To put it simply, Xiao Qing was a little unhappy at the time.
Yes, she was just annoyed. Xiao Qing knew she was beautiful, a fact proven by the occasional admiring glances she received from her fellow disciples as she grew older. Although Xiao Qing was usually indifferent to boys, she was, after all, a young girl, and possessed a certain amount of feminine vanity. Despite her aloof nature, she still felt a degree of enjoyment in those admiring looks. This wasn't to say she was vain; it's just that what woman isn't like that?
But ironically, during their first encounter, he mistook her for another stinky guy trying to pick him up, only to later find out that she had mistaken him for someone else!
At that time, Xiao Qing also noticed that Chen Xiao's occasional glances at her revealed a hint of admiration. However, when those eyes were on her, it seemed as if they were flowing elsewhere—to that legendary woman who looked very similar to her.
This is what made Xiao Qing begin to feel a little annoyed. As a girl, especially a girl who is both beautiful and proud, it's inevitable to feel a little dissatisfied: I'm such an outstanding girl standing in front of you, and you're looking at me while thinking about someone else?
One can imagine how much change a subtle psychological shift can bring about later.
The biggest change was that during that martial arts arena encounter with several outsiders who came to challenge him, he inexplicably suffered a relapse and was defeated. Chen Xiao stepped in to help, even sustaining a minor injury in the process…
That awful "hero saves the damsel in distress" cliché!
But ironically, the more clichéd the joke, the more effective it is. Truth is truth for two reasons: first, it is indeed truth; second, it becomes truth precisely because it is so common and universally known.
So, it's not that girls like Xiao Qing don't like being rescued by a hero. Ninety-nine out of a hundred girls have a natural tendency to depend on others. In certain special times, when they are at their weakest, they also hope for a strong arm to lean on.
Even if Xiao Qing has a strong personality, she is still a girl after all, and she can't escape this commonness.
However, this gave Chen Xiao an advantage—with Xiao Qing's skills, frankly speaking, she was the one bullying others; who could possibly bully her? Normally, if something happened, she would easily defeat her enemies herself; why would anyone else need to come to her rescue?
Unfortunately, this once-in-a-millennium opportunity fell into the hands of Chen Xiao, this clueless and naive boy. Well… it has to be said, this opportunity was indirectly created by Phoenix. If Phoenix and Xiao Qing hadn't gotten so close, they wouldn't have both fallen ill at the same time… (I wonder if Phoenix would be so angry if she knew she'd inadvertently created a rival for her love that she'd put on her maid outfit again…)
As a result, Chen Xiao beat up the thugs who came to challenge him, rescued the damsel in distress, and at the same time gently pried open a crack in Xiao Qing's heart, which had been sealed for many years.
As for the later encounter on the resort island, besides further demonstrating Chen Xiao's fearless and manly spirit, its only remaining purpose was to make Xiao Qing blush and her heart race even more.
After years of being tough, she finally met "him" who allowed her to show her vulnerable, girlish side. Such subtle feelings were especially precious to Xiao Qing.
Originally, she was eager to fight, running away from home and coming all the way to K City to find that audacious "fiancé" who dared to get engaged to her and want to marry her. Then, she would beat him up and break off this messy engagement, and that would be the end of it. After that, she, the great martial arts master Xiao, could return to the Xiao family without any worries, study martial arts, pursue the path of martial arts, and become a generation's female master...
As for husband? Hmph! What's that?
But today, when that sleazy private investigator handed her the information he had painstakingly gathered, and she turned to the last page and saw Chen Xiao's photo, it was as if a pebble... Ah! No! It should be called a boulder! A boulder as big as the USS Kitty Hawk was thrown into the girl's heart, and the ripples it created were not just ripples, but a colossal wave!
Recalling his encounter on the resort island that day, during the fierce battle, at a certain moment, Chen Xiao held himself and felt... it seemed, as if, perhaps... not so hard to accept, and even more so, it seemed that he felt a little bit of enjoyment in his heart?
If in the past few days, Xiao Qing's feelings for Chen Xiao were somewhat chaotic and she would occasionally do some emotional things that were beyond reason, such as that time at the hospital.
So today, I'm practically forcing myself to make a decision!
Should I acknowledge this fiancé or not?
At least Xiao Qing understood one thing: her original plan—to find this fiancé and beat him into a pulp—had been directly rejected.
Next...
By some strange twist of fate, Xiao Qing found herself at Lehu by following the address in the information, and there was the house where Chen Xiao used to live, as shown in the information...
Having come this far, Xiao Qing had experienced countless contradictions, struggles, and... shyness in her heart.
That's right, it's shyness.
However, she still made excuses for herself, deceiving herself: it's just going to see where he grew up, it shouldn't be a big deal.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they arrived in front of the house, they saw "him" sitting on the steps.
Chen Xiao gently flicked away the tears from the corner of her eye, then gave a self-deprecating laugh, quickly reached into her pocket, and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and a lighter.
Chen Xiao hadn't smoked in a long time, but today... he wanted to!
Chen Xiao had just put a cigarette in his mouth, and before he could even light it, he looked up. He saw a pair of gentle eyes gazing at him from under the streetlights. The person seemed lost in thought.
"ah……"
Chen Xiao immediately stood up, staring in surprise at the person under the streetlight.
They're a little far apart... Phoenix?
But when Chen Xiao saw the long hair tied in a ponytail and the sportswear, she realized what was going on.
"Xiao Qing?"
Chen Xiao subconsciously took the cigarette out of his mouth, paused slightly, then smiled sincerely. He waved to her, "Xiao Qing! What are you doing here?"
Seeing Chen Xiao's smile... Xiao Qing's first reaction was panic! Her second reaction was to immediately turn around and run away!
But when Chen Xiao waved, Xiao Qing helplessly found that her feet had already moved towards that person against her will.
"I must have been possessed by some supernatural force! Yes, that must be it!" the girl comforted herself.
As they approached, their eyes met, and Chen Xiao smiled calmly: "What are you doing here?"
Xiao Qing's eyes darted away slightly. She didn't answer, but casually asked, "And you? You're back?"
"Yes. I just got back this morning and haven't had a chance to call you yet." Chen Xiao smiled. "I brought you a gift. It's a very beautiful Japanese sword, supposedly the work of a top-notch swordsmith."
Xiao Qing felt increasingly unbalanced under Chen Xiao's gentle smile. She reluctantly turned her head away, avoiding his eyes, and deliberately lowered the temperature of her voice, saying softly, "Oh, thank you..."
"How did you get back here?" Chen Xiao's first thought was: She came to find me?
But she quickly dismissed the idea. Xiao Qing had no idea that this was her old residence.
"I..." Xiao Qing tensed up for a moment, then subconsciously touched her pocket, where she found a folded file on Chen Xiao. She took a deep breath and said casually, "I came for a run... uh, the air at Lehu Lake is nice."
running?