Zhou Gu feels like he has walked into a den of dragons and tigers. This family is indeed too hospitable for their own good, leaving him no room to act out. He could barely hold back his irritation.
Su Rong glanced at Zhou Gu and chuckled inwardly, "Let’s go! I’ll show you around the residence."
Zhou Gu didn’t see the point in touring around a mere governor’s residence. On his journey here, he had already had a good sense of the place. But since he couldn’t possibly just remain here with her, he had no choice but to acquiesce.
So, Su Rong took Zhou Gu out of the reception room and headed towards the backyard.
Since Su Rong didn’t say anything, Zhou Gu spoke even less. The governor’s residence really had nothing worth seeing. Except for a waterside pavilion lined with flower-trees on both sides. It was somewhat pleasing to the eye, but none of the plants were rare or exceptional; certainly not enough to catch Zhou Gu’s attention.
The path was mostly deserted, clearly due to an order from the lady of the house for everyone to steer clear.
Su Rong noticed that, although Zhou Gu was walking with her, he always kept a distance that could fit two people between them. She wondered whether this was because he was genuinely indifferent or just abiding by the governor’s etiquette? She intentionally, while walking up the stairs, pretended to step on her skirt, cried out in surprise, and fell forwards.
Zhou Gu swiftly reached out to support Su Rong, and just as swiftly took his hand back.
Recovered, Su Rong turned towards Zhou Gu with a look of lingering fear, "Thank you."
Zhou Gu opened his mouth awkwardly, pinching his fingertips, "You’re welcome."
He thought to himself, that this fragile woman, incapable of withstanding a mere gust of wind, couldn’t even walk steadily - he did not want such a wife.
Very sensitive to people’s emotions, Su Rong immediately caught the fleeting look of distaste Zhou Gu had directed at her. She was startled; she had done everything she could to put on an act, how did he still find it distasteful? What exactly did he dislike?
She replayed their encounter in her mind, feeling that everything on her end had been seamless. It would have been impossible for him to tell that she had deliberately stepped on her skirt. Without a single hitch in her demeanor, she continued up the stairs. A gust of wind blew just then, ruffling stray strands of her hair and causing her to squint her eyes. As she tilted her head slightly to shield her eyes, her body wavered. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zhou Gu watching her intently, his face filled with unease.
Su Rong felt a little bewildered. What was he anxious about?
Brushing back the loose tresses from her forehead, she softly asked, "Zhou Gu, you’ve been in Jiangning for three days now. Where all have you been?"
Oh, she hadn’t been out and about for more than half a month, and she really wanted to.
Zhou Gu waited until she had made it up the stairs and into the pavilion, before releasing a sigh of relief. The gentle and fragile woman he was destined to marry - he had made up his mind that he didn’t want her. Otherwise wouldn’t he have to be constantly on his guard? He marveled at how, given her frailty, she hadn’t been swept away by the wind, or stumbled and fallen while walking around. He considered it nothing short of a miracle.
He answered her, "Within the city, I’ve walked around the night markets, and spent some time in the streets during the day."
"You didn’t go out to play outside the city?" asked Su Rong, wondering what was there worth seeing in the city’s night markets and streets.
Zhou Gu shook his head, "I haven’t had the time."
Seeing her puzzled expression, he gauged what she was thinking and his face flushed. "Jiangning has a lot of unique street food and trinkets you can’t find in the Capital City. It’s very lively."
Su Rong nodded in understanding, "Oh, I see. Visitors from other places do enjoy browsing the night markets."
She asked Zhou Gu to sit down and took the seat next to him. The table was already set with fruits and tea. She picked up a peach and handed it to Zhou Gu, "This is a honey peach, only grown in and around Jiangning. Try some."
Zhou Gu was just about to decline, but then saw Su Rong pick up another one, place it against her lips, and take a bite. Her other hand continued to hold out the peach to him. Her hand was delicately fair and soft, well cared for, her fingers slender and beautiful much like a green onion. Her wrist was even more delicate. Considering the size of the peach, he could barely believe that her wrist was not being crushed under its weight. He hesitated for a moment then reached out to take it.
Su Rong suddenly asked, "I heard you got into a fight with the Young Prince of the Rui’an King’s Residence over a woman? Is she more attractive than me?"
Zhou Gu nearly dropped the peach, looking at her in shock.
Su Rong tilted her head and smiled at him. "Don’t worry, I’m just curious. I was told that you, single-handedly, beat the entire group of guards from the Rui’an King’s Residence to a pulp. Just how many guards were there? And how badly did you hurt the Young Prince?"
Zhou Gu was at a loss for words.
He didn’t know if it was usual for a betrothed couple to ask such questions at their first meeting, but his betrothed had just asked him, too directly. He was momentarily thrown off and didn’t know how to respond.
"Is it that hard to answer?" Su Rong’s eyes were clear and innocent, seemingly just out of simple curiosity with no ulterior motives.
Zhou Gu forced a smile, "Not really."
Seeing that Su Rong was still looking at him, he awkwardly explained, "Qin Luan..." he coughed,"...the woman, her brother and I are somewhat acquainted. After her family got into trouble, her father was beheaded by the emperor, all the males in her family were exiled to a bitter cold place three thousand miles away, the females were demoted into slavery. Her brother, before leaving, asked me to take care of her since she couldn’t handle hardships, so I..."
After truthfully explaining everything, he suddenly felt something was off. He had never explained this to anyone, not even the people of his own residence who presumed that he was attracted to Qin Luan, though he didn’t want to marry her. Why did he feel the need to explain it to her? 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶
His countenance changed abruptly.
"Ah, so you were simply sticking up for your friend. That was very righteous of you." Su Rong couldn’t help but inquire further, "What about the Young Prince? Considering the Young Prince’s noble rank, why would he stoop to stealing another man’s woman?"
"He’s infatuated with Qin Luan."
Su Rong leaned her head slightly to one side and laughed, "So, does Qin Luan not like him? Hence you had to help her elope with another man?"
"I don’t know, I was drinking with someone the night before and only heard about Xie Lin attempting to abduct her the next morning. In the heat of the moment, I remembered how her brother had entrusted her to my care, so I rushed over without thinking," he regretted adding, "Drink really does cause a lot of trouble. If I had been more sober, I wouldn’t have gotten involved. Actually, after giving it some thought, I realized it would’ve been better if she’d been taken by Xie Lin, because even if I had managed to rescue her, I wouldn’t have been able to provide for her."
Having understood this, Su Rong heartily approved, "You’re already engaged, you wouldn’t have been able to shelter her."
Zhou Gu was left speechless.
"I heard that although you managed to rescue her, she didn’t end up in the Duke’s residence?" Su Rong inquired.
She had heard it from Li Yan, who said that she had been sent to the Eastern Palace by the Emperor’s orders to serve the Crown Prince. After all the fighting, neither of them got what they wanted.
Zhou Gu’s face darkened slightly, "Mhm."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
