Lin Hao only woke up a week later.
The moment Lin Hao opened his eyes, he saw Ye Xue looking at him with disappointment. He didn't pay much attention to the girl's attitude towards him. He simply looked down at his injuries.
Thanks to his training at the Zhao family, the venom from those vipers had no effect on him. It was only the combined toxicity of the venom that temporarily overwhelmed his body, causing him to fall into a restorative sleep.
Other than the unnerving, dense patterns of viper fang marks on his body, there were no significant lingering effects.
Ye Xue, who had been sitting beside Lin Hao the entire time, put away her disappointed expression when she saw the boy wake up. She stood up from her chair and stretched casually. After loosening her muscles and bones, she turned to Lin Hao, who was still lying in bed, and said, "Since you're awake, let's start the new training. Whether it's for the military opportunity upon graduation or if you desire something else, you need to start working hard now."
After she finished speaking, she opened the door and Lin Hao was left alone in the room.
Ye Xue walked outside and found a place to sit down, but she could still see the room where Lin Hao was from her vantage point.
She waited, waiting for Lin Hao to come down.
Although she could calculate, the moment she recalled what Lin Hao had said to her a few days prior, she found herself rarely prying into the destinies of others.
Perhaps some people truly didn't like to know their fate in advance.
After thinking about Lin Hao's words, Ye Xue stopped looking at him. Instead, she turned her head, closed her eyes, and savored the rare moments of peace and sunshine.
She wondered how much longer such days would last.
"Axue, I've finally found you," a deep male voice suddenly broke the peaceful scene.
How annoying.
Ye Xue thought with disdain upon hearing that voice.
She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the man before her. A hint of impatience flickered across her refined face as she asked, "What are you doing here?" Though reluctant, Ye Xue maintained her courtly etiquette upon seeing this person.
This was an ancient Eastern etiquette that seemed out of place in the interstellar era, yet it possessed an incomparable ancient charm.
The man standing before Ye Xue seemed oblivious to her impatience. Instead, he performed a standard royal salute and said, "I simply wanted to see you, Axue. And didn't you foresee my arrival today?"
After he finished speaking, he attempted to sit beside Ye Xue. Ye Xue, sensing his intention, looked at him with cold eyes and a hint of dissatisfaction in her tone, "Asheng, have you forgotten the noble etiquette you learned?"
This child had become so presumptuous in just a few years.
Seeing the displeasure on her face, Qin Dongsheng immediately dropped his casual demeanor. He retreated to his original position and stood respectfully before Ye Xue, saying, "Lord Ye, please forgive my earlier rudeness. I have come today to seek your counsel on a matter."
Ye Xue nodded with satisfaction at this changed demeanor and asked casually, "Speak, what brings you here?"
This was how a national leader should behave.
The person from moments ago, acting like a street ruffian, was certainly not someone she had trained.
So presumptuous.
And who gave him the right to call her Axue?
Qin Dongsheng said sternly, "I wish to inquire about the future fortune of my son."
A few days ago, a slip of paper, appearing from nowhere, had been placed on his desk. It contained only a few words: 'Your son will like men in the future.'
This single sentence had kept Qin Dongsheng awake and distressed for days and nights.
Why, of all people, would his only heir be attracted to men? What would become of the nation's future?
Although he knew this might be a prank, the thought still filled him with dread.
Therefore, he had proactively broken the ten-year pact he had with Ye Xue.
He was now desperate to know if his son would indeed prefer men, and more importantly, who that man would be.
Ye Xue said nothing upon hearing this. She simply closed her eyes. Less than a minute later, Ye Xue opened her eyes and said to Qin Dongsheng, "All I can say is, let nature take its course. Do not interfere, or you will bear the consequences."
As Ye Xue finished speaking, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
Her once rosy cheeks instantly turned pale.
Upon hearing this, Qin Dongsheng wanted to loudly question what "let nature take its course" truly meant.
Did it mean there was still a fifty percent chance his son would favor men?
But if so, what direction would the nation's future take?
However, before he could voice these questions, he saw Ye Xue's complexion turn pale and blood flow from her lips.
"What's wrong? Has the usage time for this body run out? Do you need me to provide you with more?"
"Since when did I need you to arrange things for me?"
Before Qin Dongsheng could finish, Ye Xue casually wiped the blood from her lips, her eyes fixed icily on Qin Dongsheng, and said with a hint of mockery.
After she finished speaking, she stood up from her chair and addressed the stunned man again, "Do not do pointless things, no matter the time, or else..."
She didn't finish her sentence, instead heading towards Lin Hao's room without even glancing at the boy.
She truly hoped that the child would not act rashly in the future.
There were times she wished she didn't possess this ability. Then, she could have died peacefully, without being entangled in all these messy affairs.
Qin Dongsheng, having obtained a hint of the answer he sought, gave a deep look at Ye Xue's retreating figure and then returned.
He couldn't fathom why Lord Ye's health had deteriorated so severely. The body she had recently acquired was still new; how could it decline so rapidly?
Even if Lord Ye were to scold them, that task would have to be prepared.
After all, it concerned the future of the empire; such scolding was a bearable price.
-------
By the time Ye Xue arrived at the ward, Lin Hao had already dressed and was about to leave.
"What kind of training will we be doing next?" Lin Hao asked upon seeing Ye Xue suddenly appear at the door of his room, his expression largely unchanged.
He had grown accustomed to this girl's uncanny ability to appear and disappear.
If they had known each other for two years and he was still startled by this girl, it would have been truly laughable.