The nighttime courtyard was like a poem or painting, with stars twinkling in the deep sky and bright moonlight casting down, creating a serene and mysterious scene.

Unfortunately, the sound of the pipa, akin to the slaughter of pigs, ruined this beauty under the night sky.

In the antique room, Yang Qingqing lay flat on the floor, which had a carpet laid out. She was propped up on her elbows, with the pipa lying flat beside her. While she was reading a book, her hand continuously strummed the strings of the pipa beside her.

There was no rhythm, let alone melody, it was just random plucking. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

She wore a dark blue traditional outfit from the Shu Residence, the skirt was very short, and from the back, her body curve was incredibly graceful and slender. Her petite white legs occasionally swung back and forth, making her seem very leisurely.

The White Tiger Dabai lazily sprawled a meter away from Yang Qingqing in a special den she made for him. Perhaps it was truly tired, its head slumped, and its eyes had just begun to close halfway; the jarring sound of the pipa woke it up again.

The White Tiger’s mouth opened slightly, letting out a low growl, but it quickly sensed its owner’s deadly stare. The owner was swinging a pillow in front of it, indicating that if it continued to make noise, the pillow would be thrown at it.

Dabai had no choice but to dejectedly lower its head, resting it on the ground.

But just then, its ears pricked up, detecting a "stranger’s" scent. It suddenly rose, but didn’t fully stand up, instead crouching low and baring its teeth, growling toward the outside of the room.

Tigers have a strong territorial sense and particularly keen scent, and Dabai considered this courtyard its territory. Whenever outsiders entered, it would immediately issue a repelling growl.

At the same time, Yang Qingqing also heard footsteps outside. With the perception of a Middle-Grade Martial Artist, she could tell from the footsteps that it was a man’s steps.

The place she lived in was the backyard of the Prince’s Mansion. In this backyard, besides a few young boys, there was only one man who could enter.

That was the owner of the Prince’s Mansion.

"He’s here..."

Yang Qingqing’s expression suddenly grew panicked, and she hurriedly stood up.

Admittedly, although her nocturnal "disturbance" was annoying, she was genuinely intimidated by Chen Mo, even though they had not formally met yet.

The reputation precedes the man.

Chen Mo, after all, was a fierce figure who drove away foreign enemies and subdued rebellious factions, with countless people perishing at his hands; he was no mild-mannered scholar.

Of course, despite her intimidation, she believed that with her father around, Chen Mo wouldn’t dare do anything to her, at most chide her a bit.

She could endure that.

Thinking of this, she decided to act offensively and rudely.

Chen Mo didn’t knock on the door, entering directly, and immediately heard a cold shout: "Who?"

Before he could speak, the voice continued: "Are you King Wei? With your status, do you not know etiquette? Entering without even knowing to knock on the door first?"

"Roar!" Dabai also let out an angry roar at Chen Mo, then slowly approached him; this was a common animal reaction when evaluating prey.

"Smack!"

But in response to Yang Qingqing, there was only the sound of a loud slap, and in the next moment, the White Tiger Dabai was struck by a forceful power, thrown fiercely against the wall, and, after landing, emitted a low whimper, looking at Chen Mo with fear in its eyes, not daring to move forward again.

That instantly made it behave.

"An animal is just an animal; it doesn’t know to wag its head when seeing its master, but instead growls at its master. It deserves to be hit." Chen Mo’s expression was icy, his piercing gaze coldly glowering at Yang Qingqing.

Nominally, Yang Qingqing was Chen Mo’s concubine, naturally, everything of hers, including her pet, belonged to Chen Mo.

"You..." Yang Qingqing glared at Chen Mo in anger, though fear gripped her heart. She hadn’t clearly seen how the other party made his move just now.

Chen Mo walked past Yang Qingqing and sat behind the book desk, saying, "This is my territory; you’re my concubine, and I need to knock to come to you?"

Chen Mo glanced at Yang Qingqing indifferently, suppressing her thoroughly with his aura.

Yang Qingqing didn’t expect Chen Mo to be so rude upon entering, belittling her like this, just as she was about to organize her words to retaliate.

Chen Mo continued, "You speak of etiquette? Fine, let’s discuss it thoroughly. From the moment you stepped through the gate of the Prince’s Mansion, you became my woman. As a concubine, you should have gone to greet the main wife upon entry. Yet all this time, have you paid respect once?

When I returned initially, did you come out to greet me, as you say proper etiquette? Hmm?"

Chen Mo’s deep gaze tightly fixed on Yang Qingqing.

Being a legitimate daughter of a grand family, Yang Qingqing’s looks were commendable, her clothes colorful, primarily in dark blue fabric, embroidered with exquisite patterns brimming with the ethnic characteristics of the Shu Residence. She possessed a high nose bridge, a graceful and alluring figure, with her exposed skin being snow-white and delicate, exuding a wild charm.

Yang Qingqing couldn’t refute a single word, as what Chen Mo said were facts. She could only grit her teeth and say, "In the dead of night, does King Wei have business with this humble girl?"

"You know it’s late at night, so why are you still causing a disturbance at this hour?" Chen Mo asked.

"The humble girl was practicing the pipa and lost track of time, for which she apologizes to King Wei." Yang Qingqing naturally had a response, bowing and apologizing to Chen Mo.