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Chapter 1304: I'm Not That Kind of Person
Yan Xuehen didn’t reply. Only when Sang Hong left did her sleeve brush out and close the door.
When he saw her stare at him coldly, Zu An said with an embarrassed laugh, “I was just joking around, you know… No one would really suspect that kind of thing.”
Yan Xuehen snapped angrily, “Coming back with you was a mistake in itself! Now…” Her face turned red as she spoke. She paused for a moment before continuing, “Now even my reputation has been ruined by you.”
Zu An suddenly got up and exclaimed, “Who dares to harm your reputation? I’ll go and beat him up right now! There aren’t many who can beat me in all of Cloudcenter Commandery now!”
“Look at you, getting all cocky because you just reached the master rank,” Yan Xuehen remarked. She instinctively wanted to prod his head with her finger. However, she quickly realized that such an action would be too intimate, so she secretly pulled her finger back. She continued, “Anyway, if you were the one who went out there, wouldn’t it only make matters worse?”
“Then should we just let these rumors spread?” Zu An asked, sounding as if he were actually looking forward to doing something like that.
Yan Xuehen harrumphed. “With my usual way of doing things, these rumors won’t have any soil to grow on. However, that’s based on the premise that you don’t get close to me anymore.”
Zu An could only reply helplessly, “Fine, fine, fine. I’ll just pretend that I don’t know you if we run into each other in the future, alright?”
“Of course that won’t work. I just helped you out so much. If you pretended we didn’t know each other, it would just seem a bit suspicious. Furthermore, I’m Chuyan’s master…” Yan Xuehen trailed off, feeling incredibly conflicted inside.
A strange silence fell over the room. Zu An frowned. Having Chuyan between the two of them really was quite annoying.
Just then, two loud and carefree voices called out from outside. “Brother Zu~”
Yan Xuehen’s expression changed. Because of the topic they had just been talking about, she instinctively felt a bit of guilt and hid behind a screen, saying, “Don’t let them know I’m here.”
She immediately felt regret as soon as she hid there, however. She could have just left confidently, and yet if she hid there and was discovered, it would really be hard to explain herself.
However, it was already too late to leave. The two people outside had already pushed open the door and entered. Yan Xuehen snuck a look through the gaps in the screen and recognized them to be people from the Imperial Envoy. Their status in that group wasn't too low, either. Of course, for her, that still didn’t mean anything at all.
If Pei You and Gao Ying found out their names weren’t even worth remembering by the Goddess Yan they worshiped, they would probably feel incredibly broken-hearted.
“Brother Zu, you finally came back! I really was scared to death this time…”
“Right? I thought you were done for after things got so out of hand!”
Zu An felt warm inside when he sensed the strong concern in the two’s voices. He replied, “Thank you for helping me take care of things while I was gone.”
“Come on, aren’t you treating us like outsiders here?” Pei You replied with a laugh. However, he suddenly wrinkled his nose and exclaimed, “Huh? Why do I smell a woman here?”
Behind the screen, Yan Xuehen was alarmed. She really was scared of them finding out that she was there.
Zu An’s forehead was also covered in dark lines. This Pei You was a composed, indifferent, and handsome man in front of others, but in front of the people he was close to, he would reveal his extremely frank and straightforward nature.
He had to give this guy’s nose some respect, though. He can even sense Yan Xuehen’s extremely faint smell! This guy might have Tian Boguang’s[1] talent.
“Is that so? It might be because I switched the incense in the room.” Zu An laughed and tried to bluff his way out of it.
However, Pei You shook his head and said, “It’s not incense, it’s a woman’s smell. I seem to have smelled it somewhere. Why can’t I remember though…”
Yan Xuehen was embarrassed and furious. She hissed through ki, “You’re dead if he finds out it’s me!”
Zu An was sweating like crazy. He was about to say something to draw Pei You’s attention, but instead, he suddenly clapped his hands and said, “I remember! I smelled it not too long ago. It was White Jade Sect Goddess Yan’s scent!”
Yan Xuehen felt a loud explosion go off in her head. At that instant, she even had the urge to kill Zu An.
Zu An had a helpless smile on his face when he saw the Rage points roll in. I’m really being hated unfairly here… He could only explain, “Sect Master Yan did come here just now, but she left after we talked a bit.”
Yan Xuehen thus nodded in satisfaction when she heard that. I guess this guy isn’t that stupid.
Pei You had a regretful look as he said, “Sect Master Yan really is beautiful. I’m really jealous of you…”
Zu An had a strange expression as he thought, If I told you I could even go in and out of her, you might just faint on the spot.
Just then, Gao Ying spoke up. “Sect Master Yan is indeed a fairy. Unfortunately, there isn’t a shred of worldliness in her. How could a woman like that accommodate us like the girls from a brothel? Brother Zu, in order to help you cleanse yourself of bad luck, I already reserved some courtesan queens in Jasper Lane for you. Let’s go; I guarantee you’ll be satisfied today.”
Yan Xuehen’s expression turned cold. This guy actually frequents places like brothels with his colleagues behind others’ backs? Looks like stopping him and Chuyan from being together was the right choice.
Zu An was shocked. He quickly said with an earnest expression, “Brother Gao, please don’t speak such nonsense! I have a wife, so how can I let her down and go to those kinds of places?”
Yan Xuehen nodded to herself behind the screen. This brat at least has a bit of a conscience.
Gao Ying was stunned, replying, “Brother Zu, isn’t this kind of thing completely normal among the noble circles?”
Zu An said in an upright tone, “Other people are other people, but I am myself. Such a thing makes me angry just thinking about it! Thus, you shouldn’t call me for these things again in the future. I’ve already received your good intentions, but I was injured quite badly in the mines. I’m going to rest and recover, so I won’t be going with the two of you.”
They were all cultivators, so they understood how important it was for injuries to heal as quickly as possible. Gao Ying quickly said, “Of course your recovery is more important. We’ll invite you again once you’ve recovered.”
Zu An staggered. Bro, you’re killing me here! He said, “Ahem, Brother Gao, didn’t I just tell you I wasn’t that kind of person?”
…
As they were escorted out of the room, Gao Ying and Pei You had stupefied expressions on their faces. On the way back, they chatted with each other.
“Don’t you think brother Zu was acting a bit strange today?”
“You’re right. Why did he keep speaking out of righteousness or something? It’s almost as if he was saying these words for someone else to hear. Could it be that someone else was impersonating him?”
“I don’t think that’s the case. If he were a fake, how could all of those people not be able to see through his disguise? In my opinion, it’s probably because he now depend on Goddess Yan, so he wants to leave her with a good impression.”
“That makes sense. We’ll have to invite him after Goddess Yan leaves Cloudcenter City.”
…
When the two of them left, Yan Xuehen walked over with a completely cold expression. Zu An exclaimed, “Big Sis Yan, please don’t misunderstand! I’m not that close to the two of them, and I’ve never gone to those kinds of places.”
Yan Xuehen snorted. She asked, “What are you explaining all of this to me for? It’s not as if we have any kind of relationship.”
Zu An almost blurted out ‘Aren’t you Chuyan’s master?’ Fortunately, he reacted quickly and swallowed those words back down. Otherwise, he might have died a miserable death on the spot. Instead, he replied, “We’ve gone through many life and death experiences together, right? Of course I need to explain things to you clearly.”
Yan Xuehen’s complexion improved a bit when she heard what he said. She was about to say something when she heard more footsteps. After learning her previous lesson, she didn’t hide behind the screen guiltily, instead putting on an act and saying to Zu An, “When it comes to many things, it’s not what you say, but rather how you act.”
Just then, the door opened. Pei Mianman saw Yan Xuehen inside, and her smile instantly froze. Yan Xuehen was Chuyan’s master, while to some extent, she had stolen her best friend’s husband. When she finally met Chuyan’s master, the atmosphere turned strange.
“I didn’t expect to meet Senior Yan here!” Pei Mianman exclaimed, instinctively showing Yan Xuehen the bow of a junior.
Inwardly, Yan Xuehen’s thoughts were also a mess. This girl’s relationship with Zu An seems to be special, and she’s even Chuyan’s best friend. I’m done for if she notices anything is off. As such, she nodded slightly and said, “You two should chat; I’ll leave first.”
She quickly left afterward, leaving Pei Mianman stunned. She felt that something was strange. Why does this feel like a wife coming home to a girlfriend somehow…
1. This is a character from The Smiling, Proud Wanderer.
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