Zhu Zhuqing Confesses, Jin Lingfeng Refuses, and Qian Renxue Appears

After hesitating for a long time, he bit his lip and said in a low voice:

"Zhu Zhuqing, I asked you out this time."

"Because there's something important I need to tell you."

At once, joy appeared in the girl's eyes. She nodded excitedly and said:

"His Highness the Holy Son, what is it? You... you can say it..."

After speaking, Zhu Zhuqing raised her head. Her brows and eyes were filled with tender affection as she gazed deeply into the eyes of the man she loved.

Yet the slight press of her lips showed just how nervous the girl was.

Unable to bear Zhu Zhuqing's affectionate gaze, Jin Lingfeng quickly looked away.

His throat moved, but the words at his lips were ultimately swallowed back down.

Zhu Zhuqing was such a pitiful girl. Did he truly have to hurt her so cruelly...?

Then, in the very next moment!

Zhu Zhuqing suddenly opened her arms and tightly embraced the man she loved.

In a bashful, soft voice, she said:

"His Highness the Holy Son, Zhuqing... likes you. Can I be with you?"

After saying that, Zhu Zhuqing's delicate body trembled slightly. It was impossible to imagine how much courage it had taken for her to speak these feelings from her heart.

Yet the instant Jin Lingfeng was embraced, his pupils abruptly contracted.

His fists clenched tightly, and his body stiffened on instinct!

"Zhu Zhuqing!"

"No!"

"You've misunderstood!"

Jin Lingfeng forcefully pushed the beauty in his arms away and spoke agitatedly.

Zhu Zhuqing looked at the man before her with confusion in her eyes.

In a faint murmur, she asked:

"His Highness the Holy Son, don't you like me?"

"Now that I've confessed to you first, you're pushing me away..."

The girl felt utterly devastated. After all, this was the first time she had ever taken the initiative to confess to a man...

Jin Lingfeng took a deep breath and looked straight into the beauty's eyes. After a long silence, he said seriously:

"Zhu Zhuqing, I'm sorry."

"I'm the one who made you misunderstand."

"The reason I helped the Zhu Family and helped you and Dai Mubai break off your engagement..."

"Was only because I hoped to promote cooperation between Spirit Hall and the Zhu Family."

"I already have someone I love. We love each other very much, and toward you, I..."

"From beginning to end, I've only ever regarded you as an ordinary friend. It isn't what you think..."

In an instant, the man's words fell into Zhu Zhuqing's ears, leaving her face frozen as though she had turned to stone!

Immediately afterward, a piercing pain rose in her heart, making her suffer terribly. Her eyes reddened, and two streams of tears rolled down her cheeks...

Zhu Zhuqing instantly broke into sobs. Her jade hand covered her lips as she stared in anguish and unwillingness at the man who had opened the doors to her heart, only to mercilessly shut them again.

Her delicate body shook violently. It was impossible to imagine the pain her heart was enduring at that moment...

For a time, the girl's sorrowful sobbing sounded especially clear in the quiet surroundings. The atmosphere was heavy and stifling.

Seeing Zhu Zhuqing crying so miserably, Jin Lingfeng felt terrible. Although Xiao Wu had cried two years ago as well, she had always forced herself not to shed tears before him. She was not as fragile as Zhu Zhuqing...

A deep sense of guilt immediately arose in his heart. Jin Lingfeng felt sorry for Zhu Zhuqing. It must have been something he had done at some point that had caused this pitiful girl to misunderstand...

"Zhu Zhuqing, I'm sorry."

"I..."

Jin Lingfeng instinctively reached out, wanting to gently pat the girl's shoulder to comfort her. But before he could finish speaking, a familiar female voice came from behind him.

"Lingfeng!"

Those two simple words contained endless resentment, as if a wife were reproaching her husband for flirting around outside.

Jin Lingfeng quickly turned around, only to see a woman in a short palace dress walking toward him with her hands on her hips and displeasure in her eyes...

"Xue'er, why are you here?!"

Jin Lingfeng asked anxiously.

Qian Renxue had always been disguising herself as Xue Qinghe. If her true identity were discovered, it would be a serious problem!

The stunning woman arrived before him, shot him a fierce glare, and snorted coldly.

"If I hadn't come, my boyfriend would've been stolen away!"

"Do you think I should have come or not?!"

Jin Lingfeng was instantly extremely embarrassed.

He glanced at the pitiful-looking Zhu Zhuqing, then at Qian Renxue glaring angrily at him, and sighed helplessly.

He took his beloved girl's jade hand and led her before Zhu Zhuqing, speaking seriously.

"Zhu Zhuqing, she is the one I love, Xue'er."

"We've been together for a long time, and we're planning to get married next year."

"So, I hope you can let this go."

"A beautiful girl like you will definitely meet a man who knows how to cherish you someday..."

However, before he could finish, Qian Renxue cut him off coldly.

"Lingfeng, aren't things messy enough already?"

"Saying such things now will only make Zhu Zhuqing feel worse!"

"You, shut up!"

Jin Lingfeng was slightly stunned, but when he noticed Zhu Zhuqing crying even more sorrowfully, he could only choose to remain silent.

"Lingfeng, step aside for a moment."

"I want to speak with Zhu Zhuqing alone."

After a long while, Qian Renxue gave Jin Lingfeng a meaningful look.

Jin Lingfeng nodded and said, "Alright."

He knew Zhu Zhuqing was looking at him mournfully. Unable to face her, he chose to quickly walk away in another direction...

Zhu Zhuqing bit her lip and was about to chase after him, calling out sorrowfully:

"His Highness the Holy Son, don't go..."

But in the next moment.

Qian Renxue stood in front of her, looking at her coldly.

Zhu Zhuqing raised her head and saw an incomparably beautiful face, golden hair, and a curvaceous figure.

The woman exuded an innate air of nobility and was currently watching her with wary eyes.

Only then did Zhu Zhuqing realize that this woman was perfect in every way—her figure, temperament, and appearance. Even Zhu Zhuqing herself felt inferior.

Gradually, a strong sense of inferiority rose from the girl's heart.

This was the first time in her life that she had felt inferior to another woman in every aspect.

Soon, Zhu Zhuqing's choked sobs echoed through the silent surroundings, making the atmosphere bleak and sorrowful.

Qian Renxue looked at the heartbroken girl. Her tightly furrowed brows relaxed, the coldness in her gaze faded, and she sighed helplessly.

She shot a fierce glare at that hateful man peeking over from afar, then extended her jade hand and placed it on the girl's shoulder, comforting her softly.

"Zhu Zhuqing, I know you like Lingfeng, just as I do."

"But love has to come in order. Lingfeng and I have been together for seven or eight years."

"We'll be getting married next year. I hope you can forget him, or you'll only suffer more."

Qian Renxue tried her best to remain calm as she patiently persuaded her.

She was only an ordinary woman. Seeing her man entangled with another woman also made her angry and heartbroken.

But Qian Renxue knew that if she threw a tantrum and argued with Zhu Zhuqing, it would only annoy Jin Lingfeng and might even push him toward Zhu Zhuqing.

Unknowingly, Qian Renxue's love for Jin Lingfeng had become cautious and fragile. She feared that if she made even the slightest mistake, the man she loved would leave her.

Therefore, even though she was extremely angry now, she still held herself back, hoping to persuade Zhu Zhuqing to let go and retreat in the face of difficulty...

Zhu Zhuqing looked into the woman's eyes. With her keen senses, she noticed the faint apprehension in them. Her gaze instantly turned cold, filled with hostility.