Lin Mucí thought Ling Qianhe would retort.
Unexpectedly, Ling Qianhe glanced at her and suddenly chuckled.
"You're right."
Lin Mucí: "…?"
Xue Zhizhi's expression also shifted. Her complexion was already as pale as snow, and now, trembling, she raised her head, her breathing unsteady.
"Your Majesty, this concubine's eyes…"
Ling Qianhe, however, said,
"Isn't it good to be blind? There is so much sin in this world, isn't it better to see less of it? Moreover, I don't see you adapting poorly… Your face deserves a pair of blind eyes."
Lin Mucí almost burst out laughing.
Ling Qianhe's words were truly sharp and caustic, yet they sounded oddly reasonable.
The young girl opposite him began to sway precariously. Ling Qianhe walked over, his fingertips pinching her chin, and he said,
"You say you saved me—"
"But that doesn't amount to much."
"Don't think I owe you any gratitude."
Xue Zhizhi clearly hadn't anticipated Ling Qianhe would be so unconventional.
Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's hum.
"Your Majesty, when Zhizhi saved Your Majesty, it wasn't for Your Majesty to repay Zhizhi in the future. Zhizhi saved Your Majesty simply because she couldn't bear it— Your Majesty, Zhizhi merely felt that Your Majesty looked pitiful, which is why she saved Your Majesty."
She had intended to highlight her own beauty and kind heart.
Her extreme fragility.
But Ling Qianhe glanced at her, his expression revealing a further hint of disgust. Da Feng Novel Network
"Pitiful?"
He sneered.
"Do I need your pity? How absurd and laughable. What, are you the only good person in this world, the only one who is gentle and kind? Yet I am by no means a good person; I am a demon, a villain— As for repayment, I've never even considered it."
The young girl opposite him looked pale. She seemed startled, or perhaps as if an arrow had pierced her chest by Ling Qianhe's words, her entire body trembling. Her voice was low,
"Your Majesty… why would Your Majesty say such a thing…"
"Your Majesty, Zhizhi only wishes for Your Majesty's well-being…"
Ling Qianhe, however, gave her an intensely annoyed look.
"Be quiet."
Lin Mucí knew Ling Qianhe found her bothersome.
This little green bird, trying to use the same tactics she used on Helian Lanyi against Ling Qianhe, was truly seeking trouble for herself. Wasn't she just walking straight into the line of fire?
She continued to smile at Ling Qianhe, but the depths of his eyes held a turbulent, mixed expression. He turned to look at Lin Mucí and then said,
"Tell her what kind of woman I like."
Lin Mucí hadn't expected Ling Qianhe's aim to turn back and fall upon her. She coughed.
After a moment of thought.
She had to say something that would contrast sharply with Xue Zhizhi, the green bird.
Since she enjoyed playing the innocent white lotus, the fragile damsel,
Lin Mucí thought for a moment.
Then she said,
"Likes… likes… a sly little fox?"
Ling Qianhe's expression became momentarily quite colorful. He looked at Lin Mucí, and Lin Mucí felt she had gone a bit too far with her impromptu remark. She was about to explain when, to her surprise, Ling Qianhe followed her lead.
"Yes. I like sly little foxes."
As he spoke, his gaze landed on Lin Mucí. Lin Mucí felt his eyes roaming up and down her, as if he were contemplating something, his expression almost as if he wanted to devour her.
He looked at Xue Zhizhi with utter disdain.
But towards Lin Mucí, his gaze was burning and presumptuous.
As if he wished to lift her clothes right then and there— His gaze slowly swept over her, then he walked over. His palm landed on her shoulder, and he said,
"You believe you have shown me kindness, so I have brought you into the palace. But beyond that, do not harbor any other desires."
Xue Zhizhi was already flustered. She didn't even know how to stand properly. Perhaps a flicker of hope remained deep within her heart, and she said,
"Your Majesty, do you know the background of the woman by your side… She may not be as Your Majesty imagines her to be. Her arrival by Your Majesty's side might perhaps be driven by some ulterior motive…"
Unexpectedly, Ling Qianhe, the cold-faced emperor, suddenly laughed.
He turned to look at Lin Mucí. His fingertip slowly lifted her chin, but unlike the indifferent, wicked manner in which he had held Xue Zhizhi's chin, his fingertip lightly caressed Lin Mucí's chin, carrying a more flowing, seductive charm.
He leaned closer to her, his fingertip slowly tracing circles on her chin.
Then he said,
"I am never afraid of others having motives towards me."
"If she comes, let her come."
Lin Mucí felt her heart pounding. Yet, these were precisely the words Ling Qianhe would say. She increasingly felt that this demon before her was almost one hundred percent similar to Ling Qianhe.
She pursed her lips. His fingertip, however, extended upwards along her jaw, then pressed against her lips.
She seemed to feel the warmth of his fingertip. Then Ling Qianhe leaned close to her lips and said,
"I like sly little foxes."
"Don't I?"
…
Xue Zhizhi retreated with a dejected look. After she left, the snow outside continued to fall. Lin Mucí turned, intending to seize the opportunity to escape, but a cold yet alluring voice reached her ear.
"Where are you going?"
Someone grabbed her by the nape of her neck.
His palm was slightly cool, causing Lin Mucí to involuntarily shiver. She even hesitated to turn around, fearing to meet Ling Qianhe's eyes.
She could easily imagine… the profound meaning those eyes would contain. Her lips felt inexplicably dry. She licked them, swallowed, her voice extremely low.
"Your Majesty, it's late; it's time for bed…"
Ling Qianhe drew close to her neck, exhaling slowly. She felt like shrinking into a ball, hearing him say,
"I have never liked delicate, weak flowers."
"However, some people dare to tease but can't handle the consequences."
She still wanted to dodge, but the young man behind her clearly gave her no chance to escape. He forcefully pressed down on her shoulders, forcing her to turn. She met his gaze, seeing his unfathomably deep eyes. Within his pupils, it was as if mountains and seas were roaring past. Then he said,
"Sister Mucí, how do you plan to… be sly for me?"
These words, though laden with intense provocation,
When spoken by him, by this cold-faced young demon, they sent a chill down one's spine.
In fact, during this period, Lin Mucí had gradually noticed that this young man seemed to be growing increasingly cold and bloodthirsty, with a capricious temper. The stubborn youth who only sought revenge back then still had hot blood burning in his chest.
But now, he was like an unapproachable, cold deity—
An evil god.
Having consumed human malevolence.
His emotions had become indifferent. After his revenge, he had no attachments, and this made him even more terrifying.
In this world, demons have no attachments.
They merely toy with all beings, within the palms of their hands.
He looked at her, then drew close to her neck. She carried the faint scent of the night-blooming cereus, and a hint of another, more hidden fragrance. She heard his voice, causing flames to erupt in her mind.
"Let me snuggle up."
He slowly nuzzled her neck. A blush rose from her earlobes to her cheeks. His lips, as if absentmindedly, brushed against her earlobe. She heard him say,
"This is not enough."
"Sister Mucí, you truly don't know what I want?"
"You clearly know what I like."
He liked her.
Lin Mucí felt a sense of daze, as if Ling Qianhe were embracing her—nuzzling against her. But she had only been distracted for a moment before the demon behind her keenly detected it. This capricious young emperor sneered, then abruptly released her.
"Scram."
If she didn't like it.
Why should he, then, shamelessly beg for it?
However—
That momentary daze she experienced, had she been thinking of someone?
Thinking that by her side, she might have once had someone else, once been as intimate with someone as she was with him. The youth's face was cold, yet it seemed capable of erupting with profound ferocity in an instant— He absolutely would not allow it!
If this woman were close to someone else, he would kill that person!