Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess
Chapter 791 - 387: The Gunpowder Scent Between a Woman and a Young Girl_2

Chapter 791: Chapter 387: The Gunpowder Scent Between a Woman and a Young Girl_2

It might be that Jiang Shouzhong has figured some things out; his sinking mood has finally started to brighten up.

Noticing the man’s change in emotions, Xiao Lingqiu softly asked: "Feeling better now?"

The woman’s cheeks were very red.

Red like a pomegranate.

If the previous embracing was merely an innocent desire to seek comfort, and the venting through clothes was merely an attempt to help relieve the other’s pain—

Then now, her forbidden territory, firmly gripped within his hands, had completely crossed into the intimate realm of husband and wife.

Xiao Lingqiu felt deeply regretful for her actions.

And yet, she had no intention of resisting.

Forget it; after all, I do have my limits. As long as I hold firm to my boundaries, it’ll be fine.

The woman comforted herself this way.

Jiang Shouzhong tightened his embrace around Xiao Lingqiu’s delicate body, his five fingers slightly curling, feeling her heartbeat more closely. He said slowly:

"My ever-optimistic superior once told me, ’What’s done is done; all we can do is look forward.’ To be honest, I don’t have much attachment to the Ran Mansion, except for Old Madam Ran. But for Qingchen, I carry a great deal of guilt.

When I first entered Ran Mansion, Qingchen hated me. On our wedding day, she even chose to run away; in the end, I was the only groom, standing there foolishly by myself.

Later, when we held the ceremony again, it was my turn to flee, leaving her in front of all those people. My superior joked, saying it was heaven punishing Qingchen..."

Xiao Lingqiu’s expression grew complicated: "You two really are a pair of adversaries."

Feeling a slight twinge from her chest, she tried to pull his hand away but failed.

"Yeah, adversaries indeed."

Perhaps realizing that discussing one woman in front of another wasn’t appropriate, Jiang Shouzhong swallowed back the words he had intended to share.

Softly, he spoke: "I hope to correct things in time rather than make amends afterward. For instance, with you—I don’t want us to turn into adversaries too."

Xiao Lingqiu parted her red lips slightly but said nothing.

Is this another confession?

But...

The woman’s heart was in turmoil.

"Senior brother!"

Suddenly, a startled scream sounded from outside—it came from Duo Ying’s room.

Jiang Shouzhong froze, then quickly flipped himself upright.

"Stay in the room and don’t run around."

Leaving those words behind, Jiang Shouzhong dashed out of the house.

Arriving at Duo Ying’s quarters, he saw Hou Qi, who had originally been unconscious, now rampaging wildly, smashing items in the room.

Duo Ying crouched in a corner, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

When she spotted Jiang Shouzhong entering, Duo Ying urgently cried out: "Be careful, Jiang!"

Jiang Shouzhong sensed something amiss. Tilting his body to one side, he narrowly avoided a sudden sneak attack—a palm strike hurled toward him.

The strike roared past his side, flapping his garments loudly in its wake.

Turning his head, he caught sight of an elderly man missing an arm, hiding in the shadows. His body was drenched in blood, and he was badly injured.

This one-armed old man was none other than Jiang Chenglu.

Seeing Jiang Shouzhong dodge successfully, Jiang Chenglu instantly realized he had encountered an expert. He retreated several steps and pointed at the enraged Hou Qi from afar, saying: "Come with me!"

Jiang Chenglu intended to use Hou Qi, who bore the Blood Spirit Seal, to fend off Jiang Que’s pursuit.

But he had underestimated Jiang Shouzhong’s strength.

Just as his body half-emerged from the doorway, a flying sword shot forward with lightning speed, aiming directly for his face.

Jiang Chenglu, panic-stricken, instinctively raised his hand, summoning a blood-colored talisman.

The talisman seemed almost sentient. As soon as it appeared, it emitted a faint red glow. With a "clang!" the flying sword collided violently with the talisman, sparking a shower of blinding flames.

Although he barely managed to block the flying sword’s attack, the overwhelming force threw Jiang Chenglu against the doorframe, causing him to cough up blood.

Jiang Shouzhong knocked Hou Qi unconscious once more and began advancing toward Jiang Chenglu.

Just then, Jiang Shouzhong suddenly sensed a sinister Sword Qi approaching him like a ghost.

Pausing mid-step, he pointed his flying sword at Jiang Chenglu, and with lightning speed, his hand darted to his waist and gripped the Spirit Water Sword’s hilt. With a crisp "swish," the Spirit Water Sword was unsheathed.

Its blade gleamed coldly like flowing water, as though a bubbling spiritual spring coursed along its surface. The aura emanating from it clashed against the sinister Sword Qi.

Clang!

The two swords collided, dissolving their force with identical moves.

"Huh?"

A surprised voice came from the girl outside the door.

Even Jiang Shouzhong was taken aback—the sword moves unleashed by the opponent were eerily similar to the Greedy Life Swordsmanship.

When the girl’s delicate and charming face became visible, Jiang Shouzhong froze in place.

"Que’er?!"

Hearing the familiar male voice, Jiang Que hesitated. Through the faint shadows, she suddenly realized the man standing before her was Jiang Shouzhong!

The two stared wide-eyed at each other.

Neither had expected to meet under such circumstances.

During their moment of shock, Jiang Chenglu’s eyes grew dark with hatred and madness—avoiding the flying sword, he lunged toward Jiang Que with ferocity: "You vile girl, die!"

"Watch out!"

Jiang Shouzhong instinctively wrapped his arm around the girl’s slender waist, turning to swing his sword.

Thud—

Jiang Chenglu’s head flew off.

Jiang Shouzhong didn’t spare the old man’s corpse a glance, his gaze fixed instead on the girl in his arms—long unseen. He asked: "Why are you here?"

Compared to the once youthful and innocent-looking Que’er, the current Jiang Que had grown taller; her curves now accentuated her womanliness. A cold glamour between her brows left Jiang Shouzhong feeling a strange sense of unfamiliarity.

"Who’s Que’er?" The girl frowned.

Jiang Shouzhong froze, carefully scrutinizing the girl: "You’re not Que’er?"

The girl’s eyes sparkled mischievously as she smiled and replied crisply: "I’m Jiang Que, Jiang from Jiang Mo, and Que from Zhang Que’er."

Jiang Shouzhong was speechless.

He flicked her forehead lightly and said with exasperation: "What nonsense name change is that?"

Jiang Que pouted her moist lips, rubbing her head as she said: "I think it’s a great name!"

As she spoke, the girl measured their heights with a playful stretch, finding that when she stood on tiptoe, her head bumped against his chin. She nodded in satisfaction:

"Not bad. A few more years and I’ll catch up. By the way, where’s Er Liang?"

"Er Liang isn’t here."

"Then where is she?"

Jiang Shouzhong answered: "A lot has happened—it’s hard to explain all at once. Tell me first, why are you at Water Moon Manor?"

Hearing that her close friend wasn’t here, Jiang Que felt deeply disappointed. Pointing at the corpse of Jiang Chenglu on the ground, she said: "That guy betrayed Blood Spirit Cave—I came to clean house."

Jiang Shouzhong clicked his tongue as he assessed the girl: "You came to clean house? Seems your cultivation has grown quite a bit."

The man felt a sudden wave of nostalgia.

Back when he first met this girl, she was merely a beginner Martial Artist.

Jiang Que puffed out her chest proudly, her voice sweet and spirited:

"I have exceptional talent for cultivation, you know. Even Sword Demon praised me back then—unlike you, whose poor talent made Sword Demon refuse to teach you."

Mentioning Yan Changqing, Jiang Que’s bright eyes dimmed with a hint of loss.

The girl had always dreamed of becoming Yan Changqing’s disciple.

Unfortunately, he didn’t think much of her.

Jiang Shouzhong ruffled the girl’s hair but suddenly glanced over, catching sight of Xiao Lingqiu standing at the door without him noticing. Her gaze was peculiar.

How to describe it? It was as though she were looking at a beast.

Her expression seemed to say:

How could you stoop so low?

Jiang Shouzhong cleared his throat, discreetly pushing Jiang Que away some distance, and awkwardly explained to Xiao Lingqiu: "An old friend."

Then, turning to Jiang Que, he introduced her: "She’s my..."

"Friend."

The woman’s tone was stiff.

Seeing Xiao Lingqiu, Jiang Que exclaimed with almond-shaped eyes: "Oh, so it’s you, sister!"

"You two met?" Jiang Shouzhong asked curiously.

With indifference, Xiao Lingqiu replied: "We ran into each other earlier while I was taking a stroll."

Jiang Que’s pretty eyes sparkled mischievously. Holding onto Jiang Shouzhong’s arm, she smiled sweetly and said:

"When I greeted the aunt earlier, she completely ignored me—probably because her hearing is failing with age. Oh, aunt, let me reintroduce myself. I’m Jiang Mo’s already-confirmed fiancée."

"Cough, cough, cough..."

Jiang Shouzhong choked.