Not a single word had been spoken between them. They had even kept their breathing as quiet as possible.
When they were plotting, they had deliberately lowered their voices until only the other person could hear.
Gu Chengyin hadn’t even been there just now. How had he known?
Mind reading?
No, Gu Chengyin couldn’t read minds.
Deduction?
That didn’t make sense either. By the time he came upstairs, they had already shut their mouths.
There wasn’t a single clue that could have allowed him to deduce it.
Then… had he just guessed?
Luo Zhao opened and closed her mouth.
Her expression became extraordinarily complicated in that instant.
There was the guilty unease of having her thoughts guessed correctly, the embarrassment of being caught red-handed, and the frustration of wondering how this man could understand her so well.
Shangguan Yunying was somewhat calmer, but even that calmness was an act.
Seeing their expressions, Gu Chengyin knew he had been right.
Because this didn’t require any guesswork at all. Given how well he understood the two of them now, after being tormented by Lin Qingyan like that, if they weren’t thinking about getting revenge, then they wouldn’t be Luo and Shangguan.
But the problem was, couldn’t they refrain from plotting right in front of him?
Gu Chengyin sighed inwardly once more.
If they had to plot, couldn’t they find somewhere empty to do it?
And if they insisted on plotting in front of him, couldn’t they at least avoid making it so obvious?
Gu Chengyin didn’t say any of this aloud. There was no point. Even if he did, they wouldn’t listen.
When it came to important matters and serious business, he could have the final say, and these women would obey him without question.
But when it came to causing trouble over trivial matters, they had never learned the meaning of restraint.
They would cause trouble when they wanted to, and plot when they wanted to.
Shangguan Yunying glanced at Luo Zhao, then began, “Master…”
She had barely gotten one word out when she suddenly felt her center of gravity disappear.
It wasn’t the dizzy, spinning kind of imbalance. It was the kind that came from being suddenly yanked by someone, leaving her completely off balance.
Everything in her field of vision spun rapidly.
Luo Zhao’s astonished face, the candlelight swaying across the ceiling, the tassels hanging from the bed curtains.
Then all those images froze, because Gu Chengyin had already pulled her into his arms.
Shangguan Yunying’s face instantly turned scarlet. She immediately buried her head in the hollow of Gu Chengyin’s shoulder.
And she showed no intention of lifting it.
Not even a little.
“Hmm?”
Gu Chengyin’s voice drifted over, tinged with confusion.
“Yunying, what were you trying to say?”
Shangguan Yunying didn’t answer. Instead, she pretended to be an ostrich.
When an ostrich encounters danger, it buries its head in the sand and pretends the danger doesn’t exist.
She was that ostrich now, and Gu Chengyin’s shoulder was her sand.
As long as she didn’t lift her head, she wouldn’t have to answer a question she no longer remembered.
Yes, she didn’t remember.
What had she been about to say?
The moment Gu Chengyin pulled her into his arms, Shangguan Yunying’s mind had gone completely blank.
Every thought had evaporated as if it had never existed in the first place.
Only one thought remained:
He’s holding me.
It was that simple.
Her brain had short-circuited that completely.
Seeing that Shangguan Yunying had no intention of answering, Gu Chengyin didn’t press her.
Instead, he turned his gaze toward Luo Zhao.
Luo Zhao was watching them, her lips slightly pursed like a little cat that had been neglected.
She clearly wanted to be held too, but couldn’t bring herself to ask.
All she could do was gaze at him with those dewy eyes, hoping her master would take the initiative.
But Gu Chengyin ignored that look and said, “Her Highness, don’t say I didn’t warn you. You’re in the Tower of Tranquility right now.”
Luo Zhao’s expression underwent a breathtaking transformation at those words.
First came confusion: The Tower of Tranquility? What was wrong with the Tower of Tranquility?
Then came contemplation: Wait, the Tower of Tranquility… wasn’t that Little Aunt’s magical treasure?
Then realization: That’s right! No matter what we say or do in here, Little Aunt will know about it!
And finally, horror:
Oh no.
Luo Zhao’s face went from red to white, then from white to green.
How could she have forgotten that?
No wonder Lin Qingyan had known what she called Gu Chengyin earlier.
It wasn’t because Lin Qingyan had exceptionally sharp ears, nor because she had happened to be standing outside the door and overheard them.
It was because the Tower of Tranquility belonged to Lin Qingyan!
Every word spoken and every action carried out inside was completely known to Lin Qingyan!
Didn’t that mean that her plot with Shangguan Yunying just now…
Lin Qingyan knew all of it?!
Oh no, oh no, oh no.
Luo Zhao’s head buzzed as if ten thousand bees were holding a conference inside it.
If the lesson from earlier had only been an appetizer, then how tough would the main course be once Lin Qingyan found out they had plotted revenge?
Luo Zhao didn’t even dare imagine it.
“No!”
Luo Zhao shot upright and grabbed Gu Chengyin’s hand.
Her palm was cold, and her fingertips trembled. She held on tightly.
It was as though she had seized a lifeline and refused to let go even if it killed her.
“Little Aunt is definitely going to punish me again when she comes back! Master, you can’t just leave me to fend for myself!”
Her voice was unmistakably panicked, and her eyes were beginning to redden again.
Her pitiful appearance was a stark contrast to her usual image in court.
One was the cold and aloof Crown Prince, and the other was a well-behaved puppy who could only cry and run to her master whenever she was bullied.
Gu Chengyin looked at her and sighed helplessly.
Just what had Her Highness learned, anyway?
Plotting revenge against Lin Qingyan inside Lin Qingyan’s own magical treasure.
What difference was there between that and loudly plotting right beside her ear?
But in the end, Gu Chengyin still said, “It’s all right, Her Highness. When Little Aunt comes back, I’ll talk to her.”
Luo Zhao’s eyes immediately lit up at those words.
The panic and fear that had covered her face moments ago were swept away.
In their place was the relief of someone who had narrowly escaped disaster, along with utter dependence.
Although Lin Qingyan feared neither Heaven nor Earth, she would certainly listen to Gu Chengyin.
As long as Gu Chengyin spoke, Lin Qingyan had never once refused him.
Just then, Shangguan Yunying suddenly lifted her head.
Because she had buried it in the hollow of Gu Chengyin’s shoulder, several loose strands of hair had slipped free from her coiffure.
They hung beside her face, highlighting her flushed cheeks and adding a touch of languid allure.
Her eyelashes were still damp. At some point, a glimmer of tears had gathered there.
The droplets clung to the tips of her lashes, catching the dim light and reflecting tiny shards of brilliance.
Without blinking, she stared straight at Gu Chengyin’s face.
Then Shangguan Yunying’s expression changed.
The corners of her lips slowly curved upward, forming a smile neither too wide nor too slight.
Luo Zhao noticed the change and felt her heart jolt.
She had seen that expression before.
The last time Shangguan Yunying had worn it was just a moment ago.
And the time before that had been…
Never mind. Thinking about it gave her a headache.
Luo Zhao was just about to ask when Shangguan Yunying spoke.
“Then… can Master bully Sister Qingyan?”
“Her Highness and I want to push from behind.”
shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
