Chapter 457: Did Little Luo Miss Me?
At this moment, the extremely weak Jin Yaowei seemed to have exhausted all his strength and once again began gasping heavily for air.
“You want to die quickly, or do you want to struggle to stay alive?”
This outcome was not surprising at all, as it was more or less what Yu Luo and her father had expected.
After Jin Yaowei finished speaking, Yu Luo responded coldly, her tone devoid of any emotion, as if she was born to be heartless.
“No, I… Can I live? I… I still have a daughter… I want to see her!”
Just as Yu Luo was about to give Jin Yaowei a choice regarding his fate, he suddenly seemed to experience a final burst of energy, his voice becoming much more agitated and loud. After speaking, he even struggled to get up from the ground.
Seeing Jin Yaowei in such a state, a faint smirk of mockery appeared on Yu Luo’s lips.
“Seeing how much you value Fang Jian, I thought he was the person you cared about the most. So you actually have a biological child?”
After saying this, Yu Luo turned to Zhang Hu, who was standing nearby.
“Have you found where Jin Yaowei’s family is hiding?”
“Miss, ever since Jin Yaowei fell into our hands, his wife and daughter disappeared overnight.”
Hearing this, Yu Luo slightly furrowed her brows, pondered for a moment, and then spoke again.
“Maybe they’re in hiding, trying to find a way to save him. Or perhaps, since Jin Yaowei used his position as the Martial Alliance Leader to harm many sects in the martial world, they’re afraid that those people will come after them for revenge.”
After finishing her thoughts, Yu Luo turned her gaze back to Jin Yaowei.
“You know my capabilities. If you don’t want your wife and daughter to end up like you, you’d better confess everything about Feng City. Judging by your condition today, you won’t last long, so take two days to think it over. If you change your mind, have someone inform me. I have all the time in the world to wait, but I can’t guarantee that your wife and daughter won’t walk right into their deaths out of desperation.”
With that, Yu Luo stood up, and Yu Haojie followed suit.
“Give him some wound medicine and provide him with two meals a day. He must not starve, but he also must not have the opportunity to take his own life. If he commits suicide, I will hold you all accountable.”
After giving his orders, Yu Haojie left with Yu Luo.
Lying on the ground, Jin Yaowei couldn’t help but smile bitterly when he heard the words “Martial Alliance Leader.”
Heh… in his current state, what would it even mean to be alive?
When he was the Martial Alliance Leader, he had been envied by many, and countless people wanted to kill him and take his place. He had also taken advantage of his status to seek personal gain more than once.
If he survived and left this place, how could those people ever let him go?
But…
If he died, what would happen to his wife and daughter?
Dying wasn’t an option, but living was unbearable. Jin Yaowei was in utter despair.
Eastern Feng Kingdom
Two days later, at Ye Lu’s residence, several baskets of strawberries arrived, sent by Yu Luo’s people.
Seeing the bright, juicy strawberries, Ye Lu’s gloomy mood instantly lifted.
“Did Little Luo really ask you to bring these to me?”
Picking up a strawberry, Ye Lu eagerly put it in his mouth. The sweet and tangy taste overwhelmed him with delight.
He was never one to indulge in food, but anything that came from Yu Luo always turned out to be a rare delicacy!
“Young Master Ye, this was indeed personally ordered by our Miss to be delivered to you.”
The one delivering the strawberries this time was Hu Liu, a guard stationed in Yueyang City. Since Ye Lu frequently did business with Yu Luo, he and Hu Liu had become quite familiar with each other.
Hearing Hu Liu’s confirmation, Ye Lu picked up a few more strawberries and happily ate them.
“Such beautiful and delicious fruit… I doubt even the Empress Dowager and my father have ever seen it before. Azan!”
Summoned by his master, Azan quickly appeared and respectfully bowed.
“Take two baskets—one for the Empress Dowager and one for my father. Didn’t we have trouble deciding on a proper New Year’s gift? Tell the servants to repackage them into something more elegant. Today, I’m going to rub this in my royal brothers’ faces!”
Seeing his master’s triumphant expression, Azan held back his thoughts and promptly took two baskets of strawberries away.
“If it weren’t for the New Year, I wouldn’t have come back. By the way, did your Miss leave any other messages for me? For example… did she happen to mention whether she missed me?”
Looking at Ye Lu’s hopeful face, Hu Liu forced a smile while trying his best to suppress any expression of ridicule. He bowed and replied solemnly,
“Young Master Ye, our Miss did not say anything at all.”
Ye Lu:
“That’s impossible! I already heard about it—Little Luo nearly got trapped again in Luo City! I heard tens of thousands of martial artists besieged Luo City, and she even captured Jin Yaowei alive. She must be terrified after all that, right? Go back and tell Little Luo that as soon as the New Year is over, I’ll go to Luo City to see her. Tell her not to worry.”
Seeing Ye Lu’s self-assured expression, Hu Liu struggled to maintain his polite smile and had no choice but to nod in response.
Outside the Guest Hall
Meanwhile, just outside, Xiahou Yuanwei had come looking for Ye Lu. The smile on her face froze upon overhearing their conversation.
Silently, she backed away from the corridor and left the palace with a dark expression.
“Princess, if Prince Lü finds out that we were eavesdropping, it won’t be good.”
As soon as they left the palace, her maid anxiously grabbed her hand and warned her.
At that moment, Xiahou Yuanwei’s face was deathly pale, and she was trembling slightly.
“No, I can’t face him right now, or I’ll lose my composure and give myself away. I won’t be able to control my anger.”
Seeing her master in such distress, the maid felt deeply concerned.
“Sigh… No wonder Lü Wang (Prince Lü) has been spending so little time in the capital this past year. I heard he even started doing business in the wilderness. So, there was actually a vixen waiting for him out there! Even after returning to the capital, she still has the audacity to send him gifts! Princess, why don’t you tell the King about this? He will surely stand up for you.”
Hearing this, Xiahou Yuanwei’s eyes filled with growing resentment.
“I’ve never seen him smile so happily when talking about any other woman. If he spends most of his time away from the capital, that woman must really have some tricks up her sleeve. You’re right—I can see that his heart has been stolen by someone in the wilderness. I must tell my father about this and have him come up with a solution. But for now, we must act as if nothing happened and go see him.”
Perhaps the cold wind outside had helped calm her emotions. After taking a deep breath, Xiahou Yuanwei regained her composure and, with her maid by her side, returned to the palace.
(End of Chapter 457)
