The next morning.
You Rong’s eyelids fluttered twice, and he slowly opened his eyes. Familiar crystal chandeliers filled his vision. Startled, he sat up abruptly and turned to look at Lin Qinghe beside him.
Lin Qinghe lay there peacefully. You Rong gently stroked her face, pressing his forehead against hers. Confirming she was real and unharmed, his tense nerves relaxed, and he let out a long sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, she's alright."
Just then, the bedroom door opened, and Zhang Yi entered with food. Seeing You Rong awake, his face lit up with joy, and he hurried over.
“Young master, you’re finally awake! You were unconscious the whole night. Are you alright? Do you feel any discomfort anywhere?”
You Rong belatedly remembered that he had been severely injured before he passed out. He looked down and saw that all his wounds had healed.
Noticing You Rong’s surprised expression, Zhang Yi guessed his thoughts and explained before he could speak, “It was the Chu family head who treated your injuries. Our blood race’s blood has excellent healing properties.”
Although it was not as effective as vampire saliva, he thought about how strange it would be if they had used saliva to heal You Rong, with them licking him all over… the image was indeed quite bizarre.
You Rong nodded slightly, acknowledging he understood.
Zhang Yi pushed away the chaotic images in his mind and placed the food in front of You Rong. “Young master, it’s good that you’re awake. Please eat something. Your injuries have healed, but you lost a lot of blood yesterday. Your body must be weak and needs nourishment. This is a nourishing soup that I asked the servants to stew for you. Drink some… I remember the ancestor used to make nourishing soup for you too.”
The last sentence brought a pang of sadness to You Rong. He pursed his lips and said, “Okay, give it to me.”
You Rong drank all the nourishing soup in one go. The taste was not familiar, which made his heart ache even more.
Putting down the bowl and chopsticks, You Rong did not forget about the snake race and the blood race’s joint intrusion into the castle the previous night. His gaze deepened, and he directly asked, “Steward Zhang, what exactly happened yesterday? Did you find out who was behind it?”
It was better not to mention it. As soon as he did, Zhang Yi’s face was filled with anger. “Young master, you don’t know! Last night, the snake race colluded with the Ouyang family, which is how they managed to break in. The Ouyang family head, Ouyang Yue, this traitor! A traitor to our blood race! How dare he do such a damnable thing!”
After a string of furious curses, Zhang Yi continued, his voice still laced with lingering fear, “Fortunately, you were here, young master, to buy us time to return with the Chu family head. Rest assured, the castle is now guarded by Chu family members inside and out. An incident like yesterday will never happen again. As for Ouyang Yue… the Chu family head has already taken the elders to deal with him!”
You Rong’s expression turned as cold as if ice shards were about to fall. He lowered his eyes slightly, gazing at Lin Qinghe’s tranquil, delicate face, a hint of worry flashing across his features.
Why was only the Chu family allowed to guard the castle inside and out? Was it out of fear that there were other blood race members among the four great families who harbored ill intentions towards her?
Coupled with the beastmen outside, any one or two of them were not a threat. But if they all coveted Lin Qinghe's power and united, combined with those within the blood race who had ulterior motives, it would be a situation of internal and external troubles. Even with loyal blood race members like Chu Tianhao and Zhang Yi by Lin Qinghe’s side, it was hard to guarantee that something wouldn't happen one day, especially since Lin Qinghe might enter a dormant state for two thousand years.
Two thousand years… it was far too long. He could not protect Lin Qinghe by her side for two thousand years with his entire life.
Zhang Yi noticed You Rong’s deep concern and could only try his best to comfort him. “Young master, please don’t worry too much. With Chu family head and me here, we absolutely will not let anything happen to the ancestor! The most important thing for you now is to relax, take good care of your health, so you can better care for her by the ancestor’s side.”
You Rong looked up at Zhang Yi and nodded, “I understand, thank you… Steward Zhang.”
“You are too kind, young master. This is what I should do.”
Zhang Yi urged You Rong to rest well and then turned to leave. Zhang Yi understood that his words of comfort were only minimally effective for You Rong.
***
That night.
Chu Tianhao arrived, and from the moment he entered, he was filled with rage and incessantly cursed Du Qingfeng.
“This snake race leader is truly cunning, no! Deceitful! He hid himself away and sent those insignificant snake race members to their deaths. He managed to stay well hidden. Despite so many of our blood race members, we couldn’t find him… Once I find him, I will definitely kill him! How dare he covet our blood race, and how dare he spout that nonsense about swallowing the ancestor to gain her power… It’s infuriating! I’m so angry!”
The more Chu Tianhao thought about it, the angrier he became. He paced back and forth in the bedroom, gnashing his teeth. In his mind, he had likely beaten Du Qingfeng countless times. Su Dan Novel Network.
Zhang Yi outwardly comforted Chu Tianhao, telling him to calm down, but his thoughts were exactly the same as Chu Tianhao’s.
If they caught that snake race leader, they would make him wish he were dead!
You Rong listened to Zhang Yi and Chu Tianhao’s conversation without saying anything. He lowered his head to look at Lin Qinghe, his brow furrowing tighter and tighter, his eyes filled with unconcealable worry.
Too many people coveted her abilities. How could he possibly ensure her safety?
Internally, the blood race could be barely managed by Chu Tianhao and Zhang Yi. As for the many covetous beastmen…
You Rong was extremely worried about this. For the next month, he was almost constantly consumed by worry. Especially when the spirit fox tribe and other beastmen came to probe every few days. Although they were captured and killed without exception, You Rong’s anxiety did not diminish in the slightest.
Another day.
You Rong had just finished feeding Lin Qinghe when a knock sounded at the door. Zhang Yi’s voice echoed from outside, “Young master, it’s me.”
You Rong wiped the bloodstains from Lin Qinghe’s lips, gently laid her down, completely disregarding the bleeding wound on his wrist, and said indifferently, “Come in.”
Zhang Yi entered and, seeing the situation and the strong smell of blood filling the room, knew without thinking that You Rong had just fed Lin Qinghe his blood. He was already accustomed to it.
Zhang Yi walked over and said, “Young master, another beastman attempted to intrude into the castle today. They were all apprehended. Among them…” Zhang Yi paused, “was a werewolf.”
You Rong’s eyelids did not lift. His voice was extremely cold, “Don’t bother with them. Follow the usual procedure: anyone who attempts to intrude into the castle, kill them! Leave no survivors!”
“Uh…” Zhang Yi hesitated for a moment, then continued, “This female werewolf said her name is Meng Xiaoyi, and she claims to know you. Wouldn’t you like to see her?”