Song Fanze still didn't move, so the servant could only put the food on the table and leave.
That night, Song Fanze had a dream in which Chi Qiangwei was trying to take human form.
She said, "I want to protect you."
She was somewhat weak and injured, but she still tried her best to respond to him.
Song Fanze squatted down next to her and watched over her.
In his dream, he saw her looking distressed. The flower bud was not as full as before, and the petals had lost their luster, as if it were about to wither away at any moment.
He held her in his hands, and she gently nestled in his palms to comfort him.
Song Fanze said remorsefully, "...I'm sorry, I failed to protect you."
After waking up, he sat up, looked at the red rose on the table that had been trampled beyond recognition, got up and walked over, and gently stroked the petals.
Suddenly, a thorn on the rose pierced his finger, and a drop of blood flowed out and dripped onto the petals, where it was quickly absorbed.
He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that the petals that had been dripped with his blood had become glossy and vibrant.
At this moment, a servant rushed in and said.
"Mr. Fan Ze, something terrible has happened! Rumors are circulating that you are having an affair with Miss Chu."
Upon hearing this, Song Fanze immediately strode out.
Then some people came and made a scene.
Young Master Li, who had a past conflict with Song Fanze, came to the door with a group of people.
He is Chu Chu's cousin; they grew up together.
"Song Fanze, come out here!"
"You hypocrite, what kind of great philanthropist are you! I think you're just a sanctimonious person!"
Young Master Li stood at the door with a group of people, shouting and cursing, attracting the attention of passersby.
Pedestrians pointed at the house and whispered among themselves.
Upon seeing this, Young Master Li gathered all the people together.
"Look at this! Our great philanthropist from Akashi Town is having an affair with a woman who is about to get married!"
Upon hearing this, the people looked on incredulously. "Mr. Fanze is a man of high moral character. How could he possibly do such a thing?"
Upon hearing this, a sinister glint flashed in Young Master Li's eyes. "What high moral character? He's just pretending."
Upon hearing this, the people looked surprised. "That's impossible."
Others thought so too.
Seeing that Song Fanze was highly regarded by these people, Young Master Li fanned the flames and slandered him.
"Don't let Song Fanze fool you."
"Do you really think he's giving away free porridge to the poor? He's just imitating his ancestors from a hundred years ago in an attempt to gain a good reputation."
Upon hearing this, everyone exclaimed "Ah!" Most people believed what Young Master Li said, while only a small number remained skeptical.
But Young Master Li was already quite satisfied with the situation.
He still remembered that poetry gathering years ago. Song Fanze showed him no respect, producing one brilliant poem after another. Everyone cheered for him, while he became a marginal figure, ignored by everyone.
Another time, a little girl ran towards them on the street. He thought she was coming to see him, but it turned out she was coming to see Song Fanze, which made him look foolish in the street and be laughed at by everyone.
A large number of people gradually gathered in front of Song Fanze's house to watch the excitement.
At this moment, they finally saw Song Fanze come out from inside.
People who recognized Song Fanze immediately asked, "Mr. Fanze, did you really have a secret rendezvous with the Chu family's young lady?"
Song Fanze replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "My relationship with Miss Chu is completely innocent; I have acted uprightly and honestly."
"So, it's not true that you're giving us free porridge?"
At this moment, someone in the crowd spoke up immediately at Young Master Li's prompting.
"Of course it's fake! Look how well he dresses, how many servants he keeps in his house, and how many flowers he has time to grow. If he were really doing good deeds for us poor people, why doesn't he share some of his money with us instead of just giving us a bowl of bland porridge every day and expecting us to be grateful to him?"
Upon hearing this, everyone lowered their heads and whispered among themselves.
Another person said, "If Song Fanze is really kind-hearted, why would he hire so many servants to serve him? The profits from the shops he runs are all brought to him by us."
"So, Mr. Fanze really did have a secret rendezvous with that Miss Chu?"
"Hmph, what Mr. Fanze? Does he deserve the title of 'Mr'?" Young Master Li said angrily.
Song Fanze is not someone who can argue with ordinary people about these things, and even if he proves that he did not do these things, it will only make others think that he is hypocritical and making a forced explanation.
With the help of his servants, Song Fanze quickly closed the door.
Young Master Li and his group were still cursing at the door.
...
Early in the morning, Song Fanze came to the street to distribute porridge as usual.
He and his servants set up the stall together, and a pot of porridge was brought up.
A group of poor people came over and picked up the porridge that Song Fanze handed them.
They took a sip, immediately spat it out, and then smashed the porridge, bowl and all, back into his pot.
"Who would drink such awful porridge!" the man spat, then left.
Once the first one appeared, a second, then a third. They all threw their bowls of porridge onto the table and left.
"What great philanthropist? I think he's a great villain."
"He's really playing a clever game; he wants to use his reputation to expand and strengthen his shop!"
"Friends, don't drink his porridge! We'd rather go hungry than drink his porridge!"
Upon hearing this, more and more people put down their porridge.
The angry person threw the bowl, along with the porridge, into the pot on the table, spat, and left.
"You...you all!"
The servants were enraged to see the people who were usually so respectful to Mr. Fanze now showing such disrespect, and they wanted to take action on Mr. Fanze's behalf.
Song Fanze stopped him, saying, "Forget it, let's go back first."
A servant spoke up for Song Fanze, saying, "Mr. Fanze, are we just going to stand by and watch these people bully you?"
"We've really been too kind, Mr. Fan Ze. Can you really swallow this insult?"
Song Fanze said, "They just believed what Young Master Li said. In a few days, once this storm passes, things will return to normal."
However, the servants were not comforted at all and remained furious.
"Mr. Fan Ze, you've really raised a bunch of ungrateful wretches."
While they were angry, they also admired Mr. Fan Ze's magnanimity and tolerance.
These past few days, Song Fanze hasn't been distributing porridge.
He stood outside the study window, watching over the half-dead red rose. He had tried everything he could to save it, but to no avail.
Aside from that one night when he dreamed of her, he hadn't dreamed of her again in the past few days.
He stared at the only shiny petal, and he thought about the time he pricked his finger.
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