"Rumor has it that Young Master Jiang is a debauched rake, but seeing you in person is quite a surprise. As expected of the dignified Son of the Prime Minister, how could you be a simple man?"
Su Qinghan's beautiful eyes were cool and detached. With a slender hand, she lifted the teacup before her, tilted back her fair, swan-like neck, and drained it in a single gulp as if it were wine.
She had brought this disaster upon herself. Had she been more ruthless, she could have abandoned her family, regardless of Jiang Lan's threats.
But her conscience wouldn't allow her to do such a thing…
Just a moment ago, Su Qinghan had even been thinking, 'If I were to ruin my own face, Jiang Lan would surely lose interest in me.'
But with the power and status of the Prime Minister's Mansion, he could probably find the best physicians to restore my looks anyway.
Since she couldn't escape this fate either way, she couldn't be bothered to feign politeness any longer.
Jiang Lan sighed softly. "Miss Qinghan, why the look of despair? I've always had a soft spot for beautiful women. I can't bear to see one heartbroken and frowning. The more you act this way, the more guilty it makes me feel."
Su Qinghan stared at him, her clear eyes wide. Her glossy, red lips parted, and after a long pause, she managed to force out a single word, "Shameless."
Jiang Lan shook his head slightly and stood up.
Su Qinghan thought he was about to make a move, to take liberties with her again.
Like a frightened rabbit, she scrambled to her feet and backed away.
Clearly, Jiang Lan was just an ordinary person with no cultivation, while she was a Cultivator at the Fourth Realm, the Illuminating Nether Realm—immeasurably more powerful than he was.
Yet now, facing him, she felt as if she were facing a ferocious tiger.
However, in the next moment, when she saw what Jiang Lan was doing, Su Qinghan froze, a sense of shock and even flattery washing over her.
She watched as Jiang Lan picked up the steaming, gurgling teapot from the red clay stove at the side and refilled her empty cup.
His hands were clean and slender with long, distinct fingers, but for some reason, they were also excessively thin and unnaturally pale.
Su Qinghan stood there, momentarily speechless. For someone of his status to personally pour tea for her…
'What did this mean?'
Jiang Lan sat back down, looked at Su Qinghan with a faint smile playing on his lips, and said, "Miss Qinghan, are you afraid I've poisoned it?"
"Rest assured, the tea is Hu Long Biqing Tea, the finest in all of Great Xia. Not only does it calm the mind and focus the spirit, but it also helps a Cultivator sort through their internal Spiritual Energy, refining what is pure and expelling the dross."
"The water is Celestial Pool Cold Water, taken from the tens-of-thousands-of-years-old pool atop the Chi Yao Sect's mountain. The annual tribute is less than a hundred pounds…"
In truth, even without Jiang Lan's explanation, Su Qinghan had already sensed something special when she'd downed it like ordinary tea.
The Spiritual Energy in her body had begun to circulate on its own, without any prompting. The slightly unstable foundation from her Realm-Breaking earlier today was even being steadily stabilized as the Spiritual Energy sorted itself out.
This seemingly simple cup of tea, both the leaves and the water, were Spiritual Objects that Cultivators could only dream of.
For a moment, Su Qinghan couldn't tell if she felt envious or numb. Despite having such supreme resources and background, Jiang Lan was an ordinary person with no cultivation at all…
'An ordinary person with no cultivation?'
Suddenly, Su Qinghan felt as if she had grasped something.
With the power and status of the Prime Minister's Mansion, they could turn even an ordinary pig into a Cultivator with a respectable level of strength.
And yet, Jiang Lan was truly an ordinary person. In fact, in Su Qinghan's eyes, his physical condition was worse than that of most commoners—his qi and blood were deficient, his complexion was pale, and his frame was thin, as if he were just recovering from a major illness.
'Is there really nothing strange about this?'
"Miss Qinghan, you can relax. If I had poisoned the tea, you would have already succumbed. You'd be paralyzed and helpless, for me to do with as I please."
"I may not be some shining example of virtue, but I wouldn't stoop to taking advantage of someone in your position."
"Besides, at this very moment, if I wanted to do something to you, do you think you have the ability to resist?"
Jiang Lan's leisurely voice interrupted Su Qinghan's thoughts.
He toyed with his teacup, his posture casual.
"Young Master Jiang is truly a man of honor."
Jiang Lan's words brought a flush of irritation and color to Su Qinghan's flawless, fair face as she retorted.
'She honestly hadn't thought of that. If Jiang Lan had truly poisoned her, she would have had no way to defend herself. She really would have been at his mercy, just as he'd said.'
'Setting aside her initial prejudice, she had to admit that a rich heir like Jiang Lan, who had his own set of "principles," wasn't completely without merit.'
'Jiang Lan chuckled inwardly. 'If it weren't for Su Qinghan's Sword Immortal master and the future trouble of winning this heroine's heart, I wouldn't be going through all this hassle.''
'A melon plucked by force might not be sweet, but it still quenches your thirst.'
In the pavilion, the rich aroma of tea lingered amidst a swirling mist. As moonlight filtered down through the night, it created a rather ethereal atmosphere.
Su Qinghan sat with perfect posture in her plain white dress. Her figure was slender and graceful, her curves exquisite, her form perfectly proportioned.
From the bottom of her heart, she was certainly unwilling to give herself to Jiang Lan, but for now, at least, she had to avoid angering him further.
Jiang Lan could guess what Su Qinghan was thinking, a calm and gentle smile never leaving his face.
If one were to ignore Su Qinghan's tense expression and the chains around her ankles, an uninformed outsider might have mistaken the scene for a romantic rendezvous.
"There's an assassin!"
"Protect the Young Master!"
Suddenly, the sound of fighting erupted from nearby, accompanied by angry shouts.
A strange figure in coarse linen clothes appeared, sending a group of guards flying and kicking them into the pond.
In the pavilion, Su Qinghan was stunned.
'An actual assassin? Is he here to kill Jiang Lan? Or to save me?'
'But I've never seen this strange man before.'
"Protect the Young Master!"
Angry shouts rang out as a huge swarm of Jiang Family guards appeared around the pavilion, all of them Cultivators at the Third Realm of the Spirit Sea Realm.
In any given city, a force like this would be considered the elite of the elite.
"You overestimate yourselves."
The newcomer was, of course, Lin Fan.
He simply hadn't expected this. 'I assumed Su Qinghan was imprisoned in a dungeon, but instead, I find her sitting across from that rich heir in a moonlit pavilion, drinking tea and looking perfectly safe.'
While he felt a sense of relief, he couldn't suppress a surge of anger.
Lin Fan's gaze was ice-cold and fearless as he strode forward, a tyrannical Sword Intent swirling around him.
He used his palm as a sword. With a mere flick of his wrist, a terrifying power erupted, and the gushing Sword Intent became almost tangible, its edge sharp and menacing.
SPURT…
As the guards charged, it was as if they were all run through by a long sword. Blood sprayed from their limbs, and none could get within half a foot of him.