Ten years ago, Lu Yuwei took an incurable Gu poison meant for me, leaving her on the brink of death. Moved by this girl’s unwavering devotion, I used a forbidden art to plant a life-and-heart-sharing Gu in us, giving her half my life so we could live on together. From that moment on, she felt my pain and shared my joy. Through our bond, I raised her to become one of the capital’s rising elite. But I never imagined that, in the name of freedom, she would accuse me of using a vile Gu to force her into a bond. Bai Zimo drew her into his arms and murmured, “Yuwei, only after the Gu is removed can you truly be yourself.” She believed him and handed me what she claimed was a potion that could break the bond. “Drink this. I don’t want to be your puppet anymore.” I coolly drew a dagger and pointed it at my own heart, then drove it in with enough force to reach the bone. Blood instantly welled from Lu Yuwei’s chest. As she stared at me in horror, I drank the Gu-breaking potion, though it was laced with poison. “Have you forgotten, President Lu? Our lives are bound together. We’ll stay that way until death.”
