She clearly felt the man's body stiffen for a moment, and then a big hand landed on the back of her hand.
"Thank you..." Su Mingyu said with a smile in the corners of her eyes. "Thank you for staying by my side."
That nightmare had haunted her for many years. Every time she woke up, she would be covered in cold sweat and deeply pained. Now, although she still suffered, somehow, she didn't feel as lonely.
Sensing that Su Mingyu seemed to let out a sigh of relief, Gu Ruobai turned to look into her bright eyes. His voice was filled with a hint of pity. "Sometimes I really can't tell if you're cold - blooded or too affectionate."
This girl didn't let others get close easily, but she always repaid every person who cared about her with the gentlest response.
Su Mingyu just smiled at Gu Ruobai without answering. "Let's go. It's time to watch the show."
By the time the two of them arrived at the First Fragrance, the King of Yu was already there. Of course, that 'Mo Wenyuan' was also sitting casually in the grandstand. His eyes under the mask were still as black as ever, showing no sign of his emotions.
Su Mingyu and Gu Ruobai exchanged a glance, then she pushed Gu Ruobai in.
When the people in the brothel saw Gu Ruobai, the whole place erupted.
No one had expected that this Young Master Su had such a close relationship with the King of Ruixian and even pushed his wheelchair for him. This clearly indicated that they were on very intimate terms.
Moreover, who would have thought that such a small beauty pageant in a brothel would catch the attention of two princes from the capital, and even the King of Ruixian, who was known for not being interested in women, had come.
Wasn't he engaged? How could he come to such a place?
While everyone was filled with confusion, a flash of surprise crossed the King of Yu's eyes. Almost instinctively, he glanced at Mo Wenyuan beside him.
But Mo Wenyuan clearly had no interest in him. His eyes were calmly fixed on the stage below, showing no sign of wavering.
The King of Yu's face darkened. Especially when he saw Su Mingyu behind the King of Ruixian.
His expression turned solemn. A vague smile appeared on the King of Yu's lips. "I've heard that the King of Ruixian is deeply in love with his fiancée. I didn't expect him to come to such a place."
Although there wasn't much sarcasm in his words, the hostility was still quite palpable.
For a moment, everyone's eyes turned to Gu Ruobai.
Gu Ruobai just smiled faintly. "A gentleman is always fond of a fair lady. Since the King of Yu can come, why can't I take a look?"
Saying this, he deliberately patted the back of Su Mingyu's hand in front of the King of Yu. "Let's go. Since we're here, we might as well see how it ends."
Su Mingyu nodded and pushed Gu Ruobai towards the front grandstand.
Out of deference to Gu Ruobai's power and influence, no one dared to compete with him. So they spontaneously made way for him.
As the hunched - back man took the stage, the tense atmosphere in the air seemed to dissipate. Everyone's attention was once again focused on the stage.
Only the King of Yu on the second floor looked solemn. His eyes were fixed on Su Mingyu and Gu Ruobai below, as if he were brewing something.
Su Mingyu sat next to Gu Ruobai. Her eyes couldn't help but wander, as if she was looking for something.
Soon, Su Mingyu spotted Su Yueyue in an unobtrusive corner of the crowd. She exchanged a glance with Gu Ruobai.
Gu Ruobai opened his fan with a snap. At his signal, several people quietly made their way towards Su Yueyue. When they disappeared again, so did Su Yueyue.
"Today is the final competition. Miss Mei Qing won the first place yesterday, so she will start the show for us today."
As his voice fell, music filled the brothel.
Mei Qing walked in gracefully, wearing a light - pink dress. Then she started dancing elegantly to the music.
Only then did people realize that Mei Qing was not only good at sword - dancing but also an excellent dancer.
Unlike the appreciative crowd, a hint of worry lingered in Su Mingyu's eyes.
Throughout the dance and even when she took her final bow, Mei Qing's eyes were clearly directed towards Mo Wenyuan on one side. This was not a good sign.
Gu Ruobai had no real interest in these things. He was just here for show, so he looked rather bored.
After Mei Qing's dance, the hunched - back man walked onto the stage again. "The rule for the final competition is very simple. We have bronze, silver, and gold tokens on the ground. A bronze token costs ten wen, a silver token costs ten taels, and a gold token costs a hundred taels. The young lady who receives the most tokens will be the winner."
When the people below heard that it would cost money and the prices were quite high, their expressions darkened.
The hunched - back man grinned at them. "The madam has spent so much money on this big event for the girls, and it has even caught the attention of the two princes. Charging a little money is just to ensure that the girls will treat you with the best attitude!"
"Moreover, any gentleman who has voted in all three competitions and has spent more than fifty taels in total on votes will be able to spend a whole day with the flower - queen for free tomorrow. All expenses will be covered by the First Fragrance."
As soon as he said this, the crowd erupted again.
Spending just fifty taels to spend a whole day with the flower - queen was a great bargain. Everyone knew that even just to meet one of these girls, they had to spend hundreds of taels.
Not to mention spending a whole day with the flower - queen. This was like a gift from heaven.
While everyone was excitedly watching, Su Mingyu leaned over and whispered something in Gu Ruobai's ear. Then she quietly got up and went to the second floor.
When everyone's eyes were fixed on the stage, a delicate hand landed on the King of Yu's shoulder.
The King of Yu stiffened. Then he quickly realized who it was. When he turned around, he saw a delicate face. "Young Master Su?"
Su Mingyu quickly put her finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet. Then she carefully glanced at Gu Ruobai.
Seeing that Gu Ruobai seemed completely unaware, Su Mingyu seemed to relax. She pointed to a private room deep in the corridor behind her.
The King of Yu lowered his eyes, nodded in confusion, and got up to follow her.
After closing the door and shutting out all the noise, Su Mingyu let out a long sigh of relief.
Seeing her being so cautious, the King of Yu suddenly had the urge to tease her. "Miss Su, you've just called me away in front of so many people. Do you know that if the King of Ruixian were to find out, this would be like catching us in the act? The evidence would be incontrovertible."
It seemed that she was intimidated by his words.
Su Mingyu's face suddenly turned pale. She wanted to open the door, but the doorknob was behind the King of Yu. She stretched out her hand hesitantly, looking extremely troubled.
Seeing her cute look with her head tilted, the King of Yu couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth. "I was just joking. Didn't Miss Su think about all these things when she called me in?"