Chapter 80: Xue Ning’er’s Self-Reflection
Translated by algoo | Proofread by algoo
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Lin Xiu was surprised that Qin Wan would eat at such a place.
This kind of roadside stall usually catered to commoners. Even wealthy merchants wouldn’t come here. Lingyin was already quite down-to-earth among them, but she had never eaten at a roadside stall with him.
Someone like Xue Ning’er, an otherworldly fairy who didn’t seem to live in the real world, wouldn’t even step into such a roadside shop, let alone sit on these worn-out stools, for fear of dirtying her shoes.
Princess Minghe wouldn’t even consider it. Her meals were prepared by imperial chefs. She probably wouldn’t even look at the food from Zhaiyue Pavilion or Tianxiang Restaurant.
Lin Xiu had assumed Qin Wan was the same kind of fairy, until he saw this scene.
Qin Wan was also surprised.
The Lin family were already second-rank Barons. She had also just seen that the smallest denomination Lin Xiu carried was a one-hundred-tael banknote. Why would he eat at such a place?
He was the first noble she had ever seen eating at such a place.
The shop owner saw Qin Wan and smiled. “You’re here again, miss. The usual? Thin noodles, less spring onions, more broth…”
Lin Xiu realized that Qin Wan had borrowed money from him probably to eat.
This made him even more curious.
Although the Qin family wasn’t particularly prominent, they shouldn’t be short of money. If she had forgotten to bring money and had no choice but to eat plain noodles that cost a few qian, it wouldn’t explain her familiarity with the owner.
Clearly, she was a regular here.
Although his mind was full of questions, Lin Xiu still greeted her casually with a smile. “What a coincidence, Miss Wan’er.”
Qin Wan recovered her composure and sat across from him. “It is a coincidence. Do you often eat here, Young Master Lin?”
Lin Xiu shook his head. “Not often, just happened to be passing by and was hungry, so I came in for a bowl of noodles. You seem to be a regular here, Miss Wan’er.”
Qin Wan didn’t deny it. “This small shop’s noodles are quite good. I come here often.”
After this, an awkward silence fell between them.
For Lin Xiu, being in the same room with a girl and having nothing to say was a great humiliation. But facing Qin Wan, he didn’t try to start a conversation.
Although this was only the second time he had seen her, his intuition told him that she was a high-level player.
Qin Wan’s level was far above that of a little green tea like Xue Ning’er. Against such a woman, all of a man’s usual tricks were useless.
Simply put, she was his kind.
Although they had barely spoken to each other, his intuition told him this woman wasn’t simple. He couldn’t see through her.
Caiyi, Xue Ning’er, Lingyin, even Noble Consort—he could understand their thoughts with a single glance or gesture. But Qin Wan’s eyes were like a deep pool, revealing nothing.
Her level wasn’t below his.
Facing someone of a lower level, he could act freely because everything was under his control.
But against someone of the same or higher level, the moment he made a move, he would lose.
In high-level confrontations, no move was the best move.
But in the end, Lin Xiu couldn’t help but make the first move.
He took off his outer robe and handed it to Qin Wan.
Qin Wan shook her head. “I’m not cold.”
Lin Xiu glanced at her wet clothes clinging to her chest, and the impressive curves beneath, shaking his head. “This isn’t about being cold or not. I can’t eat properly if you don’t put on some clothes. Or, would you like to sit at another table?”
Qin Wan looked down, then up, taking Lin Xiu’s robe and wrapping it around herself. “Thank you.”
From beginning to end, she remained calm, without a trace of the shyness or anger a woman should show in such a situation. If it were Xue Ning’er, she would have been playfully hitting his shoulder, saying coquettishly, “You’re so bad…”
This further convinced Lin Xiu that he had encountered a formidable opponent.
After that, they didn’t exchange another word.
After finishing his noodles, Lin Xiu stood up, had Sun Dali pay for both their meals, bid farewell to Qin Wan, and left the noodle shop.
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Inside the noodle shop, Qin Wan ate her noodles slowly. Lin Xiu’s robe was warm, but she couldn’t see through him.
Zhao Lingjun’s fiancé didn’t have much presence in people’s minds. The son of a third-rank Baron, who only awakened his otherworldly ability at eighteen, was as mediocre as they came. A mediocre talent who was famous only because of his fiancée, being toyed with by a woman like Xue Ning’er without even realizing it, unknowingly the subject of ridicule by many. Qin Wan used to think so too.
But after today’s brief encounter, she realized she had greatly misunderstood him.
This man wasn’t simple. He was definitely not mediocre. Such a person couldn’t be manipulated by Xue Ning’er. Her tricks only worked on simple-minded dandies. She was treating this man, whose methods were far superior to hers, as prey. In the end, it would be her who suffered.
She just didn’t know what Lin Xiu’s purpose was in approaching Xue Ning’er…
Revenge?
Or turning the tables, deceiving her for both her body and her heart?
She couldn’t see through him.
After finishing her noodles, Qin Wan paid and left the shop.
The rain had stopped at some point.
Qin Wan closed the umbrella Lin Xiu had lent her and walked down the street. Two drunk men happened to walk by. They were momentarily stunned by her beauty, then lecherous expressions appeared on their faces. They teased, “You’re so beautiful, miss. Want to have some fun with us…?”
Qin Wan looked at them, a captivatingly charming smile appearing on her face. “Sure…”
With that, she walked towards a nearby alley.
Seeing such a stunning beauty willingly throw herself at them, the two drunk men were overjoyed and eagerly followed.
After some time, someone passed by the alley entrance. Hearing the sounds of passion coming from inside, they couldn’t help but stop and peek inside, then stared in shock and disbelief.
In the alley, the two drunk men were passionately kissing, their hands roaming all over each other, a scene both passionate and chaotic…
The passerby felt their stomach churn, scrambling away as they lamented, “What has the world come to, what has the world come to…?”
…
Otherworldly Practitioner’s Courtyard, Training Ground.
Lin Xiu and Li Bozhang leaned against a tree by the training ground, each with a blade of grass in their mouths, staring at the sky for a long time.
Having gone from fellow hedonists to companions in misfortune, their friendship was now even deeper.
Lin Xiu now knew that Li Bozhang came to the academy to escape.
With a wife like his, being outside was indeed better than being at home.
Lin Xiu initially came to learn martial arts, but he gradually realized that martial arts classes weren’t as useful as he thought. Their main benefit was having instructors guide their Qi cultivation. Lin Xiu had already successfully cultivated Qi, so even without classes, he could cultivate on his own.
His reason for attending martial arts classes was, naturally, Xue Ning’er.
Because he had reached the limit of copied abilities, he needed another awakening to acquire her flight ability. Before that, he had to maintain a good relationship with her, otherwise, all his previous efforts, even the precious earrings gifted by Noble Consort, would be wasted.
As Lin Xiu stared blankly at the sky, a beautiful face suddenly appeared before him.
Li Bozhang sighed. Companions in misfortune indeed…
On the other side, Xue Ning’er clenched her teeth, her fists tightening in her sleeves.
Was that little vixen Qin Wan trying to steal Lin Xiu from her?
If it were anyone else, Xue Ning’er wouldn’t be worried. She had absolute confidence in herself. Few could snatch prey from her grasp.
But against Qin Wan, she wasn’t so sure.
Since Qin Wan arrived at the academy, many of her former pursuers had switched their attention to her. There was bad blood between them.
To be honest, she panicked a little when Qin Wan appeared beside Lin Xiu.
After Qin Wan left, she could no longer maintain her composure. She hurried over to Lin Xiu, feigning calmness. “Young Master Lin, are you close with Qin Wan?”
Lin Xiu replied, “Not really, I’ve only met her twice.”
Xue Ning’er pressed, “Then what did she want from you just now?”
Lin Xiu repeated the same story he told Li Bozhang.
Xue Ning’er was slightly relieved but still warned him, “Young Master Lin, Qin Wan is a dangerous woman. You should stay away from her. I think she must have ulterior motives in approaching you. Don’t fall for her tricks…”
Both Lingyin and Xue Ning’er described Qin Wan as a “dangerous woman.” But Lin Xiu knew very well that the person with ulterior motives was right in front of him.
However, he feigned disbelief, shaking his head. “You’re overthinking it, Miss Ning’er. Miss Wan’er and I are just ordinary friends.”
Xue Ning’er was displeased. “Ordinary friends? You call her ‘Miss Wan’er’ so intimately. Do ordinary friends address each other like that…?”
Lin Xiu said, “But I also address you as ‘Miss Ning’er’…”
“You!”
Xue Ning’er was truly exasperated by this blockhead. Didn’t he know she disliked Qin Wan? How could he be so close to that vixen? She glared at him. “Hmph, I don’t want to talk to you anymore!”
With that, she turned and stormed off.
She had decided that if Lin Xiu didn’t apologize, she wouldn’t talk to him again!
This fool, how could he not even tell when a beautiful woman approached him with ulterior motives?!
Li Bozhang, who was lost in thought while staring at the sky, glanced in the direction Xue Ning’er left and sighed softly.
Perhaps even Miss Ning’er herself hadn’t realized that in her relationship with Lin Xiu, she had gone from being the proactive one to the passive one…
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Ten days passed in a flash.
During these ten days, Lin Xiu didn’t stop cultivating.
The distillery outside the city was operating day and night. Even so, their wine was still in short supply. This revolution in the wine industry had even impacted other taverns in the capital, especially those focusing on high-end wines, whose business plummeted.
There was a huge chain of interests involved, even implicating the top noble families in the capital. If it weren’t for Prince Qin’s backing, the tavern probably wouldn’t have survived.
This made Lin Xiu realize that partnering with Li Bozhang instead of the Zhao family had been the right choice.
Although the Zhao family were first-rank Marquises, they couldn’t suppress the top nobles in the capital.
With the tavern’s booming business, Lin Xiu was naturally making a fortune. At his request, besides the silver needed for expanding the workshop and purchasing raw materials, every five days, Li Bozhang would give him his share of the profits in banknotes. Lin Xiu would immediately exchange these banknotes for Origin Crystals.
To avoid attracting attention, he used a different appearance each time and went to different shops.
Although second-rank Origin Crystals weren’t scarce, if someone bought dozens or hundreds at a time repeatedly, it would definitely be noticed.
Lin Xiu also bought a dozen or so third-rank Origin Crystals in installments, preparing to use them for breaking through bottlenecks.
These Origin Crystals cost as much as one thousand taels each and were relatively rare. Lin Xiu visited several shops to gather fifteen. As for fourth-rank Origin Crystals, they were generally priceless. He inquired at a few shops, and most said they didn’t have any. The only shop that did had a price 30% higher than the market price.
This meant that after his next awakening, Lin Xiu could only cultivate steadily and could no longer rely on large quantities of Origin Crystals to shorten his cultivation time.
Of course, compared to others, his cultivation speed was still very fast.
With two Heaven Rank abilities and one Earth Rank ability, his cultivation speed was two to three times faster than others. So, the term “genius” could also be applied to him.
These ten days were fulfilling for Lin Xiu.
Xue Ning’er, however, wasn’t having a good time.
Even though she was angry, Lin Xiu didn’t try to coax her. He hadn’t spoken to her proactively in the recent martial arts classes either. Was he also angry?
Gradually, Xue Ning’er went from sulking to not being angry, and finally, to self-reflection.
Had she been too unreasonable last time?
It seemed Lin Xiu had only lent Qin Wan an umbrella and a coat. Any gentleman would have done the same.
If Lin Xiu had ignored her, that would have been truly heartless.
So, Lin Xiu wasn’t wrong?
That meant she was wrong.
It was her fault.
Xue Ning’er regretted it immensely. She shouldn’t have gotten angry. She had finally gained his favor, but her petulance had ruined all her previous efforts.
In the next martial arts class, Xue Ning’er took the initiative to approach Lin Xiu, her head lowered. “I’m sorry, I was wrong last time. I was being unreasonable. Please forgive me…”
Before Lin Xiu could speak, she acted like a child who had done something wrong, tugging at his sleeve, fidgeting uneasily. “Please forgive me, okay…?”
Not far away, several of Xue Ning’er’s pursuers saw this scene and felt their blood rush to their heads.
If Miss Ning’er acted like this towards them, even if they raised their voices slightly, they would slap themselves. That damned Lin Xiu, no matter what Miss Ning’er did wrong, he should forgive her without hesitation!
Looking at the aggrieved Xue Ning’er, Lin Xiu smiled. “Alright, alright, I forgive you. Qin Wan and I are really just ordinary friends, no, not even ordinary friends, we’ve only met twice. How can that compare to our relationship…?”
The gloom that had lingered in Xue Ning’er’s heart for ten days vanished because of his words. She huffed softly. “I guess I didn’t misjudge you…”
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