The night sky was pitch black, but the opera house was brightly lit, like a bonfire under the sky. Laughter filled the air, and the opera singers on stage spoke with great enthusiasm.

Zhong Yingru's gaze immediately returned to Li Changzhou.

She had been having affairs with him several times and knew him fairly well physically, but today was the first time she noticed a hint of mockery in his smile.

It's like treating characters on a stage—on stage, even the emperor himself is a big shot, but the common people in the audience dare to point fingers and criticize without taking it to heart.

Is this how he looks when dealing with strangers?

"To force someone to do something they can't?" The tall, thin middle-aged man repeated the phrase, giving a cold laugh.

He lifted his long robe and sat down on the stool.

"Second Master Li," the tall, thin middle-aged man said, his tone full of sarcasm and mockery, "that living in this world is just God forcing people to do things against their will. How hard is it to live? You're not young anymore, don't you understand this simple truth?"

Zhong Yingru frowned her delicate eyebrows and turned her gaze to the middle-aged man.

"No matter who's behind you, how dare you speak to Second Master like that?"

Now the entire Xia Kingdom is controlled by the Li, Song and Zhao families. Li Changzhou is the second young master of the Li family. Apart from a few people, who dares to give him a hard time?

If it weren't for Commander Li testing his son to decide on his successor, the assassination attempt a few days ago would have already turned Songcheng into a bloodbath, with rivers of blood flowing.

“Li Changzhou,” the middle-aged man said with a smirk, staring at Li Changzhou, “do you think I dare?”

Li Changzhou fell into deep thought, wondering what he could gain by pretending to join the other side.

If the other party tries to win you over, they won't try to win over others. This means one less enemy lurking in the shadows and one more ally. You'll also find out how they plan to deal with Marshal Li and Li Bichang.

Zhong Yingru and the middle-aged man in a long robe both looked at him. He lay on the soft couch, his elbows supporting the armrests, his five fingers facing each other in front of his chest, his eyes showing a thoughtful expression.

"Never mind," he suddenly said to the two of them.

At first, he feigned friendship with the assassin, simply because he was new to the area and wanted to see what it was like.

Now, if you make him obey the orders of an organization for a long time, and even a subordinate with some status dares to treat him like a human being, what's the point of making the mission simpler (simple doesn't mean it can be completed)?

"What do you mean, let it go?" The middle-aged man in the long robe frowned.

On the stage, deafening gongs and cymbals clashed down.

The female lead flicked her flowing sleeves, and her pearl and jade headdress shimmered with blue light.

Zhong Yingru covered her mouth, her eyes wide open. The middle-aged man in the long robe had white flames burning in his eyes, the whites of his eyes engulfing the child, his eye sockets filled with white.

He remained seated on the stool, but his entire body was stiff, giving him a deathly pale, candle-like appearance.

On stage, the martial arts performer flicked his face, revealing a ghostly mask.

"Bravo!" Cheers erupted from all sides.

The Black Reaper slowly sheathed his scythe, his figure gradually blurring into nothingness.

"Second Master!" The door was suddenly pushed open, and Liu De barged in with his men.

The Black Reaper is great in every way, except that he always brings a chilling wind when he appears, which can be used to cool off in the summer.

"Hang him at the city gate for three days." Li Changzhou pointed to the soulless middle-aged man in a long robe.

Liu De looked at the corpse and his expression changed. Tong Kong zoomed in. The corpse in front of him did not resist and had no wounds. The person died suddenly, and the manner of death was extremely strange.

"Should we send someone to keep an eye on him?" His attitude towards Li Changzhou, besides power and money, also included a hint of subservience based on strength.

"What's the point of looking at a corpse? Let whoever wants it take it. Throw it out, it's bad luck to leave it here." Li Changzhou picked up his wine and took a sip.

"Yes." Liu De turned to his men and whispered, "Take him away!"

The bodyguards stepped forward and cleanly carried the body out, leaving only Li Changzhou and Zhong Yingru in the private room.

“You’ve seen it too,” Li Changzhou put down his wine glass, “I’ve gotten into a lot of trouble lately, even my elder brother wants to kill me. Let’s not have any contact for the time being.”

He turned to look at the still-shaken Zhong Yingru: "We'll be together again once this is resolved."

Zhong Yingru lowered her hands from her chest and turned her gaze to Li Changzhou.

Her expression was complicated, as if she were meeting him for the first time.

After a long pause, she said blankly, "I thought you were just good-looking and knew how to please women."

"I admit he's good-looking, but knowing how to please women depends on the person," Li Changzhou laughed. "Sister-in-law, go home early. Be careful on the road, and it's best not to go out during this time."

Zhong Ying nodded subconsciously, and after regaining her senses, she stood up and walked outside.

"Sister-in-law."

Zhong Yingru turned around and saw Li Changzhou pointing at her soft couch, where the shawl was still lying.

She walked back as if she had lost her soul, reached for the shawl, and was about to turn around when she suddenly pounced on her.

She pressed herself against Li Changzhou, who was lying on the soft couch, her arms tightly wrapped around his neck, her delicate face pressed against his, as if trying to draw warmth from him.

The two were as close as spoons stacked together. Li Changzhou could put his hands down and wrap them around her slender waist, and then down to her full, curvaceous hips.

“Ah Zhou,” she murmured, “I’m yours for life. If you die, I will die with you, whether I like it or not.”

She raised her head, her lips painted with rouge, exhaling warm breath. Her lips were slightly parted, and before they even touched the ground, her tongue had already darted out slightly.

Li Changzhou struck her, knocking her unconscious.

He grabbed her by the back of her cheongsam and tossed it onto the soft couch next door.

"Damn it!" he couldn't help but mutter under his breath, rubbing his chest with his hand.

If she leaves behind the scent, how could she possibly face Miss Yang? This woman is simply insane!

Li Changzhou dipped his finger into the wine glass, wanting to get some wine on himself and smell it, but then he thought better of it.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!