Chapter 435: Willingly Hooked

Long Qingyue still seemed a bit unhappy and asked, “Why not?”

Ye Wenxin explained helplessly, “There’s no need to bring a third person into this.”

This time, Long Qingyue laughed, with a carefree abandon that she had never shown before. Ye Wenxin felt a swirl of complex emotions, and she started wondering if she should find out more about Long Qingyue’s recent activities and kill off anyone who might be trying to get close to her.

“This one-year promise is just between the two of us.”

“But didn’t you say you’d get married?”

Long Qingyue nodded, her voice calm and steady as she said, “Yes, if you don’t come find me within a year, I’ll tell the whole world that you, Gu Qingcheng, are going to marry me, Long Qingyue.”

Ye Wenxin felt as if she were still dreaming; Long Qingyue’s statement made no logical sense. Why should she end her unmarried life for failing to take the lead? Also, why was it that she had to get married, instead of Long Qingyue marrying her? Nothing about this made sense. However, it seemed that breaking the promise might actually be more beneficial.

As Ye Wenxin pondered the weight of the promise, Long Qingyue’s expression became odd. “Don’t dwell on those pointless things, I’m just planning to tarnish your reputation. Oh, and once I announce it to the world, I will kill all your mistresses.”

Ye Wenxin stared in shock, and as if she felt it wasn’t enough, Long Qingyue added, “And that includes the non-humans too, you know, like the ghosts.” Long Qingyue’s smile was radiant, and it made Ghost Mother, who had been ready to argue, shrink back into the umbrella sword, as she realized that not only was Long Qingyue insane, but she was also merciless.

It was in that moment that Ye Wenxin fully grasped just how vicious Long Qingyue could be.

Long Qingyue had said she was tired of being best friends, so she wanted to transform their relationship into something new. This relationship was nominally termed ‘wives’, but in fact, being unable to touch, caress, or seize anyone else, was a fate more miserable than being single.

Ye Wenxin wouldn’t have minded it before, but she had gained the peach blossom chains, which required her to build more relationships to upgrade, marrying Long Qingyue would stifle her potential. Ye Wenxin realized she had fallen into a pit, and Long Qingyue had buried her deeply within it, making escape impossible.

“Isn’t… isn’t this worse than death?”

“Not at all. At least you still have wealth, power, and the title of Princess Consort. Isn’t that quite good?” Her tone was light, and there was obvious indolence in her eyes as she gently rested her hand on the armrest. The blood-red lion had transformed into a huge, relaxed cat.

Compared to others’ luck, Long Qingyue’s could manifest in two distinct forms.

It could either be a regal lion emperor, or an enchanting cat that led people astray; Long Qingyue’s villainous status was markedly different from others. She was now negotiating a deal with Ye Wenxin that seemed destined for Ye Wenxin to lose out, yet on a subconscious level, Ye Wenxin felt she would gain immensely.

Marrying Long Qingyue seemed like a significant gain, but when she considered Long Qingyue’s love for mischief and manipulation, Ye Wenxin felt she might not be able to handle it.

“Forget it, I’ll definitely come to find you within a year!” Ye Wenxin had a clear picture of the pros and cons. After resolving the issues in Yangzhou City, she only had to deal with matters concerning the Beast Taming Garden and Cosmos Academy.

Schedule-wise, Ye Wenxin had plenty of free time. Regardless, she was confident she could fulfill the promise with Long Qingyue within a year.

“Alright, I shall wait and see.” Long Qingyue didn’t say more, and just as Ye Wenxin was about to resume pushing her, she suddenly recalled something.

“Hold on, if you get a reward from this promise, shouldn’t I also receive a reward for fulfilling it?” Ye Wenxin finally realized what seemed off, and Long Qingyue fiddled with her sleeve. “Well, what would you like, Qingcheng?”

However, Long Qingyue’s question put Ye Wenxin at a loss.

Ye Wenxin already had everything she needed, and what she was lacking was just the three women needed to complete the three peach blossom branches. However, Ye Wenxin would rather live for several more years than ask Long Qingyue for women, so she said, “How about a few inheritance manuals?”

Long Qingyue shook her head slightly. “Inheritance manuals are not like cabbages you can grow and then harvest.”

Ye Wenxin smiled but said nothing. She knew there was a woman who treated ancient manuals as casually as cabbages. If it weren’t for the meddling Great-Grandma in that woman’s necklace, Ye Wenxin might have already obtained the other ancient manuals. However, she couldn’t discuss this with Long Qingyue, so she just offered a perfunctory smile.

While the two continued walking, the Secret Guards were still waiting outside the Mo Clan Stronghold. They appeared very excited upon seeing Long Qingyue. Once Ye Wenxin let go of Long Qingyue’s wheelchair, one of the Secret Guards immediately prepared to approach, but Long Qingyue stopped them.

The Secret Guard, startled, stepped back and kept their head bowed, clearly harboring instinctive fear towards Long Qingyue. Long Qingyue glanced at Ye Wenxin and said, “Miss Wenxin, take care.”

Ye Wenxin returned to her usual demeanor at this address, and cupped her fist. “Likewise, Your Highness. May you have a smooth journey.”

Long Qingyue smiled gently. She took out a flying magic item from her bag of holding and signaled to the Secret Guard. They immediately approached, carefully assisting Long Qingyue onto the palanquin, which then soared into the sky.

The other Secret Guards followed suit, taking to the air themselves, soon filling the sky with countless black dots, with only Long Qingyue’s flying magic item standing out conspicuously. Ye Wenxin looked up and saw Long Qingyue still gazing at her. Long Qingyue gave a soft smile, raised her pinky finger, and mouthed something.

Instinctively, Ye Wenxin also extended her pinky in response, and Long Qingyue left with the Secret Guards right after.

The Mo Clan Stronghold immediately became desolate. Ye Wenxin intended to turn and leave, only to suddenly remember that she had forgotten to ask Long Qingyue an important question.

“So, was Mo Niancheng actually Yue’er?”

Yet, all that remained was empty air and the lingering illusion of that kiss. Ye Wenxin felt a bit dazed, thinking she hadn’t slept enough, so she ran back to her room hoping to sleep, but it eluded her.

The unexpected turn of events with Long Qingyue left Ye Wenxin with a sense of anticipation, the kind that itched at her mind and made her restless.

“Master, I’m hungry.” With the hindrance finally gone, Ghost Mother happily came out to demand food from Ye Wenxin. Ye Wenxin nodded, and Ghost Mother indulged in Yin energy as usual.