Yang Ruxin’s bold laughter broke out, "I just knew you wouldn’t hold it against me..."
But Gu Yao rolled his eyes in response.
Yang Ruxin glanced at Gu Yao, "Can’t you stop making that expression? It’s kinda unmanly for a guy to be rolling his eyes all the time..."
"You..." Gu Yao immediately glared, "You’re the one who’s being unmanly."
"I’m a woman; isn’t it perfectly normal for me to be a bit girly?" Yang Ruxin laughed.
"You..." Gu Yao knew he couldn’t win the argument, took a deep breath in resignation, then suddenly smirked mischievously, "Just now, Guan Qingshu seemed to be quite interested in you, you know. Playing hard to get should only be done once; do it too often and..."
"Little Yaozi, are you not feeling well if you don’t gross me out?" Yang Ruxin stuck out her tongue, "That guy’s been out of the game for a while. Why are you still bringing him up?"
Gu Yao pouted, "Who can tell what’s true or not? Initially, you were..."
Suddenly, Yang Ruxin stopped walking and looked at Gu Yao very seriously.
Gu Yao was taken aback, "What... what are you trying to do?"
"I’m going to seriously talk to you about me and Guan Qingshu," Yang Ruxin said, eyebrows slightly raised. For some reason, she didn’t quite want Gu Qingheng to misunderstand that she still liked Guan Qingshu, so she felt compelled to make things clear.
Gu Yao swallowed hard, unsettled by her earnest expression.
"In the past, it was because my dad verbally promised me to his dad before he died, so I always thought that man would be my husband. Plus, he was quite handsome and educated, so I thought it was only right to treat him well... But over the years, no matter what I did, he just wasn’t interested. After my dad passed away, his dad denied any such arrangement. Yang Dani even died because of him, why should I continue to chase after him?"
"But now, it seems like he..." Gu Yao started to stammer.
The corners of Gu Qingheng’s mouth slightly curled up.
"That’s his problem now. And I don’t think he’s actually interested in Yang Dani. He’s just upset that the woman who used to beg like a dog for his attention is no longer interested in him," Yang Ruxin said with a bitter smile. "Actually, just a few days ago, because of him, I had a close call in Ghost Gate, nearly not making it back..." she paused for a moment, "If I really had died, do you think he would’ve felt any remorse? What about my mom? What about my younger siblings?"
Gu Yao opened his mouth but couldn’t find the words to say.
"People get tired." Yang Ruxin sighed, "Besides, Guan Qingshu isn’t the only man in the world. There are plenty of good-looking, educated men out there. Why should I hang myself on a crooked tree like him?"
"But he might become a successful candidate in the imperial examinations, or even an advanced scholar. Then..."
"Little Yaozi," Yang Ruxin rolled her eyes, "what’s with you today? Are you getting paid to speak on his behalf? Let me make it clear to you, even if he becomes the Champion, it doesn’t matter. If I don’t like him, then I don’t like him. If we’re friends, can you please stop bringing him up and annoying me?"
"I..."
"If you keep on, I’ll start thinking you’ve fallen for him..."
"You..." Gu Yao’s face turned a deep red, "What nonsense are you talking?"
Yang Ruxin laughed, "How is it nonsense? Men can love men, too. I’m not making fun of you..."