Qu Xiangxiang hopped down from the stone platform, shouting to Lin Zheng, “I won! I won!”
“Wonderful!” Lin Zheng laughed, eyes curved with joy, and hugged her. “I won too!”
“What?” Qu Xiangxiang blinked. “You haven’t even fought yet.”
“Oh, who said anything about that?” Lin Zheng waved dismissively, pulling out a pouch and shaking it. “Before you went up, I placed a bet on you winning. And I just earned sixty top-grade spirit stones.”
A bet?
Qu Xiangxiang propped her chin on her hand, curious. “So what were the odds between Yun Qingqing and me?”
“Uh…” Lin Zheng looked up at the sky. “Yun Qingqing was two-to-one. You… were thirty-to-one.”
Qu Xiangxiang: “…”
“So you only bet two stones on me?” She held up two fingers.
Qu Xiangxiang had always been good at catching the important details.
Lin Zheng fiddled nervously with the braid at her chest. “I’ve been buying too many clothes lately, so funds are tight…”
Qu Xiangxiang pointed to her heart. “Hear that?”
Lin Zheng: “What?”
Qu Xiangxiang: “The sound of my heart breaking. Proof of your betrayal.”
Lin Zheng: “…”
“Don’t be like that.” Lin Zheng nudged her shoulder with an elbow. “Fine, after this is over, I’ll treat you to dinner. A celebration, okay?”
Qu Xiangxiang held up three fingers. “Three boxes of peach blossom pastries from Zhenshan Hall.”
Lin Zheng: “…Deal!”
…
On the stone platform, Mu Hanzhang and Ruan Qingtao had already drawn their swords.
Lin Zheng produced a packet of sesame candy from nowhere, munching as she asked, “So, who do you think will win?”
“Ruan Qingtao, probably.” Qu Xiangxiang plucked a fragrant piece of sesame candy from the paper bag, answering carelessly. “Didn’t you say Mu Hanzhang’s spiritual power is so weak he can barely control his sword?”
Then why do you even like him? Lin Zheng rolled her eyes, about to press the question, but before she could, the two on stage clashed swords.
“What’s going on?” someone nearby muttered. “Ruan Qingtao’s talent isn’t bad, so why does her swordplay look so soft?”
Qu Xiangxiang rolled her eyes. Of course—it was the *Tender Sentiment Sword*. Softness was the point.
We cannon fodder fight to kill. When the male and female leads fight, it’s called flirting. What a painful realization.
Qu Xiangxiang couldn’t help cursing this damned world once again.
“Strange,” Lin Zheng tugged Qu Xiangxiang’s sleeve, staring at the pair on stage. “Don’t you think Ruan Qingtao’s acting odd?”
“Hm?” Qu Xiangxiang watched Ruan Qingtao’s movements absentmindedly. After a moment, her hand reaching for candy stilled. “She’s… deliberately throwing herself into Mu Hanzhang’s sword?”
Lin Zheng nodded, astonished. “Is this woman insane?”
Clearly, Mu Hanzhang had noticed too. Ruan Qingtao kept pressing forward with her sword, never dodging his strikes. Mu Hanzhang had no interest in probing her motives—he only wanted to end this tedious match quickly.
Ruan Qingtao was no match for him. He had planned to lose deliberately, to avoid revealing his strength too soon. But she seemed unwilling to end it, her sword soft yet relentless.
Their blades clashed with a loud clang. Ruan Qingtao spun her sword into a flourish, the edge grazing Mu Hanzhang’s left arm. Then she shifted slightly to the right, her flowing hair whipping across his face—making it look as though she were pressed against him.
Mu Hanzhang: “…”
Would this damned sparring match ever end?
The crowd: “…”
Were they fighting—or flirting?
Some curious onlookers craned their necks to see Qu Xiangxiang’s reaction. She sat there, expression blank, staring at the two on stage, her eyes rimmed red.
“Qu Xiangxiang saw Ruan Qingtao sparring with Mu Hanzhang and got so angry her eyes turned red,” whispered one disciple nearby, quickly spreading the gossip.
“Qu Xiangxiang saw Ruan Qingtao flirting with Mu Hanzhang during the match and cried her eyes red.”
“Mu Hanzhang fell for Ruan Qingtao, abandoned Qu Xiangxiang, and now flaunts his flirting right in front of her—Qu Xiangxiang’s eyes are practically blinded with tears!”
But in reality…
“Lin Zheng,” Qu Xiangxiang grimaced, spitting out a piece of sesame candy. “How long has this candy been sitting around? It’s harder than a rock—my tooth nearly broke. It hurts like hell.”
“Forget your teeth,” Lin Zheng snapped, glaring at the stage. “Look—Ruan Qingtao’s about to win.”
Qu Xiangxiang raised her head just in time to see Ruan Qingtao spin aside, dodging Mu Hanzhang’s sword, then strike his right shoulder with her palm. Mu Hanzhang staggered back two steps, his sword clattering to the ground.
The match was decided.
Qu Xiangxiang: “…”
Mu Hanzhang’s performance was utterly half-hearted, like someone forced into overtime and slacking off.
Ruan Qingtao, meanwhile, looked bewildered. She hadn’t even used much strength.
Elder Bai Shu raised his hand to signal the end of the match. Ruan Qingtao smiled sweetly, bent down to pick up Mu Hanzhang’s fallen sword, and walked toward him to return it. But after only a few steps, she let out a short cry, as if she had twisted her ankle, and fell straight into Mu Hanzhang’s arms.
The crowd: “…”
Was it just them, or did this scene feel *damned familiar*?
Qu Xiangxiang: “…”
What on earth were these two playing at? This was downright disrespectful to the audience—their acting was atrocious, one worse than the other.