Gu Sinian was stunned, his brow furrowed as if contemplating how to answer.
Qi Zhenzhen smiled and changed the subject, "Why did you come with Qian Yuanbao? He left in such a hurry earlier, saying it was something very important."
Gu Sinian recounted what Qian Yuanbao had told him, leaving Qi Zhenzhen wide-eyed.
"It can be like that?" Qi Zhenzhen exclaimed, finding it utterly unbelievable.
"Fortunately, Qian Yuanbao really has nothing with that actor. If there were anything, and it got out at this crucial moment, the marriage might face complications," Gu Sinian said.
"So you advised him to confess to Sister Nuan?" Qi Zhenzhen asked.
"It's better than the county princess hearing about it from someone else. When such things are passed by word of mouth, by the time they reach her, who knows how many people have embellished it and what they've made of it," Gu Sinian explained. "If he confesses proactively, it creates a first impression. When the county princess hears such talk later, she naturally won't believe it."
"Does Qian Yuanbao truly have no relationship with that person?" Qi Zhenzhen inquired.
"While he can be unreliable at times, he wouldn't mess around with matters of principle," Gu Sinian stated firmly. "Besides, he has feelings for the county princess. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sought help from the palace for this matter back then."
After a pause, Gu Sinian added, "Regarding the rumors outside about me and him, they are also untrue. We..."
"I know, you have no relationship," Qi Zhenzhen interjected. "Qian Yuanbao, like me, is a sort of shield."
Gu Sinian froze, lamenting inwardly. What was he thinking back then? He clearly liked her, yet he let Zhenzhen misunderstand, even smugly talking about agreements and arrangements. Now, Zhenzhen had already decided he was that kind of person.
"Not a shield," Gu Sinian said, looking directly into Qi Zhenzhen's eyes, enunciating each word.
Qi Zhenzhen looked at Gu Sinian with confusion, not understanding why he was so agitated.
"I said, I like you," Gu Sinian declared, steeling himself.
Qi Zhenzhen looked at Gu Sinian blankly, "Like me?"
"Yes, I like you. I liked you before," Gu Sinian said earnestly.
"Before?"
"From the time you saved me, I had a good impression of you. Later, what I said at Granny Lu's was also sincere. It's just that you said you were betrothed, and my pride got the better of me, leading me to say those things. And then came the agreement," Gu Sinian said, turning his head away, appearing somewhat embarrassed.
"As for the matter with that male courtesan, it was that scoundrel Qian Yuanbao who spread it," Gu Sinian directly blamed Qian Yuanbao, completely omitting that he had agreed to it at the time.
"In short, I never liked men, I don't now, and I won't in the future. Qian Yuanbao can testify. I, I boasted about it to him many times," Gu Sinian's voice grew softer.
Qi Zhenzhen could no longer describe her feelings. For the past few days, she had been agonizing, constantly reminding herself to guard her heart, not to hope for anything, and to simply fulfill their agreement. When the agreed period was over, they would go their separate ways. All the psychological preparation she had done, was it all for nothing?
"So? What do you mean by telling me all this?" Qi Zhenzhen asked calmly, suppressing her emotions.
"To tell you my feelings, and to know yours," Gu Sinian replied.
"What if I said I don't like you?" Qi Zhenzhen said.
"Don't worry, you're going to marry me anyway. I have plenty of time to make you feel my affection," Gu Sinian said, blushing. Living under the same roof, sharing the same bed, if he still couldn't win her over, then, as Luo Wanqing said, he would be persistent. Wasn't it said that a good woman is hard to resist a persistent man?