This sentence, hailed as a typical example of psychological abuse in the world of web novels, packed a considerable punch, causing Liu Jiangfusheng to freeze for a moment, the light in his eyes shattering.
He spoke in a low voice, "Is this how you see me? As someone unreasonable?"
After a pause, Gu Junshi retorted, "Then tell me, how do you want me to see you?"
Liu Jiangfusheng raised his arm, pointing directly at Li Sheng. His expression was devoid of emotion, a smile on his lips that carried a sharp edge. "Who is he to you? That you would criticize me like this for him? What am I to you?"
Gu Junshi’s expression turned cold. "Don't forget your identity. You are merely my... ex-husband."
With the conversation having reached this point, it was evident without further preamble that the conflict would escalate to a higher level.
He dejectedly lowered his arm, his gaze falling, as if his heart had died. He gave a dismissive laugh, "Yes, in your heart, I am nothing more than a past you discarded. Then why do you still keep me imprisoned here? What is it you want?"
Although, but in this situation, it was not appropriate to interject a side note, Gu Junshi couldn't help but silently wonder if he had been driven mad by the abuse.
Didn't she say it from the beginning? She wanted him to tell her the truth about being inexplicably imprisoned for seven days seven years ago, how she ultimately had her abdomen cut open and her child removed, and whether her child had survived.
"What I want, don't you know?" She played her suppressed anger and the coldness in her eyes to perfection.
Liu Jiangfusheng looked at her for a moment, then shifted his gaze away, continuing, "The grievances between us have entangled for so long, it's impossible to tell anymore. Please, let me go."
With his ethereal and sorrowful demeanor, if he hadn't been locked in a cage, he would have probably climbed onto a high platform, his robes billowing in the wind, exuding an air of having given up everything, ready to ascend to the heavens.
Compared to his genuine emotions, Gu Junshi felt a little exaggerated. Since he wouldn't look at her, she was determined to see him clearly.
She laughed in her anger, "If I let you go, who will let me go?"
A strange tension arose between them, as if each held a stack of scripts, their words perfectly fitting and flowing into one another.
Xiao Sijun’s heart leaped into his throat. He nervously looked at his arguing mother and father. Although he didn't understand their shallow dialogue, he knew that his father was in his mother's hands and would undoubtedly be tormented.
And at this moment, it was time for the most classic scene in the abuse genre.
"Don't force me to hate you!" Liu Jiangfusheng slammed his hand onto the cage. His fair, thin hand swelled, veins bulging, his fingertips pressing hard.
Gu Junshi released Li Sheng. She covered the hand gripping the cage with her own. Her deep, tranquil eyes met his resentful gaze, and she casually replied, "I want you to hate me. That way, you will never forget me."
Liu Jiangfusheng's breath hitched.
Logically, at this moment, he should have appeared deathly pale, his face drained of color. After all, her words in this context were certainly not sweet nothings, but a desperate, self-destructive threat.
However, he tried very, very hard... but still couldn't help but blush.
Because his skin was so fair, that shade of pale turned to a rosy hue. He took a deep breath to calm himself, trying to conceal his panic and shameful awkwardness.
"You... cough... you wish!"
Is that weak, chiding tone for real?
Gu Junshi: "..." She composed herself and released his hand. Seeing his fingers seem to extend forward slightly, she quickly hid her hands behind her sleeves and continued coldly, "Don't even think about escaping. If you dare to escape, I will break your legs and imprison you by my side for all eternity."
After speaking, she took Xiao Sijun’s hand and, along with Li Sheng, walked away.
Gu Junshi had also binge-read some older novels. Characters like Liu Jiangfusheng, who were the suffering "heroines," usually only offered a few explanations at the very end.
Gu Junshi believed that since he was unwilling to follow the sweet, innocent, and pampered route, she could only choose the path of intense, tragic love offered by Li Sheng.
Earlier, she had been troubled about how to continue her cultivation of the "path of love." Now, she no longer had to worry.
Although she truly didn't understand, could this kind of trope really end perfectly in the end?
Would anyone really abuse someone they liked to the point of despair at the slightest disagreement?
After inflicting unbearable emotional and physical torment on someone, would that person then fall deeply in love with their tormentor?
Things like broken legs, jumping off cliffs, family annihilation, digging out heart blood...
And then, after enduring all these events, the one being tormented would still half-heartedly forgive the other when forcefully taken?
Yes, there were quite a few such types in storybooks, and they were widely popular, enjoyed by both men and women.
Therefore, Gu Junshi deduced that perhaps the intense love in storybooks wasn't unreasonable; it was just that she didn't understand it.
However, after repeated study, she summarized some superficial insights.
There was a technique of suppressing first and then exalting.
Perhaps it was to make the sweetness even more intense by preceding it with bitterness.
Or perhaps the other party had a touch of Stockholm Syndrome?
No, she couldn't use such prejudice and narrow-mindedness to understand this perverse behavior of "if I love you, I must first torment you to death." Since it had become the most popular romance reading material in storybooks today, it must have its merits.
So, where should she start?
Or, perhaps, go through them all in order?
Broken legs?
Pretend to let him escape, and then capture him when he thought he was free, break his legs, and imprison him again?
Or force him to jump off a cliff?
This was still during his captivity, so this could be reserved for later.
Family annihilation?
This was too troublesome and difficult to execute. His clan possessed divine bloodlines, making them hard to exterminate.
Misunderstandings?
With Li Sheng as a natural catalyst, there was no need to worry about a lack of misunderstandings between them.
Substitute?
A substitute, meaning finding someone who resembled him to replace him and provoke him. Compared to Li Sheng's innocent, pure, and delicate appearance, the gap with the world-renowned Liu Jiangfusheng was considerable. However, that young man named "Hua Jie" might be suitable...
Digging out heart blood?
In this day and age, would anyone really believe that consuming someone else's heart blood could achieve the miraculous effect of bringing the dead back to life? However... the world of tragic love stories never made sense, lacked logic, and defied science. So... she should still find an opportunity to dig it out.
Anyway, with his current cultivation level, digging out some heart blood wouldn't cause significant harm. At most, the reason for needing the blood would be a bit far-fetched.
Halfway through, Xiao Sijun went off to play, leaving Gu Junshi and Li Sheng walking in silence.
Gu Junshi appeared calm, but her mind was calculating, enough content from the criminal code to fill half of it if this were a society governed by law.
"Jun Jun, I think brother seems truly heartbroken now," Li Sheng said suddenly, looking at her with a troubled expression.