Chapter 50 The Matchmaker
A look of doubt appeared in the young master's eyes. This person didn't seem to care much about Hengbo. Could it be that he had his own selfish motives and therefore thought that others were up to something?
He suppressed his doubts for the time being and instead asked, "Who are you to Heng and Cuihua?"
His intuition told him that the relationship between Hengbo and this person wasn't simply that of a creditor and debtor, hence his question. Besides, the young master pouted: Why did Hengbo choose such a rustic name? He was almost embarrassed to call him that…
Shen Guitang pretended not to hear his slip of the tongue and did not care about his slightly offensive question: "Cuihua is the daughter of my benefactor. I just never expected that we would have the chance to meet again in Yujing."
The young master thought to himself, "This old man doesn't seem like someone who would be short of two hundred taels of silver, yet he's so stingy with his benefactor's daughter. But this also proves that he doesn't have those kinds of feelings for Hengbo. After all, who would be so petty with their beloved? And Hengbo, in particular, would never fall for such a person."
Thinking of this, the young master felt much better and became more amiable towards Shen Guitang: "Since that's the case, then I'll call you that," he paused, and finally said with a frown, "Big Brother." He actually secretly wanted to call him "Uncle," since, according to the generational hierarchy of Hengbo being his benefactor's daughter, calling him Uncle wouldn't be an exaggeration. However, although he called him an old man in his heart, he knew it was just his own dislike for him, and that this person was actually only five or six years older than him at most.
Shen Guitang was well aware of his inner thoughts, and his smile became even more amiable. If someone familiar with his character were here, they would probably be sweating. However, the young master was new to the place and had not yet suffered a "beating" from Shen Guitang. In fact, he even began to feel a little guilty for his previous offense because of Shen Guitang's kind attitude.
"Since you call me elder brother, I should naturally extend some hospitality. I wonder where you are staying now, my dear brother. I should go and visit you."
Although the young master felt that the relationship between the two had grown too close too quickly, and he was indeed the one who had said "Big Brother" first, it would be rather unreasonable to refuse now.
In this way, Shen Guitang proceeded step by step, while the young master fell deeper and deeper into the trap. By the time he was sent out of the Shen family mansion, he had revealed almost everything about how he and Hengbo met and the details of their daily interactions.
"It's late, my dear brother, please be careful on your way back." Shen Guitang stood at the entrance of the Shen residence, bidding him farewell as if an elder brother were instructing his younger brother.
The young master wanted to say something more, but was abruptly stopped by Shen Guitang's words, "Don't worry, I'll send someone to take Miss Cuihua there first thing tomorrow morning." Now the young master really couldn't think of anything else to say. He scratched his head, turned around and went back into the night as Shen Guitang watched him go.
"Young Master," Black Wind asked, puzzled, "Are you really going to send the young princess away?"
Once Shen Guitang could no longer see the young master, the warm smile on her face vanished instantly. "Why would I lie to a mere boy?"
Besides, how can we marry her back if we don't send her away?
The next morning, Hengbo woke up to find out that the young master wanted to take her to stay elsewhere, and Shen Guitang had already arranged for someone to help her pack her luggage.
Hengbo was somewhat confused: So, he had been kicked out?
Hengbo wanted to ask Shen Guitang what had happened, but Ergou, who had rushed over, told him that he had gone hunting in the mountains outside Beijing early that morning...
Yokoha: He can hunt too?
Er Gou was speechless and choked with emotion: "Sister Cuihua, is that the point right now? You weren't taken advantage of and then abandoned by him, were you?"
Hengbo thought for a moment, then shook his head: He hadn't had a chance to mess with me yet.
Just as the two of them were racking their brains but still couldn't figure it out, the young master who had been thinking about Hengbo ever since he returned home had already arrived at the gate of the Shen residence.
"Cuihua, I've come to pick you up!" Seeing the young master's face beaming with joy, Hengbo was still completely bewildered, but she could only take her luggage and follow him.
She didn't have many belongings to begin with, and they had worn out quite a bit over the days; a single bundle contained all her possessions. Seeing that Hengbo was about to run off with someone else, Ergou, still thinking about his own good future, gritted his teeth and grabbed her sleeve tightly: "Sister Cuihua! Take me with you!"
Shen Wangcai is heartless; he abandoned his wife to go hunting. Indeed, the most reliable person in the Shen family is Shen Ergou.
Hengbo didn't understand. Wasn't Shenfu Ergou's home? Why would she move out with her?
Of course, Er Gou couldn't say that he wanted her to be his sister-in-law. With a quick dart of his eyes, he made up a story: "You know how he bullies me in this family. I don't ask for wealth or status. I just want Sister Cuihua to give me a hot meal!"
"Besides," Er Gou tried to awaken Heng Bo's conscience, "I've lost all my money to you. If I get kicked out one day and can't even afford a steamed bun, would you really let me starve to death on the street?"
Hengbo:……
The New Year's money that Er Gou had painstakingly saved up over the years was now lying quietly in Heng Bo's bundle. Heng Bo touched the heavy silver inside and finally nodded in agreement.
Er Gou: Shen Wangcai, I've really sacrificed so much to help you!
When the three of them returned to the inn where the young master was staying, they were greeted with trepidation by the innkeeper, who was standing guard at the door, before they even stepped inside: "I was truly blind to your greatness, I had no idea that you were of such esteemed status. I have already cleared out all the private rooms for your rest, I hope you will forgive me!"
This inn is considered one of the best in the capital. When the young master came to book a room on the day he arrived in the capital, he heard that the best room here was not the superior room, but the elegant room, which was of a higher standard. However, the elegant room here was reserved for high-ranking officials and nobles. No matter how much money you could afford, if your status was not high enough, you could only stay in the superior room.
Although the young master was dissatisfied with the innkeeper's sycophantic attitude, he was new to the place and didn't want to cause trouble, so he decided to stay in the upper room.
But now, what's going on here?
However, the shopkeeper refused to explain the reason behind it, only apologizing repeatedly. The young master found him annoying and simply chased him away.
So what if it's a private room? Can't they stay there?
As for Hengbo having a little tail, the young master originally had no objection. After all, although his family business was in Jiangnan, he was not short of money to feed another mouth.
However, this little tail is way too clingy to Hengbo! No matter where Hengbo is, this little girl is always by his side. She has to sit next to Hengbo when she eats, she always squeezes between him and Hengbo when they go out to play, and she even has to sleep in the same bed with Hengbo at night...
If you say just a few words to her, her eyes will fill with tears that are about to fall: "I am just a little girl living under someone else's roof. I only know Sister Cuihua. Naturally, I want to be closer to her. Otherwise, I really won't feel at ease."
Whenever she finished saying that, Hengbo, who favored his concubine over his wife, would affectionately pat her head, while the young master would receive a reproachful look from Hengbo that said, "How could you be so insensible?"
Young Master: ……
No wonder men's homes are always in turmoil once they take a concubine. What wife could swallow such a thing?
Fortunately, the young master still had a trump card: "Cuihua, I have something urgent to tell you alone. It's about your sword."
Hearing him emphasize the word "alone" and mention the sword, Er Gou knew she couldn't get involved this time. Sure enough, when Heng Bo saw the serious expression on the young master's face, she gave Er Gou a small piece of silver and told her to go out and buy some candy.
Er Gou glanced at Heng Bo's expression and reluctantly closed the door for them. Before leaving, she specifically instructed, "I'm not going anywhere, I'll just stay at the door and call me if anything happens."
Hengbo was completely bewildered, while the young master's face turned pale. If he still didn't realize that all those little tricks the little devil had been up to protect him, then he had wasted all those years of eating fish.
It's a pity that just when the two of them are finally able to be alone, trouble is brewing.
“Martial arts sects like ours all have their own networks of connections. A disciple of our sect recently learned from a disciple of another sect that their sect had received a mission: to search for the whereabouts of the Master of the Horizontal Wave Sword.” He finished speaking, glanced at Hengbo, and seriously speculated, “You haven’t offended anyone, have you?”
Hengbo didn't care much after hearing this. As long as she was alive, she would always be an obstacle for some people. She would deal with whatever came her way.
The young master was very anxious about his careless attitude. "Although Hidden Sword Manor will do its best to smooth things over for you, you are alone outside and it is inevitable that you will make mistakes. Why don't you come back to Jiangnan with me?"
In his anxiety, his voice grew louder, and the words "Jiangnan" were caught by Er Gou, who had his ear pressed against the crack in the door. She immediately panicked. Shen Guitang was definitely going to stay in Yujing. If Cuihua really went to Jiangnan, what would happen to her? She couldn't possibly go to Jiangnan and live a life of subservience to the young master!
Shen Wangcai! Where on earth have you run off to?!
At this moment, Shen Guitang, who was being talked about, was sitting on a rock deep in the mountains, gazing intently at the sky.
Hei Feng handed him a freshly roasted pheasant sprinkled with spices: "Young master, why don't you have someone from the pavilion send someone to buy two wild geese? You've been waiting here for over a day without seeing a single goose feather."
The day before yesterday, before dawn, he was dragged out of the house by Shen Guitang. The carriage took nearly three hours to reach the foot of the mountain. Because there was no road on the mountain, the carriage could not go up, so they spent most of the day climbing the mountain. After a long and arduous journey, they finally set up camp by a lake halfway up the mountain.
"Young master, what's going on?"
Shen Guitang never burned incense on ordinary days, but when he woke up the next day, he suddenly took out an incense burner, leaving Hei Feng completely baffled. Moreover, no wonder he felt that Shen Guitang's luggage was rather heavy this time; it turned out that he had also brought an incense burner.
Shen Guitang ignored him, lowered her head and calculated for a while. Finally, she chose a good feng shui spot to place the incense burner. She then took out a bundle of incense sticks wrapped in oil paper and selected the three that she was most satisfied with.
Finally, everything was ready. He knelt on the ground and devoutly inserted three incense sticks into the incense burner and lit them one by one. The smoke drifted gently with the mountain breeze, while Shen Guitang sat quietly with his eyes closed in front of the incense. Bathed in the morning light, he looked like a Buddhist monk who was free from desires and detached from worldly affairs.
After it had completely burned out, Shen Guitang finally answered his question: "Burning incense and eating vegetarian food, praying to gods and Buddhas."
Black Wind asked, puzzled, "What are you asking for?"
Shen Guitang, without blushing or skipping a beat, replied: "Matchmaker."
Black Wind: How could I have thought he was detached from worldly affairs... The world is vast, but he is a demon.
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Author's Note: Mini-Theater:
Er Gou: In a relationship, only one person makes the sacrifices. It's not my love, yet I'm the one making the sacrifices.
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