Zhōngguó made a face in my direction, a clear attempt to provoke or elicit some sort of reaction. However, it didn't bother me in the slightest. If anything, it only made my amusement grow. I could feel a small smile tugging at the corner of my lips, but I chose not to indulge him. My attention gradually shifted away, and I soon ignored the weapon who was clearly trying to rile me up for his own entertainment. The soft hum that drifted from his direction served as a quiet backdrop, but I paid it no mind, busying myself with putting the petals away in their proper place."Why aren't you as excited as I thought you'd be?" His voice broke through the quiet, carrying a tone of curiosity. By now, he had already made himself comfortable, sprawled lazily across my bed like it was his own personal lounging spot. I could feel his eyes on me.With a quiet sigh, I swept my fringe away from my face, tucking the stray strands behind my ear. Slowly, I raised my head from the mask I had been inspect
There was something deeply unsettling about the atmosphere in the room, an almost palpable tension that seemed to cloak the space and instill a sense of unease in anyone who crossed its threshold. However, it appears to be like the two men had not noticed each other's gazes as they were blatantly sizing each other up.There was a rather interesting look on Ravel's face as his face adorned a smile that even Zhi Ruo would find rather creepy. On the other hand, the Patriarch seemed entirely absorbed in his own thoughts, completely unaware of Ravel’s unnerving expression. His focus remained on the steaming cup of tea in his hand, his brow furrowing slightly as he took a slow, deliberate sip.There was nothing that Ravel could do but wait in silence with his impregnable smile.'Master has said that she has plans to deal with her grandfather when it comes 'with her secrets'. Though, I don't think she has taken into account how much the man has kept his eyes on her even if he was not in sig
Ye Gu Shi sat up straight his eyes gazing down at Ravel's form. He felt awfully overwhelming, that the butler who was just acting could not help but break into genuine cold sweat. "Ravel, I will now ask you to use that strength to aid me for a bit." The patriarch's voice reached Ravel's ears, Ye Gu Shi was solemn as he asked, it was obvious that he put great importance to this, that much Ravel could tell.Ravel furrowed his brows, his gaze still lowered on the floor. "May I ask what this is about?" He ventured out carefully, Ravel could almost feel the worried frown on Ye Gu Shi's face even though he did not dare to raise his eyes at this moment.There was a deep sigh that reverberated in the room, Ye Gu Shi almost seemed tired and worried all at once. This made the butler more curious than he would ever care to admit. "I know you have hidden your strength for quite some time, I hoped that you would be willing to use that strength to protect my granddaughter." His request came out lik
Thirty minutes before their scheduled landing, a soft knock echoed through the quiet hallway as Ravel, the ever-dutiful butler, rapped his knuckles on Zhi Ruo’s door. He stood there, impeccably dressed as always, though his usual calm demeanor was tinged with something more urgent.The butler proceeded to inform that he got from the patriarch to Zhi Ruo. Ultimately, and very quickly, betraying the contract he had with his master's grandfather.Zhi Ruo who had just woken up after getting a 3 hour power nap, couldn't get a word in after she was bombarded with Ravel's information dump. She could only let her butler in wordlessly, and led him to the table where he continued to babble on.She, on the other hand, had other plans. After guiding Ravel to the table, Zhi Ruo didn’t bother sitting across from him. Instead, she walked right back to her bed, not even pretending to be interested in the deluge of information spilling from her butler. With a sigh, she plopped face-first onto the matt
[Thirty minutes later— landing time...] In the vast expanse stretching near the Sighted Valley, the aircraft descended smoothly, landing without much of a hitch. As the doors opened, Zhi Ruo stepped out with an air of quiet confidence, her movements purposeful and composed. Behind her, Ravel followed closely, his demeanor attentive as ever.The other contestants had already gathered in the designated drop-off area, their murmurs filling the space as they watched the new arrivals. Zhi Ruo took a steady step, her gaze sweeping over the (still) ufamiliar faces. The last time she had been here, she had been left unnoticed, easily dismissed, and barely given a second glance by the crowd. But today was different. This time, all eyes were on her, a subtle shift in their expressions was apparent.This was not the same indifferent reception she had received during her first arrival; this time, she was far from overlooked. There's this hushed silence that blanketed the whole place, Zhi Ruo wa
When Zhi Ruo ascended to her pavilion, she was welcomed by her immaculately attired maids, who combined made for a lovely sight. The girl nodded with satisfaction, her thoughts already praising Ravel's managerial skills. She could tell that Ravel had been careful in his training of the staff. because she failed to see a single hair out of place.His training of the household staff was evident in every corner; not a speck of dust dared to linger, and not a single servant’s uniform bore the faintest wrinkle. After they landed, at the forefront of the welcoming assembly stood her venerable grandfather, Ye Gu Shi, a figure of unshakable dignity, clad in robes that seemed to flow like rivers of ink and silver. Flanking him were her senior brothers, their postures firm as ancient pines, and her sole senior sister, Ye Qing Qing, whose serene presence commanded both grace and authority.He congratulated the people that managed to get far in the tournament. The ordeal was done in a solemn man
A day later, and with sufficient rest. The lady took her time to look over her servants to find out what was missing or needed in her pavilion. Ravel mentioned in passing that the food in the pavilion was a bit lacking, the young lady noted this in the back of her head before she handed all her responsibilities to Ravel to handle. The butler, who was already used to this, didn't complain with Zhi Ruo's way of handling things and just calmly proceeded to make schedules. Through all that, Ravel had the time to dress Zhi Ruo up with the help of the other maid servants. Although the servants weren't used to the cosmetics products and skin care products that Zhi Ruo had around. They were quick to learn how to efficiently apply these products to Zhi Ruo's body. Ravel didn't let the maid servants stick around to help Zhi Ruo prep her face. The young lady prepped her own face by herself. In the afternoon, Zhi Ruo went out of her pavilion, and went straight to her grandfather's office where
A dancing silhouette could be seen flying across the raining valleys. Wait, no not dancing, fighting should be the exact term. It seems to be fighting an invisible force, blow by blow resounded in the empty and wet valley, the wind and rain were blown of by the vigorous action of the silhouette.An open palm strike struck out in the empty space, it seemed to have hit something. It was then followed by a loud resounding crash, in front of the palm on the ground laid a huge crater. And inside that huge crater has a huge hole."Open palm technique, basic 1.." the figure said, it's voice soothing, angelic and godlike, like an immortal speaking from the sky. Making one wanting to hear more."Zhi Ruo! You damn wench!...I'll...get you... next ti-" a laud screeching noise pierced through the air before it suddenly stopped, the owner of the voice finally made itself visible laying inside the giant crater.