Chapter 21
As you may know, Ma Huaizhen, from Wenshi Hall, is the most unromantic man in all of Kunshan.
Wenshi Hall is responsible for many different things, and although Ma Huaizhen is not the head of the Twelve Peaks of Kunshan, his status is almost the same as those twelve peak masters. Because he is in charge of so many things, he often interacts with his disciples and is the one that many of them try to please and gain favor with.
Unfortunately, all their efforts to please him are in vain, as he is impervious to flattery. No matter if they try to tempt him with material goods or seduce him with their beauty, with Ma Huaizhen, their efforts are fruitless.
It is said that those senior martial sisters who have tried to seek his favor by acting silly have already fallen out of favor.
Mu Xiaoxiao was stunned and turned pale. "Senior... what do you mean by that?"
Ma Huaizhen's expression remained unchanged as he lazily glanced at her.
After dealing with these disciples for so long, he could easily read their minds and see through their intentions.
"Since you are a disciple of Kunshan, you should focus on cultivation," the man raised his eyelids and smiled slightly. "It's a shame to see someone with such good talent wasting it like this."
Mu Xiaoxiao had talent that was worthy of his attention, but unfortunately, she had clearly not devoted herself to the right path.
Ma Huaizhen looked at Mu Xiaoxiao with the same indifference as he would look at a cheap vegetable at a market stall. After all, a cheap vegetable was worth three coins per catty, while in his eyes, Mu Xiaoxiao was worth even less.
While narrowing his eyes, he thought to himself that she wouldn't even be enough to feed the teeth of a fourth-level monster if they were put together.
He had heard about how Zhou Yan doted on his female disciple, even taking her with him last time they went to subdue the Demon Realm.
He didn't expect her to end up like this.
What a pity.
The man sighed with some regret.
The young girl's face turned pale as if she had been struck by lightning. She stood there motionless, her skirt fluttering in the night wind, her body swaying.
"I... I didn't mean it that way," Mu Xiaoxiao explained nervously, tears welling up in her eyes. The sparkling tears glistened under her eyelashes, making her look particularly pitiable.
But in Ma Huaizhen's eyes, it was not enough to garner his attention.
When his gaze met her almost smiling eyes, Mu Xiaoxiao's heart skipped a beat. The remaining words got stuck in her throat, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't speak. She could only bite her lower lip and shed tears, fluttering her eyelashes.
Although they had heard about Ma Huaizhen's unromantic nature, witnessing this scene in person made the other disciples of Kunshan feel uneasy.
Mu Xiaoxiao was raised by Yuqing Spiritual Master, and her talent was exceptional. If it were anyone else with her background, they would have already become arrogant. However, she was young and had a good personality, never displaying even a trace of arrogance in front of others.
It is natural for this doted-upon young girl to act a bit spoiled, but Ma Huaizhen's words were a bit too harsh.
Upon seeing the girl crying desperately, the other male disciples couldn't help but sigh with regret.
Of course, there were also female disciples rolling their eyes, feeling refreshed inside.
Who was she trying to charm with her childish act? But she ended up attracting so many men.
Seeing Mu Xiaoxiao like this, Feng Wangyan's expression immediately changed. He was about to explode, but unexpectedly, Lu Pihan reached out and stopped him.
Although he looked frail and sickly, his cold gaze made Feng Wangyan instinctively halt his steps.
"Step aside," Feng Wangyan angrily sneered, "Aren't you her senior brother? You dare to stand up for that useless person, yet you're silent now?"
Is it easy to endure?
Lu Pihan calmly glanced in Mu Xiaoxiao's direction, keeping his eyes down and saying nothing.
No one can become as strong-willed as a plum blossom without experiencing bone-chilling coldness.
The master spoils Xiaoxiao too much on weekdays.
Lu Pihan knew well what kind of person his younger martial sister was in his heart.
He had never really agreed with Zhou Yan's way of nurturing people. If he had decided to embark on the path to immortality, he would stick to it till the end. Without firm determination, it would be better not to get involved in the first place. Even if he and Zhou Yan could protect her, how long could they protect her for? There would come a day when she would face isolation and helplessness.
There is nothing in this world that can be solved just by being coquettish. Especially someone like Mu Xiaoxiao, who is carefree and coquettish towards men. If she encounters a man with malicious intents, it's like throwing herself into the jaws of a tiger.
Flowers in a vase may look beautiful, but once moved outside, they are easily broken.
Today, let Ma Huaizhen grind her temper a little.
It's different with Qiao Wan.
Thinking of those eye-catching white shorts, Lu Pihan frowned.
Both of the younger martial sisters do not give Lu Pihan peace of mind.
As if finding the current situation not chaotic enough, at this very moment, a flash of sword light suddenly appeared on the mountaintop.
With tear drops still hanging on her eyelashes, Mu Xiaoxiao froze as soon as she saw the sword light.
"Pei... Pei Chunzheng?"
As the sword light dissipated, a young man wearing black boots and a blue and white martial arts robe stood in front of Mu Xiaoxiao with a cold and sharp gaze.
Qiao Wan glanced up and also felt a bit dazed.
When did Pei Chunzheng arrive?
When the young man met Qiao Wan's eyes, he quickly looked away with indifference.
He turned his head to glance at Mu Xiaoxiao, making sure she was safe, but his gaze didn't linger. Instead, he looked at Ma Huaizhen and coldly said, "Senior, don't you think your words are biased?"
Even Ma Huaizhen didn't expect someone to suddenly appear.
The man leisurely narrowed his eyes, glanced at Pei Chunzheng, and seeing his posture, smirked, "Is the hero here to save the damsel in distress?"
"At the age when you should focus on cultivation, you're constantly indulging in romantic affairs. When the time comes, you won't even know how to die."
Pei Chunzheng's brows furrowed even deeper, and the vermilion mark on his forehead looked like a drop of blood. He lightly tapped the hilt of his sword, forcibly suppressing the urge to draw his sword.
Mu Xiaoxiao never expected that Pei Chunzheng would suddenly appear.
She stared blankly at the young man in front of her.
From her perspective, she could only see the young man's profile, with beautiful eyebrows and eyes.
It had been a very long time since she last saw him.
Ma Huaizhen casually said that and couldn't be bothered to talk more with these younger generation. Some things were better left unsaid, especially since he wasn't much of a talkative person. Talking too much made his throat hurt.
Ma Huaizhen glanced up and looked at Qiao Wan.
Meeting Ma Huaizhen's gaze, Qiao Wan understood what he wanted to do. She took a step forward and placed her hand on the back of the wheelchair.
"Push me back." Ma Huaizhen said.
As soon as Ma Huaizhen spoke, even Pei Chunzheng and Mu Xiaoxiao's eyes fell on her.
The young man's gaze fell on her and he clearly noticed Qiao Wan's pants. His eyes flickered and he looked at the young man cowering behind her.
Gan Nan, who was lurking in the shadows, took a step back nervously.
Don't look at him.
Pei Chunzheng withdrew his gaze.
Gan Nan quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing that Ma Huaizhen was close to Qiao Wan but distant towards her, Mu Xiaoxiao was even more upset. She whimpered softly, like a small cat.
She didn't understand why Ma Huaizhen had such a deep misunderstanding of her.
Hearing the sobbing behind her, Pei Chunzheng tightened his grip on the sword.
No one expected Pei Chunzheng to suddenly appear, and at this moment, the disciples at the foot of the mountain were all curious, their eyes widened.
I heard... there was a past relationship between Pei Chunzheng and Qiao Wan.
Just as everyone was eagerly waiting for Qiao Wan's reaction, she lowered her eyes, responded briefly, and did not even look at Pei Chunzheng and Mu Xiaoxiao. She pushed Ma Huaizhen and prepared to leave.
The onlookers were a little dumbfounded: Is this... is this it?! I exposed myself, and you're just showing me this?!
"Martial Sister Qiao Wan," Mu Xiaoxiao suddenly took a step forward and called out softly.
Qiao Wan paused, "Elder Martial Sister, is there something else?"
Mu Xiaoxiao's gaze swept over her face, then looked at Ma Huaizhen, wanting to say something but not knowing how to start. She could only suppress her grievances and reluctance, her eyes becoming red and her lips trembling as she said, "Nothing... nothing else."
The two were only a dozen steps apart. The girl was wearing only a thin dress, her nose and eye sockets slightly red, but she still showed a timid smile. On the other hand, the person opposite her had a cold expression, not even raising an eyebrow.
No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like the image of a malicious supporting female character.
Some of the disciples at the foot of the mountain couldn't bear to watch anymore.
How could this interloper be so arrogant?
Unbeknownst to Qiao Wan, who had unintentionally mastered the essence of a malicious supporting female character, she was now feeling anxious.
There was nothing to say between her and Mu Xiaoxiao. Qiao Wan thought for a moment, feeling worried, and could only slightly nod her head to show politeness.
Realizing that Elder Martial Brother was still standing there, she also greeted him nervously.
Lu Pihan didn't have any special reaction. He spoke a little earlier, and the cold air entered his lungs, causing him to cough while watching what was happening in front of him, without much to say.
However, he looked at Qiao Wan with an especially deep gaze.
Qiao Wan: orz
At this point, Ma Huaizhen was starting to get impatient. When Qiao Wan pushed Ma Huaizhen to leave, she could feel countless eyes on her back.
But, since things had come to this point, she could only pretend she hadn't seen anything.
Gan Nan was still a little dazed. Seeing that Qiao Wan was leaving, he hurriedly followed behind.
As someone who had been hiding in the shadows, trying to minimize his presence, Gan Nan witnessed this big scene, feeling very ashamed and embarrassed.
After all, this was Kunshan's family matter. By witnessing the drama of the friendly sect, there was nothing he could do except pretend he hadn't seen anything.
Compared to that, there was another thing that worried Gan Nan more.
The young man looked dazed, with a twisted face, and even more confused in his mind.
This fairy, Gan Nan thought, was named Qiao Wan.
Today, he and Fairy Qiao descended from the sky, and others saw it.
He studied at Qingyang Academy, where Confucianism was valued. Although other cultivators looked down on him, calling him old-fashioned, to him, the principles of courtesy were never to be abandoned.
Gan Nan felt guilty for involving Fairy Qiao and ruining her reputation.
As he kept thinking about it, Gan Nan's brows furrowed, and his mind became even more confused.
Since Fairy Qiao's reputation was ruined because of him, should he take responsibility and propose to her?
But, he didn't actually like this fairy.
He had always wanted to find a princess whom he genuinely loved.
Although Fairy Qiao was also very good, she wasn't his type.
Gan Nan felt both guilty and troubled. He liked someone like the Water Goddess Luo, even though his father said that it was all fiction created by humans to deceive others. But since he was young, he had wanted to marry Luo as his wife. Even though he was now five hundred years old, this idea hadn't wavered.
Fairy Qiao didn't mention this matter. Could he pretend nothing had happened?
Gan Nan thought quietly.
No, no!
As soon as this thought came up, Gan Nan immediately blushed and forcefully pushed it down.
How could he think like that?! It was not what a gentleman would do!
On one hand, it was the condemnation of his moral sense and sense of responsibility. On the other hand, it was his own selfishness. Gan Nan felt ashamed and couldn't face himself. He even drooped his dragon horns and frantically tapped his head.
A gentleman stands tall and behaves properly.
With such an event happening today, he must take responsibility for the fairy. How could he disregard her for his own selfish desires?
Yes!
He, he, he... He must take on this responsibility!
Although he currently had no romantic feelings for Fairy Qiao, emotions can always be developed.
Moreover, Fairy Qiao was skilled in combat. If she became his princess, his father would definitely be satisfied.
The young man thought seriously in his heart and suddenly felt a surge of righteousness.
This is what a noble person should do!
He! He wants to marry the fairy as his queen!
"Fairy Qiao!" Suddenly the young man stood still, took a deep breath, and with a heroic gesture, he shouted with a red face.
"I... I have something to say to the fairy!"
This strong declaration of his left Qiao Wan a bit confused, and even Ma Huaizhen turned his head to look.
