Su Xiaoliu covered her head and looked back. Gu Rongxue looked down at her and said softly, "Don't be nervous. Come with me." With that, he turned and walked forward.
Su Xiaoliu didn't react for a moment. Gu Rongxue looked back at her and asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Su Xiaoliu quickly caught up, shook her head and said, "It's nothing."
Gu Rongxue gave a soft laugh and said, "Didn't you expect it to be me?"
Su Xiaoliu knew he was referring to the number - one beauty in the martial world. She gently shook her head.
The two walked one in front of the other.
Su Xiaoliu looked up at him and asked, "Did you know me before?" He seemed to know Yun Ruo.
Gu Rongxue shook his head and said softly, "Not really. I've just met you a few times." He turned to look at her and said tenderly, "It might be a good thing for you if you've forgotten the past."
Su Xiaoliu pursed her lips and lowered her head.
She didn't want to be someone else's substitute.
Outside the pavilion, peach blossoms were fluttering and falling on the water. The originally calm water rippled in circles. The warm wind blew across their faces, carrying a faint fragrance.
"At the Pingshan Conference, everyone's eyes will be on you at any time, so you mustn't be the least bit discourteous." Gu Rongxue sat down beside the stone table and waved his sleeve to gently brush away the fallen leaves on it.
Su Xiaoliu stood beside him and thought to herself secretly: Can't the number - one beauty in the martial world scratch an itch or sneeze? No one can control that!
Gu Rongxue looked up at her. Seeing the worried look on her face, he was slightly stunned for a moment and then smiled, "You don't have to feel so restricted. Just do your best."
Su Xiaoliu looked at him, sat down suddenly and said seriously, "What if I need to relieve myself during the conference? Hold it in?"
The faint smile on Gu Rongxue's lips froze for a moment. He looked at Su Xiaoliu and said softly, "If you're in urgent need, just say so. It's okay."
Su Xiaoliu thought for a while and then asked, "How long will the Pingshan Conference last?" If she just had to sit there for people to look at, she should be able to get off after the conference. If it was only half a day, she might be able to get by without being found out as a fake.
"Three days." Gu Rongxue replied.
Three days?
Su Xiaoliu widened her almond - shaped eyes and clenched her fists.
She had only agreed to be the leader's concubine, but now there was an extra identity. Should she go to that Guard Chang and ask for a raise?
Gu Rongxue saw her impatience. The corners of his mouth curved up and he added, "You only need to show up on the second day. If the leader has no arrangements for the other two days, you can move around freely."
Su Xiaoliu lowered her eyes and sat there in silence.
"I want to go home."
Gu Rongxue tilted his head to look at her and asked gently, "Where's your home?"
Su Xiaoliu opened her mouth. Just as she was about to answer "the capital city", she suddenly remembered that now she was Yun Ruo. She thought for a while and said, "It's very far from here. It'll probably take a very long time to get there."
Gu Rongxue gave a soft laugh. Suddenly remembering something, he took something out of his sleeve, put it on the stone table and said, "This is the hairpin you dropped on the ground before. Now I'm returning it to you."
Su Xiaoliu looked at the hairpin on the table. It was entirely green, with a silver - threaded butterfly at the top. There were delicate patterns on the body of the hairpin, which glistened in the sunlight.
Su Xiaoliu slowly picked up the hairpin. The silver wings of the butterfly on the top fluttered slightly, looking extremely lifelike. There was also a faint medicinal fragrance. Su Xiaoliu looked at the hairpin carefully. For a moment, she felt as if she had seen it somewhere before.
But this hairpin wasn't hers after all.
Su Xiaoliu pursed her lips. She looked up at Gu Rongxue and said softly, "Thank you."
After putting away the hairpin, Su Xiaoliu looked up. Gu Rongxue had already stood up. He glanced outside the pavilion and then looked down at Su Xiaoliu and said, "The leader asked me to teach you some etiquette in case of need."
Su Xiaoliu looked at him in confusion and repeated, "Etiquette?"
"It's going to fall, it's falling..."
In the pavilion, Su Xiaoliu sat on the stone bench with a bitter face, with a delicate silk ball trembling on her head.
Gu Rongxue sat beside her. There was not the slightest sign of wavering on his extremely beautiful face. He reached out and patted her slightly tilted body and said, "Sit up straight."
Su Xiaoliu's body moved when she was patted, and the silk ball on her head rolled straight down her face.
Su Xiaoliu quickly reached out to catch the ball and carefully put it back on her head.
"Keep it on for another half an hour." Gu Rongxue said in a tone without any trace of soft - heartedness.
Su Xiaoliu sat up straight again with tears in her eyes, muttering, "If you hadn't touched me, would it have fallen..."
Gu Rongxue glanced at her, pretending not to hear, and said seriously, "Sitting posture is very important. How can a young lady sit so slovenly without any manners?"
Su Xiaoliu trembled as she tried hard to find her balance. She pursed her lips.
She had thought Gu Rongxue was a gentle person, but she didn't expect that he could be so strict that it was unbearable. Why was she so unlucky, always getting into these bad situations...
Her head was gently knocked. Then that pleasant voice sounded.
"Don't let your mind wander. Concentrate."
The silk ball on her head shook. Su Xiaoliu almost lost her balance again. She quickly moved her body and finally managed to steady the ball.
She glanced at Gu Rongxue out of the corner of her eye and said angrily, "Who's letting their mind wander? How am I letting my mind wander? Which eye of yours saw me letting my mind wander?" She flatly refused to admit it.
Gu Rongxue looked at her, sighed softly and couldn't help smiling. He said softly, "Quibbling."
Su Xiaoliu felt a bit guilty under his gaze. She withdrew her eyes and murmured, "Who's quibbling?"
From afar, a handsome young man in white brocade clothes and a high hat walked over with a food - carrying box.
"Sir Rongxue, the leader ordered me to bring some food. Have a meal with Miss Yun."
The handsome young man in the high hat put the food - carrying box on the stone table and opened the lid. A delicious smell of the dishes wafted out.
Su Xiaoliu had already found her balance. Hungry as she was, the moment she saw the food, she pounced on it like an arrow and plopped down on the stool in front of the stone table, staring intently at the dishes the handsome young man took out.
The handsome young man in the high hat was startled by her. His eyes fell on the motionless silk ball on her head and he said in surprise, "Is this Miss Yun's new hair accessory? It's really quite special."
Gu Rongxue beside him couldn't help chuckling.
Hearing this, Su Xiaoliu, who had been staring at the food, turned to look at the handsome young man, pointed to the silk ball on her head and asked, "You mean this?"
The handsome young man in the high hat nodded.
Su Xiaoliu looked at Gu Rongxue with a wronged face.
Gu Rongxue had no way with her. With a smile in his eyes, he said softly, "Take it off."
Su Xiaoliu reached out and touched the silk ball on her head. Under the stunned gaze of the young scholar, she took it off and put it aside.
"Miss Yun has really good balance." The young scholar twitched the corners of his mouth and said blankly.