Chapter 105: Shedding the Golden Cicada's Skin

"Chen Le, why are you acting so inexplicably? You've been like a different person since this morning."

Lu Qianxue slammed her chopsticks onto the table in a fit of temper. She cast a side-glance at Li Pingyang, convinced that he had something to do with this. Li Pingyang pursed his lips, wearing an aggrieved expression.

Chen Le said nothing, merely staring fixedly at Lu Qianxue. His gaze was so intense it was as if he were about to devour her. Lu Qianxue shivered, goosebumps erupting all over her skin.

"Are you sick or something?"

Flustered and shy, Lu Qianxue mumbled under her breath and hurriedly picked up her chopsticks to continue eating. This was the first time Chen Le’s gaze had ever made her feel so flustered. She had no idea what was happening.

Chen Le’s next move shocked even Li Pingyang. He reached out his hand, moving it directly toward Lu Qianxue’s face. The four attendants—East, South, West, and North—all dropped their chopsticks at once, their faces frozen in shock. Xilian swallowed a mouthful of rice, a hint of anticipation in his eyes.

"What are you doing?"

Lu Qianxue recoiled nervously. To everyone’s surprise, Chen Le stood up, propped one foot on his chair, and placed a hand on Lu Qianxue’s shoulder. She felt completely at a loss, her eyes darting away in extreme tension.

Even if she had never eaten pork, she had certainly seen pigs run. Lu Qianxue squeezed her eyes shut, waiting quietly for Chen Le to lean in. The four attendants also guessed that they were about to witness the scene they had been waiting for.

Slowly, Chen Le leaned toward Lu Qianxue and reached out to touch her face. He wore an expression of intense sincerity and deep affection.

Then, he plucked a stray grain of rice from the corner of her lip. With a grand, nonchalant air, he sat back down, picked up his bowl, and buried his head in his meal.

Everyone was left completely bewildered.

Li Pingyang, who had been resting his chin on his left hand to watch the show, was so stunned by Chen Le’s maneuver that his hand slipped, and he nearly fell off his chair.

"Eat! Why are you all staring at me?"

Seeing that everyone had stopped eating, Chen Le looked up to prompt them. Hearing this, everyone picked up their chopsticks again, including Lu Qianxue herself. While eating, Chen Le would occasionally look up, nibbling on the end of his chopsticks, and steal a glance at her.

***

After the meal, Li Pingyang sat on the doorstep with the four attendants, lined up in a row. They watched as Lu Qianxue, armed with a large blade, hacked away at a pile of wood in the courtyard.

Lu Qianxue didn’t know why she was suddenly so irritable and restless. It was as if an inexplicable emotion had suddenly invaded her heart.

Chen Le stood leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, his sword held in his left hand and a fine silk handkerchief in his right, watching her the entire time. Seeing that she was exhausted and had vented her frustration, with beads of sweat forming on her forehead, Chen Le ran over quickly and handed her the handkerchief with a smile.

He didn't know much about handkerchiefs; he had specifically asked a vendor on the street to choose this one for him. From the material to the texture, it was a high-quality piece.

Taking the handkerchief, Lu Qianxue rolled her eyes at him in silence.

"Chen Le, did you take the wrong medicine today? I don't know what happened to you, but I hope you can go back to normal!"

Lu Qianxue said angrily, throwing the handkerchief back at him. Chen Le caught it quickly, his face showing disappointment.

Lu Qianxue pushed him aside, and when she saw him trying to follow, she stopped, turned around, and warned him not to bother her. Watching Lu Qianxue retreat to her room and slam the door shut, Chen Le shot a fierce glare at Li Pingyang, who was sitting nearby watching the fun and struggling to hold back his laughter.

He stormed over and threw the handkerchief in Li Pingyang's face. This had been his brilliant idea, yet not only did Lu Qianxue not develop any fondness for him, but she now treated him like a madman. They used to be able to talk about anything, and he had thought their relationship was quite good. Now, Lu Qianxue didn't even want to see him.

"Li... Er... Pang!"

Chen Le gritted his teeth, pronouncing each word clearly. His gaze frightened Li Pingyang, who immediately stood up, looking for a way to escape.

But with a single look from Chen Le, the four attendants pinned him down, and Chen Le raised his fist, ready to strike. Li Pingyang hurriedly explained that it was alright—the show wasn't over yet!

Chen Le lowered his fist, grabbed Li Pingyang by the collar, stared at him, and then let go. Li Pingyang pulled him aside and whispered that his performance had been a bit too much.

Chen Le rubbed his chin and leaned in, listening as Li Pingyang offered a new strategy. The four attendants also leaned in to listen, but were driven away by a glare from the pair, scurrying off to attend to their own business.

***

At night, everyone was fast asleep.

A faint sound of footsteps drifted by. Chen Le heard the disturbance, snapped his eyes open, and sat up in bed. He saw a dark figure passing by his window.

Under the moonlight, the figure headed toward Lu Qianxue’s room. Looking at a pile of dry wood in the corner, the figure pulled out a fire-starter, blew on it, and ignited the pile.

Lu Qianxue, deep in sleep, was awakened by a choking white smoke drifting in through the door cracks. She sniffed the air, realized there was a fire, and rolled out of bed.

Pushing open the door, Lu Qianxue covered her nose and mouth with her hand, squinting through the thick smoke. She saw the woodshed on the right engulfed in fierce flames.

The four attendants were busy fetching water buckets to fight the fire, Li Pingyang among them, holding a basin. But Chen Le was nowhere to be seen.

Lu Qianxue glanced toward his room and saw the doors and windows tightly shut, which immediately filled her with panic. She ran toward Zhou Tianlong, grabbed the bucket from his hand, and dumped the water over herself.

Soaking her clothes, she sprinted toward Chen Le’s room and slammed the door open. Inside, Chen Le was still lying on the bed, seemingly unconscious.

Rushing into the room, Lu Qianxue braved the flames to reach his side. She patted his face and noticed his lips were purple. A poisonous needle was embedded in the back of his hand. She pulled it out and helped him up to head outside. Suddenly, a roof beam, weakened by the fire, snapped and came crashing down.

Lu Qianxue raised her arms to block the beam, preventing it from crushing Chen Le. Her wet clothes protected her, and she managed to drag him to safety.

Looking at the unconscious Chen Le, Lu Qianxue was filled with worry, her brows furrowed in distress. Perhaps due to inhaling the smoke, Chen Le coughed violently and regained consciousness.

Seeing him wake up, Lu Qianxue smiled with relief.

Chen Le looked at her—wet, her hair plastered to her face, eyes filled with anxiety—and offered her a smile.

Only then did Lu Qianxue realize she was still tightly gripping his hand and hurriedly pulled away. Seeing her concern for him, Chen Le felt a surge of joy.

But when he turned his head, he realized Li Pingyang was gone!

Following his gaze, Lu Qianxue also realized that Li Pingyang, who had been fighting the fire with a basin just moments ago, had vanished.

The four attendants had been too focused on the fire to notice.

Chen Le sat up from the ground, looking at Lu Qianxue, and finally understood Li Pingyang's true intent—he had been using him all along.

"He's trying to escape! After him!"