They are not my family

Her breath caught.

That face—!

Her heart stilled for a beat before slamming wildly inside her chest.

Zhao Ling Xu.

She took a step back.

Her eyes widened in shock.

Zhao Ling Xu didn't flinch.

Instead, a flicker of pain passed through his eyes. So faint, but so very real.

"

And yet… here he was, staring at her with none of the madness of Pei Rong. None of the cruelty of the Empress. Just a strange calm. An eerie… sadness.

Before she could ask what twisted game this was, he took a step forward.

"I can help your maid," he said. "If you can find him."

Her brows furrowed.

"…Him?"

Zhao Ling Xu nodded.

"You know who I mean."

She blinked again, processing his words.

The prince.

Zhao Yan.

"They say he's dead," Ling Xu said. "But I don't believe it. You don't believe it either, do you?"