Chapter 40 The moment after she apologized, he hugged her tightly into his arms...

When the groom came down from the high seat in the hall, Pei Huaijin saw Chen Youran and the ninth lady of the Liang family holding hands, following the group of guests and heading towards the backyard together.

I guess he went to the new house to join in the fun.

The seventh brother pulled Liang Liulang into the banquet and said he would toast him later.

He remembered Shen Yunshu telling him about the relationship between Shen Youran and Liang Liulang, which ended in vain because of his seventh brother's sudden appearance.

Therefore, during that meeting that day, Shen Youran was actually satisfied with Liang Jia Liulang.

She fell in love with Liang Liulang at that time.

So she likes men like Liang Liulang?

Pei Huaijin secretly observed this Liang Liulang. As someone who had practiced martial arts for many years, he usually had a tall and strong physique. He also had a good appearance, with sharp eyebrows and deep features. He could be considered handsome...

Although Pei Huaijin worked out regularly and considered himself in good shape, compared to Liang Liulang, who had a sculpted body with his sculpted legs and axle, and exuded a burst of strength, Pei Huaijin suddenly felt that he was still a little frail. His waist and abdomen seemed not to be firm enough, his shoulders not broad enough, and his arms were not as powerful as Liang Liulang's...

No, he is a civil official, well-informed and well-respected, and has a great reputation for his literary talent. Why would he want to compare his physique with that of a warrior?

Why should you feel inferior just because your figure is not as good as others?

Pei Huaijin smiled secretly and stopped thinking about it...

The guests in the front yard were chatting and laughing, waiting for the banquet to begin, when suddenly thick smoke rose from a place in the backyard.

"Oh no! There's a flood in the backyard!"

The front yard immediately became a mess. The servants ran to the backyard to put out the fire. Some of the guests ran out, while the others, concerned about their relatives and friends in the backyard, ran to the backyard with the servants.

Shen Youran is also in the backyard!

"Seventh brother, stay here and don't move..." Pei Huaijin said this and rushed to the backyard.

Liang Xu also rushed out.

The thick smoke in the backyard expanded at an extremely fast speed, shrouding the two courtyards in thick darkness.

When Pei Huaijin arrived, people kept squeezing out of the moon-shaped gate in one of the courtyards. The red silk tied above the gate indicated that this was the courtyard where the bride was.

Shen Youran was inside.

The people inside were scrambling to escape. Pei Huaijin couldn't get in for a while. When he was about to climb over the wall, he suddenly heard the voice of his seventh brother behind him.

"Brother, I, I..." His breathing was unstable and he seemed to be about to faint.

Pei Huaijin frowned, turned around to find his seventh brother, and supported him: "Didn't I tell you to stay in the front yard? Why are you causing trouble here?"

“I, I want to come and save my sister-in-law…” The fire was so big, Shen Youran might be trapped, how could he stay in the front yard peacefully.

He wanted to come to the backyard to help, but as he got closer to the fire, a familiar scene suddenly emerged in his mind: the twisted wall of fire doused with palm oil, the curled, cracked, and constantly falling wooden beams, the shrill and desperate cries in the charred smoke...

His head hurt so much, as if it was torn apart by something. Those tragic scenes gradually overlapped with the fire in front of him. He felt as if he was in a sea of ​​fire, and the surroundings were like purgatory.

With every breath, the headache grew worse, as if something was struggling to grow out of my brain.

He was having trouble breathing and seemed to be about to faint. He instinctively shouted, "Brother, I, I..."

The moment he fell, his eldest brother came over to support him and scolded him for not staying in the front yard.

"I, I wanted to save my sister-in-law, I'm sorry..." Not only did he fail to save her, but he himself developed a strange disease.

Pei Huaian's eyes went dark and he fainted in his eldest brother's arms.

The situation was too chaotic, the frightened guests were out of control, and Pei Huaijin couldn't ignore his unconscious brother.

He had no choice but to help him to a safe place first, and after settling him down, he anxiously returned to the burning yard.

The servants of the Marquis' Mansion and some guests had already started fetching water to put out the fire. The officers and soldiers from the fire shop also arrived in time, and the fire was quickly put out. When he went to the courtyard, he was stopped by someone: "Sir, there is no one inside. They all ran out."

All ran out?

Then Shen Youran must have come out too.

He hurriedly turned around to look for her. The smoke gradually dissipated and he finally found the little girl whose half face was blackened by the smoke.

She walked towards him with a pursed mouth, tears in her eyes, and looked like she was about to cry.

She must be terrified. She was frightened to death by a small fish before, and now there is such a big fire...

He should have kept her by his side and not let her run around.

Fortunately she is okay.

fortunately……

Pei Huaijin also strode towards her, thinking of quickly holding the frightened little girl in his arms and comforting her.

But someone suddenly grabbed his sleeve and he was forced to stop.

"Cousin, I'm so scared..."

Pei Huaijin lowered his eyes to look and saw that it was his cousin from the Meng family, dressed in a wedding dress. Her makeup was smudged and the phoenix crown on her head was crooked. She was asking him for help with tears in her eyes.

He had no choice but to comfort her hurriedly: "It's good that you're okay. We can talk about other things later."

When he looked up at Shen Youran again, he saw her standing there in a daze. Her upper face was blackened, and her wet eyes were filled with surprise, grievance, disappointment, sadness, and finally, she glared at him angrily...

Pei Huaijin broke free from Meng Wanxin's hand and walked towards her.

But every time he took a step forward, she took a step back.

He took another step forward and she took another step back.

Fortunately, he had big steps and caught up with her before she could turn around and run away.

"Don't run, Youran." He held her hand and wanted to hold her in his arms.

But she shook his hand off with force, stomped her feet, and changed the direction of her body, making it clear that she didn't want him to hold her.

He had no choice but to hug her in a different direction, and she changed direction again...

She turned around in place, and Pei Huaijin changed directions four times, but still failed to hold her in his arms as he wished.

Several guests who had escaped the fire couldn't help laughing when they saw him circling around his wife.

Pei Huaijin had to temporarily give up the idea of ​​holding her in his arms and took out his own towel: "Let me wipe your face first..."

"No need." Shen Youran's own handkerchief was no longer usable, but she had another one in her hand, given to her by Liang Liulang. She clutched it and wiped it all over her face...

Pei Huaijin lowered his eyes to look at the green handkerchief in her hand. It was obviously a man's handkerchief. He couldn't help but frowned. He raised his hand to pull the handkerchief away from her hand, threw it on the ground, and then handed over his own handkerchief: "Use this."

Shen Youran became even angrier: It was such a big rage just now, and it was fine that he didn't come to find her in time. Liang Liulang not only saved her, but also kindly gave her a handkerchief to wipe her face. Why did he throw away his handkerchief?

She glared at Pei Huaijin and refused to take his handkerchief. She squatted down to pick up Liang Liulang's handkerchief, brushed off the dust on the handkerchief, stood up and walked towards Liang Liulang.

She handed the handkerchief to him and took a look at the colorful satin she had pulled from the door of the bridal chamber. "Sister Qingluo wanted to snatch this for you, and I helped her get it. However, there was a big fire today, so it's not likely to be part of the celebration. I'd better not give it to you..."

Just as she was about to throw away the colorful satin in her hand, the other person extended his hand with a broad palm: "No problem, give it to me."

Since he wanted it, Shen Youran placed the colorful satin in his hand and said, "I don't know how to thank you for what you did today. Another day..."

"I, Pei, and my wife will come to your house to express our gratitude another day..." Pei Huaijin came over and took over her words, looking at Liang Xu distantly and politely.

"Brother Pei, you don't have to be polite. When I found her, she was still protecting my sister. If I want to thank someone, I should thank Madam Shen first..."

"In that case, Pei and his wife will not bother you anymore. I'll treat Brother Liang to a drink some other day..."

"Brother Pei, you're welcome."

In front of Liang Xu, Pei Huaijin grabbed Shen Youran's hand again: "We can't have this wedding banquet today, let's go back."

Shen Youran and Liang Xu nodded and said goodbye, and then were pulled away by Pei Huaijin angrily.

When he reached the bride, he heard another helpless cry.

"Cousin," Meng Wanxin looked at him with tears in her eyes, hesitant to speak, "Wu Lang left me before the ceremony was even complete. I don't know what to do."

The other party didn't even take off her veil. The veil on her head fell off when she escaped just now.

After all, she was his cousin, and she had served his mother for two years. Pei Huaijin couldn't really ignore her. "The people from your family who were escorting the bride should not have gone far. I will send someone to bring them back. The Lin family will discuss whether this marriage should go ahead. If you still have difficulties, go to the Pei Mansion to find my mother. She will help you with some advice..."

Seeing that he was about to leave, Meng Wanxin lowered her head, looked at the tightly clasped hands, bit her lip and stammered, "Yes, cousin."

Pei Huaijin took Shen Youran to find Pei Huaian, who had already woken up. Although Shen Youran was still sulking, she saw his pale face and asked with concern, "What's wrong with you?"

Pei Huaian held his head and stood up slowly. He was also very confused: "I don't know, I just suddenly had a headache, a very, very painful one..."

Pei Huaijin reached out and helped him up: "Maybe you were scared. I'll ask a doctor to see you when I get home..."

The originally happy event had turned into this. The Lin family didn't bother to apologize to the guests one by one. Most of the guests left on their own. The numerous carriages and horses at the gate of the Marquis' Mansion were crowded together. No one was in charge, and they pushed and pushed each other. The chaos lasted for a while before slowly dispersing...

When Pei Huaian came, the horse he rode was tied to the back of the carriage. He sat in the carriage, dazed and listless, as if his soul had left his body. No one knew what he was thinking.

The carriage, which could easily seat two people, seemed a bit cramped because of the extra person.

Shen Youran had recovered from her fright, but she was still pouting in anger.

She didn't know why she was angry: when the fire came, she and Liang Qingluo fell at the back of the crowd and couldn't escape for a while. In desperation, she hoped that Pei Huaijin could come to save them.

But he didn't come, it was Liang Xu who came.

It’s okay, she thought, it’s good that she could escape, it doesn’t matter if he wasn’t the one who saved her.

But she was so frightened that she was terrified. She also wanted to hug someone and cry like Liang Qingluo did.

Naturally, he couldn't hug Liang Xu and cry, so he could only go to Pei Huaijin.

He was clearly walking towards her, but he stopped halfway to comfort someone else.

Although it was the cousin of the Meng family who took the initiative to stop him, Shen Youran felt inexplicably angry when she saw his sleeve being grasped by another girl and his gentle tone as he lowered his eyes to speak to her. It was as if a flame from the fire had fallen into her chest...

Even if he came over quickly and offered to hug her, she would not care.

Don’t let him hug you!

"What's wrong with your hand?" When Pei Huaijin was in a hurry just now, he was only concerned about her little face that was blackened by the smoke. Only now did he see that one of her hands was injured, with many broken and swollen spots on the back of her hand and her finger bones.

Just as I was about to take her hand for a closer look, she tucked it back into her sleeve: "None of your business."

Pei Huaijin thought she was angry with him because he hadn't rushed to save her immediately. He blamed himself and felt scared: "I'm sorry, my seventh brother suddenly fainted. I was delayed for a while and was late..."

Pei Huaian finally regained his composure after hearing these words. He looked at Shen Youran with a guilty look on his face, "I'm sorry. I wanted to go with my brother to save you, but I fainted while running..."

"I'm not mad at you." He suddenly fell ill, and Pei Huaijin couldn't just leave him alone. Besides, Shen Youran wasn't mad at Pei Huaijin for not coming to save her in time. She was mad at him and that cousin from the Meng family...

But then again, why was she so angry when she saw him stop in front of Miss Meng?

Shen Youran couldn't figure this out for a moment. She just felt irritated and angry. She could still manage a good expression when talking to Pei Huaian, but when she looked down and saw Pei Huaijin's hand reaching out to grab her injured hand, she hit his hand without thinking: "Hey, don't touch me!"

She hit him a little too hard, and the sound of "pa" was particularly clear in the narrow carriage.

Pei Huaijin didn't expect that she would hit him. After a moment's pause, he silently withdrew his hand and stopped talking.

A faint red tinge appeared on the back of the cold white hand that fell back on his knees.

Shen Youran thought he would scold her for being "unreasonable", but he said nothing, his expression was indifferent, and she didn't know what he was thinking.

It made her feel guilty.

Her hands were quicker than her brain just now, and she didn't expect that she would do such a thing. Now that she had beaten the man, she realized that what she did was wrong.

But she didn't want to apologize to him, after all, she still had an inexplicable anger in her heart.

So no one spoke, even the usually talkative Pei Huaian sat there in amazement, looking at her, then at his elder brother. The atmosphere in the car seemed to freeze.

After a long while, Pei Huaijin suddenly spoke out and called out to the outside of the car curtain: "Qingjian, stop the car."

The voice was cold and chilling, and Shen Youran's heart tightened when he heard it: Why did he ask Qing Jian to stop the car now? Could it be that because she hit him, he wanted to kick her out of the car? No, he wasn't that kind of person. Maybe he wanted to get out by himself...

Qing Jian reined in his horse and stopped. Pei Huaijin glanced at his seventh brother beside him and said, "I think you are fine now. Go out and ride."

"Brother, you..." You two were arguing, why was I the one who was kicked out?

Forget it, it would be more suffocating for him to stay here, so it would be better to go out and get some fresh air.

Pei Huaian bowed and walked out of the carriage. After a moment, the carriage started moving again.

Shen Youran lifted her eyelids and glanced at Pei Huaijin. Seeing that he had a stern face, she guessed that he must be scolding her after driving Pei Huaian out.

It's just a hit on him. At worst, I can just ask him to hit me back.

Shen Youran lowered her head, thinking to herself, when suddenly her body felt lighter, and the next moment, she was held in his arms.

He held her arm with one hand and her knee with the other, holding her firmly in front of him.

"I was wrong today for not finding you earlier. I apologize to you..." Pei Huaijin rarely coaxes people. He was silent for a while just now because he really didn't know how to coax this angry little girl, but he couldn't let her sulk all the time, so he could only drive his seventh brother out and hold her in his arms first.

Shen Youran wanted to say that she was not angry that he did not come to rescue her immediately, but that he spoke to the girl from the Meng family.

But if she told this matter, she would feel that she was being unreasonable. The girl was frightened and wronged on her wedding day, so it was reasonable for her to confide in her cousin. Why should she be angry?

But she was very angry right now. She couldn't suppress or hide this emotion, which made her want to lose her temper.

Seeing that she still refused to speak, Pei Huaijin was silent for a while, then said, "You didn't get to have the wedding banquet tonight, are you hungry now? I'll take you to Fengle Tower to eat, okay?"

Shen Youran wanted to say she wouldn't eat out of spite, but she was truly hungry and there was no reason to be reluctant about eating: "But my clothes are dirty, and my hands are dirty too..."

"It's okay. Go there and ask someone to get you a basin of water to wash your hands first. After you've eaten, you can go home and take a bath."

"Um."

"Then let me wipe your face first..." She had been angry with him just now and didn't let him touch her, so half of her face was still black.

"Ah?" Your face is dirty too?

There was no mirror in the carriage. Shen Youran only knew that her clothes and hands were dirty. She didn't know that the upper half of her face was blackened by the smoke. The lower half of her face was relatively clean because she had been covering her mouth and nose in the smoke.

There was a water bag in the car. Pei Huaijin wet the handkerchief, lifted up the little face with clear black and white, and wiped it bit by bit.

The black dust brought by the burning fire was not as easy to wipe off as ordinary dust. Pei Huaijin wiped it patiently for a long time, but half of his little face was still gray.

“Hey, hey, hey…” Shen Youran raised her face, and her skin hurt from being wiped by him. She instinctively shrank back, “Isn’t it clean yet?”

Pei Huaijin moistened the handkerchief with water again and pinched her retreating face: "It's almost there..."

The dirty little face gradually returned to its fair color, and the redness he had rubbed showed through the thin and tender skin. Pei Huaijin's gaze gradually moved down, from those watery eyes, to the red tip of the nose, and then to the lips that were pouting because he pinched her cheeks...

My heart suddenly moved... I wanted to kiss her.

The wiping movement on his hand became slower, but the distance between him and those red lips was getting closer and closer.

"Shut up," Shen Youran stretched out her hand to block it, pushing his face away, "I'm still angry, why are you kissing me?"

Pei Huaijin withdrew his mouth awkwardly.

*

When the carriage arrived at Fengle Tower, Pei Huaijin asked Qing Jian to park the carriage and then go to a nearby clinic to buy some trauma medicine and send it over.

Pei Huaian, who was behind him, also got off his horse and followed over to eat.

Pei Huaijin asked for a small room on the second floor and asked someone to bring a basin of water so that they could wash their hands.

Before the food arrived, Qing Jian bought the ointment.

Shen Youran was injured on her right hand, and she didn't want to apply medicine at the moment, so as not to delay picking up food with chopsticks later.

Pei Huaijin insisted on applying the medicine first. He took her hand and applied the ointment to the broken skin one by one.

The medicine was applied and the food was served.

Shen Youran shook her right hand, which was covered in ointment: "How can I pick up food like this?"

Pei Huaijin picked up the plate and chopsticks in front of her: "What do you want to eat? I'll pick it up for you..."

Shen Youran looked at him in surprise, and then, thinking that this was a form of sincerity in his apology, she accepted it openly.

"Then let's have some lotus seed soup to whet our appetite..."

"Okay." Pei Huaijin replaced the chopsticks in his hand with a soup basin, scooped a spoonful of lotus seed soup, and handed it to her lips.

"Chengsha Dango..."

"good."

"Dongpo pork..."

"Um."

"Crispy bone fish..."

"Wait a moment, I'll pick the thorn."

“Hurry up, hurry up…”

Pei Huaijin, who was always calm and composed, was flustered by her instructions, but he enjoyed it. Shen Youran ate with a smile on his face, and his mood finally improved a lot.

Pei Huaian on the opposite side couldn't bear to watch it anymore. He ate voraciously for a while, then got up and wanted to go home first.

"Are you full so soon?" Shen Youran asked him.

Pei Huaian touched his stomach: "I don't know why, but seeing you two like this, I feel full..."

Pei Huaijin glanced at him and said, "Get out of here."

Pei Huaian left with a playful smile.

There was also a pot of wine on the table, the restaurant's own Meishou wine, which was served to every table. Pei Huaian didn't drink because he had to ride a horse. Shen Youran stared at the pot of wine for a while. Halfway through the meal, he finally couldn't help but grab the wine glass and said to Pei Huaijin, "I want to drink."

Pei Huaijin brought the freshly rolled spring pancake to her lips, watched her open her mouth and take a bite of half, then said, "Why do you suddenly want to drink?"

"Don't they say drinking can calm nerves? I was so frightened today..." She often heard people say that drinking can calm nerves and drown sorrows. She was frightened today and was troubled by inexplicable emotions, so it was very suitable for her to drink.

Pei Huaijin reminded her: "This wine smells mellow and tastes light, but it has a strong aftertaste."

"Then I'll drink less..."

"Okay." Pei Huaijin felt guilty towards her today. He would satisfy her whatever she wanted.

Shen Youran said that she would drink less, but when she actually started drinking, she completely forgot about it. After finishing a glass, she asked him to fill it up. She drank one glass after another, and most of the pot of wine went into her stomach.

After finishing the meal and drinking enough wine, Shen Youran propped up his head and watched Pei Huaijin eat.

His eating posture is just like him, always so methodical and orderly.

She didn't like his old-fashioned nature, but when she saw him today, why did she find him quite pleasing to the eye?

Haha, maybe it’s because he’s so handsome…

Pei Huaijin was having his meal when he caught a glimpse of her supporting her forehead with her hand, shaking her head and grinning at him foolishly, her dark and bright eyes also tinged with a hazy look.

He put down his bowl and chopsticks after eating until he was 70% full, and turned to look at her: "Are you drunk?"

"No!" she denied immediately, her voice intoxicated.

"Let's go home." While she was still able to walk, Pei Huaijin helped her up, took her downstairs, and walked out along the corridor.

Towards evening, the lights are bright, illuminating the whole place. This is the busiest time in Fengle Tower.

Under the eaves of the main corridor, many prostitutes in pink, white, black and green were leaning on the railing, chatting and laughing, dressed in fancy clothes, waiting for the call of the drinkers.

When Shen Youran followed Pei Huaijin down the corridor, she inevitably passed by them.

Pei Huaijin's outstanding appearance attracted their frequent glances. One bold woman in green even reached out and grabbed his sleeve, her tone as soft as spring water: "Sir, are you going back now?"

Green clothes, white wrists, sleeves...

The scene before her eyes overlapped with the one at the Changxing Marquis Mansion. Shen Youran felt a surge of rage rising to her head. She slapped the woman's hand away, turned around, and hugged her arm tightly, like a cat protecting its food. "Mine! This is mine! No one is allowed to touch it!"