Swing the sword at the future female devil

Chapter 383 Baby, you're being a little sensitive.
Duan Huaige's voice carried a hint of teasing laughter, crisp like ice breaking in winter. Xiao Jiang turned her head at the sound, her eyes full of surprise, the candied hawthorn skewer in her hand brushing against Duan Huaige's nose.

"What ice sculpture? Duan, can't you even speak properly?"

Xiao Jiang snorted softly. Although she had already decided to launch a revenge campaign, after so many years of being childhood sweethearts, their arrogance and bickering were ingrained in their DNA, and it was not something that could be changed in a short time.

Duan Huaige's eyes shone brightly, reflecting the red paper-cut window decorations newly pasted on the doors of the houses at the alley entrance. He took a step closer, his gaze falling on Jiang Xiyu's face, a mischievous smile on his face, and his voice suddenly lowered: "Tsk, how old are you, still managing to get a face full of smeared food while eating a snack."

Warm fingertips brushed across Xiao Jiang's nose without warning, gently wiping away a bit of sugar stain. The temperature of the fingertips was surprisingly hot, burning all the way up her skin to her ears. Xiao Jiang subconsciously shrank her neck, burying her face deeper into her scarf, and mumbled indistinctly, "...Mind your own business."

"Alright, tell me, why did you call me out? You didn't call me out just to show me how you eat candied hawthorns, did you?" Duan Huaige asked leisurely.

Hearing this, Xiao Jiang snapped out of her daze and snorted, "Uncle Duan and Aunt Yun asked me to take you shopping for New Year's goods, and also told me to keep an eye on you so you don't end up buying those junk food gift packs that even dogs wouldn't eat every day."

"Xiao Jiang, that's a bit heartless of you to say. Back then, I only bought that snack gift pack because you begged and pleaded with me, wasn't it?"

"That was all your own doing, just to get the magic card from the gift pack! You even tricked me into using my hard-earned New Year's money to buy it! And now you dare to blame it on me!"

"Alright then, let's each buy our own this time, okay?"

Duan Huaige slipped away first, and Xiao Jiang, who was so angry that she jumped up and down, followed closely behind. She pounced on him and grabbed his arm, making a foul move similar to charging with a ball.

Don't even think about leaving me behind!

"Okay, okay~ I can't abandon my dear childhood sweetheart, Xiao Jiang~"

The two strolled along the street corner, oblivious to everyone else, as the festive atmosphere of the New Year grew stronger. The market seemed to have been splashed with the most intense vermilion and gold powder overnight, and the clamor almost overturned the low arcade buildings on both sides.

The cries of vendors rose and fell, high-pitched and long, carrying a strong local accent. Bright red Spring Festival couplets and gold-embossed "Fu" (good fortune) characters cascaded down from the stalls like waterfalls.

Duan Huaige, like a nimble fish, carved out a small, safe space for Xiao Jiang in the surging crowd. He always lagged half a step behind the girl, his arm subtly shielding her from the pushing and shoving. Jiang Xiyu, half-protected by him, looked around at the dazzling array of New Year's goods, but her steps involuntarily followed his.

"Look, Xiao Duan~ there's a lantern stall over there!" Xiao Jiang excitedly pointed to a paper lantern stall not far away, with red paper hanging on the walls and writing brushes and ink on display. The stall owner was an old man wearing reading glasses, who was intently writing a huge "福" (Fu, meaning good fortune) character, his brushstrokes flowing like dragons and snakes, full of vigor.

"How strange, Xiao Jiang." Duan Huaige looked at the girl with great surprise, as if he had just met her for the first time: "The first stall you want to go to isn't a food stall. Are you still logged in from another location as Da Jiang?"

Xiao Jiang rolled her eyes, her pretty face full of disdain—if I were still logged in with my main account, why would I waste my breath on you? I'd just drag you back to my cave and squeeze you dry! Let's see who dares to stop me.

"You should be glad I'm not logged in with my main account right now, otherwise, your offensive remark would have been enough for me to kill you a hundred times over."

She dragged Duan Huaige to the stall, smiling as she picked out some exquisite hand-held lanterns. Finally, she picked up a rabbit-shaped one, turned to Duan Huaige, and said, "Little Duan, look, doesn't this look like the lantern you made for me when I was six years old to make me happy?"

"No, mine looks much better."

"Hmph, you're just saying that." Xiao Jiang pouted slightly, giving Duan Huaige a delicate and captivating profile. The girl's earlobes were sparkling and adorable, pink and tender, making one want to savor them. Duan Huaige's heart skipped a beat, suppressing the alluring thoughts that flashed through his mind. Damn it, ever since that vixen Xiao Jiang forcibly opened his silver handkerchief, my resistance to the great demon queen's beauty has been getting weaker and weaker. At this rate, I'm afraid I'll really have to go over speed bumps a few more times?
The invisible hand of the King of Yan is controlling everything. In order to pull Qin Shuangjiang down from her stolen position as the Empress, she has resorted to any means necessary!
To distract himself, Duan Huaige pretended to examine a lantern. His sharp eyes caught sight of the ink characters inscribed on it, and he casually remarked:
"Little Jiang, look at the words on this page, aren't they beautifully written? 'May you have peace and joy every year...'"

"What, Sleepy Xixi?" Xiao Jiang took the lantern with a suspicious look and said, "You're not just lying to me, are you?"

"Oh, so it's this 'Year After Year'... I thought you were teasing me..."

Duan Huaige: "..."

The most embarrassing episode for art students has appeared.

After the tiring and exhausting trip to Longhu Mountain, Duan Huaige couldn't help but feel a pang of nostalgia as she strolled leisurely through the streets with Xiao Jiang. Although most of the shopping trip involved Xiao Jiang shouting and yelling:

"Xiao Duan, isn't that cotton candy-shaped sheep adorable!"

"Wow! Duan, let's go buy that! That one, that one!"

He was half-dragged to a sugar painting stall. Seeing the two of them approaching, the stall owner immediately called out, "Young man, why don't you buy a sugar painting for your girlfriend? It's delicious and beautiful!"

"Hey, uncle, what are you talking about? What girlfriend? We're childhood friends...we just grew up together and are close, that's all. She's not my girlfriend!"

Duan Huaige: ?

Wouldn't it be more convincing if you loosened your grip a little when you said that?

While Xiao Jiang denied it, her body language betrayed her by tightening her grip on Duan Huaige's arm. Her main tactic was to say no with her body language. The stall owner seemed to see through the girl's insincerity and chuckled without calling her out.

Duan Huaige was naturally not so lacking in emotional intelligence as to seriously explain. Although he had previously vowed to uphold male virtue for the King of Qin, he immediately forgot what he was supposed to do when faced with the girl's tears.

"Excuse me, I'd like a little turtle." Duan Huaige took out his phone to scan the QR code and pay. Xiao Jiang, who had been beaming with joy, immediately stopped smiling upon hearing this.

Jiang Xiyu: ?

"What do you mean? You're buying me a turtle?" Xiao Jiang grabbed Duan Huaige's collar fiercely and said, "What are you implying? What are you alluding to? Who ordered you to do this? What is your purpose in doing this?"

Duan Huaige: "..."

Baby, you seem to be a little too sensitive. This is just a very ordinary little turtle sugar painting, it's really not hinting at your martial spirit true form.

(End of this chapter)