Chapter 138: Sneaking a Look

Fubao lured Gu Yun, who had been hiding among the royal hunters, out with a chicken leg and led him to the Academy Dean's estate under the guise of visiting a colleague.

Gu Yun soon sensed a demonic aura lingering around the Dean’s residence and began to formulate a plan. That night, he snuck into the estate and slipped into Zhu Fanrui’s room, but his timing was unfortunate; he walked straight into the scene of a beauty emerging from her bath.

Clutching his nose to stop it from gushing blood, Gu Yun scanned the room and his eyes locked onto a painting. It was quite new, clearly finished only recently, yet it reeked of demonic energy. The flying celestial maiden depicted in the painting stared back with malevolent eyes.

"So, you’ve been hiding here. I couldn't find you elsewhere; truly, this was easier than getting a chicken leg."

A painting demon?

Gu Yun felt incredibly smug. No wonder he hadn't found a trace of demonic aura where he had previously searched; it had run off to this place instead.

"Don't think you're escaping me," Gu Yun said with his hands on his hips.

Just then, a shrill cry erupted behind him: "Ahhhhh! Pervert! Help!"

It was Miss Zhu, who had just finished bathing, only to find a Peeping Tom standing in front of the screen where she had been washing.

"No, I’m not! I didn't!" Gu Yun protested three times in a row.

A crowd burst in, and the blood-drenched, wooden-headed Gu Yun was promptly tied up while still clutching his nose.

"I wasn't peeping at the young lady bathing! I was looking at the painting!" Gu Yun insisted, pointing at the celestial maiden on the wall.

"Looking at a painting? My daughter is bathing inside, and you’re standing outside looking at a painting?" The Dean looked at Gu Yun, who was being pinned to the ground by servants, his face darker than charcoal.

*Wait, Miss Zhu? Father, that sentence didn't sound quite right.*

The Dean's wife, who was busy comforting her daughter, was speechless.

"I came specifically for this painting," Gu Yun muttered, lying on the floor with his chin propped on his hand.

"Oh, so you took advantage of my daughter bathing to come and look at a painting?" the Dean asked darkly.

"Exactly," Gu Yun said with a straight face.

"Do you take me for a fool?" The Dean was furious. Why would anyone break into a bathing beauty's room just to look at a painting instead of the beauty herself? "Young man, tell me the truth, or you will suffer a miserable fate," the Dean threatened.

"I... I am telling the truth. I truly came for the painting."

"Very well. My daughter is worth less than a painting? Take him out and beat him to death," the Dean ordered, his face black with rage.

Miss Zhu thought, *Is that the point? The point is that this guy was peeping at me!*

"Wait! Fine, I came for the young lady," Gu Yun said, flicking his bangs and trying to look cool.

"Good, that’s more like it. One must be honest. Right, the matter is settled—take him out and beat him to death," the Dean waved his hand. *I knew my daughter was the most outstanding.*

Gu Yun: "..." Damn it.

When Gu Yun finally managed to escape under the excuse of needing to relieve himself, Miss Zhu was staring into the mirror, whispering to herself, "As expected, I am the most beautiful."

Meanwhile, the figure in the painting on the wall had vanished.

"You failed?" Fubao asked, surprised. Gu Yun was quite capable—even if he was a bit of a blockhead, his skills were top-notch.

"Sigh, don't mention it, Miss. That fat old man kept trying to force me to admit I was peeping at his daughter. I barely managed to escape," Gu Yun groaned, sprawled on a chair, only his mouth moving to complain.

"Peeping? Peeping at what? What did you see? Was it good?" Fubao’s eyes lit up. *Ah, the scent of gossip.*

Gu Yun: "..." He had a headache.

"I didn't peep. I saw nothing," Gu Yun said helplessly.

"Oh, really?"

"Really."

"Tsk, tsk. Miss Zhu has such dark skin, you probably wouldn't even bother looking," Fubao teased, crossing her arms.

"Who says? Her skin was so fair," Gu Yun blurted out before he could stop himself.

"Oh, oh, oh! 'Fair,' you say? Didn't you say you didn't look? How would you know Miss Zhu is so fair?" Fubao pointed at Gu Yun, her face full of "you're dishonest and lecherous" judgment.

Gu Yun: "..." Women are devils. I need to run away again.

And so, Gu Yun fled once more.

"Tsk, tsk. The wooden block’s romantic luck has arrived," Fubao chuckled.

"More like a romantic disaster," the little ginseng added. "Are you certain now? It’s a painting demon."

"Oh! Those are hard to catch. Should we just burn it like the Dean did with those others?" Fubao recalled that the previous batch of paintings had been destroyed by fire.

"That only works if they are willing to hand the painting over. Given how much Zhu Fanrui treasures that piece, that won't work," the little ginseng shook its head.

"Then what do we do?"

"If fire doesn't work, we use water. The demon is in the painting at night and in Miss Zhu's body during the day. Why not just douse her in water?" The little ginseng smiled quite lecherously.

"No, that concerns a lady's reputation. We can't do that," Fubao firmly rejected the idea; it was unkind. *Besides, a wet beauty in public... eww.*

"Then what? Do you have a better idea?" The little ginseng rolled its eyes.

"I think I do," Fubao said, stroking her chin with a devious smile.

The little ginseng: "???"