Chapter 136 - 3.32

The past forged them and carved their delicate qualities, polished them into brightly shining diamonds that were now known to the public as the wise King and his faithful servant. No one knew the long past that stood behind them, and no one needed to know. Those were all buried six feet under, and the murky scent of death was masked with tranquility which the land of Xi now held.

"Xu Jiaqi alone will not be enough. And it's not even her purpose to hold the throne. She is going to give it to Xie Yongrui, but not out of grace and paying her debts.. But because she wants to sit behind the throne, working everything from behind the scenes." He Yiyuan spoke.

"Is that another of your perception?" Zheng Jianyu raised a brow. He Yiyuan having such strong and vocal points about Xu Jiaqi meant that there really was something going on with the girl, enough to shake this man up to this point.

"Mhm. And it shall eventually happen."

"...As you say." Zheng Jianyu nodded, pulling over the hood of his robe.

No matter what happens, they will survive and thrive on.

______

Xu Jiaqi returned to her quarters, and was met with Lin, who informed her that Xie Yongrui had called for her presence in his chambers.

Hearing this, Xu Jiaqi was not surprised. She quickly took a casual bath, dipping herself in hot water that she was able to efficiently draw out with the help of the other talented human beings who inhabited Xian Ruo.

Xian Ruo was growing under her control in a rapid pace. Rather than being afraid of her, Xie Yongrui was someone who would show a proud smile every time her name was mentioned to him with a favorable light shining over her.

Xu Jiaqi unconsciously let out a smile. Perhaps it was because she was fond of the thought that Xie Yongrui was like this because he was the one she looked for. The soul that had a connection with her.

It made her wonder. Even if Xie Yongrui was indeed the one, what was she going to do? Surely, she can't possibly tweak the reality to her own advantage. She didn't love the other soul, but a part of her heart was moved. By the acts of Zenith, and by how this same soul managed to crawl back into her current world and meet up with her again.

She never had any expectations towards having love. It was all just a scheme for her to achieve desirable results at the very end. Nothing else.

But could that someday change? To her, love was nothing but a devious emotion that would drag her down to the depths of hell. For love, people could be so extreme to the point of no return. She couldn't relate to that sort of feeling. She had never experience such intense emotions.

That was, until her dreams started playing in. In each scene, she would be washed up with extreme sensations. So real that she was stricken with every single tingling thought of it actually happening to her. Memories of heartbreak, pain, happiness, tragedy, everything mixed up together made her want to escape from it all.

But the dreams never stopped. Even as Xu Jiaqi told the System about it, the dreams just kept on rolling. There was no stop for it, as if it was a painful series to remind her of something she forgot. Something important about herself.

Drowned in her thoughts momentarily, Xu Jiaqi soon snapped out and went to see Xie Yongrui after finishing her bath. The reeking smell of blood vanished from her body, and she portrayed elegance as she wore a gorgeous, yet simple dress made out of the finest silk.

Xie Yongrui especially liked it when she dressed up, and loathed it when Xu Jiaqi couldn't hide the clear exhaustion she faced even with her acting. He didn't want to see her suffer, but she constantly threw herself into danger.

Because it didn't pose any harm, Xu Jiaqi thought that entertaining the idea would be alright. She would tidy herself up before showing herself in front of him, but the man would always have a saddened expression. It was because he knew that she must've gone around and placed herself in dangerous positions yet again.

Thus, she headed towards Xie Yongrui's locations with practiced steps. Observing the nearby surroundings while departing. Seeing all the lush plants sway left to right due to the gust of strong wind that attacked.

Soon, she would be able to move about and finally begin her path to paving Xie Yongrui's rise. To her, it was all just a simple chess game involving the many countries, it wasn't that much of a big deal.

They were lowkey right now. Not hiding, but not showing up at the same time. The world did not know about their movements in detail, but they knew about their existence.

Xu Jiaqi strutted in confidence, and soon reached Xie Yongrui's location. She knocked lightly on the door, and slid the entrance open. Immediately, the figure of a calm lord showed up. Her eyes curved up and showed a flash of tenderness without her noticing.

"How have you been, my lord? I have returned." Xu Jiaqi entered and gently sat down next to him, latching her hands onto his arm, which was holding a teapot to serve the two of them tea.

Where else would a lord be personally serving their servant tea, which they brewed themself?

"I have been.. not so great. Really, it seems like you are avoiding me on purpose. I hope that I'm wrong, but.. how come you always choose to do missions that are far away from the estate? You are supposed to be my consultant, but it doesn't feel that way at all. You're almost never here except for the times that I summoned you. What do you have to say about that, dearest advisor?" Xie Yongrui scoffed jokingly.

"I just have been very busy, my lord. You are overthinking it. Why would I avoid you?" Xu Jiaqi smiled as she draped a long shawl that she brought along with her around her body. "It's cold, and the wind is heavy.. Winter is near, my lord."