As it was a confidential task assigned by the White Jade Sect, however, Zu An couldn't really ask anything else about it. He nodded, indicating that he hoped everything would go smoothly. Then, he was forced to play five-in-a-row with Hei Baizi. Xie Xiu brought them tea as if he had just received a great amnesty.

The students outside all began to discuss with each other.

“Who is that person? Even Hei Baizi is treating him with such respect.”

“Is he another chess saint?”

“No way! There’s no one better at chess than Hei Baizi. Even the libationer said that in terms of chess, he wouldn’t necessarily be a match.”

“Sigh, I suddenly think that this man is really handsome. He doesn’t seem to be worse than big brother Xiu at all!”

“Wow, what a traitor. Big brother Xiu is the most handsome man in the world.”

“But this man is also pretty handsome! Besides, he’s not the same type of handsome as big brother Xiu. He seems a bit more masculine…”

Before the student could even finish, she was immediately assaulted with a barrage of words from the others.

“What? Are you saying that big brother Xiu isn’t manly?”

“That… That’s not what I meant…”

“Have you all really not heard of him? That’s Zu An, who just achieved a great contribution to our country. He’s so young, and yet he’s already a marquis! Furthermore, he’s the most popular subject from the Eastern Palace. His future prospects are limitless.”

“So that’s who he was!”

…

Chu Chuyan couldn't help but smile when she heard their conversations. It was as if she had returned to her life back at Brightmoon Academy. Even though she hadn’t participated in such things at all back then, her little sister Huanzhao was quite interested in such affairs and would often talk about them next to her, just like the students right now.

Hmph, it’s fine as long as they don’t go after Ah Zu, she thought. What did the number of girls who liked Xie Xiu have to do with her, anyway?

Just then, a figure hurriedly rushed down from the mountains, moving very quickly. If Chu Chuyan hadn’t quickly moved to the side, they would have bumped into each other.

“Sorry, sorry,” said the other figure, bowing hastily. She was a woman with delicate and refined features. Even though she was rushing, there was still an indescribable scholarly air to her.

“Huh? Miss Xie?” Chu Chuyan voiced her surprise when she saw who it was.

The other woman was stunned. When she raised her head and saw that it was Chu Chuyan, she was also surprised, replying, “Miss Chu?”

The one who had appeared was none other than Xie Daoyun. She had heard about Zu An’s arrival at the academy, and was so happy that she sprinted out of her training study, but she hadn’t expected to run into Chu Chuyan’s arms.

“It’s been a while; Miss Xie is still as elegant as ever,” Chu Chuyan said, feeling happy to meet an old friend in a foreign place.

Previously, in Brightmoon City’s social circles, the two couldn't really be considered confidantes, but they had been friends who admired each other’s talents.

“Miss Chu’s gracefulness is truly stunning,” Xie Daoyun said with a sigh. Chu Chuyan had already been called a fairy by everyone in Brightmoon City. Now, that immortal demeanor was even more evident; she had an enviably aloof air.

The two of them exchanged conventional greetings, but then Chu Chuyan recalled how Xie Daoyun seemed to be in a hurry. That didn’t seem to match her usual gentle and quiet nature, so Chu Chuyan couldn't help but ask with a smile, “What made Miss Xie run so quickly? Don’t tell me you’re rushing to see a lover?” She rarely made such jokes; it was just because she was in a good mood that she decided to say that.

Xie Daoyun’s entire body trembled. Her face turned red at a visible rate. She replied, “What… What lover? Miss Chu has misunderstood.”

Chu Chuyan smiled but didn’t say anything. As someone who had experienced that herself, how could she not understand Xie Daoyun’s reaction? Of course she didn’t believe the response.

Xie Daoyun snapped out of her daze and explained, “I heard that my little brother got into trouble, so I rushed over to see what happened.”

“So that was it. That Xie Xiu is the same as he was back in Brightmoon Academy,” Chu Chuyan remarked. She couldn't help but smile. “There are quite a few women outside Hei Baizi’s courtyard. All of them seem to be here for him. Some were even fighting against each other.”

Xie Daoyun stomped her feet and said, “That brat has always caused those around him to worry. I’ll go and take a look first. The two of us should meet up again if we have a chance in the future.” Then, she lifted her dress and swiftly ran over.

As Chu Chuyan watched her break out into a small run, while still looking so graceful and refined, she wondered just who it was that had the good fortune of catching her eye.

Suddenly, her smile froze. She turned around and looked in Zu An’s direction, but she quickly shook her head. Those two hadn’t interacted much, so how could that be possible? She thought to herself, I shouldn’t be overly suspicious like this over nothing.

…

Meanwhile, Zu An admitted defeat, saying, “Your respected self really is a saint in chess. You were able to come up with a solution so quickly.”

On the other side, Hei Baizi stroked his beard proudly, but he still said humbly, “Sir Zu overpraises me. Compared to you, who invented this out of nothing, my skills aren’t that special.”

The two of them praised each other for a bit, then Hei Baizi gave the two youngsters some time. It was obvious that he was about to head out to boast for a while. Before he left, he even helped them chase away the female disciples huddled around the courtyard.

Xie Xiu took out all sorts of things to entertain Zu An, saying, “Brother Zu, if you hadn’t come today, I might have really had a layer of skin shaved off!”

Zu An chuckled and asked, “What kind of heaven-angering thing did you do now?”

Xie Xiu became a bit gloomy as soon as he began explaining, “Ultimately, it’s all because master had a distant relative, a niece. He insisted on sending me to meet her at night, and said she’d jump into a lake and drown herself if I didn’t. I thought she was just saying that to scare me, but she really did it! Fortunately, there are many capable people in the academy, and they managed to save her life in the end. After the fact, master was naturally furious.”

Zu An said seriously “Brother Xie, this is where I have to criticize you a bit. It’s only natural for an outstanding man to have many pursuers, but you can’t cause trouble only to abandon them in the end.”

He thought back to Brightmoon Academy, where a female student had likewise attempted suicide when Xie Xiu left her; he also recalled the two women who had been fighting over Xie Xiu outside. He already saw Xie Xiu as the standard of an irresponsible playboy.

Xie Xiu immediately protested, “I’ve never caused trouble, and why would I abandon them?”

“Heh…” Zu An muttered. He knew Xie Xiu’s ins and outs. This kid was nothing more than a playboy with affairs everywhere. Compared to him, Zu An was like a pure little virgin.

When he saw Zu An’s expression, Xie Xiu knew the other man didn’t believe him. He explained in a pained manner, “Brother Zu, even though I’m fickle in love, my eyes are still quite proud. My master’s niece is really… Well, it’s not easy to put into a few words. Either way, she isn’t my type. I already refused her several times, but what could I do if she didn’t listen? She just insisted on doing that kind of thing. It’s only because of my reputation in the academy that everyone thought I abandoned her.” He felt so wronged he seemed about to break out into tears.

Zu An recalled Hei Baizi’s appearance. He couldn't help but smile.

“If you weren’t always seducing women in the academy day after day, why would you have a bad reputation?” Xie Daoyun suddenly chimed in. Even though she was upset, her voice was still extremely delicate and gentle. It was easy to picture a refined and scholarly woman just from her voice alone.

“Miss Xie,” Zu An said, nodding toward Xie Daoyun.

Xie Daoyun blushed a bit. She sweetly replied, “Big brother Zu.”

Xie Xiu couldn't help but become depressed. He replied, “Isn’t Zu An the same? He has so many women, so why aren’t you scolding him?”

“He’s the same as you?” Xie Daoyun harrumphed. “He treats others sincerely and has never played with their feelings. There’s even less of a chance of him doing something like easily abandoning them.”

Xie Xiu was stunned, saying, “I properly end each of my relationships before starting another one, and yet I’m worse than him who has his feet on several different boats at the same time?”

Zu An almost choked on his tea. He retorted, “Xiu’er, this is where you’re not being sincere. I was consoling you just a moment ago.”

Xie Daoyun ground her knuckles against her little brother’s head, saying, “Don’t try and make your stunts seem so great. Also, have you not seen how outstanding the women at big brother Zu’s side are? Do you think they’re all so stupid that they would be deceived so easily? You’d better not be led astray by big brother Zu.”

Xie Xiu felt really attacked. He protested, “Sis, whose big sister are you really?”

…

Meanwhile, at the peak of the rear mountain, Chu Chuyan looked at the painting on the wall curiously. However, she quickly withdrew her gaze as she said, “Libationer senior, my sect told me to bring you a message saying that they agree to what was discussed back then. They will appear at the designated place at the designated time.”