Chapter 196: This Guy, No Hope
After lunch, Young Master Sang originally planned to stick to the full dramatic style and send Hua Jianglian off.
But then Little Ying stopped him.
In the end, it was agreed that Gu Yingmian would be the one to send Hua Jianglian away for Young Master Sang.
Walking along the path outside the courtyard, Hua Jianglian was absent-minded, while Gu Yingmian followed closely behind her.
“How’s it going, Sect Leader Hua?”
Gu Yingmian broke the silence first: “Did you enjoy lunch?”
Hua Jianglian really wanted to say just okay.
But honesty came into play.
Honestly, she had a fantastic time at that lunch.
The food was sumptuous, people were laughing and joking around, even she ended up smiling at times without realizing it.
It was only when she came to her senses that she would suddenly cover her mouth, not knowing why she was so happy.
But she really was happy.
She loved this lively and relaxed family atmosphere.
“Uh… well, it was just okay,” she huffed, turning her head away.
Seeing Hua Jianglian huffing for a while, Gu Yingmian smiled lightly: “If Sect Leader Hua wants to come by again, you’re always welcome to join us for dinner.”
“Little Ying told me that she hopes you come more often too.”
“Really, really?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Hua Jianglian regretted it, shaking her head: “No way… I wouldn’t stoop so low as to mooch off food all the time.”
“Our Demon Cultivators can definitely afford to feed me; why would I need to run to someone else’s house for meals?”
“Is that true?” Gu Yingmian blinked her beautiful eyes, “Sect Leader Hua really doesn’t want to come?”
“Of course… not…”
Hua Jianglian felt a bit guilty.
She avoided Gu Yingmian’s gaze and quietly turned her head to the side.
“Well, that’s a shame.”
Gu Yingmian smiled: “But it’s alright.”
“I’m guessing Sect Leader Hua already has the answer in her heart regardless.”
“No matter when, we’ll always welcome Sect Leader Hua to join us for dinner!”
“Ah? Oh…”
Hua Jianglian foggily said goodbye to Gu Yingmian.
However, on her way back up the mountain, Gu Yingmian’s words inexplicably lingered in her mind.
She didn’t quite understand what Gu Yingmian was saying.
But looking at Gu Yingmian’s half-smile gaze towards her, Hua Jianglian always felt an odd guilt.
What does it mean that I already have the answer in my heart…
What answer do I have?
All day long with riddles… she kicked a pebble in frustration.
The pebble rolled a few times and fell into the stream beside her.
Hua Jianglian walked over to the stream, planning to wash her face.
Just as she was about to reach in, she suddenly noticed her reflection in the water.
On the surface, her cheeks seemed a bit flushed, almost like a rosy blush of embarrassment.
Hua Jianglian remembered that expression.
In the comics she read, the female lead always had that look when she thought about the male lead.
At that moment, Hua Jianglian’s heart skipped a beat.
No… it can’t be.
Could it be…
I, I, I, I won’t really have fallen for that guy, right? She suddenly felt a bit flustered.
—
—
At this moment, inside Young Master Sang’s home.
“Sigh.”
Young Master Sang lay limply on the chair, muttering to himself: “I wonder how well I did today; is the boss satisfied?”
“If I made the boss angry, the promotion and pay raise I worked so hard for won’t just go poof, right?”
“Don’t! I’ve already found movers; you can’t tell me I don’t have to move now, right?”
Beside him, Zhang Xiaoying shot him a look of exasperation.
“… Hubs, don’t you think you’re ignoring something more important?”
“More important?” Young Master Sang pondered.
Seeing him lost in thought, Zhang Xiaoying’s eyes lit up. Just as she was about to feel relieved, he exclaimed:
“Right!”
“I need to pick a few comics from Si Jingzhu’s room to give the Sect Leader as a gift!”
“Can’t let the boss leave empty-handed, that’d be so inconsiderate!”
Zhang Xiaoying: “…”
Watching her husband in anguish, Zhang Xiaoying couldn’t tell whether he had high or low emotional intelligence.
Was it intentional or accidental?
Si Jingzhu was still protesting unhappily at the side: “Hey! Why is it always my room? Why is it always me who ends up with the bad luck?”
“Who told you your interests align so well with the boss? Just accept your misfortune.”
“I, I protest!”
“Protest denied.”
“Ugh…”
Finally, Si Jingzhu, feeling wronged, withdrew into her room, packing away her candies, snacks, and comics.
Next time someone asks her, she would refuse to give anything.
Just then, Gu Yingmian returned after seeing Hua Jianglian off and exchanged glances with Zhang Xiaoying, only to find Xiaoying shaking her head.
“Didn’t Young Master Sang notice the Sect Leader’s feelings?”
“He can be surprisingly dim when it comes to these things.”
“Yeah…” The two girls sighed in unison.
“I wonder if we should drop hints to help him out?” Zhang Xiaoying tentatively asked.
Gu Yingmian thought for a moment but shook her head.
“There’s no rush. It’s fine to wait until the Sect Leader figures it out herself.”
“For this kind of thing… if a boy takes the initiative, it might be more complicated and lengthy. But if a girl does, it’s just about breaking through that flimsy barrier.”
Zhang Xiaoying nodded thoughtfully.
That made a lot of sense.
But if that’s the case… then there are still many barriers at home left to break through.
“Speaking of which, wasn’t it you who confessed first?”
“Eh?” Gu Yingmian blushed bright red all at once, shyly lowering her gaze, “Uh…”
“How did you confess?”
“I, I just… we went out to see some fireworks and out of the blue, my feelings just burst out…”
“Wow! I didn’t expect you, Gu, to seem so pure and innocent while hiding this romantic side in your heart.”
“Hey! Little Ying, you’re teasing me again! Let’s see how I deal with you tonight.”
The two girls began to giggle and tease each other, while Young Master Sang, still lying on the chair gloomily, sighed.
“Sigh.”
“Do you think I should chase after them now and make up for the gift?” he mumbled to himself.
“I can’t let the boss go back empty-handed; they won’t try to make things difficult for me, right?”
“The Sect Leader shouldn’t be that petty, should she?”
“Who knows… maybe I misunderstood the Sect Leader’s hints?”
Watching his distressed expression, Yan Rouwan, who was cradling Jiao Jiao and Hei Xia, seemed a little helpless as she sighed.
“This guy, Sang… no hope.”
“Indeed.” Shi Qingyan nodded in agreement beside her.
Jiao Jiao and Hei Xia meowed along, adding to the moment.
Looks like the whole family surprisingly reached a consensus on this matter.
(I’m so sleepy. I’ll lie down for a bit and continue tomorrow with three updates.)
