Faced with the provocation in Lin Wanzhu’s tone, Yang Zhen’s pretty face showed no sign of panic, her own voice remaining steady.
"Oh, well, thank you so much, Senior Sister."
Yang Zhen’s eyes curved into crescents as she spoke with a beaming smile, placing the brass basin in her hands on the ground.
The clear water in the basin rippled slightly, but not a single drop splashed out.
She walked to Su Yu’s side and wrapped a slender, pale arm tightly around his other one, pressing her soft body against him without reservation. Her breath was fragrant as she whispered,
"Brother Su always trains so hard. His Qi and Blood is as vigorous as a dragon’s, and it’s usually Zhen’Er who helps him... quench his fire at night. I feel so bad that Senior Sister had to trouble herself to lend a hand today."
She enunciated the words "quench his fire" with particular, coquettish emphasis, leaving no doubt as to her hidden meaning.
The smile on Lin Wanzhu’s face stiffened, and her gaze instantly grew sharp.
Yang Zhen, however, acted as if she hadn’t noticed. She tilted her head up slightly, fluttering her eyelashes at Lin Wanzhu, her tone growing even more gentle and demure. "But, Senior Sister, it’s getting very late. Brother Su is exhausted from a long day’s work, and Zhen’Er still needs to help him wash his feet and massage his tired muscles. The night grows deep and cold; perhaps it’s best for you to return to your residence and rest."
How could Lin Wanzhu fail to recognize the girl’s blatant attempt to send her away?
She crossed her arms, puffing out her impressive chest. "It’s fine, I’m not tired. Besides, as you said, it is late. I’ll just spend the night here at the Su Mansion."
At her words, Yang Zhen’s grip on Su Yu’s arm tightened instantly.
Caught between the two women, Su Yu felt the tension in the air become thick enough to cut with a knife.
’At this moment,’ he thought, ’speaking up would be a mistake, but staying silent would also be a mistake. The best response is to be a statue.’
"Senior Sister, you’re the Vice-Patriarch of the Lin Family and a Commander at the Public Security Bureau," Yang Zhen said, refusing to back down, her wide eyes fixed on Lin Wanzhu. "If you were to stay the night at the Su Mansion under such vague circumstances... and word got out, it wouldn’t be very good for your reputation, would it?"
With that, she lifted her delicate chin and turned to Su Yu. "Isn’t that right, Brother Su?"
Su Yu kept his eyes fixed downward, his expression neutral, and remained silent.
Lin Wanzhu let out a cold snort. For some reason, she didn’t press the confrontation.
"Ah Yu, I’ll be heading back then."
Lin Wanzhu turned to Su Yu, her tone reverting to its usual brisk confidence. "I’ve reached the Muscle Forging Realm now. If you ever run into trouble, just come find me. I’ll have your back."
Before she left, she shot Yang Zhen a glance, her eyes holding a barely veiled trace of disdain.
Watching Lin Wanzhu’s green-clad figure disappear at the end of the covered walkway, Yang Zhen bit her red lip, a feeling of indignation swelling within her.
’I’m still too weak!’
’Brother Su is now a top genius, famous throughout the Outer City. He doesn’t need some useless arm candy by his side. If I don’t get stronger soon, he’ll end up getting tangled up with an old woman like Lin Wanzhu!’
’In her eyes, her Brother Su was a young, promising prodigy. An older woman like Lin Wanzhu was completely unworthy of him!’
’Before, her strength was low, and she hadn’t yet taken that final step with Brother Su, so she lacked the confidence to stake her claim.’
’But now, she was Brother Su’s woman. She had even awakened the Wood Spirit Body, giving her limitless potential on the path of Martial Arts. That being the case, she would never allow some unworthy woman to lay a finger on her man!’
"Zhen’Er, ahem..."
Su Yu was about to speak to ease the tension, but before he could finish, a cool, slender finger gently pressed against his lips.
"Brother Su, you don’t have to explain a thing. Zhen’Er knows that everything you do is for the best."
Yang Zhen looked up, a blush rising on her stunningly innocent face. Her gaze was liquid and seductive as she looked at Su Yu, casually gathering her dark hair and tying it into a neat ponytail.
"Doesn’t Brother Su still have some fire left to quench? Zhen’Er will help you quench it right now."
Before her words had even faded, her graceful, tantalizing body slid down along Su Yu’s thigh as she slowly, submissively, sank to her knees...
...right there in the open courtyard, under the cold moonlight!
Zhen’Er’s shockingly bold move made Su Yu’s heart skip a beat, and the Qi and Blood in his entire body surged to his head!
He seized her slender shoulders, swiftly scooped her up into his arms, kicked the door to his room open with a great stride, and rushed toward the bed.
’This girl,’ he thought. ’Ever since her Spirit Body awakened, not only has her figure become more seductive, but her personality has gotten wilder too...’
...
「In the days that followed」 Su Yu’s life fell into a regular, busy rhythm.
He practiced his Fist Technique in the morning to temper his Qi and Blood, reported for duty at the Public Security Bureau to lead patrols during the day, and returned to the Su Mansion at night to train diligently behind closed doors, frantically grinding the Skill Level of his Mountain-Shaking Demon Ape Fist.
With Zhen’Er breaking through to the Flesh Refining Realm and Lin Wanzhu advancing to the Muscle Forging Realm, this string of breakthroughs instilled a powerful sense of urgency in Su Yu.
During this time, however, he also took care of another matter with swift and decisive action.
He began frantically hoarding grain.
Ever since he learned that the Black Lotus Sect’s grand army had mobilized and was pressing toward the borders of Liangzhou, Su Yu was certain that Black Stone City would inevitably be dragged into the meat grinder of war. There was no chance of escape.
He immediately used the large sum of silver in his coffers, having Zhen’Er secretly dispatch people to buy up grain at a frantic pace. He didn’t stop there; he also passed the news on to his master, as well as the Yang Family, Jiang Family, Lin Family, and Qingxi Village.
And just as he’d expected, the influential powers in the city were no fools. Within a mere five or six days, the price of grain on the markets of Black Stone City skyrocketed, jumping three times a day.