After Qu Xiaodie left, Xie Yushu calmed down a bit. Remembering what the servants had said about Han Zhongyu seemingly being quite drunk, she got up and went to check on him.

Only Lanting and two bodyguards, whom Xie Yushu was not very familiar with, were sitting on a stone table under the shade of a tree in the courtyard, dozing off. When they heard Xie Yushu's footsteps, they got up and greeted her.

Xie Yushu waved her hand, telling them to get up, and asked...

"How is your father? He's the highest-ranking official at that table; who would dare to force him to drink?"

Lanting stammered

"Well, no one else would do that. My master is probably just too happy about the opening of the resort. After all, he can reduce the rent for the people!"

"Didn't we already know about the rent reduction? Why are you so happy?" Xie Yushu smiled helplessly.

"I'll go check on him!"

Lanting simply gave a "please" gesture.

Lanting finally breathed a sigh of relief after Xie Yushu entered the room, fearing that Xie Yushu would question him again.

Could it be that the princess asked for details, wanting him to say that his master was because of those clever monkeys who noticed that his master's gaze towards the princess was sometimes shy and sometimes sweet, and discovered something. Throughout the meal, they talked about how the princess and the official were equally matched, evenly matched, and evenly matched. In short, they were indirectly praising the princess and the official as a perfect match.

The adults are so happy they're practically blind. If someone praises them, they'll down a drink. They'll drink again for every compliment they receive. Where else can they go if they don't get drunk?

The only one who was oblivious, Zhou Yi'an, said a sentence

"The princess is a heroine among women. Why must she be compared with Lord Han to show her talent?"

She herself is a breathtaking sight.

As a result, Han Zhongyu immediately sent him back to work overtime.

Honestly, why not eat your food properly? If you don't want to eat, go back to work.

Zhou Yi'an still had gifts to give to Xie Yushu, so she was unwilling to leave. However, she was directly "invited" out by Lan Ting's men.

Now everyone at the table understood even better: Han Zhongyu was always impervious to swords and spears, and there was no way they could find a place to flatter him.

Now they've finally found his weakness. The whole table of people took turns praising Xie Yushu and everything related to her, and they drank cup after cup.

Thinking of this, Lanting couldn't help but feel worried. His master might be doomed, and his integrity and principles might be ruined!

Inside the house

Han Zhongyu was truly drunk, his face flushed, but he was lying quite properly. When Xie Yushu entered the room, she heard him muttering in his sleep, but she couldn't make out what he was saying.

But thinking about the scenes on TV, in this situation, the response would usually be, "Water, water, give me water."

So Xie Yushu naturally poured a cup of cold tea, pinched Han Zhongyu's mouth, and forced him to drink a few mouthfuls.

Han Zhongyu's mind was racing with thoughts about that letter!

When I was sober, I didn't dare to ask, afraid that if I did, we wouldn't even be able to be friends anymore. But when I finally got drunk, the alcohol emboldened me, and in my dream, I finally asked the question I wanted to ask. But then someone poured cold water on me and even choked me.

He must have been rejected, and he was heartbroken!

After Xie Yushu put down the water glass, she finally heard a sentence clearly.

"She doesn't want me anymore, she doesn't like me, why doesn't she like me?"

His voice was filled with deep sadness.

Upon hearing this, Xie Yushu immediately transformed into a gossipy old woman, and knelt beside Han Zhongyu's bed to ask him...

"Who dumped you? Tell me so I can have a laugh!"

How rare! Han Zhongyu, the pride of heaven, actually got dumped! Xie Yushu's eyes blazed with gossip, waiting for Han Zhongyu to speak.

It is said that if you ask someone who talks in their sleep, they will answer you if you follow their words. But after waiting for a while, Han Zhongyu did not say anything more.

Helpless, Xie Yushu had no choice but to give up; as expected, these rumors from the streets were unreliable.

But looking at such a handsome and refined person in front of me, wouldn't it be a waste not to make a move? Just look at that face, so angular, and those lips, so red and white, and that Adam's apple, collarbone, abs...

"Smack!"

Han Zhongyu slapped Xie Yushu's hand away.

He muttered something under his breath.

"Get out of the way!"

Xie Yushu was really startled, thinking he had woken up, but he was sleeping soundly!

"Tch! So stingy. Just wait, one day you'll be mine!"

Xie Yushu cursed in frustration and turned to leave.

Seeing that Xie Yushu had come out so quickly, Lanting couldn't help but ask...

"Are my parents alright?"

"It's nothing, he was just really drunk. He was asking for water, so I gave him a cup of herbal tea. You can go check on him later."

"yes!"

As Xie Yushu walked out of Han Zhongyu's courtyard, she realized that her heart was pounding. She knew she shouldn't do anything bad; it would be embarrassing if she got caught!

With a sigh of relief, Xie Yushu returned to her own courtyard.

Meanwhile, Qu Xiaodie was also pondering how to persuade Hongmei. After everyone had left, she heard that Hongmei had gone to see Chen Da. Under normal circumstances, Hongmei should have been directing people to finish up the villa. But because she was going to see Chen Da, she asked Nanxing to cover for her!

Qu Xiaodie was both anxious and angry, resenting that her daughter had so easily given her heart and soul to someone.

In order to bring her to her senses, Qu Xiaodie had no choice but to have someone call her back.

Hongmei had just fed Chen Da a piece of watermelon when someone came looking for her, saying that Qu Xiaodie wanted to see her.

Although Hongmei was reluctant to leave, she couldn't refuse Qu Xiaodie's invitation, so she told Chen Da that she would come to accompany her after she finished her work.

Chen Da grabbed her and stuffed all fifty taels of silver that Qu Xiaodie had given her into her hands.

"Keep this, buy whatever you like!"

Hongmei was greatly surprised.

"This wasn't a gift from the head steward, I don't want it. You should keep it for yourself and use it later."

This fifty taels of silver might take Chen Da and his group ten or more years to earn, how could she possibly accept it!

Chen Da said

“Take it if you want. I’m happy to let you spend my money. Don’t worry about me. The person who hit me even paid me a few taels of silver for medical expenses, which is enough for the three of us brothers to live on for a while. Besides, we have hands and feet and we can earn money every day!”

After a brief struggle, Hongmei was finally persuaded by Chen Da and accepted the money.

At the same time, he became even more convinced of Chen Da's identity.

How much patience could a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl have? Back at the manor, before Qu Xiaodie could even speak, Hongmei began to plead for Chen Da.

“Master, you know about what happened to the young marquis and the others today, right? I just went to see Chen Da. Although I’m quite familiar with him, I’m not praising him in front of you entirely out of personal bias. He genuinely wants to serve the princess and join our manor.”

Otherwise, he wouldn't have kept a close eye on the situation at the manor and rushed over in time when the young master and his companions were in danger.

He saw that the young marquis and his entourage were unguarded and went over immediately. That shows he's a meticulous person. Don't you often tell us that meticulousness leads to success? If you recruited him, he would definitely do a better job than I did!