The Queen of Bluffing Is Here

"Yao, what are you thinking about? Yao." Bo Miao waved a hand in front of Fang Yao, who had been lost in thought for ages.

Fang Yao's eyes followed Bo Miao's hand, and she snapped back to herself.

"What?"

Bo Miao looked at her gloomily and had to repeat what she had just said. Hearing her, Fang Yao's mind drifted back to what had happened last night.

Seeing Bo Miao's curious expression, Fang Yao coughed, looked up at her, and asked, "Why didn't you go out today?"

Fang Yao hadn't answered her question and had asked one of her own. Bo Miao, already listless, wilted even further. Now Fang Yao was curious too.

"What happened? Did you do something wrong? Did your brother ground you? Honestly, how many times has that happened this month..." Fang Yao rattled on, leaving Bo Miao no chance to get a word in.

As Fang Yao grew more and more carried away, Bo Miao forced her way in. She held up a finger. "Stop. Comrade Fang Yao, please close that precious mouth of yours. I didn't cause trouble, and I'm not grounded."

"Then something's off. Every time I get up, you lot are nowhere to be seen. When have you ever come home before curfew?" Fang Yao eyed Bo Miao suspiciously.

Let me see what's going on. Did that girl get sweet-talked into taking him back? Hm? No? Then why is she home?

Bo Miao broke into a sweat. Was she really that shallow? She had seen that scumbag's true colors. How could she possibly let him sweet-talk her into taking him back? How could Yao think that of her?

Fang Yao sneezed. Who was thinking about her?

Bo Miao kept shooting Fang Yao resentful little looks until Fang Yao felt a little guilty and wanted to cough to change the subject.

"My eldest brother said he was worried you-know-who might come looking for me and take revenge, so he told me to stay home."

Bo Miao flopped onto the sofa in a huff.

Fang Yao knew exactly who she meant. Bo Miao's cheeks were puffed up like a frog's. Fang Yao wanted to laugh—what was she supposed to do?

She hid her face, enjoyed a quiet laugh, then said with a straight face, "Your eldest brother's dropping the ball. He still hasn't crushed that guy?"

Could a supporting character be that lucky too? That shouldn't be possible. Or has he already crossed paths with the protagonists? Otherwise, with Bo Hanmo's abilities, crushing a family that couldn't compare to theirs should be easy!

While Fang Yao was thinking, Bo Miao said, "I don't know where that guy got his luck. Someone got him out. My eldest brother said the person who helped him comes from a family just as powerful as ours. I'm furious."

Bo Miao grabbed a doll from the sofa and viciously tugged at it.

The poor doll had been sitting quietly in its corner. Now it was being kneaded out of shape.

Doll: o(╥﹏╥)o

Hearing Bo Miao mutter under her breath, Fang Yao couldn't resist a jab. "So now you're angry? Who was it who kept saying, 'He wouldn't do that. I believe him,' all teary-eyed and fierce?"

After teasing Bo Miao, Fang Yao had gotten all the gossip there was. With nothing new to hear, she waved the system away until another juicy story came along.

"Yao~" Bo Miao wriggled closer and tugged at Fang Yao's sleeve.

Fang Yao's eyes widened at the coaxing tone. She pointed at herself. "Don't tell me you want me to go out with you. Absolutely n—"

Fang Yao ran and Bo Miao chased, refusing to give up even when she was panting.

"Yao, please, dear Yao. Come out and have fun with me."

"Yao~~~~~"

"Fang Yao, don't make me beg you! I promise we'll come back as soon as you're tired."

Running was effortless for Fang Yao. Bo Miao was so winded she could barely speak, while Fang Yao was only a little tired.

Seeing that Bo Miao still refused to stop chasing her, Fang Yao pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth.

"Your stamina needs work. We haven't been running long, and you're already exhausted."

Bo Miao rolled her eyes, too tired to speak. "..."

The housekeeper and servants: ...Young Madam, have you considered that your stamina might be superhuman? Even the men probably can't keep up with you.

The housekeeper and servants looked at Bo Miao sympathetically. Miss, it's not that we won't help. It's just... good luck. We're leaving.

Once everyone else was gone, Bo Miao sat right down on the floor, no longer caring how she looked. Soon she was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling. She raised a trembling hand and flipped it off.

Fang Yao squatted beside Bo Miao and poked her with a finger. One poke wasn't enough; she kept at it. Just as Bo Miao was about to lose her temper and yell, Fang Yao spoke. At her words, Bo Miao scrambled up from the floor.

"Yao, do you mean it?!"

"A woman keeps her word. Start exercising with me tomorrow, and I'll protect... I mean, go out and have fun with you today." Fang Yao nodded.

Bo Miao agreed without a second thought. She dusted herself off, grabbed Fang Yao, and headed for the door. "Deal. If I have to exercise, I'll exercise."

"If you get your second brother, your good friends, and his friends to exercise with us, you can ignore curfew today. Stay out as late as you like." Fang Yao continued to tempt her.

Fang Yao hadn't expected Bo Miao to stop so suddenly. She ran straight into Bo Miao's back and knocked her forward.

Bo Miao stared at the floor in terror and covered her face. She couldn't let her face get ruined!

?????

Why doesn't it hurt?

Fang Yao had her by the back of her collar. "How long are you going to keep covering your face?"

Bo Miao lowered her hands and found herself dangling in midair. She hadn't hit the floor, though her neck hurt and she could barely breathe. She hurriedly got her feet under her and gulped down a breath of fresh air.

"Yao, it's a deal." Bo Miao held out her palm.

Fang Yao raised an eyebrow and high-fived her. "A deal's a deal. Lie to me, and you'll end up just like that doll."

(✧∇✧)╯╰(✧∇✧)̣

Bo Miao swallowed. "Don't worry, Yao. I'll keep my word. And I really don't have a curfew tonight~"

When Fang Yao nodded, Bo Miao jumped for joy. Her delighted voice even reached the housekeeper and the others.

A servant said, "Miss is so happy today."

The housekeeper said, "She is. Ever since Young Madam arrived, there's been no end to the happiness in this house."

"Thank you, Young Madam."

"Thank you, Young Madam."

The housekeeper and servants pressed their palms together and murmured, "Amitabha." The good days had arrived.

(^▽^)

Elsewhere, Bo Zhe and the others, unaware they had already been sold out, all sneezed at once.

Bo Zhe rubbed his nose. "Weird. Why did we all start sneezing out of nowhere?"

Yang Qi said, "No idea. I sneezed too, and I've got chills. I have a bad feeling about this."

Yang Qi rubbed his arms until he felt warmer, then picked up his cue and went back to playing pool.

"Xiao Zhezi, could your sister-in-law be talking about us?"

"Get lost. If my sister-in-law were talking about anyone, it'd be my eldest brother. Why would she talk about you?" Bo Zhe shot Lu You an irritated look.

Does this guy have a death wish? He'll say anything that pops into his head.

(￣ー￣)

Lu You waved a hand. "What are you thinking? I meant, could she be digging up gossip about us again? Yeah, gossip. Maybe she's foreseen that something might happen to us..."

Lu You couldn't bring himself to say the words "get into trouble," so he just waggled his eyebrows. Surely everyone understood.

( • ̀ω•́ )✧

At Lu You's words, Yang Qi and the others' spirits plummeted. They looked from one another to the next and sighed.

The other players in the establishment saw the gloom hanging over Bo Zhe's group. Their families were no match for theirs, so it was best not to get in their way. Everyone gave them a wide berth.

Even the staff tread carefully. After all, those young masters and ladies were the establishment's biggest source of income.

How miserable. (ಥ﹏ಥ)