Love from the Male Protagonist's Harem

Chapter 71.1

LFTMPH Chapter 71-Speak the Truth Part 1

Translated by Snowfall77

Xia Ge: “So if I ask you who are you, you’ll answer me truthfully?”

Cloaked person: “If you’re willing to tell me your identity, I’ll tell you mine.”

Xia Ge: “……”

The cloaked person was also quiet for a moment before offering: “If that doesn’t work for you, let’s set the matter of identities aside and agree to ask each other anything except that.”

Xia Ge: “But I just want to know who you are.”

Cloaked person: “You want to know who I am, but aren’t willing to tell me who you are. That’s not exactly fair, is it?”

“But it is greedy.” The cloaked person tacked on after a brief pause.

Xia Ge: “……”

The cloaked person then demonstrated their humaneness: “Naturally, if I ask a question you’re unwilling to answer, you can simply stay silent.”

Could refuse to answer, huh?

“Understood. And no asking each other who we are, right?” The situation might not be ideal, but it shouldn’t be a loss either. Xia Ge agreed: “Fine, I’ll play. Who gets to ask the first question?”

Taking out a gold coin, the cloaked person showed it to Xia Ge. On the front of the coin was depicted a Damascus knife and on the tail side was a coat of feathers. Their voice calm, the cloaked person said: “Heads, you ask the first question. Tails, I ask first.”

Next the cloaked person flipped the coin up.

The coin made a shiny, swirling arc in midair. Extending their hand, the cloaked person caught it as it fell, then slowly unfolded their fingers so Xia Ge could also see it.

In the dazzling light from the lamps shining outside the room’s window, Xia Ge saw a gold coin engraved with lustrous feathers.

Tails.

Xia had no trust: “Did you cheat?”

Cloaked person: “Alright, I’ll yield to you. But you’ve just asked your first question.”

“No, I did not cheat.”

When the cloaked person was done speaking, the soul speech orb did not light up or react in any way, indicating that the cloaked person had indeed spoken the truth.

Xia Ge: “……”

“Now it’s my turn.” The cloaked person went on, “What you are doing down here, in the ‘big’ black market?”

Quietly eyeing the soul speech orb for a moment, Xia Ge finally answered: “……I heard that an ancient Yimei was going to be auctioned off tonight, so I came to have a look at it.”

The soul speech orb remained unlit.

Now it was the cloaked person’s turns to not speak for a while, until: “The Zhen Hun?”

Their tone rhetorical.

“That counts as a question!” Xia Ge countered, “But it’s my turn!”

“So, from the ‘small’ black market, to the entering Black Rock cave proper, have you been following me?”

A very long pause ensued, and just as Xia Ge was giving up hope of the cloaked person answering, they admitted it.

“Yes.”

“But why would you want to follow……”

The cloaked person didn’t let Xia Ge finish, interrupting suddenly with: “Do you like the fox mask?”

Without thinking Xia Ge touched the mask on her face, then, realizing her subconscious reaction, awkwardly put her hand back down.

“……”

Why should Xia Ge have to admit her preferences……

“That question doesn’t count! You asked if the ancient Yimei up for auction was the Zhen Hun,” Xia Ge shamelessly cheated, “I’ll answer that!”

The cloaked person didn’t bother arguing: “Alright, answer.”

“Fine……the ancient Yimei being auctioned is the Zhen Hun.”

The Soul Speech orb started shaking, acting like it was about to light up——

“Is not true!” Xia Ge hurriedly continued, “It’s not actually the Zhen Hun!”

The Soul Speech orb quivered twice and then reverted to motionlessness.

Ignoring the cold sweat that’d broken out on her forehead, Xia Ge contemplated the consequences of the Soul Speech orb turning a fake Zhen Hun into the real one. Turning the false into the truth sounded convenient in theory, but Xia Ge wasn’t a complete idiot. There was no such thing as something for nothing in life. There was always a price to pay.

Xia Ge hadn’t forgotten the system’s warning: [The Cost Of Making A Lie Into The Truth Is Extremely Tragic.]

And she had no desire to find out what that tragic price might be.

Besides, changing a fake Yimei into a real Yimei with so many predatory eyes watching, especially the Demon Sect, wouldn’t be a good thing for Xia Ge at the present.

The cloaked person simply went ‘hmm,’ as if the Zhen Hun, either real or fake, meant nothing to them.

Collecting herself, Xia Ge came up with her next question: “Why were you following me?”

That seemed to stymie the cloaked person and they didn’t answer for a few seconds.

“Because of you.”

Xia Ge was all ears: “Mmm?” Did the cloaked person have a problem with Xia Ge?

Now the cloaked person’s pause was even longer, but finally, after some deliberation, they claimed: “You’re cute, I suppose.”

“……”

Instinctively watching the Soul Speech orb, Xia Ge said: “Hey now, don’t talk nonsense……”

While strangers should refrain from lying to each other, embarrassing each other was just as bad.

Xia Ge was going to be 5’7” in the future! Would she still be cute then? Huh?!
But……

The Soul Speech orb neither lit up or moved in any way.

Xia Ge stared at the cloaked person in disbelief: “……”

The cloaked person had fucking switched the Soul Speech orb, right?!! Too awkward!

Or did they really think they’d complimented Xia Ge?!

Xia Ge had the system scan the Soul Speech orb again to make sure it wasn’t a fake, and the system declared it to be genuine.

Underneath the fox mask, Xia Ge’s face was stiff.

The cloaked person’s tone was utterly serious: “I didn’t talk nonsense.”

Taking a deep breath, Xia Ge tried to let it go: “……you still shouldn’t say such things. It could lead to misunderstandings.”

“Misunderstandings?” The cloaked person ruminated on Xia Ge’s words, seemingly perplexed, “Who would misunderstand? You? What do you think you’ve you misunderstood?”

Xia Ge: “……”

Are you playing dumb? Pretending to be stupid? Aren’t you? You have to be, right?!

There was no way Xia Ge could answer the cloaked person’s latest questions.

the chapter title—实话实说[shí huà shí shuō]

speak frankly; not beat about the bush; not mince matters; talk straight; speak truthful statement truthfully; true

The coin—-

弯刀 [wān dāo]

machete;

take your pick-

1 Damascus knife

2 Gurkha machete

3 Mongolian machete