Bibi Dong Poured the Tea Herself!

He knows me so well. Could he really be from the future?

Bibi Dong grew increasingly certain of this thought.

Those words Li Mubai had just spoken in his heart.

The information they revealed was this: the man named Li Mubai seemed to know her very well.

Bibi Dong felt that Li Mubai's assessment of her was fairly objective.

If she truly acted according to her personality,

and made some wrong decision, she really would be unlikely to apologize.

She might even resolutely carry that wrong decision through to the end.

Otherwise,

she wouldn't be Bibi Dong.

What she could least stand to hear were voices of opposition!

Otherwise,

those elders at the meetings

wouldn't have responded whenever asked with things like, "Yes, yes, yes, everything you say is right!"

It was precisely because they had spent so long dealing with Bibi Dong that they knew her personality.

They had no desire to argue with her at all.

What if they won the argument?

They would still be the ones to suffer in the end.

Some things could be heard and left at that; it wasn't as if they absolutely had to carry them out.

That was how this bunch of old hands conducted themselves in Spirit Hall!

As for all this,

Bibi Dong knew, but there was nothing she could do about it.

When all was said and done,

she wasn't strong enough.

And the problem caused by her lack of strength was that she couldn't command everyone's respect.

But

how long had Li Mubai known her?

She usually gave nothing away, so how could this man possibly have understood her completely so quickly?

Hearsay?

That didn't seem likely either.

She knew that Li Mubai didn't have a single friend in Spirit Hall.

Today was his first time attending Spirit Hall's monthly meeting. Where would he have found friends?

Never mind friends.

It was questionable whether he even knew everyone in Spirit Hall and could call them all by name.

So,

was he very likely from the future?

Just as Bibi Dong was pondering,

"Ahem. Since you've apologized, Your Holiness, it would be rude of me to let this awkward silence continue."

Li Mubai coughed twice, easing the awkward atmosphere between them.

"Regarding the question you just asked, Your Holiness, may I ask whether you want to hear the truth, or..."

"Of course I want the truth. Who would want to hear a lie?"

Before Li Mubai could finish, Bibi Dong cut him off.

"The truth might deal you a blow. I hope you won't be angry when you hear it."

"Don't worry. How could I possibly get angry? Do I look like someone so petty?"

Bibi Dong suddenly asked, her brows cold.

"Of course not."

Li Mubai spoke respectfully, but inwardly he rolled his eyes.

If you're not that kind of person, I'll run naked through the streets and eat a great big pile of shit!

Bibi Dong's brows knitted slightly. What is this "shit"?

Why does Li Mubai keep saying things I can't understand?

Since he mentioned running naked, that means he doesn't believe I'm someone who doesn't get angry easily.

In other words,

this "shit"... must be some kind of food that doesn't taste very good?

"Since you're so certain, Your Holiness, I'll speak plainly."

Li Mubai picked up the teacup on the table, faint wisps of white steam still rising from it, and drained it in one gulp.

"As things stand, Spirit Hall can hardly be said to be close to becoming a hegemon. On the contrary, it's still very far away."

"Of course,"

"if compared with either of the two great empires, Spirit Hall's strength is indeed not lacking. With the foundations it has accumulated over the years, it can certainly contend with either one."

Hearing this,

Bibi Dong's brows finally relaxed, and a touch of joy rose in her heart.

At the same time,

she looked at Li Mubai and, without realizing it, suddenly felt that he wasn't so bad after all.

But her joy didn't last long.

The next moment,

"However..."

A word of qualification suddenly sprang from Li Mubai's mouth.

There's a however?

Bibi Dong frowned, a bad feeling stirring in her heart.

"However, Spirit Hall isn't an empire, after all!"

"Although Spirit Hall has powerful experts who can each hold off an army, and quite a few of them at that,"

"if Spirit Hall were to go to war with either of the great empires,"

"it still might not win."

"Even if it did win, it would surely be gravely weakened. The vultures eyeing it covetously would inevitably tear it to pieces in an instant, destroying it..."

Time passed, second by second.

"So."

When Bibi Dong heard this, her expression grew grave.

Li Mubai's analysis had instantly set out the situation she had failed to see clearly before, laying it all out in perfect order.

She had to admit that everything Li Mubai had said was true.

And what Li Mubai was about to discuss had to be the various flaws and shortcomings within Spirit Hall itself.

She couldn't help straightening up and pricking up her ears.

Without realizing it,

even Bibi Dong herself hadn't noticed

that her attitude toward Li Mubai had quietly changed.

"So Spirit Hall is still a hundred and eight thousand li away from the hegemonic position you spoke of."

Li Mubai finished speaking on his own

and reached for the cup on the tea table. He had been talking for quite a while, and his mouth was dry.

But when he picked up the cup, he found there was no tea left in it.

"What comes next?"

Bibi Dong's eyes were now filled with intense curiosity.

"What do you mean, next?"

Li Mubai set the cup down and was just about to rise when Bibi Dong's question interrupted him.

"Aren't you going to explain why Spirit Hall has fallen into such a passive position?"

Bibi Dong pressed.

"Why? What else could it be? It isn't that Spirit Hall isn't strong enough. It's that the way Spirit Hall operates simply doesn't work."

My throat's dry. What else is there worth saying?

Li Mubai shook his head, unwilling to say more.

He picked up the teacup and stood, intending to go to the kitchen and pour himself some tea to soothe his throat.

But what he never expected

was that Bibi Dong would stand up first and take the cup from his hand.

Li Mubai was just about to ask what she meant by that

when he saw Bibi Dong walk straight into the kitchen. Before long, she came back.

And now,

she had a cup of steaming tea in her hand.

Bibi Dong took two steps toward him, bent down, and gently set the teacup on the tea table in front of Li Mubai.

At such close range,

a peculiar fragrance from Bibi Dong's body wafted unstoppably into Li Mubai's nose.

It smells so good!

The peculiar fragrance made him feel refreshed and a little light-headed...

Uh... wait, no!

How could I, Li Mubai, be that kind of person?

Impossible, absolutely impossible. How could I share Mengde's tastes?!

Just then,

Bibi Dong seemed to realize something. She quickly straightened up, then hurried back to her seat.

A trace of shame and anger showed on her cheeks.

She had heard every bit of what Li Mubai had just been thinking, loud and clear!

Those words unfit for polite company were truly shameless!