“Won’t come out.” Yang Houcheng’s desperate voice came from behind the screen.

Chi Can raised an eyebrow: “So you won’t come out? Fine, then, I’m leaving. After all, it’s not me who’s making a fool of myself!”

“Shixi, don’t go!” Yang Houcheng hurriedly emerged from behind the screen, walking dejectedly to Chi Can’s side with his head hanging low.

Chi Can leaned back comfortably against his chair, a lazy smile hanging at the corner of his mouth.

Yang Houcheng tugged at his hair: “Have some sympathy, will you? What should I do?”

“What do you mean, what should you do?”

“Just now… You saw it, didn’t you?”

“I saw it.”

“Then what should I do? Do I need to take responsibility for Miss Xie?” Yang Houcheng looked at his companion with hopeful eyes.

At this moment, he desperately needed his friend’s comfort. Shixi, someone so unconventional and free from worldly constraints, should think it’s nothing, right?

Young Master Chi looked deeply thoughtful: “You should.”

Yang Houcheng began coughing violently, his face turning completely red from coughing: “What?”

Chi Can glanced at him: “I said you should take responsibility. You sat on that young lady’s body, and you still don’t want to take responsibility?”

“But you—”

Chi Can unhurriedly brushed away Yang Houcheng’s hand, saying coolly: “Me what? Have I ever sat on any young lady’s body?”

Yang Houcheng was instantly dumbfounded.

That’s right, even though those young ladies who admired Shixi were willing to live or die for him, Shixi had never taken responsibility for any of those girls. Thinking carefully, Shixi had never even touched the hem of their clothes.

But he had sat on that young lady’s body!

Just thinking about it made Yang Houcheng feel like the sky was falling. He raised his hand and slapped himself: “Are you an idiot? If she wants to go fight the Japanese pirates, let her go! What business is it of yours?”

“Now you think of hitting yourself, but why were you so quick to sit on that young lady’s body back then?”

Yang Houcheng vigorously scratched his hair: “That Miss Xie isn’t much shorter than you, and she was dressed in men’s clothing and fought so fiercely. I carelessly forgot she was a girl for a moment.”

Chi Can’s face darkened: “What do you mean ‘not much shorter than me’?”

He decided to deliver a fatal blow to his friend.

“In any case, no matter what excuses you have, you did sit on that young lady’s body. As for whether you should take responsibility, that’s naturally up to you.” Chi Can patted Yang Houcheng’s shoulder with a deeply thoughtful expression and strode away.

Yang Houcheng stood dazedly in the empty hall. After standing there for who knows how long, he slapped his forehead hard and said fiercely: “Take responsibility then! I’m a man—am I afraid of taking responsibility?”

The young lord strode purposefully toward the second floor of the ship’s cabin. Halfway there, he remembered he didn’t know which room Xie Shengxiao was staying in, so he turned back to find Qiao Zhao.

“Miss Li, so you’re here. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

Qiao Zhao instructed A’Zhu to pour out the finished medicine, then turned to look at Yang Houcheng: “Is there something Yang Dage needs from me?”

Yang Houcheng chuckled: “Miss Li, brewing medicine?”

“Mm.” Qiao Zhao felt slightly puzzled.

Yang Houcheng had always been straightforward by nature. What was wrong with him today?

“Hehe, finished brewing so quickly.”

“Yang Dage, what exactly do you need?” Qiao Zhao raised an eyebrow slightly.

“Is this medicine brewed for that young lady who was bitten by the mad dog?”

Shao Mingyuan coughed from the side: “Chongshan, if you want to find someone to chat with, I can keep you company.”

Yang Houcheng looked at Shao Mingyuan in bewilderment, his eyes widening: “Tingquan, you’re here too?”

Shao Mingyuan twitched the corner of his mouth.

He was the one who was blind, but now he was beginning to doubt this matter.

Yang Houcheng felt greatly embarrassed and hurriedly said, “Then you two chat. I’ll help you deliver the medicine.”

Qiao Zhao sighed: “Yang Dage, just tell me what you need.”

Yang Houcheng lowered his head: “Uh, I want to find Miss Xie to apologize.”

“Then why are you looking for Zhaozhao?” Shao Mingyuan asked with amusement.

“I don’t know which room Miss Xie is staying in.”

Qiao Zhao pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly at Yang Houcheng: “Then, Yang Dage, come with me. A’Zhu, give the medicine to Ye Luo.”

A’Zhu handed the prepared medicinal soup to Ye Luo, saying softly: “Miss, please be careful.”

Shao Mingyuan stopped Qiao Zhao: “Don’t feed the medicine personally. Leave it to Ye Luo. Ordinary people may not react in time when encountering unexpected situations.”

“Alright, I understand.”

Several people went down to the second floor. Qiao Zhao pointed to a door: “Miss Xie is staying in that room.”

“Thank you.” Yang Houcheng steeled himself and walked over. He stood at the door, hesitating for quite a while before gathering the courage to knock: “Miss Xie, are you there?”

The door creaked open, and Xie Shengxiao stood inside the doorway, wearing the brand-new men’s clothing that Qiao Zhao had brought for her. Though the style was ordinary, her demeanor and bearing were naturally carefree, not concealing her jade-like elegance.

Yang Houcheng couldn’t help but be stunned.

Xie Shengxiao looked at Yang Houcheng expressionlessly: “Does Young Master Yang have business with me?”

“Miss Xie, could we talk inside?”

Xie Shengxiao thought for a moment, then stepped back a few paces to clear the doorway: “Come in then.”

She didn’t believe this man could devour her.

Yang Houcheng entered the room and stopped at a distance from Xie Shengxiao, standing motionless.

“Please sit, Young Master Yang.” Xie Shengxiao said neither warmly nor coldly.

She wanted to see what this person intended to do.

“Miss Xie, about what happened earlier—” Yang Houcheng’s face turned bright red, and he couldn’t continue.

“What happened earlier?” Xie Shengxiao’s expression darkened slightly. “Does Young Master Yang want to compete with me again?”

“No, no!”

“Then are you here to persuade me not to follow Marquis Guanjun to fight the Japanese pirates?”

“That’s not it either!”

“Then what exactly has Young Master Yang come to do? Could it be that you’ve come to apologize to me?”

Yang Houcheng’s forehead began to sweat: “Miss Xie, don’t be anxious. I know apologizing is useless, so I’ve come to—”

Xie Shengxiao couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

What was she anxious about? Was this person sick?

“Young Master Yang, you’ve always prided yourself on being a remarkable man, but this stammering appearance of yours doesn’t look like it.”

Yang Houcheng closed his eyes and steeled his heart: “I’ve come to ask if Miss Xie is betrothed. If not, when I return to the capital, I’ll inform my parents and have them go to your family to propose marriage!”

Xie Shengxiao was stunned, her voice changing pitch: “What did you say?”

“I said, when I return to the capital, I’ll ask my parents to go to your family to propose marriage. Don’t worry, I’ll take responsibility for what happened today.”

“What happened today? Take responsibility? Propose marriage?” Xie Shengxiao felt that even when she fell into the Japanese pirates’ den, her emotions hadn’t been as turbulent as they were now. She nearly couldn’t catch her breath and pointed toward the door: “Get out!”

“What?” Yang Houcheng was confused.

He was willing to take responsibility; what more did she want?

She couldn’t possibly want to sit back on him, could she? But that way, she’d still be at a disadvantage.

Xie Shengxiao yanked the door open, pushed Yang Houcheng toward the doorway, and was so angry she was fuming: “Get lost right now, immediately, at once! If you’re still within my sight in the next instant, I’ll beat you so badly your mother won’t recognize you!”

“Miss Xie, could you not be so petty? This won’t solve the problem between us—”

Xie Shengxiao grabbed a small stool and chased after him, angrily saying: “The biggest problem between us is that I didn’t beat you to death just now!”