Chapter 61.1: What Happened… to Us?
The feeling when encountering each other in a foreign place was different from the feeling when meeting in Tongxu. Even though they weren’t very familiar with each other, Xiaoqi still had a sort of feeling as if she had reunited with an old friend in a foreign place.
Xiaoqi looked at the street, then blinked and asked, "Why are you also here?"
"Ha, I came out to play. Could it be that we came here on the same road? Xiaoqi and this lady, weren’t you two in Tongxu in the past?"
Ruoshui looked at Xiaoqi, then looked at Chen Zigong again with her eyes narrowed. "We live right here ah. You aren’t stalking us, are you?!"
Chen Zigong"s lips twitched. "Ben… I don’t have a hobby of stalking people. But back to the topic, the scenery in Ruzhou"s actually not bad. It’s just a pity that the season isn’t quite right."
Xiaoqi recalled Dawnbreak Hot Springs. Rubbing her cheek, she felt a little sentimental.
Chen Zigong looked around and said, "Let’s find somewhere to sit for a while. It’s rare after all for people to be able to encounter each other anywhere."
It was not just the three of them that were able to encounter each other anywhere: there was also the Lin Zixiao that had only returned home recently. With a twirl of her eyes, Xiaoqi saw the Lin Zixiao that was walking with her head slightly lowered. Lin Zixiao"s target was clearly not Xiaoqi. Her line of sight when she lifted her eyes only swept pa.s.s Xiaoqi briefly before it locked onto the profile of Chen Zigong. When it did, her body imperceptibly stiffened.
Ruoshui also noticed the person that was looking over this way and instantly pouted fiercely. Chen Zigong followed the pair"s line of sight and looked over. His brow lifted for a moment, but he didn"t say anything.
Lin Zixiao"s hands clenched, then loosened beneath her sleeves. As she looked at Chen Zigong, she opened her mouth but Chen Zigong didn"t wait for her to speak. Instead, he turned around and said with a smile, "Let"s go. Let"s sit for a while in that teashop ahead. It won"t interfere with you guys waiting for that lady."
Ruoshui gave Lin Zixiao a fierce glare, then pulled Xiaoqi"s hand and followed Chen Zigong into the teashop.
"How hateful, she"s even coming out to hover around. If only Liu Hengzhi was here. Sss~~ Then I"d have him sort her out." Ruoshui said indignantly.
"What? You guys have animosity between you?" Chen Zigong handed his fan to the attendant behind him as he asked.
Ruoshui wrinkled her nose. "You don"t know how terribly loathsome she is. The moment she came back for Hao w.a.n.g fu, she went to stick to my Zhou gege and caused Xiaoqi"s hand to almost be ruined."
Chen Zigong lifted his brows as he looked towards Xiaoqi. Xiaoqi was still looking at the Zixiao that was standing on the opposite street. She was still standing there, s.p.a.cing out as she looked at the group over people here. There was no expression on her face, yet Xiaoqi felt that there was an unconcealable sorrow.
Lin Zixiao stood there for a long time before giving a bitter smile and walking away. Xiaoqi retrieved her gaze and pouted as she said, "It"s all that Hao w.a.n.g ye"s fault. To not even be able to look after his own people, he"s even dumber than Ha Pi."
When Ruoshui heard this, she opened her mouth and laughed. The attendant behind Chen Zigong furrowed his brows and was a bit angered, but Chen Zigong slightly waved and smiled as he said, "Who"s Ha Pi?"
"Haha, Ha Pi isn"t a who, he"s the little dog Xiaoqi raised. He"s extremely pretty." Ruoshui was so amused she forgot propriety and even did a doggie paddle gesture with her fingers.
"Audacious!"
The person behind Chen Zigong gave a loud shout, shocking Xiaoqi to the point that she instantly jumped to hug Ruoshui. Xiaoqi blinked her eyes as she looked at that man whose face had turned black, then turned to look at the Chen Zigong whose facial color wasn"t all that good either. She gulped, then opened her mouth with difficulty to ask, "That ah, did my family"s Ha Pi bite you?"
Chen Luonian"s forehead twitched. He took a deep breath, then sent away the person behind him before saying with gritted teeth, "Do you know that there has never been anyone that dared…"
"En?" Xiaoqi blinked her eyes.
Chen Zigong looked at the two that had turned into a lump from wrapping their arms around each other and kneaded his forehead as he said, "That attendant of mine is afraid of dogs. He can"t even listen to the word "dog"."
Xiaoqi and Ruoshui exchanged a glance, then exhaled in relief and released each other. Xiaoqi looked at the person that sat down on another table and whispered, "He doesn"t look like someone who"s cowardly. Why is he afraid of dogs?"
Chen Zigong"s forehead twitched again upon hearing the word "dog". He had to restrain himself multiple times before he was able to speak with a calm voice again. "I seem to have heard that Official Song and that lady have had a past, so how can you describe it as sticking to him? Not to mention, Hao w.a.n.g ye is such a great and powerful person, if she was his wife, how could she be randomly strolling about on this large street? It may be that she"s just one of the servant girls in the w.a.n.g ye fu."
Ruoshui pounded the table as she burst into laughter. "That w.a.n.g ye didn"t even know that one of his servant girls ran off, how could he not be a stupid w.a.n.g ye? Sss~~ Can"t even keep track of his own family"s servant girls. If one"s incapable of maintaining one"s own house, how could one pacify and rule a country?"
Aiyahyah, this sentence was way too sophisticated. As expected, she really was educated! After Ruoshui finished speaking, she lifted her chin as she looked towards Xiaoqi proudly.
Chen Zigong was really getting a bit annoyed, but the Xiaoqi at the side refuted seriously, "You"re not allowed to call that w.a.n.g ye dumb."
Hearing this, Chen Zigong"s mood improved and he slowly hooked the corners of his lips. But before his smile even managed to fully form, he heard Xiaoqi continue, "Didn"t you say that person was bestowed to Hao w.a.n.g ye? Hao w.a.n.g ye is definitely a rotting old man who"s skinny as a dried pole with a body full of baggy loose skin. He probably can"t even straighten his back and sways uncontrollably with every step. That person probably didn"t want to marry an old man so she sneakily ran back here."
The figure Xiaoqi described was remarkably similar to the spermatozoon(the mature motile male s.e.x cell of an animal, by which the ovum is fertilized, typically having a compact head and one or more long flagella for swimming) that the book-telling mister talked about. Xiaoqi felt that a vulgar old man looked precisely like that. People like Old Man Qian with ample roundness are definitely kind and good daddies with good fortune. Father-in-Law Dad was sandwiched right in the middle, not being fat or skinny, so he didn"t count as amiable but also wasn"t terrible.
Chen Zigong"s cheeks twitched, then he gave a humph and said, "You two sure allow Official Song to be exculpated. Houseflies don"t hover around a flawless egg, so it can clearly be seen that he"s a rotten egg from the start."
"As if! You"re the rotten egg! You"re the stinky chicken egg!" Xiaoqi glowered at Chen Zigong and breathed heavily as she pulled Ruoshui up. Giving another humph, she said, "My family"s husband is the best. You"re hateful."
Chen Zigong looked at the back of Xiaoqi"s irritated leaving figure. He opened his mouth and had to exhale several times before he was able to restore his calm.
This place wasn"t very far from the governmental office and it was almost about time for Song Liangzhuo to return to the fu. So after thinking it through several times, Qiu Tong decided to take a detour to the governmental office. When she led Song Liangzhuo over to look for Xiaoqi and Ruoshui, it was just in time to see Xiaoqi run out of the teashop while holding Ruoshui"s hand. Qiu Tong didn"t know that man that was sitting inside, but Song Liangzhuo"s facial color immediately turned bad upon seeing him.
It already caused a person to be unhappy when a man appeared multiple times next to Xiaoqi, but every time they still had to have such exchanges.
Song Liangzhuo seized Xiaoqi into his arms with a dark face as he expressionlessly met Chen Zigong"s eyes. Chen Zigong lifted his brows. Upon seeing the other party"s earlier gloominess, he lifted his teacup and saluted towards Song Liangzhuo with a rather good mood.
Song Liangzhuo pressed his lips together and narrowed his eyes, then left with his arm around Xiaoqi"s shoulders.
When Xiaoqi ran into his chest, she returned to being a quiet little kitty. When she was tugged by Song Liangzhuo"s arm, she couldn"t help but walk forward stiffly.
After walking a few steps, Song Liangzhuo turned and said to Qiu Tong, "You can bring Ruoshui back to the fu first. We"ll head back a little later."
Qiu Tong happily agreed, but Ruoshui pouted unhappily. "Ss~~ Zhou gege wants to sneakily bring Xiaoqi out to eat tasty things?"
Song Liangzhuo knitted his brows. Qiu Tong was provoked into forthright laughter by Ruoshui"s strange teasing expression. She pulled Ruoshui as she said with a smile, "Lady Ruoshui should just head back first with Qiu Tong. Didn"t Young Master Liu say he"d be going to the fu every night to take a look at Lady"s tongue? You shouldn"t make Young Master Liu wait for too long."
Ruoshui blinked her eyes and thought that maybe Liu Hengzhi might have brought some fun things again. As she looked at Zhou gege and Xiaoqi being all loveydovey, her heart for some reason missed him quite a bit. In any case, her tongue was starting to hurt terribly again. It"s all because she spoke too much earlier. Ruoshui sucked another mouthful of cool air with a "ss" sound and her tongue felt a little better. Her eyes whirled back to Song Liangzhuo and Xiaoqi, then feigned unwillingness as she got onto the carriage with Qiu Tong with a pout.
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Credits: Translated by Chiyomira, Proofread by Ocelot
[Chiyomira’s Corner]
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