Zhu Zhuqing Was Getting Anxious

His heart was bleeding.

He had spent five gold coins on one trip out!

Looks like cutting someone off came with costs too!

If he had known Hulande was so easy to talk to, he should have bargained it down to one...

Zhu Zhuqing was indeed in a bad mood, but Jiang Yunzhou's matter-of-fact tone seemed to possess some strange magic, loosening the knot in her heart ever so slightly.

She slowly turned her head, her gaze falling on the takeout boxes on the table, fragrant with food.

A sudden urge rose in her to turn her grief and anger into an appetite.

"Thank you," she said softly.

Breathing in the scent of the food, she suddenly felt hunger wash over her.

"Eat up. It won't taste as good once it gets cold." Jiang Yunzhou unusually did not tease her.

Zhu Zhuqing nodded and silently walked over to sit at the table.

She picked up her chopsticks without even looking closely at what she was eating, stuffing food into her mouth with a vengeful fervor.

Every bite felt as though she were chewing through disappointment and anger, while also using the food to fill the enormous void inside her.

Before long, she had wiped out several generously portioned snacks!

Jiang Yunzhou stared in astonishment from the side. This girl had quite an appetite, huh?

He had originally planned to have a couple of bites with her, but now not even crumbs were left.

"Uh..."

He rubbed his nose, looked at the completely empty takeout boxes, and sighed sincerely. "I never expected that besides being able to sleep, you can eat quite a lot too... Impressive!"

Zhu Zhuqing did not smile. Nor could she.

She merely set down her chopsticks in silence, her hollow eyes fixed on the deepening twilight beyond the window.

The conflict and confusion in her heart tangled around her like vines. She felt trapped in a dead end with no way out, unable to advance or retreat.

Seeing that Zhu Zhuqing was still so absent-minded, Jiang Yunzhou knew that simple words of comfort would not do much for her.

The predicament she faced was far more complicated than mere heartbreak.

The Star Luo Empire's imperial marriage alliance system, the shackles imposed by the Zhu Family—these were all things that had to be considered.

Should he advise her to break off the engagement or leave her family?

That would only make her think Jiang Yunzhou had ulterior motives, or was even exploiting her vulnerability.

This was not something to rush. It would take time and strength to resolve it bit by bit.

For now, he needed to sever the lingering bond between her and Dai Mubai. At the very least, he could not let it deepen any further!

At the same time, he needed to give her a path where she could see hope.

Once she became strong enough, she could say no to fate.

"Go take a bath after you finish eating, then get some proper sleep. Seeing you look so lifeless makes me uncomfortable." Jiang Yunzhou broke the silence.

"Oh, and remember to get up early tomorrow. I need your help with something."

Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing was pulled back from her thoughts. She lifted her head, a trace of bewilderment in her eyes. "Help?"

"Mm, help."

Meeting her gaze, Jiang Yunzhou said, "I'm planning to establish an academy and recruit disciples. Come lend me a hand."

"Start, start an academy?" Zhu Zhuqing froze, wondering if she had misheard him.

Wasn't that leap a little too big?

Jiang Yunzhou nodded in confirmation. "Exactly. Since you still haven't decided whether to become my disciple, I can only go find someone else first..."

Those words were like a thin needle, pricking some hidden corner of Zhu Zhuqing's heart and leaving behind a hollow feeling.

It was as if something she had thought belonged to her was about to be taken away by someone else.

"No!" she blurted out anxiously.

"Didn't you promise me three days to think about it? The time isn't up yet, so how could you..."

She wanted to say, How could you give up on me?

But the words reached her lips and were swallowed back down, while grievance showed plainly on her face.

Before Jiang Yunzhou returned, she had sat there for an entire afternoon, forcing herself to calm down and think.

Their accidental encounter, his saving her, and how he had dragged her to watch the show in the hotel lobby that afternoon—though they seemed coincidental, they all carried the faint air of careful calculation.

That was why she still held some wariness toward Jiang Yunzhou and did not dare make a decision lightly.

Yet deep within her, a voice was shouting: Agree to him quickly. If you miss this chance, you'll regret it for the rest of your life.

So what exactly was she hesitating over?

These past two days were when all the major soul master academies began recruiting students.

Jiang Yunzhou had chosen this moment to reveal his plans to start an academy precisely to force her into making a choice under pressure!

Besides, she had already watched that little performance involving Dai Mubai. One day or three days made no difference.

"You consider what you need to consider, and I'll start my academy. Neither interferes with the other."

Of course, starting an academy was for recruiting students.

Zhu Zhuqing suddenly thought of the girl in the pink dress she had seen in the lobby today!

Jiang Yunzhou had even specifically told her to remember that girl!

There had been a different light in his eyes then, as if he was very interested.

An inexplicable sense of crisis quietly rose within her.

She looked up at Jiang Yunzhou with suspicious eyes.

It was as though she wanted to see through his handsome face and uncover what he was truly thinking.

Silence spread through the room, broken only by the faint sound of their breathing.

Zhu Zhuqing struggled inwardly for a while, torn between reason and instinct.

In the end, she took a deep breath and asked, "Can... can I trust you?"

After asking, she felt a sense of relief, but could not stop herself from inwardly cursing: This damn man was really awful! He said he would give her three days to think, yet every word he said was pushing her!

Jiang Yunzhou met her gaze, his eyes deep. "Of course."

"However, whether you trust me or not, the choice is yours."

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her eyes, her long lashes casting shadows over her fair face as she continued weighing her options.

Setting aside his stingy habit, there seemed to be nothing about him she could not accept.

But starting an academy?

It required funding, registration procedures, qualification reviews. Could he really pull it off?

He was so stingy—would he truly be willing to spend that much money?

A crafty smile curved Jiang Yunzhou's lips. An academy? It was nothing more than a convenient name for taking in disciples.

Did they really expect him to become a headmaster and manage all those trivial matters? No chance!

What he cared about had never been an academy, but nine personal disciples who could help him reach the pinnacle!

All his effort would be devoted solely to those nine people.

As for the academy?

It was merely a name to make things more convenient.

Zhu Zhuqing secretly clenched her teeth. For the sake of that handsome face, she would trust him!

Becoming his disciple did not seem so bad.

Jiang Yunzhou's strength was right there for all to see—a genuine level 79 Soul Saint!

No matter how she looked at it, she was getting the better deal.

Just as she was about to blurt out, I'm willing to become your disciple, she thought of something else.

If she became his disciple, would the only relationship between them be that of master and disciple?

Yet he was so persistent. What he seemed to want was merely the status of "disciple."

Ah, how troubling.

But if she did not become his disciple, then this young and powerful man might truly turn and walk out of her world without hesitation, just as he had said.

The thought made her heart tighten for no reason.

She suddenly realized that despite having known each other for only a day and a night, she had already said more to him than she had in the past several months combined.

Her instinctive wariness toward a stranger had somehow quietly vanished in his presence long ago.

It seemed that simply seeing him and hearing that unreliable yet strangely reassuring voice of his could bring a trace of comfort to her shattered heart.

"Alright. I trust you."