Pokémon, Ash is going to become a perfect man from now on.

Hanako gave Ash an ultimatum, then leisurely headed to the kitchen.

"Brother, I'm going with Mom first too." Lila nodded obediently to Ash and left with Hanako.

"Xiao Zhi, I can't help you with this trouble this time." Nanami said with a smile. "However, I will take care of liaising with Miss Ma Xiu. Leave the initial communication work to me."

Nanami is currently managing Xiaozhi's company, and the collaboration with Maxiu must be conducted under that company's name. She came specifically to discuss the collaboration.

"Hey, I don't know why, but I feel inexplicably refreshed." Xiao Mao revealed a gloating smile, as if even the tension of the round of 16 had disappeared.

"Don't get too carried away and end up getting beaten up on the ground." Xiao Zhi rolled his eyes at the other person with disdain.

After that, he gave Xiao Lan a look and then hurriedly left the players' hall.

"They're all gone?" Salina, left at the back, felt lost. "What should I do now..."

She was very worried about Xiaozhi and Xiaoxia's situation, but she was also frustrated to find that her worries seemed to be of no use.

“You don’t actually have to do anything,” Xiao Lan said with a smile, trying to comfort him. “When you’re with him, you might as well relax and just be yourself, otherwise he’ll get very tired too.”

"Is it…"

"Of course, you can also choose something you're good at," Xiao Lan continued to remind you. "You can help Auntie cook, or accompany Sister Nanami to discuss cooperation. Either of these is fine, it just depends on what you like."

"Hmm, I understand... but what about you?" Serena nodded with some doubt, but she was also very concerned about Xiao Lan's choice.

Or rather, she cares a lot about Xiao Lan herself...

"Of course I'm not going to do anything." Xiao Lan stretched lazily. "I'm not good at either of these. I'm just like Xiao Xia when it comes to cooking; the ingredients turn into poison in no time. I'm not good at running a company either. If you ask me to manage the accounts, Xiao Zhi will lose so much money in less than a week that he won't even be able to afford pants. So, you should worry about yourself first."

"In that case... I'll go help Aunt Hanako cook." After considering it for a moment, Serena still felt that the kitchen was more suitable for her.

"Phew...that's it~" After Serena left in a hurry, Xiao Lan finally showed a truly relaxed expression.

"Honey, you need to hurry up on your end too~"

...

Ash, using the power of Aura to explore, quickly located Misty's position.

Xiaoxia sat alone by a secluded flower bed in the athletes' village, seemingly holding a Psyduck in her arms.

When Ash found her, she was looking down, her shoulders trembling slightly…

"are you OK?"

"I'm...ok!"

The same question, the same haphazard wiping of the corner of the eye, and the same feigned nonchalance after turning away…

Everything was like a repeat of their second encounter in Kurenai City.

This time, however proud Xiaoxia was, she couldn't hide the resentment in her heart...

"What are you doing here..." she asked sullenly, her voice trembling with a hint of tears.

"Mom is preparing a dinner party and would like to invite you to eat with her, so she asked me to come find you."

"This..." Xiaoxia's lips twitched slightly; she really didn't want to hear a single word of this answer.

I'm so depressed, how can I possibly have the appetite to eat?!

Even if it's a lavish meal, even if the person hosting is his mother, he still...

Okay, Xia realized that she was actually starting to waver a little.

Was all that sadness and frustration just now just an illusion...?

"That was just one of the reasons." But at that moment, Xiaozhi suddenly shook his head solemnly.

I came to find you because I was very worried about you.

"What...what did you say?!" A high-pitched scream rang out as Xiaoxia's arms tightened suddenly...

"Quack..." The duck god suddenly foamed at the mouth, his superpowers almost giving way...

Chapter 197 What exactly did the two 'Yellow' Gods say?

"Xiaoxia, if you keep tightening it, Psyduck really won't be able to take it."

"Ah... I'm sorry, Psyduck!"

Seeing Psyduck in her arms with its eyes rolled back and even faintly glowing blue, Misty immediately let go of her arms in a panic.

Seeing this, Ash couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief along with DuckGod.

If Psyduck were to actually unleash its psychic powers, Misty and I might be fine, but we'd definitely have to pay the tournament organizing committee a flowerbed in return…

"Have you come to your senses yet? I really didn't expect you to react so strongly." With the crisis alert lifted, Ash couldn't help but twitch his lips in exasperation.

"Of course... I didn't!" Xiaoxia's attitude made a forced 180-degree turn, and she made a lie that didn't reflect her true feelings. "Which eye of yours saw that I reacted too much? It's clearly... Psyduck's own ability to withstand stress is too low. I didn't exert any force at all!"

The reaction will definitely be strong!

Who speaks so bluntly? Do you think you're Nazja?

Saying you're worried about me in this kind of situation could easily be misinterpreted as you trying to seduce me!

It's not impossible...

P.S. These are the honest truths~

In response, Psyduck expressed her utter disbelief at her sixth owner, wondering how much force she had just used...

"Uh... if you say no, then no." Ash shrugged speechlessly.

“There wasn’t one in the first place!!”

Okay, it seems that Xiaoxia is starting to recover; at least her proud and arrogant spirit has returned.

"Besides... how could you possibly be worried about me? Shouldn't you be happy?" Xiaoxia, who thought she had caught the blind spot, began to retort smugly, "If you keep me out of the top eight, you don't have to keep that promise, right!"

“I have never thought that way. Apart from you, I probably want you to achieve your goals more than anyone else.”

"Why...?" Xia was stunned.

She had just said it casually and never expected the other party to respond so attentively.

At that moment, Xiaoxia subconsciously looked at Xiaozhi's face, but quickly lowered her head awkwardly... The seriousness in his eyes made her feel a little lost.

"Because you're so much stronger than before," Ash said softly. "I know you've worked incredibly hard this past year, and it wasn't easy for you to stand here at the League Conference. If possible, I'd like to see more battles..."

To be honest, Ash is a little confused right now. He's not sure if he's looking forward to Misty growing up to be like she is in the later parts of the anime, or... if he hopes she can grow up to be like she is in the original anime.

The original works of the original series are classics and a source of nostalgia, but some of the old criticisms have been stuck in Ash's throat for a long time.

Especially regarding the portrayal of the female lead, Xiaozhi wonders if the director and screenwriter have some kind of grudge against Xiaoxia.

She's a tsundere tomboy with a terrible personality. She likes to boss people around but is actually terrible at it. Not only did she give the male protagonist a huge beating when they first met, but she also keeps stealing things like Togepi and Totodile from time to time.

In addition, there are her three brainless older sisters. In the original series, they did nothing of any importance. By the end of the series, Misty finally started to be reliable, but then she just dumped the gym on her. Is this something a real sister would do?

If they hadn't interfered, Zhixia's children might have been able to go on a trip!

Therefore, the character design of Xiaoxia in the animation is truly full of malice.

If you look at other series, the Cerulean Gym in the Red and Blue games is a nightmare for players, while Misty in the special episode is a rich young lady with both a good family background and great strength;

There are also other spin-off comics where Misty is not only incredibly strong and has a stunning figure, but her three older sisters are also top-tier trainers who easily surpass the anime and manga versions of her.

This is Xiaoxia, see the .jpg file.

And this one~.jpg

"Hey, you're the one who came to advise others, why are you standing there dumbfounded?" Xiaoxia waved her hand, bringing Xiaozhi back to his senses. "You said you wanted to see more of my battles, but no matter how hard you try, isn't the outcome already predetermined? All your opponents will be utterly crushed by you. Tomorrow's battle will just be another loser like me..."

"But no matter which battle it is, I have never let my guard down!" Ash shook his head seriously. "Especially when the opponent is you, I will be extra careful."

Misty's current strength is definitely much stronger than in the original story, and she is also stronger than any of the opponents Ash encountered!

"Be extra careful... So you're prepared to lose to me?" Xiaoxia asked, raising her eyebrows curiously.

"Uh, no, not at all," Xiao Zhi said awkwardly.

This has nothing to do with whether he has low emotional intelligence or not; it was a predetermined outcome, and there's no point in making up lies.

"Are you... sure you're not here to cause trouble?" Xiaoxia's expression stiffened, but she didn't actually feel too uncomfortable.

They are all trainers who strive for victory, and it's impossible to expect Ash to take care of her girlish feelings at a time like this.

"Xiaoxia, it might sound strange for me to say this, given my position... but I still hope you can cheer up," Xiaozhi said sincerely. "In tomorrow's battle, win or lose, let me see you fight with all your might again."

"Oh, I see... Since you've asked so sincerely, I'll mercifully grant your request~" Misty suddenly smiled mischievously and held out her hand to Ash. "I'll definitely give it my all in tomorrow's battle!"

"I'm really looking forward to it!" Xiao Zhi gently grasped the girl's hand and pulled her up from the flower bed.

But afterwards, he seemed to forget to let go, and the two of them held hands at extremely close range, both of them a little stunned...

"Xiaoxia..." When their eyes met, Xiaozhi suddenly felt a surge of impulse...

I couldn't resist giving the gift I had been preparing for so long to the other person.

However, he ultimately gave up; the timing wasn't right, and the atmosphere was a bit strange...

"Xiao Zhi..." Xiao Xia's eyes were also glazed over, and her mind was in complete disarray.

At first, she really disliked the person in front of her.