Chapter 12 Changing One's Mind and Waiting to Die
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The carriage had traveled quite a distance when Wen Zhixu looked back at the street corner and saw Lin Xihe standing at the other end of the long street, swinging her arms like a furious character, baring her teeth and claws in his direction.
Without needing to think too much, it's definitely an insult directed at him.
Seeing that his young master's face was ashen but he was holding back his anger, Wen Ba knew that he was very angry. He then said indignantly, "Second Young Master, are you just going to let Miss Lin be so arrogant?"
The preface to the article states: "If a mere servant loses his composure in the street, wouldn't it become a laughing stock?"
As dusk settles, it's the time when people are digesting their meals.
Many idlers craned their necks, waiting to see the spectacle. If the high-ranking Second Young Master Wen were to quarrel with a lowly servant in the street, he would become the laughingstock of the entire city the next day.
The carriage stopped in front of the mounting shop, and Wenba went into the shop to pick up the newly mounted calligraphy.
The shopkeeper hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Is this truly the work of Young Master Wen? It resembles calligraphy, yet it doesn't. What could be the reason?"
Wen Ba was illiterate, but protecting his master was an instinct ingrained in his bones. He straightened his back and said, "My second young master has always been unique."
The shopkeeper was a conservative scholar who looked back and forth at Wen Zhixu's calligraphy in simplified Chinese characters, saying, "This stroke... is too much."
Wen Ba carefully rolled up the calligraphy, his attitude arrogant: "Second Young Master, are you so frugal that you can't save on ink sticks?"
Shopkeeper: "..." Is the Duke of Wen's mansion going to be raided? Is it really necessary to be this frugal?
Back in the carriage, Wen Ba presented the calligraphy with both hands: "Second Young Master, I will deliver it to the Lin residence tomorrow?"
Wen Zhixu lightly tapped the window frame with his fingertips, and the face of that cat-like servant flashed before his eyes. He felt a sudden surge of irritation for no reason, and without thinking, he uttered two words: "No need to see me off."
Wen Ba was taken aback: Didn't you want to write and send it yourself? How come you changed your mind so quickly?
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Lin Xihe didn't find Bu Bu, but instead bumped into Wen Zhixu at the entrance of the brothel. Being new to the ancient world, everything was new and exciting to her. She then wandered over to the entrance of Yuling Courtyard and tiptoed to peek at the elegant ladies and graceful figures there.
"Miss, please stop looking!" Qingwu was both embarrassed and anxious. Seeing that the handsome young man was rooted to the spot and she couldn't call him back no matter what she did, she had no choice but to stomp her foot, "Lin Daniu!"
A carriage stopped, and several young men in fine clothes got out, chatting and laughing. The coachman was about to drive the carriage to the backyard when he saw Lin Xihe dressed as a servant and greeted her.
Lin Xihe: "Big brother, who's the most popular girl around here?"
The coachman chuckled: "You, you're really like a toad lusting after a swan. Fine, I'll tell you anyway. The top courtesan of Yuling Courtyard, 'Sai Guanyin,' is someone that countless young masters from noble families in Shengjing City would love to see but could never get a chance to meet."
"Oh? Is it really that beautiful?"
"Is that a lie?" the coachman said again. "It's a pity that even such a beauty has her heart completely tied to the second young master of the Duke of Wen's mansion."
"Oh—!" Lin Xihe drew out the last syllable.
When all the clues came together, she realized. So it was Cuihuang! That girl's real name was too plain; no wonder she changed it to "Sai Guanyin" (a name implying divine intervention).
"That won't do!" Qingwu, who was listening anxiously from the side, couldn't help but interject, "Young Master Wen is already engaged!"
Everyone in Shengjing knew that Wen Zhixu was already taken, so how could Sai Guanyin, a mere courtesan, dare to harbor such delusions?
Upon hearing this, the coachman seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world. He glanced at Qingwu from head to toe and said with a barbed tone, "The Second Young Master Wen is such a pure and upright person, yet he has been dragged down by the foolish Miss Lin. Who in the whole capital doesn't sigh that he's a sucker? Who are you to point fingers at him?"
"You!" Qingwu's face turned deathly pale.
Lin Xihe dragged Qingwu away, muttering to herself as they walked: "These ancient people must be using 2G networks. If this kind of secret of a wealthy family were in modern times, photos of Young Master Wen visiting brothels would have already dominated the trending topics, with the whole country surfing the internet to gossip."
The key point is that she herself is strong, healthy, and quick-witted; there's not a trace of idiocy in her. This coachman can't even get any fresh gossip.
"Surpassing Guanyin, what a boastful tone," Lin Xihe sneered. "I'd even dare to mock Buddha!"
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That night, after serving the second young master to his bed, Wen Ba said to Wen Qi dejectedly, "The second young master doesn't like me."
He got in through his uncle's connections as a coachman, changed his name, and worked as a servant for the second young master.
Wen Qi patted him on the shoulder: "The Second Young Master has always been kind and generous to his subordinates."
Wen Ba's voice became even softer: "The Second Young Master has never smiled at me."
Wen Qi was taken aback by these words, and after a pause, he said, "If the Second Young Master wants to smile, then he should smile at the future young mistress."
Speaking of the future young mistress, Wen Ba recalled the scene when the second young master had a chance encounter with Miss Lin. "After the second young master saw Miss Lin, his face became even more tense."
"How can you and I possibly understand the affairs of our masters? Doing our job well is our duty as servants."
Wen Ba lowered his head: "Seventh Brother is right."
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The next morning.
The honest and conscientious Wen Ba had a keen eye for detail. He repaired the oiled window paper, put away the writing implements, and finally gently straightened the newly mounted calligraphy on the desk.
The newly retrieved mounted small characters were exquisite. Following the second young master's instructions, the mounting shop owner made them into embossed paper, a style favored by young ladies.
At this moment, Wen Ba stood in front of the desk, with two identical pieces of paper in his field of vision, even the elegant and unique silk borders were exactly the same.
On the left: the sounds of chickens and dogs can be heard...
Right side: I've never met Miss Lin before...
Which one is the calligraphy that the young master specially wrote for Miss Lin?
Wen Ba, who was illiterate, fell into deep thought.
After Wen Zhixu finished washing up, Wen Ba gently reminded him, "Second Young Master, there are fallen petals on your shoulder."
Wen Zhixu lowered his eyes, his fingertips picking up a small fallen petal.
This crabapple blossom is exactly the same as the one mixed in with the crumpled paper that Lin Xihe threw over.
He looked toward the courtyard wall that separated the two mansions, where a crabapple tree was climbing over the wall, its crimson blossoms splashing down and staining the white walls and gray tiles red.
He recalled the gardener's words: this tree was a sapling his mother had given him when Mrs. Lin was pregnant. His thoughts drifted back to his childhood, when he had painstakingly lifted a small shovel and personally covered it with the first handful of soil.
So, he, still a child, had seen Lin Xihe once—although at that time, she was still lying leisurely in Madam Lin's belly.
Thinking of this, Wen Zhixu ordered Wen Bajiang to deliver the letter to the Lin residence.
Wen Bayi couldn't help but ask, "Second Young Master, this calligraphy..." Didn't you say you wouldn't give it to Miss Lin?
The master's thoughts have become more unpredictable than the weather in June.
Wen Zhixu remained unfazed: "A gentleman keeps his word; how can he break his promise? Send the Golden Wound and Jade Powder along with it."
Wen Ba: "..."
Oh wow, they're even willing to send out medicine bestowed by the emperor?
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After dismissing everyone, Lin Xihe immediately buried herself in preparing a table full of exquisite breakfast. Qingwu brought in mouthwash tea and saw that her mistress's cheeks were bulging.
Lin Xihe quickly swallowed the sugar packet.
Qingwu looked down at her sturdy frame and quickly handed over a teacup: "Miss, you mustn't eat as much as I have."
The dishes at the Lin family mansion were comparable to those of Michelin-starred chefs; Lin Xihe, before her transmigration, had never tasted such exquisite meals.
She chuckled and quickly came up with an absurd reason: "Hey, this is called turning grief and anger into food."
The maid was stunned.
She understood every word the young lady said, but when put together, it was like reading gibberish.
After breakfast, Lin Xihe felt utterly bored. No system, no missions, and having transmigrated here, besides a good appetite, she had no ambition in life.
“Miss,” a servant announced from outside the door, “Young Master Wen has brought a piece of calligraphy.”
Swoosh—
Lin Xihe, who was lounging on the couch waiting to die, suddenly sprang to her feet.
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