Revenge of the Phoenix Beauty-Chapter 52: Do I like men?!

The sun blazed above as Hua Qingyan trained alone in the courtyard. Sweat clung to her brow, and her grip on the wooden sword was steady despite the heat. Yet her strikes lacked precision today—her mind wandered. Thoughts of Liu Feng's condition, the intruder, and Zhao Lianyi's mysterious death clouded her focus.

"Focus," she muttered to herself, swinging again—but her movements were stiff, distracted.

Suddenly, a small stone landed near her feet, snapping her from her daze. Instinctively, she struck it mid-air with her wooden sword, eyes narrowing as she turned toward the direction it came from.

There, leaning casually against a wall, was him.

That strange man from the market... Her eyes widened in disbelief. What in the world is he doing here?!

He caught her gaze and grinned before gesturing for her to come over.

Hua let out a quiet breath, grateful she was in her male disguise. Her chest bound, her frame dressed in the simple uniform of a low-ranked soldier. There was no way he'd recognize her—not yet.

She puffed up her chest slightly and strode over confidently, keeping her voice low and sharp.

"So, this is where you serve? General Hua's estate?" Jiang Yao asked, his tone playful.

She rolled her eyes. "What do you want? Are you here to pick a fight?" she snapped, hand tightening around the wooden sword.

Jiang raised his hands quickly in defense. "Easy there. I just thought... we could be friends, Mei Qing," he said, smirking as he said the name she'd given him.

"I don't want to be friends with you," Hua replied curtly. "And if that's all, I'm leaving."

She turned on her heel.

But just as she took a step, she felt a grip on her wrist.

She froze.

Jiang, too, seemed startled by his own action. He hadn't planned to grab the other man's wrist—hadn't even known why he did. But now, holding it, he noticed something strange. The wrist was... delicate. Small. Almost fragile, as if it might bruise under the slightest pressure.

His heart skipped.

Hua spun around, her eyes sharp with fury. "Let go," she hissed, yanking her hand away with a look of pure disgust.

Jiang released her immediately, stunned, watching as she stormed off, her figure soon disappearing around the corner.

He stood frozen for a moment, his heart racing. Why... did I grab his hand? he wondered. Why do I find him so interesting?

Do I... like men?!

The thought sent a chill down his spine. His face turned pale, and he shook his head as if trying to erase the thought.

Unbeknownst to either of them, someone stood in the shadows, half-concealed beneath a dark hood. Watching.

As Jiang stood rooted in confusion, the hooded figure clenched their fist tightly, knuckles pale beneath the glove.

Their presence was silent, their gaze cold.

And their purpose?

Still unknown.