8. Outwitting
"Father." I cautiously stepped into the hall. Normally, I would never come here, and I wondered why Father had summoned us here today.
"Fei'er, come here." My second brother looked at me with difficulty and said softly.
Father didn't look up, and continued drinking his tea.
Han Beiming looked at me, somewhat displeased.
Han Yitian sat next to Fei Yu, expressionless. Jin Yuan was also there, and he seemed to be in high spirits.
"Father?" I stood in the center, feeling like a prisoner being interrogated. Even if I were to be sentenced, I needed to understand exactly where I had gone wrong.
"Look for yourself!" Father pointed to the sky, and I reached out to take the paper that looked like a letter.
It's all written in black and white, crystal clear.
A promise with Moran Nan:
If you can identify my disguise three times in one day, then you must belong to me.
Peach Blossoms in the Waves
"Fei'er, when did you provoke him?" the second brother asked earnestly.
I chuckled. "What does he mean by 'belonging to me'? He doesn't usually issue challenges when he's picking flowers, does he?"
“It seems he wants to take you as his apprentice,” Jin Yuan said.
"Really? Why? What have I done to deserve this?" I said softly.
"No matter what, you better be smart," Dad said fiercely.
"Father, could this be a diversionary tactic? I think, in any case, Fei Yu is his real target. He wants you to focus your attention on me, so that when no one is protecting Fei Yu, he can make his move?" I thought, resting my chin on my hand.
"Possibly. But you should still be careful," the second brother said.
"Detecting three disguises in one day is laughable. If it were that easy, would he have succeeded?"
“From now on…” I looked up at the rising sun. “It’s still early, isn’t it, Brother Jin Yuan?” I suddenly turned to look at him. “Did you sleep well last night?”
All eyes turned to him.
"Thank you, very good." Jin Yuan looked at me with a smile. "I didn't expect the young master of the Mo family to be such a master of medicine."
"No, it's just that I was afraid you would harm my precious Feiyu, so I specially got him a talisman for protection," I said.
"A peace talisman, is it? It's specifically designed to counter sleeping potions. Not only could I not knock out Fei Yu, but Han Yitian was also protected by the peace talisman and remained conscious. I'm quite curious, however, when exactly you saw through my disguise." Jin Yuan sipped his tea unhurriedly, completely ignoring the surprise and anger of the crowd.
“You only drink black tea,” I said. “Your sense of taste has deteriorated from dealing with incense for so long. You prefer strong-flavored foods and teas.”
"Just because of that?" He looked at me incredulously.
"Of course, the flower thief has caused quite a stir in the city, so I have to be careful. Actually, once, when you were drinking water, I had a maid bring you a cup of tea, but you didn't notice. It's rare for a martial artist not to be alert. Isn't that right? A flower thief in the waves?"
"You?" The second brother drew his sword. "It was you?"
"Could it be that I wasn't wrong about you after all? But there are two more times, I'll be waiting for you to become my disciple." He suddenly burst into laughter, a look of disgust washing over me. I covered my nose and mouth. I knew in my heart that he had run away.
"Fei'er, what are you going to do?" My second brother looked at me with great concern.
I shrugged. "I have nothing to be afraid of. So what if they take me as their apprentice? At worst, I'll just become a womanizer."
"You bastard!" Father was so angry he was practically fuming.
I glanced at him and walked out.
"Second brother, can you please not follow me?" I asked in the study, looking at my brother, who was fully armed and had a serious expression on his face.
"I will protect you; I absolutely cannot let you be attacked."
"Don't worry, if he accepts me as his apprentice, it's definitely him who will fall, not me." I pulled out a book and slowly flipped through it.
"How can you not be worried?" Han Beiming followed behind us like a follower.
"Things will work themselves out," I said casually. "There are still two chances, aren't there?"
At the lunch table, everyone held their breath, staring intently. Aside from me, no one seemed to have much of an appetite. My second brother had been following me all morning and was exhausted. Han Beiming ate his meal in silence. Fei Yu and Han Yitian also looked at me with puzzled expressions.
"If brother really becomes a womanizer, will he still want to play with me?" Fei Yu suddenly asked. Han Yitian almost choked to death.
"Do you want me to come to you?" I smiled. I wondered if he even knew what the duties of a flower thief were.
“Of course, there are actually many flowers on the back mountain too. You don’t have to be a thief to pick them openly. Nobody’s forbidding it. Why do you have to pick them secretly?” Fei Yu said innocently. Han Yitian then coughed.
"Shuang'er, come here." I called to the maid beside me. She hurried over.
"Let's have some tea," I said.
Shuang'er stared wide-eyed, looking confused.
"After you finish drinking, tell me if it tastes like tea or water." I smiled. All eyes turned to her again.
“Young Master Mo has such good taste.” Shuang’er laughed. “You saw through me again.”
"Isn't Shuang'er mute?" Fei Yu asked absentmindedly.
"It's not Shuang'er, it's Langlitaohua." I looked at Feiyu and smiled reassuringly.
"How did you see through it this time?" he asked me, his voice regaining its masculine tone.
"When Fei Yu just did something stupid, you had a smile on your face. Shuang'er usually wouldn't smile like that, because she's used to Fei Yu's way of speaking," I said.
"Brother said I'm an idiot?" Fei Yu looked at me with displeasure.
“I see,” he said.
“No need for smoke bombs, you can go now, no one’s stopping you,” I said. “Don’t make sure we can’t even have a proper lunch.”
"Could it be that he is indeed worthy of my selection? We will have another match, and I will be waiting."
"Brother, I'm not an idiot." Fei Yu glared at me.
"I see."
"No, no," Fei Yu continued to fuss, his attention diverted by the roast pork Han Yitian had placed in his bowl. I looked at Han Yitian gratefully. He finally nodded. We were kind of friends after a fight, I suppose. At least now he wasn't as hostile towards me as before.
After finishing my meal, I continued reading. My second brother continued to follow me.
"Brother, are you tired?"
"I'm not at ease," the second brother said firmly.
"Bei Ming, you should go and rest too." It's really troublesome that two people with such good chemistry have been following me for so long.
"I'm worried too."
"You don't seem too worried, Fei'er?" My second brother looked at me.
"I'm not too worried."
"Why?"
"Because no matter whether I recognize him three times or not, he won't give up. I even doubt that he will show up again," I thought.
"What?" My second brother looked at me. "That's infuriating. Why did he take a liking to you?"
"He's attracted to your intelligence, isn't he?" Han Beiming looked at me. "I'm quite surprised too. Not only are you skilled in medicine, but you also have a keen eye for detail. The longer I've known you, the more I find you intriguing."
“I’ve been his older brother for so long, and I never knew he knew so much. What are you complaining about?” the second brother said with dissatisfaction.
I smiled.
During dinner, we were called to the lobby again.
"Father?" The second brother looked at his father with a dark expression.
"You unfilial son," Father said, looking at me. "Kneel down."
"Father, what did Fei'er do wrong?" the second brother pleaded quickly.
“I didn’t expect you to show up again. I thought you had given up.” I looked at my father and smiled bitterly.
Father did not answer.
"However, dressing up as your father is a really bad idea."
"Why?" he said.
“Because my father doesn’t like me, he would never summon me twice in one day,” I said calmly. “I won. What do you say?”
“I still don’t want to give up. You’re so smart, how can you spend your whole life in this place? Your talents are being wasted.”
"Does following you and becoming a womanizer mean I'm wasting my talents?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Come with me, and you'll discover how wonderful the outside world is." He suddenly dropped his disguise. He was a very handsome man, not much older than his second brother.
“I refuse,” I said.
"Why?"
"Is it because of him?" he asked, pointing at Fei Yu. Fei Yu looked at him, puzzled.
"No. I don't want to leave. This is my home."
"Your family?" He suddenly laughed. "A father who doesn't care about you, and a brother who only pities you."
"Shut up!" the second brother shouted, unable to bear it any longer.
“A friend with ulterior motives.” He looked at Han Beiming. Han Beiming’s eyes flashed with a cold light.
What is it about this place that you would like to stay for?
“At least I still have Fei Yu.” I looked at him.
"Him? He is the root of all your troubles."
I shook my head. "Feiyu is the most precious."
"If Fei Yu were gone, you would come with me?" He suddenly laughed, a wicked and helpless laugh. "The first person I've ever fallen for is someone who sees through everything, yet can't escape. Is it that you can't see through the people around you, or that you're unwilling to see through them?"
"Go away. Don't bother me." I looked at him.
"Since that's the case..." Before he could finish speaking, he pulled his hand back and threw several hidden weapons in Fei Yu's direction.
"Fei Yu." I stepped forward to block. Han Yitian was the first to deflect the hidden weapon with his sword, and at the same time, I heard the sound of a sword piercing flesh.
Han Beiming's ever-present sword pierced his heart. He fell.
I stared at Han Beiming in disbelief. His cold gaze was unfamiliar. ☆Fried☆Ice Cream☆Organization☆
"That scoundrel deserves to die," Han Beiming said quietly. Then he walked out without looking back.
"Han Yitian, take Feiyu away," I said to the terrified Feiyu. Han Yitian nodded.
"Fei'er, what are you doing?" Second Brother watched as I picked up the corpse.
“Actually, brother, I’ve realized that he’s the one who understands me the most,” I said.
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