Chapter 68

Chapter 68

Lu Yunqi flashed a charming smile and winked at Murong Jie, then enthusiastically stepped forward to shake his hand, saying, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, I've heard so much about you!"

But before their hands could meet, Murong Jie withdrew his and frowned at him, his eyes filled with disdain.

Lu Yunqi: ???

Damn it!

Fine, fine. Considering you're still keeping your virtue, I won't hold it against you.

Murong Jie asked in a cold, deep voice, "May I ask what business Lord Mo has with me?"

Lu Yunqi thought to himself, *Oh ho, he's already using the royal 'we'—what a smooth identity shift!*

But on the surface, he showed nothing and simply handed over a ledger. "Your Highness, please take a look. This is the financial report for Wancheng over the past six months."

The moment Murong Jie saw the report, his expression shifted dramatically—for a man who rarely showed any emotion, this was nothing short of a dead man rising from his coffin.

He stood up abruptly. "Over ten million taels of silver? Do you realize your six-month cash flow exceeds the national treasury? Where did you get this much money?"

Lu Yunqi chuckled. "Ah, Your Highness, don't get so worked up! You've probably heard about Wancheng by now. All over the world—I mean, anywhere there are people—we have contact points. You know the red gemstone on the Emperor's crown? I've got over a dozen of them in my possession. And every single one is better quality than the one on His Majesty's crown. Bright red, dazzling, and under sunlight they even blaze with a fiery brilliance."

With that, he pulled out a ruby and placed it on the tea table as if showing off.

Murong Jie picked up the ruby and gave a faint hum. "Indeed. Wancheng has certainly surprised me."

But then, Murong Jie fell into brief contemplation.

The man before him looked far too young—barely twenty, if that.

A twenty-year-old who could turn a wasteland into a city—and a city wealthy enough to rival a nation—in such a short time? An ordinary person could never do that.

There must be someone backing him. But who could it be?

First, he could rule out the Yan people to the north—they were too fond of fighting and weren't clever enough.

Next, the Nanzhao. They were too far from Wancheng. If they wanted to build a city, they'd do it in the south. Why would they go out of their way to build on Great Xia's border?

Could it be the Jin people?

Unlikely. He'd been dealing with the Jin for years. If they had such resources, they wouldn't be losing one battle after another.

After eliminating all impossibilities, whatever remained—no matter how unbelievable—had to be the truth.

That meant the power behind this young man was Great Xia itself. But within Great Xia, who had the power to back him and let him build a city wealthy enough to rival a nation?

After weighing every possibility, only one person had that kind of power... but...

But that couldn't be right. His father-in-law wouldn't secretly back someone like this and let him grow so powerful without a single word leaking out.

Little did Lu Yunqi know that in that brief moment, Murong Jie had already dissected the situation and nearly uncovered his secret.

But Murong Jie kept his composure and simply probed, "If Lord Mo came here just to show off, then there's no point in continuing this meeting. Speak plainly—what do you want from me?"

Lu Yunqi slapped the table and declared, "Now that's what I like to hear! I love doing business with someone with Your Highness's temperament! Far better than those who beat around the bush! Then I'll be direct. You know that with the city growing to this scale, my own private forces alone can't protect it. So, I'd like to invite Your Highness to come aboard."

"Join you?" Murong Jie asked, puzzled. "In what way?"

Lu Yunqi grinned. "Simple—Your Highness becomes Wancheng's protector, and we're willing to share the profits with you."

Murong Jie gave a cold snort. "There's no such thing as a free lunch. Surely, Lord Mo has other conditions besides this?"

In this world, no enemy appears without reason, and no friend either.

Something like this—a pie falling from the sky—Murong Jie certainly didn't believe a pie would just fall from the sky into his lap.

Lu Yunqi's arrival was already a stroke of incredible fortune. He didn't believe the same luck would strike twice.

Lu Yunqi blinked and asked, "Your Highness, do you think... I'm good-looking? How do I compare to that little young lord you hold dear?"

Murong Jie looked at Lu Yunqi's face—a face that seemed like the goddess's crowning masterpiece—and gave a faint hum. "Unmatched in this world. But... not as dear as the one I remember."

Lu Yunqi: ..."Not as dear as the one I remember," huh!

But the answer pleased him greatly. He thought, *Not bad, kid. You've kept your virtue well.*

He shrugged, neither confirming nor denying, and said, "Well, in terms of looks, I've never lost. My condition is simple—I'm willing to share this big slice of the pie called Wancheng with Your Highness. All you have to do is take me as your consort, and we'll split the benefits."

Murong Jie's eyes narrowed slightly. He turned to look at Lu Yunqi, and his heart suddenly trembled.

He recalled the first day his relationship with Lu Yunqi had changed—yes, that day when the lines had been drawn.

That day, Lu Yunqi had suddenly acted like a completely different person. After thoroughly humiliating him, he'd stripped off his clothes and...

He'd been so audacious that Murong Jie was caught completely off guard.

And now, this person before him—why was he making the exact same demand?

Take him as a consort? Ha! Murong Jie thought, *Who in this world could compare to him?*

Absolutely ridicu—

But as his gaze withdrew, it drifted downward for a moment, and he suddenly noticed a tear in the man's sleeve.

The tear was small—probably snagged on something without him noticing.

But Murong Jie noticed, because the fabric pattern on that sleeve was identical to the piece of cloth he had tucked inside his robes!

Murong Jie's breath caught. In an instant, he understood—last night... the person who had snuck into Fei Luan's room to feed the baby... was him?

Then why... why would he go feed the child?

And could he turn invisible?

If he could turn invisible, could he also change his appearance?

In this world, someone like Lu Yunqi was already a rare beauty. And now this man before him was just as breathtaking—was such beauty even meant to exist in the mortal realm?

Lu Yunqi looked at Murong Jie with a smug expression, thinking, *Come on, reject me. Reject me!*

*If you reject me, I'll hand Wancheng over to you in the name of righteousness!*

But the next second, he heard Murong Jie's voice, hoarse and strange, say two words: "Fine."