chapter 13
Chapter 13
System: [Host, you’ve gotta finish the mission before you get your reward! Go go go! Just snatch the Regent King’s Belt and you’ll win a mystery grand prize!]
Ye Piaoling gulped.
What kind of mysterious grand prize could it even be…
Alright, she was interested.
Ye Piaoling’s eyes spun as she quickly pasted on a smile. “Hey, Regent King! Seriously, you can pull off any look! Last time it was the white style, today’s black outfit is even cooler-and this giant belt? Absolute fire!”
As she talked, her hand was already sneaking out, reaching right for the man’s belt…
In the end, two fingers hooked it!
Ye Piaoling looked up, instantly meeting the man’s deep eyes.
In the darkness, he gazed down at her from above. His eyes were gentle to the extreme, but with a bewitching undertone-a look that could drag anyone in with a single glance.
Ye Piaoling stared at his outrageously handsome face, her heart skipping a beat…
His expression was clearly soft and warm, but she couldn’t help catching a wicked, chilly vibe from it!
Ye Piaoling nervously stretched her mouth into a grin, still kneeling there with one hand looped around Di Xiulan’s belt, tilting her head up in a standoff.
A beat later, she gave the belt a tiny tug, loosening it:
“So, um, can I ask something kinda rude… If you lose this belt, will your pants fall down?”
“…”
The air hung still for a second.
Di Xiulan: “No. But your head might.”
Ye Piaoling: “…”
She let go of the belt, awkwardly.
She’d figured that if his pants wouldn’t fall, taking the belt wouldn’t have any huge consequences…
Turns out, the consequences could still be pretty huge.
Ye Piaoling sucked in a cold breath, got to her feet, and started explaining:
“I just thought this belt looks super trendy, probably worth a ton, right? Couldn’t help but touch it inside and out, and wow, it really does feel amazing…”
“Alright, kiddo, let’s drop the act.”
Di Xiulan cut her off, smiling softly.
“About the night before last-I’ve come especially to hear your explanation.”
His gentle, low voice was magnetic, like a lover’s murmur-soft, yet dangerously charming.
But Ye Piaoling felt her hair stand on end.
“Ah!” She shivered, glancing up at the man, eyes wide with alarm.
So the Regent King really was here to settle accounts over what happened in the Cave!
Di Xiulan kept smiling as he looked at her, his tone casual.
“Think it over before you answer.”
Ye Piaoling didn’t even pause, blurting out, “Well, here’s the deal: Two nights ago I was being chased by beasts in Baishou Mountain and accidentally ducked into a Cave, only to stumble upon Your Highness sleeping inside. Turns out I know a way to break a Sleeping Curse, so I bravely used it…”
“To wake Your Highness, there are three steps: First, kiss Your Highness right on the lips; second, shout out a spell-it’s really easy, just two words: ‘Oh shoot!’; third, put a mask on Your Highness… Do this, and you’ll definitely wake up soon!”
“As for taking your mask, that was just on impulse, like a little medical fee-nothing big, Your Highness doesn’t need to worry… Oh, and by the way, you came all the way here today, so I bet it’s to thank me, right? You’re way too polite, I honestly wasn’t expecting a big reward, but since you’re already here, I guess I do have one tiny request…”
Ye Piaoling pointed at the man’s belt, her face perfectly shameless.
“Just give me this belt!”
Di Xiulan: “…”
Not only was this woman full of nonsense, her behavior was downright weird.
The belt he’d been wearing recently was nothing special. What exactly was she up to?
Di Xiulan: “And why do you want this belt?”
Ye Piaoling replied dead serious, “A friend of mine wants it. I’m just trying to help her fulfill her wish.”
Di Xiulan’s eyes narrowed and he gave a cold laugh.
A friend?
Her ‘friend’ was probably just herself.
Seeing that he didn’t agree, Ye Piaoling quickly said, “If you don’t want to give it away for free, I can buy it!”
Di Xiulan raised his brows at that.
“A deal, then?”
“Exactly! Name your price!” Ye Piaoling said, totally game.
“Alright. The price is: you do something for me.”
“What is it?”
“There’s a little animal in Chonghua Palace, also under a deep sleep. If you can wake it, I’ll give you the belt.”
Ye Piaoling: “Uh…”
She immediately called to the System in her mind: [Hey System bro, how do I wake up a sleeping animal? Don’t tell me I have to kiss it too?]
System: [Heck if I know, host! You’re on your own for this one, good luck!]
Ye Piaoling: [Guess I’ll just see when I get there. If it’s a cute cat or puppy, I suppose kissing one isn’t impossible… I mean, I’ve already kissed the Regent King, so what’s a cat or dog, really?]
Silly System: [Preach! Even I can’t argue with that logic.]
Ye Piaoling psyched herself up and flashed a confident grin: “A little animal? Alright, I’ll give it my all! Ha!”
Ye Piaoling followed Di Xiulan to Chonghua Palace.
They stepped into a creepy side hall, and with a flick of Di Xiulan’s sleeve, the walls slid aside on their own, revealing an entrance leading underground.
Ye Piaoling stared at the pitch-dark entrance to the Underground Palace, frowning.
“Regent King, what kind of little animal do you keep? Why keep it locked up underground?”
“You’ll see soon enough.”