Wu Ling had never intended to harm anyone with what he considered a bit of harmless flirting and teasing, but without knowing, he'd greatly stoked the fires of uncertainty and inferiority that Jin Wuya had long thought she'd tamped down within her heart.
"Oh, I see," Wu Ling said, seeing a surge in the dull brownish-yellow inferiority and brilliant green envy. "Sister Jin," he said, putting aside his carving and looking deeply into the young woman's golden eyes. "Until a few days ago, the words I'd have used to describe you would have been 'radiant', 'sculpted', and 'heavenly.'"
"Sister Xiang is a beauty to be sure," Wu Ling acknowledged because it was true and it would be foolish not to. "But she's very different from you. There isn't a centimeter of your body that doesn't speak to your dedication, your strength, your poise, and your grace."
