hostility
Merchants donated money to the government to help build Shiyu Water City, and Cui Dongchi was the one who contributed the most.
He was not a virtuous man. After the completion of Shiyu Water City, he asked Lu Chang to exempt his fleet from taxes in Shiyu Town for three years. Lu Chang agreed and invited him to go to Shiyu Town to inspect the construction of the water city.
That day, the Cui family carriage arrived late. Jingwan wanted to ride in the same carriage as Chunlai, so she waited in front of her door. When the Cui family carriage arrived, Cui Dongchi was the first to dismount.
He strode up to the Lu family steward and asked him to prepare a horse for him, as he intended to ride it on his journey.
Lu Chang wanted to ask why, but then he saw another woman get off the Cui family carriage. He swallowed his words and ordered the steward to bring two horses. He then rode with Young Master Cui.
Jingwan waited in front of the Cui family's carriage. After Cui Dongchi got off the carriage, Chunlai also got off. However, she was in a hurry and could only smile apologetically when she saw Jingwan. She then stood respectfully in front of the carriage and helped Gu Qingchen down.
Jingwan stared blankly at the beautiful but unfamiliar woman, not knowing who she was. She first looked at Chunlai, only to see her standing respectfully behind the woman, her head bowed.
Without his permission, I cannot say a word, especially since the person standing next to him is the Cui family daughter, who is the most respectful of social status.
Cui Dongchi revealed her identity in a few words, saying that she was his eldest sister, Cui Qingchen, the eldest daughter of the Cui family.
Jingwan turned to look at Lu Chang, and seeing him nod slightly at her, she bowed to Qingchen and said, "Greetings, Sister Cui."
Gu Qingchen didn't even glance at her, let alone return the greeting. He simply walked up to Lu Chang, acting as if they were old friends: "Qingqing, it's been a long time. We parted ways in Jianchuan two years ago. How are you?"
Two years ago? Jingwan quickly calculated the time in her mind and realized that two years ago was the time when Lu Chang was not in Pingdu and was traveling.
Oh, so you went to Jianchuan and had such a deep relationship with such a beautiful woman. No wonder you don't want to go home.
Lu Chang said calmly, "Everything is fine." After saying that, he went to take Jing Wan's hand, but found that she was stiff and her face was much gloomy.
She was always cheerful, and if she was in a bad mood with him, he could tell at a glance that she was angry. But she rarely looked so gloomy.
Ignoring the presence of others, he whispered to her what was wrong, but Jingwan ignored him, shook off his hand, and looked at Chunlai behind Gu Qingchen. She saw that Chunlai had finally looked up, but only shook her head slightly and gave her an apologetic smile.
Jingwan then realized that Chunlai would not be able to sit with her, so she simply shut her mouth, lifted her skirt, and got into the carriage.
Lu Chang didn't know what she was angry about, but he didn't mention riding a horse again and followed Jingwan into the carriage.
Gu Qingchen, who remained standing there, had a stiff face. She had imagined all sorts of scenarios for their meeting when she came, but she never thought that she would be left standing there, especially for the sake of a woman.
Dongchi gave Chunlai a wink, and Chunlai understood, whispering, "Please get in the car, Miss."
Gu Qingchen turned around abruptly and got into the carriage, clearly angry. Chunlai knew the young lady's temperament and became even more careful in her words and actions.
The two carriages traveled one after the other, each with its own unique challenges and uncertainties.
As usual, Lu Chang pulled the man into his arms, but the usually docile man was unusually playful today, struggling to break free with his hands and feet, refusing to be held, and even moving closer to him, determined to draw a line between them.
Lu Chang could only move closer to her and hug her, but Jing Wan resisted and continued to struggle until his iron hands held her tightly in his arms. Lu Chang was a little angry at her ambiguous rejection, and his tone became stern: "What are you making a fuss about? Sit properly!"
After he finished speaking, he went to kiss her cheek, but his lips tasted a cool, salty flavor.
Lu Chang quickly lifted her small face, only to find that her eyes were red and a tear was streaming down her face, making her look pitiful.
Now it was his turn to panic. He held her and began to coax her gently, patting Jingwan's back like he was comforting a crying baby.
Unlike her usual loud sobs, Jingwan sat still this time, silently wiping away her tears without making a sound. This made Lu Chang even more worried, and he spoke to her with an unprecedented gentleness.
It took Jingwan a long time to stop crying. She kept her head down and only left Lu Chang with the words, "You're being mean to me."
Lu Chang quickly admitted his mistake and coaxed her with repeated calls of "good sister, good sister."
Jingwan didn't want to argue with him. She knew how Lu Chang had treated her, but Gu Qingchen's appearance reminded her of the three years Lu Chang had left without saying goodbye.
She had once told Lu Chang on the hill behind that small temple that she had forgiven him and that she didn't care about his leaving without saying goodbye.
He spoke so lightly back then, with such a nonchalant air about him. But now, thinking about it, he hates her more and more. He abandoned her to travel around and met such a beautiful woman. Even now, he hasn't offered a single explanation for those three years.
Jingwan forgot that Lu Chang had tried to explain things to her at Huaguang Temple, and at that time Jingwan told him that she didn't want to hear it anymore.
Moreover, as a woman herself, she could sense the hostility that the Miss Cui was towards her, and this hostility came from the man beside her.
Lu Chang was not stupid. He realized that she had been happily waiting for spring, but after seeing Gu Qingchen greet him, she changed her expression and he understood most of the situation.
He sighed deeply in his heart. It was truly divine retribution. He had thought that once Jingwan reconciled with him, this retribution would be over, but he never expected it to continue.
He held Jingwan in his arms, rested his chin on her shoulder, and said, "In all my life so far, I have rarely regretted anything I have done, but the year I left you has left me with a heart full of regret."
Jingwan still pouted, still angry: "I don't believe you, you're lying to me again."
Lu Chang then pulled her hand into his arms and said, "Alright, alright, take it out and see if it's all green intestines."
Jingwan couldn't help but chuckle, but then felt that being so easily persuaded by him was a sign of a lack of integrity, so she immediately suppressed her laughter and continued to show a cold face.
Lu Chang stopped teasing her and said, "Little darling, don't you know who's in your heart? I've only met that Miss Gu a few times, and we haven't even exchanged more than a few words, let alone talked about anything else."
Jingwan was still sullen, casually playing with the jade pendant on Lu Chang's body. Her cousin was a very, very capable person. In the past, present, and future, he would never lack women who liked him. She couldn't keep getting angry over these things. Not only would she be asking for trouble, but she would also slowly cool his heart.
She said her cousin was lying to her, but she believed him completely. Jingwan was not a sentimental person; the straightforward nature of people from Northwest China was fully reflected in her. She immediately kissed her cousin's cheek and said, "I want to see how you behave after that."
Lu Chang imitated her earlier actions, smacking her cheek hard, which angered her again, causing her to punch and kick herself.
After the turmoil in the Lu family's carriage subsided, things became difficult for the Cui family's carriage.
Cui Dongchi has always been impatient with women throwing tantrums in front of him, and he doesn't want to put up with even his own sister.
Guessing that a storm would rage after meeting Lu Chang, he simply refused to ride in the comfortable carriage, preferring to enjoy the scenery on horseback rather than try to appease Gu Qingchen.
Chunlai followed her into the carriage. She already knew the young lady's temperament, so she just sat silently in the carriage, head down, without saying a word.
Gu Qingchen slapped Chunlai again, causing Chunlai's face to turn to the side. As a servant, even if she could ride in the carriage, she could only kneel and serve her master. When she was hit, she could only lower her head as low as possible.
"You lowly servant, even you are laughing at me!"
Gu Qingchen was so angry that she stiffened up. Recalling the scene of Lu Chang following the carriage, she closed her eyes in hatred!
Another shameless woman who uses her looks to seduce men. She only relies on her beauty to try and seduce men. What a slut!
When the carriage arrived at Shiyu Town, Lu Chang got off first and tried to help Jingwan down. She waved her hand and playfully tried to jump off the carriage. Lu Chang was afraid she would fall, so he caught her with both hands and helped her down.
Jingwan ran to the Cui family's carriage again. Chunlai got off first, but this time she didn't even look at Jingwan. She kept her head down and then helped Gu Qingchen down.
Jingwan knew that with this young lady around, Chunlai wouldn't speak to her, so she could only return to Lu Chang's side, hug his arm, and stand on tiptoe to mutter to him, "I don't like that Miss Cui."
Lu Chang pinched her cheek to comfort her.
Cui Dongchi stepped forward and said that his sister had been traveling for too long and was feeling tired, so she needed to find a place to rest.
Lu Chang then found a teahouse and had the women sit down to drink tea and eat some snacks, while he and Cui Dongchi toured the teahouse together.
Jingwan knew he had important business to attend to, so she didn't want to keep bothering him and sat down in front of Gu Qingchen.
Chunlai still kept her head down, massaging Gu Qingchen's shoulders and back; she was the most humble servant.
The young lady from the Cui family kept her eyes closed, whether she was tired or unwilling to see Jingwan. Her younger brother, Cui Dongchi, had spent a large sum of money to rent the second floor of the small building, but no one came up, making it exceptionally quiet. Jingwan dragged a chair to the railing and sat down, looking at the distant sea view, trying to recognize her cousin among the people coming and going.
Lu Chang led Cui Dongchi to the seaside. Most of the fishermen who passed by knew Lu Chang and would call him Lord Lu when they met. He responded to each of them with humility and politeness.
Cui Dongchi remained silent, yet he took everything in.
The Shiyu Water City was only half-built, and its basic shape could be vaguely seen. Workers were building breakwaters and docks. Cui Dongchi looked at the tall gun emplacements and city walls on both sides and knew what was going on.
Lu Chang didn't want this water city to become a commercial port; he had other motives!
On horseback, still atop the cliff, one could enjoy a panoramic view of the entire town. Cui Dongchi had also visited other major ports in Lingnan, and compared to those famous ports, Shiyu Port's natural environment was in no way inferior.
The coastline is straight, the waves are small, the area is vast, and there are fishermen living there. There are small islands in all directions of the sea. If the water city can really prosper, these small islands can also become a place for ships from all directions to resupply.
What a pity! How come Lu Chang found such a great place first!
He had already made long-term plans and was even more satisfied with his investment. If he could help Shiyu Water City prosper, it would be able to rival the ports controlled by the Feng family in Lingnan...
Lu Chang knew that the matter was settled as soon as he saw Cui Dongchi's expression.
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