Hearing Xiao Se's words, Xiao Yu finally let out a quiet breath of relief and continued,
"It was a student from Jia Nan Academy who went home for the holidays and spread the news. Now the entire Wu Tan City—and even the surrounding cities—are in an uproar about you. They're saying you defeated three Da Dou Shi all by yourself during the Inner Courtyard selection, calling you a once-in-a-generation genius. My grandpa even sent a letter asking when you plan to return to the Xiao Clan."
As she spoke, Xiao Yu took an envelope out of her storage ring and handed it to Xiao Se.
Xiao Se accepted the letter, opened it, and glanced through it. A cold sneer immediately curled at the corner of his mouth. The words were written with apparent sincerity, full of emotion, enough to move one to tears—yet from beginning to end, there was not a single mention of how he had once been shut out of the Xiao Clan, nor of how his parents' relics had been taken from him.
Seeing Xiao Se's expression darken further, Xiao Yu took a deep breath and said softly,
"Little pervert… I know a bit about what happened with your uncle and aunt back then. The Xiao Clan really did wrong by you."
"This has nothing to do with you."
Xiao Se casually incinerated the letter with a flick of flame. Then he gently brushed aside the strands of hair on Xiao Yu's forehead and pulled her into his arms, his voice low and gentle.
"I won't go back to the Xiao Clan. I've never considered myself one of them. But I'll always be the little pervert in your heart—the one who clearly wants your body, yet only has the courage in his heart, not in his actions."
When she heard the first part of his words, Xiao Yu's heart almost dropped into the abyss. But the second half sent a warm current flowing through her chest. Nestling against Xiao Se's embrace, she gave a soft mm in response.
"Right. There's actually something I've been wanting to ask you too."
Xiao Se smiled and shifted positions, wrapping his arms around Xiao Yu from behind. His large hand naturally cupped the soft, inverted jade bowl at her chest, drawing a few involuntary moans from her before he finally spoke with a teasing grin.
"When I first arrived at the Xiao Clan, you clearly disliked me. So why was it that after I reminded you not to bathe in the hot springs at the back mountain, your attitude toward me suddenly changed?"
"Mmhn…"
Feeling the warmth of Xiao Se's hand, Xiao Yu's face flushed crimson. She let out a few soft, trembling sounds before answering in a slightly shaky voice,
"It was thanks to your reminder. Not long after you left that day, Xiao Yan came by. I wanted to thank you, but then I realized your personality was… strange. So I went to ask Grandpa about you. At first, I only played around with you out of a sense of responsibility toward the clan, but then…"
"But then you ended up giving your heart to me, right?"
Xiao Se lightly kissed her earlobe. "Don't—"
Under Xiao Se's teasing, Xiao Yu's eyes gradually grew hazy. But how could Xiao Se possibly let her off so easily? Ever since absorbing the six soul rings, his body had become increasingly mature, and at this moment, he clearly looked ready to devour Xiao Yu completely.
Just as Xiao Se was about to activate his signature 'clothes-removal technique', the door to the room was suddenly pushed open.
"Cousin Xiao Yu, Xun'er heard that Cousin Xiao Se is back—"
The voice cut off abruptly.
Xiao Xun'er stood frozen at the doorway, staring silently at the two of them. Her beautiful face was deathly pale.
Xiao Se and Xiao Yu were lying side by side on the bed, Xiao Se's hand still inside Xiao Yu's clothes. Both of them turned their heads in shock to look at Xiao Xun'er.
The air in the room instantly froze, the atmosphere turning strange and oppressive.
Xiao Se was the first to react. His heart instinctively jolted with panic, but then he remembered that he and Xun'er were neither relatives nor lovers. His expression quickly returned to normal. Calmly, he withdrew his hand from Xiao Yu's clothes and pulled the blanket up to cover her, blocking the fleeting glimpse of spring.
After tidying his slightly disheveled clothing, Xiao Se stood up, exhaled slowly, and asked seriously,
"Xun'er, is there something you need?"
"N-no… nothing…"
Silent tears slipped down from the corners of Xun'er's eyes. Choking slightly, she replied, "You two… keep talking. Xun'er will come back later."
With heavy steps, she turned around and left the room.
Hearing Xun'er's sobbing voice fade away, Xiao Yu—who had been hiding shyly under the blanket—hesitantly poked her head out. Looking at the now-empty doorway, she raised her beautiful face toward Xiao Se and asked uncertainly,
"Little pervert… aren't you going after her?"
"What does it have to do with me?" Xiao Se replied flatly. "Besides, I already compensated her with Immortal Herbs and pills for the cultivation technique. I don't owe her anything."
Xun'er's sudden interruption completely extinguished Xiao Se's interest in continuing his earlier move. He closed the door again, sat down at the table, poured himself a cup of tea, and drank it in one go.
Strangely, although the tea was clearly sweet, he tasted a hint of bitterness.
Seeing that only the two of them remained in the room, Xiao Yu adjusted the moon-white bodice and collar that Xiao Se had messed up, then went to the dressing table to tidy her hair. After confirming there was nothing amiss, she walked back to Xiao Se's side.
"Sometimes I really don't understand how you managed to win over Xian'er and Zhuqing," Xiao Yu said as she poured him another cup of tea. "Xun'er seems to have fallen for you too."
"Should I take that as encouragement for me to expand my harem, Yu'er?"
Xiao Se's gaze swept shamelessly over Xiao Yu's full chest, and he swallowed unconsciously.
"Hey! Behave yourself. I'm talking about something serious here."
Xiao Yu shot him a reproachful look, her tone soft yet annoyed.
"Then let me tell you a story."
Xiao Se sighed and proceeded to tell Xiao Yu about the matter of the Kou Jiao Wine.
"So… you drank Kou Jiao Wine back then?"
After listening, Xiao Yu looked utterly stunned. "That's why Xun'er—"
"I was lucky enough to obtain a bottle during my travels," Xiao Se said with a self-mocking smile. "Like I said before, my memories of that period are extremely vague—almost completely gone."
If he had only transmigrated into Bibi Dong's world, things wouldn't have been this troublesome. Yet somehow, Xiao Xun'er had become entangled as well.
"No wonder Xun'er acted just like a boy during her first two years in the Xiao Clan," Xiao Yu said, half laughing, half crying. "She beat up any boy who got close to her and kept reminding me to stay away from Xiao Yan all the time."
She suddenly understood everything.
"So what are you planning to do about Xun'er?" Xiao Yu asked. "Women understand women better than men. I noticed long ago that she treated you very differently. Even her early entry into Jia Nan Academy this time was for your sake."
She couldn't help but marvel at the strange charm her little man possessed. First there was a Dou Huang-level Little Doctor Fairy, then the genius girl Zhu Zhuqing—and now even Xun'er, a girl with an exceptionally proud heart, had been drawn in.
"Nothing," Xiao Se replied calmly. "The one she liked before was always Xiao Yan. If she really changed her feelings just because of a set of vague, incomplete memories, wouldn't that make her affection too cheap? Besides, it's more likely guilt than love—nothing more."
"Uh—"
Hearing this, Xiao Yu's mouth twitched. Her beautiful eyes widened, disbelief written all over her face as she exclaimed,
"Who told you she likes Xiao Yan?"
"Isn't that the case?" Xiao Se asked in surprise.
Xiao Yu shook her head.
"Indeed, for a long time even I thought Xun'er liked Xiao Yan. But I changed my mind when you were ten. Once, I teased her about liking Xiao Yan. She denied it outright and said they were just siblings. I thought she was shy and kept teasing her, but after that… she ignored me for a long time."
"At the time, I was completely baffled," Xiao Yu said with a wry smile. "Now that I think about it… maybe she was telling the truth."
(End of Chapter)
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