Chapter 99: Don’t You Dare Call Him That
“Lu Yingqi that shrinking…” Rong Xie simply couldn’t bear to say Shen Bingsi’s vulgar words. “You called him out?”
“Exactly,” Shen Bingsi said proudly. “No need to thank me too much; it was just a small effort.”
However, the excited thanks and passionate hug Shen Bingsi imagined didn’t appear. Instead, Rong Xie’s face turned ugly instantly. “Are you crazy!”
“?”
“He was in seclusion, and you banged on the door to call him?” Rong Xie was having a breakdown. “You didn’t bang on the door of the seclusion room, did you?”
Shen Bingsi didn’t speak but poked his tongue against his cheek, implying what other door would it be if not the seclusion room door?
“Who likes having people bang on their seclusion room door while in seclusion? Do you?” Rong Xie couldn’t help becoming sharp.
“Um, weren’t you anxious to find him?” Shen Bingsi felt slightly guilty.
“I wanted to find him, not make enemies with him… When you banged on the door, you didn’t mention my name, right?” Rong Xie held onto a sliver of hope.
However, Shen Bingsi extinguished that sliver of hope too.
“I did.” Shen Bingsi cleared his throat, his gaze wandering. “Ahem, I said, my Rong Xie is looking for you…”
“Why did you do that!” Rong Xie broke down. “Why do you make decisions for others so casually!”
Thinking of how hard it was to contact Xiao Zhi and leave a good impression, and just when that good impression could be extended to Lu Yingqi, someone barged in and scattered all of Rong Xie’s painstakingly laid plans.
Shen Bingsi hadn’t expected Rong Xie’s reaction to be so intense either.
Linglong watched from the side with her mouth half-open. The good-tempered Brother Rong in her impression actually got so angry at Sword Saint Shen. She always thought Sword Saint Shen was the one with the worse temper. She didn’t expect that when the two were alone, Sword Saint Shen was the one being scolded by Brother Rong, submissive and afraid to talk back.
Truly unexpected. Just like with Sister Qu before—clearly a woman, yet she could actively pin Brother Rong down. The seemingly weaker party held the dominant position in the relationship. It really made one’s blood boil…
Linglong felt a strange switch flip inside her body. She couldn’t help licking her lips, watching the two quarrel with even more concentration.
“Calm down first…” Shen Bingsi tried to steady Rong Xie, but the moment he was about to touch his arm, he was shaken off.
Rong Xie turned away indignantly, his ears red with anger.
Shen Bingsi had never seen Rong Xie so angry. Before, at Huanxue Villa, he had done more annoying things—like not responding to Rong Xie’s voice transmissions for seven consecutive days, repeatedly breaking promises to come back for dinner, or using the Heaven-Severing Blade when unhappy, restraining all emotions and saying only cold, harsh words… After Rong Xie left, Shen Bingsi had deeply reflected on these matters and realized how ridiculously wrong he was.
But now, he was trying hard to redeem himself. Whoever Rong Xie wanted to see, even if it was someone he hated, he would try his best to drag that person out from Elder Bai’s heavy protection.
Yet Rong Xie wasn’t grateful at all.
“Is he that important to you? You haven’t even met him, yet you’re worried if something will happen to him because his seclusion was interrupted!” Shen Bingsi couldn’t calm down either, his words full of resentment. “Let me tell you, he was just sitting steadily in the seclusion room, while I was outside getting scolded by Elder Bai. You don’t know how protective Elder Bai is. The way he looked then—yes, just like you now—if I touched his precious apprentice even a little bit, he’d want to tear me apart. Are you not worried about me at all?”
“…” Rong Xie felt a headache. Why should he worry about Shen Bingsi? It wasn’t like he asked Shen Bingsi to find Lu Yingqi. However, saying these words would only infuriate Shen Bingsi further. Besides, Linglong was watching; who knew what nonsense Shen Bingsi might spout? He took a deep breath, trying hard to control himself. “So, after Lu Yingqi came out, what did he say?”
“I don’t know!” Shen Bingsi still looked full of resentment. “Before he came out, I was chased away by Elder Bai.”
“…” Rong Xie was speechless. “Then what details were you going to tell me?”
Shen Bingsi had claimed to know the details just to take credit in front of Rong Xie. He didn’t expect to be scolded instead of praised. Now asked to tell details, he couldn’t, so he said sullenly, “Anyway, it was just useless stuff, useless details!”
Seeing him say this, Rong Xie guessed he didn’t know any important details. Shen Bingsi’s thoughts were easy to guess; whatever he didn’t say was written on his face. Rong Xie knew with just a glance.
However, he still couldn’t forgive him for making decisions on his behalf, and for moving next door without telling him.
“Also, what’s the deal with you moving into the house next to mine?” Rong Xie asked.
Shen Bingsi was silent, looking like he was about to explode with anger.
Rong Xie turned his head and said to Linglong, “Lady Linglong, I’m afraid I won’t be done here for a while. I acknowledge the good news you brought. Many thanks to you and Captain Zhao. Let Senior Brother Lu decide the meeting time; I’m free anytime.”
“Ah… oh, okay!” Linglong was still immersed in Rong Xie’s heroic posture of dismissing Shen Bingsi and didn’t react immediately. Then, her blood boiled again. Rong Xie was stern with Shen Bingsi while gentle with her. This differential treatment made her feel genuinely delighted, as if she had suppressed the arrogant Sword Saint Shen in some way.
Rong Xie didn’t know Linglong’s subtle mood. He just found it somewhat difficult that Linglong didn’t seem to get his hint, a strange smile floating on her face. He had to say it directly: “Lady Linglong, I won’t host you today. shall I walk you out?”
Linglong finally reacted. “Oh… no need, no need! I’ll go out myself. You guys chat, you guys chat!”
Rong Xie felt a bit embarrassed for not hosting Linglong because of Shen Bingsi, so he insisted on seeing her out. Before reaching the flower hall door, Linglong ran off first, waving back and telling Rong Xie not to come out.
Rong Xie had to return to the flower hall.
The atmosphere in the flower hall was tense. Shen Bingsi’s face was very ugly. This situation had happened countless times, and Rong Xie felt a headache.
“When will you respect my choices? I don’t have as much energy as you, nor can I cause as much trouble as you. But if you insist on interfering with my life without greeting, I can only move somewhere else again,” Rong Xie said.
However, Shen Bingsi seemed not to hear, his attention elsewhere. “Senior Brother Lu? Why call him Senior Brother Lu? You aren’t from the Xuantian Sect! You haven’t even met him, so why use such an intimate address!”
Rong Xie looked at Shen Bingsi, feeling powerless. How many times did they have to repeat this talking past each other? He simply said recklessly, “Because I want to get close to him and build a connection! Yes, I am indeed not a Xuantian Sect disciple, nor even a Lingjing Sect disciple. But so what? As long as I can build a connection with Lu Yingqi, calling him Brother is no problem.”
Shen Bingsi sucked in a breath of cold air, looking at Rong Xie in disbelief. “Why… Don’t you dare call him that! Don’t call him that!”
Rong Xie had really never called anyone “Brother,” except when he followed behind Shen Bingsi as a child and obediently called him “Big Brother.” Later, after figuring out Shen Bingsi was likely younger than him, he stopped using that address. Shen Bingsi was disappointed about that for a long time.
“Why? What is so important about him? He also cultivates the Ruthless Path, no different from me!” Shen Bingsi shouted loudly. “Whatever emotions I don’t have, he doesn’t have either!”
“What nonsense are you talking about? I’m building a connection with him just for friendship,” Rong Xie rubbed his temples. “Just like with you. If you still want to be friends with me, please accept this point: I will have my own life, my own affairs, and my own friends.”
Shen Bingsi stared at Rong Xie. His ears were still buzzing because Rong Xie said he wanted to call another person “Brother.” This shock couldn’t be eliminated in a short time. He thought he could follow Rong Xie calmly, supporting whatever Rong Xie wanted to do, going along with his wishes, letting him know how useful he was until he couldn’t leave him.
But the first step was wrong. Rong Xie wanted to call someone else “Brother.” That address should have belonged to him alone!
Shen Bingsi covered his face with his hand. He panted heavily, turned around, and walked quickly out of the flower hall, his shoulder hitting the door with a muffled thud.
When Rong Xie looked up, the flower hall door was swinging back and forth in the air, and Shen Bingsi’s figure was gone.
“Why do I feel his emotional fluctuations are getting bigger and bigger…” Rong Xie muttered to himself.
Today’s negotiation ended in failure again. Not knowing what trouble Shen Bingsi would cause in the future, Rong Xie thought about it and decided to ignore it for now.
It was better to handle the important matter at hand first.
How could he reverse the bad impression already left on Lu Yingqi and build a connection with him?
Later that evening, Wang Mu came back from outside. Exhausted from running wild all day, he sat on a small stool eating the food Rong Xie left for him. While eating, he told Rong Xie that the Villa Master seemed to have moved next door. He heard it was a rented house with a three-month lease, and he didn’t bring a single servant, looking like just a temporary stopover.
Wang Mu was always well-informed, knowing even more details than Rong Xie who saw it with his own eyes. Rong Xie asked him to keep an eye on the movement in the neighboring house and tell him immediately if anything happened. Wang Mu agreed.
Early the next morning, Linglong ran over in a hurry. Before Rong Xie went out, he was stopped by her.
“Brother Rong, the time is set, it’s today!” Linglong said breathlessly. “At noon today, Lu Yingqi will come to pick you up. They decided the place. However, there is a request.”
Linglong looked around, especially glancing a few more times at the wall of Shen Bingsi’s courtyard next door.
“He went out yesterday and hasn’t come back,” Rong Xie said.
“That’s great, because Lu Yingqi’s servant boy said they don’t want to see anyone other than Brother Rong.” Linglong lowered her voice. “Especially—Sword Saint Shen.”
“Oh?” Rong Xie was somewhat surprised that Xiao Zhi specifically mentioned Shen Bingsi. However, he hadn’t planned to let Shen Bingsi go over and cause trouble anyway. “Understood.”
After agreeing on the meeting spot with Linglong, the two parted ways. Rong Xie went to the Blue Plateau Manor, requested leave, and hurriedly returned home. He washed and dressed carefully, waiting for the arrival of this key figure.
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