Whether it was obvious or not was no longer important. What mattered was…
“General Xiao, you came back to look for me. Is there something you wanted to say?” Shang Changge asked.
“Nothing,” Xiao Ji replied.
That answer was a little unreasonable. Unable to understand it, Shang Changge asked,
“Then why did you come back?”
From the first-floor hall of the teahouse, the storyteller’s expressive voice rose and fell dramatically, carrying clearly into the private room on the second floor.
Xiao Ji gazed steadily at Shang Changge, seemingly weighing how—or whether—he should say it. After a long pause, he finally spoke.
“I wanted to see Your Highness, so I came back.”
Shang Changge: ?
Good heavens. What was this supposed to be? A confession? Did love just arrive out of nowhere?
Qingyao was the first to react. So enraged that she temporarily forgot the man before her was a legendary killing machine, she drew her sword and pointed it directly at Xiao Ji.
“Shameless rogue!”
Outside the door, Duoming, who had first learned that the young woman he had never met was actually a princess, and then heard his general casually utter such flirtatious words, was speechless.
…
Well…
As a professionally trained subordinate, should he rush in and protect his general right now?
But that was someone serving the princess. He couldn’t exactly do anything to her.
So what was he supposed to do?
Standing outside the door, Duoming was caught between confusion and distress.
Inside the room, the sharp edge of the sword hovered only inches away.
Xiao Ji remained completely unmoved. He continued looking at Shang Changge as though waiting for her response.
Shang Changge was bewildered. Thoroughly bewildered.
She had Qingyao lower the sword.
The tense atmosphere eased somewhat. After collecting herself, she cautiously asked,
“General Xiao… do you have feelings for me?”
That couldn’t be it, could it?
Whether at the banquet last time or during everything that had happened tonight, her actions had been motivated solely by a desire to win him over—and, admittedly, by the mischievous pleasure of teasing this cold-faced, cold-hearted general.
And that was enough for him to fall for her?
Since when had her charm become so overwhelming?
That didn’t make sense!
Though, to be fair, whether in beauty or character, she was indeed one in ten thousand and virtually flawless.
But this man was a great general. What kind of beauties hadn’t he seen before?
They had only met twice in total, and he liked her already?
Love at first sight?
One glance that lasted a lifetime?
N-No way.
It was far too melodramatic, far too unreal.
She refused to believe it.
Terrifying.
“No,” Xiao Ji said.
The woman’s expressions had been so colorful, so transparent, that they were impossible to miss. Once again, amusement flickered across Xiao Ji’s eyes.
“I simply don’t know why I wanted to see Your Highness. That’s all.”
Shang Changge let out a sigh of relief.
The next moment, however, she became serious and vigilant, speaking with utmost sincerity.
“Then General Xiao should be careful. Wanting to see someone for no reason is often the beginning of attraction.”
“Let me make this clear first—don’t fall in love with me. It won’t end well. I know I’m irresistibly charming, but please don’t become infatuated.”
“Every now and then, when the mood strikes me, I might mischievously tease you a little, General. But I won’t take responsibility for it.”
Of course, that playful side of hers only came out when Xiao Ji had no wife, concubines, or beloved sweetheart.
She might not be a particularly good person, but she still had principles.
Watching the woman speak so animatedly and yet so seriously, Xiao Ji suppressed the faint, almost imperceptible emotion that rose within him.
His fingers habitually tapped the tabletop before he got straight to the point.
“Forgive my boldness, Your Highness. At the banquet some time ago, why did you speak up for me and my soldiers?”
A look of utter disbelief appeared on Shang Changge’s beautiful face.
Without even thinking, she answered,
“To win you over, of course. General, couldn’t you tell? I thought I’d made my intentions quite obvious.”
Why wasn’t she even a little more tactful?
Don’t ask.
Because sincerity was always the ultimate finishing move.
Xiao Ji: …
Xiao Ji had to admit that Shang Changge’s honesty had genuinely stunned him.
He had imagined that the princess would ponder carefully before answering, or perhaps make up some excuse to brush him off.
Maybe she would simply avoid answering altogether.
But never, not even once, had he imagined that she would be this straightforward—this candid and open.