Chapter 140 - 3.36

Now that Xu Jiaqi and the System had reunited with each other, her confidence shot up even more. The presence of the helpful System was essentially like a guarantor to her condition.

With this newfound energy, Xu Jiaqi embarked on a farther path to escalate her plans with He Yiyuan, while also maintaining control over Xian Ruo's wellness.

Not long after her first meeting with He Yiyuan, winter descended. Particles of snow fell from the sky, painting a beautiful white landscape that seemed so tranquil. Xu Jiaqi's well-made preparation was fully launched, and the entirety of Xian Ruo would be able to continue their sustainable living until spring came around.

With the change of the season, Xu Jiaqi also received a particular message from a certain someone.

He Yiyuan's continuation of their plan. The finalized decision: Xu Jiaqi would have to go to the Xi Kingdom as Xian Ruo's delegate. The time limit was unknown, but the message clearly states that it would take longer than one year, depending on how far the alliance was going to stretch to. He Yiyuan promised that he would take care of Xian Ruo under his wing as well, while keeping it an independent power altogether.

Essentially, the final agreement ended up being a golden ticket for Xian Ruo in exchange for Xu Jiaqi's departure.

What did that entail?

"So.. how the hell do I tell him without creating a shitshow?" Xu Jiaqi mumbled as she rolled around in the bed.

Xie Yongrui. If he heard this piece of news, if he knew that she had to go away, how would he react? Definitely not great, right?

[Who knows, Host? I only left for some time, but you were already able to land a deal with He Yiyuan. How great.]

"Systemm~ When will you be able to get a real physical body? Like ones that can show up in reality, be touched, or be seen by others?"

[..Host wants me to do that?]

"I thought that it would be fun. You could be my companion or whatever, and I don't have to worry about talking to the air anymore. It feels weird sometimes. Like, what if I am actually not talking to a living thing, but rather a-" Xu Jiaqi was about to continue her rambling, but stopped herself. "..Sorry, nevermind."

She covered herself with the thick blanket, signalling the harsh weather of the winter. She submerged herself in the heat and avoided the matter altogether, leaving the System still in shock and filled with questions.

"Qiqi, you are inside here, right? Can I enter?" A voice came from the outside as Xu Jiaqi spent her time lazing around.

Winter made her want to relax badly.

From the first word, Xu Jiaqi had already noticed who was behind the door. It was her lord, Xie Yongrui.

"..Good day, how come the lord personally visits his subordinate's room? What's the occasion here?" Xu Jiaqi got up from her slumber and looked at Xie Yongrui with a creased brow.

"Qiqi, do you want to go out for a walk?" The man asked with a stoic expression.

"In the winter? Do you want to kill me and dispose of me inside a frozen pond or something?" Xu Jiaqi gestured for him to enter first since the cold air was already attacking the moment he opened the door ever so slightly.

"..Why is your first thought about killing?" Xie Yongrui voiced complaints as he patted Xu Jiaqi's head, who was shorter than him.

"Oh, it's just an assassination method that I thought of using. I need to start forming better techniques. I know that I won't get caught, but if I just snap their necks, cut their throat, poison them, or do all sorts of things, won't I be super unoriginal?" Xu Jiaqi casually talked about her dirty jobs.

"..You worry about those type of things?"

"Of course I do. Is it bad?"

"What bad? There's nothing bad that you can do."

"...That's more like it." Xu Jiaqi broke into a smile and chuckled as she scrambled around to get a thicker mantle for her and the man, who was donned in rather thin clothing for the weather. "Though, really, why do you want to go outside? I thought you had instructed me to stay inside and keep myself warm."

"...I overheard some things. Some unpleasant news."

Xu Jiaqi blinked, and thought about all the possibilities that the lord could've entailed with that statement. There was one thing that immediately came to her suspicion. "..He Yiyuan?"

She wrapped the two of them in the mantles she got, and the two sat down facing each other.

"You... How did you come to get acquainted with that man? I know you dealt with Zheng Jianyu, but He Yiyuan? Even the bigshots all around the world have troubles trying to meet that man."

"I didn't try to meet him. He came to see me on his own. Apparently, he wanted me to join him, but obviously I declined. Since.. I have you, my lord."

"Still, He Yiyuan wants you to come to the Xi Kingdom, right? What about that?"

"..Will you object to it if I said that I wanted to go?" Xu Jiaqi's plan was to accept, but what about Xie Yongrui?

Originally, she was worried on how she would tell this matter to him, but she didn't expect him to come here and ask her personally. It was rather.. intriguing.

"I knew from the start that you're someone that won't be restrained by my words. Why even bother trying to hold you back? I would only pose harm to you, a free soul."

"You're not going to stop me? Really?" Xu Jiaqi raised a brow.

"You've never been mine from the start, were you?"

"Is that the case.. I thought that you would be the type of person to fight for it, but I guess I was wrong." Xu Jiaqi leaned on his shoulder- something that should've been massively inappropriate if they had a normal master-subordinate relationship.

But between them, nothing was normal.. At the same time, everything was normal, they were able to be balanced because they were right by each other's side.