Chapter 32 Holding an umbrella for her

After that, the two continued to walk side by side, but there was always a subtle distance between them, and the distance was getting wider and wider.

Xie Yunshuo is on the left, looking to the left.

Jiang Si is on the right, her gaze wandering and moving into the distance.

Although the two of them had nothing to say and even deliberately kept their distance, the atmosphere was completely different from when they ignored each other before.

There seemed to be stamens of the Albizia julibrissin floating in the air, making people's skin feel strange and uncomfortable.

But it’s late autumn now, where can we get the Albizia julibrissin flowers?

Jiang Si raised her hand and rubbed the arm that Xie Yunshuo had grasped, feeling aggrieved.

It was clearly just an ordinary armrest, but she didn't know why she felt it was a little weird. Maybe it was because it was her first time having physical contact with a man outside of her, and Xie Yunshuo's hands were so big.

The touch of his palms and fingers, as well as his body temperature, all made Jiang Si feel abrupt and strange.

It left a deep impression on her memory.

The physical contact with her former enemy had gotten her hands on something that was hard to ignore, something that seemed to be covered in hair and thorns, making her feel uneasy.

Therefore, Jiang Si unconsciously distanced herself from Xie Yunshuo and became more and more distant from him.

Xie Yunshuo was also feeling uneasy.

He pulled her in a hurry. It was the first time he offended a woman like this, and he was extremely uncomfortable.

Her wrist was very slender, and he could hardly hold it fully. And there was the look in her eyes, the expression she had when she looked at him at the moment her arm was held and shook.

All of this made it difficult for him to ignore and remain calm.

Xie Yunshuo felt weird. He was just helping her and stopping her, but why did it become so weird?

Like something that makes people feel uneasy.

He suppressed his anxiety and tried to dispel the inexplicable uneasiness in his heart. He glanced sideways and saw Jiang Si almost walking out of the umbrella.

He held the umbrella in his right hand and placed it between the two of them. Jiang Si walked out, so Xie Yunshuo had to move closer to her and tilt the umbrella towards her.

While his hands were doing things that would benefit her, the words he spoke were stern and ruthless.

"Why are you going outside? Do you want to get caught in the rain?"

In fact, the right side of Xie Yunshuo's clothes were stained with more than a dozen drops of rain.

The oil-paper umbrella in Xie Yunshuo's hand is relatively large, and it can easily block the rain for three people.

It wasn't enough for the two of them.

Jiang Si looked up and saw that the center of the umbrella was facing her head, providing her with most of the protection from the rain.

Therefore, the two harsh words Xie Yunshuo said were of no importance.

She said calmly: "I don't want to get wet in the rain, I just want to stay away from you."

If it weren't for him giving her the umbrella, Jiang Si would have had more to say based on his two sentences.

Her two equally ruthless words initially left Xie Yunshuo greatly puzzled.

He must have done something wrong, but she would rather get wet than get closer to him. But on second thought, he didn't seem to be moving towards her either.

The two are equally matched in strength.

Xie Yunshuo couldn't get close to her, always fearing that the strange feeling in his heart would become more obvious, so it was better to stay far away from her.

But for Jiang Si, this distance is better than nothing.

Everything was fine when they were almost walking side by side just now, but now he was deliberately avoiding suspicion and staying away from the person next to him, which made the other person's presence even more obvious.

From the corner of Jiang Si's eyes, she saw Xie Yunshuo's tall figure, with lips, nose and jaw with sharp lines like those carved by an axe.

I hated it before, and I still hate it now.

Xie Yunshuo was just like her, the two of them walked slowly, trying to keep up with each other's pace.

And they observe each other frequently.

Ever since we talked about having sex and leaving offspring last night, no one can escape this matter. It has become a big idea in our minds and has been deeply remembered.

It is very easy to keep echoing, and it is easy to remember anything no matter what you see.

The two of them walked all the way to Zhixingzhai with their own thoughts. They might not have felt it obviously when standing under the umbrella, but when they arrived at the main courtyard, the servants guarding outside the courtyard saw it. From the perspective of an observer, it was obvious that the umbrella was tilted.

The eldest son's sleeves were even wet.

This was such a rare event that even if Xia Rongyi hadn't seen it with her own eyes, it would have reached her ears soon.

The one whose clothes were wet was their eldest son, but everyone was secretly relieved when seeing this scene, even though he had only done something as trivial as holding an umbrella for Jiang Si.

After all, Xie Yunshuo didn't seem like someone with such delicate and considerate thoughts and attitudes.

Most military commanders are careless and unconcerned.

This morning, Jiang Si sent someone to say that she would arrive late, so Xie Xingxiu and Xia Rongyi also came out a little later.

Xie Yunshuo's second brother and third sister happened to be sitting in the middle room at this time.

Xie Qinghan and Xie Yunling looked up at them in turn.

Seeing Jiang Si walking in front and Xie Yunshuo following behind, a large area of ​​the sleeve on the right side of his shoulder was wet.

At this point, Xia Rongyi still didn't know what was going on. She wondered, "Who held the umbrella to protect Yun Shuo from the rain? Why is he so wet?"

The servants were terrified. Xie Yunshuo said, "It has nothing to do with anyone else. I was holding the umbrella myself."

Jiang Si lowered her head and said, "He gave me the umbrella, so he got wet."

When she said this, everyone was secretly shocked, including Xie Yunshuo.

Xia Rongyi and the others were surprised that Xie Yunshuo could provide such considerate service, and Xie Yunshuo was surprised that Jiang Si was so loyal.

He clearly said that he held the umbrella himself, and that was enough. Xia Rongyi would not ask any more questions, and it was none of her business.

But she took the blame on herself again, being a little too honest.

After being surprised, everyone's expressions were a little subtle, especially Xie Qinghan.

She wanted to laugh but didn't dare to, so she jokingly said, "It seems that our General's Mansion has no shortage of umbrellas, so why do my brother and sister-in-law need to hold an umbrella?"

Her question made Xie Yunshuo suddenly realize what was going on.

Yes, why don’t we each hold our own umbrellas and walk separately, instead of squeezing under one umbrella?

He recalled his subconscious thoughts. He felt that holding an umbrella separately was too distant, and he didn't want everyone in the mansion to misunderstand that the couple was estranged, so he held an umbrella with Jiang Si.

But even when his clothes got wet because he was holding the umbrella at an angle, he didn't ask anyone to bring him another umbrella. Instead, he kept walking forward while he was still as he was.

The light rain soaked half of his shoulder.

Xie Yunshuo knew that he was in the wrong and realized that he seemed to care too much about the couple's reputation, which led to him paying attention to things that clearly did not require attention. Too much is as bad as too little.

Even Xie Qinghan, who didn't know what their old relationship was, knew that it was inconvenient when it rained, and they should each hold an umbrella so that no one would get wet.

Xie Yunshuo realized that he had done all these things just to save his reputation. He should think more about it in the future and not generalize, which would be a waste of time.

Jiang Si is fine.

She could accept it whether Xie Yunshuo held an umbrella for her or they went their separate ways.

If she were to choose, she would choose to separate, so that everyone would be at ease.

In the whole thing, Xie Yunshuo was the only one who was not considerate and attentive. He made things complicated by thinking too much.

The others chatted and laughed and the matter passed, but Xie Yunshuo was still thinking about it silently.

The topic has moved on to the next part.

Xie Qinghan asked with a somewhat worried look on her face, "How long will this rain last today? If it continues to rain tomorrow, will we be unable to go to Miaoyu Villa?"

She had been looking forward to going out for fun for a long time, and it wasn't a party with complicated rules. Xie Qinghan had been worried about this for the past few days, and was eagerly looking forward to it.

If something unexpected happened and she couldn't go, her heart would be broken.

Xia Rongyi advised: "If it still rains tomorrow, you can go another day. Everything else will remain the same."

Xie Qinghan's expression became even more awkward.

At this time, Jiang Si spoke, each word clearly, to comfort Xie Qinghan.

"Today's rain fell this morning. 'When you hear birds singing in the morning rain, it will soon clear up.' On the way to Zhixingzhai, I heard birds chirping in the treetops. The rain might stop by noon. If the sky is bright and the clouds are thin after the rain, the sun will shine tomorrow and the ground will dry up quickly. I read this in a book and it's correct. If it rains in the evening today, with clouds and fog, it might continue for several days."

Everyone listened to her quietly. She quoted from classics and spoke clearly and logically, and no one refuted her.

However, Xia Rongyi didn't say anything and didn't express her opinion. It seemed that she had some doubts about what Jiang Si said.

She also maintained her previous decision regarding their trip tomorrow.

If the weather is not clear and the ground outside is slippery and muddy, it will be inconvenient to go out.

Since her mother-in-law didn't say anything, Jiang Si also fell silent and stopped comforting Xie Qinghan.

But she glanced at her and gave her an encouraging look.

Jiang Si not only read miscellaneous books, but also observed a lot after reading them to help her gain a thorough understanding.

After reading the book, she used the information in the book to observe the daily weather and made judgments based on it for two years with almost no mistakes.

Sometimes you can predict the weather.

But it is not convenient to talk too much about these things in front of my mother-in-law and others. There is no point in talking too much, and there is no need to show off.

Not everyone is like her parents, siblings, and are willing to listen to her talk so much, believe her, and appreciate her.

Only Xie Yunshuo looked at her more.

There are new discoveries.

He was surprised that Jiang Si could observe the celestial phenomena and predict the clouds and rain.

Sure enough, after the family said these words together, half an hour later they opened the window and looked outside, and the rain had stopped.

There was a thin layer of rainwater on the bluestone bricks in the yard outside.

The sky was not too dark, and there were no dark clouds.

Coming out of the main house and out from under the eaves, Xie Yunshuo unconsciously said to Jiang Si, "I didn't expect you could do this."

Although the two of them didn't get along, Jiang Si had no scruples in front of him. She said whatever she wanted to say, regardless of whether he was willing to listen or not.

"Then I'll tell you, it's possible that the rain has only fallen in a small area. I'm afraid it hasn't even reached the outside of the city. The rain won't cover much ground. Do you believe it?"

"Really?" Xie Yunshuo didn't quite believe it.

But he saw that Jiang Si spoke firmly and didn't seem to be joking with him.

Jiang Si replied: "Not really. This is just speculation, not certain."

There was no need to hold an umbrella when going back. The two of them always kept half an arm's length apart and returned to Xiaoxian Yiju one in front and the other behind.

Because they stepped in the rain outside, Xie Yunshuo's clothes were wet. After they returned to the house, they wiped themselves and changed into clean clothes, and stayed in the house and did not go out again.

Because of this rain, I have to stay indoors for another whole day.

Since everything was fine, Xie Yunshuo should stay in the main house. After changing his clothes, before leaving the study, he thought about what Jiang Si said and called Qiu Ze.

"Go, tell a clever servant to go outside the city and see where the rain has fallen."

Qiu Ze hadn't followed Jiang Si to the main courtyard, so he didn't hear what she said. He asked, puzzled, "Why are you asking this, young master?"

Xie Yunshuo didn't want to explain because he took to heart what Jiang Si said casually.

"Why ask so many questions? Just do as I tell you." Qiu Ze pursed his lips, lowered his head and retreated swiftly.

When Xie Yunshuo returned to the main room, he saw Jiang Si and the maid had already packed up and set up the chessboard on the kang table, with the white pieces on her side and the black pieces on the other.

Xie Yunshuo asked in surprise, "Why did you want to play chess with me?"

"Anyway, the ground is wet outside today and there's nothing to do, so I might as well play chess to kill time. If you don't want to play, I'll play with the maid." She said it meaninglessly, as if she had no specific intention of playing chess with anyone.

Xie Yunshuo said, "You guys go down, I'll take a look."

It's strange, he was obviously willing, but what he said was a refusal.

I always felt that it was a bit strange that the two of them were sitting opposite each other and playing chess quietly.

Jiang Si didn't want to give him a look, but when he rejected her, she couldn't help but give him a look.

"Isn't your reputation as a master of both civil and military arts unfounded? Are you afraid of losing to me in a game of chess?"

Xie Yunshuo flatly denied it: "I didn't say I wouldn't go down with you, I just asked the maid to accompany you first."

He still needs to prepare himself mentally.

Xie Yunshuo actually didn't know what he was guarding against. He just saw Jiang Si sitting there sideways, folding her sleeves to play chess, and placing them on her snow-white wrists, her slender hands holding a white and smooth jade chess piece.

The posture was so soft and graceful that he didn't know how to deal with it.

It’s all because the rain was so ambiguous and lingering, locking people in the house and leaving them with nothing to do.

It was actually a little strange when the two of them weren't arguing.

In fact, Jiang Si was not used to it either.

She was setting up the chess pieces, originally intending to play chess for herself and her maid. When Xie Yunshuo came over, she casually mentioned it, but he refused.

Jiang Si was so angry that she blamed herself for being too talkative, giving him a good face, and letting him take on Qiao.

What he meant by asking the maid to accompany her first and he would do it later was just an excuse for not wanting to do it.

This situation made Jiang Si feel strange. She held an umbrella for her when she went out, and made sure she didn't see the steps for fear that she would step on water. Once she came back, she would be back to her original state.

Maybe he has to show himself in front of others before he is willing to behave well.

Jiang Si no longer paid any attention to Xie Yunshuo. Even though he stood aside as if he wanted to watch the game, she didn't even glance at him and concentrated on playing chess with the maid.

Wu Chan has always been her good opponent in playing chess. She taught her that when playing chess, the two of them should not address each other as master and servant, but only call each other "black piece" and "white piece", being fair and just, and not pretending to be humble.

In ten games of chess, Wuchan would win three or four of them.

In fact, Jiang Si was not good at playing chess. She was not scheming, but just liked this mode of playing chess.

Occasionally, when it rains and I can’t go anywhere, I set up the chessboard and play a couple of games to pass the time.

She didn't even look at Xie Yunshuo and seemed to be playing chess seriously. Xie Yunshuo thought she was a Go master.

As he watched, he found that the chessboard was stable and his guess was wrong again.

Seeing Jiang Si's unyielding character, Xie Yunshuo had assumed she would be aggressive in her chess moves, but she was actually gentle and slow in her approach. Unconsciously, Xie Yunshuo stepped forward and suggested, "Why not play here?"

From his tone, Jiang Si knew that he must be good at chess, but because she was rejected for her kind request, she ignored his advice.

Instead, he was warned: "A true gentleman watches chess without saying a word."

Xie Yunshuo nodded and stopped talking, but still stood aside and watched.

Wu Chan became tense for no reason.

She was a maid sitting here playing chess, and she felt a little uneasy when Xie Yunshuo stood beside her.

She was used to playing chess with her master, but because she didn't know Xie Yunshuo's temperament and felt that he was difficult to get along with and had a bad temper, she couldn't feel at ease.

Unconsciously, he began to fidget, always hesitating whether to stand up and let Xie Yunshuo sit down.

Jiang Si noticed Wu Chan's uneasiness. As she placed the chess pieces, she stared at the chessboard and said slowly, "What are you afraid of? He wanted to stand himself. It's none of your business. Just sit still."

After Jiang Si said this, Wu Chan became even more panicked.

But she was the girl's maid and only needed to listen to the girl, so she straightened her legs and sat upright.

Xie Yunshuo didn't react much to this.

It was indeed he who rejected her invitation to play chess, and he wanted to stand here and watch, so there was no need for others to feel intimidated by this.

Jiang Si won the game in the end, but her victory was steady and not aggressive enough, and she only won by half a point.

As You Lu and Wu Chan were collecting their chess pieces, Qiu Ze walked in from outside and reported to Xie Yunshuo, "My lord, it's true that the rain isn't widespread. There's no rain outside of the North City."

After hearing this, Jiang Si looked up at Xie Yunshuo with a playful look in her eyes.

"You actually sent someone to ask?"

Xie Yunshuo's face darkened and he looked at Qiu Ze seriously. Qiu Ze was stunned with fear.

He didn't know that he had to say this reply secretly to Xie Yunshuo, and the young master didn't tell him either. What a mistake.

He is a young master with a worm in his stomach, but now he has also stumbled.

Qiu Ze lowered his head and dared not speak.

Jiang Si stared at Xie Yunshuo's expression and found it funny. The unhappiness she had felt at being refused a chance to play chess disappeared.

Apart from anything else, Xie Yunshuo's attitude of seeking evidence was a character she admired.

If she said something and others didn't remember it, didn't care about it, and had no curiosity about it, that would be boring.

Especially after Xie Yunshuo sent someone to inquire, she felt a little embarrassed when she found out, which added a bit of interest to the matter.

She kept fiddling with the chess pieces in the porcelain cup beside her. If she was someone who could consider other people's feelings, she probably wouldn't ask any more questions, but she saw that Xie Yunshuo was uncomfortable, so she insisted on asking.

"So, now you know what I said is true?"

Xie Yunshuo had no way to escape and had to respond.

"Yes, you are right."

Fortunately, he was not a stubborn person, which made Jiang Si change her opinion of him a little.

Jiang Si had thought that someone like him would be so self-righteous that he wouldn't acknowledge her abilities, but she was surprised that he didn't.

At this time, in order to change the subject, Xie Yunshuo said, "Okay, now I will play chess with you?"

His words were questions. If what happened just now had not happened, Jiang Si might have rejected him out of revenge.

But now she decided to agree to his request: "Sit down, you hold the black piece."

Xie Yunshuo sat down and asked Jiang Si, "Why do you like to play with white?"

Jiang Si played with a jade in her hand: "Because I want to come from behind and win."

She liked the feeling of reversing the situation later with the white pieces. Xie Yunshuo understood because he also liked to play with the white pieces, which was more challenging.

However, since Jiang Si had already taken the white pieces, he had no choice but to take the black pieces.

The two began to play chess, with the black piece going first.

Just now, when Jiang Si and Wu Chan were playing chess, the atmosphere was relaxed and quiet. However, when it was their turn, they started arguing after just a few moves.

"Xie Yunshuo, why did you go down there?"

"Because I want to kill you."

Jiang Si didn't expect Xie Yunshuo to play chess so ferociously. Every move was a killing move, all aimed at taking advantage of her and capturing her pieces.

She played chess just to pass the time and didn't delve into it. This was the first time she met someone like him and she was completely helpless.

The further Jiang Si went down, the colder her expression became, and her eyes became dull and lifeless. The further she went down, the harder it became.

There were more black than white on the entire chessboard. When the game was decided, Jiang Si stared at Xie Yunshuo with resentment.

"Xie Yunshuo, do you need it?"

Xie Yunshuo had a smile on his face.

Winning the game of chess naturally makes people happy, especially since he defeated Jiang Si without leaving a single piece of armor.

He was in a good mood and couldn't help but say a few more words.

"Since we're playing chess, I must give it my all. That's the only way to respect you. If I let you win, you'll be unhappy again."

That makes sense.

For Jiang Si, although she is not good at playing chess, she still hopes that her opponent can take the game seriously. It is fun to play chess with both wins and losses.

Only the frustration of losing can highlight the joy of winning.

But now she lost, and she was very angry because she lost to Xie Yunshuo.

She picked up her white piece and said, "I didn't expect you to be so good at chess."

She was not angry at all, but praised him instead, which made Xie Yunshuo feel even happier.

"Playing chess is like leading an army. When you make your first move, you should think about the next dozen moves. Only by completely destroying the enemy and protecting your own soldiers can you be a good commander."

Jiang Si nodded, feeling quite rewarded.

Everyone said that Xie Yunshuo was a gifted general, and it turned out that they were not just flattery.

Playing chess with him made her realize firsthand that this man was decisive and had a clear mind.

She often had to think before making a move, but Xie Yunshuo had almost no hesitation throughout the entire game.

It was as if he had anticipated where the chess piece would land in the next moment.

She even speculated that he not only had that one strategic thread, but he had also already made judgments about other possible situations.

The entire chessboard seemed like a sandbox to him, where he could review his troops, look ahead and behind, survey the overall situation, and make plans.

Just by looking at the chess table, one could see that Xie Yunshuo was in high spirits.

Jiang Si fiddled with the white pieces, looking up at Xie Yunshuo from time to time. Somehow, after playing chess, looking at him again, it was as if she was looking at a different person, refreshing.

Even his face looked more handsome and imposing.

Xie Yunshuo noticed that she looked at him frequently, and his heart was in turmoil. He couldn't help but tease her rudely.

"Why, are you looking at me and playing a game of chess with me? Are you aware of my good qualities?"

Jiang Si resisted the urge to roll her eyes at him, her eyelids trembling slightly, and she turned away, ignoring him.

He's so rude and unrestrained, it's really annoying.

When you can be a modest, cautious, gentle and meticulous person, then you can say this again.

However, Jiang Si knew in her heart that Xie Yunshuo could never be that kind of person.

He is like a blazing sun, illuminating the battlefield with his eternal and blazing fire, blessing the people and defending the country.

If he were to be a cold moon, he would no longer be himself.