Chapter 103 Do you like it?
Achan stood outside the door. It was already 7 PM, and the light and shadows on the horizon had been swallowed up by the night.
The evening breeze carried a slight chill, but she only waited outside for a short while and hadn't felt cold yet when the door behind her opened.
Bai Xiuming came out, having changed into a black cross-collar narrow-sleeved robe. His long hair was tied back, with a few strands falling in front, giving him a casual look.
Achan first peeked into the house. Candles were lit inside, and all the things inside had been taken away. However, there were several boxes on the table. She wondered what was inside.
She shifted her gaze back to Bai Xiuming and asked him, "Are you leaving?"
"Hmm." Bai Xiuming stood in front of her and responded softly.
Achan understood that after the Xuan Shui snake venom was neutralized, the remaining injuries were minor to Bai Xiuming and would not delay his next task.
The Mingjing Division took action against the Shen family today. This family has been able to prosper in Xiling for so long, so they must have a close relationship with the Xiling Royal Palace. It may not be enough to just deal with them; the next target will be the Xiling Royal Palace.
This kind of thing should be resolved as soon as possible; it can't be delayed. Bai Xiuming's eagerness to detoxify must also stem from this thought.
Although he only uttered a few words, Achan could tell that there was probably the fate of the Queen Consort of Xiling between him and the King of Xiling. She wondered what he would do next.
As her thoughts gradually returned to normal, Achan couldn't help but remind her, "Be careful, don't get hurt again. If there's a next time, I might not be able to help you."
Bai Xiuming smiled, but still replied seriously, "Okay, I understand."
His expression was so serious that it seemed more like a promise.
"Then you can go." As soon as she finished speaking, Ah Chan suddenly realized something was wrong and quickly added, "Hey, wait a minute."
Bai Xiuming looked at her, waiting for her to continue.
Achan stretched her hand out in front of him, her fingertips touching his chest: "What about my benefits?"
What do you want?
Achan withdrew her hand and took two steps back, looking the man in front of her up and down, her gaze inadvertently falling on his hand.
Bai Xiuming seemed to sense something. He glanced down at it, then raised his right hand: "You like this?"
He was referring to the black ring he wore on the index finger of his right hand.
Achan really liked it, after all, a dragon soul was sealed there.
However, she was still quite self-aware; the help she gave Bai Xiuming today wouldn't earn her a dragon soul. Moreover, Bai Xiuming had saved her life more than once; if she were to be honest, she owed him a debt of gratitude.
Although she never verbally defered to Bai Xiuming, she had her own assessment of everything that had happened.
"Do you like it?" Bai Xiuming asked again.
"If you like it, will you give it to me?" Achan asked with a smile.
Bai Xiuming took the ring off his hand, and A Chan's smile slowly disappeared. She looked up and stared blankly at the man in front of her.
Bai Xiuming lowered his eyes, took her left hand, and put the ring, which was a bit too big for her, on her middle finger. The ring slowly shrank until it became the perfect size for A Chan's finger.
"alright."
Achan was still staring at him, seemingly not yet recovered from her shock.
He let go of her hand, looked up and met her somewhat bewildered eyes, and said, "I'm leaving."
Achan didn't speak. She stood there, watching him open the courtyard gate, his tall figure gradually disappearing into the night.
She slowly lowered her head and looked at the black ring on the middle finger of her left hand. In that instant, her heartbeat suddenly became erratic.
She felt a little uncomfortable when a ring suddenly appeared on her finger, but... she still liked it very much.
Xiling remained quiet tonight. Bai Xiuming left early, and Hui Niang was probably with Hui Xue and the others. A Chan locked the courtyard gate and went back to her room.
Bai Xiuming had tidied her room very cleanly; he had even remade her bed and cleaned the bathtub.
Achan walked back to the table and sat down. By the dim candlelight, she opened several boxes on the table.
This contains spiritual herbs and several kinds of spiritual fruits, all of which are used to nourish the body. Without exception, they all have mild effects and are most suitable for ordinary people.
She took out a palm-sized fruit from inside, held it in her hand, and the flickering candlelight reflected in her eyes. Gradually, her eyes curved into beautiful crescents, and a smile appeared in them.
The fruit is very sweet.
After eating a nourishing spiritual fruit before bed, Achan slept soundly that night. Her hands and feet, which had been feeling cold lately due to the cooler weather, also warmed up considerably.
But some people are destined to have trouble falling asleep.
In the Xiling Prince's mansion, all the guests who had been entertained during the day had left, but the Xiling Prince was still sitting in the main hall with an extremely gloomy expression.
The dignified Princess of Xiling sat beside the King of Xiling, while Bai Yichen sat to their left. Everyone waited quietly.
After another short while, the commander of the guards finally returned.
This was the second time he had been sent out. The first time, he failed to find the person and returned to the palace, where he was angrily reprimanded by the Prince of Xiling. If it weren't for Bai Yichen's intercession, he would probably have been punished by now.
"Your Highness, the area around the Shen family is still shrouded in thick fog. My men have been searching the area for a long time, but we haven't been able to find the entrance or any trace of the Crown Prince." The guard captain swallowed hard when he saw the sinister expression on the Prince of Xiling's face, and continued, "Fortunately, I waited by the side and finally saw several people wearing the official robes of the Mingjing Bureau come out from inside."
The King of Xiling exhaled: "The Mingjing Division? You're not mistaken?"
"I am not mistaken, the leader is Shen Zhuo, the pacification commissioner of Mingjing Division who has been lingering in Yongzhou for the past six months."
Although Shen Zhuo's trip to Xiling seemed to go unnoticed by anyone, his position as the Commander of the Mingjing Division was already enough to attract attention, and the King of Xiling naturally knew of his whereabouts.
The Shen family was not careful enough and were targeted, but the King of Xiling did not take it to heart, believing that Shen Zhiheng could handle the matter well.
Unexpectedly, such an accident occurred suddenly, and it was clear that the Mingjing Division had long been eyeing the Shen family. A mere garrison commander of the third realm dared to attack his future daughter-in-law's family right in front of him, clearly showing that he, a prince, was not taken seriously.
"It's the Mingjing Division again! They have some nerve, daring to run wild on my territory!" King Xiling slammed his hand on the armrest of his chair, his eyes blazing with barely concealed rage.
Seeing this, Bai Yichen looked worried and said, "Father, if the Mingjing Division attacks the Shen family, we may not be able to openly stop them."
Although he had always lived in Xiling, his maternal grandfather was the current Minister of War, and through his correspondence with his grandfather, he learned a lot about the head of the Mingjing Division.
Even though my father is now a ruler of the Fourth Realm and can go anywhere in the world, he still has to keep a low profile in front of the King of Light.
As long as the Ming King was in Great Xia, no one from the five borders dared to enter Great Xia. What a terrifying deterrent force this was!
He had heard that his father had offended the Ming King years ago, but fortunately, he had made preparations in advance and was able to escape unscathed. Given his father's personality, he must hold a grudge against the Ming King, but now was not the time, and he did not want his father to provoke such a person again.
"I will naturally not do anything to them openly." Despite saying this, he could not hide the murderous intent in his words.
“My elder brother was originally the Commander of the Mingjing Division, so he should be acquainted with Shen Zhuo.” At this point, Bai Yichen looked at the guard captain and asked, “Commander Lin, did you see my elder brother come out with them?”
The guard captain shook his head: "I did not see the prince with them."
"That's strange," Bai Yichen murmured, then said to the King of Xiling, "Father, we can investigate my elder brother's whereabouts later. Right now, the most important thing is to find out what exactly happened to the Shen family. With Shen Zhuo's cultivation level, how could he possibly suppress the Dragon Mother?"
The King of Xiling remained noncommittal about his second son's words; the Shen family was not as valuable to him as Bai Xiuming, his eldest son.
However, he did not say much to his son, only saying, "It is not surprising that the Mingjing Division's envoy has some treasures to suppress the demon race."
Even so, he still frowned because of his son's words.
Even if Shen Zhuo is lucky enough to suppress Jiao Mu and control the Shen family, Cang Gongzi is still in the Shen family. Why doesn't he make a move? Could it be that he is also afraid of Ming Wang's power and dares not make a move?
Thinking of this, the commander of the Xiling Dynasty's guards waved his hand: "You may leave now."
"Yes." The guard captain breathed a sigh of relief, at least he wasn't punished by the prince.
After everyone left, Bai Yichen spoke up, "Father, we can't delay with the Shen family any longer. We need to find out the situation as soon as possible. Should we continue to send people to keep an eye on them?"
The King of Xiling shook his head: "No need, I already have a plan in mind."
Seeing that the King of Xiling was unwilling to say more to him, Bai Yichen couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed.
He knew that his father must have many secrets, such as the young lady Xuan who suddenly moved into the mansion. He had previously thought that his father had taken a fancy to that woman and wanted to bring her into the mansion. However, he accidentally bumped into his father talking to her several times, and the father treated her as an equal. He figured that the young lady must be someone important.
But his father never told him about the girl's background, nor did he want him to speak with her.
Seeing that his son wanted to say something more, the King of Xiling had lost his patience. He turned to the Queen Consort of Xiling and said, "It's getting late. You and Chen'er should go back and rest. I still have things to take care of."
"Please take care of yourself, Your Highness." Although the Princess of Xiling could see that her son was unwilling, she had no choice but to take him away.
After the mother and son had walked quite a distance, the Princess of Xiling slowly said, "Yichen, you are too impatient. How could you casually tell your father how to act on such an important matter as today? If there were no outsiders present, your father would probably be angry."
Bai Yichen took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "After my elder brother returned, I was a little anxious."
Although he had long known that his father did not value Bai Xiuming and that bringing him back was for another purpose, he could not rest easy until the position of heir apparent was in his hands.
Princess Xiling chuckled lightly: "You, you just think too much. Don't worry, your father will never treat Bai Xiuming the way he treats you. He has no feelings for this eldest son whatsoever."
"Why is Mother so certain?"
Princess Xiling chuckled lightly: "Although your father's first wife died from the persecution of a fox demon, that fox demon also relied on his power to kill the late princess. Bai Xiuming will never forget this matter."
His mother rarely mentioned these past events and forbade him to ask. Seeing that she was finally willing to talk about them today, Bai Yichen couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why didn't His Majesty punish Father for favoring the fox demon back then?"
Princess Xiling recalled the events of that time and slowly said, "Back then, King Ming killed the fox demon, and your father confessed his crimes to His Majesty. However, it was eventually discovered that he had been bewitched by the fox demon's magic, which led him to commit such a foolish act. It can be considered understandable."
Later, when the demon race in the Northern Wilderness was in turmoil, your father donated most of his royal fortune to fund the army, and with your maternal grandfather's intervention in court, His Majesty finally let the matter drop.
"I see." Bai Yichen understood.
"Therefore, there is no need to worry about Bai Xiuming. The position of the heir of the Xiling King will be yours sooner or later, so just wait patiently."
Bai Yichen finally felt relieved: "My son understands."
In the main hall, after his wife and children had left, the King of Xiling looked at the open doorway and said, "Please come in, Miss Xuan."
A young woman dressed in black walked in silently from outside, having been listening outside for an unknown amount of time.
"What, the matter with the Shen family hasn't been resolved yet?" Miss Xuan asked.
The King of Xiling shook his head, his tone tinged with doubt: "Miss Xuan, we're in the same boat now. When the Shen family got into trouble, Young Master Cang was clearly there too, so why didn't he lend a hand?"
Miss Xuan was slightly displeased with his questioning, but she still explained, "I lost contact with Cang."
"Really?" The King of Xiling was skeptical.
“Today I used a secret method to send him a message, but he has not responded.” Despite saying this, Miss Xuan showed no worry on her face.
"Could it be that the Mingjing Division has some hidden tricks up its sleeve, and even Young Master Cang is in trouble?" King Xiling did not want to speculate in this direction, but for some reason today, he felt uneasy, as if something had gone out of control.
“How could that be?” Miss Xuan said with certainty. “Cang’s methods are beyond what your human race can handle. Unless a Fifth Realm expert descends, he will never be in trouble.”
"In that case, I would like to invite Miss Xuan to the Shen family to see what exactly happened?"
Miss Xuan hesitated for a moment before saying, "Very well, I will go for you."
Miss Xuan's figure quickly disappeared into the night, and in just a few flashes, she appeared outside the Shen family's ancestral home, which was shrouded in thick fog.
She tried to enter the thick fog, but was stopped by a force.
After several unsuccessful attempts, she became somewhat annoyed and resorted to harsher methods.
Her demonic power collided with the formation, creating a huge boom. The formation was also broken open, but before she could enter, the opening quickly healed.
Although it was only for a moment, Miss Xuan still sensed it; there was no trace of Young Master Cang within it.
Was he not at the Shen family's house today? If so, why did he go out without telling me?
Miss Xuan had some doubts in her heart. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to leave first. As for the Shen family, she didn't care anyway.
The so-called Dragon Mother was nothing more than an experiment by Young Master Cang using the Shen family. Her strength was far inferior to that of a true fourth-realm demon. She was just a strange-looking half-demon. What did her life or death have to do with her?
All she had to do was obey the princess's orders and successfully bring the Demon Seal back.
Xiling seems rather unstable now. It seems I need to get the King of Xiling to find Bai Xiuming as soon as possible. Once I've finished refining the Inexhaustible Bone for him, I'll leave this place with Cang as soon as possible.
Having made up her mind, she turned and headed towards the Xiling Prince's Mansion, unaware that as she appeared at the Shen family's residence, a figure had been hiding in the air, looking down at her.
Seeing her leave, the figure followed her.
King Xiling waited patiently for a while, and soon Miss Xuan returned.
"Well, have you found any trace of Young Master Cang?" asked the King of Xiling.
"His presence has vanished; he should not be at the Shen family's residence today."
"What about the Shen family?"
“I only sensed the presence of a very small number of living beings; the dragon mother was not among them.”
Miss Xuan answered truthfully.
Although he had expected it, the King of Xiling was still somewhat disappointed.
"Thank you very much, Miss Xuan, for today."
“No need for formalities. If the King of Xiling is truly concerned about the Shen family, he might as well investigate it himself.” After saying that, Miss Xuan added, “I must remind the King of Xiling that I will not stay here for long. You had better find Bai Xiuming as soon as possible. Once our agreement is fulfilled, Cang and I will leave Xiling immediately. The princess is still waiting for my report.”
The King of Xiling felt somewhat helpless. Miss Xuan had not been able to find anyone, so now it was up to him to go and look for her himself.
His son had been training in the Mingjing Division for many years, so he shouldn't die so easily. He wasn't too worried, but he really should find him as soon as possible.
Originally, he had planned to have Shen Yingzhu marry him so that he could continue his family line, but now that this unexpected event has occurred, he has given up on that idea.
After all, once one reaches the fifth realm, lifespan becomes long, and offspring become less important.
Having said all she needed to say, Miss Xuan turned to leave.
A voice suddenly rang out: "You probably won't be able to leave Xiling alive."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
