Perhaps it was because she had spent too long in the other world, but Shu He now found the concept of "status and hierarchy" in this world utterly repulsive. She detested even more the way people stood on high, looking down their noses at her.
Ignoring the newcomer, she pointed at Nan Qi’s nose and glared fiercely. "Remember this: show some respect when you speak to me! I am not some kitchen maid or servant girl of yours. Learn some manners, do you hear me?!"
Nangong Xiyun turned bright red with fury. She wasn't really scolding Nan Qi; she was using him as a scapegoat to insult her for being ill-mannered!
She wanted to snap at the woman, but a glimpse of Baili Moqing standing deep in thought by the study window forced her to suppress her rage. She maintained her gentle, ladylike facade. "You are dressed as a kitchen maid. If you are not a maid, then what are you?"
"A guest!"
Shu He glanced at her. She remembered this woman.
She was the second daughter of the First-Rank General Nanggong Zhen, Nangong Xiyun. Back at the Prime Minister’s flower banquet that year, of the many people who saw her for the first time, Nangong Xiyun’s ridicule had been the most piercing.
Shu He still remembered clearly how Nangong Xiyun had tugged at her companions, her bright, beautiful face full of shock. "Yu Ling, Wan'er, am I seeing things? Is this really Shu He, Shu Yue’s third sister? Why does she look so much like the fat pig kept on my family’s estate?"
"Well, there is a difference. The pig on our estate is fat, but at least it's plump and fair! Look at her—the pus on her face is practically oozing out! It’s disgusting!"
"Hmm, do you smell that strange odor? It seems to be coming from her!" Ge Yuling, standing beside her, chimed in, wearing an expression of unbearable disgust.
Their words had caused the surrounding noble ladies to cover their faces and laugh. Only Shu He, who rarely appeared in public then, felt so ashamed she wished the ground would swallow her up.
"With a face like that, she dares to covet Prince Dongli! I don't know where she gets the nerve!"
"They say she’s going to confess her love to Prince Dongli today. Is that really true?"
"If it were, Prince Dongli would be too pitiful. To be associated with such an ugly woman—wouldn't he be mocked to death by those with malicious intent?"
"I heard this Shu He even hangs around the pleasure houses in the capital, and..."
"What? Really? Even someone like her can..."
"Hahaha..."
The piercing taunts had swirled around her. The noble ladies and servants had looked at her as if she were a venomous insect or a snake, their eyes filled with disdain. Later, she had crouched on the ground and sobbed, only to hear Nangong Xiyun’s vicious voice ring out again: "You fat hag, let me tell you, if you dare lay a finger on my cousin Moqing, I will make you wish you were dead!"
The image of that fierce, sinister face was still vivid in her mind, though the gentle, pleasing appearance before her now had made her fail to recognize her at first. It had been over four years; she had certainly grown more cunning.
"A guest?" Nangong Xiyun felt uncomfortable under that gaze, sensing something familiar in those cold, clear eyes. She looked her up and down. "Why was I not informed that such a guest had arrived? Besides, I have never known a guest to visit another’s home looking so disheveled!"
"There is much you don’t know. Must every single thing that happens in this courtyard be reported to you? Who are you? The mistress of this house?"
Nangong Xiyun tried to interject, but Shu He didn't give her the chance. "Don't bother saying you aren't. Even if you were, there are things you should know about this house, and things you should not. Stop being a busybody—curiosity killed the cat!"
Nangong Xiyun was livid, her face cycling between pale and flushed. "You...!"
"Do you know what 'curiosity killed the cat' means?" Shu He shoved aside the hand that had been pointing at her. "It means stay out of things that don't concern you. Don't be nosy and don't be curious, or even if you have nine lives like a cat, it won't be enough to save you!"
As soon as Shu He finished speaking, the study fell into a deathly silence. Aside from Nangong Xiyun, no one—especially Nan Qi—dared to take a full breath.
Nan Qi’s heart felt like a rollercoaster plummeting from the clouds into the mud and back again, jumping so violently he could barely handle it.
A thousand words converged into one thought: *This woman—she is truly, ferociously terrifying!*
"Rakshasa" didn't even capture her essence; "Yaksha" was much more fitting!
Nangong Xiyun’s chest heaved with rage, her face changing colors rapidly. Finally, her eyes grew misty with tears as she looked toward Baili Moqing, nearly sobbing. "Cousin, Yun'er is being bullied like this. Are you, are you just going to let it happen?"
Shu He rolled her eyes at her. If this were the version of herself from the other world, she would have killed this Nangong Xiyun outright! She hated people who put on such a pathetic show.
Baili Moqing placed the book in his lap. His gaze moved past Nangong Xiyun and landed on Shu He, who seemed to be covered in sharp thorns. After staring for a long moment, he simply picked up the cold tea on the desk and took a sip. "She is, indeed, a guest."
That simple sentence was an endorsement of everything Shu He had said and done.
Nangong Xiyun looked wounded, unable to believe he would allow her to be so insulted for the sake of an outsider.
She wasn't the only one; Shu He and Nan Qi were both deeply surprised.
Nan Qi thought: *The last person to be this insolent in front of Master ended up as nothing but bones, didn't they? How is it that this time, it’s just brushed off like a minor annoyance?*
Shu He thought: *Why is this man so tolerant now? When he was on top of me back then, that look in his eyes was as if he wanted to swallow me whole!*
Unable to accept it, Nangong Xiyun ran out of the study in tears. Seeing her "pears in the rain" appearance, Nan Qi felt that Shu He had gone too far. After all, Nangong Xiyun was one of their own; how could an outsider lecture her like that?
However, before he could speak, a sharp, knife-like gaze from Shu He shot toward him, and the words died in his throat.
Nan Qi clenched his fists, cursing himself for being weak. He looked toward Baili Moqing, hoping his Master would give an order so he could have the confidence to scold this arrogant woman.
Alas, his Master seemed not to see his plea for help. Or rather, he had ignored it, instead casting a silent, cold glare in his direction. It was as if he were saying he was pathetic.
Nan Qi felt wronged and sat down by Xiao Yi'er’s bedside to sulk.
"Are you a martial artist?" Baili Moqing observed her dry, yellowed hair and her gaunt, thin frame; it somewhat matched the situation she described.
Shu He finished tucking her hair away and adjusted her clothes before replying leisurely, "You could say that."
She had drifted through the other world for thirty years; she supposed that counted as living in the *jianghu*.
Nan Qi shot a fierce glare at Shu He from the corner of his eye. *Where is that intensity? That temper? How does she become a docile, purring cat as soon as she speaks to Master?*
He asked again, "Which school or sect?"
Shu He picked up the plain porridge Uncle Zhang had left on the table. It was cold, but that didn't stop her from eating. Without raising her eyebrows, she replied, "No sect, no school. Self-taught."
This made Nan Qi want to glare at her again. "Self-taught," indeed! With her amateur skills, she could only handle a few bandits! She had the nerve to call herself "talented"!
Noticing Nan Qi’s strange look, Shu He turned back to see him pretending to tuck in Xiao Yi'er’s quilt. She couldn't help but chuckle.
Actually, Nan Qi was quite cute, though his temper wasn't great. If she didn't give him a little trouble, he’d keep barking at her for no reason.
"You..."
"Sir, there’s no need to ask anything else, is there?"
Baili Moqing had wanted to ask more, but she ruthlessly interrupted him. In all his life, this was the first time he had been treated like this!
"If you ask any more questions, I’m afraid I’ll get the wrong idea. After all, although I am a mother, if a handsome gentleman like you were to take an interest in me... even if I wanted to remain a widow, I’m afraid I wouldn't be able to hold out!"
As she spoke, Shu He kept an eye on his shifting expression. For a moment, she felt nervous and a bit guilty. He wouldn't fly into a rage, would he?
That would be for the best—she didn't want to spend too much time with him, lest she accidentally slip up.
But before she could see Baili Moqing’s reaction, Nan Qi jumped up and pointed at her nose. "You woman, you are truly shameless! What kind of man do you think my Master is? Why would he look at an unvirtuous woman like you?!"