Chapter 232: Untitled

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

All for an heir.

Now, he dared not even pay respects to her grave. On the day of her death anniversary, all he could do was to burn three joss sticks in his room. Amidst the swirling smoke, the illusion of her eyes filled with condemnation were every so real. He owed her too much; a debt that could not be repaid in this lifetime.

The gut-wrenching betrayal he had committed all for an heir, but still, his sacrifices did not bring him an heir! He had taken control over his own life with his iron fist, but yet, the fangs of revenge continued to follow him, leaving wounds that would not heal for eternity.

Xuanyuan Cheng slowly put his hand down. At this moment, he felt as though his ambitions were shattered. ‘All these years of painstakingly planning, schemes just to give you the very best… but your gaze is on somewhere else… why bother, why bother…’

He looked at his daughter with fear and anger in his eyes. In a trance, he thought, ‘She hates me too… hate me then…’

“You are only concerned about your Brother Yue, but has your Brother Yue ever thought about you?” He calmed down and slowly walked towards her. “Do you know why I have no children other than you? Do you know why your only brother died at infancy? Yun Er… It turns out you are also part of the cold-blooded royal family, but your coldness is only towards your father that loves you so much.”

“Ah…” Xuanyuan Yun stood there, paralyzed.

As the pair of father and daughter fought, Meng Fuyao eavesdropped from behind the wall gleefully.

With her ears upright, she meticulously identified the muffled sobbing sound from the residence opposite as a complicated expression filled with pain and joy hang on her face.

Behind her, Shadow Blade leaned on the wall, crossed-arm, beside the tree, his eyes filled with amusement. In the entrance further down stood Little An. The rest of the servants that were sent over by the Regent King were all stopped outside of the courtyard to allow her to carry out her deeds.

The sound of the door opening seemed rushed. Xuanyuan Cheng hurried out, his footsteps were elegant and solid. In his haste, his posture was tilted as he walked. An evil thought crept into Meng Fuyao’s head, ‘Could it be that he had a stroke?’ But upon closer look, she realized that his footsteps were a little odd. Despite the speed, every step was solid. ‘Could it be a martial art he has trained in?’

She should have gotten down immediately, but her curiosity made her stare longer than she should have as she tried to decipher Xuanyuan Cheng’s martial arts. Seeing her there unmoved, Shadow Blade panicked as he rushed forward and hugged her leg, trying to pull her down.

Meng Fuyao refused as she clung onto the wall. Shadow Blade grabbed her leg. This girl, fresh out of the shower, wore only a thin dress in the cold. Even though the dress could cover her skin, the flowery scent of her skin could not be covered by it. Between the pieces of cloth, her white skin sparkled, tender and soft.

And so he hugged, not wanting to let go.

Meng Fuyao’s attention was still focused on Xuanyuan Cheng as she carelessly patted his head like a little puppy, urging him to let go. Shadow Blade ignored her, and the absent-minded Meng Fuyao paid no heed. After all, she was still analyzing Xuanyuan Cheng’s martial arts; something that seemed useful for her to break through the sixth level and third section of her “Cleaving Nine Heavens”.

Then she felt something tightened around her kneecap.

As though something was stuck to it.

Slightly cooling, she could feel the silky smooth skin even with the thin piece of dress between them a little itchy too. A certain someone had too long eyelashes and had managed to tickle her knee despite her dress. It reminded her of the flower petals that would gently flutter and float on peaceful water during springtime, with not an ounce of its beauty diminished.

Meng Fuyao heart fluttered too, and it was soon followed by fits of giggles as the eyelashes tickled her. As she laughed, he looked down and saw Shadow Blade gently hugging her leg with his face glued to her knee. She trembled a little, and the tiles on the wall rang quietly.

From afar, Xuanyuan Cheng immediately turned over.

Shocked, Meng Fuyao immediately jumped down, but she had totally forgotten that her leg was still in someone’s embrace. With this jump, the force had silently pushed the still injured Shadow Blade over. Yet, he refused to let go of her leg and so, just like that, Meng Fuyao was too dragged down by him.

Meng Fuyao was a worrywart, to begin with, and as she fell down, she still recalled that the severe injuries on Shadow Blade’s back were not healed—he could be her meat cushion. And so, she quickly turned and cushioned him. His body heavily pressed down on hers.

As he fell down, he could not control his weakened body, and his face landed right in front of Meng Fuyao’s eyes. Meng Fuyao blankly stared at this face without any form of makeup, only the hair-do of a lady. But even so, his beauty was ever so stunning and breathtaking. She rolled her eyes and pushed him away, but Shadow Blade was still on her, panting slightly.

His scent rushed up to her nose. It wasn’t the fragrance of a flower, yet it was more seductive than a flower fragrance. This man that belonged to the night had an air of mystery that surrounded one. His hand wrapped around her waist gently, not wanting to let go as he gazed into her eyes. Their legs intertwined, all their actions silently screaming ‘entangled’ at this very moment.

Fragrance wafted as they looked into each other’s eyes.

A lifetime of loneliness, love to be forgotten at this moment.

Shadow Blade closed his eyes and panted slightly, content with that fact that the kind lady under him didn’t dare to push him away with too much force for fear of hurting him. His eyes remained closed as he took the chance to savor every fragrance that belonged to her…

‘Ah, her scent is like a flower at the top of a cliff, noble yet amiable, cold yet warm, blooming from afar.’

He opened his eyes and cherished every moment of eye contact they had as though the last hope that was destroyed was once again rekindled.

“How much luck do I have in this life to be able to exchange for a single moment just to have you in my arms…”

His raspy voice was like a soft finger rubbing against fine sandpaper, a melody that would somehow take one’s soul away.

Meng Fuyao’s heart thumped, but at the same time, she could hear the footsteps getting closer and closer. A servant quickly announced the Regent King’s arrival. Meng Fuyao was just about to push Shadow Blade away when Xuanyuan Cheng’s cheerful voice resounded from outside the courtyard. “I have come to pay my respects to the empress and to see if there are any inconveniences that you may have.”

He was surprisingly respectful as he stood outside to wait, but he made the lady in charge report to him what the empress was doing. “My lady is admiring the moon with her servants.”

Meng Fuyao quietly sighed as she pulled the silent Shadow Blade up. “Look at the mess. Quickly shrink your bones, and hopefully, the Regent King’s visit tonight will not be over an hour… Otherwise…”

But… Murphy’s law, you see.

Xuanyuan Cheng’s visit dragged on as he sat in the front hall, not wanting to leave. Shadow Blade’s “Chun Mei” carefully “served” him. From her appearance, “Chun Mei” was a normal maid that Xuanyuan Cheng had paid no attention to. But before he left, he suddenly started to discuss about the talents in the Seven Kingdoms.

The hands on the clock ticked. Xuanyuan Cheng rambled on jovially; Meng Fuyao listened in trepidation, worrying that Shadow Blade could not maintain his bone-shrinking. Once it was revealed, it would be ‘Game Over’ for everyone. All she could do was to continue the conversation as naturally as possible while carefully listening to Shadow Blade’s movements.

However, after an hour, she could hear the slightest cackling of a bone.

“Ka!”

This sound echoed like a bomb in her ears, almost robbing her of her hearing.

The bone-shrinking was undone!

Opposite her, the smiling Xuanyuan Cheng suddenly kept quiet as his gaze scanned across the room.

Meng Fuyao immediately lifted up her finger that was on her knees and awkwardly mumbled, “Argh, can’t get used to wearing nail sleeves… it broke again.”

On her left middle finger sat a broken nail sleeve.

Xuanyuan Cheng kept his gaze.

Meng Fuyao feared the sound of the bones would ring once more—her nail sleeves could not be broken continuously. She quickly coughed elegantly, covering her lips with her sleeves as she said, “My bad, Regent King. I cannot get used to the weather in the capital and have caught a cold.” She then ordered “Chun Mei” to ask Little An to bring her some ginseng pills.

“Chun Mei” bowed as he turned to walk away. Suddenly, Xuanyuan Cheng asked, “Your Highness has a cold? Oh, dear, how could this be? Chun Mei, get the doctor in the residence to visit.”

Meng Fuyao panicked. It was obvious that Shadow Blade could not maintain his bone-shrinking technique any longer and having to walk to the front courtyard in this state would cause trouble, especially given that she would not be by his side. If Xuanyuan Cheng were to catch him, she wouldn’t be able to save him even if she wanted to.

“A mere cold. The imperial doctor has already written down the medication, and if I were to use other medication, they might clash. Furthermore, the night is no longer young, it would be extremely inconvenient.” Meng Fuyao emphasized the words “extremely inconvenient”, meaning: You, Regent King, in my place at this time of the night is extremely inconvenient.

Unfortunately, Xuanyuan Cheng did not get the hint. With a smile, he replied, “We are all family. There is no such thing as an inconvenience between us.” And then, he turned to “Chun Mei” and ordered sternly, “Go now!”

Meng Fuyao could feel her heart palpitating as her skin crawled. Forcefully calming herself down, she gracefully made her way over and ordered. “Very well, Chun Mei do go…” Xuanyuan Cheng’s expression relaxed. Suddenly, Meng Fuyao leaned forward, and Shadow Blade reached out to help her. Meng Fuyao had now gotten back on her feet and gave Shadow Blade a slap.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep