Chapter 3: Emperor Yin

"Second sister, why are you protecting her?" Zuo Qingya said aggrievedly. "I am your sister. Why are you still speaking for her?"

Zuo Xianyu raised her head and spoke slowly: "It is precisely because she is an outsider that I want to teach you. No one will say anything if she indulges in depravity."

"As the eldest daughter of the Zuo family, you must be careful with your words and actions and not embarrass yourself in the socialite circle."

"But I just can't stand her." Zuo Qingya curled her lips, and her eyes suddenly lit up. "I remember there were a lot of good things in her room. Anyway, she's going to leave soon, so I'll take all the things back first."

She stood up and went upstairs.

This time, Zuo Xianyu didn't stop her.

No matter what, Si Fuqing had been using the Zuo family's money over the years, so the things in her room should belong to the Zuo family.

Zuo Xianyu finished a cup of black coffee, touched up her lipstick in front of the mirror, picked up her handbag, and went out to work.

Upstairs

Si Fuqing's bedroom was at the innermost part of the fourth floor. Apart from that, this floor was full of guest rooms.

Zuo Qingya had a spare key from Madam Zuo, so she entered easily.

The bedroom was not big, with only a bed and a table with a bookshelf.

"Who are you pretending for with all these books?" Zuo Qingya said disdainfully. "You don't even have a junior high school diploma. You slipped through the cracks of nine years of education."

She ignored the bookshelf, walked to the table, picked up a few jewelry boxes that were barely acceptable, and muttered again, "Poor girl."

She had expected to get something valuable.

Zuo Qingya turned around and was about to leave.

Bang!

She was suddenly pushed against the wall with great force. Her back went numb, and her wrists stung.

Zuo Qingya's hand went limp, and the box fell to the ground.

"You like being a thief so much?" A girl's voice asked lazily, carrying a slight smile. "If you have the guts to steal, do you have the ability to take it?"

Zuo Qingya was startled and screamed, "Si Fuqing, is that you? What do you want to do?!"

A year ago, Si Fuqing had returned to China with the Star Girls group. She had always worn heavy makeup—purple lips and white eyebrows.

At this moment, she was barefaced, and Zuo Qingya almost didn't recognize her.

"I should be the one asking you that." Si Fuqing narrowed her eyes and approached slowly. "What do you want to do?"

"What can I do?" Zuo Qingya couldn't help but shudder, then became furious. "Of course, I want to take back all the things you've eaten from the Zuo family over the years! How dare you lay a hand on me?"

"Don't worry about it." Si Fuqing lifted her chin with a finger, forcing her to look up, and said lightly, "What I used isn't yours, and I will return it."

Zuo Qingya sneered. "You have no money and no power. How can you pay it back? I'm telling you, you—"

Hush. Be good." Si Fuqing tightened her grip slightly and chuckled softly. "I don't like people who are too noisy."

Zuo Qingya was stunned, her mind swaying for a moment.

Then, with a bang, she was pushed out, and the door was locked behind her.

…

After a few seconds, Zuo Qingya finally came to her senses.

She was so angry that she yelled and banged on the door. "Si Fuqing! Si Fuqing, come out if you dare! This is the Zuo family! Why did you lock me out?"

"Come out! You bastard with unlucky parents! Why are you still staying in the Zuo family?"

The door was shockproof and soundproof. Si Fuqing ignored her and turned around to look around the room.

She didn't glance at anything else and went straight to the bookshelf, where there were several professional books on dancing and singing.

Some of the pages were yellowed and had small labels of various colors attached to them.

Si Fuqing ran her fingers over them one by one, looking lazy.

She knew she was still in the entertainment industry and was a relatively famous idol, but unfortunately, all the attention she received was insults.

In her previous life, her master had allowed the disciples to choose a place for training, and she had also spent some time in Glen.

Glen—the world's largest film and television center.

It was a gathering place for movie stars from all over the world and a hub for performing arts talent.

Si Fuqing pressed her fingers against her legs and waist, finding them much softer than she had imagined.

That would make it easy to retrain.

Besides professional books, there was also a three-row calendar book—thick and elegant.

The predecessor of the Great Xia Empire was the Great Xia Dynasty, and before that was the Great Zhao Dynasty. Thousands of years of history lay recorded here.

Si Fuqing raised an eyebrow and placed her finger precisely on one book.

This was a biography of an emperor.

The Biography of Emperor Yin.

She had heard her second senior brother talk about this glorious yet brief history many times.

Emperor Yin was the youngest emperor in the history of the Great Xia Dynasty.

He was perfect and powerful, decisive in his actions, and had the world in his heart.

During his reign, he expanded the territory of Great Xia to its largest extent, conquered thousands of miles, defeated the barbarians and the Principality of the Western Continent, and made his power known throughout the world.

All the small vassal states around paid homage and tribute.

The Great Xia Dynasty was so powerful in his time that it shook all the kingdoms in the Western Continent that wanted to invade Great Xia's territory.

Emperor Yin devoted his entire life to the dynasty. He had no wife, no concubines, and no descendants. His successor was chosen from the royal clan.

It was a pity that since ancient times, heroes—like beauties—were not allowed to grow old. He died from lung disease at the age of 27, coughing up blood.

He came with great excitement and left silently.

Si Fuqing had always heard her second senior brother lament that Emperor Yin died too early. Otherwise, he believed, the entire Western Continent would have been conquered by Great Xia.

He was a natural-born god of war, unmatched by anyone.

There was a sentence written on the title page:

"When the sky is not stable, the sea is not calm, and the country is not at peace, what is home?"

According to historical records, Emperor Yin had used this phrase to reject his ministers' proposal for selecting talented women to serve him.

Si Fuqing had merely listened back then, never taking it seriously.

After all, the time gap was too long. When Emperor Yin died, it was only the year 684 in the Xia calendar—her great-grandfather's great-grandfather hadn't even been born yet.

But now that she had met the same fate—dying young—Si Fuqing finally became interested in this young emperor.

She touched her chin, took out The Biography of Emperor Yin, and put it into her backpack.

She packed her ID and other necessary items before leaving the room.

She wouldn't take anything from the Zuo family.

As soon as Si Fuqing descended to the third floor, she heard Zuo Qingya's crying voice from the first floor—very clear.

"Dad, she actually locked me out! And she even hit me! My wrists are swollen!"

"Dad, why is she still staying in the Zuo family? Grandpa has already passed away! She should leave as soon as possible!"

Si Fuqing lifted her coat and continued walking down slowly.

On the first floor, she saw Zuo Tianfeng, who had just returned.

After staying up all night dealing with Old Master Zuo's matters, Zuo Tianfeng looked exhausted, his expression dark.

Hearing Zuo Qingya's complaint, his anger flared instantly.

Bang!

"Stop!" Zuo Tianfeng slammed the table and said coldly, "Take out everything in your bag and put it down!"

"You are not from the Zuo family, yet you still want to take away the Zuo family's things?"

Si Fuqing slowly raised her head. Her fox-like eyes narrowed, deep and charming, blurred yet frivolous.

She flexed her wrist and smiled.

"My suggestion? Get out of the way."