Shen Wenqing nodded and said, "A few months ago, Patriarch Zi and Mo Qingcheng fought at Duanhun Cliff and Jiujue Peak. Liu Xing secretly left the Shen family to watch the battle."
"By the time Ji Gongfeng found him again, the seal within his body had been completely broken. If not for a strange power within him sustaining his life, he would have already perished!"
"But now, that strange power is also slowly dissipating. It is estimated that within a month, even immortals cannot save him!"
"In this life, Liu Xing is my only child, so I implore Patriarch Zi to save my Liu Xing's life!"
At this moment, Shen Wenqing displayed the complete image of a loving father, utterly devoid of the shrewdness of a family head.
As for his original intention to win over Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan, it had long since been cast aside.
Seeing Shen Wenqing's heartfelt display, Zi Linling's tender spot was touched.
For some reason, she was suddenly reminded of that figure, covered in the blood of demonic beasts yet tirelessly slaying them.
The words "Zi Guo Chang" lingered in her mind.
She wondered if, had Zi Guo Chang not disappeared back then, the original owner would not have died? Would she not have ended up here?
"Lin'er!"
Seeing Zi Linling lost in thought, Ye Lingyuan called out softly.
When he noticed the hint of unusual sadness in Zi Linling's eyes, he was heartbroken.
But Zi Linling was too deeply immersed in her emotions; this soft call had no effect.
"Lin'er!"
Ye Lingyuan called out again softly, gently tightening his grip around Zi Linling's waist.
Zi Linling suddenly snapped back to reality, nodded, and said, "Alright! I'll go with you!"
Shen Wenqing was overjoyed and said, "Good, good, good! Patriarch Zi, His Highness the King of Hell, please!"
The three of them stood up, about to leave, when a voice, neither distinctly male nor female, echoed in.
"Zi Linling, Ye Lingyuan, receive the imperial decree!" Su Dan Novel Network
As the voice faded, a eunuch, accompanied by several guards, entered.
The eunuch, with an effeminate appearance, held a whisk in one hand and an imperial decree in the other. He arrogantly blocked their path.
Clearly, the voice just now belonged to this eunuch.
Upon seeing the newcomer, Shen Wenqing's heartfelt expression quickly vanished, replaced by a harmless smile.
He stepped forward and cupped his fist at the eunuch, saying, "So it's Eunuch Hai! I wonder what wind has blown such an important figure by the Emperor's side to our humble establishment!"
His words were cleverly phrased.
While appearing to greet Eunuch Hai, he was actually informing Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan of the eunuch's identity.
Eunuch Hai, whose full name was Hai Sixian, was the right-hand man of Emperor Dongfang Xiongqi of the Azure Dragon Empire.
Hai Sixian, who had been walking with his nostrils upturned, immediately changed to a smiling face when he saw Shen Wenqing approaching.
"So it's Patriarch Shen. This humble servant greets you!"
Although he said he was being polite, he only gave a slight bow.
After all, standing behind him was the imperial family of the Azure Dragon Empire, the Dongfang clan, so his status was elevated accordingly.
"Eunuch Hai, no need for pleasantries! I wonder what brings such a busy man as yourself to a small place like the Yuelai Inn today?"
Shen Wenqing's smile did not waver, but he asked as if he didn't know the answer.
After all, Eunuch Hai's previous words had made his intentions abundantly clear.
Hai Sixian did not expose the pretense and explained, "This servant is on official business! And Patriarch Shen, why are you also neglecting your lucrative business to come to this remote corner?"
Shen Wenqing smiled and said, "This humble Shen has specifically come to invite Patriarch Zi and His Highness the King of Hell to the Shen residence to see my poor child!"
As he spoke, a hint of sorrow reappeared on his face.
After all, everyone in Dongfang City knew that the immensely wealthy Shen family had a sickly young master, and they also knew that this sickly young master was on the verge of death. Therefore, Shen Wenqing had nothing to hide.
Of course, he was also subtly implying that Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan were currently honored guests of the Shen family, making Eunuch Hai wary.
"Oh?"
Hai Sixian let out a faint hum and looked at Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan behind Shen Wenqing.
A flicker of jealousy flashed in his eyes.
These two were too beautiful! Beautiful like seductive vixen.
Zi Linling was one thing; women were supposed to be good-looking. But why did Ye Lingyuan, a man, have to be so handsome?
It had to be said that human jealousy was a terrible thing. Especially for eunuchs like Eunuch Hai, their minds had been twisted to a terrifying degree.
As the saying goes, "If I don't have it, why should you? If I can't, why can you? If I don't know, why do you?"
And Eunuch Hai's first impression of Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan was already "terrible" to the extreme. Would he still care about the warning in Shen Wenqing's words?
"You are Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan?"
His voice carried a hint of disdain.
"Heh!"
Zi Linling let out a cold laugh and did not reply.
Ye Lingyuan already had a demeanor of not caring about anyone, so he was even less likely to respond.
Hai Sixian's expression immediately turned unpleasant.
He was a favored official of Dongfang Xiongqi. Which person in the Azure Dragon Empire did not greet him respectfully and with a smile?
Now, to be treated with such disrespect, how could he not be enraged?
Shen Wenqing, seeing the awkward silence, quickly stepped forward and smiled to smooth things over, "Eunuch Hai, these two are indeed Patriarch Zi and His Highness the King of Hell, but they are new here and not yet accustomed to things. Please forgive any offense, Eunuch Hai!"
By saying this, he was essentially offering Eunuch Hai a way out, and whether Eunuch Hai chose to take it was his own affair.
After all, Zi Linling and Ye Lingyuan were also formidable individuals.
They dared to capture the young master of the imperial Zi family to extort them, and then roam freely in the capital of the Azure Dragon Empire. They even dared to insult the scouts of the four great families and a younger master of the imperial Zi family. This was either due to their extreme arrogance and overconfidence, or they were absolutely fearless.
Were Ye Lingyuan and Zi Linling foolish?
Absolutely not!
Therefore, they were absolutely fearless!
And to be fearless, either their background was powerful enough, or their strength was powerful enough. Clearly, Ye Lingyuan and Zi Linling belonged to the latter category!
Shen Wenqing had dealt with all sorts of people his entire life and considered his judgment to be quite sharp.
Therefore, the moment he saw Ye Lingyuan and Zi Linling, he knew they were the type of people who could only be moved by emotion, not by forceful suppression.
This was why he had played the emotional card of Shen Liu Xing.
Of course, his paternal affection for Shen Liu Xing was genuine.
Everyone in the empire knew that if anyone dared to harm Shen Liu Xing in the slightest, Shen Wenqing would fight them to the death.
And what Shen Wenqing was doing now was not to use Shen Liu Xing to scheme against Zi Linling, but to establish an emotional bond with Zi Linling through Shen Liu Xing.