"They've come here for no other reason than to verify whether Young Lord Chiyan is real or not."
Aunt Xue, who had been silent until now, spoke up from the side: "You needn't worry. In a moment, I will possess that young lord's body and use his physical form to suppress them with immortal arts."
"But Aunt Xue, you're still very weak..." Han Dong voiced her concern.
"It's fine."
Aunt Xue responded in a light, indifferent tone, as if she didn't consider the people outside worth a second thought. "Dealing with these people will be more than enough. It's just that..." Ouyang Ye asked, "What is it, Aunt Xue?"
Aunt Xue frowned slightly as she looked at Gu Qingfeng in the garden. She still clearly remembered the inexplicable sense of discomfort and the innate, almost primal fear she felt when this person had stared at her not long ago. What exactly was going on? She still hadn't figured it out. After a moment of contemplation, she shook her head and replied, "It's nothing. The problem shouldn't be significant."
"Senior Sister Han Dong, you go out and handle them first. I'll go remind Old Jiu not to give anything away later!"
After Han Dong nodded and was about to leave, Aunt Xue added, "Han Dong, take down the manor's protective formation. Since we've already been discovered, there's no need to hide anything anymore. Let them see us openly and honestly. They want to verify Young Lord Chiyan's authenticity, don't they? Let them verify it. We might as well take this opportunity to make them believe completely."
Qian Shan also said, "Aunt Xue is right. Things have reached this point; there's no need to keep hiding. Their persistent doubts are partly because you've been evasive and secretive before. Rather than letting them remain suspicious, it's better to convince them utterly."
...
In the garden.
Gu Qingfeng was enjoying the fine wine and delicacies that Xiao Jinr had personally brought over.
Truth be told.
The taste was quite good.
The wine, though it couldn't compare to the peach blossom wine brewed by Old Taoist Taohua, could still barely be considered worthy of the title 'fine wine'.
"Big Brother, this is Illusion Star Fruit, and this is Glazed Fruit, this is... Demonfire Fruit..." Xiao Jinr kept pulling out various Spirit Fruits from her storage pouch—more than ten kinds in total—making Gu Qingfeng's eyes swim. Moreover, he could tell these weren't ordinary Spirit Fruits; they were all rare varieties containing pure spiritual energy.
"I say, Xiao Jinr, where did you get all these things?"
"Hehe, Big Brother, I secretly picked them all from Sister Su Hua's cave abode."
Xiao Jinr gave a mischievous smile and asked, "Big Brother, are they tasty?"
Seeing Gu Qingfeng nod, Xiao Jinr was overjoyed and quickly said, "If Big Brother likes them, next time Jinr will pick more for you."
"That would be wonderful!"
Just then, Ouyang Ye's voice came: "Eat, eat, eat! What time is it, and you're still eating!"
Entering the garden and seeing Gu Qingfeng sitting there eating and drinking as if nothing was wrong, Ouyang Ye's anger instantly flared. She was about to scold him when her eyes suddenly lit up at the sight of the Spirit Fruits on the table. "Illusion Star Fruit, Glazed Fruit, Demonfire Fruit... Good heavens, these are all Spirit Fruits from Sister Su Hua's cave abode! Xiao Jinr, you... you're giving them all to him to eat?"
"Mhm, mhm! Sister Yeye, you can have some too!"
"You silly girl! Do you have any idea how precious these fruits are? How can you just let him eat them..." "Sister Yeye, these were brought by Jinr specifically for Big Brother. Why can't Big Brother eat them?"
Gu Qingfeng also laughed, "Yeah, Big Sis, why can't I eat them?"
"You... you..." Ouyang Ye was momentarily speechless, not knowing how to respond.
To be honest, although she begrudged these precious Spirit Fruits, she also knew Gu Qingfeng had done great favors for both her and Senior Sister Han Dong. Eating some Spirit Fruits wasn't really a big deal. What truly infuriated her was the way this guy ate them with such a sense of entitlement, not treating himself as an outsider at all—as if he really were Gu Qingfeng!
That wasn't even the worst part.
The most infuriating thing was that she knew these Spirit Fruits contained exceptionally rich and pure spiritual energy, their effects surpassing those of miraculous elixirs by ten or even a hundredfold. And yet, this guy was devouring them like common wild berries, finishing one in a few bites.
It was simply a waste of heavenly treasures.
Of course.
Begrudging was begrudging.
Anger was anger.
Waste was waste.
She couldn't very well tell Xiao Jinr that this was a fake Young Lord Chiyan.
Ouyang Ye took a deep breath, suppressing the complex emotions in her heart, and glared fiercely at Gu Qingfeng. "Consider yourself lucky this time! But these fruits are extremely precious, containing incredibly rich, pure spiritual energy. The way you're eating them is just wasteful!"
"They're just some fruits, meant to be eaten. What's wasteful about that?"
"You ignorant fool!"
If Xiao Jinr weren't here, and if the situation weren't so urgent, she really would have loved to teach this pretentious, boastful, arrogant, and ignorant guy a good lesson!
"Sister Yeye, what Big Brother said is right. Fruits are meant to be eaten."
Seeing Ouyang Ye point at Gu Qingfeng, Xiao Jinr pouted, somewhat displeased. "Why are you being so mean! Besides, these fruits were brought by Jinr for Big Brother..."
"You little girl! I haven't even asked you yet—was it you who told people we were staying here while arguing with them outside?"
"What about it? Those people are so annoying, saying Big Brother is fake, that he's an imposter. Hmph!"
Xiao Jinr grew angry just thinking about what happened on the road. "So I told them Big Brother is staying at Xiao Zhe Manor and told them to come see for themselves whether my Big Brother is real or fake."
"I was just wondering why so many people showed up outside."
Gu Qingfeng took a sip of wine and shook his head with a laugh. "So they're all here for me!"
"Who else did you think they were here for!"
Ouyang Ye glared at him, enunciating each word clearly. "Let me tell you, there are several hundred people outside right now who want to verify whether you're real or fake!"
"Let them come. It's not like we're afraid of them."
Gu Qingfeng wore an indifferent expression. "It's just about verifying authenticity. Let them verify all they want. What's real can't become fake, and what's fake can't become real!"
Ouyang Ye wondered if she had misheard. What did he mean, 'what's real can't become fake'? 'What's fake can't become real'? Damn it! Could it be that this guy had gotten so into his role that he actually believed he was the real Gu Qingfeng?
"Exactly! Sister Yeye, Big Brother isn't fake. Why are you so anxious? Honestly..." Xiao Jinr looked at Gu Qingfeng and asked, "Big Brother, why do all those people say you're fake? It's really hateful. Big Brother is clearly real."
"Don't just say those people think your Big Brother is fake."
Gu Qingfeng chuckled. "Even our esteemed Miss Ouyang here thinks Big Brother is fake!"
"Ah! That can't be!"
Xiao Jinr frowned as she looked at Ouyang Ye, her doubtful gaze seeming to ask whether Sister Yeye had something wrong with her eyes or her brain.
Across from them.
Looking at Gu Qingfeng, who regarded himself as the real Young Lord Chiyan, and then at Xiao Jinr, who believed this guy was her real Big Brother.
Ouyang Ye, at this very moment, felt like crying.