Chapter 666 I Dare

Even though she was already in a life-or-death situation, Shang Ruyi's face immediately darkened upon hearing Madam Jiayuan's words.

Ashina Shali was slightly taken aback, and then a sinister smile appeared on his face.

What a vicious thought!

Shang Ruyi clenched her teeth tightly—although Lady Jiayuan's idea seemed to spare her life, its true purpose was much deeper—if she were to let Ashina Shali execute her, then letting him vent his anger would confirm Ashina Zhuxie's "great achievement," but Lady Jiayuan clearly could not allow such a thing to happen.

Therefore, the credit for not killing oneself remains only in words.

Moreover, for Ashina Shali, killing himself seemed insufficient to quell the hatred that had lasted for more than a decade.

What he wanted was humiliation and revenge.

As for becoming Ashina Zhuxie's concubine, firstly, it would indeed be a way to vent one's anger, because she was not only Yuwen Ye's wife, but also Shang Ruohong's daughter. Becoming the concubine of the eldest prince of the Western Turks would be a great insult, not only to herself, but also to the living Yuwen Ye, and to the dead Shang Ruohong, who would not be able to rest in peace in the afterlife.

Besides, only by staying alive can one endure more torment.

More importantly, she was the daughter of the person Ashina Shali hated most. Lady Jiayuan suggested that she become Ashina Zhuxie's concubine. Over time, it was inevitable that Ashina Shali would extend this hatred to the people around him.

This can be considered killing three birds with one stone.

For him, if this were to come true, his reputation, his honor, everything would be ruined!

This even caused the newly established Great Sheng Dynasty to lose face, because she was the Princess Consort of Qin. Regardless of her relationship with Yuwen Ye, her status was extraordinary. If people knew that the Western Turks had not only captured the Princess Consort of Qin but also made her their concubine, the people of the Great Sheng Dynasty would probably not be able to accept it.

Upon thinking this, Shang Ruyi immediately raised her head: "I won't accept it!"

"I'm sorry, I cannot comply!"

Almost simultaneously, two voices rang out.

Shang Ruyi's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately turned to look at the person beside her. She saw that the tall Prince Zhu Xie had his back to the campfire, and his face was covered with a large shadow, which made his expression look even more gloomy, and even a bit sinister.

Upon hearing the words spoken at the same time, he turned his head and glanced at Shang Ruyi.

The two remain enemies to this day, after all, he was the one who captured him and brought him all the way from Qixian to the Western Turks. But in that one glance, they both had a silent understanding.

However, Lady Jiayuan's smile deepened, and she whispered in Ashina Shali's ear, "Khan, look, the eldest prince and this woman seem to have quite a tacit understanding."

"..."

Ashina Shali frowned as he looked at them and said, "Zhu Xie, why don't you accept?"

He didn't even ask Shang Ruyi.

After all, in his eyes, Shang Ruyi was like meat already on the chopping board, with no room for refusal; on the contrary, Ashina Zhuxie's "I'm sorry I can't comply" indicated a sense of resistance, which made him feel a little displeased.

Ashina Zhuxie said in a deep voice, "Father Khan, I do not need concubines."

"..."

"I don't need this woman to be my concubine."

Ashina Shali said, "I've told you before, your younger brother is already married, so you should find a woman by your side soon, even if it's just—"

As he spoke, he glanced coldly at Shang Ruyi with his remaining eye and said, "Want me to warm your feet tonight?"

Shang Ruyi's expression darkened even more.

Ashina Zhuxie, however, calmed down. He took a deep breath, stepped forward, and said, "Father Khan, I do need to find a woman, but I don't want this one."

Ashina Shali's face darkened, and he said, "If you don't want her, she will only die."

At this point, he looked at Shang Ruyi again, his gaze as cold as if he were looking at a piece of meat on a chopping board, and said, "Well, do you want to die? If you don't want to die, then you'd better beg my son to take you in as his concubine."

"..."

Shang Ruyi didn't speak immediately, but just looked at him quietly.

At this moment, everyone on the grassland fell silent. Everyone seemed to understand that she only had one way to live. Now, it was up to her to give up her dignity to seek a chance to live, or to die for her and her father's dignity.

After an unknown amount of time, Shang Ruyi's calm voice rang out—

"Would it be enough if I begged him?"

"..."

"It turns out that on the grassland, you can get what you want simply by asking for it."

"..."

"I thought you got everything through your abilities."

"..."

“If that’s the case, then it’s no wonder that my father was able to do what he wanted to do more than a decade ago.”

These words, like a gust of cold wind carrying a knife, suddenly pierced Ashina Shali's body, shocking everyone around. They were both surprised and angry, and for a moment they forgot to react.

Even Lei Yu was so frightened that he held his breath.

When Shang Ruyi said such a thing at this time, wasn't she afraid that Ashina Shali would chop her into mincemeat?

Sure enough, the next moment, Ashina Shali slowly stood up, supporting himself on the edge of the table. Although he was a bit old, he was still very strong. He only had one eye, but it looked increasingly sinister and bloodthirsty. He walked up to Shang Ruyi, his sharp gaze almost piercing through the body of the seemingly slender and weak woman in front of him, and said, "You, say it again!"

"..."

At this moment, Shang Ruyi's heart was pounding like thunder.

But her face remained completely expressionless. Instead, when she looked into that blood-red eye, she became even calmer and colder, and said coldly, "I say, the Turks have no strength."

"..."

"Of course, you don't need to use your strength to deal with a woman like me."

"..."

Therefore, I do not ask for anything.

"..."

Ashina Shali glared at her fiercely, his hands clenched into fists, his knuckles cracking. He suddenly gritted his teeth and said, "Whether we Turks have strength or not, you'll find out by trying."

"..."

"But what do you have that we can compare to?"

Shang Ruyi's heart skipped a beat again, but this time, it felt like she was walking on the edge of a cliff, almost taking a wrong step, but barely managing to steady herself. Despite the shock and danger, she still controlled herself and did not show any fear or excitement, and calmly said, "I know that the Turks are the best at riding and archery."

Ashina Shali suddenly sneered: "You dare to compete with us in horsemanship and archery?"

Shang Ruyi said, "I dare."

"..."

"But I don't know, Khan—whether he will or not."