"Because Yao-yao's auction item is just too special. If I don't host it myself and someone else takes over, there'll be trouble, you know!" Shen Yushu said.

"What auction item?" Wei Zhao blinked. "Don't tell me it's something like a first kiss again?"

"Whoa, Arrow Boy, you're amazing! Even more on the ball than Genius Shu—guessed it in one go?" Shen Yushu's eyes went wide with surprise. "But it's not a first kiss, okay? The first kiss went to Arrow Boy ages ago..."

"Ahem, Xiaoshu, could you get to the point? If you keep spouting this nonsense, I won't go along with your auction!" Gu Mengyao shot Shen Yushu a glare, cutting him off.

Wang Xinyan and Han Jingyi, however, were staring at Wei Zhao and Gu Mengyao with curious looks. Wang Xinyan was too embarrassed to ask, but Han Jingyi had no such reservations: "Wei Zhao, you and Yao-yao—have you two been secretly an item for a while now?"

"Good grief, we just shared a drink once..." Wei Zhao explained.

"Oh, is that all..." Seeing there was no gossip to be had, Han Jingyi dropped the subject.

Yet Gu Mengyao, even as she felt a faint relief, also felt a twinge of something like disappointment. She could not say why, but she had a vague wish to be misunderstood; now that Wei Zhao had set the record straight, she felt oddly unhappy instead.

"But this time the auction item is still Yao-yao's kiss? Xiaoshu, don't tell me you're planning to fleece Zhong Yongliang again?" It suddenly occurred to Wei Zhao that Zhong Yongliang had returned to school. He had kept a low profile, but Wei Zhao had still caught wind of it.

"Heh heh heh heh, the man's got money to burn. If I don't fleece him, who will?" Shen Yushu said.

"All right, Xiaoshu. If it weren't for raising money for the orphanage, I'd never go along with your nonsense. Hurry home now—I'm starving." Gu Mengyao offered an explanation, though she was not sure whom she was explaining to; in her heart, though, she felt as if she were saying it to Wei Zhao.

Wei Zhao understood now—no wonder Gu Mengyao was going along with Shen Yushu's antics. It was for the orphanage! As for the kiss or whatever, Wei Zhao did not much care; with Xiaoshu around, the young miss could not possibly come out on the losing end.

After returning home, Han Jingyi and Han Xiaochao had dinner at Wei Zhao's villa and then left. Han Jingyi still had the task Wei Zhao had assigned her to attend to, while Shen Yushu sought Wei Zhao out in a mysterious manner, lowering his voice: "Arrow Boy..."

"What is it? We're in our own home—no need for all this secrecy, is there?" Wei Zhao could not help but find Xiaoshu's tiptoeing rather amusing.

"That's true." Shen Yushu chuckled. "Arrow Boy, do you have any of that stuff—a medicine that, when it touches the skin, makes it swell up red real quick? The more vicious the better."

"What do you want it for?" Wei Zhao asked, puzzled.

"Oh, it'll be useful, of course," Shen Yushu said. "Well? Do you have any or not?"

"I do, as it happens, but what do you want that stuff for?" Wei Zhao had no idea what Shen Yushu was up to.

"To protect Yao-yao's chastity, naturally. If you'd rather Yao-yao become secondhand goods, then pretend I never said anything," Shen Yushu said. "Otherwise, you won't be the only man who's ever kissed Yao-yao!"

"Xiaoshu, what are you saying?" Gu Mengyao had just finished clearing the dishes with Wang Xinyan and was coming out of the kitchen when she caught Shen Yushu talking about her being secondhand goods and being kissed by Wei Zhao. She was furious at once: "Do you want a beating?"

"Uh... Yao-yao, I'm only trying to help you!" Shen Yushu had not expected Gu Mengyao to come out just then and hurried to explain.

"Help me? What's between Wei Zhao and me doesn't need your help!" Gu Mengyao's face flushed red with embarrassment. "Go do whatever it is you're supposed to be doing. Meddle any more, and I'll have Wei Zhao turn you into secondhand goods first!"

"Huh?" Shen Yushu was stunned, staring blankly at Gu Mengyao. After a long moment he said, "Yao-yao, did you misunderstand something?"

"Misunderstand what? Misunderstand your head! Aren't you trying to matchmake me and Wei Zhao again? And getting him to turn me into... secondhand goods..." Gu Mengyao grew even angrier when Shen Yushu not only refused to admit it but talked back.

And no wonder she misunderstood. Gu Mengyao had come out of the kitchen and only caught half the conversation; she was no cultivator, so her hearing was not that sharp. If Xiaoshu's voice had not been a little louder than usual, she would not have heard anything at all. As it was, she had caught only fragments and had to guess at the meaning.

But Xiaoshu had said something about turning her into secondhand goods and having Wei Zhao kiss her—was that not just a way of saying he wanted Wei Zhao to push her down? How could Gu Mengyao not be angry? This sort of thing was fine to discuss privately between the two of them—whoever heard of saying it straight to Wei Zhao's face?

"Uh..." Shen Yushu was dumbstruck again for quite a while before he managed: "Yao-yao, you really do like Arrow Boy, don't you—otherwise why would your conscience be so guilty? What Xiaoshu actually said was, I was afraid that after Zhong Yongliang kissed you, you'd become secondhand goods and Arrow Boy wouldn't like you anymore. But you heard it as having Arrow Boy turn you into... Aaaahhhh! Ohhhhh! It hurts! Since when does getting caught mean getting hit? Sister Xinyan, save me!"

Shen Yushu fled upstairs with Gu Mengyao in hot pursuit, while Wang Xinyan hid a smile behind her hand. Having lived here a while, she had come to realize that this place was filled with joy every single day...

"Heh, Xinyan, Yao-yao and Xiaoshu are actually quite easy to get along with. You're more or less used to it here, aren't you?" Wei Zhao asked with a smile and a shake of his head.

"Mm, not bad. Yao-yao and Xiaoshu are both very good to me—they don't treat me like an outsider." Wang Xinyan smiled, a hint of envy in her voice. "It's just that they're still a little polite with me. After all, how long have I known them? Not as long as the two of them have known each other, so their bond runs deeper. When they roughhouse like this, I'd like to join in, but I never get the chance."

"That's true, but you'll get used to it in time," Wei Zhao said. "Compared to me, you're already doing much better. When I first came, those two gave me a hard time—they thought about driving me out day and night."

"What? No way?" Wang Xinyan was startled by Wei Zhao's words. "But they both care about you so much! They actually rejected you at first and wanted to drive you out?"

"Heh, well, back then—when we met on the train—I had just arrived in Songshan City, sent by an elder to protect them," Wei Zhao said. He had never mentioned this to Wang Xinyan before, and now it came up naturally. "A grown man moving into their villa—thinking about it now, anyone would have been less than welcoming."

"But the facts prove you're a gentleman." Wang Xinyan had complete confidence in Wei Zhao's character. Though they slept together and there was no end of little flirtations, before she gave her consent, Wei Zhao could restrain himself and never overstepped by so much as half a step—and that made Wang Xinyan regard him with new eyes. RS

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