Chapter 689: Qingluo and Zhe Ying

Chapter 689: Qingluo and Zhe Ying

It had been two months since Jin'er and Zhe Jing completed their marriage.

The newlyweds were in the honeymoon phase, making all the single shadow guards of the Xie Mansion green with envy, and the mansion was filled with the sound of frogs croaking every day.

Zhe Ying felt a bit of a letdown as his close brother Zhe Jing gradually started keeping secrets from him, no longer sharing everything like they used to.

When the other shadow guards teased him about when he would find a wife, he couldn't help but snort.

"Women only slow down my sword drawing speed."

The next day, Qingluo presented him with a sharp sword.

Zhe Ying was baffled: "Miss Qingluo, why are you suddenly giving me a sword?"

Qingluo said mysteriously: "Ah Ying, I heard that women can influence a man's sword drawing speed. I didn't believe it at first, but guess what happened?"

Ah Ying found the words familiar, as if he had just said them, and instinctively asked: "What happened?"

"I think it's spot on. That day, Jin'er and I went shopping and encountered a rude man who was disrespectful to Jin'er. Coincidentally, Zhe Jing passed by, and he drew his sword three times faster than usual!"

"Ah?" Zhe Ying was dumbfounded.

Qingluo continued: "That's why I got you this sword. For people like you who live by the sword, fighting is a common occurrence. If you can draw your sword faster than your opponent, you can take them down more easily!"

Seeing Zhe Ying still in a daze, Qingluo couldn't help but smile: "Okay, okay, I'll stop teasing you, Ah Ying. Just take it. That was just an excuse; I just wanted an excuse to give you something."

"You..." Zhe Ying was totally confused, unable to react. Though he felt a bit odd, he also inexplicably didn't want to turn down the sword.

So he took the sword in his hand.

A glint of light flashed in Qingluo's eyes, and she left happily.

Two days later, Zhe Ying came to thank her for the sword.

"Miss Qingluo, I now think there's some truth to what you said. Today, during a spar with my brothers, I found that with this new sword, my sword drawing speed is indeed much faster."

Qingluo quickly nodded: "Yes, so I said there's some truth to it. Women can influence sword drawing speed. You can come talk to me more often."

Indeed, for this good sword, she had spent all her monthly allowance and the rewards from my lady, just to make sure he had an extra layer of protection in danger.

Zhe Ying initially thought her words were unreliable, but now he felt there might be some truth to it, so he hesitated and then nodded in agreement.

Seeing his agreement, Qingluo happily took out a handmade sword tassel from her pocket: "This is also for you."

Zhe Ying was not one to accept gifts without merit, and he usually didn't like receiving presents. Seeing the tassel, he immediately wanted to refuse.

But Qingluo seemed to have anticipated what he was about to say: "Stop, Ah Ying, don't refuse."

"Why?" Zhe Ying was puzzled.

Qingluo looked at this blockhead and shook her head: "Ah Ying, I find you quite nice, but you're missing something."

"Missing what?" Zhe Ying felt he wasn't usually slow, but in front of Qingluo, he always had many questions.

Qingluo pointed at herself.

"Missing you?" The young man was confused again.

Qingluo smiled, "Yes, if you say so, it’s not wrong~ Without me, you’re just missing a woman by your side, aren’t you?"

"Young man..." The young man’s face instantly turned red, unsure where to put his hands and feet, his voice stammering, "You can’t just say things like that."

"How am I saying it casually?" Qingluo retorted, "Haven’t you figured it out by now? Women can slow down your sword draw. It’s because of me that you’ve gotten so much faster, which means you’re missing a woman by your side, missing me. If you want to get better, you’ve got to stick close to me."

Hearing her crazy reasoning, Zhe Ying felt she was wrong. They were different genders—how could he get close to her? But he couldn’t refute her, just stood there, frozen in front of Qingluo.

Qingluo stepped forward, hooked the sword tassel onto him, then looked at his red ears. She stifled a laugh and straightened her face.

"Ah Ying, I know you’ve been worried your skills aren’t what they used to be since your eye injury. If you want to improve, you need to work harder, maybe try a new angle."

Seeing her serious expression, Zhe Ying suddenly felt that he’d overreacted. Qingluo really wanted to help him.

He felt a rush of emotion.

Since he lost an eye, his body had its limits, and his martial arts were not as good as before. Everyone comforted him, but no one had tried to help him like this, even coming up with such a strange idea.

Perhaps, he should try the method Qingluo suggested.

"Alright."

The moment he agreed, Qingluo’s smile widened.

For many days after, Zhe Ying would come to Qingluo whenever he had a spare moment.

Over time, rumors about them started going around in the Xie residence.

Zhe Ying was straightforward, a bit of a clueless guy. People wouldn’t easily talk in front of him, worried he’d blow up.

But as the rumors spread more, they eventually reached his ears.

He panicked.

Qingluo was thinking of ways to improve his martial arts every day, but her reputation was taking a hit because of him!

He ran to Qingluo to explain, "I’m sorry, Qingluo, they are spreading rumors about your reputation. I’ll set the record straight today..."

"Ah? Rumors? What rumors?" Qingluo looked surprised.

Zhe Ying was too embarrassed to say it, but the time they spent together had finally made him completely familiar with Qingluo. After hesitating for a while, he said, "They’re saying you... like me."

Qingluo blinked, "They figured that out?"

"?"

Zhe Ying was confused again.

Looking at this clueless guy, Qingluo deliberately exaggerated her tone, "They’re sharp—they caught on to that. Ah Ying, I have to clarify, this is not a rumor."

"!"

Zhe Ying’s eyes slightly widened.

Qingluo sighed again, "Can’t you tell, I like you?"

"You..."

"Ah Ying, since the day you saved me from the Shen family, I started liking you. You really are a clueless guy."

"During this time, I've been pursuing you. I gave you a sword, a sword ornament, convinced you to come see me more often, and even learned to make pastries from Jin'er to give to you. Didn't you realize these are the ways a woman shows her affection to the one she loves?"

"Or is it that you have another woman in your heart, so you couldn't see it?"

As Qingluo's words kept coming out, Zhe Ying's face visibly turned as red as a beet.

His face had never been this red in his entire life.

When he heard the last sentence, he seemed to be startled and quickly waved his hands, "No, there's no other woman..."

"So, it's just me, right?" Qingluo took a step forward, leaning in closer to ask.