Chapter 22 Chapter 22 Three People Reading the West Chamber Together

It is said that Wu Tianyue and Daiyu went to bury flowers and saw Baoyu alone in the woods from afar. Daiyu went up to him and greeted him.

Baoyu turned around and saw Daiyu. He was very happy and was about to smile, but when he saw Wu Tianyue following behind him, he thought to himself, "As expected, my expression became depressed. I was afraid that this flower would fall to the ground and be trampled on, so I threw it into the water."

Watching the petals drifting outward on the water, Daiyu couldn't help but frown: "Once this water flows out, it will make the places where people live dirty and smelly, and it will be wasted again. It's better to sweep it up, wrap it up, and bury it in the earth. After a long time, it will turn into soil."

After hearing this, Baoyu clapped his hands and laughed, "That's right. Wait until I put down the book and I'll go with you."

Since coming to the garden, without Jia Zheng's constant instruction, Baoyu has been wandering around all day. She has never seen him read a book. So Daiyu heard him and subconsciously asked him, "What book?"

Baoyu accidentally let the cat out of the bag and hurriedly covered it up: "It's just The Doctrine of the Mean and The Great Learning."

Wu Tianyue had good eyesight, for before Baoyu had finished speaking, he glanced at the book and said doubtfully, "Your book clearly says 'Meeting the True'."

The elders did not allow Baoyu to read this book, so after Wu Tianyue exposed it, he panicked and hid it.

If they were children, Daiyu would have asked him to take a look at her too, but after returning from Yangzhou, they were not as close as before, so seeing him so flustered, she smiled and said to him, "You read the book, I will go to bury the flowers with the prince.

Wu Tianyue was very curious and was about to ask Baoyu to borrow a copy to read, but Daiyu said this, so he had to leave. He could only comfort himself in his heart that he would ask someone to buy a copy later.

Baoyu was originally very frightened, afraid that the two would know that he was reading a random book, but when he saw that Daiyu no longer asked questions and was about to leave him and Wu Tianyue, his mouth turned bitter and he hurriedly stopped them: "This is really a good book. After you read it, don't tell anyone."

When Wu Tianyue saw that Baoyu took the initiative to give the book to Daiyu and Daiyu did not object, he happily took it and pulled Daiyu to sit down and read.

Daiyu didn't want to read it at first, but seeing how enthusiastic he was, she became curious about what book Baoyu was so fascinated by, so she took it to the flower forest to read, and then she lowered her head to read it.

Baoyu only subconsciously wanted to keep Daiyu. Now, watching the two of them reading together head to head, his chest felt tight. He ignored etiquette and squeezed in between them: "I haven't finished reading yet."

Daiyu was engrossed in reading and was pushed away by him. She frowned slightly, but Wu Tianyue hurriedly moved the book over to her, pursed her lips and said nothing.

The three of them sat there reading, and finished reading in less than a meal's time.

Daiyu loved the words in the book very much. After closing the book, she continued to recite it silently. She was lost in thought when she heard Wu Tianyue praise it: "It is really good. The writing is brilliant, the words are poignant, and it has the effect of warning the world. But..."

Hearing these two words, Daiyu looked up at him. Coincidentally, he was looking in the same direction. Their eyes met. Somehow, they thought of the hug in Xiaoxiang Pavilion just now, and their hearts couldn't help but beat like drums. Wu Tianyue also stopped and didn't say anything.

Baoyu had read it before, and just now he watched it again with the two of them. Thinking of Daiyu beside him, his mind was distracted. He felt that he should be the one with "sorrowful and sickly body", while Daiyu was the one with "stunning beauty", and they were the perfect match.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but want to ask Daiyu what she thought of the book. Unexpectedly, when he looked up, he saw her and Wu Tianyue staring at each other in a daze. His heart was very sad. He coughed lightly and interrupted them: "What was the prince going to say just now?"

When Daiyu heard his voice, she suddenly came back to her senses, lowered her head, her hair scattered, covering her cheeks, leaving only the red tips of her ears exposed.

Wu Tianyue also turned his head, thinking back to the moment they had exchanged glances and feeling that he was feeling quite strange today. He gathered himself and replied to Baoyu, "It's just that Zhang Sheng's reason for breaking up with Cui Yingying was too perfunctory. He first accused ancient women of bringing disaster to the country, and then compared Cui Yingying to Baosi and Daji, implying to others that she was the source of disaster. He was truly heartless and ungrateful. Even if it was Baosi and others, they didn't blame the king or the generals for the country's downfall, but instead blamed a woman and slandered her as a monster. This is not what a real man should do..."

As he spoke, he saw Daiyu's fingers, extraordinarily slender and white, twirling unconsciously with her belt. He wanted to reach out and grasp them, but realizing his own thoughts, he quickly turned his eyes away in shock. After a pause, he continued, "Zhang Sheng is just like those people who make random accusations. He doesn't want to take responsibility for Cui Yingying, so he disregards her reputation, comparing her to a demon, and blaming everything on her, making himself appear so innocent. He's truly irresponsible.

That would be fine, but he later became indecisive and went back on his word. Having previously severed ties, he should have stayed true to his word, but after marrying, he thought of Cui Yingying again and even sent a message through her husband to ask her out. This behavior shows neither respect for his wife nor any concern for whether Cui Yingying would become estranged from her husband because of this. In my opinion, he is a cowardly and irresponsible person. He doesn't love anyone but himself, and he is not worthy of the free and easy Cui Yingying.

Baoyu had just compared himself and Daiyu to Zhang Sheng and Cui Yingying. After listening to this conversation, he subconsciously wanted to say something in defense, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt that what he said made sense and he really couldn't refute it, so he shut up and pondered it in his heart.

"But this book is quite well written. Cui Yingying is able to handle things easily, and the author describes her love affair with Zhang Sheng in a lingering and touching way. The writing is also very good, so it's worth reading." Wu Tianyue saw that Baoyu and Daiyu were both lost in thought and asked Baoyu with a smile, "Do you have any more? Lend it to me."

Baoyu's fantasy about Zhang and Cui's love was already shattered by his words. Moreover, since adults didn't allow him to read such books, and he had brought them in secretly, he was afraid that if he lent it to him, it would leak out. Naturally, he was reluctant and declined with a smile: "I came across this book by accident, there is nothing else to it."

Wu Tianyue heard this and knew that Daiyu was reluctant, but since he often went out and it was convenient for him to find books, he did not regret it. He stood up, picked up the flower hoe and other things, and asked Daiyu, "Let's bury the flowers first."

Daiyu agreed with what Wu Tianyue had just said. Coupled with what happened today, her feelings towards him became even more different. At this moment, she felt shy and did not dare to look up at him. She just nodded and picked up the fallen flowers. Baoyu did not think about it anymore and hurried forward to help.

Wu Tianyue found the location of the flower grave, dug one next to it with a flower hoe, and then came to help the two collect the petals.

The three of them worked together and buried the body in a short while.

After sitting and resting for a while, Xiren, the head maid in Baoyu's room, came to see him and said that Jia She was not feeling well and the sisters all wanted to go and pay their respects. Grandmother Jia asked him to go and see him as well.

Baoyu hurriedly took the book, said goodbye to the two of them, and followed Xiren back to his room. After he left, the two of them were left alone.

After the incident with the puppets and the reading, the atmosphere between the two of them was quite different from before. A gentle breeze blew by, and Wu Tianyue caught a whiff of Daiyu's delicate fragrance, making him feel uneasy. He said hurriedly, "It's still early, and my sisters aren't here. Why don't you go back and see Mother? The bamboo forest was just planted a few days ago. Go and see if there's anything you need to change."

Daiyu had just heard about the bamboo forest and wanted to go and see it. She was free today, and she also felt it was strange to stay with Wu Tianyue, so she naturally agreed.

The two of them got up and went to Xiaoxiang Pavilion, where they happened to meet Zijuan, who said that Fengjie had sent two small bottles of new tea for the royal family. Daiyu asked her to keep them, changed her clothes, and went to the palace with Wu Tianyue.

Daiyu turned back to Lady Jia, who gave her some instructions and ordered someone to prepare the carriage and horses.

Wu Tianyue saw the Jia Mansion's carriage coming out from outside. Fearing that Daiyu would be embarrassed, he asked his servant Fei Yan to remove the Wang Mansion's carriage.

After Daiyu came out, he helped her into the carriage and followed beside her on horseback. Feiyan led his men to follow behind the convoy, and they all went to Prince Zhongshun's Mansion.

The carriage had not gone far when suddenly a tall man with his head lowered came towards the carriage.

Although the Rongguo Mansion was in decline, when people walked outside on weekdays, people would give them some face when they saw the sign, not to mention pedestrians on the road, who basically had to give way. The coachman also developed the habit of looking down on others and never thought that someone would bump into him. It just so happened that the man suddenly came out of the alley and walked straight towards him.

The driver was startled and frightened for a moment, and suddenly pulled the horse. The horse raised its hooves and pulled the carriage to an angle. Wu Tianyue hurriedly stepped on the saddle and reached out to steady the carriage. Seeing that he had such strength, the servants of the Jia family were all shocked and stood still.

"Is my sister okay?" Wu Tianyue asked into the car.

Daiyu was also lifting the gauze curtain and asking, "Are you okay?"

The two said this in unison and couldn't help but smile at each other.

Seeing that everyone in the Jia residence was still, and no one went to check on the man, Wu Tianyue dismounted and asked, "Who are you, and why are you walking so carelessly?"

The man wasn't hit or trampled by the horse's hooves, but he was a little startled. Seeing him coming to ask in person, he quickly leaned over and began to kneel: "Greetings, Your Highness. I am a member of the Jia family, my name is Jia Yun. I accidentally bumped into you, Your Highness. I beg for your forgiveness."

"No need to be so polite." Wu Tianyue called him up, and seeing that he moved freely, he said casually, "You should be more careful when walking on the road in the future. If this carriage goes any faster, you will be injured if not killed."

The driver and the others also reacted and wanted to scold him, but when they heard Wu Tianyue's gentle tone, they did not dare to act rashly. They hurried forward to help Jia Yun up. Jia Yun bowed and thanked him, "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness."

Wu Tianyue nodded and was about to leave when he saw Jia Yun retreat to the side, his face pale. Thinking of Jia Yun's absent-minded appearance earlier, he thought something might be wrong. He ordered Fei Yan, who had caught up with him, to give Jia Yun a bag of silver and said, "We have other things to do today. Take this money and go to the infirmary. If it's not enough, come to Yihongyuan to find me."

Jia Yun was angry today because he had been turned away from his uncle when he asked him to borrow money. Thinking of his widowed mother at home and finding nothing to do in the Jia Mansion, he couldn't help but feel disheartened. That's why he didn't notice the carriage and didn't expect this unexpected surprise. However, since it was his own fault and he was not injured, he smiled and declined: "I'm fine, Your Highness, there's no need..."

Before he could finish, Wu Tianyue had already jumped onto his horse, and Fei Yan stuffed the purse into his hand: "Just take it, my prince."

After saying this, he followed Wu Tianyue and the motorcade started to head towards the palace again.

Jia Yun was delighted when he received the silver. He thought that with this money, if he worked hard, he might be able to get a job with Second Lady Lian. So he bowed in the direction the group was going before returning home.

Wu Tianyue was just helping out and didn't take it seriously. After getting on his horse, he saw Daiyu lifting the curtain and looking at him teasingly. Thinking of his inexplicable heartbeat and flushing face today, he said uncomfortably, "Why are you looking at me?"

Daiyu tilted her head and smiled, "I didn't expect that my brother, who looks careless, is actually so thoughtful."

Wu Tianyue didn't know why, but when he heard the word "brother" now, he always felt different from before. When he heard her praise him, he suddenly thought of the hug in the morning. He stiffened and said, "Have a good ride, be careful or you'll feel dizzy again later."

He did not argue with her, but was worried about her. Daiyu could not help but think of the book they had read together today. Her cheeks and ears turned red, and she lowered the curtain without saying a word.

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Thanks to the little angel "waiting for the flowers to bloom" for irrigating the nutrient solution~