Ao Jiangyue stood before the Dragon Palace, gazing up at the magnificent structure.
She had not visited this place in a long time.
This Dragon Palace was, of course, not *that* Dragon Palace.
The Dragon Palace was a hotel, an exceptionally luxurious and opulent one, a subsidiary of the Sea King Group.
Ao Jiangyue stepped inside.
“Miss, welcome to the Dragon Palace Hotel.”
Two handsome, tall doormen opened the hotel doors for her.
Ao Jiangyue scanned them. Had it been so long that they no longer recognized her?
“Welcome…”
As Ao Jiangyue entered, a lobby manager in a business suit rushed forward. Upon seeing Ao Jiangyue’s face, she was startled, her greeting catching in her throat.
“Do you know me?” Ao Jiangyue asked.
She recalled the lobby manager of the Dragon Palace being a middle-aged man, not this young woman before her.
“Young Madam, welcome. I have seen your photograph. We are honored by your presence.” The lobby manager bowed deeply to Ao Jiangyue.
“Is my room still available?” Ao Jiangyue asked with a frown.
“Yes, yes, Young Madam, please follow me.”
The lobby manager quickly led her forward.
Although Ao Jiangyue hadn't been here for a long time, her room had always been kept for her, with someone cleaning it daily.
Ao Jiangyue glanced at the lobby manager’s name tag: Yang, Xiu Mei.
Arriving at a private elevator, Yang Xiu Mei used her card to open the door. Simultaneously, she relayed instructions via the intercom.
“Young Madam, have you had dinner? Shall I prepare dinner for you? Would you prefer Western or Chinese cuisine?”
“No, Chinese food. Have it sent directly to my room.”
“Certainly.”
The Dragon Palace Hotel had thirty-three floors, and Ao Jiangyue’s reserved room was on the thirty-third floor.
This floor was not open to the public. Besides Ao Jiangyue’s room, there were also rooms for her father and her two elder brothers.
However, they also rarely visited, though certainly more often than Ao Jiangyue.
This was because Ao Jiangyue had been “exiled” and seldom returned.
Ao Jiangyue entered the room and, seeing the furnishings, finally felt a sense of familiarity.
She waved Yang Xiu Mei away.
“Then I shall not disturb your rest. If you require anything, please contact us via the internal line.”
Yang Xiu Mei respectfully withdrew, closing the door behind her.
Ao Jiangyue walked to the window and drew back the curtains. The vast floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the entire city of Shencheng.
At night, Shencheng was a blaze of lights, like a luminous pearl.
Ao Jiangyue opened the window and took a deep breath. The sky over Shencheng instantly churned with wind and clouds, giving the impression of an approaching storm.
“Knock, knock, knock…”
At that moment, a rhythmic knocking sounded from outside the door, steady and unhurried. The sound itself suggested a graceful gentleman stood outside.
“Enter,” Ao Jiangyue said without turning.
As her voice faded, the door did not open. Instead, a slender old man wearing a long robe entered.
“Your Highness,” the old man said, bowing slightly not far behind Ao Jiangyue.
Ao Jiangyue did not correct his address, nor did she turn around. She gazed at the night sky outside and remarked, “The air grows increasingly polluted.”
The old man nodded slightly. “The faster the development, the more severe the pollution. It is inevitable.”
“The human world is like a purgatory. What good is there in it?” Ao Jiangyue murmured.
This time, the old man remained silent, simply standing behind her.
After a moment, Ao Jiangyue finally turned and smiled. “Uncle De, it’s been a long time.”
“Your Highness, you flatter this old servant. Please call me Steward De.”
Uncle De, as Ao Jiangyue called him, appeared extremely solicitous.
But Ao Jiangyue paid him no mind, turning instead towards the large sofa in the center of the living room and sitting down.
Then she asked, “My father knows I’ve returned, right?”
“Master and the Crown Prince have gone to Xiajing and are not in Shencheng. However, the Second Prince knows of your return and is on his way.”
“Oh, my father isn’t in Shencheng?”
Ao Jiangyue was somewhat surprised by this and then frowned, appearing worried.
“Your Highness, do you have important matters to discuss with Master?” Uncle De asked, a look of pleasant surprise dawning on his face as if he had just recalled something.
The surprise was tinged with a hint of anticipation.
Ao Jiangyue nodded, then said with slight annoyance, “How many times have I told you, don’t call me Your Highness. It sounds grating.”
“Yes, yes, Young Madam.”
Uncle De was quite adaptable.
“Then when will my father be back?” Ao Jiangyue asked again.
“Master was invited by Chairman Xia this time, and it is expected to take some time,” Uncle De replied.
“Chairman Xia? Xia Changsheng?” Ao Jiangyue asked with surprise.
Uncle De nodded.
Xia Changsheng, one of the twelve chairmen of the Ninth Department, these twelve chairmen kept the entire Great Xia suppressed, ensuring the peace and tranquility of ordinary citizens’ lives.
His power was immense, so much so that Ao Jiangyue’s father, the Old Dragon King, did not dare to offend him lightly.
It was rumored that above these twelve chairmen, there was a Grand Chairman, whom no one had ever seen.
“What business does he have with my father?” Ao Jiangyue asked.
“That is beyond my knowledge,” Uncle De replied.
Although Uncle De was a veteran official of the Ao family, he did not know everything.
Ao Jiangyue nodded, quite resigned. “Since my father is not here, I’ll stay one night and leave tomorrow.”
“Leave? Why such haste to return?”
As Ao Jiangyue finished speaking, a man strode in, pushing the door open.
The newcomer was tall and walked with an imposing stride. His thick hair was slicked back, revealing a smooth forehead, and he wore a sharp, efficient suit.
“Second Brother.”
Upon seeing him, Ao Jiangyue rose from the sofa and took a small step forward, then paused as if remembering something.
“What’s wrong? Haven’t seen me in a while, and now you’re so distant?”
The newcomer was Ao Jiangyue’s second brother, Ao Haiping.
He walked up to Ao Jiangyue, opened his arms, and forcefully hugged her.
Ao Jiangyue’s body stiffened at first, but then she relaxed, her raised hands slowly settling on Ao Haiping’s back.
Ao Haiping released her after a brief embrace and pulled her down to sit on the sofa.
He then scrutinized Ao Jiangyue, his face showing displeasure. “Xiao Yue, the old man punished you, and you’re just going to obediently stay stationed at the Yangtze River, not moving an inch? Are you stupid? What era is this? This is domestic violence, it’s illegal.”
The normally serene Ao Jiangyue could no longer hold back and let out a soft laugh.
It was like a hundred flowers blooming at once, and even the dark clouds that had gathered in the sky outside parted, revealing the sparse stars in the night sky behind them.
However, Ao Jiangyue’s smile quickly faded.
A trace of bewilderment appeared as she murmured softly, “After all, the mistake was mine back then, and it’s only right for Father to punish me.”
Ao Haiping reached out and gently patted Ao Jiangyue’s hand in comfort. “You did nothing wrong. The fault lies with that person.”
Speaking of that person, Ao Haiping’s expression was one of clenched teeth.
But Ao Jiangyue merely rolled her eyes at him, as she did not believe Ao Haiping’s attitude at all.
Their relationship had been very good back then.
It was through her second brother that Ao Jiangyue had come to know him.