Bei Wuxuan gazed at the young woman before him. The timid compliance of the past, her infatuated arrogance—all of it had vanished. Her eyes met his directly, their depths cold and remote, dark and utterly calm. Not the slightest trace of her former obsession could be seen.
He suddenly let out a soft laugh and said sidelong, “Miss Xiao has grown far more capable than before. You’ve learned how to refuse while inviting pursuit, how to play hard to get.”
Xiao Qianyin frowned. Just what did this man think he was? Did everyone have to chase after him? Did everyone have to be in love with him? If it came down to it, the man who had performed the sword dance in the peach grove was not inferior to him in the slightest. Even if she chose that man, he would be far better than this arrogant lunatic.
“Play hard to get? Refuse while inviting pursuit?” She sneered, as if she had heard the funniest joke in the world, and gradually burst into laughter.
“What are you laughing at?” Bei Wuxuan asked, unperturbed.
After a moment, she stopped laughing and said in a low voice, “What am I laughing at? I’m laughing at your rich imagination. Do you think you’re some hot commodity? That everyone is fighting over you? I truly wonder if you’re so excessively narcissistic that something has gone wrong with your brain. Do you think everyone you meet likes you? How pitiful!”
Although Bei Wuxuan did not understand what “excessively narcissistic” meant, he did understand “something has gone wrong with your brain.” Coupled with the young woman’s mocking, disdainful attitude, fury instantly surged through him.
He was the Crown Prince of Southern Tang, and exceptionally gifted in swordsmanship. Wherever he went, was he not surrounded by attendants and admiring, worshipful gazes? Yet now he was being ridiculed by a lovesick fool? And one he loathed and looked down upon the most!
“Xiao Qianyin, don’t go too far! Do you think that just because your maternal grandfather is Marquis Dingguo, you can spout nonsense here? The person standing before you is the future emperor of Southern Tang!”
Anger appeared on Nangong Wei’s beautiful face, and she immediately rebuked her.
Xiao Qianyin looked her over carelessly. So this was the so-called number one beauty under heaven!
The legitimate daughter of the Nangong family, one of the four great clans, doted on since childhood. After growing up, her beauty became renowned far and wide, and she was praised as a swordsmanship prodigy among women. She admired the Crown Prince of Southern Tang and seemed to have a lover’s relationship with him.
Every time Xiao Qianyin had been mocked and ridiculed, Nangong Wei had not acted personally, but had secretly fanned the flames, making the original owner’s reputation even more notorious. It seemed she would have to properly entertain this number one beauty under heaven.
“I am relying on power to bully others. So what? I heard Miss Nangong is the most beautiful woman under heaven. Now that I’ve seen you, you’re merely so-so.”
“What do you mean? Sister Nangong is a famous beauty. Unlike you, so…”
The young woman in red could not help retorting, but no matter what, she could not finish the second half of her sentence.
Because the current Xiao Qianyin had completely changed from her former heavy makeup and gaudy dress. She was elegant and plain; the black robe that should have suited a man had somehow been worn by her with a proud, aloof bearing, as though she stood apart from the world. Her long hair was tied only with a silver-white ribbon, fluttering in the wind, full of vigor and vitality. Where was there any shadow of her past self? If one looked carefully, she was indeed quite pretty—of course, she still couldn’t compare to Sister Nangong!
“Why aren’t you speaking?” She raised a brow and looked toward the young woman in red. Her eyes, cold as ice and snow, made the girl feel only a sharp, dazzling clarity, a nameless brilliance that caused her breath to catch.
“In truth, she is rather pretty,” the young woman in red muttered. Though her voice was soft, everyone present practiced swordsmanship and had no poor hearing; naturally, her words fell clearly into their ears.