Chapter 181 Let's talk about romance, not state affairs.
After Su Guo'er whispered.
Ouyang Rong keenly noticed that the atmosphere inside the pavilion was somewhat different.
Not to mention the complex look of admiration that Su's younger sister gave him.
Even the chubby-faced maid who was standing guard behind the screen wall peeked out from behind the wall, looking at him with admiration and respect.
There was still a hint of guilt in the young maid's eyes, as if she felt deeply ashamed of her superficial understanding of the poem left by Young Master Ouyang not long ago. Now, under her mistress's analysis, she suddenly understood and admired him even more.
At this moment, seeing the two women's strange reactions, someone's forehead was covered in black lines.
A "thump" was heard.
He put down his teacup, sat up straight, and said solemnly:
"Miss Su, please have some self-respect."
"I am a scholar of the Great Zhou Dynasty. His Majesty has specially granted me the rank of a seventh-grade official. I firmly support the decisions of Her Majesty the Empress and the officials of the court, and I have no objection to the official documents of the court."
"I have not participated in any private discussions, nor do I understand the meaning of such topics."
"What the court supports, I support; what the court opposes, I oppose; what the court neither supports nor opposes, I neither support nor oppose. We will closely revolve around…"
"Apart from that, I only focus on affairs within Longcheng County, and during my tenure I am wholeheartedly seeking the well-being of the people and managing the Butterfly Creek flood.
"He knows nothing about other national affairs."
Ouyang Rong never expected that even after his rebirth, someone would still come looking for him to discuss politics.
Does he seem like one of our kind? Why are they all looking for him?
He still vividly remembers how Jian Zheng wiped out a certain postgraduate entrance exam group in his past life.
Ouyang Rong believed that one should not fall into the same pit twice.
Especially in this era when feudal imperial power was the greatest political correctness.
I thought this was a cyber group? They'll even scatter your ashes offline...
The young county magistrate, with a strong will to survive, made a solemn statement.
Su Guo'er and Cai Shou couldn't help but exchange a glance.
Su Guo'er looked at the righteous Ouyang Rong with slight surprise, and then at his teacup, which he hadn't drunk much from.
She smiled elegantly and nodded.
"In the Golden Palace, you risked your life to remonstrate with the emperor. Your name has spread throughout the world. Although I am a young lady living in seclusion, I have heard of you. But hearing is believing, seeing is believing. Only by witnessing it with my own eyes can I know that Lianghan is not just a gentleman."
"Having passed the imperial examination with flying colors and been granted an official position in Xingyuan, you were riding high when you were suddenly struck by a setback. Such a life of ups and downs, I understand why you are so cautious, sir."
Ouyang Rong ignored him, his eyes fixed straight ahead, and gestured around the room with his finger, speaking in a nonchalant tone:
"Miss Su, a fine day with beautiful scenery, fresh tea brewed with dew, let us not waste this moment of romance."
"Alright, let's not talk about state affairs, let's just talk about romance and have a drink together."
Su Guo'er revealed an elegant smile that made Ouyang Rong's lips twitch slightly, and raised her glass in a gesture of greeting.
Ouyang Rong lowered his eyes, sipped his tea, and turned his head to gaze at the setting sun.
The two chatted for a few minutes.
Most of the stories revolve around Xie Lingjiang and Su Dalang.
Since the two know each other, it's appropriate to find some topics to talk about.
A moment later, it seemed that he noticed Ouyang Rong's teacup was empty and he looked back at the night view.
Su Guo'er suddenly stood up, her pretty face expressionless, and took her leave.
Wearing a colorful ribbon and carrying a zither, he departed.
Without any hesitation or fuss.
Ouyang Rong glanced at her tall, slender figure in the black Taoist robe, nodded slightly, stood up, turned away, and returned with his umbrella.
In the following days, Ouyang Rong went out early and returned late. Occasionally, when the water level in the upper reaches of Butterfly Creek was alarming, he would spend the night in Yue Nu Gorge and not return.
However, whenever he returned from his shift in the evening and heard the sound of a zither coming from the plum grove, and he had nothing else to do, he would usually go there happily and have a small gathering in the elegant pavilion in the grove.
Sometimes he would carry two or three cake boxes, and sometimes a pot of yellow wine, to get drunk in the twilight.
Putting aside the elegant smile that often left Ouyang Rong speechless, and the little habit of always veerging the conversation toward political trends.
This young lady from the Su family is quite a remarkable person.
First of all, she is undoubtedly a talented woman, proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
If Ouyang Rong hadn't been taking the postgraduate entrance exam for Classical Chinese in his previous life, and hadn't also incorporated his memories and knowledge from this life, he almost wouldn't have been able to pass the exam.
Fortunately, he was also a good conversationalist. Combining his knowledge from both lifetimes, he could keep her engaged with any topic.
If it were just the knowledge and skills learned by young ladies, that would be one thing. Young ladies from noble families, living a life of luxury and confined to their rooms, would naturally learn traditional arts like music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Even philosophical discussions would be acceptable. Well, it wouldn't be surprising if one day you accidentally found a jade object resembling a two-headed dragon under your pillow...
However, Ouyang Rong occasionally wanted to take a step back and talk about advanced theories of disaster relief and water management.
Or perhaps he could use some of his previous life's methodologies to explain the governance issues that Su Xiaomei was still unwilling to give up on—of course, Ouyang Rong avoided the issue of the centralized court in Luoyang, but he could talk about the issues of local prefectures and counties, since the conflict between the central government and local governments had a long history and was a concern for rulers of all dynasties—but he did not expect that Su Xiaomei could actually grasp the general idea of the topic.
Moreover, she and Ouyang Rong had a pleasant conversation.
Although Su Xiaomei mostly just racked her brains and cited examples of famous people's water management from ancient books when faced with Ouyang Rong's water management theories, which were somewhat out of touch with the experience of this era.
However, it still demonstrates the breadth of this woman's reading.
This is no longer simply a matter of a well-bred young lady passing the time by learning and mastering some knowledge of ladylike conduct; it cannot be explained by that.
Beyond her love of romance and beauty, this young lady from the Su family must have also been a voracious reader of historical records and had thoroughly explored the local customs and local chronicles of various places across the country.
Is this something an ordinary young lady from a wealthy family could do?
No wonder he dared to engage in political discourse with him, showing such eagerness to try...
So occasionally, the two would gather at the Plum Blossom Pavilion for a chat. They would talk until the tea was cold and their feet were tired, until the moon was high in the sky, before reluctantly saying goodbye. They would walk out of the pavilion in opposite directions, both of them looking dejected, as if neither of them had had enough fun.
Ouyang Rong began to understand why the ancients had idioms like "to have a long talk with someone knee to knee" and "to have a long talk with someone by candlelight."
This Su Xiaomei is indeed a wonderful person.
Ouyang Rong, on the other hand, felt quite favorable towards him.
He felt somewhat ashamed for his elder brother, Su Dalang.
Look at you, your mother, and your sister, and then look at yourself.
They're still forcing themselves to read it.
If Ouyang Rong hadn't clearly observed that Su Guo'er truly had a feminine figure and wasn't some androgynous "beauty" with an Adam's apple, he would have almost thought that this was the second-generation successor carefully cultivated by the Su family.
Wait a minute, are they really all taught at the same academy within the prefecture?
Why does Su Xiaomei seem so carefree, with no studies to follow and all that political commentary? Has she already graduated early from the private school? Is Su Dalang left still struggling to keep up with his studies?
I've vaguely grasped the truth of the matter.
Ouyang Rong could no longer laugh.
The image of Su Dalang's honest face, with its stubble and unshaven brow, floats before my eyes... Ah, Dalang is actually quite pitiful.
In addition, Su Dalang and Su Xiaomei have different personalities.
Kind and compassionate, treat others with sincerity.
Ouyang Rong felt that if he had to pick one to be a true friend, it would definitely be the former.
Although Su Xiaomei is highly intelligent, she has a strong personality and is very competitive.
While it's true that you can get along well and be teammates, long-term interaction will definitely not be easy.
Because once a conflict of opinion is discovered regarding something, one side has to compromise and lower its proud head, otherwise the argument will likely end in a bloody fight.
Moreover, Ouyang Rong genuinely felt that although Su Xiaomei was stunningly beautiful, she was by no means a mere pretty face, nor could she be regarded as an ordinary girl. Making friends was possible, but truly connecting with her was extremely difficult.
In this way, the contrasting cuteness and natural naiveté of the junior sister are also lost.
Not cute enough.
The junior sister who followed him around calling him "Senior Brother, Senior Brother" was more suitable to be his close friend.
As for this Su Xiaomei... it's quite appropriate for her to chat occasionally in Merlin, show off to each other, and leave satisfied, while maintaining a distance that's neither too close nor too far.
Yeah, just like the political commentators in that righteous postgraduate entrance exam group before.
At present, the water management of Longcheng that Ouyang Rong envisioned is nearing completion, and he is now dealing with the people and people around him.
Ouyang Rong was well aware of the situation.
Moreover, he increasingly felt that the Su family next door was very likely from one of the five surnames and seven clans.
Even if they weren't one of the Five Families, they were still a prestigious and renowned family of equal standing. It's just that for some reason, this branch of the family moved to a small county town in a corner of Jiangnan. Could it be that they committed a crime and went into hiding?
There are quite a few stories here, and the waters are deep.
But it doesn't matter, Ouyang Rong will make a move... Pretend you don't know, and avoid the deep waters.
Of course, Ouyang Rong, who had already begun to slack off on things other than the Butterfly Creek flood control, was unaware of this. The conversations he had with Su Xiaomei at the Plum Blossom Pavilion these past few days had also made her increasingly astonished by him. She often lingered in her boudoir, pondering his outrageous and thought-provoking views, and her pace quickened as she lingered...
These private matters and changes in attitude will not be discussed for the time being.
It was late at night that day.
Ouyang Rong returned from the Plum Grove Pavilion in high spirits, muttering to himself as if still savoring the experience.
Push open the door and enter the plum grove courtyard.
The white-haired maid, who had been sitting on the swing in a daze and waiting for a long time, jumped off the swing, picked up a lantern, and hurried to greet him:
"Master, master, you're having another rendezvous with Miss Su so late again? Are you hungry? I'll make you some noodles."
“I’m not hungry, we’ve had enough to talk about, let’s go to sleep.” Ouyang Rong shook his head. “Also, what nonsense are you talking about? What secret rendezvous? This is called a gentleman’s friendship, as light as water.”
Ye Weilai frowned slightly and muttered, "Is everything as bland as water now...?"
Ouyang Rong paused, couldn't help but turn around, and tapped her little head twice. "You're asking for trouble, aren't you?"
"Mmm." Ye Weilai covered the white fur with both hands, shrank back, and whispered:
"I was talking about our relationship. How can it be so bland that we still need to chat all the time? Shouldn't plain water be tasteless? Why did you suddenly hit me, Master? Did I say something wrong?"
“…” Ouyang Rong.
"Ahem, it's nothing, it's my fault, I won't use that word next time."
With that, Ouyang Rong turned around and went to wash and bathe.
Before long, the lights in the room went out, and the master and servant went to bed to rest.
Moonlight streamed through the cracks in the window and fell to the ground.
Inside the bedding outside the bed, a pair of gray-blue eyes quietly opened, clear and bright.
Ye Weilai turned her head and glanced at Ouyang Rong's peaceful sleeping face.
Suddenly, a slight sound of a door opening came from the entrance.
A short while later, a faint sandalwood scent wafted into the room.
"Sister Embroiderer."
Ye Weilai called softly, covered Ouyang Rong with the blanket, put on her shoes, got out of bed, and made way for him.
The embroiderer nodded, skillfully sat down on the couch, gazed at her beloved for a moment, and then gently stroked him.
Ye Weilai skillfully fetched a pen, ink, and paper. By the moonlight, she noticed that the embroiderer's expression was somewhat grave today.
The embroiderer lowered her head and began to write:
"I will teach you that sword move again, and you can review and practice it on your own. I need to go out tonight."
Damn it! In the last chapter, I described the protagonist's gaze, and I heard some readers left comments like, "You little brat, step forward, I'll kill you!" Good for you, step forward, don't force Xiao Rong to kneel down and beg you! That's it, Xiao Rong's brain has been polluted, needs a new one…
(End of this chapter)
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