Xu Bai hadn't expected that this seemingly stubborn, even somewhat aggressive, young man would have such thoughts, and for a moment he didn't know how to respond.

After Zheng Boyuan finished speaking, he looked at Xu Bai, whose brows were furrowed, and said with a smile, "Look at me, why am I telling you all this? You wouldn't understand."

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai frowned even more deeply, slammed his hand on the table, and said, "You're underestimating me. How could I not understand? I was born in this city. Moreover, my sister told me that when my mother gave birth to me, it was right when the Northern Di people attacked the city. My mother gave birth to me on the mountain. I was born at the same time as this Hexi City."

Looking at the little guy who was sitting sulking to the side after talking to him, Zheng Boyuan felt inexplicably relieved. He smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I won't do it again, okay? Look at this rice cake, it won't taste good if it gets cold if you don't eat it now. I'll pour you a cup of ginger and jujube tea, you can drink the tea and eat it here, okay?"

It was rare for Zheng Boyuan to want to take care of someone. He poured Xu Bai some ginger and jujube tea that had been kept warm on the stove in the room, put it on the kang table, and then found two pairs of chopsticks and handed one pair to Xu Bai.

Xu Bai looked at Zheng Boyuan, who was busy walking, his brows still furrowed. Xu Bai felt that Zheng Boyuan carried a lot of hostility. Children who have not been properly loved since childhood will always have some psychological problems. Xu Bai felt that it was not good for his sister to have too much contact with this boy, but he could not kick him out of his home. Although Xu Bai had never been in a relationship, he was a recognized friend of girls in his class during his undergraduate years. When the female classmates encountered any troubles in their relationships, they liked to come to Xu Bai to talk. Over time, Xu Bai had developed quite a lot of theories about relationships.

Seeing that Xu Bai was still frowning, Zheng Boyuan sighed and said, "Brother Bai, I really misspoke. I'll apologize to you properly, okay?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai relaxed his brow and asked, "Brother Zheng, my mother said that your biological mother passed away a long time ago. So who took care of you in your family?"

Zheng Boyuan's eyes showed some annoyance when he heard Xu Bai's words, but seeing Xu Bai's concerned expression, he sighed and said, "When I was little, my biological mother left me a wet nurse and several older sisters' wet nurses. Later, when I was a little older, I had to move to the outer courtyard. My stepmother took it upon herself to send away all the people who served me and found me a few new servants and two maids to serve me, and then I moved to the outer courtyard."

Taking advantage of his young age, Xu Bai said, "Those who serve you must not be doing their job well. You should still bring the people your mother left you."

Zheng Boyuan sighed and said, "I'm still young, how can I make decisions on my own? My eldest uncle knew that my stepmother was going to drive them away, so he secretly took them to an estate that my mother had given me as part of her dowry. He told me to bring them back when I was old enough to make my own decisions. He also told me that my servants were up to no good and were always trying to lead me astray. I know I can't go astray. I also have a younger sister in the inner courtyard. Fortunately, my grandmother can help take care of her."

Xu Bai said, "Then why did you come to Hexi this time?"

Zheng Boyuan, having seemingly opened up, or perhaps because he felt Xu Bai only wanted to hear gossip and he himself genuinely wanted to confide in someone, picked up a piece of fried rice cake for Xu Bai. After watching him eat it, he put down his chopsticks and said, "I'm twelve years old this year. In June, it was my grandmother's birthday, and all my uncles' children came to our house. As the eldest son in my family, I accompanied my father to the outer courtyard for the social gatherings. In the middle of it all, someone came and told me that my younger sister had choked while eating. I was anxious, so I rushed to the inner courtyard. But as soon as I entered the inner courtyard, I was knocked unconscious with a stick. When I woke up, I had my outer clothes removed and was lying on a bed in a warm pavilion by our lake with a girl. The girl was obviously drugged. I knew then that I had been tricked."

Upon hearing this, Xu Bai stared intently at Zheng Boyuan with his large, bright eyes. Zheng Boyuan, seeing Xu Bai's wide eyes, assumed he was incredulous, since they were in his own home. However, Xu Bai wasn't worried about Zheng Boyuan being knocked unconscious; he was simply catching up on gossip. His long-suppressed gossip urge was now burning fiercely. Xu Bai's reputation as a friend to women wasn't due to his eloquence, but rather his love of gossip. What girl would want to date a boy who loved listening to gossip?

Zheng Boyuan gave a bitter smile and said, "Don't you also find it unbelievable? I, the eldest son of a marquis, was actually schemed against like this in my own home. I know that girl. She is the eldest daughter of my stepmother's brother, who was born to the same concubine. She is three years older than me. I was not willing to let my life end like this. After I got dressed, I hated these people so much. When I saw that the girl was about to wake up, I threw her out the window into the lake."

Xu Bai was stunned upon hearing this and said, "Why did you throw her into the lake? Shouldn't you have found someone else to lie with this girl?"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Boyuan looked at Xu Bai in disbelief and said, "How could you think that?"

Xu Bai said, "Since you're letting your daughter lie with a man, naturally you want her to marry him. If you don't want her to marry you, then help her find another man to marry. You're blocking her marriage, no wonder you can't go home."

Zheng Boyuan was at a loss for words. He looked at Xu Bai for a long time and said, "How do you, a two-year-old toddler, know about such things?"

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