Si Mobai’s tone was still cold and indifferent, “Is that so?”
“Of course, why don’t you want to make friends?” Huo Mingcheng noticed the strange expression on Si Mobai’s face and was a little puzzled. After all, he was the Prince of Xuanchu. His status alone was enough for many people to flock to him in the hopes of attaining his friendship.
Huo Ruojun stood to one side quietly, regarding Si Mobai with a look of infatuation in her eyes. The longer she stared at him, the more she felt that he was pleasing to the eye.
“No,” Si Mobai replied coldly. He did not know how to be a friend or what it meant to be a friend to another. He never had any before.
Huo Mingcheng smiled and patted Si Mobai’s shoulder. “Since we’re friends, don’t stand on ceremony. If there’s anything, you need only say it.”
“My Imperial Brother is a wonderful person. He values friendship very much. He has friends all over the world, and he likes making new friends.” Unwilling to be outdone, Huo Ruojun spoke up, sincerely praising her Imperial Brother.
“Is he seeking my friendship to secure his own throne?”
“…”
Huo Mingcheng and his sister were stunned by Si Mobai’s straightforward question. How could seeking another’s friendship carry any other motive if the one seeking it was sincere? It baffled the two siblings.
Si Mobai truly was not an easy person to get along with.
“Prince Si, don’t be so petty as to second guess my Imperial Brother’s intentions. You don’t even possess a shred of spiritual force, and you’re practically dead on your feet! What kind of ulterior motive do you suspect of us? The two continents have always maintained a cordial distance from each other. You might have great power in your own lands, but here, you have none. You are at our mercy!”
Huo Mingcheng tried to stop her several times in the midst of her tirade but to no avail. He could only look at Si Mobai apologetically. “Jun’er spoke out of turn. Please accept my apology on her behalf. She is a little spoilt and speaks without thinking. Please do not take her words to heart.”
“Imperial Brother, how can you say such a thing about your own sister?!” Huo Ruojun glared at her brother angrily. She was speaking up for him, and yet not only was he unappreciative of her efforts, he even sided with an outsider instead.
Si Mobai’s expression did not change. “I’m sorry.”
“By the way, how did you travel from the Xuantian Continent to the Wushang Continent? Perhaps you’ll be able to return using the same method.” Huo Mingcheng quickly changed the topic without the slightest intention of blaming him.
Huo Ruojun pouted, muttering softly, “Why would he want to go back? It’s better over here than it is over there.”
Although she had spoken under her breath, Si Mobai’s keen hearing picked out her words as if she was saying them out loud. However, not wanting to stir the pot, he pretended not to hear her.
Faced with Si Mobai, an ice mountain of ten thousand years, the brother and sister duo were at a loss for words. Though there were things they wanted to say, they chose to say nothing at all. Sparing each other a glance, they decided to take their leave.
Si Mobai sat on the bed and raised his right hand to look at the crescent-shaped ring that looked like a heart. Something seemed to be moving in the jade-coloured crystal. This ring of his was one of a pair.
Lan’er wore the other half on her hand. The ring automatically sized itself according to a person’s finger. Even now, he still did not know what its use was outside of being proof of their marriage.
“Lan’er, I miss you.” Si Mobai stared at the ring, pulling it off his ring finger. It was as if she was standing by his side, smiling gently at him. That gentleness, that beauty, he could feel how much she missed him and him, her.
What was she doing now?
Was she busy with something?
Did Feng Yunsheng and his mother-in-law arrive at the Wushang Continent as well? Or did they land somewhere else on the Xuantian continent?
He could imagine how anxious Lan’er probably was, considering how he and her mother had disappeared so suddenly. Did she think he and Feng Yunsheng were in cahoots?
Si Mobai eyed the exquisite concentric knot thoughtfully. His chest tightened. He was afraid Lan’er would misconstrue the truth behind his disappearance. It filled him with anxiety.
