An Unexpected Confession

[Ding! Key event check-in successful: Defeat Dai Mubai!]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: Six Meridian Divine Sword (Soul Power adaptation)!]

[Reward description: Invisible sword Qi driven by Soul Power, comprising six sword techniques (Shaoshang Sword, Shangyang Sword, Zhongchong Sword, Guanchong Sword, Shaochong Sword, Shaoze Sword). It can attack at range and defend up close, complements the Nine Yin Manual, and grows more powerful as Soul Power increases.]

A flicker of delight crossed Yan Zu's eyes. The Six Meridian Divine Sword had come at just the right time, making up for his lack of long-range attacks.

"A-Zu, you're just letting him go?" Xiao Wu pouted. "That guy was awful! How dare he flirt with us!"

"He is a Shrek student, and Zhu Zhuqing's fiancé, after all." Yan Zu shook his head. "Besides, he's been taught enough of a lesson. What about you, Zhu Zhuqing? Are you all right?"

Zhu Zhuqing looked in the direction Dai Mubai had left, the last trace of hope in her eyes turning to ashes. "I'm fine. It's just... I've given up on him completely. He's even more contemptible than I imagined."

Ning Rongrong took her hand. "Someone like that isn't worth being sad over. Come on, let's go have a feast and forget about him!"

In the top-floor suite, the assignment of rooms became a delicate subject.

"Sister Xiao Wu and I will take the master bedroom, the big one." Ning Rongrong tossed her luggage into the master bedroom, then pointed to the second bedroom. "Zhu Zhuqing, you take that one. As for A-Zu..." She tilted her head in thought, then suddenly smiled slyly. "Would you mind making do with the living room sofa? Or... sleeping on the floor?"

"I don't need a bed when I cultivate." Yan Zu returned Little Jade to his shoulder. "The living room is just right."

Zhu Zhuqing leaned against the doorway with her arms folded, a hint of confusion flashing across her cold, beautiful face. During their journey, she had long since noticed how unusual the relationship among the three was-Xiao Wu and Yan Zu's closeness went without saying; the understanding that let them read each other with a single glance went far beyond that of ordinary siblings;

And Ning Rongrong, the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, had willingly gone everywhere with Yan Zu, even giving up her comfortable life in Heaven Dou City to come to this remote Suotuo City for him.

"You..." Zhu Zhuqing finally couldn't hold back, her voice cool. "What exactly is your relationship?"

The room fell silent for a moment.

Xiao Wu was stuffing a hotel-provided pastry into her mouth. Hearing the question, she blinked, then naturally wrapped her arms around Yan Zu's arm, as if staking her claim. "I'm A-Zu's partner. We grew up together, and we're going to be together forever."

She said it as though it were only natural. Zhu Zhuqing froze briefly, then looked at Ning Rongrong, waiting for her answer.

But Ning Rongrong was at a loss for words.

She opened her mouth, but her little mouth, usually so quick with words, seemed blocked by something. Her glazed eyes moved between Yan Zu and Xiao Wu before finally settling on Yan Zu, her delicate little face turning bright red at a visible rate.

She had originally come to Nuoding Academy because she was obsessed with "Wen Yansheng's" works. Back then, she had only wanted to meet the gentleman who had written The Song of Roland.

But later, she discovered that whenever she was near Yan Zu, the circulation of her Soul Power would inexplicably speed up. That warm, auspicious presence made her feel as comfortable as if she were soaking in a hot spring.

She began finding all kinds of excuses to get close to him, pestering him for stories and pulling him along to cultivate. She had even been willing to put aside the airs of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's little princess and follow him around like a "tagalong."

She had thought it was only because of the benefits to her cultivation, but just now, hearing Xiao Wu say the word "partner" so naturally, a fierce surge of sourness and resentment had risen in her heart.

But what was her relationship with Yan Zu? Companion? Friend? Or... the role she didn't dare think too deeply about?

Xiao Wu was already his partner. Did that mean she was trying to "steal him away"? Since when did the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect have to fret so much over gains and losses?

"I..." Ning Rongrong bit her lower lip, her hands unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes. Her pride was still there, but her voice grew a little softer. "Right now, I'm A-Zu's companion... but..."

She took a deep breath, as though mustering every ounce of courage she had ever possessed, and raised her head to look Yan Zu straight in the eye. Her chin lifted slightly as she struggled to maintain the last of her pride. "But in the future, I'm going to become A-Zu's partner too! If Sister Xiao Wu can, so can I!"

The air froze in an instant.

Yan Zu's hand shook, and he nearly dropped his teacup, his dark eyes full of astonishment. He hadn't expected Ning Rongrong to confess so bluntly, much less on an occasion like this.

"What did you say?!" Xiao Wu bristled at once. The smug smile on her face vanished, replaced by a dangerous narrowing of her eyes. "Ning Rongrong, say that again?"

"I will!" Ning Rongrong's face was as red as a ripe apple, but the stubbornness in her bones wouldn't let her back down. "I like A-Zu! I want to be with him! A-Zu is so wonderful, why can't I like him? I'm not forcing him to choose me, I just want to try!"

"Why, you little brat!" Xiao Wu stamped her foot in anger and grabbed Ning Rongrong by the wrist. "Get in here with me!"

"What are you doing?! Let go of me!" Ning Rongrong struggled, but her strength was no match for Xiao Wu's, and she was dragged straight toward the master bedroom.

"Zhu Zhuqing, sorry for the trouble... could you give us some privacy?" Xiao Wu called back to Zhu Zhuqing, then slammed the master bedroom door shut.

Immediately afterward, Ning Rongrong's startled cry came from inside. "Ah! Sister Xiao Wu, what are you doing?! Don't hit me there!"

"Smack! Smack!"

"Ah! I was wrong! Go easy!"

"Now that you know you were wrong, will you still talk nonsense?"

"I won't... ah! No, that's not right! I will! What's wrong with me liking A-Zu?!"

"Smack! Smack!"

"Boo-hoo... Sister Xiao Wu, you're bullying me!"

Yan Zu stood in the living room, listening to the sounds of "roughhousing" from inside, so embarrassed he didn't know what to do with his hands and feet. The crisp smacks and Ning Rongrong's tearful pleas for mercy made even his soul, which had lived two lives, blush.

Zhu Zhuqing stood at the door to the second bedroom, a rare, strange expression appearing on her cold, beautiful face. She glanced at Yan Zu, then at the tightly shut master bedroom door, and silently entered her room. As she closed the door, she didn't forget to add, "...Have some restraint."

"No, Zhu Zhuqing, you've misunderstood..." Yan Zu opened his mouth to explain, but Zhu Zhuqing had already shut the door.

The "battle" in the master bedroom continued for about a quarter of an hour. The sounds gradually grew quieter, turning into a rustling conversation, occasionally punctuated by Ning Rongrong's aggrieved sobs and Xiao Wu's stern scolding. In the end, they actually turned into the two girls' hushed laughter.

Yan Zu sat on the sofa, circulating the Nine Yin Manual to calm his mind, smiling bitterly to himself. He should have noticed long ago that Ning Rongrong's eyes had grown brighter and brighter whenever she looked at him over the past two years. But he had been wholly occupied with his grand plan for civilization, and mindful of Xiao Wu's feelings, he had deliberately avoided the matter.

Night grew deep, and moonlight flowed like water.

Zhu Zhuqing had already gone to sleep in the second bedroom, her breathing steady. Yan Zu was cultivating cross-legged in the living room when he suddenly sensed a fragrant breeze approaching. He opened his eyes and saw Xiao Wu.

The girl wore thin pajamas, her long pink hair hanging loose. She walked barefoot up to him and, without a word of explanation, took his hand. "Come with me."

"Xiao Wu, Rongrong..."

"She's asleep." Xiao Wu pursed her lips. "I gave her a 'lesson,' and now she's behaving herself. But..." She paused, her gaze complicated. "She wasn't wrong either. She really has done a lot for us these past two years, and... she genuinely likes you."

Yan Zu fell silent.

(Thanks to ALingMengxiang for the monthly ticket support.)