Chapter 257: Each with Their Own Agenda

Zu'an hadn't expected Qiu Honglei to leave so abruptly, and at that moment, her strength was immense, even exceeding his own power when he wasn't activating the berserk effect of the "Phoenix Nirvana Scripture."

Caught off guard, he was also pulled into the water.

Once in the water, Qiu Honglei, like a mermaid, twisted her waist and lightly moved her feet, pulling Zu'an a long distance through the water.

Concerned about being discovered by the Black Wind Fort members, she pulled Zu'an deep underwater, never surfacing.

Sure enough, the other Black Wind Fort members were constantly searching for them on the surface, but soon lost track of them.

Zu'an looked frustrated. He thought, "Sister, you could have at least given me some time to prepare! If we had stayed, Peimian Man and I, working together, could probably have defeated Chen Xuan."

Unfortunately, the moment he opened his mouth, all his words turned into: "Glug... glug, glug..."

"Oh no," he thought, "am I going to end up like Xue'er did back then?"

Although he knew how to swim, he had never tried prolonged underwater swimming. The crucial point was that he had no mental preparation; otherwise, if he had taken a deep breath beforehand, he wouldn't be in such a sorry state now.

Noticing him choking and struggling desperately, Qiu Honglei swam gently over, then pressed her lips to his, giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Zu'an's eyes widened instantly. He had only seen such scenes in TV dramas before, and at the time, he used to wonder if they were even feasible. Now, he was experiencing it firsthand.

He could feel a fresh breath passing from her mouth, and Zu'an's flailing movements gradually ceased.

His hands naturally rested at the junction of her waist and hips. Feeling her enchanting body, his resentment instantly vanished.

"Please, let this happen a few more times!" he thought.

Feeling his hands, Qiu Honglei gently pushed him away, gave him a chiding look, and then pulled him towards the shore.

After a while, Zu'an began flailing again, frantically pointing to his mouth and gesturing.

Qiu Honglei's face flushed, and she ignored him, simply accelerating her swim towards the shore.

Finally, both surfaced. Zu'an gasped for fresh air, as if reborn.

Qiu Honglei, feeling a bit apologetic, asked with concern, "Are you alright?"

"How dare you ask!" Zu'an's voice suddenly rose, filled with grievance. "I was calling for help just now, and you completely ignored me!"

Water droplets slid down Qiu Honglei's face, but her blush was still evident. "Who told you to be naughty with me just now?"

"Is it being naughty just to instinctively hug you? I didn't even use my tongue!" Zu'an retorted sullenly.

Qiu Honglei: "..."

To be honest, she regretted it a little, wondering if she had sacrificed too much to complete her mission.

But given the situation, if she hadn't given him air, he would probably have drowned.

After finishing his complaints, Zu'an eagerly turned to look into the distance. In the middle of the river, flames shot into the sky, and two figures alternated in appearance.

"Oh?" he thought. "It seems that Peimian Man had hidden her strength before; she's actually fighting Chen Xuan to a standstill."

As if sensing his worry, Qiu Honglei parted her red lips slightly. "Don't worry. That young lady cultivates fire-element techniques, while Chen Xuan is metal-element. As the saying goes, fire counters metal, so she has a natural advantage in a fight."

Zu'an's mind was slightly eased, but he still couldn't help saying, "Even with the elemental counter, Chen Xuan is still a sixth-rank expert. Plus, being in the river is disadvantageous for a fire-element practitioner. My friend is still in danger."

"This is, after all, a bustling area of Mingyue City. Such a big commotion will quickly draw the city guard. Chen Xuan won't dare to stay long," Qiu Honglei said, pursing her lips into a smile. "It seems your relationship with that friend is quite deep. She came to rescue you despite the danger, and you've been constantly worried about her safety."

Zu'an smiled faintly. "If you, young lady, were in danger, I would be just as worried."

Qiu Honglei snorted. "I thought you were an honest man, young master, but it turns out you're a glib-tongued fellow too."

Inwardly, she mused, 'This guy is truly extraordinary. Such a beautiful and powerful woman actually stood up for him. It seems I'm not the only one who has noticed him.'

"I disagree with that," Zu'an corrected earnestly. "Calling me 'glib-tongued' is one thing, especially since we just kissed, but where does 'slippery tongue' come from? We didn't even use our tongues just now."

Qiu Honglei: "..."

After so many years at the Divine Immortal Pavilion, she had always been the one to take the initiative and tease other men. She never expected to be rendered speechless by this guy today.

She rolled her eyes at him, no longer bothering to engage. She simply held onto a nearby stone and slowly climbed out of the water onto the shore.

She hadn't noticed it while in the water, but as she emerged, countless water droplets cascaded from her body. Her clothes clung to her skin, revealing an exquisitely graceful figure. Every inch of her seemed to exude endless allure.

Zu'an felt his nose warm up. He instinctively touched it, relieved that he wasn't bleeding; otherwise, it would have been embarrassing.

"Young master, come up quickly—oh!" Qiu Honglei turned to pull him up, but suddenly noticed his gaze. She looked down, immediately understood what he was looking at, let out a startled cry, and quickly covered her chest with both hands.

Zu'an's old face flushed. He couldn't say anything, and somewhat guiltily, he climbed onto the shore.

To hide his embarrassment, Zu'an said, "Let me escort you back to the Divine Immortal Pavilion first, young lady, so you can change your clothes."

To his surprise, Qiu Honglei shook her head and said with some difficulty, "The Divine Immortal Pavilion is full of people and prying eyes. If I go back like this, it will cause an uproar."

"Then what should we do?" Zu'an was taken aback.

Qiu Honglei bit her lip and said coyly, "Why don't we go to your home, young master? You can just find some men's clothes for me there."

This was seduction, pure and simple!

With Qiu Honglei's unparalleled beauty, combined with the suggestive words in this situation, it seemed no man on earth could resist.

Unfortunately, Zu'an was no ordinary person. He refused, "This is too far from the Chu family manor, and there's a high chance of being seen along the way. Besides, you know my status in the Chu family; it wouldn't be convenient to bring you back."

"You are the esteemed son-in-law of the Chu family. Can't you even decide for yourself when it comes to hosting a guest?" A faint smile appeared on Qiu Honglei's lips. This was exactly the effect she wanted: to make him realize the many inconveniences within the Chu family, leading to dissatisfaction and the desire to climb higher, at which point she could cater to his ambitions.

Zu'an rolled his eyes. 'Are you an ordinary guest? The most famous courtesan in all of Mingyue City! If I brought you back, not only would that tigress Qin Wanru explode, even Xiao Zhao would probably break ties with me.'

Furthermore, this woman's background was unclear, and her motives were questionable. With Chu Chuyan severely injured, bringing her back to the manor was definitely not a wise choice.

Ignoring her attempt at provocation, Zu'an said, "How about this: we go get a room."

"Get a room? What do you mean?" Qiu Honglei was utterly confused.

"It means finding a room at an inn. Then I'll go find you some clothes, and you can change," Zu'an explained earnestly.

"Let's not," Qiu Honglei said, pursing her lips into a smile. "I always feel like your suggestion has an ulterior motive."

Just then, a commotion came from afar, and many people holding torches rushed towards them.

"It seems to be people from the Divine Immortal Pavilion," Qiu Honglei said, glancing over with some hesitation.

"Perfect then. I'll feel more at ease if you go back with them," Zu'an chuckled.

"But in my current state, I don't want anyone else besides you, young master, to see me," Qiu Honglei said, looking at him with piteous, watery eyes.

Zu'an inwardly marvelled. This woman truly didn't miss any opportunity to tempt him. In his previous life, she would undoubtedly have been a master seductress.

He took off his outer coat and wrapped it around her. Being closer, he could increasingly smell her enchanting subtle fragrance. "This should work," he said.

His coat was long, and he was considerably taller than her, so it was perfectly capable of concealing her revealing state when wrapped around her.

Qiu Honglei tightened the robe around her, her expression somewhat complex. "Young master, do you know how much of a stir it would cause if I were seen in this state, wearing a man's clothes?"

Zu'an chuckled. "Didn't you make up your mind to marry me? This is a perfect opportunity to declare that you're taken. Isn't that good?"

Qiu Honglei was startled. She hadn't expected him to use her own tactic against her, and for a long moment, she couldn't find any words to retort.

"I'm leaving now!" Zu'an waved his hand. The mention of the Chu family had just reminded him that Chu Chuyan's cold qi needed to be removed daily through his acupuncture, especially in these first few days. If he missed treatments, the cold qi could easily backfire, causing even more severe injury.

The thought made him eager to return home.

Sensing his eagerness to leave, Qiu Honglei couldn't help but call out to him, "Ah Zu!"

Zu'an had only walked a short distance when he heard her and turned back. "What is it?"

Qiu Honglei looked aggrieved. "Am I so annoying that you're in such a hurry to leave?"

"I have important matters to attend to. We'll meet again next time, young lady." Zu'an waved at her, his figure gracefully disappearing into the night sky.

Soon, Madam Hua Weimian arrived with a large group of guards. "Honglei, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Qiu Honglei shook her head, gazing in the direction Zu'an had left, somewhat lost in thought.

Hua Weimian was about to say something else, but her expression subtly changed when she noticed the man's coat on Qiu Honglei. She immediately commanded her subordinates, "No one is to speak about what you saw today. If I hear even a whisper of gossip outside, I don't care who leaked it, all of you will be beaten to death with sticks."

The guards' hearts froze, and they quickly nodded in assent.

This place wasn't too far from the Divine Immortal Pavilion, and the group quickly escorted Qiu Honglei back.

Back in her room, maids and servants had already prepared hot water. Qiu Honglei took off her soaking wet outer garments, revealing a stunningly beautiful body that could drive any man wild, and slowly stepped into the bathtub.

Lying in the tub, she stretched out a snow-white arm, and with a gesture, Zu'an's coat, which was hanging on the screen, flew into her hand. She rummaged through the clothes for a while, then couldn't help but hum softly, "This guy is really a miser. He didn't even carry any silver notes with him."

Although she didn't find any silver notes, she did find a beautiful conch shell.

"Oh?" With her knowledge, she naturally knew that this item could store music.

Soon, the classic background music from "God of Gamblers" filled the room!

Qiu Honglei felt her blood begin to boil. After a long while, she finally let out a long sigh. "That stinky Ah Zu! He said 'The Swordsman' wasn't composed by him. What a liar!"

Just then, a soft sound came from the window.

Qiu Honglei's expression changed. She quickly grabbed Zu'an's coat to cover herself and glared sternly at the figure outside the screen. "Who told you to come in!"

Gu Yueyi's voice drifted in. "I was just worried about my junior sister's safety and came to check. I didn't expect you to be bathing." Although he said this, he showed no intention of stopping.

One could even faintly hear the sound of him nervously swallowing.

Qiu Honglei's face turned cold. She stretched out a hand, and a delicate bamboo pole holding a small lantern appeared out of thin air in the room. Under the bright yellow light, Gu Yueyi discovered in horror that he couldn't move at all.