The moment Mu Yao left, Ning Shu vomited a mouthful of blood. Frickin’, after vomiting for a while, she had actually gotten used to it.
Late at night, Ning Shu sent out an imperial hidden guard to bring the young girl from the cold palace over.
Ning Shu sat on a chair and silently chanted the heart-clearing chant. It was a good while before she opened her eyes to find that the hidden guard was standing there with her hand over the young girl’s mouth.
When the young girl saw Ning Shu, her gaze immediately turned indignant. She bit hard on the hand covering her mouth, but since there was no order from Ning Shu, the hidden guard could only endure the pain coming from his hand.
Ning Shu waved dismissively to have the hidden guard withdraw. The hidden guard removed her hand from the young girl’s mouth and the young girl’s blood-stained mouth was revealed. It was clear that she had really bit through the hidden guard’s hand.
“From now on, your name is Mu Qing,” said Ning Shu.
The young girl scoffed, her mouth stained with blood. “May I ask what Your Majesty means by this?”
Ning Shu glanced at her indifferently. “You don’t even know the most basic manners? Slap her.”
Court Lady Qiu walked over to deal the punishment, but she was shoved to the ground by the girl now called Mu Qing.
Court Lady Qiu staggered and fell to the ground. Mu Qing stood nearby and crossed her arms as she looked at Ning Shu provocatively. She looked very smug as if she had just obtained victory against Ning Shu.
Ning Shu didn’t get angry and just furrowed her brows. “You’re so arrogant and obstinate despite having lived in the cold palace, how have you not been beaten to death yet?”
Mu Qing: …
A wolf-like viciousness appeared on Mu Qing’s face. “I’m not scared of death, but others are. That’s why I survived.”
Ning Shu nodded. So she had survived with this behavior of baring fangs and brandishing claws.
“You’re the high and aloof emperor, why are you paying attention to an inferior being like me?” Mu Qing clearly hated and loathed Ning Shu greatly. Her hands were clenched into fists and her body was trembling slightly. It was clear that she was doing all she could to suppress the feelings in her heart.
Ning Shu drank a cup of tea, then said, “Are you expressing discontent?”
“No,” said Mu Qing.
“Mu Qing…”
“I don’t have a name and I’m also not called Mu Qing.” Mu Qing interrupted Ning Shu’s words.
Ning Shu was very annoyed. It was tiring from the start to talk, and now this girl kept interrupting her pointlessly. Ning Shu called for the hidden guard and said, “Give her a beating. Just make sure not to kill her.”
Mu Qing looked towards Ning Shu in wide-eyed shock. Anger flooded up in her heart along with a feeling of being wronged. Ning Shu said mildly, “Although you’re our child, you’re still a stranger to us. We can dictate your fate. You feel that we owe you, but at the very least, you’re still alive. Your status as a prince inspire at least a bit of fear in others. If not for that, do you think you would’ve have been able to survive until now?”
“Beat her.” Ning Shu rubbed her forehead. She felt a fishy sweetness in her throat, so she drank two cups of water in one go.
Mu Qing didn’t struggle and covered her head as she crouched on the floor, allowing the hidden guard to hit her. She bit her lips hard and muffled cries of pain only occasionally escaped.
“That’s enough,” said Ning Shu.
Ning Shu looked towards Mu Qing. “Can you talk properly now? Be a bit more mature. Even if you vent your anger and hatred like this, we don’t care at all and won’t feel any guilt.”
Mu Qing looked at Ning Shu, the rims of her eyes were slightly red. “Could it be that you don’t even feel the slightest bit of guilt towards my father?”
“We are the emperor. Everything we do has a reason,” said Ning Shu coldly. “We will not say anything about the past. Even if we had been wrong, we’ll only continue to wrong.”
In the past, Mu Qing had been absolutely unyielding, but when she heard what Ning Shu said, her tears immediately fell. “Father kept talking about you up to the moment he died, but all that was waiting for him was the fate of rotting to death. You didn’t even know he died.”
Ning Shu felt a great headache and her gaze started unfocusing slightly. She repeatedly chanted the heart-clearing chant. When she heard Mu Qing’s mournful accusation, she only felt vexed.
She didn’t have much time left, so she didn’t want to listen to these pointless little issues about love and hate, grievances and resentment.
