Long Mingze took a deep, shaky breath, he closed his eyes for a heartbeat, then lifted them to meet hers. His voice was low now, stripped of its former command, tinged with something close to exhaustion.
"Xia Yuqing," he said, almost whispering her name. "You win. You made me—the emperor—bow first." A bitter smile twisted his lips. "Let's trade."
Xia Yuqing said nothing, her expression unreadable.
"Let's trade," he repeated, this time his voice trembling slightly, like a man standing at the edge of his rope. "You come back to me and I will let her go."
The words hung in the air between them, heavy and dangerous.
"Are you crazy?" Xia Yuqing's voice rang out, sharp with anger.
Long Mingze only smiled, leaning back as though her fury amused him. "Crazy? How so? Did I ask for something wrong? You were mine from the beginning. I'm only asking for what already belongs to me."
