Chapter 126 - 126: Able to Act and Pretend
Inside the cabin, all the noises abruptly fell silent, leaving only the sound of footsteps on the staircase from the loft above.
Yang Zhen looked back, his expression momentarily startled. His gaze gradually became entranced. Had this setting been any less formal, his mouth would have watered significantly.
In that moment, Yang Zhen wished he could sing a song: “With all due respect,
I can’t ignore the play you have planned for me to partake…”
On the staircase, a young woman’s laughter shone brilliantly. This was the first time Yang Zhen had ever encountered someone whose smile was accompanied by a sweet, rice-and-orris scent. This woman before him appeared to be boneless, yet sensuously shaped, possessing a figure and appearance beyond reproach. Her appearance instantly grabbed everyone’s attention.
The most important aspect was her smile, and her sparkling gaze towards Yang Zhen. It was as if her gaze could rip him apart, gnaw on his soul, causing him to prance about happily, a foolishly smitten look on his face, which suited him perfectly.
One was twisty, the other was feigning. Both of them controlled even the smallest facial expression so well, a match of equals.
If Yang Zhen had to describe her with an image that resonated in his heart, it would be like the Crow Queen Miyue, a character he once encountered in a game on the blue planet. She exuded an enchanting and coquettish charm.
This young woman was wearing a black gauze dress that highlighted her figure as if carved by divine craftsmanship. There was a mesmerizing allure amid her curves, hazy and profound.
Yang Zhen’s gaze swept through her from head to toe, and he immediately came to one conclusion, this woman was not ordinary.
This was the first time Yang Zhen had met a woman who could almost rival Hua Youyue in allure. However, if the attraction to men was taken into consideration, the black-clad woman, who had chosen the path of seductive queen, was slightly superior.
Hua Youyue quietly watched the woman. A mist gradually arose from her, her form slightly retreating. The reclusive aura of the Changyue Tower Master gradually ascended like water vapor, clashing and refracting against the woman’s aura.
“Why has the Cloud Master come down?”
“Truly a vibrant flower from the Coast of the East Sea. Every appearance she makes is stunning.”
“The Flower Tower Master has been blessed, so naturally the Cloud Master would come down to congratulate her. But both these women are formidable, and now that they are standing together, we all have a visual feast.”
“Wait, the Cloud Master is heading towards that young man. What’s his name again?”
“Yang Zhen!”
“What a frightening scene!”
Yang Zhen, who was already quite into character, wiped off the non-existent saliva from his mouth and held the Cloud Master’s hand in his. The admiration in his moon-like eyes, the deep and affectionate timbre in his voice:
“I used to think that of all the women in the world, none could outshine Youyue. Even when I ventured out of the village, onto the mainland, upholding justice and seeing the world, I felt all the women were just ordinary. Only now… only now do I realize that I am still a frog at the bottom of a well!”
“Frog at the bottom of a well?” The Cloud Master’s curious gaze landed on Yang Zhen. She giggled, trying to pull her exquisite hand away discreetly, her face slightly changed.
Yang Zhen gripped her hand tight, his unfocused eyes looked up at a forty-five-degree angle towards the heavens, filled with infinite regret as he said, “Yes, you see, in front of me, the sky will forever only be as big as the top of this well. I am just a frog at the bottom of a well, looking at the sky, unaware there are women in this world more beautiful than Youyue.”
The crowd gawked at Yang Zhen, particularly the fact that he had managed to hold the hand that countless others coveted, their faces twitching in unison.
This shameless rascal, talking about a frog at the bottom of a well and having a limited worldview, they’re just bluffs; even the entranced look on his face was probably an act.
They had met shameless people before, but they had never met someone as shameless as this. Despite the dazzling beauty right in front of him, his attention was focused on the Cloud Master. Thinking about it, they wished they were in his place.
Listening to Yang Zhen’s blatant praise, envy, jealousy, and hatred appeared on the faces of the people who swallowed their saliva.
Luo Wuchen snorted coldly but stopped short as a wave of laughter, like a silver bell yet sweet as rice-and-orris, cut him off.
The Cloud Master glared at Yang Zhen slightly, finally pulling her weak, boneless hand away, looking at him with laughter in her eyes: “A frog at the bottom of a well, this is an interesting metaphor. Young Master Yang, with all these sweet words, have you cheated many young girls?”
Oh no!
Yang Zhen clicked his tongue, this woman whose gentleness reached to her bones was indeed not so simple! With her clever words, and most importantly, her unending laughter, even when she was exposing his shortcomings, it didn’t agitate him.
Moreover, Cloud Master had a smirk plastered on her face when she was talking, her gaze fixated on Hua Youyue said it all without any need for words.
Hua Youyue maintained her calm demeanor, showing no signs of anger, instead she was looking at Yang Zhen with the same smirk, seeming to wait for his reply.
Can’t mess with this one, can’t mess with this one.
What happened to the cute, naive otherworldly girls they had promised? The two women before him were crafty and cunning, spinning him around in different directions, he simply couldn’t handle them.
Yang Zhen laughed heartily and said while leaning back in his seat, “Only through death and life, do we learn the nature of friendships. Only through poverty and wealth, do we truly see friendship’s posture. Only when we compare the noble with the lowly, do we see the true shape of friendship. My words come straight from the heart, how could they be described as deceitful…”
The sound of his voice was assertive, powerful, and radiating an aura of aloofness. This made Yang Zhen’s lounging demeanor look profound and expansive.
As soon as Yang Zhen’s words rang out, all the other sounds in the cabin disappeared, only leaving behind the clear sound of his voice echoing around the room.
The Cloud Master trembled all over, looking at Yang Zhen surprised, she repeated Yang Zhen’s words to herself. Her bright eyes shone even more as she giggled, “So, Young Master Yang is actually such an open-minded and ambitious person, my knowledge and intelligence are so weak in comparison. I have a made a fool of myself, please don’t take offense!”
Yang Zhen waved his hand, “No harm done. Even though we are separated by the vast seas, our hearts are as close as neighbors. Despite the thousand hills and the ten thousand rivers that separate us, fate has allowed us to meet. Fate is quite magical, isn’t it? Sure not to blame you from journeying across the world to find it.”
Cloud Master’s eyes brightened even more.
Not only did Yang Zhen make his stance clear that he would welcome genuine friends, he also eloquently outlined the authenticity of friendship under hardship. Such breadth of mind and understanding immediately earned him the approval of the majority present.
Luo Wuchen’s face turned grim. He wanted to speak but faltered several times. After staring at Yang Zhen for a long while, he turned his head to his fellow disciple in confusion, “What does he mean by these two sentences?”
One of the female disciples hesitated for a moment before replying, “He probably means… Yang Zhen wants to be Cloud Master’s neighbor!”
“Humph!”
Luo Wuchen snorted coldly before breaking into boisterous laughter. He walked towards Yang Zhen and said, “Cloud Master is as beautiful as a heavenly fairy. To think that you, a frog living in a well has designs on becoming her neighbor, it’s too ridiculous to imagine!”
The crowd:”???”
Pfft!
Hua Youyue couldn’t help it and broke out into laughter. Cloud Master also covered her mouth and giggled non-stop, but the way she looked at Luo Wuchen was filled with disappointment.
Seeing the two women laughing, the others couldn’t hold back their laughter any longer and burst out laughing.
A man with thick eyebrows and large eyes was eating his noodles. He was acting as if it had nothing to do with him. Although he was a bit surprised by Yang Zhen’s profound sayings, he merely raised his head to glance at Yang Zhen before he resumed eating while pondering over Yang Zhen’s words.
When he heard Luo Wuchen say that Yang Zhen wanted to be Cloud Master’s neighbor, the man spit out his noodles spontaneously. A white noodle was hanging from his nose, dangling back and forth. The man, looking stupefied, stared at Luo Wuchen, and slowly removed the noodle from his nose:
“Damn, how can there be such a drink-loving glutton at Tianqing Blessed Land?”
Seeing everyone laughing out loud, Luo Wuchen, who was clueless about what he said wrong, blushed with embarrassment. He glared at Yang Zhen resentfully, his expression gloomy and icy.
Yang Zhen ignored Luo Wuchen, but felt a little fondness towards the big man who had noodles hanging from his nose. Despite the noodle hanging from his nose, the man nonchalantly removed it; he was definitely a character.
However this Cloud Master obviously had a high status, why did she seek him out, and seemingly get him into unnecessary battles, Yang Zhen looked at Cloud Master with some hesitation..