âNope. Iâll take Little Daze for a walk in the morning then some other chores and studying. I practice in the afternoon and cultivate at night.â
âLittle Daze?â
âA beast that I picked up. Looks a bit like a horse, and now itâs my mount.â
âI seeâŚ.â
Hearing the laughter from the main seats, Jiayan bit harder into her food.
Whatâs so funny? All she knows is studying and practicing. Is she a dummy? What does cousin see in her anyway?
Crack!
She bit into something hard and her teeth felt numb. âAh!â She let out a shriek of pain.
âWhat happened?â This shriek attracted the attention of the queen and king.
State Master Jiayan spit out an item. Seeing that there was blood on it, she held her cheek and started crying.
âSister bit the clamâs shell!â the prince turned back to his parents.
The king and queen smiled. The king of Yijun chided her, âYouâre not young anymore, canât you be more careful?â
âThere are times where you just miss something.â The queen smiled and beckoned Ding Qingqing to come over. âQingqing, help State Master take a look.â
âYes.â Ding Qingqing smiled.
After ensuring that her teeth were alright, Jiayan heaved a sigh of relief. She then caressed her cheeks to soothe the pain. Seeing Lu Mingshu smiling, anger rushed up to her heart and she shouted at her. âWhat are you laughing at?!â
Lu Mingshu looked over at her.
âWhat are you looking at? Iâm talking about you! Am I that funny?â
âJiayan!â The king of Yijun shouted at her.
Doesnât she know where she is right now? Even if you donât like her, this is not an appropriate thing to do in front of the crowd!
âI only asked her a question!â
Even father is on her side!
Jiayanâs face turned red with anger, and she pointed at Lu Mingshu. âSpeak up!â
Lu Mingshu gave her a thin smile before answering. âNothing much, Iâm just happy that I won the bet with State Master Jiayan.â
State Master Jiayan stared at her blankly for a moment.
âHas State Master forgotten?â Lu Mingshu looked at her. âOn the opening day, State Master and I bet in front of the crowd about whether I could get into the New Generation Ranking.â
State Master Jiayan had really forgotten about it.
That day when she sent her servant girl to deliver medicine to Lu Mingshu and got exposed by Xie Lianzhen, she had been so upset that she skipped the competition for a few days. Now that Lu Mingshu spoke about it in front of everyone, shivers ran down her spine.
The bet! A hundred mystic crystals!
Her first reaction was to look over at her father, the king of Yijun.
âThereâs such a thing?â The king of Yijun looked at Jiayan in shock.
Lu Mingshu answered before Jiayan could. âYour Majesty isnât aware of it? That day, State Master and I made a bet; if I didnât get into the New Generation Ranking, Iâll stop bothering her, and but I did, sheâd have to pay meâŚâ
Lu Mingshu didnât complete the sentence, but people who knew State Master Jiayan personally would know roughly how much she bet.
The king of Yijun furrowed his eyebrows. âJiayan, you have to concede defeat if you lost.â
ââŚyes, father.â
After a while, nothing happened. The king of Yijun looked at her oddly. âWhat are you doing then? Pay the bet!â
State Master Jiayanâs eyes brimmed with tears.
Where am I supposed to get a hundred mystic crystals!?
Lu Mingshu continued to stare at her without any intention of saving her.
The king of Yijun sighed and spoke up. âMiss Lu, Jiayanâs been spoiled by me. I apologize on her behalf if she has offended you.â
Lu Mingshu shook her head. âJust a fair bet. It canât be considered offending me.â
The king of Yijun smiled stiffly.
Is this Miss Lu really that dense, or is she doing it on purpose?
With that, he looked at Lu Mingshu. âIâll pay for Jiayan. How much is it?â
âNot much, only a hundred mystic crystals.â
The king of Yijun then turned to the servant next to him. âGo get a hundred⌠mystic crystals?â The last two words were significantly higher-pitched than his other words. He looked at Lu Mingshu oddly and then turned to Jiayan
Jiayan didnât even dare to raise her head. A hundred mystic crystals were something that even a Spirit Realm elder might not have. She may have a good life, but all her money had to pass through the king of Yijun before she could use it.
âJiayan!â The king of Yijun looked at her in anger.
Jiayan didnât even dare to look up.
âYouâŚ!â He was so angry that he started shaking. But he managed to calm himself down.
This idiot, why are you so easy to fool? And this Lu Mingshu, even though Jiayan may have harassed you a bit, arenât you taking things too far?
But Lu Mingshu didnât seem to care what others thought of her and continued to enjoy herself.
The king of Yijun took a deep breath and beckoned his servant over. âGo get a hundred mystic crystals.â
The servant did as told.
In a short while, a pouch was in Lu Mingshuâs hand.
A hundred mystic crystals was not a small amount. The king of Yijun seemed to stare daggers at her. âMiss Lu, a hundred mystic crystals. Keep it well.â
Lu Mingshu didnât count the crystals in front of the crowd, at least leaving him some face.
âThank you.â
Seeing this, the queen gave the king of Yijun a stiff smile and glanced over at the king of Zhongzhou.âŚ..who shook his head in response and sighed.
This girl is indeed very stubborn. Sheâs in this situation and yet she still dared to offend the king of Yijun? Perhaps she never planned to stay in the first place?
âWhereâs Xingâer? Call him over.â
âYes,â Ding Qingqing answered.
Lu Mingshu batted her eyelids. After what happened yesterday, she didnât feel like seeing Xie Lianzhen. After hearing from Wei Chunqiu about Xie Lianzhenâs past, she didnât know what to feel or do since her entire plan went down the drain.
But it was the queenâs order, so there was nothing she could do.
After a moment, Xie Zhanghui came over, pushing Xie Lianzhen.
âElder brother!â The little prince went over happily.
Xie Lianzhen smiled and caressed his head.
It was a warm sight in the eyes of others, but not to Lu Mingshu.
Someone who sees nothing as important, how is he able to pretend that he cares and loves his younger brother?
âYour majesty, your highness.â Xie Lianzhen slightly bowed to them.
The king of Zhongzhou smiled at him. âIs there any improvement in your cultivation recently? Ah, thisâŚ! Are you preparing to break through to the Spirit Realm?â
Xie Lianzhen nodded. âIâll have a try. If I fail, it will be easy to make adjustments.â