Ye Chen squatted by the pond, casually tossing leaves into the water.
The goldfish in the water gathered in front of him, vying for food, but Ye Chen's mind was clearly not on that.
He strained his ears to hear what was happening inside the study, but the study was clearly well soundproofed. Apart from Li Muyue's initial exclamation, the rest of the conversation was just a muffled whisper.
Suddenly, a young man's exclamation rang out, and before Ye Chen could react, a figure darted in front of him.
Chen Ziqiao's handsome face was filled with anger. He pointed at the leaf in Ye Chen's hand and said angrily, "Who are you? How dare you break a branch of the Jade Dragon Tree!"
Ye Chen was taken aback. He looked up at the aggressive young man in front of him, then turned to look at Uncle Fu who had followed him, his face full of questions. "Where did this kid come from?"
"Young Master, Young Master, this is Mr. Ye Chen, a distinguished guest invited by the Master."
Uncle Fu followed behind, explaining from a distance.
He then smiled at Ye Chen and said, "Mr. Ye, this is the master's grandson, Chen Ziqiao, young master Chen."
"Grandpa's distinguished guest?"
Chen Ziqiao looked Ye Chen up and down, noticing that he was about the same age as him, and his eyes were full of suspicion.
He secretly guessed that the boy was probably visiting his maternal grandfather with his elders.
He said bluntly, "Why isn't Grandpa's distinguished guest in the study? Why is he running around in the yard ruining the flowers and plants?"
"Ahem, your grandfather and Li Muyue are talking inside," Ye Chen coughed lightly, pointing to the study.
Just then, the study door opened, and Old Li, leaning on a cane with one hand and supported by Li Muyue with the other, came out.
"It's Ziqiao. I can hear you yelling even through the gate. What kind of behavior is this?" Old Li said, feigning anger.
"Grandpa, Grandpa."
Upon seeing Old Li, Chen Ziqiao abandoned his questioning of Ye Chen and ran to Old Li, saying ingratiatingly, "I've come to see you. You look much better today."
At this moment, the young man in casual clothes who had come with Chen Ziqiao also stepped forward and bowed respectfully to Elder Li, saying, "This junior greets Elder Li."
Then he looked up at Li Muyue, a flash of passion crossing his eyes, and said with a gentle smile, "Muyue, it's been a long time."
"Oh, it's Haoxuan. What brings you to visit this old man today?" Old Li said to the young man in front of him in a calm and unhurried tone.
Li Muyue, who was beside him, simply nodded, her expression unchanged.
“My father heard that you were unwell and kept saying he wanted to visit you, but he was afraid of disturbing your rest. Today I happened to meet Ziqiao and heard that you are much better, so I came with him to visit you.”
Xie Haoxuan answered respectfully, displaying the demeanor of a humble gentleman.
With a faint smile on his face, Old Li said, "Your father is very kind. As the local official, he is very busy. He doesn't need to come all the way here to see me."
At this moment, Ye Chen and Uncle Fu also came over. His gaze swept over Li Muyue and saw that her eyes were slightly red. He couldn't help but feel a tightness in his heart and a sense of gain and loss.
When Chen Ziqiao saw Ye Chen, he remembered what had just happened. He pointed to a small tree in the yard and said, "Grandpa, look, the Jade Dragon Tree that I gave you has had a branch broken off by him. It's almost dead."
"Don't wrong me. I just broke off a branch. How could it not survive?" Ye Chen rolled his eyes and said speechlessly.
Following Chen Ziqiao's finger, Old Li looked at the small tree in the yard and saw that it was indeed missing a branch. His lips twitched, revealing a pained expression.
After recovering from his illness, he devoted himself to gardening. This jade dragon tree was perfect for his practice, and he meticulously pruned every branch, never asking anyone else to do it for him.
Hearing Chen Ziqiao's words and seeing Xiaoshu's condition, Li Muyue glared at Ye Chen with her beautiful eyes. Seeing his bewildered expression, she snorted coldly.
She herself didn't realize that she had become much closer to Ye Chen, a kind of girlish behavior that she would never have done before.
Xie Haoxuan, who was standing next to her, was mostly focused on Li Muyue. When he saw her little actions, he glanced at the two of them and his smile became a little stiff.
Seeing Li Muyue's gaze, Ye Chen muttered under his breath, "It's just a small tree. I'll get you as many as you want. Why are you being so stingy?"
Old Li withdrew his gaze, shook his head helplessly, and said, "Never mind, it's just a bonsai."
Hearing this, Chen Ziqiao's eyes widened even more, and he thought incredulously, "It's just a bonsai? I accidentally damaged a leaf on this Jade Dragon Tree a couple of days ago, and you scolded me for half a day. Isn't this double standard too severe?"
Everyone escorted Old Li to the reception room. After they sat down as host and guest, Old Li looked around and asked Xie Haoxuan, "How is your grandfather's health?"
Xie Haoxuan quickly replied, "Thank you for your concern, Elder Li. My grandfather's health is still the same as before; he can eat and drink well."
"Among those of us who went to the countryside back then, Old Xie is the one with the best health. Unlike us, we didn't know how to cherish our health when we were young, and now we're all half-dead," Old Li shook his head and sighed.
"Grandpa often talks to me about what happened back then, saying that if it weren't for you all taking care of him, he wouldn't have made it through," Xie Haoxuan said with a smile.
"Hehe, he was the youngest back then, so it was only right to take care of him," Old Li said with a chuckle.
He glanced at Xie Haoxuan, then turned to look at the others. Seeing Chen Ziqiao's absent-minded look, he smiled and said, "When people get old, they like to reminisce about the past. Don't think I'm a nagging old man."
"Grandpa, what are you saying?"
Li Muyue glared at Chen Ziqiao and quickly said, "You're in great spirits today. You don't usually talk this much. We're so happy for you."
"Yes, yes, Big Sister is right." Chen Ziqiao was startled by Li Muyue's glare and quickly echoed.
"Haha, people are in high spirits when they have good news." Old Li laughed heartily, his gaze shifting back and forth between Ye Chen and Li Muyue.
After a moment's thought, he said slowly, "To avoid any unforeseen complications, if you don't object, I'll make the decision for you two directly."
Upon hearing this, Ye Chen subconsciously looked at Li Muyue, only to see her with her eyes lowered and silent, a blush rising on her pretty face.
He understood that silence meant no objection, and a surge of joy welled up inside him. He quickly replied, "I'll leave it to Elder Li to decide."
Chen Ziqiao, who was listening from the side, was completely confused and asked in bewilderment, "Grandpa, what are you talking about? I don't understand."
Old Li glanced at Li Muyue, and seeing her expression, he laughed heartily, "Silly child, of course it's a good thing. Let me tell you, from today onwards, you have to call Ye Chen brother-in-law."
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