Chapter 205 Still Shipping the CP

Su Hewan blinked her clear, limpid eyes, propping her chin on both hands as she looked innocently at the two men sitting opposite her—both stiff as wooden statues.

“Gentlemen, why did you stop arguing?”

Yu Qing quickly followed suit, cupping her cheeks with both hands. Her big eyes sparkled with an insatiable, gossip-hungry curiosity.

“Yeah, yeah! Where were you just now? Go on, keep going—we haven’t heard enough yet!”

The corner of Lu Yan’s mouth twitched violently, and a rare crack seemed to appear on his eternally icy expression.

Shen Jue, meanwhile, took a deep breath and let out an extremely soft yet icy snort.

Almost at the exact same moment, the two of them turned their heads away in perfect unison.

“Hmph!”

“Hmph!”

From left and right, two cold snorts rang out simultaneously inside the cramped carriage.

Su Hewan and Yu Qing’s eyes instantly lit up even more.

【Oh my god! Even their anger is perfectly in sync!】

Inside her mind, Yu Qing was practically pounding the wall in excitement, nearly swooning from this breathtaking chemistry.

【As expected of a destined rivals setup! This damn sense of synchronization!】

Listening to these deafening inner thoughts, Shen Jue and Lu Yan both felt their temples throbbing.

They had completely lost track of what kind of expressions they should even use to face these two women whose minds were clearly filled with nothing but questionable fantasies.

Shen Jue narrowed his long, phoenix-shaped eyes, casting a sinister glare at Su Hewan.

Lu Yan clenched his molars, staring at Yu Qing with a look of utter exasperation, as if scolding iron for not becoming steel.

There was definitely not a single normal brain between these two women.

By sunset, the convoy finally entered Pingyang Town, a bustling settlement located at the border between north and south.

Merchants gathered here in droves, and people from all walks of life mingled freely—making it the perfect place to gather information.

The carriage came to a stop in front of the largest inn in town.

After a brief period of playful bickering and rest, the four of them swiftly switched back into serious, work-focused mode.

To quickly uncover the secrets of the mysterious Shennong Valley, they decided to split up.

Lu Yan headed straight for the local government office.

Shen Jue, on the other hand, took two Eastern Depot shadow guards and slipped into Pingyang Town’s black market and underground teahouses.

As for Su Hewan and Yu Qing, they naturally used the excuse of purchasing medicinal herbs for self-defense along the journey.

The two girls linked arms and launched into a full-on shopping spree, practically wearing down the thresholds of every apothecary in town.

Only when night fell and lanterns lit up the streets did the four reunite around a round table in the Heaven-grade Room No. 1 of the inn.

Though their channels differed and their methods varied, the information they gathered pointed, astonishingly, to the same place.

“Shiwanda Mountain Range.”

Shen Jue’s slender fingers tapped lightly against the table as he spoke those four words.

“According to legend, Shennong Valley is not located in the Central Plains, but hidden deep within the most mysterious parts of the southern frontier’s Shiwanda Mountains.”

Lu Yan slapped a copied fragment of an old record onto the table, his expression grave.

“There are also scattered records in the archives. The climate there is extremely hot and humid year-round, and it’s constantly shrouded in dense, suffocating miasma.”

Su Hewan immediately picked up the thread.

“We visited more than a dozen apothecaries today. Those old shopkeepers all said the southern frontier is rich in exotic plants—but also crawling with poisonous insects.”

Yu Qing nodded vigorously, rubbing her arms as goosebumps rose.

“Right, right! I heard the mosquitoes there are as big as fingernails—one bite and they can suck half an ounce of blood!”

The atmosphere of the discussion remained fairly harmonious—until they began debating the next route.

Under the dim candlelight,

Lu Yan pointed at a narrow, winding path on the map, his voice cold and firm, leaving no room for argument.

“If we take this southwestern trade route straight in, it’s dangerous—but we can avoid the local chieftains’ sphere of influence and save the most time.”

Shen Jue immediately let out a mocking laugh upon hearing this.

“Lord Lu, have you grown too comfortable in the capital? Has your brain started to rust?”

He tapped another water route on the map with the ribs of his fan.

“The clue clearly states that there will be Miao people assisting along the water route. Taking the waterway is the fastest way to verify the situation. And yet you insist on leading people into the mountains to feed poisonous insects?”

“The identities of those who are supposed to assist us haven’t been verified yet. If it’s a trap, are we supposed to let the entire force be wiped out?”

Lu Yan slammed his hand on the table, his sword-like brows shooting up as a chilling aura poured off him without restraint.

“What? Even the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard knows fear?”

Shen Jue refused to back down, meeting him head-on.

The two of them exchanged sharp words back and forth, and the atmosphere instantly became tense again, like drawn swords and bent bows.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the round table, the two besties were each holding a handful of five-spice sunflower seeds, munching away with great relish.

Su Hewan leaned close to Yu Qing’s ear, lowering her voice, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

“Look, look—they’ve started arguing again! Classic disagreement!”

Yu Qing immediately caught on and nudged Su Hewan excitedly with her elbow.

“This is called a clash of ideals! Sparks of love flying out of conflict!”

“A power couple like this is the best to ship! Neither one submits to the other, yet neither can take the other down!”

Su Hewan nodded repeatedly.

“Exactly! And look at Lu Yan again!”

Yu Qing’s inner monologue was running wild as well.

“Even though he talks tough, look at his ears!”

“They’re red! Lord Lu’s ears are actually red! That’s definitely shyness—he’s flustered from being teased by Shen Jue!”

Hearing the two of them chatter excitedly like a pair of over-enthusiastic crickets—

Shen Jue’s fan-tapping motion suddenly froze.

Lu Yan’s hand, which had been about to point at the map, also stiffened mid-air.

Shy, my ass!

Teasing, my ass!

He was furious—furious at that damned eunuch faction!

The patience of the two men finally hit its breaking point at the same moment.

The discussion in the room grew louder and louder, and the two girls had already escalated from whispering to blatantly exchanging looks and gestures.

Smack!

Shen Jue finally couldn’t take it anymore and slammed his palm onto the table.

The loud bang startled Su Hewan and Yu Qing so much that the sunflower seeds in their hands scattered all over the floor.

Shen Jue slowly turned his head, a smile that wasn’t quite a smile on his lips.

“You two… what are you whispering about?”

His deliberately lowered voice carried a grinding, teeth-clenched menace.

“Say it out loud. Let me hear it too.”

Lu Yan also turned around, blocking the doorway the two were about to bolt toward.

“Uh… we were discussing… how fragrant today’s sunflower seeds are!”

Yu Qing swallowed hard, forcing out a smile uglier than crying.

“Right, the five-spice sunflower seeds from Pingyang Town truly live up to their reputation.”

Su Hewan immediately straightened her posture as well, putting on a serious expression by force.

The two men, already on the verge of losing control, had completely run out of patience for their nonsense.

“Looks like you two are too idle.”

Shen Jue let out a low chuckle. Suddenly, his figure flashed, and he appeared right in front of Su Hewan.

With a long arm, he directly hooked around her slender waist and lifted her up like a little chick.

“Since you’re in such high spirits, why not head back to your room? I’ll ‘have a proper chat’ with you.”

“Ah—Shen Jue, what are you doing?! Put me down!”

Su Hewan cried out in shock, her legs kicking wildly in midair.

On the other side, Lu Yan didn’t bother with words either.