lovenovelstory Chapter 552 I've Fallen for the Moon Goddess
Chapter 552 I've Fallen for the Moon Goddess
Xu Longxiang remained silent for a long time, so long that the light inside the tent seemed to dim a degree.
He had been observing Qin Mu from the moment he made his move on the stage until now, when he casually made that request while holding his teacup.
In his vision, a person who has cultivated to that level should be indifferent and detached, and should not be entangled by these ordinary desires.
But Qin Mu's nonchalant demeanor at this moment made his previous judgment waver.
Finally, he spoke, his voice deliberately calm, as if buying himself time: "Senior... what kind of woman do you want?"
He spoke slowly, as if testing the depth of the water.
Qin Mu didn't look at him, but lowered his gaze to the teacup in his hand. The tea was clear and reflected the thin, elongated spots of light filtering down from the top of the tent: "What I want, Your Highness may not be willing to give."
Xu Longxiang's eyes narrowed slightly.
He didn't answer immediately; his fingers slowly tightened and then loosened on the edge of the table.
After a few moments of silence, he spoke again, his voice a shade deeper than before, as if pushing a stone out of a deep alley: "Senior, please speak freely. Although the Northern Territory is not as wealthy as the Great Qin, if I were to use all the resources of the Royal Palace, I could find any kind of beauty."
When he said this, he unconsciously used the self-reference "this king"—as if reminding the other person, and also reminding himself.
He controls the entire northern border, with 300,000 iron cavalry and countless resources.
These are the reasons he has the confidence to win people over.
Qin Mu finally looked up at him: "I want her."
Qin Mu's gaze did not fall elsewhere; it passed over Xu Longxiang's shoulder and landed on the curtain of the tent behind him.
The curtain was still swaying slightly, indicating that someone had just left.
Xu Longxiang turned his head in the direction of Qin Mu's gaze.
The tent flap had already fallen, but he had just clearly seen the hem of a moon-white garment standing there.
In an instant, that aloof and indifferent face appeared in his mind—white clothes, a mask, and those eyes that could stir one's heart even through the mask.
Xu Longxiang stopped speaking.
He stood there, frozen, like a traveler walking on a narrow path who suddenly discovered a precipice ahead, wanting to retreat but unwilling to turn back.
His fingers had left the edge of the table, dangling on his knees, curling slightly before relaxing again.
After a long pause, he spoke again: "Senior... who are you referring to as 'she'?"
Qin Mu smiled.
The smile was more genuine than before, like a leaf that had fallen onto the water and finally sank: "Moon Goddess."
Xu Longxiang's pupils suddenly contracted.
He seemed to have been struck by something, and even his breath caught in his throat for a moment.
He didn't answer immediately, but his fingers clenched tightly on his knees, his knuckles turning white and the veins slightly bulging.
"How did you know, senior?" His voice was a few decibels lower than before, like a thin layer of ice covering a lake in winter, where you could hear a faint cracking sound when you stepped on it.
Qin Mu leaned back in his chair, his demeanor still as nonchalant as ever: "I saw her on the stage just now. She was standing next to you, wearing a white jade mask. Whether she was wearing a mask or not, I could recognize her."
Xu Longxiang's clenched fingers did not loosen, and the frequency of his chest heaving increased, as if he was trying to calm something down.
He looked at Qin Mu, the calm that had been present in his eyes fading considerably, replaced by a complex light—a mixture of wariness, probing, and a hint of almost instinctive resistance that he was unwilling to admit.
He remained silent for a long time, long enough that the light inside the tent shifted an inch further.
Just as the silence was about to solidify into a wall, he finally spoke: "Senior, this request... I'm afraid I cannot grant it."
Qin Mu didn't seem surprised.
He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and put it down, as if he weren't the one who had just been rejected: "Because she's your favorite person?"
Xu Longxiang did not deny it.
He paused for a few moments, as if gathering his thoughts, his voice lower and more resolute than before: "Senior, the Moon Goddess is an important ally of mine, and someone I... am willing to befriend wholeheartedly. She is not a bargaining chip."
After he finished speaking, he seemed to have unloaded a heavy burden, and his shoulders relaxed slightly.
He met Qin Mu's gaze, his eyes now devoid of the previous wavering and hesitation: "Apart from her, you may speak freely about any woman from the Northern Territory, even my own sister. It's not out of the question. But she is the only one I cannot agree to."
Qin Mu looked at him, at his clearly still-shaken state, yet barely managing to regain his footing: "What if I insist?"
Xu Longxiang's gaze suddenly tightened, like a string stretched to its limit.
He looked at Qin Mu, as if trying to determine whether the other was serious, joking, or simply testing his limits.
He did not answer.
He sat there silently, his clenched fingers never loosening.
Chen Ruoyao had already walked some distance outside the tent, but she could still see through the gap in the curtain.
I saw Xu Longxiang's stiff back and his clenched fists.
She didn't stop walking, but turned her head slightly, glancing at the tent that was still swaying slightly out of the corner of her eye, and the smile on her lips deepened.
She knew His Majesty wouldn't really do anything to her, but she also knew that he was using her knife to stab Xu Longxiang inch by inch in the place he cared about most.
Inside the tent, Qin Mu looked at Xu Longxiang's tense expression, his clenched fists, and his unwillingness to back down yet also reluctant to turn hostile. Finally, he looked away and said, "Your Highness, there's no need to be nervous. I was just joking."
He spoke casually, as casually as someone bending down to tie their shoelaces by the roadside, finishing, standing up, dusting off their hands, and continuing on their way.
Xu Longxiang's brow twitched slightly, like a shallow ripple spreading across a lake surface ruffled by the wind, before quickly subsiding.
He stared at Qin Mu for a few moments, as if trying to determine whether his words were true or false.
After a moment, his shoulders finally relaxed a bit, and his clenched fist slowly loosened. His voice was a little hoarse: "Senior... this joke wasn't funny at all."
Qin Mu smiled, offering neither explanation nor apology. He simply picked up the slightly cooled teacup and took another sip.
Xu Longxiang clenched his fist again after he had just loosened it.
His gaze fell on Qin Mu's face, as if he were reassessing the man's worth.
His earlier "just kidding" made him think he had stabilized the situation, but Qin Mu's nonchalant tone at this moment clearly told him that every word he had just said was serious.
The light inside the tent dimmed further, and sunlight peeked through the gaps in the curtains, as if waiting to see where this standoff would lead.
Xu Longxiang remained silent.
His silence was longer than before, so long that even the sound of the wind outside the tent became clear, like a stretched thread, becoming tighter and tighter.
He spoke, his voice deeper than before: "Senior, you just said—'Actually, I wasn't joking.'"
He paused for a moment, as if to confirm the accuracy of his repetition, "So, what you mean is that the request you made just now was still serious."
Qin Mu neither denied nor nodded.
He simply leaned back in his chair, holding the now slightly cooled cup of tea in one hand, his gaze calmly meeting Xu Longxiang's. "Your Highness," he said, "you just asked me what I wanted. I told you, but you didn't believe me. I said it was a joke, but you still didn't believe me. So what exactly do you want to hear me say?"
Xu Longxiang's lips twitched slightly, like a leaf being blown by the wind, wanting to close but being held back.
His voice was even lower than before: "Senior, the Moon Goddess... she is no ordinary woman."
"I know." Qin Mu's tone was as calm as if he were saying that the weather was nice today. "I saw her wearing a mask on the stage just now. A woman who can stand so calmly next to you is naturally not an ordinary person."
Xu Longxiang's fingers slowly tightened on his knee.
He should stand up, end the conversation with a resolute tone, and tell the man in gray—don't even think about it, that's one of my men.
But he couldn't stand up.
He clearly remembered the sword light that had swept across the sky on the arena, and how the entire training ground was so quiet when the iron sword fell to the ground that only the sound of the wind could be heard.
He remembered the warriors who had fallen before him—there were renowned swordsmen from the Northern Territory, rogue cultivators who had practiced for many years, and Bai Yujing, whose true strength even he could not fathom.
None of these people could withstand three moves from that person.
He needs this person.
He knew it more clearly than ever before.
Qin Mu is like a pillar that can support the entire palace; once you miss him, you'll never find another like him.
He must keep this person.
Xu Longxiang took a deep breath, his voice softer than before, like a bent bamboo stalk slowly bending down: "Senior, apart from her... all the cultivation techniques, all the treasures, and all the weapons in the Northern Kingdom's treasury, I can give to you."
Qin Mu glanced at him: "Your Highness, do you think I lack those things?"
Xu Longxiang remained silent.
Because he knew that someone capable of wielding such a sword strike certainly didn't lack those things.
He didn't even glance at the Autumn Water Sword before casually handing it to the boy beside him.
For him, martial arts techniques, weapons, and treasures are probably no different from roadside stones.
Xu Longxiang's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and his voice was even softer than before, as if he were making a concession that even he himself was unsure if he could keep his promise: "Senior, the Moon Goddess... her alliance with me has not yet ended. After the alliance expires, her whereabouts will be decided by herself. I will not interfere."
Qin Mu looked at him, remained silent for a few moments, and then smiled.
The smile was more genuine than before, like a leaf that had finally found a place to land on the water: "Your Highness, you are more tolerant than I thought."
Xu Longxiang did not respond to that sentence.
His gaze fell on the cup of tea on the table, which had gone cold, as if he were looking at something unrelated to him: "You flatter me, senior."
Qin Mu stood up, placed the teacup on the table, and made a very soft "tap".
He looked down at Xu Longxiang: "Your Highness, rest assured, I won't take her away. I just... want Your Highness to know that I'm interested in her."
He smiled slightly. "As for who she will choose in the end, that's her business."
Without waiting for Xu Longxiang's reply, he turned around, lifted the tent flap, and went outside.
The curtain fell behind him, creating a gentle breeze that ruffled the stray hairs at Xu Longxiang's temples.
Xu Longxiang sat alone in the tent, head down, looking at the cup of tea on the table that had gone cold.
His back remained ramrod straight, but his hands were clenched tightly on his knees, his knuckles turning white.
After a long while, he finally let go, picked up the cup of cold tea, and drank it all in one gulp.
The tea had long since lost its warmth, and the icy sensation slid down from the tip of my tongue into my throat.
He muttered to himself, "He's actually taken a liking to the Moon Goddess..."
The sound was very soft, like a thread broken by the wind, which dissipated before it even hit the ground.