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Yet, his heart was bleeding.
A single outing cost five gold coins!
It seems cutting in also comes with a cost!
If only he had known Hu Lande was so easy to talk to, he should have haggled down to one...
Zhu Qing was indeed in a bad mood, but Jiang Yunzhou's matter-of-fact tone, as if possessing some peculiar magic, actually made the knot of frustration in her heart loosen a little.
She slowly turned her head, her gaze falling on the takeout box on the table, emitting the aroma of food.
Suddenly, she felt an urge to turn her grief into appetite.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Smelling the food, she suddenly felt a wave of hunger.
"Eat quickly; it won't taste as good when it's cold," Jiang Yunzhou said, uncharacteristically refraining from teasing.
Zhu Qing nodded and silently walked to the table and sat down.
She picked up her chopsticks, not bothering to look closely at what the food was, and simply retaliated by stuffing it into her mouth.
Each bite was like chewing on disappointment and anger, and also like filling the huge void in her heart with food.
Soon, several substantial portions of snacks were completely devoured by her!
Jiang Yunzhou watched, dumbfounded; this girl had quite an appetite!
He had originally thought of eating a few bites with her, but now, there wasn't even a crumb left.
"Uh..."
He rubbed his nose, looking at the empty takeout box, and sincerely exclaimed, "I didn't realize that besides being able to sleep, you're also quite a big eater... Impressive!"
Zhu Qing didn't smile, and couldn't.
She just silently put down her chopsticks, her eyes hollow as she gazed out at the gradually darkening twilight outside the window.
The entanglement and confusion in her heart were like vines Binding her, making her feel trapped in a dead end with no exit, caught between a rock and a hard place.
Seeing Zhu Qing still looking distracted, Jiang Yunzhou knew that simple words of comfort wouldn't do much for her.
The predicament she faced was far more complex than just a broken heart.
The Starfall Empire's royal marriage system and the family shackles of the Zhu family all needed to be considered.
Should he advise her to cancel the engagement or leave her family?
That would only make her think Jiang Yunzhou had ulterior motives, or was even exploiting her vulnerability.
This kind of thing couldn't be rushed; it required time and strength as a backing to slowly resolve.
Right now, the priority was to sever the bond between her and Dai Mubai, or at least prevent it from deepening!
At the same time, he needed to show her a path with visible hope.
Once she was strong enough, she could tell fate: No.
"After you eat, take a bath and get some good sleep; I don't like seeing you so lifeless," Jiang Yunzhou broke the silence.
"Oh, and remember to get up early tomorrow; I need your help with something."
Zhu Qing heard this and was pulled back from her thoughts, looking up with a hint of confusion in her eyes: "Help?"
"Yes, help."
Jiang Yunzhou met her gaze and said, "I'm planning to establish an academy and recruit disciples; I need you to lend a hand."
"Open, open an academy?" Zhu Qing was stunned, suspecting she had misheard.
This leap seemed a bit too big, didn't it?
Jiang Yunzhou nodded, confirming, "Precisely. Since you haven't decided whether to be my disciple yet, I can only go find someone else..."
These words were like a fine needle, pricking a hidden corner of Zhu Qing's heart, bringing a sense of emptiness.
It was as if something she thought belonged to her was about to be taken by someone else.
"No!" she blurted out, with urgency.
"Didn't you promise me three days to consider? The time isn't up yet, so how could you..."
She wanted to say: 'How could you give up?'
But the words caught in her throat, and a sense of grievance was written on her face.
Before Jiang Yunzhou returned, she had sat for an entire afternoon, forcing herself to think calmly.
Their accidental meeting, his rescue, and then pulling her to watch the show in the hotel lobby that afternoon—all seemed coincidental, yet they all carried a hint of careful planning.
So she still harbored a wariness towards Jiang Yunzhou, not daring to make a decision lightly.
But deep down, a voice was shouting: 'Say yes to him quickly, or you'll regret it for a lifetime if you miss this chance.'
So what exactly was she struggling with?
These two days were when the major Spirit Master academies began their recruitment.
Jiang Yunzhou chose this moment to propose opening an academy precisely to make her choose under pressure!
Anyway, the play about Dai Mubai was over; one day and three days were the same.
"You consider your decision, and I'll open my academy; neither will delay the other."
Opening an academy was, of course, for recruitment.
Zhu Qing's mind suddenly flashed to the young girl in the pink dress she saw in the lobby today!
Jiang Yunzhou had even specifically told her to remember her!
At that time, his eyes were filled with a different kind of interest, as if he was very intrigued.
A strange sense of crisis quietly arose.
She looked up, her suspicious gaze fixed on Jiang Yunzhou.
It was as if she wanted to penetrate his handsome face and see his true thoughts deep down.
Silence spread through the room, broken only by their subtle breaths.
Zhu Qing's heart was in a fierce battle, reason and intuition pulling in different directions.
Finally, she took a deep breath and asked a question: "Can I, can I trust you?"
As she felt a sense of relief after asking, she couldn't help but inwardly grumble: 'This scoundrel of a man, he's truly despicable! He said he'd give me three days to think, but every word he says is pressuring me!'
Jiang Yunzhou met her gaze, his eyes profound: "Of course."
"However, whether to believe or not, the choice is yours."
Zhu Qing lowered her eyelids, her long lashes casting shadows on her fair face, still weighing her options.
Aside from his stingy habit, there seemed to be nothing she couldn't accept.
But, opening an academy?
It required funds, registration procedures, and qualification reviews. Could he really pull it off?
He was so stingy; would he really be willing to spend all that money?
A cunning smile played on Jiang Yunzhou's lips. An academy? It was just a convenient name for recruiting disciples, nothing more.
For him to actually be the dean and manage those trivial matters? No way!
What he cared about was never an academy, but rather recruiting nine direct disciples who could help him reach the pinnacle!
All his efforts would only be poured into these nine people.
As for the academy?
It was merely a name to facilitate things.
Zhu Qing secretly gritted her teeth. For the sake of his handsome face, she would believe him!
Becoming his disciple didn't seem so bad either.
Jiang Yunzhou's strength was evident; a genuine Level 79 Soul Sage!
By all accounts, she was getting a great deal.
She was almost about to blurt out, 'I am willing to become your disciple,' when something else occurred to her.
If she became his disciple, would there only be a master-disciple relationship between them?
But he was so persistent; what he seemed to want was merely the 'disciple' identity.
Alas, it was truly distressing.
Yet, if she didn't become his disciple, then this young and powerful man might truly turn and leave her World, just as he said.
Thinking of this made her heart tighten inexplicably.
She suddenly realized that in just a day and a night of acquaintance, she had spoken more to him than in the past few months combined.
That instinctive wariness towards strangers had, at some unknown point, quietly dissipated in his presence.
It seemed that merely seeing him, hearing his unreliable yet somehow reassuring voice, could bring a glimmer of solace to her broken heart.
"Okay, I believe you."