It might be that Jiang Shouzhong has figured so things out; his sinking mood has finally started to brighten up.
Noticing the man’s change in emotions, Xiao Lingqiu softly asked: "Feeling better now?"
The woman’s cheeks were very red.
Red like a pogranate.
If the previous embracing was rely an innocent desire to seek comfort, and the venting through clothes was rely an attempt to help relieve the other’s pain—
Then now, her forbidden territory, firmly gripped within his hands, had completely crossed into the intimate realm of husband and wife.
Xiao Lingqiu felt deeply regretful for her actions.
And yet, she had no intention of resisting.
Forget it; after all, I do have my limits. As long as I hold firm to my boundaries, it’ll be fine.
The woman comforted herself this way.
Jiang Shouzhong tightened his embrace around Xiao Lingqiu’s delicate body, his five fingers slightly curling, feeling her heartbeat more closely. He said slowly:
"My ever-optimistic superior once told , ’What’s done is done; all we can do is look forward.’ To be honest, I don’t have much attachnt to the Ran Mansion, except for Old Madam Ran. But for Qingchen, I carry a great deal of guilt.
When I first entered Ran Mansion, Qingchen hated . On our wedding day, she even chose to run away; in the end, I was the only groom, standing there foolishly by myself.
Later, when we held the ceremony again, it was my turn to flee, leaving her in front of all those people. My superior joked, saying it was heaven punishing Qingchen..."
Xiao Lingqiu’s expression grew complicated: "You two really are a pair of adversaries."
Feeling a slight twinge from her chest, she tried to pull his hand away but failed.
"Yeah, adversaries indeed."
Perhaps realizing that discussing one woman in front of another wasn’t appropriate, Jiang Shouzhong swallowed back the words he had intended to share.
Softly, he spoke: "I hope to correct things in ti rather than make ands afterward. For instance, with you—I don’t want us to turn into adversaries too."
Xiao Lingqiu parted her red lips slightly but said nothing.
Is this another confession?
But...
The woman’s heart was in turmoil.
"Senior brother!"
Suddenly, a startled scream sounded from outside—it ca from Duo Ying’s room.
Jiang Shouzhong froze, then quickly flipped himself upright.
"Stay in the room and don’t run around."
Leaving those words behind, Jiang Shouzhong dashed out of the house.
Arriving at Duo Ying’s quarters, he saw Hou Qi, who had originally been unconscious, now rampaging wildly, smashing items in the room.
Duo Ying crouched in a corner, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.
When she spotted Jiang Shouzhong entering, Duo Ying urgently cried out: "Be careful, Jiang!"
Jiang Shouzhong sensed sothing amiss. Tilting his body to one side, he narrowly avoided a sudden sneak attack—a palm strike hurled toward him.
The strike roared past his side, flapping his garnts loudly in its wake.
Turning his head, he caught sight of an elderly man missing an arm, hiding in the shadows. His body was drenched in blood, and he was badly injured.
This one-ard old man was none other than Jiang Chenglu.
Seeing Jiang Shouzhong dodge successfully, Jiang Chenglu instantly realized he had encountered an expert. He retreated several steps and pointed at the enraged Hou Qi from afar, saying: "Co with !"
Jiang Chenglu intended to use Hou Qi, who bore the Blood Spirit Seal, to fend off Jiang Que’s pursuit.
But he had underestimated Jiang Shouzhong’s strength.
Just as his body half-erged from the doorway, a flying sword shot forward with lightning speed, aiming directly for his face.
Jiang Chenglu, panic-stricken, instinctively raised his hand, summoning a blood-colored talisman.
The talisman seed almost sentient. As soon as it appeared, it emitted a faint red glow. With a "clang!" the flying sword collided violently with the talisman, sparking a shower of blinding flas.
Although he barely managed to block the flying sword’s attack, the overwhelming force threw Jiang Chenglu against the doorfra, causing him to cough up blood.
Jiang Shouzhong knocked Hou Qi unconscious once more and began advancing toward Jiang Chenglu.
Just then, Jiang Shouzhong suddenly sensed a sinister Sword Qi approaching him like a ghost.
Pausing mid-step, he pointed his flying sword at Jiang Chenglu, and with lightning speed, his hand darted to his waist and gripped the Spirit Water Sword’s hilt. With a crisp "swish," the Spirit Water Sword was unsheathed.
Its blade glead coldly like flowing water, as though a bubbling spiritual spring coursed along its surface. The aura emanating from it clashed against the sinister Sword Qi.
Clang!
The two swords collided, dissolving their force with identical moves.
"Huh?"
A surprised voice ca from the girl outside the door.
Even Jiang Shouzhong was taken aback—the sword moves unleashed by the opponent were eerily similar to the Greedy Life Swordsmanship.
When the girl’s delicate and charming face beca visible, Jiang Shouzhong froze in place.
"Que’er?!"
Hearing the familiar male voice, Jiang Que hesitated. Through the faint shadows, she suddenly realized the man standing before her was Jiang Shouzhong!
The two stared wide-eyed at each other.
Neither had expected to et under such circumstances.
During their mont of shock, Jiang Chenglu’s eyes grew dark with hatred and madness—avoiding the flying sword, he lunged toward Jiang Que with ferocity: "You vile girl, die!"
"Watch out!"
Jiang Shouzhong instinctively wrapped his arm around the girl’s slender waist, turning to swing his sword.
Thud—
Jiang Chenglu’s head flew off.
Jiang Shouzhong didn’t spare the old man’s corpse a glance, his gaze fixed instead on the girl in his arms—long unseen. He asked: "Why are you here?"
Compared to the once youthful and innocent-looking Que’er, the current Jiang Que had grown taller; her curves now accentuated her womanliness. A cold glamour between her brows left Jiang Shouzhong feeling a strange sense of unfamiliarity.
"Who’s Que’er?" The girl frowned.
Jiang Shouzhong froze, carefully scrutinizing the girl: "You’re not Que’er?"
The girl’s eyes sparkled mischievously as she smiled and replied crisply: "I’m Jiang Que, Jiang from Jiang Mo, and Que from Zhang Que’er."
Jiang Shouzhong was speechless.
He flicked her forehead lightly and said with exasperation: "What nonsense na change is that?"
Jiang Que pouted her moist lips, rubbing her head as she said: "I think it’s a great na!"
As she spoke, the girl asured their heights with a playful stretch, finding that when she stood on tiptoe, her head bumped against his chin. She nodded in satisfaction:
"Not bad. A few more years and I’ll catch up. By the way, where’s Er Liang?"
"Er Liang isn’t here."
"Then where is she?"
Jiang Shouzhong answered: "A lot has happened—it’s hard to explain all at once. Tell first, why are you at Water Moon Manor?"
Hearing that her close friend wasn’t here, Jiang Que felt deeply disappointed. Pointing at the corpse of Jiang Chenglu on the ground, she said: "That guy betrayed Blood Spirit Cave—I ca to clean house."
Jiang Shouzhong clicked his tongue as he assessed the girl: "You ca to clean house? Seems your cultivation has grown quite a bit."
The man felt a sudden wave of nostalgia.
Back when he first t this girl, she was rely a beginner Martial Artist.
Jiang Que puffed out her chest proudly, her voice sweet and spirited:
"I have exceptional talent for cultivation, you know. Even Sword Demon praised back then—unlike you, whose poor talent made Sword Demon refuse to teach you."
ntioning Yan Changqing, Jiang Que’s bright eyes dimd with a hint of loss.
The girl had always dread of becoming Yan Changqing’s disciple.
Unfortunately, he didn’t think much of her.
Jiang Shouzhong ruffled the girl’s hair but suddenly glanced over, catching sight of Xiao Lingqiu standing at the door without him noticing. Her gaze was peculiar.
How to describe it? It was as though she were looking at a beast.
Her expression seed to say:
How could you stoop so low?
Jiang Shouzhong cleared his throat, discreetly pushing Jiang Que away so distance, and awkwardly explained to Xiao Lingqiu: "An old friend."
Then, turning to Jiang Que, he introduced her: "She’s my..."
"Friend."
The woman’s tone was stiff.
Seeing Xiao Lingqiu, Jiang Que exclaid with almond-shaped eyes: "Oh, so it’s you, sister!"
"You two t?" Jiang Shouzhong asked curiously.
With indifference, Xiao Lingqiu replied: "We ran into each other earlier while I was taking a stroll."
Jiang Que’s pretty eyes sparkled mischievously. Holding onto Jiang Shouzhong’s arm, she smiled sweetly and said:
"When I greeted the aunt earlier, she completely ignored —probably because her hearing is failing with age. Oh, aunt, let reintroduce myself. I’m Jiang Mo’s already-confird fiancée."
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Jiang Shouzhong choked.
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