Phoenix Cries Across the World: The Cold-Hearted Princess is Too Alluring

Even through the darkness, Mu Ziyuan could sense Chu Yingge's overwhelming dissatisfaction; this woman was truly arrogant and haughty.

Leaning back in his chair, Mu Ziyuan pondered for a long time before gently flicking the candlestick beside him. The candle, which had been extinguished, suddenly reignited.

The room instantly became bright. Chu Yingge closed her eyes and waited for them to adjust to the sudden light before turning her head to try to find the person she was about to negotiate with.

As expected of a cunning old fox, even with the room lights on, Chu Yingge couldn't clearly see the face of the person in front of her because there was a screen between them.

Too lazy to say anything more, Chu Yingge cut straight to the point.

"I suppose Your Highness doesn't truly want to marry me. In that case, why not cooperate with me?"

"What are the benefits of cooperating with you?" Mu Ziyuan asked leisurely.

Chu Yingge remained silent, seemingly considering whether the person in front of her was trustworthy. After a long while, she finally decided to take a gamble.

She had already considered the situation before she came back, and besides, she never fights a battle she's not confident of winning.

"Your Highness is surely aware of the situation in the capital. Most of the power is in the hands of the Emperor and the Grand General. If Your Highness wishes to ascend the throne, you should find someone to cooperate with."

"Do you know what you're saying?" Mu Ziyuan's tone was already tinged with anger.

This woman actually dared to say such outrageous things in front of him, she's incredibly audacious!

"I will pretend you were never here today, please leave!"

"Isn't what I said the truth?"

Chu Yingge seemed to have expected the person in front of her to say this, and was not intimidated by Mu Ziyuan's sudden angry tone.

Instead, he walked closer to the screen: "Don't say that Your Highness is not interested in the throne. If you really had no interest, you wouldn't have returned to the capital after the late emperor's death. I've already guessed your obvious intentions. Do you think the new emperor doesn't know?"

"What do you want to say?" Mu Ziyuan asked in a deep voice.

Chu Yingge sneered, her sinister gaze becoming even more pronounced: "The new emperor will not let the prince go. The fact that he bestowed me upon the prince is the best proof of this, because I am the least powerful person in the prime minister's mansion. Even if the prince marries me, he will not gain any benefit."

"You're quite clever."

Mu Ziyuan was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected that a young lady who had never left her boudoir could analyze the situation in the capital so clearly. It really opened his eyes.

Thinking this way, my anger actually lessened a bit.

"Keep talking."

"On the surface, Your Highness has no power, but that is only on the surface."

Chu Yingge paused here, seemingly testing the person behind the screen. When she was not stopped, she continued.

“I know that Your Highness will not easily expose your power due to the situation, so I will do all this. Your Highness only needs to support me in secret.”

"Why should you help me?"

"Because I want the prince to protect me."

What Chu Yingge said was true. Although she was very confident in herself, she was all alone. In this era of overwhelming power, it was simply a pipe dream to protect herself.

She was already struggling with just the Prime Minister's residence, not to mention other factors.

"Your Highness need not worry. My relationship with you is merely that of husband and wife in name only. As long as Your Highness protects me, I will serve you. I will not interfere in any other way."

Chu Yingge emphasized this sentence to make it clear that she did not want to climb the social ladder and would never have any wishful thinking. However, to Mu Ziyuan, it sounded as if Chu Yingge was eager to distance herself from him.

Knowing his power and his intentions, it's truly unexpected that he would still try to distance himself from the situation.

With a light laugh, Mu Ziyuan's anger had completely dissipated. He was just worrying about how to gain a foothold in the capital when someone offered him advice and plans.

Moreover, this person was someone he had his eye on.

It seems his elder brother really misjudged the situation this time, handing over a treasure to him for nothing.

"I agree to cooperate with you, but the conditions need to be changed."

"What are the conditions?" Chu Yingge asked, somewhat puzzled.

What she said was already the best treatment she could get; what more could the person in front of her possibly want?

Mu Ziyuan got up from his chair and slowly walked out from behind the screen, a hint of teasing in his eyes.

"I still want you."

"It's you?"

Chu Yingge frowned and immediately had a brainstorming session, going over the whole story.

It turns out that the previous acts of saving my life were not coincidences, but deliberate, and even tonight's stalking had a reason.

This man repeatedly manipulated her, and indeed, despite being a top assassin from the 21st century, she couldn't gain the slightest advantage against him.

"So you're the one I'm going to marry. How could you bear to show your true colors? Are you enjoying playing this game?"

"I am not playing a game."

Perhaps sensing that the person in front of him was angry, Mu Ziyuan walked towards Chu Yingge, a hint of apology in his eyes.

"I am serious."

Chu Yingge took a step back without making a sound, and quietly placed one hand on her waist.

"I can't control whether Your Highness likes to play pranks, but has Your Highness chosen the wrong target?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Chu Yin swung her long whip at Mu Ziyuan, her face filled with extreme disgust.

What she hated most in her life was being lied to, especially by the man in front of her.

Without any attempt to dodge, Mu Ziyuan took the full force of Chu Yingge's whip. Although not fatal, it still caused cuts and bruises, with blood slowly seeping out from his ripped clothes.

Chu Yingge was somewhat surprised that Mu Ziyuan did not dodge. Her skills were nothing compared to Mu Ziyuan's, so Mu Ziyuan had deliberately not dodged.

"why?"

"Because I want to be your support, didn't you say it's good to have a strong tree to lean on?

Staring blankly at the person in front of him, as if trying to find answers in their eyes, but those eyes seemed incredibly sincere, without a trace of falsehood.

Chu Yingge had studied psychology, so she naturally knew the truth of what Mu Ziyuan said.

But it was precisely because it was true that she was suspicious.

With Mu Ziyuan's abilities, what kind of woman couldn't he have? Why did he choose her?

If it's because of what she just said, then how do you explain what happened before?

"Why me?" After hesitating for a long time, Chu Yingge finally voiced her question.