The Princess And The Lord

"I want my reward!"

"You want what?"

Lory didn't need to guess who had the audacity to rudely barge into her room. She peeked from the screen divider with confusion and saw Zhao Li Xin's charming smile. She frowned slightly and moved behind the screen once again. She picked the last layer of her hanfu and tightened the sash before she got out.

"I gave the Jiang siblings a lighter punishment like you wanted me to do so this Lord is asking Her Highness for his reward," Zhao Li Xin gave a cunning smirk.

"Who did you call Her Highness? I think you called the wrong person?" Lory pursed her mouth but blushed slightly. Her heart almost leaped from her heart when he called her princess. She knew he was teasing her but the way he called her combined with his face was not good for her weak heart.

Zhao Li Xin was amused. The more she shied away, the more he wanted to tease her. He moved his face an inch away from Lory. He could only be playful with her but no one would believe it even if they saw it with their own eyes. "This Lord can always recognize his little Princess…"

Being close to a heaven-defying beauty like Zhao Li Xin gave Lory's brain too much pressure. She pushed his face away and covered it. He wasn't offended as he thought her shyness was adorable and he could smell the unique sweet smell from her skin.

"Milord, I only have little money… This humble girl is not rich. Please give me leniency," Lory pouted.

Zhao Li Xin was confused this time around, "How can you not have money yet you are my fiancée? I gave you the Xin Xen token, didn't I?"

Lory gave him a blank expression. He had given her a lot of things and she barely remembered what he was talking about. She mostly nodded with indifference whenever servants delivered gifts from Zhao Li Xin. She would look at them once, place them in her drawers and forget about it. She even had the money she earned when she was Zhao Li Xin's maid.

The couple stared at each other as they realized they were not good at handling the details of their possessions.

Zhao Li Xin sighed, "Where is the token? I will teach you how to use it."

"I…forgot," Lory's blank face turned guilty. Then she took long strides to her drawers while Zhao Li Xin calmly followed her but he found it funny to watch her clumsy side. "Don't worry everything is in my drawers." she raised her hand to reassure him or perhaps herself.

Lory noticed she had too many drawers. Zhao Li Xin's pampering level was no joke. Not even her own father couldn't match him. She had left some of his gifts in the underground palace. She hoped someone had brought the token to the new resident as they had moved three times in the year.

"It's a small token in a small wooden box… It's palm-size…" He gestured with his hand

Lory nodded. It was fortunate she divided the boxes by sizes and not by value. It has to be mixed with her jewelry box. She carefully rummaged through her top drawer as she did not want to accidentally break anything expensive.

"You rarely wear jewelry…" He commented as he sat on the couch.

"Too much hassle…." She said briefly.

He leaned back on the sofa and watched her move around. It was strangely soothing to watch her. "The princesses in your place don't like jewelry?"

Lory gave him a 'Are you stupid' look and rolled her eyes, "All women love jewelry."

"You said it is a hassle," He rebuked.

"But it doesn't mean I don't like it. It is a hassle on a normal day because I'll need to move around all the time, but I would still wear them occasionally," Lory clicked her tongue as she opened another jewelry box while she tried to remember where she could have placed the box.

"Move around?" Zhao Li Xin didn't care about the token. He could easily make another token with a new design and terminate the use of the old token so no one could misuse it if they found it. However, he didn't tell her this because he knew she would still insist on looking for the old one. His princess was very frugal.

"I was a very busy girl, you know? I needed to go to school, attend private lessons, practice martial arts, attend royal affairs, beast subjugation... now I feel tired mentioning it," Lory heaved heavily as she remembered her old life. She missed her family and friends but she definitely didn't miss her flurry activities as a princess.

"Why did you need to do all that? You didn't have any subordinates to do it for you?" Zhao Li Xin frowned. He didn't understand why a princess needed all that. The princess in his Kingdom only needed to learn the four arts and look pretty. The other activities they did were fighting with the concubines and other princesses in the Imperial harem.

"Why should I do that? It is not like I hated everything. My favorite was the beast subjugation which was like a road trip with the flair of action. It was fun traveling with my brother and friends," Lory giggled as she remembered visiting the hunter guild for the first time. She and Lucas were only thirteen at the time and the guild master cause a ruckus. The Master almost called the authority as he thought Fargo, who had taken them, was into child labor.

"Remember something funny?" Zhao Li Xin's mouth slightly curved when he saw her smiling.

"Hm…I do have a lot of funny memories," Lory nodded as her smile deepen. However, she also had a lot of sad memories. Some were even too painful to remember. People said the one who had a lot was the one who also lost the most. The saying described her too well.

"Found it!" She opened a wooden box and exclaimed. She walked towards him and handed him the box to confirm.

Zhao Li Xin opened the box and looked at a white jade with a black gem in the middle and tassels at the bottom. It was the one and only design made for her. It showed her high position within the Hei Shen Sect and her authority to use the sect's power for her needs. Every Hei Shen Sect member had to treat and respect the token owner like they did with their Lord.

The token was made by Wu San Bo for the future mistress of the Hei Shen Sect. Zhao Li Xin at the time thought it was a waste of good jade. He never thought he would one day ask Wu San Bo to give the Xin Xen token to Lory. This shocked everyone but they were also confused when the lady never wore it.

"It looks beautiful," Lory sat next to him and propped her chin with her hand on her knee.

"Keep it close to you. It shows your identity as the Hei Shen Sect's future madam," He tied the token on her belt. "You will be the second owner of the Hei Shen Sect with this. No one in the sect will slight you and those who dare will be punished with death. You can move the King Palaces using this token and the sect will back you up whatever you choose to do."

"Aren't we talking about money…? Why give me something like this? Can't you just give me money? I have you so I don't need this," Lory pleaded with Zhao Li Xin as her waist suddenly felt heavy. The gift was too much for her especially since she didn't have anything to give him in return.

"No! Yesterday's trouble happened because I hadn't formally announced your position and some stupid woman dared to pretend to be my fiancée. Your position will be solidified with this. The other women who pretend to know me will be taken as a joke compared to you," Zhao Li Xin said sternly. He was more annoyed by the incident than Lory.

Lory could not say anything when he made the kinda face, "Okay, I'll make sure I do not lose it."

"Good! If other people besides you use this token, they would be eradicated back to nine generations," He smiled gently.

"..." She slightly felt dizzy at his words. "Let's tie the thing around my hand instead. Make a double knot on my wrist with it."

"Oh, before I forgot…I'll order San Bo to list down all businesses connected to the Hei Shen Sect for you. This way you will just show them this token when you go out and they will serve you as they do me... Don't bother paying for anything too… What else…? I also own a bank…I forgot its name... You can use the token to withdraw money from there. You can take as much as you want. No one will stop you…" He carelessly waved his hand and didn't notice Lory's pale face.

'As much as I like? Shouldn't there be a withdrawal limit?'

Her father was strict with money. He never let his children be spoiled with material things. He emphasized spending money on important necessities only. He made them live outside the palace and join the hunter guild as the king intended to harden his children. It was normal for Lory and Lucas to spend their time in cheap motels and camping when on subjugation missions.

But now she lived with someone who pampered her too much to the point of being scared. She wondered what would happen to her in the next few years if it were to continue. Would she be a useless spendthrift? She almost felt like a kept woman but they had yet to have sex. 

Zhao Li Xin remembered the reason he had come to her room, "Oh, What about my reward?"

'You still remember that?'