The moment Mu Anxiao spoke, both of them fell silent.
"....."
Mu Anxiao looked at the two in front of her with a confused expression and asked, "Did I say something wrong?"
"Do you think you were right?" Piao asked gently.
Mu Anxiao puffed out her cheeks and said, "There's nothing wrong with what I said, right? You said... you..." She pointed at Feng Qishi, who was staring at her with a cold face, "You like him."
"Do you like women?" Piao asked.
"I don't," Mu Anxiao shook her head.
"Do you have a woman you like?" Piao asked again.
Following Piao's words, Mu Anxiao thought for a moment and said, "Oh, yes, I like... the aunt who sells flatbread in the city. Her flatbread is especially delicious."
The aunt she mentioned was simply a flatbread vendor. Every time Mu Anxiao went, the aunt would give her one for free, which was why she liked her, besides the taste.
"You're disgusting," Piao suddenly said.
Mu Anxiao looked at Piao with confusion, "Why do you say I'm disgusting?"
"You like women, and old ones at that," Piao said.
Feng Qishi glanced at Piao. "....."
Mu Anxiao felt nothing about this. Instead, she calmly asked, "What are you trying to say?"
"I want to say that my liking for Brother Shen is actually the same as your liking for the aunt. So, you have to apologize to me."
The moment Piao finished speaking, Mu Anxiao's expression turned awkward. "After all that, you just want to say you're not gay?"
"Mu Anxiao, what kind of messy things do you have in your head all day?" Feng Qishi couldn't help but interject.
Mu Anxiao looked at Feng Qishi and asked, "Are you angry?"
Feng Qishi retorted, "If I said you and some girl had a lesbian relationship, would you be happy?"
Mu Anxiao shook her head, "No."
Feng Qishi asked again, "Would you feel comfortable?"
"No," Mu Anxiao shook her head again.
Feng Qishi glanced at Piao and said, "Since you know, then apologize to him for me."
At this moment, Mu Anxiao truly regretted saying those words. However, if she didn't apologize, these two guys would surely find ways to mess with her again.
Helplessly, she said, "I'm sorry."
"Don't say it again," Piao said.
Mu Anxiao nodded, "I got it."
Seeing Mu Anxiao's wronged expression and recalling her guess about his relationship with Piao, Feng Qishi lost the inclination to speak up for her.
After a while, they finished their pastries. Mu Anxiao, not liking sweets, stopped after eating two.
Feng Qishi also didn't have a fondness for desserts, so he only ate two. Piao, however, was different; he ate five or six, leaving only three on the plate.
At the same time, Mu Anxiao remembered Xiao Zeng, who was reading in the dilapidated temple. After a moment of hesitation, she said, "Piao, can you wrap these three up?"
"What do you want them for?" Piao asked.
Piao had never had a habit of packing food because, in his opinion, it would damage his image.
Mu Anxiao said, "I want to eat them."
Piao said, "If you want to eat them, eat them here."
At the same time, Feng Qishi saw through Mu Anxiao's intention. He took a sip of the flower tea and said, "Since she likes them, let her pack them, Brother Piao."
The moment Feng Qishi spoke, Mu Anxiao cast a grateful glance at him.
Feng Qishi put down his teacup and looked at Mu Anxiao's smiling face, curling his lips. "Can you stop looking at me like that? It's creepy."
Upon hearing this, Mu Anxiao returned to her usual expression. "....."
Piao glanced at Mu Anxiao and said, "Brother Shen, if you let her pack them, I won't say anything."
Mu Anxiao looked at Piao, who cared about his reputation, and thought of his usual demeanor. She couldn't help but smile, "I didn't expect you to be so concerned about appearances!"
"Say one less word," Piao pointed at Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao rolled her eyes.
After the packing was done, Mu Anxiao was too lazy to wander around with Piao anymore.
Leaving the pastry shop, Mu Anxiao, Piao, and Feng Qishi stopped by the roadside. "We've finished walking the street, and it's getting dark. When do we make our move?"
"Now."
Mu Anxiao eagerly asked, "Where are we going?"
"Where else? Directly to Wan Sha's residence."
"Will she kick me out?" Mu Anxiao asked with lingering fear.
Piao glanced at Mu Anxiao and said, "She will. However, seeing how eager you are to finish this, I'll have to escort you."
"You're not coming with me?"
Mu Anxiao had always believed Piao had a foolproof plan. To her surprise, he was now throwing her into the fire pit. At this point, her trust in him had significantly diminished.
Feng Qishi, carrying the remaining pastries, said, "I'm afraid we can't make a move today." He looked up at the darkening sky.
Mu Anxiao asked, "Do we have to wait again?"
"Haste makes waste," Piao said.
Hearing Piao say this, Mu Anxiao dropped the subject. "I'm leaving first." With that, she extended her hand towards Feng Qishi.
Feng Qishi asked, "Where are you going?"
"He won't even let me follow you guys," Mu Anxiao pointed at Piao.
Piao had never said that. Hearing Mu Anxiao say this now, he became angry. "When did I say that? How come I don't know?"
"Since there's nothing else to do, you're definitely taking Brother Shen to your residence, and you're not letting me in. If I go, I'll have to wait outside. It's better if I leave first."
Summarizing her past experiences and adding the recent incident, Mu Anxiao suddenly lost faith in Piao.
"You can come," Piao said.
Mu Anxiao asked, "Really?"
Piao feigned a smile. "You are Brother Shen's subordinate. Since he's allowing you to follow, if I don't bring you, it might not look good."
Upon hearing this, Mu Anxiao shifted her gaze to Feng Qishi's face.
Feng Qishi said, "She's not my subordinate, she's my... servant."
Mu Anxiao had expected Feng Qishi to say something nice. Now, hearing this, she felt a loss of goodwill towards him.
"....."
Piao smiled. "Since that's the case, let's go."
As Piao spoke, Feng Qishi thought of Mu Anxiao's sixth layer of spiritual energy. After a moment of thought, he said, "Mischievous Mu, I want to eat candied hawthorn."
"If you want to eat them, buy them yourself. Why tell me?" Mu Anxiao said.
Feng Qishi glanced at Piao and said, "Go buy them for me."
"You..."
The moment Mu Anxiao uttered the first syllable, Feng Qishi took out one tael of silver and handed it to her. "Keep the change."
"Now that's more like it." Mu Anxiao took the silver and turned away.
At the same time, Piao noticed something was off with Feng Qishi and asked, "What are you trying to do?"
Feng Qishi said, "If I'm not mistaken, you were a celestial being before."
"You've figured it out," Piao smiled.