Chapter 176 Sincerity for Sincerity (x)

Situ Ling originally intended to go find Mei Liangyu first, but Mei Liangyu ran away first. She heard that there was a disciple of the military school among this group, and that it was this disciple of the military school who saved her brother, so she excitedly ran over and called the person "sister" repeatedly.

Li Jinshuang initially refused, but Situ Ling was very patient and energetic. She was not discouraged at all after being rejected once or twice. Instead, she became more and more determined and pestered Li Jinshuang all day long.

It wasn't until nightfall that Li Jinshuang had a chance to find Yu Sui.

Yu Sui didn't leave her room all day.

Because there were maids guarding outside, Li Jinshuang did not go through the main gate, fearing that the maids would tell Situ Ling where she had gone, so she chose to quietly climb over the wall into the courtyard.

Yu Sui's door was closed. When she sensed someone approaching, she put away her wind-listening ruler, opened the door, and peeked out. She happened to see Li Jinshuang scaling the wall and landing on the ground. She couldn't help but clap her hands and say, "What skill!"

Li Jinshuang, who had just landed: "..."

She hesitated for a moment before explaining, "It was a last resort."

Yu Sui waved to Li Jinshuang, signaling her to come inside and talk.

After Li Jinshuang entered the house, she told Yu Sui about her experience that day. Yu Sui stayed by the stove, reheating the fruit tea that had long since gone cold. After listening to her, she smiled and said, "My senior brother said that she is only thirteen years old and is fond of military strategy. It's not easy to meet a disciple of military strategy, so she will definitely pester you."

"If you find her annoying, you can just leave."

Li Jinshuang shook her head: "Although he talks a lot, it's not annoying."

Yu Sui reached out and fanned the fire lightly, not looking at her, but asked, "Is it because you didn't play with girls when you were little that you feel so uncomfortable with little girls being close to you?"

Li Jinshuang was silent for a moment, then answered softly, "Yes."

Because she was raised as a boy by her grandmother, she wore boys' clothes when she was young and studied with a group of boys all day long.

At first, a few boys found Li Jinshuang interesting and played with her all day long, but they were stopped when their families found out.

Their family told them that although Li Jinshuang dressed as a man, she was a girl and a member of the Li family, so they should not befriend her and should avoid her if possible.

Later, neither boys nor girls wanted to play with Li Jinshuang. Some even thought that Li Jinshuang was so out of place that she was a monster.

"When you were little, did you want to play with girls?" Yu Sui tilted her head to look at him.

Li Jinshuang shook her head: "I had so many things to learn when I was a child, I was too busy and hardly had time to think about these things."

Yu Sui asked, "Does Nanjing also have a National Academy?"

“Yes,” Li Jinshuang said. “After finishing their studies at the National Academy, they will continue their studies after returning to the manor.”

Upon hearing this, Yu Sui showed a curious expression and gestured with her hands, saying, "I used to be like that at Qingyang Academy. Every day there were so many things to learn and so many books to memorize. A book could have tens of thousands of words, and I had to memorize it all. The next day, the instructor would quiz me on which page and paragraph I wrote what, and I could never remember it."

"What child can memorize a book of ten thousand words at the age of five or six?"

After she finished speaking, she noticed Li Jinshuang's expression froze, and she asked suspiciously, "Have you finished reciting?"

Li Jinshuang nodded and said, "I've finished memorizing it."

After she finished answering, she saw Yu Sui staring at her with wide eyes. Li Jinshuang added, "Some texts must be memorized. At home, my grandmother would also check my memorization."

Yu Sui cupped her face in one hand and looked Li Jinshuang up and down: "You have to memorize books and practice swordsmanship, how many hours of rest do you get each day?"

Li Jinshuang thought for a moment and said, "At most three hours."

Yu Sui: "Sleep for three hours a day?"

"Hmm," Li Jinshuang said calmly.

At the shortest I've slept, I only get one hour of sleep.

Yu Sui covered her mouth with her other hand and said in surprise, "I thought it was bad enough that I was kneeling and reciting my lessons at home, but I didn't expect your home to be even worse. You only let me rest for three hours."

Li Jinshuang looked at her in confusion: "Why do you have to kneel to recite your lessons?"

"Because I'm too stupid, I can never remember anything." Yu Sui smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners. "When I was a kid, I couldn't even remember all the students and teachers at the National Academy."

Li Jinshuang said, "It doesn't mean we have to kneel down to study."

Yu Sui explained, "The other children in the Imperial Academy can recite it, but I, as a princess of the royal family, cannot. I have brought shame to the Nangong family, so naturally I have to be punished by kneeling and reciting it to teach me a lesson."

Li Jinshuang's gaze froze for a moment; she was quite familiar with this kind of thing.

“I used to be like that too. If I lost to someone in the National Academy competition, or if my swordsmanship didn’t improve and I didn’t learn the sword manual within the allotted time, my grandmother would punish me by making me kneel.” Li Jinshuang recalled the past. She finished speaking without any emotional fluctuations in Yu Sui’s quiet smiling eyes. When she met Yu Sui’s gaze again, she couldn’t help but want to laugh. “Sometimes I would kneel all night and couldn’t get up the next day.”

Yu Sui nodded in agreement: "But the mute girl will help me apply medicine and hot compresses. She is very good at massage."

So later, every time Yu Sui was punished by kneeling, she would comfort herself and tell herself it was okay, because the mute woman would help massage her and clear her meridians, so it wouldn't leave scars or illnesses.

Li Jinshuang said that she was the same. The wet nurse in the mansion felt sorry for her because she was so young. Every time she was punished by kneeling, she would carry her back to help apply medicine and recuperate.

The two even started comparing which medicine was more effective.

Yu Sui naturally started talking to Li Jinshuang about her childhood, which led Li Jinshuang to unconsciously join in the conversation.

For the first time, the two did not discuss the complex and heavy topics that required careful consideration before speaking, such as the Pagoda, the Warring States, family feuds, and the art of war and swordsmanship.

They were talking about small things that were closely related to them, things they couldn't let go of or forget.

"It seems you are one of the smart and talented kids in the National Academy. I have many people like that around me, and I can never compare to them in terms of talent. Fortunately, the National Academy considers family background, so no one will scold me if I sleep in the National Academy during the day."

Yu Sui brought the warmed fruit tea to the table: "Among the students who were my classmates, the one with the best talent was Princess Shangyang."

Yu Sui verbally said that Princess Shangyang had the best talent, but she believed that Zhongli Que was the most powerful.

Princess Shangyang has a good talent for the Nine Schools of Arts, but she is somewhat impetuous in other arts classes. Zhongli Que is good at arts classes, but he cannot learn riding, archery and swordsmanship.

If Zhongli Que could learn the Nine Schools of Arts, then Princess Shangyang wouldn't have been the one who stole the spotlight back then.

Li Jinshuang handed over the cup, watched Yu Sui pour the tea, and said, "The most talented person in Nan Jing is the Holy Maiden."

"Xun Zhiya?" Yu Sui looked up at her.

Li Jinshuang hummed in agreement and mimicked Yu Sui's humor: "The National Academy in Nanjing also considers family background."

Yu Sui chuckled and said, "Indeed, no one can compare to the Holy Maiden."

Li Jinshuang said, "When Shu Chujun was in the Imperial Academy, she always followed the Holy Maiden. Wherever the Holy Maiden was, she was there too. It was only after I joined the Imperial Guard that I was responsible for the safety of the nobles going out and the Emperor's travels, which is why I had frequent contact with the Holy Maiden."

Yu Sui exclaimed in surprise, "Imperial Guard? You already have a position in the army, so wouldn't Shu Chujun be able to bully you whenever he gets the chance?"

Li Jinshuang's expression showed a hint of helplessness for a moment: "You'll get used to it."

“How can I get used to this?” Yu Sui sat across from her, taking a sip of her fruit tea. “In the past, if anyone bullied me, I would find a chance to bully them back quietly. If I didn’t find a chance, I would just wait and see. There will always be a day when I get my revenge.”

Li Jinshuang now believes these words.

Yu Sui slowly sipped her fruit tea and told Li Jinshuang about her "revenge" experiences at the Imperial Academy, including but not limited to throwing books directly in the face of people who spoke ill of her, using provocation on Princess Shangyang to provoke her into taking action, and so on.

She wouldn't ruin the good atmosphere tonight by mentioning any shady methods.

These childish acts of revenge unexpectedly amused Li Jinshuang a few times.

Li Jinshuang smiled but only pursed her lips, softening her subconsciously tense and resolute face for a moment. The corners of her mouth curved slightly, and a faint smile flashed in her usually quiet and silent eyes.

Yu Sui asked Li Jinshuang if she had ever retaliated against the children who had spoken ill of her in the past. Li Jinshuang thought for a while and finally shook her head: "I don't think so."

"Not even once?" Yu Sui frowned.

Li Jinshuang let out a soft "hmm" and thought for a moment before saying, "Actually, since I have a sword spirit, no one can bully me anymore."

Yu Sui tapped the table with her finger: "Talking badly about you is also considered bullying."

“After hearing it so many times, I stopped taking it to heart.” Li Jinshuang frowned after saying that, and hesitated for a moment before adding, “But… there’s something else.”

"Hmm?" Yu Sui looked at her patiently.

Li Jinshuang frowned and said with some difficulty, "Because of men's clothing... sometimes other girls will misunderstand."

Yu Sui suddenly realized, "Is there another girl who likes you and wants to get engaged to you?"

Li Jinshuang nodded.

She had only met the girl a few times and had helped her out in small ways, but she never expected that the girl would send someone to the Li family to propose marriage.

Li Jinshuang could never forget the girl's incredulous, heartbroken, and angry gaze after discovering she was a woman.

Because of the girl's bold declaration of love, the whole city knew about it. When the aristocratic men in the capital learned that the woman they admired had fallen for Li Jinshuang, they were furious and hurled insults at her.

Both being from prominent families in the capital, they saw each other frequently for a period of time. The young lady treated Li Jinshuang coldly, which made Li Jinshuang feel uncomfortable as well.

Li Jinshuang had never confided in anyone about this matter, and her grandmother wouldn't care about such things either. As long as she focused on her cultivation, Li Jinshuang never responded to the gossip of others.

When Li Jinshuang talked about this with Yu Sui tonight, she also suppressed the grievance in her heart.

After hearing the whole story, Yu Sui first scolded those who were gossiping, and finally said to Li Jinshuang, "You, with your masculine appearance, are also very handsome and talented. It's perfectly normal for girls to like you. Those men who said those dirty things are just jealous of you because they are not as good-looking as you and their appearance is not favored by girls."

She propped her head up with one hand and looked at Li Jinshuang with a smile: "Even I like your masculine appearance, so you can imagine how jealous those men are of you."

Li Jinshuang's heart skipped a beat when she heard this. Seeing that she was frightened, Yu Sui quickly said, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. Of course, I'm not treating you specially because of your masculine appearance. There are many masculine appearances that I like."

Li Jinshuang was both amused and exasperated by Yu Sui's antics. She couldn't help but lower her head, shake her head gently, and smile.

Yu Sui looked at Li Jinshuang who was smiling, but her heart was very calm.

She used to think that to win over Li Jinshuang, she had to analyze her family's personal interests, scheme against her relationship with Xun Zhiya, take advantage of her past, and get her on the same boat as her.

It doesn't actually need to be so complicated.

If you want to befriend Li Jinshuang and make her like you, all you need to do is, just like tonight, naturally chat with her about the past.

There are so many things to tell about Li Jinshuang's childhood, but she has no one to share them with.

Yu Sui's similar circumstances finally made Li Jinshuang open up to him.

After tonight, Yu Sui will be Li Jinshuang's friend.

Nangong Ming once told Yu Sui that making friends also requires tactics and cunning, and one must be able to distinguish between good and bad.

Looking back now, Yu Sui remembered everything Nangong Ming had ever said.

The flower shadows reflected on the stone wall swayed gently. On the other side of the stone wall, in a corner unlit by the night light, green bamboo stood silently, its branches shading Mei Liangyu, who was standing against the wall.

He came to see Yu Sui tonight.

To his surprise, Li Jinshuang arrived before him. Seeing the two girls chatting so enthusiastically, Mei Liangyu wisely refrained from going in to disturb them. Just as he was about to leave, he overheard Yu Sui talking about her past.

Mei Liangyu didn't leave. Instead, he waited behind the outer wall of the courtyard and used some of his magical abilities to listen to the conversation inside.

He automatically ignored Li Jinshuang's part and only listened to what Yu Sui said.

Upon hearing Yu Sui recount how she had to kneel to recite texts as a child, Mei Liangyu frowned, wondering if Nangong Ming was ill.

Some of them were mentioned by Yu Sui unintentionally before, while others were ones that Mei Liangyu had never heard of.

When Yu Sui recounted her revenge at the National Academy, Mei Liangyu's eyes and brows were filled with a smile.

Mei Liangyu was also hearing Yu Sui curse for the first time, and thought that his junior sister's curse was very reasonable. Those boring men not only deserved to be cursed, but also deserved to die.

Upon hearing Yu Sui say that she had many male admirers, Mei Liangyu narrowed his eyes in thought. How many?

[Author's Note]

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!