The Woman Ruler of the Altan Clan

Chapter 42 Days Without You

After checking the clan's budget report for a few hours, Khan decided that he needed a break and went back to his room to be as alone as he has done lately.

Khan has now begun to live out his days meeting, and assessing potential female candidates who will follow the Selection for the first group. The name list was made by her mother. Eej who seeks and selects the seven suitable names to be candidates.

The seven women will undergo the first stage Selection, where only two people will be selected. After that switch to the second group to the third group. Representatives of two selected women from the three groups will advance to the final stage Selection. So at the end of the Selection is the deciding round for the six women who were selected in the previous selection to become queen.

Centuries ago, the remaining five unelected women could usually be appointed concubines by the clan leader. The clan leader could choose from all five or just a few of them. But it is not binding, all are returned to the leader wants to lift the concubine or not.

For something so simple, this seemed extraordinarily frightening. But, come to think of it, Khan has indeed felt overwhelmed ever since they announced the Selection, so this should come as no surprise anymore.

Her mother chose all her own contests, choosing young women from among the nobility, alliances from other clans, and influential families.

Eej knew that he had to make the Selection choose the young women representing every influential person from the entire clan to make it look legitimate. And no participants were taken from among the common people.

Her mother knew that the noble council would not approve of her, even if written rules about it did not exist. Since centuries Selection has always chosen based on the genealogy possessed by its candidates. The higher the pedigree the more likely it will be chosen.

But Khan did not care about all that, even he did not glance at the slightest at the women who had been met by Eej in a closed dating event.

The date was held in Astrakhan. Khan was not willing to enter the city of Och, because he did not want the interference of the council of nobles or the elders living in that city.

"How are you feeling?" Her mother was suddenly next to her, her face looking curious.

"Good."

Mother smiled. "It's impossible that you're okay. It's terrible."

"Ah, indeed. I don't think I need to answer anymore. Eej already knows how I really feel."

Her mother's gentle smile was still visible, she exhaled her breath. His eyes were looking far ahead.

"I'm so grateful I never experienced this with your father. We've been close since childhood and everything just flows until we grow up. Maybe more precisely we have been dating without the need to go through the selection of a mate selection event again that is emotionally draining."

Khan was not sure what to say. He knew that it was fortunate that his parents could find each other and be together without any opposition from any side.

His mother was the daughter of one of his grandfather's right hands. And his father had been close to him since childhood. As they grow older they get closer, and the father begins to realize that Eej is his soul mate. Like a tadpole, Eej also has the same feeling.

They finally got married. At the end of his life, he loved his mother. And Khan wants to be like them. Loving one woman to the end.

"I feel very uncomfortable. I've been through a matchmaking process without a Selection process like this. And it ended in disaster. Now I have to go through the matchmaking process again with the Selection which was a waste of time and effort." Khan fell silent, he clenched his hands in his lap.

"Why can't I choose my own soul mate, without the interference of any side?" He gritted his jaw.

Eej approached Khan, he patted the man on the shoulder. "I'm proud of you. You'll get through this. And I will always support you" he said. Eej then walked out of his study. In the middle of the road he stopped. "Oh yeah, tonight you have a date with the fifth woman. I hope you can behave more sweetly," he added with an amused chuckle.

Khan gripped the edge of his desk while snorting in annoyance. In a thousand years he will not be sweet to a woman, except the woman he truly loves.

***

The night had come, Khan was already preparing to head to one of the city's fine restaurants. He sat on the back bench of his luxury car with a cold look and his feet.

As the car stopped right in front of the restaurant, Khan tidied up his suit and got off his vehicle with a cold aura, but the charm of a clan leader remained firmly attached to him.

He stepped inside, and found Taban already waiting there. He nodded and made eye contact with one of the servants. The waiter rushed into another room not far away.

Then a woman walked out of the room entered by the waiter, moving gracefully in a long sleeve dress in green tosca, which was in line with the color of her eyes. The woman was slender in stature with the average height of an Asian woman, but had a face that was quite pleasing to the eye.

The woman stopped before Khan, bowing to pay her respects. "Kiaria Khenbish, the Great."

Khan tilted his head in welcome and nodded his head. He immediately hinted at the servants to pull the bench. Khan and the woman sat down as the bench was pulled back by the servants.

"It's nice to meet you, Great One. Thank you so much for choosing me. I look forward to proving that I deserve to be your companion."

Khan shakes his head curiously. "really? And, how did you do that?"

Kiaria smiled. "I'll tell you that I come from a very good family. My father has a noble bloodline of the Khenbish clan."

"What is that all? No need to say I already know more than that."

Unintimidated, Kiaria continued, "I think that's quite impressive. And I'm also willing to have many children and not refuse if you want to take the Concubine later."

Khan's face grew colder, he looked at the woman with a sharp look.

"Unfortunately, it's not impressive for me to have multiple partners as a factory for producing children and as a clan sweetener alone."

Kiaria's face was stunned.

"We'd better enjoy dinner" Khan said in the voice of his feet. He immediately hinted at Taban to call the waiter. They order food as desired.

Until the dinner ended, there was no more conversation between the two. Khan did not give Kiaria a chance to start a fixed conversation with her cold face and her legs.

"You can go" said Khan briefly. When they are done enjoying their dinner.

Taban understood the cue, then helped pull Kiaria's bench and said, "Thank you for coming." Taban looked smiling at the woman. And Kiaria replied to him with a faint smile.

Then Kiaria bowed respectfully, and started walking away. Kiaria's face looks so sad passed from the presence of Khan. But the man didn't care, he did deliberately not want to be sweet.

"If you keep acting like that we won't get a single woman to advance to the next round, sir." Taban stood next to Khan while trying to hold his gel face.

"But that's not the rule of this Selection, sir. You still have to choose, like or dislike those women."

"Then you or Eej choose." Khan raised his right hand, looked at the time marker on his wrist, and began to stand up from his seat.

"That's right." Taban rolled his eyeballs, not believing the words that came out of Khan's mouth just now.

Taban looked at this man before him with a look of pity. Since Shanum returned to his country, Khan returned again to his cold, stiff, smileless attitude, just like his attitude before meeting the girl.

"If the show's over, I want to get back home soon." Khan looked at Taban with a questioning look.

"There's no more show. The woman had also left here" Taban replied.

Khan nodded, then moved out of the room. He headed for the luxurious car that was already waiting for him. Khan went into the back side, set his seat. He took off his suit, rolled up his shirt sleeves, and massaged his temples. His face looks tired.

Although maybe this dating show had no effect on his heart. He still feels disturbed, he does not like to be forced through futile activities. And this selection is a futile thing according to him.

Khan got out of his car in the front lobby and walked into his mansion. He told one of his servants to make coffee for him, and was escorted to the study. Afterwards Khan walked back to the hallway leading to his study.

Khan sat behind his desk and grabbed a cell phone from inside his pants pocket. He opened the gallery app, and stared at the smiling photo of Shanum inside the phone screen.

Khan misses that girl so much. The one thing that cannot be denied is that he feels so lonely. Khan did not realize how much he depended on Shanum to fill his void, to seal all the holes in his life.

The day without Shanum made him languish. Khan put the phone on the table. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against the fists of both hands, with both elbows propped up on the table.

There was a knock on the door, and a waiter came in carrying a tray of coffee. "The coffee, sir." The waiter put the coffee cup on the table, then withdrew.

Khan grabbed the handle of the cup, brought it closer to his lips, and tucked the coffee slowly. Coffee running down his throat delivers a warm and delicious taste. Suddenly he was surprised by the ringing sound of his cell phone. Khan saw Sergei's name on the screen. The man called her using a video call.

He snorted, but still picked up the phone and shifted the screen. "Why did you call me, Sergei?" said ketus. Khan saw the man's face grinning on the screen.

"Well, what's the news, the Great One?"

"How dare you call me. Whatdoyouwant?"

Sergei cleared his throat, his face looked serious. "I'm not offended by your boycott of my business, Great One. So no need to be sad."

Khan clenched his jaw and hissed. "You're too confident, Sergei. I've never felt sorry for anyone."

"You are sure, the Great. I think you're wrong. You're feeling very sad right now, about Shanum maybe... Proof you never called that girl."

Khan's face froze as Sergei said the girl's name. "It's none of your business, God damn it!" Khan growled furiously.

"Woa, no need for emotion, Great One. I just have good intentions. If you don't act soon, you'll lose the girl."

"What do you mean?" Khan squinted his eyes, he was still suspicious of the man.

Sergei chuckles amusedly. "It turns out, the Great One was still paying attention to Shanum. Despite already dating some charming and graceful women."

Khan looked at the man coldly. "Why do I feel like you're insinuating me, Sergei?"

Sergei chuckled, his laughter blaring. "You're feeling too much, I didn't mean that. I'm just saying what I saw."

"So you're spying on me, Sergei?" Khan grinned coldly.

"Well, a little. I'm just curious." Sergei smiled amusedly.

"You take care of yourself and your partner. Don't interfere in my affairs."

"Well, if that's what you want, the Great. Then you've moved on from Shanum. I'm just sorry, 'cause you guys really fit in."

"I told you, Sergei. Don't interfere" Khan exasperated.

"OK, then I will support Shanum to get close to one of the handsome teachers on his campus" Sergei said, shrugging his shoulders.

Khan fell silent. A moment later Sergei saw a wounded look in the depths of his eyes. But then the gaze returned coldly unreadable.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Great One. I hope you get a female candidate...."

"Wait..." Khan cut off Sergei's speech. Then he looks to rub his face. The man was silent for a few seconds.

"Yes, there's more you need from me, the Great One."

"Please.You help me to keep an eye on him there. I'll pay for your services."

Slowly a smile broke on Sergei's lips, "I don't need your money, Great One. My body is free. Lunaku loves him, so I'll automatically take care of him."

"Okay, I need you to report every activity to me. And don't you dare support the teacher's approach to who it was with him. If you need to keep them away" Khan said, staring intently at him.

"I'm sorry, the Great. I'm just willing to watch. To keep them away, it's not my realm. You'd better do that, Great One."

Khan sighed and then closed his eyes. "I'd love to do it, Sergei. But unfortunately I can't."

Sergei frowned, but he did not ask further. Looking at Khan's chaotic face, he felt heartless. Sergei knows how he feels. Because he had experienced it, when the Diva hated him.