"He... rejected you?" Qi Xiao asked tentatively.

Qin Wan chuckled softly and shook her head. "I didn't see him."

Upon hearing this, Qi Xiao was taken aback at first, then came to his senses.

Didn't see it...

"Is it the Prince of Huainan?"

Qin Wan smiled and did not deny it.

“My father said that my life is destined to be full of hardships. He hopes that I am well, and he hopes that my elder brother is well.”

"..." Qi Xiao fell silent.

"My only wish in this life is for my elder brother to be well."

Qi Xiao looked at Qin Wan with a complicated expression, "Are you willing to accept this?"

"Are you willing to accept this?"

"So what if I'm not willing to accept it?" Qin Wan looked directly into his eyes and asked calmly.

Qi Xiao opened his mouth, about to say something, but Qin Wan didn't give him a chance and interrupted him directly.

"However, you don't need to overthink it..."

"Although I admired my elder brother, that was in the past. Three years have passed. Time is the best healer; it can dilute many things, especially a young girl's feelings of first love that were never very strong to begin with."

“I have never been honest with my older brother about this, and he has never responded to me…”

"Alright, I'm done talking." Qin Wan looked at Qi Xiao.

Qi Xiao: "???"

That's it?

"That's it?" Qi Xiao looked like he was questioning his life.

"Otherwise what?"

"Didn't the Prince of Huainan say anything else to you?"

Seeing that Qin Wan was so oblivious, Qi Xiao had no choice but to ask her himself.

“My father said he has arranged two paths for me: one is to enter the palace as a concubine, or to become a prince’s wife. With my status as a phoenix maiden, I can take the latter path very easily…”

"The second path is to come to the City of Four Directions. He paved the way for me, allowing me to control my own destiny instead of becoming anyone's appendage."

Upon hearing this, Qi Xiao paused for a moment, then said, "...The Prince of Huainan is quite good to you."

"My father treats me like his own son," Qin Wan said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Qi Xiao couldn't help but roll his eyes, glanced at Qin Wan sideways, and sneered, "You have a misunderstanding of yourself."

Qin Wan smiled casually, "Does it matter whether it's a man or a woman?"

Of course it's important!

In that instant, Qi Xiao instinctively wanted to refute, but the words caught in his throat.

If the other person doesn't care, why is he so bothered?

Thinking of this, Qi Xiao frowned slightly, feeling that something was amiss, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it...

"Why not choose the first option?" Qi Xiao couldn't help but ask.

Qin Wan glanced at him, her red lips slightly pursed, and after a moment of silence, she ultimately did not hide anything.

"That night, my father stopped me outside my elder brother's courtyard, called me into his study, and took out a pile of portraits."

“Portraits?” Qi Xiao frowned. “…All the marriageable princes of the Great Xia Dynasty?”

Qin Wan smiled without saying a word, neither denying it.

Qi Xiao: "..." Heh.

This King of Huainan is truly audacious.

Did he think it was a talent show?

They even placed portraits of the current emperor and all the princes in front of Qin Wan, allowing her to choose whichever she wanted.

Qi Xiao's anger lasted less than a second before he turned away.

"Am I inside?" Qi Xiao suddenly realized.

Qin Wan smiled but remained silent.

Upon hearing this, Qi Xiao fell silent...

He doesn't look too good...

"So, you recognized me from the very beginning?"

Qi Xiao's tone sounded somewhat like he was gritting his teeth.

Qin Wan smiled and explained, "I have a pretty good memory, you could barely call it... photographic memory?"

Qi Xiao: "..." Heh.

[Ye Qixiao's favorability increased by 2, current favorability 26.]

Qi Xiao seemed a little upset, but because of Qin Wan's honesty, his favorability actually increased.

"Since you knew I came with ill intentions, why did you still keep me here?"

"Because even if it weren't for you, it would have been someone else." Qin Wan's honesty left Qi Xiao speechless.

"So what? What is your purpose?" Qi Xiao pursed his thin lips slightly.

"Let's cooperate, Seventh Prince."

"I don't know what Consort Rou means to you, but I will do everything I can to help you save her."

"Similarly, I will have to trouble the Seventh Prince with the poison in my body."

Upon hearing this, Qi Xiao's eyes flickered slightly, but only for a moment before returning to normal.

I don't understand what you're saying.

He is denying it.

"Seventh Prince, since I dared to keep you here, how could I not be wary of you?"

"I could have dodged that arrow," Qin Wan said frankly.

...

...

...

Qi Xiao: "..." This woman is terrifying.

"Why did you tell me all this?" Qi Xiao still had doubts and couldn't fully trust her.

Or perhaps, he was wary of her.

Tonight's events, Qin Wan's frankness, not only shocked him but also made him realize just how terrifying this woman was.

But the more he understood Qin Wan's "unfathomable" nature, the more he wanted to get closer to her and have some fun with her.

This feeling of meeting a worthy opponent is so exhilarating.

Compared to those fools in the palace, Qin Wan is much more interesting.

[Ye Qixiao's favorability increased by 2, current favorability 28.]

He liked this feeling.

This feeling of evenly matched competition.

He found it very interesting.

"Consider that arrow a small gift I gave to the Seventh Prince as a token of our first meeting," Qin Wan said frankly.

"Although the palace has chosen the seventh prince, given the suspicious nature of those people in the palace, there are countless spies of theirs in the Qin family army."

"In order to ensure that the Seventh Prince can enter the camp smoothly, and also to convince the palace of the Seventh Prince's sincerity, I naturally have to cooperate a little."

"Otherwise... if the Seventh Prince traveled all the way to Sifang City but gained nothing, then the palace must have other arrangements and methods, making it impossible to guard against."

Qi Xiao: "..."

[Ye Qixiao's favorability increased by 5, current favorability is 33.]

She knows how to curry favor and how to get along with people.

"Aren't you afraid that the poison will kill you?" Qi Xiao deliberately feigned anger, as if he had been tricked.

"You've examined my pulse and administered acupuncture many times; you know my constitution better than anyone, don't you?"

Qi Xiao: "..."

...

...

...

"You really aren't afraid of death."

After a long while, Qi Xiao finally managed to utter this sentence.

No wonder that on this battlefield where killing is rampant, she, a mere woman, was able to rise to the position of Grand General of the Nation all by her own strength.

Besides the Prince of Huainan paving the way for her, her own abilities were also undeniable.

Thinking about this, Qi Xiao gained a deeper understanding of Qin Wan.

"And what about your internal energy?" Qi Xiao asked.

Upon hearing this, Qin Wan smiled and raised her fair hand...

Under the moonlight, that seemingly slender hand clenched into a palm and struck fiercely towards the hill not far away...

"Bang!"

"boom!"

Dust flying everywhere...

Plant debris flew around in a chaotic flurry...

It was clearly visible even in the chaotic darkness of the night...

Qi Xiao: "..." Heh.

To hell with guilt.

This woman is a complete fraud!

He had been through many ups and downs, and even in the ruthless palace, he had never met anyone as cunning and scheming as Qin Wan.