Not good, something happened!
Shangye Shaoqing heard the exclamation nearby and leaped over.
He soon saw a wilting lotus pond where a young girl struggled in the water in panic, her small boat overturned. A few servants on the shore jumped in clumsily, swimming with a doggy paddle, flustered.
"Don't be afraid, girl, I'm here to save you!"
Shangye Shaoqing stepped on lotus leaves, landing gracefully in the center of the pond, and easily rescued the girl.
Tang Xiaoguo was soaking wet and had choked on some water.
She could swim, and had only set off in the boat to pick lotus seeds. She didn't expect the boat to sway, and when she fell in, she panicked like a drowning person. It was so embarrassing.
"Th-thank you..." Tang Xiaoguo wiped the water from her face and was about to thank him when she suddenly froze, "You... it's you? Smelly fart young master, why are you in Qingxu Heaven?"
Shangye Shaoqing glared, "What did you call me?"
Tang Xiaoguo suddenly covered her mouth, Oh no!
Since seeing Shangye Shaoqing in the underground palace last time, she and Sister Su had unanimously agreed that this person was a smelly fart. When they gossiped occasionally, they never called him 'Young Master Shangye', but affectionately nicknamed him 'Smelly Fart Young Master'.
She had blurted it out accidentally.
"N-no, you must have heard wrong."
Tang Xiaoguo's pretty face flushed, and she quickly corrected herself, "Young Master Shangye, I-I'll go back and change first..."
She left Shangye Shaoqing behind and ran off. A while later, she came out after changing, wiping her hair with a towel. She saw Shangye Shaoqing looking around the courtyard, appearing leisurely.
"You little girl, if you hadn't run into this young master, you would have been in trouble just now."
Shangye Shaoqing turned to look at the refreshed Tang Xiaoguo and remembered who she was, "Hmm, not bad. Although you're a bit short and your figure is also lacking, you are still refined and lovely, worthy of being Luo Luo's junior sister."
Tang Xiaoguo had originally intended to thank him, but she was annoyed when she heard this.
"How am I short, and how is my figure lacking? Also, I am Sister Su's senior sister, don't spout nonsense if you don't understand. By the way, you still haven't said why you are in Qingxu Heaven. Did you sneak here with ill intentions?"
She stared at him vigilantly, as if she would shout if anything was wrong.
Shangye Shaoqing smiled proudly, "Your Sister Su and Senior Brother invited this young master to Qingxu Heaven as a guest. They are busy with something right now, so I was just looking around. Otherwise, how could I have happened to save you?"
Is that so?
Tang Xiaoguo was a little doubtful, then suddenly surprised, "Then that means Sister Su and Senior Brother are back? When did they return, where are they now? And, what has happened in these past few days?"
Shangye Shaoqing fanned himself, his chin slightly raised, "We just arrived in Qingxu Heaven. The events of the past few days have been simply thrilling and soul-stirring. If I don't tell you, you'll never imagine it in your lifetime!"
"What exactly happened, Young Master Shangye, hurry up and tell me!"
Tang Xiaoguo, being a naturally gossipy and curious person, was even more eager. She quickly thanked Shangye Shaoqing, invited him inside to sit, and asked a servant to bring tea and snacks, urging him to tell her quickly.
Since he had nothing to do, Shangye Shaoqing sat down and recounted the events of the past few days.
He spoke eloquently, with a spring breeze in his smile, portraying himself as calm under pressure and decisive. It was he and Su Luo who joined forces in the Giant King City to defeat Shui Qingyue, rescue many cultivators, and help Su Luo gain the favor of the giant tribe and the Golden Horn.
Of course, he didn't mention anything about Emperor Haotian.
One must be low-key.
"So, Luo Luo and Brother Li invited this young master to Qingxu Heaven as a guest." Shangye Shaoqing elegantly picked up his tea cup and took a sip.
Looking at Shangye Shaoqing's elegant demeanor, Tang Xiaoguo's unfavorable impression of him vanished.
"So that's how it is, Young Master Shangye, you are so amazing."
She looked at Shangye Shaoqing gratefully, raised her tea cup, and said in thanks, "I'll toast you with tea instead of wine, thank you for your help, Young Master Shangye. Otherwise, Sister Su and Senior Brother would have been in danger."
Shangye Shaoqing said with a proud smile, "It's just a small matter, not worth mentioning."
Suddenly, a stern voice sounded in his mind, "You brat, you're still drinking tea here? I told you to chase that girl Su, and you've forgotten it completely! You get lazy if I don't keep an eye on you for a day..."
Emperor!
Shangye Shaoqing trembled and quickly responded in his mind, "Emperor, I wasn't being lazy, it's just that Miss Su was busy with something, so I..."
"You dare to argue?"
"No, no! I am... I am..."
He was flustered and at a loss. His gaze fell on Tang Xiaoguo, and a flash of inspiration struck him, "Emperor, this is Luo Luo's junior sister. I'm asking her about Luo Luo's preferences! Only by knowing what she likes can I pursue her, right?"
"You're already calling her Luo Luo? Progress! Then hurry up!"
Emperor Haotian thought, this brat isn't that stupid, he even knows to ask for help.
He urged Shangye Shaoqing to hurry, and then fell silent again.
The voice in his mind disappeared, and Shangye Shaoqing finally breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at Tang Xiaoguo, he regained some of his smugness and said seriously, "Miss Tang, I have something I want to ask you."
Tang Xiaoguo nodded, "Yes, Young Master Shangye, what do you want to ask?"
"It's about Luo Luo. Since you are her junior sister..."
"Senior sister!"
"Ah, that's not important. I want to ask, do you know what Luo Luo usually likes? For example, what does she like to eat, what skirts does she like to wear, what does she hate the most, especially... what kind of person does she like? Tell me everything you know."
Looking at Shangye Shaoqing's bright eyes, Tang Xiaoguo felt something was not quite right.
"Why are you asking this, Young Master Shangye? If you want to know, just ask Sister Su directly." She frowned at him.
If I could ask her, why would I ask you?
Shangye Shaoqing muttered in his heart, and frowned, "Aren't you Luo Luo's junior sister? You don't even know these small things? How can you be a junior sister if you don't care about her?"
"Who says I don't know?"
Tang Xiaoguo immediately retorted, "I know everything about Sister Su! She likes to eat braised chicken feet, oily braised prawns, braised pork ribs, bobo chicken, roasted whole lamb, boiled fish, honey bean double-skin milk, fermented glutinous rice balls, honey cake..."
"Stop, stop, stop, why is it all food? What else?"
"I also know that Sister Su likes to wear light green dresses and often wears a light purple pearl hairpin. She hates cockroaches the most, and also dislikes dirty things. Once, Xiaobai and I went to play with Sister Su in the back mountain, and we saw a porcupine defecating, its butt full of poop..."
Shangye Shaoqing took notes one by one and urged her to continue, "And then, what happened afterward?"
"Afterward, we all ran away, hahahaha..."
In the storeroom of the Resource Hall, Su Luo had no idea.
Tang Xiaoguo, pure as a piece of white paper, had sold her out completely.
Su Luo was counting the spoils of this trip. She took out the large bundle from her storage ring, poured a pocketful of precious gems into a box, along with the Spring of Life and the Lotus Glazed Lamp.