Chapter 21 He Hates "Listen up, from now on, you..."
I don't dream much, but I dreamed all night long.
It had nothing to do with his childhood, nor with mine, but rather with a bunch of random novels.
Domineering CEOs, Cinderellas, cold-blooded emperors, time-traveling women, amorous princes, reborn women... they all flooded into my dreams.
The various plots intertwined—torture, sweet moments, revenge, and power struggles—left me dizzy and confused.
It ended with me asking, "Which type of situation do I belong to?"
I woke up, opened my eyes, and found the bright sunlight stinging my eyes so much that I closed them again.
It took me a long time to adjust, and I sat on the ornate, vintage bed, lost in thought.
If I could write novels, I would definitely tell those naive girls who are obsessed with romance novels that the male protagonist isn't always deeply affectionate and charming; he might be cold and cruel. Although there are also icy male protagonists, I know he's definitely not the kind of icy figure in books.
He is a true iceberg, an iceberg completely, from soul to body.
His eyes, body language, temperament, and personality all revealed this.
I have no intention of melting this iceberg, because that's as naive as a woman trying to change a man.
Men can never change unless they want to.
The severe trauma he suffered in his childhood will likely take him a lifetime to heal.
I cannot bear this burden.
I jumped out of bed, looked in the mirror, and touched my swollen lips, feeling like crying. He was so cold, yet his kisses were so passionate. The swelling hadn't gone down all night, even with ointment applied. He had used so much force to confirm our relationship.
The door was quietly pushed open, and a maid peeked in.
"What is it?" I suddenly asked sharply, startled by my own tone. Why was he being so stern?
The maidservant bowed respectfully, "My lord, Lady Lana is waiting for you to have breakfast together."
Lady Lana? I paused for a moment, then immediately realized, "Oh, oh."
The slightly disordered tone of his voice helped me regain my composure, and I breathed a sigh of relief.
A dazzling crystal chandelier, a soft carpet, half a table of food, and the sweet aroma of milk.
I sat at one end of a magnificent long dining table, my long hair tied back, my makeup exquisite, my posture graceful, and my long dress trailing on the ground—every little detail was impeccable.
Is this really me? How can I be so elegant, and with such beautiful makeup?
In a daze, I was led to the other end of the dining table.
We are separated by a vast distance. He is on this side, and I am on the other.
I recalled a scene I saw on TV where a count and his wife ate from a great distance apart. The chief mistress was roughly equivalent to a wife in status, but without any official title.
After calming myself down, I started eating breakfast.
Breakfast included rye bread, boiled eggs, cheese, butter, and a salad made with cabbage, apples, mashed potatoes, pumpkin puree, and custard, along with hot water and fresh milk.
I took the knife and started cutting the rye bread. After cutting and slicing, I finally managed to cut off a small piece, put it in my mouth, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it with difficulty. I've been living here for quite a while, but I still haven't gotten used to this bread that's as rough and hard as wood. But I still eat some with every meal, partly to keep myself from getting hungry, and partly because I think the original lord must have eaten rye bread. Wouldn't it be strange if I suddenly stopped eating it?
Then, eating the boiled eggs was much easier; the eggs were very flavorful, and the food from places untouched by industrial pollution was truly excellent.
But my favorite food is still fruit and vegetable salad, with its natural fragrance. I ate most of the plate and drank all the milk.
I unconsciously looked at "me," or rather, at him.
He used a knife and fork with unparalleled elegance, cutting the black bread as effortlessly as if it were tofu. He forked a small piece and put it in his mouth with incredible grace. I had never seen anyone use a knife and fork so elegantly, like the world's most noble and elegant Persian cat. No, even the most prized Persian breeds weren't this elegant.
I watched it without blinking.
He ignored me the whole time, his lips slightly pursed, revealing a subtle mockery.
After breakfast, I walked along the windowless corridor, and countless snowflakes drifted in. I wrapped my black fox fur cloak tighter around myself.
He walked behind me and said coldly, "Listen carefully, from now on, you must obey my every move, or you will bear the consequences."
"Oh, what will be the consequences?" I hate that threatening tone.
"Our country treated witches extremely cruelly, using methods such as burning at the stake, branding, and live dismemberment." His voice grew even colder.
I argued, "I am not a witch, and I will not be found out. You are the one who will be punished."
He sneered, "I know the rules here better than you do. Who do you think it could be?"
"Hey, I've done nothing to you," I almost cried, "Why are you trying to hurt me? I didn't possess you on purpose, who wants to stay here?"
He smiled coldly, "If it weren't for the fact that you helped me on Volcano Island, I would have killed you long ago."
My lips trembled. "I'm inside you now. If I die, you die too."
He laughed coldly again, "Maybe I'll go back into my own body."
That's certainly possible, but I said, "Maybe you can't go back, and if you die, you're just dead."
He suddenly dragged me into a corner, and a small mirror appeared in his hand.
Sha Ling and Aya appeared in the small mirror, only able to speak, their hands and feet immobile, their faces filled with terror. The background behind them indicated they were bound in a small, dark room.
I stared in horror at the tiny mirror that looked like a video camera on a cell phone. Was this all real?
“With just one order,” he said coldly, “they will be starved to death without food or water.”
"How...how did you do that?"
He has lost power and resources, how could he still have this ability?
He looked at me like I was an idiot again. “My territory is full of my people. Some of them have never seen me in person, but once they see my tokens or handwritten letters, they will follow my instructions.”
I was speechless.
His tone softened a bit. "As long as you obey me, I guarantee you and your two companions will be safe and sound. You have no idea how to survive here, let alone how to impersonate me. Once you're exposed, we'll both die. If we switch back someday, I can give you some money, which you can use as a dowry or to do business."
It sounds tempting, although I don't plan to get married or do business here.
But I know I need his help. Besides surviving here, I also want to leave, just like I left Black Castle.
“Okay,” I said, “but you must promise that you cannot force me to do or say anything I don’t want to do.”
He stared at me coldly. "Fine."
As soon as I pushed open the door to the Imperial Study, a guard rushed in with a note in his hand. He knelt down and said, panting, "My lord, we have just received intelligence that Lord Roshi's army is only seven kilometers away from us. They have just fired a declaration of war."
I was terrified. Was this the start of a war? Who was Roxi? Why was he attacking me?
I looked at him in alarm. He remained expressionless, but a barely perceptible glint of anger flashed in his eyes.
The makeshift council hall was in complete chaos, with people pushing, shoving, cursing, and arguing, just like a vegetable market.
“We must engage in battle immediately, or our territory will be occupied by Roshi.”
“I agree, my lord. Rosie is no different from those bandits who burn, kill, and plunder. We must use the methods for dealing with bandits, regardless of whether Rosie is your father’s most beloved illegitimate son.”
“No!” The white-bearded veteran Tendy strongly objected. “Roshi came under the guise of helping the lord exterminate corpses. Attacking him is tantamount to attacking the king.”
The young general Byrne, who had once questioned me, immediately said, "Uncle, everyone knows that Rosie's motives are impure; he wants to seize our castle under the guise of exterminating zombies."
It turns out that a man named Rosie, after learning that my territory was overrun by zombies, wanted to lead a large army to help me exterminate them. He claimed to be helping me, but in reality, he wanted to take the opportunity to seize my territory.
"Why don't we send someone to deliver a letter of reconciliation to Rohi, offering a village or town in exchange for his withdrawal?" someone suggested.
But before the words were even finished, someone lunged at the person who made the suggestion, shouting, "Bullshit! How much land has Roxi seized from us? Are we really going to give it all away?"
The man was beaten until his mouth and nose bled, and he could no longer speak. The others quickly pulled the assailant away.
I rubbed my temples, my head throbbing, and looked at him sitting beside me.
He, however, remained calm and composed, as if it were none of his business.
"What should we do?" I asked him in a low voice. Didn't he say that I should listen to everything he said? Now it's time to give him advice.
“Aren’t you supposed to be very clever?” he sneered. “You were able to rescue me from Castle Black before.”
I glared at him.
He said in a low, barely audible voice, "We'll split into two groups: one to investigate the zombies and the other to engage them in battle."
"We'll split into two groups: one to search for zombies and the other to engage them," I immediately announced loudly. This man's voice was incredibly loud; when he deliberately raised it, he drowned out all other noise.
Everyone looked at me. I suppressed my panic and mustered my courage to explain in detail: "Roshi's pretext is to exterminate zombies, so we will exterminate the zombies ourselves first. Some people will go to investigate the source of the zombies and eliminate the root cause; others will fight against Roshi's army to buy time. Once the source of the zombies is found and eliminated, they will have no reason to attack."
Everyone praised it.
As we walked out of the council chamber, he whispered to me, "You're not too stupid."
"What's the meaning?"
"You understood what I meant by investigating zombies and preparing for battle; you explained it very clearly."
I was speechless for a moment, then asked again, "Who exactly is Luo Xi?"
He answered simply: “He is my father’s most beloved illegitimate son. I have been in this territory for three years, and he has taken away three of my villages. These three villages occupy half of my territory.”
"So, your half-brother is now using the pretense of exterminating corpses to try and take over all your territory," I said quietly.
"Is he very jealous of you?" I couldn't help but ask.
A man's vicious attack on another man is likely a combination of self-interest and jealousy.
He did not answer.
"Why doesn't your father care?" I asked again.
Even if a father dislikes one son, he wouldn't let the two sons fight.
He rolled his eyes at me but didn't answer.
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