Chapter 990: Completely Cleaned Out

“Guo’er?” Xiao Longnu murmured to herself, her expression one of disbelief.

Song Qingshu stood behind her, clearly sensing her body tremble, looking as if she might collapse at any moment. He hurried forward to support her, saying, “Junior Sister, what’s wrong?”

Xiao Longnu’s face was deathly pale, her lips tightly sealed as she stared inside, not uttering a word.

Curious, Song Qingshu peeked through the crack in the door and saw that the bed where he had just treated Xiao Longnu’s injuries now had a man and a woman entangled together. The man had lost an arm, and it was none other than Yang Guo, who had just returned; the woman was wearing a bright wedding dress, the same one Xiao Longnu had just been wearing.

Song Qingshu thought to himself, where did Yang Guo find a woman in such a hurry? He was curious about the woman’s identity and focused his gaze. Although most of her body was blocked by Yang Guo, he still recognized her from a fleeting glimpse; it was the eldest daughter of the Pucha family—Pucha Qiucao.

Song Qingshu’s expression turned strange. He thought he had sent her down the mountain to restrain the army, so how did she end up here fooling around with Yang Guo?

Although Song Qingshu knew there was a marriage contract between Pucha Qiucao and Yang Guo, they hadn’t married yet. Moreover, last time in the Imperial Palace of Daxing Prefecture, Yang Guo had openly claimed her as his fiancée. Therefore, the sudden development of their relationship to this level left Song Qingshu astonished.

At first, he worried that Pucha Qiucao might have been forced by Yang Guo and was considering intervening to save her. However, he quickly dismissed that thought. The occasional glimpse of Pucha Qiucao’s charming face showed both anger and joy as she gazed lovingly at the man, and her arms were wrapped around Yang Guo, showing no signs of being forced at all.

Clearly, Xiao Longnu had come to the same conclusion. She gasped, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth, murmuring, “Why, Guo’er, why would you do this to me?”

Song Qingshu thought she would rush in to confront Yang Guo, but to his surprise, after breaking free from his grasp, she turned and left in a daze.

Song Qingshu was taken aback and quickly chased after her, grabbing her arm. “Junior Sister, there must be some misunderstanding. Why don’t we ask Brother Yang?”

“Don’t touch me!” Xiao Longnu shook off his hand. “I’ve already said it; from now on, we have nothing to do with each other. You don’t need to concern yourself with my matters.”

Only then did Song Qingshu remember that Xiao Longnu hadn’t settled accounts with him yet. He could only smile awkwardly and not provoke her further.

“And don’t follow me anymore!” Xiao Longnu glared at him angrily. Seeing him stop, she gradually disappeared into the darkness of the Ancient Tomb.

Song Qingshu hesitated several times, but ultimately did not pursue her. In this situation, what could he do? Xiao Longnu had just been “bullied” by him, and now seeing Yang Guo’s scene, any comfort or explanation would be futile. He could only leave it to time, the best remedy for psychological wounds.

After a moment, Song Qingshu decided to return to the room to check, as Pucha Qiucao was now considered his subordinate. If something went wrong, he would have a hard time explaining to the Pucha family upon returning to the capital.

Meanwhile, the fierce battle in the room was coming to an end, and Yang Guo gradually regained consciousness. When he saw the woman beneath him, he couldn’t help but feel ashamed. “I’m sorry, I…”

Pucha Qiucao gently pressed her finger to his lips, gazing at him with deep affection. “What I need to hear right now is not an apology.”

Smart as Yang Guo was, how could he not know that what the woman needed was a promise? His lips moved, but he suddenly thought of Xiao Longnu’s delicate face, and a look of struggle appeared on his face. Finally, feeling ashamed, he left behind a simple, “I’m sorry!” and grabbed the clothes beside him, fleeing down the distant corridor.

Pucha Qiucao was momentarily stunned, staring blankly at his disappearing figure. After a long while, she finally came to her senses and couldn’t help but curse, “Yang Guo, you bastard!”

After cursing for a while, sadness overwhelmed her, and she buried her head in her clothes, crying softly.

“Usually, you seem quite clever; how could you be so easily taken advantage of?” At that moment, a teasing voice suddenly came from beside Pucha Qiucao.

She instinctively looked up in the direction of the voice and saw Song Qingshu leaning against the door, looking at her with a half-smile.

“Ah~” Pucha Qiucao let out a sharp scream, hurriedly grabbing the clothes beside her to cover her chest, stammering, “You… what are you doing here?”

“Why can’t I be here?” Song Qingshu’s gaze fell on her exposed skin, and he chuckled. “Why are you so agitated? After all, I’ve seen you and Yang Guo getting cozy just now.”

Pucha Qiucao’s face turned red as she angrily retorted, “Shameless, vulgar!”

Song Qingshu replied gloomily, “Miss, I was here treating someone’s injuries, and then you two burst in like a whirlwind, immediately putting on a scene not meant for the common eyes. Who’s really shameless and vulgar here?”

“I…” Pucha Qiucao was momentarily at a loss for words, not knowing how to respond.

“Alright, alright, hurry and get dressed. We came here to subdue the Quanzhen Sect; those people are still waiting in the Hall of the Three Pure Ones.” Knowing she was embarrassed, Song Qingshu changed the subject.

“Turn around!” Pucha Qiucao, still heartbroken from Yang Guo’s departure, was almost on the verge of tears from Song Qingshu’s teasing.

“I’ve already said, it’s not like I haven’t seen it before.” Although Song Qingshu said this, he still turned around.

After a series of rustling sounds, Pucha Qiucao’s weak voice suddenly came, “I can’t go out wearing this.”

Song Qingshu turned back to see her wearing the wedding dress Xiao Longnu had worn earlier, and he frowned. “I’m not Yang Guo; why are you dressing up as a bride?”

“I’m not dressing up as a bride,” Pucha Qiucao said aggrievedly. “I had to change into this because my clothes were soaked when I came in.”

Song Qingshu’s mind turned, and he recalled that the only entrance was through the waterway. Unlike Xiao Longnu, who had hidden in a box, it was no surprise that she was drenched.

“I’ll help you dry it.” Song Qingshu walked over to pick up the wet clothes beside him. After all, there were so many people at Chongyang Palace; if Pucha Qiucao really appeared in this wedding dress, it would definitely cause a stir.

“Thank you… thank you.” Pucha Qiucao wished she could find a hole to hide in, feeling embarrassed to have such a humiliating moment seen by others.

Song Qingshu nodded, about to use his internal energy to dry the clothes, when suddenly he showed an awkward expression. “Um… I just treated someone’s injuries, and my internal energy is quite depleted. I’m afraid I can’t use it to dry the clothes.”

At this moment, Song Qingshu felt similar to how Pucha Qiucao had felt earlier, wishing he could find a hole to hide in. His usual image was that of a powerful expert, but now, just as he wanted to show off in front of a young woman—oh no, now she should be called a young matron—he had failed.

Noticing Pucha Qiucao standing there in a daze, Song Qingshu quickly changed the subject. “I’ll go find some firewood to help you dry it.” After saying that, he rushed into the next room to gather a pile of dry wood.

*****

Song Qingshu had been through many storms, and when the bonfire was lit, he had already regained his composure. He placed Pucha Qiucao’s clothes on a nearby rack and began to meditate to recover his energy.

“What are your plans for the future?” The room was too quiet, and while meditating, Song Qingshu asked.

“Ah… ah?” Pucha Qiucao was clearly a bit distracted.

Song Qingshu couldn’t help but say, “Are you just going to let him take advantage of you for nothing?” He wasn’t particularly close to Pucha Qiucao, but he suddenly thought that if she married Yang Guo, wouldn’t that leave Xiao Longnu alone? Although taking advantage of a situation was somewhat unethical, he had never been a moralist.

“What do you mean by taking advantage of me for nothing?” Pucha Qiucao blushed and spat, “Why do you speak so unpleasantly? It’s really annoying.”

“Yang Guo had his fun and then left; isn’t that taking advantage of you for nothing?” Seeing her expression darken, Song Qingshu quickly comforted her, “Actually, you don’t need to think too much about it. You’re not the worst off. In my hometown, there’s a professor who played with a flight attendant for three years. After he got bored, he went to the authorities to sue her, claiming that during the marriage, the wife had the right to reclaim any jointly owned property. He made the court order the flight attendant to return all the millions he had given her.”

“At the same time, that flight attendant, while being the mistress, foolishly became the legal representative of the professor’s shell company, and in the end, she had to bear millions in debts. You see, she was taken advantage of for three years without gaining anything, and had to pay back millions. Compared to her, you’re already much luckier.”

Pucha Qiucao felt dizzy listening; there were too many terms she had never heard before in Song Qingshu’s words. However, this didn’t prevent her from understanding the gist of the story. She angrily retorted, “You men are really shameless.”

Song Qingshu laughed, “Hey, hey, hey, it’s not like I’m the one who had fun and then left.”

Pucha Qiucao glared at him unhappily. “You’re lecherous and flirtatious; you’re not much better.”

Song Qingshu replied seriously, “I admit I’m flirtatious, but I take responsibility for every w0man.”

Pucha Qiucao was taken aback, as if he had hit a sore spot, and for a moment, she couldn’t find her voice.

“The clothes are dry now; hurry and take off the wedding dress.” Song Qingshu pulled down the clothes from the rack and casually tossed them to her. To be honest, he was quite displeased that Pucha Qiucao was wearing Xiao Longnu’s wedding dress. In his mind, that dress was a rare memento between him and Xiao Longnu.

However, Pucha Qiucao hesitated. “If I go out, won’t I just get my clothes wet again?”

“This wedding dress doesn’t belong to you,” Song Qingshu said coldly.

Pucha Qiucao’s face turned pale as she took off the dress, puffing up her cheeks and saying, “If it’s not mine, then it’s not; who cares!” In a few swift motions, she took off the wedding dress and threw it at Song Qingshu.

Song Qingshu was immediately stunned, staring at the youthful body of the girl before him, and he couldn’t help but say with a strange expression, “Are you planning to seduce me because Yang Guo abandoned you?”

“Ah!” After Yang Guo left, Pucha Qiucao had been in a daze, so many of her actions were instinctive. Only after he reminded her did she realize she was now completely uncl0thed, and she screamed.