"..."
Li Zhanjue did not answer.
Meng Qingluan also wanted to get his answer; she had only asked him tentatively.
A leopard can't change its spots.
Li Zhanjue had been pursuing Chen Yan for so long, how could he possibly give up just because of a few words from her?
“It’s difficult, but I can try.”
"Oh...what?"
Meng Qingluan initially gave a perfunctory answer, but after realizing what Li Zhanjue meant, she immediately stood up.
Meng Qingluan felt as if a thunderbolt had struck her head. Her eyes widened suddenly, her already round almond-shaped eyes becoming even rounder as she looked at Li Zhanjue with a face full of doubt.
Seeing her surprised expression, Li Zhanjue remained calm and composed.
"What? Are you surprised?"
How could I not be surprised?
Li Zhanjue smirked. "Shouldn't I be the one who's surprised? How did you know I like Chen Yan???"
He believed he had hidden it well, except that he harbored some hostility towards Meng Qingluan.
Meng Qingluan glanced at him disdainfully.
"Isn't it obvious? You made sarcastic remarks about me for Chen Yan's sake, and even climbed over my wall to threaten me. Later, when you found out that neither of us would back down, you tried to pretend to like me and sow discord between us."
Does he think he's hidden it well?
Li Zhanjue was taken aback.
She actually knew all of this?
After calming down, he gave a self-deprecating laugh, a faint bitterness rising in his heart.
She never believed she was being sincere.
The two remained silent, and the atmosphere returned to stillness.
The only sound coming from inside the house was the crackling of burning firewood, and the wind blowing into the room blew the flames at an angle.
The firelight illuminated their faces, and Li Zhanjue suddenly asked.
"Why...why do you like Chen Yan? Didn't you have been deeply in love with me for a long time before?"
Li Zhanjue deliberately adopted a joking tone, his palms sweating slightly as he nervously clenched his fingertips.
He had no particular thoughts.
He was just curious, just curious! Nothing more than curious!
After all, any normal man would be curious if a woman who has liked him for a long time fell in love with him.
This is normal! It's not that he likes her! That must be it!
Li Zhanjue frantically tried to find excuses for his problems and nervousness in his mind.
Meng Qingluan's eyes darted around, and her lips unconsciously parted slightly as she pondered.
"Because... Shen Yan is handsome, has a gentle personality, and he's also very good to me."
Meng Qingluan reviewed the advantages of the Shenyan inkstone.
Li Zhanjue fell into thought, unconsciously comparing himself to Shen Yan.
Handsome? He's not bad-looking either, otherwise how could he have outshone Chen Yan and become the most beautiful courtesan at Nanfeng Pavilion?
He has a gentle personality, and his temperament isn't bad... at least he won't throw a tantrum for no reason...
Even though Meng Qingluan had annoyed him to that extent before, he hadn't laid a hand on her or hit her.
As for being good to her...
"What do you mean by 'it's good for you'?"
Li Zhanjue asked a question casually, while also grabbing a piece of firewood and throwing it into the burning fire to distract himself.
"He's very obedient to me, willing to spend money on me, and will even admit his mistakes."
Obedient to everything, willing to spend money, and proactive in admitting mistakes.
He could do all of these things; in fact, his treasury as a prince was far larger than Shen Yan's.
“I have these too…” Li Zhanjue muttered softly.
"What did you say?"
Meng Qingluan turned to look at him, but his voice was too soft; she only vaguely heard a sentence or two about him…
Did Li Zhanjue secretly curse himself a couple of times?
"It's nothing! I just said your standards are a bit too low..."
"You..." You're just jealous, aren't you?
"Smack—"
Before Meng Qingluan could finish speaking, the already dilapidated door was kicked open.
The cold wind instantly seeped into the cracks, filling the room and penetrating every crevice, stinging every inch of skin like a knife.
Meng Qingluan narrowed her eyes.
The person was completely shrouded in darkness; she could only see his spiky hair and obese body.
"Little Fatty?"
"..."
The chubby boy walked into the house, his face blackened by the electric shock, his hair standing on end, and even his clothes were tattered from the shock, barely covering his private parts.
Meng Qingluan and Li Zhanjue stood up and looked at him warily.
The chubby boy had a dark complexion, with only the whites of his eyes barely visible. The three men's gazes met in the air, and a silent hatred condensed in the atmosphere.
The chubby boy's eyes widened in fury, "You two bastards!"
"You're a slut, you're a slut! Your whole family are sluts."
Meng Qingluan retorted by picking up a half-burnt firewood stick from the ground and throwing it at him.
It hit the chubby boy's foot squarely.
The red-hot end burned through his shoe, causing him to grimace in pain. His originally fierce and frightening expression became distorted, and gasps echoed throughout the room.
Meng Qingluan picked up another one, and just as she was about to fly it over, the chubby boy saw it out of the corner of his eye and immediately put his foot down.
"Don't move! If you dare throw another one, believe me, I'll blow you all up right now!"
"..."
Meng Qingluan saw what he was holding and withdrew her hand.
The chubby boy held two round objects in his hands. Not recognizing them, Meng Qingluan humbly asked Li Zhanjue, who was standing to the side, for help.
What is he holding in his hand?
"Thunderbolt Bomb".
“Thunderbolt…” Meng Qingluan repeated, then loosened her grip, and the red-hot matchstick fell to the ground.
Thunderbolt!
Isn't that a bomb?
So the chubby guy was holding two grenades; no wonder he wanted to blow them up.
Meng Qingluan's vision went black for a moment, and she quickly tried to calm the person opposite her.
"Don't be impulsive, let's talk this out! Look, the room is so small, even if you blow us up, you'll still die. Why bother?"
"Hmph, shut up!" the chubby boy roared, brandishing the grenades in his hand in a fit of rage. "I want you all dead! Sister Mei is dead, Brother Yi was killed by you, and I don't want to live either. Let's all die together!"
"No!" Meng Qingluan cried, "You're so fat and strong, the bomb might not even be able to blow you up. I'm tall, long-legged, slim-waisted, and small-faced, I'd be blown away in an explosion."
Fatty: "Are you insulting me, or are you subtly praising yourself?"
"I hate people like you the most!"
After the chubby boy finished speaking, he made a throwing motion with both hands.
"stop!"
Li Zhanjue pulled Meng Qingluan behind him and stood in front of her.
"..."
Meng Qingluan looked up, her eyes shining brightly as she gazed at the man who had his back to her.
Has the male protagonist's overpowered nature finally been unleashed?
He rushed forward and delivered a flying kick to the chubby boy, turning his pig's head into cold pig's head salad. Was he going to save the two of them and save the world?
Meng Qingluan was so engrossed in her beautiful fantasy that she couldn't pull herself out. The next moment, Li Zhanjue's answer made her expression change instantly.
"If you're going to blow her up, blow me up first. Wait until I'm dead before you blow her up! If I don't die, you can forget about killing her."
"..."
Li Zhanjue spoke with a fierce tone.
Meng Qingluan was petrified on the spot.
Brother, listen to this, is this even human language?
If this lightning strikes, even if he's the male lead, or even the King of Heaven himself, he'll have to go back piece by piece.
What are you pretending for? You're loading cargo.
The chubby boy couldn't help but chuckle, "What are you pretending to be? Don't rush, the three of us will hit the road together."
Meng Qingluan rolled her eyes, turned her head behind her, and looked for a window she could climb out to escape.
Upon closer inspection, she indeed found a dilapidated window.
—Although it's not big, it's not wide either. If I fly over and crawl outside, I should be able to avoid being blown up.
As for Li Zhanjue…
He has the protagonist's halo; at most, he'll be half-paralyzed and lose an arm or a leg in an explosion.
As for myself, who might be cannon fodder, things are a different story. According to the age-old law, having my brains blown out would be the least of my worries.
The most likely outcome is that he will be blown up into neutrinos on the spot.
Meng Qingluan tugged at Li Zhanjue's sleeve and whispered.
"Well done, Bruce! Since you're so responsible, I'll give you a chance to prove yourself. When I try to escape through the window, you pounce on him and hold him back."
"good!"
Li Zhanjue nodded.
Just as Meng Qingluan was about to take a step and slip away, Li Zhanjue suddenly grabbed her sleeve and pulled her back, which she had managed to move two steps with great difficulty.
Meng Qingluan's heart skipped a beat.
You're not going to back out now, are you? You'll drag someone down with you even if you die, right?
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