Zhu Zhuqing Wept! Blue Silver Enfeoffed as King! Tang Yuan's Kingly Bearing!

Zhu Zhuqing's heart suddenly clenched, and she sprang from her chair like a startled kitten.

"P-Prince!"

Flustered, she tried to bow, fumbling for the teapot on the table to pour Tang Yuan some tea.

Clatter.

Too nervous to hold the teacup properly, she dropped it straight onto the floor, where it shattered into pieces.

Tea splashed across the hem of her skirt.

"I-I'm sorry! This servant deserves to die!"

Zhu Zhuqing's face instantly turned deathly pale, and her body trembled uncontrollably.

She remembered who she was.

She was a trophy of war.

This man's personal favorite.

In a place as strict as the King's Mansion, breaking something and disturbing one's master was a grave offense.

What was more...

It was already late at night.

Tang Yuan had pushed open her door and come in at this hour. His intentions could not have been clearer.

A few nights ago, troubled and restless, she had stepped outside her room for a walk.

As she passed the master bedroom, those suppressed yet impossible-to-hide sounds had slipped through the window and into her ears.

They had been her sister Zhu Zhuyun's voice.

Pain mixed with pleasure, pleading laced with submission.

For Zhu Zhuqing, who had never experienced such things, those sounds had undoubtedly come as a tremendous shock.

She knew what her sister had been doing.

As a servant, she had been attending to her master.

And now...

Was it finally her turn?

Zhu Zhuqing looked at Tang Yuan standing in the doorway. His tall body cast a vast shadow in the candlelight, completely enveloping her.

She was very nervous.

Her palms were drenched in cold sweat.

Yet for some reason, beneath that overwhelming fear, there was a trace of inexplicable... anticipation?

Compared to Dai Mubai, that useless coward who only knew how to run away, this powerful man before her seemed far more worthy of entrusting herself to.

Since she could not resist, since this was her fate...

Then she would accept it.

Zhu Zhuqing bit her lip and forced herself to calm down.

Ignoring the shards on the floor, she drew a deep breath and tried to keep her voice from trembling too badly.

"Lord Blue Silver King."

"Are you... resting here tonight?"

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her head, not daring to meet Tang Yuan's eyes.

"This servant... this servant will go make preparations."

"I'll bathe and change clothes, into something... more attractive."

As she spoke, she turned to head behind the screen.

Though she knew nothing of seduction and was nowhere near as alluring as her sister, she was still a daughter of the Zhu Family and knew what men liked.

Since she had to serve him, she would do her best to satisfy this man and spare herself some suffering.

"Stop."

Tang Yuan's voice rang out behind her.

It was calm, without a ripple of emotion.

Zhu Zhuqing froze in place.

She turned around and looked at Tang Yuan in confusion and helplessness, her hands clutching her skirt so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

Could it be...

He would not even give her time to prepare?

Was he that impatient?

Tang Yuan found the girl before him, startled as a frightened bird, somewhat amusing.

He walked to the table and sat down, avoiding the shards on the floor.

"No need to busy yourself."

"Sit."

Tang Yuan pointed to the chair across from him.

Zhu Zhuqing froze.

She could hardly believe her ears.

But she did not dare disobey Tang Yuan's order. She could only inch over cautiously, perching on the edge of the chair with her body held rigidly straight.

"Prince... you?"

Tang Yuan shook his head at her restrained appearance.

"Are you very afraid of me?"

"N-No." Zhu Zhuqing hurriedly denied it, but her voice was as faint as a mosquito's.

"Enough, stop pretending."

Tang Yuan leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over Zhu Zhuqing's face.

This girl's development was indeed remarkable. Coupled with her cool temperament, she truly was a budding beauty.

However, Tang Yuan had not come tonight to take her.

At least, not yet.

Sometimes, the pleasure of nurturing someone was more interesting than simply plucking the fruit.

"Your sister did that willingly. It was also her means of survival."

Tang Yuan suddenly spoke.

Zhu Zhuqing abruptly raised her head, seemingly never expecting Tang Yuan to mention this.

"You are different from her."

Tang Yuan lightly tapped his fingers against the tabletop, producing a rhythmic sound.

"You're somewhat reserved, and you carry a lot on your mind."

"But what I value is your talent, as well as that ruthless unwillingness to admit defeat."

"Your will is very resilient. In that regard, you're stronger than your sister."

At Tang Yuan's praise, Zhu Zhuqing's eyes flickered.

"Cultivate well."

Tang Yuan looked into her eyes, his tone growing more serious.

"In this world, strength is the only hard truth."

"If you can put that ruthlessness into cultivation, then in the future, even among Titled Douluo, there may be a place for you."

"When that time comes, you won't merely be my personal favorite, or someone else's accessory."

"You will have the right to take control of your own fate."

Zhu Zhuqing was stunned.

Take control... of her own fate?

No one had ever said those words to her before.

Her family had told her to fight, so that she could survive.

Dai Mubai had told her to wait, for the sake of a political marriage.

Only the man before her had told her that becoming stronger was for the sake of controlling her fate.

"As for everything else..."

Tang Yuan stood and looked down at her.

"We'll talk about it after you grow up."

"You're still too young. I'm not in a hurry."

Tang Yuan reached out and lightly patted Zhu Zhuqing on the head.

"Whether it's a problem with cultivation or something you lack in daily life, you can come directly to me."

"Since you've entered the Blue Silver King's Mansion, you are one of my people, Tang Yuan's people."

"As long as you are loyal enough, I don't mind paving a path to the heavens for you."

Having said that, Tang Yuan did not linger any longer.

He turned, pushed open the door, and left.

His movements were smooth and flowing, without the slightest hesitation.

Zhu Zhuqing was left alone, sitting blankly in the room.

The door closed again.

The candle flame in the room flickered.

Zhu Zhuqing's taut body seemed to have been drained of all strength, going limp in an instant.

Leaning against the back of her chair, she let out a long breath.

The tightly drawn string in her heart loosened.

An unprecedentedly complicated emotion welled up within her.

There was relief.

Relief that the thing she had feared had not happened tonight.

Yet alongside that relief, there was unexpectedly a faint sense of disappointment.

Was she not charming enough?

Or did he truly just think she was too young?

But more than anything, she was moved by the respect he had shown her.

He had not treated her as a tool for venting his desires, nor as a mere trophy.

Instead, he had regarded her as a Soul Master with potential, with a future.

As a person.

"Blue Silver King..."

Zhu Zhuqing looked at the tightly shut door, and a strange glimmer flashed through her cool eyes.

What kind of man was he, really?

When domineering, he was like a tyrant.

When killing, he was like Asura.

But in that moment just now, he had seemed like a mentor worthy of trust.

That stark contrast was like an enormous whirlpool.

It possessed an indescribable magic that made one unable to resist drawing closer, wanting to explore it.

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her head and looked at her palm.

It was where Tang Yuan had patted her earlier.

It seemed to still retain a faint trace of warmth.

"To take control of my own fate..."

Zhu Zhuqing murmured, the corners of her lips lifting slightly into a faint yet beautiful smile.

"I will."