Off to the side, the Hidden Guards gave Qian Miao a long, brooding look without saying a word.
Don't ask. If you did, the answer was that they couldn't beat him.
A little while later.
Someone from the kitchen brought over the soup Chu Youning hadn't had a chance to drink.
Qian Yan, who was delivering the meal today, had just been about to take the soup to his master and Chu Youning when his older brother caught him by the back of his collar.
Qian Miao looked at him with exasperation, as though despairing that iron could never become steel. "Deliver, deliver, deliver-is that all you know? Can't you read the room? Our master and the Elder Princess must have gone off to enjoy the flowers beneath the moon. Why would they need you tagging along?"
As he spoke, he picked up the tureen of soup and set it on a nearby table.
"How did I end up with such a stupid little brother? You've already lost one of your Third Fire's flames and become Second Fire. If you follow them tonight, get ready to be called Qian Fire from now on!"
Qian Yan froze for a second. At the prospect of becoming Qian Fire, he immediately shrank back.
"Brother, I... I won't deliver it, all right?"
Meanwhile.
Chu Youning followed Qing Qianxue, finding their surroundings increasingly unfamiliar.
Clearly, hardly anyone came here ordinarily; there was little sign of life.
Even with lanterns hanging at intervals along the walls, the place still felt rather eerie.
She couldn't help folding her arms and rubbing them, though her voice remained airy. "National Preceptor, on a dark and windy night like this, with just a man and a woman alone together, where exactly are you taking me~?"
Deep down, her mind,