Nemesis
Zou Shuangqiao called Jun brother affectionately.
It was as if it was the spring rain, which continued endlessly and penetrated deep into the bones.
Zou Shuangqiao sat proudly beneath the umbrella. She raised her handkerchief and gently wiped her dampened makeup. She narrowed her eyes and smiled as she waited for the man before her to turn around. She felt her victory was assured. She was certain Cui Zhijun was already itching, unable to contain his urges. He would glance back and ask about her well-being. Then, all she had to do was walk side by side with him in the wind and rain, then, when the moment was right, she would lean against him tenderly and snuggle into his arms.
Wouldn't Cui Zhijun be completely obsessed with her?
As Zou Shuangqiao was lost in thought, he suddenly felt rain falling on his head. What was going on? Why was his umbrella still leaking?
Zou Shuangqiao raised his head inexplicably.
She was surprised to discover that Cui Zhijun had deliberately stepped back two steps after turning to face her, effectively letting her out from under the umbrella. Unexpectedly, Zou Shuangqiao was standing right by the edge of the umbrella. The water on the edge was even more urgent than the rain, mercilessly soaking her delicate makeup.
Zou Shuangqiao clenched his handkerchief tightly, feeling embarrassed but not daring to get angry.
However, Cui Zhijun's indifference was not without reason. It was mostly due to the reminder from his wife last night. Since he already knew the intentions of the two Zou sisters, which were almost written on their faces, he had to find a way to avoid provoking them.
To avoid saying too much and doing too much, which would lead to misunderstandings, especially Taishi Zheng's misunderstandings.
Cui Zhijun looked at the person in front of him with extreme vigilance.
Zou Shuangqiao looked up. That face was colder than the rain. It would have been fine if the warm greeting he'd imagined wasn't there, but why wasn't he even allowed to use an umbrella? Wouldn't that completely ruin all his plans? Zou Shuangqiao faced the man before him, feeling a bit helpless for a moment.
She called out in a wronged voice, "Brother Yun, do you dislike me? Or have I offended you in some way?"
Cui Zhijun casually picked up the scratched paper umbrella for her from the fallen grass.
Actually, Cui Zhijun didn't want to do this, but Zou Shuangqiao kept pressing him, forcing Cui Zhijun to resort to this desperate measure. He could only blame Zou Shuangqiao for being too weak and for throwing his umbrella in such a panic. Anyone with a discerning eye would have known what was hidden in the nearly bent grass.
as well as……
Today's rain has been falling since early morning until now. It doesn't just start to fall.
Zou Shuangqiao tells lies without even thinking.
Cui Zhijun asked her, "What is this?"
Zou Shuangqiao replied calmly, "Oh, how come there's an umbrella here? I guess someone must have left it here. What a pity, such a good umbrella is broken like this... But what's the meaning of Brother Yun showing it to me? Brother Yun wouldn't let a weak woman like me go home with a broken umbrella, would he? But I think a gentle man like Brother Yun would not be able to bear to see me wet in the rain~"
If you get wet, go back and dry yourself...
Cui Zhijun felt uncomfortable when he saw Zou Shuangqiao's hypocritical behavior.
He knew there was no point in trying to reason with such a person, so he simply decided not to bother with him. Wordlessly, Cui Zhijun folded his paper umbrella and casually perched himself on the tree trunk at Zou Shuangqiao's feet. He then lifted Cuo Cuo, wearing a straw raincoat, above his head. Cui Zhijun hurried off into the hazy mist and rain, never looking back.
At that time, Zou Shuangqiao stood there, looking at the figure in the distance who was using a dog to shield himself from the rain, feeling terrified.
Zou Shuangqiao's confidence of more than ten years was shattered by Cui Zhijun, and he began to fall into self-doubt.
She couldn't understand why the man in front of her would rather get wet in the rain than share an umbrella with her... Could it be that she wasn't charming enough? But Zou Shuangqiao didn't know that the person who would share an umbrella with Cui Zhijun in this life had already appeared at the gate of the Imperial College, in the first rain of Bianjing's golden autumn.
-
Outside Yinjianju, Cui Zhijun walked along holding Cuocuo, and except for the area between his eyebrows, everything was wet by the rain.
And Cuo Cuo's confused head was kept pressed tightly against the back of his hand.
After a few steps into the yard, Cui Zhijian and Cang Yi were making a fire under the awning.
When the couple saw Cui Zhijun approaching with a small dog in a straw raincoat on his head, they both laughed out loud. "Erlang, what are you wearing? If you don't have an umbrella at home, why do you have to use a dog to keep it out of the rain?"
After saying this, Cui Zhijian burst into laughter.
Cui Zhijun ignored him and glanced around, but didn't see his wife. Just as Cui Zhijun was about to ask, Taishi Zheng, attracted by his brother's loud laughter, poked his head out of the small room. "Brother, I can hear your laughter from inside the room. What are you two laughing at?"
Cui Zhijun looked up and subconsciously called out, "Madam."
"Erlang? Why are you here?" Zheng came out of the house in surprise, came to Cui Zhijun and took a closer look, "Ah, why are you all wet——"
Cui Zhijun smiled slightly, thinking that the person in front of him still cared about him.
He just said, "It's okay."
Zheng hurriedly took the dog from his head and held it in her arms, feeling heartbroken. She didn't even glance at Cui Zhijun, who had come all this way after so many hardships. Zheng untied Cuocuo's raincoat and placed it against the puppy's head. "How can Daddy use you to keep him out of the rain? What if he catches a cold? Mom will take you to warm up by the fire."
Cui Zhiyun's smile froze at the corner of his mouth.
It turned out that he was just being sentimental.
Ke Zheng didn't pay much attention. She looked up at the people outside the shed and asked in confusion, "Cui Erlang, what's wrong with you today? Why don't you have an umbrella? I remember we have two green umbrellas that I brought from home."
Seeing this, Cui Zhijun hesitated to speak.
He was just about to go over to Taishi Zheng and talk to her in detail when, from behind the carved doorway, came those soft words that sent chills down one's spine. Cui Zhijun had deliberately left his paper umbrella behind, lest Zou Shuangqiao find another excuse to catch up.
Unexpectedly, this person was so shameless as to chase me here.
Cui Zhijun looked back in surprise.
Look at Zou Shuangqiao, frail and holding an oil-oil umbrella, as she came to Cui Zhiyun and said without hesitation in front of Taishi Zheng: "Brother Yun, I have thought about it over and over again, but I still can't do it. You took pity on me and gave me the umbrella, and I am very grateful. But what if you get caught in the rain because of me and catch a cold? I will feel bad about it, but brother Yun, don't worry. If you are really sick, I will take good care of you-"
Zou Shuangqiao was not blind, so she should be able to see the person sitting under the awning in the yard.
But she pretended as if no one was around.
"Brother Yun?" Cui Zhijian and Cang Yi threw away their firewood sticks and couldn't help but sigh in disgust. Zheng's face gradually darkened. Although she knew what kind of person Cui Zhiyun was, she was still displeased with Zou Shuangqiao's arrival.
In addition, when Cui Zhiyun's oil umbrella appeared in her hand, Zheng felt inexplicably angry.
But she remained silent.
Cui Zhijun never paid attention to Zou Shuangqiao from beginning to end. His eyes were always on Tai Shi Zheng, for fear of missing any of her expressions.
Zou Shuangqiao chose the perfect moment to turn around and said casually, "Hey? Madam Second Young Master, you're here too? I was so busy looking for Brother Yun that I didn't see you. How rude! I hope Madam Second Young Master won't blame me~"
But Cui Zhijun ignored Zou Shuangqiao.
While Zou Shuangqiao was talking, he left her side indifferently, walked over to Taishi Zheng, took her hand, and said gently, "Xiao Zheng, you see I'm all wet. Can you accompany me to the house to find a clean towel to wipe myself?"
"Oh, yes, Zheng, take Erlang in and wipe him down. If that doesn't work, your eldest brother's new clothes have just been washed on the cabinet in that room, so you can go change into them first to prevent him from catching a cold. Leave the old ones here, and when the weather gets better, I'll wash them and send them back to you." Cang Yi kindly replied, but Cui Zhijian looked unhappy when he heard it, "What? Wife, why should he wear my new clothes first? If he has worn them, can they still be called new clothes? Erlang's clothes are wet, can't he just dry them? He's a grown man, how can he be so precious!"
Cui Zhijian is very fussy.
"You're the only one who's meddling." Cang Yi pursed her lips and kicked him. Cui Zhijian, visibly irritated by his wife's glare, dared not complain. He could have old clothes if he wanted them...it was better than offending his wife and having nothing to wear in the future.
"Thank you, sister-in-law." Zheng stood up and let Cui Zhijun pull her away.
Cuo Cuo also followed happily.
The three of them walked into the house in such a loving manner, but Zou Shuangqiao was still outside the shed making a sound of "oh".
Cui Zhijian turned around and saw the tactless person in front of him, and asked casually: "Um - who are you?" But when he heard Cui Zhijian's serious voice, Zou Shuangqiao was frightened by his stern expression when he lowered his eyes, and did not dare to answer for a long time.
"Darling, don't be rude." Seeing this, Cang Yi scolded Cui Zhijian. When she turned her head, he asked again, "When I went to Lingyuxuan to serve breakfast this morning, I heard the elders say that this young lady must be the younger sister of Zhisong's wife, right?"
Zou Shuangqiao recovered her composure and returned to her usual charming demeanor. She bowed gracefully and said, "You two must be the eldest son and the eldest young lady, right? I am Zou Shuangqiao, the younger sister of Zou Shuangtong, the second wife of the second house. Shuangqiao greets the eldest son and the eldest young lady, and pays my respects to you both."
Although Cang Yi didn't like the person in front of her, she still had to consider the Second House's reputation. She said politely, "Since the Zou family's little sister is here, and you look a little wet, why don't you warm yourself by the fire before leaving?"
Zou Shuangqiao was not polite. When she saw someone inviting her to stay, she immediately nodded and acted obediently, "Madam, you are so kind. Shuangqiao thanks you."
Cang Yi didn't say anything else.
Zou Shuangqiao then closed her umbrella and walked into the awning, standing by the burning stove, peering in furtively. Cui Zhijian raised his eyes and saw her like that, then casually picked up the small stool beside him and slammed it aside, deliberately reminding her, "Alright, stop looking, go sit over there."
Zou Shuangqiao was really afraid of the burly man in front of him.
She subconsciously glanced at Cang Yi. She really didn't know how she could stand him. She looked down upon such a man.
But I still keep thinking about it in my heart.
Zou Shuangqiao, however, still nodded under Cui Zhijian's authority, and sat obediently opposite the couple not far away. When he raised his eyes and accidentally met Cui Zhijian's, Zou Shuangqiao realized for the first time that she was so afraid of looking into a man's eyes.
She quickly looked away.
The three of them sat quietly in the rain, the sound of falling water all around them. For some reason, Cui Zhijian turned to look at Cang Yi, then back at Zou Shuangqiao. He seemed to have something to say, but shook his head several times. Cang Yi couldn't help but ask, "Da Lang, do you have anything you want to say?"
Cui Zhijian looked at Cang Yi for a long time without saying anything. How could Cang Yi not understand him?
She just said, "Just say it."
Cui Zhijun got permission and asked, "Aunt Zhisong, what is your tongue..."
"Wasn't it straightened when it was born?"
“…”
As soon as these words came out,
Zou Shuangqiao fell silent, and Cang Yi held his forehead to suppress his laughter.
Cui Zhijian looked at his wife with a bewildered expression. He really didn't understand why they reacted like this...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
