I'm Competing With The Male Lead For A Woman - Chapter 24

Xiao Jin’s thoughts were not enough to disrupt the atmosphere on the other side.

The sound of a lute came from the hall.

Accompanied by a gentle and melodious tune, a songstress on the stage held a jade flute and played a clear song.

Listening to the music, Lan Qing’s eyes narrowed into a slit. She continued to talk about the impatient guest. “That day, a swordsman from the martial arts world came to the building. He looked quite down and out, but he was extremely generous. But this person… was very impatient.”

“It was as if he was in a hurry to be reincarnated. He didn’t even ask whether our sisters were artists or courtesans. He dragged a sister into a room in just a few moves. If it weren’t for Miss Bai arriving in time to take charge, we don’t know how things would have ended.”

Regarding the difference between “artists” and “courtesans” at the Yanyu Pavilion, Xiao Jin had also glanced at it in the original novel.

An artist was likely a girl who was skilled in the four arts: playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. They only sold their art, not their bodies.

In the famous Yanyu Pavilion, the courtesans were a little skilled in painting and calligraphy. They occasionally received some noble guests and were considered to be both artists and courtesans.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Jin frowned slightly.

Since Lan Qing had just said that the man was a down-and-out swordsman, how could he have come to the Yanyu Pavilion for fun and afford the same price as a “noble guest”?

It was a little strange.

Chu Shao smiled faintly, trying to get more information.

But when she casually brought it up, Lan Qing didn’t seem to know any more information. She also didn’t know the swordsman’s specific identity.

She only vaguely remembered that the swordsman looked to be around thirty years old. His facial features were quite upright. He had a long, flexible sword on his back. He had taken it out to show the girls before, and his tone was full of boastfulness.

Lan Qing recalled what happened that day. She continued, “But when the swordsman put his sword away, he seemed to have remembered something. His expression became very solemn, and he even sighed.”

“We didn’t know he was that kind of person before. A sister even asked him, ‘Why are you sighing?’ He just shook his head and oddly muttered a few words, saying that his days were numbered and that he would probably die in a few days. But he was clearly in his prime. Saying such things was a bit preposterous…”

When she heard the long, flexible sword, Chu Shao remembered the black-clothed swordsman she had fought. His sword was indeed very soft.

She had seen him fight Xiao Jin before, and his sword moves were really weak and powerless. But when he met her, his moves became ruthless and merciless.

It was a shame he was still too slow and not very suitable to be an assassin.

Chu Shao’s lips curved into a smile. Could this person be an old acquaintance of Xiao Jin? If that were true, things would be even more interesting.

After getting information about the swordsman, there was still the aromatic pill left to ask about.

Chu Shao reached for a pastry and casually glanced at Xiao Jin, who was quietly drinking tea on the side.

Perhaps because of the snow-white robe, the other person’s cold and solemn aura seemed to have dissipated a lot. Coupled with the white silk scarf that covered her eyes and her legs resting on the bamboo wheelchair, she looked like a fragile jade figure.

Chu Shao recalled the scent of “Chunshankong” in the dark room. She felt that this scent was a perfect match for the current Xiao Jin.

Thinking this, the smile on Chu Shao’s lips deepened. So she lightly raised her hand and casually picked up a lock of Lan Qing’s hair that was hanging on her shoulder.

Looking at the soft luster on the black hair, Chu Shao felt it resembled a hanging sword tassel.

At the same time, she thought that Xiao Jin should also have such a sword and sword tassel. Only then could she hold a blade in the snowy night, face the beasts with bared fangs, and fight to the death as blood splattered everywhere.

That was a very moving sight.

When Su Tan saw Chu Shao playing with Lan Qing’s hair, she opened her eyes wide as if she had unlocked some shocking knowledge.

The hall was filled with bright candlelight. Lan Qing’s face was fair and beautiful, seeming to have a reddish glow.

Xiao Jin sat in her wheelchair, still maintaining her composure.

After all, she was already very familiar with Chu Shao’s yandere nature. She also believed in an eternal law—nothing good comes from being overly attentive.

But what the other person was trying to steal, Xiao Jin couldn’t understand at the moment.

However, if Chu Shao’s action was to help her, Xiao Jin felt that she really didn’t have that kind of luck.

Chu Shao sniffed Lan Qing’s hair. When she raised her head again, she shifted her gaze to Xiao Jin. She smiled and asked, “What a lovely scent. I wonder what kind of perfume my sister uses. I’d like to buy some for my younger sister at home.”

It was only then that Lan Qing knew that the frail woman sitting on the side was Chu Shao’s sister. But it was a shame that she was blind and seemed to have problems with her legs.

While feeling a little pity, Lan Qing was also a little shocked. She didn’t understand why Chu Shao would bring her sister to this kind of place.

Because the shock on Lan Qing’s face was so obvious, even Xiao Jin, who was pretending to be blind in her wheelchair, had a face full of black lines when she heard Chu Shao’s words. Now, a few more appeared.

She really wanted to have a normal teammate, not someone like Chu Shao who always brought up uncomfortable topics.

Seeing Xiao Jin’s cold expression, Chu Shao’s mood inexplicably became even better.

Chu Shao smiled faintly, put down Lan Qing’s hair, and explained, “My younger sister is blind and cannot walk. She only likes to listen to music.”

“I heard that the zither and lute at the Yanyu Pavilion are a must-see. That’s why I came all this way to show her the elegant music of the capital.”

Chu Shao’s nonsense was pretty good. At least Lan Qing believed it.

However, Xiao Jin and Su Tan found a flaw. They both narrowed their eyes at the same time.

Chu Shao had been in the Yao Kingdom all this time. How would she know that the zither and lute at the Yanyu Pavilion were a must-see?

Did she make it up?

But even if she made it up, it wouldn’t be so smooth without even a draft.

The naive Lan Qing suddenly understood. She didn’t notice anything was wrong. She even turned her head with a smile and said to Wan Jun next to her, “Sister Wan, if I’m not mistaken, this piece is ‘Eighteen Stanzas of a Nomad Flute.’ And this scent should be the ‘Chunshankong’ that Miss Bai made, right?”

Wan Jun glanced at Lan Qing, secretly thinking about how reckless Sister Lan was to sell out Miss Bai in just a few sentences.

But when Wan Jun looked up and met Chu Shao’s smiling eyes, she inexplicably felt a little horrified.

So she forced a smile and nodded. She replied, “It’s probably ‘Chunshankong.'”

“‘Chunshankong’? That name is very pleasant to the ear.” Chu Shao got the answer she was satisfied with. She fanned herself and smiled. “I wonder if you sisters have any extra aromatic pills. My younger sister happens to need some fragrance recently. I’d like to buy a few to take back.”

The expression on Chu Shao’s face was very genuine, and her smile was very gentle.

After all, that was what she was thinking.

Ever since Xiao Jin had given all the night mint from the Night’s Rest Pavilion to Su Tan, although there was still some lingering scent on her clothes, the mint scent on her body had gradually faded.

Chu Shao now wanted to find another, more pleasant scent to keep on Xiao Jin’s body and clothes.

Fragrance was a very wonderful thing.

Chu Shao could even imagine that cold scent drifting with the wind, lingering in Xiao Jin’s black hair, eyes, and tightly pursed lips.

It was a beautiful scene.

Just thinking about it made Chu Shao feel very happy. Not to mention, this scent was something she was about to bring to Xiao Jin.

In reality, Xiao Jin didn’t quite understand why Chu Shao wanted to buy “Chunshankong.”

After all, their purpose for coming to the Yanyu Pavilion was to investigate the assassination case, not to buy “Chunshankong.”

Furthermore, they already had that aromatic pill. They had already asked who made it. Shouldn’t the next step be to get close to Bai Zheng? Why did she suddenly want to buy the aromatic pill?

Xiao Jin was silent for a long time. Then she realized that Chu Shao might be the biggest obstacle to her completing her mission.

So she decided to turn the situation around and pull the derailed plot back on track.

In the next moment, Xiao Jin activated her active skill, the talent that the original owner was born with—coughing up blood.

“Cough, cough…”

Xiao Jin frowned and coughed violently.

Even though she had taken out the prepared silk handkerchief beforehand, a few drops of red plum still fell onto her snow-white robe.

Although Xiao Jin was coughing expressionlessly, because her eyes were covered by the white silk scarf, the bloodstains on the snow-white robe made her look a bit frail.

Such a “frail” woman coughing so painfully couldn’t help but make Lan Qing and Wan Jun feel sorry for her. They wanted to hand Xiao Jin a handkerchief.

But as soon as they stood up and were about to get a handkerchief, they saw that the “Young Master Chu,” who had just been gentle and friendly, was no longer next to them.

Lan Qing was a little confused. How could a living person just disappear?

When she looked over again, Chu Shao had already leaned down and was kneeling beside Xiao Jin’s wheelchair. She was smiling and raising her hand, gently wiping the bloodstains from her lips.

“…”

Teleportation? How did she do that?

This was the scene that Lan Qing and Wan Jun saw.

They had no idea that the real situation was even more bizarre.

The person involved, Xiao Jin, was fortunate enough to witness everything.

At first, she activated her blood-coughing skill just to interrupt Chu Shao’s magical way of thinking. But when she coughed up blood while wearing this dress, it seemed to have triggered one of Chu Shao’s magical passive skills.

The reason Xiao Jin found it magical was that when Chu Shao found her coughing up blood and moved in front of her with a ghostly movement, Xiao Jin noticed that the joy on the other person’s face was almost overflowing.

Even with a layer of white silk between them, Xiao Jin could see the smile on Chu Shao’s lips and the raised hand hidden in her sleeve.

When she was wiping the bloodstains, her fingertips trembled slightly.

Xiao Jin looked at this scene and thought, Her hands are shaking so much. I don’t know how she could hold a sword so steadily.

Chu Shao seemed to be unaware. She was still holding the silk handkerchief and wiping the blood for Xiao Jin.

It wasn’t until she had wiped the blood from Xiao Jin’s lips that she held the other person’s cold fingers and carefully wiped the blood from between her fingers with a new white handkerchief.

Looking at Xiao Jin’s fingers becoming clean again, Chu Shao’s mood was very pleasant.

But when she raised her head and saw Xiao Jin’s pale lips, her words seemed to carry a hint of regret. “It’s a pity. The cinnabar on your lips has also been wiped off.”

Xiao Jin: “…”

Lan Qing and Wan Jun, who were watching the show, were already stunned.

“Your”? What kind of strange word is that? Using an honorific for your sister? Is that some kind of special fetish?

Chu Shao was very sick. It was even to the point where it could be contagious. At this moment, Xiao Jin’s hand was being held by Chu Shao, and it was also trembling a little.

But it was because she was angry.

Xiao Jin had no other thoughts now. She just wanted to ask Chu Shao, “Princess Consort, do you still remember that you’re acting and that your current identity is my older brother?”

Su Tan, who was sitting on the side, couldn’t bear to look.

Everything today, whether for her or for the two girls from the Yanyu Pavilion, had a certain level of impact on them.

She could only sigh, “You live and you learn.”

Just as Xiao Jin was in despair, feeling that the situation was getting out of hand, a young servant in a blue robe came down from the building.

He didn’t seem to notice the tense atmosphere in the room. Instead, he walked over and respectfully bowed to Xiao Jin. “Miss, Miss Bai Zheng has sent me to inform you that she would like to invite you upstairs for a talk.”