This chapter is brought to you by zhopiabee, thanks for the ko-fi! (ﾉ´ヮ`)ﾉ*: ･
After bidding farewell to Grand Princess Duanhua, Shen Qingyao strolled the streets with Cui Qiao, with her face still flushed red. If she were to return home now, she feared she would be teased by her family to death.
The Imperial Examination had begun, and all the examinees had gone to take the test. The bustling capital, which had been lively for quite some time, suddenly seemed empty, quiet, and desolate. Shen Qingyao walked slowly. It was still early, and there were not many people in the streets yet. She yawned slightly, her eyes following the wisps of smoke rising from a breakfast stall on the street corner. Suddenly, she was feeling hungry…
“Cui Qiao! Are you hungry?” Shen Qingyao asked Cui Qiao beside her.
Although Cui Qiao wasn’t hungry, she still nodded in agreement with Shen Qingyao’s suggestion: “Miss, are we going back home? The food at home must be ready.”
However, Shen Qingyao shook her head, rubbing her stomach and pointing to the noodle shop next to them: “Let’s eat noodles here!”
Cui Qiao hesitated, “Miss… I’m afraid this place…” isn’t very appropriate.
Cui Qiao wanted to say more, but Shen Qingyao interrupted her, pulling her towards the noodle shop: “It’s fine! It’s great! Just smell how delicious it is!”
The shop owner standing at the door heard this and chuckled. He welcomed the two of them to sit down and loudly declared, “Young Miss is right! Our wonton noodles here are unique in the capital! Once you try them, you’ll know!”
Excitedly, Shen Qingyao nodded repeatedly and said crisply, “Yes, yes, please give us two bowls of noodles, sir!”
“Alright! Two bowls of wonton noodles! Please wait a moment, guests!” The owner agreed and turned to walk towards the kitchen.
Shen Qingyao pulled Cui Qiao, smiling softly to reassure her overly cautious maid, and managed to make Cui Qiao lose temper with her laughter, so Cui Qiao had to go along with her.
[Host.] The system suddenly spoke when they were waiting for the noodles, [Your persona experience card has expired. Do you want to draw a new one?]
Shen Qingyao paused for a moment, feeling sour about the previous two persona cards. What difference did it make whether to draw or not to draw those persona cards?
“Can you give me a random one?” Shen Qingyao shrugged, no longer particularly interested in the matter, just going along with whatever happened.
The system fell silent, presumably going to draw a random card. Shen Qingyao waited quietly for its response, catching sight of two more people entering the noodle shop. The dim light in the small noodle shop darkened a bit, prompting Shen Qingyao to look towards the door unconsciously.
The two men who entered seemed to be master and servant. The master wore a dark green robe embroidered with verdant bamboo, with a folding fan swaying in front of him, giving off an elegant and refined aura. Behind him was a tall and sturdy bodyguard, with dark skin and a fierce look, making people reluctant to approach easily, and blocking the light was precisely this big guy.
“Boss, two bowls of noodles.” The big guy’s voice was hoarse and his expression fierce, which scared the boss into a daze, standing still for a while before nodding repeatedly in response.
[Host!!! Why is it him!!!] The system didn’t even bother to draw a persona card, it started screaming for her, its tone as if the other party had committed some unforgivable crime.
Shen Qingyao quietly turned her eyes away, pretending that nothing had happened. Indeed, it was not a good person who had arrived. It was none other than Xiao Jing, the major villain she had glimpsed from afar in the Ruyi Pavilion before the New Year.
By now, Shen Qingyao’s noodles were ready. The shop owner brought them over on a tray, then Cui Qiao placed a bowl in front of Shen Qingyao and took the other for herself.
Adhering to the principle of staying away from villains for safety, Shen Qingyao quickly buried her head in her soup, praising how delicious it was while strategically avoiding the villain’s gaze.
However, even if she didn’t want to get close, there was always a villain who wanted to approach her.
Xiao Jing led the bodyguard, his eyes scanning the noodle shop before finally settling on Shen Qingyao’s table. He stepped forward deliberately, slowing down his voice and said, “Miss, the shop is too crowded, and there are no empty tables. Would you mind if I share your table?”
“?” Shen Qingyao raised her head in confusion, feeling nauseated by his inexplicable words.
Using the corner of her eye, Shen Qingyao quietly glanced around. The shop indeed wasn’t large, and there weren’t many customers scattered about. There was only one table nearby, but several tables were empty in the distance. Shen Qingyao glanced at the table, then at the somewhat attractive face of Xiao Jing, and smirked, telling a joke, “No empty seats.”
Shen Qingyao stared at him with a look as if he were a fool, and Xiao Jing finally couldn’t hold back. He glared at the attendant beside him, who immediately understood and occupied the empty table next to them. Xiao Jing then smiled and looked back at Shen Qingyao, as if to say, “See, there are really no empty seats nearby now.”
Shen Qingyao couldn’t understand why this person could shamelessly act so confidently. She didn’t dare to claim herself as a social cow; this person was the true social cow!
If I can’t afford to provoke, I’ll just avoid it. So Shen Qingyao pulled up her vigilant companion, Cui Qiao, and left her seat, gesturing, “Please, have a seat.”
Then she ordered, “Cui Qiao, let’s change tables.” When Cui Qiao picked up both bowls of noodles, Shen Qingyao chose a table far away and was about to leave.
Xiao Jing’s eyes flashed, watching her series of movements with an amused smile. He stopped his subordinate who was about to indignantly intercept her, followed Shen Qingyao, and sat directly opposite her without asking for her consent this time.
“…Are all villains this shameless?” Shen Qingyao was a bit annoyed.
[…The villains are managed by a different department; I have no idea.] The system quickly distanced itself from the situation.
Shen Qingyao took a few more bites of noodles, but with the noticeable gaze from across the table, even the most delicious noodles didn’t taste good anymore. Shen Qingyao put down her chopsticks with a clank, raised her head, feeling somewhat annoyed.
“Sir, we are strangers, what’s the meaning of this?” This was practically being a hooligan!
“I feel a connection with the lady, can we be friends?” Xiao Jing showed a confident smile. Honestly, this villain looked okay, but compared to Lu Zhao, he seemed oily. Can’t he change this centuries-old flirtatious approach? It’s so obvious he has ulterior motives; only a fool would fall for it.
[Host, is he trying to flirt with you?] Oh, there’s really a fool here.
“Be more confident, remove the ‘trying to’.”
Shen Qingyao smiled politely, with a hint of appropriate confusion. But inside, she complained to the system, “He just wants to win over Lu Zhao through me! Am I a fool to let him succeed? If he succeeds, I’m doomed too!”
“Sorry, my Mom doesn’t allow me to talk to strange people.” Shen Qingyao glanced at him; those words ‘strange people’ were practically stamped on Xiao Jing’s chest.
Xiao Jing’s perfect smile froze for a moment; he didn’t expect her to be so indifferent. He paused, “Miss, why be so absolute?”
“Sir, I’m already engaged. My fiancé is handsome and talented. I only love him in this lifetime. Please don’t bother me again!” Shen Qingyao stood up, speaking loudly, drawing the attention of the surrounding diners, who began whispering and gossiping.
Xiao Jing didn’t expect her to be so direct, as if not caring about her reputation at all. His face darkened, gritting his teeth, “Oh? Is that so? I wonder who the lucky groom is?”
Shen Qingyao widened her eyes, angrily saying, “Why should I tell you? Are you harboring inappropriate thoughts about my fiancé? He would never like you!”
She said this even louder, attracting even more attention.
Xiao Jing’s face turned thoroughly black, and the big guy was so angry he stood up, looking as if he wanted to strangle her.
Shen Qingyao was a bit nervous, but she didn’t back down. After all, the villain was still in the budding stage, and she had the backing of the lead’s group.
“Cui Qiao, let’s go!” Shen Qingyao said with a pout, and without finishing her sentence, she hurriedly walked out, as if fleeing.
This time, Xiao Jing didn’t stop her, staring at her retreating figure with an unpredictable expression.
The big guy returned to Xiao Jing’s side, casting a fierce glance around at the onlookers still watching the scene, then muttered angrily, “Master! That youngest daughter from the Shen family is too audacious! How dare she slander you like that!”
Xiao Jing waved his hand, silencing the big guy, but he couldn’t help but think further. Shen Qingyao’s reaction was nothing like that of an ordinary woman meeting a stranger for the first time. It seemed she had known his intentions long before, intentionally bringing up absurd topics…
His eyes narrowed slightly, a dangerous glint flashing through. He had initially thought Shen family’s youngest daughter was just an inexperienced girl who could be easily manipulated with a few casual words. But unexpectedly, she turned out to be interesting.
“Perhaps it was the incident at Ruyi Pavilion that alerted the enemy. Lu Zhao must have noticed something last time and warned her. Otherwise, why would she act like this?” There was no discernible emotion in Xiao Jing’s voice, but those familiar with him knew he was intrigued.
Sure enough, Xiao Jing’s lips curled slightly as he murmured, “Interesting…”
“Oh my god, I’m getting goosebumps all over!” Shen Qingyao, who was hastily leaving the scene, couldn’t help but complain to the system. How could this villain be like this? Was he plucked from some ancient Mary Sue novel?
“Look at that three parts cold, four parts uninhibited, and five parts indifferent smile of his, I really had to try hard not to flip the table right there!”
[Hahaha, Host! What are you thinking? Saying he has impure thoughts about White Moonlight? Have you seen his expression? That cracked me up!] The system laughed loudly.
“What else could it be? If I don’t choke him, he’ll scheme against me! Don’t compare him with the main leads; the best way at times like this is to choke him to death and run away!” She didn’t want to get involved in the conflicts of the leads’ group. She was just a salted fish trying to survive!
Shen Qingyao sighed, thinking that she had already been targeted by the villain. He had seized the opportunity during Lu Zhao’s exam to confront her. It seemed that next time she went out, she must bring her Elder Sister or call Lu Zhao! Even though this villain seemed foolish, when it came to scheming, it was better to make friends with people with high IQ.
Shen Qingyao thought angrily, remembered she had only taken a bite of her noodles, feeling even more frustrated. She added in her mind, once Lu Zhao was done with his exams, she had to lodge a complaint!