Proof of Who Was Strongest in the Inner Household? Even the Princess Could Be Kept in Hand?

Gu Moran did not answer immediately.

Ye Qingyun hasn't made a move yet.

The second prince did not draw his sword.

If the answer is too harsh, Murong Xue might really take a knife and go to Shun'an Lane.

If you speak too softly, she won't teach you properly.

He pushed the leather rope in front of Murong Xue.

"Nobody's here."

Murong Xue did not answer.

So what will you study?

"But someone is practicing how to kill."

Batuer slowed down his chewing of the jerky.

Murong Xue approached, carrying a knife.

"That commoner?"

"You noticed it too?"

He was unwilling to accept defeat at the poetry gathering.

"Just this?"

"When he stood on the stage, his hand was always on his waist; his hand was strong."

Murong Xue pointed to her side.

"On the grasslands, people are always touching their knives, either because they're afraid of losing them or because they want to draw them."

Gu Moran looked at her.

Is all this princess knows how to chop down wooden stakes?

No.

She has a good eye for people.

Murong Xue asked again, "What stage has he reached in his training?"

I don't know.

"Didn't your people investigate?"

"I checked, he practices behind closed doors."

"Then go kick the door down."

Gu Moran raised her hand and pressed it to her forehead.

"Princess, this cannot be done in the capital."

Murong Xue lowered her brows.

" The Central Plains are such a hassle."

She pulled the knife out completely.

The blade left its sheath, the metallic sound echoing through the courtyard.

Gu Moran saw the blade, took a step back, and then stopped abruptly.

Murong Xue saw his foot move.

"Scared?"

"Afraid."

Murong Xue stopped.

"You're honest."

You can fool people, but you can't fool a knife.

Murong Xue nodded.

First, don't stare at the knife.

Gu Moran was still looking at the tip of the knife.

"It's right in front of my face, why aren't you looking at it, but at you?"

"Look at the shoulders."

Murong Xue raised her right shoulder.

"The shoulder moves first, then the knife moves."

She turned her waist, her boot soles grinding against the blue bricks.

"Your waist is strong."

Her toes were turned outwards.

"Feet guide the way."

Gu Moran looked her over from shoulder to waist to feet.

Lin Qingdai taught about the fundamentals.

Murong Xue taught about fate.

Only by standing firm can you avoid being knocked down by a single bump.

Only by retreating can one take another breath.

Murong Xue raised her knife.

"Next, I'll cut you."

Gu Moran's smile vanished.

"Use the back of the knife?"

"Blade."

Batuer looked up.

"Princess, His Highness is a prince."

Murong Xue didn't look at him.

"I know."

Gu Moran at the blade, his throat dry.

Blocking it, Essence-Fortifying Hard Shirt, is useless.

Betting that she'll stop is like risking your life to test her courage.

Only by hiding can you find a way out.

He tucked his sleeve into his palm to prevent the fabric from catching on the knife.

"Come."

Murong Xue's shoulder moved first.

Gu Moran didn't look at the knife; he first stepped to the right.

She turned her waist, and he protected his left arm to his neck.

She pressed her toes to the ground, and he slid half a step to the side.

The knife grazed the edge of the sleeve, tearing the fabric slightly. The wind brushed against the back of the hand, and a chill seeped into the skin.

Batuer stood up, the jerky still in his mouth.

Murong Xue sheathed her sword.

"Too slow."

Gu Moran looked at the torn cuff.

How much difference?

"If I were to truly kill you, my sleeve would tear, and I would be torn to pieces."

Gu Moran up.

"The princess's words are truly auspicious."

"If you want to hear something nice, go find Shen Ling'er."

Gu Moran chuckled, sweat clinging to his clothes.

After laughing, he suppressed the breath he had been holding in.

Murong Xue sheathed the knife, then drew it out halfway.

"Again."

"Still using the blade?"

"Afraid?"

"They'll have to come, even if they're afraid."

The second cut came even faster.

Gu Moran looked at her shoulder.

When the shoulder moves, he goes first.

But Murong Xue didn't follow.

That was a feint.

The real knife came pressing down from the other side.

Only two words remained in Gu Moran's mind.

They fell for the trap.

Blocking it head-on will result in bloodshed.

Even being a fraction of a second too late can result in bloodshed.

He bent backward, his heel hitting a splinter of wood, and his body tilted to the side.

The knife stopped three inches from his chest.

Murong Xue looked at him.

"Look at the shoulders, but don't just look at the shoulders."

Gu Moran himself on his knees, gradually suppressing the rise and fall of his chest.

"Princess, your tuition fees are quite high."

"You didn't send enough salt."

"Add two more bags tomorrow."

"Add a good horse's bit as well."

"Make a deal."

Batuer swallowed the jerky.

"Your Highness, the princess's willingness to ask for things means she is willing to teach."

Gu Moran looked at him.

"Do you Northern Territory always cut someone first when you take on a disciple?"

Batuer shook his head.

"No."

Gu Moran just breathed a sigh of relief.

Batuer added another sentence earnestly.

"Slam it down three times first, then chop it."

Gu Moran looked at Murong Xue.

Murong Xue nodded.

I'll throw you tomorrow.

Gu Moran straight, the wind blowing open the tear in her sleeve to reveal the wrist guard underneath.

So, is this where we're going today?

Murong Xue picked up the leather rope and twirled it between her fingertips.

The leather is nice.

Batuer held the dried meat, his tone sincere.

"Princess, His Highness is hiding better than that wooden stake from this morning."

Murong Xue stopped holding the leather rope.

"Shut up."

Gu Moran laughed out loud.

[System notification: Consort's favorability has increased.]

[ Murong Xue's favorability +5, current -15.]

[Volatility Source: The host's willingness to face the blade despite acknowledging fear indicates a courage recognized by the grasslands.]

[Added tag: Wants to prove he's the strongest at home.]

Outside the courtyard, Uncle Fu stopped at the doorway.

"Your Highness, it's time for your tea."

Gu Moran was taken aback; this was a coded message that Boss Zhao had sent a letter.

He didn't go over immediately.

Murong Xue was looking at him, her hand still gripping the hilt of her sword.

If I make an excuse to leave now, Murong Xue will become suspicious.

Hiding it only makes it more conspicuous.

Gu Moran went over and drank some tea, then casually took the slip of paper and unfolded it between his fingertips.

There was only one line on the paper.

[In the backyard of Shun'an Lane, Ye Qingyun shattered nine blue bricks with his palm today.]

Gu Moran closed the paper and returned to the courtyard.

Murong Xue took a step closer.

What are you hiding from me?

Gu Moran stuffed the paper into his sleeve.

"Madam is joking; who could possibly keep it from you?"

"It's just that my opponent practices very diligently."

"That commoner? Does he even deserve to be called your opponent?"

Has he ever killed anyone?

Gu Moran looked at the knife at her waist.

The image of Ye Qingyun holding the marriage certificate on the poetry platform flashed through my mind, as did the image of the bamboo slips warming against my palm.

"Not now."

Murong Xue didn't press the matter, but simply sheathed the knife and spoke with an air of haughtiness.

"I, this princess, will not allow him to kill you."

Gu Moran glanced at her.

A woman's heart is truly unfathomable; no matter how cunning you are, you can never truly understand her.

She and Lin Qingdai both had negative feelings toward me, yet they both expressed a desire to protect me.

Batuer also put down the dried meat.

"Your Highness, shall I go and take a look at it for you?"

"Need not."

Gu Moran refused quickly, then slowed down her speech.

"He's looking for someone to prove himself right now, and your going would only go his way."

Murong Xue understood.

"Aren't you going to ignore him for now?"

"Let it air dry first."

What if he runs right into it?

Gu Moran raised his hand and straightened the torn cuff.

"Let's see who he runs into."

Murong Xue looked at him.

"You've already set up a trap?"

Gu Moran picked up half a pastry from the table and took a bite.

"How could I possibly devise any schemes?"

Murong Xue sneered.

"You said the same thing at the poetry gathering."

She hung the knife back on her waist.

Bring the bit tomorrow.

Gu Moran swallowed the last bite of the pastry.

"Okay."

Batuer immediately stood up and bowed.

"Your Highness, please take care."

Gu Moran turned and left the hospital, the tear in her sleeve clinging to her wrist in the wind.

Uncle Fu followed behind.

"Your Highness, should we add more people to Shun'an Lane?"

"No."

" Ye Qingyun shattered nine bricks with his palm; his progress is not slow."

Gu Moran walked through the corridor. The soil in the flowerpots under the corridor was damp, and the smell of medicinal wine still lingered on her sleeves.

Therefore, we must not get too close.

Uncle Fu lowered his voice.

"This old servant is worried that he will act prematurely."

Gu Moran stopped and looked back at the tightly closed door of Azure Wolf Courtyard.

From inside came the sound of Batuer unwrapping a paper package of dried meat, and Murong Xue's short reprimands.

At the other end of the Iron Plum Courtyard, Lin Qingdai's wooden stick made another sound.

The area around Clear Frost Courtyard was quiet.

A faint medicinal fragrance wafted from the Green Vine Courtyard.

These people are all in the Prince's mansion.

He couldn't let Ye Qingyun just barge in.

Gu Moran took out the slip of paper from her sleeve and folded it even smaller.

"Have Boss Zhao put up the sign for Dragon Abyss Martial Arts School as soon as possible."

Uncle Fu looked at him.

"In advance?"

"Right."

"Should we leave it to dry for the first three days?"

"Air."

Gu Moran stuffed the note back into her sleeve.

"But let everyone in the south of the city know that's where you learn real skills."

Uncle Fu understood.

"Let Ye Qingyun hear this."

"You can hear it but still can't come in."

Gu Moran walked towards the study, the torn cuff of his sleeve brushing against the pillar in the corridor with a soft sound.

The more anxious he is, the more he will walk towards the door.

Uncle Fu said in a low voice, "Your Highness, this will only push him further."

Gu Moran did not turn around.

He's already breaking the blue bricks.

"Next time, he might not want to break the bricks."

The next day.

It was just past noon.

Boss Zhao stepped into the study, his shoes still covered in mud and dust from the south of the city.

The aroma of tea and the smell of cooking followed him into the house, and two sesame seeds from a sesame seed cake stuck to his cuff.

Gu Moran sat behind his desk, his left arm pressing down on the medicine cloth, his right hand on the map of the South Street.

Shun'an Lane was circled three times in red ink.

Two streets to the east, the four characters for Dragon Abyss Martial Arts School" are still damp.

Boss Zhao cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, the plaque has been hung up."

(๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧

[Thank you Lin Xin, Shen Xing, and Wang Zhe for the gifts! You all went to so much trouble. I'm so grateful for your free clicks to urge me to update and your support!]

The new outline for "Dream Chaser" is ready. Please feel free to give your feedback!

Ye Qingyun's countdown to leaving the game has begun. With heavy hearts, let's bid farewell to our first dream chaser.