Chapter 8 "A Chance Encounter"
At the banquet just now, Du Qianqian was called away by Tang Wen, and she cried to him all the way, saying that she had no close sisters.
"I don't know what I did wrong, I just can't get along with them..."
"It's okay. Being ostracized is my fate. I understand." She crossed her hands above her head, her eyes brimming with tears, which made Tang Wen feel heartbroken.
Tang Wen's words of comfort struck a chord with her: "They envy and are jealous of your uniqueness. They are all boring and dull, so they can't get along with you."
Those noble ladies felt offended just by his glance, unlike Du Qianqian, who could occasionally touch his hand or put her arm around his shoulder under the guise of brotherhood.
Tang Wen, who had become Du Qianqian's mouth double, unknowingly led her to the room. Combined with Sheng Mingshu's plan, the situation should have been very favorable.
Unfortunately, she met Ling Wei now.
hehe……
Ling Wei glanced at Tang Wen's lower body and stomped on him with such force that the unconscious man twitched.
System: Oh wow...
Ling Wei: Didn't you say you didn't have any close sisters? Well, here you are!
The door was locked from the outside, and Ling Wei struggled to climb out of the window.
After taking only a few steps, Ling Wei felt a surge of heat rising to her head. She had just rolled on the ground, and now her clothes were disheveled and she was covered in sweat. This alluring appearance was absolutely unacceptable for her to appear at the banquet.
"Master, where is Xie Zhuo?"
After releasing its consciousness, the system withdrew it and said, "Weiwei, there's no one at Xie Zhuo's place. Do you want to go over there?"
As expected of Vivi, she doesn't waste any opportunity.
It pointed the way for Ling Wei, and Xie Zhuo, who had come out for some fresh air, was sitting by the lake.
Ling Wei staggered to the lakeside. She was still some distance away from him, but she could already clearly see his tall figure on the shore.
The man casually bent his long legs, his posture exuding laziness.
The system rubbed its hands together, ready to watch Ling Wei's actions, only to see its host facing a distant figure without even glancing at it, taking a running start and leaping into the lake like a cannonball.
system:"???"
!!
Help!
"Waaaaah, Weiwei!! Are you waiting for Xie Zhuo to come and save you?! I forgot to tell you! Based on what happened before, there's a good chance he won't save you!"
These scions of prominent families had long received this kind of education.
Years ago, a young nobleman kindly saved someone, but was instead entangled with a notorious and shrewish woman from a high-ranking family, and was forced to marry her, becoming the laughingstock of the entire capital.
From then on, any young master of a certain status would only send his servants to rescue him in similar situations, and would never get involved himself.
Ling Wei didn't know these things, but it didn't matter.
The effects of the drug were too strong for her to bear, and her instincts overcame her reason.
Once she was in the cold water, the dryness brought on by the medicine was finally suppressed, and her muddled mind regained a moment of clarity.
She swam happily in the lake, for she came from a water town in Jiangnan and was naturally good at swimming.
On the shore, Xie Zhuo was taking a break to get some fresh air.
He didn't want to come to this ridiculous banquet, but his mother insisted.
Unlike the cautious neutrality of the Gu family, the Xie family has already sided with the Fourth Prince because the current Empress is from the Xie family.
Therefore, his mother hoped that he would settle down and start a family as soon as possible to establish a stable foundation.
He was already a highly sought-after figure in the capital, and the young men who wanted to curry favor with the Xie family or befriend him were irresistibly enthusiastic, so he could only find a way to avoid them.
Ling Wei's fall into the water made quite a commotion, so he naturally saw it too.
Mo Feng, the bodyguard beside him, asked in a low voice, "My lord, do you need me to go and rescue you?"
Xie Zhu lazily raised his eyelids, his gaze lingering on the splashing water for a moment, and he nodded almost imperceptibly.
Mo Feng accepted the order, quickly took off his outer robe, and jumped into the water.
Xie Zhuo watched leisurely with his arms crossed. There were so many young ladies who had "unexpectedly encountered danger" in front of him that he could hardly count them on his fingers.
Half of them, upon seeing that it was a guard who came to their rescue rather than themselves, were instantly relieved.
The other half gritted their teeth and finished the play, then sweetly said they wanted to repay the Marquis's family for "saving their lives."
Which one is this person in front of you?
Before long, Mo Feng swam back and reported, "My lord, she...she can swim."
Xie Zhuo's lips curled into a predictable, sarcastic smile. He waved his hand and said, "Since nothing's wrong, let's leave it at that." He then turned to get up. "Let's go back."
Xie Zhuo didn't go far, after all, there wasn't even a maidservant by her side, and he was afraid she might really drown, so he stayed hidden in the shadows and watched.
He had assumed that this young lady, whose family he didn't know, would swim ashore soon, but a short while later, she was still soaking in the water.
If he hadn't surfaced every now and then to catch his breath, he would have almost thought he had sunk.
Now he was genuinely curious. He'd come all the way to the princess's residence... to swim?
After a while, even soaking in cold water didn't help; the unfamiliar restlessness sent waves of tingling sensations through my body.
Ling Wei stopped swimming and stayed by the shallow water near the shore, calculating when the dramatic scene of catching her husband cheating would begin.
Before them, a pair of dark cloud-patterned shoes stopped on the lake shore stone.
Xie Zhuo approached from afar and finally saw the girl's appearance clearly in the water.
Her soaked black hair clung to her pinkish cheeks, and her peach blossom eyes were slightly open, the sunlight reflecting in her wet pupils, revealing a hint of bewilderment and clarity.
Water droplets rolled down her straight nose, her full lips were tightly pursed, and she was immersed in the water, her shoulder line faintly visible, like a lotus flower blooming under the moon.
Upon seeing him, she was startled and dove into the water, but couldn't hold her breath and surfaced gasping for air.
Xie Zhuo squatted down, looking down at her with a hint of amusement in his voice: "Miss, you're in a good mood. The lake in the Princess's residence isn't a place for you to swim."
When Ling Wei recognized Xie Zhuo, her eyes lit up with surprise, as if she had grasped a lifeline.
She swam a little closer to the shore, her voice wet and panting: "I'm sorry for losing my composure... I just... I just had a few drinks and felt unbearably hot, so I couldn't help myself... Could you please find my maid for me?"
Her eyes were earnest and filled with embarrassment. "I...I'm really not fit to go ashore in this state."
Xie Zhuo chuckled to himself.
So it was because he drank too much and started acting crazy? That's a rather novel excuse.
"Which company are you from?" he asked.
“My maid is called Xiao Yao… Please don’t make a fuss, cousin. Find Gu Qingyu, the eldest daughter of the Gu family. She knows where I am.” Ling Wei answered clearly and logically.
"Gu Qingyu? You're a member of the Gu family?" Xie Zhuo frowned. His mother and Gu Qingyu's father were siblings, and he and Gu Qingyu were cousins.
He's been to the Gu family so many times, how come he's never seen this girl before?
Xie Zhuo gestured for Mo Feng to go look for the person, while he stayed on the shore to wait.
The girl seemed to lower her guard a little because of his identity, and moved a little closer to him, extending her wet hand: "Cousin... please pull me up..." Her voice trembled slightly.
Xie Zhuo found it strange, but seeing that she had been soaking for a long time, he was indeed worried that she had run out of energy.
He reached out and grasped that cool, soft little hand, and with a slight pull, he lifted her up.
Whoosh!
The sound of water filled the air as Ling Wei stood on the shore, completely soaked.
In late spring and early summer, she wore a light apricot-colored silk dress, which was now soaked with water and clung tightly to her body. Her skin, visible through the wet fabric, was almost completely exposed.
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