Ye Hongshang could barely keep a straight face. She quietly emerged, Crystal Ball in hand, and began replaying Xie Jinhuan's intimate encounters, his probing into every opening, his Three Flowers Gather at the Crown...
Empress Dowager Guo also sat a little straighter, first studying the impeccably composed Xie Jinhuan, then looking toward the bevy of beauties next door.
Xie Jinhuan knew the two older sisters would question him, but his conscience remained clear:
"Everything I do 'springs from affection.' I never chat up women I don't like and deceive them into falling for me. Overall, I still keep my nose clean-"
Ye Hongshang interrupted, "You certainly don't chat up women you don't like, but you fall for every woman you meet. There aren't any you don't like..."
Xie Jinhuan could hardly agree with that. Hadn't he refrained from unlocking the Defeat Compendium entries for those tramps in Hundred Flowers Grove?
Empress Dowager Guo did not criticize Xie Jinhuan for his pile of wives, however, and simply returned to the subject:
"You look as though you have no interest in women, but in reality, you spend all day wanting to look at girls.
"Ye Ci was different. He was already famous for writing Spring Palace booklets while studying at the Academy, and he often teased girls with his glib tongue. But he abided by the gentleman's way and kept the sages' teachings firmly in mind. He never lingered over romantic love, putting all his thoughts into saving the world.
"Actually, Qixia True Person, myself, and the others were much the same. We sought either the Great Dao of immortality or peace for the world. With catastrophe looming, we had no mind for personal feelings. Even when the Witch Cult Rebellion ended, none of us were trapped by love. There were only