Seeing Qiu Qianqian's darkening expression, Jing Zhe became frightened.

A witch is a witch; she's capricious and unpredictable.

One second she's being affectionate and smiling at you, the next she might be chopping your head off with a knife—which head, depending on her mood.

So Jing Zhe didn't dare to provoke her and quickly slapped his mouth, saying, "Oh dear, look at my mouth, it's all messed up! I mean, before, Miss Qiu was wearing all black and her face was covered, but now she has not only changed her clothes, but also comes to see me so openly, it's normal that I don't recognize her!"

Qiu Qianqian seemed to believe her and nodded.

But what he said wasn't pleasant: "Looks like I was just imagining things. Your mouth... still smells terrible!"

"..."

Jing Zhe was taken aback by her words and became somewhat angry.

If it were before, Jing Zhe would have been terrified if he had encountered Qiu Qianqian, who wanted to take his head, since she was a witch. But things are different now. Although he is only at the middle stage of the fourth level, he might have broken through again after his battle with Zhu Xinning the night before last. So he is not too afraid of Qiu Qianqian.

If you want to fight, then fight. If I really can't win, I can run away!

Of course, it's best to avoid fighting if possible...

"Miss Qiu, my breath doesn't smell bad, would you like to try some?"

"..."

Qiu Qianqian was stunned. She never dreamed that Jing Zhe would dare to speak to her like that when there were only the two of them.

Could it be that he has a backup plan?

She then looked around. Apart from the large mound in front of her, the surroundings were barren and deserted. Moreover, it was some distance from the city wall of Jingzhou, so it was unlikely that any rescue would come in the short term. After examining Jing Zhe again, she found that he was exactly the same as when she had seen him more than a month ago, without any signs of internal strength.

So, he dares to flirt with me?

Does he think he doesn't dare to make a move?

"You really think you're too long to live!"

As he spoke, he raised the sharp dagger in his hand.

"etc!"

Seeing this, Jing Zhe quickly said something.

"A gentleman uses words, not fists; we can talk things over!"

As mentioned earlier, Jing Zhe felt it best to avoid taking action if possible. After all, he was heading to Jinxi the day after tomorrow, which was Tongtianque's stronghold, and Qiu Qianqian was a prominent figure in Tongtianque. He had provoked her for no reason, and before his trip to Jinxi had even begun, he had already attracted a powerful enemy, which was not what he wanted.

Although he had just flirted with Qiu Qianqian, it was because he was confident that he could use other methods to keep her in check.

“I am a woman, not a gentleman.”

Qiu Qianqian still held her sword, glanced at Jing Zhe, and said with some disdain, "You are no gentleman either!"

"..."

Jing Zhe chuckled awkwardly, "Well, Miss Qiu, our chance encounter today shows that we have a deep connection. What happened last time was just a misunderstanding, and I hope you won't hold a grudge! Besides, I did a great service for Tongtianque before, and I plan to visit your sect after I go to Jinxi the day after tomorrow!"

Sure enough, upon hearing this, Qiu Qianqian dropped the dagger in her hand, her face full of suspicion.

"Oh? What great news is it?"

"Miss Qiu must know about Qi Gulong's murder, right?"

Seeing Qiu Qianqian put down her weapon, Jing Zhe was overjoyed and immediately began to speak, preparing to claim credit.

But Qiu Qianqian's reaction was somewhat unexpected.

"Qi Gulong was killed? When did that happen?"

"you do not know?"

Logically speaking, the killing of Qi Gulong should be considered a major event, and since nearly a month has passed, it shouldn't be difficult to get the news back to Jinxi, right?

Moreover, it was published in the first issue of the Da'an Daily—although Jing Zhe gave the honor of killing Qi Gulong to Liu Jinghong.

"You must have heard of the Da'an Daily, right?"

The newspaper is so popular in Jingzhou, it can't possibly not reach Jinxi, right?

To everyone's surprise, Qiu Qianqian still shook her head.

Jing Zhe was taken aback, thinking that Jinxi was a major city in Anguo, so the news should not be so out of touch.

Unless… someone is deliberately blocking the news!

Thinking of the Prince of Jin, Jing Zhe felt that this was very likely!

He stopped worrying about it and thought it was better that Qiu Qianqian didn't know. If she read the newspaper, she might be prejudiced and think that Liu Jinghong really killed Qi Gulong, and then feel that he was lying to her!

"Oh, after all, Jingzhou is too far from Jinxi, so it's normal that Miss Qiu hasn't heard of it! Then let me tell you about it!"

"No need to explain anymore, you're lying anyway!"

"..."

Qiu Qianqian didn't even listen to him and interrupted him directly.

"Miss Qiu, you're mistaken. I, Jing, never lie!"

"Pooh!"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Qianqian spat out a word, her face full of disdain, and said, "That statement is a complete lie! Men are all bastards; not one of them is honest!"

"..."

Jing Zhe glanced at Qiu Qianqian with some curiosity, thinking that she didn't look very old, and seemed to be even younger than him, so why could she say such things as "having controlled countless husbands"?

“Miss Qiu, that’s where you’re wrong. It’s their business if other men lie to you, it has nothing to do with me! I’m an honest person, I never lie!”

Qiu Qianqian glanced at him and continued to scoff, "A man who lies to me? Heh, I've never been lied to, because any man who dares to talk to me more than necessary has already been killed by me!"

"..."

After a moment of silence, Jing Zhe asked curiously, "Then why did you say that all men are liars?"

"That's what my master said!"

"Um... Miss Qiu's master must have been hurt by a man in the past, which is why she said those things, right? Actually, men are not all the same. You can't let one man deceive you and then condemn all other men, can you?"

Jing Zhe patiently comforted him.

But Qiu Qianqian didn't appreciate it at all, and said coldly, "My master has never been deceived by a man."

"How could she possibly understand men?"

"because…"

Qiu Qianqian said in a deep voice, "My master is a man!"

"..."

Jing Zhe was speechless. Being a man is already hard enough, why should men make things harder for each other?

But he felt he had gone off-topic and quickly corrected himself: "Miss Qiu, I really did kill Qi Gulong. If you don't believe me, you can send someone out to inquire whether Qi Gulong is dead or not."

"Heh, Qi Gulong is quite skilled, while you don't even know martial arts. Are you still telling me you're not lying?"

"I swear to God! And I will be going to Jinxi in a few days. I will also visit the Sect Leader at Tongtianque and tell him how I killed Qi Gulong. If I were lying, how could I dare to explain to your Sect Leader in person?"

"..."

Qiu Qianqian was slightly taken aback.

Qi Gulong has indeed been a thorn in the side of Tongtianque for many years, because he has been staying in Nanqi for most of the year, and they have no way to deal with him. If someone can really kill Qi Gulong for Tongtianque, they would truly be a benefactor to their sect...

————