Decision

"Why did you do this? Did Mr. Shirakawa pressure you into it?"

Gu Sheng held Mei Daizi in his arms as they lay on the Japanese tatami mats, stroking her delicate head and asking softly.

They had already moved from the bathroom to the empty bedroom next door. The two of them squeezed beneath a single quilt, their bodies pressed together as they huddled for warmth.

"No~"

Mei Daizi merely shook her head, her fine hair brushing against the tip of Gu Sheng’s nose and making it itch.

"Then what was the reason?"

Gu Sheng continued questioning her, clearly determined to get to the bottom of it. Mei Daizi was his second woman, and the one with whom things had progressed the fastest so far. She was not a virgin, which made him care even more and want to know her true feelings.

When it came to matters between men and women, Gu Sheng still took things seriously. He could not accept casual affairs—not yet, at least. If a woman had been with him, he could not accept her going off with someone else afterward. Call it greed or possessiveness; that was simply the kind of person he was.

So he had to understand why Mei Daizi had willingly taken the initiative with him and decide how he ought to treat her.

"Mr. Shirakawa said that as long as I slept with you and could tie you down, he would be willing to take me as his disciple and teach me the ways of the Onmyoji and the art of Shikigami. Mei Daizi needs to grow stronger, so I agreed to the deal."

Mei Daizi raised her head to meet Gu Sheng’s gaze. Three slender, jade-white fingers rested against his face. "But that wasn’t the reason Mei Daizi was willing. Mei Daizi was willing simply because she wanted to. Because it was Mr. Zhang, Mei Daizi was willing. If it had been anyone else, Mei Daizi wouldn’t have agreed so easily."

"Is that so~"

Gu Sheng smiled and buried his face in the hollow of Mei Daizi’s shoulder, simply enjoying the beauty in his arms. Whether she was telling the truth or not, he chose to take her words as truth.

"Mhm~"

Mei Daizi merely wrinkled her delicate nose slightly before wrapping both arms around Gu Sheng’s neck. She only smiled gently at his snuffling and kissing, patting his back lightly as though soothing a child.

"Take me to see Mr. Shirakawa."

Gu Sheng enjoyed a moment of tenderness with Mei Daizi before regaining his earlier composure. He sat up and prepared to get dressed.

"Xianzong-kun, wait. Let Mei Daizi do it."

Mei Daizi climbed out of the warm quilt, put on her kimono, then knelt down and helped Gu Sheng change his clothes.

"Mei Daizi!"

When Mei Daizi was about to stand and lead the way, Gu Sheng reached out and pressed down on her slender shoulder. After giving her a playful squeeze, he grinned at her. "Change into another outfit. From now on, dress more modestly. I don’t want other people taking liberties with my woman."

"Got it~"

Mei Daizi’s face flushed. She lowered her head and answered again, then turned her back to Gu Sheng, took off her kimono, and began changing her clothes…

"Smack~"

Gu Sheng slapped her once and nodded in satisfaction. Only then did he turn to Mei Daizi, who had changed into a lady’s dress. "Let’s go."

"Xianzong-kun!"

Mei Daizi blushed and gave him a coquettish complaint. She then stood up, straightened her appearance, and led the way with small steps.

"Mm-hm~~"

Gu Sheng glanced at Mei Daizi’s back and cleared his throat awkwardly. He seemed to be getting worked up again!

"Mr. Zhang has arrived. Please, sit!"

In the conference room, Gu Sheng followed Mei Daizi inside. Shirakawa Rin, who had been waiting for them, smiled and nodded. After ordering someone to bring tea and pastries, he beckoned to Gu Sheng. "My humble home is rather crude. I hope you won’t take offense, Mr. Zhang."

"Mr. Shirakawa, you’re too polite."

Gu Sheng calmly and composedly sat down across from Shirakawa Rin, while Mei Daizi very naturally stood behind him.

"Mr. Zhang, what brings you to me? You arrived at an opportune time, too. I’ve been away from Wen County these past few days, busy with matters concerning our cooperation."

Shirakawa Rin took a sip of tea before speaking with a relaxed, unhurried tone, as though everything was already under his control.

"Better to arrive at the right time than the early one. Mr. Shirakawa truly understands that principle."

Gu Sheng’s words held no trace of joy or anger, and his face revealed no emotion either. "I came to see you for my own reasons. You just said you’ve been busy with our cooperation. How is it progressing?"

"Mr. Zhang, rest assured about the Shirakawa Trading Company’s side. The latest batch of production lines arrived in Wen County with me. At the latest, you’ll be able to take them away tomorrow. Also, our experts have arrived. When would you like to go inspect the Gold Mine?"

Shirakawa Rin smiled faintly, appearing completely at ease, as though he had already made every preparation.

"There’s no need to rush that. None of those matters require haste. What needs attention is the matter right in front of us."

Gu Sheng waved his hand, raising Shirakawa Rin’s hopes before suddenly dropping them again. Pointing to the smiling beauty beside him, Mei Daizi, he said, "I heard that Mr. Shirakawa once promised Mei Daizi that you would teach her the ways of the Onmyoji and the art of Shikigami. I wonder, will you honor that promise?"

As soon as Gu Sheng finished speaking, the smile on Mei Daizi’s face stiffened. She glanced at Shirakawa Rin nervously, afraid he would mistake this for her idea. But when Gu Sheng’s warm palm covered the back of her hand, she gathered her courage and gave Shirakawa Rin a formal smile.

"That can be arranged. Miss Mei Daizi has extraordinary talent. I imagine she’ll be able to master the art of Shikigami within seven days."

Shirakawa Rin’s smile froze. Even Mei Daizi’s formal smile could not make him relax his poker face. Still, one had to endure a little to accomplish great things. Although he deeply disliked Mei Daizi’s "blackmail," he did not want to jeopardize the bigger picture, so he upheld the promise he had made earlier.

"Excellent. I’ve already made arrangements on my end as well. Then let us wish each other a pleasant cooperation!"

Gu Sheng smiled at Shirakawa Rin. Of course he had made arrangements—he even had three different plans for how Shirakawa Rin would die. One was to throw him to the Demon Worms in the Gold Mine and let them help him strip his bones. Those bugs were nothing more than a dish before Gu Sheng, anyway.

Alternatively, he could bundle up Shirakawa Rin and his group—excluding Mei Daizi and Ryoko—and send them to the Taotie Cave on Pig Head Mountain for an exciting adventure, letting them personally face the true strongest combat force in the Wu Xin: The Monster Killer World.

"Mr. Zhang, there should still be one problem."

Shirakawa Rin suddenly spoke again. "Gu Xuanwu. You said earlier that you could resolve the issue with Gu Xuanwu, but it seems you’ve failed. Gu Xuanwu still has the same attitude, and he’s still hostile toward the Empire. This is very bad.

"I know that you and Commander Gu grew up together. You should be, what do you call it… childhood sweethearts, right?"

When Shirakawa Rin reached this point, Gu Sheng’s expression turned extremely strange. He gripped the arms of his chair, barely managing to keep himself calm.

This guy was really asking for it! He didn’t understand the culture, yet he insisted on spouting nonsense. Wasn’t he deliberately picking a fight?