Chapter 165 (1/2)

Chapter 165: Stubborn

”What if I insisted on partic.i.p.ating?” Jun Huang asked, tilting her head to meet his gaze. There was no trace of doubt in her eyes.

Nan Xun's tone hardened in response to her stubborn reaction. ”Do you know what kind of tournament this is? It's where masters of martial arts fight to earn their glory. Even if we put aside your limited training, your health condition alone is going to put you in great danger. You're going to get hurt without gaining the benefit of spreading your name.”

Jun Huang didn't want to make Nan Xun worried, but she had made up her mind. She had to fight Rong'er fair and square. ”I've given her my word. I can't just take it back. If you're not willing to train me, then so be it.”

She got to her feet and walked past Nan Xun to go upstairs.

Nan Xun couldn't stand being subject to her cold gaze. He took a deep breath and caught Jun Huang's wrist. Reluctantly, he said, ”I'll train you.”

They made their way to the backyard of the inn and notified a clerk what they were going to do. The clerk gladly took the silver Nan Xun awarded him and left them alone.

From the first floor, Rong'er watched the two of them train with swords. She ground her teeth together and tightened her fists, barely suppressing her anger. She would not let Jun Huang off the hook easily! Now she only had to wait for the tournament to come.

Jun Huang had made some progress after a day of training, but the worried look never dropped from Nan Xun's face. At night, Jun Huang had retired to bed early out of exhaustion. Nan Xun left the room after some consideration and knocked on Rong'er's door.

Rong'er was glad to see Nan Xun, but she could tell that Nan Xun was here to demand answers from her. She opened her mouth, at a loss of what to say.

”I thought you were a brave heroine who could rival any men, and I planned to watch you fight on stage to show everyone what you you could do. However, it turns out you are simply a spoiled girl. Now I feel no desire to even look at you.”

Nan Xun had been fuming the whole day, but he couldn't vent his anger on Jun Huang. Now all his ire was aimed at Rong'er. He considered Rong'er to be an unreasonable and unpleasant woman.

Rong'er took a deep breath and retorted, ”What is the gentleman saying? Feng Baiyu is a man. If even I, a woman, can partic.i.p.ate in the tournament, why can't he? Besides, he agreed to partic.i.p.ate himself. Has he said something that made you think I deserve such reprimand?”

Her tone was dignified, but under her sleeves, her fists were tight and her nails had buried into her palms.

Nan Xun frowned. He didn't expect Rong'er to be this blind to her own wrongdoings. He stormed away with a whip of his sleeves. Rong'er let out a sigh of relief.

For the next few days, Rong'er had not seen Nan Xun and Jun Huang even once. Her sect had been busy in preparation for the upcoming tournament as well. She worriedly waited for the tournament to come.

On the day of the tournament, many more people had gathered in Yun Town. The sound of gongs and drums announced the occasion before the sun even rose above the horizon. Nan Xun had woken up early. With a faint smile, he let out a resigned sigh as he looked at the still sleeping Jun Huang. He truly did not know how to deny her anything.

He silently got off the bed and turned to look at her face. They had trained a little longer yesterday. Thus, her sleep had been particularly unrestful last night. Her face was an unhealthy color.

Silence stretched. Nan Xun walked out of the room and asked the clerks to prepare a bowl of congee. As he had done before, he added the medicine into the bowl and brought it back to their room.

When Jun Huang woke up, Nan Xun was entering the room a bowl of congee in his hand. She felt warmth welled up in her chest, but she didn't let it show. She still believed that she must not give Nan Xun any false hope. She was never meant to be his.

Jun Huang snorted silently. She kept her distance from Nan Xun because of her condition, and yet she could not tolerate hearing others criticize Nan Xun. Otherwise she wouldn't have fallen into Rong'er's trap and gotten herself into this mess. Fortunately, Nan Xun didn't know exactly what had happened that morning.

Nan Xun put the bowl on the table and came up to Jun Huang's side. ”What's wrong?” he asked worriedly. ”Are you feeling alright?”

Jun Huang shook away her unnecessary thoughts and let out a long breath. She got to her feet, ma.s.saging her throbbing temple.

”Don't go to the tournament if you are unwell,” Nan Xun said with his eyebrows furrowed.

Jun Huang waved a hand dismissively and got herself presentable before taking a seat at the table. She tucked into the congee. Nan Xun knew that there was nothing he could say to change her mind. He silently waited for Jun Huang to finish eating.