Upon arriving at the agreed-upon teahouse, before Jiang Chuting could even step inside, a ragged, dirty-faced young man suddenly darted out from the side, grabbed his leg without a word, and demanded money from him.
"Young master, young master, please give me some money, please give me some money for my meal, young master, please give me some money..."
Jiang Chuting glanced down and couldn't help but smile.
What a coincidence! I ran into this guy before when I was disguised. He was perfectly healthy, not some poor, starving wretch. On the contrary, he was a lazy, gluttonous thug with a gang of about a dozen people. They roamed the streets, grabbing their targets and refusing to let go unless they were paid. It was practically robbery. If they didn't get enough, they'd steal, like rats in the gutter. Jiang Chuting had taught them a lesson once, and they all kowtowed and promised never to do it again. But now, with a different face, they'd come knocking on his door again.
The agreed time was approaching, and it was not good to delay. Jiang Chuting did not intend to argue with him at this time, but he was held tightly by the legs and could not move an inch. Jiang Chuting simply stretched out the hilt of his sword and numb his acupoints. Taking advantage of his momentary weakness, he broke free and prepared to go in.
But the thug was determined to extort money from him, and he rolled on the ground in pain, howling, "It hurts, it hurts so much! It hurts, it hurts!" It was as if Jiang Chuting had really done something to him, and the commotion attracted the attention of everyone around.
Jiang Chuting thought for a moment, then walked over, bent down slightly, and whispered something to him. The thug's eyes widened as if he were a demon descending, and he stopped howling and scrambled away.
With the excitement over and the crowd dispersed, Jiang Chuting was about to enter the teahouse when he noticed something. Looking up, he saw a probing gaze fixed on him from the window upstairs.
After Jiang Chuting went upstairs, he arrived at the agreed-upon window seat, where, as expected, the man who had been watching him earlier was waiting.
He was in his early thirties, with regular features. When he saw him approaching, he nodded slightly as a greeting, but his expression was rather indifferent.
Jiang Chuting nodded to him, noticing his attitude, and quietly walked over to sit opposite him. Although they both knew each other's names, they still introduced themselves.
After giving his name, Yao Qian's first words were: "It seems I was wrong."
Jiang Chuting smiled and looked at him, not understanding what he meant. Yao Qian looked him over and said, "Originally, I heard rumors about you from the outside world, and I thought that things that I hadn't seen with my own eyes shouldn't be believed. So I had to meet you in person before I could make a judgment."
So, meeting him was for the purpose of evaluation and verification? Jiang Chuting's lips twitched, but she didn't reply.
Yao Qian's tone was no longer polite: "Let's put aside the rumors for now, but just now you actually went against a beggar on the street. Not only did you not pity him and give him alms, but you also beat him up and threatened him. It is clear that your character is indeed flawed. Even if you have a good appearance, it is nothing but empty looks and empty substance."
He was quite indignant and made a righteous and stern criticism, but Jiang Chuting smiled instead of getting angry and said gently, "Things that are not seen with one's own eyes may be misunderstood and slandered. Young Master Yao is a scholar, so he should also know the saying, 'Seeing is not necessarily believing.'"
Yao Qian frowned: "What do you mean? Could it be that what I just saw was all an illusion?"
“That beggar was just a thug in disguise. He’s been swindling and cheating people for years, and he’s harmed many. This is the second time he’s fallen into my hands. I didn’t hurt him just now; I only used acupuncture to get rid of him.” Jiang Chuting met his doubtful gaze calmly and continued, “He was shouting and yelling because he wanted to extort more money. If I had really made a move, he wouldn’t have been able to escape so quickly. But it’s not surprising that you misunderstand. Young Master Yao studies the classics diligently, cherishes truth, goodness, and beauty, and hates evil. It’s perfectly normal that he wouldn’t see through this kind of folk trick.”
He spoke gently as he explained the cause and effect, but Yao Qian felt as if he had been slapped in the face, and his face turned slightly red with embarrassment.
“This…” Yao Qian thought about the details he had just seen and realized that he had misunderstood him. He stood up, bowed to him and apologized: “I was being presumptuous.”
Jiang Chuting smiled faintly: "It's alright."
Yao Qian said that one should not believe what one has not seen with one's own eyes, but in the end, she still came with prejudice against him. So when she saw that scene, she immediately concluded that he was of bad character.
However, having the courage to abandon pride and admit one's mistakes is not so bad.
Yao Qian personally poured him tea, and Jiang Chuting politely thanked him. Although he didn't have much ill will towards him, he also had no intention of getting close to him, so he planned to have some tea, make a polite gesture, and then take his leave.
After Yao Qian sat down again, he started chatting with Jiang Chuting. Perhaps because he felt a little guilty about what had just happened, he was particularly enthusiastic towards Jiang Chuting, and Jiang Chuting mostly responded with a smile, so the atmosphere was relatively relaxed.
As the two were talking, a haughty-looking young man in fine clothes came up the stairs, followed by several subordinates. The young man walked straight towards Jiang Chuting's table. Jiang Chuting looked up and saw him, and felt a sharp twitch between her brows.
Pei Jing... why did he follow us here?
Pei Jing pretended not to know him and didn't greet him, but deliberately walked past his table, giving him a cold glare, then glanced at Yao Qian with a mocking look, before sitting down at the table diagonally to their right.
Jiang Chuting stared at him silently for a moment before looking away.
Before he could even catch his breath, two more teenagers came upstairs.
One of them, dressed in purple with arrow sleeves and possessing a handsome appearance, was walking and talking with his companion, a bright smile on his face; he was Lin Zhi.
Jiang Chuting's heart skipped a beat. Lin Zhi should be in a neighboring city half a day's journey away right now, so how could he happen to be here?
When Pei Jing appeared, Jiang Chuting was merely surprised, but when Lin Zhi appeared, he suddenly felt extremely uneasy. He wished he could find a place to hide so that he wouldn't be discovered.
However, the second floor was already spacious and sparsely populated, so his idea was not very realistic. Lin Zhi glanced around casually and saw him.
Jiang Chuting noticed that the smile on his lips froze almost instantly, and his eyes suddenly darkened, as if his good mood had vanished completely. Jiang Chuting's face and hands stiffened, and she quickly avoided his gaze. With a different face, the treatment was indeed vastly different.
Jiang Chuting thought Lin Zhi would immediately change places upon seeing him, but for some reason, he didn't leave. Instead, he sat down with his companions to their left.
Remembering his words, "Every time I see you, I'll teach you a lesson," Jiang Chuting suddenly had a bad feeling. She silently picked up her teacup and took a sip, her scalp tingling slightly.
Although Yao Qian also found the two groups of people coming and going a little strange and glanced at them, his mind was on Jiang Chuting at the moment, so he didn't pay much attention and failed to notice the undercurrents in the air.
Yao Qian smiled and suggested, "Chu Ting, let's go for a stroll after we finish our tea." After chatting with him for a while, Yao Qian found him more and more pleasing to the eye and was already calling him by his name spontaneously. After all, he had been quite moved when he first saw his portrait, otherwise he wouldn't have come to meet him.
Under the pressure of gazes from both directions, Jiang Chuting gave a faint smile: "No, I have things to do at home. I'll go back after I finish this cup of tea." She didn't know when Lin Zhi would lash out, so it was better to leave sooner rather than later.
Yao Qian understood the implication in his words, paused for a moment, and quickly asked, "Are you still angry about what happened earlier? It was indeed my fault, and I apologize to you again."
Jiang Chuting could clearly feel Lin Zhi staring intently in their direction. He seemed to be considering when to make his move. Distracted, Jiang Chuting shook his head and said to Yao Qian, "No, I..."
Worried that he would reject her outright, Yao Qian hurriedly said, "Chu Ting, I have two older brothers. I have already spoken with my parents and they have agreed that we can adopt children into my family. If you come with me, you will be part of my family and will not be mistreated. Don't be so quick to deny it. We can meet a few more times and get to know each other better."
As she spoke, she actually tried to grab his hand. She had only come to meet and chat, and at the beginning, she had even criticized him, seemingly harboring resentment. Jiang Chuting had no idea that he would get into the mood so quickly, and she pulled her hand away, preventing him from touching her.
Pei Jing nearly crushed the teacup in his hand and suddenly stood up.
Jiang Chuting felt it was best to leave quickly, so he took out some loose silver and placed it on the table to pay the bill. He then said to Yao Qian, "I'm sorry, Young Master Yao, I have to leave now."
"Chu Ting! Don't go yet, I..." Yao Qian stood up and blocked his way, but before he could finish speaking, he was shoved aside and stumbled backward, bumping into the table.
It was Lin Zhi who pushed him.
Lin Zhi glanced at him coldly with his dark eyes, then looked at Jiang Chuting and asked expressionlessly, "Are you sure you want to continue flirting with other men in front of me?"
Lin Zhi's friend behind him stared wide-eyed, quite taken aback by his words, but simply watched from the sidelines without getting close.
Jiang Chuting had anticipated Lin Zhihui's interference and wasn't too surprised; his purpose was simply to further tarnish Lin Zhihui's reputation. Yao Qian, after regaining his footing, looked displeased and was about to question him when another person rushed over and grabbed Jiang Chuting's arm.
"You're something else! Yesterday you were all lovey-dovey with me, calling me your darling, and now you're having an affair with more than one person! You really know how to break my heart!" Pei Jing was furious, ignoring Yao Qian and pointing directly at Lin Zhi, demanding, "Tell me, who is this?!"
Jiang Chuting was exasperated, wondering why he had to join in the fun. It seemed he was just stirring up trouble. "...Xiao Jiu, can you please stop this nonsense?"
Pei Jing sneered: "Am I being unreasonable or are you being unreasonable? With your sweet talk, you've been able to fool me all day long! I believe you, but what about you? How have you treated me?"
Lin Zhi raised an eyebrow, looking at Jiang Chuting's face, and said sarcastically, "Not bad, so there's another one. You can even maneuver between several parties. You're quite impressive."
Although she knew Lin Zhi didn't have a good impression of her, Jiang Chuting didn't want him to misunderstand further, so she explained to him, "Xiao Jiu is my apprentice. He's just throwing a tantrum and talking nonsense. There's nothing like what he said."
"Disciple?" Lin Zhi's expression was full of sarcasm: "You're really something, not even sparing your own disciple."
Jiang Chuting was speechless. Pei Jing, seeing that Jiang Chuting seemed to care a lot about Lin Zhi's opinion, became wary and unwilling to back down, continuing to add fuel to the fire: "What tantrum! Didn't you lie to me?! Your so-called matter of life and death, you just came to see these people?"
Lin Zhi chuckled and raised his voice slightly, saying, "Don't underestimate him. There might be more than just us."
He actually said such a thing! Jiang Chuting felt a sharp pain in her heart, her breathing became erratic, she shook off Xiao Jiu's hand, and hissed, "Shut up, all of you."
Pei Jing, with red eyes and a wronged expression, said, "You did something wrong, and you still yell at me."
Jiang Chuting glanced at him coldly. Pei Jing wasn't afraid of him at all; his eyes were murderous as he whispered, "I'll settle the score with you when we get back."
Yao Qian was so shocked he was in a state of confusion. He looked at Lin Zhi, then at Pei Jing, and finally at Jiang Chuting, his breath coming in gasps. "You, you... you really can't judge a book by its cover!" Without waiting for Jiang Chuting to say anything more, he stormed off.
Jiang Chuting stood still for a moment, not looking at anyone, and then walked away. Pei Jing glanced at Lin Zhi with unfriendly eyes, instinctively feeling strong hostility towards this person. Lin Zhi's gaze towards him was also unfriendly.
Pei Jing took a step back and gestured to his subordinates behind him to make a move. However, he was forced back by a powerful sword aura as soon as he drew his sword. It was Jiang Chuting who flashed back and stood in front of Lin Zhi with his sword.
Jiang Chuting said to Pei Jing, "Xiao Jiu, don't do it."
His favoritism was blatant. Pei Jing stared at him coldly for a moment, then suddenly laughed, a laugh that was icy and chilling, his eyes filled with dark clouds. "Master, you are so biased, it really makes me sad. Fine, fine, of course I'll listen to you, I won't lay a hand on you. After all, you're my good master."
Lin Zhi felt no gratitude whatsoever for Jiang Chuting's protective stance; instead, he felt extremely uncomfortable. Even with his injured arm, he was more than capable of dealing with these people. Why should he pretend to be a good guy? Just as he was about to lash out with harsh words, Jiang Chuting had already sheathed his sword and strode away without looking back. With a graceful sway of his robes, his figure quickly disappeared around the corner of the stairs.
Pei Jing gave Lin Zhi one last cold glance before following him away.
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