clergé

Chapitre 20

"In terms of beauty and handsomeness, the Ninth Prince is second to none, yet he has never won her the slightest favor," Gu Xiju continued, shaking his head.

"Maybe she likes the kind of cunning, scheming, and wicked guy?" Pang Wan wondered if she liked the cunning fox type.

“The Palace Mistress of the Lonely Palace is undoubtedly the most intelligent woman in the world. She has investigated countless mechanisms, yet she still cannot win her favor.” Gu Xiju shook his head again.

Pang Wan thought to herself, "Oh my, even the Alliance Leader has been forced to say the word 'pity'. Senior Sang Chan, are you perhaps going down the path of female supremacy?"

"Then perhaps it's not that the people are wrong, but rather that the way you express your love is wrong."

Pang Wan frowned, pacing around the room with a heavy heart: "Think about it, so many people admire her, the fairy must find ordinary love quite boring. Perhaps what she longs for is a legendary love story that will shake the world?"

Gu Xiju was taken aback by her words and raised an eyebrow: "What do you mean by shocking the world?"

Pang Wan suddenly turned around and gave him a sinister smile—"Hmph!"

She walked over to Gu Xiju, picked up a cushion, and hugged it to her chest with a smile.

"Chanchan!" she suddenly roared, her face contorted and veins bulging as she stared at the cushion. "Chanchan! You're mine! You can only be mine!" She tried to pinch the cushion, her eyes red and her voice hoarse. "I won't allow you to talk to anyone else, not even smile at anyone else! If you dare to smile at that person again, I'll torture him to death! And you, I'll break your wings and imprison you by my side forever!" Then she pulled the pillow back into her arms, pressed it against her cheek, and whispered gently, "Your beauty can only be known to me! You will always be mine alone! Chanchan!"

"See that?" In the next instant, Pang Wan had already regained her composure, throwing the pillow at Gu Xiju without blushing or panting. "Practice when you have time."

Gu Xiju was still stunned by her actions and hesitated before asking, "...Does it have to be this intense?"

"Inexperienced!" Pang Wan gave him a disdainful look. "The stronger a woman is, the emptier she is inside. She needs another, even stronger man to conquer her and plunder her. Only then will she turn into a little white rabbit and obediently lie by your side!"

Gu Xiju's face turned pale, then red, then pale again, and finally she murmured, "She has a fiery temper, I'm afraid this won't work."

Pang Wan sighed, thinking that he was truly a hopeless case, so he waved his hand and said, "Fine, I'll pass on my last killer move to you as well."

As she spoke, she lifted the lid of the teacup on the table, dabbed some tea on the corners of her eyes, and turned away, her face filled with utter grief.

"Chanchan, I know that worldly love has long since faded from your heart. Although I have sworn to marry no one but you, I will never interfere with any of your choices. I am willing to grow old alone for you! Ah!" she cried out, grabbed a paperweight and poked herself in the stomach, then collapsed limply to the ground, feigning death. "No, don't ask me why I took this sword for you? Chanchan, I only want to see your smiling face! Your happiness is my greatest wish! Farewell, my love!"

“This sure-kill move is called retreating to advance.” Pang Wan jumped up from the ground with a thud, expressionless. “Although girls who claim to pursue freedom are afraid of being tied down, they are soft-hearted in the end. If you can make her feel no pressure and be devoted to her, valuing her more than your own life, then this matter is pretty much settled.”

Gu Xiju was stunned by her brilliant singing and acting, and after a long while, he said, "Does she want me to die before her? This..."

Pang Wan pouted, annoyed, and winked mysteriously, "It's just a sword wound, you're so smart, just find the right angle, you won't die!"

She became quite pleased with herself for her good performance.

Gu Xiju didn't speak, but just stared at her for a long, long time.

Then he put down the book and burst into laughter, laughing so happily that tears almost welled up in his eyes.

The guards at the gate hadn't seen their leader laugh so heartily in a long time. They exchanged glances, wanting to look inside but also afraid to.

"You don't believe me?" Pang Wan was both ashamed and angry that Gu Xiju didn't take her words to heart. She pounced on him and grabbed his collar. "All women in the world fall for this, and you don't believe me! How dare you not believe me?!"

Gu Xiju couldn't stop laughing, her chest heaving, and she had to use her hand to block it: "Hey, stop fooling around, stop being silly."

When Bai Xiaosheng entered, this was the scene he saw—the usually imposing and masculine leader seemed to be begging for mercy, while his famously arrogant little maid was now lying on top of him, her face contorted with rage and her fists raised like a tigress.

"Cough cough!"

He was so shocked that the cough he was holding in showed through his shock.

The two people on the chairs sprang away quickly, but Gu Xiju remained calm and smiled at him, saying, "Why didn't you say hello before you arrived?"

The maid's face flushed red, whether from anger or embarrassment, she didn't bow, glared at him angrily, and ran away.

"As expected, Miss Wanwan has won the Alliance Leader's special favor."

Just before Pang Wan ran out of the room, Bai Xiaosheng said something meaningful.

Pang Wan slipped and almost fell.

Gu Xiju didn't say anything; he just smiled and kept smiling.

Chapter Five

A fleeting dream

Pang Wan made up his mind never to teach Gu Xiju how to pick up girls again; this man was truly hopeless.

However, she still wanted to continue discussing Sang Chan with Gu Xiju, because figuring out the details of the women the male protagonists in this place liked would be more beneficial for her future Mary Sue heroine training.

That day, she was turning left and right in front of the mirror, hoping to reveal some of her "delicate and graceful" beauty, when she suddenly heard Maid B calling from outside the door: "The Alliance Leader is about to leave for a banquet, why aren't you coming out?"

She quickly lifted her skirt and walked outside. Maid B glared at her from the doorway but didn't say anything.

Pang Wan knew exactly what that expression meant; it was a deep dislike, but also a feeling of helplessness at the moment. She quickly found the source of that expression—she was being treated differently once again. Everyone else rode horses, but she was the only one put into Gu Xiju's carriage.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Gu Xiju couldn't help but ask when he saw her looking around in the carriage without saying a word.

Pang Wan glanced at him and whispered, "Aren't you the leader of the martial arts alliance? Why do you need to ride in this pampered carriage..."

Before Gu Xiju could speak, the cold voice of the maid outside the carriage interrupted: "The Alliance Leader comes from a noble family and is of high status, unlike ordinary mortals!"

Pang Wan said nothing, but turned his back to the maid B, put on a stern face, and silently repeated her words with a stern expression. When he said "ordinary people", he even rolled his eyes and pointed to his own face.

Gu Xiju chuckled and reached out to tap her forehead: "Nonsense."

Pang Wan pouted and obediently climbed to the carriage window.

The journey to the banquet was long, and Gu Xiju didn't speak to her again, but just kept flipping through the letters in his hand. Perhaps because of their age, the letters were yellowed and fuzzy.

He read it very carefully and attentively, as if he wanted to imprint these words in his heart.