The conclusion! Hoju’s promise is always a happy ending, remember? Only one more update, the epilogue, to follow.

Cheng Muyun had resigned himself to loneliness, but perhaps Wen Han truly was sent to him by Heaven, for never again will either of them be alone.

This story was translated with the expression permission of the author for?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. All forms of reproduction, redistribution, or reposting are not authorized, except by linking to?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com.?If you are not reading this from?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the copy is unauthorized and has been taken without consent of the translator.

China. Yes, in China.

They were both in China.<>Please support this translation at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

Cheng Muyun switched to another sitting posture, setting his arms on his knees and leaning forward slightly. In Russian, he uttered softly, "Fu Yiming.. is such a 'woman' who must get even for even the pettiest of things."

The mole had been dealt with.<>This UNAUTHORIZED copy was taken from?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

But what was to follow would be even greater retaliation and retribution. How could the fight between the Moscow operations team and the trafficking organization come so easily to a conclusion? Perhaps, it would take several generations of people. Cheng Muyun had exhausted all methods so that she, as Cheng Muyun's woman, could pass through layer after layer of tests and safely continue living in Moscow. Just how much effort had he put in? He had even abandoned everything and faked his own death to slip away, all so that she could live like a normal person, so that she could survive and continue living..

He had deceived everyone and escaped unnoticed, like a golden cicada shedding its molted skin[1]. But in the end, Fu Yiming had forced his will and sent Wen Han here to where he was.

Thrusting the one woman in this entire world whom he, Cheng Muyun, loved into the maelstrom of danger once more.

....<>Please support the original translation of this story at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

The ants continued to come together in large numbers to pick up a dead cicada and transport it away.

It was as if they were mocking him that his "golden cicada shedding its skin" strategy had failed.

Those two middle-aged men dressed in white tank tops were already in a stunned state from the Russian that had suddenly come from Cheng Muyun's lips and had forgotten about all the village gossip from a moment ago.

Amidst the intermittent chirping of cicadas, Cheng Muyun at last lowered his head and smilingly shook it. "Two sirs, may I ask that you please leave first? My wife and I need to resolve some personal matters."

After an awkward silence, the two men gave embarrassed laughs. First one of the, then the other put their palms together and departed from this place with floundering steps.<>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express?permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

The sweltering sun still baked down, creating in people a feeling of restlessness.

Walking up to him, Wen Han took a look around, selected the cleanest spot, and sat down. Her feet were already so sore they were numb. She had actually worn high heels and walked more than fifty minutes on these mountain paths. Luckily, this place was merely isolated and not located on some sort of sheer cliff or steep slope; otherwise, in order to see him, she likely would have needed to spend another day finding a local to help her.

There was sweat on the tip of her nose and also her forehead.

Those calmly spoken words a moment ago had been rehearsed over and over countless times. But now, there was not a single person in this little temple, only him and her..

Only him and her.<>This is an UNAUTHORIZED copy, taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

The dream that she had had an uncountable number of times over this last half a year had become reality.

Wen Han breathed lightly. The composure that she had forced herself to maintain in front of other people all vanished without a trace. Her nose tingled. Her throat was tight and dry. Even the tips of her fingers had a slight tremble in them that she could not control..

For the first time since sitting down, she finally had the courage to lift her eyes and look into those deep black eyes that had been gazing at her the entire time. "I told my mom, I've fallen in love with a man. He once did a great deed for Russia, but also because of this, he got on the bad side of many people and had no choice but to leave his homeland. I want to use all of my remaining life to be with him and may not have the chance to return to Moscow anymore. She told me, if I believe that is the best thing to do, then go do it. She can’t accompany me for my entire life. She adopted me because she wanted me to have the happiest life possible."

Cheng Muyun placed his palm against the back of her head, feeling that warmth that belonged to her.

Heaven knew that he had wanted to do this all along since that elephant stampede. Every time he imagined her weeping because of his death, he would want to take her away.

He suddenly remembered what Meng Liangchuan had said in Nepal: "Fate is when 'one gives a kowtow.' When you finally realize you cannot fight it, you naturally will.. willingly bow in submission to it and completely believe in it."

At the time, he had not really believed this type of talk.<>Please read this at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

That was because, that morning, everything had still been in his control. Zhou Ke had still been sitting in the lobby of that lodging house, pretending to be dozing, his pulse still jumping rhythmically—still alive.

Now, though, he did seem to believe it somewhat.<>Please read this at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

"My love, you should know that," Cheng Muyun said to her, his unique, dangerous smile that was innate to him seeming to jump in his eyes, "my return here signifies that I am letting go of my past. You should know that if you really do leave with me this time, there is a chance.."—he leaned in closer—".. a chance that you truly will not be able to go back to Moscow again in this lifetime."

This was her last chance.<>Please support this?translation at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

She could still go back on her decision.<>Please support this?translation at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

"Fu Yiming promised me he would take care of my adoptive parents. Also, all that money that you left me, I only took a small bit of it. The rest I left for my mom. Also, I was thinking,"—her eyelashes fluttered slightly—"maybe, many years from now, we can mail a photo back. On it will be our children. See? Maybe Fu Yiming is more capable than you and is able to tear that whole trafficking organization up by the roots and destroy it, and then we can go back, right?"

This place was extremely quiet. There was not even a breeze.<>Please read this at?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

"Just look, you're thirty-five already." Wen Han muttered quietly in Russian, "If you keep wavering about this, we won't be able to have a lot of kids."

As a result of this sentence, there was a slight flicker in Cheng Muyun's eyes.

All things of the past are gone as yesterday; all things of the future are born today.

That was his greatest wish.<>This UNAUTHORIZED copy was taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

Although he knew that worldly things and thoughts plagued him and he would not be able to enter into monkhood again, this place of morning bells and evening drums and oil lamps burning before Buddha's statue was the best place for him to be. But more often than not, fate will play a joke on you. Such as right now.

Not only had the one who was of the world remained in the world, love had also followed.

After an endless silence, he tugged up her too-low neckline. "As you wish."

Tossing out a "Wait a moment," he rose and went back into that small brick house behind the temple's great hall. Before long, he came back out wearing once again the hiking wear from before. When he stepped out, he wordlessly gave a rub of his bald head with his right hand, then immediately pulled on his hood.

From age fifteen, he had kept the precepts in order to bring peace to his heart.

That same year, that girl, who right now was standing a dozen or so paces away on the concrete platform, had come into this world. He was not certain—to date, he still was not certain—whether or not Wen Han had been placed into the world as a reward to him from Heaven.

Pure. Strong and tenacious. Intelligent. A woman who, in any situation, could very quickly find the direction of her heart.

No. She was actually still young. She should still be called a girl.<>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express?permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

He hesitated no more and took her with him, leaving this temple that had long been without monks. The temple doors were open, and they left directly.

The instant they stepped beyond the last brick outside the doors, he took the girl behind him by the waist and straightaway picked her up into his arms. Wen Han let out a startled cry. He had lifted her very high, and facing the sun, she was unable to open her eyes.

This was the first time he held her so high. He lifted his head, lifted it to gaze up at her.<>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express?permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

When he set her down again, he immediately stretched out his hand and let it slide from her shoulder into her top. At the same time that his hand contacted the front of her bosom, he also bit down on her lip, using sucking and the force of his teeth to compel her to open her mouth. Her feet stumbling, Wen Han's back crashed into the red, brick wall..

This sudden physical intimacy ignited all the blood in her body..

And her tears. They simply would not stop. Desperately, they streamed down, as if they needed to completely pour out these last six months of sorrows and suffering. Right here, in the sun, all her tears flowed out.

"Darling," Cheng Muyun, his voice by her neck, quietly confirmed with her in Russian, "what did you just say just earlier? You want to have a child with me?"

Without waiting for her mouth to open in answer, he sealed it again with his own.

As Cheng Muyun thrust his fingers into her hair, he pushed aside that sun hat so that it fell to the ground, causing those long, black tresses, which had originally been neatly bound, to fall open and become exposed beneath the intense sunlight. His eyes squinted, unable to open because of the brilliance of the light reflecting off of her locks.

Wen Han's eyes had long since grown red, and again and again, she called his name. "You really are leaving with me, right? You won't fake your death again, right?"

"I will not." He brought his face down, kissing her chest. "I will not."

He would no longer allow any man to see her body or her eyes, to sense her blazing and genuine soul. "We must hurry off this mountain as soon as possible and find a place to spend the night. I believe my words cannot be more clear and understandable, yes?"

Over these many days, she had found her way here to this remote mountain village. She had previously had many instances of apprehension, fearful that he would be unwilling to see her, fearful that he would refuse to leave with her, and even fearful that he had also tricked Fu Yiming and was actually not even in this place.. But all these fears, in this moment, were crushed amid his every word. Her feigned composure, her fluster, her hopes, all of these were, right here, outside the walls of this temple that he had hidden himself away in for ten years, one by one smoothed over.

"I love you, Wen Han." Cheng Muyun did not try to hide this at all. He had never been someone to conceal his feelings, be it his desire for her in the very beginning or his love later. After all, no matter what they were, all those things that he could not control and had to do with love were somehow connected to this woman. "Regardless of whether it was as a punishment or redemption, Heaven sent you to my side. Only you can make me feel lust and desire that cannot stop, and also jealousy that I do not know what to do about. And also, love. I love you. I have loved you all this time. Wen Han, all this time, I have still deeply loved you.."<>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express?permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

Wen Han could not open her eyes, for they were blinded by the sun. And her tears.

This man had finally wholly, completely surrendered all of himself. From this day forward, in everything, whether it was wandering from place to place, without a home, or being on the run as fugitives, he would no longer be leaving alone. And she would no longer be living her life alone.

Never again.<>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express?permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

[1]?金蝉脱壳 "jin chan tuo qiao." Literally, this translates as "a golden cicada leaving behind its molted skin." This is one of the Thirty-Six Stratagems and is where one escapes something by strategy, usually by disguise or leaving something distinctive of yours behind to deceive people.<>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express?permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

This story was translated with the expression permission of the author for?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. All forms of reproduction, redistribution, or reposting are not authorized, except by linking to?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com.?If you are not reading this from?hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the copy is unauthorized and has been taken without consent of the translator.

Completed: 1 of 1 Prologue 50 of 50 Chapter segments 0 of 1 Epilogue