Chapter 65 Heart-Fluttering
Although it was through a sleeve and he didn't directly touch Jiang Ru's wrist, it was still a rare treat for Pei Wu.
Jiang Ru exclaimed in surprise, "What's wrong? You're acting really strange today; you even got involved!"
Pei Wu finally realized his rudeness and hastily withdrew his hand, his fingers curling slightly. His dark eyes lowered hastily at first, then he looked up again, staring intently at Jiang Ru.
He wanted to ask something, but Jiang Ru's eyes had already curved into a smile. She pointed at Pei Wu, as if she had caught him red-handed for the first time. With bright eyes and white teeth, she smiled and said, "Pei Wu, you always told me that men and women shouldn't touch each other, but this time you touched me first."
She made no mention of the fact that she had hugged Pei Wu that day.
Pei Wu had indeed made a mistake, and he sincerely said, "It was my fault."
Jiang Ru was very magnanimous: "It's okay, I'll help you next time. But remember not to say anything to me again, because you made a mistake too."
These are clearly not the same thing at all. Jiang Ru has done it much more often, while Pei Wu has only done it this once. However, after a long silence, he still said, "Okay."
Jiang Ru was overjoyed, even more so than when she discovered the drought-resistant rice. She raised her chin at Pei Wu and said, "You're always the one who criticizes me. It's rare to see you get the short end of the stick."
Pei Wu had only pulled Jiang Ru in a moment of impulse, and he regretted it the moment he grabbed her. Unfortunately, he didn't get a chance to regret it. Pei Wu was speechless, unable to explain his actions.
Perhaps seeing that he was speechless and looked pitiful, Jiang Ru couldn't help but mutter, "You were right when you were talking to me before, but now you're acting all wronged."
Pei Wu shook his head: "I am not wronged."
He just didn't know what to say. He felt he needed to keep Jiang Ru here, but once she was there, he didn't know what to do next.
After he finished speaking, Jiang Ru looked at him suspiciously, then waved her hand and said, "Never mind, help me carry these rice grains back."
Pei Wu bent down and, guided by Jiang Ru, carried the rice into the house.
After the rice was unloaded, Jiang Ru pondered for a moment and asked Pei Wu, "Can you go to the Ministry of Rites? If the rice sent from the South is indeed Liaocheng rice, it might be useful in the event of a drought."
Upon hearing this, Pei Wu finally turned his gaze to the rice. He looked down at it for a moment and said, "Sure, would you like to come with me?"
Jiang Ru wanted Pei Wu to go, but she was afraid that Pei Wu wouldn't be able to distinguish between the two types of rice, so she said, "It would be better if I went instead, I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to tell the difference."
Pei Wu nodded, but still had a question: "But is this rice really like that?"
Jiang Ru didn't finish her sentence: "I'm not sure. If it works, we'll have to try it first."
Actually, the rice that Jiang Ru bought was enough for the experiment, but of course, the more the better, so that Jiang Ru could confirm it.
It's just unclear whether this rice from the South is being presented for the first time, or if it was presented before; otherwise, why is it that no one knows about it until now?
We'll have to go to the Ministry of Rites tomorrow to discuss this further. Jiang Ru clapped her hands and said, "Alright, once this is sorted out, we can have dinner now."
The warehouse was dusty and poorly lit. Jiang Ru carefully watched her step as Pei Wu suddenly called her name.
Jiang Ru didn't turn around, but simply asked, "What's wrong?"
Pei Wu watched Jiang Ru's retreating figure and said softly, "Cousin, I don't think I'm acting normally."
This time, Jiang Ru finally turned around. She had already reached the door and her eyes widened slightly upon hearing this.
Pei Wu was standing in the shadows, so Jiang Ru couldn't see his face clearly, only his silhouette, which she couldn't make out clearly either. Jiang Ru asked, "What's wrong with you?"
Pei Wu remained silent, his figure defiant.
Perhaps it was the darkness inside that fueled Jiang Ru's imagination, so she guessed, "Were you wronged today? Who bullied you?"
Pei Wu only became like this after his shift ended today, so it's possible he was scolded by his boss. Jiang Ru felt sorry for him, thinking that he was so young and had to work and get scolded.
However, Pei Wu shook his head.
He wasn't sure if Jiang Ru could see him in the dark, so he added, "She wasn't wronged."
"Why is that?" Jiang Ru couldn't think of anything else, only that it was Zhao Tuo's fault, so she said angrily, "It must be Zhao Tuo, I knew it was him..."
"No," Pei Wu denied again.
This time, Jiang Ru really couldn't guess. After thinking it over, she could only come up with one possibility: "Could it be that you're unhappy because I just said something about you?"
Jiang Ru really thought it was possible. Pei Wu was naturally shy, and it was possible that he would be in a bad mood after being teased by her like that.
Jiang Ru could only say softly, "Then I won't say anything to you next time, okay?"
In the darkness, Pei Wu remained standing in the same spot, only his eyes shone brightly. His shadow remained motionless. Jiang Ru waited for a long time without receiving a reply, so she took a step forward and tried to pull Pei Wu out of the house first, since it was too dark inside and she couldn't see Pei Wu's expression.
But she had only taken two steps, still some distance from Pei Wu, when he spoke up, saying, "Cousin, it's not your fault. I was overthinking things. It's all right now."
He took a step forward, his figure getting closer and closer to Jiang Ru, his presence enveloping the cramped room, forcing Jiang Ru to retreat.
The two left the room. Jiang Ru glanced at Pei Wu a few more times, still puzzled. Seeing that he seemed perfectly fine, she asked him uncertainly, "Are you really all better?"
Pei Wu hummed in agreement: "Alright."
He was saying one thing but meaning another; he clearly had something on his mind. Jiang Ru knew him all too well, so she immediately tugged at his sleeve, forcing him to stop. Jiang Ru pressed him for an answer: "What's wrong with you?"
Pei Wu was finally stumped. He couldn't say what he wanted to say, and he couldn't get an answer to the question he wanted to ask. So he was thinking about what excuse he could come up with to fob off Jiang Ru.
But Jiang Ru knew him very well, and immediately said, "Don't lie, tell me now."
Pei Wu opened his mouth, but Jiang Ru urged him again, "Speak quickly!"
Pei Wu's mind raced, and for the first time, he uttered a statement that was both a lie and not a lie: "Because of Zhao Tuo."
Indeed, Jiang Ru's guess was correct, and it coincided with the time when Pei Wu's mood was off. Jiang Ru frowned: "How can you let him make you think like that? We can just ignore such an annoying person, why are you still angry?"
Jiang Ru herself is no longer angry, but Pei Wu is even more annoyed than her, and has been sulking by himself ever since.
Jiang Ru sighed, "You should have said so earlier. If you had, I would have kicked him a couple of times for you."
Zhao Tuo is so annoying, he really deserves to be beaten up, and because of him, Pei Wu has been feeling frustrated and depressed.
Jiang Ru muttered, "He really is annoying."
It seems that from the very first moment they met, Pei Wu had a strong aversion to Zhao Tuo. Later, on the archery field, he showed no respect for Zhao Tuo whatsoever. Indeed, it was Zhao Tuo who provoked him first, and Pei Wu was always infuriated by him.
From the moment he arrived in the capital, Zhao Tuo caused trouble all the way, offending Song Shu, Jiang Ru, and Pei Wu. No wonder Pei Wu was annoyed by him.
Jiang Ru could only offer Pei Wu a weak consolation: "He is, after all, a prince of the Southern Kingdom, and he will be returning to the Southern Kingdom soon, so we won't be able to see him again. Don't be angry."
Although Pei Wu's eyes showed little emotion, Jiang Ru knew he hadn't been comforted. At her wit's end, she asked, "What can make you happy?"
Pei Wu's gaze fell on Jiang Ru's face. Jiang Ru had large, light-colored eyes, like jewels, and she stared intently at Pei Wu without blinking.
Pei Wu knew he shouldn't let his emotions affect Jiang Ru, so he smiled at her and said, "Let's have dinner first. I was angry earlier, but I'm much better now."
Although he was still not quite right, as long as he could eat, it shouldn't be a big problem. Besides, it wouldn't be able to be fixed in a short time. Jiang Ru took two steps forward helplessly, and then turned around and said, "Let's go."
Dinner was delicious as always, and Xia's cooking skills were getting better and better. In order to avoid Jiang Ru noticing anything amiss, Pei Wu acted as usual, without any abnormalities, and this time Jiang Ru did not notice anything wrong.
Before going to bed, Jiang Ru specifically instructed Pei Wu not to overthink things and not to get sick because of petty people, and Pei Wu agreed.
Once inside, Pei Wu finally took off the mask he had been wearing.
He walked to the table and sat down. The book in front of him was the one he had picked up earlier. Pei Wu turned to a page, but couldn't get into it for a long time.
His mind was in turmoil.
He was affected from the moment he overheard Zhao Tuo and Jiang Ru exchanging those ambiguous remarks.
He had previously said he would find a good man for Jiang Ru, and this had always been his idea, but he had never taken any action, let alone found one for Jiang Ru.
As for why he didn't seek her out, Pei Wu's reason was that Jiang Ru was still young, but Zhao Tuo reminded him today that Jiang Ru was almost seventeen.
At seventeen, even if you don't get married, you should start discussing marriage early. After all, if you don't find someone now, you'll be older in two years, and all the eligible men will be engaged, making it harder to find someone then.
He is Jiang Ru's cousin and should be making plans for her, not delaying this matter for his own selfish reasons.
He already knew what he was thinking, but he couldn't say it.
Pei Wu was not made of wood or stone. How could he remain unmoved or completely oblivious to the wind blowing the banner?
He was older than Jiang Ru after all, and shouldn't have given her the wrong guidance. Jiang Ru had always treated him as her cousin, and for him to have such thoughts was truly beastly.
This goes against Pei Wu's sense of propriety. He should find Jiang Ru a good family, a suitable husband who is good to her and whom she also likes.
The summer wind was strong, and the fierce wind made the gauze curtains flutter everywhere. The candlelight by the window also danced and swayed. The gauze curtains in front of Pei Wu's eyes would block his vision from time to time, and his vision would be sometimes bright and sometimes dim. The wind blew his hair. Pei Wu sat upright by the window and thought that it was time for him to make plans for Jiang Ru.
Jiang Ru is a grown woman now and shouldn't be constantly bothering him. She should marry a promising young man. With Pei Wu around, Jiang Ru won't be bullied; he will prepare everything for her.
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Author's Note: There won't be any angst here. We're giving Xiao Pei some time to think.
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