Perhaps due to the prolonged lack of restful sleep, it wasn't long before Long Ping and Long Ting, still whimpering, fell asleep clinging to Nie Kong’s arm.

Carrying the two little girls up to the bedroom on the second floor, Nie Kong felt a surge of emotion looking at their eyes, swollen like walnuts, yet a faint, wry smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Looking at them, he suspected they would never leave him in this lifetime. It was manageable now while they were young, but how to arrange for them once they grew up and matured was a vexing problem. Could it really be that he had to turn them into legitimate maidservants, just as Long Xuechan had suggested?

Unbidden, the image of Hua Mei surfaced in Nie Kong’s mind again. By his count, it had been over half a year since Hua Yanlian took her away...

...

In the Shatu Empire, deep within the middle section of the Nu Cang Mountain Range, in a locale of profound mystery, myriad flowers bloomed in dazzling competition, the very void suffused with floral scents ranging from rich to subtly elegant.

At the heart of this sea of blossoms lay a shallow pool, several zhang in circumference. The water within gently