Fan Heng seemed surprised that his politeness would elicit such a reaction from Qin Wanyin.
He almost forgot the purpose of his visit. His gentle smile froze for a moment, and he nearly revealed the sinister look in his eyes.
However, Li Shiyue was not surprised at all by Qin Wanyin's attitude. If it were her, she would also be unable to control her temper when faced with those rumors for no reason.
Moreover, Qin Wanyin didn't say anything unpleasant; she was just stating the facts.
"Did Young Master Fan deliberately wait for Ah Yin and me here?"
Although Li Shiyue's expression was calm, her gaze was fixed on Fan Heng with a scrutinizing and appraising quality.
His hand, hidden beneath his sleeve, grasped Qin Wanyin's wrist. Meeting her questioning gaze, he shook his head almost imperceptibly.
Fan Heng had noticed Li Shiyue's appearance long ago, but he didn't recognize who Li Shiyue was.
His gaze lingered on her face, his eyes filled with amazement, but upon seeing her hair styled in a traditional Chinese updo, a hint of melancholy and regret appeared in his eyes.
The young lady looked like she had just gotten married. He wondered which families in the capital had recently had happy events, as there didn't seem to be many.
Moreover, his master's intention was for him to get close to Miss Qin. If the young woman in front of him was also a member of the Qin family, it would be quite nice to win the hearts of two beauties.
"This lady may not know that I have some talent that has earned the appreciation of Grand Tutor Qin, which is why there have been rumors circulating in the capital recently."
When Qin Taifu was mentioned, Fan Heng even raised his head to secretly look at Qin Wanyin. Seeing Qin Wanyin's displeased expression, he lowered his head, his brows furrowing slightly, and a hint of hurt slowly flashed across his eyes.
Lowering one's head is not entirely correct.
The angle at which he lowered his head was just right so that Li Shiyue could see him looking pitiful as if he had been abandoned by his sweetheart. He really knew how to manipulate people.
But it would have been better if he hadn't mentioned Grand Tutor Qin and the rumors about the capital. The moment he did, he completely enraged Qin Wanyin, who reached out to break free and stepped forward: "You, you, you, stop slandering my father! Who are you? Outsiders rarely enter the Qin family mansion, let alone an outsider."
"My father is a first-rank Grand Tutor. It is a serious crime for him to have private dealings with scholars and officials. My father has no grudge against you, so why are you slandering him like this!"
It would be hard for anyone to believe that the prestigious Grand Tutor's mansion, a first-rank official, would have few visitors. But if it were the corrupt and rigid Grand Tutor Qin, then it wouldn't be surprising.
After all, even when Qin Taifu had previously given guidance to the students, he had only given them a few words of instruction at the academies in the capital. As for entering the Qin family mansion, it was only the Crown Prince and a few other officials' families with whom he had good relations, such as the Duke of Rongguo's mansion, who visited him.
Even when Qin Wanyin was angry, the words she said weren't harsh enough to bother some people.
"So Young Master Fan was waiting here on purpose, just for the rumors circulating in the capital?"
Li Shiyue pulled Qin Wanyin back from her impulsive act. Seeing that Qin Wanyin was still indignant, Li Shiyue was worried that Qin Wanyin might do something rash.
Moreover, this place is quite open. If Qin Wanyin really impulsively rushes over there, and someone sees her, there's no guarantee that even more damaging rumors will spread about her.
Li Shiyue couldn't bear to watch such a thing happen right in front of her. She glanced at Qin Wanyin out of the corner of her eye, but her gaze was scrutinizing Fan Heng in front of her.
Still a young man, he saw Qin Wanyin's anger and a hint of smugness in his eyes. But when he saw Li Shiyue reach out and pull Qin Wanyin back, a trace of regret appeared in his eyes.
pity?
Li Shiyue accurately captured the emotions in his eyes, and looked at Fan Heng with even greater wariness, tightening her grip on Qin Wanyin's wrist.
Fan Heng nodded, still looking injured. He was confident that he could still charm the two people in front of him in this state, just like before.
Qin Wanyin was filled with anger and only wanted to rush over to vent her frustration, but she was held back by Li Shiyue and could only hold back.
Li Shiyue looked away, not for any other reason than that she felt a pain in her eyes, as if she had seen something unclean.
She missed Xu Yunci terribly.
"Since Young Master Fan is aware of the recent rumors about going to the capital, he should also know whether they are true or false. If they are false, what are you trying to do by blocking the two of us here?"
"Since you say that Grand Tutor Qin appreciates your talent, don't forget that Grand Tutor Qin holds the highest rank and is loyal to the Emperor and the Crown Prince. If he truly appreciates you, the reason he would invite you to his door is to recommend talented individuals to the Emperor."
"Since you claim to be talented, it is no wonder that you have been appreciated by the Grand Tutor of the First Rank of this dynasty. I heard that your family is poor, so you must have suffered a lot on your way to the capital. You should seize this opportunity to make connections instead of spreading unfounded rumors here."
"Young Master Fan, what do you think?"
Her voice was steady and strong. After she finished speaking, she glanced at Qin Wanyin, who probably realized that something was wrong.
Instead of rushing forward, he grasped Li Shiyue's hand and pulled her back two steps.
Qin Wanyin was simple-minded; her face practically screamed, "Stay away from me, or you'll regret it."
Seeing that his thoughts had been easily exposed, although he didn't say it too directly, it was no different from what he had said. He was just short of directly saying that he wanted to get close to Qin Wanyin and the Qin family.
Fan Heng's expression became slightly unnatural. He put away his injured look and looked at Li Shiyue with undisguised hostility.
What does this lady mean?
"I'm sure Young Master Fan understands what I mean better than Miss Qin and I do. Since you're a scholar, I won't be so direct, and I'll save you some face."
Li Shiyue paused slightly and saw two maids walking out of the corridor behind Fan Heng. They were dressed in the clothes of servants from the Guo family.
“You two, this young man has been drinking and has gotten lost. The women's section is just ahead, so it's not appropriate to let a man from outside the family go there. Today is your wife's first banquet, so don't let him make a fool of himself. Take him to the quiet courtyard in the front yard.”
As soon as Li Shiyue finished speaking, Fan Heng seemed dissatisfied and was about to say something when he heard two maids reply, "Yes, County Princess."
Wait, a county princess?
Is she really such a young county princess, yet she's wearing a woman's hairstyle? Could she be the county princess who married the young master Xu of the Rongguo Duke's mansion in the capital?
Fan Heng looked somewhat uneasy, but neither Li Shiyue nor Qin Wanyin gave him a second glance. The two of them turned around and walked back the way they came.
"Was that a county princess? I wonder which royal family she is from?"
The two maids looked puzzled. One of them replied, "She is the Princess of Yichang, personally bestowed by the Emperor. Young master, you may not know this, but the Princess of Yichang and my mistress are cousins."
Then that's it. Guo Xun's wife is a girl from the Rongguo Duke's mansion, and she is Xu Yunci's younger sister.
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