...
In Tiandou City, a secluded private room in a high-end restaurant.
Qian Renxue, who resembled Xue Qinghe, was sitting upright in the main seat.
The tea in front of her had gone cold, indicating that she had been sitting there for a while and was not in a good mood.
"Squeak—"
The door opened, and Serpent Spear Douluo walked in with Ghostly Appearance.
"Greetings, young master." Ghostly bowed slightly.
No need for formalities.
Qian Renxue waved her hand, not even gesturing for Gui Mei to sit down, and went straight to the point:
"I called you here because I want to ask you something."
"That Xuan Hao..."
Qian Renxue's eyes were filled with confusion and anger.
"Is he even a member of the Spirit Hall?
Doesn't he know what the Angel Family means?
Doesn't he know what my identity means?"
Ghost sighed inwardly and answered honestly, "Young Master, Xuan Hao naturally knows."
"If you know that, why did he act that way?!"
Qian Renxue slammed her hand on the table, her usually gentle face now contorted with anger.
"Disdain?
Ridicule?
And even trying to intimidate me with that woman?"
"His actions in Tiandou City these past few days, whether it was scheming against Dugu Bo or using the royal family and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, all demonstrate that he is a very shrewd and intelligent person who knows how to weigh the pros and cons and assess the situation!"
"I valued his intelligence and believed he could achieve great things, which is why I offered him such generous terms right from the start, even promising him the position of Pope!"
"And then what happened?"
Qian Renxue laughed angrily, "He looks down on me? He even treats me like a joke?!"
"Does he think that only that woman can give him everything?
Does he think that I, Qian Renxue, am not capable of giving him anything?!"
Ghostly was silent for a moment, looking at the girl in front of him who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth and was used to everyone obeying her, and sighed inwardly.
What was he supposed to say?
Do you mean, young master, that you have low emotional intelligence?
Or are you just being pretentious?
"Young Master, do you... want to hear the truth?"
"Speak!" Qian Renxue said coldly, "Don't try to fool me.
If you don't explain clearly, I'm going back to Grandpa and asking him for an explanation!"
Ghostly figure had no choice but to accept that there was no escaping this situation.
"Young Master, the problem is not that your conditions are not good enough, but rather… your attitude."
"Attitude?" Qian Renxue frowned.
"Yes." Ghostly organized her thoughts and carefully explained, "I watched Xuanhao grow up. His personality is a bit… special.
He's the type who responds better to gentle persuasion than force."
"If you talk to him nicely, make him happy, or offer him something fun that he's genuinely interested in, even if it doesn't bring him much benefit, he might happily do the job."
"but..."
Ghost glanced at Qian Renxue, his voice lowering slightly:
"Young Master, you just came in with such a condescending attitude, like, 'It's your good fortune that I've taken a liking to you,' and 'From now on, you'll be working for me…'"
"To be honest, I was on tenterhooks the whole time I was watching from the side."
"Feeling apprehensive?"
Qian Renxue asked, puzzled.
"I'm afraid that if Xuanhao gets angry, he might just punch you in the face!"
Qian Renxue's eyes twitched slightly, somewhat incredulous: "Attack?
He dares to attack me?"
"He really dares to do that!" Ghost said seriously.
"Young Master, you may not be aware of Xuan Hao's status in Martial Soul City.
In the past two years, he has been a little tyrant at Martial Soul Academy.
He has personally dealt with at least two-thirds of the more than one thousand students in the entire academy."
"From the entire college, from the education commission to the students, who wouldn't treat him with utmost respect and deference?"
"Let alone you, even when His Holiness the Pope took him as his disciple, he had to coax and deceive him, and even make great concessions, to win him over."
"Normally, His Majesty truly dotes on him.
Although he occasionally scolds him or beats him up, he always treats him as an equal... even like a younger brother, and has never put on any of the airs of a pope."
"Those who have been kind to him, even if they beat or scold him, he will accept it with a smile, and he can even shamelessly act cute and charming."
"But what if it's a stranger..."
Ghostly glanced cautiously at Qian Renxue's gloomy face:
"Especially someone like you, who came across as 'I'm the boss, it's your honor to work for me' the moment you met him, and even threatened him with his sister..."
"To be honest, the fact that he didn't punch you in the face today is already a great act of restraint."
"..."
Qian Renxue was stunned after hearing these words.
That woman… that cold-blooded, ruthless woman who always had an icy demeanor, actually dotes on a child like this?
And a younger brother at that?
An indescribable bitterness and jealousy welled up in her heart, making Qian Renxue's face even more unpleasant.
"so..."
Qian Renxue took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly, "You mean, I still have to... coax him?
Beg him?!"
Who is she?
The young master of the Spirit Hall!
The heir of the Six-Winged Angel Clan!
From childhood to adulthood, she has always been pampered and spoiled by others.
When did it become her turn to humble herself and coax others?
"Young Master, you can't say that," Ghost said helplessly.
"It's true that you are a favored daughter of heaven, but Xuan Hao… is also a favored son of heaven that comes along only once in ten thousand years."
"Not even ten years old, level thirty-five, top-tier True Dragon Martial Soul, mind like a demon."
"His talent, his methods, and his arrogance are no less than yours."
"Among geniuses, the most taboo thing is to think one is better than the other."
"In his view, he is no less than you."
"So, your trick of bestowing favors might really just be a joke in his eyes."
A long silence fell over the private room.
Qian Renxue sat there, her expression constantly shifting.
She felt she had done her best, shown the utmost sincerity, and offered the highest price.
But unexpectedly...
So, she was in the wrong position from the very beginning?
The junior brother she saw as needing to be "gifted" was actually a little tyrant who needed to be "coaxed"?
She was unwilling to accept it.
I'm really not willing to accept this.
Why can that woman do it, but she can't?
Why is it that woman can make such a genius devoted to her, while she only gets disdain after throwing away all her resources?
"So you only respond to gentle persuasion, huh...?"
After a long while, Qian Renxue released her hand, a glint of defiance flashing in her eyes.
"What a prodigy!"
"If that woman can be coaxed, why can't I, Qian Renxue?"
"I refuse to believe that there is anyone in this world that I, Qian Renxue, cannot win over!"
She looked at the ghost, her gaze regaining its composure:
"Elder Ghost, since you know him so well..."
"Then tell me, besides cultivating and causing trouble, what does this kid like to do most?"
Ghost paused for a moment, "Uh... money?"
Qian Renxue: "..."
"Are you serious?"
After thinking for a moment, Gui Mei recounted how Xuan Hao had been collecting protection money at the Martial Soul Academy.
Upon hearing this, Qian Renxue was speechless. "Isn't this just bandits?"
She Long also lost his composure.
With such talent and status, how could someone still be obsessed with money?
Is that all the ambition you've got?
Ghost explained, "Xuanhao simply doesn't like owing favors, so he will never ask others for help with problems he can solve himself, and he will never involve troublesome favors in problems that can be solved with money."
"If he wants something, he can earn it himself, steal it himself, or... get it in his own way."
"In this way, he owes no one anything and can live with a clear conscience."
Qian Renxue asked in confusion, "What about the Pope?"
"Since he's so independent and dislikes owing favors, then what about his relationship with that woman..."
"It's the same," Ghost explained. "In the past two years, Xuan Hao has almost never asked His Majesty for anything.
Whether it's soul tools, herbs, or cultivation resources, as long as he can get them himself, he will never ask for them."
"Unless he is truly at his wit's end and has no other choice, he will never easily use His Majesty's favor."
"He himself told His Majesty that whether it is a teacher-student relationship or a family relationship, it is essentially mixed with the exchange of interests.
But if too much is mixed in, it will become corrupted.
Only by maintaining a certain degree of independence can the purest relationship be maintained."
"Relationships need to be nurtured, not consumed. If one party gives too much and the other only knows how to take, then the relationship will eventually deteriorate and become a favor or charity."
"This child may seem unruly, but in reality... he is very sensible."
If Xuan Hao were truly the kind of person who didn't know his place and only knew how to cause trouble, Bibi Dong would never have been so tolerant of him, let alone dote on him!
Xuan Hao and Bibi Dong's interactions were handled with terrifying finesse!
He was so angry that he would climb on the roof and tear off the tiles every few days, which made Bibi Dong want to hit him, but he saw very clearly that Bibi Dong was not angry.
If it weren't for Xuan Hao's cultivation of this relationship over the past two years, Bibi Dong would have made her move much earlier regarding the 100,000-year-old soul beast!
"That's interesting..."
A strange light flashed in Qian Renxue's eyes. "It seems I really did use the wrong method."
She originally thought Xuan Hao was a spoiled brat or a ruthless opportunist.
But now it seems that this kid is more mature than she imagined, even... more indifferent.
He viewed everything as a transaction, using it to protect himself from harm and constraint.
No wonder he was dismissive of his recruitment efforts.
Because in his eyes, it was "charity," "trouble," and even more so, "an unpayable debt of gratitude."
"Since he's so sensible, what happened this time?" Qian Renxue asked.
"If it were just a minor incident, that woman would at most scold him a couple of times.
But now, not only have you two titled Douluos personally come to Heaven Dou City to arrest him, but you've even gone so far as to use all the secret agents of the Spirit Temple."
"This situation doesn't seem like a simple case of running away from home."
Qian Renxue stared intently at the ghost, trying to discern something from his stiff face:
"What earth-shattering thing did he do in Spirit City?"
"..."
Read 20+ chapters ahead at Patreon
patreon.com/TaroYamato
patreon.com/TaroYamato