Chapter 945: Tease and Flirt

“Then I must see which young lady has my little brother so hopelessly smitten.”

Sister Hong’s voice pulled Ye Wenxin out of her thoughts. Her expression returned to normal as she listened to the storyteller recount yesterday’s tale of Long Qingyue singlehandedly taking on renowned figures.

Even if some parts were exaggerated, Long Qingyue’s talents and education were beyond question. It was no overstatement to call her both gifted and exceptionally hardworking.

She was extremely disciplined and self-restrained. Though talismans were her specialty, she also excelled in other scholarly and artistic pursuits, living up to her reputation as the foremost talented woman in the world.

Yet few had seen Long Qingyue’s face. And given it was common knowledge she had crippled legs, who would ever associate the perfectly fit Miss Yue with Long Qingyue?

Watching the storyteller describe yesterday’s events animatedly, Ye Wenxin suddenly thought that perhaps ignorance was bliss.

But as Sister Hong listened to the increasingly exaggerated parts of the tale, her expression grew incrementally complicated. “Little brother, are you sure you love her?”

“Of course, Sister. Why else would I try so hard if I didn’t?” Young Master Lü’s face turned red. He grew flustered under Sister Hong’s questioning, afraid of her disapproval.

Sister Hong looked like she wanted to say something but hesitated. She gently rested a hand on his shoulder, sighed, and finally spoke. “Little brother, even though you’re my brother, I still have to give you a reality check.”

“What do you mean? Do you think we’re not well-matched in status?”

“No, it’s the opposite. Do you really think a girl that outstanding doesn’t have a fiancé? That she doesn’t come from a powerful family background? I fear our Fang family cannot reach that high.”

Unlike the emotional Young Master Lü, Sister Hong was rational in her analysis. Because Miss Yue was so exceptional, her plain and ordinary little brother didn’t have the qualifications to pursue the young woman.

Ye Wenxin nodded along in agreement. For some reason, hearing all this pleased her a little.

But Young Master Lü refused to accept it. He turned to Ye Wenxin, the person most agreeable to him, hoping she would back him up against Sister Hong, only to catch her nod.

“Celestial Master Ye, why are you nodding?” Young Master Lü’s flushed face turned a shade darker as if indignant.

“No, no, I was nodding to encourage you! Young Master Lü, you’ve got this in the bag!”

Ye Wenxin kept bluffing, but she also didn’t believe her words. Still, since Young Master Lü was currently her employer, offering a few hollow words of comfort was well within the scope of service.

“You guys, you’re not thinking this too, are you?” What little confidence Young Master Lü had was quickly unraveling. He looked around, hoping to find some agreement among the others, but all he got was silence.

“You—! You’ll be the death of me!” Young Master Lü snapped, picking up his pace. His young servant hurried after him.

Behind them, Sister Hong started laughing. Ye Wenxin felt she might have slightly misunderstood her character. She’d seemed like the warm, big-sisterly type, but how could someone who worked in a place like the Treasure Pavilion still hold on to a naïve heart?

Her skill in teasing her little brother was so polished. Clearly, she had done it before. It almost seemed like she enjoyed making sport of him.

“Celestial Master Ye, why are you looking at me like that?”

Ye Wenxin’s expression was complicated, and Sister Hong quickly noticed the shift in her mood. She blinked in confusion. “Celestial Master Ye, why are you looking at me like that?”

“I just think you have a pretty smile, Sister Hong,” Ye Wenxin said with a smile to steer the conversation elsewhere. She silently prayed Sister Hong wouldn’t read too much into it.

Sister Hong froze before suddenly running off to give Young Master Lü a hard, angry slap on the shoulder.

“Ow! Sister, what was that for?!” Young Master Lü cried out in pain, picking up his pace to run away.

Ye Wenxin stared blankly at the scene. She turned to the others and asked, “Did I say something wrong?”

Why had her attempt at flattery made Sister Hong flee the scene? But no one offered her an explanation. Instead, they all gave her looks that were a mix of annoyance and wariness, as if afraid they might be the next target of Ye Wenxin’s flirting.

“Say something. Was I not supposed to flatter her just now?” Ye Wenxin earnestly sought their input. Unfortunately, no one seemed to acknowledge her sincerity and instead picked up their pace.

“She’s our employer’s older sister! Isn’t it normal for me to compliment her?!” Ye Wenxin assumed her flattery had somehow offended the group. But wasn’t a little buttering-up part of human nature? She couldn’t figure out why everyone was acting so weird about it.

Still, no one responded. They only walked away faster.

Ye Wenxin was frustrated but saw a crowd gathering in the distance. Realizing something interesting was happening, she quickly approached and squeezed through.

And sure enough, even though Long Qingyue hadn’t arrived yet, Young Master Lü and Yu Xian were already at each other’s throats again.

“Little brother, don’t lower yourself to his level,” said Sister Hong.

“Big brother, this is so embarrassing! Must you turn on each other over a girl?!”

Yu Xian’s younger sister and Sister Hong were exasperated. They had known each other for over a decade, and the two brothers had never fought so viciously.

Despite their sisters’ words of reason, the men didn’t stop glaring at each other. Then, in perfect unison, they shouted, “Not unless he gives up on Miss Yue!”

Immediately after, the two nearly lunged at each other. They even threw out a “Why are you copying what I say?!” simultaneously and with equal venom.

Their brotherly synchronicity ironically came out at this moment. The next second, the two tumbled across the grass, throwing punches at each other.

It was supposed to be a fight, but their clumsy, flailing moves made them look more like kittens pawing at each other than anything. To everyone watching, it was nothing short of a joke. Sister Hong and Yu Xian’s sister felt deeply embarrassed on their behalf.

“Who dares start a fight in Six Academy?!”

The dean made a dramatic entrance after someone had informed him of the situation. The two rolling on the ground scrambled to their feet at once, terrified of his presence.

The dean gritted his teeth upon seeing the two rascals. “You two again! Was yesterday’s punishment not enough for you?!”

Young Master Lü and Yu Xian quickly threw their arms around each other’s shoulders, plastering on fake smiles to pacify him.

“Dean, we were just messing around.”

“Yeah, we’re as close as brothers!”

The dean’s arrival finally ended the ridiculous spectacle. Not that he bought a word of their excuses. He immediately launched into a lecture. The bystanders had no intention of leaving either, happily sticking around to watch these two pampered troublemakers being chewed out.