Chapter 446 — The Other Side of Qiu Lingshan: Wei Zhao Nearly Planted Himself on the Floor, So Scared Was He by Her Change of Heart

"Heh, Xiao Song, it is about time you found a man who can keep you in line. You are far too wild by half!" Yang Huaijun said with a laugh.

"Ah? Brother Yang... what... what nonsense are you talking? What man am I looking for?" Qiu Lingshan's eyes flew wide, her cheeks burning scarlet, and she glared at Yang Huaijun, bristling with indignation.

"A girl must marry when she comes of age!" Yang Huaijun, for his part, did not mind in the least. "Besides, when your big brother here needs Wei Zhao to run an errand, even I have to go and beg him!"

"You... even you beg him?" Qiu Lingshan had long been baffled by Wei Zhao's true identity. Even if he was nothing more than a formidable bodyguard, there was no reason for Yang Huaijun to hold him in such high regard. Yang Huaijun was not a man who gave his admiration lightly, yet in Wei Zhao's presence he assumed an attitude of unreserved, self-abasing deference, and that was precisely what Qiu Lingshan could not make sense of.

Yang Huaijun had retired from that mysterious organization. Though he carried injuries now and his skills were nothing like what they had been, he had known his own brilliant hours, and he was a man of both courage and cunning -- not the sort to praise another man easily.

But as for Wei Zhao... Qiu Lingshan truly could not work out what possible connection the two men could have. Most suspicious of all, the very first time Yang Huaijun had laid eyes on Wei Zhao, he had all but lost his composure.

Yang Huaijun nodded gravely. "I am asking him to treat my illness at this very moment."

Yang Huaijun had it in mind to play matchmaker between Wei Zhao and Qiu Lingshan. Though the Song family's power was no small thing, the household hardly interfered in Qiu Lingshan's marriage, and since the Song family had its origins in an ancient martial clan that venerated strength above all else, the old master of the house was openly supportive of Qiu Lingshan's declared intention to take only a man who could beat her in a fight.

And Wei Zhao happened to satisfy exactly that condition. On this one point alone, it might be worth letting Wei Zhao have a try. What tormented Yang Huaijun, however, was the matter of Xiao Ning: knowing full well that Wei Zhao could never be accepted by Xiao Ning's family, he nonetheless could not stop himself from helping her, again and again.

What manner of state of mind was this? The affection he had buried in the deepest recesses of his heart had been transformed into a guardianship over her happiness.

Qiu Lingshan was left briefly at a loss for words. She had thought that with Yang Huaijun present today she would have someone to lend her backbone, but it seemed she had miscalculated -- Yang Huaijun... could not order Wei Zhao about either.

"Heh... you questioned me just now, so all our earlier arrangements are off." Wei Zhao sat down on the sofa, right beside Qiu Lingshan.

Hearing this, Qiu Lingshan was so full of regret she nearly vomited blood. Had she known it would come to this, why ever had she let her tongue run ahead of her? She had thought Yang Huaijun would stand up for her, only to discover that her own careless words had brewed a grave mistake.

Looking at Wei Zhao wearing that 'I need no one's help, and don't you come bothering me' expression, Qiu Lingshan was so angry she could have gnawed her teeth to shreds, yet there was nothing she could do about it. Wanting to smooth things over between them, she gave Wei Zhao a kick with her foot. "Hey... why so petty?"

"This is not a question of pettiness; it is a question of principle. I will not help, and that is the end of it -- it is all cancelled." Wei Zhao, for his part, was only too glad to let it go. He had never particularly wanted to entangle himself in Qiu Lingshan's affairs; had Yang Huaijun not put in a word, he would not have bothered with her in the first place. Now that the chance had come, Wei Zhao shrugged the whole matter clean off his shoulders.

Qiu Lingshan glared in fury, yet could do nothing about it. After a moment's hesitation she tugged at the hem of Wei Zhao's jacket, leaned close to his ear and whispered, "The brainless little fool was wrong, all right? Just forgive her this once..."

As she said it, Qiu Lingshan's whole body trembled. When had she ever stooped so low for anyone? Yet before Wei Zhao she had no choice but to humble herself. How was she so unlucky? He had her completely in his grip, with not an inch of room left to turn the tables...

"Heh... very well, then I shall forgive you just this once..." The way the girl wheedled set something stirring in Wei Zhao's chest. He had not expected that when this little beauty threw herself into her charm, even he could be moved...

There is no beautiful girl who cannot be adorable; the key is whether she knows how to let that adorable side of her show. So ran Wei Zhao's conclusion. It seemed he still had a bit of a soft heart -- and that was not necessarily a good sign.

What if, someday, some female assassin were to act cute at him -- would he let her go?

Qiu Lingshan's voice had been small, too small for Guan Xuemin to catch, but Yang Huaijun, seated right beside her, heard every single word! What sort of power did Yang Huaijun possess? Injured as he was and fallen from his former rank, at his peak he had been an early-stage Yellow-rank master, and so his hearing was naturally beyond that of ordinary men. Catching what Qiu Lingshan whispered to Wei Zhao, he very nearly fainted on the spot.

This -- was this still the Qiu Lingshan he knew? True, she could show a girlish side before him, but that was only because she took him for a big brother, an elder; nothing more was meant by it. But with Wei Zhao... as far as he could tell, Wei Zhao was not even as old as she was, was he?

Could it be that Xiao Song had, this time, actually lost her heart?

Suspicious as he was, Yang Huaijun could only pretend he had not heard. A girl's face was at stake here. She might well say such things to Wei Zhao's face, but if an outsider were to overhear, Qiu Lingshan would probably go and kill herself.

Qiu Lingshan shot Wei Zhao a furious, cutting glare, though she had, at least, gotten the answer that satisfied her. She turned her head away, fuming, and would have nothing more to do with him.

Though Guan Xuemin had no notion of what had just passed between them, instinct told him that the bond between Wei Zhao and Qiu Lingshan was anything but ordinary, and he sighed inwardly. He had seen his granddaughter's feelings all along; had it been some other young man, Guan Xuemin would still have felt confident of bringing the match about. But now that it was Wei Zhao, he had no confidence at all.

First, Wei Zhao's medical skill surpassed his own. Second, beyond medicine, Wei Zhao was clearly a man apart in every other respect as well -- extraordinarily gifted. One could glean a thing or two of this from the exchange between Qiu Lingshan and Wei Zhao.

"Xiao Yi, wait a moment. Xiao Yang and Xiao Song have some matters they want to go over with me, and they have only just arrived. Once they are finished, we can speak of other things." Guan Xuemin said to Wei Zhao. As his acquaintance with Wei Zhao had grown warm, Guan Xuemin already treated him as something of a member of the family and no longer stood on ceremony.

"Sure, no trouble. I will sit here a while." Having said this, Wei Zhao looked over at Yang Huaijun again. "Or would you rather I step out for a bit?"

With that, Wei Zhao made to stand up.

Qiu Lingshan was half tempted to claw him back down by the collar. She had wanted Wei Zhao's help with this very business all along -- what on earth was there for him to excuse himself from?

"No need. As it happens, you may as well listen. Should you happen to spot some clue, you could give us a hand." Yang Huaijun waved his hand, speaking on Qiu Lingshan's behalf before she could.