Why do I have so many masters?

The right leg was crossed, the left leg hanging down as he sat on the stone bed, appearing just like any wealthy young man from the Parthian Empire. Beside him, a maid filled his cup with wine, as he gently toyed with the coarse pottery bowl in his hand, the pale green strong wine swaying within.

In front of him, a few men knelt.

One of them held a redwood tray in both hands, within it was a bright yellow silk, atop which rested a seal, depicting a crouching tiger. The middle-aged man holding the royal seal bowed his head deeply, speaking respectfully:

"Reporting to the king, the royal seal is here."

The Second Prince gently put down the wine bowl in his hand, grasped the royal seal with his left hand, and pressed it deeply onto the bright yellow silk, leaving a red seal mark. At this moment, the pure color of the seal ink seemed to carry an indelible scent of blood.

Without needing to ask, he knew how many sacrifices and struggles this royal seal had gone through to finally appear before him.

And his elder brother, upon returning, couldn't wait to occupy the royal mansion, showing no intention of concealing his true thoughts. The royal king's body was scarcely cold, and his actions had long caused dissatisfaction among some old ministers.

The youth turned his head, looking into the deep night sky outside.

Then he dismissed those men, continuing to deal with unfinished matters until the sky brightened before he stopped, raising his right hand to lightly rub his brow, murmuring to himself:

"Elder brother, you are indeed too naive."

"Here, after all, is the resting place of the great king, and you and I are not our father. The king does not wish to bear the infamy of fratricide, but if you were to act recklessly... ha, if it weren't for that person, you should have seized the moment when you were drunk to lead the crowd into the royal mansion."

The youth's thoughts paused slightly, yet he dismissed this notion.

Since ancient times, such things inevitably meant purging, and the number of wrongful deaths among them was often enough to be shocking. He naturally did not care about these, but he did care about his own life.

The youth couldn't help but raise his hand to touch his neck.

Even in his own home, he still felt a chill, as if the assassin, reeking of blood and with a cold, hard expression, stood right beside him.

The hand resting on his shoulder brought a mighty qi mechanism, like a river from a glacier, still wrapped with ice shards that made him feel cold and prickly all over.

"Huff..."

"Like a fishbone stuck in the throat, like a thorn in the back."

"Alone, this heart is uneasy."

......

The sun was high.

Parthian Empire · Royal City.

Different from the various feudal lords, here was the true royal city of the Parthian Empire, the residence of the King of Parthia, within which lay the three-hundred-year-old royal palace of the Parthian Empire, yet it was quite unpretentious.

At this moment, in this palace belonging to the King of Parthia, there were two unusual guests, not wearing Parthian attire. Compared to the Parthian official uniforms, their clothing materials were more delicate and intricate, yet retained an air of authority. One was dressed in a round-collared robe, with a white jade ring at the waist and a purple-gold fish pouch, dignified in demeanor.

The other was tall, dressed in splendid clothes predominantly red, with a beast-head shoulder armor on the right shoulder, clothes adorned with complex patterns, creating an immense sense of pressure, one hand resting on the waist, gripping the handle of the waist saber.

This latter was observing the royal palace of the Parthian Empire and transmitted his voice:

"This time it's another great trouble."

"Why is there trouble every time?"

"Why does the great trouble always seek me?"

The civil official maintained composure, still calm, occasionally nodding and smiling at the passing maids, yet his voice transmission showed extreme annoyance as he said:

"How would I know?"

"Insignificant King Balman, he died and died, but it had to be a Qin who killed him. The King of Parthia surely plans to extort a hefty price from us, but we cannot let him succeed."

The military officer snorted coldly, transmitting back:

"Extort? Does he have the face for it?"

"A petty lord, with tens of thousands of troops, I truly don't know how he got his head publicly stabbed by a twenty-something Qin and still managed to let him escape."

"Embarrassed to this extent, yet still has the nerve to throw this matter at us?"

"Where's the face?!"

Before long, someone stepped forward to welcome them. After disarming the two, they led them into the inner part of the royal palace.

The King of Parthia seemed to have just risen, merely wearing inner garments. This ruler of one of the thirty-six nations in the Western Regions looked exceedingly broad-faced and amiable, sitting at the table having breakfast, while a strikingly beautiful woman gently massaged his shoulders.

Aside from the King of Parthia and the maid, the room also contained a man clad in armor and war robes, half-kneeling on the ground, appearing respectful and reserved.

The attendant led the two inside, then retreated. Upon seeing the King of Parthia, both guests merely bowed without half-kneeling as Parthian subjects did, yet none expressed displeasure. The King of Parthia set down his spoon with a clear sound and smiled:

"Troubling both of you to come all this way, this little king feels uneasy."

The man dressed as a civil official bowed and said:

"Why does Your Majesty say so? I am truly flustered."

"Great Qin and Parthia have been allies for a century, supposed to assist each other. Moreover, when someone instigated the Great Qin martial artist to assassinate King Balman, Your Majesty having sent us a message, how could I dare to neglect?"

The King of Parthia chuckled and said:

"I merely thought that the perpetrator, after all, being a Great Qin martial artist, both honored guests should be somewhat familiar. This is my personal Iron Cavalry Colonel, who personally witnessed the assassin that day. You both may question him thoroughly."