Outside the house, Xiang Tian Xiao led his family’s cultivators and bid farewell to Yang Kai and Qiu Yi Meng.
As the sun set, the Xiang Family’s Second Young Lord’s stood tall, striding forward, his head held high.
He had not done anything to feel ashamed of.
Behind him were less than ten people.
When he had come to Yang Kai all those months ago, he had brought more than twenty cultivators with him along with four crates of supplies, but after so long, through various large and small battles, only these few had survived.
All the others had already died in battle, giving their lives in order to obtain victory for Yang Kai.
As the remaining members of the Xiang Family disappeared in to the distance, Yang Kai slowly took back his gaze.
Of these people, the only one whose name he knew was Xiang Tian Xiao. Everyone else he had barely even spoken a word to, but that still could not dampen the respect and grat.i.tude he felt towards them.
This was the case for those from the Xiang Family as well as all the other allies from all their various forces who remained in his mansion. Yang Kai was very grateful to all of them. If they had not come to his aide and he had been truly forced to face the Inheritance War on his own, even with his great personal strength, he wouldn’t have been able to accomplish anything.
Qiu Yi Meng nearby also suddenly felt a little heavy hearted.
This was the first group of cultivators to leave Yang Kai not because of a dispute over interests, nor because of some kind of bitter hatred, but because of honour and commitment to their family.
“The Xiang Family will be much better off under Xiang Tian Xiao’s leaders.h.i.+p.” Yang Kai took a deep breath and said.
At the very least, he was more reliable than Xiang Chu. If the Xiang Family was truly inherited by Xiang Tian Xiao in the future, Yang Kai didn’t mind normalizing relations.h.i.+ps with them.
Qiu Yi Meng gently brushed her hair back behind her ear and chuckled, “In other words, you’ve done the Xiang Family a favour.”
“Unfortunately, the Xiang Family won’t appreciate it.” Yang Kai laughed wryly to himself, “Let’s head back.”
But as Yang Kai turned around, before he had taken a single step towards the house, his face suddenly became cold, reaching out his hand and grabbing at the air.
His hand, which seemed to reach through the s.p.a.ce itself, extends out like an invisible rope.
A cry of surprise rang out, causing Qiu Yi Meng to glance over at its source, her brow furrowed.
A few dozen meters away, a figure wrapped in a black robe was suspended mid-air, struggling violently, their neck seemingly being pinched by an invisible hand, their feet kicking back and forth yet unable to escape from Yang Kai’s grasp.
“Hm?” Qiu Yi Meng was shocked. The exclamation of this person which she had just heard sounded familiar to her, but as she couldn’t see this robed figure’s face she couldn’t help feeling curious.
Yang Kai coldly snorted, flicking his wrist, sending out a wave of True Qi and knocking off his captive’s head covering.
After seeing her true face, Yang Kai only stared harder at her, a cold light flas.h.i.+ng across his eyes.
Qiu Yi Meng on the other hand relaxed and calmly watched the struggling posture of the woman in front of her, giggling slightly, “It really is you.”
“Can you let go?” The woman bit her bright red lips, ignoring Qiu Yi Meng’s teasing laughter and glaring at Yang Kai, her face bright red with embarra.s.sment, her well rounded chest rising and falling rapidly, providing quite the enticing scene.
Yang Kai frowned and didn’t immediately know what to do. Just now, he had felt someone quickly approaching him without sending out any greetings, so he had taken the initiative to restrain them.
After considering for a brief moment, Yang Kai waves his hand and released the other party. Suddenly regaining her freedom, the woman yelped and fell to the ground miserably, glaring at Yang Kai angrily as she got up.
There was also a hint of venom in her gaze but she managed to hide it quickly.
She had never been treated like this before.
“Young Lady Ye.” Qiu Yi Meng snickered, standing proudly next to Yang Kai and narrowing her eyes at Ye Xin Rou in front of her, suggestively asking, “Weren’t you living a life of peace and luxury, serving the Second Yang Lord in his Mansion? Why have you come all the way here?”
Listening to the hidden barbs in her voice, Ye Xin Rou felt aggrieved but didn’t reveal anything on her face, instead wearing a dazzling smile, “I don’t understand what Elder Sister Qiu is saying. I am only an ally of Second Young Lord, why would I be serving him? Such minor things can be taken care of by the maids, there’s no need for me to personally intervene.”
“Really?” Qiu Yi Meng put on a surprised expression and continued, “How come I heard that since forming an alliance with Second Young Lord, Sister Ye has steadily grown closer to him. Big Sister was even wondering if it was almost time to talk about Sister Ye’s marriage date.”
Ye Xin Rou’s winning smile never faded as she swiftly countered, “Elder Sister Qiu must be mistaken. Junior Sister Ye isn’t one to casually decide her marriage partner. On the other hand, Elder Sister Qiu isn’t young anymore. Isn’t it about time for her to consider finding a man to rely upon? If Elder Sister is interested, little sister can put in a good word for her with Second Young Lord. Second Young Lord is a little dispirited right now, so if he were to receive such pleasant news, little sister is certain he would be quite pleased.”
“No need for that.” Qiu Yi Meng laughed sweetly, turning her head slightly to look at Yang Kai, “If I am to marry, there’s already a candidate around me.”
Ye Xin Rou couldn’t help gawk slightly, not having imagined that Qiu Yi Meng would act so boldly. Right in front of Yang Kai’s face, she had all but directly professed her love. Only after a while did she recover, wearing a look of admiration as she spoke, “Elder Sister Qiu is really extraordinary, little sister’s face is thin to say such embarra.s.sing words.”
Qiu Yi Meng stared warmly while Ye Xin Rou smiled sweetly, each of them staring into the other’s eyes, invisible sparks flying between them.
At the entrance to the house, the two guards from some unspecified force who happened to be on duty listened to these two young woman calling each other Elder Sister and Junior sister, their tone of voice warm and gentle, as if they were really a pair of harmonious sisters. But contrary to this seemingly intimate conversation, they felt more like these two young ladies were pointing swords at one another, causing cold sweat to drip down their foreheads.
“If you have something to say, spit it out and be done with it! I don’t have time to listen to you two prattle on.” Yang Kai impatiently interrupted their verbal confrontation. He had something he wanted to handle right away so naturally he didn’t want to waste time here.
“Must Little Lord act so cold?” Ye Xin Rou pouted somewhat dissatisfied, “Oh, very well. Since I’m already here, I might as well say what I have to say.”
Yang Kai simply stared at her, his expression still indifferent.
Seeing his att.i.tude, Ye Xin Rou’s brow furrowed somewhat, “Little Lord isn’t going to make me say it here, is he?”
“Is it something inconvenient to say?”
“Of course it is not convenient to say here.” Ye Xin Rou’s expression sank. Right now she was sneaking around. If someone were to see her in contact with Yang Kai, it wouldn’t be a good thing for her.
After all, she was currently Yang Zhao’s ally.
Qiu Yi Meng was obviously also worried about this, tip toeing and whispering something into Yang Kai’s ear.
She was concerned that word of him meeting with Ye Xin Rou would be spread out and used by people as negative propaganda. Not only was such a thing bad for Ye Xin Rou, it would also tarnish Yang Kai’s reputation.
After listening to Qiu Yi Meng’s words, Yang Kai, even if he was not willing to, he could only say, “Let’s talk about it inside.”
Just as he said these words, Ye Xin Rou swiftly flew forward, leaving a fragrant scent in her wake as she rushed into the mansion, throwing a flirtatious glance to Yang Kai and giggling as she pa.s.sed by him.
Witnessing all this, Yang Kai’s expression became strange. This Ye Xin Rou seemed totally different from what he had imagined.
“Did you think she was a naive innocent woman?” Qiu Yi Meng coldly snorted.
“I did think so.” Yang Kai nodded. From Ye Xin Rou’s reputation, her appearance, and his brief contact with her, Yang Kai had felt that although she was currently his opponent, she wasn’t someone bad.
But now, it seems like his eyes weren’t as good as he had thought.
“Hmph, be careful not to let her eat you, bones and all.” Qiu Yi Meng snorted sourly.
“Just what kind of person do you think I am?” Yang Kai glanced over at her indifferently.
Receiving this look, Qiu Yi Meng suddenly let out a pleasant laugh, feeling like she was worrying over nothing.
If Yang Kai was like Huo Xing Chen, she may still have some concerns about him falling for Ye Xin Rou’s temptations, but even though she felt Yang Kai was hateful at times, he was still a principled person.
If she were to wholeheartedly try to seduce Yang Kai, Qiu Yi Meng estimated that Yang Kai wouldn’t refuse her, but Ye Xin Rou… she didn’t have such ability!
Thinking so, Qiu Yi Meng suddenly felt a pleasant sense of superiority.
Walking into the house, outside a quiet room, Qiu Yi Meng paused and sneered, “You talk to her yourself. If I go in with you we’ll probably just end up fighting again, so it’s best if I’m not around anyways.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly. Having experienced the scene outside his mansion just now, he knew that what Qiu Yi Meng said was the truth.
Both of them were Young Ladies of the Central Capital Eight Great Families, so they would naturally be compared to one another. However, Qiu Yi Meng’s reputation was undoubtedly more spectacular, not something Ye Xin Rou could compare to.
Inside the room, Ye Xin Rou had already taken off her disguise, gently breathing with a calm and relaxed expression. Her looks were impeccable and she had dressed herself up carefully. Yang Kai always knew Ye Xin Rou was a great beauty, but now looking closely at her, this impression became more profound.
Her two jade like arms were exposed and her skin a pure shade of white, her chest was full, not too big or too small, just right, her waist was thin and graceful, perfectly curved hips leading to long slender legs.
Adorning her delicate feet were some small bell-like decorations. Although they didn’t make any sound, they were small and cute, adding an exotic flavour.
The first impression she gave off was that of a gentle and feminine young woman.
But when Yang Kai observed her for a moment, he noticed a certain seductive charm in her movement and gaze.
“Whatever you have to say, just say it.” Yang Kai spat impatiently.
“Little Lord is really quite cold.” Ye Xin Rou smiled and pouted lightly.
“You’re wrong about that,” Yang Kai grinned, “I’m not a cold person, I’m also interested in beautiful women, but I have something to do now, I have no interest in wasting time.”
“Beautiful? May I take that as Little Lord’s compliment?” Ye Xin Rou’s face showed a dazzling smile as she casually flirted.
“To each their own. Everyone has their own views regarding beauty, and in my opinion you are indeed a beautiful woman.” Yang Kai nodded in agreement, “But even if you are a beautiful woman, you can’t waste my time.”
“In that case, Xin Rou will get straight to the point.” Ye Xin Rou didn’t try to entangle him any further. About Yang Kai’s character, even Ye Xin Rou briefly understood. He was a man with strong convictions and refused to be led around by others. Regardless of what kind of word games she tried to play, it would likely only serve to annoy him.
Yang Kai put on an expression that said he was listening.
“After the great battle seven days ago, Second Young Lord has completely lost his fighting spirit. Although I am an ally of Second Young Lord and should support him at this time, reinvigorating his confidence, I believe that no matter how hard I try, it will be to no avail. In other words, Second Young Lord is destined to lose this war.”
“What are you trying to say?” Yang Kai’s eyes flashed as the corners of his lips rose, “Don’t tell me you plan to abandon Second Brother and seek refuge with me?”