I will wait for you

Chapter 3 ; Niè Huáisāng

It is not the violence with which Jiāng Chéng repels him that gives him the impression of a slap, but his words. This brings him back to reality. Huáisāng takes a step back and remains dumbfounded for long seconds. Jiāng Chéng's last sentence loops in his head. More than being called insane, it is the mention of his brother that gives him feelings of shame and guilt. The loss of a loved one doesn't excuse what you've become. Deep down, he knows that Jiāng Cheng is right, but his words touch him more than he would like to admit. Niè Huáisāng knows that his brother would turn in his grave - if he were there - by seeing him act with so much deviousness, for him whom the word justice has a clear importance. For Niè Míngjué, everything was black or white. By this definition, her younger brother is wrong, wrong. He would not be wrong to think so, after all. To get to the end of his plan, Huáisāng must do bad things. But nothing will stop him. He is even ready to reincarnate in the skin of a demon if it allows him to go to the end of his revenge, even if it means getting lost in the darkness and dirtying the name of the Niè... This is already the case, since the clan is in decline. Again, it is not certain that his brother would forgive him. No matter, he does not seek forgiveness, he does not seek happiness. Huáisāng must keep this role. He knows what he is doing and, above all, he is the only one who knows the truth. If he showed any sign of doubt, his days would be numbered.

I wanted to protect you for a lifetime. This is what Niè Míngjué told him some time before dying, aware of his own death caused by his failing Qi. They were all unaware at the time that this deviation was not natural. No... Niè Míngjué would have understood his reasons, right? No. Of course not. He could not tolerate it.

It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter ! He has to do everything he can to stay alive and avenge him. What does it matter to him, what his Da-Ge would have thought? What does it matter to him that Jiang Cheng thinks he's crazy? They know nothing. He told him, right? Half drowned in alcohol ... You're blind Jiāng-Xióng! Oh, it's so easy to be quick at judgment. But in the meantime, what other option does he have? No one would believe him. Jīn Guāngyáo is the Chief Cultivator. The kind and discreet clan leader who does everything well, who organizes everything with care. The one who devoted himself to raising Jīn Líng with Jiāng Chéng, the only inheritance of a broken family. Whose fault? And it would be him the fool? Oh Jiāng Chéng ... If you knew who you trusted ... If you knew who you trusted with what is most precious to you ... How could Huáisāng tell him? He has no political weight, would have died the next day... Everyone would say that he is going mad with grief because of the loss of his elder brother. No, Huáisāng has no credibility... Not even to those who once were his loved ones. The only possibility is to let Wèi Wúxiàn discover little by little the truth about all these events. He must go to the end.

Alcohol made him very nostalgic and childish with Jiāng Chéng, he had the impression of finding his old friend, that the tragic events had not taken place. If his heart was relieved for a few minutes, Jiāng Chéng quickly reminded him that their friendship is broken, torn for a long time by life. Their proximity is not appropriate and the nicknames he gives him even less. Huáisāng did not want to hurt him. He is really sorry. Maybe he deserved these last words, but coming from him, who had once been a friend, it hurts him.

Slowly, as if each step is an immeasurable effort, Niè Huáisāng leaves the pavilion, with the intention of going for a walk in the gardens. He walks near the reception hall, close enough to hear Jīn Guāngyáo's speech. Elegant, he articulates each word with clarity.

"Welcome to the Golden Carp Tower. I am pleased to receive you in these times of prosperous peace. But, as many of you have testified, peace is not the same for all, and the present leader of the Niè clan still suffers terribly from the loss of the one we all regret: Chìfēng-zūn. The brutal and violent circumstances of his death left his younger brother traumatized. As you may have noted, and because there is no point in hiding the truth: it is not uncommon for him to drown his grief in alcohol at festive evenings like this. It is in excess that he tries to regain the upper hand and I humbly beg you not to blame him, to find in you the goodness to forgive his impulsive and still young actions, despite the past years."