Luo He talked for some time. Luo He stepped closer without warning.
Su Kim had been watching him carefully, as she always did but even then, she didn't expect the sudden shift. One moment he was speaking about plans, about power, about the future and the next, his hand lightly caught her wrist and pulled her just close enough. Then he kissed her.
Not forceful. Not hesitant. Just certain.
For a brief second she froze. Not out of shyness. Not out of fear. Out of surprise.
Her red eyes widened slightly, something rare for someone like her. The kind of reaction she never allowed others to see.
The sunlight flickered faintly against her face, catching that small crack in her composure. Then it passed. Just as quickly as it came. She didn't step back.
Didn't lean in either. She simply looked at him.
"You do that," she said after a moment, her voice calm again, "as if everything already belongs to you." There was no anger in it. But there was weight.
A quiet challenge. Luo He didn't respond immediately.
Because he didn't need to. Su Kim slowly pulled her wrist free from his grasp not forcefully, but deliberately. Reclaiming space. Reclaiming control. Her gaze shifted briefly toward the cradle, where the child rested peacefully. Then back to him.
"You don't ask," she added. A pause.
"You decide." Still calm. Still composed.
But this time, there was something else beneath it awareness. She wasn't rejecting him. But she wasn't yielding either.
She stepped past him, moving toward the window, her cloak brushing softly against the floor. For a moment, she said nothing.
Then "If you're going to build a world like the one you described" she said quietly, looking out into the night, "you'll need more than power to hold it together."
She turned her head slightly, just enough for her eyes to meet his again. "Even someone like you should remember that."
No softness. No tension. Just truth.
And yet she hadn't walked away. She stayed. Because whatever this was it wasn't simple and she had already chosen not to leave.
Luo He descended the stairs at an unhurried pace, his expression as composed as ever. The hall below had already gathered Jin Quan, Jin Su, Jin Yang, and servants lingering at the edges all waiting, all watching.
Su Kim followed a step behind him, the child resting quietly in her arms. The moment they entered every eye turned.
Luo He didn't pause. Didn't hesitate.
"We are expecting another child," he said openly.
The words landed heavily. Silence spread across the hall. Jin Quan's brows tightened. Jin Su's grip on her sleeve stiffened. They exchanged sharp glances. And slowly almost instinctively their gazes shifted toward Jin Mulan.
Jin Mulan froze. For a brief moment, her composure cracked.
Annoyance flashed across her face sharp, immediate. He actually said it just like that? She had expected to manage it carefully to choose the limits on how her parents heard it. But Luo He Had simply dropped it in front of everyone.
What does this man even run on to be this bold? Her thoughts flickered fast.
Is he insane…? Luo He continued calmly, as if nothing had shifted. "I wasn't referring to my wife."
That only made things worse.
Then without breaking his tone he placed a hand lightly against Su Kim's abdomen. Subtle. But unmistakable.
The room went still again. Jin Su's eyes widened first.
"It's this sorceress?" she snapped, her voice cutting through the silence. Her gaze sharpened instantly, suspicion turning to accusation. "She must have done something," Jin Su continued, stepping forward. "A charm a potion something to cloud your mind.
There's no way you would" Luo He turned his head slightly. Not toward Jin Su. Toward Jin Mulan. Just a glance.
But a specific one. Quiet. Intentional.
The kind only she understood. A silent request. Jin Mulan saw it and for a second, irritation flared again.
Now you want my help? But she stepped forward anyway. Positioning herself between her parents and Luo He. "Don't overthink it," she said calmly. Her voice was steady far more controlled than she felt.
"He has the right to choose who he keeps by his side." The room shifted.
"I allowed it," she added. That changed everything. Jin Quan's posture eased slightly. The ministers exchanged slower, more measured looks now. "If my daughter does not object…" Jin Quan said slowly, "then it is not our place to interfere."
Jin Su hesitated. Her eyes moved from Luo He to Su Kim then to Jin Mulan. Still not convinced. But no longer pushing.
The tension didn't disappear. But it settled. Just enough. Jin Mulan turned sharply. "Come with me." Her voice wasn't loud but it didn't leave room for refusal.
She grabbed Luo He by the sleeve and pulled him away before anyone could continue the conversation. The moment they stepped into the corridor her grip tightened. Then she turned on him.
"Why would you say that in front of them?" she demanded, her voice low but sharp.
Luo He didn't react. "If we hide it," he said calmly, "and someone else reveals it later it becomes leverage." Jin Mulan blinked. Caught slightly off guard.
"But if we say it ourselves," he continued, "we control the narrative. We decide how it's understood." She stared at him. For a moment silent.
He really thinks this far ahead for someone who always claimed not to care about people's opinions he understood them far too well. Her frustration didn't disappear. But it shifted.
She stepped closer. Leaning toward his ear. Her voice dropped slightly almost seductive.
"Did you do anything with her now ?" The question was quiet. But direct. Luo He saw right through the trap. Luo He's lips curved faintly. "What if I did?" he replied, almost teasing. Not defensive. Not apologetic. Just provoking. Jin Mulan's eyes narrowed immediately.
That answer was worse than silence.
"Keep imagining," he added lightly. "It might be more interesting that way."
That did it. Her annoyance flared again, sharper than before. "You're unbelievable," she muttered, pulling back. For a moment, she said nothing.
Then turned away slightly, arms folding.
Because strangely that answer bothered her more than if he had simply denied it.
And Luo He knew it.
Luo He watched her for a moment longer.
Her irritation hadn't faded. If anything, it had settled into something sharper quieter, but deeper. The kind that didn't disappear easily. Then he spoke.
Calmly. Almost casually.
"What if I gave you a chance" he said, turning slightly toward the corridor that led to their chambers, "to make the battlefield more even?" Jin Mulan's brows pulled together.
"The battlefield?" she repeated, her tone edged with suspicion. But he didn't explain. Didn't clarify. He simply turned and began walking. Not fast. Not slow.
Certain.
"What are you even talking about?" she called after him, taking a step forward then stopping herself. For a moment, she stayed where she was. Thinking.
Battlefield even her jaw tightened slightly.
This man he knew exactly how to phrase things. Not to comfort. Not to reassure.
But to pull her in. Her pride wouldn't let her ignore it. And he knew that too.
A quiet breath escaped her. Then she moved. Following him.
The door to their chamber slid open with a soft sound. Luo He had already stepped inside. The room was dimly lit, warm tones from the lanterns casting long shadows across the polished floor. The bed stood untouched, the space calm almost too calm after everything that had just happened.
He didn't turn immediately. Didn't acknowledge her right away. That alone was enough to make her more alert.
"You're going to explain," Jin Mulan said, stepping in and closing the door behind her. Her voice was firm. Controlled but there was a slight sense of teasing beneath it. Luo He finally glanced back at her. "You followed."