This Is What Sincerity Looks Like

"Senior Sister, you've been getting younger and prettier lately! And this Golden Phoenix Hairpin you're wearing today suits your hairstyle and outfit perfectly. It truly has the magic of painting the dragon's eyes and adding flowers to brocade!"

In the backyard of the Jade Flower Pavilion, the moment Xia Daoming saw Liu Xiaoqiang—her alluring charm on full display, a strip of soft gauze wrapped across her full breasts, rising and falling like waves with every breath—he immediately stepped forward with a broad smile and lavished her with praise.

"Really? Junior Brother, you certainly have a good eye. I specially asked Master Feng of the Butterfly Phoenix Tower to make this Golden Phoenix Hairpin for me some time ago. I only got it today!"

When Xia Daoming praised her Golden Phoenix Hairpin, Liu Xiaoqiang's peach-blossom eyes immediately lit up. She first lightly touched the hairpin with her hand, then, in an unprecedented move, swayed her waist over and intimately hooked her arm through his.

"Senior Sister, spare me! A beauty like you, with a figure, a face, and a temperament to die for, is holding my arm like this. I'm afraid I might lose my composure!" Feeling the softness against his arm, Xia Daoming put on an exaggeratedly miserable expression.

"Pfft! Cut it out! You spend every day surrounded by swallows and orioles. Especially that Lian'er—even I would be tempted by her. You'd lose your composure just because I linked arms with you?" Liu Xiaoqiang rolled her eyes at Xia Daoming, but only clung to him more tightly.

"Senior Sister, you truly have no idea how great your charm is! Without the slightest exaggeration, you're lethal to men and women, young and old alike!" Xia Daoming opened his mouth and showered her with another round of praise.

"Giggle!" Liu Xiaoqiang could not help bursting into laughter at Xia Daoming's style of flattery from another world. She laughed until her body trembled like a flower branch in the wind, and eventually she could not resist resting her forehead on his shoulder.

"This..."

The singers, dancers, and musicians who knew Liu Xiaoqiang's usual style were all dumbfounded at the sight, as though they had seen a ghost in broad daylight.

Yuchi Xiao, Zhuo Xingji, and Jiao Yongbao nearly had their jaws hit the floor.

"I say, Xingji, you're a regular at the Jade Flower Pavilion. Has Junior Sister Liu ever treated you like this?" Yuchi Xiao asked, nudging Zhuo Xingji beside him with his elbow.

Yet his tiger eyes remained fixed on Xia Daoming's arm pressed against those rolling waves, brimming with envy, jealousy, and resentment.

Liu Xiaoqiang had a lovely face, a graceful figure, and an alluring, charming temperament. When the senior and junior brothers of the Hidden Dragon Martial Arts School had first met her, quite a few of them had been utterly bewitched and launched fierce pursuits.

However, Liu Xiaoqiang had once been a female relative of an official family exiled to Li City, and she had endured a bitter past too painful to look back on. Thus, though she laughed and joked with Yuchi Xiao and the others, unconstrained by vulgar or refined banter and appearing easygoing and warm, in certain matters she actually kept them a thousand miles away.

After running into walls several times, Yuchi Xiao and the others came to understand Liu Xiaoqiang's temperament. They put away those thoughts and simply became fellow disciples and martial siblings.

Back then, Gu Ren had considered himself exceptionally gifted and strikingly handsome. Refusing to believe otherwise, he had persisted relentlessly for a long time, but in the end, he too could only fail. It had dealt quite a blow to the proud Gu Ren, who had always prided himself on his looks.

Yet who would have thought that Xia Daoming had only been here for a year, and Liu Xiaoqiang would already take the initiative to come over and link arms with him?

"Nonsense! How could that possibly happen? It's not like you don't know Junior Sister's temperament!" Zhuo Xingji replied irritably, feeling utterly dejected inside.

He was not only Liu Xiaoqiang's fellow disciple—he was also one of the Jade Flower Pavilion's biggest patrons!

"Junior Sister, you're being far too partial. You were never this affectionate with us before!" Jiao Yongbao's smile carried a trace of "resentment."

"Nonsense. Whenever you come to the Jade Flower Pavilion, every last one of your eyeballs gets drawn away by the girls. Which one of you has ever truly cared about me, your junior sister?" Liu Xiaoqiang said with a roll of her eyes, tightening her hold on Xia Daoming's arm.

"Heaven and earth bear witness, how could we possibly not care about Junior Sister?" Yuchi Xiao and the other two spoke almost at the same time.

"Then tell me, three Senior Brothers, what is different about me today?" Liu Xiaoqiang tossed them a flirtatious glance and raised an orchid finger.

The three men stared at Liu Xiaoqiang for quite a while, then looked at one another. In the end, Jiao Yongbao braced himself and spoke first with a smile. "Junior Sister, your appearance is even more radiant and gorgeous today than before!"

"Yes, yes, radiant and gorgeous, even more than before," Yuchi Xiao and Zhuo Xingji hurriedly nodded in agreement.

"Enough, enough. Stop being so fake. 'Radiant and gorgeous, even more than before'—not one of you is sincere!" Liu Xiaoqiang rolled her eyes at the three of them.

"How are we not sincere?" The three men protested.

"Hmph, if you were sincere, then with how often you come to the Jade Flower Pavilion, how could you fail to notice that I changed to a new hairpin today?

"Look at Junior Brother Daoming. He hardly ever comes here, yet the moment he does, he notices I'm wearing a new hairpin! This is what sincerity looks like. This is what it means to have your junior sister in your eyes. Unlike you lot—once you step into the Jade Flower Pavilion, no one knows where your eyeballs drift off to."

Liu Xiaoqiang rolled her eyes again and tightened her grip around Xia Daoming's arm once more.

The three men were instantly dumbstruck.

They were three rough men. Who would pay attention to what kind of hairpin a woman wore?

While Yuchi Xiao and the other two stood there in a daze, Xia Daoming could only curse inwardly.

He had merely followed the social principles from his previous life: when complimenting someone, do not speak in broad, generic terms or use all-purpose flattery. Be specific—that was what made it seem sincere.

For instance, if a woman carried a newly released handbag, complimenting the bag would make her happier than complimenting her beauty.

Or if a woman held an adorable puppy in her arms, petting it and praising how cute it was could easily close the distance between you. Perhaps one day, you might even get a chance to touch her.

When Liu Xiaoqiang had sashayed over earlier, her hand had occasionally touched the hairpin, as if she feared it might fall off without warning. Xia Daoming had naturally gotten into the habit of casually praising her Golden Phoenix Hairpin.

Who would have expected that Liu Xiaoqiang had never before received such precise and detailed praise in her life? It struck straight into her heart, and she immediately began seeing Xia Daoming, her junior brother, in a new light.

Senior Sister, you're the proprietress of a pleasure house. How are you still this innocent?

After cursing inwardly, Xia Daoming could not help sighing to himself again.

"Eh, Senior Brother Jiao, you've cultivated Hidden Strength? No wonder you're spending lavishly to treat us today!" Unable to bear seeing his three senior brothers suffer such a blow, Xia Daoming's eyes shifted to Jiao Yongbao, and he spoke with a look of "surprise."

Jiao Yongbao had originally been a talented disciple of the Hidden Dragon Martial Arts School. Later, after an accident, he had lost all hope of advancing in the martial path and had turned from martial arts to business.

After Liang Jingtang obtained the Longevity Jade Liquid, he had privately shared some with him.

Jiao Yongbao consumed a small amount of Longevity Jade Liquid every day. As a result, his qi, blood, and vitality flourished anew, and he once again condensed Hidden Strength.

Besides Jiao Yongbao, Yuchi Xiao and Zhuo Xingji had each received some as well.

The two were both Fifth-Rank Great Martial Masters and in the prime of life. They had merely passed their peak of qi and blood, but were still far from the stage of rapid decline. If they could obtain Longevity Jade Liquid and stabilize themselves for several years, they might have a chance at the Sixth-Rank Realm.

As for Liu Xiaoqiang, she was older and only a Fourth-Rank Martial Master. She was not as gifted as Jiao Yongbao either. Even if she received some Longevity Jade Liquid, it would likely only nourish her complexion and delay the aging of her appearance.

And the Longevity Jade Liquid was extremely precious. Liang Jingtang could not bear to waste it, so he had not shared any with Liu Xiaoqiang.

"Tsk! You could tell that? No wonder you were able to defeat Senior Brother Yuchi so easily!" Jiao Yongbao exclaimed in shock.

"One thing is one thing. Why are you dragging me into this for comparison? Come, come, it's been a long time since we sparred. How about I exchange a few moves with you today?" Yuchi Xiao said, suddenly slapping Jiao Yongbao's shoulder with his large palm.

"Cough, cough! Senior Brother, lighter, lighter! I finally managed to cultivate a bit of Hidden Strength again. Don't shake it out of me," Jiao Yongbao quickly begged for mercy.

"Get lost. If I were that powerful, would Daoming have defeated me so easily?" Yuchi Xiao glared.

"Haha!" Everyone burst into laughter.

As they laughed, Liu Xiaoqiang finally released Xia Daoming's arm and went to arrange the girls.

Xia Daoming secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Senior Sister Liu really has quite a lot to offer!

Before long, Liu Xiaoqiang returned to the private room with several girls favored by Yuchi Xiao and the other two, sending them to keep the three men company.

She herself sat beside Xia Daoming and personally accompanied him, making Yuchi Xiao and the other two green with envy, yet helpless to do anything about it.

Who could blame them when Junior Brother Xia was so skilled at charming women?

He did not look at a woman's chest or legs, yet somehow noticed the Golden Phoenix Hairpin atop her head. They had no choice but to concede defeat.

Xia Daoming, however, felt somewhat uncomfortable.

Normally, when he came here to drink some wine and listen to a tune, he felt perfectly relaxed, perfectly detached.

But today, with Liu Xiaoqiang sitting beside him and those watery peach-blossom eyes constantly sending flirtatious glances his way, he truly felt a little heated.

"Senior Sister, it seems the Jade Flower Pavilion's business has become much quieter," Xia Daoming said, unable to withstand the teasing any longer and changing the subject.

"Alas, isn't that so? The situation in Li City is becoming more chaotic by the day, and everyone is anxious. Who has the mood to visit pleasure houses and listen to songs? Even those who do come are desperate men with violent tempers, difficult to serve.

"Business is getting harder and harder. If not for the fact that the Jade Flower Pavilion at least gives the sisters below a place to shelter from wind and rain, I truly would not want to keep doing this." Liu Xiaoqiang sighed, her face full of worry.

Today's updates are complete.