Chapter 216

Not only did you not acknowledge Gu Rongjin's words, but you also speak in a sneaky, disgusting way.

"Gu Rongjin said you treat him as a brother; if that's true, there's nothing to apologize for, right, Miss Azi?" Mu Yuanzhi wouldn't let her avoid the question.

Let's see how many times this woman can avoid him in front of Gu Rongjin.

Azi lowered her eyes and coughed slightly, and Gu Rongjin told her not to speak.

How cliché!

You can't possibly not notice this, can you?

Mu Yuanzhi tossed the prescription down and left; Gu Rongjin picked up the prescription: "You haven't even gone to decoct it yet? I'll go get someone to grab the herbs."

"Young Master..."

"Don't worry, it'll be decocted soon!"

Gu Rongjin went out without looking back, and as soon as he left the room he caught up to Mu Yuanzhi: "Wife, how are you running so fast?"

"Don't call me wife!" Mu Yuanzhi walked even faster.

"Don't be angry!" Gu Rongjin softened his tone a bit, with a somewhat coquettish tone: "Azi wasn't like this before."

Those words successfully made Mu Yuanzhi stop in her tracks, she raised her eyebrows slightly surprised: "Turns out you're not blind either."

"What kind of person am I? Don't treat me like those vulgar men, okay?" Gu Rongjin, somewhat annoyed, reached for Mu Yuanzhi's hand: "Can't you trust your husband a bit more?"

Mu Yuanzhi's expression improved a little; she lifted her eyes to him: "What do you want to say? Spit it out!"

"Azi really used to treat me as a brother; maybe it's because her feelings just awakened, she couldn't quite distinguish familial love from romantic love, plus she's gotten used to clinging to me—I've told her this over and over, rest assured I have a brain and am not blind, I will absolutely not let you get hurt." Gu Rongjin swore earnestly, gripping Mu Yuanzhi's hand tightly.

Mu Yuanzhi shook off his hand: "Too late, I'm already hurt."

"I was just worried sick earlier; you know I treat Azi like a sister—how could I know she'd actually like me?"

"Do you know why she changed her name to Azi?" Mu Yuanzhi asked him.

Gu Rongjin: "She said she wanted to draw a clear line with the past?"

"Why, of all things, Azi?"

"... She said it's because she likes the color purple."

"Hmph."

"You wouldn't be suggesting she deliberately changed it to a homophone similar to your name, would you?"

"Mm-hmm, she also likes to imitate my clothing style."

"Could it be that Qilin brat is wagging his tongue in front of you?" Gu Rongjin thought more and more that something was off—this isn't the kind of question his little Yuanzhi would ponder.

Mu Yuanzhi crossed her arms and looked at him: "Just say whether it is or not."

"Maybe……" Gu Rongjin really hadn't thought that much, but considering today's events, it doesn't seem like overthinking either.

"I advise you to talk to her properly, or else don't blame me for being rude!" Mu Yuanzhi gave Gu Rongjin a sideways glance.

"Me? Why would you be rude to me?" Gu Rongjin felt wronged.

"Letting a childhood friend develop an improper longing for you—don't you bear any blame?"

Gu Rongjin nodded firmly: "Yes, yes, yes, it's all my fault—I'll definitely settle this!"

He promised.

"Also."

"What else? Madam?" Gu Rongjin asked cautiously.

Mu Yuanzhi: "Go apologize to Qilin."

"You want me to apologize to that little brat?"

"Of course, you yelled at him—don't you owe him an apology?"

Gu Rongjin resigned: "Fine, fine, fine—I know I'm lowest in the family hierarchy. Once I have someone fetch the herbs and decoct them, I'll immediately go apologize to our family's little ancestor. Madam, are you still satisfied?"

"More or less—let's see how you perform."

Gu Rongjin resigned, ordered someone to fetch the herbs and decoct them, then ran to Qilin's room to find him—turns out this guy has an even worse temper than his wife, wouldn't open the door, and his apologies outside were to no avail.

"Small person, big temper—I'll definitely find someone to straighten you out later!"

Gu Rongjin had no choice, so he first went to the kitchen to bring the decocted medicine to Azi; just then, Qishi Huai arrived again.

He truly didn't know whether Qishi Huai came to supervise him or to gloat over his misfortune, but this guy pretended he was just coming to gather intel.

"I went to ask Miss Mu if she'd come; she said no, just listen to my report." Qishi Huai said, then gave Mu Yuanzhi and Azi a meaningful glance.

Gu Rongjin glanced at Azi; he had originally wanted to make things clear with her, but Qishi Huai showed up, so he'd have to talk later.

"Azi, who injured you this time? And what's up with that lunatic you've been muttering about?" Qishi Huai asked.

Azi frowned deeply: "The person who hurt me is like a lunatic—I mean his mental state; his martial arts are unfathomably deep, and his style is something I've never seen before. I heard those people shouting his name as Jinglou or Jinglou?"

"I've never heard that name—have you?" Gu Rongjin asked Qishi Huai.

Qishi Huai nodded: "If it's Cloud Mirror Pavilion, then he's from Egret Island, a famous dart escort in that region."

"Oh?" Gu Rongjin raised an eyebrow: "Would a dart escort even pledge allegiance to the court? That waste Zheng Gui actually managed to poach such talent."

"Probably not Zheng Gui." Qishi Huai said, "Someone must have recommended him."

"Cloud Mirror Pavilion? I've never heard of it." Azi wondered.

She's also fairly well-informed about martial world affairs.

"It's not surprising that Miss Azi hasn't heard of him; this person has only recently emerged, reportedly previously staying on the far side of the Black Sea, distant from the Central Plains." Qishi Huai said.

Gu Rongjin: "With someone this skilled in martial arts showing up, it seems our plan to rely on sneak attacks won't work."

"You can go yourself." Qishi Huai said.

"How do you know I have that intention?" Gu Rongjin smirked: "Under the moon, flying heaven mirror, clouds rising to form sea tower—I'll meet him tonight under the moon!"

Qishi Huai stood up and patted Gu Rongjin on the shoulder: "Hang in there, or else we'll have to clash head-on with tens of thousands of imperial troops."

"Don't worry, winning without battle is always my motto."

After Qi Shihuai left, Gu Rongjin cleared his throat and said to Azi, "Azi, I have something I want to say to you."

Noticing Gu Rongjin's seriousness, Azi not only composed her expression, she pursed her lips and looked at Gu Rongjin.

"I've always treated you like a sister, and I will continue to do so—do you understand what I mean?" Gu Rongjin pondered for a long time, still unsure how to express it.

He didn't want to say something too hurtful, and he was afraid that if he wasn't clear, people would misunderstand.

This is someone he has regarded as a sister since childhood.

Azi stared at Gu Rongjin, her eyes trembling and dim, and she asked, "Did I cause trouble for the Heir Apparent?"

"No, I just want you to understand that I like Mu Yuanzhi—I will only like her in this life, the next, and all lifetimes to come, so don't waste your time on me; you should quickly compose your feelings and go find your true partner."