At this moment, Sikong Yue was completely bewildered.
To be honest, just now she had wanted to break the window paper to see whether this fellow Gu Wangchen actually dared to ignore Miss Su’s wishes and forcefully “enter the bridal chamber.”
If he really dared, she would definitely have to step in and save Miss Su.
But in the end, she held herself back.
For no other reason than that this job was hard to come by, and besides… it seemed, perhaps… Miss Su did this for a living?
She remembered that, once, she’d seen a little illustrated booklet under her senior sister’s bed. Some of the men who came to these pleasure houses most enjoyed this kind of pretend coercion.
Back then, her senior sister had even analyzed it with a serious face, saying it heightened excitement for both parties, making business more efficient and enjoyable.
After hearing this theory, Sikong Yue’s innocent little heart was deeply shocked.
That’s why, when she heard the sounds of struggle inside, she thought it was that situation her senior sister spoke of.
And now, the reason she burst in was because she sensed demonic energy!
A demon was present!
The moment she thought of this, she couldn’t care less about any “pretend coercion.” She drew her sword and kicked the door open.
If she really caught a demon and saved the two people inside, wouldn’t she get a reward from the manager?
She could even imagine the trembling Gu Wangchen kneeling at her feet, thanking her for saving his life, and by the way, returning her lost money!
But who could have guessed things would turn out like this?
Sikong Yue’s eyes went wide, her pupils shining with disbelief.
This… this…
Looking at Su Qianhua straddling Gu Wangchen, her hair in disarray, clothes askew, and seeing the two of them intertwined on the bed, Sikong Yue’s brain suddenly short-circuited.
Where was the demon? Why was it nowhere to be seen?
Why were these two just engaged in this “pretend coercion” nonsense!!!
And it even looked like the woman was forcing the man.
Her heart was once again struck, and she instinctively averted her gaze, refusing to look at the scene that left her cheeks burning.
A deep, awkward silence fell among the three. The boudoir was so quiet, one could hear a pin drop.
Gu Wangchen glanced at Su Qianhua, who had instantly retracted her fox ears and tail, her golden hair turning back to black, and even the faint blush of the markings at the corners of her eyes disappearing. He immediately understood her weakness.
So, she was this afraid of her demon fox identity being exposed.
Thinking this, he turned to glance at Sikong Yue, whose cheeks were flushed, cleared his throat, and was the first to speak:
“Who are you anyway, barging in so thoughtlessly during such an affectionate moment between Miss Su and me?”
He reached out and wrapped an arm around Su Qianhua’s waist, using her moment of daze to sit up and pull her into his embrace.
Just as Su Qianhua instinctively tried to struggle, he shot a glance back and forth between them and reached up, making a “pinch the fox ear” gesture atop her head.
“You…” Su Qianhua gritted her silver teeth. She wanted to snap back, but then remembered what Gu Wangchen was doing, and immediately understood his intention.
This guy wanted to deal with the intruder together, first!
Her beautiful eyes flashed, and she instantly made up her mind.
Cooperate for now, get rid of the troublemaker, then settle things with this guy afterward—fight it out, win or lose, life or death!
“Young Master Gu, that person is…”
Su Qianhua instantly switched to a seductive tone, her bright eyes fluttering, her expression soft and vulnerable, pitiful enough to stir anyone’s heart.
She even snuggled into Gu Wangchen’s arms in a show of fear.
“Don’t worry, Miss Su. No matter who barged in, I, Gu, will make her pay the price!”
With that, Gu Wangchen turned and looked at Sikong Yue, who was frozen like a statue, and raised his voice: “Bold one! You broke into Miss Su’s boudoir uninvited, sword in hand—are you here to commit murder?”
“I—I’m not!”
Hearing that all-too-familiar, teeth-grinding voice, Sikong Yue snapped out of it, sheathed her sword, and hurriedly protested, “I just sensed demonic energy in the room and was worried a demon had broken in, so I came to save you!”
“Demonic energy?”
Gu Wangchen sneered, pulling Su Qianhua closer and scanning the room before speaking with a slow, lazy tone: “But Miss Su and I have been here all along, and neither of us sensed any demonic energy, let alone a demon.”
“Isn’t that right, Miss Su?”
“Mm, what Young Master Gu says is true. I know my own boudoir well—how could there be a demon~”
Gu Wangchen smiled lightly and looked at Sikong Yue with interest. “So now I’m starting to doubt your real intentions.”
“And besides…”
Not giving her a chance to respond, he sized up Sikong Yue’s outfit, then pretended to have a sudden realization. “Haven’t I seen you before? Wasn’t it yesterday at the entrance to Ba Bridge… huh?”
“Sikong Yue!”
“Oh, Lady Sikong,” Gu Wangchen clicked his tongue and teased, “So you’re working as a guard at Jingfang Pavilion now? No more adventuring? Or maybe not fishing anymore?”
“You!”
She might have been able to hold back before, but now, at the mention of this, Sikong Yue’s anger surged uncontrollably.
Why had she ended up working at Jingfang Pavilion?
Wasn’t it because of this damned Gu Wangchen!
He’d caused her to lose her travel money, left her penniless, and she’d even missed the free meal at Ci’en Hall!
Sure, she’d lost her money before running into Gu Wangchen, but society was corrupt, the higher ups set the trend, and it was precisely because Chang’an was full of wastrels like Gu Wangchen that so many thieves appeared.
So, she had to deal with the ringleader!
Thinking of this, she snapped back at Gu Wangchen’s provocation: “Gu, you’ve got some nerve blaming me! Yesterday you blocked Ba Bridge, wasted so many people’s time entering the city, and even caused me to… to miss an important appointment.”
“Important appointment?”
Gu Wangchen scoffed, then lowered his head to ask the beauty in his arms, “Miss Su, that’s the one I told you about just now—the lady hero who rolled bait into a fist and dove into the river to catch fish.”
“I even had someone check—her so-called important appointment was just to beg for food at Ci’en Hall, and she didn’t even get it in the end.”
“Eh? So it’s this lady hero? She looks so dignified—how could she do such a thing?” Su Qianhua responded in a charming voice, the coquettish tone nearly lifting the roof.
“You… you two…”
Seeing how in sync the pair was, Sikong Yue felt her whole body burning, trembling as she stammered, “Ugh, I’m not arguing with you about that! I just want to know—where’s the demon?”
“I told you, there’s no demon.” Gu Wangchen dug at his ear and said disdainfully, “I think you’re just here to get back at me, deliberately interrupting the fate between Miss Su and me.”
“I’m not! I really sensed demonic energy—I was worried for your safety!”
Sikong Yue immediately argued, “If you don’t believe me, we can have the Demon Suppression Division of the Jingting Guard come check. They’ll definitely be able to detect residual demonic energy in the room!”
“Let the Demon Suppression Division get involved?”
Gu Wangchen glanced at Su Qianhua. The two exchanged a look, came to a decision, and then played along: “Then what will Miss Su (Young Master Gu) and I do tonight?”
“Huh? What…”
Only halfway through did Sikong Yue realize what the “do” in their synchronized “what will we do” meant.
Her ears flushed red, and she quickly shook her head to dispel the eighteen-plus images from her mind, saying hastily, “But I really did sense demonic energy! What about your safety…”
“Enough, Sikong Yue, Lady Sikong, I don’t know why you’re so insistent there’s a demon in Miss Su’s boudoir, nor can I guess your real intentions.”
With that, he glanced at Su Qianhua in his arms.
“Mm… Young Master Gu, could it be that Lady Sikong admires you as well, and is a bit… unwilling to see the two of us…” Su Qianhua’s gentle voice was filled with concern and a hint of unspeakable grievance.
“Hah? You think I admire him?!”