Chapter 82 "A-Zhi, stay by my side!"
Only husband and wife can refuse to drink alcohol.
However, seeing that Yoriichi and Aori both looked normal, Tsugikuni Iwakatsu knew that they were unaware of this custom.
He glanced at the attendant, and the wine glass next to the girl was quietly removed, as if nothing had happened.
After the banquet, the father learned that Yoriichi had never taken the past to heart, and he was exceptionally happy, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.
Finally, as if he had thought of something, he drunkenly sighed, "I never thought Yoriichi would find someone to spend his life with. That's good. I can finally face my mother with that."
Ji Guoyan shouldn't have refuted him at this time, but seeing the genuine smile on his face, he couldn't help but say, "You've misunderstood."
He adjusted his expression, but it was still somewhat cold, and his voice seemed to carry a hidden meaning: "They are not a couple."
Kokushiro knew that even though their behavior was quite inappropriate and sometimes crossed the line, Ori and Yoriichi were far from being husband and wife.
—This is the truth, so it's better to clear up the misunderstanding.
After saying that, he left without paying attention to his father's suddenly stiffened expression.
For the next few days, he did not contact Yoriichi or Aori again.
Because she had dismissed the maid and no one had informed her, Azhi was unaware that anyone was coming. She sat lazily on the veranda, looking down at the ants carrying an unknown fruit.
She simply watched, without any ill intention of causing any trouble for the ants, until the light in front of her was blocked, casting a large shadow.
Aori looked up and saw Kokushiro's face. Her eyes widened slightly, and she instinctively sat up straight, pointing to the door and saying, "Yoriichi has gone out."
He had only been gone a short while. I guess Ji Guoyan arrived a little earlier and we just happened to run into each other. What a coincidence!
Jiguo Yansheng, however, did not come for this purpose. He sat down beside Azhi in the same manner as her, looking rather casual, which was quite incongruous with his status. He calmly asked, "Are you about to leave?"
He looked straight ahead as he spoke, and although all he could see was a wall, it seemed as if he could see very high and very far.
Aori was slightly taken aback and couldn't help but look over as well, but she didn't find anything noteworthy, so she looked at Tsugikuni Iwakatsu.
The boy's face, with its hard, cold lines, revealed no obvious emotions. It was hard to tell if he was happy, but it was also hard to say if he was unhappy.
Ah Zhi is the worst at guessing what others are thinking. In these situations, she usually needs very straightforward and obvious hints to understand correctly, but this person is stingy and makes her guess on her own.
So Azhi could only start with the questions he raised.
She was quite worried about her little garden, but she figured nothing would happen. It was transplanted from the mountains and wasn't any rare or expensive plants; it was very resilient.
Perhaps after we get back, some of them will bloom.
Thinking of this, her eyes couldn't help but reveal anticipation, and her voice became much lighter: "It should be soon."
In Tsugikuni Iwakatsu's eyes, the girl seemed extremely impatient; they had no attachment to the place and only wanted to leave as soon as possible.
But Kokushige didn't want them to leave. He looked down at Aori's profile, and from that angle, even the fine downy hairs on the girl's skin, which were glowing with light, were visible.
He abruptly changed the subject: "The house you and Yoriichi used to live in is still there."
Ji Guoyan stopped there and didn't say much more.
In reality, that house is not just something that was left behind.
For some inexplicable reason, Ji Guoyansheng never chose to demolish the house that symbolized the stripping of his identity, which may also be the reason why he was not very resistant to it.
After Yoriichi and Oori left, he went there again.
The small, enclosed room did not feel any more spacious after the two people left. Yoriichi and Aori did not take anything with them, and at least to the naked eye, Tsugikuni Iwakatsu still looked the same as before.
The kite they used to play with together is still hanging on the wall, and the straw fishing net is still tucked away in the basket...
Ji Guoyan only stayed for a short while. He didn't touch anything in the room and never went back after that, only occasionally sending craftsmen to check and maintain it.
Houses are like having a soul; once no one lives there, they know they have been abandoned and then slowly fall into disrepair.
At first, there were only minor problems, such as cracked doors and leaky roofs. However, after a rare heavy snowfall, the entire house collapsed.
That should have been the end of everything concerning this house.
However, perhaps wanting to prove something, Ji Guoyansheng sent people to build a similar small house at that location and then moved the original items into it.
At that time, he had not yet officially become the head of the family. When his father found out, he could not understand his actions at all and almost stopped them.
He seemed to have forgotten that he was the one who caused all this, and slapped Jiguo Yansheng hard, cursing him: "You are a wolf in sheep's clothing, you actually want your younger brother to live in a house like that."
He was looking for Yoriichi at the time, so the misunderstanding naturally arose, but Kokushiro Kuwata did not explain.
However, at this moment, Kokushiro asked Aori a rather pointless question: "It should be no different from before. Do you want to go and take a look now?"
No, there are still differences. For example, there's the naturally occurring crack in the wall, or the kite that was buried under snow and dug out, now completely rotten...
Ji Guoyan never saw a kite exactly like that one again; he had also passed the age of flying kites.
After seeing the confusion in A-Zhi's eyes, Guo Yansheng noticed it again. The girl's eyes were so clear that she could see everything clearly, which made it impossible for him to even deceive himself.
She clearly couldn't remember clearly again, because she had no attachment to this place.
Aori hesitated at Kokushiro's invitation. She felt she should wait for Yoriichi to come along, so she said slowly, "But... Yoriichi hasn't come back yet."
But they still didn't get to see Yoriichi.
Only half an hour later, Azhi felt embarrassed to keep Jiguo Yansheng waiting with her any longer, so she straightened up and said, "Let's go together!"
The girl was dressed in a rather elegant kimono, which made it difficult for her to move freely. Kokushiro Iwakatsu had obviously taken this into consideration, so he slowed his pace and walked beside Aori.
Nevertheless, the road that seemed far away when you were a child becomes very short when you walk it again as an adult.
Upon arriving at their destination, Aori indeed failed to recognize that this was a rebuilt house. When Tsugikuni Iwakatsu opened the door, she looked around as if it were her first time there, occasionally revealing a small expression of surprise.
Perhaps I remembered something.
In the undisturbed silence, Kokushiro Iwakatsu suddenly spoke, his expression unchanged: "Wouldn't it be better to stay in the manor?"
He wasn't referring to this cramped little house, of course, but to the one that had been arranged for her, which was actually the best-built house in the mansion, both spacious and comfortable.
He then asked very carefully, "Are you not comfortable staying at the mansion?"
This is impossible. Under the arrangement of Kokuichi Katsumi, everything that Aori enjoys is the best. Even the most demanding person cannot find fault with it.
Azhi should have answered in this way.
This time, however, as she looked into Jiguo Yansheng's seemingly calm eyes, she felt a sudden chill run down her spine.
The feeling was like facing a volcano that could erupt at any moment, making her feel completely unsafe. She couldn't help but clench her fists and murmured, "I...I'm with Yoriichi."
Azhi didn't realize that her words were like a fuse, and she even subconsciously took a step back, which only added fuel to the fire.
Ji Guoyan's eyes darkened.
Before reuniting with the girl, he thought he didn't care much about her, but after actually meeting her, everything before became a fleeting illusion.
Ji Guoyan wanted to keep Azhi here. He had been thinking about reasons to keep her here for the past few days, but he couldn't come up with any reasons yet, and he was accumulating a lot of anger.
Through her sleeve, Kokushiro Tsugikuni grasped Aori's wrist, lifting it to her chest with minimal effort, making it easy for her to escape. He asked, enunciating each word clearly, "Kokushiro Yoriichi, what is he to you?"
The boy's voice faded, leaving a long silence.
Through the thin fabric, Azhi could feel the thick calluses on the boy's fingertips, and the skin that wasn't actually in contact with his fingers gradually warmed up due to his upward pushing motion.
Danger seemed imminent.
Azhi gradually realized that the question raised by Jiguo Yansheng was very serious, and she had to answer it very carefully in order to pass.
She belatedly realized that if the answer was not satisfactory, something she didn't want to see would happen...
Azhi couldn't answer, so she cleverly bit her lip, her thick black eyelashes trembling, and chose not to answer.
In Ji Guoyansheng's eyes, such a reaction was of course the most unacceptable. He wanted to treat Azhi with a gentle and non-coercive attitude, but the repeated setbacks made him feel that he needed to change his strategy.
Just like Yoriichi Tsugikuni, who always acted rashly and inappropriately, Iwakatsu Tsugikuni, who was as pure and noble as the lonely moon, also did something very rude and excessive.
The only difference is that the former was acting without a clear understanding, while Ji Guoyansheng knew everything about this matter.
He suddenly remembered his father's absurd statement, which remained in his mind and would occasionally make his breathing quicken.
Just because of one instance of drinking on behalf of someone else, she could become the "person to spend a lifetime with" in his eyes. How ridiculous is that?
Driven by this unspeakable anger, Kokushiro grabbed Aori's chin and, for the first time, clearly and directly expressed his request to her: "Aori, stay by my side!"
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 15:30:22 and 22:33:39 on August 16, 2023!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: 5 bottles of millet porridge; 3 bottles of white nutrient solution;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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