Originally, Nangong Liu Yun’s little mouth was about to touch Jiang Xuan.
But an unexpected voice interrupted her. At this moment, her eyes were pitch-black and terrifying.
She brought Jiang Xuan to a mountain range outside the Imperial City precisely because she didn’t want anyone to disturb them.
Even the guards she normally keeps close to her have been dismissed early by her.
Jiang Xuan being taken out of the Jiang family naturally meant no Jiang family guards were following him either.
In the Imperial City, the mere mention of Nangong Liu Yun’s name made others walk sideways with fear.
With her around, she would naturally protect Jiang Xuan.
At this moment, the only thought in Nangong Liu Yun’s mind was:
That someone disturbing her romantic plans would be sent straight to hell.
But before she could show her power, Jiang Xuan surprisingly opened his mouth:
“Xia Xiao Yu, you’re back?”
A young woman dressed in green and holding a long sword moved in the distance and came right up to Jiang Xuan.
The woman had black hair with golden eyes and an exceptional aura. She was a stunning beauty whose presence made the giant object in front of her seem almost perfect.
Jiang Xuan felt something was wrong as soon as he saw her. She was both his childhood sweetheart and his former “employer.”
In fact, this childhood sweetheart left without a word three years ago.
Later, Jiang Xuan found out that Xia Xiao Yu was taken away for special training in the martial arts sect because of her unique cultivation body.
He never expected to meet again under such circumstances.
Without Jiang Xuan even getting a word out, Xia Xiao Yu pointed her long sword at Nangong Liu Yun.
“Who are you? Why did you bring my precious ‘Xuan Brother’ to such a place? And… not even having any sense of shame thinking about doing such things…”
“Huh? Are you my husband’s sister? No, I haven’t heard about my husband having a sister.
Actually, who you are doesn’t matter anymore. What matters is that you’ve come too late; he’s now mine, and we will soon be married.
When the time comes, if you wish, I might consider giving you an invitation.”
Xia XiaoYu: “!!!!!!!”
“No way! Xuan Brother clearly said that he only likes me. He wouldn’t marry you!”
Jiang Xuan: “??????”
Xia Xiao Yu’s words made Jiang Xuan recall something from three years ago.
On that day, the leader of the Xia family brought Xia Xiao Yu to the Jiang family.
When the two leaders were speaking, Xia Xiao Yu ran to Jiang Xuan’s room as usual.
Jiang Xuan had repeatedly refused her entering his room, but this time, since she offered so much, Jiang Xuan, who was lacking spirit stones for his business, couldn’t resist and accepted.
Then, things took a turn. After Jiang Xuan received what she called a ‘gift,’ there came various crazy actions from Xia Xiao Yu.
“Xuan Brother, I accidentally ruined your pillow; let me compensate tenfold, and I’ll dispose of this pillow for you.”
“Xuan Brother, I accidentally dirtied the clothes in your room; let me compensate a hundred times, and I’ll dispose of these clothes for you.”
“Ah? I really wasn’t trying to touch your hand, Xuan Brother. Please don’t tell Aunt Jiang—trust me, I’ll make it right with you. You wouldn’t want this affair to be public and tarnish your reputation, would you?”
“Xuan Brother, what do you think of me? Do you like me or not?”
“As long as you say you like me, these twenty thousand high-grade spirit stones are yours.”
…
Doesn’t this test involve such low-class things on an innocent young man?
Which young man would put up with this?
As the subject of this game, Jiang Xuan acknowledged that this rich girl really understood people well.
Following the principle of doing his job to earn money, he cooperated with Xia Xiao Yu’s demands.
He made sure his childhood sweetheart was completely satisfied.
To him, earning spirit stones easily was definitely a bonus, regardless of quantity.
Jiang Xuan originally thought he would quickly become wealthy and secretly climb to the top.
Unknowingly, his benefactor disappeared without a word. Jiang Xuan was heartbroken then—how could such a wealthy yet foolish benefactor run away?
Reflecting on the past, Jiang Xuan finally realized:
Could this little girl possibly see their past transactions as genuine?
Oh no, this won’t end well!
If this fiancée was just a spoiled girl, it would be simpler to deal with, but since she’s a hidden big boss—
Any misstep could have severe consequences.
Seeing that any explanation now could only cause confusion or anger from both sides, Jiang Xuan decided to take action.
He gradually grew cold.
“Xia Xiao Yu, put down the sword. Since you left without a word three years ago, there’s nothing between us anymore.”
Hearing this, Xia Xiao Yu froze, her whole body shaking slightly.
“Xuan…Xuan Brother… that’s not true. There was a reason three years ago; let me explain…”
“It’s too late; I’m already married to the Empress, and I and my wife share a deep bond. You should leave…”
Jiang Xuan’s words caused Xia Xiao Yu’s eyes to widen slightly, and she dropped her long sword.
“What? The Empress married you off? No, I absolutely won’t accept that!”
Xia Xiao Yu’s lively eyes flashed with madness.
Her gaze fixed on Nangong Liu Yun.
“I remember you, the idle good-for-nothing everyone knows as a martial arts failure from the Nangong family.
You are no match for Xuan Brother, and neither is your genius sister. Only I am worthy of him.”
Xia Xiao Yu unleashed a powerful aura, indicating she had reached the semi-heavenly martial realm.
A semi-heavenly martial cultivator, powerful enough to sweep through the talents of the younger generation in the Imperial City.
Not many elite warriors could reach this level.
Nangong Liu Yun laughed softly.
“Your strength seems impressive, but did you choose to abandon Xuan Brother to improve yourself?”
“You’ve made your choice, now you want to come back crawling on your knees? It’s too late, he’s already mine.
Still, thank you for your departure. I had the chance to meet him. Don’t worry; I’ll invite you to be my bridesmaid and make you witness it firsthand.”
Nangong Liu Yun’s words instantly left Xia XiaoYu defenseless. Her imposing presence vanished, making her look almost disoriented.
She looked at Jiang Xuan, eyes pleading.
“That’s not true, Xuan Brother—I…”
“Stop, I don’t want to hear your explanation, Xia Xiao Yu, you’d better leave now.”
While saying this, Jiang Xuan used lip-synced speech to whisper:
[Quickly go, if anything happens, don’t say anything here.]
In the past, Jiang Xuan had happily reciprocated Xia Xiao Yu’s romantic gestures just to please her, and to make money.
But if these words got twisted and leaked to Nangong Liu Yun, disaster would strike.
Considering she was an unseen big boss above all others, no one could bear her fury.
Taking pity on their old relationship and their employer-employee status, Jiang Xuan kindly encouraged Xia Xiao Yu to leave.
However, noticing Jiang Xuan’s lip-synced speech, Xia Xiao Yu’s dull eyes regained their sparkle.
Now, Xia Xiao Yu understood:
Xuan Brother acted coldly solely to protect her.
His marriage with the bad woman was ordered by the Empress; he worried about her becoming enemies with the entire Imperial Dynasty.
Despite despising that bad woman, he accepted the marriage for her sake.
It must be because he still loved her deeply, though he always denied it verbally.
Mother once taught her boys are often contradictory and reserved.
One shouldn’t trust their words entirely but observe their actions.
To win their heart, one must be bold, cautious, and resourceful.
Xuan Brother truly loves her, despite the accident and time apart.
If Jiang Xuan knew how Xia Xiao Yu interpreted his words, he would deny them outright:
[No, that’s not what I meant, big shot, please don’t misconstrue me!]
Elsewhere, believing Xia Xiao Yu would listen and leave, Jiang Xuan urged her gently instead.
She slowly approached and raised the sword with determination in her golden eyes.
“Xuan Brother, I now understand. Your marriage to this bad woman is forced by the Empress.
You merely concealed your feelings for me, hurting me with harsh words because you’re afraid I’d face the entire Imperial Dynasty for you.”
“No problem, I get it, Xuan Brother, but I refuse.
I’ll destroy all restraints holding you back with one strike.
And I’ll prove to everyone that only I am worthy of you, Xuan Brother.
Don’t worry, Xuan Brother, I’ll win.”
Jiang Xuan: “????”
What does she think she’s doing?
Puzzled, Jiang Xuan stood frozen.
Beside him, Nangong Liu Yun watched with interest and calmly asked,
“Why? Do you really think your current strength can counter the entire Imperial Dynasty?
The Empress’ strength is immeasurable; even Mother isn’t confident in winning.
Moreover, within the Imperial Palace, there are rumored to be several elders surpassing the heavenly martial realm. How would you deal with them?”
At those words, Xia Xiao Yu snorted contemptuously.
“The Imperial Dynasty’s foundation is nothing compared to us. I’m the Holy Maiden of the Hundred Flowers Sect. My master is a martial spirit practitioner, and our patriarch is a semi-ruler.
Just steps away from the legendary ruler status.
Forcing Xuan Brother to marry you is wishful thinking!”
With these words uttered, Xia Xiao Yu looked tenderly at Jiang Xuan.
“Don’t worry, Xuan Brother, I’ll win.”
Hearing this, Jiang Xuan trembled slightly, although not because of Xia Xiao Yu. Instead, he recalled a friend’s fate.
Using his internal scanning system, he confirmed that Nangong Liu Yun had reached the peak of the ninth great ruler realm. The outcome was clear.
Even with Xia Xiao Yu or even their sect leader present, the sentence would be:
[Lady Liu Yun, we apologize. We weren’t able to fully enjoy our fight or use our full strength.]
Watching the situation spiral in a bizarre direction, Jiang Xuan felt compelled to intervene.
He took Nangong Liu Yun’s hand,
“Wife, disregard Xia Xiao Yu’s nonsense. Let’s leave.”
Nangong Liu Yun looked amused and leaned in to whisper,
“Husband, couldn’t you possibly have done something scandalous with this girl? A childhood sweetheart, no less.”
“There’s nothing going on, she’s just a girl from my neighborhood, a missing one for three years.”
At this moment, Jiang Xuan, whose scan function showed his affection for Nangong Liu Yun dropping drastically from 10000 to -9999, but quickly restored to 10000, felt he was momentarily seeing things.
Meanwhile, Xia Xiao Yu was about to stop Jiang Xuan when he spoke,
“Xia Xiao Yu, if you try to stop us, I’ll never recognize you as my childhood sweetheart again.”
Xia Xiao Yu froze and stepped back, no longer daring to act further.
Gazing helplessly as Jiang Xuan and Nangong Liu Yun walked away, she murmured,
“Xuan Brother surely didn’t mean to offend me; he’s just protecting me by putting up this act. I’ll prove to him soon that with my status as the Holy Maiden of the Hundred Flowers Sect, an insignificant Imperial Dynasty means nothing.”
