, this stranger took care of her attentively. He spoke little, and she did not dare to speak either; they stood together under an eave where they could avoid the rain—she quietly observed him while he discreetly assessed her.
When parting ways, Yun Sheng gave her his umbrella while she simply remembered his face.
Once again, they met on a certain evening six months later. Amidst the bustling crowd of Yun Family Village, he and she unexpectedly encountered each other. Their eyes met, and she instinctively wanted to look away, but her peripheral vision caught his smile. Whether it was the old master's deliberate arrangement or not, a sudden gust of wind arose, followed by rain. She followed his footsteps into a small shop tucked away in a corner. The shop sold items that young women liked. To avoid his gaze, she casually lingered among the rouge and face powder, as well as the velvet flower hairpins, but her attention was drawn to a jade screen.
The shopkeeper informed them that this jade was not of good quality due to its many impurities. It was unsuitable for making jade ornaments or bracelets, and even for crafting a pair of earrings, it would be difficult to select. However, if it were discarded, the jade craftsman would feel it was a waste. He happened to see the screen in a girl's room and decided to create one based on that design. Unfortunately, such items were rare in the market and thus did not attract much attention; it had been sitting in his shop for quite some time. If they liked it, he would sell it to them.
In the end, Yun Sheng bought the jade screen as a gift for Hui Niang. Although Hui Niang liked it in her heart, she felt uncomfortable accepting a gift from a stranger and politely declined.
As they parted ways, Yun Sheng asked Hui Niang if she would accept the jade screen as a betrothal gift. Hui Niang blushed and did not want to answer, but her chin involuntarily nodded.
Yun Sheng smiled as he carefully put away the jade screen and handed back the umbrella that Hui Niang had intended to return to him. He promised that within a month at most, he would have his parents visit Hui Niang's family to propose.
Hui Niang did not know why she believed him! Upon returning home, she began to wait patiently. Yet a month passed, then two months, and then a year… She never received any news from Yun Sheng. Just when she began to despair and thought his words were nothing more than frivolous talk, Yun Sheng arrived with his parents to propose marriage. That year, she turned seventeen. If it weren't for her old illness, her parents would have long since promised her to someone else. Nevertheless, she ultimately became Yun Sheng's wife, and he became her husband.
Hui Niang had her doubts about her husband. On the day of their proposal, Yun Sheng's unfamiliar gaze made her feel as if they did not truly know each other. However, she was no longer that fourteen-year-old girl; he had also become more taciturn over time, so she attributed these changes to their growth. Moreover, there was Yun Sheng's character. The Yun Sheng she knew was not very talkative but loved to laugh; especially when he smiled, it seemed like he held a sun in his eyes. Yet after their marriage, although he remained quiet, he no longer laughed.
The more Hui Niang thought back on these memories, the more uneasy she felt. Looking at the face before her that resembled Yun Sheng's so closely only filled her heart with growing fear. It seemed as if there had always been two Yun Shengs surrounding her over the years.
She recalled their wedding day—the silent yet ravenous Yun Sheng who showed no mercy towards her on their wedding night—and remembered how on the second day after their marriage, she dragged her sore body out of bed while he stood outside the door with concern etched on his face but unsure of what to say; he simply handed her a bottle of ointment. Then there was the Yun Sheng who remained indifferent upon learning of her pregnancy but held her tightly in silence after she lost the child, his face filled with pain and guilt…
All these past events surfaced vividly in Hui Niang's mind; two identical faces intertwined in her thoughts until they caused her unbearable headaches and left her gasping for breath.
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