Book 15: Chapter 22
Flowers Bloom. Flowers Rain. Flowers Hail.
Needless to say, I had no basis to interrogate the assassin I carried back to Liu Shan Men. Putting aside the probability of him being as mentally demented as his family being rich, I couldn’t afford to offend his associates. After all, not even Prime Minister Li dared to explicate his identity publicly. I would probably have landed myself in hot water if I accused Blue Prince of sending an assassin after me.
Blue Prince was apparently one of the few Princes with a good head, good being defined as undesirably clever if you were his enemy. If you compared him to his brothers, then I couldn’t be wrong – with the exception of Green Prince. Despite being the sixth youngest, he proved himself capable at a young age with his many merits. He then went on to become the only Prince to oversee two cities. It was understandable for him to be proud when he had been treated as a precious gem since he was a kid.
As Blue Prince’s turf include Beiping, it stood to reason that he kept a pulse on the north’s martial arts community. Shaolin and Wudang picked their Prince long ago. Among the three biggest sects, Mount Daluo was the only one left that hadn’t aligned with a Prince. More than likely, Blue Prince already designated Mount Daluo as an important sect to win over. Had it not been for the fact that my brothers were hard to find, and it was hard to climb our mountain, we probably would’ve run out of room for gifts already. That was until Young Shiyi gave him a thrashing…
Blue Prince lost faith in Mount Daluo after Young Shiyi’s actions, and he realised the threat we posed, especially Young Shiyi. After all, she didn’t take his status into account, had the ability to summon an enormous force, and she was a dangerous fighter. Therefore, resorting to violence to deal with us was a reasonable conclusion… until I ran into his assassin.
My suspicion had changed to suspecting Blue Prince wanted to kill two birds with one stone. In the event that his assassin succeeded, Blue Prince would more than likely had claim that his assassin acted out of his own volition. Any grudges that formed between Feng Clan and Mount Daluo as a result were problems reserved for His Majesty and Feng Clan. In the scenario that his assassin failed, he got rid of a brain-dead subordinate without having to do the dirty work himself. As a matter of fact, he could’ve leveraged it to pit Feng Clan and me against each other. You know what they say, strike venomously.
The good thing about Blue Prince was that he had a functioning brain, which meant that he could be reasoned with. That being the case, it was best to not make an enemy out of him if possible. To begin with, there was no enmity between us to begin with. If anything, Young Shiyi was to blame for hitting him first, although there was no way we would’ve accepted him hitting her back. Since he just took a beating, though, I guess there was no bad blood. In any case, we needed to discuss it.
“So, that’s why you barged in while I was washing?”
Despite there still being a veil of steam from the hot water, the sword in Boss’ hand and her smile were ice cold. If it weren’t for those facts, it would’ve been the most seductive scene you could’ve been in.
Boss thrust at my head! Considering her improvements, I would’ve been skewered if this happened a few days ago. This skill of ducking a strike without shifting my gaze was a one Shifu taught me when he once had to use it at a brothel. It required both the return of my abilities and the knowledge, or I would’ve perished.
“And you’re still staring!”
“No, I’m not!”
“Explain your drool.”
“I am strategically staring.”
Boss didn’t know that her moist assets jiggled as she thrusted her sword. Of course, my response forced me to dodge another three thrusts.
“Still going to claim it was an accident?!”
“The heavens can prove I didn’t mean to barge in!”
“Even if I believe you… wipe your bloody nose.”
Your fault for trying to attacking me three more times.
Boss knew the Princes from childhood, and I didn’t know who better to discuss the assassination with, so I came over when Boss happened to return late at night. Yes, I heard Boss and the sound of water when I was outside. However, I thought she was just washing her face, so I welcomed myself in. Plus, Boss usually washed after midnight, but she washed earlier for some reason tonight. I also didn’t know she kept her sword beside her when she washed up.
Boss fastened her towel around her and stared at me without batting an eye or saying a word even though she wanted to. Compared to the past, she was less… casual. In the past, she would’ve just lashed out at me for a while, literally kicked me out, got dressed, and then came out to beat me up again, only stopping once I was bleeding. Otherwise, she’d pretend to seduce me to lure me closer, and then she’d clap me with an inkstone, then leisurely get dressed while I was nursing my face. Or, she would’ve coyly scolded me for a bit and then let the matter go. This time, however, she was angry and panicked. She gave the impression that she wanted to reproach me, but she couldn’t find the words, wanted to hit me, but couldn’t bear to. She didn’t blush or react as an inexperienced maiden would, though. She was just mad. She loved using profanity, but she rarely got mad.
Come to think of it, it feels like Boss has been avoiding me, but why?
Boss leaned on the tub for a while to think, then slotted her sword into the ground. “Wait!”
“Y-yes, Ma’am.”
Boss, staring at me, retreated and puffed her cheeks. “No looking!”
“I swear I won’t.”
Boss retreated behind the screen, then waited to confirm I wasn’t trying anything before she actually got dressed. She didn’t seem to realise that I could see her silhouette thanks to the design of the screen and the candle! I spun around the other way after catching a glimpse of her entire nude silhouette.
“Feizhen, what’s the matter?”
“N-n-nothing! I’m fine, ahahaha, just a little warm, haha…”
I didn’t peek, but I couldn’t block my ears. In turn, I couldn’t stop myself from having vivid imaginations. I tried shaking the thoughts out of my head, but it didn’t work. Therefore, I looked down to cast my focus elsewhere, only to see a big tub of warm water with flower petals floating on the surface. I could smell… Boss. Once again, I saw images of the water caressing her skin.𝐛𝗲𝐝𝐧𝗼𝐯𝐞𝐥．𝐜𝐨𝗺
I gulped.
No, don’t get the wrong idea! I’m no sick pervert! I was just researching! Studying! Exploring!
“Vice-captain, I have an urgent matter to report!”
In my moment of panic, I blurted, “C-come in,” before I realised my mistake.
“What do you mean, ‘Come in’?! I’m still looking for my clothes!” grouched Boss.
I happened to spot Boss’ pyjamas sitting right next to the tub. She clearly forgot to grab them when she hurriedly retreated behind the screen.
“Hmm? Big Bro? Are you inside? I’m coming in,” announced Tang Ye.
“I’m changing!”
“You’re changing in Vice-captain’s room?”
I could virtually feel the temperature on the other side of the screen rise, but what options did I have?
“Yes! So don’t come in!”
“… Okay.”
Phew.
“But it’s fine for me to wait inside, right?”
Tang Ye pushed the doors open!