Chapter 0098

Chapter 98: Wife, you dare fight me for my husband?

Zhou Tong spoke with a calm face, as if stating a small fact: “Being without you is important to me.” His tone was so cold it felt like ice piercing Chen Ling’er’s bones.

She felt her five senses fading, her body turning into a broken statue that would fall apart at a touch. [It’s over. There is no chance left.] In the deepest despair, people often finally see things clearly.

If Zhou Tong had yelled at her, if he had poured out the wrongs of the past, even if he had raised a hand against her, she could have faced it with a smile. She had even practiced it in her heart a hundred times: if Zhou Tong got angry, she would lower herself, use her warmth to soothe his scars, and use love to redeem him. But he gave her no chance. He cut it off in one stroke, and cut it clean.

She hugged herself and curled up, shaking as she whispered to no one: “Why did it turn out like this? This was never what I wanted.”

Lian Han Xing walked over. Dawn was near, and their time together was almost gone. She asked in a flat voice: “How should we deal with her? Kill or spare?”

Zhou Tong answered like it did not matter: “Do as you like. She is of no use to me.” His indifference twisted Chen Ling’er’s heart like a knife. The junior brother who once had eyes only for her could not even be bothered to decide her fate.

He came like moonlight and left on the wind. Zhou Tong rose into the sky without leaving even a backward glance.

Lian Han Xing stopped beside the curled-up girl, her expression complicated. She was not a kind person, but as a woman she could be soft. Seeing Chen Ling’er so pitiful, even knowing she deserved it, still made her feel sore inside. She stroked the girl’s hair and spoke gently: “Girl, little girl, forget him. I can help you erase the memory.”

Chen Ling’er jerked and shook her head hard: “No, never. He must be punishing me. He wants me to taste this pain of never getting what I beg for. I will accept it. I deserve it.”

Lian Han Xing sighed: “You know that man will not care.”

“But I care,” said Chen Ling’er. She pushed herself unsteadily to her feet, wiped her tears, and her eyes turned firm. “Sister, from this day on I am yours. You can order me as you wish. I will not complain.”

Lian Han Xing narrowed her eyes and a killing chill leaked out as she asked: “Even if it means standing against the people at your side?”

“Yes. They must also pay for what they did.” Chen Ling’er’s memory sharpened. Scenes from the past rose one by one. Her master and her junior brothers and junior sisters owed Zhou Tong. The debt had to be paid.

“Good,” said Lian Han Xing at last. “I will grant your wish.”

Chen Ling’er lifted her face, cheeks bright red and eyes full of longing and hope: “Sister, I have one more request.”

Lian Han Xing paused: “Say it.”

Chen Ling’er whispered, voice shaking: “Can you turn into his face again, and hold me?”

Lian Han Xing blinked, then nodded. In the next breath she took on Zhou Tong’s form.

Chen Ling’er closed her eyes and leaned forward with a faint, dreamy murmur: “Yes, hold me tight. Harder. A little harder. It’s fine even if it hurts.” A false peace spread across her face as she let the borrowed arms fold around her.

At first light, outside the Guest Minister Hall in the Imperial Palace, Mu Rong Ya stood like the boss of the house, a pack of sharp-eyed girls at her back. They stared down the uninvited visitor, who was none other than the master of the palace, Her Majesty the Empress, Qian Miao Yu.

The empress tried to keep her voice steady as she stepped forward: “I came to see my guest minister.” Even a mighty queen turned timid before these stunning, bandit-like girls. All her old swagger was gone.

Mu Rong Ya tilted her head and caught on one word: “Yours?” The little demoness at her side smiled in a wicked way and teased: “You aren’t here to claim him as yours, are you?”

The empress shook her head fast and darted her eyes away: “No. I have something important to give the guest minister. Please ask him to come out and meet me.”

Mu Rong Ya blocked her with a calm stare: “Sorry. Your guest minister says he isn’t here. Leave the thing, and you can go.”

Qian Miao Yu gasped. This woman’s pressure made her chest tighten. She shook her head like a wave: “I can’t. This must not be given to outsiders. I must place it in his hands myself, no matter what.”

The little demoness barked a laugh: “Outsiders? So you’re the insider, and we’re not? Sisters, take her down.” The girls closed in with playful, dangerous smiles.

The empress turned pale. She glanced for help but saw her bodyguards tied like sacks and thrown outside.

A voice fell from above, calm and cool: “What is all the noise?” Zhou Tong arrived, and in a breath the girls straightened up.

The empress seized the chance and almost cried with relief: “Guest minister.” She started to complain, but several sharp gazes cut her off. Zhang Chu Qiao even drew a hand across her neck in a silent threat that said, If you tattle, you’re done. The empress shivered and got to the point.

She lifted a brocade box and spoke with formal care: “Guest minister, I present you the Seal of the Realm.” Inside sat a simple, ancient seal. Zhou Tong could feel thick faith and the power of national fortune pouring from it. The others stared, shocked. They knew what it meant. Half the realm, given away in one move.

Zhang Chu Qiao’s eyes shone with clear insight: “Smart girl. Big courage.” She knew Zhou Tong would never drown himself in power and would never manage a country. If he accepted the seal, the realm would still be Qian Miao Yu’s, but she would gain a powerful ally. She would lose nothing.

Zhou Tong stayed silent and did not reach out. The empress added in a low voice: “The auction starts tomorrow. With this seal, you can draw on half the national treasury, a full one hundred billion spirit stones.”

Everyone, even Mu Rong Ya, sucked in a breath. Such wealth fit a great nation that ruled a whole region.

Zhou Tong finally nodded and took the seal with an easy motion: “I will accept it.”

The empress bowed and then ventured: “I have one more request.”

“Please speak, Your Majesty,” said Zhou Tong.

“I cannot attend the auction tomorrow. I have always wished for a bangle with two linked phoenixes. If you could bid for it and gift it to me, that would be best.”

“A small matter,” Zhou Tong answered at once.

Teeth ground behind him. Someone was clearly not pleased with the empress slipping in a favor.

Zhang Chu Qiao hooked an arm around the empress’s neck and dragged her aside with a smile that did not reach her eyes: “You, come with me.”

The empress stiffened and squeaked: “What do you want? I will shout.”

Zhang Chu Qiao leaned close and spoke in a low, dangerous purr: “Wife, you dare fight me for my husband? Are you asking for a lesson?”